shank-movie

CAL teaser

2011-09-25T09:51:00.001-07:00

from the creative duo behind SHANK comes a recession romcom - BUFFERING

2010-08-12T16:20:00.001-07:00

Teaser from new film....BUFFERING

2010-07-28T04:49:00.000-07:00

Another Award

2010-07-28T04:48:00.001-07:00

SHANK WINS - Best Film at the MicMexico Film Festival.....

Great stuff....it still keeps on trucking!

Well done everyone....

2010-04-29T06:24:00.001-07:00

SHANK WINS ANOTHER AWARD and this time the writers are rightly credited for their work

Best Screenwriting - Darren Flaxstone & Christian Martin, Shank

Hooray.....

http://filmoutsandiego.com/2010/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=42&Itemid=174

and another film - a beautiful film with some glorious photography and the beautiful and underrated Vanessa Paradis

2010-04-14T14:29:00.001-07:00

one of the writer's favourite films - available from http://madbad.co.uk/show/onedayinsummerakaunjourdete/

2010-04-14T14:27:00.001-07:00

2010-04-14T14:18:00.000-07:00

2010-04-14T14:04:00.000-07:00

2010-03-21T06:31:00.000-07:00

VOTE FOR SHANK IN THE TLA GAYBIES - WE'VE BEEN NOMINATED AS BEST DRAMA - ALL SUPPORT AND VOTES WELCOMED - VOTING ENDS 31ST MARCH 2010 ....WE'RE UP AGAINST SOME ILLUSTRIOUS COMPETITION - YOU CAN VOTE AS MANY TIMES AS POSSIBLE.........PLEASE VOTE - FOLLOW THE LINK...

http://www.tlagay.com/gaybies/a-2

2010-03-13T09:15:00.000-08:00

We've been asked various times where some of the stories behind SHANK came from - the writers Darren Flaxstone and Christian Martin took inspiration from their own real life experiences as well as from stories from various newspapers and articles from gay press about homophobic bullying. The article below was one such article from which part of the narrative was conceived. There have been commentators who found the idea of a female gang leader unbelievable - this article should assuage that opinion...

2010-03-02T02:03:00.000-08:00

Check this link to watch q&a of SHANK

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=1345807452724&ref=mf

2010-02-09T02:38:00.000-08:00

Despite already being out on dvd in the UK SHANK sold out to a full house last night at The Riverside Studios in Hammersmith.....many thanks to all the programmers, Guy, Ian, Dan and especially Shira Macleod for all her support. Lovely to see all of you guys thank you.

Thanks to the audience who stayed for the Q&A as well......there must have been at least 75% of you that chose to hear us ramble on about the film...!!! Well done you for persevering!

Special mention though to Limahl - thanks for the 80's flashback and for being the first to jump up and grab a mic to ask a question that was awkwardly about yourself and tenuously linked to the film....we hope we answered your question? If not get in touch and we'll try again.

