WEB SERIES / TV PILOTS
SCREENING
Saturday 24 June – 14.00
SMALL BOAT OWNERS CLUB
20 Guildford Lawn, Ramsgate CT11 9AY
FOUR WALLS
(USA)
SYNOPSIS
Grace Molotsi, a married nurse from the township, feels trapped and at her wits end due to an abusive husband who has made her life a living nightmare.
When she finally takes the decision to end his life, her house is invaded by two thugs on the run from a cash-in-transit robbery gone wrong who take her hostage. Will the thugs be able to trust Grace when they discover her tied up unconscious husband in the bedroom?
How will Grace be able to explain the various revelations that arise once her husband regains consciousness? Four Walls provides insight on the systematic societal issue of Gender Based Violence (GBV) posing the question, just how far do victims have to go to be heard and protected
Writer/Director/Producer: Kgosana Monchusi
Writer/Director/Producer: Menzi Mzimela
Writer/Director/Producer: Juvaiś Dunn
Cast: Enhle Mbali Mlotshwa, Khulu Skenjana, Jeff Jackson
MEET THE DIRECTORS
Four Walls was sparked by a childhood incident in Kgosana Monchusi’s neighbourhood where he witnessed a gang on the run taking cover in a house on his street and the shootout that ensued. this childhood incident became the key creative source for a story that sees thugs bust into a house to take cover, but find more dangers in the house they are hiding in. Kgosana is a soweto born and bred creative who discovered his love of entertainment at a very young age.
Upon completing High school, he enrolled at the University of the Witwatersrand in 2006 to study Music, during this time he fell in love with film composition and subsequently his passion for film. Other directing credits include the international award winning debut short film Opus (2019) winner of the Best Short Film at Silicon Valley African festival, award winning Queer short film Feminine Lotus (2020), and the hit romantic comedy A Safe Bet (2021).
Menzi Mzimela is a first time writer/director with a strong love and passion for cinema. With various acquired skills ranging from content creation and video editing, he loves all areas of the storytelling process. Menzi’s key focus is to create horror and thriller films with a strong focus on socio-political themes. His highest priority when creating a story is intrigue and entertainment, with a strong focus on primal themes such as love and survival which help create universally relatable stories that transcend race, and language. Other production credits include working as an editor and creative producer on BET Awards Africa content, My Top 5 and VS Gaming Weekly
Media entrepreneur Juvaiś Dunn was born and raised in the coastal province of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. After completing his matric, Juvaiś attended AFDA for a year and then he went on to study Marketing at Boston Media House and in 2011 he joined a marketing company in Johannesburg where he worked as a marketing assistant, though he knew that he was destined to become an entrepreneur and storyteller.
Juvaiś is a first time writer/ director who has always had a deep desire to tell rich stories that are inspired by the African reality but have global themes, Four Walls is such a story. Other production credits include working as an Executive Producer on the international award winning short film Opus, SAFTA Nominated The Big Secret (Season 2), Comedy Central’s Laugh in Your Language and BET A-list.
PRAY IN LOVE
(TAIWAN)
SYNOPSIS
Yuan Shaohu, who wanted to be a policeman since he was a child, was praised by his superiors and learned that he had been promoted. He happily went home to celebrate with his roommate Yang Qi’an, but found Qi’an left already without saied goodbye. At this time,Yuan Shaohu receiv an order from Xiao Qin to help Congressman Yang’s son as a security guard on the wedding day.
On the day of the wedding, he discover that Qi’an, who he thought was an orphan, turned out to be the illegitimate son of Congressman Yang. Congressman Yang wants Qi’an to come back and marry Fan Xiaozhen, the daughter of the chairman of the construction company. Because Congressman Yang was involved in a lawsuit, marrying the Fan family was the last way out.
Writer/Director: Maxine Hsieh
Producer: Kumi Fu
Cast: Leo Huang, Nan-Chung CHENG
MEET THE DIRECTOR
Director Maxine Hsieh herself has been paying attention to LGBTQ film and television for many years. Due to the opportunity, she has been promoted from a “Fujoshi” who loves BL dramas to a “creator” of BL dramas.
She hopes to create a drama full of local flavor in Taiwan’s free creative environment. And the story wanted to tell is combined with Taiwanese elements in the picture, not only Taiwanese audiences can experience it, but also hope to bring their hometown culture to the world, so that foreign fans can also experience Taiwan’s local “Beauty”.
The nutrients for her creation come from personal experience. In the process of growth, “creation” is one of the real evolutionary processes. It starts from facing up to one’s own imperfection, learning to let go, face it, and find the best self.
In 2020, the independent production of the “Innocent” Boy’s Love drama has been released worldwide. It is hoped that the “Pray in Love” short film can be successfully developed into a full series.
LEAR ALONE
(UK)
SYNOPSIS
A One Man version of Shakespeare’s ‘King Lear’ filmed in Lockdown London in partnership with the homeless charity Crisis and produced as a web-series. Episode 1, called ‘Abdication’, starts with King Lear abdicating and rejecting his youngest daughter, Cordelia, and his true friend, Kent outside an old people’s home in North London. By leaving, the actor makes himself homeless. The episode ends outside Goneril’s castle, represented by the Globe Theatre.
