Oscar Winner Russell Crow and Director Ridley Scott deliver greatness with A Good Year.

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Oscar®-winner Russell Crowe reunites with "Gladiator" director Ridley Scott in A Good Year a Fox 2000 Pictures presentation of a Scott Free production. London-based investment expert Max Skinner (Crowe) moves to Provence to sell a small vineyard he has inherited from his late uncle. Max reluctantly settles into what ultimately becomes an intoxicating new chapter in his life, as he comes to realize that life is meant to be savored.

A Good Year is based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Peter Mayle. (Mayle and Ridley Scott, who are longtime friends, together came up with the idea for the novel.) Scott produces from a screenplay by Marc Klein. The film also stars the esteemed Albert Finney as Max's late Uncle Henry, who imparts wisdom to his young nephew; Marion Cotillard ("A Very Long Engagement") as a café owner who catches Max's eye; Abbie Cornish ("Sommersault") as Max's supposed long-lost cousin, who may hold the vineyard's title rights; Tom Hollander ("Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest") as his best friend; and Freddie Highmore ("Finding Neverland") as the young Max.

Confident and cocky, headstrong and handsome, Max Skinner is a successful London banker who specializes in trading bonds. A financial barracuda on the banks of the Thames, Max devours the competition in his efforts to conquer the European market. His latest conquest has netted a tidy seven-figure profit, much to the chagrin of his Saville Row-draped rivals. Max's triumph is in perfect keeping with his philosophy: winning isn't everything, it's the only thing!

Soon thereafter, Max receives word from France alerting him to sad news: his elderly Uncle Henry has passed away. Max, Henry's closest blood relative, is the sole beneficiary of his estate, which includes a Provençal chateau and vineyard, La Siroque, where Henry cultivated grapes for over thirty years.
Max travels to the chateau where he spent his boyhood summers vacationing with his eccentric uncle, whom he hasn''t seen or written to in years. While Max tends to the legal affairs of his inheritance, he is suspended from his firm, pending an investigation into his questionable bond transaction.
With his future in London in flux, Max reluctantly begins settling into life at the chateau. He reunites with the chateau''s longtime vigneron, Francis Duflot (still tending the vines after three decades), whom Max remembers from his boyhood visits. Duflot's exuberant wife, Ludivine, the estate's housekeeper, warmly welcomes Max back.

Max is uncertain as to whether life in the South of France suits him. He rings up his best friend, London realtor Charlie Willis, to inquire as to what a small chateau and winery like La Siroque would command on the current market. Charlie advises Max that small wineries with a good product can bring several million dollars, as boutique wine, made in small batches, is the rage in wine shops. It's money in the bank for Max should he lose his job.
As Max fondly embraces the memories of summers past (spent with a man whose wisdom and philosophy helped Max chart his successful career) while contemplating a cloudy future, a complication arises with the sudden arrival of a determined, twentysomething California girl, Christie Roberts. Christie, a Napa Valley native, claims to be the illegitimate daughter of the deceased uncle. The revelation, if true, makes her Max's cousin and, according to French law, the beneficiary of La Siroque.

Suspecting Christie may be a fraud, Max questions her about her past while bickering with her over the fate of the vineyard, whose plonk (as the French define bad wine) rivals the worst vinegar imaginable. Max, who has tasted La Siroque's awful vin de pays, also finds some other bottles in Uncle Henry's cellar bearing the name Le Coin Perdu ('the lost corner'). This mysterious, legendary vin de garage has fetched thousands per bottle on the black market for years, according to the fetching local cafe owner, Fanny Chenal, with whom Max has become smitten.

Where does the wine come from, and why is Duflot so insistent on staying at La Siroque whatever the vineyard's fate? And, what about some unusual vines discovered on the property by Christie, which the crusty vintner claims are experimental in nature, and a renowned oenologue has deemed unworthy?
Max's memories and the passage of time bring forth emotions and feelings he thought were long lost, and afford him a new appreciation of his late Uncle Henry's philosophy on life - and on life in Provence: "There's nowhere else in the world where one can keep busy doing so little, yet enjoy it so much!"

Peter Mayle is a native Brit who abandoned a successful advertising career and reinvented himself as a best-selling author and novelist. He has been writing about the good life in the South of France for over fifteen years. Critics have praised his books, both fiction and nonfiction, calling the writer "the world's foremost literary escape artist" because of his knack for setting his colorful yarns in a locale one magazine called "the most enticing place this side of paradise." Mayle's first book, a memoir called A Year in Provence, has sold over five million copies (in 28 languages) since its publication in 1991.

It was over a bottle of Provençal wine that Mayle (who lives full-time in the Luberon area of Provence) and filmmaker Ridley Scott (who has maintained a vacation home and vineyard there for fifteen years) came up with the idea for Mayle's breezy 2004 novel A Good Year. "Ridley used to work in the commercials business and I used to work in the advertising agency business in London," Mayle recounts about his early history with the filmmaker; their friendship stretches back to London's advertising world of the 1970s. "He was about the best there was, so we would always use his company for shooting commercials if we could afford him. We worked together intermittently in London, and then he went off and did movies and I went off and (wrote) books."
Almost three decades later, Scott and Mayle had a memorable lunch. "Ridley arrived with a newspaper clipping which reported on new wines in Bordeaux - 'garage' wines - which commanded huge prices without a chateau or pedigree. Yet, people paid a fortune for them."

"I saw this piece in the newspaper business section of the Times about a vineyard in France that was selling garage wine for over £30,000 a case," Scott recounts about the 1996 clipping, which he still keeps in his files in London. "I was looking for an excuse to come back to France to shoot a film, and this story idea offered the perfect opportunity.
"I bounced this idea off Peter Mayle and he said, 'That would make a good novel,'" Scott remembers. "And I said, 'You write the book, then I'll get the film rights.' So, he wrote the book, which was successful."
Mayle labored at his laptop for nine months in 2003, researching the subject in both in his adopted Provence and in one of the world's renowned wine regions, Bordeaux, on France's Atlantic coast. Le Pin, located in the appellation called Pomerol, cultivates what many believe to be the best Merlot on the planet.

In the meantime, Scott went off to Morocco and Spain to film his epic saga, "Kingdom of Heaven." A month after the author turned in his manuscript, a deal was finalized for the film rights - and Scott and Mayle were back in business together.

Scott also suggested the book's (and film's) title. "A winemaker has a difficult life. But if he gets it right, he's had a good year," says the filmmaker. "That's what a French winemaker will say: 'It's been a good year.'"
Scott chose New York native Marc Klein ("Serendipity") to adapt Mayle's novel for the screen. Klein admits that when he accepted Scott's offer, he knew nothing about wine or Provence. Scott advised Klein to visit the South of France to conduct research and get a flavor of the area. Klein visited Provence in 2004, met with Peter Mayle, and spent almost a year researching the region and the wines.

Adapting Mayle's novel provided Klein with some formidable challenges. "Peter writes books that are like travelogues," says the screenwriter. "They're more about atmosphere - the kind of book one likes to read on vacation, where you want to be swept away to a certain place. We needed to provide additional narrative structure on it. At the same time, we wanted to give moviegoers the same experience they would have reading the book."
"Peter's book is a jolly romp," Scott adds. "It's very much embedded in the lifestyle of Provence. For the movie, I found that the mechanism for the story needed to be adjusted a little bit, to turn up the volume on the character of Max, who needed to learn an important life lesson. The philosophy that Uncle Henry was trying to instill into this young Max really didn't take."

