Face to Face with... Michael Pearce

Charity films can sometimes be a difficult undertaking; too much emotion and it can feel over-played, like you're being held to ransom by sentiment. Too little emotion and you miss empathising with the film's characters and message.

In his work for the charity Shift.MS Home Corp director Michael Pearce has perfectly navigated that problem to create Gallop, an amazing, subtle but powerful short film that raises the awareness of MS sufferers. You can see the film above and, below, read what Pearce has to say about making the film and working with the charity and Mother London.

What was the brief you received for the project from Mother?

The brief was to create a short film where the central character is diagnosed with MS. Mother wanted it to be a love story and there was a rough first draft knocking around. Together, we sat down, ripped everything apart and wrote and rewrote Gallop.

What attracted you to the project initially?

It was very much in the territory I’ve been working – narrative shorts, so there was more space to develop characters and be taken on a journey than there usually is in a commercial. My concern was that it shouldn’t feel like a ‘charity film’, I didn’t want to make something that was over-earnest or sentimental. It needed to have other dynamics to it, a certain playfulness and poetry, and should exist as a short film in its own right. The people at Shift.ms and the team at Mother were very supportive and open to this idea.

Can you explain a little bit about Shift.ms?

Shift’s philosophy is very much about building a community and getting people to talk openly about their experience. It’s a social networking site for young people with MS (most people are diagnosed in their 20s and 30s), it provides a platform to where people can share experiences and ask questions that might otherwise be difficult.

It’s unusual for a charity film to take such a subtle approach; was that a purposeful choice by the charity/agency?

Yes, they wanted to create something where you could connect with the characters and themes on a different level than you can in a conventional commercial time frame. The current trends in how we view material online is changing, the lines are being blurred between what’s a piece of advertising and what’s a short film, that’s exciting and they wanted to explore this territory.

Did either of the actors, or indeed did you have any prior knowledge or experience of the disease to influence how you could represent it?

No, but that’s not necessarily what I’m looking for in an actor. If an actor is both sensitive and fearless you can tap into and explore feelings that might seem alien to you. We’ve all experienced and possess inside us a deep reservoir of human emotion, and actors that are emotionally supple and are focused are able to channel those experiences into their performance. Concrete knowledge and experience undoubtedly help, but they’re not essential.

How long did the film take to shoot?

It was filmed over a hectic, adrenaline fuelled three days across North London.

What was the hardest part of the production?

The time constraints - the budget was relatively low so we had shoot very quickly. Three days would usually be enough to shoot a 10-minute film but we had three-four locations per day, which cuts your time in half. We would turn up at a location and have under an hour to shoot a scene. It really helped that I’d worked with the DP, Benjamin Kracun, before and we’ve got a great shorthand, the actors had also done their homework which meant we were in a good place from take one. Through planning ahead, thinking on your feet and fighting for every inch, you make the film you want, regardless of the constraints.

What are you up to next?

I’m developing my first feature and diving head first into the commercial world, Gallop certainly gave me a taste for it.