Akenfield

Loosely based on Ronald Blythe’s acclaimed book 'Akenfield: Portrait of an English Village', this unassuming yet powerful film traces three generations of one Suffolk family and their lives in the farming industry. Described as a work of rural realism, and shot in sumptuous widescreen, Akenfield features a cast of non-professional actors drawn from the communities of several Suffolk villages. Featuring improvised dialogue and shot mostly at weekends over the course of a year, the film offers an authentic depiction of country life over the changing seasons. With all three generations - grandfather, father and son - performed by the same actor (local famer Garrow Shand), the film paints a compelling picture of a traditional way of life facing a period of great change, brought about by the industrialisation of the twentieth century. (British Film Institute (BFI))