Black Angel (1980 film)

Plot

Sir Maddox, a medieval knight, returns from the Crusades to find his home rife with sickness and his family gone. As he journeys through this mystical realm he encounters a mysterious and beautiful maiden, who appears to him as he is drowning. Sir Maddox learns that the maiden is being held prisoner by a black knight and in order to free her he must confront her captor, the Black Angel.

Cast

Production

The film was shot at Eilean Donan in Scotland in autumn 1979. The budget of £25,000 was given to Roger Christian by an Eady Scheme fund from the UK government.

Release and rediscovery

George Lucas tied the film as a programme with The Empire Strikes Back in the United Kingdom, Australia, and Scandinavia. It was never released on any home media, such as VHS and DVD, and for many years the original negatives were believed to be lost.

In December 2011, the 35 mm negative was rediscovered by an archivist at Universal Studios in Los Angeles, California. On 13 October 2013, it was screened for the first time since its original release, and became available on Netflix and the iTunes Store for streaming and download, respectively, in early 2014.

On 12 May 2015, the film was uploaded to YouTube with an introduction by Christian.

Feature film adaptation

In June 2015 it was announced that Roger Christian was working on a feature film adaptation of the short. At the same time Christian started an Indiegogo campaign to raise money for the film.