Films that inspire Free Jazz Pictures

So there are a number of films that inspire the vibe of what Free Jazz Pictures makes and will make, many of these are either French films or stylised films that captured a particular look or vibe.

Many films with Alain Delon are very stylised, either in look, cinematography or simply down to the cast and chemistry. These films were either very urban or set in elegant locations, yet the premise or format of the story was a simple, and effortless.

La Samouraï (1967) has a moody palette that captures stoicism of the protagonist, there's nothing crazy elaborate the picture, it's a thriller with revenge and honour with a theme of isolation running through it.

Les petits mouchoirs (Little White Lies) (2010) is a great ensemble film, but it's the capture of friendship, food, fun and folly that makes this film a joy to watch, with characters anyone of us could identify with.

The American (2010); moving away from ensemble pieces, is a great mimimalist film. It has breakthaking locations in Italy and Sweden, every frame is like a grogeous photograph, however it has a contained minimal cast and dialogue. It's moody, you drink in very visually, it has a classic euro thriller vibe that pulls inspiration from spaghetti westerns and samurai films.

Before Sunset (2024) has a special place with surely any indie film-makers; the beautiful and bold choice for the simplicity of a conversation between old friends draws you in, it feels so real and has inspired many a duologue film. I always found my strength was in writing films like this, and have several character driven scripts inspired by this format.

Jacques Deray's 'La Piscine' (1969) with Alain Delon and Romy Schneider, is a beautiful languid thriller, it smoulders slowly while looking effortlessly cool. This is a great example of maximising a minimal range of locations with much of the film taking place at the characters villa.

It's amazing what films can inspire when you're faced with minimal location options for an indie film, so it's supriseing to find main stream films, whether Hollywood or European that can provide great examples, especially if you're pushed for budget or no budget, in indie film-making.

The Matador (2005) will always have a special place in heart, it's a comedy, a drama and thriller filled with pathos. Pierce Brosnan absolutely shines in this film as Julian Noble as a hitman having a nervous breakdown, it's a fascinating character driven story and the main character to my knowledge has never been replicated in any other film. If you want a unique take on the buddy film genre, this is it.

A special shoutout goes to a mere scene in a film where the faces, dialogue and minimum movement does all the hard work in selling the scene. Out of Sight (1998), has great moment that oozes chemistry in a car trunk set, possible the smallest space you could shoot a scene with two characters. Following a jail beak the protaganists; a thief and a federal marshal, are confined to the trunk of a car during a getaway. It's a scene of a little over 3 minutes but it conveys so much about the two characters from their awkward yet chilled dialogue. If you're absolutly stuck for ideas or locations, confined spaces can be a goldmine for short stories.