Sky announces start of production in Wales for Save The Cinema, a Sky Original

In cinemas and on Sky Cinema in 2021.

Based on a true story.

Starring Samantha Morton, Tom Felton and Jonathan Pryce

Sky today announced the start of production in Wales for new Sky Original film Save The Cinema, which will be available in cinemas and on Sky Cinema towards the end of 2021. The film is co-produced by Sky and FAE Film & Television.

Save The Cinema, a Sky Original features an all-star British cast including Samantha Morton (Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them), Tom Felton (Harry Potter), Jonathan Pryce (The Two Popes), Adeel Akhtar (Enola Holmes), Erin Richards (Gotham), Owain Yeoman (Emergence), Susan Wokoma (Enola Holmes), Colm Meaney (Gangs Of London), Rhod Gilbert (Have I Got News For You) and Keith Allen (Kingsman: The Golden Circle). This feel-good story is based on the efforts of one woman bringing together a community to save the local cinema.

Set in the 90’s, Save The Cinema is inspired by the life of Liz Evans, (Samantha Morton), a hairdresser and linchpin to the local community in the small town of Carmarthen in Wales. Her mission is to stop The Lyric Theatre being demolished by bulldozers and turned into a shopping centre. With the threat of demolition becoming ever more likely, Liz and friends barricade themselves in the cinema and with the help of postman turned local councillor Richard (Tom Felton), they come up with a grand plan.

To revitalise the cinema and stop the council taking the heart of the community away, a desperate Liz persuades Richard to write to Hollywood to ask for a helping hand. A phone call later and an influential filmmaker agrees to offer a very special treat for Carmarthen, but does this help save the future of The Lyric?

Sarah Wright, Director of Sky Cinema and Acquisitions at Sky UK & Ireland comments: “I’m thrilled to start production on Save The Cinema. Filmed in Wales and featuring the best of British talent, at its core is an incredible true story – one woman’s seemingly impossible dream to galvanise her community to stand up for local arts and all it represents. I cannot wait to bring this Sky Original film to Sky Cinema in 2021.”

Save The Cinema, a Sky Original is directed by Sara Sugarman (Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen), written by Piers Ashworth (Fisherman’s Friends) from a story by Lorraine King, produced by Matt Williams, Piers Tempest and Karl Hall at FAE Film & Television and executive produced by Julia Stuart at Sky.  Sky is majority funding the film in association with Head Gear Films, LipSync and Ffilm Cymru.

Sky Cinema is the home of Sky Original films, with brand new films launching every month alongside an unrivalled range of the latest cinema releases and on demand library.

For further information please contact: Mark Pitchford / mark.pitchford@sky.uk.

About Sky

Sky is Europe’s leading media and entertainment company and is proud to be part of the Comcast group. Across six countries, we connect our 24 million customers to the best entertainment, sports, news, arts and to our own award-winning original content.

Our technology, including the market leading Sky Q, connects people to everything they love - TV, music, games, online video, fitness and educational content, all in one place, easy. Our streaming service, NOW TV, brings viewers all the enjoyment of Sky with the flexibility of a contract-free service.

Building on the success of Sky Originals like Chernobyl, I Hate Suzie and Brassic, we are doubling our investment in original content by 2024 through Sky Studios. Sky News provides impartial and trustworthy journalism for free, while Sky Arts, the UK’s only dedicated free-to-air arts channel, makes the arts accessible for everyone. Our new TV and movie studio, Sky Studios Elstree, is expected to create over 2,000 new jobs and generate an additional £3 billion of production investment in the UK over the first five years alone.

We believe that we can be a force for good in the communities in which we operate. We’re committed to being Europe’s first net zero carbon entertainment company by 2030. We take pride in our approach to diversity and inclusion: we’ve been recognised by The Times and Stonewall for our commitment to diversity and we’ve put in place a new programme to invest £30million across our markets over the next three years to tackle racial injustice.

About FAE Film & Television Limited

London based FAE Film & Television is the newest name in British film making; a multi-faceted, forward thinking entertainment company centred around the ever-changing face of youth culture, music and British Culture.

Operating in all areas of entertainment, Production, International Sales, talent management, branding, creative rights ownership and management, FAE has offices in LA and London and is in the forefront of innovating, development and production of idea to screen.

FAE Film & Television has recently completed production on Sky Original, TWIST featuring Sir Michael Caine, Lena Headey and Rita Ora, and have a further three films in Pre Production for 2021 release.

About Ffilm Cymru Wales

Ffilm Cymru Wales is the development agency for Welsh film. We are dedicated to advancing and sustaining a strong film industry for Wales; one that we can all be proud to call our own. We do this by providing funding and training to emerging and established Welsh filmmakers, offering exciting cinematic experiences to audiences across Wales, engaging people of all ages and abilities in creative learning, and developing new skills and career paths through a range of training programmes.

For more information please see www.ffilmcymruwales.com