BFM

Interview with Horace Ove-The Godfather of black Brit cinema by Imruh Bakar

Horace Ove, born in Trinidad, is one of the Caribbean's most prolific and significant filmmakers.

He produced his important work, so far, over a period of three decades while living in the UK. He has won several major awards for his films and also holds a National Decoration The Scarlet Ibis Medal from the Government of Trinidad in recognition of his international achievements.He was named Best Director for Independent Film and Television by the British Film Institute in 1996.

Horace Ove is considered the father of Black filmmaking in Britain Having arrived in London in 1960 to study art, Ové worked as a painter and photographer, and went on to make his flrst film The Art of the Needle in 1966. Though there were other filmmakers like Barry Reckord, Lionel Ngakane, Frankie Dymon Jr. and Edric Conner (1913�1968), Ove has proved to be the most prolific. His film Pressure (1975), acknowledged as the first feature by a Black British director, is widely regarded as a landmark in British film history.

It is however not usually noted that the British Film Institute who flnanced the film refused to release it for almost three years because it was seen as being a 'biased' representation of British society. The film was eventually released, but even today is still only available on a worn 16mm print.

Ove has now re-located to the Caribbean, dividing his time between Trinidad, Jamaica and the US.At the end of April 1998 he made a brief visit to London. His schedule included a visit to Windsor Castle for a reception hosted by The Queen for the British arts fraternity. When I met with Ove a few days later the topical issue was the controversy which had erupted over the integrity of Hanif Kureishi's writing. This provided a starting point for our conversation about Ove's career and experiences in Britain, the limitations imposed on black artist, and his current work in the Caribbean.

The Kureishi situation was for him indicative of the V S Naiapaul syndrome. For a black artist to be successful in British society one has to indulge in turning the worst aspects of black life into parody and spectacle. From his own experience this says something about the narrow view of black life in Britain which has placed limitations upon black film makers over the years. In his own ironic and exuberant style Ove expressed the view that he was not against looking critically at black life, but he says, "I don't want to be forced into a kind of false position because that is the only way I could be given the opportunity to make a film, or be seen as credible." Speaking from the position of thirty years experience of the British film industry and the commissioning process within television, he is stressed that the limitations reflect the prejudices and inadequacies of views held by of those who commission. As a filmmaker he has found himself forced to make a choice between working from what would be considered a British perspective, or what would be called a Caribbean perspective.

"There is this thing called the glass ceiling, and its a bitch when you hit the ceiling. You thought it was space and you could go anywhere because you have laid the foundation, you have paid your dues, you have studied, then as you are moving they say stop, this is as far as we want you to go in this society. What I say as an individual, as Horace Ove and the way that I was brought up, is that the world is my oyster and I will go anywhere. If I can't do it here after all these many years, then I will go anywhere like any other artist or filmmaker. When I started my career, the films I made during the sixties to the eighties were during a very strong political time and most of my films had a social political edge. But that is all the people saw in those films and things I did on television. Either they agreed with it or disagreed, but they did not see my ability as a filmmaker."

On his arrival in Britain Ove's formal training brought him into contact with the most sophisticated ideas about cinema at the time, particularly European Art Cinema. He went to Italy in the early sixties to work on the film Cleopatra. As he recalls, "A lot of people like myself got jobs as dancers, slaves, you name it. So I went to Italy and stayed. Important for me was that ....

The full text of this interview can be found in Black filmmaker 1998

FILMOGRAPHY

PRESSURE
PLAYING AWAY
TELEVISION
GOOD AT ART
THE EQUALIZER
A HOLE IN BABYLON
THE GARLAND
WHEN LOVE DIES
MOVING PORTRAITS
THE ORCHID HOUSE
THE PROFESSIONALS
EMPIRE ROAD
THE LATCHKEY CHILDREN

