BBC Films has announced a full development slate following its recent restructuring. The production arm of the Beeb is following The Other Boleyn Girl and is at work now adapting the script for The Boleyn Inheritance - one of the sequels also written by Philippa Gregory.
The book is told through the eyes of different characters - Anne of Cleves, Katherine Howard and Jane Boleyn - so Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman won't return for the sequel.
Anthony Wonke, who recently won a TV BAFTA for The Tower, is directing a new as-yet-untitled documentary about British gymnastics and the wider issue of sports competition.
After Confetti, BBC Films is again working with Debbie Issit for new comedy Nativity, about a school nativity play. No cast is set yet.
A film based on BBC comedy series The Mighty Boosh is being developed now. Commercial affairs and general manager Jane Wright says: 'Access for that kind of talent is a huge asset for us.' The company draws on resources from other areas in the BBC, but Wright firmly points out: 'We will always work with independent producers and we want to keep those relationships.'
Lynne Ramsay will return to directing after a break since 2002's Morvern Callar, with her autumn shoot lining up for We Need To Talk About Kevin. Jennifer Fox (Duplicity, Michael Clayton) is the US producer. Lionel Shriver's controversial bestseller was about a family torn apart by their violent son.
Paul Newman has come on board to narrate James Honeyborne's wildlife documentary The Meerkats, which is now finished. Also completed is new comedy FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions About Time Travel), which marks Gareth Carrivick's feature debut.
Still in development are the $50m live-action Jungle Book with Pathe, and family adventure story Swallows And Amazons.
The Boy In Striped Pyjamas starring Vera Farmiga and David Thewlis will be ready for a September release.
Also recently confirmed on the BBC Films slate is Andrea Arnold's Fish Tank, which starts shooting June 23 in Kent. Tom Hooper's The Damned United will shoot started at the end of May starring Michael Sheen as former Leeds United Football Club manager.
Meanwhile, Peter Pan In Scarlet is being developed with Headline Pictures. Geraldine McCaughrean book was an approved sequel to JM Barrie's classic tale.
In production now, BBC Films has Armando Iannuci's political satire In The Loop (sold by Protagonist) and Jane Campion's Keats project Bright Star (sold by Pathe).
The BBC Films-backed Brideshead Revisited should be ready to screen in Venice or Toronto, as will Sam Mendes' Revolutionary Road starring Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio. Also in post are John Crowley's Is There Anybody There' Starring Michael Caine, Lone Scherfig's An Education based on a Nick Horby script, and Saul Dibb's The Duchess starring Keira Knightley. Another Knightley starrer, The Edge Of Love will open the Edinburgh International Film Festival and Lionsgate UK will open it June 20.
Controller of BBC Fiction Jane Tranter recently restructured BBC Films, appointing Jane Wright, Christine Langan, Joe Oppenheimer and Jamie Laurenson to a new four-person board (it was formerly headed by David Thompson) and the broadcasting giant has confirmed an increase in annual funding to $24m (£12m).
BBC Films will move from its stand-alone offices in central London to BBC headquarters in white City in Mid-June. 'It's been feeling overdue,' Langan said of the move. 'We feel supported by the BBC but we also feel like a distinct part, what we do is different but it will be good to be running into our colleagues more.'
Langan adds: 'Development is our strength.' There is a small development deal with digital studio Slingshot, which goes into production soon on a teen revenge horror project, The Tormented.
'The board represents a plurality of tastes, all four of us have to greenlight a project,' Oppenheimer says of the new structure. 'We were worried that four voices could flatten out the decision making, but we are examining projects quite rigorously. We also trust each other's instincts. And once we're on board, there is one executive producer, so the board process is invisible to most of the industry.'
Wright maintains: 'We're ambitious, we want to make high-impact films. 'We've got a rather varied slate and that will continue.'
