Hurricane Films
Encyclopedia
Hurricane Films is a film production company based in Liverpool
, England. It has produced both documentaries and fiction films at both short and feature length
. It is best known for Terence Davies' feature-length documentary Of Time and the City
(2008).
, the former drummer for pop group The Farm
.
In the early 2000s it made several short films, often films with relevance to social problems or the local area, or films with a twisted take on popular culture. These shorts included Comm-Raid on the Potemkin (2000), a re-interpretation of Sergei Eisenstein
’s Battleship Potemkin
shot in the style of a video game, by the Irish director Enda Hughes; Wrecked (2000), about a drunken journey home in Liverpool city centre; Gutwallops (2000), a surreal tale of family violence; and I’m A Juvenile Delinquent, Jail Me! (2004), a satire of reality television and its exploitation and sensationalising of youth culture, directed by Alex Cox
.
and enlisted a group of fifteen teenagers with no previous experience in screenwriting to share their experiences and create a film script.
The resulting film, Under the Mud
, was made for less than £100,000. Described as “social surrealism
” by the producers, the film is a comedy-drama following one day in the life of a Garston family on the day of its youngest daughter’s first Holy Communion, as family tensions erupt and the children go missing. It contains various fantasy sequences
, as well as moments of drama alternated with slapstick
comedy.
Under the Mud played at several international film festivals in 2006 including the Hollywood Film Festival
, Victoria Film Festival
and Cambridge Film Festival
. It did not receive theatrical distribution, but was released on DVD in 2009.
celebrations, Hurricane was awarded a £500,000 Heritage Lottery Fund
grant to produce a project of local importance. The company teamed with Terence Davies to make Of Time and the City, a chronicle of Davies' own life as a Liverpool youth and a personal reminiscence on his alienation from society and love–hate relationship with the local area. Narrated by Davies himself, the film showcases masses of archive footage
chronicling the evolution of Merseyside
over the course of the 20th century, and features poetry excerpts from such authors as T.S. Eliot and Emily Dickinson
, as well as a classical music soundtrack composed of works from composers such as Mahler
and Sibelius
.
Of Time and the City was shown In Competition at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival
where it won heavy critical acclaim, and it continued to receive accolades as it expanded into international release. It was named the best film of 2008 by BBC
film critic Mark Kermode
, won the New York Film Critics Circle award for Best Nonfiction Film of 2009, and Papadopoulos and Boulter were nominated for a 2008 BAFTA Award as "Most Promising Newcomers."
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
, England. It has produced both documentaries and fiction films at both short and feature length
Feature film
In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
. It is best known for Terence Davies' feature-length documentary Of Time and the City
Of Time and the City
Of Time and the City is a 2008 documentary film directed by Terence Davies.The film has Davies recalling his life growing up in Liverpool in the 1950s and 1960s, using newsreel and documentary footage supplemented by his own commentary voiceover and contemporaneous and classical music...
(2008).
History
The company was founded in the year 2000 by Solon Papadopoulos, a marine engineer turned filmmaker, and Roy BoulterRoy Boulter
Roy Boulter was the drummer in the Liverpool based pop group The Farm. He joined the band a replacement for Andy McVann, who died in a car crash on 1 October 1986....
, the former drummer for pop group The Farm
The Farm (band)
The Farm were a British band from Liverpool, popular through the early 1990s. Their album Spartacus reached the top position on the UK Albums Chart when it was released in March, 1991.-History:They formed in early 1983....
.
In the early 2000s it made several short films, often films with relevance to social problems or the local area, or films with a twisted take on popular culture. These shorts included Comm-Raid on the Potemkin (2000), a re-interpretation of Sergei Eisenstein
Sergei Eisenstein
Sergei Mikhailovich Eisenstein , né Eizenshtein, was a pioneering Soviet Russian film director and film theorist, often considered to be the "Father of Montage"...
’s Battleship Potemkin
The Battleship Potemkin
The Battleship Potemkin , sometimes rendered as The Battleship Potyomkin, is a 1925 silent film directed by Sergei Eisenstein and produced by Mosfilm...
shot in the style of a video game, by the Irish director Enda Hughes; Wrecked (2000), about a drunken journey home in Liverpool city centre; Gutwallops (2000), a surreal tale of family violence; and I’m A Juvenile Delinquent, Jail Me! (2004), a satire of reality television and its exploitation and sensationalising of youth culture, directed by Alex Cox
Alex Cox
Alexander Cox is a British film director, screenwriter, nonfiction author and sometime actor, notable for his idiosyncratic style and approach to scripts...
.
Under the Mud
In 2004, Hurricane Films began work on a community-based writing project that would become a feature film. Papadopoulos and Boulter visited the economically depressed local area of GarstonGarston, Merseyside
Garston is a district of Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It is bordered by Aigburth, Allerton, and Speke.-History:Gaerstun, meaning 'grazing settlement' or 'grazing farm' in Old English, is one possible root of the name....
and enlisted a group of fifteen teenagers with no previous experience in screenwriting to share their experiences and create a film script.
