Michael

Vertigo Films Presents

A Nick Love Film

The Football Factory

Danny Dyer

Frank Harper

Tamer Hassan

Roland Manookian

Neil Maskell

Dudley Sutton

And

Jamie Foreman

CASTING DIRECTOR

SAM CHANDLEY

MAKEUP AND HAIR DESIGNER

DEANNE TURNER

COSTUME DESIGNER

JAYNE GREGORY

COMPOSER

IVOR GUEST

MUSIC SUPERVISOR

LOL HAMMOND

EDITOR

STUART GAZZARD

PRODUCTION DESIGNER

PAUL BURNS

DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY

DAMIAN BROMLEY

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER

ROCKSTAR GAMES

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER

ROBERT BLAGOJEVIC

RUPERT PRESTON

BASED ON THE BOOK

‘THE FOOTBALL FACTORY’ BY JOHN KING

PRODUCED BY

ALLAN NIBLO

JAMES RICHARDSON

WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY

NICK LOVE

Introduction

The Football Factory was filmed over six weeks during April and May 2003 on location in South East London.

The film has been written and directed by Nick Love whose debut film Goodbye Charlie Bright was critically acclaimed upon release in 2001.

From the best selling author John King comes the adaptation of his cult novel ‘The Football Factory’. The film was produced by award winning producer Allan Niblo (‘Human Traffic’, ‘South West 9’) and James Richardson (‘ Kiss Kiss Bang Bang’).

The all British cast include Danny Dyer (Human Traffic), Frank Harper (Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Twenty Four Seven, Bend it Like Beckham), Jamie Foreman (Nil By Mouth, Gangster No. 1), Roland Manookian (Goodbye Charlie Bright, GMT), Neil Maskell (Nil By Mouth) and veteran actor Dudley Sutton (Felini’s Casanova)

Following closely in the footsteps of the book the film is a violent and humorous snap-shot of the infamous Chelsea Headhunters. Both hard hitting and hugely entertaining it speaks directly to its generation.

"The best book I have ever read about Football and working class culture in the nineties. Buy, borrow or steal a copy now."

Irvine Welsh

Film Synopsis

THE FOOTBALL FACTORY is a study of loyalty, football violence and male culture. The story centres around Tommy Johnson a bored twenty-something who lives for the weekend, casual sex, watered down lager, heavily cut drugs…. and occasionally kicking the f*ck out of someone. Tommy’s life ambles along until a violent encounter with a rival firm starts a war and a series of nightmares force him to ask him the question about his life: is it worth it?

Told through Tommy’s eyes and linked together by his relationships with three other generations of males, THE FOOTBALL FACTORY is a drug fuelled adrenaline rush of a story about friendship, revenge and violence.

This is England’s worst nightmare. Enjoy it.

Characters

The story unfolds through the eyes of Tommy Johnson, a bored twenty-something. Tommy has always been involved in fighting, whether it was for the attention of a girl or off the football pitch, he has always been addicted to the rush. After a night out with his best mate Rod, he unintentionally upsets Millwall’s head boy Fred. Soon a tit for tat revenge situation begins and Tommy starts to have recurring nightmares. Not having anyone to turn to he faces his fears head on and suffers the consequences.

Billy Bright is part of the older generation of The Firm, he is full of bitterness in what he sees as the country and system that have failed him. Away from the crowds he commands an audience to impress the younger guys, but he’s a sad and isolated character whose life is fast spiralling out of control.

Fred heads the rival Millwall firm, the arch enemy of Chelsea. Things come to a head when Tommy inadvertently crosses path with him.

Zeberdee, a mouthy young guy coming through the ranks of The Firm has already run into a cul de sac of crime and drugs. Zeberdee aspires to be a future top boy, unfortunately his lack of intellectual guile gets him into hot water.

Rod is Tommy’s oldest friend and confidante, ambling along the path lead by his mates. His life comes to a turning point when he meets the woman of his dreams only to find love has its strings attached and some strings are harder to break than others.

