“Lesson 7” By Neil Linpow
Synopsis
Having downloaded a self help program devised and narrated by the enigmatic MAX, we follow ASH, as he prepares to tackle Lesson 7: Confronting death. What begins as a seemingly innocent and melancholic trip to a near deserted hospital ward in the late night hours, becomes a twisting journey of anguish and manipulation.
Directors Statement
For many people, their phone is their most trusted confidant. We take it everywhere with us, let it into our psyche and desires. We trust the apps we download, the audiobooks, podcasts and life guides we listen to. It’s the place we look to find the answers to both our passing whims and our deeper more existential life questions. But what might it look like if one of the smart devices or phone apps we give this intimate access to our lives could lead us towards violence and madness? How far could we allow ourselves to be pushed in the pursuit of freedom from the constraints of modern society?
The idea was to make a film that could work as a self contained short film, but that also hinted at a wider story, and be both thought provoking and harrowing. Written and shot before the pandemic and then finished in the quiet lockdown months, it's themes feel especially poignant now. It examines ideas of mental health, self help and the desire to break free from the constraints of normal life, at any potential cost.
Credits
Production Company: Big Trouble Films
Directed and Produced by Neil Linpow
Written by Hunter Andrews
Story by Hunter Andrews and Neil Linpow
Executive Producer: Colm McCarthy
Director of Photography: Job Reineke
Edited by Elena De Palma (Whitehouse)
Casting by Gemma Sykes
Production Manager: James Fuller
Production Assistant: Luka Glisovic
Production Assistant: Jonas Morgan
1st AD: Danny Zanre
Steadicam: James Thomas
Focus Puller: Maiya Rose
2nd AC: Molly Burcham
Gaffer: Genki McClure
Spark: Matt King
Lighting Assistant: Orpheus Alexander
Sound Recordist: Louis Boniface
Art Dept: Mariana Fabricante
Make up Artist: Andrea Mate
Post Production Producer: Jason Oakley
Sound: Factory
Sound Producer: Lucy Spong and Beth Massey
Sound mix and original score by Josh Campbell
Producer: Ray Okudzeto
Colourist: Toby Tomkins (CHEAT)
Online: Coffee & TV
Producer: Dionne Archibald
Flame Artist: Jon Trussler
Camera Equipment: One Stop Films
Lighting Equipment: Panalux
Cast:
Max - Michelle Fairley
Ash - Neil Linpow
Elderly man - Bryan Hands
Nurse - Anna Herriot
Shot on location at Hemel Hempstead Hospital & St Mark’s Hospital
Special Thanks:
Partizan, Jenny Beckett, Ella More O’Ferrall, Jack Bristow, Joe Browne, Theo Cassels, Charlie Scannell.