Cornish Feature Films
The Fighter's Ballad
South West Premiere
Sun | 6 Nov | 14.20 | Screen 4| Book Tickets
Dir. Tony S. Ukpo | UK 2010 | 18 | 98min + Q&A
Newquay native Peter Cadwell wrote and stars in this powerful film adaptation of his stage play The Fighter. A two-hander set in London and shot in ‘the bleakly beautiful’ St Leonard’s church in Shoreditch, the story begins with a world-weary priest (Clive Russell) carrying out his mundane daily duties to a dwindling congregation. A violent, desperate man (Cadwell) breaks into the church and begins a heavyweight bout of soul-searching and redemption, reflecting and refracting the anxiety and anger of contemporary society. A gritty, low-budget production, shot in nine days, the film exhibits high standards with strong performances from the well-matched leads and an atmospheric score by Sam Karl Bohn.
*Actor-screenwriter Peter Cadwell will introduce the film and afterwards be joined for a Q&A by director Tony Ukpo, casting director Jane Frisby and composer Sam Karl Bohn.
Happy Christmas
Preview Screening - Opening Night Film
Fri | 4 Nov | 19.45 | Screen 1| Book Tickets
Dir. Mark Jenkin | UK 2011 | 12A | 109min + Q&A
An interwoven seaside hymn to gift-wrapped promises and unwanted presence. Taking place one Christmas Eve, this subtly compelling drama follows the various members of a disparate family as they come together for an overdue festive reunion. Wrapped in glimmering layers of unspoken feeling, tied up with ribbons of regret, the ensemble cast beautifully portrays the thematic ebb and flow of connection and separation, clinging and abandonment, as they’re pulled inexorably toward the contrived family gathering that’s never quite reached. Written by Mark Jenkin and produced by Denzil Monk for awen productions cic, the film was set and filmed in West Cornwall.
*Director Mark Jenkin will introduce the film and afterwards will be joined by cast and crew for a Q&A.
An invitation-only reception will follow sponsored by University College Falmouth.
We are grateful to the Cher Varya Group for sponsoring this year's two Opening Night films.
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Weekend Retreat
Preview Screening
Sat | 5 Nov | 21.00 | Screen 1| Book Tickets
Dir. Brett Harvey | UK 2011 | 15 | 78min + Q&A
Karen and Duncan Campbell are stuck in a loveless marriage. Trying in vain to patch up their relationship, they escape for the weekend to a picturesque house in the bucolic Cornish countryside. Kevin and Gary Tregidger are estranged stepbrothers brought together by family tragedy. Destitute and desperate, they hatch a plan to change their fortunes by burgling a large, isolated house in the bucolic Cornish countryside. The snag: it’s the same house. As the weekend draws on, the Campbells find themselves held hostage and the Tregidgers get increasingly out of their depth. The stakes are raised as secrets are revealed, relationships are pushed to the breaking point – and body parts are lost.
The debut feature by Brett Harvey, four years in the making, was produced by Denzil Monk and Simon Harvey of the leading Cornwall-based production company o-region. It stars Esther Hall (Rome, Waking the Dead, Spooks), Dominic Coleman (Psychoville, Special People, Clubbed), Simon Harvey (o-region / Kneehigh Theatre), Dean Nolan (Bish Bash Bosh) and Dudley Sutton (Lovejoy, The Football Factory). Weekend Retreat was shot for just £22,000, entirely on location in St Wenn, Cornwall, over a period of 12 days in June 2010. Since January 2011, the film has been test-screened in a selection of village halls and small-scale venues around Cornwall and has generated a groundswell of support and enthusiasm. Over the last few months the filmmakers set up and ran a crowdfunding campaign, successfully raising a further £10,000 to complete the film in autumn 2011.
