FILMS OF ART AND ARTISTS

Clear Spot Films is an independent film production company based in London, founded by filmmaker and editor Martin Cooper in 2022.

The company specialises in arts-related documentaries and short dramas, with a particular interest in artists, creative lives and the ideas that shape the world around us.

Martin brings more than 30 years of experience in British television broadcasting to the company. He trained at the BBC and went on to build an extensive career as a documentary and television editor, working across many of the UK’s most respected factual and arts programmes.

His editing credits include Arena, Imagine, Modern Times, Cutting Edge, The Late Show, Bare, Reputations, The Monastery, 24 Hours in A&E and 24 Hours in Police Custody, as well as numerous documentaries by Michael Palin and films by Jonathan Meades. He also edited the Elton John documentary:Tantrums and Tiaras.

Several of the programmes Martin worked on were nominated for BAFTA and Emmy Awards. In 2001, he was awarded Best Documentary Editor by the Royal Television Society, and in 2006 he was invited to serve as a judge on the Arts Panel for the prestigious Grierson Documentary Awards.

After decades working as an editor, Martin decided in 2015 to take the next step and begin producing and directing his own films.

His first feature documentary, Traces of the Soul (2018, 86 minutes), was produced through his company Obscura Films. Following his second feature documentary, History, Mystery & Odyssey (2023, 77mins), the company was renamed Clear Spot Films.

Today, Clear Spot Films combines Martin’s long experience in documentary filmmaking with a personal passion for discovering compelling stories, distinctive characters and creative worlds.