Focus Films Ltd. is an independent feature film development and production company in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. It was founded in 1982 by

David Pupkewitz David Pupkewitz is the founder and CEO of Focus Films Ltd. (UK). Starting out his career as an independent producer creating broadcast drama and documentaries for Channel 4, in 1995 he moved into Feature Film production with the George Sluizer hel ...

and Marsha Levin and is based in Finchley Road, London.

Background

Focus's early successes with television documentaries ('' Via Namibia'') and dramas such as ''

Kolmanskop Kolmanskop (Afrikaans for “Coleman's head”, german: Kolmannskuppe) is a ghost town in the Namib in southern Namibia, ten kilometres inland from the port town of Lüderitz. It was named after a transport driver named Johnny Coleman who, during ...

'' and ''

Othello ''Othello'' (full title: ''The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice'') is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare, probably in 1603, set in the contemporary Ottoman–Venetian War (1570–1573) fought for the control of the Island of Cypru ...

'', all of which were broadcast by

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

, led to its transition to feature film production for the international market starting with Crimetime directed by George Sluizer in 1995. Further films produced by Focus are ''Secret Society'', ''Book of Eve'', and their biggest budget film to date, '' The 51st State'' directed by

Ronny Yu Ronny is a given name, sometimes a short form (hypocorism) of Ryan. It may refer to: * Ronny (footballer, born 1986), Brazilian footballer Ronny Heberson Furtado de Araújo * Ronny (footballer, born 1991), Brazilian footballer Ronieri da Silva Pi ...

. The film stars Robert Carlyle,

Samuel L. Jackson Samuel Leroy Jackson (born December 21, 1948) is an American actor and producer. One of the most widely recognized actors of his generation, the films in which he has appeared have collectively grossed over $27 billion worldwide, making him ...

. During the hiatus encountered by the independent British film industry between 2004 and early 2007, Focus re-organised its team and strategy and in 2007 co-produced the

Bruce Dickinson Paul Bruce Dickinson (born 7 August 1958) is an English singer who has been the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Iron Maiden from 1981 to 1993 and 1999–present. He is known for his wide-ranging operatic vocal style and energetic stage ...

–scripted film'' Chemical Wedding'', directed by Monty Python veteran Julian Doyle. The film stars Simon Callow and

John Shrapnel John Morley Shrapnel (27 April 1942 – 14 February 2020) was an English actor. He is known mainly for his stage work with the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre in the United Kingdom and for his many television appearances. O ...

. It was released theatrically by Warner Music in the UK and Ireland at the end of May 2008.

Films

*''

Miss Romance Miss (pronounced ) is an English language honorific typically used for a girl, for an unmarried woman (when not using another title such as "Doctor" or "Dame"), or for a married woman retaining her maiden name. Originating in the 17th century, it ...

'' 2009 (directed by

Ryan Little Ryan Little (born 28 March 1971) is a Canadian film director, cinematographer and producer. He is perhaps best known for his 2003 film '' Saints and Soldiers.'' His work has a broad range of genres including war films and children's subjects. ...

) *'' Heaven and Earth'' 2010 (directed by Marleen Gorris featuring Natascha McElhone and

Pierce Brosnan Pierce Brendan Brosnan (; born 16 May 1953) is an Irish actor and film producer. He is best known as the fifth actor to play secret agent James Bond in the Bond film series, starring in four films from 1995 to 2002 (''GoldenEye'', ''Tomorrow ...

) *'' Master Harold...and the Boys'' 2008 (directed by Lonny Price and featuring Ving Rhames and Freddie Highmore) *''

Surviving Evil ''Surviving Evil'' (also known as ''Evil Island'') is a 2009 horror film directed and written by Terence Daw, and produced by David Pupkewitz, Anton Ernst and Malcolm Kohll. It stars Billy Zane, Christina Cole, Natalie Mendoza and Louise Barnes. ...

'' 2008 (directed by Terence Daw and features

Billy Zane William George Zane Jr. (born February 24, 1966) is an American actor. His breakthrough role was in the 1989 Australian film ''Dead Calm'', a performance that earned him a nomination for the Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Most Promi ...

Christina Cole Christina Cole (born 8 May 1982) is an English actress known for portraying Cassie Hughes in the Sky One supernatural television series '' Hex''. Early life Born in London, Cole is the eldest of three siblings. She has a younger sister, Cassand ...

and

Natalie Mendoza Natalie Jackson Mendoza (born 12 August 1976) is an Australian actress, singer, and dancer. She is best known for her roles as one of the main characters, Jackie Clunes, in the British drama series '' Hotel Babylon'' (2006–2008) and as Juno in ...

