Stop/Eject Cast and Crew Screening

Me, Georgina Sherrington, Amelia Edwards, Therese Collins and Oliver Park at the screening
Me, Georgina Sherrington, Amelia Edwards, Therese Collins and Oliver Park at the screening. Photo: Denis Baudin

Last weekend Stop/Eject, two years in the making, got its first proper screening at the Mac in Birmingham, to an invited audience of cast, crew and sponsors.

The film had been in postproduction for fifteen months – as long as my feature Soul Searcher. With every film I make I want the quality to improve, which means more time, and I want to do fewer jobs myself and turn them over to talented specialists, which again means more time because they’re all fitting it in as a favour around paying work.

The DVDs and Blu-rays arrived in the nick of time.
The DVDs and Blu-rays arrived in the nick of time.

So it might have taken a while, but it was worth it, and it seems that everyone who came along on Saturday agreed. Those of you cast/crew/sponsors who have a Blu-ray copy will be able to see the huge difference wrought by editor Miguel Ferros versus my original cut.

But even since picture lock back in January the film has come on leaps and bounds. The actors were all convinced that the edit had changed since they saw it at the ADR session, but actually all that had changed was the soundtrack. Henning Knoepfel’s sound design and Scott Benzie’s beautiful music, both delicately mixed by Jose Pereira, bring a whole new dimension to the film. Again, if you have the DVD or Blu-ray, be sure to check out the Superior Sound Reproduction featurette for a glimpse into the transformative process of postproduction audio.

Georgina Sherrington. Photo: Paul Bednall www.paulbednallphotography.co.uk
Georgina Sherrington. Photo: Paul Bednall www.paulbednallphotography.co.uk

The day itself was really nice, with most of the key people attending and everyone having a good time. After the screening many of us went on to Fletcher’s Bar and Restaurant to drink, chat and gather around a TV to watch Record & Play: The Making of Stop/Eject.

As usual with these events there is a tinge of sadness. Will I ever see some of these lovely people again? Will we get to work together in the future? With all the good will going round at a premiere, you want to start shooting a new film with the same team the next day, but of course it never works out that way.

Anyway, thanks once again to everyone who came and everyone who supported Stop/Eject. Venice Film Festival has already turned down the film, but there are plenty more to enter and you’ll all get to see it eventually on the festival circuit or (ultimately) online.

Stop/Eject Cast and Crew Screening