Getting to Know Bristol: Shunk Films
Posted on: 08 Nov 2016Cousins Sam Dawe and Paul Holbrook established Shunk Films in Bristol on the back of their first movie collaboration in 2012. Here they talk to 365Bristol about their success in the four years subsequent, and the experience of doing what they love in the city that they're from.
When did you found Shunk Productions?
Paul: We started collaborating on our very first project together around 2012 just as Sam was finishing up uni and as a result ‘Shunk Films’ was born and we’ve been producing content ever since. Our first collaborative project was a 6-part comedy-drama called ‘Gwentboys’ which we’d still love to make one day. It progressed to the final read stage of the BBC Writer's Room but unfortunately fell away at the last hurdle. It’s still one of the best thing’s we’ve ever written in my opinion.
Are you both from Bristol?
Sam: We're both local. We grew up in Hartcliffe and both went to what was then Withywood School, I now live in Clifton and Paul lives in Whitchurch. Bristol's a big part of our filmmaking identity and we'd love to see it become even more of a creative hub than it already is.
Tell us about your business.
'Shunk Films' is a Bristol-based production company made up of creative partners and cousins Sam Dawe and Paul Holbrook - two screenwriters turned filmmakers. Both avid movie lovers, in 2011, we took our love of the medium to the next logical step and jumped into the world of spec-screenwriting. A couple screenwriting courses later and we were both hooked. After three years of learning and honing our craft and writing speculative feature-length screenplays and TV serials - both as a partnership and on solo projects - we decided it was high time we moved into self-production. We set about writing our debut short film, Porphyrophobia - a surreal comedy-drama about a troubled young man with a strange phobia and his pandering mother. With the film done and dusted towards the end of 2013 and with our overdrafts thoroughly pillaged, we focused our efforts on writing a series of shorter, more broadly comedic shorts entitled, The Wrinklefist Files which were released online throughout 2014 and went on to be screened at several film festivals worldwide picking up plenty of awards along the way.
2015 saw us jump back into narrative storytelling however with the ambitious A Girl and Her Gun which was has been very well received and has screened at prestigious film festivals around the world including the bafta-qualifying Aesthetica Film Festival and London Short Film Festival. We then released further comedy shorts throughout 2016 including Lie Hard, The Barry Gibb, Ectoplasm and Daddy Cool further strengthening our growing portfolio and audience reach. Our screenwriting portfolio is ever-growing too and we have a packed roster of projects to adapt ahead of us which we are working through one-by-one with the ultimate aim being to eventually write and direct our first feature film.
We realised early on through our brief involvement in our chosen industry that there was a wealth of 'low-budget filmmakers' all talking about what projects they were going to write, going to produce but, of that number, very few actually backed up their claims and did the hard work necessary to put a quality project together. We wanted to be different. We pride ourselves as a filmmaking partnership on productivity. We do what we say we'll do. We set clear goals and we commit to making the projects we set out to - come rain or shine (usually rain). We take a great deal of care producing micro-budget work we’re passionate about to a high standard that we're proud of. The outstanding aim of Shunk Films is to entertain our audience; whether that be telling colourful and engaging stories or simply making people laugh. We deliver on our promise to work hard in our chosen industry and will eventually move on to feature films. As a partnership we are always in 'pre-production' and have lots of exciting projects on the horizon, all of which we look forward to sharing with you as each project progresses from script to screen.
You’ve been nominated for a number of awards over the last year and accepted into lots of big film festivals – what’s the highlight been?
Paul: It’s difficult to pick out just one highlight in regards to festival acceptances and nominations etc, for us the outstanding highlight is always seeing all the hard work of our cast and crew who often work for little or no money getting the recognition they deserve and to eventually see our projects find an audience.
Sam: It was great to be selected for ASFF and LSFF too though, meaning our latest film A Girl and Her Gun qualifies for entry into the BAFTAs. It's also really nice to see your film on the big screen alongside some really great shorts.
What sort of film projects have you been involved with recently?
