Party Pieces
Not all friendships last forever...
PAUL ANDREWS Producer
A successful entrepreneur for twenty-five years, Paul’s expertise spans financial services, investment sales, arbitrage, property investment and network marketing.
In 2005 Paul established international television production and media sales company GlobalWatch, working with a host of multi-national companies at CEO level. He has interviewed and collaborated with senior Government Officials such as Russian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov, ex-Russian Finance Minister Mikhail Zadornov, President of Ethiopia Girma Wolde-Giorgis, ex-President of Nigeria Olusegun Obasanjo and the UK’s Minister for Trade and Industry Lord Green.
An ex-junior table tennis international player, Paul sponsored and co-promoted with close friend Matthew Syed (author of Bounce: How Champions are Made) three International table tennis events televised by the BBC including an Olympic special.
Paul’s management company represents several actors including Natascha Berg, an ex-Miss Germany who played Antonio Banderas’ wife in Steven Soderbergh’s HAYWIRE. He is currently producing an app with Olympic legend Daley Thompson.
In 2011 Paul produced a documentary called ‘Russia Calling’ which looked at the changes over the last twenty-five years from the old Soviet Union to the new Russia. He was also instrumental in assisting the Russian Stock Exchange on listing their clients’ stock prices on the financial news channel CNBC.
Paul established GlobalWatch Film Productions in 2013 to produce a slate of feature films, from lower budget comedies and psychological horror features to larger budget films aimed at the North American studio market.
Paul is assembling an experienced team of seasoned professionals to develop, produce and sell these films in order to achieve strong financial returns for investors.
JONATHAN GERSHFIELD Director
A post-graduate in film and television from Bristol University, Jonathan launched a career in commercials, making over 750 around the world and winning golds and silvers at Cannes, New York, Chicago, San Sebastian, Kinsale and D&AD.
Since moving into TV comedy, he has directed several high-profile series including ’Trollied’, ‘Hebburn’, ‘Dead Ringers’, ‘Wild West’ and ’Big Train’, as well as the popular children’s comedies ‘Sadie J’ and ’My Life as a Popat’, both of which were nominated for BAFTAs.
2008 saw the release of his feature film ‘Three and Out’ starring Colm Meaney, McKenzie Crook, Imelda Staunton and Gemma Arterton, which went on to win 15 international awards.
Jonathan co-wrote ’A Bunch of Amateurs’, selected for the Royal Film Performance in 2008 and starring Burt Reynolds (also featuring in ‘Party Pieces’), Sir Derek Jacobi, Samantha Bond and Imelda Staunton. He is currently developing two other screenplays ‘Infidelity’ and ‘Bernie’s Gift’.
Jonathan’s awards and nominations include:
THREE AND OUT (2008)
California Independent Film Festival – Won Best Comedy
Method Fest Independent Film Festival – Won Stella Artois Award for Best Foreign Film
Durango Film Festival – Won Audience Award for Best Feature Film
Durango Film Festival – Won Jury Award for Best Feature Film
Garden State Film Festival – Won International Feature Length Comedy
Tallahassee Film Festival – Won Best Narrative Feature
Honolulu International Festival – Won Special Mention for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures
Oxford International Film Festival – Nominated for Best Narrative Feature
Oxford International Film Festival – Won Best Screenplay
Method Fest Independent Film Festival – Won Colm Meaney: Stockholm Krystal Best Supporting Actor in a Feature Film
California Independent Film Festival – Won Best Actress for Imelda Staunton
Palm Springs International Film Festival – Official Selection
Southern Appalachian Int Film Festival – Won Best Comedy or Musical
Sao Paulo International Film Festival – Nominated for International Jury Award
Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival – Official Selection 2008
SADIE J (Series 1 – 2011)
2011 Nominated for BAFTA Award for Best Children’s Comedy
MY LIFE AS A POPAT (Series 2 – 2007)
2008 Won RTS Award for Best Children’s Drama2008 Won Broadcast Award for Best Children’s Programme
2007 Nominated for BAFTA Children’s Award for Best Drama
NEIL MONAGHAN Writer
A writer for film, theatre, television and radio, Neil trained with the BBC, working in post-production for the Film Department. He left to set up his own production company. He has written several award-winning shorts as well as undertaking multiple feature commissions. His first feature MADE IN ROMANIA, a comedy ‘mockumentary’ about independent filmmaking, starred Jason Flemyng, Jennifer Tilly and Elizabeth Hurley.
