LOS ANGELES, CA (May 29, 2025) —British Director Stephen Portland will debut his latest film with a World Premiere at the 28th Annual Dances With Films Film Festival next month during their opening weekend. The trio cast includes Joe Thomas (The Inbetweeners and BBC’s White Gold), Rosa Robson (Inside No. 9, and Buffering), and American actress Kelley Mack (The Walking Dead and Chicago Med). The concept for Universal was born the same way as Portland’s first feature film Something – from the available resources, or lack thereof. With the use of a log cabin and very little else, he set about creating a story that could take place in a single location, with a cast of no more than three people.

“When I initially began reading the script, I didn’t recognize what sort of film this was going to be”, says Thomas. “For the first few pages I thought it might be a romantic comedy based around a love triangle. But then the plot went completely in the other direction. The whole thing seemed so unusual and refreshing.”

Film Synopsis- Leo and Naomi are a US-based British couple of academics, enjoying a romantic weekend in a remote log cabin. They are interrupted by the arrival of a woman who’s been following Leo’s research in the field of junk DNA (parts of the human genome that appear to have no purpose). She claims to have discovered a hidden code, and needs help. She is given five minutes to explain what she has found. Five minutes turns to half an hour, which then becomes the rest of the day, leading to a lively dinner and a raucous night in the cabin. The next day, the gravity of the discovery begins to dawn on the three new friends, leading to a dramatic showdown over what to do with this explosive information.

Dances with Films 28th Annual Film Festival is June 19-June 29, 2025 at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood.

World Premiere: Saturday, June 21, 2025

Time: 9:00 pm Media Carpet, 9:30 pm Premiere

Where: TCL Chinese Theatre, Hollywood, CA