Furlined, a production company with bases of operation in L.A. and London, has added director Ben Tricklebank to its roster for commercial representation in the U.S. and U.K. He had previously been handled in the ad arena by Smuggler.
Tricklebank hails from the U.K. He comes to directing from a background in design, as a multidisciplinary artist and director creating interactive films, virtual reality installations and digital experiences— always with a focus on story. His commercialmaking spans such brands as Hennessey, Sony, Lexus, Audible and Gran Turismo. Tricklebank’s work has received assorted major awards. Back when he was at Tool of North America (prior to Smuggler), Tricklebank and Erich Joiner directed the interactive documentary Clouds Over Cuba for the JFK Presidential Library and Foundation via The Martin Agency. Clouds Over Cuba won a News and Documentary Emmy Award, among other honors.
“There’s beauty and soulfulness in Ben’s film, qualities that are the hallmarks of storytellers whose voices truly resonate,” said Diane McArter, president of Furlined.
“Ben is an artist. He makes the complexity of the craft feel almost invisible,” said Furlined VP Ben Davies.
Rom-Com Mainstay Hugh Grant Shifts To The Dark Side and He’s Never Been Happier
After some difficulties connecting to a Zoom, Hugh Grant eventually opts to just phone instead.
"Sorry about that," he apologizes. "Tech hell." Grant is no lover of technology. Smart phones, for example, he calls the "devil's tinderbox."
"I think they're killing us. I hate them," he says. "I go on long holidays from them, three or four days at at time. Marvelous."
Hell, and our proximity to it, is a not unrelated topic to Grant's new film, "Heretic." In it, two young Mormon missionaries (Chloe East, Sophie Thatcher) come knocking on a door they'll soon regret visiting. They're welcomed in by Mr. Reed (Grant), an initially charming man who tests their faith in theological debate, and then, in much worse things.
After decades in romantic comedies, Grant has spent the last few years playing narcissists, weirdos and murders, often to the greatest acclaim of his career. But in "Heretic," a horror thriller from A24, Grant's turn to the dark side reaches a new extreme. The actor who once charmingly stammered in "Four Weddings and a Funeral" and who danced to the Pointer Sisters in "Love Actually" is now doing heinous things to young people in a basement.
"It was a challenge," Grant says. "I think human beings need challenges. It makes your beer taste better in the evening if you've climbed a mountain. He was just so wonderfully (expletive)-up."
"Heretic," which opens in theaters Friday, is directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, co-writers of "A Quiet Place." In Grant's hands, Mr. Reed is a divinely good baddie — a scholarly creep whose wry monologues pull from a wide range of references, including, fittingly, Radiohead's "Creep."
In an interview, Grant spoke about these and other facets of his character, his journey... Read More