A key change from the novel was the screenplay's depiction of Uncle Henry, who is only referred to in the novel. After toying with the idea of making Henry a ghostly figure, Scott and Klein decided to depict the character in flashbacks, which, says Scott, "allows us to see the grooming of Max as a child, which pays off as the story unfolds."

According to Russell Crowe, these flashback scenes accent one of the film's principal themes: "That as long as people are in your heart, they never die.
"I thought that was a wonderful metaphor," Crowe continues. "When Ridley and I worked on 'Gladiator,' the metaphor was death. But on A GOOD YEAR, we discussed the themes in terms of reincarnation - not necessarily from the dead to the living, but having the 'living dead', like Max, become revitalized from his experiences in Provence. Every character in this story has a situation that changes his or her life for the better."

Says legendary actor Albert Finney, who portrays Henry: "Max has these memories of his uncle when he had his summer holidays here as a child. He remembers them favorably, which suggests he had a good time with Henry. Young Max enjoyed his company. The philosophy Henry imparts on the boy has mostly to do with wine in particular, but around that is a philosophy of enjoying life. I think he's a good influence on the boy."

Max isn't the only character that undergoes transformation. Says Crowe: "For every character, something happens within the story that elevates, changes or revitalizes his or her life. I've had the same thing happen in my own life, when I married and we had a baby. So it is possible to get yourself out of a rut and change things. That's what the title refers to - Max's life. He comes to Provence, reconnects with the memory of his uncle and the things that his uncle taught him, which opens his heart. And his life changes."

"I think audiences will come out with memories of their childhood after seeing this film," says 14-year-old Freddie Highmore, who portrays the young Max. "The film will make you look back on the things that have happened in your own life. Young Max didn't know at the time how important the lessons were that Uncle Henry was giving him. But, as he got older and comes back to visit this place, he realizes how important they have been in making him grow up."

THE CAST AND CHARACTERS
"As a story teller, a novelist, I don't think you can ever completely divorce yourself from your main characters," says Peter Mayle. "Bits of you creep in there, whether you like it or not, whether it's intentional or not. Your characters are often reflections of what you yourself feel, and Max is representative of a very strong feeling that I had when I was his age, which is I wanted to basically get out of London and try something else. Of course, Max does it in a rather more dramatic fashion than I did."

"You live with these characters by yourself all the time in your own head," Marc Klein offers about the craft of screenwriting. "Then, you work with someone like Russell Crowe, who's a genius. He came to me in between takes and gave me ideas about the character. He inhabited his character in a way that's even deeper than I could have ever hoped."

While looking for a vehicle on which to re-team with Ridley Scott, Crowe remembers chatting with the director during the production of 'Gladiator' about getting together again for another film. "I enjoy working with Ridley because we have a really good rhythm 5
together. We talked about what the next project could be, knowing we wanted to do something entirely different from 'Gladiator.' So, we decided to work together on a comedy."

"I always thought that Russell would be perfect for the character of Max," Scott adds. "Russell is like Max. Russell carries a lot of the innocence in him and manages to keep that innocence fresh, untrammeled somehow."
Crowe found much to dig into when he took on the role. "Max has had a fortunate childhood in that he had this wonderful bon vivant uncle who put all the information in him that he needed in order to become a good bloke. But, he's taken his uncle's advice on competition and edge and made it his life's mantra, to the point where competition isn't really any fun for him anymore.
"One of the key things that Ridley said to me when we first talked was, 'There's a Provençal saying that you don't own the chateau; the chateau owns you,'"

Crowe continues. "That's one of the things we worked on. Max must travel to Provence in order to receive his inheritance. From the time that he gets there, events conspire to keep him here. It's very definitely a fish-out-of-water/coming-of-age adult comedy with humanity, which gives it realism."
While the film represented the second Crowe-Scott collaboration, it was the fourth reteaming for the director and five-time Oscar-nominee Albert Finney. The stage-and-screen legend essays the role of Uncle Henry, a character that existed in name only in Mayle's novel, but comes to life throughout the film.
Finney relates that he did not indulge in creating much backstory for the character, but acknowledges that a long-ago, fateful trip Henry made to the U.S. West Coast - a visit that is discussed but not depicted in the film - is an important part of the character's history. Another AuMax's inheritance of the property and his future at the chateau.

The actress, who did a videotaped audition for Scott only weeks before filming was to begin, is well-known Down Under but less so outside of her native country. She has been winning critical acclaim for several years for her work in such films as "The Monkey's Mask" and the sexual drama, "Somersault," the only Australian film screened at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival, where the actress won a standing ovation.

"Christie is a twenty-one year old American girl from the Napa Valley in California," says Cornish, who hails from the Aussie wine region of the Hunter Valley near Sydney. "She learns that she has a birth father and that he's alive and lives in France. So, she makes the journey to his front door (which is when we meet Christie in the film). Unfortunately, she finds out the bad news about Henry, but meets a cousin, Max, whom she never knew she had. When Christie arrives on the doorstep, it throws something into the mix which changes Max. He doesn't really believe this girl and of course, he's wary of her. Eventually, the two characters find something in each other that they can both relate to."

Also joining the starring cast is Marion Cotillard ("A Very Long Engagement") as Fanny Chenal, a Provençal beauty who owns the local café - and who catches Max's eye. "I liked the script's spontaneity," the Parisian beauty states.

"I also appreciated Max's journey - how he comes to understand what he really needs is right there at the chateau and in Provence.

"Fanny is the owner of a restaurant," she continues. "She's a broken heart who decided that life would be much easier, less painful, without love. She organized her life not to be hurt again. Her café is called La Renaissance, which means 'rebirth'. But, sometimes, hopefully, life brings you what you need, even if you don't know what that is. Even if Fanny doesn't want to confess that she needs love, she definitely needs love. And she deserves it, too."

From his homeland, the director cast British character actor Tom Hollander ("Gosford Park," "Enigma," "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest") in the role of Charlie Willis, Max's best friend, who guides Max on the possible sale of the property; Archie Panjabi ("Bend It Like Beckham," "East Is East," "The Constant Gardener") as Max's reliable London assistant, Gemma; and Freddie Highmore ("Finding Neverland," "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory") as the young Max, seen in flashbacks with Uncle Henry at the chateau.
"I'm the young Max, who's based on the older Max, because they're the same character," Highmore offers. "I watched Russell work a bit and we talked about the character and how each of us thought he was going to be. It just came from that. It was just great fun from the moment I stepped onto the set to be with Ridley and Albert and Russell."

Scott also populated his movie with other popular French performers. Didier Bourdon portrays Francis Duflot, the longtime vintner who has tended to La Siroque's vines for three decades and who may know the true secrets of the vineyard's potential. "Francis Duflot is a winemaker. Vinyo, as we say in France," Bourdon describes. "He has a long history with Max. They knew each other when they were younger. Their relationship is between friendship and mistrust. When Max returns to Henry's home, after being away for years, Duflot is wondering, worried that Max will sell the château."

Duflot's wary relationship with Max comes to a head during a tennis match between the two, which becomes more like a war than a friendly game. "The tennis match scene came about because Ridley is a great lover of the sport," Crowe says. "He was bemoaning to me over a glass of red wine that we didn't have any battle sequences in the movie. That got me thinking. And we had the whole sequence set up by the tennis court, and a sequence playing tennis in flashback. And so I made the suggestion that perhaps we find a way of getting these two men to do battle on the clay court."

