Simon Bird The Inbetweeners Movie 2

Cast: Freddie Stroma, Emily Berrington, Tamla Kari, Simon Bird, James Buckley, Joe Thomas, Blake Harrison
Directors: Damon Beesley, Iain Morris
Genre: Comedy
Rated: MA

Synopsis: Jay, Neil, Simon, and Will reunite in Australia for a holiday.

The Inbetweeners Movie 2
Release Date: August 21st, 2014

About The Production

When Will, Simon, Jay and Neil, four boys from the fictional Rudge Park Comprehensive, graduated from the television screen to the cinema screen in 2011, they went on to become international box office sensations.

The Inbetweeners Movie set a new record for the most successful opening weekend ever achieved by a comedy film in the UK, overtaking Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason and The Hangover Part II on its way to a first-weekend gross of over £13 million. The film then went on to take over £45 million at the UK box office, breaking away from its original core E4 audience to become the mainstream smash of Summer 2011.

The creators of both the TV show and the movie, Iain Morris and Damon Beesley, were understandably delighted by the success and couldn't wait to get the gang back together for another feature-length comedy jaunt.

'The first film went really well and it's nice to be a success," begins Morris. 'That gave us a chance to do another film and we knew that we'd love to do another one " but only if we had a strong enough story.

'That was vital. The fans have been amazing and we wouldn't have wanted to short change them, so we wouldn't have done another chapter had we not got a great story for the boys." During its run on E4 and C4, The Inbetweeners introduced viewers to four hilarious, often hapless yet always endearing schoolboys: Will McKenzie (played by Simon Bird), Simon Cooper (Joe Thomas), Jay Cartwright (James Buckley) and Neil Sutherland (Blake Harrison).

'It's not like the band broke up," continues Iain Morris. 'Damon Beesley and I still liked the characters and the four actors a lot. There was no, -we hate the boys', or -they hate us', or -no one wants to see another film.' We all really like each other and get on brilliantly, so doing another film seemed a bit of a no-brainer really."

Co-creator Damon Beesley agrees. 'We thought long and hard about it and decided that there was another really good story that could be told," he says. 'There was one more stage before these boys actually grew up " in the shallowest sense, of course."

'Originally, we thought that the first film was a brilliant place to end," explains James Buckley. 'We ended on such a high. It got a great response and people come up to us every day and say how much they like the film. But then we all missed each other.

'We have great jobs and we're really lucky, but doing The Inbetweeners on film is another level, it is just something else entirely," he adds. 'I really appreciate these boys and I missed them so much when we were working on other things. Working with these boys has been the most fun I have ever had on a job."

The success of The Inbetweeners is built upon this unique chemistry " as well as on the characters' universal appeal. Indeed, according to Spencer Millman, who is producing the new movie, almost anyone, teenager or adult, can relate to the characters and the often-awkward situations in which they end up.

'What is really brilliant about The Inbetweeners is that so many people feel as though they are these characters," he says.

Spencer Millman has produced Harry Hill's TV Burp, Bo' Selecta, The Mighty Boosh and Lee Nelson's Well Good Show, as well as the pilot episode of The Inbetweeners, and he says that it is rare to find a show where all the main characters are so beloved.

'Obviously, some people were exceptionally cool at school and they were the lucky ones, but the majority of people are The Inbetweeners and when you get something people can relate to, and which makes them laugh that is amazing, especially when people like all of the cast.

'Often in a sitcom or a film comedy people like some characters and not others but here I think everyone responds to the truthfulness of the characters," he says.

'From day one, when we did the pilot it always felt so real, because so much is based on real things that happened to Damon Beesley and Iain Morris. You can have funny sitcoms and films but you don't necessarily come away from them saying, -that happened to me!'

'That is what's unique about The Inbetweeners and I think that is what will happen with this film when people see what the boys go through."

Four Go Down Under

The on-screen lives of these four highly relatable characters have charted any number of the important events that unfold in the lives of modern teenagers " from early sexually fumblings to a first trip with friends overseas. Needless to say, the new film continues that tradition. 'We wanted to make this film different, though," Iain Morris explains. 'We didn't want to rehash the same story as the first film. We wanted to challenge the boys, putting in scenes that are different for them.

'So we tried to think about somewhere the four boys would realistically be together," he continues, 'and without being too philosophical about it, there is a certain classlessness to gap years in Australia. So we sent them Down Under."

The film picks up several months after the first movie finishes, with Jay proving the catalyst for the boys' new adventure, having split up with his girlfriend and headed off to Australia to stay with his uncle. 'But it is not the same for the rest of them in England without Jay," Iain Morris says. 'When we pick it up, the boys have fragmented a bit," adds Damon Beesley. 'Will has gone to university in Bristol. Simon has gone to the same university as his girlfriend. Neil is still at home, working in a bank, and Jay has gone to stay with his uncle in Australia."

