Driven to Direct: The Third Year Student Putting St Andrews on the Film Map

Axel Mordecai, 23, is a third-year-student studying Economics His dream however, isn’t to go into finance, but to become a filmmaker. “I know I'm young, but I am desperate to start making movies as soon as I can,” he said. Mordecai is from Kalbarri, Australia, but grew up across the world — spending time in the UK, seven years in Texas, and attending a South African boarding school. This global upbringing has shaped both his perspective and creative ambition. Mordecai is intent on drawing on his creative ambitions, largely shaped by his global upbringing, to transform the St Andrews film scene

“When I first got here, there hadn't been a film made in St Andrews in about five years,” Mordecai said. “So I made the first one.” It was called Cinema of Distractions, a Monty-Python style short film revolving around two cinemas who disagreed on whether or not food should be allowed to be brought into the cinema. “One of the things I'm good at is that I can write comedy. Comedy is impossible if you can't write it,” Mordecai explained. The short film was featured in a couple festivals in Europe, but Mordecai struggled post release. “I'd made this film, and I didn't know where to go after that, so I took two years out, and I started getting some IMDb credits to my name.” During his two years off Mordecai was a script editor for Nope, a number of short films and TV pilots with Crow House Projects, most notably the pilot for Shoulder Deep a vet sitcom, that's likely being released early 2027, and a a short film with Plague Dorm Productions called In the Court of the Queen of Shadows.

Now, upon returning to St Andrews, he is working on a pilot episode for a show called Star News. It tells the story of a 21-year old University Student, Dylan Morris, who stole £12,000 of computer equipment to fund a BAFTA awarded film. The episode opens in the principal's office, where he finds out that, to commute his theft sentence, he must resurrect St Andrews' failing student news service. Mordecai is already half way through shooting the 30-minute pilot. He and his team hope to complete shooting the episode by the end of May and have an edited version by September. “I'd like it to be released next year so people can see it,” he explained.“If it gets picked up, we could even come back here and film it, you know. It would be brilliant.” 

The project is rooted in Mordecai’s desire to prove himself to the industry. “I'm very young for film. I'm very old for university, because I took two gap years.” Nothing is confirmed yet, but Mordecai is tentatively in line to direct the film when he graduates from St Andrews. “It would be a low budget film, which in the industry is between two and five million. For us that is a grotesque amount of money, but for film it’s a small budget, a micro budget.” This upcoming opportunity could make his career, “I hopefully should be able to direct it, or at least co-direct it… I have to jump through a lot of hoops if I'm going to be given this shot at such a young age,” he said. “I want to make this to show investors in the project that even though I'm young, I know what I'm doing. If they're going to sign off on having a 23 year old, in any kind of directorial capacity, I need to show that I'm capable of doing it.” 

Reviving the filmmaking culture in St Andrews hasn’t been easy. “It is so insanely difficult to make a film in St Andrews, which I'm finding out as we do this,” Mordecai said. “There is no filmmaking infrastructure, so in order for me to get anybody trained out here is a pain in the *ss.” Up until recently, Filmmakers Society had limited equipment. “So [the assistant director and I] financed all the film equipment ourselves. We just worked a lot over the summer and paid for it, which was killer,” he said. 

Mordecai has a 44-person team helping him out. “There [are] a million roadblocks that we keep running into. I'm making it sound like I'm a one-man band. I'm not at all,” he explained. I have a phenomenal team around me, people that are really trying their hardest and doing a great job, and we continue to smash these roadblocks.” 

A big motivating factor for making Star News was to help students find a creative space and learn to make films themselves. “We're trying to train people so that, when I leave at the end of next year, film isn't just gonna die all over again,” he explained. “Hopefully, people will have the equipment. They'll know how to use it. They'll know the scope and the reality of what it takes to make a film here. So hopefully I can leave some kind of legacy of a functioning film department in St Andrews.” His production team for this project is entirely made up of student volunteers. 

First-year student Alexa Nanes is one of the many students learning from Mordecai’s production. Mordecai announced the opportunity to participate in production at a film society screening.“I was immediately curious,” said Names. “I’ve been searching for a more hands-on production experience to accompany my film degree, which focuses more on film history and theory. As someone [who] wants to work in the film industry, I am always seeking student projects.”

“[Mordecai], the director, creates a collaborative and fun environment while simultaneously establishing professionalism on set,” Names said. “It is really interesting for me to watch an aspiring director. He makes space for others to contribute their feedback while also executing his vision for the episode.” Names gained insights into the qualities necessary for a good director and “how to curate an environment where creativity can flourish,” she explained. “Being on the crew has shown me how much preparation is needed before each shoot to limit the amount of mishaps bound to happen.”

The total production for Star News will cost the group of students around £2000, but they are struggling to raise the money. They have begun crowdfunding because  “grants, especially at St Andrews, are a no-go. A big reason is that they don't believe it's going to happen. And the other thing is, it's never existed before, so there's no system set up in place,” explained Mordecai. 

All crew members will receive an IMDb credit for their participation in making the pilot episode. “I'm making this episode because I need to make it. I'm not making this for the credits, but for everybody involved,” Mordecai explained. An IMDb credit is the film equivalent of doing an internship. “If you're going to university and pursuing a degree, but at the same time, you have an IMDB credit, that's kind of a big deal to people,” he added. “It's the minimum barrier to entry. It's what separates a random person from someone [who] has some experience. And I think it'd be really good for a lot of people our age.”

Even in a place like St Andrews, where the film infrastructure is lacking, Mordecai continues to pursue his dream. “I feel sick if I'm not doing it, is the only way I can explain it. It's a terrible job — I'm constantly stressed. There [are] a million factors that need to go right, and half of them are based on luck. I mean, we're putting fires out every day [...] I just can't not do it. So I have some kind of weird addiction to it,” he said. Anytime I'm not making a film, I'm miserable.”