GFF: Departure

Andrew Steggall’s assured first feature is a sensitively-handled coming-of-age tale set in the Languedoc region of France. English teenager Elliot (Alex Lawther, The Imitation Game) and his mother Beatrice (Juliet Stevenson) arrive to clear their summerhouse in preparation for its sale. An aspiring writer, Elliot is attracted to local lad Clément (Phénix Brossard) and initiates a friendship marked by a painful sense of longing and desire. As Elliot struggles to define his future, an embittered Beatrice cannot let go of the past. Their emotional journeys are at the heart of a confidently composed, beautifully photographed family drama.

(film also screens Fri 26 Feb, 1pm)