2010-01-04T15:18:00.001-08:00


GAY FILM REVIEWS BY MICHAEL D. KLEMM

Shank TLA Releasing, 2009 Director Simon Pearce Screenplay: Darren Flaxstone, Christian Martin Starring: Wayne Virgo, Marc Laurent, Alice Payne, Tom Bott, Garry Summers, Bernie Hodges, Christian Martin, Louise Fearnside Unrated, 89 minutes Open Cam Wolfe Video, 2005 Director/Screenplay: Robert Gaston Starring: Andreau Thomas, Amir Darvish, Ben Green, J. Matthew Miller, Christian Jones, Reiner Prochaska, John Geoffrion, Ryan Thrasher, Vincent Bradberry, Cecil E. Baldwin Unrated, 100 minutes	A Bit Of The Old Ultraviolence by Michael D. Klemm Posted online, November 2009 You can't judge a book by its cover or a film by its press release. I thought both of the following titles would wind up being be no more than, at most, guilty pleasures. Beefcake fests. Or porn with a plot. I was wrong.
	*Shank,* a 2009 film by debut director Simon Pearce, from a screenplay by Darren Flaxstone and Christian Martin, may be the most twisted and violent coming out film I have ever seen. Repressed queer desire and violence are the ingredients of this harrowing film, set in working class England. Cal (Wayne Virgo) is 18 and a member of a street gang. Being gay can't be part of his street cred and he keeps that part of him hidden from his comrades. His gang is a bunch of violent misfits with way too much time on their hands. A typical day involves taking lots of drugs, vandalizing property and sometimes committing random acts of assault. The leader is a high strung queen bitch named Nessa (Alice Payne) who lords it over her charges. Her lieutenant, kept on a short leash, is Cal's best friend, Jonno (Tom Bott). He is a dumb stud and probable closet case who is oblivious to how homoerotic his horseplay with Cal is. There is an odd triangle between these three and perhaps it is jealousy that fuels what transpires later.
	Cal is, of course, in love with Jonno. To relieve the tension, Cal hooks up with other men online, all the while continuing to deny to himself that he's queer. The film opens as he is tricking, in the woods, with a 30-something college professor named Scott (Garry Summers). Cal has Scott film it on his phone. Afterwards, gay panic or self loathing must click in because Cal knocks the man out and leaves him bleeding in the forest as he drives away. Returning home, he downloads the film into his computer, puts a picture of him with Jonno on the side of his screen, plays the blurry video and masturbates furiously.
	Everything falls apart one day when Cal intervenes and stops Nessa and Jonno from needlessly bashing a gay college kid. Apparently Nessa, who is suspicious of Cal and Jonno's close friendship, just wants to watch them beat up a fag... and then realizes that she was right about Cal when he refuses to join in. Cal drives after the poor kid and takes him home. When he returns to his gang, they aren't happy. No one disobeys Nessa's orders and Cal barely escapes with his life. Having nowhere to go, he returns to the home of the boy he saved. Good idea, because his gang is looking for him.
	*Shank* is a very violent British film that plays, at times, like a hybrid of A Clockwork Orange and Trainspotting - with maybe a little bit of Larry Clark's Kids and Bully thrown in for good measure. This bunch likes to film their assaults on cellphones, in much the same way that Cal has all of his tricks film his sex acts. The senseless brutality of the gay bashing is amplified by the use of a handheld video camera that adds an unbearable documentary realism to the scene. The violence throughout Shank is often almost unwatchable; there is a rape scene that is shocking in its savagery. The antics of our gang are a little over the top but I believe that was the filmmakers' intention because their mischief stands out in stark contrast with the loving relationship that develops between Cal and Olivier, the kid who was bashed.
	Olivier (Marc Laurent) is a French university exchange student. Coincidentally, one of his professors is the man that Cal left in the forest and this man will figure again at the end. Olivier was in the wrong place at the wrong time but luckily he had a savior. Cal is hardly Superman but his coming to the rescue turns out to be a life changing epiphany. The love that blossoms between Cal and Olivier, two young men who are definitely from opposite sides of the track, is both touching and believable. Their affair is almost idyllic and, for awhile at least, Cal's former gang life is forgotten.
	When not indulging in bits of the old ultraviolence, Shank is a very sexy and erotic film. The sex is explicit but hardly prurient. Sex is actually a major theme in the film. Homoerotic horseplay is the order of the day in many of the gang scenes. This theme peaks just before Olivier's bashing. Cal and Jonno are sitting in a car, shirtless, and smoking a joint. Cal often gazes longingly at Jonno and, paradoxically, Jonno is sometimes doing the same. The moment we have been waiting for almost happens when Jonno asks Cal if he wants a "blowback." This is when one person blows the pot smoke he just inhaled into another person's mouth. (We called these "shotguns" when I was a teen-ager in the 70s and, looking back in hindsight, I can't think of anything more "gay" for two straight guys to do.) As Jonno takes a hit and then blows it into Cal's mouth, it is almost a kiss. It is one of the film's most sexually charged moments. If a cellphone didn't go off a few seconds later, these two stoned lads would have been all over each other. In fact, Jonno looks troubled, and even disappointed when their camaraderie is interrupted.
	This is one of the film's ironies. Jonno appears to be in his own closet. He has feelings for Cal that go beyond being "bro-mates" but this testosterone-fueled thug will never admit it. His actions during the film's violent, alpha dog climax seem to confirm this. There is also a scene in which Jonno has sex with Nessa and, until she stops him, he initially tries to take her from behind. Without Nessa in the picture, things might have been a lot different and she knows it and wants Jonno to herself.
	Thankfully, no effort is expended to make the audience identify with Cal's gang. Nessa is a truly detestable woman and a total sociopath. But, rather than make her complete cartoon, a climactic revelation lays bare her chaotic motivations. Shank is an electrifying film that competently balances the more sensationalistic elements with a truly touching love story. While it might seem like a more butch man would be Cal's type, it is also true that opposites attract and his romance with Olivier will touch your heart.
	A few of the gang scenes got on my nerves, and some of their dialogue is very hard to understand - to the point where it could have used subtitles. Without the love story, I would have tired of Shank quickly and it is to the director's credit that the two disparate stories and styles mesh as well as they do. Aside from the few aforementioned quibbles, Shank is a well made and acted film. The editing during the gang's screen time is cut up and frantic with matching hip hop music - Eisenstein meets MTV - while the love story slows down and is more pastoral with unobtrusive music cues, sometimes even silence.
	It is always a pleasure when one expects one movie and then discovers another. Despite the ultraviolence, this is one of the most touching love stories I have seen this year and the forbidden affair angle only adds to the romance. Okay, this isn't Dr. Zhivago but I was caught up in Cal and Olivier's tale. Orpheus had to descend into hell first for his Eurydice and Cal will also get his fifteen minutes at being a hero. This film is sometimes ugly, but a beauty shines through that brings light to the darkness. Shank is a bumpy ride but it's worth it.

