Aimless
Aimless is the interwoven tale of three unconventional people looking for direction in life. Nathan is a jaded businessman, whose business just happens to be espionage and assassination. Percy is a balding sad-sack – a man so wretched he considers a mouse called Alan his best friend. And Zara is only a hair’s breadth from returning to the insane asylum, which is unfortunate as she’s about to get a nasty surprise.
As our three protagonists find themselves swirling down the plughole of life, it’s up to them to grab onto the greasy sink-hair of hope. They can either give up and admit defeat – or throw themselves headlong into new, confusing, and often frightening existences. With loved ones being kidnapped, mental states collapsing, genetic manipulation, vigilante violence, snipers, secrets, dead friends, clown fetishists, porn stars, Glock-wielding mums, and two ever more confused narrators, it’s hard to tell which option is more dangerous. Can Nathan, Zara and Percy escape their aimless lives – and do they even want to?
Tobias Tobbell – Director / Producer
'Aimless' is Tobias' second feature film as director and first as producer. The story was devised by the cast and himself over four months of Sunday workshops, shot over the following 5 months of Sundays and the post took over a year whilst working full time as a freelance editor / camera-man. Tobias often to takes on several key roles in the micro-budget productions he works on and this film was no exception; being editor, DoP, director and producer.
Tobias grew up in deep Essex country-side, UK, and spent nine years at a boarding school in Cambridgeshire. Having not completed a film or drama course his first few short films (all digital) were fairly experimental; a chance to learn the craft. Between the ages of 16 – 22 he took an active interest in theatre, getting involved in nearly 25 productions as either writer, director, actor or a combination of those roles. The following 7 years saw him direct 10 shorts and a feature-length thriller: all micro-budget, all digital.
David Moon - Nathan
David trained at Drama Studio London and since graduating has worked extensively in theatre, film and Comedy. Stage credits include Blue Remembered Hills, After The Hole, The Big Filling (Edinburgh Fringe Festival), The Crumps (White Bear Theatre), The Catskills (The Cockpit Theatre), Another Dave and Dave Show (Hen & Chickens Theatre). David has performed in the National Impro League, captaining his team to victories against groups such as NewsRevue. David also regularly performs in a Sketch Comedy Group, Late Night Gimp Fight at the Hen & Chickens and the Lion and Unicorn Theatre.
Film includes Death Defying Acts, Aimless, The Papier Mache Romance, A Riot of Their Own, Untitled Jack, Dreamers, Through the Eyes, Triumph of the Wheels and numerous 'How to...' films for VideoJug.com
While David has yet to win any awards for his acting, he did once receive a "Best Brother" award from his younger sister. His other brother is in Prison.
She is also involved as production manager for In Company Theatre, involved their recent productions Shoot 2 Win and Martha, Josie and the Chinese Elvis. This is Trudi's first feature film.
Claire Randall - Zara
Claire trained at The Academy of the Science of Acting and Directing. Theatre credits include, Farrah Delamitri in Popcorn for the Moscow Theatre Festival, Salome in The Day They Killed The Son of God, Mrs Manningham in Gaslight, and Amanda Wingfield in The Glass Menagerie. Film credits include, "How to" films for Worlds End Television, Ultimatum for DJO Productions, Choices for JAN Productions, and Goldfish for MK4h Films.
Sarah Strong - Louise
Sarah is originally from North Yorkshire, then moved to Cumbria before settling in London to pursue her acting career. Graduating from The Bridge Theatre Training Company in 2000, she has worked consistently in theatre and film ever since.
She has performed in theatre productions from Shakespeare plays such as Macbeth and The Tempest and contemporary classics, such as Sarah Kane's Blasted and Jim Cartwright's Road, through to many new writing projects with her theatre company, Fortress Productions (www.moli.com/fortressproductions) who focus on women as leading roles in theatre. She has performed in various leading fringe theatres in London, most recently in the prestigious Kings Head theatre, Islington.
Sarah has also worked on several feature films, short and online projects, some of which can be viewed via her website, www.sarahstrong.com, along with photo's, cv and performance reviews.
