All at Sea (2012)

Interesting facts

Wide Blue Yonder is a 2010 Norwegian-British black comedy-drama film about an old rogue sailor who breaks all the rules to fulfill an old friend's dying wish to be buried at sea. The film was directed by Robert Young from a screenplay written by Hugh Janes, adapted from his stage play Two of a Kind (1995). It stars Brian Cox, Lauren Bacall and James Fox.

Production

Wide Blue Yonder was originally written for the theatre by British playwright Hugh Janes and staged in London's West End with Eric Sykes as the lead.

The film was shot on locations in Haugesund Municipality, Karmøy Municipality, and Sveio Municipality from 13 July to mid-August 2007.

Problems with the film began during principal photography when British producer John Cairns' Parkland Films and Norwegian producer Bjørg Veland's Euromax Productions were unable to pay their bills, including salary for cast and crew. They had raised only €2.4 million of the production's €6.4 million budget.

Norwegian producer Bjarne Hareide was brought in to restructure the financing, but when filming wrapped, €1.6 million local costs were still uncovered. New investments were needed to finish the feature and the film was finally ready for a star-studded world premiere at the Norwegian International Film Festival in 2010. However, it took another two years to clarify the rights, further complicated by the British producer's bankruptcy.

Wide Blue Yonder world premiered at the Norwegian International Film Festival in Haugesund on 19 August 2010 and was also screened at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival in May 2011. Five years after its completed production, it was finally released in Norway on 25 May 2012 and saw a limited release in the United States on 27 June 2014.

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