Before we hit the road for our Norfolk shoot our stills photographer, Yvanne Teo, asked me to describe the images I most wanted her to capture. To which I said that we needed a picture of Rachel on the beach for the poster – one that would give a sense of Rachel’s free-spirited personality and encapsulate the final mood of the film.  So, all I can say is a massive thank you to Yvanne for a job beautifully done.

Nonetheless, after I was advised that a poster for a ‘drama’ should strongly advertise the conflict at its core, it was very tempting to change course and use the dramatic image of Josh Moran and Robert Dukes we have on the website – for me, it’s a favourite moment in the film and of course it meets the requirement.

However, one of my most long-treasured pieces of jewellery is the small enamel badge I found in the Artist’s Coop , which now lives on my tatty old denim jacket, and simply states:

She didn’t always follow the recipe…

Rachel superficially appears to be a drama about two men in conflict, but the reason they are in this place, both physically and emotionally, is Rachel – a strong young woman who had the courage to live her life as she wanted to, despite the enormous pressures and expectations placed upon her by family and community.

The subject matter of the film is tough, and there are moments when it seems that it can only end in absolute bitterness, so I wanted the poster to allow the audience a glimmer of hope in the darkness of the subject matter, a hint that the film might deliver something else beyond the pain of an insoluble situation.

And therefore I also have to sincerely thank Jane Padginton for designing just such a poster.