IN THE DARK HALF
TO OPEN IN CINEMAS ON AUGUST 10th
Cert: tbcRunning Time: 87 mins
For further information please contact:
Caroline Henshaw/ Sophie Roche at Rabbit Publicity
/
Tel: 020 7299 3685/ 3686
For photography please go to:
Press release:
Alastair Siddons’In The Dark Half tells the compelling and mysterious story of a teenage girl’s journey through her own unsettled imagination.
Set half in shallow suburbia and half in the mystical, eerie woods, the film explores the nature of depression and delusion whilst maintaining a chilling edge.
15-year old Marie and 6-year old Sean are neighbours. Whilst Sean goes on hunting trips with his father Filthy, a secret den on the hill has become Marie’s refuge from a world she is finding increasingly difficult to cope with. One night, while Marie is babysitting for Filthy, Sean suddenly dies in her care. As Filthy’s grief threatens to overwhelm him, Marie becomes aware of another presence. It follows her from the hill into the city and it won’t leave her alone. It wants something from her. Is it the spirit of Sean? Or her unresolved past creeping into her present and distorting her perception of reality?
In the Dark Half was the first film to go into production under the umbrella of South West Screen’s iFeatures digital filmmaking scheme, the BBC Films and Bristol City Council-backed ’micro-studio’ initiative. The initiative was launched with the aim of harnessing cutting-edge digital technology and low budget production methods in the Bristol area.
Starring Tony Curran (Red Road), Lyndsey Marshal (The Hours) and Jessica Barden (Tamara Drew), In The Dark Half is a haunting and atmospheric story about love, grief and redemption with an unexpected twist.
For further information please contact:
Caroline Henshaw/ Sophie Roche at Rabbit Publicity /
Tel: 020 7299 3685/ 3686
For photography please go to:
South West Screen and BBC Films present in association with Matador Pictures, Cinema Six and Regent Capital, The Film Agency for Wales, and The City of Bristol
A Bard Entertainments / iFeatures production
IN THE DARK HALF
Tony Curran
Lyndsey Marshal
Jessica Barden
Casting Director
Manuel Puro
Make-up and Hair
Susanna Peretz
Costume Designer
Jemima Penny
Music
Dan Jones
Editor
Paul Carlin
Production Designer
Max Bellhouse
Director of Photography
Neus Ollé
Co-Producers
Wendy Bevan-Mogg, Josephine Rose, Antony Smith
Executive Producers
Christopher Moll, Steve Jenkins, Nigel Thomas, Keith Potter
Produced by
Margaret Matheson
Written by
Lucy Catherine
Directed by
Alastair Siddons
TONY CURRAN – FILTHY
Born in GlasgowScotland, Tony Curran attended the HolyroodSchool and made his TV debut at the age of 16 in the popular children's show Dramarama. He was a participant in the Scottish Youth Theatre, and later enrolled at the RoyalScottishAcademy of Music and Drama. Upon graduation, he landed his first film appearance opposite Robin Williams in Being Human.
Over the next few years, Tony served his acting apprenticeship in numerous supporting roles both in films such as Shallow Grave, Go Now and Coming Down and on TV in Tales of Para Handy and Soldier, Soldier.
During this time, Tony also established himself as a notable stage actor, performing in The Last Romantics, The Boat Plays and Dogs Barking, amongst others.
After landing strong supporting roles in several studio films, including The 13th Warrior, Gladiator, and Blade 2, Tony was cast as the leading role of The Invisible Man in the Fox feature, The League of Extraordinary Gentleman with Sean Connery.
At this time, Tony started splitting his time between the UK and Los Angeles. He was quickly hired again by Fox for another leading role in Flight of the Phoenix, opposite Dennis Quaid. Tony's currency with A-list directors and Hollywood studios continued to flourish with roles in Michael Mann's Miami Vice, Steven Soderbergh's The Good German, Screen Gem's blockbuster franchise Underworld: Evolution, Neil Jordan's Ondine and Sony's Midnight Meat Train.
