Big news for Stormin' Norman as Encompass' film debut has been selected for the 2013 Portobello Film Festival in London! The film was written and directed by Paul G Raymond and is scheduled to be shown on Sunday 8th September at 'Having a Laugh' which screens the latest and greatest comedy films.
Stormin’ Norman follows Norman (Christopher O'Shaughnessy), a homeless man living in London. We journey with Norman through the ups and downs of his everyday life until he meets Sarah (Eva Lea), a young woman who dares to break the routine. A heartfelt comedy drama by writer-director Paul G Raymond, Stormin' Norman is a moving snapshot of an unlikely friendship between a grieving man and an aspiring musician.
We're very proud to have Stormin' Norman screened at the UK's biggest independent film competition and hope you can join us and say hello!
You can find a map to the event here and a full schedule for the entire festival (running 28 August - 15 September) can be viewed here. You can find out more information on this huge event by visiting the Portobello Film Festival website.
Don't forget you can go behind-the-scenes on the film's blog and also watch the trailer below!
Hello folks, producer Jonathan here and we're back with another Stormin' Norman update!
So whilst Encompass has been busy with our new Bare Essentials event and pre-production for new play Who is Moloch? the Stormin' Norman team have been entering the final stages of post-production for this first Encompass project on film.
It's been a long time coming but we finally have a cut that we're happy with. Editing a film can be a laborious process, especially when the film in question is a short one and you have less time to play with! Simon (editor) has worked hard to fine-tune the film and has done a brilliant job responding to director and producer feedback - even when said feedback has been nitpicking! Perhaps no-one has been more brutal with his own work than writer and director Paul however - cutting unnecessary scenes and dialogue as he sees fit without any hesitation. It takes a certain artistic tenacity to be able to do this, a quality in Paul which I've had the pleasure of witnessing throughout this production.
Pan has been readying the sound, and it'll be interesting to see what he does with the urban soundscape of East London. I think after the brilliant London 2012 we all know how vibrant the city can sound! Whilst dialogue is a key component of this short (and just how much may surprise people) it'll certainly be interesting to hear how Norman's environment changes throughout his day and in the various locations.
Another part of post-production nearing completion is the score. Frequent Encompass collaborator Alex Burnett has finalised the music for the film and is recording the live elements this week. Here's what he has had via his new Facebook page:
"Creating a soundscape first can often lead to finding the right melodic material. The current film I'm scoring, 'Stormin' Norman', proved this yet again as I produced the ambient texture of the city before discovering the first melody of the soundtrack. For the final track what I wanted to achieve is a piece that not only brings the score and film to an exciting and emotional conclusion but also be a track that people can and want to listen to."
Composer Alex scoring Stormin' Norman
Alex's last project for Encompass - the acclaimed soundtrack for What It Feels Like - was produced electronically but this time he wanted to have live instruments present throughout the score, a decision both Paul and myself were fully behind. Alex is in the studio this week recording violin and guitars with EP associate performers Helena Gullan and Luke Manning respectively - Luke also appears in Stormin' Norman as 'Barry'. I'll also be dusting off my drumsticks to play drums and percussion - the rhythm is the real backbone of the score and I'm honoured Alex asked me to play for it! Paul, Alex and I felt that the blend of electronic and live elements would further extend the sonic scope of this ambitious soundtrack - it really is quite unlike anything we have heard for a short and having seen it in the context of the film we can safely say you're in for a treat! You can listen to a preview of the soundtrack below:
The exciting part of any project is seeing everything come together. Stormin' Norman is nearly complete! As we want it to have a presence on the festival circuit first we won't be releasing it online for a good while - however we will be organising screenings which you'll be able to come to! Keep an eye out...
Ladies, gentlemen, boy and girls, children of all ages, Encompass Productions is proud to present you day two on location of the Stormin’ Norman shoot. My name is Anthony Anthimou; I am one of the runners on set to assist with the coming together of this short feature production. This was my first project with the production company and I was looking forward to our new venture. By reading this you will gain insight into my world and views of the day that we had in store for us…..so here we go!
The date, Monday 19th March, the time, approximately 18:00, the crew is set the cast is ready for the second day of filming. The good thing about a second day shoot is that all the cast and crew know each other, so all the getting to know you period is over and we could all get ready to rock and roll.
This was also our first night adventure when it came to capturing the essence of Norman, this required more lighting, warmer clothing and lots of hot teas. We were using the same location as we did on the first day of shooting, Norman’s home as I like to call it. Being that we had to film at night we used a lot more equipment and had to be careful about the security of the cast, crew and equipment. As we set up for filming we had a lot of pedestrians interested in what we were shooting; when they see big lights and cameras, they are like moths to a flame. Most of which actually thought Norman (played by Christopher O’Shaughnessy) was a real homeless man and that we were shooting a documentary. One gentleman in particular was so convinced, he came up to Norman, interrupted the shoot to offer to buy him food. Even after ten minutes, the gentleman would not concede that we were filming, needed to record dialogue and thus required silence. So Jonathan (the producer) and I ushered the gentleman to the side (and out of shot), to which he explained that he was sympathetic to Norman’s predicament because he used to be homeless. The guy was pretty cool, he talked about his life and where he wants to go in the world and we wished him the best and returned to the end of the shoot.
On the whole the team was amazing, as a runner and a future film maker I learnt a lot and gained valuable experience and friends. We worked well as a unit, from the director Paul, to the actors to all the crew, it was a quality atmosphere and I look forward to more days of filming. On a side note, the catering was amazing, provided by Perlita and our costume designer Theresa (Jon’s mother and sister!). The food was lovely and the teas/ coffees were of the highest quality (only because I made most of them LOL). P.S the apple juice came in very handy, if you want to know why, well you’re just gonna have to wait to see the film.
Thank you for reading and maybe you will hear more from me, until then….peace, love and the Encompass way
Anthony Anthimou – Runner Extraordinaire Encompass Productions present "Stormin' Norman" Written and Directed by Paul G Raymond
Hello all! After last weekend's auditions we are pleased to announce the cast for Stormin' Norman is as follows:
Norman - Christopher O'Shaughnessy Sarah - Eva Lea Nick - Nicholas Waters Josh - Jonathan Whittaker Tre - Liam Fleming Barry - Luke Manning
We're very excited to bring some fresh new acting talent in alongside long-term Encompass members Christopher and Luke. Christopher in particular has been on board the project for a while, assisting in the development and editing of the screenplay in addition to his role as the title character.
We're also happy to welcome a new face to the Stormin' Norman crew: Theresa Jouliac (also an Encompass patron!) will be in charge of Costume Design.
The team are in the final stages of pre-production and filming will begin in East London mid-March.
You can see the full list of cast and crew by clicking here. For updates on the project keep an eye on our website and social media pages!
