BTP CV - Bungalow Town

Bungalow Town Productions make highly individual documentaries for world-wide audiences.
The company was established in 2004 by producer Rachel Wexler and director/producer Jez Lewis.
Rachel Wexler, Producer
Rachel has over twenty-five years’ experience in
film and television, principally documentary. As a
graduate with a degree in media, she began
working with independent post-production
companies in London before working in production
for several years at the BBC. She has gained a very
strong track record in making highly individual
feature documentaries for worldwide audiences.
Rachel has produced or co-produced films for
international theatrical and DVD distribution and broadcasters including BBC, Channel
4, ITVS (US), Sundance Channel (US), PBS (US), YLE (Finland), TV2 (Denmark), SBS
(Australia), and NHK (Japan). Her films have been broadcast in territories worldwide
and they have also exhibited at innumerable film festivals across the globe and won
dozens of awards including an Emmy and two Peabody Awards. Rachel also provides
training as part of Future Producer School, which she devised.
EMMY AWARD WINNER
Jez Lewis, Producer/Director
Jez began working with a variety of independent
production companies in 2001, principally in
research and development of new films. Always
interested in social issues, he began working with
Nick Broomfield in May 2004. For the next two
years Jez worked very closely with Nick and was
Associate Producer on His Big White Self, a feature
documentary about South African neo-Nazi
Eugene Terre'blanche. With Nick, Jez co-wrote and produced his feature drama
Ghosts, about immigrant workers and modern-day slavery. In 2009 Jez completed his
debut feature documentary, Shed Your Tears And Walk Away, about the extraordinary
human dramas which abound in the small rural town of his childhood. This film has
been nationally distributed in independent cinemas, exhibited in several film festivals
including London Film Festival 2009, and won Best UK First Feature at London’s East
End Film Festival 2010, and award intended for fiction. Since then Jez has continued to
direct, acted as story consultant, and is executive producer on several feature
documentaries. Jez also provides training as part of Future Producer School.
Contact:
Bungalow Town Productions Ltd
Southmore Cottage
Long Green
Wortham
Suffolk
IP22 1PU
+44 (0) 1379 898 797
[email protected]
www.bungalow-town.com
In Development:
Generation Food
Director: Steve James (Hoop Dreams, The
Interruptors)
Writer: Raj Patel (The Value of Nothing, Stuffed And
Starved)
Producers: Cynthia Kane, Julie Goldman, Rachel
Wexler
How will the world feed itself in the twenty first
century? By breaking the twentieth century’s rules!
Generation Food tells four interconnecting stories
from India, Malawi, the US and Peru to show with
humour, compassion and ingenuity, how radically
new kinds of food systems are being created in the
most unexpected places.
In Production:
Produced by Intrepid Cinema with Bungalow Town as Exec Producers
The Islands and the Whales
Director: Mike Day
Producer: Mike Day
Executive Producers: Rachel Wexler, Jez Lewis
The pilot whale hunters of the Nordic Faroe Islands
believe that hunting is vital to their way of life. But
when a local doctor makes a grim discovery about the
effects of marine pollution, environmental changes
threaten to end the controversial tradition and
change the community forever.
Star Men - currently in cinemas
Directed and Produced by Alison Rose, Executive Producer Jez Lewis
2015; 90 minutes and 1 hour versions.
Festivals
Sheffiield DocFest
CPH:DOX
Cambridge Film Festival
RIDM - Montreal International
Documentary Festival
Press
Synopsis
Four exceptional astronomers celebrate 50 years of work and friendship on
a return road trip in the southwestern United States, recapturing youthful
adventures and recounting each other's influences on the most exciting
period in astronomy’s history.
Leaders in their field, they helped build the world’s biggest observatories
and made revolutionary discoveries about the evolving universe, discoveries that have the power to change the way humanity sees itself.
Now in old age and facing death, they reunite to attempt an arduous hike
that nearly defeated them in their youth. Their journey through memory
and the breath-taking landscape provokes them to reflect on how their profound work on the universe has reflected back on the individual, affecting
their sense of faith, how life may have purpose, and what is knowable and
unknowable.
The Guardian,
Peter Bradshaw
“There is enormous charm
and food for thought in Alison
Rose’s documentary”.
Empire
“Charming, a real life Big
Bang Theory reunion”.
The Times,
Kevin Maher
“Deceptively moving… a profound tale of friendship”.
Total Film,
Kate Stables
“An engrossing look at hardy
friendships and Big Science… a quiet delight”.
