‘Homonym’ is a short supernatural horror film inspired by Danny Robins’ investigative podcast  ‘Uncanny’.

Set against a backdrop of police negligence in the late 1990s, it uses the supernatural to give voice to the female witnesses who are still having their testimonies dismissed today.

Set in the police station of a sleepy one-horse town in rural Devon 1999, the film centres around the witness interview of Sam Evans; a fifteen year old girl who was found alone at home with the bodies of her family. A malevolent presence, nicknamed ‘Eleanor’, has been tormenting them since they moved into the house and is, Sam claims, responsible for her family’s deaths. 

The police immediately dismiss her statement, but as eerie goings-on at the station start to mirror it, they are soon forced to reassess. Trapped by a storm, and with events becoming increasingly violent, group hysteria rises. 

Unearthing the bloody history of Sam’s house, the group find it is connected to generations of unheard women, all the way back to the local witch trials and an accused girl called Eleanor; she insisted she was innocent, but no one listened. Guilty of the same crime, the police realise their mistake too late, Sam’s family were never the target, Eleanor just needed a way into the station.

Taking an environment and atmosphere traditionally associated with police dramas and teenage slasher films, ‘Homonym’ delivers something new and unexpected.  A revenge story at its core, it both relishes in its horror genre and uses it to express the frustration and rage of having your voice ignored.

In many ways, ‘Homonym’ starts where most horror films end. What happens next?

I want to highlight its shift from humdrum night at work to full-blown supernatural incident. Initially the colour palette will reflect the institutional setting in cold greys and blues, and the action will play on long wide takes. The viewer is removed, observing the action. The soundworld will be sparse; evoking the creepy sensation of a busy building when empty. But as the characters' worlds are turned upside down, the cinematic world also intensifies. The colours saturate to a 1990s palette and the soundworld intensifies with background noises becoming overwhelming. Tighter frames and shorter takes put the viewer in the middle of the action now, and jumping from angle to angle disorients and throws them off balance along with the characters. 

But the performances are the real key to the film; delivering its message and the emotional guts. Having worked as an actor for over ten years I am excited for this to be a key creative focus.

Films such as ‘Talk to Me’ and ‘His House’ which use the supernatural to explore the ramifications of social issues are a key inspiration for the project. But as is the fun of 1990s teenage horrors such as ‘Scream’. These films are aware of their own genre, and they play with it, teasing the viewer with their tropes. ‘Homonym’ relishes its genre and uses its life-and-death stakes to reflect the life-changing implications of your story being ignored.

‘F***k off, black-cab drivers don’t do that sort of thing’ were the words of police to a victim of John Worboys, the ‘taxi-driver rapist’, when she reported her assault. Statistics for the number of female testimonies dismissed by the police in the UK today are quite terrifying, and I found my faith in this institution completely rocked by the murder of Sarah Everard in 2021. It’s a terrifying pattern I want to highlight.

I’ve always been fascinated by the crunch point between the supernatural and the cold hard facts of life in ghost stories. The film is partly inspired by Danny Robins’ investigative podcast ‘Uncanny’ which explores real-life accounts of supernatural experiences. Most memorable was the account of a woman forced to request social housing due to a poltergeist. Unable to afford moving house, she was mortified at having to explain to a council worker that their home was no longer habitable because it was haunted. Suffice to say, the council did not help her. It again expressed the predicament of not being believed by the institution designated to help you.

Exploring how female narratives are so frequently twisted by others is at the core of my work. This combined with the above drove me to write ‘Homonym’; where a seemingly impossible female narrative, to the detriment of its sceptics, turns out to be true. 

All contributions to the campaign will go directly into the production costs for a three day shoot in January 2025 and ensuing post-production in February 2025.  Our aim is to deliver the project by April 2025.

These costs include Camera, Lighting and Sound Kit Hire, Location Hire, Transportation for Kit, Cast & Crew Fees (London Living Wage), Costume and Set Purchases, Catering, Hard Drives and Post-Production Fees

Trailer for 'The Eyes of Marge':

We will be submitting the film to festivals both nationally and internationally, targeting primarily BIFA and BAFTA qualifying festivals. Our secondary focus will be genre festivals, with the project lending itself to both the Horror and Crime genres. 

We are also going to focus on applying to festivals which are known for great events and screening spaces, so that our contributors can enjoy a brilliant festival experience when they join us on the red carpet!

Our strategy will be selective, only submitting to festivals with a great reputation for programming high quality film. 

Following the festival run we will seek distribution via SVOD and VOD streaming services, having already established a good relationship on our previous projects with platforms that provide this. Online platforms with a great reputation for fantastic film and which are highly regarded in the industry will be where we target for exposure for the film.

The bigger picture is that the short will act as a proof of concept for the feature length version of the film, currently in development.

We want to include our contributors in the process from start to finish. We will keep you posted with regular updates on how production is progressing, share sneaky little bits of BTS footage from the shoot and send you exclusive previews of how the film is looking as it is developed in post-production.

We really want you to be and feel a part of team 'Homonym'.

If you are a fan of horror... we definitely think this film is for you.

If you remember how to keep a Tamagotchi alive, grew up watching 'Buffy The Vampire Slayer' and 'The Craft' or hid behind the sofa when you rented the VHS of 'I Know What You Did Last Summer'... then we also think this film is for you.

If you like tightly packed parcels of punchy storytelling and powerful visuals in your short films... then we think this film is probably for you too.

We honestly are so grateful for every contribution to the project, as well as every repost, share or mention of the campaign to friends, colleagues, relatives, strangers in the coffee shop, randomers on the tube and long lost relatives... it's a cliche (well more of a marketing tagline now) but every little helps.

Thank you and we can't wait to welcome you on board!