Scrawl (film)
7 /10 1 Votes
Directed by Peter Hearn Music by Dan Hall Initial release 17 October 2015 Editor Matty Crawford | 7/10 IMDb Written by Peter Hearn Cinematography Matty Crawford Director Peter Hearn Screenplay Peter Hearn | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Produced by Annabelle Le GresleyPeter Hearn Starring Mark Forester EvansDaisy RidleyNathalie PownallElizabeth BoagLiam HughesJoe DalyAnnabelle Le GresleyEllie SelwoodChris Casey Producers Peter Hearn, Annabelle Le Gresley Cast Daisy Ridley, Mark Forester Evans, Nathalie Pownall, Annabelle Le Gresley, Elizabeth Boag Similar The Inbetweeners 2, The Past is a Grotesqu, The Big Ask, Of Men And War, Dead Man on Campus | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Scrawl is a 2015 independent British supernatural horror-thriller film written and directed by Peter Hearn and produced by Annabelle Le Gresley and Hearn. It stars Liam Hughes, Joe Daly, Daisy Ridley, Mark Forester Evans, Le Gresley, Nathalie Pownall, Catherine Ruddick and Derek Jones. It tells the story of two best friends, Simon and Joe, who must rewrite the happenings from the comic book, Scrawl, after realizing that the events occurred from the comic begins to happen. It is also Ridley's film debut just before she started filming for Star Wars: The Force Awakens. The film received positive reviews. As of 2016, the film is still lining up for indie horror festivals, playing a longer version than the final cut.
Contents
Plot summary
Loners and best friends Simon (Liam Hughes) and Joe (Joe Daly) had written a horror comic book featuring characters from their daily lives. But when a murder on the beach occurred, and a girl based on the book, Hannah (Daisy Ridley), suddenly appears, they began to realize that the events from the comic book are starting to happen for real. With the help of Annie (Annabelle Le Gresley), Frank (Mark Forester Evans) and Rosie (Ellie Selwood), they must prevent a massacre in the woods that occur in the book, while battling Death, facing what they have written.
Cast
Production
Scrawl's stylistic production harks back to the 70s and 80s horrors Phantasm and A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors, as well as fantasy films such as Big. Hearn had been teaching film at Andover College, and conceived the project as a hands-on training exercise for his students, influenced by Brian De Palma's Home Movies. Much like that film, Hearn's students were given the responsibility of raising money (via crowdfunding), as well as shooting and editing the film, all under Hearn's supervision. The cast consisted of professional actors, mostly British, such as Star Wars and upcoming Hollywood actress Daisy Ridley, as well as award winning theatre and film actress Elizabeth Boag, Mark Forester Evans and Nathalie Pownall from the horror film Credo. Both Boag and Pownall had worked before with Hearn on his short film 'Motto' as well as a previous feature film. Hearn stated that this film will likely attract a wider audience because of Ridley's appearance. Many of the students involved have subsequently gone into the industry or onto film school.
Release and Reception
The film was produced by Half Day Wednesday and Red Scout Films, and has been playing in film festivals and select theaters between October 2015 to an unspecified month in 2017. A DVD version is due to be released independently in the first quarter of 2017, and features the short film 'Motto', trailers, a documentary video, and a commentary from Peter Hearn.
The film received positive feedback from independent movie reviewers. Dr. Lenera of Horror Cult Films rated the film 8/10 stars and said it is "a very impressive piece of work considering the circumstances of its making, and is certainly very different to much else that is out there at the moment."
Hearn was recently awarded the Phil Tucker Spirit Award by the Zed Fest Film Festival, in Burbank, CA.