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It’s a crazy comedy of love, therapy, shagging — and vegetables.

The West Wittering Affair, one of the competition features for the Bermuda International Film Festival, is a ‘romantic revenge’ comedy about four Londoners and their life after a crazy weekend in the country.

Director David Scheinmann, who created the film with his brother Danny, describes The West Wittering Affair as “A small film with a big heart. An ultra low budget independent British romantic ‘dramedy’ about love, shagging, therapy and a curious take on revenge involving fruit and vegetables.”

The film begins when Kath plans to seduce Jamie by inviting him for a weekend in West Wittering. To make her plan less obvious, she also invites another couple, her friends Greg and Natasha.

What Kath doesn’t know is that Greg has recently lied to Natasha about having an affair to test her love. Needless to say the four friends’ weekend has jolting repercussions and it finally takes a two-year-old, Polly, to bring them all to their senses.

Improvised

The film began not so much as a film, but as a filmed actors’ improvisation workshop. The actors in the workshop each chose to play characters based on themselves. Scheinmann says that the result of the workshop seems to articulate the inner voice of the society culture and generation to which the film-makers and actors themselves belong.

He added that both he and his brother have relationship histories that could just as easily be the starting point for a movie, but the film is about people like them, not them.

Scheinmann adds that the world of relationship angst is ripe for comedy as well as more heart-felt emotions.

“Mostly we want to entertain and amuse by expressing certain truisms with which an audience can identify,” he said.

“Due to the unusual way in which The West Wittering Affair was made no message was actually planned or dreamed up. Through improvisation a story began to emerge. Our story telling process was a kind of emotional research through drama.

“Successful research often leads to discovery. This is how the story evolved and reached its conclusion and therefore its message. That message is neatly summed up by the words of John Lennon — ‘Life is what happens to you when you are making other plans’.”

The Scheinmann brothers both plan to work together again on films, this first project together having worked out well for them.

David Scheinmann says that they are currently story lining their next project and keeping the same ensemble from The West Wittering Affair together, as well as opening up the casting to allow for some notable cameos.

The West Wittering Affair will screen at Liberty Theatre on March 17 at 7pm, and at Little Theatre on March 19 at 4pm.[[In-content Ad]]

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