SYNOPSIS
Joe, a young musician from Glasgow, is extremely passionate about a band he has set up with two of his best friends from College - David and Michael. Being the drummer of the band, Joe is constantly exposed to loud noises but the adrenalin of performing distracts him from the pain that this is causing him. When driving home after a gig with his mum, their car is hit by a lorry from the side and they are flipped into the air. Surviving with only a few cuts and bruises, they are both grateful to be alive but do not realise the drastic impact that this event will have on them for the rest of their lives. A few weeks pass and Joe starts to notice a high pitched noise everywhere he goes. He is unable to concentrate at college and cannot perform to his usual standard during band practice. Joe is a shy person and does not want to show that he is in pain so he decides to keep it to himself. His friends and family become more and more worried about him but since David and Michael both have their own issues (Michael is trying to find a way to tell his family that he is gay and David's abusive stepdad has just been let out of jail), their efforts to help him are very slim. Frustrated by how much this is ruining his life, Joe runs away from home but when the high pitched noise appears again, it all becomes too much for him. After coming into contact with a deaf veteran, Joe realises that there may be a way for him to overcome his issues and he eventually goes on an adventure of self discovery and creative realisation.
PRODUCERS STATEMENT
As the writer/director of this project, my follow up role as producer meant that I was keen to focus mainly on the casting aspect. It was extremely important to me that whoever was cast for each role must be passionate about the subject matters that are being tackled. When Mandy first applied for the role of Freya, I was certain that I wanted to take her on for this role as no one else could have possible stood out more. Not only was she a brilliant actor but being partially deaf herself meant that she was able to connect to her on screen son on a completely other level than what I could have ever imagined. Chris’s first audition for the character of Joe also swept me off my feet. He had not played drums for over two year but his sheer determination to get back out there and learn how to play again simply for the purpose of being apart of this project amazed me. As for Michael and Jack, they are both very cheeky characters and were a joy to have on set, their ability to switch from emotion to emotion is exactly what I was looking for and their own perceptions of the characters were great. Victor is a YouTuber and has made many video for the BBC talking about his change from female to male. His presence in the transgender and gay community meant that he was connected to the character of Jason from the very start. He understood how important it is to be yourself and was very excited to share his story with even more people. As for all the other actors, there determination to be a part of this project and their inspiring acting abilities is what made me chose them for their individual roles. I could not have wished for a better cast to work with on this project.
My main role as producer on this project was to create a realistic budget breakdown of all the resources that would be needed. Even though PAUSE is a low budget production, SING wanted to ensure that this would not affect its employees negatively which is why its rates conform to the sums recommended by BECTU. The minimalist and contemporary set design and costumes definitely alleviated SING’s expenses, since the material was easily accessible and reasonably priced. There are a couple of scenes that required special attention, as well as peculiar makeup and props towards which a fair amount of the budget was allocated. As a result of a small-scale cast and crew, transport expenses were also limited, and the location owners’ were willing to accommodate SING’s requests. The plan was to promote PAUSE through local businesses, while SING provided content to advertise these venues too. Part of the marketing budget was reserved to social media ads, which are crucial nowadays. Thanks to an efficient and time-saving schedule, production days were limited to four, including three days of post-production and an extra day available for re-shootings. SING’s priority was to ensure the well-being of its cast and crew, therefore extensive catering was provided and the necessary liability insurance was purchased. The cast comprised novice actors, which allowed SING to contain above-the-line costs. Quite a few helpful locals agreed to volunteer to appear as extras. Equipment hire constituted a significant part of the budget, which was necessary to craft a high-quality product. SING also destined a relatively substantial sum to savings that could be accessed in case overtime occurred, as well as other unforeseen circumstances.
WRITER/DIRECTOR STATEMENT
PAUSE is the pilot episode of a television series which follows three different characters on three different journeys through there teenage years. The main character, Joe, is a drummer in a band who starts to lose his hearing. The thought of not being able to perform or listen to music again is truly heartbreaking for him. He goes through many struggles and tries and shove it to the back of his mind but the high pitched noise keeps coming back and he soon realises that his life is about to take a dramatic turn. David is the bass guitarist in the band and even though Joe’s story is the main one that we focus on, we also show the struggles in David’s life as his mum’s ex boyfriend (who was extremely abusive to her in the past) is let out of jail and heads straight to her house. The guitarist and main singer in the band, Michael, is hiding his sexuality from the rest of the group as he is scared that they will treat him differently. We quickly learn that Michael has already slept with another guy but it is very clear to see that this is something that he does not want anyone else to find out about.
