Meet Brandon Atherley | Screen writer & Actor

We had the good fortune of connecting with Brandon Atherley and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Brandon, do you have some perspective or insight you can share with us on the question of when someone should give up versus when they should keep going?
There is only one correct answer to this question and that is… never give up! No matter how grim or bleak things are looking, you just never give up. Always keep going, keep pushing on! Remember that famous phrase, “Where there is a will, there is a way.” Within the realm of film and screen writing, “Never give up,” is a mantra you hold onto so tightly… it begs you to stop choking it.

I live in a country where film and screen writing, in my opinion, are not taken seriously. The persons placed to run the organisations responsible for facilitating and building this industry are fixed in a tiny 2cmx2cm box and can’t see past their toes. It is both stifling, and killing creativity. That’s why it will be a struggle to see any real growth, hence chopping opportunities for creatives. But I have a deep titanic love for film, and my one true passion is creating and telling stories the way I want to. The genres I love are action, anime, horror, sci-fi and fantasy with dark and sinister tones. I’ve never studied film or screen writing, though I wanted to. My path was one of Ecology and Earth Science. I didn’t mind, because to write good sci-fi films I need to know the principles behind the science. Then I could use my knowledge to bend, pull and twists the principles however I want to create the story I wish to tell. I was already a good story teller and could write short stories so I knew all I had to do was learn the fundamentals of screen writing, and I could do that on my own. Fortunate for me I meet a like minded individual who is passionate about film and I joined the film workshop he hosted, where he taught the basics of both film and screen writing. This individual actually lived 3 minutes away from me and I only knew of it because I saw the poster in his small convenience store.

With the basics at hand I just had to keep practising in order to improve my quality of writing, and so I did. After the short film I wrote as part of the workshop, I immediately got cracking on a feature length horror, set in my country and using some folk lore to help build the world. I outlined the history and setting of the story, built the characters and started to pull them together in the screenplay. Then I saw another film workshop post and I immediately entered. It was here I met another screen writer and she introduced me to two websites where I could read produced screenplays, one of them being imsdb.com. She also introduced me to Film Freeway where I could enter my screenplays in international competitions. My eyes swelled in wonder and I was off like a horse at the race track. I figured I can better my craft by entering competitions and gauging myself by how well I did on an international scale. After all ,my goal is to tell stories that would be seen by the world over. So I entered several screen writing competitions over time. Especially the ones where I would get feedback from industry professionals. The feedback was so insightful and has shaped my writing to this day. Yes disappointments were frequent. Seeing that I was unsuccessful into moving into a quarter final hurt, and the feedback at times was brutal but honest. Getting your projects torn apart like that is not easy… but you get off your butt and you keep writing. Unless your hands are broken, and your brain has been removed… you keep writing! All of the feedback I used to make my writing stronger and fiercer…

Then I met him… Stockton Miller. A local film maker, who had dreams as big as mine. No professional training. Not even workshops. But he just had a thought to take up a cellphone with a camera, go on a pasture and start recording. This is how his Film Company, Board House Productions started. I met Stockton though a local actor and at that time he had plans to produce the first ever Zombie Horror film within the region. Again my eyes were swollen big with wonder at the thought, and I immediately joined this project. He hired me as a writer and the two of us along with Cherah (co-founder of Board House Productions) spent hours developing the story, setting, characters and I spent even more hours writing the screenplay for it. Working with him was fantastic. Our visions aligned and the creative freedom he gave me as a writer was note worthy. During this time he applied for film grants from several of those organisations with responsibility for film and every single one of them declined him. It was tough, getting back to back replies all telling you, “No! But we didn’t give up. The project had one private investor onboard and we got the movie produced, “Building Six Archive: Into the Darkness.” It was in local theatres for a week before Stockton pulled it. He actually didn’t like it and ended up scrubbing it from the internet.

A year or so later, he had the vision of redoing the film and exploring different story lines. Even got another investor on board, one who had seen the first film in the theatres. With this we created a new version of the movie, one Stockton refers to as the international version! A zombie horror, with much better graphics, and more focus on the survival of the characters. Scary, gore-filled, and heart wrenching! This movie, with international distribution was renamed “The Silence After” and is set to release in local theatres on October 25th 2025. And shortly after will hit streaming platforms. This is the version we’re excited for. The one where story is king and the audience will experience that rollercoaster ride that will leave them breathless and heart broken.

