Festival Plan
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Head of Department
Interviews
Jaspar Cumiskey
Writer/Director
Why do you think this story needs to be told?
This story is about Alzhimers and how it impacts a family dynamic. My father and I wanted to tell a story about a Father and Son, taking from our own relationship and our relationships between the older generation in our family. Alzhimers may not be something that affects everyone but parental mortality is. Everyone in some way, shape or form can relate to either the experience or the fear of watching your ‘protectors’ throughout your life grow old. My grandmother has Parkinsons and Dementia but I still have a fairly limited personal experience with the disease. I couldn’t pretend to have had constant first hand contact with it throughout my life. One of the big questions and ideas behind Sleuth that I learnt first hand is that the one thing you never want to do when you’re with someone with dementia is to try and bring them out of their reality, as all you’ll do is cause panic and distress. I wanted to tell a story of a father who forgets his own kin every day, treating him like a stranger, passing judgement and insult constantly because he cannot remember; and then we have his son a man who may not have been the best Son to his old man but he’s here now, he takes the beating and wave after wave of hurt because that is his Dad. The one who used to promise him everything would be ok and now it was his time to return the favour.
Tom Aldous
Editor
Barney Rye
Director of Photography
What were some of the struggles you faced and how did you overcome them?
Filming in the current climate was always going to have its challenges. Fundraising was definitely going to be tough with people being out of work or furloughed over the last year which is why privately funding Sleuth made a lot more sense. Making a noir film is something I’ve never done before so it was really important to research the genre and take time to make sure key elements were present such as costume and props.
How did you manage to prepare for filming during a pandemic?
We always knew that making a film during the pandemic was going to be difficult so it was really important to be prepared for every situation early on in pre-production. There were a lot of challenges faced over the months but thanks to our dedicated cast and crew, we were able to make a film that we’re all really proud of!
How did you keep the film dynamic in two small locations?
I was able to keep my filming dynamic by using a variety of different shots from wide and close ups to also tracking shots, and even using Dutch (canted) angles at times. I also changed settings on the camera by slowing the shutter speed which allowed me to show that the scene was a flashback or that the character is becoming delirious with the slow and jolted movement. Making sure I used different sizes of lenses as well helped the dynamic so that it doesn’t all feel as if it was filmed on one standard lens but using wide lenses to display the room and it’s features and then close-up lenses to display small details in the frame.
How did you find working with the director?
I really enjoyed my time working with Jaspar, having not had plenty of chances to be on a film set over the past year I began the shoot day slightly rough around the edges, however Jaspar was calm and helpful throughout and through the week began to show more confidence on set and having that calm figure around really helped that. He was professional and showed a great understanding not only of his role but everyone elses as well.
Ellie Mckay-Cross
Producer
How did you find working with the different departments of the post team?
I felt it was productive and I had a good working relationship with both the sound designer and colourist. Even though our initial colourist had to unfortunately drop out due to other commitments, I felt that our new colourist, Joe, was very proficient in what he does and was really professional and reliable on our project. We were also able to determine a workflow plan at short notice promptly and navigated effectively. Sound Design was also well managed I felt and Michael was reliable and very efficient in his role. Finally, I felt Jaspar and I also had plenty of productive editing sessions which were intensive and felt that we gave the edit everything we possibly could to reach the final product we did.
What did you do to prepare for editing Sleuth?
As this is the largest project I’ve worked on at my time at the University of Portsmouth and everything worked towards, I made sure to prioritise good preparation. I took into consideration a variety of scenarios and established early on a planned and drilled workflow for the post production team. I also made sure that I had enough provision for the edit such as a good external harddrive, backup drives, to ensure an editing process that was smooth and responsive.
Michael Manning
Sound
How did you navigate working on a small set?
Working in a cramped environment can often be problematic. For instance, there were occasions where I was unable to get a boom mic close enough to the actors for quality audio while keeping both the boom and the boom shadow out of frame. This is why I always have a couple of radio mics at the ready. They can be concealed on the actors or sometimes behind a prop or set piece and offer greater coverage.
How did you find working with a composer?
I thoroughly enjoyed working with a composer on this project. Composers don't expect you to convey what you want through musical vocabulary but instead using emotive language. Planning with a composer is very helpful in cementing in your own mind how you want the film to feel at any given point.