2009-11-09T16:53:00.000-08:00

2009-10-30T05:21:00.000-07:00

Groovy Gay Film Festival #2: Shank

I was pleasantly surprised by the film, Shank, which is one of the best gay dramas that I've seen in a long time. However, when the movie began with a group of young thugs filming their brutal assault on a man, I did not have high hopes of enjoying myself for the next 90 minutes. But by the end of the film, I was sitting on the edge of my seat wondering if any of the fascinating characters would live happily ever after.

The emotional events in the gritty world of Shank center around 18-year-old Cal, who's a member of a violent British gang--and secretly in love with his best friend, the hunky (and frequently shirtless) Jonno. At the beginning of the film, Cal has sex in the woods with an older stranger he's met online before giving the guy a painful headbutt and driving off without him. He later jerks off at home while watching their hot forest romp on video (he films all his gay encounters with his cell phone). Add in some lines of cocaine and this is Cal's miserable life--until he meets Olivier, a sweet student from France who becomes another random victim of the gang's violence. Cal and Olivier's unlikely friendship turns everyone's life upside down, including Jonno, Nessa (the vicious gang leader who is one scary girl), and Scott (Olivier's teacher--and Cal's close acquaintance from the woods).

Shank is a fairly simple story, but writers Darren Flaxstone and Christian Martin slowly--and expertly--build the tension of their tale and even provide a few surprising twists in the final scenes that made me sit up and go, "Wow, I didn't see that coming." Their screenplay really couldn't be better, and 21-year-old director Simon Pearce has grabbed their words and gone wild with them. It's an impressive feature film debut for this extremely talented young man, who perfectly captures the explosive darkness of Cal's existence while at the same time lightening the mood a bit for the developing relationship between Cal and Olivier. I especially liked that Olivier's penchant for the color pink eventually rubs off on Cal's own wardrobe.

But major kudos must also be bestowed upon the amazing ensemble of actors who truly inhabit these troubled characters and give such vivid performances that I could easily believe that they really existed. Garry Summers (Scott), Tom Bott (Jonno), Marc Laurent (Olivier), and Alice Payne (as Nessa, one of the roughest, toughest gals I've ever seen onscreen) are all wonderful, and I found it quite refreshing that a female was the "leader of the pack." However, I have to reserve most of my praise for actor Wayne Virgo, whose portrayal of Cal is nothing less than brilliant. He makes us slowly grow to care for this young man struggling with his inner demons, and by the emotional ending, we're firmly in his corner, hoping that he'll find happiness. This film is Virgo's first professional acting role, which makes his performance even more extraordinary.

