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Films

Medieval Films: Come Back Home

Come Back Home is a 15-minute short film tells the story of a family having to deal with going to war in fourteenth-century Scotland.

The film was written and directed by Bradford James Jackson. He explains that the story “is told through the eyes of a young mother, Katherine, who faces heartache and pain as her husband is called away to fight. Inspired by true events and set in 14th Century Scotland, Katherine, alone with her daughter, reveals a family’s vulnerable essence and shattered hope that is brought on by war.”

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While the movie is set in the medieval Scotland, the themes of the story are based on more recent experiences. “As a young boy,” Jackson explains, “I witnessed my father leave for war many times and experienced the hardship my mother had to endure alone. I have long since had the desire to bring the essence of this story to life through film. I originally started writing Come Back Home almost five years ago while living on a Renaissance fair grounds. Being immersed in the lifestyle of the Middle Ages set my heart on fire for the time period. I saw Come Back Home as a timeless story that makes us question what’s worth fighting for, something men and women have struggled with for thousands of years, and to this day.”

Come Back Home was shot entirely in and around the city of Anchorage, Alaska. It was filmed over five days and made use of Living Historians and Historical Renaissance groups from the area. The sets and props used were also historically accurate. Jackson adds that “several locations were chosen for their rural and mountainous features similar to Scotland. The cast and crew were sometimes required to hike through mountainous terrain with heavy equipment and full suits of armor weighing up to 85 pounds in order to capture the soldiers’ journey through remote and untouched lands.”

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While there is little dialogue in the film, the actors gave strong performances, most notably Erin Lindsay King, who plays the wife and mother Katherine. Jackson notes “she had an undying passion for acting that exuded from her eyes every moment she was on screen. In Come Back Home she opens up her heart to reveal the painful and vulnerable experience of watching a husband leave for war, and does so with a delicate authenticity.”

This project has taken Bradford James Jackson several years to write and then make. He adds that “now that the film is done, honestly I’m lost for words. the whole process seems unbelievable but even after you look back at everything you have done and all the hard work, days of editing, and too may sleepless nights. I always come back to one conclusion… Even for a short film this seems amazing but I owe all of this to my cast, crew, family, and friends, it is to them I truly say thank you for your hard work and dedication in believing in my vision.”

come back home

Be sure to keep an eye out for more films by Bradford James Jackson through the YouTube channel: Bradford Jackson Films.

You can also learn more about the film on their Facebook page

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