Dreamcatcher |
| Last Update: 03 March 2003 |
Sean has contributed a signed photo to
a dinner auction which will be held
at the Cedar Court Hotel, Huddersfield, on Wednesday, March 26,
2003.
The auction is to help raise funding for
a Yorkshire-based film production,
Dreamcatcher.
Source: KKP
Movies
HELP US MAKE THE NEXT “FULL MONTY”
Ken Kitson, who played the famous policeman
in “Last of the Summer Wine” for
23 years, has written Dreamcatcher, a romantic comedy western
- set in Yorkshire.
He needs £2m to make the film and is appealing for investors
to help finance it.
He is looking for people to invest a minimum
of £1,000, a contract will be signed
and witnessed. The Government allows full tax breaks on investments
in British
films. People are already supporting the venture and filming is
planned to start
in West Yorkshire in July, 2003.
People can also help by supporting a fantastic
dinner auction at the Cedar
Court Hotel, Huddersfield, on Wednesday, March 26, when unique
TV, film,
sport items and memorabilia will go under the hammer.
For more information, visit KKP Movies.
Source: This
is Bradford
20 February 2003
Actor plans to make movie on Ilkley Moor
ILKLEY Moor is about to become the dramatic
backdrop for Yorkshire's very own
spaghetti western.
Dream Catcher - possibly the first cowboy
movie to be set in the county - is the
brainchild of Last of the Summer Wine actor Ken Kitson, who plays
a policeman
in the hit television series.
The romantic comedy tells the story of
divorced and unemployed Will Case, a
Bradford man who lives in a Wild West fantasy world.
Fifty-six-year-old Ken, who has appeared
in a host of films and TV series,
including Brassed Off, Coronation Street and Heartbeat, first
came up with the
idea 20 years ago and actually wrote the script about 12 years
ago.
But his love for the genre goes further back than that.
"My dad used to take me to see westerns
when I was a kid and it has left its mark,"
he said. "There is a picture of me in a cowboy outfit when
I was aged about five
which my mum showed me. She said I played dead really well."
Now his dream is likely to become reality
with himself in the starring role,
supported by a host of well-known actors - including Jean Alexander,
who
played Hilda Ogden in Coronation Street, and George Baker, of
Inspector
Wexford fame.
But like all good dramas, his battle to
get his creation on to the big screen has
had its share of problems.
He may even have to change the name of
the film because of the recent
publication of a novel with the same title. And despite widespread
support
within the acting and musical fraternity, Ken has struggled to
find a big backer
and he still has to raise more than half of his initial £2
million budget.
But he has set a July start date for filming
and is now inviting members of the
public to invest in the project, which he insists will go ahead,
come what may.
He stressed: "I have been let down
by several millionaires but that has not
deterred me. If I can get 2,000 to invest £1,000 each that
is £2 million."
Once he has made the movie there will
be distributors, exhibitors and the
production company to pay, as well as investors and the brek even
point is
£7m. After that he begins to make a profit.
"I know £7 million is a lot
of money," he said. "But I am sure it can be done.
Billy Elliott made £20m in three weeks"
Fellow actors are doing their bit to help
him raise funds by contributing
memorabilia and signed photographs for a £45 a head dinner
auction to be
held at the Cedar Court Hotel at Huddersfield on Wednesday, March
26.
Tickets for the dinner, which features
items from stars including Sean Bean,
Michael York, Michael Palin, Sir Cliff Richard and Kenneth Branagh,
are available on
(01274) 468331.
Meanwhile, Ken has enlisted the help of
local western societies to get in some
much-needed gunslinging practice.
"So far all I have done is shot my foot and burnt my jeans," he joked.
But if his shooting skills need a little
polishing, his acting and scriptwriting skills
are winning support from local investors.
Peter Coleman, an independent consultant
in the energy industry, is the first
Ilkley business to back the film with an undisclosed sum.
He said: "I was really impressed
with the project and with him as a person - his
enthusiasm and his commitment.
"I think it is a genuinely good investment,
and it will be nice if Ilkley is used
as a backdrop."
The last major movie star to be filmed
on location on Ilkley Moor was Sean Bean,
who played the lead role in the television series of Sharpe. Otley
is regularly
used in Heartbeat, while Emmerdale is also filmed in the area.
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