After the wettest year on record for England a cautionary film about flooding is a more welcome arrival.
Despite planning to produce the drama, which is focused around a major flooding incident, before December’s downpour, the director of ‘Are You Ready?’ said the recent weather made it very topical.
The film, shot in several locations around Aylesbury in December, was commissioned by the resilience team at Bucks County Council as part of a new public awareness campaign. Director Darren Cliff said he was delighted with the end product.
He said: “The purpose of the film is to make the general public better prepared to deal with major incidents that affect the home, such as severe weather, the need to evacuate and flooding.
“For me, it was important to produce a film that was as realistic as possible and to highlight the reality that events like these could put lives at risk.”
The film made use of council employees and in one scene more than 20 local people were used to play residents who had been evacuated due to a major explosion nearby.
Mr Cliff added: “It has been excellent that we have been able to deliver and produce a drama. Sometimes these kind of campaigns can be led by a presenter or someone talking to somebody.
“To have quite a free creative on writing was quite refreshing.
“It was a fantastic shoot. I had a great team around me who worked tirelessly throughout the shoot to produce an exceptional piece of work.
“Everyone in front of camera was superb, very patient and committed to the project.
“As a director, I am a bit of a perfectionist and very demanding in that I won’t rest until I’ve got every shot just right.”
The film will be used by the council as a valuable resource at road shows and community events across the county before being available to watch on its website.
While the new film will be used to warn residents of the dangers of flooding, Bucks Fire and Rescue Service said it experienced one of its quietest ever Christmas periods.
A spokesman said: “We had 20 or 30 incidents in previous years and this year there has been noticeably less business than previous Christmas periods.”