Film
Joy’s debut feature 7 KEYS had its World Premiere at SXSW in March 2024 and its UK Premiere at Frightfest in the summer. It went on to festivals including Celluloid Screams, Dinard, and Saskatoon Fantastic Film Festival and was nominated for awards including Best First Feature/Talents de Demain Award, and Best Film and Best Actress in the Total Film Awards. Film Stories magazine named Joy as a “Horror Director to Watch” for 2025.
7 KEYS is a thriller starring Emma McDonald (Moonhaven) and Billy Postlethwaite (SILO) as Lena and Daniel, who go on a wild ride through London, getting to know each other in other people’s homes. But what begins as a risky fantasy soon becomes a deadly threat.
Previously, the film was selected for the Locarno Pro ‘First Look’ strand, curated by Locarno Film Festival in collaboration with the BFI.
Press for 7 KEYS:
“7 Keys is a white-hot thriller… a lean and mean thriller, flushed with sex appeal, emotional explosions, and sick twists” Mashable
“Joy Wilkinson’s fiery meet cute descends into a must-see psychothriller” Geek Vibes Nation
“All at once city symphony, mobile romance and tense urban psychothriller” SciFi Now
“An electrifying debut from Joy Wilkinson… coupled with the sizzling dynamic of her leads Emma McDonals and Billy Postlethwaite works the viewer to frenzy” The Hollywood News
“Joy Wilkinson’s assured and unpredictable feature debut… takes its couple through as many genres (romance, thriller, melodrama, horror) as locations. This is both calling card and travel pass” bfi.org.uk
“7 Keys is a smart and wholly original thriller… Joy Wilkinson amps up the tension as hwer story builds towards a powerful climax… spellbinding performances” Dexerto
“7 Keys is about power and obsession. It’s tense, creative, and completely unhinged. 7 Keys is SXSW 2024 gold.” Reel News Daily
“7 Keys channels the sexy, erotic thrillers of the ‘80s & ‘90s… everything you want from a movie within the genre: hot people acting naughty, high-stakes character arcs and innovative, stylistic filmmaking.” Agents of Fandom
“7 Keys not only unravels a thrilling narrative but also delves deep into the intimate spaces we call home.” Creepy Kingdom
“Stylish execution of a high concept British thriller” The Geek Show
“An intoxicating whirlwind thriller… an unpredictable and haunting rollercoaster” The Film Experience
“Hums with electricity… a sexy smart surprise” Next Best Picture
“A thrilling introspective on loneliness” The Daily Grindhouse
“Viciously clever and entertaining… touches upon many real current anxieties” Film Stories
“7 Keys’ delicate dance of intrigue, suspense, and horror… Joy Wilkinson’s Hitchcockian love-lorn nightmare weaves through London on a fast track to terror.” NightTide Magazine
“A strong entry in the thriller and adjacent horror genre… The film has plenty to say whether it is during heart-beating terror, or in the quieter, warmer moments” Folk and Horror Phenomena
Joy is developing feature projects with producers in the UK and US, including horror feature DON’T GO BACK which was selected for the BFI-backed UK Next Wave Genre Lab, sci-fi feature STALAG X for New Republic Pictures and director Francis Lawrence, and original comedy ENTER THE DRAGONS (Jeva Films/Rebel Park), starring Gemma Arterton. The script was selected for the Brit List and won development funding from Creative England/BFI.
Her previous short film, THE EVERLASTING CLUB, is a very modern twist on an old ghost story, inspired by the work of Arthur Gray (Ingulphus). It’s one of Joy’s passion projects and is a proof-of-concept for a longer form version. It was shot during lockdown and enjoyed an extensive festival run, with selections world-wide from St Louis and the London Short Film Festival to Monster Fest, Ax Wound and India’s Wench Festival for female-led genre films, winning several prizes along the way. You can watch the trailer here and follow #TheEverlastingClub for updates.
Joy’s directorial debut MA’AM won funding from the international Bumble Female Film Force. It had its premiere in 2020 at the BIFA-qualifying Shortest Nights Festival, its US premiere at the Oscar-qualifying St Louis International Film Festival, has been selected for numerous other festivals world-wide, and won several awards including the top prize for Emerging Talent at London’s New Renaissance Festival. More details on FFF here and follow Ma’am on Twitter for updates.
She is a Screen International Star of Tomorrow and was selected as one of Den of Geek’s ’50 Brilliant Screenwriters to Watch Out For’. She was selected for the iFeatures development slate and the Guiding Lights initiative, which paired her with mentor Sir Kenneth Branagh.