A movie written and produced by two BU graduates will be released next month on a platform set up to champion the work of women in the film industry.
Mo Bayliss (BA Hons Scriptwriting for Film and Television) and Steph Leigh (BA Hons Media Production) graduated from BU in 2019 and now work together as comedians and filmmakers. Their BFI-funded short film ‘A Television Broadcast From Outer Space’ will be released on the Girls in Film website on Wednesday 5 June.
Mo said: “We met at Bournemouth, and we credit our time there as helping our unique friendship to blossom. We were both incredibly dedicated students back in the day and remember our lecturers fondly. We have been making sketches and short films ever since, with our short ‘Pancake Jam’ making it to the finals of the Funny Women’s Comedy Shorts Award in 2020. Our debut BFI-funded short film, ‘A Television Broadcast From Outer Space’, went on to get multiple festival selections, as well as winning Best Writers at Women X, and Best Local Short and Best UK Short at the Fisheye Festival.”
In the film, Earth receives a mysterious broadcast from an ‘alternative earth’, showcasing fragments of daytime television that aired on the day their world ended. Mo said: “This social commentary is a high-octane fever dream, riddled with bizarre sketches and pitch-perfect pastiche that only a couple of film buffs could’ve created.”
The film’s release coincides with World Environment Day as climate change is a central theme. You can watch the trailer here.
As well as working together, Mo and Steph also work separately in film and TV in the north of England, freelancing in the art department of shows featured on Netflix, BBC and Sky Cinema.
