This is the first in a series of posts that will carry you through the story of our first film, “Best Goon Brenn.” It is essentially, a Producer’s Blog, though, as a massive fan of Bram Stoker’s novel Dracula, I prefer to think of it as “Neil Walters’ Journal.” Happy reading and thank you again for being here.
For those unfamiliar with our titular protagonist, “Best Goon Brenn” I can tell you that it is Cornish for “The Beast of Bodmin”: a large creature which allegedly prowls Bodmin Moor, an expanse of glowering moorland, which also plays host to Daphne du Maurier’s “Jamaica Inn.”
Many people believe that this creature is a large cat, alien to the moors, such as a Panther or a Jaguar. Other people debunk this theory and have come up with ideas that are even wilder. Whatever you believe, or disbelieve, there have been many unexplained sightings of large and strange animals across the entire moor, and many reports of slain livestock to give the myth substance.
During the 1970’s many photographs came to light showing large animals, and many more photographs have been taken since. Such was the concern of farmers and Cornish residents that in 1995 the Ministry of Agriculture conducted an investigation into the possible existence of a large, alien cat living on the Moor. In our film, one of the characters alludes to this investigation as “evidential and conclusive.” The idea of a giant cat, or cats, roaming the Moor is “proved” to be inaccurate, and the report is filed.
Only one week after this “conclusive” evidence is put on official record, a young boy, fishing in a stream, discovers the large skull and several bones of a suspicious, non-indigenous animal.
Wherever you live in the world there will be myths and legends synonymous with that region, including the “Himalayan Yeti”, or the shape-shifting “Skin Walkers” of South America. Indeed, one of the most fascinating legends of all is on our own doorstep in the UK: that of The Lochness Monster, or “Nessie” to which she is affectionally referred.
Maybe common sense and scientific progress denote that such things cannot be possible; they are merely stories passed down through the years to entertain. Tales told around campfires to send a chill through the bones before zipping up a sleeping bag and turning in for the night.
Whatever you choose to believe, suspend those thoughts as you come with us on our journey. The 1995 Ministry of Agriculture report stated that there was no evidence to support the theory that a large, alien cat roamed the Moors of Cornwall at night.…But what if something more sinister and demonic were out there? Something more ancient and intelligent. Something that didn’t only rely on livestock for food.