''A Dark Reflection'' (aka ''Flight 313: The Conspiracy'') is a 2015 British

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

investigative

thriller film Thriller film, also known as suspense film or suspense thriller, is a broad film genre that evokes excitement and suspense in the audience. The suspense element found in most films' plots is particularly exploited by the filmmaker in this genre. ...

directed and produced by former

British Airways British Airways plc (BA) is the flag carrier of the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in London, England, near its main Airline hub, hub at Heathrow Airport. The airline is the second largest UK-based carrier, based on fleet size and pass ...

airline captain Tristan Loraine."Toxic Flyer"
''60 Minutes Australia'', 17 October 2014. Billed as ''

Erin Brockovich Erin Brockovich (née Pattee; born June 22, 1960) is an American paralegal, consumer advocate, and environmental activist who was instrumental in building a case against Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E) involving groundwater contamination ...

'' meets ''

All the President's Men ''All the President's Men'' is a 1974 non-fiction book by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, two of the journalists who investigated the June 1972 break-in at the Watergate Office Building and the resultant political scandal for ''The Washingto ...

'' and as a fact-based investigative thriller, the film is based on the director's own experience as a commercial pilot."Flying high in the movies to reveal a global scandal"
''West Sussex County Times''"Why major airlines don’t want you to see this movie."
'Webwire Press Release'', 8 October 2014.Kemp, Stuart
"Georgina Sutcliffe, Marina Sirtis to Star in Film Based on Toxic Airline Cabin Story."
'

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

'', 9 ''A Dark Reflection'' was made largely by volunteers with funding from unions, passenger groups and concerned aviation figures.Scott-Delany, Finn
"Conspiracy thriller by Horsham director filmed to uncover air contamination scandal."
'The Argus'', 12 August 2013. It is said to be based on actual events surrounding the issue of Aerotoxic Syndrome.A Dark Reflection Official Website
''Official Website'', 2019. Retrieved: 14 August 2019.
'Cision PR Newswire'', 22 September 2014.

Plot

Journalist Helen Eastman (Georgina Sutcliffe) returns home after a disastrous assignment in the Middle East and finds a new job at a local newspaper to be closer to her friend, Joe Forbes (T.J. Herbert), an air traffic controller. Following a near mid-air collision involving JASP Airlines Flight 313, Joe has been suspended. He contends that the pilot was slow to obey the orders of the tower. This incident does not appear in the press, which intrigues Helen. She convinces her new boss, Nick Robertson (

Paul Antony-Barber Paul Antony-Barber is an English actor. He is best known for his role as Principal Sweet, in the Nickelodeon series ''House of Anubis''. He also worked alongside Francis Magee and Burkely Duffield in the show. Career Boyd van Hoeij of ''The Ho ...

), that a cover-up has taken place. Natasha Stevens (

Rita Ramnani Rita Ramnani (born 21 December 1981) is a British actress and dancer known for her roles in '' The Hunt for Gollum'', '' Jack Says'' and '' Umbrage''. She holds a post-graduate degree in Classical Acting from London Academy of Music and Dramatic ...

) joins Helen in the investigation of the air safety issues involved. They soon learn the JASP Airlines company officer, David Morris (

Stephen Tompkinson Stephen Phillip Tompkinson (born 15 October 1965) is an English actor, known for his television roles as Marcus in '' Chancer '' (1990), Damien Day in '' Drop the Dead Donkey'' (1990–1998), Father Peter Clifford in '' Ballykissangel'' (1996� ...

), has died, but his wife, a flight attendant, discovers that he has been investigating the same concerns about air safety for years. The new director of JASP Air, Ben Tyrell (

Mark Dymond Mark Dymond (born 1974, Wimbledon, London) is an English actor of Irish descent. In addition to appearances in films, he is known as Dr. Lorcan O'Brien, a major character in the 2007–2009 seasons of the TV drama series '' The Clinic'', among ot ...

