Clean featured in the New York Times

Bombito is excited to announce a second collaboration with the New York Times. Documentary ‘Clean’ is available to view on the New York Times Op Docs section, along with an opinion piece penned by director Miranda Stern.

The opinion piece, titled ‘A Final Goodbye to Opiates’, sees Miranda discuss what the documentary means to her personally, and why its subject matter of recovery - as well as how we perceive it - is so important.

Clean on the festival circuit

‘Clean’ has had an incredibly successful run so far, having screened at this year’s Galway Film Fleadh and Palm Springs International ShortFest, as well as winning the Scottish Short Film Award at the 16th edition of the Glasgow Short Film Festival.

The documentary will be screened at three more festivals this year, with its next screening being at the 2023 Indie Street Film Festival on Saturday the 16th of September.

‘Clean’ will also be screened at the 11th edition of DOX RUHR in October and at the BAFTA qualifying Aesthetica Film Festival in November.

The film

A short and personal female-centred documentary about addiction and long-term recovery from it.

Miranda weaves together observational and lyrical elements to take us into the challenging, deeply personal and relatively unknown world of recovery – along with the processes of care that follow in the years after a period of active addiction.

This is one couple’s journey together as they negotiate the world of recovery and how to plan for a future with so much uncertainty in it.

Further information

• Directed and Edited by Miranda Stern

• Cinematographer: Julyan Sinclair

• Producer: Reece Cargan

• Executive Producer: Sue Bourne

• Composer: Rotem Frimer

• Edit Consultant: Emiliano Battista

• Colourist and Online Editor Karolina Matela

• Sound Designer: Alina Ushakova

• Dubbing Mixer: Joseph Russell

Developed, supported and executive produced by the Scottish Documentary Institute's Bridging the Gap programme and Screen Scotland.

Living With It and Pembe Ay (Pink Moon) to screen at Edinburgh International Film Festival 2023

Bombito Productions is delighted to announce that 'Living With It' and 'Pembe Ay' (Pink Moon) will be screening at the Edinburgh International Film Festival 2023!

Living With It

Conceived, directed, edited and animated by Holly Summerson - and written by Nikki Rooney - 'Living With It' sees perfectionist Lee (Annabelle Davis) needing to adapt to the imperfect reality of living with a disease brought to life as a chaotic supernatural flatmate, Bug (Lawrence Chaney). Narrated superbly by actor/comedian Rachel Jackson.

Director Holly Summerson:

“Accepting disability as an important, normal part of your life is a complicated feeling - it’s incredible to have the opportunity to explore this with humour, strangeness and sensitivity in 'Living With It'.

“I am so lucky to have worked with this brilliant team, who’ve brought their own experiences, insights and exceptional skills to this film. It’s so exciting that we get to share it at Edinburgh International Film Festival!! Just down the road from where a lot of 'Living With It' was animated, shaped and dreamed about - and as part of such an outstanding, inspiring festival selection.”

Pembe Ay

During the Pink Moon season - which sees rebirth after winter - Meray leaves Scotland and revisits her childhood home to be with her father, and work through their garden, as it blossoms on the politically and physically divided island of Cyprus. While this once gave her nightmares of the conflict, Meray now finds this ignites her conversations with her father. The filmmaker digs into the intergenerational trauma, and how the conflict, opposing views to her father, and restrictions in north Cyprus affected her migration.

The film is in Turkish and will have English descriptive subtitles in all screenings.

Director Meray Diner:

“To my knowledge, I am the first Turkish Cypriot filmmaker who is showing a film in EIFF, so I can't help but feel very emotional and a great sense of empowerment through this film and the event. I am excited about the world premiere of Pembe Ay (Pink Moon) in my second home Scotland, a place that gave me the opportunity to tell my story.”

Book Tickets

Pink Moon Screening Times:

• 19.08.2023 15:00 VUE Screen 10 (sold out)

• 19.08.2023 15:10 VUE Screen 11

• 19.08.2023 15:20 VUE Screen 12 (with AD)

Book tickets here via the EIF website.

Living With It Screening Times:

• 23.08.2023 19:10 VUE Omni Screen 10 (sold out)

• 23.08.2023 19:20 VUE Omni Screen 11

• 23.08.2023 19:30 VUE Omni Screen 12

Book tickets here via the EIF website.

Clean shortlisted for a Grierson award

The 2023 Grierson awards shortlist, in association with All3Media and Digital Broadcast Partners little dot studios, is officially in - and Bombito is delighted to announce that ‘Clean’, by Miranda Stern, has been shortlisted for Best Documentary Short!

‘Clean’ has had an incredibly successful run so far, having screened at this year’s Galway Film Fleadh and Palm Springs International ShortFest, as well as winning the Scottish Short Film Award at the 16th edition of the Glasgow Short Film Festival.

The film

A short and personal female-centred documentary about addiction and long-term recovery from it.

Miranda weaves together observational and lyrical elements to take us into the challenging, deeply personal and relatively unknown world of recovery – along with the processes of care that follow in the years after a period of active addiction.

This is one couple’s journey together as they negotiate the world of recovery and how to plan for a future with so much uncertainty in it.

Miranda on what 'Clean' means to her:

"I have this really vivid memory of trying to get through a cold turkey and searching online for stories of other people who’d been through this impossible thing and come out the other side. I so desperately wanted to hear success stories, and it really struck me in that moment that there just weren’t very many out there. Or rather there were, but I didn’t have access to them because the dominant narrative that exists tends to focus on the dark descent into addiction and ends in relapse or death. The challenging, deeply personal, and unknown world of recovery and hope is rarely explored. It’s hard not to internalise some of that sense that addiction is a hopeless situation with no way out other than in a coffin, or prison.

This film wouldn’t have happened without the immeasurable and unquantifiable support from all the people I had in my corner. You know who you are.

I’d also like to take a moment for all the addicts that still suffer. This is a disease from which there is no known cure. It’s taken too many people and it is relentless. It can, however, be arrested at some point and recovery is then possible.

That’s the only message that really matters."

Further information

• Directed and Edited by Miranda Stern

• Cinematographer: Julyan Sinclair

• Producer: Reece Cargan

• Executive Producer: Sue Bourne

• Composer: Rotem Frimer

• Edit Consultant: Emiliano Battista

• Colourist and Online Editor Karolina Matela

• Sound Designer: Alina Ushakova

• Dubbing Mixer: Joseph Russell

Developed, supported and executive produced by the Scottish Documentary Institute's Bridging the Gap programme and Screen Scotland.