After an unsuspecting car journey results in the emotional break down of her relationship, Ashely accidentally crashes the car – killing her girlfriend in the process. Instead of calling for help, she panics and flees the scene, leaving her girlfriend behind. When she arrives home, she is confronted with her police officer father and her overwhelming guilt over what’s happened, leading her to eventually confess what she has done. She plunges her father into an impossible choice, between his morals and the love he has for his daughter.
Passenger depicts a sombre and dark version of everyday life, where familiar and safe spaces like homes and cars suddenly become threatening and tense. This will be achieved through dark lighting and subdued colour palettes, to convey the darker elements of the narrative, highlighting each character’s moral ambiguities. The world of the film is experienced through Ashely’s perspective, examining how she struggles to cope with the guilt of hiding the loss of her girlfriend whilst trying to keep her relationship with her father intact. The structure of the film is fragmented and constantly has you on the edge of your seat. Gradually, the mystery behind Ashely and Dania’s relationship is revealed piece by piece, constructing a gripping portrait of their emotional struggles and inability to communicate with one another, delving into themes of unconditional love and morality.
Nancy has written and directed several short films in her time at Arts University Bournemouth, as well as having been a screenwriter for the 2018 BFI Film Academy Residential, delivered by the National Film and Television School. For her final year at university, she is extremely excited to bring a dark and emotional story like Passenger to the screen with such a talented crew. She was drawn to the father-daughter dynamic of the story and how this relationship would cope in a situation like this, asking the question: how unconditional is unconditional love? Nancy aims to use her skills in working with actors and experience in production to convey a gripping and compelling film that makes us question our own moral ambiguities.
Oliver is our Producer. He has been working on this project for 8 months now with Nancy. Oliver grew up partly in America, where his passion as a filmmaker started. The biggest draw Oliver got from the script was that anyone around him in life could be a killer, even the people you least expect. This theme, explored with other themes such as grief and guilt, has caused Oliver to really delve deep when researching and preparing for the production of this film. Oliver has been shooting and producing short films for seven years now, and he is excited to use the skills he has learnt these past fours year at University. He is looking forward to navigating his crew though any obstacles and means necessary to tell this story right.
Matey Genchev has always liked dark dramas, as a viewer he is always looking for something mysterious and intriguing, and with Nancy Page's Passenger he has the potential to bring alive both. He is responsible for everything on set to happen on time and according to plan. He regularly enters into discussions with the Producer to get the maximum result in the minimum time. The specialisations "directing" and "producing" that he studies play a key role in the successful communication with the whole team and in the quality of the final film.
Joe is our Director of Photography for Passenger, with experience shooting multiple short films at university and having begun freelancing within the lighting department, he aims to use the skills and knowledge he has acquired thus far coupled with an ethos of strong collaboration to help serve and accentuate the narrative of the film. Drawn to the film for its subtle and considered approach to a dark subject, he hopes to reflect a similar thoughtful process in his contribution to the film.
Ana Marija Ramic is the Gaffer for Passenger. By specializing in Cinematography and Documentary film, with great passion for both, she has developed an array of skills which she will use to execute her role to the highest standard. Ana Marija will work closely with the director of photography Joe and production designer Hannah to help bring Nancy’s vision to life and paint a realistic and compelling environment with lighting.
Valentina is an Argentinean camera-woman that has crossed the Atlantic to educate herself to become a visual storyteller. She discovered the power of images at a very young age, when she could only see the world through photographs of other places. As a self-isolated person, she understands the burden of keeping a secret and being afraid of external judgment.
This film has the opportunity to externalise those secret fears that we all carry inside and show us how to be brave, to open ourselves up to others.
It is a blessing to be part of a team that pushes you to be the best version of yourself; making you realise that it is possible to overcome any challenges that is presented, being part of this crew means to be part of a team that makes you feel safe. The team will deliver this film with hard work and mutual support.
English born, Swiss raised, Hannah wishes to bring the dark atmospheric world of Passenger to life. Her previous film projects have resulted in successful and accurate displays of emotive storytelling through her skills in production design. The aim for this project is to result in a simple yet tasteful colour scheme, which will cohesively bring together the skills from our other visual team members. Passionate and raring to go - the excitement of filming with a car and the opportunities, challenges and team support will be one of the selling points!
David is the sound designer for Passenger specialising in sound design and documentary. Having worked on the film since its early script development, he is uniquely positioned to build an authentic and immersive world. David will work closely with the editor in order to form a powerful post-production team.
Malva is the editor of Passenger. She comes from the land of Ingmar Bergman and Roy Andersson. She choose to work on Passenger because she was drawn to the gripping and moving story of the dark drama that Passenger is, wanting to further develop her editing skills, and edit a unique film.
Melissa Hutchison is a makeup and hair artist for Passenger. Melissa was drawn to the production due to its complex exploration of character trauma. Melissa will work closely with the other makeup artists, Jasmine and Rosie, to create the images of all the characters within the world of Passenger as the audience sees them.
Erin Batten is a third-year Costume and Performance Design student working towards a generalised degree in costume design for both film and theatre. After already completing a Foundation Diploma in Art and Design, Erin has gained experience working on student film and stage productions, dance performances as well as her own freelance textile and fashion projects. A costume designer role is to tell a story. The costume must reflect the past and the journey of the character, their present state and create a foreshadowing of the future within the character’s clothing. The darker theme of Passenger will be mirrored by the colour palette to create an idea of the character’s vulnerability and grief but will allow room for subtle contrasts for softer moments and flashbacks. As well as using subtle details to reflect the intricate relationships between the characters. Erin is excited to be co-designing the costumes of ‘Passenger’ and working with the cast and crew to bring each character and the story to life.
Rachel McIvor is a third-year costume design student specialising in design for screen. The darker undertones of ‘Passenger’ with the moral struggles the characters face shows the human struggle to choose between what is right and to protect the ones they love. The tension will be shown through the colour palette and considered simplicity in the design. Rachel is very excited to be co-designing ‘Passenger’.
(To follow COVID19 guidelines for safe filmmaking, some of the crew photos were taken via an iPad)
As you can see below, funds that are raised on Crowdfunder will be given to different areas of the production. Most of your support will be going to our art department, as they have the huge job of building three set pieces - a bedroom, a kitchen, and the road the accident takes place, within a studio in Bournemouth. Following this, casting and camera comes next, as its vital we have actors who can express the emotion needed for the film, and lenses to make the visuals even more aesthetically pleasing. The rest of the money is for smaller specific areas, such as travel, and cast and crew accommodation, and contingency for day to day production usage.