Tanja Pilcher - Elouise
Tanja graduated in 2004 from East15 Acting School with a BA and distinction in Acting and was winner of 'Spotlight Graduate of the Year Award'. Since then she has worked predominantly in theatre, credits include 'The Price' and 'Never Saw the Day' with Walking Forward Theatre (National touring), 'Geek Love! The Musical' with Relentless Theatre (Young VicTheatre/Menier Chocolate Factory). Tanja is also an associate writer with New Voices at the Old Vic Theatre where her play 'Carcinoma' received a commendation and was shortlisted for the Bruntwood Award with the Royal Exchange Thetare, Manchester.
Tanja has strong roots in comedy improvisation and performed on many occasions with the late Ken Campbell in his improvised shows and workshops throughout London - performing in both the '35 Hour Improvathon!' (Inn on the Green 2005) and the '50 Hour Improvathon!' (The People Show Studios with).
Other media credits include work with 'Worlds End Television' and Tobell Films in which she performed in a series of idents and comedy sketches for website 'Video Jug'. Aimless is Tanja's debut film performance.
Tina Meegan - Mum
Tina trained at ALRA (Academy of Live and Recorded Arts). Film credits include: Angry Woman in Rug (with Lynda Bellingham); Mother in Lovestruck; Bridget in The Package; Manageress in Jimmy, Donny and Rose Theatre credits include: Denise the Widow in The Widow; Nurse Mary in The Prodigal End, The Beggar Woman(death)in Blood Wedding; Trish in O'Leary's Daughters.
Trudi Boatwright – Madam Black
Trudi has been seen in comedy all over the place. Recently she has completed filming for a series of comedy shorts for Entertainment 19's Channel Bee and played the role of a Salt Shaker in Seasoning for Bournemouth University.
On Stage, Trudi has been touring for Momo theatre in a Laurel/Hardy type Comedy, has been in Alarms & Excursions by Michael Frayn at the Old Red Lion and got raving reviews for her role as Paige in Dinner by Moira Buffini at the Brockley Jack.
Daniel Jordan - Doctor
Daniel jordan has worked in TV and Film including HARRY & Cosh (Channel 5) Serial Killers (Sky) and Bane (Winner of best feature at The LA Science Fiction/Horror Film Festival).
His most recent work is Newgate (action adventure with CGI effects).
Theatre work has included the role of Josef Goebbels at The Kings Head, and Bonner in Planet Suicide at Wet Paint Theatre. The Stage wrote: "Daniel Jordan finds light and warmth in Chris Wards wonderful words and projects a feeling for them in a way that none of the others do".
Jemima Hamilton - Julie
Jemima Hamilton trained at Drama Studio London and has a BA (HONS) degree form Loughborough University. She is currently touring Rumpelstiltskin the pantomime with Golden Egg Productions as the wicked Queen. Other theatre credits include Jess (Journeys) with Theatre VXII, Jen (Road Race) Stopwatch Theatre Company, and the title role in Educating Rita with Top Drawer Productions. Her most recent film credit is The Boat That Rocks, directed by Richard Curtis, soon to be released, in which Jemima appears in full glory as the saucy bathing mistress, Carol.
Jessica Jay - Mamoushka
Jessica is a versatile actor, singer and dancer and trained in acting and musical theatre on the degree course at Bird College. Jessica spent her younger years on the stage in numerous regional and national musicals, pantomimes and festivals and recently appeared in Eyebrow Productions' Me and My Girl at the London Palladium.
In recent times Jessica has focused on screen work, and particularly enjoys improvisation. Along with Aimless she has two improvised short films on the festival circuit this year (Philip's Head by Chris Butler and Colin Brumby from Nick Ball) with a further feature film (Anaphylaxis from Ayman Mokhtar) and short film (The Lift by Kenny Evans) currently in post production. She recently made her TV debut in Sofia's Diary for Sony Pictures and has a number of commercial, corporate, voice over and music video credits.
Jessica is represented by A&J Management and her profile can be viewed at www.jessicajay.com.
