Filmmaker Michael Henry
In 2012 I happened to stumble upon a tweet from UK based filmmaker Michael Henry, who was promoting his latest feature film, I Work. It was his third feature which he’d made it for just £500 and was self-distributing on DVD.
The film had a quirky premise and was by a filmmaker who’d gone about making a feature by any means necessary with the most modest of budgets - this was exactly the sort of indie film I was interested in checking out, as well as championing.
‘I Work’ turned out to be a lot of fun, completely unique and it was clear there was a dedicated and passionate filmmaker at the helm. In the years since Michael has become an incredibly prolific filmmaker and remained truly independent. I’ve enjoyed following Michael’s journey as a filmmaker and eagerly awaited & gladly supported his subsequent films Narcissist (2013), Time and Place (2014), Mute (2016) and Anhedonia (2019) which were all fresh, thoughtful, different and comparable to nothing else.
10 years after ‘I Work’ Michael has completed his latest low budget masterpiece Mother Sky and has just launched a crowd funding campaign for its festival run with perks including instant access to stream the movie as well as pre-orders for DVDs.
Philip Pugh: Tell us about your latest feature film Mother Sky. What’s it all about?
Michael Henry: ‘Mother Sky’ is about two vulnerable friends who run from their problems in the city, taking shelter at a commune lead by a woman who cannot feel pain. Little do they know they've stumbled into a situation worse than the one they left behind, as they get caught in a whirlwind of chaos, aggressive neighbours, hallucinatory ceremonies and land grabs that, combined, could prove fatal. At it’s core it’s really about the importance of connecting with others, how we define home and what we’re willing to do to find and protect those things.
PP: Where did the idea come from?
MH: I remember stumbling across an article about a woman who couldn’t feel pain about four years ago and being fascinated by it. The jumping off point was definitely the character of Maya who all the other characters and story points gravitate around in this film. She might not be the lead but it’s definitely built around that character. I’d actually written a different feature with the characters of Cal and Slo-mo at the centre but it wasn’t working. So I merged their characters with an early draft of this which I also thought was missing something and then it all clicked.
PP: That’s interesting, recycling stronger elements from ideas that didn’t lead to what you hoped - sort of like an unofficial MH multiverse!. What’s your approach and process like as a writer?
MH: My process is very much just getting down to it and seeing what happens. I’m currently working on writing the next feature and all I have is the opening and ending in mind. The best way to write is to simply sit and write, then go back to it to redraft with further ideas. I think the more often you can engage in the creative process (writing, directing, anything really) you’re only going to continue to improve. Writing is one of my favourite parts of the process for sure.
PP: From I Work to Mother Sky I can see a clear progression in the themes you cover (and potentially your outlook on life). A lot of your earlier films explore characters in the throes of an existential crisis, and while Mother Sky has similar themes to your earlier films like identity and belonging, there’s more of a contentment in the characters outlook on life even though they’re still lost souls. How do you think your work as a writer has evolved over the last ten years, not just as a process but the themes and dynamics you’re looking to explore?
This is a tough one. I’ve certainly not become more content or figured anything out as I’ve got older if I’m being honest. I kind of welcome confusion and the idea of not knowing because it means I can continue to learn. The existential crises are always there (on screen and in life), but I guess all I can really say is I’ve become more confident in my writing and how to get that visualised with each film. One thing that has definitely changed, in terms of process for me, is getting feedback earlier and from more people. I used to just shoot what I thought was the final draft but really the sooner you can identify pacing issues, bad lines of dialogue, or just general bad ideas, then you can can deal with them and improve the quality before the shoot.
PP: Getting feedback earlier on definitely sounds like a great approach. Who are the screenwriters who inspire you?
I have a huge amount of respect for Robert Towne, Paddy Chayefsky and Charlie Kaufman but it’s mostly writer-directors that really do it for me - Coppola, Billy Wilder, P.T Anderson, Coen Brothers, Paul Schrader, etc. Total immersion, almost to a monomaniacal degree, for each project…I really relate. I’m also nowhere near as good as these people, but I’ll continue to aspire to that level.
