Home

A short cut of A Little Bit Country has been entered into the Virgin Shorts competition and can be viewed here.

However, the director’s cut will launch on the festival circuit later this year.

Director Adam Coop on set

Director Adam Coop isn’t ashamed to admit that he’s A Little Bit Country. When quizzed on his record of societal rebellion he offering the following roots:

LBC is part fantasy, part autobiography. Everyone goes through the experience of being rumbled by their parents for something, whether it is drinking, secret girlfriends or something darker and more dangerous such as drugs, sex or… country music.

For me it was smoking. I had suspicions that Mum was on to me but it was not until I got home from school one day and was presented with a packet of cigarettes she had fished out of my jacket pocket that I was subjected to the standard parental dressing down: “We thought you were cleverer than that, we are so disappointed, how long has this been going on,” etc.

But I also grew up with a group of friends who were into Metal, Rock and even Psychobilly music. Obviously I had to keep the fact that I really quite liked country, folk, bluegrass and Americana to myself for fear of ridicule or worse. As one friend said “Metal is all around you”, which for me was actually correct, although he was speaking more on a spiritual level!

Before the days of buying music on the internet I used to dash into HMV and mooch around the world music or jazz sections until no one was looking, then I would dive into the Country music aisle, grab the CD I was after and make for the tills with it cunningly hidden under something innocuous from the charts.

The parallels with buying porn seemed obvious, as did the social pariah status afforded by liking ‘unfashionable’ music as a teenager, and the fact that I have since grown up enough (at 36) to admit that I am a little bit country, and from there the idea for the film was born.

Richard Southgate as Dylan

Richard Southgate isn’t afraid to go against the pop culture grain, either:

I get quite geeky with music things. Most recently I’ve become obsessed with Buddy Holly and Elvis and that sort of retro rock, so I went out and bought a record player and am gradually building up a bizarre vinyl collection, based on anything I can find in charity shops. I also like Loretta Lynn, Conway Twitty, Alan Jackson and Hank Williams, not to mention the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack.

So that’s official. Country is cool.

Now dust off the ol’ record player, pop on some Johnny Cash and settle down with the fact that you, like all of us, are just a little bit country.

Dylan is forced to bin ‘illicit materials’, such as his cowboy boots.

For more stills from A Little Bit Country, visit our Gallery.

Like a badass outlaw on his noble steed, the teaser trailer for A Little Bit Country has just rolled into town. Enjoy it, cowboys!

In the short film A Little Bit Country, young Dylan’s proud parents find something shocking and shameful at the bottom of his wardrobe…

No, not porn – this is buried even deeper than that.

Because Dylan has socially-suicidal secret: he loves country music.

“The porn we expected,” says his embarrassed Dad, “but not this…”

“You were such a lovely child,” bleats his devastated Mum, worrying what the neighbours will think.

“I didn’t mean for you to find out like this,” says Dylan, sheepishly.

“Reggae!” suggests Dad, throwing up his arms. “Even… glam rock… But surely not this, son? Not this!”

***

Many of us are a ‘little bit country’; behind closed doors and inside locked cabinets we covet private pastimes that defy expectations and bring supposed shame on our families and friends.

Whether it’s model trains, crochet and crafts, coin collecting, doll making, role-playing games or medieval battle re-enactments, we all pursue peculiar passions that we’re too afraid to announce to the world, fearing mockery and rejection… even persecution.

The question is, are you a ‘little bit country’?

What’s your secret and epically ‘uncool’ hobby?