Time has flown since the Rachel shoot 16-19th June 2016, and I recently realised that our Instagram account had been languishing unloved for most of that time, so I decided to put together some posts to celebrate the success of our film – so much fun to look back and see how far we have come, so I’d like to share those memories here too.

I’ll admit Rachel isn’t the easiest film to “sell” – it’s sad and full of difficult subject matter, it controversially represents a Jewish character in a less than favourable light, and the lengthy scene set in the small, windowless chapel at Leverton’s funeral directors is uncomfortable to watch. That was a deliberate artistic choice – the finale on the beach, with its vast liberating vistas, is all the more emotionally overwhelming when experienced after the claustrophobic chapel scene – but it did lead some people to say it would be unlikely to do well in festivals.

But, as it turned out, Rachel nonetheless found much love out there in the world and, wherever the film was seen, it was truly appreciated – as hoped for, screenings brought forth many personal stories of loss from our audiences and sparked meaningful conversations about life, death, religion, parenting and more.

So, what an incredible journey we have had since we set off on our road trip to Holkham beach on 16th June 2016.

Here are just some of the stops along the way:

Thank you to everyone who came together to make Rachel the success it is – Kickstarter supporters, cast, crew, post production, film festivals and of course the audiences who had so many lovely things to say about our film.

enduring love and gratitude to you all,

Karen x