David Tennant: project news and updates

Leith, camera, action: Proclaimers musical to become a film

Sunshine on Leith, the hit musical based on The Proclaimers’ songs, is to be turned into a film with David Tennant and Billy Connolly tipped for key roles.

A huge song and dance routine will be filmed on Calton Hill in Edinburgh this autumn, with as many as 1,000 extras taking part.

Former Doctor Who star Tennant has already expressed his interest in the role, and it is understood producers are keen to draft in Annie Lennox and the “Big Yin.”

Tennant is a huge fan of the band, highlighting them in an appearance on Desert Island Discs.

Though casting has yet to take place, it is hoped the film will debut at the Edinburgh film festival next year.

Read more at Deadline News 
Also reported by The Scotsman



Doctor Who star David Tennant films BBC drama in Watford
Former Doctor Who star David Tennant is not known for being camera shy but did his best to keep his head down while filming in Watford on Friday.
The 41-year-old Scot was spotted outside Christ Church on St Albans Road filming scenes for his latest project – a three-part BBC drama series.
Tennant, wearing a dark suit and a white shirt, sat in an Audi saloon car before running for cover the moment filming was completed.
The drama, titled The Politician’s Husband, is expected to air on BBC 2 in 2013.
Source (with photo): Watford Observer
 

News updates from David Tennant On Twitter: 

• Shakespeare Unlocked

TenAlpsplc has announced that Prefaces to Shakespeare has been renamed Shakespeare Unlocked. The series begins on Tuesday 19th June on BBC Four and David Tennant's episode about Hamlet is likely to broadcast on Tuesday 10th July. 
More details here

• James Bond audio collection

Ian Fleming.com has announced that David Tennant will read On Her Majesty's Secret Service in a new audio collection of Ian Fleming's classic Bond novels due to be released on Thursday 6th September. Pre-orders will be available from 1st August.

• Fright Night

Fright Night has its UK television première on Friday 22nd June. More details here

• Shakespeare iPad app

The Shakespeare Sonnets app for iPads was due for release on Monday 11 June but it has been delayed until Thursday 28th June.
The Shakespeare Sonnets iPad app (with some read by David Tennant) will also be released on DVD. It can be pre-ordered from this link 

News updates source: David Tennant On Twitter

Opportunities for young Scottish actors

• Pantheon Theatre (@thepantheonclub) tweeted the following message this week:

This Sunday (13 MAY) is our #SOUNDofMUSIC Glasgow Oct 2012 Children's #Auditions! Register soundofmusic@pantheontheatre.co.uk

Pantheon Theatre - producing, performing & promoting the arts through musicals, plays & comedies in & around Glasgow & the West of Scotland (and a little further) since 1926. 

268 Bath Street, Glasgow, UK

• Edinburgh International Film Festival looks to offer inspiring opportunities for young people

The Edinburgh International Film Festival, which takes place next month, has announced a series of opportunities for young people to explore film.

Building on last year’s inaugural initiative, the Edinburgh International Film Festival (EIFF) will offer 25 young people a unique opportunity to participate in the 2012 festival.

The Young Talents programme is aimed at film fans aged between 16 and 18, with selected participants given a free EIFF Student Pass allowing them access to Industry events, press and industry screenings and an exclusive Young Talents events programme, as well as selected parts of the public programme. Young Talents is supported by Creative Scotland and through the Scottish Government Edinburgh Festivals Expo Fund.

EIFF is now accepting applications for Young Talents 2012 and is welcoming all applicants aged 16 to 18 years old with an interest in film and who are able to be in Edinburgh during the festival dates from 20 June to 1 July. The deadline for applications is 23 May and can be accessed at edfilmfest.org.uk/learning.

Young Talents was launched at the 2011 Festival and involved 21 young people who participated in over 30 events and screenings including private Q&A sessions with actor Ewen Bremner (Perfect Sense; Trainspotting), Martin Compston (Sweet Sixteen, The Damned United) and director Dominic Allan (Calvet).

Designed to inspire young people with an interest in film to pursue a career in the industry, Young Talents explores film analysis, performance and craft, and aims to reveal the routes young people can take into the UK film industry.

Laurence Williams, 18, who participated last year, said: “There were so many events to take advantage of and I hope that I will make use of all the information and advice given.

“It was amazing meeting, talking to, and hearing from people with experience and knowledge in the film industry.”

For those in further and higher education, EIFF has announced the Student Critics Award Jury that will offer three places for aspiring film critics to attend EIFF and view a shortlisted programme of films.

