Profile Spotlight: Derek Abel

[Profile Spotlights]

On 10.10.10 Derek Abel filmed a group of squatters in London, and interviewed them about the high cost of leading a life untethered to material goods.

Who are you and what is your profession?

Derek Abel. I'm currently a film student at SAE Institute in London in my first year.

Can you tell us a little about your background and upbringing?

I've studied film for the past two years, but my entire life has been spent either watching, reading or talking about films as I grew up in the Azores Islands in Portugal. I must have watched over 15000 films.

What inspired you to become a filmmaker?

The reason I became a writer/director was due to my vivid imagination and my dream to capture that same imagination on the screen.

Who or what do you most admire?

There are plenty of film icons I could name like Steve Mcqueen, Oliver Stone, Hitchcock and more recently Tarantino, but the people I truly admire are my sister and my girlfriend for supporting me in this quest of capturing my imagination and becoming that which I've only dreaming of becoming, a writer and director.

What did you film on 10.10.10?

On 10.10.10 I filmed a group of squatters (people who live in properties that do not belong to them) who were on the verge of being thrown out of their place of residence.

It was a great experience and it really thought me a lot about film, documentaries and life. I hope you enjoyed my little film.