Valeria Bruni Tedeschi ("Mon homme," "Les gens normaux n'ont rien d'exceptionnel") plays Nathalie Auzet, the local notaire handling the legal papers on Max's behalf; veteran European character actor Jacques Herlin (Visconti's "The Stranger," Fellini's "Juliet of the Spirits") plays the irascible Papa Duflot; and French comic actress Isabelle Candelier ("André le magnifique," "Versailles rive Gauche") plays the vigneron's wife and chateau's caretaker, Mme. Duflot. (Scott calls Candelier "the French Lucille Ball.")

ABOUT THE PRODUCTION
In describing the allure of Provence, author Peter Mayle notes the area has three hundred days of sunshine a year, stunning scenery, remarkably unspoiled countryside, and extraordinary light. "You don't find that light in many other places in the world. I like the pace of life down here. It imposes a certain rhythm on you, which, when you get used to it, is very pleasant. I feel at home here."

"I loved waking up in Provence," adds Russell Crowe, who lived there for two months during production. "There's something extra special about this particular valley, the Luberon. I think it's got to do with its fertility. The light there is very similar to Australia -- the blues, the pinks and the oranges in the sky. I felt very comfortable there."

"I loved shooting in Provence…it's just so beautiful!" adds Ridley Scott, who has owned a vacation home and operated a vineyard there for fifteen years, but hadn't filmed in France since his debut feature, "The Duelists," almost thirty years ago. "This shoot was one of my most pleasant experiences."
Provence itself dates back to 600 B.C., when Phocaean Greeks settled in Massalia, now modern-day Marseilles on the Mediterranean coast, and the region's most populous city. Its history could also be depicted through the history of the wines introduced by these Phocaeans over 2600 years ago. These ancient vines - the oldest in France - were later developed by the Romans and, thereafter, in the Middle Ages, by monastic communities.

Comprised of 700 villages, Provence has several regional wine growing appellations (covering an estimated 27,000 hectares, or 68,000 acres), all designated as A.O.C. (appellation d'origine controlee), the governmental system established in the 1930s that regulates production and distinguishes quality French wines from table wines. The region boasts extraordinarily favorable growing conditions, or terroir, defined as a combination of conditions in a vineyard site that comprise the vine's total environment and give its wines what longtime wine writer Matt Kramer calls "somewhereness."

The Mediterranean climate (year-round sunshine, perfect ventilation from a wind dubbed "mistral" and good rainfall), combined with the terrain's siliceous soil, favors red grapes like Grenache, Syrah, Carignan, Cinsault and Mourvèdre, much of which is used to produce rosé, the region's specialty of the estimated 140,000,000 bottles produced annually. White grape varietals common to the terrain include Grenache Blanc, Clairette, Ugni Blanc and Rolle.
Scott based the production in the sub-appellation called Cotes du Luberon (where his own vineyard of eleven hectares is situated), an area whose vines extend over 7500 acres from Cavaillon to Apt in north-central Provence, where 70% are red grape varietals. Most of the vintners (some 80%, including Scott) grow grapes and sell them to cooperatives to produce the local table wine (vin de pays) named for the appellation. However, Scott focused his scouting efforts on several independent vineyards that bottle their own product.

"I looked at almost a dozen chateaux in the area between Roussillon and Bonnieux before coming back to the first one we saw, La Canorgue," the director states about the location where his company of 125 craftsmen spent most of their nine-week shoot in the Provençal region, which coincided with the vineyard's prime harvesting season for the next year's vintage.
Scott chose La Canorgue due to its spectacular western view looking out over the Luberon, and the magical dusk light that bathes the main house in the late afternoon. The film company, under the watchful eye of veteran location supervisor Marco Giacalone (who worked with director Scott on "Kingdom of Heaven") and French location manager Thierry Zemmour, took over the vineyard and chateau for much of the nine-week shooting schedule in the South of France.

According to Nathalie Margan, who runs La Canorgue with her father, Jean-Pierre, the Margans were hesitant when approached by the production, because the shoot coincided with harvest time.

"But, we knew the shoot would be an adventure," Nathalie says, "so we took on the challenges that came with it."

Margan describes the experience of huge trucks, vast amounts of equipment and 125 cast and crew swarming all over her property as "initially strange, but ultimately thrilling. It was great to participate. We were asked a few times to suggest how a real winemaker would have done things or what the technical terms were for this or that. They made their movie without disturbing us, and we made a good wine without disturbing them."

"La Canorgue was interesting," says production designer Sonja Klaus, noting the production worked hard to restore the chateau for the shoot. "We re-landscaped the ground, putting in statutory and ornamentation. Inside, the whole point was to have this slightly dilapidated, lived-in, comfortable feeling - a feeling of shabby chic…cluttery, lived-in, and homey. We wanted the place to feel as if one was staying with your favorite uncle or your favorite aunt."
Outside the house, among acres of vines, Klaus had a more daunting task, one she never expected. "Ridley's words to me, when he first asked me to do it, were, 'We're just going to hang out in the South of France and throw a few props around,'" she says with a laugh. "And I thought that sounded nice - until he added, 'Oh, and by the way, there's a tennis court. I think we might have to change the swimming pool, or build another swimming pool for all the stunts.'

"There was this field at the back of the house, which was actually in a perfect spot for a tennis court," says Klaus. "The snag was that it wasn't big enough to put a tennis court on it. So we actually cheated it, made the tennis court slightly smaller. But, when you watch it on film you won't know that."
Another key chateau shooting location was its empty pool, where Crowe got the opportunity to flex both his comedic and physical muscles. "We have a running gag where Max falls into the pool and then realizes he has fourteen-foot sheer walls, and he simply can't get out," says the actor. "The pool doesn't have any water in it, so he has no way of getting out."

Apart from the many weeks of filming at La Canorgue, Scott and his cinematographer, Frenchman Philippe Le Sourd captured the area's regal beauty in a series of celluloid French postcard-like images of other quaint villages scattered throughout the hills and valleys of the Luberon. Those included Gordes (four days at Cafe Renaissance, dubbed Fanny's Café in the film), Cucuron, Lacoste, Avignon and Menerbes (where author Mayle used to reside, and whose former house is still a popular stop on guided tours that frequent the village). The company also spent three days at another local vineyard, Chateau Les Eydins, which doubled for the home of the story's gruff vigneron, Duflot.

Following the two-month Provençal schedule, Scott relocated the crew to London for the production's final eight days of filming, at such recognized spots as Piccadilly Circus, the architecturally-stunning Lloyds of London building in the city's financial district, and the trendy Knightsbridge area.
Like Mayle's book, the film opens in the London financial world, and Scott liked "the antithesis and juxtaposition of London and Provence. One place is as attractive as the other. London's a great place to live. Provence is a fantastic place to live. Is it better? No, it's different. For me, I live in Provence… because I live in London. So, I need one to have the other."
Adds Peter Mayle: "Knowing Ridley's eye for landscape, color and composition, I'm sure he's made the Luberon look every bit as gorgeous as it is. I can't wait to see the movie."

ABOUT THE CAST
RUSSELL CROWE (Max Skinner) received three consecutive Best Actor Academy Award® nominations for his performances in Michael Mann's "The Insider" (1999), Ridley Scott's "Gladiator" (2000) and Ron Howard's "A Beautiful Mind" (2001). He won the Best Actor Oscar for his performance as Maximus, the Roman general-turned-gladiator, in "Gladiator," a role that also brought him Best Actor honors from several critics' organizations, including the Broadcast Film Critics Association. In addition, he received nominations for the Golden Globe®, the BAFTA Award and the Screen Actors Guild honor.
In Howard's 2001 Best Picture Oscar winner, Crowe's masterful portrayal of Nobel Prize-winning John Forbes Nash, Jr. earned him his third Academy Award nomination in as many years and garnered him Best Actor awards from the Hollywood Foreign Press, Broadcast Film Critics Association, Screen Actors Guild and BAFTA, among other critics groups.

Crowe received his first Academy Award nomination for his work in Mann's non-fiction drama "The Insider," as tobacco company whistle-blower, Dr. Jeffrey Wigand. He earned Best Actor Awards from the Los Angeles Film Critics, Broadcast Film Critics, National Society of Film Critics and the National Board of Review, and nominations for a Golden Globe Award, a BAFTA and a Screen Actors Guild Award. He followed this triple triumph with another commanding performance -- as Capt. Jack Aubrey in Peter Weir's epic adaptation of Patrick O'Brian's novels, "Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World." The film collected ten Academy Award nominations (including Best Picture), with Crowe earning nominations for the Golden Globe and Broadcast Film Critics honors.

He reunited with director Ron Howard as Depression Era prizefighter James J. Braddock in the highly-praised drama, "Cinderella Man," an official entry in the Venice Film Festival. For his critically-acclaimed performance, Crowe received nominations for best actor from SAG and the Hollywood Foreign Press. He next reteams with director Scott on the gritty Harlem-set drama, "American Gangster," also starring Denzel Washington.
Crowe also earned kudos for his performance as sensitive but brutal vice cop Bud White in Curtis Hanson's period crime drama, "L.A. Confidential," a film which was cited with nine Academy Award nominations, including one for Best Picture. He later starred in Jay Roach's sports drama, "Mystery, Alaska," and in Taylor Hackford's action drama, "Proof of Life."

He made his American film debut in Sam Raimi's 1995 western "The Quick and the Dead," opposite Gene Hackman, Sharon Stone and Leonardo DiCaprio. He next starred as the cyber-villain Sid 6.7 in "Virtuosity" alongside Denzel Washington. Additional film credits include "Heaven's Burning," "Breaking Up," "Rough Magic," "The Sum of Us," "For the Moment," "Love in Limbo," "The Silver Brumby" (based on the classic Australian children's novel), "The Efficiency Expert" and "Prisoners of the Sun."

Born in New Zealand, Crowe was raised in Australia (his current residence) where he has also been honored for his work on the screen. He was recognized for three consecutive years by the Australian Film Institute (AFI), beginning in 1991, when he was nominated for Best Actor for "The Crossing." The following year, he won the Best Supporting Actor Award for "Proof" and, in 1992, he received Best Actor Awards from the AFI and the Australian Film Critics for his performance in the controversial "Romper Stomper." In 1993, the Seattle Film Festival named Crowe Best Actor for his work in both "Romper Stomper" and "Hammers Over the Anvil."

Five-time Academy Award nominee ALBERT FINNEY (Uncle Henry) is the dynamic British stage and film actor whose career, now spanning a half century, is one of the most accomplished in the annals of contemporary acting.

Though widely known and praised for inspired performances in such films as "Tom Jones," "Night Must Fall," "Two for the Road," "Murder on the Orient Express," "Shoot the Moon," "The Dresser," "Under the Volcano" and "Erin Brockovich," Finney first achieved acclaim for his work on the classical theatre stage.

After studying at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts (accepted when he was just 17), the Salford, Lancashire, England, native joined the Birmingham Repertory Company and made his London debut in the company's production of Shaw's "Caesar and Cleopatra" in 1956. During his two years with the BRC, he debuted in the West End opposite Charles Laughton and Elsa Lanchester in "The Party," then starred in the title roles of "Macbeth" and "Othello" before joining the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1959 for the centenary anniversary season at Stratford-on-Avon.

There, he essayed such roles as Cassio in "Othello" (directed by Tony Richardson, with Paul Robeson playing the title character), Lysander in "A Midsummer Night's Dream" (again working with the legendary Laughton) and understudying another English stage legend, Laurence Olivier, in "Coriolanus," receiving critical acclaim when he briefly took over the lead.
While he continued to triumph on the English stage (in such plays as "The Lily White Boys" and, especially, "Billy Liar" with the Royal Court Theatre), movies beckoned, with 1960 becoming a watershed year for the acting talent. Finney played the small part of Olivier's son, Mick Rice, in "The Entertainer" (reuniting with director Tony Richardson), then won critical acclaim and enormous success as the brawling, nonconformist factory worker, Arthur Seaton, in Karel Reisz's milestone in British realist cinema, "Saturday Night and Sunday Morning." Only his second motion picture role, Finney's performance earned him two BAFTA nods (one as Best Actor, the other, winning as Most Promising Newcomer), as well as the Best Actor prize from the

National Board of Review.
That role led Richardson to cast the then 26-year-old as Henry Fielding's rakish, picaresque, bawdy "Tom Jones." The 1963 film, which won four Oscars, including Best Picture, and earned Finney his first of five Academy Award nominations, cemented his international stardom. Additionally, he collected his third (of thirteen) BAFTA nomination, the New York Film Critics honor and two Golden Globe® nods -- Best Actor/Comedy or Musical, and Best Male Newcomer (which he won).
After the huge success of "Tom Jones," Finney returned to films (after a sojourn back on the stage) with Reisz's 1964 drama, "Night Must Fall" (which the actor also produced), followed by Stanley Donen's classic 1967 romantic drama, "Two for the Road," in which he starred opposite the luminous Audrey Hepburn. That same year, Finney stepped behind the camera for his directorial debut on "Charlie Bubbles," which also marked the debut of actress Liza Minnelli.

Over the ensuing years, Finney has commanded the motion picture screen in such projects as Sidney Lumet's "Murder on the Orient Express" (Oscar and BAFTA nominations), Ridley Scott's "The Duellists" (the first of four collaborations with Scott), Ronald Neame's "Scrooge" (BAFTA nomination), Alan Parker's "Shoot the Moon" (BAFTA and Golden Globe nominations), Stephen Frears' "Gumshoe" (BAFTA nod) Peter Yates' "The Dresser" (Oscar, BAFTA and Golden Globe nominations, as well as the Silver Bear at the Berlin Film Festival), John Huston's musical "Annie" and his drama "Under the Volcano" (Oscar and Golden Globe nominations, and the Los Angeles Film Critics Award), Alan J. Pakula's "Orphans" (a role he originated on the London stage), the Coen Bros.' "Miller's Crossing," Mike Figgis' "The Browning Version" (produced by Ridley Scott), Yates' "The Run in the Country," Bruce Bereford's "Rich in Love," Steven Soderbergh's "Traffic" and "Erin Brockovich" (Oscar, Golden Globe and BAFTA nominations) and Tim Burton's "Big Fish" (BAFTA and Golden Globe nominations). He recently reteamed with Burton, providing the voice for one of the animated characters in his highly-anticipted feature, "Corpse Bride," and just completed work on Michael Apted's 18th historical drama, "Amazing Grace."

No less accomplished on the small screen, Finney delivered award-winning performances in such telefilms and miniseries as HBO's "The Gathering Storm" (winning BAFTA, Emmy and Golden Globe Awards for his portrayal of Sir Winston Churchill in the feature produced by Ridley Scott), "A Rather English Marriage" (BAFTA nomination), "Karaoke" and "Cold Lazarus" (combined BAFTA nomination for both 1996 Dennis Potter telefilms), "The Green Man" (BAFTA nomination), "The Biko Inquest" (his second directorial effort, for which he collected a CableACE nomination for his performance), HBO's "The Image" (his first Emmy nomination), and CBS-TV's "Pope John Paul II," playing the title role.

