He shoots, he scores: Talking Bond, Bend and (rugby) balls with director Matt Carter

8 Jan

Matt Carter’s first film as a 22 year old director was a gay James Bond film. His soon-to-be-released feature is a love story between two rugby players, based on his personal experiences. I spoke with him about what draws him to stories set in stereotypically hypermasculine, straight male contexts and how gay cinema needs to move beyond telling come out tales.

Listen to the interview wherever you get podcasts.

After seeing Jayson Bend for the first time nearly a decade after its first release, I was full of questions about the film. Fortunately, the director Matt Carter was able to make some time for us to have a conversation about his first feature, despite being knee deep in post-production on his new feature; a very personal story about gay rugby players and the impact their relationship has on their club.

A cinematic polymath, Matt does not just direct but also shoots, scores and does the visual effects for his films. He is passionate about telling stories which show that masculinity is not off limits for gay men.

Matt behind the camera on location for *In From The Side*

We talked about the challenges of making a James Bond film for the equivalent £ of the toilet roll budget on Skyfall; approaching scoring a film like John Barry; telling a gay story while avoiding coming out cliches; representing the spectrum of gay identities, from masc to femme; countering a ‘what happens in the rugby club showers?’ mentality; confronting your demons by laying your life bare in your work; re-editing sex scenes for maximum impact; why an exploding dildo is considered family-friendly by the censor; how to feature an Aston Martin for free; Jayson Bend sequel ideas; his idea for a bisexual-themed psychological thriller; how to get permission to feature Grindr in your film - and much more.

Synopsis of Matt’s forthcoming film: In From The Side

Following a drunken encounter, two equally attached men from a cash strapped and divided gay rugby club unwittingly sleepwalk into an adulterous affair but must conceal their growing feelings or risk destroying the club they love.