The Directors Network, Encino, Calif., has signed New York-based humor director Wayne Gibson and Los Angeles-based director/cameraman Stephen Vidano. Additionally, longform helmer Lorraine Senna has returned to The Directors Network for spot representation….Sean Sullivan of Sullivan Creative Management, Chicago, has been named to handle Midwest representation for Incubator Films, the Los Angeles-based shop featuring director Tom De Cerchio. Incubator continues to be repped by indie reps Siobhan McCafferty and Peter McCann on the West and East Coasts, respectively….Cinelande & Associates, Montreal, and Industry Films, Toronto, have forged a strategic alliance whereby the companies will represent each company’s directors in the other’s market….Lisa Cleff has rejoined bicoastal Attik as VP of business development and marketing. She departed the company in 2001 to serve as director of sales and marketing for R!OT Manhattan before joining creative studio Goodspot, Santa Monica…. Sabrina Manhas Hutchinson and Stacey Jones have joined Modern Digital, Seattle, as account executives….Stylist/costume designer Marcelle McKay is now repped by Aimee Rivers at The Lyons•Sheldon•Prosnit Agency, Los Angeles….
Steve McQueen Shows Wartime London Through A Child’s Eyes In “Blitz”
It was a single photograph that started Oscar-winning filmmaker Steve McQueen on the journey to make "Blitz." As a Londoner, the German bombing raids on the city during World War II are never all that far from his mind. Reminders of it are everywhere. But the spark of inspiration came from an image of a small boy on a train platform with a large suitcase. Stories inspired by the evacuation are not rare, but this child was Black. Who was he, McQueen wondered, and what was his story? The film, in theaters Friday and streaming on Apple TV+ on Nov. 22, tells the tale of George, a 9-year-old biracial child in East London whose life with his mother, Rita ( Saoirse Ronan ), and grandfather is upended by the war. Like many children at the time, he's put on a train to the countryside for his safety. But he hops off and starts a long, dangerous journey back to his mom, encountering all sorts of people and situations that paint a revelatory and emotional picture of that moment. SEARCHING FOR GEORGE AND FINDING A STAR When McQueen finished the screenplay, he thought to himself: "Not bad." Then he started to worry: Does George exist? Is there a person out there who can play this role? Through an open casting call they found Elliott Heffernan, a 9-year-old living just outside of London whose only experience was a school play. He was the genie in "Aladdin." "There was a stillness about him, a real silent movie star quality," McQueen said. "You wanted to know what he was thinking, and you leant in. That's a movie star quality: A presence in his absence." Elliott is now 11. When he was cast, he'd not yet heard about the evacuation and imagined that a film set would be made up of "about 100 people." But he soon found his footing, cycling in and out of... Read More