We’re so excited that Hampton Care Home has a starring role in Wake, a new film that premiered in London recently!
The gritty ten-minute ‘short’ marks the writing and directorial debut of actor Alan McKenna who has starred in EastEnders, Emmerdale, Doctors, Waterloo Road, Happy Valley and many other popular series.
Inspired by the experiences of a close friend, who is also Wake’s executive director, Alan was keen to use the genre of film to explore the theme of alcoholism and its effects on the person and their family.
The main protagonist, Mick, lives in a care home and is becoming increasingly ill and erratic, thanks to his addiction to alcohol. Wheelchair bound, he is looked after by keyworker Zoe and visited by his son Josh, who is visibly frustrated by his inability to influence his father’s choices and by the one-sided nature of their relationship. Mick and Zoe are played by seasoned TV and film actors Ian Burfield and Indra Ové, with aspiring young newcomer Arthur Holmes as Josh. Arthur is also the grandson of the executive director, with first-hand experience of the ripple effects of alcoholism within a family.
Using a combination of real-time scenes and flashbacks, the action takes place in the warm, dry care home and, in a stark contrast, on and under a bridge on a stormy night. The ending is intriguing and open to interpretation, but the underlying message is clear: you cannot ‘save’ another person, but instead must learn to let go and live your own life.
“The key to the film is the relationship between father and son,” explains producer Rhiannon Bennett from Across the Street Productions. She and business partner Sara Bothe, director of award-winning short film The Café, worked closely with Alan, Killing Eve editor Dan Crinnion and veteran cinematographer Damien Paul Daniels to bring Wake to the screen.
In search of the perfect location, Rhiannon and Sara thoroughly researched venues in and around London but couldn’t find anywhere suitable for the care home scenes. Enter Hilary Pearce, activities assistant here at Hampton, and a former education officer for the British Film Institute. Hilary knows Alan and Keeley, his TV make-up artist wife, well as her son Matt goes to school with their son Archie and Dan’s son Louis. “It’s a real community here in Hampton village, with zero degrees of separation,” she jokes.
Hilary had heard about the project and saw the possibilities at once, gaining permission for the production team to recce the home. Having decided that Hampton would be a perfect setting, a room on the first-floor Saffron unit was selected as ‘Mick’s room’.
“Alan was interested in the corridors too. In the film there are powerful shots that take in the length of the corridor, so the viewer gets an idea of how it might be to live in that environment,” explains Hilary.
Filming took place on a cold December day, and residents and staff were delighted to welcome the cast and crew.
“Filming at Hampton was absolutely integral to the story,” says Alan. “It made Mick’s life in the care home completely authentic. The home was amazing and everyone there was lovely. The manager even gave us all cakes and mulled wine! It was such a great experience.”
“The staff were so helpful and our whole team had a great day filming,” agrees Rhiannon.
Hilary adds: “Hampton is where our residents live, and if they happened to be coming out of their rooms or walking up the corridor, the production team simply filmed around them. Actually, our biggest challenge was to co-ordinate the Christmas fayre, which just happened to be on the same day as the film shoot!”
Wake will now be shown at the various international film festivals, and may be developed into a mini series or feature film. “It certainly makes you think and ask questions. I really want to know more about the characters and the background to the story,” says Hilary.
Alan plans to continue writing and directing as well as acting, and is actively working on other scripts. Rhiannon and Sara also have other exciting projects in the pipeline.
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