News Round-up December 2018

Lucas Ochoa (class of 2015) has started filming the series GANGS OF LONDON end of November for which he acts as executive producer. It is a 10-part returning series for HBO-Cinemax and Sky Atlantic. We are especially happy to announce this production as Lucas has set up the series while doing Inside Pictures and has been developing it ever since. GANGS has been created by Gareth Evans and Matt Flannery (cinematograpaher on RAID and APOSTLE). Besides Gareth Evans, Corin Hardy (THE NUN) will also direct episodes. Read more. On a different note, Lucas was the producer of the Netflix documentary KINGDOM OF US, which recently won the Grierson for best Single Documentary.

Stewart le Maréchal of MetFilm (class of 2012) and Angus Lamont (class of 2002) of Crab Apple Films have produced the documentary LAST BREATH, with Al Morrow along with Jonny Persey (class of 2005) executive producing and directed by Alex Parkinson and Richard Da Costa. LAST BREATH is a thriller documentary about a commercial diver left on the bottom of the North Sea with five minutes of air and no hope of rescue. The producers had access to extraordinary archive from the divers’ helmet cams. The film is being sold by MetFilm Sales and to be released in the UK by Dogwoof (Oli Harbottle, class of 2018) in early 2019. Read more.

Adrian Sturges (class of 2002) is producing the second world war-era drama SUMMERLAND, together with executive producer Hugo Grumbar (class of 2005) of Embankment. The film, which stars Gemma Arterton and Gugu Mbatha-Raw, is in post-production and will be released in the UK by Lionsgate. Read more.

Fabien Westerhoff (class of 2012) is executive producer on Eran Riklis’ upcoming film SPIDER IN THE WEB. His company FilmConstellation has co-financed and is selling this spy drama, starring Ben Kingsley and Monica Bellucci. It is currently in post-production and will be ready in the first half of 2019. Read more.

Daniel Campos Pavoncelli (class of 2015) is executive producer on THE BURNT ORANGE HERESY, by Giuseppe Capotondi and with Claes Bang, Elizabeth Debecki, Donald Sutherland and Mick Jagger. HanWay is selling this thriller set in the art dealing scene. The film was shoot in Milan and Lake Como and is now in post-production. Read more.

Piers Tempest (class of 2007) just wrapped photography on the Ingenious and Lionsgate backed MILITARY WIVES, starring Kristin Scott Thomas and Sharon Horgan, which shot in London and Yorkshire. Piers produced this film in partnership with Ben Pugh and Rory Aitken at 42. Read more.

Jonny Lee Miller (ELEMENTARY, TRAINSPOTTING) and Oscar and Grammy-winner Common (THE HATE U GIVE) have been set to star in NINE LIVES, the movie adaptation of Ursula K. Le Guin’s dark sci-fi comedy story. Producers are Gavin Humphries (class of 2012) of Quark Films, who was recently BIFA-nominated for PIN CUSHION, and Josephine Rose (also class of 2012) of Bandit Country, whose upcoming slate also includes fantasy-horror A SPRIGGAN with John Boyega as executive producer. The NINE LIVES shoot is being lined up for next summer. Read more.

Andrea Scarso (class of 2017) has announced his latest film MISBEHAVIOUR for which he acts as Executive Producer. The movie is directed by Philippa Lowthorpe and it is based on the true story of the 1970 Miss World contest and its disruption by the newly founded Women’s Liberation Movement. Shoot is underway in London, and in the cast are Keira Knightley, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Jessie Buckley and Greg Kinnear. Read more.

Cyril Megret‘s (class of 2002) current projects include the films PRIMAL starring Nicolas Cage, which is in post-production, ANA with Dafne Keen and Andy Garcia, and THE LAST THING HE WANTED from Dee Rees with Ann Hathaway, Willem Dafoe and Ben Affleck. Cyril recently worked with fellow Inside Pictures Alumni Piers Tempest (class of 2007) on the drama DRIVEN, which closed the Venice Film Festival before its North American launch in Toronto.

Raymond van der Kaaji‘s (class of 2013) Revolver Amsterdam is working up a 10-part adaptation of “Takeover,” the thriller from Jussi Adler-Olsen, the Nordic crime writer behind the “Department Q” series. Dutch director Hanro Smitsman, whose previous credits include Berlin Golden Bear-winning short film RAAK, is attached and will helm the series. It will be produced by Raymond and Germen Boelens of Revolver Amsterdam. Read more.

