First films announced for Hebden Bridge Film Festival including A Good Person, Blue Jean and The Blue Caftan

A Good Person, Blue Jean and The Blue Caftan are amongst the features being screened as part of the festival, which takes place across Hebden Bridge Picture House and Hebden Bridge Town Hall from March 24 to 26.

Many of the films being showcased at the festival will be followed by Q&A’s and panel discussions with special guests, including film directors, actors, writers and producers.

Written and directed by Golden-Globe nominee Zach Braff, A Good Person stars Florence Pugh and acting legend Morgan Freeman. Pugh stars as Allison, a young woman whose world falls apart when she survives an unimaginable tragedy and spirals into opioid addiction. Whilst in recovery she forms an unlikely friendship with her would-be father-in-law, Daniel (Freeman) as they discover that forgiveness and hope can flourish in unlikely places.

Receiving rave reviews and taking the international film festival circuit by storm, BAFTA-nominated British drama Blue Jean will screen as part of the festival and include a Q&A with actor Kerrie Hayes and producer Hélène Sifre, as well as Catherine Lee and Sarah Squires, who inspired the story.

Starring Rosy McEwen (National Theatre’s Othello, The Alienist), Kerrie Hayes (Black Mirror) and Lucy Halliday, Blue Jean is set in England, 1988, when Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative government are about to pass a law stigmatising gays and lesbians, forcing Jean, a PE teacher, to live a double life. As pressure mounts from all sides, the arrival of a new girl at school catalyses a crisis that will challenge Jean to her core.

Sarah Squires said: “As one of the original teachers who inspired the creation Blue Jean and shaped the early scripts, it is now thrilling for me to be part this event. I love returning to Hebden Bridge having lived here for seven years, and as an ardent fan of the Tod disco I also managed to get it mentioned in the film!”

One of the films bringing a global perspective to the festival is the critically acclaimed Moroccan title The Blue Caftan.

Directed by Maryam Touzani, the story follows Halim (Saleh Bakri) and Mina (Lubna Azabal), who run a traditional caftan store in one of Morocco’s oldest medinas. In order to keep up with demanding customers, they hire a talented young man, Yousef, (Ayoub Missioui) as an apprentice. Slowly Mina realises how much her husband is moved by his presence.

Previously announced for the festival is short film Incompatible, directed by festival Patron Maxine Peake and filmed around Hebden Bridge.

Hebden Bridge Festival Director, Louise Wadley, said: “We are so excited to have A Good Person, Blue Jean and The Blue Caftan confirmed for our 2023 programme. These are beautifully told, emotional and compelling stories that fit perfectly with our theme this year of ‘hope and resistance’. They have so far been shown at the likes of Cannes, Venice and Sundance festivals, so we are very lucky to have the opportunity to screen them in Hebden Bridge.

“This is just a taste of our line-up and there’s plenty more to come. Our full programme will feature even more critically acclaimed, highly anticipated new films, with multi award-winning actors and brilliant directors.”

www.hebdenbridgefilmfestival.org