A host of British screen stars have joined Charge Films and Deadbeat Films’ upcoming short film “Bury Your Gays.”
From writer/director Charlotte Serena Cooper, the film is billed as a “bold takedown of outdated LGBTQ+ tropes in film and TV mixed with dark comedy that satirises the harmful cinematic tradition of the same name.”
“Bury Your Gays” will be led by Jude Mack (“I Hate Suzie,” “Such Brave Girls”) and T’Nia Miller (“Years and Years,” “The Haunting of Bly Manor”). Miller — a long-time advocate for better queer representation on screen — also serves as an executive producer.
The cast also features Sophie Melville (“The Way”), Harry Trevaldwyn (“How to Train Your Dragon”), Blake Harrison (“The Inbetweeners”), Ella-Rae Smith (“Foundation”), Amelia Clarkson (“The Last Kingdom”) and Sule Rimi (“Day of the Jackal”).
The story follows actor Grace, who can’t understand why every role she lands ends in her untimely death — until a mysterious agent explains the ‘Bury Your Gays’ trope. Now, trapped in a genre-hopping battle for survival, Grace has one mission: do not die.
“I wrote this script as a direct response to the industry’s fixation with doomed and tragic gays,” said Cooper, who has worked in the script supervising department on blockbuster productions such as “Barbie,” “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” and “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.”
“Our film exposes a trope that’s been hiding in plain sight, shedding light on the fact that LGBTQ+ storytelling still has a long way to go,” added producer Charlotte Brownlee, whose experience includes “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power,” “The Flash,” “The Crown,” and the award-winning short “Travel Socks.”
“Some things are fun, some are important. ‘Bury Your Gays’ is both. ‘Bury Your Gays’ is a call to action,” said Miller. “It is a cautionary tale of what was, and a stark reminder to keep pushing against the status quo. “Bury Your Gays” represents every voice that is buried. How could I not take part?”
The short film is set to be developed into a feature-length production and has already earned significant acclaim, winning the Shore Scripts OutHere funding contest and securing a spot as a finalist in the prestigious Outstanding Screenplays competition. The success of the script led Cooper and Brownlee to partner with Deadbeat Films (“Devil’s Harmony,” “Swede Caroline”).
Executive producers on the project include Miller, Boris and Jack Thompson-Roylance, Anthony Toma, and Dan Hubbard. The film’s creative team includes veteran director of photography Dale McCready (“The Witcher,” “Day of the Jackal”), hair and make-up designer Gemma Hoff (“The Brutalist,” “Pieces of a Woman”) and editor Joshua Cunliffe (“My Lady Jane,” “Christmas Karma”).
The film is produced by U.K.-based companies Charge Films, which aims to champion and amplify female voices in film and TV, and Deadbeat Films. Principal photography wrapped in mid-January in London, with a release scheduled for this spring. Dan Hubbard Casting oversaw the casting.