On the small screen in America, Tony has booked series regular roles in the pilots Bunker Hill, Enemies and Amped. He has also appeared in memorable guest spots on such hit series as Numb3rs, Medium, 24 and The Mentalist. Notable recent UK television appearances include the 2010 Richard Curtis-penned episode of Dr Who – Vincent and the Doctor in which he played Vincent Van Gogh.
Though Tony currently resides in Los Angeles, he has never strayed far from his Scottish roots. In 2007, he starred on stage opposite Alan Cummings in The Bacchae and in the British indie film, Red Road, directed by Andrea Arnold, which won him both the Scottish BAFTA Award for Best Actor, as well as the British Independent Film Award for Best Actor. The film also won the Cannes Jury Prize, the London Film Festival Sutherland Trophy and 5 Scottish BAFTA awards, amongst many others.
Tony has also tapped into the American and British independent film worlds,
starring in such festival favorites as Shuttle, Golf in the Kingdom, The Lazarus Project and Beowulf and Grendel. While Tony continues to excel in dramatic character portrayals - he's just wrapped the starring role in British psychological thriller In The Dark Half and a supporting lead in new action feature The Veteran – he can be seen revealing his comedic chops opposite Janet McTeer in the upcoming feature film Cat Run and in the Fox blockbuster comedy, Big Momma's House opposite Martin Lawrence. Also scheduled for a 2011 release is the Steven Spielberg-helmed The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn in which Tony can be seen as Lieutenant Delcourt.
LYNDSEY MARSHAL - KATHY
Soon to be seen in the epic four-part TV adaptation Titanic, Lyndsey Marshal was born in Manchester. After studying classics at college for a career in archeology, she attended the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama.
Her first major part was in the play Fireface at the RoyalCourtTheatre, which she took just before graduation. In 2001 she won the Critics’ Circle Theatre Award for Best Newcomer in 2001 for her performances in Redundant at the RoyalCourtTheatre and Boston Marriage at the Donmar Warehouse.
In 2003, she won the TMA Theatre Award for Best Supporting Actress in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Since then she has performed leading roles in fourteen theatre productions, most recently alongside James McAvoy in the 2009 West End production Three Days of Rain. In 2011 she appeared in Greenland at the National Theatre.
Her acclaimed film and TV work includes A Short Stay in Switzerland with Julie Walters, Cleopatra inHBO's Rome, Being Human, Lady Sarah Hill in Garrow’s Law and The Hours with Meryl Streep, Julianne Moore and Nicole Kidman.
Earlier this year she starred inthe Clint Eastwood-directed Hereafter,a supernatural thrillerwhere Lyndsey took on the challenging role of an addictmother wholoses one of her sons in a tragic accident.
JESSICA BARDEN – MARIE
Jessica Barden began her career as a child actor in ITV’s popular children’s television programme, My Parents Are Aliens. Following this, she took roles in Channel 4’s television series, No Angels, and in The Chasefor the BBC.
This led to a regular role as Kayleigh Morton in ITV’s longest running television soap, Coronation Street.
Her first film role was playing Mary Ratcliffe in Mrs Ratcliffe’s Revolution, directed by Billie Eltringham for Warner Bros. She was then cast as one of the
lead roles in Tamara Drewe, starring alongside Gemma Arterton, in the Stephen Frears production for Ruby Films. This performance netted her a nomination as Young British Performer of the Year at the 2010 London Critic Circle awards.
Following this, she was cast by Focus Features in a principal role in Hanna, directed by Joe Wright. She was very well received in her stage debut as Pea in The Royal Court Theatre’s production of Jerusalem, which has transferred to Broadway.
In The Dark Half is Jessica’s latest film.
