SUNRAY IS NOW A FEATURE FILM

Over the past few months, Sunray creators and editors James Clarke and Daniel Shepherd have been consulting with Mark Davis (editor of Peaky Blinders, Black Mirror, The Crown) to provide feedback and a top-down outsider perspective on the work. Marks first editorial note, after some flattery, was... "this should be a movie, not a three part TV series."

Even before consulting Mark, as a team, we considered what Sunray would be like as a feature film but this confirmed our suspicions and we have acted. We are now proud to announce that Sunray will now be a 2 hour long feature film instead of a 3 episode series.

We haven't made this decision lightly, we are very aware that we promised a series. However, we are confident that this change in direction will create a better final product, and a more enjoyable viewing experience. Here's why...

Sunray flows better as a feature film.  Merging the 3 edited episodes into 1 allowed us more creative freedom with scene placement. We were able to move things around and tell the story in a better way. It enabled us to be more ruthless in the edit because each act or episode doesn't need to 'hold its own' in the same way. As a feature we are far more likely to captivate the audience for the entire run time, there's no dipping in and out.

Distribution. Selling an indie series is hard. After speaking to distributors we had a lot more interest in Sunray as a feature film as opposed to a series. The route to market for an indie series seems to be relatively untrodden, compared to indie films at least. The distributors that we have spoken to know how to push what we have now to a viewing platform. Having Sunray as a feature film means it's much more likely that we will secure a distribution deal.

Theatrical release. Editing Sunray as a feature film opens up the possibility of showcasing it as a theatrical release in cinemas. This all depends on our distribution deal but we believe this is a strong possibility and a good option to have.

Length. Our original episode length of 3 x 45 minute episodes is the same length as a feature film. Two or three part series are rare and difficult to sell. Having 3 episodes posed no benefit to the development of our story unlike an 8 part series or more that would allow for deeper character and story development.

What now?

Sunray as a 2 hour long feature film is now edited. Over the next few weeks the remaining visual effects are being worked on by Cody Hernandez (John Wick 4, The Matrix Resurrections, Avatar: The Way of Water) and his team. The sound design is being worked on by Tom Joyce from Sound Canvas and Tristan Lane Clarke (Hanz Zimmer’s Bleeding Fingers artist) is finishing our original score. We are thrilled to be working with such talented professionals who will give Sunray the top quality finish it deserves and we can't wait to bring all these post production elements together in the coming weeks.

We are nearing the end of this long adventure and will keep you all updated as we move forward hopefully with some big news in the coming months.

The Sunray Team