New Talent: Jake Dypka

When Jake Dypka was a boy, his mother moved a calf into their small back garden. Where most people would see a backyard, she saw ‘dairy yard’ and she obviously passed her original perspective of the world onto her son. Earning a cartload of awards for his documentary-style films, this young director is finding fame for his unique framing of the world in unexpected ways. 

 

LBB> Where are you originally from and what kind of kid were you?

 

JD> I am originally from Caversham in Reading. Although we lived in a terrace house in a residential town, I remember my mum being given a Jersey calf that we kept in our very small garden until it grew too big. We soon found a nearby farm to give it space to grow; from that day on I had a lot of freedom to explore fields, chalk cliffs, yards, barns and riverbanks. I was very close to my younger brother and we spent most of our time doing dangerous things with fires, knives, stones and sticks. My parents weren't very wealthy which meant a distinct lack of toys and far more time inventing games with brothers and sisters. I was a very happy, slightly rebellious child.

 

LBB> How did you learn your craft - did you go to film school or were you self-taught?

 

JD> I did a digital media degree but it wasn't very useful for learning practical filmmaking, so I very much consider myself self-taught. Being self-taught has both pros and cons, in my experience. I feel like it has been harder to discover my own style because early in my career I spent a lot of time fulfilling briefs rather than making films that spoke to me. I have now learnt that you should always write a concept that speaks to you, no matter what the brief. That, however, is much easier said than done in the world of advertising.

 

LBB> You started off editing martial arts films – what were the key lessons you learned from working on the high-kicking, fast action genre?

 

JD> It was a technical crash course in editing which has been useful ever since. When I started the job I barely knew what buttons to press and by the end I found that I had developed a really good understanding of how to edit and how to do it quickly. I have heard many people say it before, but nothing helps you learn how to direct films better than understanding how to edit. 

 

LBB> You've won quite a few awards in the last year - are awards important to you?

 

JD> I think most filmmakers would be lying to you if they said they didn't like getting noticed for their work. It’s why many directors do what they do; they want to be noticed for their ability and to be praised when they have done a good job. This is, of course, true for me too. However the most important thing about winning an award is the hope of getting more opportunities to make creative, inspiring work. We are in a very competitive industry and, aside from taking time out to make something with your own money, we can only be as good as the briefs we are given. In the case of Sammy, the Network Rail film which I won a few awards for, I had a client that provided a very simple loose brief and let me take total creative control. That is a rarity and when those opportunities come along you need to grab them with both hands.

 

LBB> How would you characterise your work?

 

JD> I think there is a mixture of factors that influence my work. The first thing is that I love to make pretty pictures; I am fascinated with the photography side of directing. I get very involved with the camera department and always want to talk about what lenses we use and how we light a scene. 

 

On the other side I seem to have a natural talent for documentary work, though it has taken me quite a long time to realise this. These two styles don't naturally go hand in hand but now I find myself trying to make them fit. What I love with documentary is the honesty, the natural behaviour of people and the unpretentiousness of it all. Documentary can apply to any type of filmmaking. If I am making a fashion film I always search for an approach that will force the model to drop their guard. That way, no matter what their presence is like on screen, they show something of themselves. It’s about searching for something honest from people. 

 

Other than that, given the choice, I tend to sway towards making things that are a little dark or a little strange. I love to elicit an emotional response from people. To me that seems easier when the subject is dark.

 

LBB> Sammy is a really powerful piece - from an emotional point of view, was it a difficult film to work on? What were your key objectives when bringing the story to life?

 

JD> I often find myself emotionally removed when making films. It might sound a bit heartless, but I tend to be thinking about how to form a narrative into an order that is most likely to elicit the strongest emotional response from people. People often associate documentary with the truth, but that is a very deceptive idea. There is no such thing as the truth, only different ways to look at an event. You could tell the same story so many different ways with documentary but to the audience they will always feel like they are getting an insight into what really happened. 

 

 

With Sammy I knew from the beginning that I wanted the images to be about setting the tone and creating a mood rather than showing exactly what happened. The way I framed this in my mind was that the pictures we were seeing weren't, in fact, the real event. We were seeing the tragedy as Leighton remembered it, through the distorted lens of his memory. This approach really ended up dictating my approach, which ended up being very surreal and stylized. On the flip side I wanted the interview segments to be completely honest, spoken by the real person. I think many people still think that the interview is performed by an actor.

  

LBB> Which piece of work are you proudest of and why?

 

JD> I find it very hard to like my own work or feel proud of it. When I finish a film, I am often very critical to the point I don't like it anymore and I am desperate to get onto my next film in order to correct the mistake. If I had to choose one, I would say Prisoner, which has many similarities to Sammy. It is also a documentary. I made it in my first year of being a paid director in London. I still didn't really feel like I knew what I was doing yet and felt a little out of my depth, but it ended up winning three Golds at the IVCA. Unfortunately I was in Morocco when it won so couldn't soak up the success. When I watch it now I can only see its flaws, but I was proud at the time nonetheless.

 

LBB> Outside of filmmaking, what do you get up to? 

 

JD> I read a stupid amount of science fiction – which I don't find embarrassing in any way. There is a short story by one of my favourite authors, Iain M Banks, that I would love to turn into a short film but I don't think I have any chance of getting the rights. It’s a bit of a cliché but I also love film photography. I have a Nikon FM2 and I really enjoy going somewhere I have never been before and taking lots of expensive-to-develop pictures. Other than that, I like travelling, being with friends, and occasionally popping back to the family farm to play with my nieces and nephews and whatever latest animal my Mum is looking after.