SIMON ARMSTRONG - STEVE
Simon Armstrong trained at the BristolOldVicTheatreSchool and is an Associate Actor ofrenowned Clwyd Theatr Cymru. His many theatre credits include Hamlet (The Globe Theatre), Bus Stop (New Vic), The Misanthrope (Bristol Old Vic), SUS (Young Vic), Uncle Vanya (Bristol Old Vic & Galway Arts Festival) and To Kill A Mockingbird.
His film and TV credits include Resistance (Rich Films), The Killer Elite (Ambience Productions / Mascot Pictures), Made in Dagenham (Number 9 Films), The Edge of Love (BBC Films) Pierrepoint: The Last Hangman (Granada Films) as well as Crash (BBC Wales), Holby City (BBC) and Midsommer Murders (ITV)
GEORGIA HENSHAW - MICHELLE
Georgia Henshaw has played principal roles in episodes of long-running television dramas, Casualty and The Bill. She also took lead roles in ITV’s comedy drama series, Moving Wallpaper, playing opposite Ben Miller, and was then cast as the lead in an episode of BBC’s popular daytime soap, Doctors.
Subsequently, she appeared in Channel 4’s highly successful teen-drama series, Skins. Following this, she has played a variety of roles on television, appearing in productions such as Catherine Tate: Nan’s Christmas Special; Being Human, and Two Pints of Lager, both for BBC3; and Law and Order, for Kudos Productions.
In film work, Georgia was cast by director Gurindha Chadha as one of the lead roles in Angus, Thongs, and Perfect Snogging, for Paramount Pictures. She then played the role of Moony in Seamonsters, for director Julian Kerridge, and has recently completed work on In The Dark Half.
TIM LEWIS - MARK
Tim Lewis trained at The Guildhall School of Music and Drama. He began his professional career with the Birmingham Rep, playing supporting roles in Romeo and Juliet. He was then cast in Nick Hytner’s production of The Man of Mode at the National Theatre. Following this, he was cast as Major Nicholls in the National Theatre’s long-running production of The War Horse at The New London Theatre in the West End.
Television and film work includes the role of Peter in the Channel 4 ‘Coming Up’ series, which was directed by Peter Mackie Burns. He played John Webster in Congregation of Ghosts for Whitechapel Films, and subsequently appeared as Martin in the successful BBC series, FiveDaughters, directed by Philippa Lowthorpe. He has recently appeared as Mark in In The Dark Half, and will next be appearing as Peter in a new production of The Railway Children, which will be staged at Eurostar’s former terminal at London’s Waterloo Station.
ALASTAIR SIDDONS – DIRECTOR
In The Dark Half is Alastair’s first fiction feature. He previously directed the large-scale documentary feature Turn It Loose, which was produced by Partizan Films and premiered at the Edinburgh International Film Festival 2009 where it was picked up for theatrical release by MK 2 Diffusion.
Turn It Loose explores the hopes and aspirations of six young b-boys from all over the world in the run up to the break dancing BC One championships held in a disused power station in Soweto, South Africa. Sight and Sound called the film “a jaw-droppingly visual feast of human movement and a nail-bitingly competitive battle of urban gladiatorial style. Not to be missed”.
He has just been commissioned by the French artist and TED prizewinner, JR, to direct another documentary feature about the global art adventure, Inside Out, that is JR's TED wish.
Alastair also has a development deal writing his next dramatic feature 'Trespass Against Us' with Film Four and continues to work on music promos with bands such as The Streets and Roots Manuva.
LUCY CATHERINE – WRITER
Lucy Catherine writes for television, film, theatre and radio. She has written for established series, including Casualty and the BBC's successful comedy drama Being Human, as well for several original television commissions for the BBC.Lucy is currently writing the first episode ofDirect Action, an original four-part drama for the BBC.
Lucybegan her writing career as aplaywright and is a former Writer in Residence and Literary Associate at BristolOldVicTheatre. Her play Jump toured the UK in 2008 and her adaptation of Roald Dahl's much-loved children's book The Witches was Radio 4's classic serial Christmas special.
In 2009 she was commissioned by Kudos Productions to write her first feature,Painkillerand in 2010 she was commissioned to writeIn The Dark Half for BBC Films and iFeatures.
