Writer
A young Brit in search of the perfect anti-hero
Jake first got seriously into film during a teenage obsession with Paul Newman, specifically his character in Cool Hand Luke (Stuart Rosenber, 1967). This led to the discovery of the early work of Marlon Brando, Martin Sheen and Jack Nicholson, who together formed a mould of anti-hero he found particularly compelling. His tastes have widened since then, but he maintains a particular affection for films like Badlands (Terrence Malick, 1973), On The Waterfront (Elias Kazan, 1964) and Five Easy Pieces (Bob Rafelson, 1971).
Although he often struggles to choose, when pressed for his current favourites Jake professes his love for Wim Wenders’ Paris, Texas (1984), Wong Kar Wai’s Fallen Angels (1995), Roman Polanski’s Chinatown (1974), Gus Van Sant’s My Own Private Idaho (1991), David Lynch’s Blue Velvet (1986), Olivier Assayas’ Irma Vep (1996) and René Clement’s Purple Noon (2013) – in no specific order.
He thinks that pessimism about the future of cinema is misplaced, and he also believes that contemporary cinema is filled with exciting new voices, even if they are operating outside of the mainstream. Anyone weeping about “the death of cinema” should familiarise themselves with the work of the Safdie brothers, Andrea Arnold, Lynne Ramsey, Barry Jenkins, Joel Potrykus, Jonathan Glazer, Ana Lily Amipour and other directors working outside of the tentpole movie industrial complex.
Since graduating from university, where he wrote his dissertation on the correlation between Twin Peaks (David Lynch, 1992) and American reactionary politics, Jake has applied his passion for film behind the camera. A feature that he assistant directed, Pleasureland, about a washed up minor celebrity searching for connection in a tired seaside town is currently in post-production.
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