On top of that, congratulations to Andrea for THE KINDNESS OF STRANGERS which will open the Berlinale. Andrea acted as executive producer. Written by Lone Scherfig, it is a contemporary drama following a disparate group of characters struggling to survive in a New York City winter. Read more.

THE ELEPHANT QUEEN, produced by Lucinda Englehart (class of 2012) and Victoria Stone, will have its US Premiere at Sundance 2019. Apple bought global rights to the film at its World Premiere in Toronto and will be releasing the film in 2019.  The film tells the story of elephant mother Athena who will do everything in her power to protect her herd when they are forced to leave their waterhole and embark on an epic journey across the African savannah. It’s directed by Mark Deeble and Victoria Stone and narrated by Chiwetel Ejiofor. Apple will be releasing the film theatrically in 2019. Read more.

Head Gear Films (run by Inside Pictures Alumni Tom Harberd, class of 2016, and Phil Hunt, class of 2011) has three films that will be screening at Sundance: ANIMALS, starring Holliday Grainger and directed by Sophie Hyde; Chiwetel Ejiofor’s directorial debut THE BOY WHO HARNESSED THE WIND; and THE HOLE IN THE GROUND, starring Seána Kerslake and directed by Lee Cronin. The horror thriller THE HOLE IN THE GROUND is produced by Inside Pictures Alumni John Keville (class of 2018) and Conor Barry (class of 2014) for Irish production company Savage Productions, and co-produced by Phil Hunt. Congratulations to all! Read more.Savage Productions also presents DIRTY GOD at Sundance, a film about young mother Jade finding her way back to herself and her daughter after an acid attack. John Keville and Conor Barry acted as co-producers, and director Sacha Polak is represented by Janey van Ierland’s (class of 2018) talent agency nummer19. Read more.

Congratulations to Sol Bondy‘s (class of 2018) THE TALE for which Laura Dern has just been nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture made For Television. THE TALE has also been nominated for three Film Independent Spirits Awards, including Best First Feature, and three Critics’ Choice Awards, among others. THE TALE follows Jennifer (Laura Dern) as she faces life-altering questions when a short story she wrote for school at age 13 forces her to re-examine her first sexual experience. Read more.

The documentary BRUCE LEE & THE OUTLAW by Joost Vandebrug and produced by Raymond van der Kaaji‘s (class of 2013) Revolver Amsterdam and Grain Media and executive produced by Noomi Rapace received the Busan Cinephile Award at the 23rd Busan International Film Festival. Read more. Revolver Film presented BRUCE LEE and as well as their documentary TOO BEAUTIFUL YOUR RIGHT TO FIGHT at the Warsaw FF, with TOO BEAUTIFUL traveling to the Havanna IFF afterwards. Revolver will present their upcoming project CROSSING by Jacqueline Vugt at CineMart in Rotterdam.Rachel Robey‘s (class of 2008) Wellington Films was named one of the Brit 50 companies in Screen lately. Read more. Their latest feature CALIBRE won the Michael Powell Award, won Best Actor at BAFTA Scotland (with a record equalling five nominations) and is nominated for three BIFAs. It is streaming globally by Netflix.

A selection of highlights from talent represented by Vanessa Henneman’s (class of 2016) European Talent Network & Henneman Agency include director Shariff Korver who will direct three episodes of the eight-part British thriller series TEMPLE; David Sakurai and Wolf Roth are currently in worldwide cinemas with FANTASTIC BEASTS THE CRIMES OF GRINDELWALD; and Julian Looman is shooting the male lead role of BBC’s new crime series THE MALLORCA FILES. Read more.

After a successful premiere in Cannes, the animated documentary CHRIS THE SWISS, co-produced by Siniša Juričić (class of 2015) toured almost 50 festivals worldwide and is now shortlisted in four categories for European Animation Awards. Read more.

Congratulations to John Ramchandani (class of 2012) who is now Head of Video Publishing & Online Programming at the Programme and Acquisitions department of the BFI.Anna Higgs (class of 2010) is now Head of Entertainment at Facebook in the UK, leading the team on strategic partnerships across studios, broadcasters, record labels and publishers for all platforms. Sofie was also executive producer on AGAINST THE TIDE which had its world premiere at Sheffield Doc/Fest, and on BLOODYMINDED which will be the UK’s first live streamed, interactive feature film in the UK. Read more.

Sofie Wanting Hassing (class of 2011) reinforced her Copenhagen-based company for film financing and distribution, Sweet Chili Entertainment, and expanded into drama production. Sweet Chili will be headed up by Line Winther Skyum Funch and Sofie Wanting Hassing as CEOs and Executive Producers. Read more.