Deva Palmier - 2004 New Film Maker Awards runner up with 'Fishy'.
With the help of the prize money, Deva has gone on to make more films and took part in a scheme where she received mentoring from 'Bend It Like Beckham' writer and director Gurinder Chadha.
"I've recently had an amazing time shadowing Gurinder Chadha shooting Angus, Thongs And Full Frontal Snogging. Last year (2006/07) I was mentored by Gurinder on the Guiding Lights Scheme sponsored by Skillset.
Here Deva tells us how she made 'Fishy' and explains what she's been doing since, there's also some great tips for budding film makers.
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Watch Deva's runner-up film
Q1. What's the story behind 'Fishy', and how did you get funding?
The idea of 'Fishy' is kind of a joke, I wrote it when I was feeling a bit blue and had just split up with my boyfriend. I thought, wouldn't it be better to go out with a goldfish rather than a bloke? I got funding from the London Production Fund which is now Film London - I really tried to put in an application that they just could not turn down...
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Q2. What was the most difficult thing about making Fishy? What problems did you have to overcome?
The most difficult thing was making a polished, high-quality, beautiful film on such a low amount of money. We made a big effort to raise extra money, but a lot of people worked on it as a favour...
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Q3. What was it like to be mentored by Gurinder Chadha?
I knew it was going to be a good scheme so I worked really hard to get on that. We were given a choice of 11 directors to work with, fortunately I'd heard a talk by Gurinder and I really admired her... What's so great about Gurinder is that she's so passionate and positive.
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Q4. How has being runner up in the New Film Makers award affected your career?
It helped massively and it's really lovely winning a prize... For people who are in a hurry, skimming down CV's, to see that you've won a few prizes and you've got the 91Èȱ¬ there is a real bonus. And of course, the prize money has enabled me to shoot another film...
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Q5. What projects are you working on now, and what are your goals for the future?
I was on a writing scheme with 91Èȱ¬ Scotland, I'm working on several scripts including two horror films, and of course I made a film called 'Can you hear me?' with the 91Èȱ¬ prize money... My goal for the future is to make feature films...
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