Rob Munday

Inspired by a dream director Douglas Jessup had one night of a girl submerged in a bathtub, hooked up to a strange machine, sinister sci-fi thriller GLOW will have you simultaneously gripped by its dramatic storytelling, and puzzled by its enigmatic narrative. The 2014 winner of the Panavision Future Filmmaker Award, this is a film of outstanding production values with a narrative set to tantalise as many as it will torment.

“I woke up late one night with these images burned into my brain”

Expanding on his vision-like inspiration for his narrative almost instantly after waking from his dream, Jessup’s love for Science Fiction soon guided him down the path of where to take his story. “As lame as it sounds, I woke up late one night with these images burned into my brain”, admits the director, “I couldn’t get back to sleep so I got out of bed and started expanding the idea around those images into what you now see in the film…So when the idea for GLOW started consolidating I knew it was what I wanted to produce for my thesis film. My goal was to make something that had the audience dying to know – what happens next?, and so far that has been the general response. Hopefully we can make more episodes soon to answer that question”.

Describing the production as a “massive learning experience”, even if GLOW’s narrative doesn’t leave you fulfilled, there’s no denying the assured filmmaking on show from Jessup and his team. Shot over 6-days (two on a soundstage/derelict warehouse and four in Palm Desert) on a RED epic this is a short rich with vivid cinematography and dynamic post-production work. The first time the director had worked with a full crew, built sets or prepared underwater stunts, although his production sounds like a challenging process, the result is something that the filmmaker is sure to be proud of for years to come.

Currently working on writing his first feature film – a suburban thriller – Jessup has also indicated that there might be more to come to GLOW universe. It’s a film that leaves you wanting more…so lets hope we get it!