Trailer

Movie Clips

Introducing

TOM SMITH

Tom Smith is a 23-year-old saxophone player who has always felt a part of the music community. Having grown up in a musical family of trumpet players, Tom knew early on that he wanted a career in music. His instrument of choice is the saxophone for its greater opportunity to demonstrate personal flair and individuality. Tom has recently completed his jazz degree at the Royal Academy of Music, has a large role in the NYJO orchestra and was even featured in the BBC’s Young Musician of the Year of 2014 when they first included jazz as a category.

Tom is learning how to make a living in jazz through composition and is currently working hard to deliver his debut album with jazz band, Gecko.

Ben Appiah

Ben Appiah is one of the youngest members of the How to Make a Living in Jazz talent team but he has already got a wealth of experience in the music industry. His passion for drumming was discovered when he was 11 years old which led him to pursue jazz at school and university. Outside of study, Ben plays jazz in the NYJO and Bicester orchestras and within his futuristic jazz band, Steam Down, who have recently completed a European tour.

So futuristic is his composition that Ben was recently highlighted in Jazz FM’s Innovation and Best Experience of The Year awards! Ben has centred his future around music by making a living both through touring and teaching – where he hopes to continue the legacy of jazz by inspiring young people.

CHRISTOS STYLIANDES

Christos Stylianides is a 22-year-old trumpet player whose passion for jazz was first discovered by chance within his primary school’s music programme. His talent for the trumpet has led him to graduate Royal Birmingham Conservatoire and he is currently learning how to make a living in jazz alongside his master’s degree at Trinity Laban. Christos is an example of hard work and dedication and brings a great wealth of scholarship and funding knowledge to the jazz talent on board the How to Make a Living in Jazz project.

Christos hopes to continue to let jazz take him all over the world, having already conquered the jazz scene in Scotland, Birmingham and London, as well as Cologne, Amsterdam and Berlin!

About the Film

Join 3 brilliant young musicians as they take the leap from full-time education to making a living doing what they love and have worked so hard for: Playing Jazz.
They have been practicing and performing for up to 8 hours a day for more than half of their young lives. All the more remarkable in this “Want it Now”, “15 Minutes of Fame” world where celebrity is won for not much more than appearing on TV and singing in tune.
Jazz has always attracted the very finest musicians, free to interpret the “dots” on the page and bring their own unique voice to a score. Jazz makes the greatest demands on its performers but also bestows the greatest creative rewards.
Hear from many of the leading lights in Jazz as they describe an art form in constant change. From Bandleaders, club owners, record labels and multi award winning artists, the art form has rarely been opened up for all to see in this behind the scenes, access all areas film.
Join us for this fascinating insight in to not just music, but the structure behind most the performing arts.

Director & Crew

Philip Nash

Director/Producer

Philip Nash has been telling visual stories for most of his life. A multi international award winning photographer, Sound Engineer and film maker, his interest in the arts, especially music, led to the discovery of a near hidden world of the professional musician. Working so hard to support themselves and their families whilst performing at the very highest standard is just part of their story. Philip reveals for the first time what all professional musicians do to make their living in Jazz.

Charlie Emseis

Editor

Charlie is a London-based film and video editor with credits on features, shorts, documentaries and commercials.

Although he studied marketing at university, his enthusiasm for cinema during this time never waned and he learned all he could from watching films and reading filmmaking books. After receiving a filmmaking diploma in 2012, Charlie edited award-winning independent feature ‘Sable Fable’ and he hasn’t looked back since. He has been editing for over seven years, crafting entertaining and enlightening content for different audiences on a variety of platforms.

As his greatest passion lies in factual programme making he is a perfect fit to edit ‘How To Make A Living In Jazz.’

Joe Potts

Director of Photography

Joe is a southern based cinematographer working in film, music videos, live broadcast and especially documentaries.

Joe has dedicated himself to perfecting his craft, and has built his career on the technical and creative excellence he brings to each project. Like all great visual artists he is fascinated by light how it plays into a scene, constantly developing he is looking it to create a unique sought after visual style. He studied at Southampton Solent University, gaining both a BA and a MA in film, and has gone on to become a part of some award winning short and feature films, as well as being lucky enough to have some of his work screened on a number platforms including BBC, Amazon prime, and BT sport.

Hugely excited about the project, Joe will be bringing his visual story telling style to  ‘How to Make a Living in Jazz’.

Maddie Catanzaro

Assistant Producer
Maddie is an Australian filmmaker who moved to London in early 2019. In her short career she has filled a variety of roles including editor, director and assistant director across various short films, music videos, and features. With her sharp wit and creative eye, she has had no problem turning her talents to any on-set challenge that comes her way.
Originally brought on to How to Make a Living in Jazz as a runner, she quickly stepped up into the Assistant Producer role in order to help bring Philip’s vision to life.