SCI FI MEMBERSHIP
Blake's 7
Q&A-ANDREW MARK SEWELL
Q&A (EPK) – ANDREW MARK SEWELL
Producer/Director
How did you get involved in making TV, films and audio - what was your 'big break'?
In many ways my ‘big break’ was getting my first job in BBC Drama at the tender age of 19 and having the likes of Tony Holland and Julia Smith as mentors – a formidable team by anyone’s standards who co-created series such as Angels and EastEnders. Ironically, Vere Lorimer (director/producer of the original Blake’s 7) was also a great champion of my ambition and in later years became a close confidant. Had it not been for these people, who gave me such an invaluable advice and insight to the business, I would probably still be a glorified bean counter planning my escape route from the executive corridors of the BBC.
What was your role on the Audio Adventures?
My role as the Director is essentially to interpret the excellent scripts written by Ben Aaronovitch, Marc Platt and James Swallow and work with the actors to make the characters and stories come alive. Since I was also the producer, I worked closely with Ben in the development and scripting of our retooled vision of Terry Nation’s original stories and characters.
How did it feel directing such an amazing and varied cast?
I felt like a kid in a sweetshop! I couldn’t believe that we (or rather David Hall) had managed to amass such an amazing cast list. How great is it to work with such luminaries’ as Michael Praed, Francis Barber, Rula Lenska, Nick Brimble and Colin Salmon all at the same time. It doesn’t get any better than this!
How does directing for audio compare to other mediums?
You’re much more focused (pretty much totally) on the voice performance since that’s essentially all you’ve got to establish and deliver a believable interpretation of the character, and therefore the story. In television you can express an emotion or action by a subtle look or underscore a plot point or poignant moment with a visual touch, but in audio you’re utterly reliant on the strength and believability of the voice performance to emote a multitude of sins.
What’s been extremely satisfying about directing these audio productions is that the strength of the voice performance alone, helped no end by some wonderful writing, work in their own right even before we caressed any performance or scene with the sound design and music. However once we added the sound design and music (a full orchestral score by Alistair Lock) the end result is very dramatic, almost cinematic and pulls everything together.
What's the difference between the three episodes, in terms of pace and style?
Not much really. They essentially run to the same format, as in a 60-minute episode broken down into 12 chapters. The chapter format was a great discipline for the writer’s to work to and rather than fragment or make the story feel disjointed it helped no end in maintaining the relentless pass. In a way we set out to give a contemporary spin to the old Saturday morning adventure serials (Flash Gordon) but for radio!
Also I’ve been a great fan of Dirk Maggs’ audio dramas and he really set the bar with productions such as Superman, Batman and of course The Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy series. Maggs’ describes his audio productions as something that bypasses the optic nerve and hotwires the imagination, with a widescreen experience you can enjoy anywhere -in the car, the train, or on the sofa with your eyes shut. That sums up perfectly what we’ve set out to achieve!
You worked a lot with Ben on the scripts, what was the most challenging aspect of this?
That’s a tough question to answer but I guess distilling what was great about the characters, plots and stories conceived and written by Terry Nation, being brave enough to discard what didn’t really work and then adding our own spin to it, making the whole thing work for audio. When you’re working on a project where the original is so embedded in your consciousness, you question your choices all the time, but you have to park your rose tinted nostalgia and stick to your convictions. I think we’ve hit the right balance between retaining the spirit of the original, fleshing out the characters, particular some of the weaker ones like Gan, whilst upping the dramatic ante.
What are your memories of the original Blake's 7 show?
Morally ambiguous characters that fought, bickered and died. Great one-liners, Servalan’s wardrobe and a really cool spaceship!
What's special about Blake's 7, why not an original series?
Its influence can still be felt today. Hit genre shows are still mapping the paths first explored by Terry Nation and there aren’t many genre shows that you can say that about! The original will always have its rightful place in the television landscape of the time, and I for one am very fond of it, but when you’ve got such a strong core format inhabited with some colourful 3-dimensional characters it’s crying out for a fresh interpretation that can introduce a whole new audience to its magic.
Why remake the original TV episodes?
Strictly speaking it’s not a remake but rather like the new Battlestar Galactica television series a re-interpretation or the original. I might be accused of splitting hairs on this one, but what I’m really saying is that as good as the original was it’s quite dated, but if the core format still works then the opportunity to rework it for a modern audience is an appealing proposition to any writer and/or producer. So long as you remain true to the spirit of what made the original, so original, then producing a fresh take is perfectly valid.
Did you consider casting the original actors who played the characters 25 years ago?
Absolutely, it was quite a heated debate, but we decided that since there were some actors that we simply couldn’t bring back for a multitude of reasons - David Jackson (Gan) sadly died last year, Jacqueline Pearce (Servalan) has left to live in Africa looking after orphaned Vervet Monkeys - it was far better to recast right across the board. Besides the age factor, these are characters that are meant to be in their 20s and 30s and many of the original actors sound their age, it also gave us the freedom to reinterpret the characters in the way we wanted. As for the original cast they will forever have their place as the classic series characters, as do the likes of Lorne Greene, Richard Hatch and Dirk Benedict for the original Battlestar Galactica series.
It has to be said that since we were re-imagining the concept for audio it made complete sense that we made a clean break with the old and ushered in the new. That extended to us even changing the theme tune (another huge debate) since at the end of the day we didn’t feel that the original conveyed the epic sense of adventure that we wanted to get across. What Alistair Lock has composed is a fully orchestrated theme that’s majestic and sweeping, whetting your appetite for the adventures ahead. I think fits perfectly with our new take on the original.
How would you describe the Audio Adventures to someone who's never seen Blake's 7?
Dramatic, character driven adventures, that just happens to be science fiction.
How did the recordings feel, how did they go?
Because Ben and I and worked for a good 12-18 months developing the audio proposition there was a certain trepidation on the first day of recording. However through a combination of pure adrenalin and the absolute conviction of everyone involved, any anxieties were quickly dispelled and there was an overriding sense of satisfaction that we were doing something a bit special. We all realised that we had been entrusted with an important legacy and I genuinely believe that we’ve done Terry’s original vision justice and hopefully breathed renewed life into the series.
What will be your overriding memory of the recording?
The camaraderie, enthusiasm and generosity of the cast and crew.
What do you think will get people excited about these audio adventures?
As Dirk Maggs’ would say these audio adventures are something that bypasses the optic nerve and hotwires the imagination, with a widescreen experience you can enjoy anywhere -in the car, the train, or on the sofa with your eyes shut.
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