THE BEST WAY THROUGH GRIEF IS COMEDY AND FRIENDSHIP
FOUNDED by Kimberley and Amy Datnow in 2016, Clean Slate Productions is the only sister production company in the UK.
And the dynamic siblings hope that making their first feature film together – romantic comedy Daddy Issues – inspires other people.
“I don’t understand why more sisters don’t do productions together because your sister’s your oldest friend, the person you trust most,” notes actress and stand-up comic Kimberley, who has appeared on Grey’s Anatomy.
“We definitely have this dynamic; I’m the older sister and she’s the younger so we fell back into those family roles sometimes! But it was an amazing process.” Kimberley stars in Daddy Issues as Henrietta, who is struggling to come to terms with her father’s death and regaining her prowess as a stand-up comic following his funeral.
After making the move from her native UK to LA to run the family business, she faces some issues; balancing trying to fit the mould of her late father’s career with her own wishes for life, whilst also trying to date. The quirky film explores Henrietta’s fragility, her past dysfunctional relationships, and the difficulties of adulthood.
The project is a “bit biographical”, says Kimberley. “We’ve definitely had dating mishaps!”
Through Henrietta’s college friends, the film shows a range of different types of “daddy issues”, based on stories the filmmakers had heard from friends. The sisters’ decision to write the film was also sparked by the sudden death of their own father; they were on other sides of the world when it happened, with Kimberley working as an actress in LA and Amy living in Israel. “Our father did pass away, but really it (the film) comes from us just talking to our friends, talking to each other about our relationships,” explains Amy.
“The best way to get through any grief is comedy and friendship,” adds Kimberley.
“A lot of people don’t talk about grief and so I think this film is really good at this time when we’ve got the coronavirus pandemic, and everybody needs to watch romantic comedy to make themselves laugh.” Did they find it cathartic to take a traumatic experience and channel it something creative?
“Yeah, it was such a good form of therapy for sure,” responds Amy.
“We tried to keep a lot of our personal things in it, like our dad’s jumper, and real photographs, to try to bring a personal touch to it.”
Amongst the cast is veteran American actor Peter Jason, star of Jurassic World, Hail
Caesar! And HBO series, Deadwood.
“There was a lot of set bonding,” says Kimberley, recalling how at the end of big scenes, Peter would sit with them and eat all the chocolate that was on set. “He was so happy to be with a young crew and we were so excited to be with this Hollywood actor and hear his stories,” adds Amy. As for what’s next for the pair, they’ve just finished writing another script together.
“We’re casting soon, and we will be shooting it in England, which is really exciting,” Amy reveals.
Daddy Issues is available to download from Amazon and iTunes now
LIFE was beautiful for Italian writer-director Roberto Benigni in 1999 when he collected two Academy Awards including the golden statuette for Best Actor in a Leading Role. His response was to spearhead a lavish passion project, a visually sumptuous but misguided adaptation of Carlo Collodi’s timeless classic Pinocchio, in 2002.
Almost 20 years later, Benigni stars in yet another reimagining of the fairy tale, Matteo Garrone’s live-action adventure, which reintroduces darker elements from the book that were tempered by Walt Disney’s classic 1940 animation.. Emboldened with stunning set design, costumes and jaw-dropping prosthetic make-up courtesy of Mark Coulier, who collected Oscars for The Iron Lady and The
Grand Budapest Hotel, this Pinocchio is a fantastical feast for the senses tightly strung to the episodic structure of Collodi’s 1883 novel. Consequently, Garrone’s picture outstays its welcome at more than two hours and scenes establishing a tender father-son bond between Geppetto and his wooden ward are a lesson in patience that younger children might struggle to learn without fidgeting.
Once the eponymous puppet is spirited far from home, pacing noticeably quickens to herald a colourful parade of travelling companions before a moving resolution that underlines the strength of family ties in crisis.
Ageing woodcarver Geppetto