Cast-List
|
Nathan |
David Moon |
|
Percy |
Paul Spruce |
|
Zara |
Claire Randall |
|
Julie |
Jemima Hamilton |
|
Elouis |
Tanja Pilcher |
|
Mute/2nd Narrator |
Ian Peto |
|
Louise |
Sarah Strong |
|
Madam Black |
Trudi Boatwright |
|
Mamoushka |
Jessica Jay |
|
Mum |
Tina Meegan |
|
Larry |
Samuel Taylor |
|
Docto |
Daniel Jordan |
|
Chad / Lord |
Lachlan McCall |
|
Lady |
Gemma Robinson |
|
Amber |
Maye Choo |
|
David Zanthor |
Himself |
|
Narrator |
David Manson |
Crew-List
|
Tobias Tobbell |
Director, Producer, DoP, Editor |
|
Richard Pryn |
Composer |
|
Keith Arnold |
EPK, Associate Producer |
Introduction
With the 'budget' for this film being near enough to zero we had to come up with production process that would limit costs. Borrowing kit from colleagues and friends would help, a skeleton crew, no props, set-pieces, costumes or locations that would cost anything, and doing pretty much every major job myself. It's not ideal, but asking a DoP to give up 4 months of weekends for zero was impossible, let alone a producer for 2 years!
Step One: casting
Simple posting out on casting call pro explaining the premise; we would be work-shopping a story over the course of 3 or so months and shooting over the following 3 or so months. Then the catch, we didn't even have the budget tocover costs! (I did some sums, food and travel costs over this period for cast and crew, limited as it was, would come to around £3k – which I didn't have). These first auditions were held in December 2006.
Auditions were fun. I've always enjoyed the auditioning process since the first silly ones we did for new plays at university. I organised quite large groups over three auditions (three weekends) at the Bell and Compass pub's function room – next to Charing Cross station (those guys were a big help – letting us use their room for rehearsing for more than 4 months of Sundays pretty much!).
The groups were given three types of scene – devising a little something based on some specific scene details, improvising on the spot and a silent scene. None were readings, as is traditional, as of course we would be improvising/devising the whole lot it wasn't really relevant.
Step Two: rehearsing
Appreciating time being a factor for actors, on unpaid jobs particularly, we split the cast of 12 into three groups. This way no one actor would be sacrificing such a huge amount of time over the next few months as if there were a single lead.
Only one group remained the same through the work-shopping process (Nathan's story). The others both lost 2 actors each, two were recast, we rearranged the stories to account for the other losses. As far as I know their having to pull out was due to paid work being thrown their way – a panto, a feature film in Lanzaroteand the others I forget.
We started off with a very simple idea – let's do a story about an agent, a hero and a cult, tying them together with the 3 main guys being lonely and unfulfilled. We threw together the ideas, made a rough plan and prepared to shoot.
Step Three: production
Co-ordinating the now total cast of 16 or so, their schedules, locations, being able to get kit and organising the odd unusual prop or costume was a challenge (this film being on top of a full-time job at Videojug).
Kit mostly came from Maverick at Neath Films (we were also under his insurance should anything happen. It didn't, hurrah). A couple of times we borrowed Videojug's Z1 kit. Locations were either public, parks / streets etc, belonging to the cast or crew, work-places and for 3 scenes Rich Mix in Bethnal Green (which has a cinema and a few interesting creative spaces). All free, bar one.
The only scene that really cost anything was Nathan's first attempt at magic. The playing cards wedge themselves into people – a hand, a forehead… (my cousins playing those parts, up for a bit of a weird Sunday out). Mike Peel popped along to help us with these little effects, plus with this bloody scene taking place in a public park we need permission from the council (in fact, we really needed permission for all of the public shoots, but each comes with, at the very least, a 'admin' cost). This scene took up a third of the total spending on 'Aimless'! But it might be worth noting the total spend was just under £500.
The production process went reasonably well – it was sometimes a bit hectic, trying to shoot 2 or 3 improvised scenes in a day. We did lose an actress after production started and had to re-cast, re-rehearse and re-shoot her scenes making it frustrating for the other unpaid actors to give up that extra time! They did it and the scenes are still in the film.
