Andrew Haigh

Started by wilder, January 21, 2016, 11:39:35 AM

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wilder

'45 Years' Director Andrew Haigh To Helm Alexander McQueen Biopic
via The Playlist

After honors and nominations from the Berlin International Film Festival, BAFTAs, National Board Of Review, European Film Awards, and more Andrew Haigh heads into next month with one more feather in his cap for "45 Years" — the first Oscar nomination for Charlotte Rampling. It has been quiet a journey for the director, and the success he's experienced means more doors are opening.

Deadline reports that Haigh has signed to direct a biopic about late fashion designer Alexander McQueen. Playwright Chris Urch will be writing and researching the script, that will be partially based on the biography "Blood Beneath The Skin," telling the story of famed and influential designer who survived drug addiction, and rose to the heights of his field, before tragically committing suicide at the age of 40. Here's the book synopsis:

When forty-year-old Alexander McQueen committed suicide in February 2010, a shocked world mourned the loss. McQueen had risen from humble beginnings as the son of an East London taxi driver to scale the heights of fame, fortune, and glamour. He designed clothes for the world's most beautiful women and royalty, most famously the Duchess of Cambridge, who wore a McQueen dress on her wedding day. He created a multimillion-dollar luxury brand that became a favorite with celebrities including Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell.

But behind the confident facade and bad-boy image, lay a sensitive soul who struggled to survive in the ruthless world of fashion. As the pressures of work intensified, McQueen became increasingly dependent on the drugs that contributed to his tragic end. Meanwhile, in his private life, his failure to find lasting love in a string of boyfriends only added to his despair. And then there were the dark secrets that haunted his sleep...

A modern-day fairy tale infused with the darkness of a Greek tragedy, Alexander McQueen tells the complete sensational story, and includes never-before-seen photos. Those closest to the designer—his family, friends, and lovers—have spoken for the first time about the man they knew, a fragmented individual, a lost boy who battled to gain entry into a world that ultimately destroyed him.

wilder

First Look: Andrew Haigh's 'Lean On Pete,' Director Signs Up To Helm Limited Series 'The North Water'
via The Playlist



Making small films that pack a big emotional wallop, and creating an intimate HBO series ("Looking") that earned a cult following, Andrew Haigh is one of the finest filmmakers of the moment. He's also quietly keeping very busy. As he works on post-production on his next film, "Lean On Pete," he's gearing up a new limited-series for TV.

First up, his new movie, which stars Steve Buscemi, Charlie Plummer and Chloe Sevigny, has unveiled its debut image. The coming-of-age story, based on the book by Willy Vlautin, tells the story of a teenager whose life is changed when he starts caring for a racehorse. Here's synopsis:

QuoteCharley Thompson is a 15-year-old who has no stability in his life. He wants a home, food on the table and a high school he can attend for more than part of a year. But as the son of a single father working in warehouses finding some stability is hard.

Hoping for a new start they move to Portland where Charley takes a summer job, and becomes best friends with a failing racehorse named Lean on Pete.

No release date yet, but I'd bet on a premiere in Berlin or Cannes next year, and A24 have already inked a deal to distribute the picture stateside.

Once he's all done with that, Deadline reports that Haigh will roll up his sleeves for "The North Water." The six-part limited series for BBC will see the filmmaker write and direct the adaptation of Ian McGuire's book that will tell the story of a surgeon who heads to the Arctic on a whaling expedition only to encounter a psychopath on board the ship. Here's the synopsis:

QuoteA nineteenth-century whaling ship sets sail for the Arctic with a killer aboard in this dark, sharp, and highly original tale that grips like a thriller.

Behold the man: stinking, drunk, and brutal. Henry Drax is a harpooner on the Volunteer, a Yorkshire whaler bound for the rich hunting waters of the arctic circle. Also aboard for the first time is Patrick Sumner, an ex-army surgeon with a shattered reputation, no money, and no better option than to sail as the ship's medic on this violent, filthy, and ill-fated voyage.

In India, during the Siege of Delhi, Sumner thought he had experienced the depths to which man can stoop. He had hoped to find temporary respite on the Volunteer, but rest proves impossible with Drax on board. The discovery of something evil in the hold rouses Sumner to action. And as the confrontation between the two men plays out amid the freezing darkness of an arctic winter, the fateful question arises: who will survive until spring?

With savage, unstoppable momentum and the blackest wit, Ian McGuire's The North Water weaves a superlative story of humanity under the most extreme conditions.

No word if this will come before or after Haigh's planned biopic on Alexander McQueen.