How LOOSE got tight with Football Beyond Borders

When did you first know you wanted to be a director? What led you to it?

I feel like I never really had an explicit ‘talent’ of my own, but I’ve always wanted to get involved with the people and things that I rate in culture. I’m a professional fan, whether it’s athletes, musicians, or geographical landforms. So, I found my way by having ideas about how to tell their stories.

I've always been proactive in making things happen. Not really knowing what a director even was, I was filming things since I was at school. As some of my friends started to see success, people began to notice my work. Then Stink reached out to represent me as a director, and I realised that’s what I’d been doing all along!

I love film because it’s the most effective way to bring an idea to as many people as possible.

It was never really about ‘film’ only, though. I have always worked across a load of different formats, including stage design, audio, image, and events. I love film because it’s the most effective way to bring an idea to as many people as possible. 

We all watch hundreds of videos on our phones every day.

How did you get involved with the Football Beyond Borders project?

Stink got the script through and pitched for me to direct it. It was my first official advertising campaign.

This sounds a bit mad, but I only discovered football a couple of years ago. I realised how insane it is that football clubs bring together hundreds of thousands of people every week. I went from zero to 100 - from never going to a game to seeing Arsenal Ladies play every single week. So when I heard about the work that FBB was doing, it was amazing to see how the incredible community and togetherness that football effortlessly embodies was being used as a positive force, and I was in!

The film has a real authenticity that many try but few master - what was your secret?

We went and met some of the girls who are part of FBB before the shoot. It taught me so much. I told them my idea for the film, and it didn’t take long to realise I was totally misrepresenting them. When I left school eight years ago, the stereotypes of girls who play football were very real, but these girls proved how much has changed and the real impact FBB has had.

I asked what excuses their mates give when they want to play a game of football. The girls had none! This hit me hard and is such a different outlook from my own experience as a teenage girl. FBB are nurturing a legendary generation of girls.

All the dialogue in the film is totally real ... some of the dialogue and one-liners were epic.

So at that moment, we scrapped the script. The girls and I wrote a story to reflect their reality. We all agreed that we hated sob stories and cringey stereotypes in films about women’s football.

All the dialogue in the film is totally real. Everything spoken by the cast is from the FBB members I met at that workshop. We made a group chat, and the girls spent a couple of weeks sending voice notes to each other. Some of the dialogue and one-liners were epic. 

I worked with my editor, Sam Marr, to deconstruct the voice notes and create a story that made sense. And that’s how we got to where we are!

How was the shoot?

We shot this in one day, which, in hindsight, is mental. But when the only client’s concern is to make sure the cast is having a good time, you’re onto a winner. FBB are really great people. Diego, Ceylon, and Debra have created an environment that allows their young people to really flourish. It was the most relaxed set I've been on in a long time, and that really helped us to focus on what mattered.

We were able to be super playful, and I was really keen to make sure the girls felt real ownership over their stories, which helped us to make quick decisions and keep the vibe up! Shea Coleman is a boss producer for always harnessing that playfulness too.