Ariadne’s Notes: 

A must see film Astronaut with Richard Dreyfus on now in theaters across Canada!

A wonderful interview on the World Poetry Cafe, CFRO, 100.5 FM  with the talented Shelagh McLeod! Calling in at 1: 30 pm PST July 18, to announce the opening of her new film Astronaut, She spoke about her  idea for the film and the message behind it. 

I loved the film since it showed  that it is important to follow your dreams no matter what age and the importance of the support of family and friends. It gave me hope. Richard Dreyfus was great in the film, bringing a mixture of mischievousness  and seriousness to his part.

Synopsis : “When lonely widower Angus moves into a retirement home, his life seems over; he feels worthless and alone. But Angus’s long extinguished dream is reignited when an exciting national competition is announced. The prize? One golden ticket for a trip to space!  Way past the age limit, he doesn’t have a chance. But spurred on by his grandson, Angus fudges his birth date, and enters the competition. Against all odds, he must battle against prejudice, ill health, and time, to win the ticket and take the trip of his dreams. 

It is our dearest wish that this story will offer a vision of hope and provide an uplifting message to families universally: that if we support one another, we can all achieve our seemingly impossible dreams regardless of our age and, in so doing, make our own metaphorical journey to the stars.

Astronaut is a deeply personal story, and one that I feel is timely and I hope will resonate with a universal audience. Because we are all on a one-way journey – and what if we could, at our bleakest moment, perhaps the end of our life, take the trip of our dreams and have another go?” 

Source: Shelagh McLeod and TARO PR.

Astronaut! Written and directed by Shelagh McLeod.

STARRING:
Richard Dreyfus, Lyriq Bent, Krista Bridges, Colm Feore, Richie Lawerence, Graham Greene

LISTEN TO THIS GREAT INTERVIEW!

Shelagh McLeod : Writer/Director/Producer. Shelagh McLeod was born in Vancouver. After training as an actress her first film role was in Jacques Demy’s Lady Oscar. She played Jean, in Dennis Potter’s Cream in my Coffee and went on to become a leading actress in film and TV in the UK, Canada, and the US. She embarked on the three year film and writing programme at Kingston University, graduating with First Class Honours in 2013 and received her MA in 2015. McLeod produced and directed three award winning short films, including the ghost story David Rose (2011) and the poignant and emotional Run (2012/13.) Run was nominated for best short and screened at Vancouver, Berlin 11 mm short kicks, Asia, and San Jose Film Festivals. McLeod was awarded Best Female Director for The Great Escape (2017) and her feature screenplay NEXUS was shortlisted for the Sundance Screenwriters Lab.