Short film Wish 143 featuring Fylde student Sam Holland has been nominated for Best Live Action Short for this year’s Oscars.
The film is a 23 minute long coming of age story, where Holland plays a boy called David who has terminal cancer and makes it his dying wish to lose his virginity before time runs out. When asked about the film Holland said “there’s a nice mix of comedy and tear-jerking, which I think makes it popular. Holland went on to say “the writer Tom Bidwell is very talented and is really the reason we have done so well”. Bidwell has also directed several well-known British institutions such as Eastenders, Casualty and Holby City.
The second year English and Creative Writing student makes time for acting in between his degree and says that he’s “not finding it too hard to manage the work load at the moment. There tends to be periods when I miss things, but I catch up”.
In terms of performing such a demanding role and the overall experience, Holland said “obviously I loved being a part of it. It was great to work with actors of such high calibre like Jim Carter and Jodie Whittaker”. Whittaker is best known for her roles in films such as St. Trinian’s, Venus, also starring Peter O’Toole, and Good, also starring Viggo Mortensen. Holland also said “the role itself was probably the most challenging I’ve done so was nice to try push myself”.
Wish 143 is up against four other short films and the winner of the award will be announced on 27th February. The Oscars will be broadcasted on the BBC that evening.
