Sands Films

Sands Films is a small, independent, British film production company, founded by producer Richard Goodwin and director Christine Edzard in the early 1970s, and based in Rotherhithe, London. The company is known for its production of costumes for period dramas and is run by Olivier Stockman and Christine Edzard. Since 2005 the building has been open to the public regularly via the Sands Films Cinema Club and Music Room, adding to the "remarkable and very valuable operation, which not only creates in-house, but also opens a window on another world."^[1]

Sands Films

Sands Films building
Industry	Film production
Founded	1975
Headquarters	London , England
Website	www.sandsfilms.co.uk

Background

The building that Sands Films occupies is a former granary, now a grade II listed building.^[2] The business was founded in 1975^[3] and, since 1976, it has housed a small film stage, film theatre, picture library, workshops and costume stores.^[4] The Goodwins initially used the derelict building rent-free, on the basis they completely repaired and renovated the property.^[5] Managing director Olivier Stockman has worked for Sands Studios since 1980.^[3]

In 2011, the company's annual turnover exceeded £1 million for the first time.^[5] After its rent almost quadrupled since 2000 and it had been asked to pay back-rent for an unrenovated part of the building, the company began to raise funds to purchase the property. This included selling shares at £500 each,^[5] and later in 2012, they successfully bought the property, with plans to modernise its production facilities. The studio and its struggle to survive increasing rent and costs was the subject of a BBC Inside Out program in 2012.^[6] The BBC film also highlights the four generations who have worked at Sands since it was founded.^[7]

As an independent film production studio Sands Films has its own soundproof stage, workshops, costume department, set construction workshop, cutting room, cinema and other services needed to make films. It is a self-sufficient and fully integrated production facility. Cinema and television companies as varied as Working Title, Talkback, BBC, Channel 4, Freemantle, Ridley Scott Associates, Sky TV, the Royal Opera House, the New York Metropolitan Opera and Canal+ have used the facilities at Sands Films for their projects.

The weekly film club is free, with donations invited, and is housed in a "cosy" cinema in the 18th century building which contains "a myriad of aesthetically pleasing spaces". These include music performances, book launches, political debates and theatre productions, as well as the non-digital Rotherhithe Picture Research Library which is an educational trust and is open to all at no cost.^[8][9]

With the covid-19 lockdown the studio intensified its live streaming activities. Stockman explained:

“Sands Films always had a connection with live music and music performance in general. But during the Covid lockdown, the studio’s recording and broadcasting facilities were made available to musicians who were deprived of their live audience, and therefore of their income. We offered the Music Room as accessible and open to all: without a paywall, fees or anything. All we asked is for donations from those who can afford it."^[7]

Since then all Sands Films’ music events have been hybrid, with a live audience in the theatre, online viewers at home and unrestricted access remaining the same. While performers are paid a minimum guarantee, Stockman says:

"Our open door policy reflects the fact that art and culture should not be treated as commodities. Music, in particular, is destined to all and should not be conditional upon a financial transaction.”^[7]

Griff Rhys Jones has described Sands Films as "romantic and inspiring; efficient, fun and creative. I love working down there. I love the atmosphere. You feel lucky to be there and privileged to get stuck into the serious business of creating fantasy in such surroundings.” ^[10]

Productions

Productions by Sands Films include Stories from a Flying Trunk (1979), The Nightingale (1981), Biddy (1983), Little Dorrit (1987), Old Ways New Ways (1988), The Fool (1989), As You Like It (1991), Amahl and the Night Visitors (1996), The IMAX Nutcracker (1997), The Children's Midsummer Night's Dream (2001) and The Good Soldier Schwejk (2018).

The studio has delivered full production packages to companies requiring a London studio base, such as A Passage to India (1984) and Bright Star (2009). Sands Films was the production base for The Long Day Closes (1992), including the building of all sets. Sands Films supplied facilities to Working Title's productions of Anna Karenina (2012) and Les Miserables (2012), and to Touching the Void (2003). The studio was a co-production partner on A Dangerous Man: Lawrence After Arabia (1990), La luna en botella (2007) and Garbo: El espia (2009).

