William, a man in his 70's is taken on a journey to a remote Scottish Island to come to terms with his own mortality.

Interview with Writer/Director Ryan Hendrick

Congratulations! Why did you make your film?

Thank you! I wanted to tell this story as the tone and subject matter spoke to me on an emotional and ethereal level. I had the notion to make a film that could reflect the perspective of our place in the universe. Strip life back to the basics, running for a train, making coffee, going to a job – they seem inconsequential when consider the larger natural world around us. The latest celebrity on twitter has no significance against witnessing a beautiful sunset up close. This drove me to tell a story of a person staring death in the face finally able to understand the value of life and appreciation of simpler things.

Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?

Sundown offers audiences an ethereal, contemplative cinematic experience in 12 minutes. The film has a rare quality that it can speak to audiences of all ages and backgrounds. At various points in our lives we all stop to contemplate our place in life, our understanding of death and mortality. This subject matter in film is usually presented in a downbeat and depressing manner. Sundown immerses the audience in the natural environment leaving audiences emotionally connected to the characters and themes, yet it will leave you feeling uplifted and optimistic.

How do personal and universal themes work in your film?

Sundown is about family, takes personal themes such as grief, regret, and responsibility, and integrates them with universal themes such as the perception of mortality, the elderly and the terminally ill. When a young person is diagnosed with a terminal illness they receive all manner of support, as Abi says in the film, "Everything is on the back of a leaflet." However, this is not so much the case with the elderly. It almost feels as if the elderly are expected to know how to die and accept their own mortality. In fact everyone fears their own mortality on some level, and the older you get it doesn't become any easier to accept that you won't live forever.

How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?

I conceived the initial concept for Sundown about 9 years ago. I spent a week on the Isle of Iona where the film was shot and was overwhelmed by the island's tranquil simplicity. The sunsets brought tears to my eyes and I suddenly felt the incredible size and grandness of the world around me. It really gave me perspective as to my place and significance in the universe. I witnessed simple, grand perfection. I started to think about how this could be of comfort and solace to those forced to face up to their mortality.

As I began to construct a narrative around these concepts I found myself unconvinced by my initial attempts and put the project to one side. Over the years I would occasionally look at it again. It wasn't until the start of 2017 I looked at this project again and came up with the version we committed to the screen.

What type of feedback have you received so far?

The feedback so far has been incredibly positive. I've been incredibly moved by some of the stories audiences have shared with me about how Sundown has had a profound emotional affect on them. Many have been left in tears when the final shot closes. I am incredibly humbled that people have responded to Sundown so powerfully. Audiences are responding in the way and to everything we hoped would reach out to them.

Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?

I was aware that the film had an emotive power to it. I wasn't prepared for just how powerful it would be for audiences. My wife Angela was in tears when I first screened it for her. Angela is my biggest fan and my biggest critic, so it was incredibly moving to gauge her reaction in comparison to an audience at arms length.

What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?

My team and I firmly believe we have a great short film with a powerful and emotive message, audiences really respond to this film and we are struggling to get the attention of the festival programmers, possibly because we are a small super indie film without industry support. We don't have a Hollywood strategist or manager to massage their personal connection with programmers to single out our film in among the thousands of films submitted to festivals. We premiered at the Oscar qualifying HollyShorts Film Festival in L.A. Hollyshorts received over 7000 submissions and they only could program 8%.

The sheer volume of films submitted to festivals in immense, so it's very easy to see how a film like Sundown is sometimes missed by the programmers. So we need to get ourselves out into the public eye and talk about the response this film is receiving from audiences, get the attention of the festival programmers and tell them that Sundown is a film will want to program. The audience want this film, it's our responsibility to give it to them.

Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?

We need film festival directors to get behind Sundown and in order to get their attention we need sales agents, managers and journalists to help us get their attention.

What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?

I believe Sundown has the potential to make a huge impact on the festival circuit. Audiences love our short film. It's a beautiful visual piece of cinema with a breathtaking music score and heartbreaking performances from our stars Caitlin Blackwood & Frazer Hines. I simply want this film to reach the large audience that is out there waiting for it.

What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?

In order to learn how to die, we must first learn how to live. One moment at a time.

What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?

I am currently financing my first feature Journey Bound, a romcom road movie set in the Scottish Highlands. It is best described as "Planes, Trains & Automobiles meets Local Hero." We are hoping to start shooting in 2019. Also I am currently developing a female led coming of age drama with Scottish actor/writer Natalie Clark that will hopefully follow on from Journey Bound as my 2nd feature.

Interview: August 2018

We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela

Sundown

William, a man in his 70's is taken on a journey to a remote Scottish Island to come to terms with his own mortality.

Length: 12mins

Director: Ryan Hendrick

Producer: David Brown/David Newman

Writer: Ryan Hendrick/Clare Sheppard

About the writer, director and producer:

RYAN HENDRICK is a BAFTA nominated filmmaker interested in optimistic and escapist stories set in Scotland.

Producers DAVID BROWN and DAVID NEWMAN are BAFTA winning Scottish Producers with a string of festival and award winning films under their belts.

Co-Writer CLARE SHEPPARD is an experience theatre actor, writer, director who has co-written with Ryan on the award winning short film Perfect Strangers, Sundown and the feature script Journey Bound.

Key cast: Caitlin Blackwood, Frazer Hines

Facebook: Sundown Short Film

Twitter: @Sundown_Film

Instagram: @Sundown_Film

Funders: Magic Monkey Films/Crowdfunding backers

Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? Stay tuned for upcoming festival announcements on our social media pages.