The Hourglass

The wordless story of a young girl's path to the sacred tree.

  • Alessio Morreale
    Director
  • Alessio Morreale
    Writer
  • Lucia Saavedra
    Key Cast
    "Woman"
    Waterloo Road, 3 Caminos, Us
  • Melissa Acimis
    Key Cast
    "Girl"
  • Sofia Morreale
    Key Cast
    "The Omen"
    Why Won't You Talk To Me?
  • Gedminte Samsonaite
    Music Composer
    Between Sand and Tides, A Circle, Grub
  • Aman K. Sahota
    Cinematographer
    Harry Potter Reunion: Return to Hogwarts, Write Off,
  • Catharina Eden
    Costume Designer
    Bridgerton, The Nevers
  • Isa Yousufzai
    Re-Recording Mixer & Sound Designer
    The Covenant, The Swimmers, Ticket To Paradise
  • Matt Stevenson
    Colourist
    Luther: The Fallen Sun
  • Simon Edwards
    VFX Artist
  • James Thomas
    Steadicam Operator
  • Michael Mensah
    Steadicam Operator
    The Little Mermaid, Zack Synder's Justice League, Gangs of London
  • Stephanie Kennedy
    First Assistant Camera
  • Louise Tse
    Second Assistant Camera
    Close Shave
  • Lucy Galliford
    Camera Trainee
  • Lara 'Lady Velvet' Collinge
    Vocal Artist
    Why Won't You Talk To Me?
  • Eva Perrin Fontana
    Vocal Artist / Celloist
  • Will Thomas
    Score Engineer
  • Jacky Chan
    Foley Editor
  • Joanna Lewandowska
    Makeup Artist
  • Azize Zufle
    First Assistant Director
  • Gemma James
    Location Co-ordinators
  • Jo Thompson
    Location Co-ordinators
  • FARM LOCATIONS
    Location Co-ordinators
  • Carter Allen
    Grip
  • Gianni Morreale
    Production Assistant
    Path For The Sinners, Take Cover
  • Alessio Morreale
    Producer
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Runtime:
    9 minutes 36 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    August 31, 2023
  • Production Budget:
    4,000 GBP
  • Country of Origin:
    United Kingdom
  • Country of Filming:
    United Kingdom
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Sony Venice
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2.39:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Alessio Morreale

Alessio Morreale is an independent Writer/Director with previous experience supporting the British Film/TV industry as a camera prep technician at Panavision London.

His first short film, “Why Won’t You Talk To Me?” was selected at the London Independent Film Festival 2022. Alessio is currently writing a feature spec inspired by stories of his Sicilian grandfather.

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Director Statement

The Hourglass is a fantasy short film that follows a silent protagonist's journey to a sacred tree.

The film is inspired by my affinity with the animations and video games of my childhood. There's a certain childlike wonder to those memories, and the stories would always contain a heartfelt sentiment or unearth a complex theme that you never quite expected to encounter initially.

As an audience member, I loved that you could extrapolate and build your own understanding of the world and themes by the limited information presented, filling in the gaps as far as your imagination was willing to do so. I think there's a lot of beauty and freedom in that.

For more info on available formats and the production team behind The Hourglass, please refer to the Festival Programme PDF attached.