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A young Alfreton film director's debut production has attracted a world-wide internet audience, with over 200,000 people watching it in just two weeks.
First-time film-maker Mark Ashmore (26) developed the project while working as John Simm’s stand-in in the cult BBC TV series Life on Mars.
And he shot his shoestring-budget movie Your State of Emergency in a warehouse on an Alfreton industrial estate.
The self-funded film tells the story of a middle-class white family being taken in for interrogation by an unknown force and being detained indefinitely without charge for taking part in a protest march against the government.
Mark of Abbott Road wrote the rough story outline while backpacking in Cambodia after graduating from university in 2005.
And the cast and crew of Life on Mars were so impressed by the powerful narrative that Mark succeeded in securing top-industry professionals to work on the film.
Former Mortimer Wilson School student Mark said that he felt compelled to make the film.
He said: “All through my 20s, the War on Terror has been the backdrop to my generation’s everyday life – and only now, with the means to communicate via the internet en masse, is my generation finally able to have its say.
“This is my contribution; this is my statement. With politicians afraid to make a change, once again it falls to art to lead the way.
“Art must scream for those that cannot.”
Director Mark says that his film mirrors the plight of the Burmese people in their battle for free thought and the right to protest against a brutal regime.
And he is asking all who watch the film to sign up and support Amnesty International via a direct link on the film’s website and pressure world leaders to intervene.
l You can watch the film online at www.yourstate.co.uk
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