US AMONG THE STONES
Feature Film from D.R. Hood
"A particularly British flavour bubbles up – acrid and amused.
It’s down to the cast, especially an outstanding Laurence Fox,
to make every glance a barbed arrow, tensed to retaliate."- Tim Robey, London Film Festival Programmer
The Story
US AMONG THE STONES is the second film from female British director D.R. Hood whose debut Wreckers (2011) starred Benedict Cumberbatch, Claire Foy and Shaun Evans. Hood has collaborated again with her key creative team: cinematographer Annemarie Lean-Vercoe (Screen International Star of Tomorrow 2012), editor Claire Pringle and BAFTA-winning sound designer Ben Baird.
She has brought to the story a vibrant ensemble cast including Laurence Fox (Becoming Jane), Raia Haidar (It Must Be Heaven), Anna Calder Marshall (Anna Karenina), Sinead Matthews (Jellyfish), Greg Hicks (Snow White and the Huntsman), Bill Thomas (Loving Vincent) and Mika Simmons (Frenchman’s Creek).
At heart US AMONG THE STONES is about a man who comes home stuck and leaves liberated, and it explores what ties home and family can have for us, even long after we have apparently ‘grown up’.
Principal photography took place in Widecombe on the Moor, Devon, with a fantastic crew and the use of multiple media – we shot on Arri Alexa, Lumix, 35mm stills camera, pinhole camera and iPhone.
Cast & Crew
D.R HOOD
DIRECTOR
Prior to her first feature Wreckers, Dictynna wrote and directed multi-award winning short films The Other Man with BAFTA winner Anna Maxwell Martin, and Journey Man, with Ruth Madoc. Journey Man was a global festival hit and had eight months' theatrical exhibition in the UK. Dictynna has had work commissioned by Granada and Channel 4, and wrote the screenplay for Tim Krabbe’s cult novel Vertraging [Echo]. Dictynna has also directed for theatre and audio, including audio versions of Aristophanes’ The Clouds with Andrew Sachs and extracts from Homer’s Iliad with David Warner.
Laurence Fox
OWEN
Laurence is an actor and musician from one of Britain’s most prominent acting dynasties. He is best known for his role as D.S. James Hathaway in the television detective series Lewis along with recent performance in ITV’s show Victoria playing the role of Lord Palmerston. He studied at RADA and appeared in Robert Altman's Academy Award-winning film Gosford Park (2001) which launched a successful career in film and television. He has also taken to the stage in roles such as Gregers Werle in The Wild Duck, Fred Beanstock in Hobson's Choice and Charles de Gaulle in The Patriotic Traitor. As a musician, he released his debut album Sorry for My Words in 2013, Holding Patterns in 2016, and his next Album is out in September 2019.
Anna Calder-Marshall
MARIANNE
Anna began her career as Clara Browning on the series The Wednesday Play and went on to a range of further series, such as Love Story, Sanctuary, and most recently Harlots (2018) and Les Miserables (2019). She will soon be seen in feature film Last Christmas. Anna starred in the 1970 adaptation of Wuthering Heights as Catherine opposite Timothy Dalton and has had a lengthy stage career. Recent work includes Love and Lost Without Words, both at the National Theatre.
Raia Hadar
CAROLINE
Raia is a talented Lebanese and French actress from Gambia who most recently appeared in Elia Suleiman's It Must Be Heaven (in official competition at the Cannes Film Festival 2019). One of her first roles was playing Daria in a Lebanese short thriller Giallo, directed by Antoine Waked in 2005. Since then she has starred in a number of short films, features, television series as well as a body of stage work. Raia lives between Canada, Europe and Lebanon.
Sinead Matthews
ANNA
Sinead was awarded last year’s Michael Powell Award 2018 at the Edinburgh International Film Festival for her role in Jellyfish. She studied at RADA and has worked across radio, film and television. One of her earliest television appearances was playing Mary in He Knew He Was Right. She also starred in Terry Pratchett's Hogfather as the Tooth Fairy as well as appearances in a number of other films including Joe Wright's Pride and Prejudice, Nanny McPhee and The Big Bang, and playing Queen Victoria in Mr Turner. Upcoming roles include Marcia Falkender in series 3 of The Crown.
Oliver Cotton
RICHARD
Oliver is an actor and writer. He has appeared in over 30 productions at the National Theatre, the Royal Shakespeare Company and several West End productions. His film credits include Firefox, Eleni, Wonder Woman, The Dark Knight Rises, The Day Christ Died, Oliver Twist, The Sicilian, Hiding Out and Christopher Columbus. His numerous TV appearances include The Borgias, The Camomile Lawn, Sharpe’s Battle, Poirot, Penny Dreadful and Ripper Street. Oliver’s writing for the London stage includes Wet Weather Cover, Daytona, Dessert and his writing for the screen includes The English Game for Netflix.
Greg Hicks
RICHARD
Greg is a critically acclaimed actor and associate of the Royal Shakespeare Company and was a regular collaborator with Sir Peter Hall. He was nominated for an Olivier Theatre Award in the category "Best Actor of 2003" for his performance in Coriolanus at the Old Vic. He was awarded the 2003 Critics' Circle Theatre Award (Drama) for Best Shakespearian Performance in the same role. He has also appeared in a number of television shows including The Bill, Waking the Dead and The Bible. Recent film work includes The Mercy. Current projects include a bilingual reinterpretation of The Merchant of Venice at La Abadia in Madrid and a one man show of Death in Venice at the Arcola Theatre next summer.