PP: You frequently bring back actors from film to film and Mother Sky is no different. At what stage do you start to consider actors who you’ve worked with before for a role? Do you go into the writing stage with an idea of who you might like to work with again and write roles with them specifically in mind, or do you wait until the script is completed before making any decisions on who might be a good fit for the roles you have?
MH: I guess the best way to answer this is to refer to how I’m writing my next project - I’ve already cast half of it in my head with several actors from ‘Mother Sky’. For me it’s not only about offering them a completely different part to play but also acknowledging where their strengths lie and how I can draw from that. I rarely write without some idea of who will be playing the part, even if it’s an obscure pipe-dream, casting-wise. Even if that person doesn’t end up playing the part, it helps to hear the voice of the character and get a sense of what it can be before trying to make any of it a reality.
PP: Over the course of your films it seems like you’ve been building up a repertory company of actors for your films. Is the building of those relationships with actors important to you as part of your process as a director, or is it more convenience to have a stable of great and reliable actors to call upon?
MH: It’s certainly more convenient, and I’ll always do what I can to speed up the process between script and screen. But in short it’s incredibly important to me. Much like the themes of this current film, you’re building a surrogate family when you make a film (or multiple films). It’s always been a dream of mine to work like Rainer Werner Fassbinder, making one or two films a year with the same group of people. Obviously money and life get in the way of that, but I’m still doing my own version of it. Working with the same people, plus some new faces each time (shoutout to Jo Rothery who is incredible in this film), it’s really about finding a shorthand, collaborating, and doing better work each time.
PP: For the other roles in Mother Sky you hadn’t cast with actors from your previous films I remember you launching a casting call on Twitter. Why did you chose to post an open casting call to Twitter as apposed to dedicated casting platforms? What were the major advantages, and were there any disadvantages to using Twitter?
MH: The open casting turned out really well. We had over 100,000 people see and respond to it. I’m always looking for new people to work with (both cast and crew). And the beauty of casting such a large net is you find really talented people who you might not have ever seen otherwise. Alice Orlik for instance was a rare gem who had only done a couple of projects before this film and she was the perfect choice for Freya in the film. If I’d only gone for people I knew to simplify the process I wouldn’t have cast the best possible person for the part. I really can’t say enough positive things about the cast I had for this film, they were everything I could ever have wished for and more.
PP: As a director, what’s your approach to working with actors - particularly with Mother Sky?
MH: We were lucky in some ways because the pandemic meant we had to pause, offering us more time to rehearse, to do improv sessions and really dissect every sentence of the script. I used to hate rehearsing but now I think the more you can do before a shoot the better the film. I think early on I just picked actors I knew could do each part and then wanted to get right to production to get the performance done, but I realise now that actors need a lot more attention and feedback in order to find how to play the part. I have friends from this film that I’ll be close to until the day I die, that’s how close that collaboration can get. It’s about understanding each other on an incredibly intimate and honest level.
PP: Do you have a casting wish list? Any established actors you’d like to work with?
MH: This could be endless. I’m gutted I’ll never be able to work with Philip Seymour Hoffman or John Cazale. In terms of living actors, yeah, there’s so many. I’m not going to do this question justice, but I’ll pick one that I find endlessly enthralling whenever I see him on screen - Franz Rogowski - quite possibly the most underrated actor of all time in my opinion.
PP: The main location in Mother Sky is not only stunning, but integral to your film. How did you go about sourcing the location? Did you have it in mind before you wrote the script or did you have to find somewhere to fit your vision?
MH: I had something quite specific in mind but didn’t have the place found by the time it came to pre-production. We found all of the options through AirBnB and word of mouth through other filmmakers. There were a couple of other options but they asked for crazy amounts of money to shoot there so that wasn’t an option.
PP: What was the shooting schedule like for Mother Sky?
MH: 21 days. It was an intense shoot with days of up to 15 hours, but everyone knew what to expect going it. Well, at least that’s what we thought...
