Guildhall Pictures News

How to treat your Treatment

2011-06-23T11:19:00.005+01:00

What is expected from a Treatment and why do writers loathe them so much?
G.Pics spent a very wet afternoon in Old Street yesterday, attending The Script Factory's Treatment Workshop, to explore such questions.

Led by Rob Ritchie, it was an excellent opportunity to learn about how to create and structure a good treatment, which you can use to help you develop your story, as well as being a selling tool to attract interest to your project.

If you've not been to a Script Factory course before, get yourself along to one! Check out their website for all your writing needs and for information on future courses.http://www.scriptfactory.co.uk

Back to work

2011-06-18T12:17:00.005+01:00

So the rain has been pouring in Blighty, but our producer, Matteo has arrived back from Cannes, a happy, tanned and tired man. He has had 10 fabulous days of walking the croisette, exploring the festival highlights and attending meetings (with the occasional party thrown in). It was another excellent year, so roll on 2012!

Guildhall Pictures hits Cannes

2011-05-08T18:54:00.000+01:00

It is that time of year again and Cannes is calling. Our producer, Matteo Rolleri, is heading to the Croisette for this year's festival.

Matteo will be there to represent our current feature 'Home' and our future project 'Quello che vorrei'. He will be joining the festival on May 13th and will have a very busy week ahead of him.

You can always catch up with him on the pavilion or look us up in the UK Film Centre guide, available at the UK film centre, Pavilion 120 in the international village.

Bon Voyage Matteo!

Copyright Guildhall Pictures Limited. All rights reserved.

Numbers Up: Available NOW!

2011-02-25T13:06:00.000Z

After a long wait and the never-ending hard work of our production team, Guildhall Pictures is very proud to announce that you can now watch 'Numbers Up' online!

Thanks to the wonderful people at Dynamo Player we can offer 'Numbers Up,' for a mere $1.99, of which 70% will go toward the development of our first feature, 'Home.'

So, if you have been wondering what all the fuss has been about and you would like to help us in the development of our first feature project, then please click on either the video above or the link below and watch TODAY.

Thank you all for your continual support in making miracles happen.

Guildhall Pictures Limited

Follow Guerilla films, Production Office

2011-01-20T10:10:00.001Z

Our friends at Living Spirit have recently launched an amazing live TV show for film makers everywhere. It is aimed at the independent market and it can be said that there is something for everyone there. Check it out every Thursday at 7:30pm (UK time) or click the link here and sign up to become a member.

Simon Beaufoy at the BFI

2010-09-21T21:29:00.002+01:00

G.Pics spent last Friday night at the BFI, attending a talk by Simon Beaufoy, the BAFTA and Academy Award winning Screenwriter of The Full Monty and Slumdog Millionaire. As part of the BAFTA / BFI lecture series, the night took the form of an interview / Q and A session, giving an insight into how Simon works and his screenwriting process. So, we thought we'd share some of his thoughts with everyone.

Initially starting out in documentary film making, he stressed the importance of authenticity and the power of narrative structure in storytelling.

"Ask yourself, if I gave you a camera, what would you point it at?"

Throwing yourself into your story world is integral, to take the time to listen to people, to soak up the visual landscape and to learn from everything that surrounds you.

Remember as you write, to be flexible with your story as ultimately it will take on a life of its own, telling you what it wants to be. However, hold on to the truth of your story, don't start writing scenes just to try and manipulate your audience.

Finally, remember to write what you love, as inadvertently a part of who you are will creep in to your writing. If you start to feel any doubts, remind yourself why you love film-making.

Another fantastic night at the BFI – They hope to make the Screenwriting Lecture series an annual event, so make sure you book up early next year and get to as many as you can.

An evening with David Hare (Screenwriter)

2010-09-10T11:57:00.003+01:00

GPics was at the BFI last night to attend a lecture by Screenwriter David Hare (one of the numerous evenings being held as part of the BAFTA/BFI Screenwriters Lecture Series).

