Director Ross Allen has joined the roster of production house Radke for exclusive representation in Canada. After graduating with a First Class BA (Honors) in Film and Video from Norwich University of the Arts in 2010, Allen embarked on a parallel path as an agency creative and filmmaker, applying his unique skill set to projects for Red Bull, Under Armour, McDonald’s, DAZN and Lurpak for agencies including Leo Burnett, Taxi and Rethink. In 2017, Allen moved to Vancouver where he has been directing ever since. A mainstay in the Vancouver filmmaking and commercial community, Allen has built a body of work creating ads, music videos, and short films. Allen has garnered accolades including a Vimeo Staff Pick and a nomination for the Young Director Awards. Most recently, he wrote, directed, and edited the highly regarded CanadaHelps COVID spot “Heartbeat of the Nation” that celebrated the service of frontline health care workers.
Amsterdam based production house Revolver has expanded its roster with the signing of directors Marko Roth, Joppe Rog, Malin Ingrid and Ian Derry for representation in Netherlands/Benelux spanning commercials, branded content and music videos. Roth’s strong sense for storytelling has won him multiple awards including Gold at Clio and Ciclope, silver at the New York Festivals and a shortlisting at the Cannes Young Director Award for his powerful film Kherou. Rog has been making documentaries, commercials, and branded content for over 10 years. He has been directly commissioned for multiple projects including films for Alessandro Michele, Donatella Versace and Rick Owens, and among his clients are such major brands as Nike, Ray-Ban and Vogue. Rog currently lives in NYC, a recent move to pursue his independent film and directing endeavors. Ingrid has been shortlisted for the Young Director Award in Cannes, in the category Changing the world frame by frame. Her latest music video for José González premiered on Pitchfork and her work for the Swedish Nation Agency for Education made the best performing spot on YouTube. She has directed several films for Happy Socks, including one with Macaulay Culkin. And Derry’s short film Johanna was screened as part of the 2017 Saatchi & Saatchi New Directors’ Showcase, picked up both D&AD and Grierson nominations and won GOLD at the Kinsale Sharks for Best Doco Short Film. He’s since directed campaigns for brands including Nike, Nicorette, Seat, Microsoft, Johnnie Walker, Versace, Hugo Boss and Fitbit….
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