PP: Well, I remember reading there were some issues around the location while you were filming. They sounded like they were rather traumatic…
MH: I’ll simplify it because the story behind the shoot is bigger than the film itself in some ways. Production was a nightmare. It seemed impossible that we would ever finish - the owner of the farm (though seemingly nice when we scouted the location) was a complete psychopath once we arrived, causing endless sound issues, being rude to all cast and crew, behaving erratic and going out of his way to make the atmosphere tense and claustrophobic for the two weeks we lived and worked together. There were also extreme weather shifts, casting issues, we broke a lens and had to stop filming for a day...the fact this film exists, and to the quality we've finally managed to finish it at, is nothing short of a miracle. I could fill a book with the trauma of this shoot. I almost gave up filmmaking because it was so horrific (I still have nightmares of the farmer and the shoot). But getting out the other side of it makes me appreciate what we did and especially the people I made it with all the more.
PP: Jesus! Well, your perseverance definitely paid off. It’s a tremendous film. And I’d also read that book by the way! What was your budget and how did you go about funding it?
MH: I worked a lot to save over a couple of years, teaching film and media courses for a non-profit. The plan was to make this for £10,000. It ended up being more like £13,000, and then if you factor in some post costs (which the crowdfunder is helping towards), it’ll most likely be £15,000 overall. I worked liked crazy and begged, stole and borrowed in between, as always, to make sure it happened. In short, I put up all the money myself.
PP: As an actor, in Mother Sky you appear briefly early on in one scene, however the first couple of films I saw of yours, in addition to writing, directing and producing, you also starred in the lead or a leading role. How difficult was that to balance and what prompted your decision to take on more cameo size roles in your subsequent films?
MH: Spoiler! I actually wasn’t going to be in this film at all but we had a significant casting issue before day one. In short, I just know I’m not an actor. Directing is my calling and I realised a few years back that the more attention I can give to production and everything behind the camera, the better the film. I’m thankful I had so many experiences in front of camera though because it has helped me appreciate what it’s like for the people I’m directing and also just the amount of stresses and insecurities they have to face.
PP: Similarly, in addition to all the other jobs you were responsible for in your earlier films, you were the cinematographer on two of them (‘Time and Place’ and ‘Mute’) as well. That really must have been an insane balancing act. How did you manage that process?
MH: With a great deal of naïveté to be honest. Without money you just have to decide whether to pick someone else for the job, spend more money, or just get on with it so the film exists. I’m always stuck in tunnel-vision mode to make sure the film gets made. It was purely out of necessity that that happened. Now I’ve worked with a couple of experienced DoPs, although I’ve learnt a lot from them, I couldn’t go back to doing things that way.
PP: One of the things I’ve always greatly admired about your work film to film is the clear and dedicated approach to grow from the last one. The first thing I noticed about Mother Sky is the huge leap in quality of the cinematography from your previous work (although your films have consistently looked great). It looks stunning. The colours are very rich & deep and there’s some incredibly well composed & executed shots and camera moves by your cinematographer Oliver Biggs who as far as I can see only has two shorts to his name prior to working with you on this feature. Obviously, this is the first time you’ve worked with him - how did this new collaboration come about and what is your general working relationship with the cinematographer like - and at what point to you bring them into the process?
MH: It came about by chance really. I was planning to work with Andy Toovey again (DoP of ‘Anhedonia’) but he wasn’t available. When I went looking for a new DoP, Oliver’s name came up a few times and he was even recommended by Andy, which I took very seriously. I think he’s exceptionally talented, and the fact he shot, lit and executed what you see on screen with pretty much no crew is testament to his abilities. There were days where it was just me and him figuring out which window to cover and how to hang a light, and there’s not a single shot in this film that didn’t work, that’s entirely down to him.
We had a lot of talks and did a test shoot before we filmed to establish how we wanted to make it look. As I get older I’m more open to suggestions and he made some great ones. I turn up incredibly well prepared but I’m always willing to try something else on the day if it sounds like a better idea. I’ll take credit for shot sizes and staging, but that’s about it. In terms of how it looks, it’s entirely down to Oliver, who will definitely be the next Sean Bobbitt or Robbie Ryan.
