Simon Channing Williams

Simon Channing Williams' career started at the BBC where he worked with amongst others; Stephen Frears, James MacTaggart, Mike Newell, Michael Apted and Mike Leigh. As a result of working with Mike Leigh they jointly formed Thin Man Films in 1988, producing many critically acclaimed films such as the Palme D'Or winning 'Secrets & Lies' and Oscar nominated 'Topsy-Turvy' and 'Vera Drake' which also won the Golden Lion at Venice. Happy-Go-Lucky is their 11th film together. Outside his relationship with Mike Leigh and Thin Man Films, Simon Channing Williams produced a number of other films, including 'Puccini' for director Tony Palmer, 'When the Whales Came' directed by Clive Rees and 'Jack and Sarah', directed by Tim Sullivan, which was an enormous hit at the UK box-office, as well as Nick Love's debut feature 'Goodbye Charlie Bright'. In 2000 he formed the independent production company Potboiler Productions with Gail Egan. Together they have produced seven feature films including a classic adaptation of 'Nicholas Nickleby' directed by Douglas McGrath, the rock epic 'Brothers of the Head' directed by Keith Fulton & Lou Pepe, and the Oscar winning 'The Constant Gardener' directed by Fernando Meirelles. He is also executive producer with his business partner Gail Egan on Fernando Meirelles current film 'Blindness', starring Julianne Moore, Mark Ruffalo and Gael Garcia Bernal. Potboiler has also acquired the rights to the latest John le Carre novel 'The Mission Song'. As a result of filming 'The Constant Gardener' Simon was instrumental in setting up The Constant Gardener Trust which is building a secondary school in the desert town of Loiyangalani some 600 km north of Nairobi. The school will be completed by the end of 2009. The Trust is also building showers and lavatories in the Nairobi slum of Kibera as well as installing 10,000 litre water towers. He was given the honour of being made an elder of Loiyangalani and last December he was awarded the Order of the Grand Warrior by President Kibaki in recognition of both his work with 'The Constant Gardener' film and The Constant Gardener Trust.