Bunhill: Reel uncertainty
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.RUMOURS of the demise of Kenneth Branagh's corporate empire have, it appears, been greatly exaggerated. Only one small company, Renaissance Theatre, has been folded. Its much bigger sibling, Renaissance Films, remains.
The film company was founded five years ago as a BES scheme by a distinguished cast including Brian Wenham, the ex-BBC executive who introduced snooker to television, and Roger Wingate, the reclusive property tycoon who controls the Curzon Cinemas.
The scheme behind Renaissance, crafted by ex-stockbroker Stephen Evans, was to make three movies over a five-year period and then divide the spoils. The scheme received an enthusiastic response, from a number of foreign trusts as well as media groupies who knew a good thing when they saw one. Unusually, the three films were actually produced at a reasonable cost and, even more unusually, all of them, Henry V, Peter's Friends and Much Ado About Nothing, were critical and box-office successes. Unfortunately, the investors are discovering that the neat five-year framework of a BES scheme is rather unsuited to the film industry, in which producers only learn the financial position from the film's distributors a couple of years after the film is launched - and actually get the cash even later. The last accounts, for the year to September 30 1992, show accumulated losses of over pounds 1.5m. Hence a certain tension: the investors still don't know if they will end up with a profit.
(Photograph omitted)
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments