Echo Chamber - CIFF - Vol.3 (Birthday Boy)
Watch the conversation with Rosa Brooke, HERE!
Time waits for no one, but stories stay eternal, and that's why @EchoChamberFP is able to take a third spin in the Cleveland Festival scene!!!
Schedules can be real fickle, BUT, Tom Brumpton will always try and make things work. So although things didn't fully align for the 50th Cleveland International Film Festival, we still get to wax lyrically about a new indie short that premiered there with great success. THEN, we sit down with this first time filmmaker and discuss all of her adventures in storytelling. The foundation built with her music career, and what led her to film. As well as jumping into things with such a nuanced tale of identity, loneliness, and the need to be acknowledged by those close to you! A really great chat, that everyone can take something away from!!! AND, if you missed her at CIFF, you can catch upcoming screenings at Kingston International Film Festival, Vaporetta Film Festival (Hoxton), Brighton Rocks Film Festival and 19th QFest St. Louis Film Festival.
'Birthday Boy' is the directorial debut from Rosa Brooke, which she also wrote. Rae (Megan Louise Wilson) is an artist going through an identity crisis. Unsure of her gender, struggling to find success, and starting to feel invisible, she and her family are struggling to cope. Today is Rae's birthday, and when their father, Jeff (Graeme Culliton), comes to visit with his troubled wife, Mandy (Jane Griffiths), things begin to unravel. Tragedy strikes the house within minutes, but Jeff insists they stick to their birthday plan: a family meal at his favorite Mexican restaurant. As the day progresses, Rae fights to maintain family unity, comfort their grieving partner, Alice (Samantha Russell), keep an eye on the increasingly drunken Mandy, and manage the constant stress of Jeff's personality, all while being ignored and misunderstood by everyone around them. Eventually, the tension boils over, and they confront their father, with embarrassing results.
Watch the conversation with Rosa Brooke, HERE!
Today we have:
Birthday Boy - Poster
Birthday Boy
Watch Review: Here.
Cleveland International Film Festival, World Premiere: 9th April 2026
FOCUS Wales Film Festival: 9th May 2026
Kingston International Film Festival
Saturday, 17:15pm, 6th June 2026 - Rose Theatre
Buy Tickets: Here.
Vaporetta Film Festival (Hoxton)
Saturday, 19:15pm, 13th June - art’otel Hoxton
Buy Tickets: Here.
Brighton Rocks Film Festival
Wednesday, 20:45pm, 17th June - Daltons
Buy Tickets: Here.
19th QFest St. Louis Film Festival
Shorts Program 3 – Becoming, Loud
Sunday, 15:00pm, 21st June 2026 - Hi-Pointe Theatre
Buy Tickets: Here.
Director: Rosa Brooke
Cast: Samantha Russell, Megan Louise Wilson, Graeme Culliton, Jane Griffiths
Credit:
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Short
Running Time: 13:37 min
Cert: 12a
Website: Here.
Watch the conversation with Rosa Brooke, HERE!
Rosa Brooke
Rosa Brooke
Director, Writer, Editor
Rosa Brooke is a Welsh Director and Screenwriter. After ten years working as a composer and music producer (placing her work with clients such as HBO, Monster Energy, and Volvo) she decided to pursue her passion for film. She has written and directed a number of short films and music videos that are currently in post-production, while writing her first feature.
Follow Rosa via:
IMDb: Here.
Linkedin: Here.
Instagram: @therosabrooke
YouTube: Here.
Rosa Brooke's Banging Newsletter: Here.
50th Cleveland International Film Festival - Logo
50th Cleveland International Film Festival
Festival Date: 9th - 18th April 2026
Cleveland International Film Festival
*(Music)
'The Big Payback' (Instrumental) by EPMD - 2020