Maxwell Setton (born 24 October 1909, date of death unknown) was a British film producer, notably active in the 1950s.McFarlane, Brian (28 February 2014). ''The Encyclopedia of British Film: Fourth edition''. Oxford University Press. pp. 688-689; He was born in Cairo"Maxwell Setton: Interview notes"
'' The History Project''. Retrieved 4 June 2021. to British parents and studied law, becoming a barrister. In 1937, he became legal adviser to Mayflower Productions, the production company of Charles Laughton and Erich Pommer. After serving in the war, he became an assistant to Lord Archibald, who was managing Independent Producers Ltd. After a few years, he set up as a producer with Aubrey Baring and they made movies for a newly organised Mayflower Productions, releasing through Rank. They produced six films together, predominantly adventure films set outside Britain written by

Robert Westerby Robert Westerby (3 July 1909 in Hackney, England – 16 November 1968 in Los Angeles County, California, United States), was a writer of novels (published by Arthur Barker of London) and screenwriter for films and television. An amateur boxer in ...

. Setton then set up his own company, Marksman Films, whose first film was ''Twist of Fate'' (1954). In 1956 it was announced Setton would run the production company of

Donna Reed Donna Reed (born Donna Belle Mullenger; January 27, 1921 – January 14, 1986) was an American actress. Her career spanned more than 40 years, with performances in more than 40 films. She is well known for her portrayal of Mary Hatch Bailey in ...

and Tony Owen, Todon, to make six films, starting with ''The Nylon Web'' by Westerby. It ended up becoming ''

Town on Trial ''Town on Trial'' is a 1957 British mystery film directed by John Guillermin and starring John Mills, Charles Coburn, Barbara Bates and Derek Farr. A whole town comes under suspicion when two grisly murders are carried out—particularly membe ...

''. However no films resulted. Neither did a proposed biopic of Joseph Conrad. He made a number of films for Mike Frankovitch's company, Frankovitch Productions, who released through

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...

. He worked with Ken Hughes and

John Guillermin John Guillermin (11 November 192527 September 2015) was a French-British film director, writer and producer who was most active in big-budget, action-adventure films throughout his lengthy career. His more well-known films include ''I Was Monty ...

a number of times. He helped establish Bryanston Films. In 1964 he was appointed head of European production for Columbia. The following year he became a vice-president of Columbia as well. In 1969 he resigned and announced he was returning to film production with three properties for Columbia: '' Caravan to Vaccarès'' by

Alistair MacLean Alistair Stuart MacLean ( gd, Alasdair MacGill-Eain; 21 April 1922 – 2 February 1987) was a 20th-century Scottish novelist who wrote popular thrillers and adventure stories. Many of his novels have been adapted to film, most notably '' The ...

, ''Those Who Walk Away'' by

Patricia Highsmith Patricia Highsmith (January 19, 1921 – February 4, 1995) was an American novelist and short story writer widely known for her psychological thrillers, including her series of five novels featuring the character Tom Ripley. She wrote 22 novel ...

and ''Rosy is My Relative'' by

Gerald Durrell Gerald Malcolm Durrell, (7 January 1925 – 30 January 1995) was a British naturalist, writer, zookeeper, conservationist, and television presenter. He founded the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust and the Jersey Zoo on the Channel Island o ...

. In January 1970 he became Paramount's vice president in charge of foreign production.By A.H. WEILER. (1970, Jan 02)
"'69 a bad year for good films, Catholic movie office finds"
''New York Times''

Selected filmography

*'' The Spider and the Fly'' (1949) - with Aubrey Baring, for Mayflower *''

Cairo Road Cairo Road is the main thoroughfare of Lusaka, Zambia and the principal business, retail and service centre of the city. It is a section of the T2 road and was so named because it is a link in Cecil Rhodes' then dream of a Cape to Cairo Road ...

'' (1950) - with Aubrey Baring, for Mayflower *'' The Adventurers'' (1951) aka ''Fortune in Diamonds'', ''The Great Adventure'' - with Aubrey Baring, for Mayflower *''

So Little Time ''So Little Time'' is an American sitcom starring Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen in their third television series. It aired on Fox Family: the first half of the series aired from June 2 to August 15, 2001, and the series then went on a four-month ...

'' (1952) - with Aubrey Baring, for Mayflower *'' Raiders in the Sky'' aka ''Appointment in London'' (1953) - with Aubrey Baring, for Mayflower *''The Golden Mask'' aka '' South of Algiers'' (1953) - with Aubrey Baring, for Mayflower *''

They Who Dare ''They Who Dare'' is a 1954 British Second World War war film directed by Lewis Milestone and starring Dirk Bogarde, Denholm Elliott and Akim Tamiroff. The story is based on Operation Anglo that took place during World War II in the Dodecanese ...

'' (1954) - with Aubrey Baring, for Mayflower *'' Twist of Fate'' (1954) aka ''Beautiful Stranger'' - for Marksman *''

Footsteps in the Fog ''Footsteps in the Fog'' is a 1955 British Technicolor film noir crime film starring Stewart Granger and Jean Simmons, with a screenplay co-written by Lenore Coffee and Dorothy Davenport, and released by Columbia Pictures. The film is bas ...

'' (1955) - for Frankovitch Productions and Columbia Pictures *'' Keep It Clean'' (1956) -for Marksman *''

Thunderstorm A thunderstorm, also known as an electrical storm or a lightning storm, is a storm characterized by the presence of lightning and its acoustic effect on the Earth's atmosphere, known as thunder. Relatively weak thunderstorms are some ...

'' (1956) - for Frankovich Productions *''

The Man Who Never Was ''The Man Who Never Was'' is a 1956 British espionage thriller film produced by André Hakim and directed by Ronald Neame. It stars Clifton Webb and Gloria Grahame and features Robert Flemyng, Josephine Griffin and Stephen Boyd. It is base ...

'' (1956) - for 20th Century Fox *''

Wicked as They Come ''Wicked as They Come'' (''Portrait in Smoke'' in the United States) is a 1956 British film noir directed by Ken Hughes and starring Arlene Dahl, Philip Carey and Herbert Marshall. Plot Poor girl from the slums Katherine Allenbourg trades on ...

'' (1956) - for Frankovitch Productions *''

'' (1957) - for Marksman *'' The Long Haul'' (1957) - for Marksman *''

Web of Evidence ''Beyond This Place'' (released in the United States as ''Web of Evidence'') is a 1959 British crime mystery film based on the 1950 novel of the same title by A. J. Cronin. It was directed by Jack Cardiff and stars Van Johnson and Vera Miles. ...

'' (1958) aka ''Beyond this Place'' *'' I Was Monty's Double'' (1958) aka ''Hell, Heaven or Hoboken''

References

External links

*
Maxwell Setton
at the

BFI The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery (United Kingdom), National Lot ...

Maxwell Setton interview
at

British Entertainment History Project The British Entertainment History Project (BEHP) records and preserves interviews with the men and women who have worked in British film, television, radio and theatre industries over the last 100 years "to ensure that their lives and experiences ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Setton, Maxwell English film producers 1909 births Year of death missing