Shank may be quite graphic in its depiction of sex and violence, but its unique "coming out" story and engaging actors are what make this dark cinematic tale one worth experiencing.

http://marcharshbarger.blogspot.com/2009/10/groovy-gay-film-festival-2-shank.html

2009-10-30T05:20:00.001-07:00

2009-10-26T17:29:00.000-07:00

http://www.britishcouncil.org/africa-news-shank.htm

	British Council supports film about gangs and identity


	Shank, coming to South Africa

A British film that tackles issues of homophobia and coming to terms with one’s sexuality is coming to South Africa courtesy of the British Council.

The Out in Africa South African Gay & Lesbian Film Festival, in Johannesburg and Cape Town in September, serves as a platform for discussion about the situation of lesbian, gay, transgender and intersex individuals (LGBTIs) in a young democracy.

The British Council has sponsored the film-makers’ trip to South Africa. Director Simon Pearce and writers Darren Flaxstone and Christian Martin will be talking to film students and audiences about the process behind their production.

‘To be supported by the British Council in bringing our film to South Africa, on top of being selected, is an absolute thrill and honour - and we cannot wait to hear what reaction it provokes,’ says Pearce.

Shank explores the life of Cal, an 18-year-old gang member whose life revolves around drugs, sex and random acts of violence. He also has a secret - he is attracted to other men, in particular his fellow gang member Jonno.

Gang leader Nessa suspects that there is something going on between them and stirs up a conflict. Trouble erupts when Cal rescues a French boy from being beaten up by the gang.

The film has already received an international award. According to the 21-year-old director, the crew is overwhelmed by the film’s success and the international support shown for their achievements.

‘We shall be bringing their shared sense of pride with us to South Africa,’ says Pearce.

Writer and producer Martin says: ‘We wanted to make a drama that could cross over to all audiences, forcing them to confront and question a very current reality, but one that still spoke specifically to a core audience.’

According to Pearce, having the British Council involved in the film provides some comfort that there are organisations that value the achievements of aspiring British film-makers.

‘Being associated with the British Council has given the film a seal of approval and is a badge of honour that we’ll wear with pride.

‘We hope this is the beginning of a strong relationship and that we can take our association forward and explore all other opportunities that might be available to us with the British Council,’ Pearce says.

According to Pearce, the decision to make the film came about because other film-makers were shying away from such stories.

‘Other films are aiming wholly at a gay audience instead of seeking a broader reach of viewers. We wanted to highlight things that were really happening out there, however uncomfortable the reality might be.’

The film also aimed to provide a training ground for a selection of young film-makers.

‘Both cast and crew were mentored through the process of making a feature film by a team of seasoned professionals from the industry, headed by Christian and Darren, who have been in the business for nearly 20 years,’ Pearce says.

This youthful team provides an example of their generation’s acceptance of difference, as they are all straight but still enthusiastic about the subject matter and story being told.

For more information about Shank visit this page. To find out more about our upcoming events and programmes click here, to find out what’s been happening in Africa read our News in Africa Section.

2009-10-26T17:11:00.000-07:00

Bonjour Montreal

2009-10-26T16:59:00.000-07:00

Some of the SHANK team introduce to Montreal - screening 28th October 2009

2009-10-19T05:26:00.001-07:00

SHANK out on DVD in the UK 2nd November 2009

available on www.madbad.co.uk

2009-10-19T05:25:00.001-07:00

Cape Times review - South Africa

Review: KAREN RUTTER

GRITTY and heart-breakingly grim, Shank takes a walk on the wild streets of modern day Britain. First-time director Simon Pearce, at a mere 21 years of age, has produced a startling film that exposes the dingy underbelly of contemporary life in the UK and its disaffected youth whose lives revolve around the dole, drink and drugs.

