Prima Facie writer Suzie Miller has said she hopes the new film adaptation starring Cynthia Erivo highlights the “nuance of consent”.
The film is based on Miller’s one-woman play about a barrister named Tessa, who specialises in defending men accused of sexual assault, and whose view of the legal system changes after she is sexually assaulted herself.
Reflecting on consent
Speaking on the red carpet at the BFI London Film Festival on Tuesday evening, the writer said she hopes the story will make audiences reflect on consent and “hear the no where it is”.
Miller told the Press Association: “Scarily for me, when the play first came out, a group of 14-year-old boys came to see it and said, ‘Oh, we didn’t even know that was rape’.”
The play first debuted in Australia in 2019 before opening on London’s West End in 2022.
She added: “The nuance of consent – people really need to sit down with it and recognise that every new action can come with a no, and you have to listen for it. And it’s not always a no.
“Sometimes it’s like I don’t feel well or I’ve got a headache, or I’m tired. All of those things are a no, and you have to hear the no where it is, and you have to look for the yes, and that’s what I hope young men and all men like take out of that.
“Wait for the yes. You’re not entitled to anything. You have to wait for someone to give you permission.”
Portraying trauma on screen
Over the course of the film, Erivo’s character, Tessa, slowly changes how she dresses and wears her hair after she was assaulted – a detail that was important to Miller to capture the way some women cope with trauma.
She said: “What happens to women is not just internal; it’s an external persona as well. And what happens when you have a trauma like that is that you don’t focus on the things that you focused on before.
“You stop worrying about your hair in the same way, you’re not so conscious of looking a certain way. You’re just conscious of your safety and your fear of seeing your perpetrator somewhere.
“I really wanted us to see that, and also to show the passage of time and how, over that waiting period, how difficult it is for women in those long waiting periods before they get to court because they’re ridiculously long, and so Cynthia transformed in that time.”
She went on to say that it was both “phenomenal” and “surreal” to see the stage production adapted for the screen and that the ending is different to the theatre show which she felt added “a bit of hope” to the story.
“There’s a bit of that concept of all of us women grab the baton and run with it, and make a difference,” she added.
Director praises Erivo
The film was directed by Susanna White and stars Lovesick actor Daniel Ings, Andor’s Elizabeth Dulau, The Crown’s Khalid Abdalla as well as actors Sarah Junillon and Elliot Levey.
White hailed Erivo as a “powerhouse” who is both “bold” and “brave”.
“I’d always admired her,” she said.
“I loved her in Harriet, but I think she really connected to with the material, and she shows her vulnerability, which I think is really extraordinary,” she said.
White went on to say she hopes the film sparks a conversation around consent and the importance of establishing “that someone is happy with what is happening to them”.
She added: “You can’t just assume because once you had a relationship with someone, it doesn’t mean that on another occasion that is what that person wants in each time.
“It’s like, is this OK? Is this what you want? It’s as simple as that. It’s not rocket science.”
The stage production ran in London’s West End in 2022 and later toured the UK and Ireland starring Killing Eve actress Jodie Comer. The performance won the actress both an Olivier and Tony award.
Prima Facie is out in UK cinemas on November 13.
