Title: Blue Jean
Screenplay and Director: Georgia Oakley
Main Cast: Rosy McEwen, Kerrie Hayes and Lucy Halliday
Director of Photography: Victor Seguin
Editing: Izabella Curry
Music: Chris Roe
Production: Hélène Sifre for Kleio Films, Eva Yates for BBC Film and Jim Reeve for Great Point Media
Year: 2022
Country: United Kingdom
Length: 93 mins
England, 1988. Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative government has introduced Section 28, a clause of the Local Government Act which seeks to prohibit “the promotion of homosexuality” by local authorities across the United Kingdom. For Jean, a gym teacher whose sexuality is a secret from her colleagues, the threat is immediate and real: if exposed, her love life could cost her her job. Anchored by a stunning performance from Rosy McEwen, this poised and penetrating debut by writer-director Georgia Oakley grips like a thriller, whilst exploring with intense sensitivity a period in British history the effects of which still resonate in countless lives today.
Biography
Georgia is a screenwriter and director with a particular fondness for convention defying, female-led narratives. Her award-winning shorts have screened at dozens of international festivals including SXSW, TriBeCa (where LITTLE BIRD was nominated for Best Narrative Short), New York Film Festival and Galway Film Fleadh.
She was mentored by Desiree Akhavan on the BFI Flare scheme and was selected for Berlinale Talents and iFeatures with her debut feature, BLUE JEAN, starring Rosy McEwen, Kerrie Hayes, Lucy Halliday. Georgia is currently developing her second feature with BBC Film. Alongside this, she is co-adapting a novel by Anna Hope for June Films; the film will be directed by Clémence Poésy. BLUE JEAN will receive its World Premiere at the Venice Film Festival 2022.