B-REEL FILMS SIGN DIRECTOR ALMA HAR'EL

London, September 2016

B-Reel Films London are delighted to announce they have signed Director Alma Har'el. The B-Reel group began operations in 1999 in Stockholm Sweden and currently has offices in the London, LA, NY, Stockholm, Barcelona and Berlin. In January 2016, Margo Mars joined the London office of B-Reel Films as MD and Partner, and has been focussed on growing its business & director roster ever since

Alma Har'el has caused waves of excitement throughout the film industry with her latest feature film 'LoveTrue', which premiered at Tribeca Film Festival in April 2016, and won Best Documentary at Karlovy Vary. 'LoveTrue' had its UK Premier at the BFI London Film Festival on 8 October.  The film was selected for the Grierson Award in the documentary competition category, and was part of the official programme. 

For 'LoveTrue' Har'el collaborated with Shia LaBeouf, an early supporter of her work since starring in the promo she directed for Sigur Ros 'Fjoger Piano'. LaBeouf is Executive Producer of 'LoveTrue'.

Har'el made a name for herself with a unique aesthetic evident in her debut film 'Bombay Beach', which won top prize at the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival. Her commercial work reinforces her effortless grasp of narrative, in particular her iconic Stella Artois spot, making her the first female director to direct a commercial for the Belgian Beer in its 20 year history of advertising.

Born in Israel and based in New York, Har'el was selected as a Filmmaker 25 New Face of cinema, and the debut of 'TrueLove' at Tribeca prompted Indiewire to comment: "LoveTrue confirms that Alma Har'el makes movies like nothing else out there."

This talented director is not only proving herself to be an aesthetic and cinematic game changer, but is also a force to be reckoned with in the advertising industry. Today Har'el announces #FreeTheBid, a groundbreaking initiative aimed at encouraging ad agencies to include female directors at the bidding stage for commercials. At the pitch stage, ad agencies traditionally present 3 directors per spot. Directors are presented by production companies based on the creative spec the agency provides, and statistics prove female directors are not included in the 3 director mix.

Alma Har'el teamed up with PJ Pereira, CCO and Co-Founder of Pereira & O'Dell, to address the deep-rooted gender bias embedded in the ad industry, and came up with #FreeTheBid, a pledge to advertising agencies to make 1 bid out of every 3 a female director. Women are the number one consumer group and make 85% of product purchase decisions, so why aren't more women directing the commercials addressed at them? Cultural misrepresentations and stereotyping of women and girls are reinforced through the predominantly male narrative presented in the majority of commercials. Women make up 50% of the world's population, yet only 7% of directors are women. #FreeTheBid aims to change this.

http://www.b-reelfilms.com/projects/commercials/director/alma-harel/region/uk/

Colnaghi VIP Launch of new gallery and Vanitas exhibition

On Friday 7 October, Colnaghi CEOs Jorge Coll and Nicolas Cortes, hosted a VIP Party to launch their new gallery at 26 Bury Street in St. James’s.  The party was a highlight of Frieze Art Fair week with art-lovers queuing around the block to see a living art installation in the gallery window, and the "Vanitas" artworks inside.  

The event unveiled the new Colnaghi Gallery space, designed by Colnaghi Creative Director Diego Fortunato, and inaugural ‘Vanitas’ exhibition featuring around 30 paintings and sculptures from the 16th to 20th Centuries.

VIPs in attendance included;  Antoine de Nicolay, Lady Arabella Baring (Countess Nesselrode), Guiomar Fernandez-Castaño and Lady Daisy Fane, Antonia baroness von Weichs, Prince and Princess of Valsavoia,  Spanish Ambassador to the UK, Federico Trillo-Figueroa, and artist Eugenio Ampudia whose video installation was projected onto the Gallery’s library.  

Other VIPs included performance artist Pandemonia, Actress Meredith Ostrum, artist Daisy de Villeneuve, and Basia & Richard Briggs OBE.

Party pictures available Getty Images: http://bit.ly/2e1tXQF

Www.colnaghi.com

Artist Alexander Newley announces ‘Portraits in Character' exhibition at St Martin-in-the-Fields,

A solo exhibition featuring portraits of Sir Kenneth Branagh and actors from the plays at The Garrick Season.

Artist Alexander Newley is delighted to announce his solo exhibition ‘Portraits in Character – supporting St Martin-in-the-Fields’, in the Crypt of St Martin’s, Trafalgar Square from 7th to 21st November. The exhibition is to run in partnership with St Martin-in-the-Fields, a fitting location for the exhibition, with its proximity to the National Portrait Gallery and National Gallery, and will mark Newley’s return to the London art world after several years in New York.

In Spring 2017 the paintings and drawings featured in ‘Portraits in Character – supporting St Martin- in-the-Fields’, will be auctioned to benefit the work of St Martin-in-the-Fields, including their outreach with homeless people. For more information about this auction in support of St Martin-in-the-Fields please contact StMartins@activ.org.uk

Newley collaborated with Kenneth Branagh to create a unique series of portraits of several of the leading cast from the Plays at the Garrick season, which comes to a close this November. Alexander Newley spent time with the cast over a period of one year, capturing the actors in character backstage after performances. The result is a series of drawings and paintings capturing the aura of some of the UK’s most celebrated actors; Dame Judi Dench, Kenneth Branagh, Adrian Lester, Derek Jacobi, Richard Madden and Lily James.

The exhibition has been previewed by ArtRabbit, ArtSlant, Artweek, Artitute and Artlyst: http://www.artweek.com/events/united-kingdom/art-exhibition/london/artist-alexander-newley-‘portraits-character-supporting

Photograph courtesy of Dame Judi Dench/ Copyright Alexander Newley