VIDEO: A father and daughter team has produced a short Western film on location in Burtonwood using a smartphone and a budget of just £60 which is set to feature on the big screen.
The “Elastic Bandit” stars nine-year-old Islien Walker who daydreams about becoming a Cowgirl and embarks on a mission to hold-up her local postman to obtain his rubber bands to make peg guns, inspired by her grandfather’s childhood.
Justin Walker produced the short film as a homage to the Western and is a completely amateur production with a minimal budget and shot and edited on a smartphone. The film is due to be screened at Lucem House community cinema in St Helens prior to one of their main features. They have also been in discussions with the Leigh Film Factory (community cinema) in relation to screening the film which was made on location in Collins Green, Burtonwood.
Justin said: “I studied Media production and communication at Yale College Wrexham. Such is life I found myself working in healthcare as a support worker within mental health services, firstly at Hollins Park on the inpatient units and then in the community at the Wigan and Leigh crisis team.
“I have been a huge film buff since a teenager and had aspirations to be a film director and the pandemic re-ignited my passion for amateur filmmaking.
“The short film project came about after I watched a western entitled The Grey Fox from 1982. As I matured I became a fan of the Western genre; I thought of the concept of a young girl (9-10 years old) who was fascinated with westerns and the old west. I wrote a few drafts of the script which came together rather easily; I had always envisioned my eldest daughter in the lead role. Islien has an interest in performing arts and attends a stage school in Warrington.
“With Islien on board we went into production, a cowgirl outfit was purchased along with a revolver, I also purchased a new tripod, a handheld rig and a mic the total budget was around the £60 mark; the film was shot on my Google pixel 6. Principal photography took around only 8 hours over 2 Sundays, the editing process took much longer!”
Richard added: “The film at heart is a yarn, a homage to the Western, but on reflection, I guess in my subconscious themes in relation to modern times did become prevalent, such as diversity, being different, feelings of loneliness and in some respect a little hint of not fitting in with peers, certainly there could be an element of ‘fantasy’ as a means of escapism from issues in life. But As the great filmmaker David Lynch stated he is always reluctant to give his own interpretation of his films and wants the audience to interpret them alone, without his influence.
“I did screen a rough cut of the film for staff at Lucem House community cinema and it was well received, the hope is to get some more exposure and perhaps submit the short to a few short film festivals.”
