An anthology of short, provocative dramas about modern desire, identity, and social friction.
This series presented six standalone short films from a range of new and established writers and directors. Each 25-minute play offered a distinct narrative snapshot of contemporary life. The films included Heterosexuality, written and directed by Rikki Beadle-Blair, in which a man named Max (Beadle-Blair) confronts his own prejudices; Clean, a bleak story starring Gary Lewis as a man attempting to navigate a fractured family life; Hot House, a claustrophobic office drama; Bed Head, a surreal two-hander; Fugee Girl, an account of an asylum seeker’s experience; and Hungry, a dark comedy about obsession starring Ricky Grover.
Acts of Passion was an example of Channel 4 commissioning at its most direct: a platform for short, experimental, and often confrontational filmmaking. The anthology format provided a national vehicle for emerging talents like director Francis Lee (Fugee Girl) and writer-director Rikki Beadle-Blair (Heterosexuality). Unifying the disparate stories was a commitment to an unpolished, realist aesthetic: a direct counterpoint to the more polished dramas of the period. The series functioned as a curated collection of cinematic statements, using the short-film form to examine subjects too risky or specific for conventional series television.
Broadcast: Channel 4, 6 Episodes, 31 August – 15 September 1999
Executive Producer: Roger Brown
Production Companies: A Vicarious Productions / Umbrella Productions / Dan Films / MKP production / Just Television production for Channel 4.
