Sales Pack V4

Directed by Steve M Kelly Written by Si Fantauzzo Produced by William Borthwick & Dean Fisher

WHO WE ARE 1 COMPANY DIRECTORS 1 PRODUCERS 1 PRODUCTION COMPANIES 1 BOARD OF ADVISORS 1 DIRECTOR 1 WRITER 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2 CITY RATS 2 CAST 3 TAMER HASSAN – JIM 3 RAY PANTHAKI – DEAN 3 DANNY DYER - PETE 4 KENNY DOUGHTY – OLLY 4 SUSAN LYNCH – GINA 5 MYANNA BURRING - SAMMY 5 JAMES LANCE - CHRIS 5 NATASHA WILLIAMS - CAROL 6 OTHER NOTABLE CAST 6 SYNOPSIS 7 CITY RATS 7 COMPANY HISTORIES 8 FACE FILMS LTD 8 SCANNER-RHODES PRODUCTIONS LTD 9 CREW 10 PRODUCER: WILLIAM BORTHWICK 10 PRODUCER: DEAN FISHER 10 DIRECTOR: STEVE M KELLY 11 WRITER: SI FANTAUZZO 11 DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: ADAM LEVINS 12 SOUND, MUSIC & POST SOUND SUPERVISOR: MARK MACLAINE 12 EDITOR & POST PRODUCTION SUPERVISOR: BEN KING 13 CASTING DIRECTOR: KATE PLANTIN 13 OVERVIEW 14 GENRE 14 TARGET AUDIENCE 14 COMPARISON FILMS 14 DIRECTOR’S VISION 15 STEVE KELLY (APRIL 2007) 15 OFFICE 18 CITY RATS LTD 18 CONTACTS 18

COMPANY DIRECTORS BOARD OF ADVISORS Faceﬁlms. William Borthwick Script Adviser Julie Rutterford

Adam Levins Casting Director Kate Plantin

Ben King

Mark Maclaine

Scanner-Rhodes Dean Fisher

PRODUCERS DIRECTOR William Borthwick Steve M Kelly

+44 (0)7939842963 [email protected]

Dean Fisher WRITER Si Fantauzzo +44 (0)7973 320 235

PRODUCTION COMPANIES Facefilms Ltd. Scanner-Rhodes Productions Ltd. 19 Ewellhurst Road 6 Reydon Ave Ilford Wanstead Essex IG5 0PE London Tel: +44 (0)20 8924 7219 Email: [email protected] E11 2JD Web: www.scanner-rhodes.co.uk Tel: + 44 (0)7939842963 Registration Number: 4910996 Email: will@facefilms.com Urban Way Productions Ltd. Web. www.facefilms.com 46a Marlborough Road Registration Number: 5415084 London N22 8NN Registration Number: 5987798

CITY RATS City Rats is a witty and provocative black comedy full of outrageous social comment. It carefully addresses contemporary issues such as sexuality, disability, ethnicity, love, life and death.

City Rats blend of stories and characters gives it a highly marketable demographic. The London theme is in fact very rare among most London productions, which opt for the unrealistic RomCom fairy tale look. Based in the gritty melting-pot of London’s East End and the vibrant central Soho gay scene, we follow the exploits of a handful of everyday people in the capital city of the world.

The rich and original material has had seasoned directors literally competing to direct it. With the incorporation of a talented and reputable casting director, City Rats is tipped to draw a cast of the highest calibre from both sides of the Atlantic.

TAMER HASSAN – JIM Tamer has come along way from his roots in South London turning in notable performances in TV and Film. Playing the lead role in Sex Actually with Rik Mayal, Tamar followed this with a leading role in The Ferryman starring alongside Jonathon Rhys Davis and Kerri Fox.

He has appeared in Nick Love's ﬁlm The Business and The football Factory; Unleashed co-starring with Bob Hoskins, Jet Li and Morgan Freeman; the blockbuster Batman Begins; and Matthew Vaughn's box ofﬁce hit Layer Cake along side Daniel Craig.