Central to the story is Cal, a working-class gang member who hangs with hoodies who delight in gay-bashing. Problem is, Cal is gay himself - although he is in fierce denial. He expresses his sexuality through clandestine pick-ups and online sex, which often end in violence. But when he falls in love with a French exchange student, he has to make some serious decisions.

While homophobia and the difficulty of coming out in a hostile environment are central themes, it is the nihilistic viciousness of the young teenagers that provides a shocking wake-up call.

By no means unusual, they are the product of a system that provides little support or encouragement for youth at risk. Left to their own means, they follow a pack mentality that favours the strong and puts down the weak - and tolerates no difference.

For Cal to break out means cutting all ties with his past - which he discovers at a price. Explicit, raw and moving, Shank lingers long after the credits have rolled.

2009-08-26T14:06:00.001-07:00

Shanked by the BFI

A Story by Darryl W Bullock

A feature from 3Sixty Magazine about how the British film industry fails to support the UK's gay film-makers

After another successful run this year’s London Lesbian and Gay Film festival is now touring the country, taking the cream of gay film-making out of the capitol and into cinemas in around 30 towns and cities, including Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Dublin and Bristol. But although programmers might be congratulating themselves on a triumphant 23^rd season, some UK film makers are questioning the validity of a British film festival that only included a handful of British-made films.

According to figures from the British Film Institute (organisers of the Festival), just 23 UK-produced films made the cut this year, and only one was a full-length, narrative feature. One particular movie overlooked by the selectors is Shank, the debut feature from 20 year-old director Simon Pearce, an often violent, drug-fuelled portrait of a young man involved in Bristol’s gang scene struggling to come to terms with his sexuality.

Co-writer and producer Christian Martin, who has petitioned the BFI endlessly for the movie to be shown, tells 3Sixty that he cannot understand the logic behind their refusal to include the film. “The festival is supposed to showcase the best in gay cinema, and the BFI has a remit to support British movie makers,” he says. “Clearly they are not achieving either of those stated aims.”

Although the BFI found Shank unworthy of inclusion in the LLGFF an awful lot of other people disagree. The film has been programmed by 30 other International gay film festivals, has been picked up for distribution by TLA Releasing and last month Simon Pearce won an award for Best Emerging New Talent in Queer Cinema at the Miami Gay and Lesbian Film Festival. Sandra Hebron, Artistic Director of BFI Film Festivals, says: “Whilst a film may attract support from other quarters, our programmers are under no obligation to include it. Having viewed and discussed Shank they did not feel it was of sufficient merit to include.”

“In light of the fact that Simon has been recognised as an emerging talent the unfounded comments from the BFI that Shank has no quality or merit continues to astound me,” says Martin, who has had run-ins with the BFI in the past, although they refute any suggestion that their decision not to programme Shank was personally motivated. “They have written to confirm that they will not offer any support to the film; it’s been left to the rest of the world to do just that.”

But Shank is not the only British film overlooked for this year’s LLGFF. Mr Right, a romantic comedy from brother and sister team David and Jacqui Morris has also been receiving accolades and has been accepted by some of the world’s most prestigious gay film festivals including those in Berlin and Miami. NewFest, the New York Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Film Festival, one of the most comprehensive showcases of international LGBT film and video in the world, has chosen the movie to open this year’s festival.

Both Christian Martin and Jacqui Morris were incensed by an interview given to the Independent by LLGFF’s senior programmer Brian Robinson which claimed that the local film-making talent isn't there to take advantage of the showcase the annual festival provides. Adds Martin: “The international success that Shank and Mr Right are attracting at the very least demonstrates that the view that there is a lack of ‘local film making talent’ is wrong. Even if the assertion was correct, what is the BFI doing to help bridge this alarming gap in local talent and why doesn’t the LLGFF have a specific strand for new and emerging British talent?”

