Emma Sullivan
Writer/Director
Film, TV & Theatre
Film, TV & Theatre
A graduate of the National Film and Television School, where she was awarded a scholarship from the David Lean Foundation for her MA in Fiction Direction, Emma Sullivan’s short film, AFTER TOMORROW, was nominated for a Palme d’Or at the 62nd Cannes Film Festival, and won Best Short Film at the Edinburgh Film Festival in 2009. That year she was also named one of Screen International’s Stars of Tomorrow.
Emma has a BA from Central St Martins and an MA from the Royal College of Art. In 2006-7 Emma took part in the Skillset Film Lab, a year-long series of collaborative workshops between actors and directors about screen acting. In 2008 she was selected for the Young Vic Genesis Directors’ project, and during 2010 and 2011 was mentored by director John Hillcoat on the prestigious Guiding Lights scheme. Emma was shortlisted for the 2012 Wellcome Trust Screenwriting Prize, run in association with the BFI Film Fund.
Emma Sullivan’s TV credits include DOCTOR WHO, SILENT WITNESS and CALL THE MIDWIFE all for the BBC. She is currently working on the BBC America series, THE WATCH, which she shot in South Africa.
DR WHO - THE HAUNTING OF VILLA DIODATI (Season 12, Episode 8)
“Lustrous, spooky, hitting every note, this episode is finely directed by Emma Sullivan, and has enough confidence and generosity to unwind with an almost minute-long poetry reading as the young Romantics loll in an idyllic setting... this is fine work indeed.” Radio Times (5*)
“an intriguing and well-paced mystery, thickly atmospheric and very funny." iNews (4*)
“Another all-female creative due came up trumps." Telegraph (4*)
AFTER TOMORROW
“There are few short films that put such a weight of narrative and emotional importance on a silent character, and fewer still that do so with such success. His single held look toward the end of the film not only explained the entire plot but it broke my heart and if that’s not a shining example of the power of cinema, then I don’t know what is.” Ben Blaine, Shooting People
Television
Production | Company | Notes |
---|---|---|
THE WATCH 2020 | BBC America/BBC Studios | Director. |
DOCTOR WHO Series 12 2019 | BBC 1 | Director. |
SILENT WITNESS 2018 | BBC 1 | Director. |
CALL THE MIDWIFE 2017 | Neal Street/BBC 1 | Director, 1 episode. |
4 O'CLOCK CLUB 2016 | CBBC | Director, 4 episodes. BAFTA-nominated, CBBC Flagship comedy-musical show. |
HOLBY CITY 2013 | BBC | Director, 2 episodes. |
DOCTORS 2011 - 2013 | BBC 1/ BBC Birmingham | Director, 12 episodes. |
Short Films
Production | Company | Notes |
---|---|---|
2018 | LAMDA | Director. |
THE HOLE 2017 | LAMDA | Director. |
THE STICK 2016 | Writer and Director. | |
2015 | Writer and Director. Short spoof commercial. | |
2009 | Wilder Films/Screen East | Writer and Director. 15' thriller. A man’s desperate attempts to reconcile with his estranged wife are repeatedly thwarted by the strange old lady whose B&B he is staying in. A thriller with a surprising yet moving denouement. |
2005 | Writer and Director. 18' drama. A long English summer and Katie is bored. As a last resort, she seeks out sherry and companionship in Dorothy, her grandmother. Dorothy wants to go home, though, and the two form an unlikely alliance whose days are numbered. | |
BULLETS FOR BEGINNERS 2004 | Writer, Director, and Producer. 23'. | |
NUT? 2003 | Writer and Director. 4' comedy. A man tries to conduct a date but is hindered by hallucinations of an ex-girlfriend. | |
RECEPTION 2003 | Writer and Director. 3' experimental drama. A bloody fight takes place at a reception. | |
PEAS OR BEANS 2001 | Writer, Director, and Producer. 7' comedy. A couple in crisis find an imaginary old lady interfering when they least expect it. | |
OLD ENOUGH 2001 | Writer, Director, and Producer. 3' drama. A man asks directions from a teenager. They find they’re going to same place, then he finds out the boy is his son – but won’t tell him. Three parts are played by one actor. |
In Development
Production | Company | Notes |
---|---|---|
TREAD SOFTLY | Creative England | Writer and Director. Feature film, in development. |
NOTHING HERE BUT FOR DOGS AND OLD PEOPLE | Writer and Director. Feature film, in development. |