The Walk | A Short Film Starring BAFTA Winning Actor Adeel Akhtar

Pilgrimage or purgatory? Every Wednesday Amar endures a 24-mile round trip on foot to the JobCentre and back to sign on. Today the walk is particularly gruelling as he grapples with the recent death of his father, avoiding a phone call he’s too ashamed to face.

The Walk by Michael Jobling
https://www.michaeljoblingfilm.co.uk/

"I’ve always found it odd that there is a set of expectations of what a film is going to look, sound and feel like if it is about working-class stories. For a visual medium, I don’t know why we feel so constrained to tell a particular story in a particular way. From a more selfish point of view, I’m coming to this script with my own experiences, style and creative ambitions, so it would have felt odd or even difficult for me to have dropped all of that to click into the ‘social realism aesthetic’.

What I read in the script was a story about a man battling crippling isolation and anxiety, about two brothers, about nature and noise, and about grief. The plot elements of Tory Britain, the cuts in public services, and Amar’s physical predicament all serve as a backdrop for the real story that’s going on inside his head. From this, the utilisation of surrealism and horror techniques ultimately made the most sense to me."

Read our full interview with Michael
https://directorsnotes.com/2024/09/10...

// Credits //
Production Company: Griffin Pictures
Producer: Anna Griffin
Director: Michael Jobling
Writer: Sophie Ellerby
Lead Actor “Amar": Adeel Akhtar
Actor “Tanvir”: Harpal Hayer
Cinematographer: Jermaine Edwards
Co Producer: Hester Bloom
Line Producer: Ella Townsend
Sound Designer: Gavin Poole
Production Designer: Elissa Morton
Costume Designer: Sally Hodgson
Hair & Make Up Designer: Faye Russell
Colourist: Vanessa Taylor

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Since 2006 Directors Notes has curated the world's best independent films alongside exclusive daily deep dive interviews which provide behind the scenes insights into the inspirations and production stories of the most talented filmmakers on the planet.

#isolation #grief #nature #jobcentre