We chat to Nottingham-based actor and director, Alfie Rowley-Stone, about his new debut short film Time Keeps Ticking and how he’s helping to bring together young people interested in breaking into the film industry...
As a result of the long-lasting effects of the Coronavirus pandemic in the creative arts field, Alfie Rowley-Stone decided to take his career into his own hands and create A9 Films production company. We find out more about his creative process, his recent short film release and what’s next for him and A9 Films...
Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
I’m 22, from Nottingham and I’ve been acting at Inspire Academy since I was about twelve or thirteen. We do a play every year and as time has gone on I’ve fallen more in love with acting and drama.
When I was about seventeen or eighteen, I started doing auditions for professional roles. I was doing quite well and was on the course to do a few different parts. But then COVID came and made it really challenging. There was a good couple years where not much was happening because all auditions stopped.
Coming out of COVID, I was looking to get a new agent and do more auditions. The problem was that all the agents were looking after their own actors. New people couldn’t really join because they wanted to look after the people they already had. So I just thought that I’d do it myself and I wrote this film back in March 2022.
Why was A9 Films production company created?
I was never really totally interested in writing, but I did have an interest in directing. Basically, I just wanted a place to put all the films I was going to make. That’s really what A9 was for.
There’s also a lot of people like me, and I want to make films with people that have all different skill sets to help achieve their dream. I’d like to bring together actors, writers, directors, cinematographers, sound engineers – everyone that wants to add to their portfolios. That’s what I’m trying to build.
I want people to see that you can do this on a really small budget. You don’t have to spend millions
What motivated you to create your short film, Time Keeps Ticking?
I just wanted to start writing something. Around the time of writing it, I’d been let down on a role I’d be given and an agent had just left me disappointed. That’s when I started penning this and I just thought I’d go with myself. I love films based on relationships and emotions as opposed to proper set-up storylines. I find the beauty through that, so that’s where the idea is from for the three friends of this film.
The camera’s handheld because I wanted it to feel like the audience is the fourth person in the friendship group. The motivation was that I wanted to make a film in the style that I like with people that I like.
How did you go about shooting this?
I already knew who I wanted to be in the film. But I’ve also got a friend who’s done a few projects. I watched one of them and the cameraman from that film, Ben Collin, I just knew straight away that I wanted to get in touch with him first.
Like I said, I wanted it handheld to feel like you were there with us. This comes out especially in the car scene where you are going from one person to the other, and that’s basically one shot from getting into the car to the end of the film.
Is there a message that you want the audience to take away from the film?
I’m not big on films with messages attached to them, so there’s no real meaning behind the film. What I want to achieve from it is that I want to work with more people on the next films. I want to meet new people to work with on another project and I want a lot of people to see it. I’m doing a family and friends screening and then it’s being released to everyone else this week.
I want people to see that you can do this on a really small budget, about £400. You don’t have to spend millions. I’m proud of the way it’s turned out for that money.
What’s next for you?
There’s another one coming. I’ve got a good friend of mine who goes to my drama group as well, he’s brilliant so I wanted to do something with him. There’s another friend who lives in London now and he’s doing his own thing, so the three of us are getting together.
There’s also another film which will be a bit more story-led this time.
Watch Time Keeps Ticking on YouTube and catch up with A9 Films on Instagram
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