My Influences

Star Wars

From a very young age I have always been a Star Wars fan. My favourite film out of them all is The Empire Strikes Back because it's the one that has the biggest impact on me. When I first watched it I thought the ending was insane when Luke finds out Darth Vader is his real father. In my opinion, it's the film where Luke makes the most progress with his Jedi skills. A lot of the film shows Luke being taught the ways of the force by Yoda, who trains Luke in multiple interesting ways. The reason why the Star Wars Franchise is such a big influence to me is that it was a massive part of my childhood. My Dad got me into it as he has also been a big fan of Star Wars from a young age, he remembers watching A New Hope on VHS that many times the ending started wearing out. He's that big of a fan that he also named me after Luke Skywalker. I remember growing up playing with Star Wars toys and watching the films with my Dad. When the new films were released we went to go watch them together even though they weren't as good as the original films. I have now watched most of the Star Wars content released and I can't wait for more stuff to come out.

Damien Chazelle and Whiplash

One of the first films I watched when my interest in films began to grow was Whiplash. It was Damien Chazelle's first feature length film; it stars Miles Teller who plays the student Andrew Neiman and J.K. Simmons who plays the teacher, Terrence Fletcher. The film is about a promising young drummer who enrols at Shaffer's; one of the best music schools in the US, where his dreams of greatness are mentored by an instructor who will stop at nothing to realise a student's potential. The reason why I love this film is how Damien Chazelle tells the story of these 2 characters who seem to have a love- hate relationship between one another. The ending of the film is a really good example of this. Andrew gets expelled from Shaffer's, leading him to getting Fletcher fired because of his teaching methods. A few weeks later, they meet each other in a jazz bar. They have a drink together and Fletcher offers Andrew a role in a band where they are going to be playing the music he learned at Shaffer's. Andrew agrees but when he arrives to perform he finds out Fletcher has stitched him up and they won't be playing the music he knows. Andrew still goes on stage and actually goes rogue performing the music he knows and taking over the band which surprises Fletcher. This leads Fletcher to follow Andrew and conduct the music he is playing. The film looks like it's going to end like this but when Fletcher ends the song Andrew carries on playing, he plays right to the credits performing an insane solo. The ending of the film just shows even though Fletcher teaches his students in strict and absurd ways, they still become great musicians and reach their potential, sometimes even dominating the teacher and going against what they say. I then went on to study Whiplash and Damien in Year 10 and 11 in Film Studies which was really exciting for me as I got to learn more about the film, the characters and Damien Chazelle. A common theme that follows through all of Damien's films is the use of up-beat jazz music and fast whip pans. The use of these really trademark his films and it shows the audience that you are watching one of his films. These are portrayed in Whiplash, La La Land and Babylon. All these films are amazing in my opinion and really inspire me to make films like Damien. He has only released 4 films at the moment but hopefully in the near future he will release many more.

Mafia Films

In the past 2 years I have been interested in the history of the Mafia/Mob and have watched many films and documentaries about them. I would love to make a true story film about a Mobster, I even created a pitch in Film Studies in Year 10 about Albert Anastasia. He was an Italian mobster who had immigrated to the USA and worked his way up the ranks. The film would be called The Mad Hatter which was Alberts nickname in the Mafia. I would also cast Leonardo DiCaprio as the role of Anastasia. The film would end with his assassination and the aftermath of the event. Martin Scorsese is a really good director when it comes to Mafia films. He has directed some of the best like Goodfellas, The Departed, The Irishman and Casino. I personally think Martin Scorsese is the best director when it comes to Mafia films due to the way he tells the story and develops the characters. He also works with Robert De Niro in most of the films which could also be another reason why they are all so good. Using him over and over again in these types of films makes De Niro's performance improve each time as he gets used to the characters he is playing. Martin Scorsese also based these on real experiences, he grew up in Little Italy in New York where a lot of the mobs ran their business. I think Martin Scorsese's Mafia films are the most inspiring and influential films for me. As an aspiring filmmaker I would love to create a Mafia film using Scorsese's style. Some other inspiring Mafia Films not directed by Martin Scorsese are The Godfather 1 and 2, The Untouchables and Donnie Brasco. These are some of my favourites I have watched and I would love to watch many more in the coming years.

Christopher Nolan

One of the most successful directors of this generation, Nolan has directed some of the most mind-bending and insane films you will ever see. All of the films I have seen from him have never disappointed me in the slightest. They all have amazing cinematography, soundtracks and acting. They keep you thinking from start to finish and always leave you flabbergasted, and sometimes very confused. The ideas he comes up with are insane which inspires me to really think outside of the box when coming up with my film ideas. With the partnership of Hans Zimmer and Ludwig Göransson, they have created some amazing music which completely changes the scene you are watching. Nolan's films are an amazing example of showing that music is extremely important when making a film. No music can change the whole mood of the film causing the audience to not react the same way. Nolan has really inspired me to make sure music is always present in a film as it can change the scene completely.