False Lights
In 2013, I had the opportunity to work on a truly unique project: filming The False Lights of Durham, a short film conceived and directed by artist and composer Ed Carter.
This music and light piece is steeped in history, mystery, and the powerful presence of the North East’s coastline. Capturing it on camera inside Durham Cathedral was both a technical challenge and a deeply atmospheric experience.
The False Lights of Durham draws inspiration from the 1860s tales of unexplained lights along County Durham’s dangerous coast. These ‘false lights’ reportedly lured ships onto rocks, causing wrecks that some officials controversially blamed on local fishing communities.
The Trinity House authority accused these communities of deliberately creating misleading lights to steal cargo from wrecked vessels—a charge which the fishing communities fiercely denied. The controversy ultimately led to the construction of electric lighthouses, forever changing the coastline’s nightscape.
Ed Carter’s piece translates this fascinating history into a composition where syncopated rhythms of light and melody mirror the original “characters” of the region’s lighthouses when first illuminated. The film visually represents this sequence, beginning with the light of Souter lighthouse (opened in 1871) and continuing through the lights at Herd Sand, South Gare breakwater, Sunderland North East pier, Hartlepool Heugh, River Tyne South pier, Sunderland South pier, Roker pier, Seaham North pier, and River Tyne North pier. Each lighthouse becomes a musical motif and visual beacon within the piece.
Filming in Durham Cathedral provided the perfect setting for this narrative. The towering Romanesque architecture and expansive darkness allowed the lights to perform like signals at sea. Ed Carter’s concept positioned the viewer’s perspective as if they were a vessel adrift on the water, surrounded by darkness and guided only by the intermittent glow of coastal lights. This atmospheric setting demanded careful cinematography to preserve both the grandeur of the cathedral and the delicate interplay of light and shadow.
Technically, filming The False Lights of Durham was a significant milestone in my career. It was the first piece I ever filmed for broadcast, and also my first time shooting with a Canon EOS C300, which we hired especially for the shoot. Filming overnight in the hushed darkness of Durham Cathedral, I was struck by how the camera’s low-light performance allowed us to capture the subtleties of the shifting beams and the textured stonework of the cathedral interior.
Lighting design was crucial. Jonathon Hodges created sequences of pulses and fades that mimicked lighthouse signals, coordinated perfectly with Ed Carter’s musical score. My role as cinematographer and editor meant navigating the balance between capturing dramatic contrast and maintaining clarity within the shadows of the cathedral’s cavernous interior.
The choral performances were another central element. The choir members—Pippa Anderson, Jo Blenkinsop, Neil Blenkinsop, Michael Bridgewater, Kiz Crosbie, Michael Dawson, Susie Green, Dave Scott, Nicola Singh (choir leader), and Ryan Tilley—acted as the voice of the fishing communities, singing lyrics that respond directly to the accusations of Trinity House. Their presence and vocals imbued the film with both historical context and a powerful emotional undertone.
One particularly moving aspect of the shoot was working with organist James Lancelot. The cathedral organ’s booming tones intertwined seamlessly with the modern composition, linking past and present in a way that mirrored the piece’s thematic exploration of history and myth.
The False Lights of Durham was commissioned as part of Channel 4’s Random Acts. At the time, Random Acts was Channel 4’s innovative strand dedicated to showcasing experimental short films across music, dance, visual art, and animation.
Launched in 2011, the strand was known by 2013 as a platform for bold and unconventional works, providing national television exposure for artists who wanted to push creative boundaries. Films were typically short—between 90 seconds and three minutes—and broadcast late at night, surprising viewers with bursts of creativity outside conventional programming. Random Acts also collaborated with arts institutions like BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art and regional organisations like Northern Film and Media, commissioning new works that could bridge television, galleries, and digital platforms.
Being commissioned for Random Acts meant The False Lights of Durham would reach an audience far beyond the walls of the cathedral. For me, it was a huge milestone—not only my first broadcast credit but also the first time my work was exhibited in a major contemporary art venue. It was an incredible honour to have the film shown at BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art, where it ran from 25th October to 17th November 2013.
Looking back, filming The False Lights of Durham was not simply a technical job but a collaboration that brought together multiple disciplines to tell a layered and intriguing story. It’s projects like this that remind me why I became a filmmaker: to help translate complex ideas and cultural histories into visual experiences that resonate.
If you’re interested in seeing more of my films with artists and artworks, you can explore them here: Artist Films