Step Four: post
Cutting the film took a few months (as it was still being done around full-time work). It was clear the 3 stories were far more disconnected than we had assumed during the shoot! So, a couple of new scenes and a commentary later we had something ever so slightly less confusing. For this reason the post-production took over a year – sometimes leaving it for a few weeks to look back with fresher eyes.
There was a screening in November (2008) at the Prince Charles cinema, just off of Leicester Square. It doubled as a screen-test for the film. We handed out feedback cards to the largely friends/family based audience (there were around 30 'strangers' there too) and had some useful responses.
Another pick-up, a bit more ruthless cutting and a lot less commentary later we had the final version – January 2009.
1. Did you identify with your character?
"Nathan is kind of the everyman character, he's the straight man compared to some of the more bizarre and idiosyncratic characters in the film. The intention was that the audience would see the world through Nathan's eyes, so the idea was to bring sympathy to Nathan that they could relate to. Perhaps in some ways I do identify with Nathan, but I'd like to think I had a bit more pride and self-awareness. I don't think I would wear the jumpers he does though. They're awful." David Moon, Nathan.
"Yes in particular to the madness and total insecurity of the Doctor." Daniel Jordan, Doctor.
"I believe you should always be able to identify with a character in order to understand them and for Madam Black - I could definitely find some things to connect with." Trudi Boatwright, Madam Black.
"I identified with the way my character wanted to be accepted by people and from that got into some tricky situations but there's a strength (which comes a little from naivety) in her that means she just carries on regardless." Claire Randall, Zara
"During rush hour, every tube carriage seems to hold someone the wrong side of stable and as you listen to them rant and rave in a seriously confined space -- about the awful transport, the economy, their false limb, you can't help but identify with what they're saying, most angry crazies have a point otherwise they wouldn't be so angry. In aimless I play Julie the sickly sweet, sadistic, violent, fuchsia dressed angry young woman.... and yes I do identify with her...totally. I absolutely see her point about the things and situations that drive her nuts, but would I rant and rave in a tube carriage to anyone who would or wouldn't listen... No I identify with her but I'm not like her... At the moment I'm still the right side of stable. I think. Ask me again after I've read the review." Jemima Hamilton, Julie.
"I identified with certain aspects of Louise, in as much that she encourages Nathan to follow his idea of a dream job. She wants him to be happy and supports his ideas. I don't relate to Louise's controlling gene though, she's certainly got a bit of OCD going on!" Sarah Strong, Louise.
"I can't really say so - I've never been a secret agent or anything like it! But to a certain degree we got to choose whom we wanted to play and I chose to create Elouis, and I suppose I chose to play a character like her because a part of me would like to be that. So she's a fantasy of mine I suppose - I like the idea of running around under cover with a gun, it's very glam." Tanja Pilcher, Elouis.
"I must have done to bring her to life and enjoy the process –particularly the 'birds and bees' scene where she took me on a 'in the moment' journey. She also made me laugh a little inside. Yes, you know life can be a little weird and when we went through her life history, I found a character that was lonely, loved her only son and became hugely protective to the extent where paranoia and obsession crept in. Yes, all part of human traits depending on our experiences. Day to day, I do not feel this strongly but I know it is there and could pop out depending on situations, so watch out!" Tina Meegan, Mum.
2. What did you make of the work shopping / rehearsal process?
"Eat - so much fun. And we spent so much time laughing. Improvisation, for me, is by far the best way to work. It's far more creative, and you eliminate the chances of suffering with a bad script. Anything born in the moment is truthful, and thus cannot be tagged as 'unrealistic' or 'hammy'. Yes, they story may end up being complete fantasy, but if the actors are playing it with conviction in the moment, it works. Tobias has a wonderfully mad sense of humour, so he really encouraged us not to hold back - the weirder the better. The only problem is when you find a little piece of magic but the camera wasn't shooting for that particular moment - trying to recreate that is tough." Tanja Pilcher, Elouis.
"As a late comer to the cast - my work-shopping was not as intense as some of the other cast members - however, I really enjoyed the freedom to play around with a character and let the process of finding what worked and what didn't emerge."Trudi Boatwright, Madam Black.