Brakeless
Directed By Kyoko Miyake, Produced by Rachel Wexler
2014; 78 minutes and 1 hour versions.
Festivals and Awards
Sheffiield DocFest
Erasmus Doc Film Fest
Winner - Peabody Award
2014
Winner - Sakata Journalism
Prize 2014
Synopsis
In April 2005, a commuter train crashed into an apartment building in Japan
and killed 107 people when a driver tried to catch up with an 80-second delay. Piecing together personal accounts of those affected by the train crash,
Brakeless looks at a society which does not seem to know when to stop its
pursuit of efficiency. It examines the way in which the characteristics that
are usually considered the national virtues - punctuality and loyalty to protocol - have become societal impediments and ultimately, dangers to the
people of Japan.
Funded by: BBC Four
Press
Peabody Awards jury
“A cautionary tale that vividly
evokes a deadly, 2005 commuter-train crash in Japan as
a metaphor to explore modern society’s relentless pursuit of speed and efficiency,
it’s beautifully made and
scored like a real-life thriller”.
The Guardian, John Crace
“A beautifully made piece of
television, combining forensic
analysis with intensely moving personal testimonies.”
Living With Poverty: Country Kids
Directed By Jez Lewis, Produced by Rachel Wexler
2013; 29 minutes.
Synopsis
Holt, a beautiful market town in north rural England is known as prosperous
and well heeled, yet it is a hotspot of child poverty.
Local charity leader, Julie Alford, works tirelessly with local children and
their families. Through this charity, Holt Youth Project, we come to know
three families with young children, struggling to balance meagre budgets
while coping with disability and severe illness among the parents.
Funded by: BBC / Open University
The Road - A Story of Life and Death
Directed By Marc Isaacs, Produced by Rachel Wexler, Co-produced by Aisling Ahmed
2012; 75 minutes.
Festivals & Awards
London Film Festival
(Premiere)
Krakow Film Festival
Dublin International FF
Glasgow Film Festival
Winner - Signs Award, Festival Signes de Nuit
Winner Grand Prix, One
World Human Rights Festival,
Kyrgyzstan
Nominated Prix Europa 2013
Press
Synopsis
On the oldest Roman road in the capital, Filmmaker Marc Isaacs weaves together numerous poignant stories of loss and the search for belonging into
a tapestry of the human experience. Keelta a young Irish woman leaves
home to build a new life for herself on the road where Billy, the old Irish
labourer is struggling to find a meaning to his life. Peggy, a 95 year old Jewish refugee from Vienna and Brigitte, a German born former air hostess,
have both suffered bad husbands, whilst Iqbal, an unassuming Indian hotel
concierge, awaits the arrival of his wife from Kashmir. A film that forces you
to recognise the struggles and preoccupations of its characters as our own.
Funded by: BBC Storyville / Irish Film Board
Screen International
“Should perhaps be required
viewing for all those tempted
to come and seek their
fortune in the UK’s capital
city”.
The Times, Wendy Ide
“A compassionate and
profoundly moving film ”.
The Guardian, Mike
McCahill
“ An unexpected treasure…
Isaacs may be British
cinema’s pre-eminent people
person… subtly pointed,
humorous and, above all,
humane”.
Financial Times, Nigel
Andrews
“The Road: A Story of Life
and Death is an unexpected
treasure”.
Outside the Court
Directed By Marc Isaacs, Produced by Rachel Wexler
2011; 1 hour.
Festivals
Sheffiield DocFest
Krakow FF
See Film Festival (UK)
Open City FF (UK)
Press
Synopsis
They arrive, they smoke, they wait: armed robbers seeking redemption;
life-long thieves; addicts; witnesses and anxious relatives. Hard exteriors
hide soft centres, old lives exist in young bodies - ordinary people awaiting
judgement on an unlovely stretch of pavement outside a London
magistrates’ court.
Whilst waiting for their cases to be heard they reveal their lives, the
complexities of the human soul are laid bare. Tense and intimate
conversations with the filmmakers illuminate stories that the magistrates
hear daily. Consequently, the more we get to know the characters in this
film, the harder it is to make easy judgements.
Funded by: BBC Four
The Sunday Times, AA Gill
“What emerges is a provoking, touching, funny, smart
and occasionally pitiful series
of vignettes that are presented with care, consideration
and dignity”.
The Guardian, Stuart Jeffries
“Outside the Court (BBC4)
could have been exploitative,
but was mostly tender,
occasionally beautiful and
had me crying for an hour”.