The moral here… don’t ever give up! All challenges, hurdles and disappointments are stepping stones on your path to achieving your goals. Now go after your goals and dreams!

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
One of my goals as a screen writer is create my own Superhero franchise, Horror franchise and Fantasy franchise, have them produced and then shared with the world! I have already developed the back stores and world building for each franchise, and I have written drafts for the first features in each of the franchises. However, as I am a full time employee at a primer tourist attraction and 12 hours of my day are dedicated to that job, I have to balance the remaining hours between working on my projects, getting sleep and eating. Not to mention I also do acting, and I work with the church to write, and produce dramatic theatre presentations. Balancing the time is sometimes tuff, but I always have to put in a few hours each night for screen writing. As writing, is re-writing, and re-writing until the project is tempered like steel.

Outside of the franchises I have also created universes for fantasy and horror series. Story ideas, characters and plots can come from things you experience or stuff you see. Example; I’ve started building out a world for a gory and brutal, fantasy, anime series entitled “The Shepherds” after playing the role of the elder shepherd in the Nativity story during the Christmas presentation at my church.

Apart from this I’m currently working on a fantasy series recently re-named Idols, after some major changes following feedback from a competition I previously entered it in. The major themes coming out are Light VS Dark (God vs the Devil), love, betrayal, false gods/pretenders, discrimination and equality. Once I’ve completed this re-write then it is back to re-writing the first film in the superhero franchise features.

I am currently working with a Board House Productions as we are set to release the first ever Caribbean Zombie Horror on October 25th 2025. The production road was long, and tampered by set backs and challenges.. But the production team and actors pulled through and were successful in creating this movie. We have the international distribution… but now comes the marketing aspect. Me personally, I’m not hooked deep within social media, but in order to promote this I have to jump in and get everything dirty. I’ve been blasting posters, reels and trailers for the movie. Even the writers doing short interviews. The team had a panel discussion at Anime Kon where we did a presentation within the crowds. Actors played “infected” and soldiers charged in and dragged them away. There’s still more content to drop including the final trailer so you guys can look forward to that.

The stories I wish to tell are those with dark, sinister, brutal and ominous tones. All spiced with some Caribbean flava! Whether it be my characters, locations or culture, you’ll find notes of the Caribbean throughout my work. I’ll drag my characters through hell and beyond… then rip out the audience’s gut at the end. Don’t expect much happy endings from my stories. I’m also a scientist at heart so expect elements of science based phenomena, particularly those that are ecology based such as global warming and aliens. I have a love for the ecosystem and its protection.

With these tones I often apply the themes of love, disparity, unity and Good VS Evil. I am particularly obsessed with the last one and exploring the interacting of good and evil, and the perceptions placed on them by characters I write. Unity is also a big one for me, as I believe it is all of us humans on this planet and it is up to us to protect it. Remember anything coming from beyond this planet is alien in nature.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
For places to go it would be:
1)Harrison’s Cave
2) Atlantic Submarine
3) Do an island safari
4) Picnic at a park
5) St. Nicolas Abby

For places to eat:
1) Oistins on a Friday Night
2) Cheffette
3) Cafe Sol
4) Buzzo’s

For hang out spots:
1) Sheraton Mall
2) Lantern’s Mall
3) Miami Beach
4) The Gap

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Shout outs to Stockton Miller the founder of Board House Production for giving me the opportunity to write such an incredible film, “The Silence After”

Douglas Newton, a shop keeper in my community. Person who taught me the principles of a screenplay.

Dye Brown, acting coach I met from the workshop.

My parents Peter and Patricia Atherley, who support my goals.

Suzanna Fingall-Alleyne, and Max Miller, proofreaders for my screenplays and stories.

Website: https://thesilenceaftermovie.com/

Instagram: ba_atherley or boardhouseproductions

Facebook: Brandon Atherley

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXFPLbbWgIs

Other: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEF5fFOqG3w