A Girl and Her Gun has just been released online via FilmShortage and is still enjoying a successful festival run, we’re also close to releasing our final mini-short of the year called Daddy Cool too. Then we’re back in the office knuckling down for a heavy stint of developing and pre-production on the next batch of ideas hopefully ready to start production next year. We have three projects at an early stage of development at the moment; Beast - a Bristol-set adventure-drama, think Shane Meadows meets Stephen King, Cell - a micro short with a sci-fi twist, penned by pro-screenwriter Alex Hollister and to be produced in collaboration with Sascha May Productions and Stakowski and Montero - a character-based comedy short which will be a collaboration with local radio personality Neil Maggs of Street2Elite Media.
Are there any other short film companies/directors we should keep an eye on?
Paul: I’m a fan of Matt Harris-Freeth, a writer-director who makes films with heart, flair and bags of personality. I think he will go on to make it as a big genre filmmaker one day. His films make me laugh, feel nostalgic and have a colourful energy about them that makes them feel a bit special. Keep and eye out for his next short A Perfect Monster which looks like it’s going to be wonderful. Another writer-director I love is Ben Steiner (The Stomach) – a guy that really knows how to get under the skin and create dark films with a unique style. There are tons of great film-makers in Bristol producing content on a budget too, to name just a few; Oliver Park, Graeme Willetts, Michael Morris, Gabriella Staniszewska. We pride ourselves on being ambitious and pro-active and several fall into that same category too I think – the ambition and ‘get-it-done’ attitude of Paul Dudbridge, Simon Pearce and their team is a perfect example, showcased by their sci-fi web-series ‘Horizon’ which I think should serve as a great example to film-makers out there who think big ideas can’t be realised on a low budget. Bristol is brimming with talented people who are passionate about film, so get out there, collaborate and get things done!
How have you found the reception to A Girl and Her Gun?
It goes without saying that A Girl and Her Gun has not only been our most successful film to date, but it is also the film we are proudest of and feel serves as an example of the kind of films we want to make moving forward. Seeing and hearing people’s positive reactions to it really reignites our verve for what we do and we couldn’t be surrounded by a more supportive group of peers in Bristol.
Sam: Most of all though, it makes you really keen to get to work on the next thing. The lessons you take from each new bit of work you do give you a real passion to get it better next time. As soon as one thing is finished I'm always chomping at the bit to get on with something new.
Where is your favourite spot for a drink in Bristol?
Paul: Well, my local is the Shield and Dagger in Whitchurch, so I suppose that’s where you’re most likely to find me with a beer in hand – cheap food too. If I’m venturing outside of Whitchurch though, the greatest place in Bristol, bar none, is The Fleece for me – music, personality, history and atmosphere. There’s an awesome Britpop night that goes down there, I think once a month, it’s put on by superstar Bristol DJ and all-round awesome film-crew bloke Matt Pugh. Check it out.
Sam: My local is the Alma Tavern on Alma Vale. They do an awesome pub quiz and the staff are cool. I also love the Christmas Steps pub.
Where do you see Shunk Productions in five years?
Paul: The outstanding aim is to produce our first feature film, so in five years I would hope we had already done that, or were at least knee-deep in pre-production. Funding would be nice too. At the very least I hope that our standards haven’t dropped.
Sam: I'd really like to have a body of work that I'm proud of so I just hope that we get better with everything we do. Funding would also be great just for the recognition and validation that comes with it.
What would you change if you were Mayor of Bristol for the day?
Sam: I'd try to inject some outlets for creativity into areas where the kids don't have those resources. Places like Hartcliffe, Knowle West, Southmead and others don't have access to any avenues for young people to learn creative arts. So you end up missing out on the creative voices that would come out of those places and our culture is poorer for it. I grew up with youth clubs where the staff engaged with you intellectually and summer trips put on by local community groups that grow your confidence but those things barely exist today.
Paul: I’d probably hide in the office all day until it was all over. I don’t like to say no to people, so I’d probably approve all kinds of tin-pot ideas and waste all the council’s money on a something silly.
For more information on Shunk films, visit www.shunkfilms.co.uk and give them a follow on Facebook and Twitter.