Sundowning

Support an award winning psychological 'social' folk horror short film script, based on a true story. Tackling female dementia carers mental health, western fear of death, dementia education and carer-related taboos.

Why Sundowning?
The term ‘Sundowning’ is a real dementia symptom. When the sun goes down, until sun up, some dementia sufferers experience nightmares, hallucinations, disorientation, extreme anxiety and confusion.

Often not spoken or known about until being experienced, Sundowning is very real, and very terrifying and fully isolating. That’s certainly what happened to our writer and director. This experience being the catalyst to educate, inform and importantly prepare audiences for when they may need to face the realities of dementia as a person or more than likely a carer.

Equipping audiences:
Our writer didn’t have references or resources to turn to, we’re making this film to change that. Cinema at its best, gives us all a point of connection and reflection that we see being the core of this film. We choose to highlight this impact on carers, the feelings and lived experience, the taboo of changes of roles with a loved one needing care and the realities all involved might be faced with - be it discomfort, heightened anxiety, struggle or even the beauty or reward of care. It’s not pretty, but it’s real, and that is what will break through.

Dementia as a subject matter:
We’re in an era of ageing population, with dementia cases ever on the rise - globally someone develops dementia every three seconds. Every. Three. Seconds. It’s estimated almost 80 million people will be living with dementia by 2030. And yet exposure in society is limited, symptoms not widely spoken about and experiences whispered through taboo or embarrassment. It’s more important than ever this subject is discussed and shown in font of audiences, the ripples of 80 million people, their families and loved ones turned into carers overnight, the devastation it leaves in its wake.

We’re equipping audiences by showing the ugliness, the horror and the beauty in the real life.