Carmen Chaplin

How did you get into directing?
I came to directing through performance: Acting was my first love and I was fortunate to start working professionally at seventeen.  I collaborated with various directors, each of whom had a distinct approach—I became increasingly interested in directing as a craft. Making my first short Tryst A Paname was an incredible experience and since then I’ve been hooked: I set-up Kwanon Films in London to develop and produce film, TV, and commercial projects.

What is your most recent project?
A Time for Everything—the short selected by SHOOT NDS.  I made the film for Jaeger LeCoultre on the theme of time in celebration of their 180th Anniversary.

What is the best part of being a director?
To begin with the desire to express a simple emotion and end-up with a complete film is an awe-inspiring journey, a journey that requires intense creative collaboration and I adore working with talented, artistic people.

What is your current career focus: commercials & branded content, TV, movies? Do you plan to specialize in a particular genre—comedy, drama, visual effects, etc.?
I would love to do commercials and more branded content; I am also currently developing two feature films, an Arts Documentary TV Series, and I am the executive producer on a narrative short film set in London shooting August 2013.

Have you a mentor and if so, who is that person (or persons) and what has been the lesson learned from that mentoring which resonates most with you?
My acting teachers Susan Batson and Harold Guskin taught me the art of storytelling through acting, which I’ve found invaluable as a director.

Contact

contact@kwanonfilms.com