MUMBAI: Principal photography of Eight Minutes Idle has begun in Bristol .
The cast includes Tom Hughes and Ophelia Lovibond along with Montserrat Lombard, Divian Ladwa , Jack Ashton and Antonia Thomas. Pippa Haywood and Paul also have cameos.
Eight Minutes Idle is a warped urban comedy about life in a Bristol call-center, directed by Mark Simon Hewis, The film is based upon Matt Thorne’s novel, and the script was co-developed by Thorne with novelist Nicholas Blincoe, also the co-founder of the New Puritans literary movement. Producing the film is Sarah Cox, whose company ArthurCox delivered the BAFTA-winning 2010 animation Mother of Many.
An Arthur Cox/iFeatures production, Eight Minutes Idle is a South West Screen, UK Film Council and BBC Films presentation in association with Matador Pictures and the Bristol City Council. The BBC has acquired UK Free TV rights, and Content Film, a division of Content Media Corporation , is handling worldwide sales.
iFeatures executive producer Chris Moll said, “It’s a tribute to Nicholas and Matt’s script and to Sarah and Mark’s cinematic vision that the production has assembled such wonderful ensemble cast of upcoming and established comic talent. The other star, of course, is Bristol itself and this is a film that sets out to capture the very soul of a city we all love.”
BBC head Films Steve Jenkins said, "A vital element of the iFeatures scheme is developing new talent, for which the funny and inventive script for Eight Minutes Idle is a perfect vehicle. Who knew that life in a Bristol call center could be this strange."
Eight Minutes Idle commenced principal photography on 21 March at a dedicated production set built at The Bottle Yard production space, and other locations across Bristol. Shooting will continue for four weeks.
South West Screen’s iFeatures scheme, backed by BBC Films, Matador Pictures and Bristol City Council, was launched in October 2009 with the aim of providing a pathway to features for the city’s most outstanding creative talent as well attracting some of the best emerging filmmakers from across the UK and Europe to the city of Bristol. Three films were greenlit in November 2010 and the first of these, In the Dark Half, completed shooting in late 2010 and is now in post-production. Eight Minutes Idle is the second film to go into production, and will be followed by the third, Flying Blind, currently in pre-production. All three films are due to premiere in Bristol in 2011.
