challenging how gender based violence is recognised, represented and understood through film/making and visual/art
about sam joseph studios
Sam Joseph Studios is a UK based creative independent film, production and visual art, installations studio led by filmmaker and visual artist Sam Joseph, working across filmmaking, installation, and visual art. The studio develops interdisciplinary, collaborative projects that examine how cinema and visual culture shape understandings of gender-based violence, social justice, and lived experience within both public and domestic spaces.
At the core of the studio’s practice is filmmaking as a creative and critical tool. Through narrative for theatrical release and hybrid forms, the work offers an alternative to dominant cinematic portrayals of violence against women, rejecting victim stereotypes, sensationalism, and passive narratives in favour of nuanced, ethically engaged storytelling grounded in feminist film theory and spatial practice.
Sustainability, care, and equity are embedded throughout the studio’s productions. All films aim to achieve certification through BAFTA Albert, with environmental accountability integrated into budgeting. Projects are developed in consultation with impact producers, alongside wellbeing strategies that prioritise psychological safety, inclusive working conditions, and anti-harassment training across all teams.
The studio is committed to authentic storytelling through diverse perspectives, inspiring inclusive production environments, and creating films and artworks that act as tools for advocacy, dialogue, and cultural change.
ethical storytelling
social justice & representation
wellbeing
sustainability & responsibility
sustainable filmmaking
sustainable filmmaking
sculpture by Annie Edwards, photographs by Sam Joseph
social sustainability
social equity and justice narrative
community engagement
environment sustainability
local suppliers
local community catering
recycling of materials
material reuse
minimal carbon footprint
main light source: daylighting
reduced carbon footprint
public transport & car share
sam joseph founder/creative director
Sam Joseph (b. Leeds, Yorkshire) is a UK-based auteur director, writer, producer and visual artist whose work interrogates the intersections of gender, space, and systemic inequality. Working in film and visual art, her practice explores socio-spatial narratives, sustainability, and the lived realities of gender-based violence, with a distinct focus on how these dynamics manifest in both private and public environments. As the auteur of her projects, she defines the visual aesthetic to ensure a bold vision.
Sam’s debut short film, (IN)VISIBLE, has garnered 14 awards and selected at 29 international film festivals, with a strong presence across platforms championing human rights, social justice, and women-led storytelling. The film establishes Sam’s signature approach: a visually sensitive, emotionally precise cinematic language that foregrounds women’s resilience while challenging entrenched societal norms and gendered power structures.
Sam’s work is defined by its ability to bridge the personal and the political, weaving intimate narratives with broader collective experience. Her interdisciplinary background informs a nuanced engagement with spatial dynamics and audience perception, creating work that is both formally considered and socially urgent. Her projects have been exhibited and screened internationally, including at Milan Design Week and on the BBC Big Screen. Critically recognised for its authenticity and human insight, (IN)VISIBLE was described by the Rome Independent Film Festival as “a narrative of great emotional intensity marked by visual sensitivity and a deeply empathetic language.”
Sam is currently developing her debut feature that continues to expand her exploration of feminist storytelling through bold, visually driven narratives with global resonance intended for theatrical release.
An RCA graduate (Grad Dip Art & Design, MA Print, MA Interior Design), CSM (BA Hons Fashion FCP) and currently, RCA p/t PhD SoA researcher https://pgr.rca-architecture.com/people/sam-joseph and is a member of Women in Film and Television.
A survivor of domestic violence
Sam is neurodivergent and has monocular vision.
Photography by Chloe Hall
claire sawford
Claire has more than thirty years experience working as a marketing, media and management consultant to the creative industries. She champions storytelling as a transformative power to drive connection and social change.
She has collaborated with filmmakers, writers, visual artists, musicians, production companies and broadcasters in the UK and US including Michael Powell, Joel Meyerowitz, Michael Stipe, Martin Parr, Susan Meiselas, Matthew Brookes, Candace Bushnell, Hat Trick Productions (Drop the Dead Donkey, Bromwell High), and EuroArt/RTE (City Lives: Berlin). She has acted as Rights Agent for documentaries such as BBC TV’s Return to Auschwitz with Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, Unsolved Mysteries – Anastasia, helped launch a screenplay development and training company, and produced campaigns and promotional films for publishers, charities and not-for-profits.
Cultural organisations with which Claire has worked include the V&A, Royal Academy of Arts, Crafts Council, National Gallery and Globe Theatre.
Claire was a founding director of the Interactive Motion Picture Corporation which created the world’s first interactive movie – BAFTA-nominated Running Time (writer Simon Beaufoy) - and one of the first viral marketing campaigns. She was a Trustee at Saffron Screen from 2017 to 2023.
A member of BAFTA, Claire is working with Sam to develop her debut feature.
sam joseph studio logo designed by Steve Graham at elementforty7.com