E4's trailblazing and award-winning show Skins returns to our TV screens on 27 January, complete with new faces in front of and behind the camera. Director and film-maker Amanda Boyle directs the opening episode of the new and fifth series of the show. After her Channel 4 debut with spoof reality show Cast Offs, Amanda -who directed Film London's PULSE PLUS-funded short Pop Art - is tackling the foremost teen TV show of recent times. Here, she talks directing for TV, working with new talent and how short film-making has shaped her career.

How did it feel when you got the call to direct the opening episode of an established and ground-breaking national TV show such as Skins?

I found out at the end of my second interview. I was back at Company Pictures [who produce the show] to meet the Executive Producer - John Griffin - with Matt Strevens - the producer. I had a cold and was dosed up on day nurse so the whole memory has a slightly woozy feel. As Matt showed me out, he told me in a hushed tone that it wasn't all signed and sealed but the plan was that I'd direct the launch episode. I was over the moon, the adrenalin and active ingredients of the day nurse combined.

I was thrilled because for me what has always singled out Skins is the writing. From its creator Bryan Elsley and his son Jamie Brittain to writers like Jack Thorne [who I worked with on Cast Offs] to the amazing pair I worked with this year - Sean Buckley (Ep 1) and Ed Hime (Ep 4) - the writers have always been exceptional.  As I walked down Charlotte Street talking to my agent Tally, that's what I was chuffed about.

The first episode sees an entirely new cast introduced to Skins audiences. Something not many directors get to experience when working on a long running TV series - was that beneficial or restrictive?

I loved working with the new cast - that definitely was a draw for me. Yet you are obviously working with a sense of the previous shows. People do say things like "That's not very Skins" or "In Skins we..." My favourite example was a night scene which we had to shoot in daylight because Skins' night could be day. But the way my brain works, it's all about making rules for myself when I direct anyway, so I'm totally content with those kinds of restrictions. What makes Skins fresh and a treat for a director is that within these constraints you are given freedom. I was really able to play with the camera and look of my episodes. So I was in the great position to be working with people who had the experience of working on four series of a hit show whilst having the space to make the episodes, in a small way, my own.

I fundamentally want to do my own work - both TV and film - as well as directing series. I would absolutely love to direct say, Breaking Bad. When I sit and watch other peoples' shows my mind is often trying to work out what their aesthetic/tonal grammar is. I often talk through scenes trying to understand them. It drives my husband mad - we often have to pause and I have to give him a recap of the story that I've just ruined.

Skins is targeted to teen audiences and it is famous for speaking to them in a very direct, raw way. How did you approach that challenge form the director's chair?

Again I'd say that's mostly rooted in the writing and clever script editing. The show is very visceral.  It's trying to tap into the emotional rollercoaster of that age. It doesn't judge and it also slightly heightens everything - colours, fashion, comedy. Famously the parents are always very 'big' in Skins whilst the leads are very naturalistic. I suppose I was just looking to find ways to echo and support that in the visual style. And of course the most important way you tap into that world is through the actors. I adore the new cast. They're all very talented in very different ways. It was a genuine collaboration with them. They drew on their own experiences and in amongst the heightened-ness worked at being as truthful as possible. My job was just helping them do that. That was different with every actor. It always is. That's the bit I really enjoy.

The cast in Skins gets renewed every two years, once the 'old' characters complete sixth form. Does that renewal extend to the team behind the scenes? How does it affect the process of making the series?

I felt very fortunate to work with a dop, editor and first AD who had all worked on the show before. Nick Dance, the DOP [Director of Photography], has shot most of Skins from the start. He is used to the demands of the show and makes things look stunning in the midst of chaos. I learnt so much from him. Same goes for Dan Gethic, the editor. He has a nose for the way creator Bryan Elsley sees Skins and the shape you need to find in the edit. And James Blackwell, my first [assistant], had done it before. He was completely unfazed by shooting sex scenes with body doubles and crane shots in two hours. I felt really supported by them all.

This is your second major project with Channel 4 after Cast Offs and you have another in the making. Do you feel part of the C4 family already?

Each show was made with a different production company and producers. They all were very distinct in approach. Yet there was definitely a family feel on them. Cast Offs was made on a tiny budget. In most cases we cast the actors before the writers wrote the scripts. Then the HODs [Heads of Department] lived in a house in Nottingham during the shoot (one of the editors had to sleep in the conservatory). We were all, with the writers and the actors - cooking the show together. For Misfits I only shot a couple of days to help out one of the directors, who is a friend - so that had a very informal feel. Skins also had a family atmosphere because of the way it was conceived, is now created and the closeness you get from the actors. As I mentioned before, what's rare about Skins is that each episode has a different feel, mood and look - which comes from the writing. For the creative team and director that's such a treat as you get the chance to really experiment within the structure. As a director on a long running show I was given such freedom. It's in its fifth series so there's obviously a clear sense of what works and what doesn't - yet you can also get to try new things out. All the experiences were different beasts and each very valuable. What connects them are [Head of Drama] Camilla Campbell and [Commissioning Editor] Robert Wulff-Cochrane at Channel 4. They're two people I really trust and respect. They're super smart and great to work with.

Like many film-makers, you honed your skills working in shorts, including Pop Art which was produced by Film London's PULSE. Tell us about that experience and your journey to date.

In brief: as a kid I was obsessed with acting, at college I did lots of plays, got interested in directing, switched my love to film, knew no one, wrote hundreds of letters, worked on other peoples' shorts, was an assistant in TV, was an assistant in film, worked at Working Title Films for seven years, at the same time started making my own shorts, did one that got me noticed, left Working Title, got a break on Channel 4's Coming Up scheme, made another short with PULSE... which helped me to get Cast Offs... and here we are. That's obviously a simplified version - along the way I've worked with lots of talented, generous people - people who have helped me in many ways. We never talk about the projects that haven't happened or the years when you think 'oh my god how hard is the British film industry - what else do you want from me' but they shape us as much as the projects that go.

Shorts are an amazing experience. I personally really like the form itself. You can experiment. You can make mistakes. A wonderful Danish film teacher, Arne Brau, described film to me like a sonograph. You can't help but show stuff about yourself in what you make. So the more you do, the more you get a sense of yourself. Not just your tastes but what you're scared of and what you love. Arne says that what makes films interesting are the 'faults' you make. To précis a brilliant man possibly inaccurately - you need to work out what your 'faults' are and make more of them. That's a really liberating way of looking at things.

I know shorts are hard to get funding for, particularly these days. If I was starting out now, I'd grab a flip camera and start playing. Someone was telling me about a great short that's made on a mobile phone. A lot of directing is trusting and honing your instincts.  It's about craft and in my experience, the more you make the more you learn. Shorts are a perfect place to do all that. I'm incredibly grateful to Film London's PULSE for giving me that opportunity on Pop Art. I look at it with both pride at what we pulled off and wince at my mistakes - that's exactly what shorts are for.

Have you got plans to watch your Skins debut when it airs?

I've yet to see the final final version. So I'll watch with bated breath!


The first episodes of the fifh series of Skins airs at 10pm on Thursday 27 January on E4.