A film student drop-out who made a movie to get over splitting up with his girlfriend has become the youngest film-maker to be accepted by the Cannes Festival.
Jake Scott, who is 18, set out to make Downright Disco, a black and white film, to explore the first and last days of his relationship with his now ex-girlfriend Alice.
Speaking to a Sunday newspaper, he said the film was just to “get things out of his system,” explaining it as a “no-budget” instead of a “low-budget” production.
On a whim, he reportedly sent the 15-minute flick to officials at Cannes, and was astounded to learn last week of their plan to screen it in a showcasing of new talent.
Perhaps fortunately for Alice, Mr Scott’s film is only “semi-autobiographical” and he assured is “much more light-hearted,” than his actual experience.
“The film is based on something that actually happened to me so it was horrible sometimes having to deal with a subject that was so close to me,” he told the Mail on Sunday.
“But at the same time it felt amazing to put so much of me into a piece, and having it shown at Cannes just makes it all worthwhile.”
The screening is more remarkable because the ex-cameraman for corporate videos failed to get a degree in film, because he pulled out of what he said was a course unsuitable for the work he wanted.
Scott’s experience with film caught on camera dates back ten years, when, as an eight-year-old, he joined a photography club and developed a love of cameras.
Having learnt about exposure and film processing, he got into skateboarding as a teenager only to realise his skill actually lay in filming as he boarded, rather than pulling any stunts.
May 19, 2008
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