Originally starting in theatre,[3] Quick made the move to video editing in 2007 when he studied television production at the Glasgow Metropolitan College (now City of Glasgow College). It is here that he first met Mark D. Ferguson and Andy S. McEwan and formed a close working relationship with the pair. After graduating in 2009, he co-founded Quick Off The Mark Productions with Ferguson and began working in corporate advertising videos. In 2010, the pair were reunited with McEwan when they began development of what would become their first feature film, In Search of La Che. Starring Duncan Airlie James in his first leading role as an actor, the spoof mockumentary followed John Tavish on his quest to track down fictional rock star Roxy La Che. English actor, Steve Nallon also made a guest appearance in the film as former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. The film premiered at the Glasgow Film Theatre on 9 November 2011 with the cast and crew in attendance as well as an unexpected appearance form Scottish actor Peter Mullan.[4]
In 2012, Quick made his directorial debut with the short comedy The Greyness of Autumn which he co wrote with McEwan. The film, starring Duncan Airlie James again in the starring role, followed the story of Danny McGuire, a depressed ostrich living in Glasgow. The film received good reviews upon its release in both the United Kingdom and abroad. Canadian review site Pretty Clever Films wrote:
"Quick is alarmingly funny. The film serves up a copious amount of black comedy that has a great WTF-factor. The film is intriguing simply because it's so strange."[5]
Throughout 2013, The Greyness of Autumn appeared at a number of festivals in the United Kingdom including the Edinburgh Short Film Festival[6] and the Deep Fried Film Festival.[7] Internationally, the film was screened in various countries including the United States where it featured in the Big Little Comedy Festival.[8] It was also shown at the Dublin Short Film & Music Festival in Ireland.[9] In 2014, The Greyness of Autumn also made an unexpected return to the festival circuit in 2014 appearing in the Southern Colorado Film Festival[10] and the Portobello Film Festival.[11] In the same month, the film also made an appearance at the Barossa Film Festival in Australia after narrowly missing out in the selection process for the 2013 edition. 2015 saw the film return to Australia when it received the Best Short Comedy accolade at the People of Passion film festival.
Quick returned to the directors chair in 2014 to direct a short children's film for a competition run by Vue Cinemas. The competition involved filmmakers from Glasgow creating three films out of scripts written by children at a local school. The project was led by Steve Johnson of Futurist Films with Quick directing the short film Minion Vs Minion[12] and Matthew Cowan of Production Attic Ltd directing Princess Butterfly[13] and Arianna.[14]
After nearly seven years in business it was announced on 14 October 2015 that Quick Off The Mark Productions would be closing due to Ferguson's decision to move to Canada.[15] The company ceased trading on 19 February 2016 and was formally closed by Companies House on 7 June 2016.[16]
Freelance Career (2013 to Present)
2013 saw Quick begin to work outside of Quick Off The Mark Productions for the first time. He edited the short film Sectarian Secret Police for Partickular Films in Glasgow. The film, directed by Joseph Andrew Mclean was shown alongside The Greyness of Autumn at the Loch Ness Film Festival in July 2013.[17]
In 2014, Quick was involved in two short film simultaneously. January saw filming begin on Glory Hunter. At the same time, Chris was piecing together the final edit of Broken Record, the directorial debut for Andy S. McEwan. Broken Record appeared at various film festivals including the Portobello Film Festival in London.[18]
Throughout 2014, Quick worked on the short Sci Fi film Electric Faces directed by Johnny Herbin. Initially, Quick was brought on board to produce the film but was also later offered the task of editing the film as well. The film tells the story of a recovering addict's plan to commit the perfect robbery but is thrown into chaos by a cantankerous bank guard and an increasingly unstable robot. Quick expressed his admiration for the work done by the cast and crew on Electric Faces. In particular, he praised lead actor Euan Bennet for taking on a mammoth task so early in his acting training and director of photography Darren Eggenschwiler for his expert knowledge in the field of cinematography. He also stated that Johnny Herbin had 'the makings of a great director.'[19] The film went on to receive a Best Writer nomination for Herbin at the 2016 British Academy Scotland New Talent Awards.
