Jedi's Paradise - Childrens TV - Jan Martin Interview

Jan Martin Interview After a chance email with Jan Martin, the Director of Series 1 of 'Orm and Cheep', I thought I'd push my luck and ask for an interview. We hope you enjoy it. Interview Q: How did you get involved with directing Orm and Cheep? A: I was a Director of a company called Independent Producers Ltd who had offices in Covent garden. I was separated from my husband, Tony Martin, a brilliant designer, illustrator, sculptor... but we continued to work together. Q: Who came up with the idea for the show and how did it become a TV Show? A: He (Tony) came up with the idea for a children's TV series called Orm and Cheep and together we worked on how to make it work. First we had to sell the idea to a TV station and finally Central Television backed the series. Q: Had you always planned to use Puppets and what was the procedure you used to create an episode? A: We had planned to do the show using puppets - we knew a brilliant puppet designer, Mary Edwards, who also was/is a great operator. Her uncle had started the Little Angel Marionette Theatre and Mary worked for him in the early days. Then I had to work out how best to do the backgrounds - create the scenes and we decided to use what was groundbreaking at the time - a blue screen. Tony drew and painted the backgrounds and the occasional prop/piece of scenery in front of the puppets. These backgrounds were only small - 4x3 feet - the puppets were quite big. The puppeteers worked in front of a blue screen on the floor hidden behind yet more blue and monitors showed them the background shot on a different camera and keyed in place of the blue screen on the monitors. This had never been done before. We knew it could work and found a great ex-BBC engineer, Derek Oliver, who could make it all work. After the shoot, we then went into the edit suite. This was where the sound and picture finally came together. Tony had created storyboards for each stage of each programme so I had worked out in advance of going into the edit which version of each scene we would use. We had gone into a sound recording studio to record all of Richard Brier's voices. He had not seen the shoot so he was creating the characters as we did the recordings. I had found a wonderful composer to write the songs and at first Richard was very worried that he couldn't produce all the voices and even if he could, sing in those voices! Q: Were you pleased with Richard Briers doing the voices and was he first choice, or was there someone else in mind? A: We had a lot of fun in those recording sessions - he is so unbelievably talented and you can persuade more and more from him. He was not my first choice as I had approached some well- known kid's presenters but they proved to be limited, self-important and expensive. And then I thought of Richard.... Q: Did you enjoy working on the show and where was the series filmed? A: It was great to see it working once we were in the studio in Barnes, London (an old squash court and not a sound stage because sound would be added at the editing stage) and apart from my husband and my PA, who had started an affair with him, the atmosphere and camaraderie was extraordinary. It was such a creative process - from the puppeteers who had to create the characters - the cameramen and engineer working to make the relationship between the keyed backgrounds and puppets work. I ended up talking to the puppets - giving them directions - after all I couldn't see the puppeteers! Q: Was it a stressful time doing the shows and what difficulties did you have while filming the it? A: It became a stressful time because it became impossible to produce the series within the schedule of 3 weeks that had been allocated AND I was getting grief from my husband - the breakdown of our marriage had a lot to do with him finding it impossible to have a successful wife even though he was so brilliant in his own right. In the studio I was in control as producer/director and although I ensured that, as the author of the story and the artistic director, Tony was happy with what was happening, nonetheless he constantly tried to quietly break me down. Interestingly no-one apart from Independent Producers staff and Mary Edwards, the puppeteer, knew that Tony and I were married. Q: Some of the puppets looked similar to the Muppet Show, was the show produced in a similar way. A: It was nothing like the Muppet Show in terms of production - it had to be much more controlled. Q: The puppets used seemed unique, what were they made out of and did this produce difficulties. A: The puppets were made especially for the series. Tony had an idea of the characters he had written and Mary was brilliant in creating them - each was made out of whatever material required - feathers, foam, wood, cloth etc etc. No duplicates were required - they were just brilliantly made. Q: What’s your favourite character in Orm and Cheep, and why? A: I loved Mole - because I liked his song but they were all so endearing even Crow! Q: Are you contacted much about Orm and Cheep and are you surprised that so many people remember the show years later (plus the theme tune, which has stayed in my mind for too many years)? A: I have never been contacted about Orm and Cheep - a second series was made which I had nothing to do with (another long story) - I was disappointed that it was not more successful as like you, I thought it was really good and unique. Q: We would all love to see Orm and Cheep again on DVD, do you know who owns the rights to the show? A: If you look at the Wikipedia entry the list of those involved is for the second series but I believe David Hamilton and Claire Derry have the rights. David Hamilton was the co-director of Independent Producers. Q: What other shows have you been involved with (any other children’s TV shows) and what are you doing now? A: The other thing that I am known for is miles away from kid's television - I started the Big Screen live opera relays from the Royal Opera to the Covent Garden Piazza in 1986 - it was a first and now look what's happened... even the BBC copied me! Q: What was your favourite show you worked on and why? A: I have to admit that directing live opera with the likes of Placido Domingo, Pavarotti, Sir Thomas Allen, Angela Gheorghiu, Robert Alagna, surpassed anything else I have done - exhilarating beyond words. I now design web sites: http://www.janmartinproductions.co.uk/

1998 Children’s TV Exhibition - Dudley, West Midlands, UK Orm and Cheep at the 1998 Children’s TV Exhibition, Dudley, West Midlands, UK

1998 Children’s TV Exhibition - Dudley, West Midlands, UK Orm and Cheep, with Mouse and Rat - 1998 Children’s TV Exhibition, Dudley, West Midlands, UK