FilmLight Colour Awards 2024: Jury Insights with Jax Harney

Jax Harney is founder and senior colourist at X-LDN.

With over two decades working in advertising, Jax honed her skills at some of the industry's leading post-production houses before setting up her own facility in 2020. Her portfolio includes an impressive mix of luxury brands across a diverse range of projects, from high-profile commercials to critically acclaimed television series and feature films.

Her innovative approach and keen eye for colour has earned her a reputation as one of London's highly sought after talents.

Outside the grading suite, Jax is passionate about mentoring emerging talent and advocating for greater diversity and inclusion within the post-production community.

Q> Do you think it’s important for colourists to be recognised in awards like these?

Jax> Absolutely, these awards are essential for validating the skills and artistry that colourists bring to the table. 

Q> You’ve been working for over two decades as a colourist. What are you looking for in entries?

Jax> I’ll be looking for creative use of colour that enhances the story being presented. I want the grade to flow – not steal the show, but compliment what I’m watching. I’ll be looking at texture and then the obvious clean keys, fine shape work and making sure my attention is being led to where it’s required.

Q> As a colourist specialised in advertising, what are your thoughts on the new category for this year – Emerging Talent?

Jax> I think this new category is an incredible way to recognise and celebrate the fresh faces in our industry who are bringing in new energy and ideas. This category not only highlights their hard work and potential, but also encourages them to keep honing their craft. I’m really excited to see this kind of recognition and support for the next generation of talent. It's definitely a step in the right direction towards a more innovative and inclusive industry.

Q> Having worked for so many luxury brands, what is the most important part of the grade for this type of project? Is it skin tone, the discussion with the creative agency? Etc…

Jax> Anyone who knows me, knows how much I bang on about collaboration being key. On every job, I try to work closely with the director, DoP and creatives to achieve the best results.

With beauty work in particular, I have to be gentle with the skin tones and stay as real as the environment will allow. This can be difficult sometimes if the client wants their product singing out of the scene, but it’s always a team discussion on how to walk this fine line of staying true to the scene while also delivering what the client wants.

Q> You set up your own facility in 2020, can you tell us more about it?

Jax> I did indeed and it is the best thing that came out of the pandemic for me. The model we’ve created is based on collaborations with different independent artists and post facilities. Colour is still my main focus and the core of the business at X, but over the years I’ve connected with some incredible talents in all areas of post, which has led to some amazing creative partnerships across the globe.

Q> How do you prefer to work with the DoP on colour?

Jax> For long form I always try to connect with the DoP early in the process. This gives us time to shoot ideas around, test looks and create a solid LUT. I find that consistent communication throughout the shoot with tweaks to the look as we go always yields the best creative outcomes.

I much prefer having the DoP in the suite for the final grade, but in commercials that isn’t often the case. In this instance, I will always endeavour to at least have a brief from set to try and carry as much of the creative intent across.

Q> What are the key challenges of your role as colourist?

Jax> Particularly in advertising, diminishing budgets mean less productions are factoring in the appropriate time for colour and finishing. Plus, some editors are now using AI tech for colour in their edit software, so we are finding that the colour grading is being axed to save money. A lot of the time this results in us having to pick up a project very late in the day – when the production hands it over to fix what hasn’t been achieved in edit and what hasn’t been accounted for at the beginning of the project.

Q> What’s your career highlight to date and why? 

Jax> I have quite a few career highlights for various reasons, so I will list a few.

Going to the BAFTAs with the short film, Kamali (2018) – directed by Sasha Rainbow and shot by Jake Gabbay. This was super special.

Working with Nicole Ackermann, Adam Bentel and the amazing VFX team at The Mill NYC on the trailer for the Bethesda Game Studios’ game, ‘Starfield’ was also pretty special. I’m a huge gamer and grading video game trailers is my happy place. 

Setting up my own post facility – that’s got to be up there.

Finally, watching the cast of Celebrity Gogglebox get all emotional while watching episode six of Big Boys (season one).