) *''

The 4th Kind ''The Fourth Kind'' is a 2009 science fiction psychological horror thriller film directed by Olatunde Osunsanmi and featuring a cast of Milla Jovovich, Elias Koteas, Corey Johnson, Will Patton, Charlotte Milchard, Mia Mckenna-Bruce, Yulian Vergov ...

'' 2008 (directed by Olatunde Osunsanmi and features

Milla Jovovich Milica Bogdanovna Jovovich; sr-Latn, Milica Bogdanovna Jovović; russian: Милица Богдановна Йовович; uk, Милиця Богданoвна Йовович ( ; born December 17, 1975), known professionally as Milla Jovo ...

and Elias Koteas * '' Chemical Wedding'' 2007 (directed by Julian Doyle and starring Simon Callow, Kal Webber,

Jud Charlton Jud may refer to: People People with the surname * Leo Jud (1482–1542), Swiss reformer * Jakob Jud (1882–1952), Swiss linguist People with the nickname or given name *Jud Birchall (1855–1887), American baseball player * Jud Birza (born 198 ...

and

Lucy Cudden Lucy is an English feminine given name derived from the Latin masculine given name Lucius with the meaning ''as of light'' (''born at dawn or daylight'', maybe also ''shiny'', or ''of light complexion''). Alternative spellings are Luci, Luce, Luci ...

) * ''

The Bone Snatcher ''The Bone Snatcher'' is a British-Canadian horror film directed by Jason Wolfsohn and starring Scott Bairstow, Rachel Shelley, and Adrienne Pearce. The film is based on a screenplay from Malcolm Kohll and Gordon Render. Plot When workers begi ...

'' 2003 (directed by Jason Wulfsohn and starring Scott Bairstow,

Rachel Shelley Rachel Shelley (born 25 August 1969) is an English actress and model. She is best known for playing Helena Peabody in the Showtime series ''The L Word'' and Elizabeth Russell in the Oscar-nominated Bollywood epic ''Lagaan''. Early life Rachel ...

and Warwick Grier) * ''

The Book of Eve ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'' 2002 (directed by Claude Fournier and starring Claire Bloom, Daniel Lavoie and Susannah York) * '' The 51st State'' 2001 (directed by

and starring

, Robert Carlyle, Rhys Ifans, Emily Mortimer, Sean Pertwee and

Meat Loaf Michael Lee Aday (born Marvin Lee Aday; September 27, 1947 – January 20, 2022), known professionally as Meat Loaf, was an American rock singer and actor. He was noted for his powerful, wide-ranging voice and theatrical live shows. He is on t ...

) * '' Julie’s Spirit'' 2000 (directed by

Bettina Wilhelm Bettina is a female name predominantly found in the Italian and German languages. This name has various interpreted meanings and origins. In Italian, Bettina originated as a diminutive of the names Elisabetta and Benedetta. Benedetta is the Ital ...

and starring Sylvie Testud and Julia Richter) * ''Secret Society'' 1999 (directed by

Imogen Kimmel Imogen or Imogene may refer to: __NOTOC__ Places * Imogene, Iowa, a city * Imogene, Minnesota, a populated place * Imogene, South Dakota, an unincorporated community * Imogene Pass, a mountain pass in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado * Imogene La ...

and starring Lee Ross and Charlotte Brittain) * ''

Crimetime ''Crimetime'' is a 1996 British thriller film starring Stephen Baldwin, Pete Postlethwaite, Sadie Frost and directed by George Sluizer. Plot ''Crimetime'' is set in the future where the media is nearly omnipotent. When an unemployed actor named ...

'' 1996 (directed by George Sluizer and starring Pete Postlethwaite, Stephen Baldwin and Sadie Frost) * ''

Diary of a Sane Man A diary is a written or audiovisual record with discrete entries arranged by date reporting on what has happened over the course of a day or other period. Diaries have traditionally been handwritten but are now also often digital. A personal d ...

'' 1989 (Independent Film and Video, Channel 4) * ''Othello 1987'' (TV drama, directed by Janet Suzman and starring John Kani, Channel 4) * '' Via Namibia'' 1985 (documentary with original music by Hugh Masekela) * ''

'' 1982 (feature)

References

{{reflist

External links

Official website
Film production companies of the United Kingdom Mass media companies established in 1982 1982 establishments in England