"Starter For Ten" is the first feature film directed by Vaughan. The screenwriter David Nicholls studied drama with him at the University of Bristol . The two previously worked together on the award-winning TV short series "I Saw You ". "Starter For Ten" will resonate with everyone who grew up in the 1980s and has experienced higher education. It can be said that this is not a typical youth comedy, because its sincerity and truth surpass similar movies, and all of this Benefit from the common experience of Vaughan and Nicos at the university. When Vaughan later became a successful TV director of the British Broadcasting Corporation , Nicos’ debut novel "Starter For Ten" also became a bestseller. In fact, Vaughan had taken a fancy to this novel at the time. He recalled: "I only Can try to pretend it doesn’t exist because I don’t feel like I have a chance to direct it."
Later, Tom Hanks ' production company, Playtone, decided to make this novel into a movie of the same name and began to look for a director. Because the story of the novel is somewhat similar to Tom Hanks's directorial debut " That Thing You Do ", Hanks approached Sam Mendes , hoping that the two can work together to make the film, and try to be loyal to the original, and all use British actors. A producer from the British Broadcasting Corporation recommended Tom Vaughan because he had previously collaborated with the original author, Nicks, on British Broadcasting Corporation’s television work.
"What makes me happy is that the first feature film I directed is very close to my own experience," Vaughan said. "Although I am not an author, I feel a strong sense of identity, which is very important for a director."
When asked about the difficulties in the adaptation, Nicos said: "You have to take a deep breath and relax, because you will have to reluctantly cut love during the adaptation process. The novel is written in the first person, and at first I thought it could not be adapted at all. Because Brian had a lot of monologues, I later told myself that it was not a necessary element to promote the development of the plot, and I had to give up."
In Vaughan's view, the role of Brian is very demanding of actors. He must be able to capture the audience from beginning to end, but the wrong things he did make people irritating. Vaughan took a fancy to James McAvoy , a young actor who appeared in the Emmy-awarded series " Children of Dune " and the fantasy series " The Chronicles of Narnia " , saying that he has the performance ability to win the support of others even if he makes a mistake. The screenwriter Nicos said: "James worked hard to make this character cute. He made terrible mistakes and had terrible shortcomings, but you can discover the kindness of his intentions. Even though his methods are utterly stupid, he can speak before he speaks. I can show kindness and loveliness. I remember the first time I discovered James on TV. I think he is very different and will definitely become a star. James is my ideal candidate, and he is the best I have ever worked with. The hardworking and most serious actor."
The filming took 8 weeks, and the most difficult part was to reproduce the TV broadcast scene of the 1985 University Challenge. In the film, Brian’s hometown was shot in the British coastal town of Jaywick, which had never appeared in the film before.
Vaughan said: "From the very beginning, I thought that the film could not be made funny with a funny look, and the film would become a botched 80s comedy." Although the film story took place in the 1980s, Vaughan did not want to imitate the same type of nostalgia. For this work, he and the clothing, production design, and set departments focused more on removing modern elements and minimizing unnecessary parts. Vaughan wanted to create the feeling that this story can happen at any time.
Nicos said: "Although we don't want to use production design to fight for laughter, we still hope to accurately show the style of that era. Through those old photos, we find that the mid-80s are far less gorgeous than the early 80s, and the fashion style is more gloomy. The clothing is mainly pragmatic in dark colors. However, for the sake of viewing, Rebecca in the film is very fashionable, and Brian’s clothing does not show any fashion errors."
