‘IT’S ABOUT FILM-MAKER DRIVEN PROJECTS, FINDING GROUNDBREAKING BRITISH FILMS, PUSHING THE AMBITION OF BRITISH FILMS’ BRIT 50: NEW DIRECTIONS, p44


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Mike Downey


FILM & MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT


Need to know Since its establish- ment more than a decade ago, Mike Downey and Sam Taylor’s F&ME has become one of the most prolifi c UK production com- panies, especially as a co-produc- tion specialist. Recent projects include White Lightnin’, Reykjavik Whale Watching Massacre and Turtle: The Incredible Journey. The company recently struck a long- term, multi-fi lm production deal with Netherlands’ Kasander Film. Key personnel Mike Downey, Sam Taylor; Stephen Daldry serves as chairman of the board. Incoming F&ME is now in post on Gareth Maxwell Roberts’ thriller The Mortician, documentary Street Kids United and Paula van der Oest’s thriller The Domino Effect (with Kasander). In prep now are Dominic Murphy’s bit- tersweet romantic comedy Cas- sandra At The Wedding, Murphy’s Iain M Banks adaptation A Gift From The Culture, Julien Tem- ple’s art-forgery tale Fake!, as well as child-prostitution story Lilet Never Happened, Hans Pet- ter Moland’s oil-rig story The El- ephant; and with Kasander, Peter Greenaway’s Goltzius And The Pelican Company, Antonia Bird’s Cross My Mind and Sander Burg- er’s To Be King. There are more than 20 projects in development. Mike Downey says “We’re doing stuff in house, we’re doing co- productions, we’re doing what we call movies that matter — more socially conscious fi lms — and we’re also doing servicing, so we have four strands. We want to do eclectic, intelligent, international fi lms for the world market.” offi ce@fame.uk.com


Chris Curling ZEPHYR FILMS Iain Canning SEE-SAW FILMS


Need to know See-Saw ticks the right boxes for the current mar- ketplace: executives from mul- tiple sectors of the industry and multi-territory reach. It is also now an Oscar front-runner with its fi rst big production, The King’s Speech (pictured below). See-Saw Films was set up as a UK-Australia production outfi t in February 2008 by Sydney- based producer Emile Sher- man and London-based sales veteran Iain Canning. The UK- Australia connection was perfect for The King’s Speech, which See- Saw boarded early in develop- ment with Gareth Unwin’s Bed- lam Productions. The project, directed by Tom Hooper, pre-sold to The Weinstein Com- pany before shoot- ing. See-Saw also has a sister company, Australian distribu- tor Transmission, and a fi rst-look deal in the UK with Mome n t um Pictures. The


company also runs Fulcrum Me- dia Finance, which cash-fl ows tax credits. Key personnel Iain Canning, Emile Sherman. Incoming The King’s Speech, a leading awards contender. Next to shoot from January will be Steve McQueen’s Shame, starring Michael Fassbender as a man in New York who cannot control his sex life and Carey Mulligan as his sister. For TV, there is Jane Cam- pion’s six-part BBC series Top Of The Lake, to shoot in New Zealand in 2011. Also in development for a 2011 shoot is John Curran’s Tracks, which Pip Karmel is adapting from Robyn Davidson’s book. Iain Canning says “Even a fi lm which would be seen as art- house now needs to have an audience somehow already waiting for it. We want to work with directors who have a mixture of ability and am- bition and unique style.” info@see-


s aw- f i lms . com


Need to know Zephyr founder Chris Curling and producing partner Phil Robertson have produced 25 fi lms since 1990, including Peter Webber’s Han- nibal Rising and Udayan Pras- ad’s My Son The Fanatic. Savvy at sourcing international fi - nance and partners, Zephyr has two production outfi ts operat- ing out of Germany and has produced in France, Italy, Spain, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Canada, Australia and Tunisia, as well as the US. Producing partners have included Dino De Laurentiis, Tarak Ben Am- mar and Andrei Konchalovsky. After 2009 critical hit The Last Station garnered Oscar nods for leads Helen Mirren and Christopher Plummer, Zephyr reteamed with German produc- er Jens Meurer of Egoli Tossell Film on Chris Smith’s Black Death, which was released in June. Key personnel Chris Curling, Phil Robertson. Incoming Currently developing Bitch, a comic take on the were- wolf myth, to be directed by Chris Smith; God Help The Girl, the directorial debut of Stuart Murdoch, frontman of band Belle & Sebastian, to be produced with Barry Mendel; and White Cha- meleon, Christopher Hampton’s coming-of-age play which is set in Egypt. Chris Curling says “Zephyr’s reputa- tion is built on our love of fi lm, working with directors and our expertise in both production and international fi lm fi nance. Our international ties are a result of our taste.” info@zephyrfi lms.co.uk


December 15, 2010 Screen International 43 ■


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