Neil Gaiman Continues His Warm Up For Feature Directing With Another Short Film

Courtesy of his wonderful blog, as readable as it is popular and probably the most popular individual's blog in the world, Neil Gaiman is currently in London in pre-production of a silent short film for British TV. This will be his second outing as director after the wonderful A Short Film About John Bolton, a documentary (ahem) about the famed comic artist and his uncommonly powerful paintings of vampires. That one had talking – lots of talking.

For some time now, Gaiman has been set to make his feature film directing debut with Death and Me, adapted from his Death: The High Cost of Living comics. Whether or not this project is still coming or has been stopped in its tracks is not entirely clear but those of you who read my script review will know just how keenly I'd like to see it come to fruition. Before that, if I remember correctly, he almost collaborated with the Weinsteins on a story about the true authorship of Shakespeare's plays but that one seems pretty much entirely forgotten now.

In preparation for bringing Death to the screen, Gaiman shadowed Guillermo del Toro for some time on the set of Hellboy 2 – as if his life was not already charmed enough! From his lucid, wittily told comics I'm sure, however, that Gaiman already has the visual storytelling down to a tee and could just use some on-set experience and, of course, any director worth their salt will tell you that you can never have enough experience.

Gaiman blogged:

Very quick one just to say I'm in the offices of a film company in London, spending two days interviewing editors, production designers, costume people and the like, for a short (ten minute) silent film I've written and will be directing in two weeks' time.

And later tweeted:

Listening to my producer talk to potential film editors. I want an editor with poetry and magic in his/her soul. Hope to find one tomorrow

As regards what the film is actually about, here are the only clues to be had so far:

I can't tell you much more about it yet. It stars, er, a star, and another, different, star. I had the idea for it half way through the HousingWorks benefit Amanda and I did in April, and pulled out my notebook and wrote it down.

So it's a two hander? We don't even know that for sure. Who might Gaiman think of as a star? Alan Rickman? Martin Freeman? Eugene Hutz? Tom Cruise? David Tennant? I'm just throwing darts, here. Your guess is as good as mine.