Home for Christmas Film

So, as you may know I am a massive fan of Cally Taylor's books, and was really excited to here that 'Home For Christmas' was being made into a movie. The book is really excellent, humorous and romantic, I think everyone can relate to Beth really easily.

I hope to catch the showing in Bath on the 11th of December, but there are screenings all around the UK - Check out the website for booking here. Make sure to pre-book though, as they will only be screened it there is enough interest.

Cally talks about the background behind the film below

As you may know the film has been developed by a small independent film company based in Brighton called JumpStart Productions. One of the owners of JumpStart, Nathalie Grace Miles, read the book when it came out in 2011 and fell in love with it. Home for Christmas is set in the fictional Picture Box cinema in Brighton and it's based on the Picture House cinema The Duke of York's, which is where Nathalie happened to work. I've always dreamed of seeing one of my books as a film (most authors do!) and I figured that, even if I just got to see it on DVD it would still be an amazing experience. You hear so often of authors selling the film rights to their books and nothing happening so I never dreamed the film would actually get made - but it has!

The film stars April Pearson (from Skins and the slasher film Tormented) as Beth Prince and Karl Davies (from Emmerdale, Kingdom, Happy Valley) as Matt Jones, Lucy Griffiths (True Blood) and Derren Nesbitt (Where Eagles Dare).

The film was financed by JumpStart putting on an auction night, through crowdsourcing website indiegogo and via private funding. 

 

The film went into production in April and May this year on location in Brighton and Swansea. I was lucky enough to go and watch a day's filming at the Duke of York's cinema (you can read about my experience here: Writing about writing...and other random waffle.: Home for Christmas the film: aka watching a figment of your imagination become real)

Now it's been made JumpStart, in connection with Picture House and Our Screen, are putting on screenings at various Picture House cinemas across the UK (Full list here - Screenings - and more are being added) Unlike regular cinema screenings this is an 'on demand' way of getting independently made films out there i.e. they'll only be screened if there's enough interest and pre-bookings. And the pre-bookings need to be made by the end of November. 

Also if you want to read the book here is the synopsis and cover :)

Beth Prince has always loved fairytales and now, aged twenty-four, she feels like she's finally on the verge of her own happily ever after. She lives by the seaside, works in the Picturebox - a charming but rundown independent cinema - and has a boyfriend who's so debonair and charming she can't believe her luck! There's just one problem - none of her boyfriends have ever told her they love her and it doesn't look like Aiden's going to say it any time soon. Desperate to hear I love you' for the first time Beth takes matters into her own hands - and instantly wishes she hadn't. Just when it seems like her luck can't get any worse, bad news arrives in the devilishly handsome shape of Matt Jones. Matt is the regional director of a multiplex cinema and he's determined to get his hands on the Picturebox by Christmas. Can Beth keep her job, her man and her home or is her romantic-comedy life about to turn into a disaster movie?