AFM: Elysian Boss Danny Perkins on His 20-Year Studio Ghibli Relationship, Bringing ‘The Boy and the Heron’ to the U.K.

Alex Ritman
·8 min read
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Danny Perkins made waves in the British film industry back in 2018 when he left his long-time position as CEO of StudioCanal UK — a tenure that had seen him oversee major and beloved hits including Paddington 1 & 2, Tinker Tailer Soldier Spy and Shaun the Sheep Movie — to set up his own film and TV production company.

Elysian Film Group, which he launched with producer Kate Solomon (United 93), in early 2020 unveiled its distribution arm, backed by minority investment from CAA (the giant’s first investment in a U.K. distributor). The timing wasn’t great, however, coming less than a month before the first pandemic lockdown.

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It was, understandably, a slow start on both the production and distribution front. But 2023 has seen the company — a nimble operation of just four staffers, including Perkins (who brings partners on board for big releases) — make some major noise. First up, it’s biggest in-house film to date, Greatest Days — featuring songs by British boy band Take That — was released in June (with Take That performing at the London premiere), Elysian having teamed with Anonymous Content. It also announced another major production in Fackham Hall, the first significant outing from Mews Films, a comedy venture set up with Kris Thykier’s Archery Films. And, in something of a coup, it teamed with Bleecker Street and Anonymous to land the U.K. rights to The Boy and the Heron, Studio Ghibli’s latest creation and the hugely celebrated animation from the master Hayao Miyazaki, in what some have speculated could be his final film. A Christmas release has been set.

Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Perkins discusses why he thinks The Boy and the Heron could be Studio Ghibli’s biggest hit, the challenges for distributors in the U.K. but why there’s still opportunity, and answers a crucial question about Paddington.

You launched Elysian back in 2018. How’s the company looking now at the ripe old age of 5?

It doesn’t feel that long. We’ve always had an ambitious plan. But I guess the pandemic wasn’t probably the ideal time to build operations from the ground up. But we had Greatest Days, which was a big project, big independent film and big independent release. It took a lot to build up a production company and then also a distribution company, with the backing of CAA and Dear Gaia Films. We were able to release that on 600-plus screens, which was an achievement in itself. And it’s nice to follow that up with something like The Boy and the Heron, which is the next big release. And then, production wise, we’ve got Fackham Hall set to shoot at the start of next year with a great cast of Hero Fiennes Tiffin, Thomasin McKenzie, Katherine Waterstone and Emma Laird announced so far. It’s a spoof of Downton Abbey, a really funny script and has been acquired by Bleecker Street. What we’re tying to do with production is have projects with a defined audience and defined sell, commercially aimed British films.

And is the primary focus for your productions to have theatrical releases?

Yeah. My background is having an understanding of the theatrical audience and setting up in that way. So that’s what we’ve looked to do. It’s challenging. And then obviously with distribution it’s to look at things that are theatrically led. So we’re applying  the same  instincts to both things. To be honest, the focus is certainly distribution, and when we can get involved in production, it’s to try to feed the distribution business.

Your distribution arm and CAA’s investment was announced back in Berlin in 2020. Timing wise, it couldn’t really have been worse, as a month later we were all in lockdown. Did it have a huge impact or, given that you’d just launched, did you not actually feel it that much?

I think it certainly slowed the plans. We had take stock and review the situation. And what was the challenge with the pandemic was there was no kind of finite amount of time on it. So, distribution wise, we kind of started doing some smaller pickups to help put the team together and to build the system. The first release was Earwig and the Witch and it’s great now that we’re the home of Studio Ghibli in the U.K. and are able to follow it up with The Boy and the Heron.

Your first company Optimum Releasing, which later became StudioCanal UK, was also the UK home of Studio Ghibli, right?

Yeah, we did Spirited Away in 2001, so it’s been a 20-plus year relationship. It’s such an amazing company and it’s great that they’ve got that loyalty there, so I’m very happy to carry on this relationship.

You acquired The Boy and Heron alongside Bleecker Street and Anonymous Content. How did that partnership come about?

It came about because they’re also the partners on Fackham Hall. We got to know Bleecker Street through doing the U.S. deal on that film. Anonymous also came onto the UK release of Greatest Days. So it’s been a natural thing of working together and looking at what opportunities are there. But it’s an Elysian release, with the backing of those two, primarily financial. It’s us on the ground.

Although they’re beloved, Ghibli’s box office figures haven’t been incredible in the U.K. Do you think this might be different?

What’s interesting, since we last released a Miyusaki film, is that My Neighbour Totoro has been on the stage in London and was hugely successful. And Spirited Away is coming to the stage next summer. We’re working with the Royal Shakespeare Company. So I think the audience for the films has grown. And The Boy and the Heron is really well placed, has come out of the autumn film festivals really well regarded, and played in London to two sold-out screenings. There’s a real anticipation. So it feels like it could be one of the biggest Ghibli films in the U.K.

Greatest Days, which was your first major release and also your biggest production, on paper felt like it ticked all the boxes – about Take That, backed by Take That, and tapping into the nostalgia market. But it didn’t seem to perform perhaps as well as expected. Do you think that was less to do with the film and more a reflection of the difficulties faced by indie releases?

I think certainly there are challenges for independent film at the moment. It was a big, ambitious film, and a big release — we did a big premiere and had Take That playing. I think we possibly suffered because we opened during the summer and very good weather, but not good weather for cinema. And also there was a lot going on in terms of people playing concerts and things like that. So it was challenging to get to the number that we wanted to. But I think we had a respectable box office, but obviously would have liked a lot more. We take a lot of learnings from that.

How is the U.K. looking generally for indie film and distributors like your comopany Things have changed dramatically in a very short space of time and it certainly seems more difficult to have that breakout hit. Is there still room to thrive?

There’s definite opportunity. There are fewer distributors around there’s but still audiences there. I think that there’s basically a market opportunity. The challenge for us is to have the right kind operations and resource to to deliver on that. I think having the flexibility of distribution and production is the right approach. It’s about gearing up to really exploit it.

Given that you were such a vital part of the first two Paddington films and helped bring the bear to StudioCanal, I can’t not ask you about the third film. It’s been six years, but are you excited now that we finally have a release date?

I’m as excited as anyone else to see the next film. All I hear is that it went really well.

Do you prefer Paddington 1 or 2?

Two is incredible, but there was something so special about working on the first. They were shooting it before the bear had been properly rendered and people didn’t know what it looked or sounded like. It was such a great experience to be part of and to see it come from this idea in a meeting to that wonderful film, and the way people reacted to it and it becoming this huge thing. So I think, weirdly, it’s the first. Two was so good, but it was almost easier as they’d done so much hard work on the first one.

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