‘Downton Abbey’s Robert Bathurst Stars in ‘Small Hours’ Animated Short about Alochol Addiction

Robert Bathurst (Downton Abbey, Cold Feet) is set to voice star in Small Hours, an upcoming hand-painted animated film about alcohol addiction written and directed by artist Oscar Wyndham Lewis.

Bathurst will play a character called Jackson, a painter whose life has been hollowed out by addiction. In a last-ditch effort to seek help, he reaches out to his long-lost childhood best friend, Francis, voiced by Edward Franklin (The Sandman, Vikings: Valhalla).

“This film is a window into the world which Oscar has created, reflecting a state of mind which many people could recognize. It is both deeply moving and very touching,” said Bathurst. “I admire Oscar as an animation artist. He has a painterly quality which creates his own reality and dreamlike urgency. The swirling style lends itself beautifully to the subject matter.”

Wyndham Lewis’s debut film, The Waves — about his personal battle with anxiety and depression — won Best Animation at the Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival’s international film competition and was shortlisted for a BAFTA Award in 2017.

Eight years in the making, production on Small Hours” a hand-painted animated short film, was delayed as Wyndham Lewis himself struggled with alcoholism. Each frame requires an individual oil painting on a piece of glass, with more than 5,000 images produced to complete the film. Andrew Gregory (Of All the Things, Alitisal), the health editor of The Guardian, is producing via his production banner Brungerley.

Small Hours will premiere next week in Manchester, England, as part of Recoverist Month, a month-long arts program organized by the charity Portraits of Recovery, which aims to challenge perceptions of substance use and recovery.

“I first drafted Small Hours in 2017, but the project was shelved for a reason that is tinged with irony,” said Wyndham Lewis. “For about a decade, my life was stunted by alcohol. “When I started work on the film, I was in the depths of addiction and that got in the way. But I finished it as someone who is three years in recovery.”

A more recent experience of helping someone close to him with their own substance use issue also helped shape the film’s direction, Wyndham Lewis noted in the announcement. He voiced hopes the film will resonate with people whose lives have been directly or indirectly affected by substance use.

“Though the film has dark themes, it carries a hopeful message,” he said. “That message is simple: if someone in your life is suffering with addiction, the best support you can offer is just to show up. There’s no need for grand gestures or profound words — simply being there can make all the difference. Addiction is often faced alone, and no one can get better by themselves.”

Bathurst is next due to star in The Hack, the ITV drama series from Jack Thorne (Adolescence, His Dark Materials), Lewis Arnold (Sherwood, Time) and Patrick Spence (Mr. Bates vs. the Post Office, A Spy Among Friends).

smallhoursfilm.com