James Lucas

The community of creative forces who manage to earn an Oscar for their first foray into filmmaking is a small and terribly lucky one; James Lucas, RSA Films booker-turned-writer of the live-action short film "The Phone Call" (2013) is among that special few. After teaming up with writer and director Mat Kirkby, the yet untested Lucas found himself the victor of an Academy Award, and what's more a brand new path to explore in the vast industry of cinema. England-born James Lucas didn't kick off his career in the film industry as a creative. In fact, Lucas began started out booking gigs for artists represented by Ridley and Tony Scott's production company RSA Films. While working at the company, Lucas joined forces with fellow RSA-affiliated party, music video and commercial filmmaker Mat Kirkby. With Kirkby's help, Lucas managed to breathe new life into a script he wrote that would ultimately become the short film "The Phone Call" (2013), starring British actors Sally Hawkins and Jim Broadbent. The film, which features Hawkins as a phone operator at a helpline call center and Broadbent as a troubled man calling in for assistance, took four years to develop from the time Lucas first brought the idea to paper. One of those years was spent waiting for Hawkins' availability, as Lucas and Kirkby decided that only she could properly play the film's heroine. Ultimately, the first-time writer and experienced music video director created "The Phone Call," which won them each an Oscar for Best Live-Action Short Film at the 87th Academy Awards.