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The Walled Garden

Two people, separated in time, united through their love of The Walled Garden and their concern for its future.

1874 – Undergardener Matthew Lacy (Tom York) is proud to be foreman at Treefall House. Matthew’s passion is the estate’s walled kitchen garden he had worked on as a Garden Boy when he was a child. He has been away, travelling from garden to garden to learn his craft as a journeyman and now he’s back. On the verge of promotion, after the passing of his mentor, he begins to question is it worth ploughing his love into this soil, will the garden survive?
 
2022 - Fliss (Fiz Marcus) and the volunteers at Treefall House Walled Garden have worked hard over three decades to bring the garden back to life from disrepair. She’s been planning this fundraising day for months and everything needs to be perfect. Today is the day they find out its future.
 
Matthew discovered soon after he returned to work at the house that his mentor, Albert Leeper had found a way, with his trusty pocket watch, to travel through time. On any day at 7am the gates can transport him to moments in the garden’s future existence: They’ve both seen it in two world wars, through the decline of the landed aristocracy and the industrial revolution – but never travelling further than the year Fliss reopened the gardens after they had fallen into disrepair in 1992.  Neither Albert or Matthew have known if the garden continued to thrive…

…until today.

But can Fliss make him bloom again and safeguard the future of this beautiful plot of land they both love?

  • Emma Morley
    Writer
  • Emma Morley
    Director
  • Emma Morley
    Producer
  • Tom York
    Key Cast
    "Matthew"
    Poldark, Olympus, Agatha Raisin
  • Fiz Marcus
    Key Cast
    "Fliss"
    The King's Man, Pennyworth
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Time Travel, Drama, Friendship
  • Runtime:
    12 minutes 31 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    March 1, 2022
  • Production Budget:
    15,000 GBP
  • Country of Origin:
    United Kingdom
  • Country of Filming:
    United Kingdom
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
  • Cheltenham International Film Festival
    Cheltenham
    United Kingdom
    May 24, 2022
    UK Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Feel the Reel International Film Festival

    Best of the Fest - April 2022
  • Short Film Factory

    Winner - 'Nature' - March 2022
  • London Independent Film Awards

    Best First Time Director - April 2022
Director Biography - Emma Morley

Emma started her career as production runner for Peak Practice and has worked in TV, theatre & film archiving, for New Perspectives Theatre Company, the Media Archive for Central England, where she exec produced the award winning From Headlines to Tightlines - The Story of ATV Today, She was Production Coordinator (for 3 series) of Poldark (Mammoth Screen), Tina & Bobby (ITV Studios) and most recently Production Manager of I Hate Suzie (Bad Wolf) and The Curse (Shiny Button). As well as being a PM and Line Producer in scripted television, Emma has written, produced and directed The Walled Garden.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

I'm delighted to introduce you to 'The Walled Garden', a beautiful story about a time travelling victorian foreman in a stately home garden and the start of his friendship, in present day with a retired volunteer - both with a common aim to keep their beloved kitchen garden alive.

I wanted to create a story which explored the fragility of sustainability and to turned age on its head. To celebrate the richness of life in retirement. Many older characters on the screen have troubles in some way...In my story, Fliss has a full life, enriched by her love of the garden. It is Matthew who appears older.

What Matthew and Fliss do have in common is their shared passion for this garden and a determination that it will survive for generations to come.

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