Eden Valley (film)
Encyclopedia
Eden Valley is a 1994
British
drama film
conceived, written, produced, directed, photographed and edited by the Amber Production Team.
The main character in the film, Hoggy, abandoned his wife and son ten years earlier to establish himself in an alternative lifestyle, living in a caravan and caring for his horses. The world gets turned upside down by the arrival of his teenage son, who has a prison sentence hanging over him. Billy has lived his life on an inner-city housing estate, and in his lifestyle theft and drugs are the norm. Using dramatic seasonal changes within the horse-trainer's environment the film follows the development of this fragile relationship. Both father’s and son's value systems are tested, with dramatic consequences.
, which was released in 1985. This film depicted the lives of seacoalers on the Northumberland
coast, and introduced members of Amber to a passion for horses, and the addictive pursuit of harness racing. The Laidler family, who were featured in Seacoal
, proved to have a profound impact. It was they who talked some members of the Amber Production Team into buying their first horse, taught them the rudiments of training and driving, and encouraged their bartering and re-cycling skills. The Laidlers wove the web that pulled Amber into the activity, and secured entry into their environment and the world of harness racing.
Amber's method of working is based on building long-term relationships within communities. Their aim is to enter into people's lives in a way that provides an authenticity to film-making that goes beyond simple realism. After becoming established in the harness racing community, Amber introduced actor Brian Hogg into it. His character, Hoggy, was developed over a period during which Brian immersed himself in the lifestyle, contributed to the development of the script, and participated in other essential tasks such as set building and horse training.
In contrast, Darren Bell, who played Billy, his son, came directly into his first film role from a background of life on an inner-city housing estate. The film was shot sequentially to facilitate Billy's introduction into an initially alien environment and to reflect on the story of Billy. The film schedule spanned a twelve-month period. We worked with a small crew, two main characters and considerable good will from the harness racing community.
in 1985. Amber argues that "all Amber members are involved in all the different areas of operation". Whilst individual members eventually take on specific roles - director, sound recordist, cinematographer - during specific productions, the project's ongoing development is collectively owned by all those involved. Amber therefore credit their films collectively, rather than singling out individuals for roles in the production that are deemed socially superior by conventional society.
1994 in film
1994 was a significant year in film.The top grosser worldwide was The Lion King, which to date stands as the highest-grossing traditionally-animated film of all time...
British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
drama film
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
conceived, written, produced, directed, photographed and edited by the Amber Production Team.
Plot
The film is set within a harness racing fraternity and explores the conflict between urban and rural values through the medium of an evolving relationship between father and son.The main character in the film, Hoggy, abandoned his wife and son ten years earlier to establish himself in an alternative lifestyle, living in a caravan and caring for his horses. The world gets turned upside down by the arrival of his teenage son, who has a prison sentence hanging over him. Billy has lived his life on an inner-city housing estate, and in his lifestyle theft and drugs are the norm. Using dramatic seasonal changes within the horse-trainer's environment the film follows the development of this fragile relationship. Both father’s and son's value systems are tested, with dramatic consequences.
Production
The roots of the film lie in the making of SeacoalSeacoal (film)
Seacoal is a British docudrama film about the harsh industrialised beach of Lynemouth, Northumberland, and the local residents of the Lynemouth traveller camp. The film stars many of the local travellers as themselves, and many well known north-east actors, such as Sammy Johnson.-Plot:Ray drives...
, which was released in 1985. This film depicted the lives of seacoalers on the Northumberland
Northumberland
Northumberland is the northernmost ceremonial county and a unitary district in North East England. For Eurostat purposes Northumberland is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "Northumberland and Tyne and Wear" NUTS 2 region...
coast, and introduced members of Amber to a passion for horses, and the addictive pursuit of harness racing. The Laidler family, who were featured in Seacoal
Seacoal (film)
Seacoal is a British docudrama film about the harsh industrialised beach of Lynemouth, Northumberland, and the local residents of the Lynemouth traveller camp. The film stars many of the local travellers as themselves, and many well known north-east actors, such as Sammy Johnson.-Plot:Ray drives...
, proved to have a profound impact. It was they who talked some members of the Amber Production Team into buying their first horse, taught them the rudiments of training and driving, and encouraged their bartering and re-cycling skills. The Laidlers wove the web that pulled Amber into the activity, and secured entry into their environment and the world of harness racing.
Amber's method of working is based on building long-term relationships within communities. Their aim is to enter into people's lives in a way that provides an authenticity to film-making that goes beyond simple realism. After becoming established in the harness racing community, Amber introduced actor Brian Hogg into it. His character, Hoggy, was developed over a period during which Brian immersed himself in the lifestyle, contributed to the development of the script, and participated in other essential tasks such as set building and horse training.
In contrast, Darren Bell, who played Billy, his son, came directly into his first film role from a background of life on an inner-city housing estate. The film was shot sequentially to facilitate Billy's introduction into an initially alien environment and to reflect on the story of Billy. The film schedule spanned a twelve-month period. We worked with a small crew, two main characters and considerable good will from the harness racing community.
Amber Credits Policy
Amber Films introduced a policy of collective crediting of its films with the release of SeacoalSeacoal (film)
Seacoal is a British docudrama film about the harsh industrialised beach of Lynemouth, Northumberland, and the local residents of the Lynemouth traveller camp. The film stars many of the local travellers as themselves, and many well known north-east actors, such as Sammy Johnson.-Plot:Ray drives...
in 1985. Amber argues that "all Amber members are involved in all the different areas of operation". Whilst individual members eventually take on specific roles - director, sound recordist, cinematographer - during specific productions, the project's ongoing development is collectively owned by all those involved. Amber therefore credit their films collectively, rather than singling out individuals for roles in the production that are deemed socially superior by conventional society.
Selected cast
- Brian Hogg as Hoggy
- Darren Bell as Billy Hogg
- Mike Elliot as Danker
- Jimmy Killeen as Probation Officer
- Wayne Buck as Young Lad
- Kevin Buck as Young Lad
- John MiddletonJohn Middleton (actor)John Middleton is an English actor well known for his part in ITV's Emmerdale as Reverend Ashley Thomas...
*Charlie HardwickCharlie HardwickClaire Elizabeth Hardwick is an English actress well known for her part in ITV's Emmerdale as Val Pollard.-Acting career:...
*Katja Roberts as The Townies
Awards
- 1995: Créteil International Women's Film FestivalCréteil International Women's Film FestivalThe Créteil International Women's Film Festival is an annual event in Créteil, Paris, France founded by Jackie Buet in 1978 to showcase the directing talents of female filmmakers who, at the time, had difficulty getting their films adequately distributed. The first festival was held in 1979 in Sceaux...
Grand Prix (Amber Production Team).