Q&A: Steph Liquorish unpacks career as an editor and future as a director

Chop Shop director Steph Liquorish talks nomination at Ciclope Asia, queer identity, finding humanity on screen and how it all started with Video Ezy.

 

Anyone who’s sat in a room with Liquorish will tell you about a maturity and mastery of craft beyond her years; her cheeky candour (read: no bullshit and sassy); but most of all they’ll tell you about her rampant love of movies.

Liquorish isn’t some new girl on the block – she has a decade-spanning storied career as an editor. She has creatively led teams as a senior editor on multiple broadcast television shows; and has brought her craft and sensibilities to high end advertisements for international brands such as Cadbury, Domino’s and Volvo. What is news, is Chop Shop recognising her electric potential and giving her a platform to do what she has always wanted to do – direct.

So why Chop Shop? Aren’t they a post-production company?

Steph Liquorish: Haha, its a great question. It’s funny really as its such a natural fit. Lav, Mike and Caleb have cultivated this culture where ”creative reigns supreme”. Everyone there has a passion for their craft and filmmaking as a whole. It’s about being disruptive – always challenging the status quo.

I think traditionally the boys have positioned Chop Shop as a post-production company, but in a very organic way, their walls between production and post have sort of dissolved. It makes total sense really now that I’ve found a home with them as a director; I can walk down the hall and have an impromptu meeting with any or all of the creative team about a crazy idea, a pitch or a treatment, and interrogate the what and how needed to pull it off.

Are there any jobs going? That’s a room I want to be in haha.

Totally! It gets me really jazzed – being in the room where it happens, you know? Cue Hamilton haha.

Being at Chop puts me in a privileged position; as a director, a young director out in the cold, you don’t always have the support you need. If you fuck up, you fuck up! That’s it.

Whereas here, I’ve got that support here; in Mike & Lav, the editorial and also VFX departments – so I’m not entirely alone. Also I think having this massive career in post means I understand story, rhythm, pace. Having that kind of foresight to bring into my jobs is awesome; to know what we need, how to deliver; how to present to client.

You’re right, if you’re out in the cold as you say, how do you learn when to talk, when not to, to listen and how to present to the head of marketing for a brand.

Exactly! And I’ve been schmoozing big dogs for 10 years haha.

I think it’s important I describe the cheeky grin and twinkle you have in your eye as you say that. Congratulations on your nomination at CICLOPE ASIA 2023 for Sunny Death Metal. So what attracted you to the project?

It was such a unique concept – the world’s first-ever death metal Public Service Announcement for Skin Cancer. It sounded ridiculous and weird and I was fairly confident it would be a once in a life time project, so it ticked all the boxes for me.

Working with ECD Ben Davies, Guido Pecego, Cam McDonald and Shaun McMahon over at VMLY&R is always a pleasure so I was stoked to get the opportunity to be apart of it. It was a great project to really be able to push ourselves creatively and see how far we could go with it.

So when did you know you wanted to be a director?

Quite young. After school I would walk myself to the DVD Store, lose hours deciding on what to rent before going home and watching films; that’s how I filled my time.

Do you remember the store?

It was a VideoEzy! I think it turned into a Blockbuster before closing down. RIP. I loved being able to engross myself in new worlds, to be made to feel through stories on the screen. I wanted to be able to do that.

Were there any particular movies that were a turning point for a Young Steph?

I think Star Wars and the original Bladerunner were two films that blew my mind as a young girl. Then in university, Short Term 12 was one of the first indie-style dramas I watched that made me go – “holy shit, that really made me feel!” After that is when I twisted more into this obsession of making people feel things rather than just making things that look cool. But obviously I want it to look cool as well haha.

Unique concepts are what I love as a director; the ability to imagine a whole new world, conjure a genuine original thought; I think it is just such a special talent. So getting the chance to translate that to the screen for an audience to experience is both a privilege and a joy.

What’s next on the horizon for Steph Liquorish, director at large?

I just finished a documentary for a local surf brand. It’s this poetic biography of a semi- professional wakeboarder, that examines mental health and overcoming adversity through an ode to the ocean.

So nothing at all like Sunny Death Metal or Bladerunner?

Definitely a change of pace from Sunny Death haha. Nobody puts Baby in a corner. I’ve talked about how I love emotion, movies that make you feel something. I firmly believe that sports documentaries universally make you feel. Even if you hate sports, you can watch a good sports doco and be really invested.

That’s the joy of the industry I guess though, there are good ideas and heartfelt stories everywhere.

Now, your queer-identity is something that you wear pretty proudly. Did you want to talk about that at all?

I mean, I’m not asking to be the face of queer, but I’m proud of being queer and I think having a queer voice is unique.

I think everyone can agree that representation on screen is really important. The moment you first actually get to see yourself on screen and stop having to idolise a straight man is a groundbreaking moment and gives you the liberty and freedom to be like, oh, okay, that person does exist. It’s like it gives you permission to be who you are – if she can kick ass and kiss girls then so can I.

And film and television has the power to give people that.

100%! When we started seeing more representation [on screen] of different types of queer, you are like, oh, I can actually just be myself, but also queer. That was kind of a groundbreaking movement. I think TV and film helped that a lot. So for me, I want to help contribute, expand and impart more of that.

Just a little sprinkle of queer in to your projects.

Just a pinch of glitter in every frame; A bit of queer glitter in every project haha.

Is there anything you’re really excited about right now?

I’m excited about the future of feature-films within Chop Shop. I mean there’s some awesome scripts kicking around. I’m really excited about jumping on and being creatively involved with a few of them. Honestly all the work and creative potential floating around Brisbane gets me buzzing.

Long-term, hopefully within the next five years I’ll be getting momentum for my first feature, getting that off the ground.

I think five years is a discredit to yourself. My money is on less than that.

I mean, I hope it’s tomorrow haha.

For all enquiries, email steph@cspost.com.au or info@cspost.com.au.