Second World War veteran Bill Farrell is in his mid seventies who is living out the remainder of his days with his childhood friend Albert Moss. Together they replace each others passed away wives and enjoy every day to the limit, still trying to pull women and getting drunk together. But when Albert dies Bill's life starts to fall apart as he struggles to cope with life on his own and a new future in Australia beckons.

When arch-rivals Chelsea draw Millwall in the FA cup, ardent Chelsea supporters Tommy, Billy and co start to plan the action off pitch. It’s a big day for younger members like Zeberdee who get the chance to prove themselves to the head boys. It’s also an opportunity for old hands like Billy Bright to prove they still have the fighting power.

The date, time and place are set. A plan of action to avoid detection by the police is in motion. All Tommy has to do is hold his nerve and not let his paranoid nightmares get the better of him as he tries to stay out of the way of Fred who is vying for his blood.

Just as the match on pitch stops the fight off pitch begins.

Can the Chelsea Firm take on the Millwall Firm....?

About The Production

Page To The Big Screen

Published in 1996, THE FOOTBALL FACTORY by John King has attracted critical acclaim and commercial success. The novel addresses the epidemic of football hooliganism within British culture in a candid and balanced style, which has prompted a stream of debate and opposition amongst middle England.

THE FOOTBALL FACTORY was also a successful stage production by The Brighton Theatre Company in 1998. The play was adapted and directed by Paul Hodson and Chris Stagg. Actor Steve North (also an Associate Producer in the film) was starring in the play when he introduced Allan Niblo to the novel.

"After reading THE FOOTBALL FACTORY, I knew it was vital to turn it into a feature film both from a cultural and cinematic point of view’’, explains Producer Allan Niblo. "The book captures football culture’s underbelly better than any fiction I had come across. To portray this we needed to find a director who not only knew the background to the book but also understood how to translate the story to the big screen".

"We both knew of Nick Love as a talented young director and after watching his first feature film ‘Goodbye Charlie Bright’, he became our top choice for directing THE FOOTBALL FACTORY. We felt his ability to translate relationships within modern day Britain was to be a key factor in making the film an authentic representation of the book" recalls James Richardson.

Nick Love adds, "I tried to acquire the film rights to John King’s novel but found they had already been sold. So later when I was approached by Allan and James to direct the movie I immediately said yes".

To the producers amazement Nick wrote and delivered the script within four days. "The script far exceeded what we had expected from a first draft, this contained all the elements of how we envisaged the film being brought to the big screen", adds James.

The Characters

Nick Love used his own experience of football traditions to show the different types of supporters and their motivation towards violence. To illustrate younger guys turning to violence, he created new character ‘Zeberdee’.

"I wanted to show how the ‘Firms’ are made up at present with young guys joining up and how the existing hierarchy works. I wanted to create different portrayals of violence through the eyes of four generations, " recalls Nick.

"The potential leader Tommy Johnson (Danny Dyer) who’s the central character is in his twenties, Billy Bright (Frank Harper) in his forties with a tendency to use his fists. Zeberdee (Roland Manookian) is in his late teens, representing a new breed of evil and finally there’s Bill Farrell (Dudley Sutton) in his seventies, who has fought for his country during WWII but doesn’t believe in violence."

Casting

Nick wrote the first draft of the script using names of the actors whom he envisaged playing those roles. Casting director Sam Chandley shared the director’s vision, she adds, "The trick was finding a balanced ensemble that was believable as a group of people who had spent huge parts of their lives together with shared a history. The off-screen friendships of our principal cast helped re-enact a strong rapport on-screen."

As the principal cast were approached to appear in the film, the reaction was unanimous. Danny Dyer (Tommy Johnson) explains, "I’d worked with Nick on ‘Goodbye Charlie Bright’ so when he approached me to play the lead in THE FOOTBALL FACTORY I immediately said yes. I had been waiting to play a lead which challenged conventions."

Veteran actor Dudley Sutton (Bill Farrell) adds, "I had not worked with Nick before but I admire his work so when he called to ask me if I wanted to be part of his new project I agreed without hearing what the film was about or reading a script, I have a lot of faith in him".