Our writer, Sinead, arrived to a buzzing atmosphere and a packed auditorium, with everyone jostling to find their seat and get settled for the event ahead. Anticipation filled the air and after a brief introduction, David Hare stepped on stage to share some of his thoughts and experiences with the eager crowd.

Screenwriter of The Hours and The Reader (for which he was nominated for a BAFTA, Golden Globe and Academy Award), David opened by speaking about how, as a screenwriter he spends time imagining and thinking about the story he will mould.

Over the next hour he outlined the following beliefs that he currently holds about screenwriting (but beware, they may change as of next week - this is an ever evolving process).

Make the outcome more interesting the proposition (it's the ending that people will remember

Write a scene through the presence of a third person (this will add an extra layer to enrich your scene)

Don't underestimate the power of language (it beautifully interacts with image to create a perfect whole)

Make way for others more talented (present a script that will excite others to come forward and lift it further)

Ilustrated with fabulous clips from Citzen Kane, The Fallen Idol and Mad Men, it was a truly inspiring and entertaining evening.

Sinead is already excited at the thought of next weeks talk by Simon Beaufoy, Screenwriter of The Full Monty and Slumdog Millionaire. So make sure you check back to hear all about it!

Canon 5D day.

2010-09-06T13:14:00.002+01:00

Fantastic news!
We are off out with our good friend, editor and cameraman, Tim Parsons of 'another schmuck', this weekend to have a close look at the Canon 5D Mk II. The camera that is starting a minor revolution among independent film makers.
Tim has kindly offered to take Brian out around the big smoke to really test out the possibilities of this amazing piece of equipment.
Of course, we will let you know what Brian finds and thinks. It is a camera that we are all incredibly keen on here, so fingers crossed, it lives up to our initial impression and very high expectations.
It is going to be an amazing week.

Guildhall Pictures

Cannes Video now available on GPics TV

2010-08-30T19:33:00.002+01:00

We are very proud to announce the upload of our short video from our trip to the 63e Festival de Cannes, back in May this year.

We explore and explain our own experience, hoping to break down the preconceptions some may have about the festival itself.

We hope you all enjoy the film and that it inspires everyone out there to truly follow their dreams.

Roll on Cannes 2011

Expect Miracles!

Guildhall Pictures

63e Festival de Cannes 2010 from Brian Franklin on Vimeo.

Copyright Guildhall Pictures Limited. All rights reserved.

Producer, Matteo, heads to Italy

2010-08-23T09:08:00.003+01:00

Saturday 21st saw us waving off our Producer, Matteo, who was flying out to Genova, Italy.

Matteo is currently working around the clock on Guildhall Pictures first Italian language film ‘Quello che vorrei’. This is a project very close to Matteo’s heart, as it is set in and around his home town and is also set to be his feature, directorial debut. Quello che vorrei will be shooting at the end of the summer in 2011.

Matteo will be gone for nearly three weeks, scouting for locations and facilities as well as having a meeting with the Liguria Film Commission about a possible co-production.

Good luck Matteo. We look forward to hearing all about your successful scouting and meetings upon your return.

Expect Miracles!

Guildhall Pictures

Blu-ray: On our web store NOW

2010-08-07T19:52:00.000+01:00

After far too long, we have finally begun to add blu-ray titles to the ‘films we loved’ section of our web store.

We have already added the first few titles and we intend to add lots more over the next few weeks. Trust me, it is a big job people. We have been film lovers for years, after all.

But, don’t panic if you don’t yet have Blu-Ray, we still have all our favourites on regular DVD too.

So, why not check out our shop at http://www.guildhallpictures.co.uk/shop.html and see what films you may have missed.

Expect Miracles!

Guildhall Pictures

Wow, we are busy. Fantastic!

2010-07-27T12:54:00.001+01:00

It has been a crazy few weeks for the team at Guildhall Pictures. In fact, we have been non-stop. So much so, that we haven’t even had time to update our wonderful blog.

So, let’s take this 10 minute ‘time-out’ to get you all up to date.

Draft 4 of Perfect is now well under way. Sinead, our writer, has been doing an incredible job of this amazing thriller. It is truly terrifying. We are all incredibly excited about this amazing story and with the wheels of pre-production starting to roll at the end of August we are getting an even bigger buzz.

