The Wasting

The Wasting
Film poster
Directed by Carolyn Saunders
Produced by Jeanne Stromberg
Carolyn Saunders
Alan Hausegger
Written by Carolyn Saunders
Starring Lauren McQueen
Gray O'Brien
Alexz Johnson[1]
Music by Matthew Chung
Marko Koumoulas
Cinematography Michal Wisniowski
Edited by Diane Brunjes
Production
company
Endzone Films
Stromhaus Productions
Distributed by Indiecan Entertainment (Canada)
Release date
  • 13 January 2017 (2017-01-13) (Borrego Springs Film Festival)[2]
  • 1 June 2018 (2018-06-01) (Canada)[3]
Running time
 93 minutes
Country Canada
United Kingdom
Language English

The Wasting is a 2017 Canadian-British drama film written and directed by Carolyn Saunders. It screened at film festivals in Europe and North America, winning Best Horror at the 2017 Austrian Independent Film Festival[4] and Best Feature awards in two categories at the Vittorio Veneto film festival.[5] The movie's public premiere took place in Toronto on March 2, 2018,[6] and it was released online in the United States and Canada in June 2018.[3]

Plot

A teenage woman faces emotional challenges – a budding romance with her new boyfriend and growing conflicts with her father's strictness. While trying to deal with these issues, she stops eating. While her health deteriorates because of her eating disorder, she sees the ghost of a frightening old woman every night. Her friends and family believe these sightings are hallucinatory or mere nightmares. With no one believing her, she must search for a solution.[7]

Cast

Production

Writer-director Saunders said that her inspiration came while writing for the documentary series Ghostly Encounters, when she met an anorexic young woman whom nobody believed was visited nightly by a ghost.[8] The woman's story became the television episode, "Anorexia and the Haunting Hag,"[9] and, intrigued by the relationship between eating disorders and the supernatural, Saunders wrote The Wasting.

Initially, the filmmakers attempted to fund the movie through the Canadian Film Centre's CFC Features program, which would have required filming in Canada.[10] When Canadian Film Centre funding was unavailable, production was moved to Upton-upon-Severn in Worcestershire, U.K.,[11] to benefit from the UK Film Tax Relief program and the availability of experienced crew and actors.[12]

During early development of the film, Saunders approached her friend Alexz Johnson to participate as actor, musician, and co-producer.[13] Saunders described the movie as a "family affair," as her sons, Brendan Flynn and Sean Stevenson appear in the cast as brothers.[14]

Release

The Wasting premiered to excellent reviews at the 2017 Borrego Springs Film Festival in Borrego Springs, California. [2] The film won the Best Horror award at the 2017 Austrian Independent Film Festival,[4] and was an official selection at the Carmarthen Bay Film Festival,[15] the Madeira Film Festival, and the Nevada Women's Film Festival. At the Vittorio Veneto film festival, The Wasting won the Monte Pizzoc and Monte Visentin awards, voted by more than 1000 young adults in the audience.[16][17][5]

North American rights to distribute The Wasting were acquired by IndieCan Entertainment in 2017.[18][19] In 2018, the North American premiere of the film was took place in Toronto.[6] The online release of the film for Canada and the United States took place in June 2018.[3]

Critical reception

At its Borrego Springs Film Festival premiere, Steve Oldfield of FoxTV called The Wasting "a mind-bending visual feast" and said "director Carolyn Saunders' first feature shows she is a force to be reckoned with - a visual storyteller with a gift for creating suspense." After a sold out premiere screening in Toronto, The Extra Mile said "Saunders has woven many visual and sound elements to create a compelling film that shines a light on perception and reality," praising Lauren McQueen's "stellar performance" and the "poignant portrayals of Johnson, Flynn and Stevenson."[20] Leora Heilbronn in Brief Take said "there’s a hauntingly ghoulish subplot in there that’s reminiscent of a Gaskell or Poe story, but the film also tackles the all too prevalent acceptance of toxic masculinity and anorexia in a refreshingly original way."[21] Edmonton Movie Guide called it "a thoughtful, complex film" in which "the characters are well drawn and realistic, strongly portrayed by the young, highly watchable cast."[22] Other reviews were mixed, and mostly positive. [23][24][25][26]

