About Brave the Dark
Synopsis:
When Mr. Deen (Jared Harris, Chernobyl, The Crown) discovers one of his students has been living out of his car and thrown into jail, he decides to bail him out. Determined to curb Nate’s self-destructive behavior, Mr. Deen quickly discovers a host of dark secrets that are slowly tearing Nate apart. What started as a good deed becomes a desperate fight to save Nate from his own demons. As Nate spirals deeper into despair, Mr. Deen must decide how far he’s willing to go to save a kid on the brink of losing everything—even himself.
Rating:
PG-13 for domestic violence/bloody images, suicide, some strong language, teen drinking, drug material and smoking.
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About the Cast and Filmmakers
Jared Francis Harris was born in London, England. He is the son of Irish actor Richard Harris and Welsh actress Elizabeth Harris (Elizabeth Rees), and brother of Damian Harris and Jamie Harris. Despite his lineage, Jared showed little interest in becoming an actor, until he was cast in a college production while attending North Carolina's Duke University (USA), where he studied drama and literature, in the early 1980s.
After graduation, Jared returned to the UK where he attended Central School of Speech and Drama and then joined the Royal Shakespeare Company, performing in Mark Rylance's "Hamlet", "Romeo & Juliet", "The Silent Woman" and "A Clockwork Orange". In 1989, he had his screen debut in The Rachel Papers (1989).
In 1990, while on vacation in New York, Jared auditioned for the role of Hotspur in "Henry IV, Part 1", which he played at the New York Shakespeare Festival following his brilliant course as an excellent theater artist in the off-Broadway play "Ecstasy", for which he was honored with an Obie Award in 1992.
Widely regarded as the one of greatest stage and screen actors both in his native Great Britain and internationally, from his breakthrough role as Andy Warhol in I Shot Andy Warhol (1996) and VH1's Two of Us (2000) where he portrayed John Lennon to Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011) and Lincoln (2012), Jared Harris expressed his unparalleled qualities as a sublime "chameleon" in a wide range of roles full of profoundness, intelligence and insights through his praised performances, among others, in The Last of the Mohicans (1992), Natural Born Killers (1994), Smoke (1995), Happiness (1998), How to Kill Your Neighbor's Dog (2000), Igby Goes Down (2002), B. Monkey (1998), Shadow Magic (2000), Mr. Deeds (2002), Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004) and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008).
His tour-de-force mesmerizing, staggering and fascinating interpretations of substantial mastery, subtlety, charisma and generosity also include some of his finest precious gems on TV such as in The Other Boleyn Girl (2003), The Riches (2007), Fringe (2008), Mad Men (2007), The Crown (2016), The Terror (2018) and Chernobyl (2019).
Jared is married to Allegra Riggio, lauded intelligent lighting designer and accidental comedian.
Photo Credit: Andrew Toth
An incredible Australian actor, Nicholas can currently be seen as a series regular on Amazon Freevee’s comedy series THE PRADEEPS OF PITTSBURGH from Michael Showalter. He recently wrapped HURRICANNA for Francesca Gregorini opposite Mark Duplass and Holly Hunter. Nicholas can next be seen in the upcoming independent film BRAVE THE DARK opposite Jared Harris.
Nicholas played ‘Henry Bowers’ in IT and IT: CHAPTER 2, New Line Cinema’s Andy Muschietti-directed adaptations of the Stephen King bestseller. He played the co-lead in the Scott Speer-directed romantic drama ENDLESS, starring opposite Alexandra Shipp, as well as the Australian feature DANGER CLOSE opposite Travel Fimmel. Nic was in Nik Arcel’s THE DARK TOWER opposite Idris Elba and Matthew McConaughey. He starred opposite Viggo Mortensen in MATT ROSS’ film CAPTAIN FANTASTIC, which premiered in Cannes and earned him a SAG nomination. He also played Nicole Kidman and Joseph Fiennes son in Kim Farrant's Australian feature STRANGERLAND.
Photo Credit: Theo Wargo
Born in London, England.
