The Before Times

A contributor-driven short capturing an unhinged moment in time. 

For festivals and screenings, click here for the Press Kit. 

I wanted to make a film about the absurd aspects of the lockdown during COVID-19, and creating a film without travel or direct contact posed an interesting challenge. Instead of doing a shoot on location, I asked 30 participants to film the lockdown as they were experiencing it. I received all sort of content from drone video, to 80s synth music, to sketches, to dances and everything in between. Participants were also asked to provide a ‘Cabin Fever’ rating of 100 to go alongside their footage to further capture what they were going through. 

Crew

Directed by Jake Martin Graves
Score & Sound Design by Manus Pitt
Dialogue Postproduction by Ioannis Spanos
Drone Pilot Jonathan Sanders

Full list of contributors

Andy Holvey, Ange Mayne, Becka Lesieutre, Beth Roland, Braith Grey, Claire Stevens + Izzie, Dan Butt, Dan Griffin, Fiona Routledge, Ged Searle, Jack Hackett, Jack Hands, Jon S, Josh Davidson, Joss Dauncy, Julie Duncan, Kodi, Kyle Patterson, Leon Nichols, Mia Garfield, Nick Gaven, Rich Whittaker, Sam Hume, Sean Doylee, Shona Capener, Thomas Dennis

Screenings

Bluescreen 3 June 2020 Cube Microplex, Bristol

Lift Off Sessions, 2020 Pinewood Studios, UK