Blackthorn

Blackthorn is a short folk horror film by Christopher Ratcliff

Written and Directed by Christopher Ratcliff

Official selection: Darkness in the Fields Folk Horror Festival, Derby
Official selection: Brighton Rocks International Film Festival
Official selection: Hastings Rocks International Film Festival
Official selection: Southport FilmFest
Official selection: Dark Harvest, Reading
Official selection: The Black Country Horror Shorts Festival

When a young couple moves to a sleepy village outside London, they stumble into a community with unsettling traditions it must uphold to maintain its peaceful existence.

Tobi never wanted to move out of London to the countryside, unlike her husband Wes, who wants them to live more sustainably and soak up some local “old-fashioned values.” When Tobi is invited to an annual summer gathering with their new neighbours, Tobi discovers some unsettling traditions and is plunged into a desperate hunt for an offering to appease the darkness in the village.

Sidsel Rostrup as Tobi
Kahmal Seasley as Wes
Michael Goward as Josh
Paul Donovan as Peter
Bryonie Pritchard as Finoa

Produced by Ted Wilkes, Christopher Ratcliff & Michael Peel

Director of Photography Michael Peel
Camera Operator Simon Cheung
Score by Rob Hill
Violin Henry Rankin
Costume and Make-up
1st AD Ted Wilkes
2nd AD Lucy Parker
Costume & Make-up Lucy Parker
Runner Jacob Warner
Art Director Catherine Thompson
Titles and Promotional Art Ollie Godwin
Sound Recording Ted Wilkes
Sound Mix Christopher Ratcliff

Blackthorn was filmed on location in Rochester and Linslade.