The pilot episode simply introduces us to these characters and their storylines. My reason for making a series is because I know that all these issues are not something that can be covered in 30 minutes. The intricacy of how each character feels is very important to me as I wanted the audience to feel the same way as they do. There are many people in this world who suffer with these issues on a daily basis which is why my aim was not to offend anyone but simply to raise awareness on their behalf and show that they are not alone. Even though the pilot episode aims to be very hard hitting and focuses mainly on the negative aspects of all these situations, the rest of the series delves into how you can work around them and what changes you can make in your life to regain a positive mindset. For example we will go on to explore how Joe will still be able to listen to music through sight and touch.
Music is a very strong medium that can be felt through your full body so just because you lose your sense of hearing, it does not mean that you cannot still hear. I first began exploring the issue of hearing impairments in 2016 when I was studying for a Baccalaureate in Expressive Arts. I had decided to tackle the issue of deaf individuals in the music industry because my piano teacher at the time, Meg, was partially deaf. It always fascinated me how she was able to hear every single note that was played however when you were having a conversation with her, she could barely understand what you were talking about. After doing a small amount of research it made me more excited to explore this subject even further. I decided to create a short drama performance to showcase the work I had done but I did not think it would be right for me to leave it there. I then went to college to study media and communications and for my graded unit, I created a script which primary tackled the issue of hearing impairments. This is where the character of Joe McNeil was born. Throughout the development process of these two projects, I got to meet and speak to a number of different individuals with experience in the industry. Dame Evelyn Glennie agreed to do an interview with me and after talking about my ideas and the different experiences she has had, I was certain that I needed to make a television series around this subject matter.
Sexuality and domestic violence are topics that are covered more often in the media than hearing impairments. However, in some cases they are still considered taboo subjects and some people shy away from delving deeply into them. Being a straight person from a loving family, these are not issues that I have tackled myself however, I have witnesses some of my closest friends do so. I wanted to use this opportunity to educate both myself and the audience on these issues so that there are more people in the world able to help those in need.
As for the characters in the series, Mrs. Durum might not seem like one who stands out among the rest however, she is one of the most important characters to me. Being fascinated by the expressive arts when I was at school meant that I wanted to spend almost all of my time in the music and drama classrooms. There were two teachers from each of these departments, who were always extremely negative about the work produced by pupils and who personally made me dislike going to school. Suffering from anxiety already made me feel like I was going to throw up or pass out every time I got up in the morning, but the thought of going into a place were I was going to be shouted at for no reason and told that my work was not good enough, made me feel ten times worse. Mrs. Durum’s personality is a mixture of both of these teachers and the way the pupils in the class feel will reflect on how they made me feel. I want to show that she might make her students feel worthless in her class but they have much bigger problems outside of this which is why they should not let it affect them as much as I did.
The use of drum sticks as a symbol of Joe's personality is something that I felt very strongly about from the beginning. There are moments throughout the series were certain characters bring up subjects that have been secretly mentioned before and either have a political context or a personal one that only my closest friends and family would understand. As for the drumsticks however, they can be seen in every single scene (whether that be hidden in the corner of a picture, or sitting on the edge of a desk). The idea behind this is to show that music is what makes up Joe’s entire life and he is trapped by it. The use of colours is also something that is personally quite important to me. Ever since I was a child my favourite colour was orange and my twin sisters favourite colour was blue. The main colours used to light each scene in this television series are orange and blue. I wanted to create the illusion that the three band members are like family to one another and as these are colours that I associate most with my family, that is why I decided to make them the main inspiration for the overall colour palette.
It is important to me that everyone in the creative industries supports each other. This is why I wanted to reach out to local venues and local bands to work together on this project. When talking to individuals from either of these places, I was able to see the positive mindset and determination of certain individuals who are eager to succeed in their industry. There are always times in people's lives where they have an amazing idea, they think about it for a while and then they let it go because they do not think it is possible. I done that for a while, but then I thought; “what if I could actually do this.” And that was the birth of PAUSE.
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