"Suspenseful thriller" gets a screening with comedian Arthur Smith in sinister straight role

The Taxidermist will be shown on Friday, January 13 (11am-12 midday) at The Depot Cinema, Lewes – and yes, Friday 13 is completely deliberate as choice of date for the screening.

Chaz did his research as to how he might describe the film. A thriller is where you know who the baddie is; a suspense film is where you might know who the baddie is; and a thriller is where you have no idea who the baddie is: “So I would say this is a suspenseful thriller!

“It stars BBC radio/TV grump Arthur Smith who's best known for his comedy work. However, this film sees him performing in a very sinister straight role. The film also features Rory Gauld (Downton Abbey) and Horsham-based actress Holly-Marie who I worked with on Beneath the Cedar.”

“It is 10 minutes and there is a twist at the end. The story is about a student, a young man who's going on a date with a girl and we don't really know the background to them that much but you can tell that he is very nervous. He is beautifully played by Rory and he has got an awful bunch of flowers for her. You can tell that this is the kind of thing that he doesn't do very often. He turns up at her grandfather’s house. Her parents have died and she lives with her grandfather who is played by Arthur Smith and there is a very dark conversation between the two – Peter who is played by Rory and Mr Hyde who is played by Arthur.

“The piece is called The Taxidermist and there is a lot of taxidermy lying around, bits and bobs and you can tell that Arthur’s character is sounding the student out. He's going out with his precious granddaughter and Arthur’s character makes reference to him being fit and healthy and what a lovely specimen he is. He is a fit lad… and it is quite a dark conversation. There are lots of pauses. And then he goes upstairs and sees Holly-Marie’s character and they go on their date and then something happens...”

Chaz is revealing no more. You will have to see the film: “We were going to make the film last Christmas but Holly had a baby in May and we had to wait for Holly to be ready. We started shooting in June, and the shooting went very well. I got lots of other people involved. I roped in two cameras and I had two composers working on it as well. It's tough making a film on your own so I roped in a lot of other people this time.”

The fact that it was on a budget helped keep it short but Chaz also trimmed it to heighten the effect: “We did film all of the dialogue but I cut out about two and a half minutes. I've become quite brutal in my editing. I really wanted it to be punchy.”

As for what happens now: “It will be going into the film festivals but this time I am aiming for the higher-tier festivals, the ones that are a bit more challenging and a bit more likely to be seen by the professionals. It only takes one person to see it and to make a decision and the film could get picked up. This is still just a hobby of mine but I take it seriously and I think I am getting better at it.”

It all follows Chaz’s three-minute film last year. Featuring Holly-Marie, it can be seen on YouTube. Just search YouTube for Beneath the Cedar [My Rode Reel 2021]. It packs a huge amount into its 180 seconds: Jane has done a bad thing. But Tom did a bad thing first. On a warm autumn morning, the couple meet to discuss their feelings. Will the relationship survive their rendezvous?