The 1984/85 Miners’ Strike opened a great wound in the soul of the nation. It divided communities, transformed the way we are policed and re-shaped the country with consequences that are still being dealt with today. Packed with raw, emotional testimony and explosive archive, this landmark series of three powerful, stand-alone stories looks at the events of the strike through the eyes of those directly involved on the front line, on all sides. In each film, we have tracked down a wide range of people who were filmed during that tumultuous year – both striking miners and those who continued to work, as well as their families, and many are telling their stories for the first time. In many ways, the series argues, the strike was a seminal event in modern British history: a fork in the road which has defined the lives of workers in Britain ever since.
Series Filmed and Directed by: Tom Barrow
Series Producer: Zora Kuettner
Producer/Director for Episode 2: Christian Collerton
Executive Producers: Neil Crombie and Joe Evans
Film Editors: Chris Nicholls (Ep.1 & Ep.3) and Sean Mackenzie (Ep.2)
Archive Producer: Miriam Walsh
Miners’ Strike 1984: The Battle for Britain Swan Films
Nominated for Best Documentary Series
"Bracingly good series." - Radio Times
“If you are old enough to remember the strike, this was a painful but riveting reminder.
If not, this is a first-rate education." - ★★★★★ - The Times
"Tom Barrow directs this gripping three-part series exploring the lasting psychological and
socio-political impact of the horrifically divisive miners' strike...The programme does a fine job
of conveying that, for the strikers, their whole lives and identities were at stake." - The Guardian
"This powerful new series of standalone stories recalls a defining year in British history through
archive footage and first-hand accounts of those who were there." - The Daily Mail
"Compulsive viewing for anyone who wants to understand why we are where we are
politically and socially in this country today." - Primal Scream
Surviving Covid Sandpaper Films
Nominated in the Single Documentary categoryMarch 2020 - four patients lie in comas in the ICU of a south London hospital, struck down by Covid-19 in Britain's first surge. This intimate film follows their stories over six months.
A respectful, unflinching film that looks at the effects of severe Covid–19… What shines strong and clear are the great and powerful bonds of family and the extraordinary kindness of medical staff at King’s College Hospital in London. - Radio Times
The filmmakers are granted remarkable access and had considerable trust placed in them by the families of the four victims; They approach the subject with all due seriousness and delicacy. - The Telegraph
The film is incredibly heartbreaking... but throughout it all, the care shown by the doctors and nurses, and the unwavering love, support and bravery of the families of the patients, is extremely humbling. - The Sun
A moving documentary that cuts out the statistics and the politics and focuses instead on the patients and their families. Their stories are sensitively, patiently told, a testament to delicate filmmaking.
- The Financial Times
An impactful feature-length documentary that tells the story of four patients struck down with Covid-19 during the first wave of the pandemic... It’s a stark reminder of just how frightening and destructive this virus can be.
- The Times
Anyone still believing that Covid-19 is ‘just the flu’ will have their illusions dispelled by this compelling film.
- The Mail
The filmmakers are granted remarkable access and had considerable trust placed in them by the families of the four victims; They approach the subject with all due seriousness and delicacy. - The Telegraph
The film is incredibly heartbreaking... but throughout it all, the care shown by the doctors and nurses, and the unwavering love, support and bravery of the families of the patients, is extremely humbling. - The Sun
A moving documentary that cuts out the statistics and the politics and focuses instead on the patients and their families. Their stories are sensitively, patiently told, a testament to delicate filmmaking.
- The Financial Times
An impactful feature-length documentary that tells the story of four patients struck down with Covid-19 during the first wave of the pandemic... It’s a stark reminder of just how frightening and destructive this virus can be.
- The Times
Anyone still believing that Covid-19 is ‘just the flu’ will have their illusions dispelled by this compelling film.
- The Mail
Directed by Nick Holt Produced by Zora Kuettner
Additional Directing: Arthur Cary
Executive Producer: Henry Singer
Don’t Call me Mad Delaval Films | Sandpaper Films
Directed by Zora Kuettner
Produced by Loran Dunn
Filmmaker, Zora follows her father back to Germany to explore a radical social experiment he carried out twenty-five years earlier. Did he succeed in altering the life arc of a group of severely mentally ill patients? A very personal film in which a psychologist and his daughter explore what constitutes a life worth living.
Diana, 7 Days Sandpaper Films
Directed by Henry Singer
Editor: Paul Van Dyck
Producers: Jenny Saunders & Jess Ludgrove
Assistant Producer: Zora Kuettner
In August 1997 the tragic death of Diana, Princess of Wales, stunned her family and catapulted the British public into one of the most extraordinary weeks in modern history.
We hear from those – like Diana’s sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, her brother Earl Spencer, Prime Minister Tony Blair and members of the Royal Household – who were in the eye of this most unexpected storm. This film tells the story of the seven days that followed the Princess’ death and something of the remarkable life that preceded it.
What was it about Diana that explained such an outpouring of grief? And what did that week reveal about Britain’s relationship with the monarchy, then and now?
This will doubtless stand as the definitive documentary on Diana’s death and the aftermath. - The Times
An extraordinary look at an unbelievable week in British history. - Metro
If you had to choose just one film to sum up the phenomenon that was Diana’s life, and the greater phenomenon that was her death, Diana, 7 Days got closer than most.
- The Daily Telegraph
A landmark film - OK Magazine
