HOW I GOT TO NOW
A Coming of Age Juno meets Sliding Doors
Genevieve Jolliffe
Writer/Director/Author/Mum
Genevieve is an award winning and BIFA nominated writer, director, producer and author. She was nominated for The Douglas Hickox Award for Best Debut at The British Independent Film Awards for her film, Urban Ghost Story, and has been included in the Variety and Screen International "Ten Directors to Watch" series.
After attending one of the UK's top film schools, Bournemouth Film School, Genevieve began her filmmaking career at 19 when she produced The Runner for which she entered The Guinness Book Of Records as Britain’s youngest feature film producer.
The next feature she wrote and produced was White Angel, a serial killer drama, starring Peter Firth. The film played as the centrepiece film of The London Film Festival and garnered many awards at international film festivals with great reviews on its theatrical release. "**** Cooly appraising the delicate border between murder and manslaughter, this is a remarkably effective film about killing." (Film Review) and "A cracking thriller with plenty edge of the seat tension, a creepily restrained performance by Peter Firth, and more twists and turns than a Dune sandworm."
Gen's next film as a screenwriter and producer, was also her first foray into directing. Urban Ghost Story starred the young 13 year old Heather Ann Foster alongside Nicola Stapleton, Billy Boyd, Jason Connery, Elizabeth Berrington James Cosmo and Andreas Wisniewski.
Urban Ghost Story received great critical acclaim. A recent look at women horror film directors by Fangoria Magazine, highlighted Urban Ghost Story as a film that had been overlooked or forgotten describing it as "Comparisons to Ken Loach and Mike Leigh might seem hyperbolic, but Jolliffe and Urban Ghost Story ultimately don’t need to be tethered to big name fancy pants male filmmakers to justify how good it is; this movie stands on its own, and is an extraordinary snapshot of how poverty, shame, guilt and isolation work together, all through the enduring supernatural metaphor of the ghost."
Variety described Urban Ghost Story as "Ken Loach meets The Exorcist...a clever, often potent blend of British kitchen-sink drama with fantasy elements" and "Jolliffe's direction is as tight as a childproof bottle of Prozac."
The Independent wrote,"Jolliffe's film filters kitchen sink social realism through horror films such as The Poltergeist and The Exorcist to produce a genuinely haunting work."
The Scotsman wrote "Genevieve Jolliffe's film makes its point about the demoralisation of the urban disenfranchised while delivering a fair quotient of chills. She makes excellent use of suggestive sound and provides an impressive action finale all done on a tiny budget. Jolliffe must be Hollywood-bound before too long."
Urban Ghost Story received many awards and accolades at film festivals around the world, including being chosen as Variety's critic's choice at Karlovy Vary IFF, and receiving Best Film Awards as well as premiering in the Official selection at The Edinburgh Film Festival, where she was signed up by talent agency, Casarotto.
Variety and Screen International listed Gen as one of 'Ten Directors to Watch', and she was also nominated for The Douglas Hickox Award for Best Debut Director at The British Independent Film Awards.
Relocating to Hollywood for MGM's film Blood and Chocolate for producer Daniel Bobker (The Skeleton Key, The Brothers Grimm), Gen was signed by talent agent and management company, ICM and Mosaic Media. Her script Absolute Angels was picked up by Warner Bros. under producer Kevin McCormick (Elvis, In the Heights). Genevieve was attached to direct the $16m film. She was also commissioned to write various screenplays for various production companies including Mermaid for award winning and Sundance alumni filmmaker Korean filmmaker, Wonsuk Chin.
Gen has also directed content for WooHoo Cards, an online greeting card company. Please click on Director Clips to see a selection of these shorts.
More recently, Gen has been commissioned to write the bio-epic of iconoclastic record producer Tom Wilson, the unsung hero who discovered Simon and Garfunkel, Frank Zappa, and who was responsible for turning Bob Dylan electric, spurring him on to become the world's first rockstar with his timeless classic hit, Like a Rolling Stone.
Genevieve has also been commissioned to write and produce a film about the story behind the raising of King Henry VIII's famous ship, The Mary Rose, with the support of The Mary Rose Trust.
