“All my characters are a mixture of me, the people around me, my friends and family”

by Montse Bru

– What is the most difficult thing about screenwriting?

I’d like to flip this question and say what I love about writing for the screen. And that’s writing. Turning  the computer on in the morning. Mug  of coffee. Music.  Dog asleep. A day ahead of dreaming dreams… I could probably learn to live without the notes and the read-throughs and the Skype calls and the set arguments and reviews and the ratings and the broadcasters. But we’re screenwriters, not poets, and the two states of mind are intrinsically linked.

– Do you think there’s a lack of creativity on television and on the big screen? Do you think there’s an over-reliance on sequels, remakes and adaptations to bring in audiences and make profit?

I honestly can’t remember a time when television – across the world – was more vibrant and challenging and imaginative. Especially long-form series, there are a staggering amount of wonderful shows. And they’re often adult, emotionally and intellectually sophisticated, witty, visual. Cinema, on the other hand, has become like a fairground ride. Big  and  noisy and flash – but about nothing.

– What is the best and worst thing about working with Matthew Graham?

The best thing is Matt’s imagination. It truly knows no bounds, never stops or rests, never gets tired. Endless pours out new ideas and characters and dialogue. He taught me to move away from my comfort zone of realism and embrace the high concept – for which I’ll be forever grateful. The worst  is probably  his  dress sense.

Ashley Pharoah and Matthew Graham

– What experiences from your life influence your characters? How emotionally involved are you with the characters you create?

All my characters are a mixture of me, the people around me, my friends and family. I can’t imagine how it could be any other way. I always try and understand my characters. Not like them, necessarily, but try and understand their motives. We are all of us on a journey, trying to survive and battle through and look for little shards of beauty and meaning – as true for me as my characters.

– You have worked on several successful series with different directors. Which project were you most excited about and why, and which director did you enjoy working with the most?

I’m really enjoying working with Alice Troughton on my latest series for the BBC, “The Living and The Dead”. She is very generous, very open, and I enjoy being on set with her and talking through scenes and images. She makes me feel like I’m back at Film School again, with roles a bit looser, everyone  feeling  confident to offer  ideas and suggestions.

– You once said that you were all very excited about your new project “The Living and The Dead” in the same way you once were about “Life On Mars” and “Ashes To Ashes”. How is this series going to differ from other television ideas that are also based on supernatural phenomena and the horror genre?

“The Living and The Dead” isn’t really a horror series. It’s more ghostly, atmospheric, eerie. It’s really a love story, about this young couple who leave Victorian London to make a new start for themselves in an isolated valley in Somerset, in the west of England. This is the area I grew up in and where I live again, so writing about the people and landscapes and myths of my home has been wonderful. And I get to sleep in my own bed.

– What should the film/ tv industry be doing for screenwriters that it isn’t?

The question of how you educate screenwriters has always fascinated me. When I started out I think Syd Fields was the only book on screenwriting you  could buy in an English bookshop – now there are hundreds! The industry that has sprung up, feeding on wannabe writers, alarms me sometimes. The festivals and gurus and books and reading schemes and competitions. If I was starting out now I’d definitely go the short film route.

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ASHLEY PHAROAH
Screenwriter and TV Producer

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