I Anna Director Barnaby Southcombe talks about the film-making process

I Anna Director Barnaby Southcombe talks about the film-making process

I Anna stars Charlotte Rampling and Gabriel Byrne as a pair of people locked in an investigation into a murder. She knows something and Gabriel Byrne's the cop who's investigating. But the pair are mysteriously drawn together. Director Barnaby Southcombe took some time to answer our questions about the film and the film-making process.

You’d been working as a director on a fair few TV series, how difficult was the transition to film? 

The way the film industry works, your TV experience doesn’t seem to count for anything. You may as well have worked as a butcher before – So I was grateful I managed to make this. I didn’t realise how long the process would be though. 4 years from start to finish and it’s still going!

What were the obstacles you faced and how did you overcome them?

Charlotte broke her wrist 3 days before we started filming and turned up for final costume fittings with a huge plaster cast. I had a choice: push the film and claim insurance but risk not getting all the actors back together again or go away and see if I could incorporate it into the story. In the end, I was a little upset that I hadn’t thought of it myself as I thought it added an interesting layer.

I’m imagining the biggest obstacle would have been getting your mother, Charlotte Rampling....?

I thought it would be a shoo­‐in, seeing as you know, we’re like... whanau, but she turned me down when I sent her a short treatment: thought the character was too dark. So I had to go away with my tail between my legs and actually write the script before she saw what it was I was trying to do. Thankfully she saw the light then.

How awkward were some of the grittier, darker scenes to direct with her?

Ah, she’s a pro. She’s done it before. I was the one who was beet-­‐red in the corner not knowing what to say. Her and Ralph Brown were great. They just took things in hand and said “right, shall we do this?”

What was her feedback like on set?

She’s very trusting in her directors. It takes her a while to gauge whether she’s going to agree to a film but once she’s made that decision she hands over responsibility– it’s kind of liberating for her because then she’s prepared to go anywhere emotionally, there’s no safety net. It’s what makes her still such an exciting actress. So it’s a very collaborative relationship.

A noir thriller is quite a debut – and with quite an auspicious cast as well?

Noir isn’t what we necessarily associate with British films and so I was keen to set the story here. The book on which this is based is set in New York and I wanted to bring a European flavour to this familiar hard boiled scenario. I knew casting Charlotte and Gabriel would bring this feeling of displacement, as they are more familiar in French and American cinema. I liked the idea of these two lost souls, searching for love in this foreign looking city and finding each other.

It’s rare to see an older cast these days in a film like this?

Yes that’s true, and certainly it was when I was trying to pull the film together, but now it seems films are starting to come out with older cast and finding an audience too, which is great. Marigold Hotel and Quartet are testaments to that. The baby boomers are such an iconic and successful generation, whose cinematic legacy in front and behind the camera is so defining, who wouldn’t want to make films with them?

What was the best part of shooting this?

The German catering. We had to shoot a few of the interiors of the movie in Germany for financing reasons and the on-set food was simply the best I have ever had.

Looking back on the film, what would you do differently and what did you do that actually surprised you?

Sounds a bit smug but I wouldn’t change anything. I’m sure this film has many weaknesses but I like them as they are. I’d like to think I would direct this very differently if I had another crack at it but only because I wouldn’t want to repeat myself. I hope I’ve learnt a lot. It’s too early to tell. It’s certainly been a hell of an emotional ride.

What’s next for you?I’m writing at the moment. I’ll let you know when I finish... promise.

I Anna is out now on DVD from Transmission Films.