The strong resemblance and stronger rapport between Calum (Paul Mescal), 30, and Sophie (Frankie Corio), his 11-year-old daughter, has them frequently mistaken for siblings. Away on a family-of-two vacation at a discount Turkish resort, the pair often conduct themselves like impish kids playing hooky. Prone to manic spells, Calum showers Sophie with affection and whatever else his meagre budget might allow. All of this in a desperate bid to stave off a depressive episode that looms like the Sword of Damocles.
In her astonishing feature debut, Charlotte Wells demonstrates a gentle touch but unwavering command of emotional complexities. As Sophie fumbles her way into adolescence and Calum teeters at the brink of psychological collapse, telling moments and revelatory gestures amass significance. Wells’ formal prowess is impressive as she interweaves her luminous 35mm compositions with digital video keepsakes shot by Sophie. As Aftersun builds to its deeply affecting finale, we’re reminded how life’s turning points often arrive without warning.
French Touch Prize of the Jury, Cannes Critics’ Week 2022
Paul Mescal, Frankie Corio, Celia Rowlson-Hall
UK/USA
2022
English
Book Tickets
Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre
Our Lady of the Nile
Veronica and Virginia are inseparable friends at an elite Catholic boarding school, Our Lady of the Nile, but what binds them together is the very thing that separates them forever. We are in Rwanda, 1973, and tribal tensions are simmering ominously.
Night Moves: Street Photography, Poetry and Music with Rodney DeCroo
To mark the publication of Night Moves, his first book of street photography (shot in and around Commercial Drive), singer-songwriter, poet and playwright Rodney DeCroo shares his images, stories and music, along with his band The Wise Blood.
Secret Mall Apartment
The stranger-than-fiction true story of a group of artists who built and furnished a hidden apartment inside a mall, remaining undetected for years. This is an absurdly fun and surprisingly profound film about gentrification and art.
The Teacher
In this potent thriller, English teacher Basem witnesses the murder of a teenager by a Israeli settler. While the subsequent investigation rolls slowly towards a foregone conclusion, the teacher is caught up in a parallel kidnapping case...
Bob Trevino Likes It
When her toxic, narcissistic dad cuts her out of his life, Lily Trevino looks him up on Facebook and happens across his namesake, Bob (John Leguizamo), a gentle, genial contractor who lives nearby, and who proves an altogether better dad...
The Encampments
When pro-Palestine protests took hold of Columbia last year, the filmmakers were there from the beginning. This documentary charts the mounting tensions between students and the administration, as the protests were picked up across North America.
Credits
Producer
Adele Romanski, Amy Jackson, Barry Jenkins, Mark Ceryak
Screenwriter
Charlotte Wells
Cinematography
Gregory Oke
Editor
Blair McClendon
Production Design
Billur Turan
Original Music
Oliver Coates
Director
Charlotte Wells
Charlotte Wells is a Scottish filmmaker based in New York. She wrote and directed three short films as a student in the MBA/MFA dual degree program at NYU. Wells has been featured in Filmmaker Magazine’s 25 New Faces of Independent Film and was a fellow at the 2020 Sundance Institute’s Screenwriters and Directors Labs. Aftersun is her first feature.