Barbara Duggen (Eve Connolly), dubbed “The Mobile Seamstress”, is struggling to keep her fabric shop alive. After a botched sewing appointment sets her on a quest to replace her client’s lost button, she unexpectedly stumbles upon a drug deal gone awry. Faced with two downed motorcyclists, guns and a briefcase, Barbara is completely torn. She is forced to pick between three choices: commit the perfect crime, call the police or drive away.

The narrative presents the repercussions of all three decisions, and the deadly confrontations that result from each as she gets entangled with the case’s owner. Using thread to free herself, Barbara stops at nothing to save her store.

This is the synopsis of Freddy Macdonald’s Sew Torn [+leggi anche:
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scheda film], one of the Piazza Grande titles being showcased at this year’s Locarno Film Festival (7-17 August).

“A film about the choices we make is my story to tell. I’ve always been drawn to narratives that explore decision making, and Sew Torn is the culmination of this interest; a layered feature that depicts how actions define your path, ultimately shaping you – for better or worse,” explains Macdonald in his director’s statement.

“Set in and around a quaint Swiss town, Sew Torn is a thriller, a dark comedy that takes place over the same afternoon, three separate times. It’s a film about loneliness and home. About grief and redemption. About revenge and love. With twists and turns driven by an undercurrent of humour, the plot is all but impossible to predict. And with a dexterous seamstress protagonist, liberation from a tangled past is finally achieved.”

The main cast is rounded off by Calum Worthy, John Lynch, K Callan, Ron Cook, Thomas Douglas, Caroline Goodall, Veronika Herren-Wenger and Wierner Biermeier.

The film was produced by US-based producers Fred Macdonald (the helmer’s father, who also served as the picture’s co-writer), Barry Navidi, Sebastian Klinger, Diamantis Zavitsanos and Socratis Zavitsanos, and was co-produced by Timothy Ross and Alexander Stratigenas for Orisono (Switzerland). Munich-based firm The Playmaker has signed with UTA to handle international sales for Sew Torn. The company plans to launch sales for the film at Locarno.

Check out our exclusive teaser below: