oliver cromwell

Oliver Cromwell came from humbling beginings in the Maida Vale district of West London. Born the middle child of decorated Royal Navy Marine, Neal Cromwell and his wife, Cesia. Cesia owned her own restaurant and pub. An immigrant as a child from Poland, her family fled from the country when World War II broke out. Anyone that knew her though knew that her children were her real priority. Work, the restaurant, all of that came second to her five Cromwell children. She did her best to split her time between them all. Making sure each child felt loved and had what they desired. Mr. Cromwell didn't always feel the same. He was often gone, duty called after all but even when he was not deployed on official duty, he spent his days drinking and conjurying up what it was he wanted his children to do with their futures. This was something that Oliver wanted no part of so the rift between Father and son was one that began quite early on in life.

Oliver was always a dreamer. When he felt that at home life was too toxic and taxing, he would close his eyes and imagine a world that was greater than the one he lived. His Mother, she was never the cause of the toxicity but splitting time between five children and owning a restaurant was not always easy. Oliver knew that. Schooling was a break away from home. He would stay late after his classes to help his teachers or to gather more knowledge from his lessons. Reading and Writing became easy favorites to young Oliver. Fantasy and fiction were nearly impossible to put down. Getting lost in books like, Catcher and the Rye, Tom Sawyer, it only caused the gears and wheels in Oliver's mind to spin. Bringing out his own creative side in writing short stories. It was just the start of his evolving creative process. His Grandfather bought him his first comic book. A wide eyed young boy seeing there was so much more than just books but also graphic novels to get lost in.

By the age of seven Oliver picked up his first camera. Something his Father had disguarded after being unable to work it. There was something about the art of film, moving pictures that sold Oliver immediately. It meant bringing what he wrote on paper to life. This meant coraling his siblings into helping him with his projects. Lucky for him, playing pretend ran in the family. Oliver felt at home behind the lens. Even at such a ripe age, he knew that this what he wanted to do. Most children under ten didn't quite understand the movie making process but Oliver was sure that there was someone behind the lens, putting out the black and white films that Oli could never get enough of. The art of filmmaking was in his blood. It came more and more natural to him as the years went on. His Mother even saved up enough money to buy him a smaller 16mm camera for his 13th birthday. To her, when you became a teenager you were entering a new phase in your life and deserved a proper gift. Something you to push you towards your calling.

The rift between Oliver and his Father grew into a full blown tear once he reached his senior year of college. Neal was set on Oliver enlisting in the Navy while Oli had much different plans for his life. He wanted to go to University and persue his dream of becoming a film maker. The push and pull between the two of them caused such a storm within the household that before Oliver had even graduated, Cesia filed for divorce. She wouldn't stand for her husband's closed minded ways any longer. She wanted her children to follow their hearts and go their own paths. Not be forced into following in their Father's footsteps. Cesia encouraged Oliver to go to university. He deserved it after the hard work he'd put into schooling throughout the years. For his senior graduation, Oliver had put together a film that went through the year of his graduating class. Having footage of most of them from freshman year to now. It was a hit with the school and something that would later get him noticed by his choice of unveristy.

After high school Oliver enrolled at the University College London and decided that he would major in Social Sciences. He felt that the better undering of people, human nature would help him later in life when working on different projects. If he were being honest though, he chose said university because of the film facilities that he had on campus. It gave him a chance to tinker around in there, working on shorts and different projects brewing around in his brain while also achieiving his degree. He became preisdent of the Union's Film Society during his stay at University. While in college he made two short films, Tarantella and Larceny. The later film was showcased at the Cambridge Film Festival. To later further his education, a BA in social sciences and a stack of recommendation letters in hand, Oliver enrolled himself in London's Met Film school in order to obtain an MA in Directing.

The start to his career was one that felt like a neverending climb on a ladder. Thus humbling Oliver to the harsh reality that was the film industry. He created his third short after graduation, titled Doodlebug. It wasn't until 1998 that Oliver was really given a chance. His first feature film, The Following, something that was funded by himself and the help of his older sister and brother. It was a project he worked on with his friends. People that he pulled from film school and had met throughout the years. It was a start and had a good run through the indepedent film festivals. For the most part it was well received by critics but for Oliver, it was everything. It was that foot in the door, that step in the right direction.

The Following painted the way for his career. It kept Oliver writing, kept him hungry to put his work out there. He credits his dreams and personal experiences for the majority of his work. Those escapes during childhood ended up being more than just escapes, they became stories, stories that came to life for him. His film career began to slowly take off and it was then that he formed a production company with his older sister, Lydia. The co-producers titled their company, Reverie Inc.