We love having the chance to shine a light on films that have come out of the South West. So we’re happy to see October kicking off with the latest locally made masterpiece making its way into the world.
The Severed Sun is the debut feature from writer, director and film lecturer Dean Puckett, produced by Rebecca Wolff and Jude Goldrei. Locally funded, the award-winning team made the film during 2023/4, and are now looking forward to its UK release. And rather excitingly, events include a screening at Exeter Phoenix, with a Q&A led by Screen Devon’s very own Claire Horrocks.
This folk horror, starring Emma Appleton, Jodhi May, Lewis Gribben, Barney Harris and Toby Stephens is likely to provoke discussion. It follows Magpie, who lives in an isolated church community ruled over by her father, The Pastor. When a man is murdered, paranoia sets in and people start whispering about a strange ‘Beast’ living in the forest.
“When we are scared, we create beasts and monsters out of the things that we do not understand. But in reality, there is nothing more terrifying than the evil that we do to one another”
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The Severed Sun has been described by Dean as “an allegorical tale…originally conceived as a response to Brexit. It attempts to tap into current social anxieties about the rise of Fascism in western democracies and the palpable fear of the crowd that has sprung up during the pandemic”. Its moorland landscape setting, he says, adds to the sense of bleakness and isolation. An unsettling mood permeates every frame, as Magpie pushes back against the patriarchal conformity of the community and exposes the various hypocrisies within it.
Expect building tension throughout and a bittersweet feeling of catharsis at the end.
We’re excited to see this – and you can too, on Friday 3rd October at 6pm.
Show your support and grab your tickets here.
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