Working with two established critics as mentors, the Jury will develop their writing and critical skills during their time at EIFF. The Jury will select the winner of the inaugural Student Critics Award at EIFF’s Awards Ceremony on 30 June. Applicants for the Student Critics Award Jury will be asked to submit 400 words on a particular film or an aspect of cinema. Further details are available from education@cmi-scotland.co.uk.

EIFF 2012 also sees the return of Edinburgh Schools Film Competition in partnership with Screen Education Edinburgh and Arts & Learning, City of Edinburgh Council.

Open to all pupils in City of Edinburgh Council run nurseries, primaries, secondary and special education schools, the competition will see selected films share the festival limelight with leading filmmakers from around the world. Work is viewed and selected by a young people’s jury who also coordinate and present the Schools Film Competition Award Ceremonies during the festival.

David Barras, filmmaker and jury coordinator, said: "Having worked with groups who have submitted films and now being behind the scenes on the jury, I can honestly say that the ideas, creativity and imagination of young people in Edinburgh is always startling and the films represent an amazing breadth of inventiveness and originality.

“It's great that the competition and its eventual winners are all decided by other young people."

The chosen films will screen to the public on Saturday 23 June for primary, and Sunday 24 June for secondary schools.

For school audiences, there will be a range of screenings, including two Media Days for High Schools, containing short and feature film screenings, master-classes and the chance to meet filmmakers and industry professionals on Monday 25 and Tuesday 26 June. There will also be opportunities for primary schools and students of Modern Studies to attend film screenings.

Film screenings support teachers and students in their learning and each film is carefully chosen from the main programme to support the Curriculum for Excellence. Full details of the schools programme are available at www.edfilmfest.org.uk/learning or by contacting education@cmi-scotland.co.uk.  

Source: STV

Kevin McKidd: Grey's Anatomy musical / Speyside Sessions update

The stars of Grey's Anatomy showed off their singing skills on Sunday (18 March) for a one-off musical performance of the medical TV drama.

Creator Shonda Rhimes was joined by 10 cast members, including Chandra Wilson, Kevin McKidd, Jessica Capshaw and Sandra Oh, for the live benefit concert at the University of California, Los Angeles (Ucla).

It featured 11 songs, many of which were from the show's musical episode last March (2011), and the event, hosted by Oh and Eric Dane, raised money for the Actors Fund, a nonprofit organisation that provides care and services to entertainment industry professionals.

Rhimes told the audience, "I believe in the joy I get from watching TV, film and theatre, and a $25 donation to the Actors Fund would be saying you believe in the arts, too."

Source: Contact Music

Also reported by Music Rooms and (in much more detail) by Hollywood Reporter 

Update on Speyside Sessions

Hollywood star Kevin McKidd is producing charity album with Scots musicians

The actor, from Elgin, has joined forces with musicians in the north-east to form the Speyside Sessions collective in producing an album of Scottish folk music.

What began as a casual folk music session with friends and family has become a major project to release an album which will raise funds for the Save the Children charity.

Gathering at Hogmanay, the musicians recorded the album in less than a week, with the help of producer Nick Lloyd-Webber - son of Andrew Lloyd-Webber - and sound engineer Bryan Tolland, known from Scots band Del Amitri.

A post on the Speyside Sessions Facebook page reads: "In less than a week 29 tracks were recorded with a huge variety and mix of performers, from local budding musicians, phenomenal singers who'd never before recorded their voice and even jaded folkies whom until this session, thought they'd hung up their mandolins for good.

"The joy, magic and spontaneity of this week has been captured forever on a soon-to-be released album for charity."

The album is expected to be released in June.

Douglas Hamilton, Save the Children’s head of Scotland, said: "We’re delighted that Kevin McKidd has chosen to raise funds for Save the Children through the sale of the upcoming Speyside Sessions album.

"Kevin has been a supporter of Save the Children for a number of years and we are extremely grateful for the work he does for us.

"We look forward to hearing the album when it is released in June."

McKidd was brought up in Elgin and was a member of the Moray Youth Theatre, before he went on to study engineering at the University of Edinburgh.

It was while at university, and after joining the student theatre company, Bedlam Theatre, that he decided to make the move into acting full-time.

He stars as Dr Owen Hunt in hit US series Grey's Anatomy and has added his voice to the upcoming Disney/Pixar animation Brave, set in the Scottish Highlands.

Source: STV