Our story: 

The Tides In Us is a short film exploring the quiet, internal struggles people carry — guilt, memory, and the difficulty of understanding ourselves. Set against the raw Cornish coastline, the story blends folklore with sensory, atmospheric storytelling to follow one man’s attempt to make sense of who he is and what he’s been holding onto.

A note from our Director:

Hi, I’m Poppy Shaw, a filmmaker who left Cornwall to “go find opportunities,” only to realise the best stories were back home the whole time. So I’m heading back with a camera, a slightly questionable plan, and a big soft spot for the place I was raised in.

Your support won’t just help me make the film; it’ll help champion the brilliant creatives tucked away in our tiny coastal villages, proof that you don’t need a city postcode to make something meaningful. If you’re able to support the project, I’d truly appreciate it. Any contribution — big, small, or “rescued from an old coat pocket” — helps bring this story home.

Why it matters...

Cornish stories don’t often make it to the screen, especially ones told by the people who actually grew up there. The language, the folklore, the odd little traditions… they’re all part of daily life, but they rarely get shown without being romanticised.

This film aims to keep things honest. We’re using real Cornish voices, local actors, and the stories we grew up hearing. 

Who's involved? 

We’re a small crew of BA Filmmaking students from Kingston University, making this film our graduation project, but more importantly, we’re a group of people who genuinely care about telling grounded, atmospheric stories.

The film is written and directed by Poppy, who grew up in Cornwall, drawing directly from its landscapes, folklore, and the complicated emotions that come with leaving and returning home.

Where your money goes...

Every penny you donate goes straight into getting this film made properly — travel to Cornwall, accommodation for our Kingston Uni crew, and the equipment we need to capture the coastline in all its moody glory. Most importantly, it helps us pay local actors fairly, so we’re not just using Cornish talent but supporting it. It also covers things like locations, props, feeding the team (hungry filmmakers are not fun), and all the unglamorous but essential bits that keep a shoot running. Your support genuinely makes the difference between a student film that just scrapes by and one that does justice to the story, the place, and the people who inspired it.

Follow our journey!

Follow our Instagram to see the chaos unfold — us hauling far too much equipment to Cornwall, battling the wind and rain, freezing our toes off, and maybe even swimming in the sea in March. You’ll get behind-the-scenes photos, stories from the shoot, and proof that making a film in Cornwall is as wild, beautiful, and unpredictable as the coastline itself.

@thetidesinus