Scott Pickett
Scott is a versatile director who has a passion for performance and cinematic storytelling. The combination of good eye, dry wit and a feel for tension has led him to create rich and varied work across all genres.
Born and raised in outback Australia, his earliest film, an animation made at High School, won first prize at the Museum of Contemporary Arts short film festival.
Scott attained his Masters in Directing at the Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS). His short films, The Rouseabout, Shot Open, The One Who Broke Your Heart and The Doppel Chain have screened at festivals worldwide and won numerous awards.
Whilst directing commercials and developing TV and film concepts, he has directed drama for Channel 7 Australia. He has also worked on the sketch comedy- The Elegant Gentleman’s Guide to Knife Fighting a TV series screened on Netflix (USA), ABC (Aus) and also The Moody’s, ABC (Aus) Hulu (USA), Sky TV (UK). Throughout the last few years, Scott has made a short supernatural thriller in the USA, a fashion film in France, as well as numerous commercial campaigns all around the world, often garnering awards. Scott continues to be driven by his passion to create funny, beautiful and innovative work.
Q & A
If the world you created in your film became a reality, is that a world you would want to live in? Is there a Sci-Fi world you’d buy a one-way ticket to?
If the technologies that I used in the world of my film existed there could be amazing, wonderful applications. However, the application of the technology in this film is totally amoral and would lead to massive levels of chaos. So, yeah sign me up.
Name a Sci-Fi character you relate to on a spiritual level? Who is your Sci-Fi spirit animal/spirit alien?
Han Solo was always a character that I was drawn to. Wait, is Star Wars sci-fi or based on a true story? Always forget.
Friend or Foe: humanoid robots with advanced artificial intelligence? What if robots start making their own Sci-Fi films? Will you support them in their endeavors?
I saw on Reddit that Hollywood was already run by humanoid robots. That explains a few of their decisions.
In 1996, Bugs Bunny recruited Michael Jordan and Bill Murray to form the greatest basketball squad of all-time, the Tune Squad; you’re Bugs, who’s on your Sci-Fi Tune Squad?
I’m not sure, but I think Godzilla could play some good D.
You’ve gotta go through some bad ideas to get to the good ones. Tell us one of your bad ideas. How do you get past the bad ones to find your spark?
Bad ideas? Like trying to play two characters in an 11 minute short and shoot it in one day when you’ve never acted before? That was a bad idea. How did I get past it? I didn’t I gave it a try. The bad ideas are the best ideas.
Do you consider yourself part of a sci-fi community? Or when your brain is in the future and your body’s in the present, is that isolating?
I think sci-fi works best when it reveals something about our present or universal condition. So, in that sense I don’t really live amongst the world of sci-fi, rather I would visit it when it best serves a greater psychological idea. I hope I’m still welcome after saying that!
Do you consider yourself more of an analog or digital person? What kind of balance do strike between the two? Is there a disconnect between the technology you make films about and the technology that you make films with?
Do you consider yourself more of an analog or digital person? What kind of balance do strike between the two? Is there a disconnect between the technology you make films about and the technology that you make films with?
When you’re creating the props and sets that make a new world, where do you look for inspiration? How do you create objects that are relatable but unfamiliar?
In the case of The Unboxing Video the only prop was a big box and stuff I had around my house.
Lightning round: Star Wars or Star Trek? Philip K. Dick or William S. Burroughs? Practical or CGI? Dystopia or Utopia? Post Apocalypse or Pre Apocalypse?
Wars. Dick. Dys. Mid?