Project Detail

Beginner's Luck

Synopsis

Mark Feinman has a dream; he's stranded alone on a desert island, but he doesn't know why. In a flash of inspiration he realises his dream is a premonition and immediately sets up a touring theatre company with his two friends, Hettie and Jason. Their mission: to bring a radical reinterpretation of Shakespeare's Tempest to unsuspecting audiences in Edinburgh, Paris and London.

Mark and his misfit mates are forced to sign up their actors from an assortment of petty criminals, public school boys and burger bar workers. However, the miraculous arrival of the mysterious and beautiful Anya spurs them on to new heights for the world premiere in Soho.

After a sublimely disastrous opening in London, the young hopefuls flee to Edinburgh and Paris in search of their dreams: fame, fortune, sexual adventure and a decent meal. Once on the road they find their idealism rewarded with every possible mishap and breakdown.

Having reached rock bottom, Mark makes a final stab at leadership. He announces a new booking in a glamorous Parisian venue. In the city of love and lights they find that their problems have only just begun. With no money and no roof over their heads, they may as well be marooned on a desert island.

Details

Year
2002
Type of project
Features
Running time
83 mins
Format
Super 16mm
Director
James Callis, Nicholas Cohen
Producer
Harriet Evans-Lombe, Richard Osborne, James Harding
Editor
Alistair Waterson
Screenwriter
James Callis, Nicholas Cohen
Director of Photography
Chris Preston
Sound
Andy Mitchell
Composer
Karl Wallinger, Tristan Norwell
Principal cast
James Callis, Julie Delpy, Steven Berkoff, Christopher Cazenove, Tom Redhill

Genre

Categories

Production Status

Production Company

Latenight Pictures

Suite 118
Golden House
29 Great Pulteney Street
London W1R 3DD
UK

T 00 44 (0)20 7437 0082

latenightpictures@hotmail.com

Sales Company

Icon Entertainment Int

The Quadrangle
4th Floor
180 Wardour Street
London W1F 8FX
UK

T 00 44 (0)20 7494 8100

www.icon-online.com

Page updates

This page was last updated on 12th May 2025. Please let us know if we need to make any amendments or request edit access by clicking below.

See also

You may also be interested in other relevant projects in the database.

Dawn is given a neck crick by the Art Teacher Untitled Woman

Director: Camille Summers-Valli

Year: 2026

Dawn is invisible to those around her in a world that favours youth. She fights back to be seen in the most unexpected of ways.

A large man is holding a tiny boy in the palm of his hand as a pint of beer sits on the table in front of them both. A Pint of Bitter

Director: Conor Kehelly

Year: 2026

You are trying to enjoy a quiet pint in the pub but a patron and his son seemingly have a problem with your demeanour. Official Selection, Flatpack Festival 2026 Official Selection, Zagreb Animation Festival 2026 Official Selection, Ottawa Animation Festival 2026 Official Selection, Fantastic Fest 2026 Official Selection Pictoplasma, New York, 2026

A teenage bedroom with many posters on the wall, a pic morrow and a lava lamp Haunts (Ôl)

Director: Lucy Hammond, Tomos Chetwode-Barton

Year: 2026

It’s 2006. In a small town in North Wales, 16-year-old Morgan stands on the edge of his future, guiding us through haunts, hangouts and nights that linger long after the last bus leaves. The year is 2006, Tony Blair is Prime Minister, Twitter has just been launched, and young people are quickly getting used to a world where social media and technology are beginning to take hold. 16-year-old Morgan, voiced by Callum Scott Howells (It’s a Sin), is searching to understand where he belongs, his journey set against the backdrop of a community in Llanberis – a small town at the foot of Snowdon in Wales. Featuring music by Welsh artists including Super Furry Animals, John Cale and High Contrast.