I didn't want the film to be in the tradition of British social realism 
Richard Jobson has turned his hand to quite a few things over the years - from punk rocker with The Skids to film critic and producer (including Heartlands, 2002). His first feature, 16 Years Of Alcohol, is the story of Edinburgh hardman Frankie Mac. It's a stylish, semi-autobiographical work, in part based on the experiences of Jobson and his late brother, Francis.
You've been connected to the film business for quite a while, but this is your first time as a director. What motivated you to take the helm?
Well I had no intention of ever directing. I've been producing for the last five years, and writing, working on other people's films. It was a chance meeting with the Hong Kong filmmaker Wong Kar-Wei that led me to have a go... I wrote a book many years ago called 16 Years Of Alcohol, he liked it very much, and said, "Why don't you turn it into a film?" I actually thought he meant he would direct it but he said, "You should have a go." I didn't feel I was ready... but I was pushed and shoved to have a go at it. I had Kevin [McKidd] with me so that made me feel more secure. I had really good actors around me. I think for anybody who fancies having a go at directing - the first rule of thumb is to make sure you have really good actors.
The film is shot in a very stylised way...
I made a very clear decision at the beginning that I didn't want the film to be in the tradition - which is a fine tradition - of British social realism. I like those films very much, but it's not what I was interested in making... I wanted it to be much more fragmented, like a dream, and I wanted Edinburgh to be like a character in the film.
The lead character, Frankie, leads a very violent existence...
The film to me was a study of the male dynamic. It is unashamedly masculine - I think a lot of filmmakers and writers these days keep well clear of that theme. We should be looking at our feminine side if you look at most films these days, it would seem. The films of Scorsese were very interesting because they look at that dynamic - where does the violence come from? And the alcohol in my film was really... the landscape was soaked in alcohol - there's always a drink, they're always in bars. But Kevin's character - I think once in the film you see him drunk. It's the mechanism of alcohol that gave him that feeling of fearlessness so he could be so violent. I think that's what I was interested in examining, as he searches for goodness.
You've said it's a film about the masculine experience. Did you find it difficult to write the female roles?
Not at all. The two female principal characters in the film are the strongest characters. Helen [Laura Fraser] is an intelligent, articulate young woman, totally in command of her world. Her instincts draw her to this guy [Frankie] - there is something about him she likes. Laura played her without any melodrama or regret; she's a very intelligent character. And then the more maternal character, played by Susan Lynch, brings an almost angel-like quality to that role. I am very proud of the women I wrote; they are much stronger than the men. I'm interested in the weakness of men, and where it comes from. I think it's a theme I'll continue to explore.
Kevin McKidd is at the core of the film...
Kevin McKidd gave the film a big heart with his performance. It was great that I had him - without him I don't think I could have delivered the film as it is. It might have been even more stylised... he has taken it to a level that no one expected it to be at.
Because you used to be a film critic and are getting into directing at an older age, do you think you had further to fall if it didn't go well?
Yes, of course, the fall could have been a mighty one and might still be [but] people seem to have engaged with it... I think maybe the other aspect to that question is that having accrued all that sense of cinema structure and grammar, and collated all that information over the years, I felt more secure in myself, writing scripts... and I had produced two or three films so I understand the economics. 16 Years' budget was laughable - 拢400,000, but I have final cut - and that's why I work at the level I work at. I didn't expect, and I didn't deserve, any more money than that. I hadn't directed a feature before, so who was going to take a risk?
How does the final product compare with your hopes for it?
My expectations were quite low. I just wanted to make it. Once we got the ball rolling there was no stopping it, really. The budget was originally quite high and then it became very low, because people found the film to be a difficult film, because of the narration. People in the UK don't like films that are narrated. They think it means the film does not work... [but] I think I used it in a different way.
The interest that has been shown by people is great. In the realisation from book to screen I was pretty clear what I wanted it to be like - the stylisation of it was always going to be something some people would like and some would hate - I didn't really worry about that too much. I wanted it to be very elegant. I created a world and put real people in that world, that was my intention, and I feel I was successful in that.
