“Snatch” and “The Irishman” star Stephen Graham’s latest feature film “Boiling Point” releases this Friday, 7th of January. This 90-minute film is adapted from Graham’s short film, also titled “Boiling Point” released in 2019. Shot in one continuous scene the short film showcases the struggles of life in a chaotic kitchen, for a head chef in one of the finest restaurants in London. The short film was nominated for Best British Short at the 2019 British Independent Film Awards, hence the excitement around the feature film. The film showcases some of our high quality, signature products such as the Suffolk and Oxford chefs jackets as well as the Slate Grey Stud Halter Apron. Worn by Graham himself and his star-studded supporting cast including, Jason Flemyng star of “X-Men” and “Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels”, as well as Vinette Robinson of “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker”. The film looks to highlights some of the major issues that impact chefs and the wider hospitality industry, such as a lack of work-life balance, mental health and addiction.
We at Oliver Harvey are extremely proud to see our products have been chosen to be starred in a film that is looking to bring attention to some of the problems that are faced by so many people in our community. Our garments have previously starred in Stephen Graham’s short film which has been adapted into the upcoming feature film the “Boiling Point”. The short film is shot in a one-take style and follows the head chef (Stephen Graham) as he abuses alcohol and drugs to deal with the heavy pressures of managing a large team while working long hours and not seeing his family. However, ultimately this lifestyle leads to him having a seizure at work and highlights that this is not a healthy coping mechanism for any chef in the real world to live their life.
Synopsis
The feature film has been directed by Philip Barantini, who also directed the short film. The plot follows Andy Mcleod (Stephen Graham) as he attempts to keep his kitchen running smoothly on the busiest day of the year leading up to Christmas. During the night he is forced to deal with multiple personal and professional issues that could jeopardize everything he has worked so hard to build. When a surprise health inspector enters the restaurant, the stakes are increased even further and the pressure really piles on Andy and the rest of his team. Andy must balance dealing with his customer’s outrageous demands while also putting out fires caused by tensions between members of his management and his brigade.
Mental health crisis in the chef industry.
Mental health is an issue that Oliver Harvey takes very seriously and we as a company have actively looked to do all we can to raise awareness around this topic. Our collaboration with Pilot Light to create “The Pilot Light Apron”, in which £5 of every sale goes towards the Pilot Light Campaign. The Pilot Light Apron has managed to raise over two thousand pounds in 2021 alone. Their campaign focused on changing the way people think and act about mental health through addressing the industry-specific contexts and environments, found in professional kitchens and the broader hospitality sector”. Pilot Light offers support to both hospitality workers and restaurants to give the 3.2 million UK hospitality workers the support they need to ensure that they look after their mental health. The campaign offers support in many ways such as workshops to help develop employees’ skills to become resilient and work in a fast-paced environment, resources, tools and training aids to help the prevention of burnouts and even personal resilience courses that are designed to help hospitality workers build up their own confidence and self-reliance.
1 in 2 members of the hospitality workforce suffers from some form of mental health illness. When you compare this to the UK’s average rate of mental health disorders which is 30% of the population suffering from at least one, you can see how big the issue is in the hospitality industry. Nestle found that one of the leading causes of mental health illnesses in hospitality is stress. The study showed that three main factors are affecting chefs stress levels the most. Firstly, staff shortages cause stress to 58% of chefs, second is lack of time at 42% and limited budgets cause stress to 42% of chefs. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic staff shortages has become the normality for many restaurants as there is a major lack of both front and back of house staff, meaning that employees are being forced to work longer hours than they should to keep restaurants running smoothly. The theme of work-life balance is a topic that is at the heart of “Boiling Point” as chefs are forced to work long hours during the Christmas period and not see their families. The film highlights the fact chefs are expected to put nothing before their job, however, this is not a lifestyle that can be maintained for a long period of time without impacting people’s mental health.
To deal with the stress of the hospitality sector, people often turn to alcohol or drugs to get them through the day. A 2008 study showed that 15% of hospitality workers suffered from some form of “alcohol-related problems”. Throughout the course of “Boiling Point” Andy is sipping on his white-water bottle which at first appears innocent, however, as the film progresses it becomes apparent that he is drinking vodka from the bottle and that this is very much a part of his everyday life.
Boiling Point is a chaotic, tense, rollercoaster of emotions that is flooded with the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. We at Oliver Harvey are extremely excited to see our products on the big screen in this exciting feature film. If you would like to look at any of the products that are featured in the film, please check the links below.