Since its debut in 1987, the SXSW Festival has spotlighted some of the biggest names in film and television. This month, it returned to Austin to mark its 40th edition, continuing its tradition of championing bold, original storytelling. Among the many honours presented throughout the week is Redbreast’s Unhidden Award, which celebrates up-and-coming filmmakers from across the world. Helping award the prize, BAFTA-winning actor Andrew Scott returned for a second year on the judging panel, hand-selecting this year’s finalists and stepping into the role of executive producer for the winning film.

Having worked with many renowned filmmakers, including Andrew Haigh, Rian Johnson, and Sam Mendes, the Irish actor is well-versed in distinctive storytelling. It’s that instinct which aided Scott in narrowing down the festival’s finalists, each tasked with putting together a fifteen-minute-long short film. This year’s winner, Pranav Bhasin, is a Mumbai-based director and writer whose practice holds a magnifying glass up to contemporary India with humour and fondness. His film, We Were Here, tells the story of three retired men convinced that technology is replacing them, asking the question “What happens when the future arrives and no one tells you?”

In the conversation below, Scott reflects on the stories that excite him most, the art of subtlety in storytelling, and his transition to working behind the camera.

Ella Joyce: How does it feel to be returning to SXSW Festival as a producer?
Andrew Scott: It’s my second year working with Redbreast, and we had such a good time last year. This time around, we’re here in Austin, Texas, and we’ve got another really, really great selection of filmmakers. It’s really exciting to be at the beginning of people’s journeys. Making short films is hard, you know? It’s hard to make an impact, so any sort of help I can give them, I’m really delighted to. 

EJ: You had the job of narrowing down the finalists. What was your criteria when choosing?
AS: It’s always just an original voice. You don’t want to see something that you’ve seen before. It’s like if you’re at a party and someone tells a really unique story about their own completely individualistic experience, you’re like, “Wow, I won’t forget that.” That’s what you’re looking for. Whether they can do that visually, or it’s the subject matter, or whatever cinematic language they use, you immediately know when you’re dealing with an original voice, and that’s what we’re trying to uncover.

EJ: Each of the films has a very intimate feeling; there’s an interpersonal thread that runs through each story. In cinema recently, it feels as if there’s been a focus on these quieter stories, with films such as Sentimental Value or Train Dreams. Is that something you also felt when watching them? 
AS: You’re right, that’s really true. You don’t have to scream to make it compelling; I completely agree. More lo-fi, low-key films have always been in existence, but I think some of the ones this year, like those ones you mentioned, Sentimental Value and Train Dreams – what a beautiful film – they creep up on you, in a way. I think it means that the filmmaker doesn’t have to take over too much, they let the actors, the story and the camera do their work. You can really tell. When you’ve only got fifteen minutes to do that, it requires a certain degree of confidence to be subtle.

EJ: From your body of work, I think All of Strangers shares that sentiment – I love that film. 
AS: Oh, thank you. It really does, and it’s also got a completely singular way of presenting itself. The audience doesn’t immediately know what it has in front of them. I think audiences are so full of imagination, they’re able to suspend their disbelief. If something is a little bit off-kilter or not necessarily mainstream, audiences really love that. Even our most mainstream, big-budget movies, the ones that really succeed, are the ones that have this kind of crazy idea at the centre of them, and then, of course, it becomes the norm, but at the beginning, you’re like, “What is this?” 

“When you marry two artists’ ideas together, then this kind of third idea is born, and that’s when the really cool stuff happens”

EJ: You have worked with some amazing directors in the past. From your experience, what is it that makes a good director? 
AS: For me, it’s about being a real enabler. I know that sounds a little bit simplistic, but you’re the head of the company as the director, so you’ve hired experts, and your ability to delegate and to have a certain degree of humility about what people are experts at is key. Somebody who can listen, have a very strong idea, and welcome other people’s ideas. As an actor, I always want to come in with an idea, and for that idea, whether it’s good or bad, to at least be considered. I think all the best directors go, “Oh, wow,” and have no sense of threat, only excitement when somebody goes, “Oh, what about this?” Then they could say yay, or they can say nay, but they’re able to go, “Oh, God, that’s interesting. Maybe we can do that,” and that’s when you meet the two. When you marry two artists’ ideas together, then this kind of third idea is born, and that’s when the really cool stuff happens. To me, that is the most important part of collaboration.

EJ: As this new generation of filmmakers starts to come through the ranks, what kind of stories do you think we’re going to see more of?
AS: The thing that art does is it unites us in some ways, and I always think it’s more important to tell the truth in our storytelling, rather than necessarily making stories about a kind of utopian way of living. I believe it’s much better to represent how we are rather than how we wish we could be. Because then the audience is involved in some way. I think when things are false in heart, it’s because you go, “Well, yeah, that’s not the way life goes.” It’s always a little bit messier, a bit tougher, a bit harder to access. We all love some movies where you’re like, “This is just lovely,” watching a rom-com – I love a rom-com. Sometimes you can have stuff that’s full of romance and full of comedy, but is just a bit thorny – that’s the kind of stuff that I like. Maybe that’s because that’s the stuff that’s really interesting to act. Lightness is really, really underestimated as a skill. Some of the best actors in the world are the ones who can play things with a very light touch – it’s much harder. As they say, comedy is really hard. It’s actually sometimes harder to get a sense of something, rather than to sort of hit the audience over the head.

“I think it’s much better to represent how we are rather than how we wish we could be”

EJ: What was it that set the winning film apart for you? 
AS: The piece is exactly what we’re talking about, it’s comedy, it’s humour. I think it’s often overlooked because comedy is the ultimate truth-teller. When you laugh, it’s involuntary. You literally don’t make the sound to laugh if your body doesn’t tell you to, or your mind doesn’t tell you to. If you make a whole room of people laugh at the same time, it means there is a definite connection with the audience. Sometimes, more vague, wishy-washy stuff, you watch and go “Yeah, I’m enjoying this,” but it’s passive in a way. Well, that’s not what happens if you’re watching… Bridesmaids. That scene with Rose Byrne and Kristen Wiig when they’re doing the best woman speeches. [both laugh] I mean, that is just so fantastic, and so funny. And that’s not easy to do because you’re in everyone’s imagination, everybody knows that situation, even if they’ve never been in it. 

EJ: Those light-hearted things are so important, and as a filmmaker, they’re sometimes the hardest things to do. 
AS: Oh, yeah, they are. It takes confidence to say, “OK, I don’t need to play these really heavy notes. I’m just going to trust that the audience is going to get this without having to spell it out.”

EJ: Looking forward to your producing role, how do you think your experience as an actor has informed your work as a producer?
AS: I’ve just finished filming this movie called Elsinore, which I’ve produced, and I loved it so much. I really, really loved it. I think it’s just about guidance. In relation to the filmmaker here, you see what the person might need, and then you go from there. Elsinore was a very big passion project, and incredibly wonderful, very funny. Filming Elsinore, I realised just how dependent you are on the kindness of strangers, people believing in your work, and people doing things for the passion, because there wasn’t a lot of money. I think it’s a special one. I hope it is, but I believe it will be.