Thursday 17 November 2011

"Grass Roots" - The Story Thus Far.

Yesterday we received the best news of The JOB's last two years. If you don't know, follow the facebook link here and like our page. Believe me, you will not be disappointed. 

The glass is so full, it's over flowing. 

The void that has been present on the void has been filled on the Facebook page however, with very little to talk about, I have been focusing on the other projects I have had on the slate. Now, with the news that has come through, it feels like time to reflect on the story thus far.

Between myself, Ed and Adam including every one else, we have not felt so much elation over the recent news. 

Little did we know that we'd be in this kind of position when we all met in Borders on Buchanan Street (a store now defunct) to discuss a potential film project within he final weeks of that summer in 2009. Borders Costa became the recognizable safe haven where I would  I remember from the pages of notes I wrote down wet with the tears of laughter that permanently hurt me for the remainder of the day. Stories that were so pitch black dark, appealing to my own sense of humour, they had to be told / shown in one respect or another.

Designed as a feature film venture, Bourac (originally entitled Arc-Angels), was a 100-page script, taking a selection of the stories and giving it a sense of structure. More as an exercise for myself in long-form writing, we had organised a read-through, with a selection of actors and my own journalist friend, Mark, to hear how the script read. Potentially the best moment at that time that cemented it's future as a TV series. 

A year later, of writing, of filming and organising, we have found ourselves, with the guidance of some very special individuals, in the position of professionally producing the series. Beginning with the pilot obviously, we have developed the series into something far more formidable from the original scratchings of meeting everyone (namely Adam) for the first time.

I think, eventually, I will fill in all the gaps and tell the whole story from start to finish, including the many, many ventures we embarked on. For just now, this is our record of what's going on and what's going to happen. 

Two years down. 

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Looking forward to the rest.

Ryan Jon Amey Henderson
Co-creator / Writer

Wednesday 1 June 2011

"... One Night In Shite's-Ville..." (What's Happening?)

It's been a while...

Doubt I can use the same excuses as before but the project breathes, continues to breathe and makes it's steps towards a fruition of sorts. There's very little to divulge in terms in where we are just now. We've all been busy on all our various projects and ventures, with the other writers working actors and myself, a filmmaker and illustrator there you'll find the majority of the new work I have been occupied with, mainly with Edinburgh-based band, The Marvels and the new comic I am illustrating, DOGS, a political (and personal) story about the creation and development of war machines.

The video links to both the Vimeo and Youtube.


We've hit a momentous two-year working relationship; myself and the two other principal writers, Ed Corrie and Adam McNamara and since the Home teaser debuted earlier in the year, the project has been well-received within our small circle. Ideally, I would want more interest in it, which is why, over the next month, in the run-up to preparing, crewing and developing two short films, The Hunted and Grout, that I will naturally be looking for help on, I have been working on some The JOB specific projects.

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It's no-one's guess that this project is very close to my heart (our hearts), a project that has bite and stamina that showcases the best that Scotland has to offer; in talent, in location and in spirit, telling some genuine (stuff you've read all before).

The plan for now is a handful of different projects to maintain a level of scope and appeal, certainly on the video channels and within the inter-linking of this blog to create visual references to back-up the project as a whole.



Below is a small list of what we're thinking.

Firstly, at the moment of conception for the project, we had written a small blurb over what the opening title sequence would look and run like. It was a simple paragraph that outlined a sequence of night traffic, shot out of focus and layered over a sequence of shots (illustrated to the side) shot during the day, detailing the areas, the home life, the car interior and the reveal of The JOB (police).

Littered around are some of the inspirations of the last few days, shot on a Canon XM-2. As the raw footage, these images go further than just becoming the backbone of the opening title sequence but for the potential of the coming short film projects for The JOB; AtoB and new project Runner, a super-short.

  It's a case of continuing to work on the handful of different projects to support the writing with actual visual reference. Either way, here's hoping that we can continue these projects over the coming weeks. I am three days already into the opening title sequence and am hoping to continue with on the same scope.

Ryan Jon Amey
Co-Creator/Co-writer

Sunday 27 February 2011

"Keeeeeee-en..." (A New Update, New Script, Teaser, Audience and other things...)