Genevieve's other work is as the co-author of a series of best selling filmmaking guide handbooks, The Guerilla Film Makers Handbook, published by Bloomsbury (The Guerilla Film Makers Handbook UK, The Guerilla Film Makers Handbook US, The Documentary Film Makers Handbook, The Guerilla Film Makers Pocketbook and Breaking into Hollywood).
Her latest book, Screenwriters Advice, was published and released by Bloomsbury. (Jan 2024). The books have received accolades around the world from the filmmaking community as well as academia being one of the necessary listed books to read at worldwide renowned university institutions.
Gen is also an active champion of underrepresented creatives in the industry having founded The Hollywood Field Trip Program where she introduces each year, new and up and coming diverse talent to major agents, managers, producers and studio heads in Hollywood, with the aim of helping them establish sustainable careers in the Film and TV industry.
(Resumé below can only be seen via the URL and not on a mobile device.)
Film, Television and Media
HOW I GOT TO NOW Adaptation of Y.A Novel Proof Positive by Lucy V. Hay
Co written with Andrew Zinnes
Cast Attached: Eleanor Worthington-Cox, Mia McKenna Bruce, MyAnna Buring, John Bradley In development
TOM WILSON PROJECT Biopic of legendary music producer of Bob Dylan, Simon and Garfunkle,
Frank Zappa, The Animals etc.
Producer: Greg Richling, Jonathan Sheldon,
Co written with Andrew Zinnes
In development
THE MARY ROSE PROJECT. The story of the rising of King Henry VIII's flagship, The Mary Rose.
Producers: The Mary Rose Trust/ WooHoo Media Group
In development
WOOHOO CARDS Writer/Director/Producer 2018-2022.
SHORT FILMS Comedy shorts created for online content.
Click here to view a selection of content
ABSOLUTE ANGELS Writer/Director
Horror comedy set in High School
Producer: Kevin McCormick (Warner Bros.) Alex Gartner (Mosaic Media)
In development
MERMAID PROJECT Writer/Director
Sci Fi Adventure film
Producer: Wonsuk Chin and Mosaic Media.
In development
URBAN GHOST STORY Writer/Director/Producer
Supernatural drama
Cast: Heather Ann Foster, Nicola Stapleton, Elisabeth Berrington, Billy Boyd, Jason Connery, James Cosmo and Andreas Wisniewski.
Nominated for Best Debut Director BIFA, Best Production BIFA, Best Actress BIFA
Variety Critics Choice - Karlovy Vary
Genevieve listed in the "Ten to Watch series" by Variety and Screen International
Selected for The Lincoln Center Screenings, New York
Best of the Fest - Edinburgh Film Festival
Best Film - FantaFestival Rome, Oporto Film Festival, WorldFest,
Best Actress - FantaFestival Rome,
Best Sound - Rhode Island Film Festival
Click here for REVIEWS
WHITE ANGEL Writer/Producer
Serial Killer drama
Cast: Peter Firth, Harriet Robinson, Don Henderson
Selected as The Centrepiece Film of The London Film Festival
Best Actor - Valenciennes Film Festival
Best Film - Fantastic Film Festival, Burgos, Spain
"The most convincing portrayal of a serial killer ever put on film." Brian Masters, Author of the biographies "Killing for Company" and "The Shrine of Jeffrey Dahmer",
"Mesmerisingly good and a triumph of British Independent Production." London Film Festival
"White Angel represents a welcome british manifestation of the guerilla film making ethic that gave us movies such as The Evil Dead, She's Gotta Have It and El Marachi." The Scotsman.
THE RUNNER Producer
Production Company: EGM International, Living Spirit Pictures
Action thriller
Cast: Terence Ford, Paris Jefferson,
Entered The Guinness Book of Book of Movie Facts & Feats as Britain's Youngest Producer.
"Screenwriter's Advice is a cut-to-the-chase book that goes to the heart of professional screenwriting. This book gives the young writer an opportunity to sit at the table with professional screen and television writers as they talk about writing. Great advice based off years of professional experience on every page. I found myself nodding in agreement throughout. This is a book you will go back to again and again." Jack Epps, Jr., Professor at the John Wells Division of Writing, University of Southern California, USA
Contact
Tel: +44 7710 527907