When Quick Off The Mark Productions disbanded in 2016, Quick launched Suited Caribou Media,[20] providing post production and photography services to independent films across Scotland. Some of his photography work has appeared in the UK print publication Digital Filmmaker Magazine.[21]
In 2017, Quick once again teamed up with Johnny Herbin to work on the short war film Mountain. The film was released in 2018 and earned Quick his first award win for editing at the 2018 Dublin Independent Film Festival.[22] He would later go on to be nominated a further 3 times for Best Editor.
Quick's next big project came in the form of a sequel to The Greyness of Autumn. The film took many years to accomplish with talks with Andy S. McEwan about a possible script starting in early 2014. In 2015, a script was finally agreed upon and a successful crowd funding campaign raised £1,505 from 44 backers including former Gamesmaster host Dominik Diamond.[23] Filming began in 2016 with Steve Johnson joining the production of Director of Photography. The film was heavily delayed in post production but was eventually released on World Puppetry Day in 2020. The film opened to positive reviews with many praising the films script and direction. Jolly Moel of Screen Critix wrote"
"Chris Quick directs the film simply with no bells, whistles or effects but he certainly knows how to direct a comedy."[24]
The film went on to receive 29 award nominations, winning 16 making it Quick's most successful project and even landed him his first nomination for directing from the Laugh or Die Comedy festival in the United States.[25] During its appearance at the Romford Film Festival, the film received commendation from the organisers with Spencer Hawken, the festival director saying:"
"I have not laughed so much in such a long time. This is a really really ridiculously funny film."[26]
In an interview at the Unrestricted View Film Festival, Quick hinted that a possible television show based on Autumn Never Dies was being explored and that Channel 4 was being targeted as a potential host for the series.[27]
Quick returned in 2023 to produce and edit Care and Repair for his Autumn Never Dies co-star Michael Cooke and later went on to do the same for Cooke's 2nd film Curiosity. He also edited the short film Shortbread for Andy S. McEwan.
In 2024, Quick reunited with Johnny Herbin to produce and edit the short film Cakes! which screened at the 2024 editions of FrightFest in London,[28]Beyond Fest in Los Angeles[29] and Motelx: Festival Internacional de Cinema de Terror de Lisboa in Portugal where it was nominated for Best European Short.[30]
Quick co-founded the Glasgow Filmmakers Alliance with actor Andrew O'Donnell in October 2011. The non-profit organisation hosts an online database with the details of film industry professionals and companies operating in and around the city of Glasgow.[31]
A supporter of independent film, Quick led a campaign to get the British Academy Scotland New Talent Awards recognised by IMDb stating that 'they represented the best of emerging Scottish talent'. The campaign was successful and the awards were introduced to the site later that year. He later repeated this success with the inclusion of the Virgin Media Short Awards after the first double win by Scottish director John McPhail with his film Just Say Hi.[32][33]
Quick reunited with Andrew O'Donnell in October 2021 to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Glasgow Filmmakers Alliance.
In 2014, Quick and O'Donnell wrote an open letter on behalf of the independent filmmakers of Glasgow to the director of BAFTA Scotland, Jude MacLaverty. In the letter, the pair asked the film body to consider a proposal of including three new awards at the annual ceremony aimed at low budget / independent filmmakers.[34] On 28 October it was announced that the proposal would be placed on the agenda of the next Bafta Scotland Committee meeting in December 2014.[35][36]
On 2 April 2015, the BAFTA Scotland committee released their response to the proposals put forward by the Glasgow Filmmakers Alliance.[37]
In March 2017, Quick along with other industry professionals, signed the open letter to the Arts Council, England, objecting to the organisations decision not to renew the visa for American born actor Tyler Collins.[38]
On 25 April 2019, O'Donnell announced that he would be standing down as director of the Glasgow Filmmakers Alliance.[39] In May, it was announced that Quick would take his place as director with Gary McLellan taking over as deputy director.[40]
Honorable Mention: Dark Comedy (Shared with Mark D. Ferguson and Andy S. McEwan, Euan Bennet, Steven Patrick, Michael Cooke, Ashley Ford, Andy Clark and Jennifer Gemmell)
David Hugh Mackenzie is a Scottish film director and co-founder of the Glasgow-based production company Sigma Films. He has made ten feature films including Young Adam (2003), Hallam Foe (2007), Perfect Sense (2011) and Starred Up (2013). In 2016, Mackenzie's film Hell or High Water premiered at Cannes and was theatrically released in the United States in August. The same year he executive produced Damnation, a TV pilot for Universal and USA Network. Mackenzie also directed Outlaw King (2018), a historical film for Netflix. Mackenzie and his films have been described as not fitting neatly into any particular genre or type.
