Sean Durkin
Sean Durkin burst on the directing scene when he made his feature film debut with Martha Marcy May Marlene.
With his brand new project Southcliffe, we see him step into television for the first time as this new four-part drama explores themes of tragedy, grief and redemption.
We caught up with the director to chat about the new series, what drew him to the project and what lies ahead.
- Southcliffe is a new four-part drama heading to Channel 4 this summer so can you tell me a bit about it?
It is about a small-market town that suffers from a spree killing. It is about the people in the town who lose loved ones, and it explores stages of their grief.
- So where did this project start for you and what was it about the script that really grabbed your attention?
I had met Peter Carlton, the producer, about a year earlier, and he had mentioned that was working on something with Tony Grisoni. He described it to me, and it sounded very interesting.
I had seen the Red Riding trilogy and thought that that was the kind of writing that I could really do something exciting with. So the two things were very appealing. I waited for a year for the scripts to be ready, and then I read them.
Even without the event of the killing I still felt that the characters were so rich that you could make a movie or a series about them just exploring their lives and what they are going through.
- After making a couple of shorts and a feature film this is your first foray into TV, so how did you find that whole experience?
To me, there is no difference. With a show likes this, there was never any difference to making a movie, to be honest. I don’t really see a difference between television and film; I guess that the only difference is where it is seen first.
So I never treated it any differently to making a movie and so there was no difference in the approach for me.
- Rory Kinnear, Sean Harris, Shirley Henderson and Eddie Marsan are just some of the names on a fantastic cast list so can you tell me a bit about the casting process? What were you looking for when you were casting certain roles?
They are an amazing group of actors. I don’t really say what I am looking for as I am really open when I start casting.
I really do like to trust the casting director; Shaheen Baig was on board for this project, and she was just wonderful at bringing the right people in.
I don’t really do auditions, I would rather meet people. And rather than saying ‘I want a character to be this or that’ it is more about getting a feeling for the actors, and if I can see them in the role or not.
- Many of the cast members in the series are British so how familiar were you with some of their work?
Quite familiar, I had seen a couple of things that each person had done. I like that it was all knew to me, and I didn't have too much idea about other things that they had done.
- How collaborative a process was it between yourself and the actors as you were developing these characters? Are you quite a collaborative filmmaker?
Yeah, very. I am very open to... I believe in understanding the person that you are casting, understanding what they are going to bring to the role and then letting them do that. From there I just try to guide the performance how I can.
I am very collaborative between myself and the actors when we discuss how to approach a scene, and I am always interested in their thoughts on it. We also discuss what dialogue was can lose; I am always looking to say less. So there is a lot of back and forth.
- This series explores themes such as tragedy, grief and redemption so what was it about these ideas that really interested you?
The core comes from the fear of losing loved ones, and that is an overwhelming human fear. I didn’t realise this at the time, but you explore it to almost comprehend it.
Events like this are so difficult to comprehend, and you can’t imagine what it would he like if it happened to you. So it is almost like you are trying to understand it better.
- I know that the series hasn't been aired yet but have you been able to gauge any response to far?
Everything so far has been great. Everyone who has seen it has responded very strongly to it. I set out, and I think we all set to out, to create a very truthful exploration of this topic and find something that is very honest and true when dealing with grief and loss.
The reaction so fair does seem to suggest that we have achieved that, and this is very encouraging; for me that is the most important thing.
- Now that you have had a taste for television can you see yourself taking on more TV projects in the future?
Absolutely. I believe in the script and creating a script that is right for whatever outlet. I don’t think that this would have been a ninety-minute film, but I think over four forty seven minute episodes that is the right length for this topic.
If you have something that can be explored in sixty minutes, then you should explore it in sixty minutes, and if you can explore it in two hours then you should explore it in two hours. Whether that puts the material in television or cinema that doesn't really matter.
For me, it is all about finding good writing and treating that as its own thing without defining what it should be.
- You made your feature-film debut last year with Martha Marcy May Marlene it did so well on the festival circuit and with the critics so were you expecting the response that the film got?
I don’t think you can very expect a good response; you can hope for a good response. I don’t think that you can do anything by focus on making the movie that you want to make and follow.
If you follow your heart and your gut and make something that you believe in then I think that there will be people that respond to it; you never know how many that is going to be. All you can do is what you feel is the best thing.
(Laughs) Yeah, I am working on a few projects at the moment but nothing has been lined up just yet.
Southcliffe is released on DVD 26th August.