Behind the Couch

With Lord of Tears , director Lawrie Brewster and writer Sarah Daly created a truly haunting piece of work; one that marked them as a creative team to keep an eye out for. With its striking imagery, spooky Gaelic-Gothic atmosphere, intriguing folklore and creepy-as-hell antagonist, it was a rich and full-blooded ghost story, perfect viewing for these dark winter nights. For those who have seen, admired and been quietly unsettled by Lord of Tears , there is good news: Brewster and Daly have just finished work on their follow up film, The Unkindness of Ravens . Shot on location in Fife and Perthshire, Scotland, the film seeks to explore the effect of the horrors of war on the human mind through the media of beautiful poetry and brutal violence. It tells of Andrew Alburn (Jamie Scott-Gordon), a homeless veteran suffering from PTSD. Plagued by flashbacks of the traumatic events he witnessed while serving in the armed forces, he is persuaded to venture out to a retreat in the remote...

2013 Dir. Lawrie Brewster After the death of his estranged mother, school teacher James Findlay returns to his childhood home, a lonely mansion in the Scottish Highlands, in an attempt to lay to rest the ghosts of his past. Tormented since a boy by dreams of a strange and terrifying entity – a figure dressed in Victorian attire, with elongated limbs, sharp talons and an owl head - James faces a descent into madness and his only hope is to banish the evil presence that haunts him. With the help of Eve, a mysterious young woman who lives on the grounds of the house, he begins to uncover the chilling truth behind his immortal stalker… Set in the remote Highlands of Scotland, and inspired by the unsettling and bleak tales of H. P. Lovecraft, Arthur Machen and the creepy Slender Man mythology, Lord of Tears is a gothic chiller that slowly unfurls in an immensely atmospheric and nightmarish manner. Writer Sarah Daly and director Brewster seamlessly fuse together an array of influenc...

The Dead Outside is Scottish filmmaker Kerry Anne Mullaney’s feature directorial debut. Gripping, atmospheric and quietly unsettling, the film unfolds as a post-apocalyptic psychological horror tale of loneliness, loss and madness. A mysterious neurological pandemic has ravaged Britain. Two survivors seek refuge in an isolated farmhouse in deepest, darkest Scotland. The pair forge a tenuous relationship until the arrival of a stranger throws everything into turmoil. As well as dealing with serious trust issues, the three must also fend off attacks from the infected population besieging the farmhouse on an increasingly frequent basis… The Dead Outside screened at the first Yellow Fever Independent Film Festival in Belfast last year and received several awards at the 10th Annual Estepona International Horror & Fantasy Film Festival, as well as garnering nominations from the likes of Frightfest, Night of Horror and BAFTA Scotland. It was released to DVD this week and I was for...

2008 Dir. Kerry Anne Mullaney A mysterious neurological pandemic has ravaged Britain. Seeking refuge in a solitary farmhouse in deepest, darkest Scotland, Daniel (Alton Milne), a young man reeling from the death of his family, meets April (Sandra Louise Douglas), a secretive young woman who has been living in isolation for some time. The two eventually forge a tenuous friendship until the arrival of a stranger throws them into turmoil. As well as dealing with serious trust issues, the three survivors must also contend with the infected population besieging the farmhouse on an increasingly frequent basis… The Dead Outside , a stark post-apocalyptic psychological horror film, was screened in Belfast recently as part of the Yellow Fever Independent Film Festival . Intelligent and thoughtful, at times it resembles a sort of pared down, minimalist  28 Days Later . Filmed with a minuscule budget and fully utilising what is essentially one location, the film plays out as a claustrop...