The Long Player

A short drama by Benjamin Peel

The Long Player introduces Tina, as she gets more than she bargained for when selling her mum's old record player. This short drama illustrates the complexities of a life lived beneath the shadows of a loved one's mental health struggles, while coming to terms with the grief of losing said relative.

Directed by Calvin Duffy, produced by Natalie Yates and written by Benjamin Peel, the film is a blend of experiences from all over the country, offering work and high quality storytelling to local Sheffield actors and filmmakers.

Produced by Evening Cat Productions, who aim to put women at the front of their stories, as well as utilise the incredible talent and eye for detail in South Yorkshire and Lincolnshire filmmakers.

What's it all about?

The Long Player delicately communicates the difficulties faced when grief becomes intertwined with lifetimes spent tackling mental ill health, as well as estranged relationships and letting go of treasured possessions.

The film meets Tina and Jack as the sale of an old record player brings them together. With opposing personalities; Tina closed off and guarded, Jack curious and forthright, the two are equally surprised when they realise that Jack is Tina's estranged father, forcing him to answer uncomfortable questions and relive a life he left behind.

It gives us the opportunity to explore both characters' experiences and emotions; from betrayal to guilt. Presenting an opportunity for the characters to ask questions often left unanswered. Relationships falling apart without the opportunity to discuss and explore each others' feelings is such a common occurrence for people globally, regardless of age or background. The film provides an element of catharsis in the sense that perhaps Tina will finally get closure.

It raises questions about coping mechanisms and encourages empathy from either side. The film is an exploration of a difficult, yet human experience.

Filming March 2026, the film will be Evening Cat Productions' second Sheffield-based short, using local actors and crew to bring the story to life compassionately.

Director's Statement

An unrealised or unreconciled relationship (be it between friends, family, or lovers) is like a square of light cast on an interior wall from an unidentifiable, exterior source: it brightens one small part of the room, but puts the rest in deeper shadow. It transfixes the onlooker with a concentrated point - be it certain past memories, unshakeable feelings of loss or anger, or just the incapacity to let go - while preventing them from taking in the details of the wider space before them.

Our film is about breaking out of that fixation. On one side, Tina always imagined her absent father as a monster, shrouded in the cruelty of his absence, but when suddenly confronted with his presence in her front room, she's compelled to consider the possibility that he's just another incomplete human, who simply made mistakes: many selfish ones, but some well-intentioned as well. On the other side, Jack has always conceived of himself as the tack-sharp, no-nonsense Good Man, who made the best of everything and never let himself be treated as a fool. Yet when he stands before his daughter who he abandoned, it's impossible for him to cling to both his idea of his own truthfulness, and also his imagined sense of infallibility.

Amidst all this we have our record player. Unlike our modern streaming music apps, which organise our personal soundtracks down to the exact minutes of our annual listening time, vinyl records have an organic randomness: you can drop the needle down wherever you like, and never be entirely sure what you're going to hear - so probably, you listen more intently. The same is true of people: for the most part, you never completely know what the person opposite you is about to say next, which is why you have to listen, even when that's harder than you'd like.

The Long Player is a film about breaking fixed ideas, letting go of false principles of ego, and asking the piece of light in the corner to fill up the whole room. The question is, can Tina and Jack bear the pain of listening more closely?

Pictured: Cast/Crew of Requires Improvement (Evening Cat Productions), currently on festival run. Photo credits: Shepherd Creative.

So Far

The film started life as an Audio Drama, written by Benjamin Peel, where it was played on numerous platforms. After considerable development, Benjamin crafted it into a screenplay, with characters that could be moulded to suit a short film format.

The film is now in the depths of Pre-Production, with locations locked, actors cast and crew collated. We're so excited to breathe further life into this project, with such a unique history.

It's so important to us that we are able to pay our cast and crew; this ensures we can continue to improve on previous films, work with high quality filmmakers and compensate for long hours on set. Our majority-Northern crew aims to provide more opportunity to the South Yorkshire area, which is often overlooked and offers less paid work than other parts of the country.

This film gives us the chance to sensitively represent the struggles faced by those left behind, after a lifetime of living under the shadow of a relative's unpredictable and volatile mental health. The simplicity of the storytelling allows for us to present a grounded and personal story, that we hope audiences will relate to. Our director is building a film that will be both beautiful and raw.

CAST

Meet Tina: Eleanor May Blackburn

Eleanor May Blackburn is a disabled and neurodivergent writer/actor/theatre-maker/poet/facilitator from Sheffield. She has created, produced and performed 3 solo shows to date that have toured all over the country and to the Edinburgh Fringe to 4&5* reviews. In 2025 she sold out at the Crucible, Sheffield Theatres with Does My Fanny Look Big in This? and later this year she takes her 3rd solo show A Sudden, Disturbing To Do List to the likes of Theatre Deli, Alphabetti and 53two. Eleanor had her first full collection of poetry Sleeve Heart published in 2025 by Stairwell Books and chapbook Ghost and Found published in 2021 by Cerasus Poetry. Other notable projects include: Pidge the narrator (lead) for the Royal Ballet and Opera’s TalesUntapped, playing the titular role in JW Theatre’s The Witching Hour and lead in The Devil's Game, Robin Hood in Same Difference’s Robin Hood, starring in Apartness alongside Sylvester McCoy and Linda Marlowe, playing the lead in Kevin Short’s feature film Bonnie & Clive. She spends her free time performing her own spoken word at open mics and slams and likes to write about disability, mental health and feminist narratives.

