“When I was a kid I watched Ghostbusters and wanted to be a ghostbuster myself. Then I watched the Indiana Jones movies and wanted to be an archaeologist. Finally, I realised that it was actually the movies I loved and so I started to learn how people made them. It was around that time that I decided I wanted to be a director.”
Welcome to Hurwitz.TV’s Directors Interview Series, where we chat with some of the most influential filmmakers from all over the world.
In this series, you’ll have the opportunity to gain profound insights from the minds and creative journeys of these cinematic storytellers. Our goal is to explore the art of filmmaking, discover the inspirations and motivations that drive these directors, and delve into the captivating stories behind their remarkable works. From seasoned veterans to emerging talents, we talk about their artistic influences, memorable experiences, and the challenges they’ve faced along the way.
Today, I am joined by director and screenwriter Tom De Ville, known for his diverse genre works in film and television. Tom’s journey has taken him from the creation of the horror series “Urban Gothic” to writing for major shows like “Hannibal” and “Stan Lee’s Lucky Man,” and most recently, to directing his debut short film “Corvidae” garnering critical acclaim.
Dennis: Thank you for joining us, Tom! To kick things off, can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your background?
Tom: Hey there, my name is Tom De Ville. I’m a screenwriter/director based in Brighton. I took a degree in screenwriting at Bournemouth University and then moved quickly into television where I created my own horror series, Urban Gothic. Since then I’ve written on big shows like Hannibal for NBC and Stan Lee’s Lucky Man for Sky. More recently, I’ve moved into directing, starting with some music videos and my first short film – Corvidae. I’m currently working on my first two feature films back-to-back.
Dennis: Have you always wanted to be a genre filmmaker? What drove you to pursue this career path?
Tom: When I was a kid I watched Ghostbusters and wanted to be a ghostbuster myself. Then I watched the Indiana Jones movies and wanted to be an archaeologist. Finally, I realised that it was actually the movies I loved and so I started to learn how people made them. It was around that time that I decided I wanted to be a director. The films I really loved as a kid were genre movies, in particular horror and thriller movies, because I think in many ways they’re some of the purest forms of cinema. A good horror movie moves us on a primal level. So I set about studying the scripts for the classics in those genres and figuring out how they worked, so I could start working on my own.
Dennis: What was the greatest piece of advice given by a mentor that shaped the artist that you are today?
Tom: There are so many different pieces of advice that have clicked with me along the way, that it’s hard to think of just one that can help in the whole process of filmmaking. But, I once heard the great John Waters say ‘If you ever wondered if you should cut it, the answer is yes.’ That’s always stuck with me as a writer and a director. That’s a good storytelling sense. Less is usually more.
Dennis: Which movies and filmmakers inspired you the most?
Tom: This is a difficult question because I think if you love cinema, you’re always looking for new inspirations and new ways of thinking about the medium. The first filmmaker I really learned about was Steven Spielberg because he made a lot of the films that defined my childhood. Jaws, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Close Encounter, Poltergeist. The filmmaker who spoke to me the most when I started thinking about horror was Guillermo Del Toro because I really like the way he defined horror films as fairy tales for grown-ups. That idea definitely informed Corvidae and some of the other horror projects I’ve worked on. At the moment I’m really interested in Nic Roeg and the way he used brutalist editing to fracture time and place in his pictures. So inspiration never stops, I’m still being inspired every day.
Dennis: What are the most challenging and rewarding parts of making a movie?
Tom: I think that most filmmakers will tell you that the biggest challenges of making a film are time and money. Good filmmaking requires time, and time always costs money. Unfortunately, at the moment, money is thin on the ground in the independent film market, so I’d always suggest that first-time film-makers build their films around focused, compact ideas that require as few locations and actors as possible. The reward is always sharing your finished film with other people. I had a great time taking Corvidae out to film festivals around the world and got to go to places like Korea and Transylvania to exhibit the film. More recently, I launched the film on YouTube and it’s been great to see everyone enjoying it again.
Dennis: 5 years ago, you finished your first short film “Corvidae.” Can you talk about your creative process and inspiration behind this movie? What was it like working with Maisie Williams as your lead?
Tom: I first thought of Corvidae when I was walking in the countryside and I stepped out of a forest into a field that was full of crows. The surprise of seeing so many of them together inspired the key image in the film (which I won’t spoil here) so I went home and wrote a short script and then forgot about it for a while. Years later I met two ambitious producers – Alexander Wolpert and Nick Hudson – who were looking for short scripts to make. They read Corvidae and loved it so they said they would make it with me as a director.
Early on we had a meeting about the cast, and Maisie was absolutely our first choice for the main role in the film. We were absolutely delighted when she came on board the film, but what followed was a mad scramble to get the shoot ready to fit in with her schedule shooting Game of Thrones. We made the film over four days in the middle of winter, in and around my mother’s home in the countryside. Maisie was a brilliant, brave actor who threw herself into every part of the process and was never scared to try anything challenging. There’s a scene in the film where she chews up some worms, and I’d had some jelly prop worms made for Maisie, but she went right ahead and put the real worms in her mouth. Every day she surprised me, and her commitment to her work was a constant inspiration.
Dennis: Lastly, name a filmmaker or an actor you would love to collaborate with and why.
Tom: There are so many brilliant, intuitive actors working today, that it’s hard to choose one. I think that I’m always excited by working with people who are committed to their art and their process, but not at the expense of other people. Filmmaking is a collaborative process, and the most exciting people working in the industry are people who know how to collaborate, whilst being true to their own vision. Recently I brought on a brilliant, bold actor named Haley Bennett (Swallow, Cyrano) to work on my first feature and I’m very excited by her bravery and commitment to her roles and how that will take shape on our project.
Corvidae is now available for streaming on YouTube:
