The Work That Made Me: Ben Quinn
Ben Quinn's work does not hide from authentic emotion, and his work can simultaneously make you laugh and cry. The emotion in his films is performance-based and often comes from an everyday place. Ben knows how to steer away from becoming too dramatic or too full of artifice in order to keep the audience connected.
The balance between humour and emotion is a credit to Ben's understanding of people and getting to the 'real' parts of the script. He jokes, 'If you ever get the performances right, you won't need Coldplay over the top to tell the evidence how to feel.' The humour in Ben's work comes from the same part of the soul as the tears. He's not afraid of the dark, but his expertise in technique and performance brings the whole fairy-tale together.
LBB> The ad/music video from my childhood that stays with me…
Ben> Weirdly, The Fleetwood Mac video for 'TUSK' changed the way I thought about music videos. It was shot hand held on 16mm in what the advertising world calls docu style. Its just a university marching band playing in an empty stadium while the band cheers them on (I think they might have been pretty high…)
It looks kind of shitty but to me it looked beautiful. It was raw and loose and free.
LBB> The ad/music video/game/web platform that made me want to get into the industry…
Ben> I lived in London when Glazer, Budgen and Gondry made it so the commercials at the cinema were better than the movie you went to see. That period was incredibly inspiring. Commerce was art…
LBB> The creative work that I keep revisiting…
Ben> 'Walkabout' by Nic Roeg. Everything about it makes me happy. The idea, the themes, the way its shot, the timing, the performance, the editing. It’s perfect.
LBB> My first professional project…
Ben> It was for Reebok. In the PPM I was struggling to be understood. My EP butted in and translated my thoughts into a strange new language. Years later, I've got the hang of speaking in marketing language but I try not to speak it too often.
LBB> The piece of work that made me so angry that I vowed to never make anything like *that*…
Ben> Nothing makes me angry….There are some performances I see that I’m glad that I wasn’t part of!
LBB> The piece of work that still makes me jealous…
Ben> 'Dreamers' directed by Glazer for Guinness. Genius from top to bottom. Mental but genius.
LBB> The creative project that changed my career…
Ben> One of the first things I made was a film for Nelson Mandela. At the presentation I got a standing ovation and Reverend Tutu cried. An award on my mantel piece will never beat that.
LBB> The work that I’m proudest of… I was involved in this and it makes me cringe…
Ben> I’m answering the previous two questions as one. I’m not the only creative person that thinks this but I'm never been 100% happy with anything that I have made.
I think we do it to ourselves to keep us hungry and trying to make the best work you can.
LBB> The recent project I was involved in that excited me the most…
Ben> I love youth sports and have been making a documentary about a girls soccer team in Venice Ca. They base their whole system on Wolf Theory and how wolves in the wild protect each other. They literally howl at the moon. They are very inspiring.
