Production Blog Archive

Webby nomination for HJP, prestigious award for Dame Helen Mirren, Golden Globe for Sherlock Holmes, family man Clive Owen talks to HJP plus the Bafta and Oscar buzz ...

Helen James Productions' new website has been nominated for a prestigious Webby Award - the 'Internet's highest honor', according to the New York Times. A 650 judging academy, whose members include David Bowie, Harvey Weinstein, Richard Branson and Matt Groening, will be looking at HJP's website, designed by asteriks. The 14th annual Webby Awards will be held on Monday 14 June 2010 in New York. The awards are presented by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences and honour excellence on the internet.

We covered the prestigious Women in Film and TV awards in December, interviewing Dame Helen Mirren and a host of stars. HJP created features for the WFTV website and the awards' sponsors, which include Pinewood Studios. The interviews were also broadcast on ITV Meridian and ITV Anglia news programmes, helping to publicise the great work the WFTV does for its 10,000 strong membership, highlighting the importance of women in the media industry.

HJP also attended the World Premiere of Sherlock Holmes in London's Leicester Square for ITV news. We interviewed Hollywood heart-throb Robert Downey Jr about his Golden Globe winning performance in the movie, which was filmed throughout Britain. Jude Law also expressed delight at the fact this film could boost tourism, especially in Kent. Rachel McAdams, Mark Strong and Director Guy Ritchie also talked about how they made the movie. Chatham Historic Dockyard proved a versatile location for the film. Production designer Sarah Greenwood explained how it was transformed into a Victorian London Dockyard, prison yard, pub and boxing ring.

Clive Owen has also spoken to Helen James Productions' Mary Green about the making of his new film, The Boys Are Back - a true story about a father single-handedly bringing up two boys following the tragic death of his wife. The movie was shot in South Australia and the tourist commission hopes it will encourage more people to visit their country. Helen James Productions promoted the film on ITV Meridian and ITV Central. You can watch out web video here

Law and Order:UK is now back on ITV1 for a second season. Helen James Productions interviewed the drama's stars, including Bradley Walsh (Coronation Street), Jamie Bamber (Battlestar Galactica) and Freema Agyeman (Dr Who, Little Dorrit). Law and Order: UK DVD (season 1) is now available to buy. Helen James Productions also produced the bonus features for season 2 and the double box set for Kudos and NBC Universal.

We continue to work on the DVD bonus features and EPK for the BBC3 drama Lip Service and we will be creating more special features for BBC1's New Tricks which has begun filming a seventh series, starring Dennis Waterman, Alun Armstrong, James Bolam and Amanda Redman.

Why not follow us on Twitter to find out more about  the company’s video production activities as well as the latest news on the Baftas and Oscars?

New website, New Tricks, new sexy BBC drama and a new venture for a Strictly star

I hope you enjoy looking around our website and watching all the videos showcasing our work. It’s very satisfying to see it all come together and I would love to get your feedback. 

Strictly Come Dancing judge, Craig Revel Horwood spoke to Helen James Productions about his new show, The Hot Mikado, and you can see the web videos we created to promote its national tour on our theatre page.

We’ve been filming in Glasgow on the set of the BBC’s sexy new drama, Lip Service. Look out of our DVD bonus features once the series airs in the spring.

The second series of Law and Order:UK is to be shown on ITV1 in January 2010, so soon you will be able to buy the DVD and see our behind the scenes features and interviews with the stars, which we created for NBC Universal and Kudos.

The BBC and Wall to Wall will also be releasing the sixth series of New Tricks on to DVD and this time our bonus material focuses on sound production – how the actors re-voice some parts, and how Foley artists skillfully and precisely re-enact key sound moments for the actors using particular props so the viewers hear, for example, every footstep or action - however small.   We also met the father and son team who compose the music for New Tricks, namely Brian Bennett (drummer from The Shadows) and his son Warren.

Finally, congratulations to Sir Michael Caine who is the recipient of the Variety Award at this year’s British Independent Film Awards. With a distinguished career spanning five decades, Sir Michael Caine is one of the most celebrated actors to focus the international spotlight on the British Film Industry. I’ve been lucky enough to meet him twice, and you can watch my interview with Sir Michael on the celebrity interviews section of this website.

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