Chuck Chuck Baby
Janis Pugh
In a small town in North Wales, Helen lives together with her husband, his new partner, their child and her mother-in-law Gwen. She looks after Gwen and works in the chicken factory, Chuck Chuck Baby. Her life revolves around the factory and their terraced house with its red bricks and carefully fenced-in garden, just like all its neighbours. The story begins as a fairy tale: along with the fluff of a dandelion, viewers are blown into Helen’s room and the daily routines of working-class life. The factory is not only a place to earn money, but also the focal point for friendships and community. After leaving the town years ago, Joanna comes back to clear out and sell her father’s house after his death. For her, this is a place of cruel memories. But it’s also the place that reminds her of her adolescent love, Helen. Janis Pugh has created a musical that pays homage to the workers of North Wales through its loving portrayals of the key figures and their solidarity with each other. Fantasy musical numbers are arranged around the lesbian love story, which seems to be a coming-of-age story beyond the protagonists’ coming of age. The film clearly and consistently shows their experience of misogynist violence, but the protagonists are given opportunities to escape. This is not restricted to the lesbian love story. Neither of the protagonists are isolated or disconnected – they both belong to a collective.
Presented by L.MAG. Das Magazin für Lesben
Awards for ›Chuck Chuck Baby‹
Univerciné Nantes 2023 Audience Award
Janis Pugh
Janis Pugh has been directing since 2003. One of the key influences on her films was her experience growing up in a working class setting in North Wales. The industrial and post-industrial landscapes and the houses, along with the people and their expressions of solidarity, all bear witness to this. In her works and their narratives, as a director she repeatedly transcends the borders between realism and fantasy. Here, her use of music is key. Dealing with death, class, and ageing are some of the motifs which she returns to in many of her films. Her works have been shown and won awards at international film festivals.
Films by Janis Pugh (selection)
The Befuddled Box of Betty Buttifint 2014 | A Beautiful Death 2012 | Conversations with my Aunt 2011 | Blue Collars and Buttercups 2007 | Butterfly 2008
