Measure
2023 · 14m · UK
Directed by Helen Simmons, Julia Cranney
Genres: drama
Tones: dark, melancholic, tense
The horror of Jen's teenage past catches up with her when she takes her autistic son to a birthday party in her hometown, forcing her to confront bullying trauma being repeated on her own child.
Picked by Zoe
The scouts
Bullying drama with a 'fantasy element' bolted on for festival points — Babadook comp earned, or just a tag they hoped would stick? Top Vimeo comment is 'I love how dark this gets at the end!' which usually means it's not actually that dark.
Co-direction by Simmons and Cranney suggests a writerly precision, and the dark social-realist register sits in the lineage of Lynne Ramsay's interest in maternal dread. The premise has weight; I would want to see how the fantasy elements braid in without dulling the realism.
Cranney and Simmons co-direct in a 13:52 social-realist register that the Vimeo comments confirm tips hard at the climax — the fantasy-into-horror handoff for an autistic child's POV is exactly the move that justifies the genre lift. Curious how restrained the camera stays before the break.
Reviews
The writing is complex and engaging, the central performance from Cooke is utterly captivating and the production elevates both the authentic and fantasy elements of the narrative.
Festivals
- Norwich Film Festival 2023
- Molins de Rei Horror Film Festival 2023, Méliès d'Argent Award for Best European Fantasy Genre Short Film