In his defence Robinson said: “We received over 800 films for consideration in the festival but have room for less than 200. We’re really passionate about the festival but only want to show films that we feel will appeal to our audience.” Lisa Daniel, director of the Melbourne Queer Film Festival (which programmed both Shank and Mr Right) finds the figures a little hard to swallow. “We received 430 submissions for our 2009 festival. Of those 152 were selected and screened, and 30 were Australian.” Domestic movies made up 20 percent of one of the world’s biggest gay film festivals: the LLGFF chose just 12 percent. Yet a spokesman for the BFI states: “None of the BFI’s objects require it to positively discriminate in favour of British Film.”

The importance of the LLGFF cannot be understated, and the festival’s endorsement can often be crucial to a film’s success, as Jacqui Morris tells 3Sixty: “When I completed the film it managed to attract the attention of a well known, mainstream distributor. We were in talks at the time for selection for the LGLFF and were absolutely devastated when we were turned down. We were given no proper explanation, just a second-hand message from Brian Robinson stating he felt it was a bit too long. I mailed him and explained that a screening at his festival could just tip the scales in our favour. I explained we were first timers, and that I wasn't disputing his comments. In fact, I pretty much begged him to find us a slot but there was no response. We didn't secure the distribution deal, and although we'll never really know why, without a doubt, acceptance from our home turf would have played a significant part.

“Highly-paid people are making decisions that affect the livelihoods of British film crews, and they should be held accountable. Considering the magnificent talent we have in this country it's shameful and scandalous that the British film industry isn't a healthy, thriving, money making business. But when you have one of its leading ambassadors making irresponsible comments about the lack of British talent, what hope do we have?”

Lee Gunther, of TLA Releasing, says: “The LLGFF is important to us as a distributor as it's the highest-profile and best-attended lesbian and gay film festival in the UK. It's always great to be a part of it for any filmmaker or distributor as we should embrace every opportunity to celebrate and promote the genre.

“I don't necessarily think the festival should be biased towards British-made gay films; the most important factor should always be the quality and relevance of the production. However, I do think that the LLGFF audiences are interested in seeing what British gay cinema has to offer and it's always beneficial to support home-grown talent, so it is important for these films to be a part of the programme.”

“We understand that a film-maker is very close to his project and is upset when his film is not selected, and we appreciate all of the labour that goes into making a film but, at the end of the day, we’re not film-makers,” Brian Robinson adds. “What we are is a small team of six who spend three months trawling through film festivals and watching DVDs to choose the films we feel will work best for a balanced festival.”

2009-08-26T13:50:00.000-07:00

Autumn European and Worldwide Festivals showing SHANK

5th - 16th September - Johannesburg & Capetown - South Africa - Out in Africa

Everynight from 11th - 17th September 8:10pm The Watershed Bristol England - box office

+44 (0)117 927 5100

30th August - 6th September Budapest Hungary - Hungary Pride Festival

3rd September - Opening Night Film - Glasgay - Glasgow Film Theatre - Scotland

14th September - Greenwich Picturehouse - London

18th - 26th October - Lisbon - Portugal

16th - 25th October - Barcelona - Nominated for a Diversity Award

28th November - 5th December 2009 - Slovenia

16th - 25th October - Copenhagen

30th September - OSLO

20th November - 1st December 2009 - Hong Kong

More to follow......watch this space - by the end of 2009 SHANK will have been invited to over 37 International Film Festivals and played in over 45 cities Worldwide! We are immensely proud of this achievement and want to thank everyone for their support.....it's been a great run so far and we can announce that you can look forward to the next film - RELEASE - which is now being edited and promises more of the same....just with a Catholic twist......RELEASE website to go live soon!

2009-08-26T13:48:00.001-07:00

A selection of Autumn Festival Dates in the USA for SHANK

· August 13-16, 2009 North Carolina Gay & Lesbian Film Festival

· August 13-23, 2009 (Scheduled August 16, 2009) Vancouver Queer Film Festival

· September 11- 17, 2009 (Scheduled September 14) Outflix Memphis

· September 19, 2009 Fresno Reel Pride

· September 17-26, 2009 (Scheduled September 20, 2009) Atlantic Film Festival

· September 25-27, 2009 (Scheduled Sat., Sept. 26, 2009) Downtown Dayton GLBT Film Festival

· October 8-18, 2009 (Sched October 10, 2009) Tampa GLBT Film Festival

· October 15-24, 2009 (Sched October 20, 2009) Reel Affirmations/DC

· October 16-25, 2009 (Sched October 18, 2009) Seattle Lesbian Gay Film Festival

2009-08-16T15:03:00.001-07:00

What’s the deal with British men?

