Back to Back Theatre’s Shadow follows a Simon, Scott and Sarah, a trio of activists with intellectual disabilities, as they hold a town hall meeting about the future impacts of artificial intelligence.
Simon, considering himself a saviour for the community, quickly appoints himself the mayor, and Scott reluctantly steps into the role of facilitator, but soon becomes enamoured with his own power and begins to dismiss the experiences of others. Sarah, often overlooked and underestimated by her counterparts, explodes, confronting the self-appointed leaders on their inadequacies. What begins as a polite discussion quickly descends into bickering and chaos, seemingly provoked by a force within. quickly descends into bickering and chaos, seemingly provoked by a force within. Sarah acts to unite the group, only to realise the battle to get their message across may be lost already.
The film premiered at SXSW last year, where it won the Audience Award for the Visions strand.
Shadow is directed by Bruce Gladwin, produced by Alice Fleming and co-conceived and co-authored by Back to Back’s core performing artists Michael Chan, Mark Deans, Sarah Mainwaring, Scott Price, Simon Laherty and Sonia Teuben.
Almost all the actors on screen are people with disabilities, and the majority of the crew roles were fulfilled by interns who identify as people with disabilities, supported by professional mentors.
Umbrella Entertainment will release Shadow into select cinemas on July 16.