Producer and writer, Matteo and co-writer Guglielmo are both hard at work on our first Italian language film, Quello che vorrei, (What I Wish). The story is one that raised considerable interest in Cannes and is a film that we have all become incredibly passionate about. It has fast become a really important part of our slate of pictures and we will keep you updated with all the news after Matteo’s trip to Genova.

Thursday saw a huge day for Brian, our Director/Producer, as he had the opportunity to pitch to a panel of industry ‘big-wigs’ and an audience of established filmmakers. The feedback was incredible and has driven us all onward, more passionately than ever. A fantastic experience and a wonderful morning.

As well as all of this, Matteo has been hard at work wrapping up a distribution deal for his independent project ‘Break My Fall’ and we would like to wish him all the very best in finalising the details this week.

Finally, we are still working really hard to get the final edit of our Cannes experience on line. Brian is hard at work completing the edit as we speak and has assured us, it will be on line very soon. We can’t wait to see it.

So, it is on with the fun bits and the not-so-fun bits (that’s right, it is EOY accounts time again) as we keep on expecting miracles.

We hope you all have an amazing week.

Guildhall Pictures

Script draft 2 - 1st meeting complete

2010-06-08T19:57:00.000+01:00

Yesterday saw the first revisions meeting for the 2nd draft of our feature script, ‘Perfect’.

I am absolutely overjoyed to say that the story is amazing and we are really close to a final draft. Matteo, myself and Sinead all sat at our usual spot, in the Hotel Russell, working away with a real buzz of excitement. It was hours until we eventually realised that it was coming up to 11pm and we should all go home and get some sleep.

This project is a truly amazing experience. The whole process has been completely collaborative from the very beginning and we are loving the fantastic results.

Here is to draft 3 and an amazing movie.

Expect Miracles!

Guildhall Pictures

More Cannes Pics, now on site

2010-06-01T20:01:00.000+01:00

That’s right, we have added a few of our favourite pics from our latest trip to Cannes on the ‘behind the scenes’ section of our lovely website.

Why not have a look, as we will soon be adding the video footage of this wonderful trip, also.

Just go to http://www.guildhallpictures.co.uk/Behindscenes.html or click on the picture above.

Expect Miracles!

Guildhall Pictures

Watch our Cannes Interview with Film Industry Network TV.

2010-05-30T20:07:00.001+01:00

Great News!!

Today saw our Cannes interview with the Film Industry Network (FIN) go live. The guys at FIN met with Matteo and Brian at the Martinez Hotel to chat about the making of Numbers Up and the aspirations of Guildhall Pictures in the long term.

Iain contacted us when we first arrived in Cannes. He had watched the movie on the Short Film Corner screener site and was so excited about the story, he asked us if he could help us push the film at the festival. We were delighted to meet with him and his team.You can see the interview here or by clicking on the link below.

http://www.filmindustrynetwork.biz/director-and-producer-from-guildhall-pictures-interview/

Cannes 2010: All at once...

2010-05-16T20:14:00.001+01:00

So sorry we had to leave you guys out of the loop during our brief trip to Cannes, but the meetings and networking came in thick and fast once we arrived.

We have had an amazing time on the Croisette. Our experiences included an interview with theFilm Industry Network (coming soon), a cocktail party in honour of Carlo Di Palma (Woody Allen’s long time D.O.P), several meetings with buyers for our short film Numbers Up , a pitch to Adriana Chiesa at the Carlton Hotel, meetings with 3 different European film studios and a great meeting with Liguria Film Commission. And this is just the tip of the iceberg.

Fortunately, we have captured most of our exploits on our wonderful little flip camera and we will be posting a video of our trip once we have had a chance to have some sleep. In the meantime, please check out our facebook page where we will post a few of the photos that we took during our time there.

Cannes really is an amazing place. It is the Mecca for all filmmakers. However you have to make it happen, make sure, if you are a truly serious filmmaker, that you go to Cannes Film Festival.

Expect miracles, because they really do happen there.