Award-winning film and TV director gives inspiring talk to students

Award-winning film and TV director, producer, screenwriter and actor Philip Barantini gave a talk about his career in the industry to film students at the University of Portsmouth last week.

Philip is a producer, co-creator and director on the major new series, Boiling Point, currently airing on BBC1 at 9pm on Sunday nights, which is a sequel to his own highly successful feature film of the same name.

In the session, Philip shared his experiences of working as an actor, director and producer across independent film, high-end TV drama and feature films and provided insight on the conception and production processes of many of his projects.

Philip, who is also a Visiting Industrial Professor to the School of Film, Media and Communication, has a long-standing relationship with the University’s Film subject area. He has acted in student’s graduation films and more recently collaborated with many of successful alumni on his award-winning films and high end tv drama projects, including the Boiling Point feature film. 

He said: “I was first introduced to the University of Portsmouth back in 2017, through the BA Film Production course, and Barnaby Boulton, Matthew Lewis, James Cummings and Alex Fountain - all of whom are now successful alumni of the University. The facilities are state of the art and fantastic; so, when I was approached to become a Visiting Industrial Professor, it was a no-brainer as it was a great opportunity for me to share my experience with the students and help to inspire the next generation of filmmakers and creatives.”

After 20 years of performing in front of the camera, including roles in the hugely successful Band of Brothers (2001) and Chernobyl (2019), Philip moved into directing in the late 2010s, marking his first short film with the award-winning Seconds Out (2019). This was his first professional collaboration with his now regular Director of Photography Matthew Lewis and Editor Alex Fountain, both University of Portsmouth BA (Hons) Film Production alumni (2017 and 2016 respectively).

Following this, he directed the BIFA winning short film Boiling Point (2019) starring Stephen Graham, which was then adapted into the highly successful BAFTA nominated 'one-shot feature film' of the same name in 2021; both movies were co-written with his frequent writing collaborator and University of Portsmouth BA (Hons) Film Studies alumni James Cummings.

Philip made his TV directorial debut when he helmed BBC police thriller The Responder, starring Martin Freeman, broadcast in 2022. He also directed all five parts of the recently aired and acclaimed ITV medical thriller Malpractice (2023) starring Niamh Algar. In January 2022, Philip directed his next feature film Accused, a contemporary revenge thriller exploring the dangers and power of social media. This was written by James Cummings and Barnaby Boulton, also a BA (Hons) Film alumnus (2017), and has just been released on Netflix to great reviews.

It was announced in October 2022 that the BBC had commissioned a four-part series sequel to Boiling Point. The series picks up six-months after the film ends with Carly (Vinette Robinson) now running her own restaurant with former boss Andy’s (Stephen Graham) staff. In a nod to the original film, the first episode opens with a ten-minute one-shot sequence. 

Ben Thompson, Principal Lecturer and Academic Lead (Film & TV) School of Film, Media and Communication, said: “Philip was a fantastic speaker, sharing valuable insights and details about his career and directing process. Phil talked with honesty and authenticity about his early career as an actor and his journey behind the camera as a director. We discussed the conception and production challenges of many of his films and high-end TV drama projects, with a focus on his latest TV series Boiling Point, starring Stephen Graham. 

“The session was an opportunity for our students to hear from one of the UK industry's established directors, whose career is going from strength to strength. We are delighted that Phil has agreed to join us as Visiting Industrial Professor, and we are already planning Phil's next visit to Portsmouth.”