About Master and Man
MASTER AND MAN THE COMPANY
Master and Man Films was founded by us - husband and wife, Film Director Alan and wife, Tamara Forrest Smith. We have quickly grown into an edgy, creative collective of indie misfit filmmakers. And despite the fact we are new - We boast well over fifty years of top-end filmmaking and TV experience within our quirky filmmaker’s collective.
So far our films are specialist story-driven biopics and documentaries with one small zombie film in the mix. We are going to create interesting, different, compelling story-driven films that will truly live forever.
Our clients - the lucky ones so far - are one of Europe’s most famous eateries and market houses, Altrincham Market. Altrincham’s No.1 coffee house, California Coffee. Glasgow’s No.1 pharmacy New Life. A reel short for well-known TV actor David Tag, and others. We won’t make it a secret that we are aiming to be one of the very best story-driven, indie filmmakers in the northwest. I believe we will be just that.
Master and Man’s collective manifesto is to use THE BEST Directors - THE BEST Writers - THE BEST storytellers - THE BEST Camera crews - THE BEST light, sound, colourists, crew, gear and more. But with one condition - they are mostly filmmaking misfits. In my experience misfits are our greatest creators. We want the best.
OUR MISFITS
Alan (me) is the creative mind behind Master and Man. A published author of over 21 books, writer of over 4000 blogs, an established business growth consultant, copywriter and lecturer. Today, I am a storyteller, writer, filmmaker and film director. They claim (clients, friends and my kids) I am definitely a unique thinker, non-conformist and lover of turning stories into film.
I first began to think about films in the early 2000s. Life got in the way but now we are here. Lockdown handed me the gift of time. I used that time to teach myself the science of filmmaking. My heroes are - Coppola I can relate to his madness and way of thinking. Hitchcock as he is a master of the shot and story. Wenders as he showed me how much can be done with just a camera. All rulebreakers, all filmmaking misfits of their time.
“I am a writer first and a film director second. For me, making a film is a direct translation of a story. A story has to be engaging, interesting, compelling, and suspenseful. There has to be a hero a villain and all the other moments you expect from great filmmaking. From tragedy to triumph or from triumph to tragedy and back again. The film must keep the viewer stuck on the screen, sitting on the edge of their chair in anticipation of what is next. I love film. ”
Tamara is the person that makes sure every box gets ticked. She is also the one that makes sure the Master and Man creatives are able to do what they do. If it has to be organised, arranged and booked - Tamara is the one that gets it done. That is Tamara in the photo at the top of the page with me. She is also my wife.
OUR BAFTA & OSCARS
Let’s talk about our awards. We don’t have an OSCAR, we can’t boast a BAFTA or any other award. But I believe they are coming and when they do we’ll share them with you. And we won’t pretend we’ve been here for decades because we haven’t. We are a new but brilliant filmmaking misfit collective. Our awards are on their way but just held up a little.
Our first handful of brilliant quirky films and commissions reveal what we can do. The story, the angle the shoot. We are ready to help you create a film that will truly live forever. Read the full story here
It’s all very simple, at MasterandMan. We take your idea and turn that idea into a film that is all of the above and more. We then make you a film that is carefully designed, planned, written, and constructed to live forever. In other words - your film will stand the test of time. And only the very best films stand the test of time. That’s what we want for ourselves as filmmakers and creators. That is what we want for you and your film. The very best creative film project you can ever hope for.
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A film production company has been on my mind for years. As a writer and family man of six children time is the tough part to start a new business. Lockdown gave me an opportunity - the gift of time. So I used that time to get started with MasterandMan.
I started by practising on my family, filming outside at 2 am, chasing cars, filming people running through parks, sitting in the back of a car with a camera during lockdown filming the weirdness of nothing on the streets. But I had time.
The only place open during lockdown was a coffee shop called California Coffee. I got friendly with them so I asked them if I could make a biopic for them. That was my second film. My first film was a request from a client of mine. She asked me if I could make a film for her. I replied yes of course. So six months into the pandemic and my team drove up to Glasgow and made the brilliant and very revealing, The Other Frontline. This was a film about the reality of being a community pharmacy and probably the only place the public could get medical treatment during the pandemic. The film covers the highs and lows, the dramas and the abandonment of The Other Frontline.
