Goldcrest Films is an award-winning independent British distribution, production, post production, and finance company. Operating from London and New York, Goldcrest is a privately owned integrated filmed entertainment company. Goldcrest Films oversees the production, distribution and marketing of films produced by Goldcrest and third-party acquisition in addition to monetising Goldcrest's library of over 100 titles. Goldcrest Films recent slate includes ''Slumber'', '' Come and Find Me'', '' Stonewall'' (directed by

Roland Emmerich Roland Emmerich (; born 10 November 1955) is a German film director, screenwriter, and producer. He is widely known for his science fiction and disaster films and has been called a "master of disaster" within the industry. His films, most of wh ...

), BBC's ''EARTH: One Amazing Day'' (directed by

Peter Webber Peter Webber (born 1968) is a British film and television director and producer whose debut feature film as a director was '' Girl with a Pearl Earring'' (2003). He subsequently directed ''Hannibal Rising'' (2007). Early life Webber took a one ...

), and

Joe Dante Joseph James Dante Jr. (; born November 28, 1946) is an American film director, producer, editor and actor. His films—notably ''Gremlins'' (1984) alongside its sequel, '' Gremlins 2: The New Batch'' (1990)—often mix 1950s-style B movies wit ...

's ''Labirintus.''

Nick Quested Nicholas Quested (born November 26, 1969) is an award-winning British filmmaker and producer of documentary films, music videos, and TV commercials. He is the executive director and owner of Goldcrest Films. Quested has produced over 40 documenta ...

is the current executive director and owner.

History

Goldcrest was founded as Goldcrest Films International by

Jake Eberts Jake Eberts, OC (July 10, 1941 – September 6, 2012) was a Canadian film producer, executive and financier. He was known for risk-taking and producing a consistently high caliber of movies including such Academy Award-winning titles as ''Chari ...

in January 1977 as a

feature film A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...

enterprise. As of 1981, the UK National Coal Board Pension Fund was a major stakeholder in this company. It enjoyed success in the 1980s and the 1990s with films such as ''

Chariots of Fire ''Chariots of Fire'' is a 1981 British historical sports drama film directed by Hugh Hudson, written by Colin Welland and produced by David Puttnam. It is based on the true story of two British athletes in the 1924 Olympics: Eric Liddell, a de ...

'' (1981), ''

Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

'' (1982)'', Local Hero'' (1983), ''

The Killing Fields A killing field is a concept in military science. Killing field may also refer to: * Killing Fields, a number of sites in Cambodia where collectively more than a million people were killed and buried by the Khmer Rouge regime, during its rule of ...

'' (1984), '' Hope and Glory'' (1987), ''

All Dogs Go To Heaven ''All Dogs Go to Heaven'' is a 1989 animated musical fantasy adventure comedy-drama film directed by Don Bluth and co-directed by Gary Goldman (his directorial debut) and Dan Kuenster. It tells the story of Charlie B. Barkin (voiced by Burt Re ...

'' (1989), ''

A Room With a View ''A Room with a View'' is a 1908 novel by English writer E. M. Forster, about a young woman in the restrained culture of Edwardian era England. Set in Italy and England, the story is both a romance and a humorous critique of English society a ...

'' (1985), the cult television series ''

Robin of Sherwood ''Robin of Sherwood'' is a British television series, based on the legend of Robin Hood. Created by Richard Carpenter, it was produced by HTV in association with Goldcrest, and ran from 28 April 1984 to 28 June 1986 on the ITV network. In the ...

'' (1984–86) and the live-action/animated musical comedy film '' Rock-a-Doodle'' (1991). The company also benefited from the new investment of

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 ...

in film production. The company won two

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

for Best Picture, for ''

'' in 1981, and ''

'' in 1982. After these initial successes the company backed more expensive productions with established Hollywood stars that often ran over schedule and budget culminating in ''

Revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

'' (1985), '' The Mission'' (1986) and '' Absolute Beginners'' (1986) that all disappointed at the box office, despite ''The Mission'' winning the

Palme d'Or The Palme d'Or (; en, Golden Palm) is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festival's highest prize was the Grand Prix du Fe ...

at the

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films o ...

. On June 11, 1985, Goldcrest Films had set up a deal with Japanese financer Nippon Herald to finance pictures for up to $2 million. The company ran into financial difficulties, and eventually seeking bids from UK firms in 1987, which included George Walker, and

Hemdale Hemdale Film Corporation, known as Hemdale Communications after 1992, was an independent American-British film production company and distributor. The company was founded in London in 1967 as the Hemdale Company by actor David Hemmings and John D ...

, who had a successful film reputation, were offering bids from the studio, but they turned down each time. After attempted takers, Masterman, which was jointly owned by

Brent Walker Brent Walker was a British company involved in property, gambling, distilled beverages and pubs. It was founded by George Walker, the brother of the boxer Billy Walker. In 1991, following the accumulation of debts which had been used to finance ...

and Ensign Trust would be shown as a possible buyer for the Goldcrest holdings, of which they outbid various offers from other companies, which included a joint bid of

Granada Television ITV Granada, formerly known as Granada Television, is the ITV franchisee for the North West of England and Isle of Man. From 1956 to 1968 it broadcast to both the north west and Yorkshire but only on weekdays as ABC Weekend Television was it ...

, the

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

franchisee, and home video and feature film distributor Virgin Vision, which has been touted among other firms.

