| Leonard - 2001 |
| Award Links: Mental Health Media Awards 2002 - October Scottish TV - October Rod Hall Agency News - October Award for Lawson's Scottish Short - February Backround: This 30 minute short film was written by Richard Smith and produced by Stella Maris Films/Scottish Screen/Scottish Television. It was directed by Brian Kelly and co-starred Stewart Wilkinson. It was debuted at the Edinburgh International Film Festival on 17 August, 2001. Story: (From Scottish TV) It’s 8am, time for breakfast, pour myself a class of fresh orange juice. 8.02am toast some bread, fill a bowl of cornflakes and set the table. 8.04am, toast ready, cut off the crusts, wipe up the crumbs, butter the toast. 8.06am sit down for breakfast. 8.15am finished breakfast, time to clean up. 8.20am time to put some food out for the birds. Take two slices of plain white bread, cut off the crusts, then halve, halve again and halve again. Arrange neatly on a plain white plate in straight lines, place evenly spaced on bird table…wait for bird. Leonard (Denis Lawson) suffers from obsessive compulsive disorder, everything has to be meticulous, nothing is left to chance and routine is the rule. Life for Leonard hasn’t changed in many years and he finds security in his routine. He works from home as an accountant and every second of every day is accounted for, nothing is wasted. Until his long lost son arrives at his door. Callum (Stuart Wilkinson) is the complete opposite of his father, there is no strict routine and life is governed by opportunities. The initial meeting doesn’t go too well, Callum arrives at 8.50pm, 10 minutes before Leonard’s bedtime causing a wave of panic. Callum, noticing his father’s unease with the situation, decides that perhaps tea-time tomorrow would be better. Again chaos ensues, as Callum arrives early and has to wait patiently for his newly found father to finish his work. These are just two of a number of situations father and son find themselves in. All the while, through each scenario, both have come to recognise that there are many pluses in each other’s lifestyle. But can they find a middle ground? Both Denis Lawson and Stuart Wilkinson put in stunning performances for Leonard. This sweet, true-life drama is beautifully written and draws out the very best from the pair. After the screening at this year’s Edinburgh International Film Festival, critics agreed it was one of the best short films at the festival. |
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