UK PREMIERE Free-spirited Stephanie, a single woman in her late thirties, calls together her friends for the home birth of her first baby. Tensions run high as midnight cravings, stalled labour and expectations abound. Stephanie’s friends and lovers must come to terms with each other and re-examine their own lives. Improvisation can be difficult to pull off on film, but Deborah Day’s team do it effortlessly, producing a tight 90-minutes from 55 hours of footage shot by 4 cameramen over 13 days on a single set. Confident performances abound, with Valerie Buhagiar particularly good as the vulnerable but strong-headed Stephanie, and Colin Mochrie in top improvisational form. Described by industry bible Variety as a sleeper hit like My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Expecting is a heartfelt crowd-pleaser we can all relate to. Best Canadian Film, Vancouver Film Festival – Best First Feature Jury Mention, Montreal Film Festival. Playing with: OUT OF THE BOX (Dir: Sachin Kundalkar, India, 2002, 35mm, 13min)