James Griffiths

in Soho
Every day's a school day on set for Moxie Pictures' James Griffiths as this new project sees the director make the jump from commercials to a comedy series for Channel 4.

In August 2008, producer Nira Park (Shaun of The Dead, Hot Fuzz, Gone) rang and asked me if I would be interested in directing a new 6-part comedy called Free Agents for Channel 4 through her company Big Talk. This is my short record of the longest journey, which will be my terrestrial TV debut and a leap into the unknown. . .

1st day's shooting on steadicam with lots of walking and talking

Walking in a straight line.
10 weeks of pre-production, 6 weeks of casting, a month of rehearsal, finding, scouting and then losing over 30 locations and we are finally shooting our first scene of our first day which involves our two lead actors Sharon Horgan (Pulling, Annually Retentive) and Stephen Mangan (Green Wing, Adrian Mole) mostly walking and occasionally talking in a straight line. It takes me at least 5 takes, and 2 humiliating tangles with sound before DP G.Magni Augustsson suggests that I walk forwards, watching them walking forward…on a clamshell.

The series, an on/off but mostly off romantic comedy is set in and around a talent agency in London's Soho. We push hard for authenticity, and against better advice, shoot all of our daylight exteriors in live locations. This makes for an interesting day in Berwick Street with the full compliment of extortion, horns, fingers, gawpers, a Gooner and an elderly gentlemen who believes there is a the link between high heels and infertility.



"That's what you want for Christmas…"

Week's 3 and 4 and the crew break off from the logistical and scheduling (short daylight day/Christmas lights) nightmares of location shooting in London and retreat to our unit base/Talent Agency Office interior location/set in Euston.

The decision to shoot on 35mm film means that we have to make huge sacrifices in all departments to make sure that every penny ends up on screen. The HD mantra becomes "That's what you want for Christmas…but what do you need?" I know that I need a proper sit down square meal and not a stand up "hot box" plastic fork sort of meal.

Everyone is relieved to get onto a set environment. Everything is in the same building and all very easy but it doesn't take long, 10 days in fact and the full effects of the office grind creep in, and good humoured office banter soon gives way to petty politics and cabin fever fuelled by a cocktail of air-con/Krispy Crèmes/the six-day weeks/continuous working days.

Each Head of Dept does as any self respecting office manager who had been on a twig and a rope to cross a ravine sort of assault course would do…we incentivise. We start a Crew Member of the week initiative, a pound draw, Tie Day Friday and enough Starmix/Fredo's and hot Ribena to raise a school to the ground. I bring in a quote from Lynn Davies, gold medal long jump 1964. "I perform better when I want to than when I have to. I have to for you. I want to for me. Self motivation is a matter of choice".



Slate 632

With the end in sight we come out of another difficult week-long interior location (a two bedroom mansion flat that needs to house and service the needs of 40 crew). Gaffer Perry Evans and his crew now have a toilet as an office and equipment store. It is also the location toilet so the electrical department set up a 'Sparks Spa' with moisturiser, some chalky mints and a 'fragrance'.

Since day 20 of our 40 day shoot our loader, Tristan Haley has run a book, with a £5 stake to guess nearest the slate. On the final night Magni and myself conspire to get the slate number up to 632 by changing every shot, just a little bit, handing the winnings to a well-loved crew member who we regrettably lost on the way.

We wrapped at midnight on the 22nd December and retired to the Charlotte St Hotel to clean out the mini bar and reflect on the journey. It had felt like an attempt on Everest at times and having worked in both advertising and TV I don't know that there are any less sticky patches or hidden crevasses that one has to navigate in the shooting process. Funnily enough, just as I was about to begin shooting, my Dad gave me a quote from Sherpa Tenzin which struck a chord " Every time I felt like I could not go on (to climb Mt Everest) I looked back at how far we had travelled and was spurred on to the peak". I loved the storytelling, and working with the cast and crew was certainly an experience I would repeat in a heartbeat. Lets just hope people like it and I get another shot.

Free Agents starts on Friday 13th February on Channel 4 at 10pm
For more info see www.free-agents.tv