Official title card
Aftermath: The Crash, by Frequency Media, is a 2018 standalone drama. It is the fourth non-soap opera production of the company, and the first since The Me In You, which was published in October 2015.
ATC was produced with a dual purpose. Had it not been published, only one drama project on Lit, Saying It Out Loud, would've been submitted in this eligibility window for the Lit Forum Awards (LITFAs). This would have meant the Drama category would have been omitted, denying SIOL the opportunity of competing for six awards. "Such a good drama shouldn't miss out on the potential awards it deserves" explained Noxy at the time ATC was announced. "But I've been itching to proudce a new drama for ages anyway. This situation just gave me an added incentive. It's also good for the forum because it gives them more choice. I hope both SIOL and ATC perform well at the LITFAs; I think that would be the best overall outcome and for me that is certainly the objective." ATC was announced a week before it was published, on Friday 23rd March, before then airing on Friday 30th March, two days before the LITFAS 14 process was formally announced.
Premise
Promotional title card
ATC focuses on the direct aftermath of a horrific car crash involving six young adults, all but one of whom is an undergraduate at the fictional University of North Riding in York. The crash itself happens on the 20th birthday of trainee engineer Jack Green (Danny Colligan), and involves his girlfriend Emily Nugent (Sophie Mae Lomas), his secret lover and best friend of Emily, Sasha Hennessy (Alyce Liburd), as well as his friends, 'cool dude' musician Wesley Jaimeson (Rich Kinsiona), sensible migrant trainee doctor Aisha Arshad (Nimisha Odedra) and outgoing but unpredictable secret drug addict and promising young doctor, Adam Braithwaite (Zachary Howarth).
The incident happens in the fictitous village of Greendale in the Yorkshire Dales, and their vehicle has rolled down a muddy embankment on a country road. With little natural light, not much in the way of traffic because the accident happened on a weeknight, and the fact that it's the early hours of the morning, the six friends - all of whom are injured to varying degrees - may well be stuck in their predicament for hours. But who can survive that long?
As well as the direct aftermath, it also becomes clear many personal issues have been bubbling away in the friends' personal lives, all of which rise to the surface as they wait for the emergency services to assist them.
The premise is described as 'a little unusual' in that the crash itself isn't actually shown, although there are three flashbacks to it shown early on. Instead, Aldenham explained, the focus is on the direct aftermath, and the drama is not about the moment of the crash, but the situation its victims find themselves in - and some of the secrets that are exposed because of it. The first three parts all take place at varying points of the crash aftermath, whilst part four is set two weeks later, with the setting being a church at which some of the surviving friends are attending the funeral of one of the crash victims.
Title Card
The word 'AFTERMATH' has a picture of a dark road in the background, hinting at the premise of the project.
Critical Reception
Based on four reviews to date, 'The Crash' has received 75% positive feedback, meaning it has received generally positive feedback. Praise was given to the vividness of the non-verbal writing and character descriptions, and the scene were some of the characters sing a song in the car to keep their spirits up. Further reviews described the atmosphere of the car crash scenes as 'eerie', the project as a whole as 'character driven' and about the inter-relationships of the characters involved. The tone, pacing and narrative quirks were also praised, particularly the train of thought behind Emily's decision not to reveal her secret about Adam at his funeral. There was a negative review, in which the reviewer felt the atmosphere of the project was 'flat', and that any sympathy for Emily's rape was plot-driven rather than organic. The overall theme of this review is that there was too much plot for a 60-minute drama, and that this was not enough time to get to know or care about the characters or their stories. However, the reviewer also acknowledged that the complexity of making readers care about unknown characters and plots in such a short space of time. The negative review felt that Adam's death happened too soon; however another, positive review countered that Adam's early death is what facilitated plot threads that followed, particularly nobody being aware of Adam raping Emily whilst he was alive, and that Emily decided not to blurt this out at Adam's funeral as she had planned, in order to spare the feelings of his family who idolised Adam.
Lit Forum Awards (LITFAs)
The project was nominated for six awards, but walked away from the ceremony empty-handed; the first Frequency Media drama project to do so.
Cast
|
Character |
Actor |
|---|---|
|
Adam Braithwaite |
Zachary Howarth |
|
Aisha Arshad |
Nimisha Odedra |
| Emily Nugent | Sophie Mae Lomas |
| Jack Green | Danny Colligan |
| Karen Braithwaite | Uncredited |
| Michael Braithwaite | Uncredited |
| Reverend Watson | Uncredited |
| Sasha Hennessy | Alyce Liburd |
| Wesley Jaimeson | Rich Kinsiona |