Sam Mendes’ Empire Of Light has finally released a short teaser. For those unfamiliar with the film, it’s a romance set back in the 1980s, in a beautiful coastal town. Details as to the plot are pretty sparse, but thanks to the teaser, we have a little more context into how exactly the story plays out. The film features a romance shared between a black man and a white woman in the UK. Despite the fact that the film takes place in the ’80s, it appears that not everyone is pleased with the couple. Police show up at the man’s door, and a crowd of angry skinheads beats on the doors to the theater.

It seems as if they find a mutual love of film to be a safe haven for them, both metaphorically and physically. The film stars Olivia Colman and Micheal Ward, with Toby Jones also in a pretty significant role. In the trailer, he explains how film works, while throwing some reels onto a projector. He explains that there are stills of film, and when passed over a light at 24 frames per second, it gives the illusion of motion.

The film is directed by Sam Mendes, who previously directed films like American Beauty, Skyfalland 1917.

Here is the film’s official synopsis:

Set in an English seaside town in the early 1980s, Empire Of Light is a powerful and poignant story about human connection and the magic of cinema, from Academy Award-winning director Sam Mendes. Empire Of Light features a stellar cast led by Academy Award winner Olivia Coleman (The Favorite, The Lost Daughter), BAFTA winner Micheal Ward (Blue Story, Top Boy), and Academy Award winner Colin Firth (The King's Speech, A Single Man). It also reunites Mendes with Academy Award-winning cinematographer Roger Deakins (1917, Skyfall).

Empire of Light is scheduled to open exclusively in theaters on December 9, 2022.

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