Where did the idea for Sorority come from?
I recently dug out an old notebook that had the first ideas for what eventually became Sorority – it was from 2005 when I first moved to London. The idea was very different back then, and was probably closer to a comedy than a drama, but over the years the project evolved a great deal. I’ve always been interested in the relationships between women in families. I was lucky enough to grow up in a household surrounded by women and, at one point, lived under the same roof as my mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. It wasn’t the biggest of places, so I’m not too sure how we all fit in, but we managed somehow! That experience has stayed with me and, because of that, I’ve always wanted to make a film centred around female familial relationships.
Tell us about the evolution of the project, from short to feature.
If anything, I did the reverse. I had the feature idea first, and then thought it would be interesting to make a shorter version of the larger Sorority idea. So I wrote a condensed version of the script called Soror. It was a great opportunity to experiment and see what worked and what didn’t, something that is easier to do with a short film, without the many pressures that making features come with. You can experiment and test the water. Most of the short film was improvised, which was my first experience of doing this so, in many ways, I was finding my way and learning about this approach during the film, a process I enjoyed hugely. The short was also shot by Lorenzo Levrini who also went onto lens Sorority. This allowed me, and Lorenzo, to establish the visual language of the film before approaching the feature version. In many ways, Soror was a test shoot, which also gave us something to show potential feature investors, when looking for financing for the feature.
The short unexpectedly became a strongly personal affair, when at the beginning of the crowdfunding process to raise our budget, I discovered that I had an adult half-sister (up until that point I had been an only child). It seemed a huge coincidence that I was making a film about sisters and I now actually had one! It was an incredible personal moment for me so I changed character names to Samantha and Grace (the names of my sister and her daughter) to reflect this. When we were on set making Sorority, Sam, Grace and her partner Tony visited the set and have a cameo in the film, which was a very special moment. It felt like we’d come full circle, from the very beginning of the short film, all the way to the feature film version.
Many years after making Soror, I had been working with Sophie Kennedy Clark on another project which, ultimately, didn’t happen. We used to meet up and bag our heads against a wall about why this other project fell through (usually with a whiskey in hand!). We then realised we should simply make a film ourselves and I pitched Sorority to her. She loved the idea and came onboard in the dual role of producer and the co-lead of “Harriet”. I had met another producer, Nick, through my agent and I felt that the three of us all shared the same values for filmmaking. We met all together for the first time in January 2019 and, by the end of the year, we had shot the film! It was a refreshingly straight-forward process.
Did you rehearse with the cast prior to the shoot?
We did. I really enjoy the rehearsal process and, on this film in particular, it was incredibly important. Sorority lives and dies by the onscreen bond between the sisters – “Harriet” (Sophie Kennedy Clark) and “Sarah” (Emily Haigh) – so it was hugely important that they got to spend time together before the shoot began. We worked on most of their scenes together, incorporating any interesting ideas that came up during the process. Because nearly all the locations were easily accessible, we were often able to rehearse in the actual places where the scenes would eventually be shot.
As well as bringing actors together, I also kept them apart. Sam Gittins, who played “Andrew”, didn’t rehearse with Emily, as I wanted their interactions to have an awkward feel on screen. It was my job to be that bridge between them and make sure that their performances would sync together.
Music and reading lists were also crucial to building the characters before we get to set. Music is a huge part of my own creative process – I often write to music – so I provided track lists for each of the main actors, which they could use to get into each of their character’s head space.
What was your process when working with the actors on set?
I didn’t want the actors to simply replicate the words on the page, but to bring their own ideas to the table when bringing their characters to life. The script is really only a starting point in the process, and I wasn’t precious about making changes, even when we were in the middle of a scene. If it feels like the right thing to do in the moment, then the actor should go with it. I think it is important as a director to know when to incorporate the ideas of others, but also when to stick to your guns. If you have a really open, creative atmosphere on set, where everyone’s opinion is listened to and valued, then a shoot will be an enjoyable experience for everyone and you will get the very best out of people as well.
Working with Kate Dickie again was a dream (she had previously played the mother role in Soror) and it was great to give her more material to sink her teeth into in the role of “Val”. We weren’t able to rehearse with Kate beforehand, but I was confident that we’d make it work on set, as Kate is such a phenomenal actress. Instead, we worked remotely, talking on the phone about the character’s history and her complicated relationship with her daughters.
One of the biggest scenes in the film, is an argument that takes place in the street between the sisters and “Andrew” (Sam Gittins) and is captured in one, long uninterrupted take. Naturally the scene was a challenge to achieve, especially as we were filming in an unpredictable location – plenty of cars, pedestrians, planes overhead, sirens going off etc. but actually, this all added to the chaos of the scene, enhancing the drama. I also chose not to rehearse the scene, so that it felt as raw as possible. If you cast the right actors, that’s half the battle, you can trust them to make the right decisions and they all did a fantastic job.
You can find out more about James’ work on his website directorjwebber.com.