Alice Troughton: Last News

Manori Ravindran International EditorBleecker Street has bought a new thriller starring Julie Delpy, Richard E. Grant and Daryl McCormack.“The Tutor” marks the feature directorial debut of Alice Troughton, who’s known for directing TV shows such as “Baghdad Central,” “A Discovery of Witches” and “The Midwich Cuckoos.”Written by Alex MacKeith, “The Tutor” follows an aspiring young author, hungry for recognition and success, who takes a tutoring position at a legendary writer’s estate.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent With only one year under her belt as Studiocanal‘s executive managing director of TV series, M-K Kennedy is leveling up the scripted ambitions of the French pay TV group’s production arm. After spearheading Studiocanal’s first in-house international series, “Paris Has Fallen” — which broke rating records on Canal+ and topped the charts on Amazon U.K.

After world premiering to critical acclaim at the 2023 Tribeca Film Festival, LD Entertainment’s sci-fi thriller I.S.S. starring West Side Story Oscar winner Ariana DeBose has been picked up for U.S. release by Bleecker Street. The film directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite (Blackfish, Our Friend) from Nick Shafir’s script will hit theaters nationwide at a date that has not been disclosed.

A sci-fi comedy by Mel Eslyn and a literary noir by Alice Troughton – who are, respectively, the longtime producer for the Duplass brothers, and an award-winning UK television director (Dr. Who, Cucumber, The Living And The Dead) — debut in limited release this weekend, alongside Adele Lim’s Joy Ride, a Lionsgate wide-release – marking first-time feature film debuts by three women.

Guy Lodge Film Critic Films about fictitious great writers often stumble when it comes to the character’s actual writing: Viewers must suspend disbelief that a lofty literary reputation has been built on the purplest of screenwriter-devised prose. A blackly comic melodrama in which writerly ego, ambition and insecurity do increasingly destructive battle, “The Lesson” gets around that trap by folding questions of authorship into its arch country-house mystery: Who is writing what, and to what extent it matters, are the questions that keep director Alice Troughton and screenwriter Alex MacKeith’s mutual debut feature interesting, even as it slides into occasional, overheated cliché. When the film’s own words don’t quite pass muster, however, a tight, tony ensemble of actors gives them some polish and punch. A big, ripe turn by Richard E. Grant — as a celebrated British novelist looking to emerge from a gloomy hiatus with one more masterwork — represents the chief selling point of this low-key Tribeca premiere, though as his wary potential protégé, it’s Irish up-and-comer Daryl McCormack (fresh off his BAFTA nomination for “Good Luck to You, Leo Grande”) who carries the bulk of the film in quieter, wilier style. With a chablis-dry Julie Delpy playing intermediary in their passive-aggressive duel, this U.K.-German co-production is the kind of accessibly upscale fare more frequently served to its target audience in another European language; Bleecker Street will release it Stateside.

Though it doesn’t exactly have the same warm, melancholic charm, Alice Troughton’s elegant literary thriller The Lesson could give star Richard E. Grant the kind of late-career bump that last year’s Living afforded Bill Nighy. An Oscar nom might be a little fanciful at this stage, but a Bafta shot is a no-brainer, with Grant on top form as a mercurial, narcissistic British author. Co-star Julie Delpy might also find new offers coming in, showing a stiletto-sharp new side to herself as his enigmatic wife.

London and Paris-based Films Constellation head Fabien Westerhoff officially announced the launch of its in-house production arm Constellation Productions exactly a year ago, during the 2022 edition of Cannes.

Manori Ravindran International Editor Bleecker Street has signed an exclusive output deal with Canadian distributor LevelFilm. The partnership will see LevelFilm handle the Canadian distribution to Bleecker Street’s films where they control the North American or worldwide rights. The first movie that will be released under the new joint venture is Catherine Hardwicke’s action comedy “Mafia Mamma,” which stars Toni Collette and Monica Belucci. The film is set for a nationwide release in 2023. Bleecker Street’s Kent Sanderson negotiated the output agreement with Avy Eschenasy, while John Bain and Dave Hudakoc negotiated on behalf of LevelFilm.

Bleecker Street has snapped up U.S. rights to Alice Troughton’s feature directorial debut The Tutor, which will star Oscar nominees Richard E. Grant and Julie Delpy and Daryl McCormack. Bleecker Street is planning a 2023 release in cinemas.