City takes the starring role in a ghoulish gangster movie
AS A film pitch it couldn’t be more intriguing. It’s got laughs, shocks, gangsters, ghostly goings-on – and it’s all set in and around Bradford.
is a genre-busting supernatural horror comedy crime movie which tells the story of two gangsters who are given 72 hours to find a stash of drug money stolen by their boss – the only problem is they have just murdered him. Desperate to track down the cash, the hapless pair kidnap a psychic medium and coerce her into contacting the dead gang boss. Unfortunately, it turns out he’s none too happy about that and they unwittingly unleash an evil spirit bent on revenge.
The film receives its world premiere in Bradford this week and it has already been attracting a lot of attention.
Described as a UK and compared to and
it started life two years ago as a short film, made on a tiny budget of just £1,000.
“In 2016 we made the short film, which was 18 minutes long, really as a showcase for our filmmaking skills to attract investors,” says director David Gilbank who also co-wrote the script with Paul Renhard. “Then we decided to enter it into some festivals as a bit of a second thought, just to see how it went.” It couldn’t have gone much better – it was selected by over a hundred different festivals around the world, including in America, Africa, Europe, Australia and South America and won more than thirty awards including Best Short Film at Bradford’s Drunken Film Festival last year.
On the back of that success Gilbank and Renhard, who are co-owners of corporate video, radio and PR company Tadah Media and have been writing screenplays together for twenty years, set about developing into a feature-length movie. “In early 2017 we started workshopping with actors, we introduced some new characters and worked on them and then we brought in Leeds playwright Gemma Head as a co-writer. She is fantastic, we were really lucky to get her on board. And then we just needed the money.”
Through their business and personal contacts Gilbank and Renhard managed to raise £80,000, gathered together local actors and crew, including producer Pepe Fowler, and began filming in May last year. They completed shooting in January this year and finished post-production in April. Locations include Undercliffe Cemetery, Lister Mills, Buck Wood at Thackley, Saltaire village and Baildon Moor. “We took a lot of time sourcing locations,” says Fowler. “And people were so supportive, especially when they found out it was a Yorkshire production.”
“Every first-time feature filmmaker is advised that you should only use one or two locations and a cast of two or three,” says Gilbank. “We ignored that – we have over 70 different locations in West Yorkshire and over a hundred cast and lots of extras. It’s also a story that doesn’t abide by the rules, it does the unexpected – so we were very ambitious.” That ambition looks as though it has paid off. Aside from the considerable acclaim and numerous awards worldwide, the first screening of the film in its home city on Wednesday sold out within an hour, the second on October 1 in just two days; two further screenings have now been added due to popular demand.
“The film has universal themes – it is about betrayal and loyalty – but I wanted to set it in Bradford because I have lived here for 25 years and I love the place,” says Gilbank. “It has a unique character – its humour and culture are different to anywhere else in the world. Bradford deserves to have its own film industry and our aim is to help build that.”
is being screened at the Light Bradford on September 26 (sold out), October 1 (sold out) and at 6pm and 8.30pm on October 2. www. bradford.lightcinemas.co.uk