I found the work-shopping /rehearsal process a different way to how I usually work, but I found it successful in creating the plot of the film and creating the characters.”Claire Randall, Zara.
"We had a yearlong rehearsal process and we were given the opportunity to be as experimental as our imaginations would let us which was a lot of fun. The thing is with a group of actors allowed to be anyone they want and say anything they want, for as long as they want... they are going to come out with some nonsense. Scrap that, a huge amount of nonsense, there were occasions we just went on and on and on and so forth. But Tobias was very good at rescuing the good bits before they get lost in the rubbish or completely forgotten. He made sure we were conscious of having a beginning, middle and an end to each section and directed us accordingly with often hilarious and unpredictable ideas.” Jemima Hamilton, Julie.
"As you may or may not know our workshops/rehearsals took place most Sunday at the ‘Bell and Compass’ in Charing Cross, London. No, not in the bar but in a space downstairs. The work grew out of improvisations with themes suggested by Tobias. What was good was scope for freedom and being able to contribute freely (no matter how silly it may have seemed). This freeness continued into rehearsals and even when we made the film, scenes did not seem ‘fixed’. This was a particularly enjoyable and brought a creative aspect to the making.
Tobias is actually very focused and I believe he knows what he wants but he brought us all onboard, as any Director should do and brought our creative ideas to life, inspired by his own. So, did I enjoy? Absolutely, I go with my instinct and this felt right from the start.” Tina Meegan, Mum.
"Liked it as it gave one the freedom to improvise.”Daniel Jordan, Doctor.
“I had a kind-of love/hate relationship with the process. I loved how open and collaborative the work-shop rehearsals were, but it was also very frustrating to feel you were acting ‘in a bubble’ because we had no idea if what we were doing was actually any good. You could spend a whole day improvising scenes and making each other laugh but then walk away from rehearsal not knowing if a single minute of the last eight hours would make it into the film.
It was also quite bizarre not to know much (at all) about the other story lines and characters in the film. We had no idea of if, and how much, our characters fitted into the other storylines and consequently into the film as a whole. I guess you just have to try and concentrate on your own character and scenes as much as possible and trust that the director is taking care of the rest; I mean his was the harder job by far, that’s the nature of an improvised film. It is odd though, to think I’m going to meet the other characters for the first time at the premiere!” David Moon, Nathan
“I thoroughly enjoyed the rehearsal process as it was the first time I'd worked on a project that was entirely improvised. I learnt a lot from watching the other actors I was working with and my confidence at improvisation grew, as well as my comedy acting, which hadn't been used much before. We spent a lot of time rehearsing the scenes, without overworking them, and we were all confident enough to know more or less what we were doing by the time filming started.” Sarah Strong, Louise
3. What kinds of films would you like to work on?
“I really enjoy working on comedy as understandably, you have a lot of fun. My preference however is working on serious and dramatic projects – I'm a big fan of characters full of angst, misery, despair, etc. Matches my personality more.” Sarah Strong, Louise
“I’d like to work on naturalistic films that tell a story that is original or that really excites me. Some of my favourite films are simple stories made on a low budget that let the characters and the story speak for itself. Films like Dead Man’s Shoes, Lars and the Real Girland Somersault for example are arresting in their originality and challenge you in a way that all-too-often these days films do not. To be involved with those kinds of projects would be fantastic; I am a big fan of writer-directors as well. That’s not to say I wouldn’t do another improvised film again, I certainly would, it’s a fun process and the freedom to create a character and story is unparalleled.” David Moon, Nathan
“I love quirky British comedies I'm a huge Richard Curtis fan.” Jemima Hamilton, Julie.
