Darren Bender - Founder
Darren is a former Commissioning Editor (Channel 4) and award-winning documentary filmmaker (COCONUT REVOLUTION, A SARAJEVO DIARY). At C4 he changed the British TV drama landscape by creating the half hour low budget drama series COMING UP which has been breaking in new writing and directing talent for 9 years running.
He also commissioned many other programmes including the new talent documentary series THE OTHER SIDE, LATE NIGHT POKER and BULLFIGHT.
Darren left C4 to concentrate on drama. The first project he created was THE HAMBURG CELL, produced by Finola Dwyer and David Aukin for C4 and HBO. He then took on the newly created role of Head of Production at Screen East, investing lottery funds into low budget features from next-generation directors and developing scripts with over 40 writers. Darren has completed the international Producers’ programmes EAVE, INSIDE PICTURES and is a member of the ACE Producers Network. He was chosen as one of Screen International’s Stars of Tomorrow in 2005.
GLENN BARDEN - CO-Managing DIRECTOR
Working alongside Darren, Glenn is an accomplished storyteller and entrepreneur. He was a senior creative at MTV Europe during the mid nineties where he designed and created their prime time show MTV HOT, and introduced the concept of camcorder shooting and deconstructed news presentation.
He then left to produce and direct factual programming on a range of channels, building up a string of credits for the BBC, Channel 4 and Channel 5.
For 8 years he ran his own successful BAFTA nominated television production company Vashca. Output ranged from the insane endurance contest TOUCH THE TRUCK, to the current affairs series RAGEH OMAAR’S CRIME INVASION.
Nahrein mirza KEMP - PRODUCER
Nahrein Mirza Kemp has an MA in Film And Television from the British Film Institute, where she was awarded the Richard Attenborough Scholarship. She began her career in BBC Radio and TV before joining film and TV company, Little Bird. While there, she worked in various production capacities for films including BRIDGET JONES'S DIARY (Renee Zellweger), GANGSTER NO.1 (Paul Bettany), ORDINARY DECENT CRIMINAL (and INVICIBLE (directed by Werner Herzog) as well as TV drama such as the International Emmy award winning DIRTY TRICKS (Martin Clunes). She then went onto originate and executive produce the 13 part children's comedy series UNCLE MAX for ITV. She produced the feature documentary SHOT IN BOMBAY for BBC Storyville and the Sundance Channel, which premiered at the Sheffield Doc Fest, and had a limited theatrical release across the UK, supported by the UK Film Council. In 2008, Nahrein produced the second series of UNCLE MAX for the BBC starring David Schneider, Frank Skinner, Meera Syal and Jocelyn Jee Esien.
Nahrein
took part in the INSIDE PICTURES course in 2007. She joined Bigger Pictures in early 2009.
ASHOK SHAH - HEAD OF FINANCE
From 1998-2003 Ashok was the company secretary of television production company Brook Lapping and oversaw their £2 million sale to Ten Alps. For the past five years he was the finance director of the digital television channel Teachers TV.