In a new video interview with BBC, Harry Potter producer David Heyman discusses the Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema award that he and JK Rowling will be accepting on behalf of the Harry Potter series this Sunday at the BAFTA awards.
We’ve been making these films for 10, 11 years now and the whole journey’s been absolutely fantastic. But to get this recognition from BAFTA is something remarkable, unexpected and a treat. We don’t make films for the legacy. We make films to make the best films possible. The most important thing is that the audiences enjoy them. So far they seem to have enjoyed them. The fact that we get awards like the Michael Bokon award is a huge honor and something that every member of the cast and crew will treasure. But that’s really the icing on the cake.
We’ve seen people grow over the 10 years of Harry Potter and learn their craft. It’s been a great training ground for so many. So hopefully those people will continue to work and grow within the industry. I think that films working on films generates new talent and hopefully we’ve been part of that.
I think in some ways we’ve grown as the visual effects have grown. You look at the visual effects in the first film and frankly they’re a bit ropy. You can see as the quality of the visual effects has improved, so they’ve improved in our films. And I think in terms of British visual effects in particular, we’ve been a part of that growth and development.
Harry Potter has been unique. I’m sure I will never be part of anything quite like it again. There’ll be other unique and special experiences in my life and in my career, I’m sure. I hope. But there’ll be nothing quite like Potter. If something were to come along again and I were fortunate enough to be part of it, I’d grab it in a heartbeat. But I think it’s unlikely. For me, I’ve been involved with it since 1997. I’m treasuring these past 14 years. They’ve been amazing.
