SEBASTIAN
2024 | 110min | Bêtes Sauvages, Helsinki-Filmi, BFI & Screen Scotland
Max is a 25-year-old writer living in London and paying his dues working at a literary magazine. On the cusp of finding success in the local lit scene, by night Max moonlights as a sex worker in order to research his debut novel. What begins as a few furtive meetings soon becomes a secret nocturnal life as his alter ego “Sebastian.” In a fearless lead performance from newcomer Ruraridh Mollica, Max’s emotions cycle through ecstasy, shame, and exhilarating liberation. Far from simply informing his autobiographical fiction, Max’s experiences as Sebastian awaken a deeper sense of self, unshackled from societal expectations – all the while threatening his carefully-earned status in the literary community. This Sundance Film Festival selection from writer-director Mikko Mäkelä explores the transgressive power of queer sexuality and the transformative impact that can result from embracing a new identity.
”Queer sexuality gets an explicit exploration in this moving second film from Mikko Mäkelä about a 25-year-old London writer living a double life. - - Max’s encounters introduce several explicit (and, I have to say, pretty hot) sex scenes into the story but they start to get scarier as one client exerts too much control. Eventually, a client, played by a genuinely wonderful and so, so moving Jonathan Hyde (a character actor who rarely gets such a showcase), shows Max kindness and doesn’t even expect sex after all.” - Ryan Lattanzio for Indiewire
“ - the device of the ongoing deconstruction of Max’s writing is clever meta-critique of the plot of “Sebastian,” in which this young man with such obvious talent decides to risk it all by delving into sex work. Gay sex work, no less. It’s a tremendous high wire act; and it’s a testament to the bravery and skill of everyone involved that the movie succeeds completely.” - Sarah Manvel for Critic’s Notebook
“An intriguing exploration of sex, identity, restraint and abandon... and a performance from Ruaridh Mollica that should put him on the map.” – Allan Hunter for Screen Daily
“Striking a fine balance between lurid voyeurism and grounded naturalism, Mäkelä’s film is a gripping wonder, perhaps a tad too literate, with its nods not only to Ellis but to authors like Jean Genet and Cyril Collard. But with its keen, sensual eye, “Sebastian” makes its portrait of an artist as a young sex worker brim with pained authenticity about how fleeting and seemingly transactional intimacies remain rife sites of exploration for queer writers.” - Manuel Betancourt for Los Angeles Times
writer & director MIKKO MÄKELÄ | producer JAMES WATSON | director of photography IIKKA SALMINEN | production designer GUY THOMPSON | editors ARTTU SALMI & MIKKO MÄKELÄ | sound designer ENOS DESJARDINS | composer ILARI HEINILÄ | starring RUARIDH MOLLICA, JONATHAN HYDE, HIFTU QUASEM, INGVAR SIGURDSSON, LARA ROSSI & LEANNE BEST
FESTIVALS:
WORLD PREMIERE at the SUNDANCE Film Festival 2024 (World Cinema Dramatic Competition) | 68th BFI London Film Festival 2024 | 37th Helsinki International Film Festival 2024 - Love and Anarchy | Stockholm Int. Film Festival 2024 | Guadalajara International Film Festival 2024 | 61st Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival 2024 | Seattle International Film Festival 2024 | Norwegian International Film Festival 2024 | JURY’s HONORABLE MENTION at the OUTshine LGBTQ+ Film Festival: Miami Edition 2024 | Boston Independent Film Festival 2024 | Inside Out Toronto LGBT Film Festival 2024 | Ghent Film Festival 2024 | Thessaloniki Film Festival 2024
AWARDS:
NOMINATED for BEST BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE (Ruaridh Mollica) at the British Independent Film Awards 2024 | NOMINATED for BEST FILM, BEST DIRECTOR, BEST SCREENPLAY, BEST LEAD PERFORMANCE (Ruaridh Mollica), BEST SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE (Jonathan Hyde), BEST EDITING. BEST MUSIC, BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY & BEST COSTUME DESIGN. at the JUSSI AWARDS 2025 (The Finnish Film Academy Awards) | NOMINATED for HARPA Nordic Composers Award 2025
Filmmaker Mazazine interview: https://filmmakermagazine.com/124248-interview-sundance-2024-editor-arttu-salmi-sebastian/