), discovers that the incident of Flight 313 is not the first and begins to ask his own questions. The chief engineer of the company tells him that the pressurization of the aircraft has a design problem, letting vaporized oils pass into the cabin air. Ultimately, the dark side of the aviation industry is exposed with incidents of contaminated air as far back as the 1950s. The pervasive industry denial campaign is supported by the owners of the JASP airline company, Charles ( Nicholas Day) and Maggie Jasper (

Marina Sirtis Marina Sirtis (; born 29 March 1955) is an English actress. She is best known for her role as Counselor Deanna Troi on the television series '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'' and four ''Star Trek'' feature films, as well as other appearances ...

). Ben has to deal with a moral issue: corporate profit or public safety? Meanwhile, Helen and Natasha understand that the flight crew, but also the passengers, are at risk. They would like to make a scoop, but their opponent, the aviation industry, is a major opponent, not hesitating to buy the silence of its detractors. At an aviation conference, however, the director of JASP Air indicates that the company's aircraft will begin to be modified so that the air in their cabin is of good quality.

Cast

* Georgina Sutcliffe as Helen Eastman * T.J. Herbert as Joe Forbes *

as Natasha Stevens *

as Maggie Jaspar *

as Ben Tyrell * Nicholas Day as Charles Jaspar *

as Captain David Morris * Claire Morfett as Woman With Filofax *

Leah Bracknell Alison Rosalind Bracknell (12 July 1964 – 15 September 2019), known professionally as Leah Bracknell, was an English actress who played the role of Zoe Tate in the ITV soap opera ''Emmerdale'' (1989–2005), for which she was nominated for th ...

as Isabelle Morris *

as Nick Robertson *

Rupert Holliday-Evans Rupert Holliday-Evans (also spelt Rupert Holliday Evans) is a British actor. He is well known for his roles in programmes such as the ITV police drama ''The Bill'' and CBBC children's programmes '' The Giblet Boys'' and '' Powers''. Early life ...

as Alan Morgan * Romina Hytten as Molly Adamson * Cengiz Dervis as Fireman Tony * Angela Dixon as Alison Radcliffe * Bill Ward as Terry * Natalia Ryumina as Katherine * Joelle Koissi as Office Worker

Production

Pre-production of ''A Dark Reflection'' started in January 2013 with filming commencing in June 2013 in

West Sussex West Sussex is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Surrey to the north, East Sussex to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Hampshire to the west. The largest settlement is Cr ...

, England."Film uncovers the dark heart of the aviation industry."
'The District Post'', 24 May 2013. Principal photography for ''A Dark Reflection'' initially lasted 40 days. It was filmed in

Techniscope Techniscope or 2-perf is a 35 mm motion picture camera film format introduced by Technicolor Italia in 1960. The Techniscope format uses a two film- perforation negative pulldown per frame, instead of the standard four-perforation frame ...

format using Fuji 35mm film by

Director of Photography The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the recording of a film, television production, music video or other live-action piece. The cinematographer is the chief of the camera ...

Nicholas Eriksson.Eriksson, Nicholas
"Nicholas Eriksson and A Dark Reflection."
''Nicholas official website'', 2019. Retrieved: 14 August 2019. All of the filming for ''A Dark Reflection'' was done on location in

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

apart from a week of filming in

Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...

, Loraine deciding not to use a

soundstage A sound stage (also written soundstage) is a large, soundproof structure, building or room with large doors and high ceilings, used for the production of theatrical film-making and television productions, usually located on a secured movie or te ...

. Further filming was carried out in Spring 2014 in

Horsham Horsham () is a market town on the upper reaches of the River Arun on the fringe of the Weald in West Sussex, England. The town is south south-west of London, north-west of Brighton and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Nearby to ...

. Principal photography was carried out at a wide selection of locations in

and

East Sussex East Sussex is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Kent to the north-east, West Sussex to the west, Surrey to the north-west, and the English Channel to the south. The largest settlement ...

such as

Shoreham Airport Brighton City Airport , also commonly known as Shoreham Airport, is located in Lancing, West Sussex, Lancing near Shoreham by Sea in West Sussex, England. It has a Civil Aviation Authority (United Kingdom), CAA Public Use Aerodrome Licence tha ...

