Claire Oakley

English Animals is about the exploitation of feelings. It looks at the outsider experience and explores themes of belonging, acceptance, respect and entitlement. It is also about a certain type of Britishness which, seen through Mirka’s eyes, is examined in a humorous and satirical way. The tone of the story will encapsulate this and luxuriate in the contradictions, hypocrisies and complications of this world. There are elements of psycho-sexual intrigue in the film and of awkward confrontations between classes. I want to explore these simmering tensions fully, capturing Mirka’s uncertainty, the watching, the waiting and the wanting. The performances will be naturalistic and unsentimental, the drama will be involving and the characters funny and deeply felt. The design will be detailed, rich and surprising. It will nod to the awkward humour in the story, leaning into Mirka’s expectations and using her point of view to discover the oddness of this world and of the couple’s traditions. The location will have something of the gothic about it, shadowy corridors and dead animals behind glass, but at other times it will feel cosy, warm and welcoming. I am interested in these shifting atmospheres and how they can deepen the audience’s experience of the story and closeness to Mirka and her journey. The camera style will be precise and still. I am interested in using composed shots through doorways, windows or foregrounded objects to create a sense of secrecy and a feeling that we are observing the drama as though it might be taking place in a doll’s house. These shots will be complimented by closer insert shots which will celebrate the objects in the house, focusing on the themes of history and tradition, as well as the details of the taxidermy.