Advance Party (film series)

Advance Party is the name given to a concept of three films which are all to follow a set of rules proposed by executive producers Lone Scherfig and Anders Thomas Jensen. The concept came out of discussion between Lars von Trier, Scherfig and Jensen [http://www.glasgowfilm.org.uk/redroad/characters.html] . Each film is to be made by different first-time directors and producers. The production companies Sigma Films (Glasgow) and Zentropa (Denmark) are behind the concept.

Scherfig and Jensen created a list of characters and gave them back stories, which the three directors could then write their story around.

Casting for all three films had to be done at the same time by the three different directors, due to the shared cast.

The rules

"The scripts can take their starting point in one or more characters or they may be subjected to an external drama. The characters can also participate in a form that is governed primarily by neither characters nor plot.

The films take place in Scotland but apart from that the writers are free to place them anywhere according to geography, social setting or ethnic background. Their back-stories can be expanded, family relations can be created between them, they can be given habits good or bad, and secondary characters can be added if it is proper for the individual film.

The interpersonal relationships of the characters differ from film to film and they may be weighted differently as major or minor characters.

The development of the characters in each story or genre does not affect the other scripts.

All of the characters must appear in all of the films.

The various parts will be cast with the same actors in the same parts in all of the films." [http://www.vervepics.com/docs/rrnotes.pdf]

Films

"Red Road" is the first film in the trilogy to be released, directed by Andrea Arnold. The other two films will be directed by Morag McKinnon (Glasgow) and Mikkel Nørgaard (Copenhagen). McKinnon‘s film is reportedly in "development limbo". [cite web|url=http://www.timeout.com/chicago/Details.do?page=1&xyurl=xyl://TOCWebArticles1/114/film/rules_of_the_road.xml|accessdate=2007-06-21|title=Rules of the "Road"|work=Time Out Chicago|date=2007-05-03|author=Ben Kenigsberg]

References

External links

* [http://www.glasgowfilm.org.uk/redroad/advance_party.html Glasgow Film Office]