Happiness is a warm gun for St Albans documentary maker

An aspiring presenter and documentary maker has travelled stateside on a shoestring budget for his latest project.

James Dann, 24, of Pinewood Close, St Albans, has released a documentary alongside fellow film maker Richard Morel about the gun culture in America.

While the top film companies have big budgets, James managed to film the documentary, titled 2nd Amendment for under £400.

He said: “We slept on the floor of researcher’s houses, in a rental car outside of the White house and frequently ate bread and ham off the dashboard before going to film high ranking politicians.”

The pair knew little about the gun culture before they embarked on their seven month project.

James said: “It’s so much more confusing than people think. You assume guns mean bad but sometimes that’s not the case.

“They’re used in so many different ways and there are lots of different angles on the whole subject. I left with more questions than answers.”

James and Richard spoke to lots of people but their high point came when they filmed inside the Lancaster gun show in Philadelphia.

“We’re the only film crew that’s ever been allowed inside, and it made for excellent footage; it’s a real eye opening moment of the film,” he added.

The two of them insist that they remained unbiased throughout the filming process.

James said: “It allowed us to speak freely with everyone we filmed. The documentary is a rollercoaster ride through one of the most heated topics of our time.”

James hopes to continue filming documentaries and a list of his current projects can be found at www.jamesjd.com.

‘2nd Amendment’ can be viewed for free at www.vimeo.com/125070548.