FR: I initially conceived the idea for Composure during the summer of 2023. I felt inspired to create a film that reflected my own experience of the creative process, a journey that often involves chaos and challenge. I wanted to channel my passion into producing something that embodied that essence, with music playing a central role. However, to complicate matters further, I had also decided to compose the entire soundtrack, making it my first - and probably last - time directing and scoring a film simultaneously!

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    Pre-production commenced as early as August, and I recall at the time that Damien Chazelle's Whiplash left a profound impact on me. The music was simply captivating, and I genuinely believe it was the catalyst for this entire project. My intention was to create a sense of urgency and unpredictability not only in the narrative but in the score as well, and I felt Jazz was the perfect vehicle for that.​

    I started working on the score with some rough ideas by November, but I didn’t have the chance to solidify the score until roughly April, with it changing drastically over that period. Since the opening scene required synchronised visuals and music, I had to complete the initial part of the score before filming even began. This was both exhilarating and demanding, especially given the stringent guidelines for a university dissertation project (for which this was specifically produced for); every aspect had to be meticulously timed. The entire cast and crew played a pivotal role in making this possible and my life was genuinely made a thousand times easier during the shoot because of them.

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    In particular, our actors were luckily very easy to find. We sent out two casting calls at the end of January 2024, and we quickly received a ton of auditions. For Otto I landed on Brandon Regan, who we previously worked with in Gridlock, which you can WATCH HERE, and he delivered a heartfelt yet subtle portrayal of the character. For Emily, Nicola Jennison’s audition definitely stood out as it was exactly what I was looking for - an additionally sour opposing force to Otto’s obsession of making music.

​    But I really can’t move forward without acknowledging the significance of Milton Gibney, the film’s Director of Photography, in translating my vision for the film (all with just a couple of day's notice before the shoot). In fact I couldn’t have been more delighted with all of the crew’s hard work, a team so strong that we would later assemble shortly afterward for Clockwork, which you can WATCH HERE.