Other films the company has been involved in for production services include Agatha Christie films produced by EMI - Death on the Nile) (1978),^[11] The Mirror Crack'd (1980), Evil Under The Sun (1982) - and Seven Years in Tibet (1997). Sands hand-embroidered the costumes for the main characters in the BBC's 2015 series Wolf Hall.^[12]

In 2017, Sands Films produced The Good Soldier Schwejk, written and directed by Christine Edzard and based on The Good Soldier Švejk by Jaroslav Hašek. The project partly was funded by the auction of a costume worn by Mark Rylance in the BBC's Wolf Hall.^[13]

Filming began in October 2024 for a new production called The Man with the Plan which will star Simon Callow as William Beveridge and comedian Mark Thomas as the Narrator.^[14] Comedian Hal Cruttenden will also appear as Winston Churchill, and Andrew Tiernan as Nye Bevan. The film tells the story of a young woman of today who discovers Beveridge's 1942 report - the Plan - which led to the founding of the welfare state. ^[15][16] On 12th and 13th April 2025, Sands Films held a filmed public event at their studios in Rotherhithe and invited political campaigners and activists to speak about their campaigns and issues, particularly in relation to the "giants" of Beveridge's report - squalor, idleness, disease and poverty.^[17] Mark Thomas hosted the event and all speeches delivered onstage were recorded on the day and made available online.^[18]

Sands Films Productions

Year	Title	Director	Writer	Producer	Awards
1979	Stories from a Flying Trunk	Christine Edzard	Hans Christian Andersen, Christine Edzard	John Brabourne, Richard Goodwin[19]
1981	The Nightingale	Christine Edzard	Hans Christian Andersen	Richard B. Goodwin[20]	Won award at 12th International Short and Documentary Film Festival, Lille, 1982.[21]
1983	Biddy	Christine Edzard	Christine Edzard	Richard B. Goodwin[22]	Celia Bannerman (as Biddy) won an award at the Moscow Film Festival [23]
1987	Little Dorrit	Christine Edzard	Charles Dickens, Christine Edzard	John Brabourne, Richard B. Goodwin[24]	Two Academy Award nominations for Actor in a Supporting Role (Alec Guinness and Writing (screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium) (Christine Edzard) [25] LA Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actress (Miriam Margolyes)[26] Two BAFTA Award nominations for Best Screenplay – Adapted, and Best Costume Design, and one for the Golden Globes (USA) for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role Evening Standard Award for Best Actor in 1987 (Derek Jacobi)[27]
1988	Old Ways New Ways	Olivier Stockman	Olivier Stockman	Trevor Ingman [28]
1990	The Fool	Christine Edzard	Christine Edzard, Olivier Stockman	Celia Bannerman[29]
1991	As You Like It	Christine Edzard	William Shakespeare, Christine Edzard	Olivier Stockman, George Reinhart [30]
1996	Amahl and the Night Visitors	Christine Edzard	Gian Carlo Menotti, Christine Edzard	Olivier Stockman [31]
1997	The IMAX Nutcracker	Christine Edzard	E. T. A. Hoffmann, Christine Edzard	Celia Bannerman, Andrew Gellis, Lorne Orleans, Olivier Stockman [32]
2001	The Children's Midsummer Night's Dream	Christine Edzard	William Shakespeare, Christine Edzard	Olivier Stockman [33]
2018	The Good Soldier Schwejk	Christine Edzard	Jaroslav Hašek, Christine Edzard	Olivier Stockman [34]

