POMPTON PLAINS, N.J. - s4story -- The upcoming BayView Entertainment release Florence follows writer-director Skip Shea's reflective horror films, Trinity and Seeds, as the third and final installment of his artistic statement on his abuse as a youth.

A pioneer in the "trauma horror" sub-genre, 2016's Trinity was inspired by a chance encounter Shea had with the clergy member who decades earlier abused him when he was child.

Seeds, a 2020 Rondo Award Winner for Best Independent Feature, continued the exploration of abuse and clandestine cover-ups in a compelling tale intermingling the secrets of the church and a New England cult.

Now with Florence, Shea creates, in the words of the film's tagline, "An internal narrative gone mad." When the title character shares a "special drink" with Father Billy, she's launched on a confusing journey into her psyche and Dante's Circles of Hell… while a masked, robed killer circles closer and closer.

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Helping Shea tell his tale is legendary Italian writer-director Luigi Cozzi, who contributed some scenes. Cozzi's involvement is appropriate, given the heavy influence foreign directors with a penchant for absurdism have had on his style.

"I looked to the greatest absurdist filmmakers for inspiration," states Shea. "Louis Bunuel or Jean-Luc Godard or Alain Resnais or Ingmar Bergman or Dario Argento. If you don't think his philosophy borders on absurdism watch Deep Red."

Real life can be stranger than fiction, and the filming of Shea's latest film brought everything full circle, when the treatment center where he was abused became an arts center: "They let me shoot scenes there," he explains. "Then it caught fire, and I went back into the ruins and shot what is now a big part of the ending of Florence."

"We have always been impressed with Skip's artistic vision in telling his tales," says BayView Entertainment VP of Acquisitions, Peter Castro. "He always brings his points across in meaningful ways, engaging and entertaining viewers."

Florence will be available for digital streaming later this year on finer streaming platforms. View the advance trailer here: https://youtu.be/kvrgqt_icqQ?si=9LSmFwhmN9pj1VGG



For additional information, visit the Bayview website at www.bayviewentertainment.com