Silent Things
Directed by Rob Brown - 13 minutes
The friendship between an autistic man and woman becomes threatened when an impulsive teenage girl comes between them. Starring Georgia Groome (London to Brighton / Angus, thongs & perfect snogging), Antonia Campbell-Hughes (Bright Star / Storage 24) and Andrew Scott (Sherlock / Spectre).
This gentle, carefully observed film looks at the unusual challenges faced by those who are on the Autism spectrum. A friend of mine was diagnosed with Asperger's as a child, and having seen intense the way it affects her, and how others treat her, it mattered to me that writer/director Rob was neither exploitative nor inaccurate with his film. I needn't have worried. Rob had done his research and was very sensitive to the underlying truths of his characters.
We faced a few challenges during the edit, one being that Andrew Scott's physical performance, whilst very true to life, was a little too intricate. So we spent time unpicking some of his tics, smoothing things over, making sure the audience wouldn't feel distanced from him before they got to know him.
Winner of the Rotterdam International Film Festival - New Arrivals Award