Northern Film & Media and NorthStar Equity Investors have announced that One Night in Turin indie New Black Films will be the first recipients of the North East Creative Content Fund.
New Black will receive £140k from the fund ahead of the release of the eagerly anticipated Italia ’90 football feature One Night in Turin. The team have also secured a further £118k of private investment.
Launched in February this year, the North East Creative Content Fund is a pioneering £2.4m partnership between screen agency Northern Film & Media and Newcastle based venture capital firm NorthStar Equity Investors Ltd. Managed by NorthStar, the fund fuses the skills of a professional venture capital team with the creative industries expertise of Northern Film & Media. This Fund will make 18 investments across film, TV, games, digital media and music over a 2 year period.
New Black Films, led by One Night in Turin director James Erskine, previously received £100k from Northern Film & Media’s Content Fund. Based on the book ‘All Played Out’ by Peter Davies, the film uses archive content with previously unseen behind-the-scenes footage and specially shot images to tell the story of a nation united by football. Received with critical acclaim from the national media, One Night in Turin is a landmark success for the North East. Erskine’s team used a number of iconic locations and crew from across the region. Post production was delivered by Newcastle-based multimedia outfit Mere Mortals.
Tom Harvey, Chief Executive Officer, Northern Film & Media:
‘One Night in Turin is the perfectly matched first investment for this innovative fund. Powerful, emotive and timed to perfection, it is a feature doc of the highest calibre. It is a quintessentially North East story of Gazza, Bobby Robson, Chris Waddle and Peter Beardsley at the extraordinary 1990 World Cup. The film is set to take cinemas by storm and will fulfil its immense commercial potential when released on DVD at the end of May. We are looking forward to partnering with NorthStar on more similarly exciting projects.’
Marion Bernard, Chief Executive Officer, North Star Ventures:
‘This Creative Content Fund was set up to help grow the North East creative sector by making viable commercial investments in a supportive and innovative way. One Night in Turin is a fitting inaugural investment for the Fund with strong management, a great production and strong North East credentials.’
James Erskine, Director, One Night in Turin:
‘One Night in Turin has struck a great resonance and emotive chord across the nation as England prepares for the World Cup. Continued investment from Northern Film & Media has ensured that we have been able to exceed our creative expectations. The £140k received from the North East Creative Content Fund will enable us to commercially take the project to the next level, roll it out around the world and represents an innovative commercial investment for Northern Film & Media and NorthStar into a film that tells a great story of North Eastern heroes on a national stage."
One Night in Turin premieres in aid of the Sir Bobby Robson Foundation in Newcastle on the 11th May. Featuring discussion with Erskine, Italia ’90 star Stuart Pearce and football pundit Jim Rosenthal, the premiere will be simulcast to digital cinemas across the country. The film will run at selected cinemas ahead of a DVD release on the 31st May.