In addition to producing the 1964 feature "Night Must Fall," Finney also produced (under his Memorial Enterprises Productions banner) "Charlie Bubbles," Lindsay Anderson's "If..." and "O Lucky Man!" and Frears' "Gumshoe."

Even with his success on the big screen, Finney never abandoned his stage roots, continuing his association with the National Theatre Company at the Old Vic in London, where he performed in the mid-1960s in Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing" and Chekov's "The Cherry Orchard." He won Tony Award nominations for "Luther" (1964) and "A Day in the Death of Joe Egg" (1968), and also starred onstage in "Armstrong's Last Goodnight," "Love for Love," Strindberg's "Miss Julie," "Black Comedy," "The Country Wife," "Alpha Beta," Beckett's "Krapp's Last Tape," "Cromwell," "Tamburlaine the Great," "Another Time" and, his last stage appearance in 1997, "Art," which preceded the 1998 Tony Award-winning Broadway run. He won Olivier Awards for "A Flea in Her Ear" and "Orphans" and the Evening Standard Theatre Award for Osborne's "Luther."

MARION COTILLARD (Fanny) made her American movie debut as Josephine in Tim Burton's "Big Fish." Cotillard is well-known in her native France for her performances in Luc Besson's "Taxi" (reprising her role in the equally successful sequels, "Taxi 2" and "Taxi 3"), for which she collected her first Cesar nomination. She is equally recognized for her work in director Jean-Pierre Jeunet's romantic drama "Un long dimanche de fiancailles" ("A Very Long Engagement"), for which she won the Cesar in 2004 for Best Supporting Actress. She earned her second Cesar nomination in 2001 for "Les Jolies choses" ("Pretty Things"), under the direction of Gilles Pacquet-Brenner.

The daughter of working theatre actors (her mother runs acting workshops in Paris), Cotillard started her career at age sixteen, making her film debut in "L'Histoire du garcon qui voulait qu'on l'embrasse" ("The Story of a Boy Who Wanted to Be Kissed"). She played the title role in the 2001 production, "Lisa," and more recently starred in "Une Affaire Privee" ("A Private Affair"), "Jeux d'enfants" ("Love Me If You Dare:), "Ma vie en l'air" ("Love Is in the Air"), "Cavalcade" and "Sauf le respect que je vois dois."

The busy actress also stars in the current and forthcoming releases "Edy," "La Boîte noire," "Toi en moi," "Fair Play" and Abel Ferrara's "Mary," which unspooled at the 2005 Venice Film Festival, walking off with the Special Jury Prize. She will next play Edith Piaf in "La Vie en rose," and also has coming out in 2006 the features "Le Concile de Pierre" and "Dikkenek."

Heralded as Australia's next major acting talent, ABBIE CORNISH (Christie Roberts) garnered critical-acclaim and the Australian Film Institute Award as Best Actress for her star turn as a sexually-charged teenager in Cate Shortland's 2004 coming-of-age drama, "Somersault."
For her breakthrough role as Heidi, the sexually tortured teen, Cornish also won the Inside Film (IF) Award as Best Actress, the Australian Film Critics Circle prize and a Special Jury Breakthrough Award at the 2004 Miami International Film Festival. "Somersault," the only Australian film screened at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival (where Cornish won a standing ovation) elicited raves from The New York Times film critic A.O. Scott, who called her "an actress whose delicate and ferocious performance combines classic movie-star loveliness with serious dramatic ability."

Cornish hails from Australia's Hunter Valley, born in Newcastle, New South Wales, in 1982. Growing up on her family's farm, she began acting at fifteen after a modelling stint led to her professional debut on the Australian Broadcasting Company's series "Children's Hospital." Soon thereafter, she landed a co-starring role on the ABC series "Wildside," for which she won her first AFI honor in 1999.

She earned a second AFI nomination in 2003 for her guest-starring role on the ABC miniseries, "Marking Time." Other roles include "The Monkey's Mask" (2000), "Everything Goes" (2004), "Horseplay" (2003), "One Perfect Day" (2004), and the upcoming feature, "Candy," in which she stars opposite fellow Aussies Heath Ledger and Oscar winner Geoffrey Rush. She has a co-starring role in Shekhar Kapur's "Elizabeth: The Golden Age."

TOM HOLLANDER (Charlie Willis) has worked with such acclaimed international filmmakers as Robert Altman ("Gosford Park"), Michael Apted ("Enigma"), Neil LaBute ("Possession"), Terry George ("Some Mother's Son," his film debut), Richard Eyre ("Stage Beauty") and Gore Verbinski ("Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men's Chest" and "Pirates of the Caribbean: World's End"). For his work as part of Altman's ensemble cast in "Gosford Park," Hollander shared several critics awards, including those from the Broadcast Film Critics Association, the Online Film Critics Association and the Screen Actors Guild.
He recently completed a role opposite Ralph Fiennes and Donald Sutherland in "Land of the Blind" and was just nominated as Best Supporting Actor for a 2005 British Independent Film Award for his performance opposite Johnny Depp, Samantha Morton and John Malkovich in Laurence Dunmore's "The Libertine." He also recently reteamed with actor Joseph Fiennes in Finn Taylor's forthcoming release "The Darwin Awards."

The Oxfordshire-born, Cambridge-educated actor collaborated with directors Joe Wright (the current release of "Pride & Prejudice," for which he won critical acclaim and a 'breakout performance' citation in The New York Times), Tom Hunsinger and Neil Hunter ("The Lawless Heart"), Rose Troche ("Bedrooms and Hallways") and Nick Hamm ("Martha, Meet Frank, Daniel and Laurence," released in the U.S. as "The Very Thought of You").

Hollander's television work is equally accomplished, with roles in the recent BBC/PBS Emmy-winning miniseries "The Lost Prince" (acclaimed as King George V opposite Miranda Richardson's Queen Mary), the adaptation of "The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickelby" opposite Charles Dance, the prominent, BAFTA-nominated BBC drama "Wives and Daughters" and a memorable guest stint as Saffie's boyfriend Paolo on the long-running BBC comedy "Absolutely Fabulous: The Last Shout." For his work as Guy Burgess in the BAFTA-nominated BBC feature "Cambridge Spies," Hollander won the Best Actor honor at the International Television Festival in Biarritz 2003.
While at Cambridge, he was a member of the university's celebrated Cambridge Footlights revue and was President of the Marlowe Society, where he became well-known for his performance of "Cyrano de Bergerac," directed by fellow classmate Sam Mendes. The London stage veteran also starred in the groundbreaking Donmar Warehouse staging of "The Threepenny Opera," directed by Phillida Lloyd.

Onstage, he collaborated with Jonathan Kent in the title role of Moliere's "Tartuffe" (Best Actor, Time Out Awards, 1996), and the role of Edgar in Shakespeare's "King Lear," and in Gogol's stage classic, "The Government Inspector," all at the Almeida. He also starred for Oscar-nominee Stephen Daldry in "The Editing Process" and starred in the title role of the original staging of Jez Butterworth's Olivier Award-winning drama "Mojo" at London's Royal Court Theater. He first worked with theatre director Richard Eyre in his 1998 staging of David Hare's "The Judas Kiss," originating his role opposite Liam Neeson in London's West End before reprising his performance across the Atlantic on the Broadway stage the same year. For his work on the English stage, Hollander has won four Ian Charleson Awards, including one for his performance in "Way of the World" at the Lyric, Hammersmith, in 1992. Most recently, he returned to the Donmar Warehouse to great acclaim for his performance as Laurie in "The Hotel in Amsterdam."

FREDDIE HIGHMORE (Young Max) recently co-starred in two high-profile motion pictures: as Charlie Bucket in Tim Burton's box-office hit, "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," and opposite Oscar nominee Johnny Depp, in Marc Forster's critically-acclaimed Best Picture Academy Award nominated film, "Finding Neverland."

For the latter, the young actor won the Broadcast Film Critics Association Award as Best Young Actor, and collected several other award nominations for his work, including two nods from the Screen Actors Guild (for Supporting Actor and Best Ensemble).
Highmore, a native of England, began his acting career at age six, playing Helena Bonham Carter's son in "Women Talking Dirty." He also appeared opposite Guy Pearce in Jean-Jacques Annaud's adventure film, "Two Brothers," and alongside Kenneth Branagh in "Five Children and It."
Highmore has also appeared in a number of television productions in the U.K., including the BBC film "Happy Birthday Shakespeare" and ITV's miniseries "I Saw You," as well as "The Mists of Avalon" in the U.S. He is currently back on the big screen, filming "Arthur and the Minimoys" for filmmaker Luc Besson in France. He will next star opposite Robin Williams and Liv Tyler in "August Rush," which will be produced by Jim Sheridan and directed by his daughter Kirsten (screenwriter for her father's 2003 Oscar-nominated drama "In America").

ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS
RIDLEY SCOTT (Director, Producer) earned consecutive Academy Award nominations as Best Director for his stunning recreation of the deadly 1993 battle in Mogadishu, Somalia, in "Black Hawk Down" (one of 2001's biggest box-office hits) and for the epic adventure "Gladiator," his vivid and dramatic evocation of ancient Rome that won five Oscars (out of twelve nominations), including Best Picture and Best Actor for Russell Crowe (as well as directing nominations for Scott from the DGA and BAFTA).

"Gladiator" also won both the Golden Globe and British Academy Awards as Best Picture, and has earned over $800 million at the global box office. Both motion picture triumphs further solidified his reputation as one of contemporary cinema's most innovative, influential and versatile visual stylists.

Scott was born in South Shields, Northumberland, England. Reared in London, Cumbria, Wales and Germany, he returned to Northeast England to live in Stockton-on-Tees. He studied at the West Hartlepool College of Art where he excelled in graphic design and painting, two strengths that would later serve as his signatures on the movie screen. He also studied at London's Royal Academy of Art, where his contemporaries included the famous artist David Hockney. During his studies there, Scott completed his first short film.

Graduating with honors, Scott was awarded a traveling scholarship to the United States. During his year there, he was employed by Time Life, Inc., where he gained valuable experience working with award-winning documentarians Richard Leacock and D.A. Pennebaker. Upon his return to the U.K., he joined the BBC as a production designer and, within a year, graduated to directing many of the network's popular TV programs.

After three years, he left to form his own company, RSA, which soon became one of the most successful commercial production houses in Europe (later adding offices in New York and Los Angeles). Over the years, Scott has directed over three thousand commercials, including the captivating spot for Chanel No. 5 entitled "Share the Fantasy" and the memorable one for Apple Computers that aired but once, during the 1984 Super Bowl. His work in the commercial arena has collected awards at the Venice and Cannes Film Festivals, as well as being honored by the New York Art Directors' Club. RSA still maintains a high profile in the global marketplace and represents some of the most acclaimed directors in the film and advertising arenas.

Scott made the leap from commercial production ("pocket versions of feature films" he calls them) to movies with 1977's "The Duellists," the lustrous Napoleonic War saga that brought him the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival. His second film switched genres, taking the filmmaker from the past into the frightening future with the groundbreaking sci-fi-thriller, "Alien," which walked off with an Oscar for Best Visual Effects.

He stayed in the future (and set the stage for future filmmakers) with his next feature, "Blade Runner," the landmark masterpiece starring Harrison Ford that is considered one of the milestones of contemporary moviemaking. The film was nominated for two Academy Awards -- art direction and visual effects. It was also added to the National Film Archives (maintained by the U.S. Library of Congress), the "youngest" film to be so honored.
Scott followed this triumph later in the decade with three more films -- the big screen fairy tale, "Legend," starring Tom Cruise; the urban thriller, "Someone to Watch Over Me" with Tom Berenger; and the cross-cultural gangster epic, "Black Rain," starring Michael Douglas and Andy Garcia.

In 1987, Scott formed Percy Main Productions to develop and produce feature films. The first production, which he helmed, was "Thelma and Louise." Starring Oscar-nominees Susan Sarandon and Geena Davis, the film collected five Academy Award nominations, including Scott's first as director (the film won the Best Original Screenplay prize and was also nominated for two British Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Director). He followed with "1492: Conquest of Paradise," his historical epic starring Gerard Depardieu as Christopher Columbus, and "The Browning Version," produced by Scott and starring Albert Finney and Greta Scacchi.

In 1995, along with younger brother Tony (also a successful filmmaker), he formed Scott Free productions, which produced "White Squall," with Jeff Bridges, "G.I. Jane" starring Demi Moore, and the blockbuster sequel, "Hannibal," with Anthony Hopkins and Julianne Moore (all three directed by Ridley Scott). Scott Free also produced "Clay Pigeons" and "Where the Money Is," a caper comedy starring Paul Newman.
Scott directed his own caper comedy, "Matchstick Men," starring Nicolas Cage and Sam Rockwell, and the epic story of the Crusades, "Kingdom of Heaven," which toplined Orlando Bloom and Jeremy Irons. He will once again step behind the cameras on the gritty Harlem-set drama, "American Gangster," reteaming with actor Crowe and collaborating with Oscar-winner Denzel Washington for the first time.

Scott also recently executive produced Kevin Reynolds' costume epic, "Tristan & Isolde"; Curtis Hanson's family drama "In Her Shoes"; and "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford," starring Brad Pitt and Casey Affleck.
The company also produced Showtime's CableACE-winning anthology series "The Hunger" (adapted from Tony Scott's 1983 film) and the Emmy and Golden Globe award-winning HBO telefilm, "RKO 281," starring Liev Schreiber as Orson Welles in the docudrama recreating the making of "Citizen Kane." Scott Free also executive produced "The Gathering Storm" for HBO, the Emmy and Golden Globe-winning telefilm (Best Made for Television Movie) depicting the life of Winston Churchill that starred Emmy-winning Best Actor Albert Finney and Emmy nominee Vanessa Redgrave. The company also recently signed a two-year deal with CBS to develop up to three projects for the network, the first of which is the acclaimed drama "Numb3rs."

The film director was involved in the combining of the two preeminent European film studios, Pinewood Studios and Shepperton Studios into a studio complex which houses forty-two stages, backlots and locations as well as award-winning post-production and production support services. Scott originally filmed "Alien" at this facility. Ridley together with his brother Tony Scott were part of the consortium which purchased Shepperton Studios in 1995 which subsequently merged with Pinewood in 2001.
In recognition for his contributions to the arts, Scott was awarded knighthood in 2003 from the Order of the British Empire.

MARC KLEIN (Screenwriter) has established himself as one of Hollywood's most sought-after writer/directors following his work with three compelling, well-regarded, and buzzworthy projects. Combining his ability to work with various genres and his innate sense of both male and female characters, Klein has proven himself an undeniable filmmaking asset on the rise.
Klein is currently editing his feature directorial debut, "The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing," which he also adapted for the screen. Melissa Banks' international bestseller is an endearing tale of a Manhattan book editor (Sarah Michelle Gellar) who changes her take on the game of romance after she lures the attention of an influential older man (Alec Baldwin). The film is scheduled for release in 2007.