He co-starred with Orlando Bloom in the British cult ﬁlm The Calcium Kid playing a psychotic boxer; and working with Ken Stott, Jack Dee and Nick Moran in Spivs playing one of the leads Mr Viias.

TV credits include Eastenders, Casualty, The Bill, Judge John Deed and Granada's huge TV drama, Kill City. He recently completed ﬁlming on David Cronenberg’s Eastern Promises playing the role of Chechen alongside Viggo Mortensen and Naomi Watts.

RAY PANTHAKI – DEAN Best known for his role as Ronny Ferreira in Eastenders Ray made a move into film with performances in the hit British films 28 Days Later, Ali G Indahouse, Tube Tales, Bollywood Queen, Provoked and the 2005 cult office hit Kidulthood.

For his role as a homeless heroin addict in the controversial movie The Feral Generation he lived on the streets of London with director Andrew Jones.

At the prestigious TMA Theatre Awards he was nominated for Best Supporting Actor in a Play for his role in Gladiator Games and has recently set up his own London- based production company Urban Way.

City Rats Ltd. 212 Piccadilly, London W1J 9HG T +44 (0) 208 709 8724 M +44 (0) 77 37 64 39 18 E: [email protected] Registration Number 630706 Face Films Ltd. 6 Reydon Ave, Wanstead, London E11 2JD T +44 (0)7939842963 E will@faceﬁlms.com W www.faceﬁlms.com Registration Number 6306992 Scanner-Rhodes Productions Ltd. 19 Ewellhurst Road, Ilford, Essex, IG5 0PE T +44 (0)20 8924 7219 E [email protected] W www.scanner-rhodes.co.uk Registration Number 4910996 DANNY DYER - PETE Danny was born in Canning Town, East London on 24th July 1977. At the age of 14 he won the role of Martin Fletcher in the acclaimed Granada Television series Prime Suspect working along side Helen Mirren. Following this Danny starred in Cadfael, A Touch of Frost and Loved Up and turned in two notable performances as Alec in Central Television's Thief Takers, and as Gary Fox in Carlton's award winning series Soldier Soldier.

Dyer’s first major film appearance came when he landed the role of Moff in British cult classic Human Traffic and he has since starred in all four films by the British Director Nick Love: Goodbye Charlie Bright, The Football Factory, The Business and Outlaw.

As one of the most recognised London actors Danny is also a seasoned theatre actor, treading the boards in both London and New York in a number of high-proﬁle productions, including Harold Pinter's No Man's Land and Peter Gill's Certain Young Men.

KENNY DOUGHTY – OLLY Although Kenny has been a professional actor for over 15 years, his reputation and ability continues to rocket internationally. Kenny has recently played leading roles along side Stephen Graham in Adrian Vitoria's outlaws, Michael Graham's Irreversi and The Empresses new clothes all due to be released in 2008. Kenny is also the new face of Shameless in the next series.

After graduating from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in 1997, Kenny appeared in Michael Winterbottom's I Want You and in Julie Taymor's epic production of Titus, starring alongside Anthony Hopkins, Jessica Lange and Alan Cumming.

In 2001 Kenny starred as Jed Willis in the romantic comedy Crush alongside Andie MacDowell and Imelda Staunton and met and married his wife, Caroline Carver after starring in My ﬁrst Wedding together. Television appearances include the role of Young Scrooge in A Christmas Carol, the drama Anorak of Fire and as Joe Orton in the acclaimed comedy-drama Kenneth Williams: Fantabulosa starring alongside Michael Sheen.

He has also starred in many other leading roles as 'Hans Vassman' in The Aryan Couple, Pitt in The Great Raid and Sir Thomas Eliot in the oscar winning Elizabeth.

City Rats Ltd. 212 Piccadilly, London W1J 9HG T +44 (0) 208 709 8724 M +44 (0) 77 37 64 39 18 E: [email protected] Registration Number 630706 Face Films Ltd. 6 Reydon Ave, Wanstead, London E11 2JD T +44 (0)7939842963 E will@facefilms.com W www.facefilms.com Registration Number 6306992 Scanner-Rhodes Productions Ltd. 19 Ewellhurst Road, Ilford, Essex, IG5 0PE T +44 (0)20 8924 7219 E [email protected] W www.scanner-rhodes.co.uk Registration Number 4910996 SUSAN LYNCH – GINA The youngest of five children, Susan showed early promise as an actress after winning the Kenneth Branagh Renaissance Award for most Promising Student at the Central School of Speech and Drama. After starring in TV’s Cracker and winning acclaim for her role in The Secret of Roan Inish, Susan went onto star in the widely lauded Waking Ned and appeared alongside Rachel Weisz in Beautiful Creatures.

She also played the role of Rachel alongside Daniel Craig, Samantha Morton and Rhys Ifans in the adaptation of Ian McEwan’s novel Enduring Love. In 2000 she won an Irish Film and Television award as best actress for her starring role as James Joyce’s wife in Nora.

MYANNA BURRING - SAMMY Myanna was born and raised in Sweden but moved to Britain at an early age. She graduated from LAMDA in 2004 and was published in the Guardians top 10 graduates of the year. Since then she has had a steadily climbing career both in ﬁlm and television.

Myanna landed her ﬁrst lead feature role in Neil Marshals ‘The Descent’. Since then she has played the lead in the horror ‘Credo’ and more recently the second female lead, alongside Rona Mitra, Malcolm McDowell and Bob Hoskins in Universal studios ‘Doomsday’.

JAMES LANCE - CHRIS After years on the scene james in known a respected figure on the British Television circuit. James has also appeared in several feature films including Sophia Cappola’s ‘Marie Antoinette’. He is currently on our screens in ITV’s Moving Wallpaper, as a writer to the infamous soap “ECO Beach”. Known for his appearances in a string of British comedy series. Other roles include dealer Sticky in the drug-related series Top Buzzer, Matt in two series of Teachers, Ben in the first series of I'm Alan Partridge, Jamie in Absolute Power and various roles in the sketch show Smack the Pony. He also played Richard, Daisy's boyfriend, in Spaced. Lance has also had roles in the British films Late Night Shopping and The Search

For John Gissing the recent mini-series The Impressionists (as Bazille) and the sitcoms The Book Group, Sensitive Skin and Rescue Me. Smaller roles have included appearances in 2 point 4 Children, People Like Us, Saxondale and Absolutely Fabulous. Recently seen playing the character of Mr. Hugo in the pilot episode of Biffovision, as well as featuring alongside Mark Heap and Tim Key in another Paul Rose -penned pilot, "Now The Weather"

City Rats Ltd. 212 Piccadilly, London W1J 9HG T +44 (0) 208 709 8724 M +44 (0) 77 37 64 39 18 E: [email protected] Registration Number 630706 Face Films Ltd. 6 Reydon Ave, Wanstead, London E11 2JD T +44 (0)7939842963 E will@faceﬁlms.com W www.faceﬁlms.com Registration Number 6306992 Scanner-Rhodes Productions Ltd. 19 Ewellhurst Road, Ilford, Essex, IG5 0PE T +44 (0)20 8924 7219 E [email protected] W www.scanner-rhodes.co.uk Registration Number 4910996 NATASHA WILLIAMS - CAROL Natasha might be best known for her role as PC Delia French in the long running UK ITV series “The Bill” and more recently in the new Doctor Who series playing the role of a Pharmacist in the Episode “Gridlock”. Her credits include parts in “Doctors”, “Holby City”, “Eastenders”, “The Last Detective”, “Nighty Night”, “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat”, “Rose & Maloney”, “Grease Monkeys” and “Silent City”.

OTHER NOTABLE CAST

JAKE CANUSO JAMES DOHERTY KATHERINE DE KANDOLE VYELLE CROOM KEIR MILLS

MARCO TREVOR CHLOE DARYLL KYLE

CITY RATS A ﬁlm about how life isn't like it is in the movies.

Eight haunted people meet and fall apart - looking for redemption in each other.

Jim is throwing watermelons off his ofﬁce roof. He's testing the effect for a possible suicide. But then there is Sammy on an adjacent roof about to jump herself. They meet, delay their departure and set off searching for other ways out than down.

Sammy's ex-boyfriend, Dean, is struggling with his creativity. His paintings are getting panned and his poetry ripped apart. He needs a muse - and who better than Gina, the experimental prostitute with dodgy legs who lives next door. However, Dean soon ﬁnds out that Gina never does anything for free.

After a short ﬂing with Dean, Olly is lost in a world of sexual confusion when forced to look after his deaf-mute brother Chris for the day. Olly discovers that not only does Chris has gay feelings too, but is more comfortable with them than he is. They embark on a searing quest through Soho's gay community to help Chris loose his virginity.

But no-one has more to hide than oldest brother Pete. He's being stalked by Carol, a timid old lady looking for her son - a guy Pete knew from his violent drug days. Fearfully Pete opens his frozen heart to Carol and they begin a treacherous journey to the woods to ﬁnd her lost son.

By the end, each lost soul ﬁnds a solution in darkness or in light. Connections are made or missed and longed-for families brought together for a moment of hope.

FACE FILMS LTD Face Films was founded in 2005 to put a face to an increasing number of films being produced at the time. The company aims to create high quality feature films with a familiar crew - who have to-date worked on nearly forty productions together ranging from drama, commercials and pop promos to film festivals and live music events. Our company ethos is to "change the face of British cinema", by producing marketable and successful films on a global scale that are not financially dependent on major Hollywood organisation for distribution and exhibition. To achieve this we will employ new digital technologies, and support and collaboration with already established UK organisations with whom we have strong connections - like the New Producers Alliance and British Film Council.

In 2005, Faceﬁlms successfully won the contract to support and development NAHEMI (National Association of Higher Education in the Moving Image) patroned by Sir David Puttnam. We are now in our fourth year of development which involves web development, enrollment of new and continuing members and an annual 3 day exhibition at the National Film Theatre. See www.nahemi.org

Over the past few years Faceﬁlms has produced a steady ﬂow of music videos due to contracts with Halo records and Universal Productions UK - promoting artists such as Jynxt (MTV's "Keep it in the Family") which reached no.2 in the MSN video chart and Second Person (MTV2, Cobra Beer advert and recent winner of Sellaband.com). We have also produced test commercials for Oxy hygiene products.

Their award winning short films include "Initiation" (2003) which won the BBC Bristol Student film competition as well as best script, best directing and second place at The Filton International film festival. In 2006, "The Passenger" staring David Tysall and Robert Goodman (Gangs of New York, Joan of Arc the Messenger) was nominated for Time Out magazine's "London Film of the Year." It has also recently reached the final in Kevin Spacey’s Triggerstreet.com online film festival, won the Bournemouth Landcrab Film Festival in best drama and screened in over 10 international film festivals, including London's "Raindance East." It has also been a featured piece in the prestigious Showreel magazine.

Faceﬁlms is based in London and also has an HD Online/ofﬂine studio in Bristol. They also offer HD camera hire as well as a seasoned and capable crew.

Scenes from "The Passenger" staring David Tysal and Robert Goodman.

