Tough Love

Tough Love is a short documentary following Tottenham Hotspur talent scout and Under 16’s semi-professional manager ‘Cas’ Darren Johnson. Tough Love explores Darren’s coaching career and takes a look into the life of a younger Darren Johnson: a troublemaker who has grown to find purpose in acting as a role model for the young community in Tottenham, North London.

Character Descriptions -

‘Cas’ Darren Johnson – Darren is an u16’s semi-professional football coach, personal trainer and Tottenham Hotspur talent scout. His focus lies on ensuring the children of Tottenham have a place to go, and a way to spend their time in order to keep the youth of Tottenham falling upon the same problems Darren faced as a child; rough streets and gang violence in Tottenham.

Jude Amponsah – Jude is the u16 captain of Woodford Town FC, managed by Darren. He lives at home with his mother and sister and has the goal to become a professional footballer. Football is his life. He wants nothing more than to stay out of trouble in the streets of Tottenham and to chase his dream.

Nada Noushie – Nada is Jude’s mother. She is a kind and caring mother with a focus on family values. She lives in fear of the violence and gang culture surrounding Tottenham and wishes for nothing more than her son Jude to stay out of trouble and continue to pursue his passion for football which he so clearly loves.

Mofe Jemide, Luca Gordon and Matthew Asare – These three boys are all aspiring footballers. They receive personal training sessions from Darren and are looking to prove their skills and leadership ability. Darren takes a softer coaching approach to these boys in order to promote their independent growth and ensure they feel they have a safe place in training away from the streets.

Jonathan Spencer – Jonathan is one of Darren’s 1-on-1 students who receive personal training. He is a quiet boy whom Darren takes under his wing to ensure he can provide him a route away from the streets. As well as teaching him football, Darren spends time with Jonathan teaching him boxing, providing him a way to defend himself and teach him the discipline to keep him off of the streets and out of trouble.

Film Inspiration -

Top Boy (2011–Present - Yann Demange)
UK’s Scariest Debt Collector (2013 - Ed Perkins)
Concrete Football/Ballon sur Bitume (2017 - Jesse Adang, Syrine Boulanouar)
All or Nothing: Manchester City (2018 - Manuel Huerga)
Sunderland ‘Til I Die (2018 - Leo Pearlman)
London’s Knife Crime Emergency: On a Knife Edge (Kevin Sutcliffe - 2018)
Yardie (2018 - Idris Elba)
Losers Ep 2 (2019 - Mickey Duzyj)

Crew -

Deen Gomez – Producer
Deen is a filmmaker from London who specialises as a DOP and Gaffer. Having worked on a number of student films as part of BA Film Production at the University of Westminster, Deen has experience in using both digital and film formats. Deen is also co-founder of RXD Studios, a small production company whereby he acts as DOP in creating music videos and promotional content for music artists in London.

Sorin Baluta – DOP
Sorin is a London based filmmaker. Comfortable with both small crews or big ones, Sorin is experienced as a DOP using both digital and film cameras. He also specialises in producing and editing but has expertise in advising and contributing to all departments during film production.

Linus Sandelands –Sound Recordist
Linus is a cinematographer and gaffer based in London with experience on a wide range of student films and music videos. Originally from the Lake District, Linus is looking to move into long-form cinema on graduating from the University of Westminster in London.

Filip Arnqvist-Eiritz – Editor
Filip is a Swedish filmmaker based in London. He specialises in editing and recording sound for various student productions. He is currently in his final year of the Film BA course at the University of Westminster.

Felecia Stalhammar – Researcher
Felicia is a Swedish film student at University of Westminster where she is studying in her final year. Though she mostly works within the camera department. It is her first time taking this role, and she is determined to get involved in making more documentaries.

  • Billy Morley
    Director
  • Deen Gomez
    Producer
  • Sorin Baluta
    Director of Photography
  • Linus Sandelands
    Sound Recordist
  • Filip Arnqvist-Eiritz
    Editor
  • Felecia Stalhammar
    Researcher
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Short, Student
  • Runtime:
    16 minutes 42 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    January 31, 2020
  • Production Budget:
    250 GBP
  • Country of Origin:
    United Kingdom
  • Country of Filming:
    United Kingdom
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital - Canon XF305
  • Aspect Ratio:
    1.85:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    Yes
Director Biography - Billy Morley

A 21-year-old Film Student at the University of Westminster.
An aspiring documentary director with a passion for character-driven narratives. Whether it be an on-course project as part of his final year studying Film BA (Hons), or a personal project outside of university, Billy seeks characters with unique stories and a charisma to match. He hopes to tell their stories on screen as well as they were told in real life

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

Tough Love explores themes far beyond football.
Without football, Darren's true work would not be possible.

We hope you enjoy watching the film as much as we enjoyed making it.