A new independent film has been created in the heart of Liverpool. I Have a Bad

Feeling About This is a fast-paced comedy/fantasy about two nerds, their love for

each other and their love for Star Wars. Ace spoke to the film’s producer, Laura

Purcell, 29, and writer/ director/actor, Alan Donohoe, 24.

The script was born out of a university project that Alan had in 2007. In 2010, he

decided that he wanted to develop it into a feature which is when he brought in

Jamie Williamson, 24.

Alan said: “The concept (of the earlier version) worked and I think it struck a chord

with people who saw it. I felt like there was more to the characters and the situation

that you just couldn’t get across with a short film.”

The film is set in Liverpool which is practical, as it’s Alan’s home. However,

practicality isn’t the only reason for the location. Alan said that Liverpool is a part of

the world famed for its wit and humour, making it the ideal setting for his comedy.

Both are incredibly complimentary about independent film-making in the North West.

Laura said that Liverpool was home to a vibrant, independent film industry, she

believes that the North West has some fantastic locations and architecture which

lend themselves to all genres of film and can even be used to duplicate other cities

and countries. She is optimistic at the impact her independent film company

(Haphazard Production’s) could have on the creative landscape.

Alan believes that the talent is there but quite often the money isn’t. He said that the

new digital technology makes the process more exciting because it is now easier

and cheaper than ever before to make your own film.

He said “I was speaking to a girl the other week that made her first feature for

absolutely nothing, and it’s a great film too.”

Of course, it’s not all fun and games, making a movie. There wasn’t much money to

spare so they had to get creative; building their own equipment, like their camera

track, and renovating gaming café, The Scythe and Teacup, to resemble a comic

book store.

Laura said: “This set is one of the things I am most proud of in our film as a

spectacular amount of effort went into the initial building and daily constructing of it.

The results were outstanding and I couldn't have asked for anything more.”

Another problem was that as everybody on set was volunteering; they had paid jobs

to do as well. This made scheduling extremely difficult but luckily Alan and Laura

were both allowed to take unpaid leave to pursue the film.

Alan said: “If you’ve never worked on a film before, it’s hard to conceive the amount

of work that goes into filming three seconds of film, or even the amount of planning

that goes into filming.”

Laura said: “Even though we had to make a few sacrifices, it was definitely worth it

and I would not change a thing.”

Earlier this year, the team launched a campaign to raise the £10,000 to make the

film. Both Laura and Alan credit the making of the film to the generous donations

from members of the public; saying that without these, the film would not have been

possible. They have thanked donators by naming them in the film credits.

The filming is completed and is currently in the post-production stage. To find out

more about the film; follow @badfeelingfilm on Twitter, or find I Have a Bad Feeling

About This on Facebook.

ENDS

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Emma Murphy