Award-winning filmmaker Ryan J. Smith on growing up in Blackpool, his latest movie and future projects

A Blackpool-born filmmaker whose latest feature has earned festival acclaim says growing up in the resort gave him the determination to forge a career in the film industry.

Ryan J Smith, 28, was born and raised on the Fylde Coast. Now a filmmaker who has won numerous awards and accolades, he sat down with The Gazette to discuss his upbringing in Lancashire, latest feature film and career in general.

"I grew up in South Shore. My mum was a teaching assistant, my dad was a gardener and we had no connections to the film industry. We couldn't afford film school, so I basically bullied my way into one by showing them everything I'd already made,” Ryan explained.

“By the time I was 15 I'd made about 13 short films and even a feature film. I can't remember a time when I wasn't making things. When I wasn't at school I was filming, writing or editing because I realised early on that nobody was coming to hand me an opportunity.

“We were working class and didn't have any money, but my parents were always supportive. They said, 'If this is what you want to do, do it, because you'll only regret it if you don't.' That mindset has stayed with me ever since."

Ryan was accepted into the prestigious MetFilm School in London aged 17, and by the age of just 23 he had shot his first feature film. Fast forward five years and Ryan has now made four full-length movies, with another two currently in the works.

He added: "I've got a funny relationship with Blackpool. I love it, but I think it needs to help itself. If you grow up there wanting to make proper feature films, there's no entertainment industry waiting for you, so you have to go out and do it yourself.

“In a way, growing up in Blackpool made me more determined because I realised very young that no one was coming to save me. I've shot four feature films there because I know the place like the back of my hand and I know what I can get away with.

“People talk about needing more film infrastructure in places like Blackpool, but I don't really agree. What you need is people from the area being productive and making things, and then opportunities will follow. I don't hate Blackpool at all – I love it. Like everywhere, it's got its problems, but it also taught me to be self-sufficient."

Ryan now runs his own production company, the Skint Film Company, and has recently been in negotiations with industry giants like Amazon over potential deals. His latest film, Arthur’s Empire, released last month to critical acclaim.

Ryan added: "Arthur's Empire is about a journalist who visits Blackpool to write about the final days of an antiques hall before it's turned into flats, but while he's there a string of robberies turns the story into something much bigger.

“It was shot between Manchester and Blackpool in three days with a budget of £3000. We genuinely thought we were making a drama, then we premiered it and 500 people were laughing their heads off, so I guess it's a comedy.

“The funny thing is a lot of what people are reading into it wasn't intentional. We were supposed to shoot in August, but because our lead actor needed surgery we ended up filming in November instead.

“Suddenly Blackpool was shut for winter, businesses were closed and the whole atmosphere of the film changed.

“Critics have said it's a political film about the decline of seaside towns, but that happened completely by accident. It's a good lesson for filmmakers, whatever happens, just roll with it and let the film become whatever it becomes."