I then made a small short called ISOLATION. This is a black-and-white but wonderful film shot in the abandoned city of Manchester right at the start of the pandemic. One character facing his greatest enemy. not the virus but his mind. This is a powerful short that I wanted to reflect the sheer brutality of being on lockdown and locked out of humanity.
I wanted more and now I wanted something bigger.
My next project became a historical biopic about the regeneration of the town of Altrincham. This is an epic piece about what was really behind the story of the market in Altrincham. this is the first time I also used a composer friend as I wanted each period to be covered by that same period's music. We replicated the sounds of the hacienda, factory records, punk rock, and new wave. I then gave it a compelling, engaging story that focused on the mind behind and then the regeneration of the town of Altrincham. This beautifully northern film is called The Curator for self-explanatory reasons once you watch it,
Then from there a couple of shorts. One suspenseful piece is called Bite Size. I wanted to use NO actors. I also wanted a minimal script. We used lighting heavily to create the mood and timing to create suspense. I loved this one. Again from full film production to the composition of sound and music, we created another great film that will live forever.
The most recent is a short called The Boxer. The reason for the Boxer for me was simple. A well-known actor named David Tag wanted a showreel that showed a completely different side of him. Rather than make a standard showreel I decided to turn him into a boxer. The short is designed to showcase David’s incredible physic for action parts on bigger films. It worked incredibly well. NO dialogue but a well-thought-out film from start to end.
Film & Politics of Woke
Yawn … There is no conversation to be had. We are filmmakers not experts in human origin or sexuality. Someone can do the job or not. We run a woke free company. Maybe I will make a film about this in the future. Right now - yawn!
OUR film production company
CREW
Our crew have well over six decades (that I can count) of filmmaking experience. From high profile TV shows to big brand adverts and to well-known films. The majority of our filmmaking crew is hand-picked very carefully by myself - the director of master and man.
FILM DIRECTOR
Currently, I am the Master and Man lead director for all our projects. We do have assistant directors, but as of now, I like to keep a very tight grip on directing for the sake of quality of vision.
MOVIE MAKING EQUIPMENT
We own a ton of gear. We usually go with SONY cameras or sometimes RED cameras and lenses. The same goes for all our gear. We only use the latest and best so you get the very best production.
FILM SOUND & MUSIC
Our main sound guys and composer have experience in major films and even top ten artists.
MOVIE EDITING/PRODUCTION
We use the best editing software between Adobe and DaVinci. Both are the best, both are industry standards. We also have a few tricks here and there that we throw into the mix.
FILM PROJECT SIZE
None are too small or too large. We can handle anything as long as you have the budget in place. It is critical you have a budget in mind.
Films with powerful engaging stories. A film with incredibly talented teams behind cameras, lights and all action. A film that is engaging to watch and doesn’t get switched off. A film that has been designed, created and put together to truly live forever.
OUR Future
We currently have one full-scale film on the slate that is being polished for funding. Hopefully, production begins soon. Some detail can be read here.
I am currently writing two brand-new scripts. Both are unnamed and strong story-driven films with very different stories. And - I am always looking for investors in our films.
If you are thinking about working with us I hope I have told you enough to pick up the phone and start a conversation.
And finally …
OUR Name Master and Man
As a writer, I am also a reader. Tolstoy is my writing hero. I love all of Tolstoy’s works and have not only read the great War and Peace (which is quite a feat in itself) but I’ve even been to Russia to visit Tolstoy’s home and gardens.
Master and Man is the name of a Tolstoy story.
We think we are the best independent filmmakers for hire near Manchester. We will let you decide once we start working on your film.
Do you need different? /// Alan is different!
Do you need different? /// Our collective is different!
Do you need different? /// Our ideas are different!
Let’s have a conversation.
Grab me here.
Alan Forrest Smith and The Misfit Filmmakers.