Frank Harper (Billy Bright) " I always knew Nick was the right person to direct this film, so when Nick read out the cards (containing the dialogue for the film) I sat there open mouthed, it was an extraordinary piece of writing, Nick really understands the relationships between men, the camaraderie and bonds that exist are displayed without the use of clichés. That’s the beauty of Nick Love, he doesn’t write conventional stereotypes."

Roland Manookian (Zeberdee) starred in ‘Goodbye Charlie Bright’ and jumped at the chance to work with him again. "I’d liken my experience with Nick to being a block of paint for Nick’s colour palette he has the foresight to create a great painting, little effort needed from me."

Tamer Hassan (Fred) also wanted to work with Nick for a long time so when this opportunity came up he was thrilled, "I wanted to work with Nick Love. I have grown up my whole life in Millwall and around the Millwall football ground. The part I was offered was very close to home."

Neil Maskell (Rod) met Nick at a party thrown my Frank Harper and they hit it off straight away, being offered the part of Rod was very important as he explains "I have never to worked with anyone as remarkable as him, he has such great energy and verve, he controlled the shoot like a captain of a ship everything scene was filmed with clarity. I have a lot admiration for him and cannot wait to work with him again."

Allan adds, "Nick picked the actors who translated the story best on screen and we’re very pleased with everyone he cast as they all deliver a stellar performance especially under such constraints. The performances can be attributed to the patience and guidance of Nick who bought out the best in each cast member."

The Real ‘Firms’

Allan, James and Nick were very cautious about the tension of real ‘Firm’ rivalry not spilling over onto the set. Allan explains, "The major issue faced by us as filmmakers was always keeping the film real and authentic. This involved using many real Firm members and football supporters as extras and shooting in the locations used in the book."

"Essentially our biggest challenge was portraying the people in the truest light and depicting people involved in a genuine way. We had to quickly learn the politics of the subculture we were entering as this was sometimes very extreme, having to recognise images, identity and ego." Concludes James.

Nick explains, "The Firms on screen were made up of a mixture of supporters from different clubs, this way we didn’t have all the Chelsea supporters playing Chelsea supporters, Tottenham supporters playing Tottenham supporters and so on. By mixing the groups we cut out the politics from the situation and everyone got on well. I’d put time aside in my mind to negotiate this so the situation didn’t become stressful or get out of hand."

The biggest achievement during filming for Allan, James and especially Nick became the Chelsea Versus Millwall fight as all concerned were worried about possible gatecrashers on the day. Nick explains, "The lead up to shooting the big fight (Chelsea Vs Millwall) was tremendously nerve racking as we didn’t know if the fights would get out of hand, there were rumours that we’d get bombarded by real ‘Firms’, thankfully this didn’t happen. We had achieved a seemingly impossible task of capturing a realistic fight between rivals Millwall and Chelsea without incident. The last week was the biggest elation from the crew and cast."

"Everything had the potential to go very wrong. There was also a press photographer lurking in the bushes taking sneaky photos. It was a mad day but everything worked out very well, after that day we all thought, F*ck – we’ve done it, " explains Nick.

The Music

The music plays a key role in intensifying the cinematic experience, which was at the forefront of Nick’s mind during the editing. Music Supervisor Lol Hammond explains, "We didn’t want to have a soundtrack which was heavy on any particular styles i.e. dance or punk. It was vital to find a synergy between sound and image, and Nick had very strong ideas about what did and didn’t work on screen."

"We screened the film to various bands whose music we wanted to feature in the film and the response was overwhelmingly positive. Everyone from Mike Skinner of The Streets to Bobby Gillespie of Primal Scream felt THE FOOTBALL FACTORY was both important in a sociological point of view and as a piece of entertainment."

"We have music ranging from new band ‘The Kennedy’s’ to ‘The Jam’ and exclusive tracks from Orbital and Alabama 3. I feel we have created a soundtrack, which I definitely would buy and a lot of people can identify with and gain immense pleasure from."

The Final Product

Nick concludes "The film will stand the test of time, I hope it will be very iconic, a post millennium film, it shows a bored race who are sick of the way the country is being run. The film says everything that people are scared to say. The film shows the nation’s dissatisfaction with Blair’s Britain".

