{"id":427897,"date":"2026-01-21T14:31:11","date_gmt":"2026-01-21T14:31:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/427897\/"},"modified":"2026-01-21T14:31:11","modified_gmt":"2026-01-21T14:31:11","slug":"jacob-anderson-ophelia-lovibond-star-in-stillbirth-drama-still-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/427897\/","title":{"rendered":"Jacob Anderson, Ophelia Lovibond Star in Stillbirth Drama ‘Still Life’"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\t\u201cMinx\u201d star Ophelia Lovibond<\/a> and \u201cGame of Thrones\u201d and \u201cInterview With the Vampire\u201d actor Jacob Anderson<\/a> headline \u201cStill Life,\u201d a short film exploring the aftermath of stillbirth through a lens of dark comedy and emotional honesty, produced by 19th Street Productions.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe project marks a deeply personal undertaking for writer-producer Kate Radcliffe, who drew from her own experience of losing her son Dexter to craft a story that confronts a topic rarely addressed on screen. Director Sophie King, whose brother was stillborn, helms the production, which is currently in post-production.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe film follows Jess and Max after their son is stillborn at 24 weeks of pregnancy. Lovibond portrays Jess as she navigates an unexpected form of motherhood marked by silent milestones and uncomfortable social encounters, while Anderson plays Max, attempting to hold their family together through grief.<\/p>\n

\n\tJordan Alexandra, Phoebe Pryce, Alex Bhat and Felicity Montagu round out the supporting ensemble.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cKate\u2019s script struck me as such an important subject matter to bring to light,\u201d Lovibond said. \u201cThere\u2019s still so little conversation around baby loss that it can feel impossible to navigate, both for those experiencing its bewildering devastation directly and for those wanting (but not knowing how) to be supportive.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tAnderson added: \u201cStories are a great way to work through things that need to be said, and Kate has written a brave, darkly funny and ultimately hopeful story about continuing to live in the face of the unimaginable.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tAccording to U.K. statistics, one in every 250 pregnancies ended in stillbirth in 2022, with 2,680 stillbirths recorded that year and an average of eight babies stillborn daily. Stillbirth rates rose for the first time in seven years in 2021.<\/p>\n

\n\tKing said: \u201cThe greatest power of cinema is its capacity for catharsis and empathy, and Kate\u2019s brutally honest script delivers on this so fully. As well as learning all about Kate\u2019s first son, Dexter, it\u2019s been an honor to pay tribute to my stillborn brother Alex by making this film.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThe production was staffed predominantly by women, with Radcliffe noting that many crew members, including men, had personal connections to baby loss.<\/p>\n

\n\tRadcliffe said: \u201cIf this film does anything, I hope it opens up a conversation about baby loss and resonates with anyone who has felt as lonely and devastated as I did the day Dexter died.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThe creative team envisions the short film as a proof of concept for a potential television series. Sarah Roy produces alongside Radcliffe. Simon Higgins serves as casting director, with Carmen Pellon as director of photography.<\/p>\n

\n\tRadcliffe\u2019s credits include \u201cThe Graham Norton Show,\u201d \u201cThe Russell Howard Hour,\u201d \u201cRhod Gilbert\u2019s Growing Pains\u201d and \u201cA League of Their Own.\u201d King is a BAFTA Connect director whose work has screened at Oscar and BAFTA-qualifying festivals, with credits including Channel 4\u2019s \u201cDisability Benefits\u201d and the award-winning short \u201cDoes Your Condom Make You Fat?\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThe filmmakers plan a targeted festival run beginning this year, focusing on U.K. and international festivals. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u201cMinx\u201d star Ophelia Lovibond and \u201cGame of Thrones\u201d and \u201cInterview With the Vampire\u201d actor Jacob Anderson headline \u201cStill…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":427898,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[64,63,134,224467,344,224468],"class_list":{"0":"post-427897","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-movies","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-entertainment","11":"tag-jacob-anderson","12":"tag-movies","13":"tag-ophelia-lovibond"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/427897","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=427897"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/427897\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/427898"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=427897"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=427897"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=427897"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}