Industry: An Interview with Lee O'Connor

Please tell us about the projects you worked on before making ‘Industry’. How did you start, and how did you learn to make films?

My previous projects ‘The Brightest Star’ and ‘Solo’ were both short films. Both of which were written and produced by me. I didn’t direct the brightest star but I did direct Solo. I have always been in love with films and always knew I wanted to make my own projects some day. So I invested in myself. I am a self taught screenwriter and filmmaker. I have spent years learning and continuing to perfect my craft. I have an in-depth understanding of all the elements of production. I feel it is always best to keep improving, making mistakes and see what methods work for me. For me, I just picked up a camera and started filming. I think just doing this is the best way to learn.

Tell us about ‘Industry’. How do you describe it?

When writing ‘Industry’ I wanted to incorporate a number of creative industries in one. The story shows creative industries such as modelling, photography, clubland, theatre and film. All of these industries I love spliced not only in the story but the actual production. ‘Industry’ is also quite daring, showcasing the verbal, physical and emotional abuse that can happen in any of these industries. In a way, it's actually a middle finger to those industry professionals who think it's ok to treat their talents in this way just because they are hired for the job. I would like to think the audience watching our film would evaluate how they treat someone on set, on a photoshoot or just in society. Egos can get in the way and this is not acceptable. I’m not saying everyone is this way in their chosen field but it is happening. On the flip side of that coin, there are many individuals in these creative industries who are not so horrible. We see in this story that you can surround yourself with professionals who lift you and respect you and that you are able to make a living from your craft without some level of abuse.

Please tell us about your favorite filmmakers.

I am huge fans of Terrence Malick, Vincent Gallo, Luc Besson, Nicholas Windin Refn to name but a few. Anyone really who tells an authentic story and stays away from the traditional trends and formulas of visual storytelling.

If you were given a good budget, what would be your ideal project?

I have a feature project I am currently working on. Even if I had a larger budget I would always stay away from green screens, VFX or anything that just came across as fake. For me filmmaking is about realness and authenticity so not much would really change in the story I would tell, perhaps just better equipment.

Describe how you would ensure that production is on schedule. What steps would you take?

Always work with people you can trust and rely on. For me, staying on schedule is all about communication. Understand all the elements of the production so you can understand how long things take or have an empathetic view on the person doing cinematography or sound etc. But first and foremost, have a solid plan before you even start shooting, lay down the ground work first and have contingency plans in place for anything that may go wrong. If this does happen, be quick to act as more often than not, things don’t always go to plan.

What was the hardest part of making ‘Industry’.

For me, it was the scenes in the studio, which was 70% of the film. We had one day to do these scenes with our lead role Oleksandra Kircheva doing 4 costume changes in such a short time frame. She nailed it. We also had issues with sound as the studio was going through a refurbishment on the floor below us so we had to do our best to work around that, so editing the sound was really quite difficult because of this.

If possible, tell us about your next work. What plans do you have for your future work?

I am currently filming my next project which is called ‘Bound’. It is currently filming in Berlin. Not to give too much away but the story is set in a modern dystopian world. This is all I can share at this point.