Cast Biographies

Danny Dyer (Tommy Johnson) - Played the infamous Moff in the 1999 cult classic, "Human Traffic" and has since worked alongside Vinnie Jones, Jason Statham and Jason Flemyng in the hit prison comedy "Mean Machine" as well as appearing alongside the Hollywood starlet, Minnie Driver in Mel Smith’s 2002 feature, "High Heel’s and Low Lifes". In addition to working on Nick Love’s "Goodbye Charlie Bright", Danny has starred in a number of other features in addition to his successful television career, which includes appearances in Foyle’s War, Soldier Soldier and A Touch of Frost. He was recently in ‘Second Generation’ for Channel 4 and ‘Family’ for BBC 1.

On his character: "The character I play is not a true Football Hooligan, but because he has grown up in it all his life and been surrounded by all of his mates in it he does not really have a choice but to immerse himself in it. Throughout the film he is constantly questioning himself as to what he is doing, but he loves a good fight!

Best experience: "The best day for me was the Chelsea Vs Millwall fight. So many people were involved and the adrenalin rush was amazing, it was like being back in the playground only with grown ups. It was like a scene out of Braveheart!"

Overall: "The experience was a real eye opener, I was worried about my first lead as you have so many people relying on you, you have so much to carry on your shoulders, but Nick is a fantastic director and I slipped into it very easily. The experience made me grow up as a person and grow as an actor as well. I am ready for my next lead now; I know I can handle the responsibility."

Frank Harper (Billy Bright)

Frank has starred in over 20 films including ‘In the Name of the Father’ 1993, ‘Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels’ 1998, ‘Out of Control’ (TV 2002), ‘Bend it Like Beckham’ (2002) and ‘Lucky Break’ (2001). He has worked with Allan Niblo on ‘South West Nine’ (2001) and can also be seen in Nick Love’s ‘Goodbye Charlie Bright’ (2001). In addition to his vast film experience, Frank has made a number of notable Television appearances in episodes of ‘The Bill’, ‘Bird’s of a Feather’ and ‘Lovejoy’.

On his character Billy Bright: "Billy’s a contradiction, he’s never grown up, a lost soul amongst men. He has a very nasty streak but that’s part of his genetic make-up. The dialogue was impeccable; Nick really gets to the heart of the character. " Asked if Frank recognises Billy Bright and what research he had to do for the part, he replies "I’ve done 24 years of research for the part, it’s a part I’ve been waiting to play for a very long time."

Tamer Hassan – ‘Fred’

Tamer has just finished his fifth feature film in six months, co-starring with such names as Orlando Bloom (in Working Title’s new British cult film ‘The Calcium Kid’) playing a psychotic boxer; Morgan Freeman, Jet Li and Bob Hoskins (in Luc Besson’s ‘Danny The Dog’) playing Bob Hoskins' right-hand-man; Ken Stott, Jack Dee and Nick Moran (in ‘Spivs’) playing one of the leads; Frank Harper and Danny Dyer (in the film version of the much acclaimed John King novel THE FOOTBALL FACTORY playing Millwall Fred; and co-starring with Daniel Craig in ‘Layer Cake’, the latest from Matthew Vaughn and Guy Ritchie's Ska Films. Tamer has also just accepted his first leading role in The Film- makers, directed by Julian Gilby.

Working in the film: "I have grown up my whole life in Millwall and around the Millwall football ground. I felt the part I was offered was very close to home. My character was very violent, aggressive, a leader and head of the Millwall Bushwhackers and basically the only nemesis in the film.

Roland Manookian – ‘Zeberdee’

Roland returns to working with Nick Love after starring in ‘Goodbye Charlie Bright’ (2001) and ‘Mauvaise Passé’ (1999). This year will see him appearing alongside Mike Reid, Rick Mayall, Tom Bell and Lara Belmont in ‘Oh Marbella’!, Directed by Piers Ashworth. He has starred in Television movies such as ‘Great Expectations’ (1999), ‘Storm Damage’ (1999), as well as appearing in hits such as ‘As If’ and ‘The Vice’.