MARGARET MATHESON - PRODUCER
Margaret began her producing career with the feature film It Shouldn’t Happen to a Vetin 1975. She then joined the BBC as Producer of Play For Today from 1977 to 1978 where her productions included Mike Leigh’s Abigail’s Partyand Alan Clarke’s Scum, which was subsequently banned. Later in 1980 she became Controller of Drama for Central Television where she was responsible for many successful series including Auf Wiedersehen Pet, as well as producing the Muck and Brassseries and David Leland’s quartet, which included Made in Britain.
From 1984 to 1990 she was a founding director of Zenith Productions where she was in charge of production and responsible for Sid and Nancy, The Hit, Personal Services, Wish You Were Hereand The Deadamongst many other films.
From here she went on to become Chief Executive at Island World where she was responsible for Ernest Dickerson’s Juice, Richard Loncraine’s Wide Eyed and Legless, and produced the BBC 1 drama series Cardiac Arrestin 1993/4 through Island World. In 1995 she was Executive Producer of the BBC’s Screen One strand and started her own production company, Bard Entertainments.
Bard’s productions include Marleen Gorris’s Oscar-winning (Best Foreign Language Film) Antonia’s Line, Kasi Lemmons’ Eve’s Bayou, Elaine Proctor’s Kin, Alex Cox’s Revengers Tragedy, Don Coutts’ American Cousins, Duncan Roy’s AKA, Mark James and Phil O’Shea’s Vampire Diary, Gideon Koppel’s sleep furiously, and Anthony Fabian’s Skin.
DAN JONES - COMPOSER
Dan Jones read music at OxfordUniversity where he graduated with first
class honours. He received the Ralph Vaughan Williams Electro-Acoustic Scholarship 1995 which he spent at the Centro Richerche Musicali in Rome.
Having accumulated an extensive list of television and theatre credits since the mid-1990s, Dan has more recently emerged as one of Britain’s most admired and sought-after film composers. His score for Max, Menno Meyjes’ controversial first feature about the early years of Hitler, starring John Cusack and Noah Taylor, received the 2004 Ivor Novello Award for ‘Best Score for a Feature Film’. Other film credits include Shadow of the Vampire, the inaugural feature from Nicolas Cage’s Saturn Films, starring John Malkovich and Willem Dafoe, and Francesca Joseph’s Tomorrow La Scala! (BBC Films), which was selected for the Un-Certain Regard slot at Cannes 2002. His most recent film credit is the Anglo-Spanish co-production Manolete, starring Penelope Cruz and Adrien Brody.
Dan’s television drama credits include Dead Set, E4’s high-profile horror drama based on Big Brother; the 6-part BBC series Strange and Pawel Pawlikowski’s Twockers. He has worked on many distinguished documentary films, including two recent and much talked-about contributions by filmmaker Tom Roberts to WGBH Boston’s Frontline series: In the Company of Soldiers and The Insurgency. In 2002 Dan was chosen with fellow composer Ben Salisbury to write the music for Sir David Attenborough’s 10 x 1-hour BBC series The Life of Mammals - the score being recorded with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. In 2011, he won his second Ivor Novello Award, and the BAFTA Craft Award, for original music for Carnival / Channel 4’s adaptation of William Boyd’s novel Any Human Heart.
Dan works extensively in theatre, as composer, sound designer, and most recently as a director. He is co-director of The Sound and Fury Theatre Company, and in the summer of 2009 co- directed (and provided the sound design for) their acclaimed production of Kursk at the Young Vic in London – which subsequently transferred to the Edinburgh Festival. Credits in the rock music world include the string arrangements for Alpha's second album, The Impossible Thrill, on the Virgin label, and a collaboration with Jarvis Cocker.
DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT
In The Dark Half is my first dramatic feature and, whilst making the transition from documentary to drama, in every instance I searched for that elusive ingredient that can significantly define both mediums - truth.