Branded – the unabridged script.
Click here to buy. Paperback £15. Hardback £25.
BRANDED the unabridged script is in English, with the edited film script translated into Ukrainian and German.
Film stills from the film BRANDED. Drawings and paintings by Pauline Amos.
Essay and background about the script and the film.
BRANDED is the story of an artist called ‘She’ and her defiance, in the face of atrocity, to uphold Art and Freedom.
Set at some time, in the past, present or the future, in an unspecified country, ‘She’ is anonymous, without a presence in the world, the none-existence of a political prisoner. She dreams of her life as it used to be, laughing with her friends and painting in her studio. The sounds of conflict increase as the war comes closer. Knowing She will die, her concern is not for herself as She asks, is this the end of Art?
Horrifying in its depiction of the persecution of artists in repressive regimes, the struggle of being confined as a prisoner of war is contrasted with the beauty of Art, with a joyousness at its heart.
“The images are seared into my imagination; at times it looked like a renaissance masterpiece, beautifully evoked despite the grim story. A woman’s struggle to be free will always get my vote. A testament to art and survival.”
Mariella Frostrup, broadcaster, author, journalist.
“Provocative script and film and entirely relevant to today’s world. Outstanding.”
Tim Spicer, OBE.
“Branded Born Criminal is a powerful testament to the resilience of creativity in the face of oppression, reminding us of the freeing power of art.”
Hani Farsi, Corniche.
“Born Criminal is a Kafkaesque tone poem of startling, unnerving complexity. Beautifully shot but horrifying in its depiction of the persecution of artists in dictatorial nations, it signals a frightening future in which the present-day brutal repression of free minds by dictators becomes global. At times the film is unremittingly grim. Yet its 70-minute running-time seemed over before I had blinked an eye, its paradoxical beauty leaving me thirsty for more: notwithstanding its soul-wrenching subject matter, there is a joyousness at its heart – the joyousness of art. Written, acted, and directed by Pauline Amos, Born Criminal is a triumph.”
Chris Salewicz, author.