City Rats Ltd. 212 Piccadilly, London W1J 9HG T +44 (0) 208 709 8724 M +44 (0) 77 37 64 39 18 E: [email protected] Registration Number 630706 Face Films Ltd. 6 Reydon Ave, Wanstead, London E11 2JD T +44 (0)7939842963 E will@facefilms.com W www.facefilms.com Registration Number 6306992 8 Scanner-Rhodes Productions Ltd. 19 Ewellhurst Road, Ilford, Essex, IG5 0PE T +44 (0)20 8924 7219 E [email protected] W www.scanner-rhodes.co.uk Registration Number 4910996 SCANNER-RHODES PRODUCTIONS LTD Established in 1999 by Dean Fisher to develop and produce feature films for theatrical release and broadcast distribution. Since then Scanner-Rhodes has produced a successful low budget feature film and marketed two successful award winning short films and earned a reputation for being creative, fresh and resourceful in bringing groundbreaking film projects into the mainstream.

We have maintained this balance through having close collaborative relationships with leading suppliers and actors and award-winning crews. Scanner-Rhodes is committed to making excellent films for cinema, television broadcast and DVD release whilst identifying and developing new and rising talent. The company's first film, Superstitious Minds starring Lucy Russell (The Following; Batman Returns) was released in the UK by Channel 17 in June 2000. It was sold to Virgin Airlines for their transatlantic flights and continued to show in different arenas, helping to mould the image of Scanner-Rhodes. Since then, the company has made steady progress in establishing a reputation for producing high-quality, marketable films.

Our final short film production, Ten Minutes, launched the company into the international arena. The film successfully applied all the ingredients and demands of a feature film to a short film structure and was successfully marketed using feature film marketing and promotion techniques. Shot on 35mm, the film stars Nick Moran (Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels), Craig Charles (Red Dwarf), Terri Dwyer and Paul Danan (both Hollyoaks). The film was first screened at Bafta and then went on to its international premiere at Cannes. Ten Minutes eventually appeared in 21 international film festivals, picking up awards at Westfest in Texas for best original screenplay and best original music score. Festival highlights included competition selection at Ourense, Soho Rushes, Raindance, Sarasota, Commonwealth, Med Film and the Canaries.

Following the success of Ten Minutes, Scanner-Rhodes produced a DVD, The Short Filmmakers' Guide that is currently used in ﬁlm schools across the UK, France and America. Ten Minutes and the accompanying documentary Making A Short on a Shoestring were both broadcast together in March 2006 on new free- to-air Sky channel Propeller.

In January 2006 Scanner-Rhodes Productions embarked on their first feature film entitled Night Junkies. Night Junkies is a dark sexy, urban Vampire thriller with an injection of Tarantino cool and ballistic action. Shot on HD on a micro budget of £50,000 (the equivalent to one shot in a Harry Potter film) the film was shot at 3 Mills Studios and on location around the once frequented Jack The Ripper Alleyway's. After receiving numerous offers, in November 2006, Night Junkies was signed up by International sales agents Renegade Pictures and US domestic rep, Strategic Film Partners. The film was recently launched at the Berlin Film Festival where it has secured distribution to some major international territories and is also in negotiations with a major US distributor.

With one sale to the US, Night Junkies has already broken even. Night Junkies was released in US in the Summer of 2007 by Allumination.

CREW

PRODUCER: WILLIAM BORTHWICK William has an MA in Film Production and has been producing in film and television for the past five years. His experience covers documentary, film, animation and sitcom for a variety of companies including the BBC, Tiger Aspect, Eyeworks and Talkback Thames. City Rats is his feature debut as a producer.

PRODUCER: DEAN FISHER Dean is founder of Scanner-Rhodes productions and co-founder of the highly acclaimed Highgate International Film Festival. Working as a freelance producer/writer for the past six years he has produced a number of shorts, a full-length documentary and an award-winning short ﬁlm Ten Minutes, screened at 21 international festivals.

In July 2006 Dean produced his ﬁrst feature Night Junkies which was released in the US, Summer 2007 by Allumination. City Rats is Dean’s second feature, with three more slated for 2008

DIRECTOR: STEVE M KELLY Steve is considered one of the UK’s leading Drama Directors working on prime-time television ﬁlms, documentaries and commercials for some of Britain’s top-rated companies. Recent work includes three 90min feature length Judge John Deeds, the acclaimed BBC One Afternoon Film series Pieces of Silver Lining and Singing Cactus.

