Ben Hampshire has joined Rogue Films in London as managing director/executive producer. Hampshire brings 18 years of advertising and production experience in both the U.S. and UK, most recently as managing director of The Mill Los Angeles where over seven years he helped the L.A. studio grow from 12 employees to 220, following five years heading production at The Mill London. Hampshire delivers a well honed mix of creative, technology and business acumen to Rogue, and will focus on creating new opportunities for its leading directors, developing young talent, recruiting new directors and managing day to day operations with company partners/executive producers David Van Der Gaag and Charlie Crompton.
Rogue has been one of London’s top creative boutiques for the past 15 years, building its reputation on the high craftsmanship, quality and originality of its work across commercials, music videos, digital content, documentary and film. This year alone, Rogue has taken home multiple honors at Cannes, British Arrows and the APAs. Cannes Lion wins include Gold for Guinness’ “Made of Black,” directed by Sam Brown; Silver for Channel 4’s promo “Prototype,” featuring amputee model Viktoria Modesta and directed by Saam Farahmand; and two Bronze for Department of Transport’s “Celebrate,” directed by Mark Zibert. Zibert is part of the Imperial Woodpecker roster, including director Stacy Wall, represented by Rogue for the UK and European markets.
A native of London, Hampshire’s career began there, then took him to Los Angeles and back across the Pond to London again. His perspective extends borders and continents, and reflects collaborations with the globe’s finest directors, visual artists, agency creatives, producers and brand clients.
“I’ve always really enjoyed working with directors, and the opportunity to join a boutique London company like Rogue with A-list talent and a strong focus on the client experience was very enticing,” Hampshire said. “We are also in a time where the creative execution is heavily reliant on existing and emerging technology, something I was fortunate to be involved in for many years at The Mill. Saam Farahmand and other Rogue directors have a strong grasp of these new frontiers in a way that Gondry and others did years before them. I couldn’t be more pleased to help shape these types of new and exciting opportunities for Rogue.”
Jennifer Kent On Why Her Feature Directing Debut, “The Babadook,” Continues To Haunt Us
"The Babadook," when it was released 10 years ago, didn't seem to portend a cultural sensation.
It was the first film by a little-known Australian filmmaker, Jennifer Kent. It had that strange name. On opening weekend, it played in two theaters.
But with time, the long shadows of "The Babadook" continued to envelop moviegoers. Its rerelease this weekend in theaters, a decade later, is less of a reminder of a sleeper 2014 indie hit than it is a chance to revisit a horror milestone that continues to cast a dark spell.
Not many small-budget, first-feature films can be fairly said to have shifted cinema but Kent's directorial debut may be one of them. It was at the nexus of that much-debated term "elevated horror." But regardless of that label, it helped kicked off a wave of challenging, filmmaker-driven genre movies like "It Follows," "Get Out" and "Hereditary."
Kent, 55, has watched all of this — and those many "Babadook" memes — unfold over the years with a mix of elation and confusion. Her film was inspired in part by the death of her father, and its horror elements likewise arise out of the suppression of emotions. A single mother (Essie Davis) is struggling with raising her young son (Noah Wiseman) years after the tragic death of her husband. A figure from a pop-up children's book begins to appear. As things grow more intense, his name is drawn out in three chilling syllables — "Bah-Bah-Doooook" — an incantation of unprocessed grief.
Kent recently spoke from her native Australia to reflect on the origins and continuing life of "The Babadook."
Q: Given that you didn't set out to in any way "change" horror, how have you regarded the unique afterlife of "The... Read More