Gatwick Airport Gatwick Airport , also known as London Gatwick Airport (), is the Airports of London, secondary international airport serving London, West Sussex and Surrey. It is located near Crawley in West Sussex, south of Central London. In 2024, Gatwic ...

Bluebell Railway The Bluebell Railway is an heritage line in West Sussex in England. It is managed by the Bluebell Railway Preservation Society. It uses steam trains which operate between and , with intermediate stations at and . It is the first preserv ...

South Lodge Hotel The South Lodge Hotel is a 19th-century five star country house hotel set near Horsham, West Sussex in the south of England. The hotel has also been used in a number of feature films including the 2014 film ''A Dark Reflection''. History In 1883, ...

Fontwell Park Racecourse Fontwell Park Racecourse is a horse racing course located in the village of Fontwell in West Sussex, England, owned by ARC Racing. It features a unique figure of eight steeplechase course and a conventional oval Hurdling (horse race), hurdles ...

Holy Innocents Church, Southwater Holy Innocents Church is the Anglican parish church of Southwater, a village in the Horsham District of West Sussex, England. Built in 1849, the church has a cruciform footprint. Inside there are many stained glass windows, donated to the chur ...

, Sedgwick Park and at

NATS Holdings NATS Holdings, formally National Air Traffic Services and commonly referred to as NATS, provides en-route air traffic control services to flights within the UK flight information regions and the Shanwick Oceanic Control, Shanwick Oceanic Cont ...

Whiteley Whiteley is a planned community of 6,500 homes in the county of Hampshire, England, United Kingdom near Fareham. The development straddles the boundary between two council districts: the Fareham (borough), Borough of Fareham to the south and we ...

. Southdown Gliding Club in

Storrington Storrington is a town and former civil parish, now in the parish of Storrington and Sullington, in the Horsham district of West Sussex, England. Storrington lies at the foot of the north side of the South Downs. it had a population of around 6 ...

provided the venue for the complex glider scene in the film where the audience first meets JASP airline Captain Jeremy Adamson (Christopher Dickins) and his daughter Molly, played by 16-year-old Romina Hytten. Despite never having been in a glider before, Romina managed to smile her way through 22 consecutive loops and countless rolls with experienced pilot Guy Westgate."Southdown Gliding Club give a lift to company filming of thriller A Dark Reflection."
'The Argus'', 18 July 2013.

Co-operative

''A Dark Reflection'' embraced a

cooperative A cooperative (also known as co-operative, coöperative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomy, autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned a ...

model for film-making,. Instead of raising the capital funds to make the film, a variety of businesses and individuals supplied goods and services, in addition to

financial investment Investment is traditionally defined as the "commitment of resources into something expected to gain value over time". If an investment involves money, then it can be defined as a "commitment of money to receive more money later". From a broade ...

. Over one hundred co-operative

businesses Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or buying and selling products (such as goods and services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for profit." A business entity is not necessari ...

and individuals partnered with the film, making it the largest co-operative film to date.

Reception

Cannes

In May 2014, producer Tristan Loraine and senior assistant producer Sarah Holloway took the film to

Cannes Cannes (, ; , ; ) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions Internatio ...

, where ''A Dark Reflection'' was screened at the

Marché du Film The ''Marché du Film'' (), also called Cannes Film Market, is an annual marketplace for films and one of the world's largest film markets. Established in 1959, it is held annually in conjunction with the Cannes Film Festival. In the 2020s, mor ...

, the market section of Cannes on 15 and 19 May. The film received a positive response, and screened to a packed auditorium.

Release

Following its success at Cannes, Los Angeles based sales agent Artist View Entertainment began selling ''A Dark Reflection''. In its first press release, Scott Jones, President of Artist View Entertainment stated, "We are very pleased to be working with Tristan Loraine and his powerful independent film. The production values and tightly crafted Direction are the key factors in pushing home a frightening message for those of us who travel by air on a daily basis." ''A Dark Reflection'' was screened by Artist View Entertainment at the

American Film Market The American Film Market (AFM) is a film industry event held annually in early November. Historically, more than 7,000 people attend the eight-day annual event to network and to sell, finance, and acquire films. Participants come from more than 7 ...

