Far from the Apple Tree (2019) — AI Story Visualization

Plot Analysis Summary

An emerging artist's stay in an ancestral home unsettles the boundary between artistic identity, memory, and self.

Story Structure — 4 Plot Phases

An Invitation to Begin Again

Judith receives Dawn's offer of a room at home and soon meets an established artist who sees promise in her work. She accepts an invitation to stay at the artist's ancestral home and help with its archive.

Key Events

• A Frightened Woman Asks — A frightened woman asks what will be done to her; an older woman advises her to play along. Location: Unspecified
• Dawn's Voicemail — Dawn offers Judith a room at home if her new life is not working out. Characters: Judith, Dawn Location: Unspecified
• An Artist Sees Promise — An established artist invites Judith to meet and praises the promise in her work. Characters: Judith Location: Unspecified
• The Residency Invitation — Judith accepts an invitation to stay at the artist's ancestral home. Characters: Judith Location: Ancestral home

The House Remembers

The host introduces the home's artistic history and encourages Judith to explore. Tapes, recordings, and artworks make the past feel increasingly present, while references to another woman begin to unsettle Judith.

Key Events

• Archive Work Begins — Judith is asked to help convert the home's archive. Characters: Judith Location: Ancestral home
• The House's Artistic Legacy — The host describes generations of artists who lived there and an ancestor said to be a witch. Characters: Judith Location: Ancestral home
• Tapes and Recordings — The home's recordings and artworks begin to blur the boundary between past and present. Characters: Judith Location: Ancestral home
• The Other Woman — Judith hears repeated references to a woman whose appearance and artistic identity resemble her own. Characters: Judith Location: Ancestral home

A Self Under Pressure

The host emphasizes the difference between how people see Judith and the other woman, while describing confusion between art and self as something she welcomes. Judith experiences disturbing recordings and visions as her health worsens.

Key Events

• Identity and Art Entwined — The host says people notice the other woman, not Judith, and admits to thriving on confusion between self and art. Characters: Judith Location: Ancestral home
• Unsettling Visions — Judith encounters disturbing recordings and visions as her health deteriorates. Characters: Judith Location: Ancestral home
• Leaving Is Discouraged — Household staff care for Judith while the host keeps her there and tells her to stay in bed. Characters: Judith Location: Ancestral home
• Judith Calls Dawn — Judith tells Dawn that the residency is going well and that she is fine, despite her growing disorientation. Characters: Judith, Dawn Location: Ancestral home

The Unresolved Return

Judith is cared for but discouraged from leaving, and she reassures Dawn by phone despite her deteriorating state. After weeks at the house, she is given Maddy's clothes and hears that Maddy is back, leaving the nature of the return unresolved.

Key Events

• Weeks Pass — Weeks pass while Judith remains at the house and her situation becomes increasingly disorienting. Characters: Judith Location: Ancestral home
• Maddy's Clothes — Judith is given the other woman's clothes and asks how long she has been there. Characters: Judith Location: Ancestral home
• Maddy's Return — A staff member says the host is delighted because Maddy is back, leaving Judith's identity unresolved. Characters: Judith Location: Ancestral home

Story Breakdown

• A New Opportunity — Judith receives support from Dawn and attention from an established artist.
  • Dawn's Offer — Dawn offers Judith a room at home if her new life is not working out.
  • Artistic Promise — An established artist invites Judith to meet and expresses confidence in her work.
• The Ancestral House — Judith accepts a residency in a house with a long artistic history.
  • Residency Invitation — Judith agrees to stay at the artist's grand ancestral home.
  • Archive Assignment — She is asked to help convert the home's archive.
• A House of Artists — The host presents the house as a place shaped by generations of art and unsettling history.
  • Generational Legacy — The host says generations of artists lived in the house.
  • Witch Ancestor — The host mentions an ancestor who was a witch.
• Past and Present — The house's materials make the past feel entangled with Judith's present experience.
  • Tapes and Recordings — Recordings and artworks seem to blur the boundary between past and present.
  • Disturbing Visions — Judith encounters unsettling recordings and visions.
• The Other Woman — Repeated references to a woman with a similar appearance and artistic identity unsettle Judith.
  • Resembling Identity — The referenced woman's appearance and artistic identity seem closely connected to Judith's.
  • Maddy's Name — A staff member later says the host is delighted because Maddy is back.
• Art and Self — The host's comments frame identity and artistic work as increasingly difficult to separate.
  • Being Overlooked — The host says people notice the other woman in a way they do not notice Judith.
  • Welcomed Confusion — The host admits to thriving on confusion between herself and her work.
• Declining Wellbeing — Judith's health and sense of control deteriorate while she remains at the house.
  • Care at the House — Household staff care for Judith as her health declines.
  • Leaving Discouraged — The host keeps Judith at the house and tells her to stay in bed.
• A Reassuring Call — Judith contacts Dawn but conceals how disorienting her circumstances have become.
  • Calling Dawn — Judith tries to reach her mother by phone.
  • Claiming She Is Fine — Judith says the residency is going well and that she is fine.
• Maddy's Return — The closing developments leave Judith's identity and the meaning of the other woman's return unresolved.
  • Clothes Given — After weeks at the house, Judith is given the other woman's clothes.
  • Unresolved Identity — A staff member's comment that Maddy is back leaves the nature of her return uncertain.

Directed by

Grant McPhee

Key Cast

• Sorcha Groundsell — Judith
• Vicki Liddelle — Roberta Roslyn
• Margaret Fraser — Dawn
• Adrienne-Marie Zitt — Dr. Penelope Sade
• Lynsey-Anne Moffat — Suzy