THE INTERVIEW
November, 2023
SAM WEEKS
DIRECTORS OF DISSIMULATION
BEST SCI-FI
Sam, tell us a little more about yourself. Where did your desire to become a Director come from?
My desire has come from a passion for film & film-making and a need to inspire people with interesting & exciting stories in an attempt to spark their imagination. With each film I make I challenge myself to focus on every detail to produce the best possible outcome, which I hope will “wow’ audiences when they see the finished products.
What is your background?
I’ve been interested in the arts from a very young age, which resulted in an interest in both film-making and acting. During my late teens, I transitioned from acting into producing and directing higher quality films. The switch was driven by my wish to be able to helm projects from start to finish, having input into every aspect of the production. My time as an actor has been invaluable in helping me to direct actors on my projects, both understanding their challenges and how to get the best from them.
What were your references for Dissimulation?
Dissimulation was inspired by many different things, not one particular movie. Probably more relevant is the influence of different directing styles: visual style influenced by Tim Burton’s movies for example, where his darker visuals provoke uncanny undertones. Similarly, our visual style was also inspired by Director Guillermo Del Toro.
You won best Sci-Fi at the Red movie Awards, what does that symbolise?
Clearly, we are very excited to have won the award, not least of all because it shows that the significant efforts of our cast and crew have been recognised.
The production design of your film is also very impressive. How do you work on the costumes, props, sets with your teams?
We wanted the world of Dissimulation to feel detailed to such an extent that you could imagine living there and for it not to feel one dimensional. We worked closely with talented designers on all aspects of the props, set and costumes starting from drawings, progressing to building models or with costumes, basic designs, and then final testing/experimentation to deliver the finished product.
Your film touches on the theme of AI, what do think of these advances today, especially for cinema?
We were in Japan in October promoting the film and it was intriguing to see real robots actually serving food in certain specialist restaurants. It made you realise our film was closer to reality than you might think. With regard to the advance of AI in cinema, we see it as potentially beneficial in allowing amateur film-makers to produce increasingly affordable sophisticated film techniques.
What was the biggest challenge in this shooting?
Simply that everything you see on screen was built from scratch, which included costumes, props and the set. From initially coming up with the idea for the film, through to finishing it took two years as a result.
Do you have an anecdote to share with us in particular?
One of the problems for the droid performers, was that with their helmets on, they had quite limited visibility. Jane Elsmore, who played the medical droid walked into the set walls on a number of occasions, often to the enjoyment of the watching crew!
What is your next project?
We have a number of ideas pending, one of which is based around an alien theme. We have so enjoyed working on Dissimulation though, that we would like to expand the film to feature length, as we have a lot of fantastic ideas to build out this world, that to date we have provided just a taste of.