Neil’s theatre work includes four plays staged at the Stephen Joseph Theatre, Alan Ayckbourn’s famous theatre in Scarborough. One of them, DOT’S NET, was later adapted for broadcast on BBC Radio 4, while his play 100 won an Edinburgh Fringe First Award and transferred to London’s Soho Theatre.
GARETH JONES Executive Producer
Gareth has been involved in the financing, sales and distribution of feature films for over twenty-five years.
After graduating in law from University College London, Gareth practised as a corporate lawyer with City firm Macfarlanes before going in-house with HandMade Films in 1984. He went on to head HandMade and subsequently became Managing Director of Alibi Films International, both international film sales companies. Gareth negotiated the corporate acquisition of HandMade by Paragon, a Canadian public company, and was instrumental in floating Alibi Communications plc on the AIM, sitting on the main board.
His screenwriting commissions include THE CURSED, a supernatural horror for director Andrew Piddington (THE KILLING OF JOHN LENNON, POIROT), co-produced by Rainmark (THE SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP, GAME OF THRONES). Neil also developed the screenplay KISS AND TELL with producer Mark Crowdy (SAVING GRACE, DOC MARTIN) and director Nigel Cole (CALENDAR GIRLS, MADE IN DAGENHAM).
Other commissions include SCOOTERMAN for Kirsten Cavendish (Cavendish Fante Productions) and David Wicht (Film Afrika); THE PERFECT WEDDING for Michael Deeley and AFTER IMAGE for Agamemnon Films in LA. His script doctoring work includes a draft of ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE for action director Chee Keong Cheung and producers Warren Zide (FINAL DESTINATION, AMERICAN PIE) and Carlos Gallardo (EL MARIACHI).
Gareth has financed and sold international rights in dozens of independent feature films including WITHNAIL AND I, MONA LISA, HOW TO GET AHEAD IN ADVERTISING, NUNS ON THE RUN, THE MAN WITH RAIN IN HIS SHOES and LOCK STOCK AND TWO SMOKING BARRELS.
Gareth executive produced Australian box office success THE HARD WORD starring Guy Pearce and Rachel Griffiths and pre-bought foreign sales rights in Sundance winner and US indie hit SECRETARY starring James Spader and Maggie Gyllenhal. Both were sold to Lionsgate in the US. He also financed, co-executive produced and sold international rights in Irish comedy MYSTICS.
Gareth joined Winchester Films in November 2002 as Head of UK Film Production and Financing to coordinate Winchester’s existing UK film activities including development, production, international sales and production finance. When Winchester merged with Cobalt Media Group in July 2003 and became ContentFilm plc in 2004, Gareth actively advised the Winchester main board during the mergers and remained as a consultant working on the acquisition and packaging of new projects including THE BUSINESS.
Gareth also worked closely with the UK distribution team at Content on the acquisition and UK theatrical releases of several films including OPEN RANGE starring Kevin Costner and Robert Duvall and MY SUMMER OF LOVE with BBC Films. His company Galaxy Pictures releases feature films in the UK theatrically.
Gareth works with filmmakers as an executive producer to arrange finance, presales and UK and international sales on feature films including 4.3.2.1 written and co-directed by KIDULTHOOD and ANUVAHOOD’s Noel Clarke which Gareth presold several European territories to Universal, including the UK where it took £1 million at the box office and sold over 300,000 DVDs; PSYCH 9 starring Cary Elwes and Michael Biehn which Gareth sold UK theatrical right to Universal and US rights to Lionsgate; and sci-fi feature ALONE starring Homeland’s Damian Lewis as a lone astronaut with 24 hours to save the Earth, shooting in the UK in early 2014.
MICHELLE GUISH Casting Director
Responsible for casting some of the biggest creative and financial successes in recent film history, including FOUR WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL and THE ENGLISH PATIENT, Michelle is widely regarded as one of the UK’s most successful casting directors.
In a career spanning thirty years and more than 80 films, Michelle has cast features including 1983’s MONTY PYTHON´S MEANING OF LIFE, MRS BROWN starring Judi Dench, SLIDING DOORS with Gwyneth Paltrow and John Hannah, SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE starring Oscar winners Gwyneth Paltrow, Judi Dench and Colin Firth, ENTRAPMENT starring Oscar-winner Catherine Zeta Jones and Sean Connery, BRIDGET JONES’S DIARY, RUN FAT BOY RUN with Simon Pegg and more recently THE BEST EXOTIC MARIGOLD HOTEL.