(Courtesy of Out On Screen - VANCOUVER)

Fifty years ago, Saturday Night and Sunday Morning, the 1960 film adaptation of British author Alan Sillitoe’s novel about a depressed blue-collar worker, started the Angry Young Man movement in British cinema. Then 10 years later A Clockwork Orange had to be banned in the United Kingdom because it was making a whole new generation of angry young men break things and hurt people.

Now, three decades later, from this land of angry young men comes Shank.

Set in Bristol, England where Banksy’s graffiti artwork of a death’s head has permanently replaced the “have a nice day” smiley face, the men are angrier than they’ve ever been.

Being angry young men of the post-Stonewall era they are, of course, angriest about the existence of the Happy Young Fag. And they spend their days calling each other fags and bashing gay men.

What they don’t know, however, is that gang member Cal is having anonymous sex with some of the gay men they bash.

Our story begins with one of Cal’s hook-ups. Parked in a secluded area of the woods, Cal shares his cocaine, mouth and ass with the stranger — all the while telling him to capture the action with his cellphone. When the man dares to ask for a second date Cal goes Ultimate Fight Club on him, leaving him bloodied, disbelieving and looking for answers as to how such a perfect date could end so badly. Back home Cal uploads the cellphone footage to his computer and watches in hot, disgusted disbelief over how he spent his afternoon.

When Cal suddenly defends and befriends one of the guys his group is bashing (a soft-spoken student in a bright pink shirt named Olivier) he has to confront his repressed gay feelings. Meanwhile Cal’s previous hook-up, who also happens to be Olivier’s professor, is slowly figuring out the identity of his student’s new boyfriend.

Intellectually masturbating over his own victimhood — the professor blames Cal’s violence toward him on the popular academic theories of desensitized and disenfranchised youth — he comes to the sad summation familiar to any gay elder in search of younger: he tells himself that Cal was a welcome, dangerous “distraction from my shitty existence.”

Complicating matters is Cal’s gang. Will Cal be brave enough to stand up to them and own his queer desire? Or will Cal be the next gay they bash?

“One of the incidents we based the story on was this young girl in Bristol who was the leader of a gang who beat up this 17-year-old French student who was on his way to a local gay cruising ground,” says Shank’s producer and co-writer, Christian Martin, over the phone from England. He says the movie is based on so many stories that no one talks about, especially youth. “They go out, go to clubs and they get pissed and they [go home with] some young guy and they think it’s all free and easy. But it isn’t. Because they’re walking out of that club and they’re still getting beaten up,” Martin observes.

Watching a gay basher work through his self-loathing while living in the UK where, according to a Seinfeld episode, all men just seem to act gay, is a really unique movie going experience.

Even better, Shank is gutsy enough — remember we’re talking about England here — to have a sunbathing Olivier ask Cal to rub suntan lotion on his young, pasty white back.

And forget about all the nudity and did-they-or-didn’t-they eye-popping sex scenes in Shank (of which there are plenty); what you’ll be replaying in your head is blowback scene with Cal and his hunkiest bud, Jonno — one sharing a lungful of marijuana with the other by leaning in ever so close to him and exhaling the smoke into his open mouth.

Interestingly, the biggest controversy about Shank isn’t its sex, the violence, the fact that its director is only 21-years-old, or that it was refused by Britain’s version of Out On Screen. Shank’s lightning bolt is the effeminate Olivier character, which Martin wanted as a flip side to the macho Jonno.

“[Jonno’s] a stereotype [audiences] can cope with,” he notes, “while for gay men [Olivier’s] the stereotype they don’t want to be.”

