Today we’d like to introduce you to Mitchell Burrows

Hi Mitchell, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?

I’m one of those people who are lucky enough to have known what they wanted to do from a very young age. I don’t think there’s been a day in my life where filmmaking wasn’t my dream career, so as soon as I had access to anything with a lens and storage space, I gathered my school friends and dragged them into making some backyard (and terrible) short films.

Fast forward through secondary school where I learnt more about the medium through countless hours on YouTube and Media lessons, and I was excited to leave Sixth Form and enter into the world of freelancing.

Writing & Directing has always been the end goal, but I knew I wanted to spend time as a Production/Camera Assistant on a few sets first, so I felt comfortable enough with the processes before I assembled my own crew for my own projects.

Mid 2022, I finally felt ready to give it a go at the same time a wave of inspiration hit me, so I could go straight into developing the script for my first film, “The Other Side”. Once the script was ready to go, I spent the next 6 months on Pre-Production and Fundraising, and the 45 minute film was shot over an intense 3-day shoot in March 2023.

Editing a film solo when you also have a day job is no easy task, so the edit took up most of the summer. Around that time, I began to remind myself of a goal I set at the start of the year – and that was to shoot 2 films by the time 2024 rolled round. Which takes me onto my second film, ‘Love Lies’.

‘The Other Side’ was a great practice in really fine-tuning the filmmaking processes before heading into my first shoot, which resulted in a surprisingly smooth, trouble-free production. So with ‘Love Lies’, it was all about challenging myself to create an entire film with a strict deadline in mind, to truly put myself in the deep end and train those muscles.

Thanks to a fantastic cast and crew who gave me their all just like they had with my first film, ‘Love Lies’ turned out to be another successful shoot, and the film is in Post Production now!

With ‘The Other Side’ currently being submitted to festivals and ‘Love Lies’ in the edit, 2024 has been a great time to start slowly stewing on some ideas I’ve had for quite some time now, and I’m currently aiming to being writing my first feature by the end of the year.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?

I think any Independent Filmmaker will tell you that getting into the industry or getting projects off the ground is far from the easiest thing in the world. Whether it’s self doubt, time, or money, the process can take a lot out of you, but as someone who adores the medium, I wouldn’t give it up for the world.

Going straight into freelance work from Sixth Form, I was lucky enough to meet some truly fantastic Cast & Crew members who have helped bring my dream projects to life in the smoothest way possible. Considering how incredibly tight the schedules were on both of my films so far, the shoots ended up being an absolute dream to be a part of, and nothing quite beats the feeling of working with great people on something you really care about, so I won’t be looking to give up that feeling any time soon!

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?

Again, I think a lot of fellow filmmakers in the independent scene can agree you have to wear more hats than you’d ideally like to if you want to get your ideas off the ground in the beginning. My main passions and the roles I’d love to fill permanently are Writing and Directing, but when money, connections, and time are limited, that also kind of means you have to be prepared to be a Producer & Editor too.

This has been the case for both of my films now, so putting two projects together in the space of a year is definitely something I’m proud of. It was tiring and demanding, but I’ve learned so much from the process and being able to bring my dreams to life was hugely gratifying.

What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?

I would probably say dedication, as filmmaking is a very long, sometimes tedious process, which means occasionally taking a shortcut or scrapping an idea can become an attractive option. There are some days that fighting those urges becomes pretty difficult, but I think the ability to ultimately ignore them and keep my dedication towards making my art and making it as good as I possibly can has allowed me to so far have an output I can be proud of.

It doesn’t mean you have to be a perfectionist, as things are ultimately going to go wrong in some stages and sometimes you have to bite that bullet as there’s not much that can be done about it, but being dedicated means the world will get your art regardless and they’ll get it as good as it can possibly be.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mitchellburrowsproductions?igsh=ZXU5YnZ4aXl1Y2Rq&utm_source=qr
• Twitter: https://Twitter.com/_MBProductions
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@thempicm?si=OyE7By5_bg9P1flM