“I'm a massive fan of Mike Leigh and Shane Meadows and British film in general. The characters created in their work are based in reality - so gritty and utterly believable, you forget that you're watching a film. That really is an art and something I aspire to be part of. I have a lot of respect for people who approach film work not simply as form of entertainment, but a mirror that shows us who we really are. On the flip side, I'm also a sucker for slapstick comedy. As a child I'd spend hours watching my Dad's video collection - Laurel and Hardy, Chaplin, Faulty Towers, Monty Python, Peter Sellers - I couldn't get enough.” Tanja Pilcher, Elouis
“I know I can do the tragic role, this seems to come naturally. However, I never was aware of my comic ability until I trained professionally. I have been reviewed as having excellent ‘comic timing’. So, I seem to be drawn to both comedy and real emotion. I would also like to work on real life scenario comedy sketches. TV could do with this.” Tina Meegan, Mum
“I'd love to work on a comedy again but also to take on some more dramatic roles.” Claire Randall,Zara
“Any, provided the story was good and there's a sexy actress to work opposite.” Daniel Jordan, Doctor
4. Which filmmakers / actors would you most like to work with?
“My dream would be to work with Hugo Weaving... I think he is just so clever - and as for filmmakers, I don't mind who I work with, as long as the product is good and the approach is right. What I don't enjoy is a set where there is a lot of tension, we are supposed to be doing this work for the love of it - and tension solves nothing.” Trudi Boatwright, Madam Black.
“If I could have my dream of working with any one then it would be Russell Crowe. I saw him in an interview and he seems to have a huge amount of dedication and understand for the profession and I think it really shows in all his films. I would also love to work with Mike Leigh because I hear his rehearsal process also comes from improvisation, so that would be nice to do again.” Claire Randall, Zara.
“Shane Meadows, Mike Leigh, Ken Loach, Roman Polanski and Stanley Kubrick, (although he's dead and that might be difficult).” Daniel Jordan, Doctor.
“In my dreams I would work with film-makers such as: P. T. Anderson, Charlie Kaufman, Christopher Nolan, Richard Curtis, Zack Braff,Cate Shortland, and it is a life-long ambition of mine to work with Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, obviously.
In terms of actors, those whose work I have the utmost respect for are people like: Edward Norton, Sean Penn, Robert De Niro, Daniel Day-Lewis and Paddy Considine. There are so many actors I would kill to work with; people like Ryan Gosling , Casey Affleck, Ellen Page, Simon Pegg, Michael Gambon, Denise Gough, and Les Dennis.” David Moon, Nathan.
“I particularly love the work of Steven Poliakoff, Martin McDonagh, Mike Lee, Ken Loach and any Director who dares to bring a difference to film. Yes, I like the true creative, which will not do me any good in the commercial world. Oh, and I would like to work with the filmmaker Tobias Tobbell again!
Actors? Well Paul Newman was a big idol for me growing up but alas I could never dream of working with him, although I can still dream! Really, I am happy to explore the art with any actor willing to contribute generously and creatively. In terms of names, I would be privileged to work with most actors but if I had to pick one male, a bonus would be Clive Owen and female would be Kate Blanchett. Yes, I have high expectations!” Tina Meegan,Mum.
“I find Julian Barratt and Noel Fielding Hilarious and Julie Walters is my favourite comedy actress.” Jemima Hamilton, Julie.
“I would love the opportunity to work with Helen Mirren and Judi Dench – two of Britain’s finest actresses in my opinion. Being involved in a project with Steven Berkoff would be fantastic, as would one with Mike Leigh, Kathy Burke, or Peter Jackson.” Sarah Strong, Louise.
“Woody Allen, Mike Leigh, Shane Meadows, Cameron Crowe, Lars Von Trier.” Tanja Pilcher, Elouis.
5. Did you enjoy working with the director?
“Yeah, Tobias was fun to work with. He’s an unnervingly laid-back director, which is quite unusual, but he succeeds in immediately putting everyone at ease. He managed to create a relaxed and non-judgmental environment to work in which is essential when creating an entirely improvised feature film. That said, I haven’t seen the film yet! So I’ll get back to you on that...” David Moon, Nathan.
“Yes, absolutely. Tobias is such a laid back guy - he'd be like: 'just do whatever you feel is right - but make it funny'. It's incredible when you think about it really, once Tobias had picked who he wanted, he split us in to groups and got us together and at the first meeting said: 'right, let's make a film'. And so we did. I couldn't tell you how we eventually ended up with what we have - but Tobias is the brains behind it.” Tanja Pilcher,Elouis.