Director: Anthony Shrubsall
Writer: William Shakespeare
Producer: Sarah Lawrie
Cast: Edmund Dehn
MEET THE DIRECTOR
Anthony Shrubsall is a freelance director and former academic. Theatre Direction includes The Return of Sherlock Holmes (Upstairs at the Gatehouse Theatre and currently touring), Power Luncheon (The Hope Theatre)The Good Dad: a Love Story (Golden Goose Theatre, The Hope Theatre and Old Red Lion Theatre). Nominated at The Hope Theatre for best director OFFIE award. A Boy Called Porro {Pleasance Theatre), Edred The Vampyre (Old Red Lion Theatre), An Absence Of (Old Court, Windsor) winner of the Kenneth Branagh new writers award), It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play (0ld Joint Stock Theatre, Birmingham) Death of a Hunter (Finborough Theatre), The Gin Chronicles series (ArtsSpace Edinburgh), Orbits (Drayton Arms Theatre), RealLife TV (Barons Court Theatre) and Saffron Hill ( Pleasance Theatre), LANZA (Kings Head Theatre) The Seagull (Tabard Theatre), Zena Edwards’s Security (Battersea Arts Centre) the first UK production selected for Tadashe Suzuki’s Shizuoka Festival, Japan, and Richard Tyrone Jones’s Big Heart, adapted into a series for BBC Radio 4. Online direction includes: Lear Alone winner of the overall ONCOMM award 2022 and Scenesaver Best Director Award 2022. Since 2020: Love Screens (OnComm Award winner) and Death of a Hunter (OnComm Award winner), He has directed two short cross disciplinary promotional films of Shakespeare works Macbeth with Terry Deary, author of the Horrible Histories and Romeo and Juliet with Tate Modern. He was formerly Artistic Director of OPEN Ealing Arts Centre and the Drayton Court Theatre, where productions included The Bullet, Landscape, The Lover and Mojo. He has published on directing Vsevolod Meyerhold’s acting technique, Harold Pinter’s Mountain Language, Samuel Beckett’s Rockaby and the theatre of Jacques Lecoq. He is a member of Equity, The Chelsea Arts Club and Fellow of The Royal Society of Arts.
MORSE CODE
(USA)
SYNOPSIS
In the eccentric community of modern day East Nashville, Simon Morse, a talented but flawed thirty-something indie folk singer finds himself at a crossroads as he struggles to strike a balance between family and career. Simon desperately wants to be both a good father and a successful artist. For the last ten years, he’s scraped by with a heavy tour schedule of small clubs, house concerts and the occasional festival. Those years on the road have all but alienated him from his wife and daughter and left him seriously questioning whether it was worth it. Will Simon let his dream die to save his family?
Writer/Director/Producer: Andrew Lee Ryan
Cast: Terra Layne, Chérie Celeste Malone, Joshua Radford, Connor Dylan, Ahmad DeChalus
MEET THE DIRECTOR
Travis Nicholson is a human writer/director, producer, and actor from Nashville, TN. Travis has had the fortune to work on set with a diverse list of directors such as Joel and Ethan Coen, F. Gary Grey, Clint Eastwood, and Harmony Korine. These experiences have given him exposure to a broad range of styles and techniques, helping him to develop in his craft. In 2012, a short film he produced entitled “The Arm” was awarded “Special Jury Prize for Comedic Storytelling” at the Sundance Film Festival. In 2014, “Listening”, a feature film he also produced and shot on location in Cambodia, received glowing reviews from the Hollywood reporter and Moviemaker magazine. In 2015 Travis co-created, co-wrote, executive produced and starred in Still The King, a comedy television series starring Billy Ray Cyrus and Joey Lauren Adams that enjoyed two fun filled seasons, shot on location in Nashville, TN.
Travis is currently in development on several new television series and a feature film.
WHAT REMAINS OF EMILY
(USA)
SYNOPSIS
Miles, an outsider at an elite private school, finds a mysterious book that can predict the future.
Director: Mya Breyana Morton
Writer: Aalexis Gaither
Producer: Tashina Southard
Cast: Manahar Kumar, Andres Chaves
MEET THE DIRECTOR
Mya-Breyana Morton is an accomplished director and cinematographer from Atlanta, GA. Her portfolio includes the award-winning student films “What Remains of Emily,” “Proud,” and “The Traveler,” which collectively earned eight prestigious awards and were showcased at domestic and international festivals. Morton’s talent was further recognized with the Independent Film Trailblazer Award at the 2022 Black LGBT Film Festival. She has collaborated with renowned companies like Target, Always, iHeartMedia, and Paramount, demonstrating her versatility in the industry. Morton’s dedication to creating captivating films that resonate with audiences is fueled by her constant learning and innovative approach to storytelling.