The Storms of Jeremy Thomas

His father and uncle were well-known British film directors, so he was born into the profession: Jeremy Thomas (born 1949) is now one of the most important producers of international arthouse cinema. His career as a producer and executive producer spans films by Nagisa Ōshima, Stephen Frears and David Cronenberg. In 1987, he received the Oscar and the British Academy Film Award for Best Film for ‘The Last Emperor’. In 1994, Thomas was president of the International Jury at the Berlin International Film Festival. In 2001, he was awarded the British Independent Film Award for Best Producer, and in 2006 he received the European Film Award for outstanding achievements in European film. In 2019, documentary filmmaker Mark Cousins embarked on a 1,000 km journey from London to Cannes to film and interview the British producer and filmmaker. For 45 years, Thomas has made this annual ‘pilgrimage’ to the famous film festival, and this time Cousins peppers him with his film interpretations and questions him on topics such as cars, sex and death. The unusual Grand Tour takes us to sights and people connected with the films and the life of the producer. "'The Storms of Jeremy Thomas' encourages viewers to broaden their horizons and seek out unknown and possibly uncomfortable work. It portrays the ’70s, ’80s, and ’90s as a lost continent of handsomely funded movies aimed at sophisticated and curious adults rather than The Kid Inside All of Us. The voyeuristic impulse that has always fueled cinema to some degree is acknowledged in several film clips, such as the brother in 'The Dreamers' watching his sister and the visiting American getting intimate, and the title character in the Thomas-produced 'Dom Hemingway' proclaiming that a painting of his johnson 'should hang in the Louvre'.” (Roger Ebert)