Brett Harvey | |
---|---|
Occupations | |
Years active | 2003– |
Notable work | Weekend Retreat (2011) |
Brett Harvey is a film writer and director based in Cornwall. His debut feature film Weekend Retreat (2011), which premièred at the Cornwall Film Festival won several awards.[1]
Harvey grew up in Malabar, Truro[2] He attended Richard Lander School[3] and later studied film at St Helens College and Truro College.[4] Harvey has two brothers: Simon Harvey and Dan Harvey. He later starred alongside them in the play Superstition Mountain.[5] Simon founded Rough Cut, a regular film night organised by o-region in association with DOGBITE film crew, which Brett is currently the programmer and regular contributor to.[6]
"I became a film-maker by mistake...I'd always loved films but never dreamed of making one myself. The first film was a joke, just something to do one night. We didn't have a script, we didn't even have a story, just some costumes and tomato ketchup. The resulting film, Zombies, was premiered at a house party to a room of 80 drunk college students. From that moment on I was a film-maker."
Brett Harvey in Western Morning News (2010)[7]
Harvey has created more than 30 short films.[1] Harvey released a DVD in 2010, What I've done while I look for a real job which showed a collection of his short films.[4] It featured 15 shorts between 60 seconds to 15 minutes long.[7]
Harvey's first notable film The Curse (2003) was made for a Rough Cut film event and later won Best Amateur Film 2004 at Manchester Festival of Fantastic Films.[8][9]
The 'o-region' production Weekend Retreat which was funded by 'Feast' was written and directed by Harvey.[10] It was promoted as a "Cornish black comedy thriller"[1] and was described in The Cornishman as "Pulp Fiction meets Shaun of the Dead without the zombies".[11] It stars Esther Hall, Dominic Coleman and Dudley Sutton.[1] Harvey won Best Director for the film at the London Independent Film Festival which was celebrated in Truro with two consecutive showings of Weekend Retreat.[12] He has also won the Slate Golden Chough Award[2] and awards at "Manchester Festival of Fantastic Films, Fresh Five, Viewfinder, Cornwall Film Festival, International Film Festival of Wales,[13] Frightfest, Total Film magazine and was nominated for a BAFTA."[4]
Harvey's film An Jowl Yn Agas Kegin (The Devil in Your Kitchen) was an English subtitled film with spoken Cornish.[14]
Harvey is an associate lecturer of film at Falmouth University.[15]