On his character: "I play Zeberdee who is a very wild young man who lacks direction in his life. He has very little guidance and has been inspired by the wrong group of people. The character isn’t in the novel as he was created by Nick Love to be representative of a younger generation coming up through the ranks."

Biggest challenge: "It was trying not to get hit in the face, trying to make sure my nose didn’t get punched on the big finale of the film."

Neil Maskell – ‘Rod’

Neil played "Shmuddie" in Gary Oldman’s 1997 hit, ‘Nil by Mouth’ and can be seen alongside Jason Donovan and Tim Curry in Alexander Jovy’s ‘Sorted’ (2000). In addition to his ever-expanding film career, Neil has made many appearances on Television favourites, such as, ‘Murder Most Horrid’, ‘The Thin Blue Line’ and ‘The Bill’.

On his character: "Rod has a very clear journey in the film, he’s on the cusp of great change just doesn’t know what’s happening to him. It was great playing a character like him especially as Nick gave me a lot of freedom as an actor to play certain scenes as I wanted."

On the other cast, "I was very impressed with the top notch cast, everyone was working together and I’ve learnt a lot from the others. In the end we were a bunch of mates hanging out having a brilliant experience on set."

Dudley Sutton – ‘Bill Farrell’

Dudley’s many film credits includes ‘Song for a Raggy Boy’, ‘Cheese makes you dream’ and ‘This Filthy Earth’; other films include Sally Potter’s ‘Orlando’; ‘The Devils’ and ‘The Rainbow’ for Ken Russell; Fellini’s ‘Casanova’ and ‘The Big Sleep’ for Michael Winner, ‘The Pink Panther Strikes Again’. His TV credits include playing Tinker in ‘Lovejoy’, Dudley will soon be seen in ‘Eastenders’ this March.

Famous in the 1960’s for partying with friends Peter O’Toole and Richard Harris, Dudley has known Nick Love for a few years and always had great admiration for him. He hadn’t read the script when accepting the part of Bill Farrell. "Nick Love called me up and said I want you to do my next film and I said yes straight away because I have a lot of trust and respect for him. He is lovely to work with, straight talking and very honest."

On his character:, "I was in the RAF so I understand the discipline and empathise with his view point in life. Bill is very non moralistic, he doesn’t disapprove of Tommy and provides him with a support system. Bill is a very strong guy who has seen the world and is ready to retire."

Jamie Foreman – ‘Cabbie’

Jamie’s film career has included appearance in various top British films ‘Gangster No 1’ ‘Goodbye Charlie Bright’ ‘, Earl of Sussex in Oscar nominated film ‘Elizabeth’ alongside Cate Blanchett. He has also put in outstanding performance as a prison officer Jim in Jim Sheridan’s ‘Out Of Control’, for BBC films ‘Sleepy Hollow’, ‘ID’ and ‘This Yea’rs Love’ as well notable performances in ‘Micawber’ for ITV and ‘Family Business’ for BBC1. Jamie is soon to be seen in Ska Films’ ‘Layer Cake’ by Matthew Vaughn.

Crew Biographies

Writer / Director

Nick Love

Since graduation with a distinction from Bournemouth Film School, Nick Love has written and directed two feature films, the first was ‘Goodbye Charlie Bright’ (2001) starring Paul Nicholls and Danny Dyer.

Critical acclaim for ‘Goodbye Charlie Bright’ includes:

"Say Goodbye Charlie Bright and you automatically say hello Nick Love. There aren’t many movies by first-time writer-directors, which hit the ground running so hard or so entertainingly. We have a new talent here".

The Observer, Peter Preston

"Vivid stuff, true to itself, and a very promising debut".

Timeout, Tom Charity

"Goodbye Charlie Bright shares with Billy Elliot a feeling for the absolute compulsion to escape from the ghetto of environmental pressures or tribal entropy that stifle the best and the brightest. A small film, yes; but unexpectedly a very good one".