Jethro Skinner
DANNY
Jethro's work spans theatre, film and television. His theatre repertoire includes playing Fabian in Twelfth Night at Shakespeare's Globe, Mark Stone in Boiling Frogs at the Southwark Playhouse, Tybalt in Romeo and Juliet at Vienna's English Theatre and most recently he appeared in The Hunt at the Almeida Theatre. Television roles include Eastenders, Cold Feet and The Misfit Soldier.
Mika Simmons
ROSE
Mika is a British actress, filmmaker and founder of the Lady Garden Foundation, a leading women’s health charity endorsed by Cara Delevingne and Margot Robbie. She has played a diverse range of roles on screen including ITV's Frenchman's Creek and Unforgotten, the BAFTA award winning Falling Apart and the role of Queen Anora in the animation game Dragon Age. In 2016, Mika played Kate in short film Balcony which went on to win the Crystal Bear at the Berlin Film Festival. Her 2019, directorial debut, Rain Stops Play, starring Immy Waterhouse, Joe McGann and Tara Fitzgerald, won the Silver Remi for Best Comedy Short at the Houston Film Festival.
Bill Thomas
BRIAN
Bill is a stage and film actor whose roles include Bill in Song for Marion (2012) and Walt Pascoe in A Horseman Riding By. He played Charles Quance in The House of Eliott and Max in The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Attack of the Hawkmen (1995). From 2002-2005 he played Tom Henshall in Cutting It. He has also appeared in Classic British television series Midsomer Murders, Lovejoy, Emmerdale and The Bill.
Taru Devani
SATYA
Taru is a UK based actor and singer originally from Uganda, Africa. She has released six albums of original, devotional and Bollywood Indian songs. Having acted in the UK for over 45 years she has diverse experience in film, TV, stage and radio. She is a co-star in the award-winning film Queer Parivaar and appears in the Oscar winning film The Long Goodbye. Her other film credits include Tuesday alongside Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Song For Marion alongside Vanessa Redgrave, Terence Stamp, Gemma Arterton and Christopher Ecclestone. Her TV credits include BBC’s Doctors and Eastenders; ITV’s DI Ray and Maternal.
Annemarie Lean-Vercoe
CINEMATOGRAPHER
Annemarie Lean-Vercoe is the first cinematographer ever selected as one of Screen International’s ‘Stars of Tomorrow’. She studied cinematography at the National Film and Television School in the UK, where she was the recipient of the Freddie Francis scholarship. Since graduating in 2003 she has shot award winning work across Africa, Asia, North America and Europe including Everyday (2012) with acclaimed British director Michael Winterbottom.
Claire Pringle
EDITOR
Claire edited D.R. Hood’s award-winning short film The Other Man, as well as Wreckers, and is an accomplished editor of family relationships and stories. She has edited three other independent feature films, several shorts, and has also edited comedy slots for Stewart Lee and other comedians.
Ben Baird
SOUND DESIGNER
Ben Baird is the winner of 3 BAFTAs and 5 further nominations as well as an Emmy nomination, two RTS awards and a Conch. He is a founder of Aquarium Sound Studios in London and Belgium and has acted as sound designer on many acclaimed independent films including Pin Cushion (2017), Disobedience (2017), The Levelling (2017) and Lady Macbeth (2017).
Georgie Paget
PRODUCER
Georgina worked for director Joanna Hogg on Archipelago (2010) and Exhibition (2013). She produced the award-winning documentary Queens Of Syria (2014) and a theatre project in Jordan with 50 Syrian refugees which toured the UK in co-production with The Young Vic Theatre. Previously she produced short films with Dan Stevens and Romola Garai among others. Recent projects include Dead In A Week (Or Your Money Back) (2018) starring Tom Wilkinson and Aneurin Barnard.
Thembisa Cochrane
PRODUCER
In association with Spier Films, Thembisa produced The Harvesters (2018) in selection at Cannes 2018. As an executive at Spier Films she worked on films including An Act of Defiance (2017), Young Ones (2014) starring Nicholas Hoult, Michael Shannon and Elle Fanning; The Salvation (2014) starring Mads Mikkelsen and Eva Green; The Price of Sugar (2013) and Of Good Report (2013), winner of 7 South African Film & TV Awards. Prior to this she was the founding producer of DHP Studios, London.
News
International Premiere in Cairo
We are thrilled the film has been invited to the 41st Cairo International Film Festival where it will have its international debut on Saturday 23 November. As festival director Mohamed Hefzy said: "It’s a festival with a lot of history [...] you know it’s always going to be there regardless of its ups and downs, even if it goes through revolutions, turbulence and economic and political insecurity."
World Premiere Announced
We are delighted that D.R. Hood has been invited back to the BFI London Film Festival where her debut film Wreckers starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Claire Foy and Shaun Evans showed in 2011. The world premiere of the film will be on 12 October 2019.
- Newsletter