EXCLUSIVE: Susanna White’s Prima Facie, starring Cynthia Erivo, is gearing up to shoot at London’s Story Works Studios in the autumn, marking th
EXCLUSIVE: Susanna White’s Prima Facie, starring Cynthia Erivo, is gearing up to shoot at London’s Story Works Studios in the autumn, marking the first independent feature to shoot at the studios.
The UK-Australian co-production is an adaptation of Suzie Miller’s Tony and Laurence Olivier award-winning play.
Australia’s Bunya Productions produces alongside the UK’s Embankment films, in association with Story Works Studios. Embankment also represents sales, with UTA Independent Film Group and CAA Media Finance co-representing for the US. Miller has adapted the script for screen.
UK producers Damian Keogh and Simon Vaughan founded 22-acre site Story Works at a former brewery in Richmond, south west London, last year. It initially was a fleeting facility for Disney+ series A Thousand Blows, which Keogh and Vaughan produced. Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale and Jack Ryan have also shot at the facility.
“Since opening, we have been focused on large-scale projects that use the entire studio, kick started by producing A Thousand Blows for Disney+. We are excited now to be able to welcome our first independent feature film to the studio and to help support the film by co-investing,” says Simon Vaughan, co-founder and CEO of Story Works, with the studios offering a discounted hire fee for the independent production.
“Having built out the space over recent years, we are now able to accommodate multiple projects side by side which makes it more affordable for smaller scale projects to shoot here.”
Adrian Wootton, chief executive of Film London, added: “We know that many independent producers have traditionally thought they couldn’t necessarily afford or get access to bigger studios, kit, costumes and facilities, but these possibilities are open to filmmakers, especially in light of the Enhanced Audio-Visual Expenditure Credit [Independent Film Tax Credit]. Story Works Studios opening its doors to independent film projects is a fantastic example of this.”
Production on Prima Facie is expected to wrap in November, with additional shooting taking place around London.
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