Bizet: The Pearl Fishers

Bizet’s rarely heard opera returned to the Met for the first time in a century on New Year’s Eve 2015, in Penny Woolcock’s acclaimed new production. Star soprano Diana Damrau sings Leïla, the virgin priestess at the center of the story. Matthew Polenzani and Mariusz Kwiecien are Nadir and Zurga, rivals for Leïla’s love who have sworn to renounce her to protect their friendship—and who get to sing one of opera’s most celebrated duets, “Au fond du temple saint.” Nicolas Testé is the high priest Nourabad and Gianandrea Noseda conducts Bizet’s s...

Tina Goes Shopping

The first film in the Tina trilogy, using the actual inhabitants of a tough Leeds council estate in the leading roles. Tina is a single mum who steals to order for her own `shopping' business, her drug-addict boyfriend Aaron is planning the theft of a cow so he can sell the meat, and Tina's father, Don, is the mobster in control of the local drugs trade.

Macbeth on the Estate

A modern version of Shakespeare's 'Macbeth'.

From the Sea to the Land Beyond

From the Sea to the Land Beyond is a film about the British coast made from 100 years of our film heritage stored in the British Film Institute collection, edited by Penny Woolcock with a soundtrack by British Sea Power

The Death of Klinghoffer

An adaptation from the controversial John Adams opera about the true life incident that took place in the mid 80s. The liner "Achille Lauro" is on a 12-day cruise in the Mediterranean. While the ship is docked in Alexandria, a maid discovers that four of the passengers are actually members of the Palestine Liberation Organization traveling incognito. Startled by their discovery, the PLO cadre is forced to act. They take the passengers on board hostage and demand the release of 50 Palestinian activists held in Israeli jails. As Egyptian, Amer...

One Mile Away

This documentary produced by Rare Day and directed by award-winning filmmaker Penny Woolcock charts the attempts by two warring gangs in inner city Birmingham, the Burger Bar Boys (B21) and the Johnson Crew (B6), to bring peace to their neighbourhoods.

Out of the Rubble

In Out Of The Rubble, Woolcock shows how planners grappled with the grimmest poverty imaginable in the post-war era, from Brixton to Glasgow, Islington to Birmingham, believing that tower blocks would transform the lives of those living in decaying slums. She follows the cycle of optimism, building and eventual decline, meeting people who 50 years on bear witness to the effects of housing on real families, striking a contemporary chord with the theme of immigration and gentrification affecting working class communities. The irresistible nost...

Tina Takes a Break

Second in the Tina trilogy of films (Tina Goes Shopping, Mischief Night) set on a tough Leeds housing estate and starring the residents who actually live there in real life. This time Tina is in prison and life on the estate is viewed through her children's eyes.

Trapping

It centers on the affable London youngster Daz, who views drug dealing as a way to get quick money to support his needy family.

On the Streets

Filmmaker Penny Woolcock spent eight months in a parallel world, the world of the homeless, befriending people and finding out where they eat, sleep and socialise. While making her film, Woolcock realised that the very real problems of homeless people have very little to do with the lack of a roof over their heads or a bed to sleep in. Their problems come from their past lives - and are less easy to remedy. Despite the efforts of different charities to move people into homes, the streets are often where they feel safe and what they know bes...