Behind the scenes: Mike Leigh’s Peterloo

Few would suggest independent filmmaker Mike Leigh, acclaimed for delivering intimate and emotional tales of British lives, as a director famous for his prolific use of special effects in his day job.

From making 16mm films to projects including Abigail’s Party (1977), High Hopes (1988), Life is Sweet (1990), Secrets and Lies (1996), Topsy-Turvy (1999), Happy Go Lucky (2008) and Mr Turner (2014), Leigh has made 21 films “that no one has interfered with” when bringing his vision to the big screen.

His latest, the Amazon backed $17.8m (£14m) period epic Peterloo, uses substantially more VFX than any of his previous films made over the last 30 years or so.

“Personally (special effects) have been on the whole about subtle tidying up and subtle changes,” Leigh says.

For his biggest budgeted film to date, Leigh worked closely with London-based LipSync Post, one of the independent film’s financial backers alongside Amazon, to bring the 19th century English set story to life. “Amazon were very, very supportive and never interfered with casting or content or anything,” Leigh notes.

The film details the story of the Peterloo massacre in August 1819 when a band of cavalry and…