Middlesbrough director credits grandfather for love of cinema

BBC News

31-03-2025

A young film director has credited his grandfather for taking him out a toxic home environment and igniting his passion for cinema.Next month, a film Middlesbrough-born Joe J Walker shot for less than £1,000 will premiere at the Alhambra Cinema in Keswick, where he also works.Mr Walker said his film directing dreams had been shaped by his grandfather who had taken him to the Blockbuster video shop in his home town every Friday."We'd usually go with a movie of his choice, like an obscure French cinema or German cinema," he said. "Then he'd pick a more mainstream one for me, something like Close Encounters."
Mr Walker said his childhood had been chaotic and he regularly witnessed violence and substance abuse.But he said Joe Walker senior, who died in 2018, had taken him out of that environment and taught him a love of cinema."We were actually watching ET and afterwards there was a behind-the-scenes featurette and I was so fascinated with the notion that people are on a set, working with actors and constructing shots," he said."My grandad told me it was called being a director and, if you want to do it, you can do it - I'll get you a camcorder."
After getting the camcorder, Mr Walker quickly started making "terrible films", he said."It was so much fun and, from that moment, I knew that's what I wanted to do for the rest of my life," he said.His latest film, a psychological horror entitled Beyond the Eye, was shot at the cinema where he works and premieres on 26 April.Owner Jonathan Moore said when he found out Mr Walker wanted to make a film "it was kind of a no brainer really" to agree to it."It's really hard to get into the film industry," he said."You either have to come from a family that's in the industry already and has connections, or you have to have money and kind of buy your way in."
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