Shank.

Granville 7. Vancouver

Sun Aug 16, 9:30 pm.

2009-07-03T15:30:00.000-07:00

2009-06-21T14:14:00.000-07:00

FROM SIMON FULTON - DIRECTOR OF PROGRAMMING OUTTAKES FESTIVAL - NEW ZEALAND

[Shank] A very raw and moving film about coming out and coming of age.

[Shank] Great...Although a little disturbing.

"Shank" should have been the opening movie, its subject matter i.e. gay bashing, coming out story, and a great twist at the end made for a better movie than "Mr Right" which had a predictable script.

[Shank] A slightly disturbing movie - the toss up for me was between Shank and Were the World Mine. Both great in their own way - the gritty realism of Shank won out over the beautiful boys and the beautiful voices of Were the world mine.

[Shank] Loved it!

[Shank] This one really surprised me, had not expected such a good film, well acted by a group of young beginners in the profession. And despite the violence and the gloom - a happy ending for our heroes!

[Shank] Totally amazing movie... sexy, gritty and something that talks about gay life in today's environment.

[Shank] Showed a very different side to struggling with being gay at a young age. I may be soppy but it was good to see love overcome all, or at least offer a new beginning against the odds. Was quite convincingly acted.

...hope you find that interesting!

Cheers,

Simon
Out Takes
NZ

2009-05-19T13:42:00.000-07:00

2009-05-19T13:36:00.000-07:00

2009-05-19T13:33:00.000-07:00

news

2009-05-19T13:32:00.000-07:00

http://www.homovision.tv/gay-brit-flick-shank-wins-miami-award/

2009-05-14T02:45:00.000-07:00

2009-05-14T02:43:00.000-07:00

2009-05-14T02:42:00.000-07:00

2009-05-14T02:41:00.000-07:00

WIRE MAGAZINE Telephone Interview MIAMI

2009-04-26T03:33:00.000-07:00

2009-04-09T09:19:00.000-07:00

Thanks to everyone in Melbourne for having the World Premiere of SHANK .....a sell out and we were delighted that Garry Summers who plays SCOTT was able to represent the film.....all the way down there....sorry we couldn't all make it......

2009-04-09T09:17:00.000-07:00

Catch it while you can and if you can make it to Turin. SHANK will be taking part in a premier European festival - Turin. 23rd April - 30th April 2009 ....more to follow

2009-04-09T09:14:00.000-07:00

"We're very excited to present your work in Toronto" - Jason St-Laurent Director of Programming Inside Out - Toronto

SHANK has been selected and invited to Screen at this prestigious Gay & Lesbian film festival 14th May - 24th May 2009

2009-04-09T09:11:00.000-07:00

Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival

2009-04-09T09:08:00.000-07:00

2009-02-13T16:27:00.000-08:00

2009-02-13T16:24:00.000-08:00

MIAMI Lesbian & Gay Film Festival 2009 24th April - 3rd May

SHANK has been invited and will be playing.....North American Premiere.

http://www.mglff.com/

2009-02-02T06:30:00.001-08:00

"I'm looking forward to the lively discussions your film will undoubtedly provoke." Rudi Furstberger - Programming Director - Verzaubert

2009-02-02T05:02:00.000-08:00

2009-02-02T04:54:00.000-08:00

SHANK invited to Verzaubert Film Festival - a 4 city festival

Berlin 18 - 25 March

Frankfurt 25 March - 1st April

Cologne 26 March - 2nd April

Munich 1st - 8th April

2009-01-27T05:28:00.000-08:00

SHANK is nearing completion of post-production......completion and delivery 20th February 2009

In the meantime interest begins from international festivals - SHANK will have it's world premiere at the Melbourne Queer Film Festival 2009 .....follow the link below and scroll down to read the sneak preview about the MQFF

http://richard_watts.blogspot.com

2008-09-13T04:08:00.000-07:00

Worlds collide as the lives of Cal and Olivier intersect in SHANK, a gritty coming of age/rites of passage drama. Check out full details on http://www.shank-movie.co.uk