Making and supplying of period costumes

Year	Title		Designer	Academy Award Best Costumes	BAFTA/ Other Award Best Costumes
1992	A Dangerous Man: Lawrence After Arabia	TV movie	Claudie Gastine
1994	The NeverEnding Story III: Escape from Fantasia	film	Vin Burnham, Monique Prudhomme
	Screen Two Episode: Hope in the Year Two	TV series
1997	Amistad	film	Ruth Carter	Nominee [35]
	Oscar and Lucinda	film	Janet Patterson	Nominee [35]
	The Woman in White	TV series	Odile Dicks-Mireaux
1999	Great Expectations	film	Odile Dicks-Mireaux		Winner[36]
	Topsy-Turvy	film	Lindy Hemming	Winner [37]
	Les Enfants du Siecle	film	Anaïs Romand
2000	Gormenghast	TV series	Odile Dicks-Mireaux		Nominee[38]
2001	The Lady and the Duke	film	Pierre-Jean Larroque
2002	Gangs of New York	film	Sandy Powell	Nominee [39]	Nominee [40]
	Tipping the Velvet	TV mini series	Susannah Buxton
2003	The Lost Prince	film	Odile Dicks-Mireaux
2004	Vanity Fair	film	Beatrix Aruna Pasztor		Winner Satellite Awards
	Stage Beauty	film	Tim Hatley
	Phantom of the Opera	film	Alexandra Byrne
2005	Pride and Prejudice	film	Jacqueline Durran	Nominee [41]	Nominee [42]
	Oliver Twist	film	Anna B. Sheppard
	Une Vie	TV Movie	Catherine Leterrier
	Fingersmith	TV series	Susannah Buxton
2006	Marie Antoinette	film	Milena Canonero	Winner [43]	Nominee [44]
2007	Becoming Jane	film	Eimer Ni Mhaoldomhnaigh		Nominee Irish Awards[45]
	Atonement	film	Jacqueline Durran	Nominee [46]	Nominee [47]
	Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street	film	Colleen Atwood	Nominee [46]	Nominee [47]
2007-2008	Lark Rise to Candleford	TV series	Phoebe de Gaye, Pam Downe
2008	The Other Boleyn Girl	film	Sandy Powell
	The Duchess	film	Michael O'Connor	Winner [48]	Winner [49]
	John Adams	TV series	Donna Zakowska
2009	Bright Star	film	Janet Patterson	Nominee [50]	Nominee [51]
	The Young Victoria	film	Sandy Powell	Winner [50]	Winner [51]
	Creation	film	Louise Stjernsward
2010	Burke and Hare	film	Deborah Landis
	Alice in Wonderland	film	Colleen Atwood	Winner [52]	Winner [53]
	The Tempest	film	Sandy Powell	Nominee [54]
2011	Wuthering Heights	film	Steven Noble
	Albert Nobbs	film	Pierre-Yves Gayraud
	La Princesse de Montpensier	film	Caroline de Vivaise		Nominee Cesar Awards
	Jane Eyre	film	Michael O'Connor	Nominee [55]	Nominee [56]
	Anonymous	film	Lisy Christl	Nominee [55]
	L'Apollonide	film	Anaïs Romand		Winner César Awards
2012, 2016	The Hollow Crown	TV series	Odile Dicks-Mireaux Nigel Egerton		Nominee BAFTA Craft Awards
2012	Lincoln	film	Joanna Johnston	Nominee [57]	Nominee [58]
	Bel Ami	film	Odile Dicks-Mireaux
	Les Miserables	film	Paco Delgado	Nominee [57]	Nominee [58]
	Anna Karenina	film	Jacqueline Durran	Winner [57]	Winner [58]
	Great Expectations	film	Beatrix Aruna Pasztor		Nominee [58]
	Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter	film	Varvara Avdyushko, Carlo Poggioli
	The Raven	film	Carlo Poggioli
	Quartet	film	Odile Dicks-Mireaux
2013	12 Years a Slave	film	Patricia Norris	Nominee [59]
	The Invisible Woman	film	Michael O'Connor	Nominee [59]	Nominee [60]
	La Religieuse	film	Anaïs Romand
	The Devil's Violinist	film	Birgit Hutter
	Pride and Prejudice: Having a Ball	TV movie	Amy Cartwright
2014	Mr Turner	film	Jacqueline Durran	Nominee [61]	Nominee [62]
	Amour Fou	film	Tanja Hausner
	A Little Chaos	film	Joan Bergin
	Outlander S1	TV series	Terry Dresbach, Glenne Campbell
	Casanova Variations	film	Andreas Donhauser, Renate Martin
2015	Far from the Madding Crowd	film	Janet Patterson		Nominee Satellite Awards[63]
	Macbeth	film	Jacqueline Durran		Nominee Satellite Awards[63]
