Papadopoulos & Sons: Marcus Markou Q+A

Meeting Marcus Markou was very beneficial, as it brought to my attention the fact that there is so much more involved in making a film than just planning the idea; shooting the footage; editing it all together and getting people to see it.

Things I learnt from Marcus:

• The way to get the best out of your cast and crew as a director is to break down the barriers and run a set that everyone feels equal in. I.e. Learning everyone's names on the first day and instead of queuing for food in order of importance (e.g. director, main actors, extras, crew), queue in order of arrival. Just small things that make those with the smallest roles feel important.

• That some of the best moments in a film are the ones that are spontaneous and not scripted, Marcus asks the actors how they would like to enter, exit, deliver lines etc... and if there is enough time for the extra shots they go ahead with it. It just gives the film a more naturalistic feel to it, as though the script could actually happen in real life.

• Just because you get rejected by mainstream distributors, it doesn't mean that you can't go out and get your film watched yourself. Self distribution is so much easier due to new technologies, eventually the distributors will come to you and then you have the opportunity to reject them.

• It is important to have a line producer to give a line by line budget of your script, so that you can decide whether or not you can afford certain shots, or if the shot is worth the money you would be spending on it. Especially important if you are a small scale independent project, because every penny is essential.

• For the technical crew i.e. boom operator, electricians etc...there is a flat line daily rate for pay regardless of the size of the production, whether it is the latest Hollywood blockbuster or a small independent film.