“Despite my rants in the mockumentary making of’ Aimless’ I loved working with Tobias. From my audition, I knew he had a unique focus and I think he is a big talent for the future. No, Tobias is not paying me money to say this, it is genuine and I am proud to have been a part of this feature film. I still don’t feel I know Tobias very well but that doesn’t matter as we were there for the art.” Tina Meegan,Mum.
“Tobias was fab to work with - particularly as I was trying to slot into a cast that had already been developed and had been working on the project. Very patient and the cast were super and I had a real laugh.” Trudi Boatwright, Madam Black.
“I did enjoy working with Tobias. I like the way he develops the film by allowing the actors to improvise and I liked the fact that as an actor you really feel like your working as a team and I think Tobias allows for that by giving you the freedom to make suggestions or add new bits to the character.” Claire Randall,Zara.
“See question 2”. Jemima Hamilton, Julie
“No. Ha-ha! Yes of course I did. Tobias was great to work with; very encouraging, good sense of humour, very open to suggestions and trying new things. He's not the type of person to shout at you and if he didn't like the way you did something he's more likely to say (in high pitched voice) 'umm, not bad but try it again in a totally different way' than say 'you're crap, get out'. It was a great experience from start to finish and I learnt a lot from him.” Sarah Strong, Louise.
“Good Question. I heard about the audition through an actor friend I was living with at the time, who told me there was an audition for an improvised comedy and he was going along and I should come too. Slightly embarrassingly, he didn’t end up getting cast, and I did. And so did his girlfriend at the time. Which was rather awkward for a few days. Still. He’s forgiven me. I think.
I remember I was seen quite late on in the day, so by this point Tobias was probably fairly tired, or hungry, or both. I think his expectations had plummeted considerably by the time I walked in. Looking back on the audition, I think it helped the other actor I auditioned with got a bit carried away during an improvisation and exposed his genitals. Yeah, that made me look normal.” David Moon, Nathan.
“I attended an audition which involved several improvisational games which were really funny. those are the best types of audition, where you forget your being judged and you just end up having a laugh.” Jemima Hamilton, Julie.
“I was very surprised that I'd got cast and I actually thought that the very first rehearsal was in fact a re-call. I thought the audition had gone ok as I'd had a pep talk from a friend of mine, who is very experienced with improvisation, and he'd given me a few tips before I went in. I remember doing a very bad Eastern European accent and blundering around the room as a 'comedy' doctor. Maybe Tobias felt sorry for me and I was cast out of sympathy, or maybe he was so confused at what I was doing, he was curious to see if I was actually normal.” Sarah Strong, Louise.
“I was contacted through a website casting agency and went along for the audition. We played some silly games and got themes to improvise and that’s where it all started.” Tina Meegan, Mum.
7. How did you feel about the deferred fee?
“Most of the time - if you are working on a project you enjoy - you do get used to the lack of up front payment - so it is not something that was ever an issue.” Trudi Boatwright, Madam Black.
“Fine, as I understand about low budget productions.” Daniel Jordan, Doctor
“In this game you have to accept that kind of thing and just get on with it. When you’re making films on a shoestring everyone pitches in and works for next to nothing, because that’s what it takes to get it made. I believe what goes around comes around, and if you do a project for nothing now, it may just turn out in a few years time that same director or producer remembers you and when they do have a budget and you may end up getting cast. But look- if you’re passionate enough about a project then money doesn’t really come into it.” David Moon, Nathan.
“At least there is the possibility of a fee. Ever the optimist.” Jemima Hamilton, Julie.
“Most projects that are put together by up and coming production companies are deferred payment and I'm fine with that - I wouldn't have worked on it if I wasn't. We rehearsed and filmed on weekends and around people's work schedules which is the way I think it should be done with deferred payment. I would not work on a deferred fee production which required me to take time off of a paid job, as I still need to pay bills. The main reason I worked on Aimless was to gain experience in comedy and improvisation, as well as being able to update my showreel.” Sarah Strong, Louise.
“I was never in this for any money - I did it because I wanted to. I saw the casting ad go out, and when I read that it was going to be a project that was based purely in improvised comedy - I knew that this was the kind of film I want to be involved in. It sounded like so much fun, which is exactly what it was - so I've no complaints really.” Tanja Pilcher,Elouis.
