A world-class Caribbean film maker. Christopher Guinness.

Christopher Guinness

Interview by Emiel Martens of Caribbean Creativity

Christopher Guinness (1981) is a director and animator hailing from the southern-most Caribbean island of Trinidad and Tobago. After having worked for leading advertising agencies at home and abroad, Christopher decided to launch his own creative agency, Bepperton Entertainment, together with his wife at the time. Their two short narrative films to date, Pothound and Captain T&T, were released on Vimeo and almost instantly found acclaim all over the world.

Could you first briefly introduce yourself? Where were you born, where did you grow up, what sort of education did you have and how did you get involved in the creative industries?

My name is Christopher Guinness and I hail from the southern-most Caribbean island of Trinidad and Tobago. I grew up drawing, painting and experimenting in all sorts of visual art disciplines which eventually lead me to pursuing studies in animation at Sheridan College in Ontario, Canada.

You have worked for two leading advertising agencies, first as a graphic artist at McCann-Erickson and later as an art director at Saatchi and Saatchi. How did you get in these competitive positions? And how was it to be working at such global creative agencies?

The job at McCann I was offered by the creative director. I had created a piece of animation which caught his eye and was subsequently used by one of their clients for the FIFA World Cup. I had no plans of entering advertising but the opportunity seemed interesting and, not unimportantly, the girls there were cute. After spending some time at ME and beginning to feel a little creatively stagnant I interviewed for a job at Saatchi. A week into the job they lost their biggest client in a competitive pitch which was prior to my arrival. As a result they had to let go a portion of their staff. At this point Leizelle, my wife at the time, and I were thinking, bad move, coming to Saatchi and Saatchi. But we rallied with the company, won the first pitch we worked on, then the next and the next. In the following couple of years we won more creative industry awards and business than any agency in the Caribbean, the biggest awards as well. It turned out to be a good move.

In 2011 you started your own design, film and animation agency, Bepperton Entertainment Productions, together with your wife, now ex-wife, Leizelle. Why did you decide to strike on your own? And how is it to be working together with your ex-wife?

Well, our working relationship is what our former marriage can only hope to be. The move was natural, we were getting jobs and needed a company for the checks to be made out to.

On your company website it is stated that you aim to produce work with social purpose. What do you want to achieve as a socially committed filmmaker? And how does your Caribbean background play into your work?

It’s important that our work to not only entertain but inform, inspire and creates discussion. Much like the best art seems to do. Our work is seasoned with the Caribbean element. I think it's unavoidable, it's innate in our creative process.

So far you have made three short films together, Married People (2010), Pothound (2011) and Captain T&T (2013). Could you tell us more about how these projects were conceived and executed?

Married people was above all an experiment in seeing if we can tell a story with as little as possible. Hence it stars Leizelle and I in our former apartment and little more. From there we decided to get a little more adventurous. My writing is influenced by life experiences, so a tragedy involving one of my dogs inspired Pothound and my childhood, Captain T&T. Once you get a clear idea down on paper, the process becomes organic. You begin to see ways of making things work, ways to serve the story without the unlimited problem solving money of Hollywood.

You premiered both Pothound and Captain T&T on the video-sharing website Vimeo, from where they went viral. Pothound even made it to the finals of the 2012 Vimeo Awards in the narrative category. Why did you decide to distribute the films through this platform?

The choice was heavily influenced by money. It really adds up, distributing through film festivals trying to get your work seen by the right person. A lot of films get lost trying to do the festival route and are shelved from the greater public for years much to their detriment. So we took a shot just putting it out there for the world or no one to see. The content appealed to many and the films got traction and were a hit on Vimeo and other social media. They even got pirated on YT, countless Asian websites, torrents for christ sakes. But what it came down to is that we got recognition and work from the exposure, which I think is the point of short films distribution anyway. I still do think the festival circuit is better if you have an extremely refined masterpiece on your hands, but for us now starting up, it was the way to go.

You are currently working on your fourth short film, Fade to Black. What is it about and when can we expect it to be released? Also, you have specialized in making short films, do you have any plans in store to make a feature-length movie?

Fade to Black is about aging, memories and love and will be out this year. I consider making short films as a stepping stone. There is a feature-length movie in the works. A very special story that is uniquely Caribbean. Just wait and see!