About me

Claire is a writer and director based in London. Her first feature Make Up has been greenlit by Creative England and BBC Films' iFeatures scheme and will shoot later this year. She has also been developing a feature adaptation of Tessa Hadley’s short story, The Swan, with Torino Lab and Creative England. Claire's award-winning short films have played at more than 50 festivals including the BFI London Film Festival, Edinburgh International Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival: Kids and Austin Film Festival, and are known for their subtle storytelling and striking visuals. Recently, she produced Tom Lock-Griffith's essay film Waterfall, which examines the landscape of grief and was shot entirely underwater. Claire co-founded Cinesisters, a collective of female directors, and frequently works as a researcher for commercials directors and production companies.

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Projects

• 17

  B E A U T I F U L E N O U G HStarring Miffy Englefield, Beautiful Enough was Claire's first film. It is a meditation on cultural obsessions with beauty seen through the gaze of an inventive young girl. BEST PERSONAL NARRATIVE, Amsterdam Film Festival, 2011 - WINNER
• 1

  T R A C K SStarring Gordon Brown and John Bell, TRACKS was commissioned by Rankin Film Productions’ Collabor8te scheme. The script was one of 8 chosen from over 1400 entries and was developed with Tristan Goligher from The Bureau. The film premiered at Edinburgh Film Festival, 2014 BEST DIRECTOR, Underwire Film Festival, 2014 - WINNER BEST FEMALE DIRECTOR, London Short Film Festival, 2015 - SPECIAL MENTION CHANNEL 4 AWARD FOR INNOVATIVE STORYTELLING, Glasgow Film Festival, 2015 - NOMINATED SHORT FILM PRIZE, Shuffle Film Festival, 2015 - SHORTLIST
• P H Y S I C SStarring Peep Show's Matt King and newcomers Jodie Bastow and Masie Hopkins, Physics was commissioned by Film London as part of thier London Calling scheme and was funded with support from Tomboy Films and Working Title Films. It premiered at the BFI London Film Festival, 2012. BEST FILM, Best of Boroughs, 2012 - WINNER BIFA Longlist, 2012
• 7

  P U M E Z A : T U N I N G I NA short documentary about how South African soprano Pumeza Matshikiza prepares for a performance. The film was commissioned by Universal Music and premiered on Nowness on 31st May 2016. “I found it inspiring, pure and true’ GUILLERMO DEL TORO, TWITTER
• J A M E SStarring Jack Hollington, Morgan Watkins and Robert Cavanah, James was commissioned by The Wellcome Trust and was written by Felix Levinson. Set in 1796, the film is based on the true story of James Phipps, the 8-yr-old boy used by Dr Jenner to test to the world’s first smallpox vaccine. The film premiered at Brest International Film Festival, 2014 and is now a teaching tool in schools across the country. BEST COMPOSER, Underwire Film Festival, 2014 - WINNER
• 6

  W A T E R F A L LWaterfall is an essay-film about memory and grief and how they are embedded in the landscape. Directed by Tom Lock-Griffithts and produced by Claire Oakley, the film was shot entirely underwater in the canals, rivers and reservoirs of East London. The film premieres at Aesthetica Film Festival in York in Nov 2016 and will also play at London Short Film Festival in January.

Skills

• Writing
• Directing
• Film

Education

English Literature MA
Sep 2001 - Jun 2005