A Covid Honeymoon by Udan Fernando

Oct 6

We present with delight this special feature, on a Thomian who is fast carving a name for himself within the Sri Lankan film industry. We are also pleased to share the link to his topical short film (for a limited time only).

“It’s likely that we can expect a considerable amount of Covid-inspired creations, and Dr. Udan Fernando’s new short film A Covid Honeymoon is one such inspired bit of work” - Dimithri Wijesinghe writing in The Sunday Morning

image 3.jpg — Udan Fernando, PhD is a researcher with 30 years of experience : conflict, post-conflict, peace building and reconciliation have been, among others, his areas of research in Sri Lanka, Cambodia, India and Kenya. Udan received a Diploma in Cinematography from OCIC, Colombo in 1985 and followed a course on Anthropological Film Making at the University of Amsterdam in 2007. Due to his preoccupation with the research and other professional work, Udan had to wait until 2018 to direct a film which was Dwandha (Duel) : a Tale of Two Rebels, a 50 minutes, English documentary based on two years of research in the UK and Australia. Dwandha was screened in Colombo (several times), Jaffna, London, The Hague, New Delhi, Melbourne and Siem Reap.
Other short films to his credit: A Special Announcement, Gastro Quarantino, A Man-Eating Cobra in Punani, and Going Home.

His Thomian roots are precious (STC Mount 1976-1986/Stone House). He forewent lucrative overseas postings to be closer to his son, also a product of College. The photos we share below are just a sneak preview of his love for the school.

This true story is inspired by a Sri Lankan couple stranded in Singapore during the lockdown period, coinciding with the director’s stay in Singapore during the same period. The couple in question and the director returned to Sri Lanka on the same repatriation flight and stayed in the same government quarantine center. The script however, is written in a way to protect privacy but with creative imagination which differs from actual occurrences, details and characters. The actual event/basic facts are used as a skeleton while the flesh of the script represents the artistic imagination of the director.

Synopsis: Classified a short film, 8 minutes in Sinhala with English sub-titles, A COVID HONEYMOON premiered at the Goethe Institute on 28th to 30th July 2020 together with the above mentioned four films Udan made while he was undergoing a two-week quarantine in Punani, Batticaloa. With their hard-saved $1,000, a young Sri Lankan couple fly to Singapore for a two-week honeymoon, with little or no idea about Covid19. The outbreak spikes during their escapade and a lockdown gets imposed. The two-week honeymoon becomes a two-month ordeal with no flights to return and nowhere to stay and with only $20 left in hand.

Click on this button / Password: UdanCovid2020

Available for viewing by special arrangement until October 20th, 2020 only.