Klein is also writing the screenplay for "Golden Gate," based on his original pitch. Produced by Tom Cruise and Paula Wagner, the Paramount Pictures romance is scheduled to begin production next year with Cruise attached to star.

Klein made his first impression on audiences worldwide with the acclaimed Miramax release "Serendipity." Directed by Peter Chelsom ("Shall We Dance"), the film stars John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale in an enchanting tale of a long-distance love that stands the test of time and happenstance. "Serendipity" garnered positive notices for Klein's richly drawn romantic characterizations and a narrative economy which branded the film's time-lapsing effect.

Prior to his debut as a screenwriter, Klein earned his first stripes in the romantic comedy genre working for director Jon Turteltaub, whose film "While You Were Sleeping" charmed audiences worldwide and launched Sandra Bullock to international acclaim. Klein graduated from New York University Film School, where he honed his skills for screenwriting while studying film icons such as Woody Allen, Peter Sellers, and John Sayles. His first sold script, "Love, Jenny," was purchased by Overbrook Entertainment ("Hitch") as a staring vehicle for Will Smith and his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. Klein also co-wrote the script "Instant Message," currently in development at Village Roadshow/Warner Bros. for director Jay Roach ("Meet the Parents").

PETER MAYLE (Author) spent fifteen years in the advertising business, first as a copywriter and then as a creative executive (for such agency giants as David Ogilvy and George Lois) in New York and London, before relocating to the South of France to write educational books for children. His first book, Where Did I Come From (1973), a simple volume about the 'facts of life', has sold over 2,000,000 copies to-date.

A brief return to London precipitated his final relocation to Provence in 1988, where he still resides with his wife and three dogs. With the intention of writing a thriller, the author became enchanted with his new surroundings and, in 1990, published the autobiographical memoir A Year in Provence, which became an international bestseller (spending three years on the New York Times list) and won the British Book Awards 'Best Travel Book of the Year' honor. In 1993, the book (which has sold over 5,000,000 copies) was adapted into a successful British TV miniseries starring John Shaw and Lindsay Duncan.

Since then, Mayle has written twelve more books (both fiction and non-fiction), including Toujours Provence (1991), Hotel Pastis (1993), A Dog's Life (1995), Anything Considered (1996), Chasing Cezanne (1997), Acquired Tastes (1992), Encore Provence (1999), French Lessons: Adventures with Knife, Fork and Corkscrew (2001) and Confessions of a French Baker, (2005). His latest (already available in France) is entitled Provence A-Z, which hits bookstores Stateside in the Fall.

In addition to his books, which have been translated into more than twenty-five languages, Mayle, a native of Brighton, East Sussex, England, has contributed to the Sunday Times, Financial Times, Independent, GQ and Esquire. In 2002, he was made a Chevalier of the Legion d'Honneur for services to the French-speaking world.

BRANKO LUSTIG (Executive Producer) reteams with filmmaker Ridley Scott for their fifth project together after serving as executive producer on Scott's recent release, "Kingdom of Heaven," as well as his Oscar-winning (Best Editing and Sound) war drama, "Black Hawk Down" and "Hannibal." The pair first collaborated on Scott's 2000 Best Picture Academy Award winner, "Gladiator," for which Lustig captured his second Oscar statuette, second British Academy Award (BAFTA) and second Golden Globe prize. He won his first Academy Award (as well as a Golden Globe and BAFTA honors) for his work as a producer on Steven Spielberg's epic 1993 Holocaust drama, "Schindler's List."

Born in Osijek, Croatia, Lustig survived two years in Nazi concentration camps at Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen. Following the war, he began his career as an assistant director at Jadran Films, Croatia's largest film and television studio. He later worked as the European production manager on two Oscar-nominated titles -- Alan Pakula's "Sophie's Choice" and Norman Jewison's "Fiddler on the Roof."

Lustig went on to serve as assistant director on Volker Schlondorff's film adaptation of Gunter Grass' novel "The Tin Drum" and as assistant director, associate producer and European production manager for Dan Curtis' miniseries "Winds of War" and its sequel, "War and Remembrance" (winning the Directors Guild of America Award for the latter). He was also a producer and assistant director on the Emmy-winning telefilm "Drug Wars: The Camarena Story," the sci-fi thriller "Deadlock" and also produced two other miniseries -- "The Great Escape: The Final Chapter" and "The Intruders."
In addition to his longtime affiliation with Ridley Scott, Lustig has also produced Mimi Leder's 1997 actioner, "The Peacemaker," starring George Clooney and Nicole Kidman.

JULIE PAYNE (Executive Producer) began her association with Ridley Scott as his assistant on "1492: Conquest of Paradise," and she continued in that capacity on "White Squall," "G.I. Jane" and "Gladiator."
In 2001, Payne was appointed Managing Director of Scott Free Films London, where she is currently developing the projects, "Emma's War, based on the book by Deborah Scroggins, with Tony Scott attached to direct; "Elegance," based on a book by Kathleen Tessaro; and "Potsdamer Platz, written by Louis Mellis and David Scinto.

For Scott Free/BBC and HBO, Payne was executive producer on "The Gathering Storm," starring Albert Finney and Vanessa Redgrave. The film was nominated for a Golden Globe award and an Emmy. Payne is currently working with BBC/HBO on a sequel, entitled "Walking with Destiny," written by Hugh Whitemore.

LISA ELLZEY (Executive Producer) is an Executive Vice President of Production at Twentieth Century Fox. She joined the studio in the fall of 2005.
Ellzey is the executive producer of the upcoming "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford" (2007), starring Brad Pitt and Casey Affleck, directed by Andrew Dominick.

Before joining Fox, she was the President of Scott Free Entertainment, the company owned by Ridley Scott and Tony Scott. She produced "In Her Shoes" (2005), directed by Curtis Hanson, and starring Cameron Diaz, Shirley MacLaine, and Toni Collette. Ellzey also produced "Tristan and Isolde" (2006), starring James Franco and Sophia Myles, with Kevin Reynolds directing. Ellzey was the executive producer of Ridley Scott's "Kingdom of Heaven" (2005), starring Orlando Bloom, Liam Neeson, Ed Norton, and Jeremy Irons. Ellzey was also the executive producer of Tony Scott's "Domino" (2005), starring Keira Knightly, Mickey Rourke and Christopher Walken.

Also while at Scott Free, Ellzey was the co-executive producer of "The Gathering Storm" (2002) for HBO. The film portrayed the life of Winston Churchill and starred Albert Finney and Vanessa Redgrave. Nominated for nine Emmy awards, the film received three: along with Albert Finney (Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Movie), and Hugh Whitemore (Writing for a Miniseries or Movie), Ellzey took home a statue for the Best Made for Television Movie. In addition, the film received two Golden Globes Awards, including Best Miniseries or Motion Picture, as well as three BAFTA Awards.

In 2002, Ellzey co-executive produced the reality television show "AFP: American Fighter Pilot" for CBS.

Before joining Scott Free, Ellzey was President of Sonnenfeld/Josephson where she was associate producer of "The Crew" starring Burt Reynolds and Richard Dreyfuss. Prior to that, she was Vice President of Doug Wick's Red Wagon Productions.

Ellzey began her career by producing a low budget independent film entitled "The Poison Tasters" starring French Stewart, which premiered at the 1995 Cannes Film Festival. Between shooting the film and its festival screening, she spent three years at Creative Artists Agency as an assistant in the Motion Pictures Literary department.

