The co-working floor has only been open a few months, but it already has its regulars. We took the time to chat with one of them, Paul J. Kennedy, a Development Executive for Mainstreet Pictures.
Q:What project are you most proud of being involved in?
A: Too hard for me to choose as every project that I have worked on has had its own strengths and weaknesses. I’ve learnt a lot from each, whether it is on big blockbusters or the very small personal ones. Each has given me different skills and I really do love them all. I think the most important thing is to keep making things and having fun doing it, no matter what it is. Recently I made a very abstract short form art-film with a group of friends that was so enjoyable because we had complete freedom and didn’t have to fit into any sort of conventional narrative or structure. I spend a lot of my days script editing and making sure stories make logical sense, so to break away from that was really fun.
Q:What makes screenwriting so fulfilling for you?
A: I think screenwriting (when done right) is the most vital part filmmaking. A film is such a specific bit of work in a lot of ways, a lot more narrow than other art forms like books or visual art. I think it is particularly hard to create a film that works and the audience is so knowledgable in that area that they are almost impossible to trick. A good film or television program all starts with screenwriting. People call it a blue print, but really it is the film on a page. Painting a picture of what is possible as well as creating a recipe for how to achieve it. There are screenplays I’ve read that have prose and dialogue and are as enjoyable to read as any novel or play. There is that saying that a good director can elevate a script, but they can’t save a bad one and I think that is very, very true.
Q:What’s your favourite thing of working in Pancake Studios?
A: The vibe! A very friendly and creative place to work with a really beautiful interior. It’s exciting to see the different projects that come into the studio and as a someone that primarily works remotely, it’s a godsend to have a place I can come to with a community and use as a base for both personal and professional projects. Long may it continue!
The freelance backbone
Screen work in Belfast runs on freelancers — editors, sound designers, colourists, production coordinators, writers. Between contracts they work from kitchen tables and coffee shops, cut off from the conversations that lead to the next job. The co-working floor exists to put those people back in the same room.
A day pass, not a lease
No minimum term, no desk assignments, no key fobs. Book a desk when you need one, or pick up a membership if the habit sticks — members get discounted room hire across the whole building, so the desk often pays for itself the first time you book the podcast studio.
If you are one of the people keeping this industry running between productions, come spend a day on Limestone Road. The coffee is decent, the tea is great and the company is better.
Made at Pancake
Stories get written here too — come make yours in the studios.