In 2004 Steve won best episode at the Soap Awards for Say a Little Prayer a feature length Doctors and was nominated for Best Stunt and Best Director. Nominations in 2005 include a RTS Best Drama and a Distinction of Excellence for a series of Beer commercials at the Marketing Society Awards. Steve has a proven track record delivering the highest quality British television drama and has been nominated for awards in each genre. He has been waiting for a truly dynamic and powerful script to make his cinematic debut - City Rats is that compelling venture.

WRITER: SI FANTAUZZO Si’s experience in the ﬁlm industry has taken him through many production roles, including Avid editing, camera operation and script editing and his dedication to ﬁlm has earned him a BA Hons in Media Production and an MA in Audio and Visual Media Production.

Si is a lecturer in Media studies and his short films have won multiple awards in some of the UK’s most respected film festivals. While early work has focused on controversial subjects (including necrophilia), later works reflect strong characterization in London-centric plots with a unique style that can twist a series of sub- plots into some of the most intriguing convolutions of story-line known to modern screenwriting. Si is currently working on his first television series, Positive, as well as various other scripts and projects, whilst working as a director for as Sky TV channel.

DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: ADAM LEVINS After training at the European Film College in Denmark and gaining a Masters qualiﬁcation at Guildhall University in London, Adam has been busy working for a slew of clients including Sketchers, MTV and Pioneer to name a few. He has been selected for several cinematography awards including the Kodak Award for various shorts shot on 35mm and 16mm.

With a strong working knowledge of the technical yet still grounded in the creative and artistic side he is able to see the bigger picture and steer projects towards their full potential.

SOUND, MUSIC & POST SOUND SUPERVISOR: MARK MACLAINE Mark has worked in many London recording studios alongside bands and producers and was a co-founder of the inﬂuential and critically acclaimed Dented Records.

As an assistant producer for Garret Lee (U2, Snow Patrol, Kasabian etc) Mark is also an experienced ADR and Voice-Over recordist supervising recordings with actors Charles Dance and Dennis Lawson and has mixed many ﬁlms and their scores.

Credits include music and recording for the BBC, Channel 4, Snowsport Synergy Films, Xtreme Sports Channel, Ripcurl, Sketchers and Oakley.

Marks’ band Second Person have enjoyed great success becoming the ﬁrst band to reach their budget in sellaband.com and have enjoyed huge MTV2 exposure.

EDITOR & POST PRODUCTION SUPERVISOR: BEN KING Ben has spent the past 13 years as an ofﬂine and online editor for TV and Film (Lightworks, Avid, Media 100 & Final Cut Pro) utilising his graphics and animation skills to do Digital FX, grading and compositing.

He has worked on over 4000 projects directing, editing and/or digital FX compositing and graphics and his vast knowledge of graphics has enabled him to produce media across the entire spectrum from print to web to DVD, standard deﬁnition and HiDef.

Most recently he has been working as senior editor on several BBC series such as Grime Scene Investigation (RDF for BBC3), When Love Comes to Town (BBC Bristol for BBC1), Help me Anthea I’m Infested! (RDF for BBC3) and Oz & James’ Big Wine Adventure (RDF for BBC).

He is also working in collaboration with music bands such as Second Person, editing music videos and designing and producing animations.

Ben is also a Moderator and Guru on one of the largest Final Cut Pro user groups: the Los Angeles Final Cut Pro User Group or LAFCPUG: www.lafcpug.org

CASTING DIRECTOR: KATE PLANTIN Kate has been casting for the last seventeen years having previously worked in publishing and then for the BBC. Kate has cast top names such as Thora Birch, Neve Campbell, Jonathan Lynn, Brian Blessed, Gabriel Byrne and Billy Boyd. This year alone Kate has cast Christopher Lee and Richard Attenborough.