	Wolf Hall S1	TV series	Joanna Eatwell
	Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell	TV series	Barbara Kidd
	Cinderella	film	Sandy Powell	Nominee [64]	Nominee,[65] Nominee Satellite Awards[63]
	If It Be Love	film	Johanna Elf
2016	Roots	TV series	Diana Cilliers Ruth Carter		Nominee Creative Arts Emmy Awards
	Victoria	TV series	Rosalind Ebbutt
	To Walk Invisible	TV movie	Tom Pye
	A Dangerous Fortune	TV Movie	Eimer Ni Mhaoldomhnaigh
	Love & Friendship	film	Eimer Ni Mhaoldomhnaigh
	Outlander S2	TV series	Terry Dresbach		Nominee Emmy (for "Not In Scotland Anymore") [66]
2017	Taboo	TV series	Joanna Eatwell
	Victoria and Abdul	film	Consolata Boyle	Nominee [67]
	Will	TV series	Kym Barrett
	Tulip Fever	film	Michael O'Connor
	Beauty and the Beast	film	Jacqueline Durran	Nominee [67]	Nominee [68]
	Harlots	TV series	Edward Gibbon
	Outlander S3	TV series	Terry Dresbach		Nominee Emmy (for "Freedom & Whisky")[69]
2018	Peterloo	film	Jacqueline Durran
	The Sisters Brothers	film	Milena Canonero		Nominee César Awards[70]
	Mary Magdalene	film	Jacqueline Durran
	Un Peuple et son Roi	film	Anaïs Romand		Nominee César Awards[70]
	Le Retour du Heros	film	Pierre Jean Larroque
	Harlots 2	TV series	Charlotte Mitchell
	Outlander S4	TV series	Terry Dresbach, Nina Ayres
2019	Little Women	film	Jacqueline Durran	Winner [71]	Winner [72]
	The Personal History of David Copperfield	film	Suzie Harman Robert Worley		Winner BIFA,[73] Winner Satellite Awards [74]
	Gentleman Jack	TV series	Tom Pye
	Harlots 3	TV Series	Richard Cooke
2020	Ammonite	film	Michael O'Connor		Nominee,[75] Nominee BIFA[76]
	Outlander S5	TV series	Trisha Biggar
2021	The Irregulars	TV series	Edward Gibbon
	The Electrical Life of Louis Wain	film	Michael O'Connor
2022	The Gilded Age S1	TV series	Kasia Walicka Maimone, Patrick Wiley
	Emily	film	Michael O'Connor
	Chevalier	film	Oliver Garcia
	Outlander S6	TV series	Trisha Biggar
	The Corn is Green (National Theatre)	theatre	Ultz
	A Christmas Carol (Old Vic)	theatre	Rob Howell
	Under the Banner of Heaven	TV miniseries	Joseph La Corte
	The Pale Blue Eye	movie	Kasia Walicka, Maimone
	The Wonder	movie	Odile Dicks-Mireaux
	The Confessions of Frannie Langton	TV series	Nigel Egerton
	Persuasion	movie	Marianne Agertoft
	Catherine Called Birdy	movie	Julian Day
	Our Flag Means Death	TV series	Christine Webb, Gypsy Taylor
	The Empress S1	TV series	Gabrielle Reumer
2023	Firebrand	film	Michael O'Connor
	The Gilded Age S2	TV series	Kasia Walicka Maimone, Patrick Wiley
	Jeanne du Barry	film	Jurgen Doering		Nominee César Awards
	The Little Mermaid	film	Colleen Atwood
	Napoleon	film	David Crossman Janty Yates	Nominee [77]	Nominee [78]
	Outlander S7	TV series	Trisha Biggar
	The Great S3	TV series	Sharon Long		Winner Emmy (for "Choose Your Weapon") [79]
	Tom Jones	TV series	Hazel Webb Crozier
	Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story	TV miniseries	Laura Frecon, Lyn Paolo
	The Artful Dodger	TV series	Xanthe Heubel
	Polite Society	movie	PC Williams
2024	A Thousand Blows	TV series	Maja Meschede
	Manhunt	TV miniseries	Katie Irish
	Mary & George	TV miniseries	Annie Symons
	Renegade Nell	TV series	Tom Pye
	Belgravia: The Next Chapter	TV series	Phoebe De Gaye
	The Count of Monte Cristo	film	Thierry Delettre
	The Count of Monte Cristo	TV series	Ursula Patzak
	Here	movie	Joanna Johnston
	Wolf Hall S2	TV series	Joanna Eatwell
	Harvest	movie	Kirsty Halliday
	The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin	TV series	Rosa Dias, Richard Cooke
	Nosferatu	movie	Linda Muir	Nominee [80]