Time Out, Phil Harrison –
Pick of the Day
“It’s an unadorned and
minimalist affair….but trust
grows, the floodgates open
and eventually he elicits all
manner of illuminating testimony”.
Guilty Pleasures
Directed By Julie Moggan, Produced by Rachel Wexler
2010; 86 minutes and 1 hour versions.
Festivals & Awards
London BFI FF 2010, IDFA
2010, Full Frame—Opening
Film, ZagrebDox 2011
Krakow FF 2011, DocVille,
Sidewalk FF, Naples Int. FF
Winner - Special Jury Award,
Mendocino FF
Winner - Best Feature Doc
Award, Sidewalk FF
Nominated - Most
Entertaining Doc, Grierson
Awards 2011
Press
Synopsis
Every four seconds a Harlequin Mills & Boon romance novel is sold
somewhere in the world. In India, the books give Shumita hope that her
straying husband will return. In Japan, housewife Hiroko yearns to make
fantasy
reality with her handsome ballroom dancing teacher. And in Warrington,
mum-of-three Shirley rifles through the books for ideas on how to keep her
marriage spicy.
But it’s not only the female readers who dream of a perfect romance. New
York model Stephen has been on over 200 Mills & Boon covers, but can’t
find his true love. While romance novelist Gill Sanderson is in fact a
pensioner called Roger, writing from a caravan in the North of England.
Guilty Pleasures explores our universal struggle to reconcile inner fantasy
with the tragicomic truths of real-life relationships.
Five heroes, four continents, one dream of true love. Because real life
begins where Mills & Boon ends…
Funded by: More 4/True Stories, YLE, CBC, NRK, DRTV, VPRO, SBS, EU Media TV
Broadcasting Fund.
Time Out, Phil
Harrison. ‘Pick of the Day’
“Funny, grim and
unexpectedly revealing.”
Sunday Times, Critics
Choice & Pick of the Day,
Victoria Segal
“This lovely documentary
looks at the phenomenon
from both sides...Sharply
edited, without mocking its
subjects, this is a film that
acknowledges the power of
these grown-up fairy tales”.
Review: Michael Hayden,
Programmer, London BFI
Film Festival, 2010
“Julie Moggan's
documentary…..has blossomed into an affectionate,
witty,
perceptive celebration of all
the lovers in the world.”
Out of the Ashes
Directed By Tim Albone & Lucy Martens. Produced by Leslie Knott & Rachel Wexler
Executive Producer, Sam Mendes. 2010; 86 minutes and 1 hour versions.
Festivals & Awards
Edinburgh Int’l FF 2010
DocsDF, Mexico 2011
Festival Do Rio 2011
Pig Pond Adelaide FF
Int. FF of India 2010
Winner - Peace & Sport
Award 2010
Winner - Best TV Doc,
DocsDF 2011
Winner - Best Newcomer,
Grierson Awards 2011
Press
The Mirror, David Edwards
Synopsis
Against a backdrop of war and poverty, Out of the Ashes traces the
extraordinary journey of a team of young Afghan men as they chase a
seemingly impossible dream - shedding new light on a nation beyond
burqas, bombs, drugs and devastation.
This feature-length documentary follows the Afghan cricket team in their
quest against the odds to qualify for the World Cup. Backed by BBC
Storyville and executive produced by Oscar-winning director and cricket
enthusiast, Sam Mendes, ‘Out of the Ashes’ follows the squad over two
years as they go from playing in their shalwar-kameezes on rubble pitches
to batting their way around the globe and up the international league
tables. At a time when headlines from Afghanistan are dominated by news
of death and corruption, the film reveals a more human side to this
beleaguered country which has endured three decades of war and
occupation.
Funded by: BBC Storyville, Worldview Development Fund.
A Shabash/Bungalow Town Production
“…here's a documentary
that's amusing, affecting and
life-affirming in equal
measure.”
Empire, David Parkinson
“Strewn with amusing,
exciting and sometimes
shameful moments, this
inspiring documentary
chronicles the side’s
progress through the lower
ranks of the ICC system, with
highlights such as a victory
over Jersey contrasting with
Taj’s dismissal as coach.
This is a fitting and utterly
charming tribute to a dreamer
who refused to be tyrannised
into accepting defeat.”
My Perestroika
Directed By Robin Hessman. Produced by Robin Hessman & Rachel Wexler
2010; 88 minutes.
