Xuenou > Movies > Cannes: Stephen Fry, Channel 4 Board Atticus Films’ LGBTQ+ Doc ‘Willem & Frieda’ (Exclusive)
Cannes: Stephen Fry, Channel 4 Board Atticus Films’ LGBTQ+ Doc ‘Willem & Frieda’ (Exclusive)
Stephen Fry, Channel Four Board Atticus Films' LGBTQ+ feature documentary 'Willem & Frieda.'

Cannes: Stephen Fry, Channel 4 Board Atticus Films’ LGBTQ+ Doc ‘Willem & Frieda’ (Exclusive)

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Stephen Fry has signed on to present Willem & Frieda, a feature documentary telling the story of members of the LGBTQ+ community who worked with the Dutch resistance during World War II.

Willem, a gay artist, and Frieda, a lesbian cellist, began forging identity papers for Jews living in the Netherlands under occupation. But when the Nazis began checking the false papers against centrally held duplicate records, Willem and Frieda came up with a daring plan to blow up the Central Records Office, destroying the records without harming anyone.

Rik Carmichael wrote the script to Willem & Frieda, which his There’s Only One Jimmy Grimble collaborator John Hay will direct.

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“I confess that, before Rik Carmichael and John Hay sent me the fruits of their amazing research, I had never heard of Willem Arondeus or Frieda Belinfante; whom I now regard as authentic and remarkable heroes,” said Fry. “Living their lives as openly gay in the 1930s was remarkable enough, but once the Nazis invaded their homeland of the Netherlands, they found in themselves a depth of courage and determination that, across the years, remains truly inspiring. It’s a question we often ask ourselves – how would I respond to the occupation of my country? Would I fight for freedom or duck down and keep out of trouble? I think the world needs to be reminded of Willem and Frieda, ordinary people who found extraordinary inner resources…”

Fry will present the documentary on camera and interview historians, as well as visit the locations of the original events.

Channel 4 has boarded the project from Atticus Films, with Julian Scott producing. Disrupting Influence is handling international sales and will present the project to buyers at the Cannes Film Market. Glenn Kendrick Ackermann, Jason Piette and Ewan Dunbar of Disrupting Influence are executive producing. Principal photography is set to begin June 6.