YDA Gold Winners Hilow on Changing the World

Hilow took home the Gold trophy for this year's newly-introduced Changing the World Frame by Frame category (see what Sir John Hegarty has to say about its importance here) at this year's YDA show with their docu-short, The Hardest Word.

We caught up with the directing collective to find out how they gained access to such an extraordinary subject, tackling tough questioning and why they decided to get matching tattoos to brand themselves as Hilow.

What was your route into directing?

We met working as in-house editors at an ad agency. After four years we went freelance, and started (badly) directing some of our own work, so decided to give being a duo a go. We got an office space, made a load of films and then got matching tattoos of our logo to seal the deal.

Where did the idea for The Hardest Word come from?

We heard about George [Montague]’s campaign [to obtain an apology for his 1974 arrest under anti-gay legislation] through Facebook and wanted to help raise his profile.

How did you gain George’s trust?

We travelled to Brighton to meet George and his husband Somchai. George puts his longevity (he’s 95 years old) down to drinking multiple cans of Diet Coke a day, so by the time we’d drunk six litres of it he’d filled us in on his life story.

What were the biggest challenges?

Asking George tricky questions. It’s very important for us to navigate the conversation in a sensitive way. You can’t shy away from tough questions, otherwise you won’t get an honest film, but there’s definitely a way of doing it that doesn’t cause needless upset to the interviewee.

How important was it to use archival footage?

We wouldn’t have been able to represent the breadth of his life without it. Luckily he kept pretty much a daily journal for most of his life so we had plenty to work with!

What does it mean to win a Young Director Award?

We are super excited to have won, because neither of us have won anything before. Not even at school.