Rebecca Culverhouse – British Filmmaker in Berlin

Rebecca just completed her latest short film Shizuka. L&A grabbed her for a quick interview. Here is her story:

Rebecca Culverhouse is a nomadic British filmmaker who has made films in Japan, the UK and Germany. Currently based in Berlin, she is writing the script for her first feature film, which is based on a short Japanese drama shot in the Tohoku area before the great earthquake of 2011.

L&A: What kind of films do you make?

As a freelance filmmaker I do a lot of promo videos for music festivals, start ups, and artists. Although each video has a completely different brief, I always like to add a warm atmosphere or a bit of my sense of humour into my videos, and people seem to like that approach. I also do a lot of music videos and am looking to get into fashion films. In terms of my own projects, I’ve made several shorts, all different genres. A lot of my film ideas are mysterious tales with a horror edge, which is quite different from my cheerful client-based work. Its nice to mix up light and dark, and not spend too long on either.

L&A: Why is Berlin a great place for filmmakers?

In London, high rents force you to take well paid jobs over interesting ones, and there is little time to work on your own projects when you are starting out. Plus it feels like you have to sacrifice comfortable living and private space to follow your dream. The cheap rent in Berlin means that you can live well, and can afford to be more selective about the kind of work you take on, while still having time to have fun and enjoy life. Saying that, there are definitely less filmmaking opportunities here than London, but that means there is less competition when you apply for a job. Also there is a great tight knit community of filmmakers and film lovers here (like Raindance Berlin, Berlin Film Society etc) and there is a real community sense of everyone trying to help each other out.

L&A: Tell us about your latest film Shizuka?

When I was living in Japan I visited the town of Matsushima. Its a very surreal and beautiful place, all these abandoned islands covered in pine forests and old statues. I knew I wanted to make a film there, so I wrote a story inspired by the memory of wandering alone over the islands. The place had such a strong sense of character that I imagined: “What if the island is somehow alive, or has magical powers?” So I came up with a story where pilgrims travel to the island to pray for their greatest wish to come true. If they can make the same wish every day for a year, without speaking or talking to anyone else, their wish will come true. I worked with a great cast made up of screen and theatre actors, and we shot the film in a couple of days.

However, when we arrived in Matsushima we discovered that there was a national oyster festival taking place at the same time, so it was a real challenge making the island seem silent and uninhabited! A lot of the dialogue recordings had people talking in the background, saying things like “This oyster is delicious!” So the edit and sound mix took ages to complete, and it wasn’t until I moved to Berlin that I finally had enough time to finish it. But in a way I’m glad that it took a while, as the story stayed alive in my head, and now I’m convinced that, if made with a proper budget, Shizuka would make a great feature film.

L&A: What is your favourite location in Berlin?

I love buildings that are covered in vines and moss, somehow it reminds me of the films by Studio Ghibli, or old children‘s books I used to read. Berlin seems to have a lot of these overgrown buildings, and for me it adds to the sense of the city‘s laid back character as well as its dramatic history.

Shizuka from Rebecca Culverhouse on Vimeo or take a look at the rest of her work: www.rebeccaculverhouse.com