As a writer of short films, I’m used to finding audiences at film festivals – people who have to get off their bums and go buy a ticket to see your film. So when I heard through BBC Writersroom about the BBC iPlayer Original Drama Shorts I knew this was a unique and exciting opportunity – the chance to write something which had no set slot, length or channel, but which had the ability to reach such a wide audience.
I was invited to attend a workshop at the BBC with about 30 or so other writers and we spent the day watching and discussing short films and TV dramas, meeting the 2014 Drama Shorts alumni, and also hearing from Dominic Mitchell, writer of In The Flesh. I came away feeling both inspired and panicked (12 days to get our pitches in! But that only leaves 11 days for staring at a blank screen!). I then tried to describe the story I wanted to tell.
My starting point for Playing Ball was observing mother-daughter relationships. I’ve always thought of having children as being quite a narcissistic act – the desire to create something in your own image and for it to be not only yours, but so very you. I was reminded of this one day when watching a miserable 7 year old being relentlessly coached to play football by her parents, with all three wearing matching tracksuits. I’ve also seen friends of mine still experiencing the same problem – how to dare to be that person your parents never expected, considered or perhaps even wanted you to be. (I must note here that Sally is in no way modelled on my own mother. And not just because she might be reading this. She was ace when I came out to her and she has never, to my knowledge, attacked a cheerleader. Though she did once chase after someone with a golf club when he tried to steal from her shop. Go mum.)
Also, as a parent myself, I was especially interested in exploring just how hard it is to get that mother-daughter relationship right. There are such high expectations on both sides and I wanted to depict a moment in which both parties see each other not just as a mum or a daughter, but as people. So from these musings, the characters and story of Sally and Charlie were born. In July 2014, I was told my pitch was being taken to script (eight were commissioned) and by October, after various meetings and rewrites, I was given the amazing news that 'Playing Ball' was one of the three to be produced.
The process from initial draft to shooting script involved meetings with Catherine (Producer), Maddie (Script Editor), Ollie (Assistant Script Editor) and Rachna (Director). It was fantastic to work with a team who understood so well the story, themes and characters. It allowed us to openly and productively debate and question decisions that I had made in the writing and to create the best script possible. Of course we didn’t always agree on everything but that’s to be expected and at the end of the day that’s simply because everybody cared so much. I’m pleased to say it never came to fisticuffs, though there inevitably came that point where you become so deeply immersed that you’re momentarily unable to see the wood for the trees. This point probably came when Maddie, the script editor, and I spent nearly fifteen minutes late on a Sunday evening discussing the difference between being boss-eyed and being cross-eyed. Other things I’ve done as part of the writing process for 'Playing Ball' include Googling “unusual terminal diseases” and “lesbian arts and crafts”, and calling a construction company to ask if a traffic cone could fit on someone’s head. Many of these things never made it into the final version but I like to assure myself it was time well spent in some way.
What never changed, however, was the clear vision I had of the emotional journey Sally and Charlie would take. I also knew that they had to come together doing something quite absurdly criminal – I liked the idea that such a dark act could be a moment of union for them. A great piece of advice I was once given about writing was to start by thinking about the ending – what do you want to end the film with? What do you want to leave the audience with? And what do you want to have said? I have always known from the very beginning how I wanted to end 'Playing Ball' and the final scenes were already in my mind long before any of the others. Sally and Charlie are two characters struggling to find the truth in their own lives and that’s pretty much what I do with any story I tell. It was also important for me not to offer any judgement on these characters – everybody has a bit of the crazies in them, after all. 'Playing Ball' is about learning that sometimes people do the wrong things for the right reasons and that bonding with your mum can be murder…but rewarding nonetheless.
Watch Playing Ball and the other new Original Drama Shorts for BBC iPlayer from 10th July 2015
Catch up with Series 1 of the Original Short Dramas for BBC iPlayer Tag, Flea and My Jihad
Watch My Jihad (now a 4 part series)
Watch Selina Lim's short 'Painkiller', made through the BBC Writersroom Cineast scheme
Find out more about Selina Lim on her website
Download the scripts for the first series of the Original Drama Shorts & My Jihad
TV Blog: Andrew Cumming on directing original iPlayer Short 'Oakwood'