Subsidiaries

Pearson Longman Longman, also known as Pearson Longman, is a publishing company founded in London, England, in 1724 and is owned by Pearson PLC. Since 1968, Longman has been used primarily as an imprint by Pearson's Schools business. The Longman brand is also ...

established Goldcrest Films and Television in 1981, led by the founder of Goldcrest Films, John Eberts, and chaired by James Lee, chief executive of Pearson Longman. At incept, the new concern owned 40% of Goldcrest Films. Goldcrest Post Production opened in Soho, London in 1982 and in West Village, New York in 2000. Recent expansion and investment has culminated in the opening of central London's largest purpose built

Dolby ATMOS Dolby Atmos is a surround sound technology developed by Dolby Laboratories. It expands on existing surround sound systems by adding height channels, allowing sounds to be interpreted as three-dimensional objects with neither horizontal, nor verti ...

Premier sound mixing theatre at Goldcrest's Dean Street, Soho premises. Offering full picture and sound post production services to both the Film and Television industry Goldcrest Post Production credits include ''

Jason Bourne Jason Bourne () is the title character and the protagonist in a series of novels and subsequent film adaptations. The character was created by novelist Robert Ludlum. He first appeared in the novel '' The Bourne Identity'' (1980), which was a ...

, Carol,

American Honey "American Honey" is a song written by Cary Barlowe, Hillary Lindsey and Shane Stevens, and recorded by American country music group Lady Antebellum. It was released on January 11, 2010, as the second single from their second album '' Need You Now ...

, Morgan,

The Danish Girl ''The Danish Girl'' is a novel by American writer David Ebershoff, published in 2000 by the Viking Press in the United States and Allen & Unwin in Australia. Summary The novel is a fictionalized account of the life of Lili Elbe, one of the fi ...

.''

Financing arm

Goldcrest Films' financing arms, Goldcrest Pictures and Goldcrest Capital Partners, structure transactions in the media sector. From 2006 to 2008 — the first two years of operation — the companies provided services on 18 films, including ''

Twilight Twilight is light produced by sunlight scattering in the upper atmosphere, when the Sun is below the horizon, which illuminates the lower atmosphere and the Earth's surface. The word twilight can also refer to the periods of time when this il ...

'', ''

Tropic Thunder ''Tropic Thunder'' is a 2008 satirical action comedy film directed by Ben Stiller, who wrote the screenplay with Justin Theroux and Etan Cohen. The film stars Stiller, Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr., Jay Baruchel, and Brandon T. Jackson as a gro ...

'', '' Knowing'', ''

Eagle Eye ''Eagle Eye'' is a 2008 American action-thriller film directed by D. J. Caruso and with a screenplay by John Glenn (screenwriter), John Glenn, Travis Adam Wright, Hillary Seitz and Dan McDermott from a story by McDermott. The film stars Shia LaB ...

'', ''

Revolutionary Road ''Revolutionary Road'' is American author Richard Yates's debut novel about 1950s suburban life in the East Coast. It was a finalist for the National Book Award in 1962, along with ''Catch-22'' and ''The Moviegoer''. When published by Atlantic ...

'' and '' Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging''. Goldcrest Capital also raises funds and provides services on UK independent feature films. The first two films of this new initiative were Andrea Arnold's ''

Wuthering Heights ''Wuthering Heights'' is an 1847 novel by Emily Brontë, initially published under her pen name Ellis Bell. It concerns two families of the landed gentry living on the West Yorkshire moorland, moors, the Earnshaws and the Lintons, and their tur ...

'' - produced by Douglas Rae and Robert Bernstein of

Ecosse Films Ecosse Films is a British film and television production company based in London. Ecosse Films produces programs for BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Showtime, Sky Atlantic, Starz Channel and WGBH. History The first production of Ecosse Films was the 1 ...

and Kevin Loader and co-financed with the

UK Film Council The UK Film Council (UKFC) was a non-departmental public body set up in 2000 to develop and promote the film industry in the UK. It was constituted as a private company limited by guarantee, owned by the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and ...

Film4 Film4 is a British free-to-air television network owned by Channel Four Television Corporation launched on 1 November 1998, devoted to broadcasting films. While its standard-definition channel is available on Freeview and Freesat platforms, it ...

and

Screen Yorkshire Following a review of the film infrastructure in England during 2000, the UK Film Council set up nine Regional Screen Agencies, one in each of the regions of England, to deliver support for film-making, exhibition and related media activities. Th ...

- and

Phyllida Lloyd Phyllida Christian Lloyd, (born 17 June 1957) is an English film director and producer, best known for '' Mamma Mia!'' (2008) and '' The Iron Lady'' (2011). Her theatre work includes directing productions at the Royal Court Theatre and Royal N ...

’s biopic of

Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. S ...

, '' The Iron Lady''. This starred

Meryl Streep Mary Louise Meryl Streep (born June 22, 1949) is an American actress. Often described as "the best actress of her generation", Streep is particularly known for her versatility and accent adaptability. She has received numerous accolades throu ...

and was produced by Damian Jones for

Pathé Pathé or Pathé Frères (, styled as PATHÉ!) is the name of various French people, French businesses that were founded and originally run by the Pathé Brothers of France starting in 1896. In the early 1900s, Pathé became the world's largest ...

and the

with the participation of

Canal+ Canal+ (Canal Plus, , meaning 'Channel Plus'; sometimes abbreviated C+ or Canal) is a French premium television channel launched in 1984. It is 100% owned by the Groupe Canal+, which in turn is owned by Vivendi. The channel broadcasts several ki ...

and Cine Cinema.

Filmography

Cinema

Television

Notes

References

External links

* {{Authority control Film production companies of the United Kingdom Mass media companies established in 1977 1977 establishments in the United Kingdom