Hanton Films is an independent entertainment production company founded in 2012 with a strong and diversified presence in independent cinema and family entertainment. The company is behind the much-anticipated film ‘The Closer I Get to You’. We had the pleasure of speaking to the film’s director and Hanton Films founder Tianna Banton about the project and running the production company.
Congratulations on making ‘ The Closer I Get to You’. We look forward to seeing the film later this year. Please provide a synopsis of the movie and what we should expect?
Thank you, we are looking forward to sharing it with the world. The Closer I Get To You is a classic love story, it centers around the relationship of a young black couple; Nadiene and Devon (or Naevon as we like to call them) who meet at a bar one night after Nadiene’s best friend Sasha bails on her last minute. From the moment their eyes meet, there’s an instant connection between them and it’s very much love at first sight for them. The connection between them was something that I wanted to make very clear when I was writing the opening scene – that their connection was fate, almost as if they were always meant to find and be with each other. It’s a connection that ignites that instant and passionate relationship between the couple. In terms of what you should expect, there’s so much that I don’t know where to start. Obviously, being a romantic comedy to some degree there’s certain aspects or grounds that we have to cover so we have strong elements of romance and chemistry throughout the film, not just between our main characters Nadiene and Devon, but other characters in the film. We also dabble with more serious moments and hurdles of being in a loving committed relationship that isn’t stereotypically related to being in a black relationship. You can also expect amazing performances from our cast. They really embodied their characters and took them to a place I hadn’t even imagined them being. Some performances will have you hooked completely.
Sarah-Maeva and Louis who play Nadiene and Devon, in my opinion, portray one of the most real relationships that I’ve ever seen. The chemistry between them, even from the first time that they met has always been electric and that more than comes across in the film. There isn’t a moment where you look at Nadiene and Devon and think “I don’t believe that they’re in love” because it’s that believable and in fairness, all of the cast’s performances are crazy amazing. One of my favorites, in particular, is that of Talitha’s character Keri who shows up in the middle of the film, I obviously can’t give away who she is and why she’s there but I can say that her performance in that scene left me with a lot of mixed feelings followed by a lot of follow up questions. They’re honestly so amazing at portraying their characters. I honestly believe that they’ve truly embodied every aspect of who the characters are and would be if they were real human beings. So definitely expect some dope performances. Other things to expect are the nods to the nineties and nineties black romantic comedies and movies in general. Without really meaning to be, the film very much has this nostalgic tone to it and is cemented with the impeccable score that was created for this film, all of which just takes you on this trip down memory lane. It’s almost as if you instantly feel at home.
Hanton Films UK is a female-led, black-owned independent film production company. Please tell us more about the company and its objectives?
Hanton Films UK in every sense of the word is my baby. I started this company when I was seventeen and knew very little about making films just that there was nothing else I would rather be doing. Hanton Films UK is solely dedicated to creating diverse content that focuses on diverse stories whether they be about gender, race, or sexuality. Our sole purpose is to give characters that you would rarely see in big movies a platform to speak on ours. It’s also important to me being a woman that our company is somewhat female-led in as many departments and not just in hair and makeup or costume but also the camera, sound, lighting, and production in general. With Just Remember we were predominantly an all-female crew with the exception being the cinematographer and with ‘The Closer I Get To You’ it was near enough the same situation. We were also predominantly a female-led crew with two female assistant directors and a female director at the top of the chain so to speak, which was crazy because that’s something you wouldn’t necessarily come across on many film sets in the film industry. For us, it’s at the forefront of any production we do.
Hanton Films UK is dedicated to amplifying the portrayal of people of color in films and producing content that promotes their cultures. What challenges do black UK independent filmmakers face in creating and distributing films?
I don’t know about other British filmmakers but, at least for me, I know that my intention with Hanton Films has always been to be dedicated with being diverse, whether that be through the stories we tell, the characters we create or the people we collaborate with, to bring those stories to life. When I first started making films, I used to think that the only way my films would be popular is if they had a caucasian male or male in general as the lead with actors of color or females as their side-kick or their love interest or even their antagonist. It wasn’t long before I started questioning why that had to be the only way a film I make could be popular. Truthfully, it wasn’t until I started working on Just Remember I realized how wrong I was, even when I was just halfway through writing the script and talking to friends about what the story would be and how it would center around a young female of color who is a part of a biracial family; I started to see people’s genuine interest in stories like that and it’s when I realized I hadn’t necessarily been doing my job as a black female filmmaker properly. I had been giving my culture less attention to focus on a culture that wasn’t mine in the hopes that it would help me make a name for myself instead of using my culture to separate myself from work that was already out there. When I started working on Young Black And On The Way Up which centered completely on young black male and female artists, actors, musicians, etc and I was getting great responses and reviews about it, something clicked in my head; I knew that I had to use this platform I created to make sure that I represent people and stories that relate to not just my culture but other cultures that don’t necessarily get seen as much as possible. Even now having written and directed a film with an all-black cast that focuses on black love, relates to the culture I grew up in, and the culture my younger brothers, sisters, and cousins, I see how important it is for people of color to know that there is someone out there attempting to shine a light on the culture they know.
Hanton Films collaborates on projects with other filmmakers and independent production companies. Are there any imminent projects we can look forward to seeing on our screens?
We always have something in the pipeline that we’re developing or in talks to develop. Late last year we announced that we were developing our first LGBTQ+ film called ‘Going The Distance’ which is being co-written by an amazing female writer called Ida Thomasdotter. We’re about three-quarters of the way through the first draft and it’s looking promising – it’s such a beautiful story and I can’t wait to dive more into it once we have a full script because it’s something different from what Hanton Films has done before but completely overdue. We’re also in talks to develop some other projects that have been interesting to talk about and just discuss. When we start working on scripts and cementing ideas I’m sure there will be an announcement or two but, for now, I’m loving where we want to take the company creatively this year and I can’t wait to get stuck in.
Where can we find up to date information on the forthcoming release of The Closer I Get to You?
Our main social media pages are our twitter and our Instagram both of which you can find using the handles ‘@tcigtyfilm’ other than that the company will occasionally post on their social media @hantonfilmsuk’ about updates. We’ve been doing a lot of promo stuff recently which has been fun so our socials have been a lot more active.
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