Private Project

CHAD

When their genius child CHAD takes a homework assignment a little too far, Mum and Dad suddenly find themselves embroiled in an urgent mission to save the planet.

  • Kerry Skinner
    Director
    The Bicycle Thief, Common People
  • Stewart Alexander
    Writer
    The Bicycle Thief, Common People
  • Kerry Skinner
    Producer
    The Bicycle Thief, Common People
  • Stewart Alexander
    Producer
    The Bicycle Thief, Common People
  • Stephen Fry
    Key Cast
    "Gus"
    Treasure, The Morning Show, The Dropout, It's a Sin, The Sandman, Gosford Park, Wilde, Bright Young Things, Peter's Friends, Dr Who, The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, A Fish called Wanda, Blackadder.
  • Sam Lockhart
    Key Cast
    "CHAD"
  • Alice Walton
    Key Cast
    "CHAD"
  • Stewart Alexander
    Key Cast
    "Dad"
    Archie, The Crown, Meg 2, The Batman, Venom: Let There Be Carnage, Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard, Stan & Ollie, Dr Who, 28 Weeks Later.
  • Kerry Skinner
    Key Cast
    "Mum"
  • Struan Wallace
    Director of Photography
  • Lydia Mannering
    Editor
  • Hallie Connor
    Production Designer
  • Andy Bolter
    Art Director
  • Ariana Ares
    Motion Designer
  • Frank Schulmeyer
    Composer/Sound Design
  • Rachael Ripley
    Costume Designer
  • Dylan Tate
    Assistant Director
  • Joanne Bolter
    Production Manager
  • Emma Butt
    Dialogue Editor
  • Rebecca Goodeve
    Colourist
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Sci-Fi, Drama, Comedy, Tragicomedy
  • Runtime:
    16 minutes 2 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    April 24, 2024
  • Country of Origin:
    United Kingdom
  • Country of Filming:
    United Kingdom
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    1:85
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Distribution Information
  • Park Bench Pictures
    Country: United Kingdom
    Rights: All Rights
Director Biography - Kerry Skinner

Kerry Skinner is an award-winning Director/Producer and founder member of Park Bench Pictures. Her debut feature, 'Common People', won numerous awards at international festivals and received a nationwide cinema release in the UK with Picturehouse.

She also directed the short film, 'The Bicycle Thief' which was selected by Directors UK as a winner of their Challenge ALEXA competition and was described by Stephen Fry as “Just wonderful! Exquisitely made in every detail, it’s triumphant.” The film screened at over 30 film festivals worldwide including BAFTA, Oscar and BIFA qualifying festivals.

Her company, Park Bench Pictures, is dedicated to promoting diversity and gender-balance on both sides of the camera and through the stories they tell. At present she is developing two new features with regular collaborator Stewart Alexander; the low-budget drama ‘Songs From A Gilded Cage,’ and ‘Body Checks’, a romantic comedy adapted from the critically acclaimed stage play which they previously produced.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

The world is divided. Greed drives division that increases inequality and threatens life on our planet.

But what if a child had all the answers? What if that child happened to be an AI app? And what if that child’s solution to the world’s problems had far-reaching consequences for the entire human race?

That child is CHAD.

‘CHAD’ is a tragic-comic Sci-Fi film which blends strong storytelling with a unique perspective on the genre and it was a pleasure bringing Stewart Alexander’s script to the screen. It touches on issues that are very close to my heart and examines them with humour, warmth and love. At its heart 'CHAD' is about a family, their love for one another, and the sacrifices they must make for their child and all life on planet earth.

As director, my aim was to balance all the disparate elements in the script to make a film where audiences might experience beauty, laughter and tears together in the cinema, and still have plenty of food for discussion in the bar afterwards. They say it takes a village to raise a CHAD, and despite the constraints of a micro-budget, I was blessed with a talented and dedicated team who helped bring CHAD to the screen. It was a labour of love for all of us.

Here's what some legends (who know their stuff!) had to say about the film....

“Thank you SO much for allowing me the honour of being an early viewer of CHAD. It’s terrifically timely and delightful. I should of course be delighted and privileged to voice GUS”.
Stephen Fry

"We watched ‘CHAD’ with pleasure. It's wry and charming and timely. You have managed to pack a lot of big ideas into a very engaging story. The equating of AI and parenting is very apt. Very approachable. The story would be perfect for an episode of Black Mirror which you have doubtless seen? AI is really THE topic now isn't it? And who is going to illuminate the potentials better than artists?”
Wendy Tilby and Amanda Forbis
(Palme d’Or winners and three-time Oscar nominees for best animated short film)