“Well we are still waiting! I feel happier now that we have signed a contract. It is something actors get used to I guess. The creative process took over and this was a huge bonus.” Tina Meegan, Mum.
8. What did you make of the low-key production process?
“In many ways I preferred that aspect of it. I liked not having much time on the day to rehearse scenes over and over, and we didn’t waste hours waiting for scenes to be meticulously lit and framed. It was unpretentious, economical, almost guerrilla filmmaking and I loved that side of it. It felt fresh and exciting which is not always the case on film sets. You can spent eight hours waiting around until every member of the crew is happy with how aesthetically pleasing one establishing shot is, or you can get on with it and shoot three scenes of dialogue in a day with no messing around. Unless it rains.” David Moon,Nathan.
“The fact that it was a low-key production made the working environment very relaxed, but not so much that we never got anything done. Everyone involved was very keen to do a good job and our rehearsals were very pro-active. At no time did any of the project get lax with cancelled rehearsals or using the time unproductively; it was always a very positive environment.” Sarah Strong,Louise.
“As this was the first film I've ever been involved in I have nothing to compare it to. To be honest, I'm not bothered about the production process; it's the other parts of this project, which make it as good as it is. You can be working in studio 52 in Hollywood, but with rubbish actors and bad script you'll have a no-hoper of a film on your hands. But I feel everyone involved in this Aimless is very talented - and that counts for a lot more.” Tanja Pilcher, Elouis.
“As they say in the trade‘less is more’ so what is there to complain about? It is better to be active in a project than not and when it feels right for you, you are on the right track. I have a lot of confidence in Tobias and I am really impressed in his professionalism with the art of filmmaking.” Tina Meegan, Mum.
“No problems there... some of the greatest work needs no bells and whistles - I've heard Johnny Depps monologue at the beginning of the Libertine was filmed on one, simple camera.” Trudi Boatwright, Madam Black.
“Cool.” Daniel Jordan, Doctor.
Aimless is the interwoven tale of three unconventional people looking for direction in life. Jaded businessman Nathan is set on edge when he finds his mother field-stripping a handgun in the living-room, and his day at the office gets worse from there. Of course, it doesn’t help that Nathan’s business is espionage and assassination. Percy is without friends, hair, or prospects – his only ray of light is his friend Alan. That’s not saying much, though, as Alan is only a mouse. And Zara isn’t much better off: she is, at best, only ever a hair’s breadth from returning to the mental home she was only recently released from. An adulterous boyfriend is enough to tip her over the edge, and into the warm, waiting arms of an ominous cult.
As our three heroes increasingly become aware that their old way of life cannot continue, they find themselves looking for alternatives. Percy meets Julie, a cheerful young woman with a furiously violent temper – and with her help, comes to realise that he may harbour a valuable supernatural power. Under the tuition of the glamorous Mamoushka, he develops his ability to calm the troubled waters of the human spirit. Zara, meanwhile, is merrily throwing herself headlong into the world of chaotically disorganised religion. An unsettling doctor, the mute Mute, and the imperious Madam Black happily initiate her into her new life. Much to Zara’s dismay, however, her fellow flock don’t turn out to be as pure as she’d been led to believe. Nathan’s got problems of his own too – his new partner is taking far too much pleasure in the more gory aspects of their work. With a gun, a licence to kill, and a “What would Jack Bauer do?” tattoo, she’s forcing him to seriously re-examine his career choices. But spying’s all he knows – and he’s not even very good at that.
As our three protagonists find themselves swirling down the plughole of life, it’s up to them to grab onto the greasy sink-hair of hope. They can either give up and admit defeat – or throw themselves headlong into their new, confusing, and often frightening existences. With loved ones being kidnapped, mental states collapsing, genetic manipulation, vigilante violence, snipers, secrets, dead friends, clown fetishists, porn stars, Glock-wielding mums, and two ever more confused narrators, it’s hard to tell which option is more dangerous. Can Nathan, Zara and Percy escape their aimless lives – and do they even want to?