Three friends rent a house in coastal East Lyme, Connecticut in an attempt to revive a neglected friendship, but when a peculiar neighbor intrudes, tensions rise and a supernatural force takes hold. Following a fireside telling of the town’s Lyme disease lore, they each begin to experience strange symptoms including a shared vision, none of which they divulge to one another. By the next nightfall, the mysterious forces have pushed the fraying friendship to its limits, revealing what each would do to help the other survive.

Director’s Vision for ‘Nine Miles’

The story of Nine Miles was developed after I began spending time in East Lyme, Connecticut. A beautiful coastal hideaway where city folk such as myself can find relief from the summer heat of New York City. New England hospitality comes in the form of beers around a bonfire in the summer months, and there is no shortage of tales, however tall, to go around.

Visible on the horizon, across the Long Island sound (exactly nine miles away) is a place called Plum Island. I have been told many versions of what exactly goes on at there, but “officially” it’s a government animal disease research facility. After doing some research into its long and storied past dating back to the 1950’s, and the many theories of its purposes. I was very intrigued by the concept of this beautiful scenery shrouding such a sinister secret.

Coming from Australia I am also fascinated by the local fauna in North America, and the fact that deer roam freely so close to suburban homes. Furthermore, I learnt that almost every person in the region has had some kind of brush with Lyme Disease and in 2020, with a quarantine lock-down happening worldwide, disease spread felt like a topic I could not escape.

As a graphic artist and director of animation, I am constantly pushing to work more with in-camera effects, set design and props, but Nine Miles was one of my first real opportunities to bring a story to life with actors. I’m looking forward to continuing to explore storytelling through characters and people.