Exclusive: Yasmin Finney stars in first trailer for Yungblud short film MARS
Exclusive: "Giving people a platform to tell their stories with truth and integrity means so much to me," Yungblud shares.
Yasmin Finney portrays a young trans teen who experiences an extraordinary night that has her reassessing all she thought she knew in Yungblud’s new short film MARS.
The project, inspired by Yungblud’s song of the same name, is an ode to trans and non-binary youth and the concept of supportive found family – and you can watch the trailer exclusively below ahead of the film’s digital world premiere on Thursday 17 November, during Trans Awareness Week.
Written by Chris Bush and directed by Abel Rubinstein, MARS is a follows a day in the life of Charlie Acaster (Finney) as she ping pongs from a trans and non-binary youth support group to an evening in a neon arcade sluping slushies.
“We may be pioneers, but that doesn’t ever mean we’re travelling alone,” Finney declares in the trailer, wearing an astronaut space suit as she lies on her bed staring at the ceiling.
The coming-of-age story – which was shot in late 2021 in Blackpool – appears sprinkled with sci-fi visuals as Heartstopper star Finney leads a tale of self-discovery in captivating fashion.
Premiering the trailer for MARS exclusively with Attitude, Dominic Harrison, the music artist known as Yungblud, shares: “I’m so honoured to present you our beautiful film MARS.”
“This all came from the idea that we could facilitate bringing characters to life by assembling a team of cast and crew that fully represent the communities whose stories we wanted to tell,” he adds.
“Giving people a platform to tell their stories with truth and integrity means so much to me and I feel that’s what we’ve achieved with this film,” Yungblud continues. “The love and friendship and warmth I felt being around this beautiful team was a hugely powerful experience and I truly feel gives a little glimpse into the lives of young people.”
Appearing alongside Finney is a cast of new and emerging talent including Leah Choudhry as Maisie, Charlie’s best friend, and Pete MacHale as Pete, the support group leader.
The production proudly committed to securing on and off-screen talent from the trans, non-binary and wider LGBTQ+ community.
“MARS is a film that is as equally beautiful as it is heartfelt and it’s surely a story to which queer people, namely trans and non-binary youth, will feel a strong connection,” Anthony Allen Ramos, Vice President of Communications and Talent, GLAAD says.
Ramos continues: “Yasmin Finney is a previous GLAAD “20 Under 20” honoree and it’s wonderful to see her continue to pursue artistic ventures that also celebrate queer people and tell interesting, authentic stories.”
The digital world premiere of MARS, including an introduction by Yungblud and Yasmin Finney, will be hosted on Moment on Thursday 17 November 2022 – you can find out more and get tickets here.