With sixth-form at an end and his university years just beginning, Will, for one, is at last set to live his dream, sharing campus life with a bunch of high-achieving fellow students with whom he'll have all sorts of enjoyable and intellectually rewarding larks. 'He has gone to a high-achieving university and this is where his life will kick off and will get back on track to where he originally wanted it to be," Damon Beesley says.
He is not really enjoying himself, though. 'And that comes down to the fact that you cannot really escape from yourself," adds Damon Beesley. 'Just because he's at a good uni and isn't hanging out with Jay and Neil, it doesn't mean he is Mr. Popularity."

For actor Simon Bird, his character certainly finds himself on familiar turf. 'Will is in his second term at university and he has not settled in quite the way that he had hoped," he says.

'I think it has turned out to be just like school. Everyone is a bit older so he hoped he'd have found a social group by this stage but he hasn't. He is still very much the outsider and isn't really enjoying university."

In the case of Will's best mate, Simon, a similar set of circumstances ensues. 'He's not enjoying university much either," says actor Joe Thomas.

'Simon is going out with Lucy but it's not idyllic. He is whinging to his mates, so his motivation in coming to Australia is to get some thinking time about his relationship."

Jay, meanwhile, is the spark for the whole Australian escapade. 'Jay makes out he lives in a mansion out in Australia and has sex with loads of amazing girls," says James Buckley of his character.

'And as anyone who has seen The Inbetweeners knows," adds James Buckley, 'this is probably not the reality of Jay's situation!"

Neil, as usual, believes Jay's story wholeheartedly and is desperate for the other three to pay their mate a visit. 'Jay is emailing every now and again, saying how amazing Australia is and how loose the birds are. Neil, God bless him, believes every word of it," says Blake Harrison of his character.

'So Neil decides it would be a good idea if they went Down Under. Neil says things are just better when the boys are all together and does feel as though he has lost a big part of his life once Jay goes to Australia," he adds.

According to Damon Beesley, Neil is really the 'lynchpin" of the group, though the character would never see that this is the case. 'Neil sees the bigger picture," he says, 'even though he doesn't realise it; that the boys are quite young and life is more fun when it is the four of them together."

Having failed to find any firm friends at university, Will is determined to meet like-minded people, people with the right dreams and aspirations, once their Australian adventure is underway.

When in Byron Bay he meets some gap year traveller-types and decides that this is the sort of odyssey he should enjoy in Australia, rather than hanging out with his school friends.

Chief among the travellers is Ben, played by Freddie Stroma, who turns out to be Will's nemesis. 'Ben is a traveller who meets the boys. He is the alpha male among the travellers and he intimidates Will quite a lot," Freddie Stroma explains. 'He is quite often in competition with Will and is a little bit of a douche bag!"

Will also meets a girl, Katie Evans, played by Emily Berrington, who believes that the two of them share a spiritual connection.

'She and Will were at prep school together and many years later they are out in Australia together and they recognise each other," Emily Berrington says. 'When they meet, she gets him to come along and join her on her travels."

Katie is a bohemian young woman with a somewhat mystical bent. 'She is into everything 100 per cent. If she is going to have a spiritual experience, it is going to be the most intense one that anyone's ever had!
'Similarly, if she's going to seduce someone it is going to be most intense seduction of their life! She does nothing by halves and is amazing to be around for about a day, but no more, because she is so exhausting.

'It has been a great role to play," the actress adds, 'and I've loved working with the four boys and the directors."

The Directors

The directors on the new movie are Damon Beesley and Iain Morris. The pair have always been involved in every aspect of the production, on both the TV series and the first film, and they felt that directing was their natural next step.

Their producer, Spencer Millman, says he had no qualms about the duo's decision. 'They are unbelievably into what they do. They probably find it easier to be directing because they are in total control of their baby. It has always been their vision, always their creative, and with them at the helm they know exactly what they want.

Directing their first feature has been a challenge, however, says Damon Beesley. 'It is difficult at times, but the material is close to our heart and we directed the last episode in the series, so it felt like a natural next step for us," he notes.

At the preparation stage, Damon Beesley, Iain Morris's work is entirely collaborative, with 'no one making a decision without getting the backing of the other one," according to Spencer Millman.

'As regards the directing on set, some days Iain Morris will be more in control in talking to the cast and Damon Beesley will be more in control talking to the crew and cameramen, and then sometimes it is the other way around."

In truth, Damon Beesley and Iain Morris's decision to direct the film provided their four main cast-members with a constant source of amusement.

'The boys' main joke on set from day one was, -When is the real director going to turn up?'" says Iain Morris.

The boys would regularly alter the directors' names on the clapperboard. 'I put on a little bit of weight and the names of famous fat people would appear on the clapperboard instead of my own," smiles Damon Morris.