Peter Dougan Capaldi is a Scottish actor and director. He portrayed the twelfth incarnation of the Doctor in the science fiction series Doctor Who and Malcolm Tucker in The Thick of It, for which he received four British Academy Television Award nominations, winning Best Male Comedy Performance in 2010.
Gary Stevenson, better known as Gary Lewis, is a Scottish actor. He has had roles in films such as Billy Elliot (2000), Gangs of New York (2002), Joyeux Noël (2005) and Eragon (2006), as well as major roles in the television docudrama Supervolcano, the Starz series Outlander, and the BBC One thriller Vigil.
Duncan Airlie James is a Scottish retired kickboxer and actor best known for his roles in Tomb Raider and ID2: Shadwell Army. He was the first Scottish fighter to win a world Muay Thai title and fight in K-1.
May Miles Thomas is a film director and screenwriter.
Sigma Films is a film production company based in Glasgow, Scotland. The company was formed in 1996 by Gillian Berrie, David Mackenzie and Alastair Mackenzie – a producer, director and actor respectively. Over the last twenty years the company has been responsible for film releases including Starred Up (2013), Under the Skin (2013), Perfect Sense (2011), Hallam Foe (2007), Red Road (2006), Young Adam (2003) and Dear Frankie (2004). In 2017, Sigma began production on big-budget historical epic Outlaw King for Netflix.
Michael Ferns is a Scottish film director and screenwriter. He is best known for his debut feature film Kirk about the life of Reverend Robert Kirk of Aberfoyle. The film won the 'Best Independent Feature' at the Festival of Fantastic Films and also earned Ferns the 'Best Director' award at the 2010 British Academy Scotland New Talent Awards.
The Greyness of Autumn is a short black comedy film following the life of Danny McGuire, an ostrich living in Glasgow. The film was produced by Quick Off The Mark Productions and marked the directorial debut for Chris Quick.
The Glasgow Filmmakers Alliance (GFA) is an online directory listing individuals and companies who are associated with film and television production in and around the city of Glasgow in Scotland. It was founded in 2011 by Scottish actor Andrew O'Donnell and Chris Quick, a Scottish film editor.
Andy S. McEwan is a Scottish screenwriter and film director.
Quick Off The Mark Productions was a film & television production company operating in Glasgow, Scotland from 9 October 2009 to 7 June 2016. It was possibly best known for the films In Search of La Che and The Greyness of Autumn.
Mark D. Ferguson is a Scottish film director, screenwriter and camera operator. He is possibly best known for his directorial and camera work on the feature film In Search of La Che.
Andrew O'Donnell is a former Scottish actor and the co-founder of the Glasgow Filmmakers Alliance. He served as the director of the organisation from its conception before stepping down from the role on 30 June 2019. He currently is the owner of Rocket Monkey Roastery Ltd in Ayr, Scotland. As an actor, he is possibly best known for the role of Jimmy Guinness in the film The Greyness of Autumn.
The British Academy Scotland New Talent Awards are presented at an annual award ceremony organised by BAFTA Scotland.
Graham Hughes is a Scottish film director. He is possibly best known for his directorial work on the film A Practical Guide to a Spectacular Suicide.
Graham Fitzpatrick is a Scottish film director and screenwriter.
John Gaffney is a Scottish actor.
Autumn Never Dies is a 2020 short comedy film directed by Chris Quick. It stars Duncan Airlie James and Nicollete McKeown and is the sequel to 2012 short film The Greyness of Autumn. The film was written and produced by Andy S. McEwan and Chris Quick and released by Suited Caribou Media and Pentagram Productions UK.
Suited Caribou Media is a post-production company based in Glasgow, Scotland.
Ryan Gerard Hendrick is a Scottish filmmaker, director and actor. His works include Perfect Strangers, Sundown and Choices, the last of which he was nominated for a Bafta Scotland New Talent award
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