ES Magazine, Alexander Walker

Producer

Allan Niblo

After graduating from the National Film and Television School, Allan has worked as a Cameraman, Director and Producer. His first film as producer was the critical and box office smash hit ‘Human Traffic’ which was picked up by Miramax and nominated for a BAFTA. The second film ‘South West Nine’ opened to rave reviews, festival success and was also nominated for a BAFTA and five BIFFA’s (British Independent Film Awards) Allan’s core activity is to concentrate on fresh and original talent and provide a platform for that talent to excel. Allan is a regular guest speaker on UK TV programmes such as Newsnight, BBC News, C4 News, Film 2002, CNN, documentary programmes, newspapers, and magazines.

Producer

James Richardson

In 1997 James was selected onto the Media Business school’s programme to train European Film and TV executives. In 1998 James was hired by Pagoda Film and Television to produce new talent projects, he was involved with attracting both Paul McGuigan and Paul Bettany to their first breaking film, ‘Gangster No.1’ before going on to shoot his first feature, Kiss Kiss (Bang Bang) written and directed by Stewart Sugg and starring Stellan Skarsgård, (Breaking the Waves’, ‘Good Will Hunting’), Chris Penn, (‘Reservoir Dogs’ & ‘Short Cuts’), Paul Bettany, (‘A Beautiful Mind’, ‘Gangster No.1 & ‘Master and Commander’) and Martine McCutcheon in her first film role. The film is currently being released on a worldwide platform. James is on the board of the Film Policy Review group of PACT, the UK producers’ forum. He is also a tutor at the Media Business School and a member of the British Academy of Film and Television (BAFTA).

Director Of Photography

Damian Bromley

Award winning Director of Photography Damian Bromley has previously worked with Nick Love on other projects Damien Bromley, Director of Photography – Was voted for the Best Newcomer DoP award at the Independent Film Awards, for his work on ‘Going off Big Time’. He recently worked on ‘Reinventing Eddie’, which was both winner of Festival de Cinema d’Ireland et de Grande Bretagne 2002 and winner of the Tribeca First Look Awards at the Galway Film Festival, 2002. He as worked on a number of 35mm dramas, including Nick Love’s ‘Love Story’ and Michelle Ryan’s ‘Suckerfish’. In addition to Damien’s extensive film and drama experience, he has worked on commercials for massive brands, such as McDonalds and Sony Playstation, as well as Promos for the hugely successful Catatonia, Cornershop and Super Fury Animals. He has recently finished filming ‘House Of 9’ starring Dennis Hopper and Kelly Brook for UKFS4 Productions.

Production Designer

Paul Burns

After studying fine art and then graphic design Paul worked as an Art Director creating Ad Campaigns for many of London’s top advertising agencies. Paul worked as the designer on ‘Dream Team’ reinventing the look of the show and lifting it to a new level. His sets included the football stadium, luxury houses, hotels, clubs and restaurants. Paul helped to make it into cult TV and one of Sky One’s top TV shows. As they move into the 300th episode they continue to use Paul’s designs.

At the same time as Dream Team Paul made a number of renowned ‘shorts’ including the award winning ‘My Sky is Big’, and the acclaimed ‘Love Story’ with Nick Love. Paul worked as the Production Designer on Vertigo’s latest feature ‘It’s all gone Pete Tong’ creating a diversity of environments from run down councils flat to a multi millionaire’s villa

Music Supervisor

Lol Hammond

Lol Hammond began making music with the legendry ‘Spiral Tribe’ in 1991 and hosting free parties all over the UK. He went onto form the ‘Drum Club’ with DJ Charlie Hall went. The Drum Club released three critically acclaimed albums and toured the world extensively supporting the likes of ‘The Prodigy’ and Orbital’. He has remixed many acts including Killing Joke, The Fall, Lush, Curve and Republica. He now DJ’s all over the world playing places as diverse as Japan, Iceland, Slovakia and Turkey as well as supplying tracks for films such as ‘The World Is Not Enough’, ‘American Psycho’ and the latest ‘Halloween’ movie. He is currently collaborating on an album with Producer Brian Eno as well as work on Vertigo Film’s second feature film, the forthcoming ‘It’s All Gone Pete Tong’. Lol is an integral part of Vertigo and will soon be setting up a new division Vertigo Music.