References

  1. 1 2 "Alexz Johnson Biography". Tribute. Retrieved February 21, 2018.
  2. 1 2 ""The Wasting" Screening Schedule". Borrego Springs Film Festival. January 13, 2017. Retrieved February 19, 2018.
  3. 1 2 3 "The Wasting on Amazon". Amazon. Retrieved June 16, 2018.
  4. 1 2 "Austrian Indie Adler Awards 2017". Austrian Film Festival. Retrieved February 19, 2018.
  5. 1 2 "Vittorio Veneto Film Festival, ecco i vincitori" [Vittorio Veneto Film Festival, here are the winners]. Oggi Treviso (in Italian). August 5, 2017. Retrieved February 21, 2018.
  6. 1 2 "#Review The Wasting". The Xtra Mile. March 2, 2018. Retrieved March 5, 2018.
  7. ↑ Musivision (March 25, 2015). "Canada shines in the INDIEGOGO Spotlight". FilmFestivals.com.
  8. ↑ "5 Q's w/Carolyn Saunders "The Wasting" Director". Borrego Springs Film Festival. January 12, 2017. Retrieved February 19, 2018.
  9. ↑ "Anorexia and the Haunting Hag". TV Guide. April 21, 2006. Retrieved February 19, 2018.
  10. ↑ "CFC Features". Canadian Film Centre. Retrieved February 19, 2018.
  11. ↑ Pinto, Jordan (November 30, 2015). "Carolyn Saunders on building out 'The Wasting'". Playback. Retrieved February 19, 2018.
  12. ↑ Deehan, Tom (November 10, 2015). "The Wasting filming on location in Upton". On Location. Retrieved February 21, 2018.
  13. ↑ Heilbronn, Laura (March 3, 2018). "Interview: The Wasting's Alexz Johnson". BriefTake. Retrieved March 5, 2018.
  14. ↑ Klassen, Judith (December 14, 2014). "Canada's Call Sheet - Teenaged Wasteland". Judecast. Retrieved March 5, 2018.
  15. ↑ Morrow, Jerome (May 16, 2017). "BAFTA qualifying Carmarthen Bay Film Festival announces 2017 winners". Screen Anarchy. Retrieved February 21, 2018.
  16. ↑ Editorial Board (August 5, 2017). "Vittorio Veneto Film Festival 2017: Programma e Vincitori" [Vittorio Veneto Film Festival 2017: Program and Winners]. Movietele (in Italian). Retrieved February 21, 2018.
  17. ↑ "The wasting della canadese Saunders sul trono del Film Festival per ragazzi" [Canadian Saunders's The Wasting on the throne of the Film Festival for Children]. Il Gazzettino (in Italian). May 7, 2017. Retrieved February 21, 2018. (subscription required)
  18. ↑ Miska, Brad (July 31, 2017). "Hunger Strike Brings Out the Demons in 'The Wasting'". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved February 21, 2018.
  19. ↑ Kay, Jeremy (July 28, 2017). "Indiecan Entertainment acquires 'The Wasting'". Screen Daily. Retrieved February 21, 2018.
  20. ↑ "#REVIEW The Wasting | The Xtra Mile". thextramileca.com. Retrieved 2018-03-08.
  21. ↑ "Interview: The Wasting's Alexz Johnson - Brief Take". Brief Take. 2018-03-02. Retrieved 2018-03-08.
  22. ↑ "The Wasting Reviews and Ratings | Movie Reviews | Edmonton Movie Guide". Edmonton Movie Guide. Retrieved 2018-03-08.
  23. ↑ "Film Review: "The Wasting" (2017)". Let the Movie Move Us. February 22, 2018. Retrieved March 5, 2018.
  24. ↑ Robinson, Andrew (March 2, 2018). "Our Review of: 'The Wasting'". In the Seats. Retrieved March 7, 2018.
  25. ↑ "The Wasting User Reviews - 5.00/5". Tribute.ca. Retrieved March 7, 2018.
  26. ↑ Babiera, Angelica (March 2, 2018). "Don't waste on self-love". Excalibur Publications. Retrieved March 7, 2018.
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