Feature Film — May Davies Production Design

WITCHES
Feature Doc

BIFA 2024 - Best Feature Documentary - Winner
BIFA 2024 - Raindance Maverick Award - Nominee
Tribeca Festival 2024 - Jury Special Mention in Viewpoints - Winner
BFI and British Council at Cannes Great 8 Showcase 2024
London Film Festival 2024
Released on MUBI November 2024

Production Designer | May Davies

Standby Art Director | Katherina Kubánova
Props | Edd Lowe

Construction Manager | Callum Harris
Scenic Painters | Dylan Atkins, Issy Pritchard

Director, Writer, Editor | Elizabeth Sankey
Producers | Manon Ardisson, Chiara Ventura, Jeremy Warmsley
Director of Photography | Chloe Thomson

Press

New York Times - At the Tribeca Film Festival, Vision and Vibes
5th June 2024
“Dramatic sets that previously served only as blurry backdrops — a decaying nursery, an overgrown witch’s atelier — are shown in intricate detail. It’s then that you realize that, even while out of focus, the moody scenery was stirring up something important: a vibe.“

IndieWire - Reflects on Postpartum Mental Illness in Veracious Documentary
12th June 2024
“an educational arena with beguiling artistic depths that could provide the basis for a handful of film school courses or a multi-part docuseries.”

The Hollywood Reporter - Links Women’s Mental Health With the Ethereal
11th June 2024
“Endeavoring to craft her own kind of psychological horror flick, Sankey and production designer May Davies place meticulous attention on the ethereal visuals of the documentary, the filmmaker situating herself and her subjects in whimsical indoor sets awash in greens and purples, celestial décor and sprawling ivy. “

Filmmaker Magazine - Interview with Director, Elizabeth Sankey
7th June 2024“My production designer, May Davies, did all of it with just her and two other people. She’s absolutely incredible. The idea was that one [set] is a disturbing hospital room, the way that it felt when I walked in. Another one was the “teen witch” room; I wanted to be Sabrina when I grew up, having a bedroom like that was my dream. The last one is the witch cottage, which I think is actually probably my favorite of the three. At the end, I came to this place of acceptance of the witch, the darkness, inside of me.“
Hammer to Nail - A conversation with Elizabeth Sankey (Witches)
19th June 2024“And then my production designer, May Davies, is unbelievable. She had so little money and she created those sets … She would do one set, we would shoot on it for a day and a half, and then we would get loads of stuff. And then overnight she and her team would redress it all. So it was like she was working so hard and she just brought my ideas to life so well. I think she started out as an artist and she used to do a lot of installations, so I think she’s very attuned to that. She was just incredible.“