The Wanting Mare
| The Wanting Mare | |
|---|---|
 Film poster | |
| Directed by | Nicholas Ashe Bateman |
| Written by | Nicholas Ashe Bateman |
| Produced by | Nicholas Ashe Bateman, David A. Ross, Z. Scott Schaefer, Lawrence Inglee |
| Cinematography | David A. Ross |
| Edited by | Nicholas Ashe Bateman |
| Music by | Aaron Boudreaux |
| Distributed by | Gravitas Ventures |
Release dates |
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Running time | 89 minutes[2] |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
The Wanting Mare is a 2020 fantasy science fiction film written and directed by Nicholas Ashe Bateman.
Plot
In a high fantasy world called Anmaere, north of the city of Whithren, wild horses run through the moorlands and up the coast. These horses are the city’s most valuable export and, as a result, are hunted, trapped, sold, and shipped across the sea once a year. For those in Whithren, this trade passage creates lucrative and exciting possibilities: the chance to escape their constantly sweltering city and escape to the Western continent of Levithen, or simply to begin again.
Meanwhile, in a small house just north of the city, a young woman dies in childbirth. Her last words are an attempt to tell her daughter of the life she’ll have and her inheritance of a recurring dream that must be kept secret – for it contains the memories of another age long before us, one where magic and myth were alive in the world.
That daughter now left behind is Moira. She grows alone in Whithren, without anyone to explain her dream, her unique difference, or her place in the world. As a result, she resolves to leave Whithren at all costs, and employs the help of Lawrence, a wounded young man engaged in the criminal enterprise of stealing tickets.
This begins a series of events that echo over the next thirty-five years of their life, the life of a child found screaming on the rocks, and through the alleys and coasts of Whithren…a city hidden in the fog, wanting in heat, now beginning again. [3]
Cast
- Jordan Monaghan - young Moira
- Christine Kellogg-Darrin - old Moira
- Nicholas Ashe Bateman - young Lawrence
- Josh Clark - old Lawrence
- Yasamin Keshtkar - Eirah
- Edmond Cofie - Hadeon
- Maxine Muster - Elien
Development
The Wanting Mare is Bateman's first feature-length film; he did not attend film school and worked independently on the film's development, part of which was funded through a campaign on the crowdsourcing website Indiegogo.[4] Shane Carruth was involved with executive production for a time, but he removed his name from the project in 2020 after accusations of abuse against him were made public.[5]
The movie was made over the course of five years with a limited crew. While there were parts of the film shot in Baltimore and Nova Scotia, the movie was largely filmed on green screen in Paterson, New Jersey, utilizing minimal practical elements and digital sets made over the five-year stretch by Bateman, producer/gaffer Z. Scott Schaefer, producer/Director of Photography David A. Ross, Production Designer/ Co-Producer Cassandra Louise Baker, and co-producer Ger Condez [6].
Reception
The film received positive reviews from Wired[7] and mixed reviews from IndieWire,[8] RogerEbert.com,[9] Variety,[4] and Polygon.[10]
References
- ^ Review, Screen Anarchy, May 22, 2020.
- ^ Review, Austin Chronicle. February 12, 2021.
- ^ https://www.slashfilm.com/the-wanting-mare-trailer-new/
- ^ a b Review, Variety, February 5, 2021
- ^ https://variety.com/2021/film/reviews/the-wanting-mare-review-1234902355/
- ^ https://beforesandafters.com/2021/01/20/this-indie-film-with-more-than-500-vfx-shots-took-more-than-5-years-to-make/
- ^ Review, Wired, February 12, 2021
- ^ Review, IndieWire, February 5, 2021
- ^ Review, RogerEbert.com, February 5, 2021
- ^ Review, Polygon, February 4, 2021.