SOUTHBANK UNSEEN will blow our minds and get us thinking through four, visually dynamic and aurally arresting, documentary dramas that delve into the unseen.
These short documentary dramas give us an alternative view of London’s South Bank from the eyes and ears of four extraordinarily gifted individuals.
Tandem is a dark tale of love in which the two central characters find their relationship thrown into turmoil by an unexpected discovery of truths. While the outgoing ‘Mr. Then’ is forced to lie low, his less confident, insecure lover ‘Mr. Now’ tries to make sense of a dark reality.
Richard Jobson’s new film surrounds 15 testimonies from British
servicemen and women who were involved in the Iraq conflict in Basra. They have a ghostly presence as they talk about their experiences in a near documentary style, after each testimony the camera glides into the lives that might have been and the people they left behind.
Jobson says ‘Like many people I was angered by the Iraq war and like most people did nothing about it. This is my response to that apathy. In the film although it appears that the speakers are the ghostly presence, it is in fact we the audience who are the Somnambulists, it is we who were sleepwalking in the build-up to the war and its tragic aftermath.’
The story was heavily influenced by the work of photographer Joanna Kane whose exhibition 'The Somnambulists' at the Scottish National Portrait Gallery left Jobson deeply impressed by its haunting vision of the space between life and death.
The hot-headed young D'Artagnan along with three former legendary but now down on their luck Musketeers must unite and defeat a beautiful double agent and her villainous employer from seizing the French throne and engulfing Europe in war.
Doctor Williams, a psychiatrist, is called to a prison to examine Voorman – an inmate with a peculiar affliction – he believes he is a god. The problem is, though, he’s managed to convince the rest of the prison population that he is indeed telling the truth.
Wounded tells the story of former soldier John Woods. When he returns from Afghanistan with horrific injuries he settles into a new life haunted by the accident that caused his injuries. On a chance moment John witnesses a neighbor abusing his young son. Without taking long to make a decision John finds himself on the run with the young lad. With the police and the boys family pursuing them they speed across the country with John trying to find a way out of this mess. The film concludes with a showdown on Clacton Pier and a concluding twist that helps John escape the nightmare.
Johnny Worricker (Bill Nighy) is a long-serving M15 officer. His boss and best friend Benedict Baron (Michael Gambon) dies suddenly, leaving behind him an inexplicable file, threatening the stability of the organization. Meanwhile, a seemingly chance encounter with Johnny's striking next-door neighbour and political activist Nancy Pierpan (Rachel Weisz) seems too good to be true. Johnny is forced to walk out of his job, and then out of his identity to find out the truth. Set in London and Cambridge, Page Eight is a contemporary spy film for the BBC, which addresses intelligence issues and moral dilemmas peculiar to the new century.
Ewan McGregor stars as a fisheries scientist who finds himself saddled with the task of introducing salmon fishing to the Highlands of Yemen. Director Lasse Hallström adapts this charming British comedy from Paul Torday’s acclaimed novel.
British auteur Michael Winterbottom sets his unique spin on Thomas Hardy’s Tess of the D’Urbervilles against a contemporary Indian backdrop. Freida Pinto stars as the titular Trishna, a young woman who is seduced by the wealthy son of a property developer. As the romance develops, their relationship also becomes increasingly sordid and volatile.
A two-tiered romantic drama focusing on the affair between King Edward VIII and American divorcée Wallis Simpson and a contemporary romance between a married woman and a Russian security guard.
In 19th century Ireland, Albert, who has been a faithful employee at Morrison's Hotel for many years, has a secret. In order to make a living, Albert (Glenn Close) has posed as a man.
When Albert has to share her bedroom with a painter named Hubert Page, he soon discovers her secret and inspires Albert to escape the false life she has created for herself. Having saved her earnings for years, Albert begins to dream of buying a shop of her own. She believes she's found a companion in Helen, a young maid, but Helen has her eye on Joe, the handsome new handyman. Albert is distressed when she realizes Joe has made promises to Helen that put the young girl in danger of making mistakes that could threaten her future.