OVERVIEW

GENRE Black Comedy / Drama

TARGET AUDIENCE Males, female and couples of ages 19-60

COMPARISON FILMS Magnolia, Scenes of a sexual nature, Closer, Winterland, Leaving Las Vegas, American Beauty, Shallow grave.

DIRECTOR’S VISION

STEVE KELLY (APRIL 2007) 'Go! Fucking go!' Were the words screamed into the cold dawn air as an SO 19 firearms squad crashed through a front door in a Brixton street. They were looking for a cop killer - this was personal and I was in the eye of a storm as a young director armed only with a video camera. They thundered through the house in a gun flash. Officers pinned the residents to the ground as the area was sealed. This was real, 100% real. I vowed to myself that moment to make films that were so real, so powerful and compelling that audiences could feel, smell and taste the stories." I read City Rats and I knew I had to make this modern classic. And I would make it intensely funny, beautiful and bitingly real.

I've always wanted to explore a story that on one level is beautifully simple and on another unmasks a Pandora's box of human emotions. City Rats combines the poignancy of American Beauty 1999 the complexities of Magnolia 1999 and the quirky humour of Little Miss Sunshine 2006. It's a funny, fresh and original film about the psychological complexities of human relationships. It explores the unique dilemmas of 8 Londoners under the cloying atmosphere of the hottest and longest day of the year with explosive consequences. This intense butterfly effect rips across the characters unleashing their hopes, fears and nightmares spiraling into a mesmerizing finale in the dawning of a new day.

This is a Black Comedy cut from the ﬁnest traditions of the genre Dr. Strangelove 1964, Pulp Fiction 1994 or Death Becomes Her 1992. It crackles with darkness, beauty and humour in equal measure.

From the ﬁrst frame of the ﬁlm the mundane boring stream of commuters is broken by the comical appearance of one worker. Jim's holding a 8lb ripe water melon and is on a mission. His mission is suicide! Artist and Poet Dean has a creative block. Which is so bad he can't even wank. He's a screwed up bisexual unable to reach a self styled orgasm and yet still winds up playing a cowboy in another man's sexual fantasy.

The script's spell is cast yet further with gritty, real life characters tortured in their own private inferno. Carol fell pregnant to a brain dead coma victim, "...He was so beautiful. He had to live on in some way...two days later I had to switch off the machine...I hardly knew him." And there is so much beauty.

At 18, Chris is a comic book reading autistic mute. He's a shy, quiet and loving boy who craves to loses his virginity to another man. His is an enchanting story of self-discovery in a silent world. Si's brilliant screenplay lifts the lid on the gamut of the human condition. The simplicity of its emotional construction and story lines so perfectly captures real-life

people in everyday struggles. It stays true to the best black comedies forcing us to laugh, cry and revel in the beauty of the human soul.

I've always admired certain British ﬁlms for their mix of rawness and integrity of performances Winterland 1999. But so often the cinematic story telling is purely functional. They can often lack visual depth, thematic styles and feel hollow and cheap. City rats will be a startling blend of performances with the shooting ﬂair of Requiem for a dream 2000 the pace of Trainspotting 1996 and the ominous mood of 21 Grams 2003.

It has long been my contention that over rehearsed performances are often dull and manufactured. I want the four stories shot as four separate ﬁlms each one taking just six days to complete. We will shoot each story in order so the crew, actors and story reach their climax with a powerful heighten energy. In City Rats I am determined it should be spontaneous and dangerous to perform. I will rehearse the actors separately so they know their lines and who they are. But it must be the camera that captures that unique moment of truth - the life- blood for these powerfully dramatic themes.

In City Rats the visual interpretation will never supplant the uncluttered narrative but will enhance the journey with depth, breadth and beauty. The camera moves will be slick, stylish and classic following the pitches and rolls of our characters private journeys.

