HOW TO MAKE IT IN HOLLYWOOD

“Choreography brought me to the US. It gave me a lot of confidence, supplied me with a visa and introduced me to great people, but somewhere deep inside I knew I wanted more. I began writing and, one night, got chatting to a couple of strangers in a bar. At the end of the night, one of them gave me his card and said: ‘If you have any sense you will send me the first 40 pages tomorrow.’ Turns out it was one of Hollywood’s biggest producers, who later became one of my greatest mentors. “My first short film, Pepper, was a big success. I had the great fortune of working with a phenomenal cast and crew. It made my job so much easier and was a truly wonderful collaborative experience. That acted as my calling card and from that moment it was a lot easier to find people to work with, or have people put faith in me as a writer and director. Finding the right representation has been the biggest challenge. “Right now I’m developing a TV show based on a seven-book series set in Northern Ireland, which is really exciting. The work I am most proud of has been my last two pilots. My first pilot was sold to Warner Bros almost overnight and my second is currently in development. “Inspiration and drive are what make LA a unique place to work as a creative. Everywhere you look there are movie billboards, premieres, Q&A events and workshops. It’s hard to be around all of that and not be inspired. The same goes for the drive and dedication from a lot of the people here. It’s difficult to climb up the ladder without major backing, but thankfully you can’t throw a stone without hitting someone as hungry as you are. It’s about finding the right people with that drive, and also making the choice to keep creating content until you find the project worth pushing.”