'Or they'd write in the names of directors who were much better than us. Then it became a story that we had won a competition to direct the movie. They'd come across and ask us things like, -Ahh, are you enjoying yourself today?'

'It was annoying because it's a good joke and it does keep on giving."

At the outset, at least, the Australian members of the crew were a little surprised by the irreverence. 'They were looking at us for guidance and the four main actors are talking about another director coming along," laughs Damon Morris.

The joke was to be expected, say the cast. 'Basically, the rules are that if something is funny you get away with it," says Joe Thomas.

'Damon Beesley and Iain Morris have encouraged us to behave the way that we do. They basically trained a collection of monkeys and have to live with the consequences!"

James Buckley, meanwhile, says that the cast directed their humour primarily at Morris. 'We mainly give Iain a really hard time," he recalls. 'We honed in on him and we did talk a lot about how much we love Damon Beelsey and what a great job Damon Beesley has been doing."

Joking aside, James Buckley notes that it made sense for Damon Beesley and Iain Morris to direct the film. 'The good thing about Damon Beesley and Iain Morris, and I hate to say good things about them," he says, 'is that they have a very clear vision and specific idea of what they want.

'They are very passionate about it and it is important to them. We have very good communication and they can talk to us candidly, which is really helpful."

Shooting in Australia

Iain Morris spent a chunk of his own gap year in Australia, where he both worked and travelled; hence, he is familiar with the people and the place. 'We wanted to send the boys further afield and we did look at South Africa. But then when you come to Australia it is like nowhere else," Iain Morris says. 'Sydney Harbour doesn't look like anywhere else in the world."

The harbour is a very recognisable location in the movie, which also sees the boys visit Byron Bay in New South Wales, a beachside town that's been popular with backpackers for decades; the Gold Coast, a city in south-eastern Queensland; and the Outback, the production trekking out to Marree, a two-street town deep in the heart of South Australia.

Production designer Richard Bullock was responsible for creating the main travellers' hostel out in Byron Bay, a set that the filmmakers also recreated when in the Gold Coast, rebuilding the hostel on the site of a local golf club when working in that region.

The primary location in the Gold Coast, meanwhile, was a well-known water park, which Richard Bullock and his team re-branded as a more generic park, given the escapades that would unfold upon its slides and in its pools.

'The water park we filmed at on the Gold Coast was great and everybody involved was incredibly nice and helpful," explains Richard Bullock.

'But because it was coming into their high season, they didn't want to close any rides for us. So we had to shoot most of our day before the park opened, which was 9.30am."

Sunrise was at 4am. 'So our call time was 2.30 in the morning," recalls Damon Morris. 'The boys had to go to bed at 6pm. I think I once went to bed at 5.30! We'd just got over the jetlag, so that was quite difficult."

The most distinctive location of all, however, was the Australian Outback. 'Just as in the series we shot suburbia and it felt real, and the guys felt as though they were in suburbia, the Outback felt the right place for shooting the desert scenes " more so than a quarry in Brighton," Damon Morris says.

The production settled upon the town of Marree in South Australia as their Outback location. 'We chose Marree because it really is remote," notes Richard Bullock. 'Also, it is the most arid place in Australia so if there were to be rain it'd still be unlikely to fall out there. It wouldn't surprise us by suddenly turning green!"

The heat in Marree is intense, however, regularly hovering around the 50-degree mark. 'It is just immense and the number of flies is quite annoying as well," says Damon Beesley. 'There was also constant talk of snakes from the Australian crew."

Such was the intensity of the heat, Damon Beesley says, his mind began playing tricks on him. 'In the Outback the heat really gets up by 4pm and my brain stopped working.

'There was one moment after lunch when I saw the four boys sitting there and I wondered why they hadn't got a chair for the fifth Inbetweener.

'Then I began wondering who the fifth Inbetweener was; I couldn't remember. Then it dawned on me " there were only ever four of them. The heat does strange things to you!"

Damon Morris, meanwhile, recalls, 'There can't be many comedy directors who have sat in their little monitor hut bathed in sunscreen as a tornado came blowing through and lifted it off the ground. The Outback and Marree in particular was a strange place to be shooting comedy."

For all the hardship, filming in the real desert, a long way from civilisation, was imperative, says producer Spencer Millman. 'It looks amazing, because it is 48 degrees and it looks that hot on film. For the scenes to be believable for the audience, it has to look like that," he notes.

'When we got on the truck to go out and film in the desert, there was a sign saying that the next town was 200 kilometres away. It really adds to the authenticity of the boys' situation in the Outback; it is important for the boys to be in situ."

The boys shot some keys scenes out in the desert. 'And they are there in that very intense heat," says Spencer Millman. 'If you end up doing that in the studio there is a very different vibe, whereas here they really don't want to be in the heat and it shows."

