Lance Nielsen

Lance Nielsen is an outspoken and controversial English screenwriter and playwright whose work focuses predominantly on topics set in social and political arenas. He frequently explores themes of grief, loss, love and friendship. Nielsen admits his work has been heavily influenced by the passing of three friends of his who died under the age of 21 and his cousin Mickel Nielsen who died of aids in 1991 on Nielsen’s birthday at the age of 26. He has also directed much of his own work.

Biography

Neilsen was brought up near Kingston Upon Thames in South London, though he is half South African and half Danish. Nielsen’s interest in the media began with acting in school and college theatre productions. Though choosing at first to stay on in the sixth form, he walked out after a confrontation with a teacher who thought he was absent from school when in fact he had been on a school hiking activity in Sheffield. During the summer break of Art College, Nielsen worked in the USA teaching disadvantaged children drama and video. While attending Epsom School of Art and Design in Surrey he also worked almost full time at his local cinema as his true love was watching movies; but ultimately he wanted to be making films and not watching them. He would get his chance when he won an industrial tribunal against his former employers Virgin Retail for having been wrongly dismissed for gross misconduct when he reported someone from Sony Music for bad practice that unknown to Nielsen was in a relationship with someone high up in Virgin management. Nielsen had moved to live in Nottingham when he won the case and received substantial compensation from the company.

Early Work

Nielsen’s early work began in Nottingham where he and fellow film director Shane Meadows began directing their low budget film projects in almost the same week. Nielsen was an early supporter of Meadow’s short film festival events in 1996 that were held in the city even though the two at first did not get along. Nielsen's first film, "Death Comes From The Touch Of The Funnyman" was loosely based upon the death of his friend James Ollet, who died of an asthma attack on the 6th of June days before Nielsen and Ollet were due to take an exam together. Filming took place over 18 months and used all the real locations where events had actually occurred. He also directed a number of shorts and workshops while in Nottingham with Best Shot Films and assisted with casting and directing a number of other shorts.http://www.doollee.com/PlaywrightsN/NielsenLance.htm

Move back to London and Los Angeles

Nielsen moved back to North London in September 1997 and his work began to focus on theatre. He quickly became the writer in residence at the North London Arts Venue, the Jackson’s Lane Theatre, writing and directing two plays a year for the next six years under The Gutted Film and Theatre Company. These included several award winning productions which included "11 Years Down the River – The Marchioness Inquiry" , "Those Who Trespass Against Us – The Victoria Climbie Inquiry" http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2002/may/15/1 , and "Sticks and Stones", which was a drama set against the conflict of Northern Ireland. The comedy short play "Making Time" went on to win a Peter Brook award and was praised by the Evening Standard 'Evening Standard Patrick Marmion, February 15th 2002.' Much of this work was rumoured to have been influenced by the death of Rebecca Holland, the leading actress from his first film. He also shot a second feature film 30 but was not happy with the result and after limited screenings he withdrew it from release. During this time Nielsen also ghost wrote for a number of biographies and did re-writes on a number of other scripts for films and episodes of television. Nielsen spent a considerable amount of time living and working in Los Angeles. In a number of interviews he has expressed his dislike for the city, stating that visits there are "...a necessary evil that I really could do without but that’s where the work is and where some of my friends are now based."Fact|date=September 2008

Illness

In an interview given to the Irish Post, Nielsen announced he intended to take a break from heavy drama, he wrote some comedies and then he turned his hand to musicals writing and directing "The East End Of Chicago", a musical comedy drama set in 1920’s. The music for the show was written by Richard Erickson. During the production Nielsen was experiencing severe headaches and was also under going chemotherapy for skin cancer on his back which would bleed frequently during rehearsals. Shortly after the production Nielsen collapsed with a stroke and fit which hospitalised him for three months. He discovered he had a blood clot in his brain which had nearly killed him; if his partner had not insisted on calling an ambulance he was told he would have been dead. His doctor told him to avoid stress and he did not direct again for two years.

Recent work

In the last couple of years the focus of his work seems to have been on writing, both his own work and freelance for other people. He did direct two plays with Tom Hardy’s Shotgun Theatre Company in 2006 and early 2007 respectively. Currently Nielsen is working on "Pressure", the documentary drama about the life of Colin Stagg. This is loosely based on a script he wrote six years earlier for the theatre, which even back then advanced the proposition that Stagg was entirely innocent of the offences he was still thought by many to be guilty of. This script is being produced by British actor Jason Flemyng. Nielsen is also involved in another production with actors Dan Styles and Gideon Turner called "Jericho's Walls Are Falling". It is understood he intends to produce Sticks and Stones again, his play about Northern Ireland, also with Gideon Turner. Nielsen has also written scripts for Gene Hackman and Judi Dench both of whom he often quotes as his two most favourite actors.

Dedications

Nielsen is known for dedicating his work to friends or actors whom he admires. Many of his dedications have been for people who have passed on. Two of his plays have been dedicated to Rebecca Holland. His play Making Time was deadicated to the actress Charlotte Coleman, star of the movie 'Four Weddings and a Funeral'. He dedicated "The Marchioness Inquiry" to the late Michael Williams, along with his acting career Williams is known for being the husband of Dame Judi Dench. Nielsen also wrote a script for Dench as a Christmas present and it is copyrighted to her alone. His latest film "Jericho's Walls Are Falling" is dedicated to Sarah. She is rumoured to have been a young girl who died of HIV, upon who a character in the film is based. The Colin Stagg script is dedicated to Jason Flemyng.