Demange’s project is in development with Northern Ireland Screen and has already secured funding from Film4, the British Film Institute, Creative Scotland and Aver Media before Screen Yorkshire’s involvement.
Written by playwright Gregory Burke (Black Watch) and produced by Angus Lamont (Donkey Punch) and Robin Gutch(Berberian Sound Studio), the movie is currently being cast.
Set in Northern Ireland, ‘71 follows a young soldier operating on the streets of Belfast during The Troubles.
Studio Canal has acquired rights to distribute the film in the UK, while Protagonist Pictures is selling the title internationally.
The deal is part of the regional funder’s pledge to fund five low-budget but high-profile movie and TV projects totaling $3.2 million (£2 million).
Screen Yorkshire, through the Yorkshire Content Fund, is also investing in Girls’ Night Out, helmed by One Fine Day director Michael Hoffman and starring Juno Temple, and The Great Train Robbery, a pair of feature-length dramas for BBC1 that tells the story of the infamous British crime from both the robbers and the police’s point of view.
It is hoped the small investments from Screen Yorkshire will mean that upwards of $32 million (£20 million) in production spend occurs in the English region.
Screen Yorkshire has previously provided cash injections for Shane Meadow’s This is England, Paddy Considine’s Tyrannosaur, Ben Wheatley’s Kill List and Andrea Arnold’s Wuthering Heights.
Screen Yorkshire chief executive Sally Joynson said: “These investments are the culmination of a fantastic first year for the Yorkshire Content Fund, which is attracting the very best in UK producers and talent to the region.”