DOCUMENTARIES
REGGAE
KING CARNIVAL
WHO SHALL WE TELL?
SKATEBOARD KINGS
THE ART OF THE NEEDLE
BALDWIN'S NIGGER
NATIVE SON




Interview Editorial Finance: bfm looks at alternative source of finance for indie filmmakers bfm highlights a worring trend in UK film cycles Report from Edinburgh Financing a short film Distribution Interview with Horace Ove: The Godfather of Black Brit Cinema (c)Black Filmmaker Publications 1998: All right reserved			Interview with Horace Ove-The Godfather of black Brit cinema by Imruh Bakar Horace Ove, born in Trinidad, is one of the Caribbean's most prolific and significant filmmakers. He produced his important work, so far, over a period of three decades while living in the UK. He has won several major awards for his films and also holds a National Decoration The Scarlet Ibis Medal from the Government of Trinidad in recognition of his international achievements.He was named Best Director for Independent Film and Television by the British Film Institute in 1996. Horace Ove is considered the father of Black filmmaking in Britain Having arrived in London in 1960 to study art, Ové worked as a painter and photographer, and went on to make his flrst film The Art of the Needle in 1966. Though there were other filmmakers like Barry Reckord, Lionel Ngakane, Frankie Dymon Jr. and Edric Conner (1913�1968), Ove has proved to be the most prolific. His film Pressure (1975), acknowledged as the first feature by a Black British director, is widely regarded as a landmark in British film history. It is however not usually noted that the British Film Institute who flnanced the film refused to release it for almost three years because it was seen as being a 'biased' representation of British society. The film was eventually released, but even today is still only available on a worn 16mm print. Ove has now re-located to the Caribbean, dividing his time between Trinidad, Jamaica and the US.At the end of April 1998 he made a brief visit to London. His schedule included a visit to Windsor Castle for a reception hosted by The Queen for the British arts fraternity. When I met with Ove a few days later the topical issue was the controversy which had erupted over the integrity of Hanif Kureishi's writing. This provided a starting point for our conversation about Ove's career and experiences in Britain, the limitations imposed on black artist, and his current work in the Caribbean. The Kureishi situation was for him indicative of the V S Naiapaul syndrome. For a black artist to be successful in British society one has to indulge in turning the worst aspects of black life into parody and spectacle. From his own experience this says something about the narrow view of black life in Britain which has placed limitations upon black film makers over the years. In his own ironic and exuberant style Ove expressed the view that he was not against looking critically at black life, but he says, "I don't want to be forced into a kind of false position because that is the only way I could be given the opportunity to make a film, or be seen as credible." Speaking from the position of thirty years experience of the British film industry and the commissioning process within television, he is stressed that the limitations reflect the prejudices and inadequacies of views held by of those who commission. As a filmmaker he has found himself forced to make a choice between working from what would be considered a British perspective, or what would be called a Caribbean perspective. "There is this thing called the glass ceiling, and its a bitch when you hit the ceiling. You thought it was space and you could go anywhere because you have laid the foundation, you have paid your dues, you have studied, then as you are moving they say stop, this is as far as we want you to go in this society. What I say as an individual, as Horace Ove and the way that I was brought up, is that the world is my oyster and I will go anywhere. If I can't do it here after all these many years, then I will go anywhere like any other artist or filmmaker. When I started my career, the films I made during the sixties to the eighties were during a very strong political time and most of my films had a social political edge. But that is all the people saw in those films and things I did on television. Either they agreed with it or disagreed, but they did not see my ability as a filmmaker." On his arrival in Britain Ove's formal training brought him into contact with the most sophisticated ideas about cinema at the time, particularly European Art Cinema. He went to Italy in the early sixties to work on the film Cleopatra. As he recalls, "A lot of people like myself got jobs as dancers, slaves, you name it. So I went to Italy and stayed. Important for me was that .... The full text of this interview can be found in Black filmmaker 1998 FILMOGRAPHY PRESSURE PLAYING AWAY TELEVISION GOOD AT ART THE EQUALIZER A HOLE IN BABYLON THE GARLAND WHEN LOVE DIES MOVING PORTRAITS THE ORCHID HOUSE THE PROFESSIONALS EMPIRE ROAD THE LATCHKEY CHILDREN DOCUMENTARIES REGGAE KING CARNIVAL WHO SHALL WE TELL? SKATEBOARD KINGS THE ART OF THE NEEDLE BALDWIN'S NIGGER NATIVE SON (c)All rights reserved Blackfilmmaker 1998