Working Title

The Company

*Co-chair persons of WORKING TITLE are Tim Bevan & Eric Fellner
*Bevan founded Working Title in 1984
*BBC NEWS STORY QUOTES (2004) "They have been listed as the most powerful figures in the British Industry"

The Secret of Success

"The working title philosophy has always been to make films for an audience - by that i mean play in a multiplex. We totally believe in this because we know it is the only hope we have of sustaining the UK film industry" -Lucy Guard and Natasha Whaston*Not riche audience - selective

About Working Title

-Made more than 85 films that have grossed over $4 billion worldwide
-6 acadamy awards, 26 BAFTA awards, 4 oscars and prestigious prizes at the games and Berlin International.
-Impressive catalogue of films from a wide range of genres -Notting Hill, Bean, Billy Elliot, Bridget Jones, Nanny Mcphee
-UNDER ACHIEVERS -Wimbledon, ThunderBirds, Captain Corellism

-Blockbusters, Comedies, Punchy Period films, Political dramas, Literacy adaptions, quirky family fare.
-Work with FRESH TALENT such as:
  Directors Joe Wright (Pride & Prejudice), Stephen Daldry (Billy Elliot).

-In addition to which is has launched WORKING TITLE 2, a subsidiary for low budget films with an 'independant' films.

Why Link With Universal?

*Being bought by Polygram, which itself, was taken over by UNIVERSAL in 1999 - has been "Liberating" says Bevan."We were now part of a big structure, so we spent much less time on finding the money and much more on developing decent scripts."
*Universal pictures owns 67% stake in the company. Many of its recent films are co-productions with Studio Canal.
*The remaining shares are owned by the company's founders - BBC films and private investors.
*Universal's involvement will vary widely from project to project.
*BEVAN GIVES TWO CONTRASTING EXAMPLES :
  -Pride & Prejudice staring Keira Knightley with a budget over $20m.
  -The interpreter $80m

Other Info

*They are CLEVER and TACTICAL about film projects
*In 2004 you know that the film Bridget Jones 2 is going to do well, so you can take a bigger risk at the other end, which was Shaun Of The Dead. It turned out ok because ThunderBirds which was thought to do alright (but didn't work out) & the other two supported it.
Importance Of Release Dates

-Trailer matches target audience (adjusted to country)
-When will the film be released (e.g.Christmas or Valentines)
-Specific release dates to avoid competiting with big-budget, highly awaited movies in the theatres.