From Copy to Camera: My First Weekend as a Writer-Director

Here's the film we made, based on a short story I had initially written about Detroit

I had the most wonderful (and slightly nerve-wracking) opportunity: I got to write and direct a film.

A real film! A short one—but still. I made the cut to be part of a competition as both a writer and director. 

It was for a short film competition called cutting it fine.

The film was based on a short story I wrote about Detroit, which you can read, along with lots iof other tales on my other site, Small Stories.

I’ve been a writer for years—mostly business copy, tone of voice guides, and brand guidelines—but screenwriting?

Totally different ballgame. And directing? That was a whole new world for me.

The competition brief was short, sharp, and intense: We had 48 hours to write, film, and edit.

I had to submit a film under 5 minutes in length that must include:

• A wink

• A radio

• A park setting

• Two female actors

• To be submitted by 6pm

Not scary at all, right?

So... where do you even start?

Well, first, you need a story. Obviously. Without a story, no one can do anything. 

The actors are stuck. The producers are stuck. The editors are stuck.

Everyone’s just sitting around waiting for your idea to appear.

Once I had that (after several false starts and a lot of pacing around in my living room) I had to build a team and pitch the idea in my mind. This meant explaining what was going on in my head to my newly found team: 

What are these characters doing? 

Why are they doing it? 

Does this make sense to anyone else?

Then came the logistics: 

How are we going to shoot this? 

What props do we need? 

Who can help source them? 

How much will it cost (basically: can we do it for free)? 

Who’s filming? 

Who’s editing? 

Who’s doing sound? 

Who’s making sure it all comes together and actually works on screen?

It was a crash course in creative chaos—and I absolutely loved it.

Yes, it was scary. Yes, it was all new. But surprisingly, it also felt... familiar. Which was kind of the point of the film.

In many ways, it wasn’t that different from my day job. Sure, I got to wear cooler outfits and the hours were significantly longer—but the core skills were the same.

• Working fast to a weird brief

• Mentoring and leading a team of people I never met until the day

• Collaborating creatively, listening and learning on the way

• Prioritising under pressure, and making sure the team were concentrating on the same priorities in the same order

• Delivering on a tight deadline (and not looking scared by it!)

• Presenting the final product to an audience (and not knowing how they’ll react)

  
  

It turns out making a film in a weekend has a lot in common with creating copy or UX doing a brief for a client—except this time, the feedback wasn’t coming from a marketing manager or a stakeholder, but from a room full of strangers munching popcorn. 

It was screened— in an actual cinema. In front of a real audience.

It was exhausting. It was exhilarating. And I’d do it all over again in a heartbeat.

Same skills. New stage. Lots of fun though.

My team was called called tinned tomatoes. Don't ask me why, that's the kind of thing that pops into your head when you have 48 hours of chaos. Hope you enjoy!