Award-winning artist and director Shelly Love has devised, written, and directed numerous music videos, commercials, and short films including “Little White Bird,” “Pod,” “Scratch,” “Delia and George,” and “The Forgotten Circus.” Her films have screened at film and arts festivals worldwide, and have been acquired for broadcast on the UK’s Channel 4. “A Bump Along The Way” is Love’s debut feature film.
“A Bump Along the Way” will premiere at the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival on September 8.
W&H: Describe the film for us in your own words.
SL: “A Bump Along The Way” is a story about a single mother, Pamela, and her 15-year-old daughter, Allegra. Embarrassed by her mother’s boozy lifestyle and her dead end job at the bakery, buttoned up Allegra wants her mother to grow up. But Pamela is fed up too, having put her life on hold to raise her disapproving daughter.
When Pamela becomes unexpectedly pregnant after a one night stand, their relationship is thrown into crisis. As mother and daughter navigate the upheavals of pregnancy and teenage hormones they also have to deal with being bullied in their own worlds. This is something Pamela feels responsible for.
However, the very thing that threw them apart soon brings mother and daughter together. As it is Pamela’s decision to have the baby, that enables her to face her demons and become a fuller version of herself. And it is through Pamela’s transformation that Allegra learns to respect her mother and accept her new little brother into their lives.
W&H: What drew you to this story?
SL: I could relate to the story on so many levels. Like Pamela, I am a single mom, and I am also an older mom, having had my baby at 43. My baby was just one year old when I read the script so all the emotions and details of motherhood were fresh in my body, mind, and soul.
“A Bump Along The Way” is a love story between a mother and daughter. Pamela and Allegra are a modern family in the real world just trying to muddle through and do the right thing. Ultimately, it is their love for one another that sees them through.
I was instantly charmed by the outspoken characters and down to earth humor in the script. However it was important to me that the more emotional scenes be given weight and be perfectly pitched alongside the outrageous funny bits. This is something I felt I could bring to the film as a director.
As a female director, I am motivated to tell female stories, challenge how these stories are told, ensure the characters are authentic and relatable, and give an honest account of the female experience.
W&H: What do you want people to think about when they are leaving the theater?
SL: Through this film I hope to have framed some questions. As a woman I have felt the societal and biological pressure to have a child, and what this means to me. In order to have a child I had to carve my own path, and make some difficult decisions.
Through my friendships with other women I have realized that every woman’s experience is different. Our relationship with our bodies, our fertility, our need to have children, and when and how to have children is unique to each and every one of us. This is Pamela’s story. It is important that society learns not to judge a woman in matters that are her own.
I hope this film goes some way to celebrating single mothers, mothers, daughters, sons, and fathers, and offers the audience the opportunity to reflect on their own unique stories.
Being bullied is a universal story, and I hope members of the audience will be encouraged to alter their behavior and take a stand if they are involved in an unhealthy relationship with themselves or another person.
W&H: What was the biggest challenge in making the film?
SL: Making my first feature film as a single mom to a one-year-old was really challenging, both practically and emotionally, but not impossible. From early on in the process it became clear to me just how hard it was going to be so I had to learn to delegate, admit my limitations, and ask for help.
This was a low-budget feature film so the shooting schedule was particularly grueling. Each shooting day would end with an emotional reunion with my baby, and any time I would normally have to prepare for the next day was taken up by the needs of my baby.
W&H: How did you get your film funded? Share some insights into how you got the film made.
SL: “A Bump Along the Way” is the tenth film delivered through Northern Ireland Screen’s New Talent Focus scheme.
The scheme aims to deliver one debut feature by a Northern Ireland resident creative team – writer, director, and producer — each year. The scripts are selected from the projects already in development with the agency. Northern Ireland Screen then introduces the writer to upcoming producers that have delivered short films through its new and emerging talent schemes.
A producer is appointed, and then suggests directors that might be suitable. When the director is selected and appointed, the script is further developed with development funding from Northern Ireland Screen until Northern Ireland Screen believes it to be production ready. When ready, the film is green lit with a budget of up to £366,000 [about 443,000 USD]. Northern Ireland Screen invests up to £226,000 [about 273,500 USD] and has a post-production deal with Yellow Moon.
