The Mire 'possibly the biggest independent film Portsmouth has seen' to be classified by council

The rarely-required power will be used at Wednesday’s (February 1) meeting ahead of the planned screening of the independent film The Mire being shown at the No6 Cinema at the historic dockyard two days later.

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‘A request has been made to the licensing authority by the director of the film, Mr Adam Nelson, for an age-appropriate film classification to be applied by them in advance of the proposed screening,’ a council report published ahead of the meeting says. ‘Mr Nelson has advised that the production could possibly be the biggest independent film Portsmouth has seen and has also stated that it is a Portsmouth film, made by Portsmouth people, with support from Portsmouth institutions.

‘Given its local connections to the city, they would like it to be screened in Portsmouth.’ Councils, as licensing authorities, are given powers under the Licensing Act 2003 to impose age classifications on films which would allow rules around the admission of children to any screening to be set.

These restrictions are a condition of licences issued by the city council and are based on the age certificate given to the film.

The crowdfunded movie has been created by two Portsmouth-based companies, Apple Park Films and Familiar Stranger Films, and is described as a psychological thriller based on a religious cult and its leader. Filming also took place in the city.

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Next Friday evening’s (February 3) screening at No6 Cinema will be its UK premiere and will be preceded by a red carpet event and followed by a question and answer session with the film’s crew and cast.

The sub-committee will be required to rate the film based on guidelines set by the British Board of Film Classification, the independent, non-governmental body set up to determine the suitability of films for viewing by children. A film that charted the near-fall and rise of Portsmouth FC was classified by the council in 2019.

The council licensing team were given a preview to decide what British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) rating it was given.