A NEW Scottish feature film about a German-Jewish refugee has been nominated for a prestigious film festival prize having already claimed a Best Drama award.
Stella, inspired by Cinderella, was a winner at the Melech Tel-Aviv International Film Festival where it had its world premiere this month.
It’s the story of a German-Jewish refugee who finds herself working in a stately home belonging to aristocratic supporters of fascist leader Oswald Mosley.
Now, it has picked up a nomination at Montreal's Independent Film Festival.
The film’s writer and director Jessica Fox, who lives in Wigtown and is the granddaughter of Holocaust survivors said: “To have been named Best Drama at the international film festival where Stella had its world premiere was beyond our wildest dreams.
"And now we've been nominated for Montreal's Independent Film Festival we hope to bring it to a much wider audience in the near future."
Although inspired by Cinderella, Stella is based on a much earlier version of the story where there are no glass slippers or fairy godmother.
Fox added: “I never liked the story of Cinderella - her fairy godmother, the glass slippers or the fuss of the ball - until I heard the older folk versions.
"In these stories, Cinderella has no magical transformation. Instead, she flees her kingdom to find safety in another. She takes on a new name and identity.
“As a grandchild of Holocaust survivors, who had to flee their homes, find new identities and keep only what they could carry, this Cinderella resonated.
"She wasn’t the fairy tale archetype, an epitome of goodness waiting to be rescued; she was a refugee, a survivor, heroic. This Cinderella, her story, was one I wanted to tell and one that is relevant to so many people forced to flee their homes today.”
Originally from the USA, where her career included being a storyteller for Nasa, Fox moved to south-west Scotland where she has found success in TV, theatre, film and literature
Set in 1937 and filmed at Galloway House, her film tells the story of a lesser known and darker moment in Scottish history – when Dumfries and Galloway became one of the main centres of support for Mosley and his British Union of Fascists.
Among the cast members is Outlander star Gary Lewis, who lives in the region.
He praised the film and the relevance which it still holds today.
“It was a joy to be a part of this film – the story is great, the location is stunning and everything else, from the camera work to the music, was excellent", Lewis said.
He continued: "Stella tells the story of a young German woman stranded in Scotland as the Nazis rise to power in Germany.
"The difficulties she faces echo those of desperate people today; refugees and asylum seekers trying to escape many horrors. Isolated and terrified for the fate of her family, she then encounters supporters of the Nazi's racist ideology."