Festivals & Awards
Sundance FF 2010, Full Frame
FF 2010, Silverdocs 2010
Hotdocs 2010, Sheffield
DocFest 2010
Winner - Full Frame FF 2010
Winner - Special Jury Awards,
Silverdocs 2010
Winner - Peabody Award
2011
Press
Synopsis
My Perestroika follows five ordinary Russians living in extraordinary times—
from their sheltered Soviet childhood to the collapse of the Soviet Union
during their teenage years, to the constantly shifting political landscape of
post-Soviet Russia.
Together, these childhood classmates paint a complex picture of the
dreams and disillusionment of those raised behind the Iron Curtain.
Funded by: POV/PBS, YLE, Ford Foundation, Sundance Institute, & ITVS.
A Red Square/Bungalow Town Production.
New York Times, Stephen
Holden, Critics' Pick
“Enthralling….My Perestroika
gives you a privileged sense
of learning the history of a
place not from a book but
from the people who lived
it…Astoundingly timely.”
New York Magazine,
Bilge Ebiri
“ …playful, insightful,
hypnotic, and, ultimately,
superb.”
The Wall Street journal,
Dorothy Rabinowitz
“….a work of such
exhilarating depth and
humour.”
Shed Your Tears and Walk Away
Directed By Jez lewis, Produced by Rachel Wexler
2009; 89 minutes.
Festivals & Awards
London BFI FF 2009
Sheffield DocFest 2009
East End FF 2010
Belfast FF 2010
Winner - Best UK First
Feature, East End FF 2010
Nominated - Best Doc on a
Contemporary Theme,
Grierson Awards 2011.
Press
The Guardian, Peter
Bradshaw.
Synopsis
A real-life drama about why, in the beautiful and quirky rural town of
Hebden Bridge, filmmaker Jez Lewis' childhood friends are killing
themselves. Beginning with a personal quest for understanding, the film
moves into a year-long drama of human tragedy and redemption as
principal character Cass comes to terms with his own mortality and
attempts to lift himself out of his cycle of self-destruction. This core
narrative carves an upward arc through an intimate study of a place often
described as paradise, but which harbours an undertow of lethal hedonism
and disillusionment. As people continue to kill themselves during the
making of the film, a maelstrom of conflicting values throws up unexpected
truths about the human condition..
Funded by: Screen East/Bungalow Town
“A passionate and
sometimes despairing
documentary…The director‟s
real concern for Cass makes
the film a compelling,
heartfelt document”
Financial Times, Nigel
Andrews, 
“At the London Film Festival
this stunning British
documentary walked away
with everyone‟s tears…Will
Cass make it? We come to
love him, so we care…Lewis
shows no mercy, knows no
defeat. He gets the reward of
unpopularity…this is
sobering, determined,
harrowing filmmaking”
The Observer, Mark
Kermode
“Jez Lewis’ documentary is
something special.”
Men of the City
Directed By Marc Isaacs. Produced by Rachel Wexler
2009; 58 minutes.
Festivals
Sheffield DOcFest 2009
DocsDF
Krakow Film Festival
Tempo Film Festival
Supertar Film Festival
Press
The Times, David Chater
“No one has ever made a film
about the City that is so
singular, so evocative and so
human”
Synopsis
A Bangladeshi man dashes through the streets burdened by the crossed
shaped advertising signboard he is carrying on his back; a trader loses his
family as a result of his addiction to the financial markets; a chain smoking
insurance man tries desperately to escape the city’s daily grind; an
aggressive metals trader lives for killing animals at the weekend; a street
sweeper on a spiritual quest seeks a life in the wilderness. Marc Isaacs’s
latest feature length film shot during the current financial crisis explores the
human cost of life in the dog eat dog world of London’s Square Mile.
Funded by: BBC Storyville, EU Media Development Fund.
TimeOut, Phil Harrison
“We all knew that the city of
London was dysfunctional in
many, varied ways. But Marc
Isaac’s excellent film turns
the spotlight on four of its
reluctant prisoners with
touching, occasionally
revelatory results….Isaac’s
wry but compassionate eye
finds poetry in each of these
lives, challenging the vast
inequalities of aspiration and
opportunity he finds, but also
asking us to ponder who the
real winners and losers are.
A truly evocative slice of
London in all it’s tawdry yet
incorrigibly hopeful glory.
The English Surgeon
Directed & Produced by Geoffrey Smith. Co-produced by Rachel Wexler
2007; 94 minutes.