Meet Jack: Richard Galloway

Richard Galloway is a Northern Irish actor who trained at Bretton Hall 2004. He also co-founded Yorkshire based; Buglight Productions 2014. He has just finished development of a new musical How could I forget? with Sheffield Theatres, other theatre highlights include: Home Truths (Cardboard Citizens), one man show The Life and Soul (Red Ladder), ‘Entertaining Mr Sloane’ (Plays the Thing), Stones in his Pockets (Contexture), and three shows with Bad Apple theatre company. In screen; ’Boots’ in The Tide (Sleeping dogs-2023) and playing Ryan in feature film Black Daruma (Far North Films 2024), thriller He Kills at Night (2025) and drama Are you trying to Kill me? (Memphis James Pictures 2026).

PRODUCTION TEAM

Meet the Director: Calvin Duffy

Educated in literature & history, Calvin turned to filmmaking during the Covid-19 pandemic. Recently he’s written and directed “Out of Hours”, produced by Film Locos and Noz Films, a short film reflecting on the impact of the 1980 Denmark Place Fire, and “Wesley the Vampire” a mockumentary made with Noz Films. Other works include a commission for Amersham Film School, and “Floating” which has been nominated for Best Music Video at Birmingham Film Festival 2025. Again with Noz Films he’s currently developing “Deep Swimmer”, a short film dealing with an aspect of the long-running UK “spy cops” scandal.

Meet the Writer: Benjamin Peel

Benjamin Peel’s play Not a Game for Girls has received five productions and it was published by Oberon Books in 2018. The Interrogator was performed as part of the New Short Play Festival, John Cullum Theatre at the American Theatre of Actors, New York, 2019. The Long Player featured in Ragged Foil’s second podcast season with The Fastest Ever Singer appearing in the same company’s lock down Isolation Sessions.

He wrote the screenplays for the short films The Runner, Silence in the Library and Messages all of which were selected for the Fear in the Fens Festival. Messages has gone onto to receive more laurels and won an award at Make it Write Productions' Weird & Wonderful Festival 2025 in Liverpool.

He has had work published in three anthologies and he has written and self-produced several short audio dramas and monologues. He was shortlisted for the Alpine Fellowship Theatre Prize in 2023.

More here; https://benjaminpeelwriter.wordpress.com

Meet the Producer: Natalie Yates

An experienced actress, with extensive screen experience, Natalie started producing in 2023. She produced "Messages", written by Benjamin Peel, in 2023, before producing "How to Win Friends and Guinea Pig People" and "Requires Improvement" in 2024, the latter of which is currently on its festival run, with screenings scheduled. Having featured as an actress in all three films, she's stepping back to primarily produce "The Long Player". Her films have had numerous selections, with Messages winning "Best Styling" at the Weird and Wonderful Festival, 2025. Training includes Intro to Production, NFTS. She is also trained to Safeguarding Level 3 (DSL), has a certificate in Mental Health First Aid and holds an enhanced DBS.

Natalie was recently accepted onto 'Directions', a series of training workshops for Sheffield-based producers and directions, funded by SYMCA, coordinated by the South Yorkshire Filmmakers Network.

Meet the DOP: Daniel Llobera

A graduate of MA Film Production at Bournemouth Film School and mentored by Witold Stok BSC, Daniel Llobera is an award winning UK based Cinematographer working between narrative features & shorts, commercials and music videos.

Having lensed seven feature films, Daniel has also shot over 50 shorts and commercials. Some of Daniel's most recent work includes "Chimera" with Academy Award Winning Producer Julie Foy (The Silent Child) and director Neil Mcenery - West (Containment). He also lensed "Forgotten Word", an official selection at the BAFTA qualifying British Urban Film Festival. Feature film "Reputation" was nominated for " Best Independent film" at the UK film awards 2025. Daniel has also shot at the Formula One Monaco Grand Prix and London Fashion Week AW/24 and SS/25.

Daniel has worked extensively with stunts and is well versed in capturing action for camera. 2024 feature "Norse Game" featured over 20 stunt performers and included several one take action sequence, high falls and burns.

He holds the award "Best In Show" awarded by the British Journal Of Photography for his still images at the exhibition "Free Range" in 2013 as well as a multitude of "Best Cinematography" awards from independent film festivals around the world.

Meet the 1st AD: Mira El Bacha

Mira El Bacha has been deeply passionate about film since childhood, and moved to London to study and make films. She graduated with a BA from UAL in Film Practice, during which she became fascinated by the AD department. Currently she’s undertaking her MA in Assistant Directing at NFTS.

She’s worked on a range of projects as 1st/2nd/3rd AD. Independent shorts have included Get Out Breathing, which won 34 awards on the festival circuit, The Barn, and The Surrogate, as well as larger projects funded by the Roundhouse and Prime. She’s also worked on music videos in the UK and abroad, with artists like Shelf Lives. Recently she was 1st AD for Out of Hours, also directed by Calvin, our director for The Long Player.

Keep an eye on our socials and website for more crew intros!

Where Does The Money Go?

As much as we'd love films to cost £100, costs add up quickly, especially when considering the skill level of our crews, travel fees and feeding teams. We're keeping things pretty local, but it still adds up! So what do we need?

Want to invest in this lush little project?

We'd be ever so grateful! We absolutely cannot do this without the sheer generosity of your lovely donations; help us tell a high quality and beautiful story.

Backing the project? We'll keep in touch with updates as we progress!

Evening Cat Prods

Want to get to know the production company? Here's a link to our website: https://eveningcatprods.com

Check out the film and its progress on Instagram; @eveningcatprods | @thelongplayer film

~ The Long Player Team x