A series of gothic tales will be shot in Bolton it has been announced following the huge success of a film released earlier this month.
And now avid fans of film, literature and culture are being given a second chance to watch a free screening of classic tale.
Brett Gregory’s short film adaptation of Franz Kafka’s ‘Before the Law’ held its first free screening on, Wednesday, October 16.
The film, shot in the prison cells of the Old Magistrates Court on Le Mans Crescent, and at Pigeon Tower in Rivington, was officially recognised by Bolton Council as a part of its Bolton Town of Culture 2024 celebrations.
Brett said: "The atmosphere was electric, and the responses were extremely passionate. It’s like everybody knew that the film was actually about something, about something that matters, about being human.
"In the main the film asks who we are as people and why, tragically, do most of us wait for permission to live our lives? Permission we often will never receive.
"For example, during the post-screening Q&A, a Bolton-based educationalist told me I was ‘sitting on a goldmine’, and that teachers and lecturers would ‘bite my hand my hand off’ to have the opportunity to use the film as a learning resource.
"It covers everything,’ she said, performing arts, English literature, English language, history, media studies, media production, and even religious studies.’"
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Brett, writer and director of the 2022 multi-award-winning Manchester feature film, ‘Nobody Loves You and You Don’t Deserve to Exist’, also announced at the event that Franz Kafka’s ‘Before the Law’ is the first film of a proposed four film gothic anthology to be shot entirely in Bolton.
He said: "The working title of the anthology of short films, is ‘Only Fear: Northern Tales of the Unknown and the Uncanny’, and it will feature adaptations of Edgar Allan Poe’s ‘The Tell Tale Heart’, Guy de Maupassant’s ‘The Grave’, and an original screenplay I’ve written called ‘Death in a Northern Town’."
Brett said: "The anthology, once completed, will then be the length of a feature film and, in turn, will be made available to watch on Amazon Prime and Apple TV, for example. The overall aim of this will be to promote Bolton, its creative vibrancy and cultural dynamism, far and wide over many years. We already have a distribution deal in place.
"As a consequence. I highly recommend that those who wish to be actively a part of this unique non-profit project to attend the second screening of Franz Kafka’s ‘Before the Law’ so details can be discussed further."
Robert Hedley, a Boltonian actor now based in Didsbury, said: "It was an absolute privilege to play the role of The Doctor in this unique and memorable production. Franz Kafka is one of the world’s literary greats, deep and complex, but Brett adapted his story with discipline, detail and aplomb.’
To date Franz Kafka’s ‘Before the Law’ has been entered into 18 international film festivals.
The second screening of Franz Kafka's 'Before the Law' will be on Thursday, November 21 at Bolton Central Library from 5.30pm to 7.30pm.
Tickets are available on Eventbrite.
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