The first English-language feature from eclectic director Agnieszka Smoczyńska, The Silent Twins is a biopic of Welsh twins June (Letitia Wright) and Jennifer (Tamara Lawrance) Gibbons. As members of the only black family in their area, the girls were severely bullied and ostracised as children, becoming more and more withdrawn to the point where they refused to speak to practically anyone but each other. However, the two had rich inner lives, expressing themselves through reams of imaginative composition. As their behaviour turned to the dangerous, the two were forced to confront the world they had shunned in this tender and sad film.

The Silent Twins opens at the IFI following this Kinopolis preview screening, from Friday, December 9th. Click here to book tickets.

Notes by Kevin Coyne.