29/10/2002 - Box Film and the new Cinema Fund, together to develop sci-fi cinema. Looking for new talents to explore the outer limits of our current imaginations

In an attempt to revive genre films and help new filmmakers re-think sci-fi films, the British Film Council's new Cinema Fund has partnered with UK film and TV production company, Box Film, to develop three new sci-fi feature films.
The scheme called ‘New Steps Beyond’ was launched last Thursday at the Delfina Gallery in London where a group of writers where invited to attend a session with filmmaker Michael Radford (Il Postino) to discuss ways of re-inventing the sci-fi genre and view extracts from films that have inspired the scheme such as Dark Star, Cube and Hardware.
UK producer Gub Neal of Box Film, who approached the Film Council with the idea behind New Steps Beyond, said: “we relish the opportunity to encourage new talent to tackle the sci-fi genre, particularly at a time when British filmmakers should be provoked into thinking more about genre storytelling”.
Also commenting on the initiative, Paul Trijbits, Head of the new Cinema Fund added: “we’re not looking for a future we have already seen, but a completely new vision, one which explores the outer limits of our current imaginations”.
The idea of ‘New Steps Beyond’ fits perfectly within the mandate of the Film Council’s new Cinema Fund which is to invest its Pounds15 millions (almost Euros24 millions) budget over three years in films that illustrate unique ideas and innovative approaches.