A Grand Romantic Gesture in Sault Ste. Marie
by Staff
(July 18, 2019 – Toronto, ON) Toronto-based company Paragraph Pictures and Highfield Grange Studios have announced the start of principal photography on a new comedy-drama A Grand Romantic Gesture being shot in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. BAFTA winner Gina McKee costars as Ava and acclaimed award-winning actor Douglas Hodge is the romantic interest she turns to when things start to fall apart. Written and Directed by Joan Carr-Wiggin, the basic plot removes around events after Ava loses her job due to cutbacks and her husband (Rob Stewart) and pregnant daughter (Rose Reynolds), encourage her to take up gourmet cooking and prepare for life as a grandmother. Instead she signs up for a drama class where she is cast as Juliet – and finds herself falling in love with her Romeo (Douglas Hodge). McKee has starred in The Borgias, Notting Hill, In The Loop, and Our Friends In The North, among many others. Hodge’s credits include Black Mirror, The Night Manager, Red Sparrow, and the upcoming release The Report. Canadian Linda Kash and UK-born Dylan Llewellyn round out the cast.
A Canada-UK co-production, A Grand Romantic Gesture is produced by David Gordian for Paragraph Pictures and Alan Latham for Highfield Grange Studios. The film is cast by Simone Reynolds, Stephanie Gorin and Mark Paladini. Financing includes support from Northern Ontario Heritage Fund and Ontario Creates. levelFILM will distribute the film in Canada. As production has just started, no release date has been announced.
