"aWake" an intense 60 minute feature film shot in two single continuous shots. It was shot in Ireland. It is the debut feature film of Irish filmmaker Mark McAuley (Writer / Director / Actor). It follows 4 characters over the course of an evening following the funeral of one of their old friends. The film takes place in one location - the house of the deceased man.

It is a psychological drama shot in black and white.

Film references include GET OUT and MULHOLLAND DRIVE.

This film is about facing the past, conquering your fears, and finding closure. We all need to face our fears to move on in life. The mechanisms we use to protect ourselves, often start to harm us, and our relationships. aWake is an on the edge of your seat psychological drama.

The film's characters are all damaged from a chilling event that happened 10 years ago. They return to the scene of the incident in the hope of reconciling their past. They will never be able to find peace, or move on, until the truth is finally revealed.

HOW WE MADE THE FILM

THE SCRIPT I mapped out the film in terms of story beats. Basically, what happens in the scene and the characters involved. I then ran a series of workshops with the actors over 5 full days. We improvised around the scenes under my direction. I recorded these improvisations and based on these I wrote the script.

THE SHOOT Day 1 - We spent a day on location with the cast and crew. Here we mapped out the movements of the actors and where the crew could go. Very similar to the approach I would take with a stage play. As it was a continuous shot we had to hide the crew so that they could not be seen on camera when the actors moved. It was a giant piece of choreography.

Day 2 - We shot the film. Take 1 was a 35 minute single shot. We took a break for approx. 30mins. Then we went again. After lunch we did the same again. So a total of 4 takes, each one being 35 mins long.

THE EDIT The original plan was to stitch the two 35 minute takes together into a 70 minute film. But when we looked at the footage we decided that it would be better to play around with the footage. Making the film leaner and more interesting from a story perspective. The film was shot in one day and in two single (continuous shots). This approach was as much a creative choice as it was for budgetary reasons.

THE APPROACH AND WHY I wanted the actors to get back to working “in the moment”. Like a stage play. In the Stanislavsky studios (where I trained) some of the best work I ever saw was situational improvisation. With a one shot it forces the actor to be “in the moment”. There is no resetting and going again. I wanted the cast and crew to walk a creative tightrope. Resulting in dynamic and natural performances. I really feel we achieved this with the project. I am very excited to present this feature film.

CAST Lacy Moore - 'Game of Thrones', 'The Fall, 'Throw Your Heart Over First', 'Age Of The Living Dead' Kojii DeBurca - 'Here Are The Young Men', 'Krypton, 'Striking Out Sadhbh Larkin Coyle - 'Hope', 'The Feature Mark McAuley - 'Vikings', 'Into The Badlands', 'Throw Your Heart Over First', 'Saol'.

Mark’s last short film 'Throw Your Heart Over First', was nominated for number of awards at festivals. It won a "Best Performance" award at the Focus Shorts Film Festival, London. It also played at the prestigious Newport Beach Film Festival 2022.

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT THE FILM “It’s a humorous and, at times, heartbreaking narrative that I hope many others will have the privilege of seeing, as I did. A visually striking feature with an incredible ensemble cast..." Derek Masterson

“...a very brave and highly creative project, it was absolutely brilliant!” - Bairbre O’Toole

"...loved the darkness and the wit, all wrapped up in claustrophobia…” - Jennie Ridyard

“Really enjoyed watching it and was fascinated at the directorial choices….. A superb cast, dialogue and how things are revealed.” - Derek Ugochukwu