Festivals & Awards
London FF, Hotdocs, Silverdocs, Vision En Corto,
Zagreb Docs, Sheffield
Docfest, Munich DocFest,
Expression En Corto,
Melbourne FF, Dok Leipzig,
IDFA, Sydney FF
Winner - Best Int’l Feature
Doc, Hotdocs
Winner - Best Int’l Feature
Doc, Silverdocs,
Winner - Silver Baton,
DuPOnt Columbia Awards
Winner - Outstanding Science
& Technology, Emmy Award
Press
Synopsis
What is it like to have God-like surgical powers, yet to struggle against your
own humanity? What is it like to try and save a life, and yet to fail? Shot in a
Ukrainian hospital full of desperate patients and makeshift equipment, The
English Surgeon, is an intimate portrait of brain surgeon Henry Marsh as he
wrestles with the dilemmas of the doctor patient relationship. With an
original soundtrack by Nick Cave and Warren Ellis.
Funded by: BBC Storyville, Wellcome Trust, Worldview Development Fund, ITVS
International, YLE.
An Eyeline Films/Bungalow Town Production.
Time Out
"This is one extraordinary
documentary, approaching
hugely emotive subject
matter with nimble delicacy
and, it has to be said, steely
reserve when it comes to
filming a brain operation
performed under only local
anaesthetic. A life-affirming,
unforgettable portrait of a
true humanitarian, it's crying
out for a proper cinema
release"
The Guardian
"…a lovely film, the best
documentary for a long time"
Garbage Warrior
Directed By Oliver Hodge. Produced by Rachel Wexler
2007; 86 minutes.
Festivals & Awards
Vancouver Int. FF, Hotdocs,
Melbourne FF, Goteburg FF,
Edinburgh Int’l FF, RiverRun
IFF, Karlovy Vary FF, Bergen
FF, Brisbane IFF, Silverdocs FF,
Palm Springs….
Winner - Audience Award
Vancouver Film Festival
Finalist—Climate for Change
Award
Synopsis
What do beer cans, car tires and water bottles have in common? Not much
unless you're renegade architect Michael Reynolds, in which case they are
tools of choice for producing thermal mass and energy-independent
housing. Shot over three years in four countries, GARBAGE WARRIOR is a
timely portrait of a determined visionary, a hero of the 21st century.
Funded by: ITVS International, Sundance Channel.
Press
Time Out, London
“This film does offer a
fascinating glimpse of
alternative living styles and
point an accusing finger at
the inactivity of our sleeping
global masters.”
An Open Eye Media Production.
Empire Magazine
“telling the epic story of maverick US architect Michael
Reynolds…Documentarian
Oliver Hodge depicts his
subject as a true humanitarian.”
All White in Barking
Directed By Marc Isaacs, Produced by Rachel Wexler
2007; 72 minutes & 1 hour versions.
Festivals & Awards
IDFA, Sheffield DocFest,
ZagrebDox, DocPoint,
Belfast FF, One World
Human Rights FF, Sydney FF,
East End FF.
Winner - Audience Award,
Zagrebdox
Synopsis
Filmmaker, Marc Isaacs, examines with charm and humour
modern attitudes towards race in Barking, a white working class
town to the East of London. Through the lives of five key
characters from different ethnic
backgrounds, Isaacs, a
prominent but unseen presence, questions prejudices, and pries
at preconceptions with remarkable results.
Press
Funded by: BBC Storyville
The Times, David Chater
Variety
“Incisive, surprisingly upbeat.
Isaacs refrains from
demonizing anyone here,
and instead crafts a
communal portrait infused
with compassion.”
“...part of Isaacs huge talent
as a film-maker is to capture
the remarkable qualities of
ordinary people.”
Phillip & His Seven Wives
Directed By Marc Isaacs, Produced by Rachel Wexler
2006; 70 minutes.
Festivals & Awards
Synopsis
Several years ago, God told Rabbi Philip Sharp that he was to
become a Hebrew King, and like a good patriarch, take multiple wives. Now
he raises horses, runs four second-hand furniture shops in Brighton and
Hove and lives with seven women who, while not legally his spouses, believe their union is sanctioned by God.
Funded by: BBC Storyville, YLE, TV2
IDFA, Sheffield DocFest,
Krakow Jewish FF,
True/False FF
Winner- Bronze Award, Krakow Jewish FF`
Press
Financial Times, Karl
French – Critics Choice
A disturbing, intimate study of
low-key madness denial and
ritual humiliation.