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"The human mind, both resilient and fragile at the same time. Among the memories, feelings, and thoughts linger the scars. The evil that men do lives after them; sometimes all you need is a trigger." Frederick Festival of Film 2005, Maryland USA.
Alecto is the story of Slava and his confrontation with his past. He lives by himself, immersed in his music and teaching. His childhood was dominated by a dysfunctional and aggressive parental relationship. From the moment he was presented with a violin as a child, he retreated into a world of music, away from arguments and abuse. He has been giving violin lessons to a promising young female student, Sarah, 16, for whom he has developed an unhealthy obsession. When Sarah finds and plays a piece of music from Slava's childhood, she unwittingly stirs up his repressed emotions. Future, past and present unite in Alecto's visitation.
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Cast and Crew list
CAST
Slava
Nick Ewans
Sarah
Nina Kwok
Young Slava
Rhys Vaughan
Slava's mother
Eleanor Brunsdon
Slava's father
Tom Blackburn
Puppeteer
Ronnie Le Drew
CREW
Directed and edited by
Simon Ruben
Director of Photography
Toby Trackman
Producer
Dunstan Kornicki
1st A.D.
Andrzeji Szanjia
Production Assistant
Joel Bond
Art Director
Jonas Kleerup
Costume Designer
Amy Spicer
Concept Artist
Keith Weir
Makeup Artist
Jane Maier
Runners
Martin Hammond
Neil Benardout
Post-production consultant
Andrew @ CC lab
Composed by
Tom Rowland
Written by
Robbie Simons and Simon Ruben
KIND SPONSORS
Ron Auders
Jerome Mital
Tom Blackburn
Jeff Fine @ The Establishment
Aneilia Kornicki
Violin tuition by
Tom Blackburn
Laurel Swift
Anna Woodward
Violins provided by
Bridgewood and Nietzert
Music performed by
Tom Blacburn
Dunstan Kornicki
Violin puppet courtesy of
Peter Charlton @ The Puppet Centre
With thanks to
Robbie Simons
Rachel Harris
Hannah McCracken
Caro Middleton
The Carol Straker dance foundation
Bridgewood and Nietzert
Gillian Harris
Mark Thorndycraft
Kennard's Good Foods
Greasepaint
AN ARTEMIS FILMS PRODUCTION
FESTIVALS / COMPETITIONS / SCREENINGS
FlatFoot Fete - Brooklyn, NY U.S.A. - 31/08/05
WINNER- TromaFling Independent Film festival - Edinburgh - 21/08/05 WINNER
JOINT WINNER OF THE 'AUDIENCE AWARD'
- Signals International Short Film Festival - Colchester - 8-11/09/05
- www.3btv.com - 8&11/08/05
WINNER- 2005 Frederick Festival of Film - Maryland U.S.A - 24/09/05 WINNER
WINNER OF THE 'OUTSTANDING STYLISTIC ACHIEVEMENT' AWARD
- Deep Fried Film Festival 2006 - Summer 2006
- Part of the DVD anthology "LovecraCked! The Movie!"
- 19th Braunschweig International Film Festival - 8-13/11/05
- Sutton Film Festival 2005 - 27/11/05
- 'The Art of Sin' at the Altered Esthetics gallery - Los Angeles 18/03/06
- Swansea Bay Film Festival - Swansea 03-09/06/06
- Aarhus Festival of Independent Arts - Int. film festival - Denmark 20-25/04/06
- 'Late at Tate' series :"Around About Words" - Tate Britain, London 07/04/06
Malgorzata Kitowski introduces a selection of experimental shorts examining
altered states of mind: films jigsawed from memories, texts, trips, and dreams.
- Vienna Short Film Festival - Vienna, Austria 6-8/07/06
- Betting on Shorts - ICA, London 12/07/06 (Cinema 1, 8pm)
- CON-CAN Off-Theater - Tokyo, Japan 01/08/06 (online programme)
- Marbella International Film Festival - 08-10/09/06
- ADAPTER at Mehrzweckhalle- Berlin, Germany 07-08/10/06
Alecto
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MOST OF THE FOLLOWING REVIEWS OF ALECTO CAME FROM ITS INCLUSION IN THE DVD ANTHOLOGY 'LOVECRACKED' - AN HOMAGE TO H.P. LOVECRAFT
- Nefarious Films
(Enter site, click on 'Shorts' in left hand bar and select 'Alecto')
"Charting the mental disentegration of a classical musician whose past holds painful secrets Alecto is not your avearge horror film. It takes itself refreshingly seriously for a start, there is nothing wrong with comedy and lighter touches in the horror genre but it is also good to see a short film that is not scared to attempt, and succeed, at creating a truly dark atmosphere."
- Moving Pictures
" What I liked about this one was the stylistic photography and music showing the most tact and professionalism."
- BadLit
"A disjointed, but beautifully shot and fully creepy story about a musician who wigs out on his student
after recalling a traumatic episode from his past brought about by a piece of music.
Really well done and the second most satisfying and fully developed short after Bugboy."
- ShoeString
"
At its best, in Simon Rubens’ blood-chilling segment “Alecto”, “Lovecraft!” is as worthy a homage as you’re likely to see this season. "
- Efilmcritic.com
"Simon Ruben's moody, Lynchian "Alecto" concerns a disturbed violinist."
- Collider.com
" 'Alecto' (by Simon Ruben) which is miles above everything else in production, visuals, artistry and sound design..."
- Deadcentral.com
"This is a decidedly strange and disjointed piece that takes a risk with visuals. Overlapping images, differing timelines, and puppets make for a satisfying and frustrating experience."
- World's greatest critic
"Like a cross between Cronenberg's 'Spider' and something out of a Bergman Flick, "Alecto" dances between the past and the present, reality and fantasy, up to and including a surreal sequence detailing Ewan's treatment at the hands of some psychotic marionettes, more frightening than that little dude from 'Saw'."
- Cinefantastico.com
"Alecto (Simon Ruben) y Remain (Ashley Thorpe) consiguen adentrarnos en la locura el primero, y el terror el segundo."
- Braunschweig Film Festival
"Die dichte Atmosphäre des Films entsteht vor allem durch die Tonspur aus einer surrealen Soundkulisse und akzentuiert eingesetzten Geräuschen. Das fragmentarische Leitthema verdeutlicht die Macht der Töne."
- Pretty-scary.net
"The sixth short was directed by Simon Ruben and was called “Alecto”. This was another superb short that tells the tale of a man tormented by a song played on the violin. The film itself was haunting and eerie as it slowly unfolded."