Steve + Q&A
classified 15Please note: This was screened in Sept 2025
Acclaimed writer Max Porter, producer Alan Moloney and actor Jay Lycurgo join us for a special screening of Steve - the new film from Tim Mielants (Small Things Like These), starring Cillian Murphy. Filmed in the South West, the film was also scored by Bristol’s own Geoff Barrow and Ben Salisbury, who will be presenting a masterclass on film scoring as part of Encounters industry programme earlier in the afternoon. This screening will be followed by a Q&A with Max, Alan and Jay, hosted by Nikesh Shukla.
Set in the mid-90s, Steve is a reimagining of Max Porter's Sunday Times bestseller Shy. The film follows a pivotal day in the life of headteacher Steve (Cillian Murphy) and his students at a last-chance reform school amidst a world that has forsaken them. As Steve fights to protect the school’s integrity and impending closure, we witness him grappling with his own mental health.
In parallel to Steve’s struggles, we meet Shy (Jay Lycurgo), a troubled teen caught between his past and what lies ahead as he tries to reconcile his inner fragility with his impulse for self-destruction and violence.