As previously reported, Mel Gibson is confirmed to star in The Edge Of Darkness for BBC Films and Graham King's GK Films. Ellen Page will star in Jane Eyre (with Ruby Films).
The book is told through the eyes of different characters - Anne of Cleves, Katherine Howard and Jane Boleyn - so Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman won't return for the sequel.
Anthony Wonke, who recently won a TV BAFTA for The Tower, is directing a new as-yet-untitled documentary about British gymnastics and the wider issue of sports competition.
After Confetti, BBC Films is again working with Debbie Issit for new comedy Nativity, about a school nativity play. No cast is set yet.
A film based on BBC comedy series The Mighty Boosh is being developed now. Commercial affairs and general manager Jane Wright says: 'Access for that kind of talent is a huge asset for us.' The company draws on resources from other areas in the BBC, but Wright firmly points out: 'We will always work with independent producers and we want to keep those relationships.'
Lynne Ramsay will return to directing after a break since 2002's Morvern Callar, with her autumn shoot lining up for We Need To Talk About Kevin. Jennifer Fox (Duplicity, Michael Clayton) is the US producer. Lionel Shriver's controversial bestseller was about a family torn apart by their violent son.
Paul Newman has come on board to narrate James Honeyborne's wildlife documentary The Meerkats, which is now finished. Also completed is new comedy FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions About Time Travel), which marks Gareth Carrivick's feature debut.
Still in development are the $50m live-action Jungle Book with Pathe, and family adventure story Swallows And Amazons.
The Boy In Striped Pyjamas starring Vera Farmiga and David Thewlis will be ready for a September release.
Also recently confirmed on the BBC Films slate is Andrea Arnold's Fish Tank, which starts shooting June 23 in Kent. Tom Hooper's The Damned United will shoot started at the end of May starring Michael Sheen as former Leeds United Football Club manager.
Meanwhile, Peter Pan In Scarlet is being developed with Headline Pictures. Geraldine McCaughrean book was an approved sequel to JM Barrie's classic tale.
In production now, BBC Films has Armando Iannuci's political satire In The Loop (sold by Protagonist) and Jane Campion's Keats project Bright Star (sold by Pathe).
The BBC Films-backed Brideshead Revisited should be ready to screen in Venice or Toronto, as will Sam Mendes' Revolutionary Road starring Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio. Also in post are John Crowley's Is There Anybody There' Starring Michael Caine, Lone Scherfig's An Education based on a Nick Horby script, and Saul Dibb's The Duchess starring Keira Knightley. Another Knightley starrer, The Edge Of Love will open the Edinburgh International Film Festival and Lionsgate UK will open it June 20.
Controller of BBC Fiction Jane Tranter recently restructured BBC Films, appointing Jane Wright, Christine Langan, Joe Oppenheimer and Jamie Laurenson to a new four-person board (it was formerly headed by David Thompson) and the broadcasting giant has confirmed an increase in annual funding to $24m (£12m).
BBC Films will move from its stand-alone offices in central London to BBC headquarters in white City in Mid-June. 'It's been feeling overdue,' Langan said of the move. 'We feel supported by the BBC but we also feel like a distinct part, what we do is different but it will be good to be running into our colleagues more.'
Langan adds: 'Development is our strength.' There is a small development deal with digital studio Slingshot, which goes into production soon on a teen revenge horror project, The Tormented.
'The board represents a plurality of tastes, all four of us have to greenlight a project,' Oppenheimer says of the new structure. 'We were worried that four voices could flatten out the decision making, but we are examining projects quite rigorously. We also trust each other's instincts. And once we're on board, there is one executive producer, so the board process is invisible to most of the industry.'
Wright maintains: 'We're ambitious, we want to make high-impact films. 'We've got a rather varied slate and that will continue.'
As previously reported, Mel Gibson is confirmed to star in The Edge Of Darkness for BBC Films and Graham King's GK Films. Ellen Page will star in Jane Eyre (with Ruby Films).
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