Its probably only been about 3 weeks since I put up the Home teaser but it feels like a life time ago I wrote into this blog so here goes... For the intrigued and interested;

A complete re-writing of the pilot script is happening right now, hopefully or last draft which is very exciting. It's a script that, if it plays out the way we want it to, will be the statement we wanted from the very beginning. There's not much else to say about this without showing actual progress, which isn't happening as we'd rather just work on the scripts to be honest...

Home, The JOB teaser has gone down incredibly well. Not the torrent of interest we had initially thought, but as pockets of interest began to emerge we could see it begin to take shape. The general opinions all round was that we had made an unpretentious peek into what the series is fundamentally about, which is incredibly positive. A genuine audience has been generated from the pool of friends and family who have spoken out about it. If you haven't seen it already here:



The JOB - Home from Ryan Jon Amey on Vimeo.


The real audience for us rests within the sofa-biders who don't mind sitting up till 11 waiting for shows like Road Wars on Sky Living. Te blind audience whose loving for mind-numbing TV surpasses the common urge to sleep and sensibility that comes attached to that. Alternatively, it will be an audience that likes clicking ON-Demand and catching it later, I don't know. It's hard to hinge an audience with the major concern not being, everyone sitting down in the right place at the right time to catch the 60 minutes we present. That 60 minutes is only 60 minutes.


Now they can pause, they can change and come back to it later, watch it online whilst blogging and chatting on puss-book. In this age, shows and programming are still staple, just how an audience receives and uses them is slightly different. I suppose now, audience demand and expanded technology have developed in this world of movement and convenience to produce a consistent sense of quality over any platform. It would have been inconceivable to watch HD videos on your phone 10 years ago.

But it is this need for demand that keeps producers and creatives busy but anxious. I find myself thinking sometimes, "we'll get swallowed by the machine and spat back out again a masticated mess". There is so much going on, our main concern has been with the writing and the quality of the writing. Overall, your average Joe Lightly or Susie Nobody won't give two shits about the technology, they want entertained, intrigued or fascinated by what they watch. It's easier for us to make the program and let the program project what audience we initially projected watch it and when and how. The power has always been with the audience and will continue to, for obvious reason...

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Below however, I go into a diatribe, although related more to audience, more on  personal level...


People say (and as a phrase in general, I hate non-specifics) but people say, "everyone has one book in them...". I agreed that as a human being who thinks continuously, we have limits to how long we can pursue certain aspects that make us what we are, whether it be in the creative sense or otherwise. I tally this in with the general population who find no interest in what we would call "creative" yet I would say that painting your kitchen or totting up numbers a sense of creativity even though it uses the other side of your brain etc. No sense in belittling folk.

Be all and end all of it is, I am reaching the limits of what I think I am possible of achieving. Unfortunately, I need to live, feel like I achieved some 'thing' then get on with it, comfortable in the mind I did all I could. If things pick up, you never know, I might change my opinion on things.

I seem to have come a long way from the utterly blindly passionate film student of 6 years passed, whose love and respect for 'cinema' surpassed his arrogance and dedication to creating a singular vision only 'one' could tell, a view I don't uphold now. It is still respected, yes, inspired, yes, but all in the context that I would rather cater stories that are perfected for dramatic intensity to interest an audience.


I have picked my projects very carefully over the last couple of years, working around The JOB, that has been the primary concern which has real legs and has had well before the shooting of the teaser and has a personal aspect close to me and the rest of the writers that means there is more to it than just becoming "another TV show about coppers".

Since the turn of the year, I have concentrated on a couple of short projects, including whatever contractual obligations I still hold with bands for music videos and promos, but these projects hold the thematic concerns I have held onto since I started producing films since 2003. This does not include AtoB, The JOB short film, which comes under the banner or the overall project so doesn't really count with the projects outwith that.

I have limited myself to help me produce them in a space of time and if they remain to be the last projects I ever make, then it's fine, I did what I set to achieve:

GROUT and Enders, which I have only referred to as a damning indightment of everything I have experienced thus far since returning to Edinburgh. A auto-biographical surrealist tale about my experiences since I returned home, taking the shape of an odd coming-of-age story: "Woulda' called it 'wankers' but seemed too literal a title" (in the comedic sense). More to come on these projects eventually, more in the form of art-work firstly: www.sayzoart.blogspot.com


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We want The JOB to do well. I want The JOB to do well. I've spent too long on the scripts and the materials to not have at least looked at making the pilot in my lifetime, more for the fact that people are interested in seeing it. I want to do it, more than ever, to show people that we did. That could be 20 people or 20,000, I don't care, the fundamental basis of what we had for ourselves has now been, what do an audience want to see?


Ryan Jon Amey Henderson
Co-Creator/Co-writer

Wednesday 2 February 2011

"I Didn't Join The JOB For This..." ('Home' Teaser)


The JOB - Home from Ryan Jon Amey on Vimeo.

© Ryan Jon Amey, The JOB, saYzo films, Jan 2011 


Cast and Crew

Starring Adam McNamara and Jenny Hulse, with the voice of Darran Lightbody

Director Ryan Jon Amey

Writers Adam McNamara and Ryan Jon Amey

Camera Operator Hamish Robb

Editor Omar Pookhan

Editing Consultant Steven Jalicy

Advisers and Additional Help Ed Corrie and Darran Lightbody


The final online publication of the teaser Home completed early this year for The JOB. Please rate and comment following the Vimeo link. 

I would like to thank everyone involved and in particular, Adam McIllwaine of the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama for providing us with kit and support and special thanks to Jim for providing the blue lamp.





Ryan Jon Amey Henderson




Co-Creator/Co-writer

Saturday 15 January 2011

"The Beast Begins To Breath..." (A Belated New Year and What's to Follow)

Belated happy returns for the turning of the New Year and what is now being called "year of The JOB". Read whatever potential but completely unintentional religious connotation into that "speech-marked beauty" but it couldn't really be any truer. I think in more specific terms, it will be and has to be "true".

The project is in a constant state of change, of evolutions, developments and continuous motions of elevated and deflated emotions. A project that, within itself, is a statement on the world I see around me. A friend of mine said "what we see and what we hear does mean we experience what we see and what we hear". But what is happening is that we have been talking a lot about The JOB but have you really seen anything yet? Bar the posters, the quick releases of the teaser for "Home" and the Facebook status updates, I would say, you have seen very little of what The JOB has to offer.

But one thing stands to debate; it's bite is about as profound as it's bark.

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I have always seen these small things as the injections of the project; the little things that keep it alive. 


"Home", the viral we finished shooting last year, which was held up due to various technical and logistical issues come the end of the year is nearing completion (now) for publication end of January and with it's new titles, score and temp. pre-dubbed soundtrack, it's in a good place for a final release this month, with a potential temp. opinion release of as soon as next week.

The off-shoot of this viral, specifically as much as it had excited the FUCK out of everyone at JOB HQ and really got the blood flowing within the creative group, it had shown one thing; the beast began to breath. We had decided on a further viral including the prospective cast which would be secured some mid-April entitled "Club" which has been put back due to the coming of "A to B", which has cropped up in the last week of so. 

"A to B", simply put, is The JOB short film. A condensed and easily digestible 5-minute short detailing a simple story set to a strong theme, shot in the style we have chosen for the series and showing off everyone's skills in cast and crew, acting much like a sizzler-reel; although dissimilar as it's not a collection of images / moments from a larger piece. This is looking to be shot come the Spring with a first draft already compiled and cast more or less secure. I'm hoping it's as diverse and as exciting as what we've written and I am genuinely looking forward to this. More of that to come in the coming months.


But all this is secular to what is the actual goal; shooting the 'A- Shift' series' pilot.

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"Bourac", The JOB pilot is still looking to begin this year, however at this current juncture, at a creatively slow snail's pace, it has been injected with the promise of a strong cast, a visually dynamic and provocative cinematic quality hinged by an absolute passion to see it through to conclusion. I think the issue I might have with it is, after we begin I won't be able to stop until it's done. It's going to be a journey, long, hard, difficult, potentially self-destructive and exhausting but I've never known a single director who has not sacrificed something for the potential of what they wanted to say. I'm not a crash-test dummy, The JOB is not a car and we're not hitting brick walls but what I am trying to say is that I'll get this made; we'll get this made.

The script is strong; a real insight into a world we all know about and experience but would never associate specifically, but I am feeling (and always have since the birth of the beast) it's made it feel more human. But like we've always said, it's been the tag for the last two years:

Maybe you'll just find out.



Ryan Jon Amey Henderson
Co-Creator/Co-writer