The UK tax credit provides the balance of the funding. The producer finds an investor to cash flow at least half of the UK tax credit. The film then moves into production with Northern Ireland Screen reserving the right of approval over all elements of the film. The team deliver the film in time for a screening at Belfast Film festival, and at Northern Ireland Screen’s annual showcase in London. If the film does well and attracts significant sales, distribution, and festival interest, Northern Ireland Screen makes additional funds available for deliverables as well as market and festival attendance.
W&H: What inspired you to become a filmmaker?
SL: Not just one thing.
As a child I used to choreograph dances, and I have a distinct memory of playing out visual stories in my head while performing to Kate Bush’s album, “Hounds of Love.”
I had an unconventional route into filmmaking. I trained as a contemporary dancer at The Laban Centre in London, England, and worked as a dance artist and choreographer before turning to filmmaking. While recovering from a dance injury, I attended a Dance on Screen workshop, and instantly felt creatively liberated and excited by the possibilities presented when making work for the screen.
I have no formal film training; instead I established myself as an art maker, and created a number of dance on screen works made through a physically devised process. I also directed a number of music videos and commercials. Through time I came to realize that I am driven by story, and began looking for opportunities to direct drama.
Film is the perfect medium for me to reflect back the human story in a way that allows me to work closely with my imagination, and tell stories which get to the heart. I am excited by the creative potential, the opportunity to challenge the way stories are told, and the potential to reach audiences.
W&H: What’s the best and worst advice you’ve received?
SL: Worst advice: Play the game.
Best: Break the game.
W&H: What advice do you have for other female directors?
SL: Try your best not to imitate what has gone before.
Gaining trust and respect can be hard as a female director. There are a lot of egos out there with preconceived ideas about how a director should behave. Make sure to surround yourself with a team who understand and respect your process and vision.
For those who have children, don’t hide the fact that you are a parent; be loud and proud about being a mother who makes films. If you need help with child care, don’t be afraid to ask for it.
If you can’t meet particular demands of the job because of family commitments, don’t be ashamed to talk about it, as it is only through talking that solutions are found.
W&H: Name your favorite woman-directed film and why.
SL: “The Piano” by Jane Campion, and “In The Cut,” also by Jane Campion.
When I first saw “The Piano” I was 18 and studying Contemporary Dance Theater in London. I was awestruck by the breathtaking cinematography, the powerful images of the piano, mother, and daughter stranded on a beach, and by Michael Nyman’s extraordinary music. As a dancer I was particularly captivated by Ada, the silent heroine whose interior world was expressed so powerfully through music and body language.
Watching this film as a young woman was powerful as I had never experienced intimate, sensual scenes told in this way before, and despite Ada’s corseted appearance and small frame, her emotional strength and willfulness managed to subvert the male world, and through her silence she was able to shut the patriarchal world out.
I was unaware at the time that I was watching a film directed by a woman — now it is obvious. Jane Campion’s films have shown me how essential the female voice is. “In The Cut” is also one of my favorite films. It’s sadly overlooked but, to me, absolutely vital.
W&H: What differences have you noticed in the industry since the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements launched?
SL: There may be a long way to go but I have experienced the positive ripple effect of this movement on a personal level.
“A Bump Along The Way” was a low-budget feature so my fee just wouldn’t stretch to cover childcare costs during production. However, I managed to secure funding for child care from The Film and Television Charities – Family Support Fund.
The Family Support Fund targets parents and carers who need financial help with childcare or caring responsibilities while juggling a career in Film and TV. The fund is a joint partnership with Raising Films. Raising Films are an organization here in the UK whose mission it is to bring about change, so people — and in particular women — in the film and television industry who want to have a family can continue their careers.
In addition to this funding, Northern Ireland Screen stepped in to cover all remaining childcare costs for the rest of the production. Importantly, as a single mom on a low income I simply would not have been able to direct my first feature film had I not received their support.
“A Bump Along The Way” will have its international premiere at TIFF this year. I am grateful once again to Northern Ireland Screen who are supporting me by paying for my son to accompany me to the festival, and I am thrilled to learn that TIFF have expanded the services they offer to parents and children at this year’s festival, which includes subsidized daycare.
Raising Film have also launched The Raising Films Ribbon Award which is available to production companies and festivals who acknowledge activity that takes into account the needs of parents and carers. These are all positive steps towards change that should be celebrated.