PP: You’ve reunited with composer Sebastian Moody for the score on Mother Sky, and I’m pretty sure that he’s scored all of your films to date. I also noted that he was the second person to receive a screen credit after yourself, which is unusual - so you clearly highly value the role music plays your films and seem to have found a key collaborator in Sebastian Moody…
MH: He’s the best.
PP: Yeah, your scores are always terrific. Talk us through your working relationship with him.
MH: He gets early versions of the script from the get-go and we’re always looking to try different approaches, but generally I tend to send a playlist of similar scores or tracks before we shoot. We’re at a really good point now where it’s mostly shorthand. I don’t have to explain too much, if at all. When it comes to the edit, I put placeholders in there, but make it very clear with him I don’t want to step on his toes at all. Every time I get a piece of music from him it’s a gift that could only come from his brain.
PP: Over the course of 8 feature films, how has your approach to music and workflow with Sebastian Moody changed and adapted? And at what point do you bring him on board to work with you?
MH: We’ve tried different approaches. For ‘Narcissist’ and ‘Time and Place’ I asked him to make a lot of the music before the shoot so I could play it on the days we filmed. There’s benefits to this but I think we’ve found a comfortable approach now, which is for him to see the rough cut and get a playlist with ideas along with some notes before we get stuck in. It’s rare that I ask for two or three more attempts at a piece of music he makes. I would say 80% of what you hear, especially in this film, is his first attempt sent to me; that’s how good we’ve got at figuring out how to do what we do.
PP: How important is music to your films and at what stage you yourself begin to conceptualise ideas for the score?
I rely less and less on music as I make more films. I tend to write listening to music but I aim to avoid using it as a crutch. I’m starting to appreciate sound design over music a lot more, but music (especially Baz’s) is half the film for me sometimes. With a project like ‘Anhedonia’ for example, I even told him that the inspiration for the film, the opening in particular, had come from a feeling of inadequacy on my part because his music had been so much better than what I was able to visualise on screen for so long. We’ve now all hit our stride with this film and it’s clicked. I can’t say enough good things about him. Incredibly talented musician. I’ll be working with him for the rest of my life I reckon.
PP: Who are the directors who inspire you?
MH: Where to start. This is harder than the actor question. I think Paul Thomas Anderson is the best living director and I will always be grateful for any film he puts out. Generally speaking though, I tend to look back, because most of these guys figured it out almost a hundred years ago. Max Ophuls, Fritz Lang. I’m a huge fan of the American New Wave and New German Cinema. I can just rattle off some names if that helps though - David Lynch, Kurosawa, Francis Ford Coppola, Fassbinder, Kubrick. Really, the list is endless. And I still have a lot to learn from them.
PP: Do you have any indie film recommendations?
Countless, again. If I can pick one film I want more people to see from recent memory though, it’s ‘The Climb’. Unique and exceptionally well directed comedy from a couple of years ago. Cannot recommend it enough.
PP: Your previous work has all been intimate low budget Indies - do you have any ambition to work on larger scale films?
A bigger budget would be welcomed for sure. Do I have a desire to make franchise films and superhero films? Not at all. I think my ideal would be a budget between £100k-£2m. More people see the film, you still have some freedom to make the film the way you see it without having to worry your career is over if it doesn’t make money (which none of those films do by the way). If that never becomes an option I’ll still happily self-finance each project and keep doing what I’m doing though. It’s too late for me now; I’m obsessed with this thing and I’ll be doing it til I die.
PP: Thanks so much for your time Michael - you’re a true independent, always with a unique vision and it’s fantastic to see your brilliant work reach more and more people each time. Best of luck with the crowdfunder for Mother Sky and the festival run. I can’t wait to see how well it does.
If you’d like to support Michael Henry and his latest film Mother Sky you can head to IndieGoGo to get hold of instant access to stream the movie as well was pre-order the DVD among many other perks.
Links:
IndieGoGo Campaign
Michael’s Twitter
Production Company Website