He studied at the London International Film School and then the New York University Film School (Screenwriting department). DH’s first short ‘KILLING TIME” played at the Los Angeles Film Festival and won First Prize at the Avoriaz Film Festival for Horror and Science Fiction. He sold his first script to Paramount Studios called “NIGHTS OF THE REALM”, and that enabled him to finance his next short film “GREASY LAKE”, adapted from a short story by T. CORAGHESSAN BOYLE, and with James Spader and Eric Stoltz in the cast, it won first prize at the Houston Shorts Film Festival.
His next script “ROCKERS” co authored with Nick Villiers , a rock and roll musical about Eddie Cochran and Gene Vincent sold to Columbia Studios and their script FACE IN THE MIRROR sold to Paramount. Producer Andrew S Karsch at United Artist’s optioned the rights to the Martin Amis novel ‘THE RACHEL PAPERS” which Damian adapted and directed. Joining up with Eric Fellner’s Initial Pictures, the film was made in London with James Spader, Ione Skye, Jonathan Pryce and Dexter Fletcher.
The Rachel Papers attracted the attention of Disney Films and he made his next two films with Touchstone Pictures. “DECIEVED” a thriller starring Goldie Hawn and John Heard and end of the cold war CIA thriller”: “BAD COMPANY” written by Ross Thomas and starring Laurence Fishburn, Ellen Barkin and Frank Langella. DH directed the pilot for the USA cable series “SINS OF THE CITY” and subsequent episodes. He also directed two episodes of HBO anthology series “STRANGERS” set in Paris. One of which he also wrote.
David Lindsey‘s best seller novel “MERCY” was offered to DH to adapt and direct by producer Amadeo Ursini. The film was financed by Franchise Pictures and released through Columbia Tri-Star starring Ellen Barkin and Peta Wilson and Julian Sands. He then wrote the script POP for Sidney Kimmel’s company Longfellow Pictures. DH wrote and directed “GARDENS OF THE NIGHT” with a cast including Gillian Jacobs, Evan Ross, Tom Arnold, Kevin Zeegers, John Malkovich and Jeremy Sisto and it got its world premiere In Competition at the Berlin Festival where it was nominated for the GOLDEN BEAR.
DH co-wrote and directed the feature film BRAVE THE DARK, with his brother Jared Harris and Nicholas Hamilton being released by Angel Films in 2025
DH has two upcoming projects that he wrote, BERNSTEIN IN THE DESERT and ARE YOU THE ENTERTAINMENT which is being produced by Elevated Films.
Photo Credit: Jamie Harris - Barney
Derek’s life mission is to bring people together through creative ideas and film.
In 2014, Derek combined his passion for business and filmmaking and opened MAKE/FILMS, a full-service video production company based in Lancaster, PA. MAKE/FILMS’ creative team produces commercials for local, regional, and worldwide brands, as well as Emmy-nominated documentaries and feature films. Derek recently produced Brave the Dark, a feature film starring acclaimed actor Jared Harris.
Photo Credit: Jordan Graff
Nathaniel Deen is a passionate filmmaker and advocate for the arts, residing in Lancaster, Pennsylvania with his wife Jessica. With over 30 years of diverse experience at Sight & Sound Theatres, Nathaniel has excelled in various roles such as Staff Photographer, Broadcast Producer, and Associate Film Producer.
Currently self-employed as a film producer, Nathaniel has made significant contributions to the film industry, with two projects featured on IMDb. Notably, he served as the Associate Film Producer and Assistant Director for “I HEARD THE BELLS,” and took on dual roles as Writer (Original Screenplay) and Executive Producer for “BRAVE THE DARK.” This deeply personal film reflects Nathaniel's journey of overcoming adversity, highlighting the transformative influence of a devoted teacher, Mr. Stan Deen, who became a pivotal figure in his healing process. In a heartfelt tribute, Nathaniel and Jessica changed their last name to Deen in 2018 to honor Stan’s unwavering support and love.
In addition to his filmmaking endeavors, Nathaniel founded The Stan Deen Foundation, whose mission is to ignite the transformative power of the Arts and Education to uplift and empower underprivileged children & teens. Through this foundation, he aims to inspire the next generation and create opportunities for those in need, embodying the very spirit of compassion and resilience that shaped his own life.
Photo Credit: Amy Marburger