Prime Focus launches TV shingle
First project to be adaptation of 'Good Omens'
By Diana Lodderhose
Prime Focus, the Indian-owned vfx and post-production facility, has launched Prime Focus Prods., which will work on TV drama.
Rod Brown, former Mob Film partner, will head the shingle in London.
The first project is an adaptation of Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman's tome "Good Omens," adapted by Terry Jones ("Monty Python") and Gavin Scott ("Small Soldiers").
Scottish broadcaster STV is funding script development on the £7 million ($11.3 million) four-hour project and will co-produce.
Prime Focus also has another project in the pipeline with Pratchett. It has secured exclusive worldwide TV rights to create new storylines for Pratchett's fantasy fiction franchise "Discworld."
Shingle is dubbing the 13-hour-long miniseries "The Watch"; the storyline will follow the day-to-day activities of the men, women, trolls, dwarves, vampires and other species that live in the fictional city of Ankh Morpork. The series will also be penned by Jones and Scott."We've already spoken to a number of international broadcasters who have shown early interest and we hope to move forward very quickly to bring this exciting project into fruition," said Brown.
The shingle is developing a Cold War spy thriller, with the working title "Department 13," alongside STV and Shoreline Ent., which toplines David Jason.
Project is being developed by Caleb Ranson, the scribe behind ITV dramas "Diamond Geezer" (which also starred Jason) and "Distant Shores."
Brown and Jason have a history of working together and have collaborated on TV movies such as 2008's "The Color of Magic" and 2006's "Hogfather," as well as the series "Diamond Geezer."
Jason said: "Rod and I are both looking forward to getting projects off the ground. 'Department 13' is a great script and I'm quite excited to be working with him again."
Contact Diana Lodderhose at
diana.lodderhose@variety.com
