''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 the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

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

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 legal clerk, consumer advocate, and environmental activist who, despite her lack of education in the law, was instrumental in building a case against Pacific Gas & Electric Compan ...

'' 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 Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly larg ...

'', 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 Aerotoxic syndrome relates to ill-health effects that are claimed to be caused by breathing contaminated airliner cabin air. This condition is not an established medical diagnosis. Potential sources of contamination Modern jetliners have envi ...

.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), 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 A ...

) 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 o ...

), 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 a British 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 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 the ...

as Isabelle Morris * Paul Antony-Barber as Nick Robertson *

Rupert Holliday-Evans Rupert Holliday Evans (also Rupert Holliday–Evans) is an English 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''. In episodes of com ...

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 county in South East England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the shire districts of Adur, Arun, Chichester, Horsham, and Mid Sussex, and the boroughs of Crawley and Worthing. Covering an ...

, 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 us ...

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 photographing or recording of a film, television production, music video or other live action piece. The cinematographer is the ch ...

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 country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

apart from a week of filming in

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

, Loraine deciding not to use a

soundstage A sound stage (also written soundstage) is a soundproof, large 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 stu ...

. Further filming was carried out in Spring 2014 in Horsham. Principal photography was carried out at a wide selection of locations in

and East Sussex such as

Shoreham Airport Brighton City Airport , also commonly known as Shoreham Airport, is located in the parish of Lancing in West Sussex, England. It has a CAA Public Use Aerodrome Licence that allows flights for the public transport of passengers or for flying i ...

Gatwick Airport Gatwick Airport (), also known as London Gatwick , is a major international airport near Crawley, West Sussex, England, south of Central London. In 2021, Gatwick was the third-busiest airport by total passenger traffic in the UK, after H ...

Bluebell Railway The Bluebell Railway is an heritage line almost entirely in West Sussex in England, except for Sheffield Park which is in East Sussex. It is managed by the Bluebell Railway Preservation Society. It uses steam trains which operate between an ...

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 188 ...

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 an oval hurdles course. Fontwell Park was founded by Alfred Day who trained racehorses at The Herm ...

, Holy Innocents Church, Southwater, Horsham, Sedgwick Park and at

NATS Holdings NATS Holdings, formerly National Air Traffic Services and commonly referred to as NATS, is the main air navigation service provider in the United Kingdom. It inherited the traditions of UK air traffic control, which (founded over Croydon Air ...

Whiteley Whiteley is a community in the county of Hampshire, England, near Fareham. The development straddles the boundary between two council districts: the Borough of Fareham to the south and east, and the city of Winchester to the north and west. L ...

. Southdown Gliding Club in Storrington 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, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-contro ...

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 the dedication of money to purchase of an asset to attain an increase in value over a period of time. Investment requires a sacrifice of some present asset, such as time, money, or effort. In finance, the purpose of investing i ...

. 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." Having a business name does not separ ...

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 ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. T ...

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

Marché du Film The ''Marché du Film'' (french for "Film Market") is one of the largest film markets in the world.Marc ...

, 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." Other reviews were also positive about the film, highlighting the importance of the issues for public interest: Ted Jeory, Home Affairs Editor of the '' Sunday Express'', London, wrote, "It's got the lot. A film that has suspense, drama, action, intrepid journalism, and perhaps most importantly–a cause. ''A Dark Reflection'' shines a light on aviation's dirty secret: the quality of the air we breathe on board planes. It's an important step in the decades long challenge to

Big Oil Big Oil is a name used to describe the world's six or seven largest publicly traded and investor-owned oil and gas companies, also known as supermajors. The term, particularly in the United States, emphasizes their economic power and influence ...

and Big Aviation." Ross Coulthart of ''Sunday Night'' on Channel 7, Sydney, wrote, "''A Dark Reflection'' is a gripping thriller based on the true-life scandal of a major toxic air health problem widespread on modern passenger jets. The most confronting thing about this extraordinary film is that it's all true." ''A Dark Reflection'' was screened by Artist View Entertainment at the American Film Market (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 Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

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

VIP A very important person or personage (VIP or V.I.P.) is a person who is accorded special privileges due to their high social status, influence or importance. The term was not common until sometime after World War 2 by RAF pilots. Examples inc ...

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

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...

sales are anticipated in the summer of 2015.

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 national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was f ...

'' 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 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' 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 Aerotoxic syndrome relates to ill-health effects that are claimed to be caused by breathing contaminated airliner cabin air. This condition is not an established medical diagnosis. Potential sources of contamination Modern jetliners have envi ...

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 The Daily Telegraph 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 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 (ASCPCs) valves bleed air from high or low stage engine compressor sections. Lo ...

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 bre ...

and cockpit 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 g ...

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

documentary films A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". Bill Nichols has characterized the documentary in te ...

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, s ...

, "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 jet airliner developed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. After dropping its unconventional Sonic Cruiser project, Boeing announced the conventional 7E7 on January 29, 2003, ...

, 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 Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 (MH370/MAS370) was an international passenger flight operated by Malaysia Airlines that disappeared on 8 March 2014 while flying from Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Malaysia to its planned destination ...

. 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. Although there is no deliberate link to the film and disappearance of MH370, it has not been said that there couldn't be some significant similarity.

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