Casting Director

Sam Chandley

Sam has cast features films including ‘Rabbit On The Moon’ for Director Jorge Ramirez-Suarez and forthcoming feature ‘It’s All Gone Pete Tong’. Sam has also cast for Bristol Old Vic Theatre including:’The Comedy of Errors’, Director David Farr, ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’, Director David Farr, ‘Great Expectations’, Director Gordon Anderson

Other TV credits include ‘Cyderdelic (The State We’re In) (comedy series for BBC3) ‘Ed Stone is Dead’ BBC2 comedy series)

’Falling Apart’ (Channel 4)

’As If’ (series 2)

Production Company

Based in a large warehouse in Kentish Town, North West London, Vertigo Films was set up in 2002 by Allan Niblo and James Richardson. The company is fully self-sufficient: ‘It’s a punk rock ethos,’ explains Niblo. ‘We’re challenging traditional methods.’ Inspired by successful, maverick record labels like Creation, Vertigo Films intends to jealously guard its independence, by taking control of every stage of film production.

This creation of a ‘mini-studio’ is a new and unique approach. "There are great British movies to be made. There’s a great richness of material out there and if we achieve our realistic economic goals, this marriage will achieve sustainability. The intention is to discover and nurture new talent from all over the UK and the rest of the world, sourcing new writers, directors, actors, cinematographers, editors and designers. Most of the films we are developing are very music driven and tie in with our label Vertigo Music" enthuses Allan Niblo.

Vertigo is purchasing digital cameras and installing low-cost non-linear editing systems in order to control the costs of production and post-production. The office has been set-up with the lowest possible overhead and the day to day operation of the company is as efficient as possible, working under the notion that the less money that is spent on the company’s overhead, the more money there is to be put onto the screen.

"We also seek to encourage established artists and technicians to become involved in exploring new approaches to story telling and to break from traditional production styles. Vertigo has discovered ways to make films with high production values at a fraction of the traditional costs and thus minimising risks for investors. As well as being at the cutting edge, Vertigo is also developing larger budget more traditional productions some of which will go into production in 2004" says James Richardson.

For further information please check out www.vertigofilms.com

The Novel – The Football Factory

By John King

John King grew up on the outskirts of West London and before becoming an author held down a wide range of jobs. He spent the decade after leaving school exploring his interests in drink, football and music. In his late 20s he spent several years travelling the world, the highlights ten months in Asia and journeys across the Soviet Union, United States and Australia.

His writing first emerged in the pages of the legendary Rebel Inc in the mid-90s, at the same time as fellow Jonathan Cape authors Irvine Welsh and Alan Warner. ‘The Prison House’ is his sixth novel, and follows THE FOOTBALL FACTORY, ‘Headhunters’, ‘England Away’, ‘Human Punk’ and ‘White Trash’. He has written short stories for several anthologies – ‘The Beasts Of Marseilles’ was shown as a theatrical/video event starring Tam Dean Burn.

John edits his own occasional fiction journal, Verbal, has written articles for publications such as the New Statesman, and along with the authors Alan Sillitoe and Martin Knight, is a founder member of The Flag Club. He is currently working on a seventh novel, ‘Skinheads’, and an LP with The Ruts based on ‘The Prison House’. He cites his interests as weak lager, strong curries, loud music, foreign travel and attacking football. Literary influences include The Clash, The Sex Pistols, The Ruts, David Bowie, George Orwell, Alan Sillitoe, Charles Bukowski, Jack Kerouac and Jack London. He lives in London.

Praise for The Football Factory

"The best book I’ve ever read about football and working class culture in Britain in the nineties. Buy, steal or borrow a copy now."

Irvine Welsh

"King, in an exceptionally empathetic way, brings us on an exhilarating journey … [his] novel is not only an outstanding read, but also an important social document."

Paul Howard, Sunday Times

"The most savagely authentic account of football hooliganism ever seen."

Blah Blah Blah

The story, characters and events in this film are entirely fictitious. Any similarity to actual persons, living or dead, or to actual events is purely coincidental.

Ownership of this picture is protected by copyright and other applicable laws. Any unauthorised duplication, distribution or exhibition of this motion picture could result in criminal prosecution as well as civil liability.