Phil Hawkins
Phil Hawkins | |
---|---|
Born |
Manchester, United Kingdom | December 26, 1984
Phil Hawkins (born December 26, 1984) is an award-winning commercials, television and independent film director from Manchester, United Kingdom. His work in feature film includes "The Women Of Troy" (2006) and Philip Pullman's The Butterfly Tattoo (2008). He is also known for appearing in the Fox/DreamWorks reality television show On The Lot.[1]
Biography
Hawkins directed his first short film when he was 13 and admits himself that it wasn't very good. He had no formal education in film and is entirely self-taught. He learnt the film-making trade by taking part in a lot of 48-hour film challenges.[2] When he was 17 he gained a place on the BBC's Mentor Project. and with a £1000 fund he made a short called The Dotted Line which got him noticed by a TV advertising production company.
His first feature "The Women Of Troy" won Best Director at the New York Independent Film Festival in 2006 and is on sale internationally on DVD. In late 2006, Hawkins was signed by the Dutch production company Dynamic Entertainment to direct the film version of Philip Pullman's novel The Butterfly Tattoo,[3] the author of The Golden Compass. The independent film won three awards at international festivals including Best Director at the New York Independent Film Festival in 2008 - the second time Hawkins has won the same award.
In mid 2010, Hawkins shot the film 'Being Sold' in just two days. The film went on to win Best Film and Best Actor for its lead Christopher Dane at the London Independent Film Festival.[4]
In 2013 Hawkins Directed the horror film "The Last Showing" starring Robert Englund. The film had a budget of £2m and was shot in the North West of England. It had its world premier in 2014 at Frightfest before being released on DVD and VOD.[5] Talking about working with Phil Hawkins, Englund commented that: "You know, it’s so great to work for someone as gifted as Phil Hawkins. After a day and a half of working with him. I was like, “Where’s he been all my life?”"[6]
On The Lot
In 2007, Hawkins was the only filmmaker from the UK selected to appear on Fox/DreamWorks reality television show On The Lot for filmmakers.[7] He was selected to appear on the show after watching his short film 'Commandeered'. Phil was controversially voted off the show to the surprise of the show's critics. For his work, Steven Spielberg called him "one of the best new and upcoming directors". Carrie Fisher (Actress Star Wars and writer) said his work "was the most visual they have seen" whereas fellow judge and director Brett Ratner said he was "a big fan". Since the show, Phil has signed up to US based manager Seth Lockhart for features development.
TV Commercials
In addition to his film work, Hawkins has Directed a number of TV Commercials for a wide range of Advertising Agencies and Production Companies.[8]
Filmography
Year | Film | Credit |
---|---|---|
2011 | Being Sold | Director |
2014 | The Last Showing | Director |
2015 | The Four Warriors | Director |
Awards
- Best Feature Director at the New York Independent Film and Video Festival 2006 for The Woman of Troy[9]
- Best Feature Director at the New York Independent Film and Video Festival 2008 for The Butterly Tattoo[10]
External links
- Phil Hawkins Official Website
- Phil Hawkins Production Company
- Phil Hawkins Twitter Account
- Official Vimeo Account of Phil Hawkins
References
- ↑ http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1014959/
- ↑ Interview with Phil Hawkins by Fast Cheap Movie Thoughts
- ↑ PR Newswire report on the making of the Butterfly Tattoo
- ↑ Philm Company profile of Being Sold
- ↑ Yahoo News Interview with Phil Hawkins
- ↑ Den of Geek Interview with Robert Englund
- ↑ Slashfilm article about On The Lot
- ↑ Phil Hawkins TV Commercial for Fashion World
- ↑ NY Film Awards winners 2006
- ↑ NY Film Awards winners 2008