MY VALLEYS MOVIE:
USING CGI to remove seagulls from scenes of a sci-fi film, building a spaceship set in a garage and keeping the budget down to just £10,000 – that’s all been part of the journey for a movie filmed entirely in the Welsh Valleys.
When you imagine the film industry, you may think of multi-millionpound projects, extravagant sets and a cast and crew as long as your arm.
But those behind Offworld – the brainchild of sci-fi author turned director Terry Cooper and producer Adam Neal – have shown it is possible to produce a feature-length film on a budget – and film it all in the Valleys!
The actual filming took place across just six days in April last year – a challenging timeframe for a group who were making their first feature film.
Terry Cooper, from Ystrad Mynach, always wanted to direct his own film. So along with producer Adam Neal, from Aberdare, they set about making the dream happen two years ago.
The film follows a group of humans who crash land and have to survive a journey across an alien planet.
The whole film was shot around the Rhymney Valley on a budget of £10,000. Filming is complete and, after a bit of editing, the film is set to be released by the end of this year.
Terry, who has also written sci-fi books, said: “We are in the editing and post-production process.
“We are wrapping up all the little things.
“We went into the University of South Wales and spoke to animation students. They were interested and formed their own team.
“Some of what they were doing was CGI – taking out things like unwanted seagulls. At one point there was a contrail from a plane, which is not what you would expect to see on an alien planet.”
Terry and Adam had never expected the film to be seen on a large scale, but there have been some exciting recent developments.
Terry said: “Our original plan was to put it online and a small number of independent cinemas.
“However, we have been approached by a third party who are potentially interested in taking it a lot further than originally planned. We are also planning to attend film festivals.”
Looking back, Terry said he cannot believe they managed to produce the film on such a small budget – and is incredibly grateful to all the crowdfunders who helped get the project off the ground.
He said: “We recently got all the cast together for the first time in a year. We were signing glossy photos and cards to give something back to our kickstarters.
“Our initial target with the kickstarters was £2,000 and we ended up raising £10,000. It came from all over, including the UK, Ireland, USA, Japan and Australia.
“Since we had the original idea we are just approaching the two-year mark. Doing a feature film on so little money is unheard of.
“I watched a film from a YouTuber who made a film with half a million quid, and he said that was hard.
“It has been a labour of love. The whole process is not really how I imagined. We have been quite blessed most of the time that things have gone right.
“It is a life lesson. If anybody is thinking about creating something, it could be a book, movie, painting, I would tell them to do it. Even when you make mistakes, you will learn.
“You will be able to go and see it by the end of the year. It is hard to put deadlines on it.
“It is going be strange finishing. It is kind of like the end of a relationship in that it has its ups and downs. At the end of the day I will be able to look back and say ‘I made that’.
“We want people to know that we really appreciate all the help and patience people have show us. Looking back, it’s one of the most ambitious things we have ever done.”
Part of the filming was done in the cockpit of a purpose-built space ship set that one of Terry’s friends allowed to be kept in his garage.
After the filming was complete, Terry assumed the set would be redundant, but after putting out a call online the spaceship found a new home.
“We managed to get hold of a company that do live gaming in Birmingham,” said Terry. “They disassembled it and took it away in a van. It is now an online gaming environment!”
Speaking during the filming, producer Adam, who works as a specialneeds support assistant at St John the Baptist School, Aberdare, said people had got involved with the project because they believed in it.
He said: “About 45-50 people are involved if you include post production. Not many of the people are being paid. They are just doing it because they believe in the project.
“The reaction of people in the local area has been brilliant. Our Facebook page has been buzzing every time we put up a post. People want to know when it is going to be out.”
Keep track of film’s progress on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ OffworldFilm