In 1915, James Joyce and Nora Barnacle traveled with their young children Giorgio and Lucia to Switzerland to escape the turmoil of  World War I. Lucia later trained as a dancer and performed  throughout Europe. Her career ended when, in the early 1930s, she was forced into psychiatric care and underwent treatment at various hospitals across Europe.

Horrible Creature is filmed at locations in Switzerland where Lucia spent time, including her primary school in Zurich, the Madonna Del Sasso monastery in Locarno, and a Psychiatric Hospital near Geneva. 

Here, Lucia’s own writing, interpreted by a cast of international dance artists, conjures her world between 1915 and 1950. The film fearlessly explores her difficult family life, her unproven illness, and her undoubted talent.