SFW 2016 Café Cinéaste: The Screenwriter

VICKY SWAIN

Southampton Film Week continued with a special screenwriter’s edition of the Café Cinéaste masterclasses held in quirky theatre venue The Stage Door on Tuesday evening. This event turned the spotlight on writer, script supervisor and co-ordinator of The Hampshire Picture Co., Caroline Sax, with an in-depth interview by  Darren Kerr, Head of Film at Southampton Solent University.

Proceedings kicked off with a screening of Caroline’s impressive showreel, which included a wide range of feature films she had worked on such as SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE (1998) and RESIDENT EVIL (2002). The discussion explored her career trajectory from just a “young girl who caught the film bug” to a script supervisor with experience working on over 40 feature films. She spoke of her brief time on Marvel’s GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY (2014), emphasising the importance of preparation for any role. 

During the conversation, it was particularly interesting to learn of how she became interested in the film industry. Living next to Stanley Kubrick, bumping into celebrities and stepping onto the set of 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY (1968) was described as a “fairyland”. However, the reality of working in such a harsh industry was discussed, indicating the need to toughen up. Scriptwriting theory was also debated with Caroline’s own personal recommendation being John Yorke’s book INTO THE WOODS: A FIVE ACT JOURNEY INTO STORY (2013) and the talk concluded with a revealing assessment of the future of women in film production. This masterclass offered a unique opportunity for hopeful scriptwriters to gain a invaluable insight into the world of screenwriting. 
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Café Cineaste took place on Tuesday 8 November as part of Southampton Film Week 2016.