(AFM) 5 & 6 November 2014.

UK release

The film ''A Dark Reflection'' was released to the public in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

on 27 February 2015 to a limited number of Cinemas. A private

VIP A very important person (VIP or V.I.P.) or personage is a person who is accorded special privileges due to their high social rank, status, influence, or importance. The term was not common until sometime after World War II when it was populari ...

screening of ''A Dark Reflection'' was shown in Horsham on 26 February.

Reviews

In review, critics said the film has the right intention but fails because of vast deficiencies in the storyline, screenplay, acting and its directing. ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was found ...

'' wrote, "...well-intentioned and informed, this tinny and tensionless dispatch really doesn’t." In their review, ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' called it a "clunky drama". ''The Hollywood News'' wrote, "It’s a fascinating story and one that could easily be improved on by the right writer, director, and cast."

Public awareness

Following his own journey from

, to film producer and

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

, it has always been Tristan Loraine's ambition to raise awareness of the issues involving toxic air. After being forced to retire due to ill health, and losing friends, both pilots and crew who died from the poisonous fumes on board the aircraft they flew, Tristan has sought to bring aerotoxic syndrome to the attention of the public. The concept of toxic cabin air has been of interest to the media for some years,. In May 2014, ''

'' shared a video of a passenger who suffered health issues after taking an American flight. It is argued that the cause of the toxic air comes from the plane build, which brings

bleed air Bleed air in aerospace engineering is compressed air taken from the compressor stage of a gas turbine, upstream of its fuel-burning sections. Automatic air supply and cabin pressure controller (ASCPC) valves bleed air from low or high stage engine ...

into the

aircraft cabin An aircraft cabin is the section of an aircraft in which passengers travel. Most modern commercial aircraft are pressurized, as cruising altitudes are high enough such that the surrounding atmosphere is too thin for passengers and crew to brea ...

and

cockpit A cockpit or flight deck is the area, on the front part of an aircraft, spacecraft, or submersible, from which a pilot controls the vehicle. The cockpit of an aircraft contains flight instruments on an instrument panel, and the controls th ...

via the

engines An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy. Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power gen ...

; this has the potential for a bleed air leak. ''A Dark Reflection'' follows several

documentary films A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". The American author and media analyst Bill Ni ...

also produced by Fact Not Fiction Films seeking to bring this issue to the fore. The film's

tagline In entertainment, a tagline (alternatively spelled tag line) is a short text which serves to clarify a thought for, or is designed with a form of, dramatic effect. Many tagline slogans are reiterated phrases associated with an individual, so ...

, "What happened on Flight 313?" links to a real event.

Film-makers welcome new aircraft design

The producers of ''A Dark Reflection'' are keen to promote the bleed free aircraft, such as the

Boeing 787 Dreamliner The Boeing 787 Dreamliner is an American wide-body airliner developed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. After dropping its unconventional Sonic Cruiser project, Boeing announced the conventional 7E7 on January 29, 2003, wh ...

, which is the first of its kind. Yet despite it being released in 2007, with ''The Telegraph'' calling it, "A Breath of Fresh Air", in 2009, there have been no moves since by the airline industry to remodel any other aircraft.

Flight MH370

''A Dark Reflection'' has been likened to the events of the missing Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370. However, the airline flight MH370 disappeared on 8 March 2014, which was after the filming of ''A Dark Reflection'', which took place during the summer of 2013."Would you like to be a film extra?"
''WSCounty Times'', 23 July 2013.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dark Reflection, A 2015 films 2015 thriller films British thriller films British aviation films British independent films Environmental films Works about consumer protection 2010s feminist films Thriller films based on actual events Collaborative projects British feminist films 2015 independent films 2015 documentary films 2015 drama films 2010s English-language films 2010s British films English-language independent films English-language documentary films English-language thriller films