The resulting film, Under the Mud
Under the Mud
Under the Mud is a 2009 comedy film directed by Solon Papadopoulos. It is set in Garston, an economically depressed area of Liverpool, UK, and follows the dramatic and eccentric happenings within one family on the day of its youngest daughter's first Holy Communion...
, was made for less than £100,000. Described as “social surrealism
Surrealism
Surrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early 1920s, and is best known for the visual artworks and writings of the group members....
” by the producers, the film is a comedy-drama following one day in the life of a Garston family on the day of its youngest daughter’s first Holy Communion, as family tensions erupt and the children go missing. It contains various fantasy sequences
Dream sequence
A dream sequence is a technique used in storytelling, particularly in television and film, to set apart a brief interlude from the main story. The interlude may consist of a flashback, a flashforward, a fantasy, a vision, a dream, or some other element. Commonly, dream sequences appear in many...
, as well as moments of drama alternated with slapstick
Slapstick
Slapstick is a type of comedy involving exaggerated violence and activities which may exceed the boundaries of common sense.- Origins :The phrase comes from the batacchio or bataccio — called the 'slap stick' in English — a club-like object composed of two wooden slats used in Commedia dell'arte...
comedy.
Under the Mud played at several international film festivals in 2006 including the Hollywood Film Festival
Hollywood Film Festival
The Hollywood Film Festival is an annual Film festival which is located in Los Angeles, California, USA. The Festival was established in 1997 by Carlos de Abreu and his wife, model Janice Pennington....
, Victoria Film Festival
Victoria Film Festival
The Victoria Film Festival is a publicly attended film festival in Victoria, British Columbia running for ten days in February. The festival shows both Canadian and international films and unreels 150 films with 55 Features on 6 screens around Victoria. It attracts a continually growing audience,...
and Cambridge Film Festival
Cambridge Film Festival
The Cambridge Film Festival is one of the biggest film festivals in the UK. The festival historically took place during early July, but now takes place annually during September in Cambridge....
. It did not receive theatrical distribution, but was released on DVD in 2009.
Of Time and the City
In 2008, as part of Liverpool's Capital of CultureEuropean Capital of Culture
The European Capital of Culture is a city designated by theEuropean Union for a period of one calendar year during which it organises a series of cultural events with a strong European dimension....
celebrations, Hurricane was awarded a £500,000 Heritage Lottery Fund
Heritage Lottery Fund
The Heritage Lottery Fund is a fund established in the United Kingdom under the National Lottery etc. Act 1993. The Fund opened for applications in 1994. It uses money raised through the National Lottery to transform and sustain the UK’s heritage...
grant to produce a project of local importance. The company teamed with Terence Davies to make Of Time and the City, a chronicle of Davies' own life as a Liverpool youth and a personal reminiscence on his alienation from society and love–hate relationship with the local area. Narrated by Davies himself, the film showcases masses of archive footage
Stock footage
Stock footage, and similarly, archive footage, library pictures and file footage are film or video footage that may or may not be custom shot for use in a specific film or television program. Stock footage is of beneficial use to filmmakers as it is sometimes less expensive than shooting new...
chronicling the evolution of Merseyside
Merseyside
Merseyside is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 1,365,900. It encompasses the metropolitan area centred on both banks of the lower reaches of the Mersey Estuary, and comprises five metropolitan boroughs: Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton, Wirral, and the city of Liverpool...
over the course of the 20th century, and features poetry excerpts from such authors as T.S. Eliot and Emily Dickinson
Emily Dickinson
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was an American poet. Born in Amherst, Massachusetts, to a successful family with strong community ties, she lived a mostly introverted and reclusive life...
, as well as a classical music soundtrack composed of works from composers such as Mahler
Gustav Mahler
Gustav Mahler was a late-Romantic Austrian composer and one of the leading conductors of his generation. He was born in the village of Kalischt, Bohemia, in what was then Austria-Hungary, now Kaliště in the Czech Republic...
and Sibelius
Jean Sibelius
Jean Sibelius was a Finnish composer of the later Romantic period whose music played an important role in the formation of the Finnish national identity. His mastery of the orchestra has been described as "prodigious."...
.
Of Time and the City was shown In Competition at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
where it won heavy critical acclaim, and it continued to receive accolades as it expanded into international release. It was named the best film of 2008 by BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
film critic Mark Kermode
Mark Kermode
Mark Kermode is an English film critic, musician and a member of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts. He contributes to Sight and Sound magazine, The Observer newspaper and BBC Radio 5 Live, where he presents Kermode and Mayo's Film Reviews with Simon Mayo on Friday afternoons...
, won the New York Film Critics Circle award for Best Nonfiction Film of 2009, and Papadopoulos and Boulter were nominated for a 2008 BAFTA Award as "Most Promising Newcomers."