PHILIPPE LE SOURD (Director of Photography) is well-known in European film circles for his cinematography on feature films, music videos and commercials.
Le Sourd first worked with director Ridley Scott on a recent TV spot for Prada (co-directed by Scott's daughter, Jordan). He followed with another spot for Jordan Scott, this time for Renault. He has also guided the camera work on commercials for such clients as Nike, Nissan, Christian Dior, Mercedes, Target, Lancôme, Disneyland, Infinity, Lexus and Smirnoff, among many others.

In the music video arena, Le Sourd has collaborated with such renowned musical artists as George Michael, Isaac Hayes, Alanis Morissette, Florent Pagny, Scratch Machine and others. His directorial collaborations here include Les Freres Poiraud and Jake Scott (Ridley's son).
For the motion picture screen, Le Sourd directed the photography for the French features "Cantique de la racaille" (1998, directed by Vincent Ravalec), "Peut-Être" (1999) and "Atomik Circus: Le retour de James Bataille" (2004, reuniting with Les Freres Poiraud). He also worked with Ravalec on two short films: "Conséquences de la réalité des morts" (1996) and "La Merveilleuse odyssée de l'idiot Toboggan" (2002).

The Paris native broke into the business after a chance encounter with Oscar-nominated cinematographer Darius Khondji, whom he met while a university student. He began as a camera loader for Khondji on "Delicatessen" (directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet & Mark Caro) before becoming his focus puller on such features as "Stealing Beauty" (directed by Bernardo Bertolucci), "Le Cite des enfants perdus" (reuniting with directors Jeunet and Caro), "Marie-Louise et la Permission," "L'ombre du Doute," "Prague" and "Before the Rain."

SONJA KLAUS (Production Designer) reunites with director Ridley Scott after working as a set decorator on his most recent release, "Kingdom of Heaven," and his 2000 Oscar-winning Best Picture, "Gladiator." Klaus was one of four set decorators on the film, and was part of the team nominated for the Academy Award for Best Art Direction/Set Decoration on the film. She also shared the art direction award from the National Board of Review for her work on Scott's Roman epic.

Klaus, now based in London, is a native of Los Angeles who relocated to England as a young girl. Her first career choice was not in the arts, but science, as a marine biologist. She abandoned the idea after attending the Dartington College of Art in Devon, studying Art & Design. Still undecided about her career, she worked for a year with the resident costume and theatre designers at the school before earning her B.A. Honours Degree in Theatre Design at Wimbledon College of Art.

She began working professionally in London's West End theatre world. After four years (during which time she designed small theatrical productions), she moved into the TV arena as an art director, working on a children's TV program. She eventually moved into commercials (over two dozen), music videos (over forty) and television dramas before seguing into motion pictures with her first production design credit, "Soft Top, Hard Shoulder" in 1992.

In addition to her collaborations with director Scott, Klaus has also earned set decorator credits on such features as "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider," "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider -- The Cradle of Life," "Dog Soldiers," "The Calling," "Five Children and It" (which starred Freddie Highmore), "Prince Valiant," "My Giant" and "The Commissioner." For television, Klaus served as a set decorator (for production designer Roger Hall) on the 1997 miniseries "The Odyssey," the 1999 telefilm "Alice in Wonderland" and the 1998 NBC miniseries, "Merlin," on which she was part of Hall's Emmy-nominated design team. Most recently, she served as the U.K. set decorator on the French production, "San Antonio."
Her production design (art director) credits in the U.K. also include the 1994 TV series, "The Pirates," the 1989 series "Streetwise," the miniseries "Eye of the Storm," and the features "Feast of July" and "Mad Dogs and Englishmen."

DODY DORN, A.C.E. (Film Editor) reunites with director Ridley Scott after serving in the same capacity on his last two projects -"Kingdom of Heaven" and "Matchstick Men."

Dorn collected an Oscar nomination for Christopher Nolan's debut feature, "Memento" (also earning nominations for an AFI Film Award and an A.C.E. 'Eddie' Award for her editing). In the same year, Dorn received Emmy and A.C.E. 'Eddie' Award nominations for her work on the acclaimed ABC miniseries, "Life With Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows," starring Judy Davis.

Prior to her breakout year in 2000, her work was also on display in two films at the 1999 Sundance Film Festival's Dramatic Competition -- "Treasure Island" and "Guinevere," starring Stephen Rae and Sarah Polley, marking the feature directorial debut of screenwriter Audrey Wells ("The Truth About Cats and Dogs.") Dorn's diverse career also includes "Sick: The Life and Death of Bob Flanagan, Supermasochist," a documentary by Kirby Dick which was honored with a Special Jury Prize at the 1997 Sundance Film Festival and with the Best Film prize at that year's L.A. Independent Film Festival.

Other films include "I Woke Up Early the Day I Died," the off-beat feature film starring Billy Zane based on an Ed Wood script written in 1974; Britta Sjogren's poetic short "A Small Domain," winner of the 1996 Sundance Film Festival's Grand Jury prize for Best Short; actress Julie Delpy's directorial debut short, "Blah Blah Blah"; "Murderous Decisions," the interactive movie for European Television; "Tuesday Morning Ride," the Chanticleer Discovery Program film that received a 1996 Academy Award nomination as Best Short; and Michael Lindsay-Hogg's screen adaptation of the classic Samuel Beckett play, "Waiting for Godot." Dorn also collaborated again with filmmaker Nolan on his 2002 thriller, "Insomnia."

A native of Santa Monica, California, Dorn graduated from Hollywood High School and began her career as a production assistant on John Carpenter's TV biopic, "Elvis." She moved into sound editing in 1982, working on such Hollywood classics as "Silverado," "The Big Chill," "Mrs. Soffel," "Racing with the Moon," "The Big Easy" and "Children of a Lesser God."

A long term collaboration with Alan Rudolph includes work as a Supervising
Sound Editor on "The Moderns," "Choose Me," "Trouble in Mind," and "Made in Heaven." Other sound supervisor credits include "The Big Picture," "State of Grace" and "Powwow Highway." Dorn also started her own sound company, Sonic Kitchen, and, in 1990, won a Golden Reel Award for Best Sound on James Cameron's sci-fi epic, "The Abyss."

MARC STREITENFELD (Music) has collaborated with director Ridley Scott on five of the award-winning filmmaker's previous projects, including "Gladiator " (technical score advisor on the Oscar-nominated soundtrack), "Matchstick Men" and "Kingdom of Heaven" (music supervisor), and "Hannibal" and "Black Hawk Down" (music editor). This film represents his first as sole composer.

Streitenfeld is also a protege of Oscar-winning composer Hans Zimmer, working with the prolific music artist on two dozen projects as both music supervisor and music editor. In addition to his collaborations with Zimmer on director Scott's film works, he has worked (in various capacities) with Zimmer on such titles as "Crimson Tide" and "The Fan" (both directed by the other filmmaking Scott, Tony), "The Rock," "The Peacemaker," "The Last Samurai," "The Pledge," "Mission: Impossible II," "Beyond Rangoon," "The Thin Red Line," "As Good As It Gets," "The Preacher's Wife" and "The Prince of Egypt" (the latter four Oscar-nominated original scores).

Streitenfeld was born in Munich. The self-taught musician began studying music as a young boy, playing classical guitar, which led to his versatility on numerous instruments. He relocated to Los Angeles at the young age of nineteen, first working with Zimmer as his assistant, then as a freelance music editor and supervisor since 2001.

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