The conditions were gruelling for cast and crew alike. 'It is so hot and the flies are a bit of a nightmare," says Blake Harrison, 'but the place itself, Marree, has been great."

According to the producer and directors, the cast took it all in their stride. 'They have been amazing," Spencer Millman says of the actors.

The logistics of shooting in the Outback caused Spencer Millman a few sleepless nights. 'My biggest concern was equipment and cameras breaking down," he says. 'We had a few issues but we were lucky that there was nothing major."

The crew did encounter problems with their flying drone when the landing legs began melting and then fell off mid-flight. 'Instead of lasting 10 minutes, it lasted a minute and a half," Spencer Millman says. 'Also, the helicopter can't fly over 37 degrees and it was 48 degrees most days. But we still managed.

'Other than that, we had all we needed: the air conditioning, medics, we had 6,000 litres of water for us and plenty of sunscreen!'

The producer says that in many ways, shooting in the Outback proved easier than filming in the towns and cities, 'because we were in total control here," he says.

'It was just us. It was quiet and there were no worries about prying eyes taking photos or giving jokes away.

'There were no screaming people in the background," he adds. 'In a way it's been an easier shoot and for a story like this to be believable you have to do it properly. That's the main advantage, it looks amazing and we were getting the best performances we could out of the boys."

By the time the film wrapped, The Inbetweeners 2 had filmed across two continents " a number of interiors, including a key scene in a Bristol pub, were shot at 3 Mills Studios in London " and a clutch of different locations.

'The distance between our last two locations in Australia was further than from London to Magaluf, where the first film was shot," explains Iain Morris.

'As a technical challenge this film is vastly different from the first, but that doesn't matter. What does matter is whether it is funny or not on screen."

Friends reunited

With The Inbetweeners first appearing on E4 back in 2008, the characters have become so well established that, 'the themes fall into place through the characters' actions," says Morris. Co-creator Beesley, meanwhile, says that in the TV series and both films, the primary theme is the importance and complexity of deep friendships.

'The friends you make at that age are normally the happy accident of timing and geography and there is something about that foundation for a friendship that is fundamentally different from any other friendship you have in your life," he says, 'for better or for worse.

'You can't escape that friendship," Damon Beesley adds. 'We've all got friends where you think, -If I met you now we probably wouldn't be friends,' but when you do see them you realise that they're almost like brothers to you.

'There is something deeper there. While the first film was about them growing up a little bit and finding love, the second film is more about them realising that you can be grown up without having love at 19 years old. Having good friends is also okay.

'Really, it's about them re-evaluating their friendship as they get back together," he says. While similar themes recur, the subtleties and the scale of The Inbetweeners' story have changed. 'This story does feel slightly more grown up," says Blake Harrison. 'In the first film it definitely felt like they were school kids in an adult world but now we start seeing them more as adults.

'It is no longer the case that they are a bit wide-eyed and don't quite understand how being in a foreign country works.

'It is more about them coming to terms with who they are and with the big decisions we all have to make in our lives."

'In the last film it was still about going out and looking cool in front of your mates. I think this film does have a little bit more heart and a bit more substance in terms of what the characters are going through and the kind of journeys some of them have."

According to Joe Thomas, the boys are growing up, albeit in a painfully slow manner. 'They are changing a bit," he says. 'Will starts to show a bit more humility, which is unusual for him. 'They are perhaps getting a sense of perspective on themselves, realising that they are idiots, and that they shouldn't be total idiots all of the time."

James Buckley adds, 'Also, they learn that you don't have to do what everyone else is doing. Just do what you think is fun."

Will's relationship with the posh backpackers is a prime example. 'When he sees what they are up to, he thinks that is what the boys should be doing," continues Buckley, 'but in reality going down a slide at a water park with your school mates is much more fun."

Thomas agrees. 'What Simon, Jay and Neil have to offer Will doesn't seem very impressive when you put it in words, but actually they offer him genuine happiness. That's an important theme, I think."

The filmmakers have benefited, say Damon Beesley and Iain Morris, from the fact that the main cast had all gone on to work on a variety of different projects before reconvening for the second movie. 'It is a huge positive that they have been away and worked on other things," Damon Beesley says. 'But they genuinely think that is the most fun they can have at work.

'They are really excited about the work and have embraced the challenges. Basically, they like showing off to each other.

'We have done one really touching scene in particular," he continues, 'unlike anything we've filmed before and we'd have never got that in the TV show. It is simply something we couldn't have done five years ago."

Spencer Millman concludes that the film should blend beautifully 'the brilliance of the writing and the performances". He says, 'You get sucked into this emotion and then the rug is pulled from under you and you are in for the big laugh.

'That is the beauty of this movie, and The Inbetweeners overall."

The Inbetweeners Movie 2
Release Date: August 21st, 2014