Although each story will have a subtle visual style and personality of Sin City 2005 the ﬁlm will obey a central cinematic vision. All stories will use hand held techniques to lay a subconscious message that these events are happening in real time. It will intensify the humour and drama giving the ﬁlm a genuine honesty.

The movie starts in London with wide-angle lenses capturing the sweeping vistas and views of the capital. This is where our characters live, dream and die. But as the tempo of the ﬁlm progresses rapidly through the long day into the night, the lenses tighten inexorably, scene by scene.

The weather grows more oppressive, their emotional states more fractured and brittle. The frame hunts them down. Panavision anamorphic long lenses drive us into a shallow depth of ﬁeld the background melts away, moving us deeper into their souls.

When night finally falls the stifling mood intensifies, the humidity and heat soar. Dialogue shots now search much closer on to the eye-line. The camera now shoots over-shoulder the frames start to add a sense of pressure and constriction 2046-2006 and In The Mood For Love 2000. The plot lines cross and accelerate until the moment where each story stands within a heart beat of climax.

Blinding arcs of light burst across as the dawning of a new day bathes the film in floods of cathartic light. Time suspends each character's moves are now captured in slow motion. This is the moment of truth. Light flares into the following shots as we slowly track-in... Jim stands on the edge of a skyscraper starring into oblivion... Olly jumps out of his car sobbing...Dean reaches deep into his underpants... Pete checks his gun, his figure silhouetted from the rising sun as he walks toward his destiny.

But the moment Pete pulls his gun. The movie clicks into overdrive. The shots now have an angled shutter effect. This subconsciously places the audience into a heighten state of clarity and awareness. The images are as crisp as the characters state of mind. The colours grow more vivid in the golden glare of ﬁrst light. The sharpness nearly burns the eye. Marco squints as he opens the door, blinded by the low sun. From the second Pete pulls the trigger City Rats accelerates compulsively reaching a breathless chilling climax.

In films it's always been vital to me that characters belong somewhere. It defines them, shapes and moulds them. London is a truly international city and yet is rarely if ever seen as the central heart beat of any film. It's either a perfect haven of middle class angst Notting Hill 1999 or the home of gangland terror Lock Stock 1998. This film celebrates London. I'm a Londoner born and bred and I love it. And I want to infuse every frame of City Rats with its' onerous grime, noise, life, death, hate, love, revenge, vibrancy, violence, sex, perversity and danger!

Dog Day Afternoon 1975 and Insomnia 2001 brilliantly deployed the weather and light as if they were outside characters infusing every scene with oppression and antagonism. In City Rats the film simmers and boils in the intense repressive heat wave of the longest day of the year. Harsh light and intense shadow accentuate the crucible atmosphere of the four stories supplying a common visual theme throughout the film. This is an integral and recurring mantra that design, lighting, wardrobe and Make up will use to create an evocative atmosphere. The stench of sweat drips from the characters. Boring into their souls. Flies buzz, traffic moans, fans splutter. There is no escape. This is London oppressive hot and cloyingly intense, as seen in no other film.

The ﬁlms grade will change gradually moving with the heat and character narratives. Exteriors will have the yellow glare of Trafﬁc 2000 where the interiors contrast with steely blue The Machinist 2004. Sharp light cuts from the window yielding silhouettes and evocative rim lighting Man on Fire 2004. City Rats stands as a thrilling and heart rending Black Comedy that is as emotionally rewarding as it is visually exciting. All set on one day, a day on which anything can happen and a night that will change their lives forever.

Office

CITY RATS LTD 212 Piccadilly London W1J 9HG United Kingdom

Tel: +44 (0) 208 709 8724

Production Mobile: +44 (0) 77 37 64 39 18

Email: [email protected]

CONTACTS William Borthwick - Producer

Dean Fisher - Producer

Chris (James Lance) playing with the pigeons (picture top)

Pete (Danny Dyer) squaring up to Marco (Jake Canuso) (picture bottom) in “City Rats”