Film Adaptation of Award-Winning Novel Y Llyfrgell To Begin Filming At National Library of Wales

Shooting is to begin on The Library Suicides, the debut feature from award-winning director Euros Lyn, and based on Fflur Dafydd’s bestselling novel Y Llyfrgell. Starring Ryland Teifi (35 Diwrnod, Tir) Catrin Stewart (Stella, Doctor Who), Dyfan Dwyfor (Pride, Y Gwyll/ Hinterland) and Sharon Morgan (Resistance, Torchwood), The Library Suicides is an offbeat thriller, set in one of the most iconic buildings in Wales, which explores the secrets and lies at the heart of storytelling, and asks who has the right to tell the story.

When famous author Elena Wdig (Sharon Morgan) commits suicide, her twin daughters, librarians Nan and Ana, (Catrin Stewart) are lost without her. Elena’s final words suggest that her biographer, Eben (Ryland Teifi) murdered her. During one night shift, the twins set off on a murderous quest to avenge their mother’s death at the National Library of Wales, but are soon disrupted by night porter Dan, (Dyfan Dwyfor), who is unwillingly caught up in the saga.

The Library Suicides is the third film to go into production from Ffilm Cymru Wales’ emerging talent scheme Cinematic. Cinematic was devised and developed in partnership with the BFI Film Fund, BBC Films, Creative Skillset, Edicis, Soda Pictures and S4C. The scheme supports emerging filmmaking talent from Wales, in creating contemporary, dynamic and distinctive features. The Library Suicides is the first of these to be filmed in the Welsh language. Soda Pictures have distribution in the UK and Ireland, and S4C will broadcast the film at a future date.

Acclaimed director Euros Lyn can’t wait to get started on his first feature film, “As a huge fan of the genre, I’m very excited to be making a thriller in Welsh and what better place to set it than the wonderfully atmospheric National Library in mysterious Aberystwyth? Wales now has a host of world class writers, actors and crew I’m very excited to be working alongside so many of them on The Library Suicides”.

Having worked on popular Welsh language programmes Pam Fi Duw, Diwrnod Hollol Mindblowing Heddiw, Gwyfyn as well as Belonging, Lyn has also directed many episodes of Doctor Who including the Hugo award-winning The Girl In The Fireplace, Torchwood: Children Of Earth, also Sherlock, Last Tango In Halifax, Broadchurch, Black Mirror, Happy Valley and Daredevil which between them have won five BAFTA Best Drama Series awards, three BAFTA Cymru Best Director awards and an International Emmy.

Fflur Dafydd is a bilingual (Welsh/ English) screenwriter, producer, singer-songwriter and multi award-winning novelist. Y Llyfrgell, on which this film is based, won her the Daniel Owen Memorial Prize at the 2009 National Eisteddfod, “I first envisaged this idea as a film, but ended up writing a book instead. Bringing these characters to the big screen feels like a dream come true, and I feel very lucky to be working with such an incredibly talented director and a fabulous cast, who all bring their own unique vision to the project.”

She is the author of five novels and one collection of short stories, and won the Oxfam Hay Emerging Writer Award at the Hay Festival in 2009 for her novel Twenty Thousand Saints. As well as adapting The Library Suicides for screen Dafydd will co-produce the film alongside Lyn.

About Soda Pictures
Soda Pictures is an Anglo-Canadian film distributor of art house, independent and world cinema. Established in London in 2002 by Eve Gabereau and Edward Fletcher, the company releases 25+ films a year and has a library of over 300 films from all corners of the world. In September 2014, it was announced that Soda Pictures was acquired by the Canadian production company Thunderbird Films in order to join a greater media group, build a theatrical film division in Canada and expand their existing business in the UK and Ireland. They launched the new venture at Toronto International Film Festival with the World Premiere of Lone Scherfig's The Riot Club.

About Ffilm Cymru Wales
Established in 2006 and formerly known as the Film Agency for Wales, Ffilm Cymru Wales has a remit to help to develop a film sector in Wales and maximise the economic, educational and cultural benefits of film.

Ffilm Cymru Wales supports Welsh or Wales-based writers, directors and producers with development and production funding, industry assistance and mentoring opportunities. We aim to bring filmmakers and audiences together by encouraging more people to see more films in more venues. We also promote the use of film in education and community regeneration, producing educational resources in conjunction with teachers to aid literacy and general learning.

About The BFI
With over £30 million of Lottery funding to invest each year, the BFI is the UK's largest public investor in UK film, and the BFI Film Fund supports first-class British filmmaking from emerging and established filmmaking talent through production, developing new opportunities for audiences to see films, and exporting films to audiences worldwide.

Highly anticipated films backed by the BFI include Sarah Gavron’s Suffragette, recently announced as the opening night film for this year’s BFI London Film Festival and featuring a stellar cast including Carey Mulligan, Helena Bonham Carter and Meryl Streep; Ben Wheatley’s High-Rise; Terence Davies’ Sunset Song which has been selected World and European premieres at the Toronto International Film Festival and San Sebastian respectively; John Michael McDonagh's War On Everyone; Andrea Arnold’s American Honey; Philippa Lowthorpe’s Swallows and Amazons; Colm McCarthy’s She Who Brings Gifts; and Pete Travis’ City of Tiny Lights.

Films supported by the BFI Film Fund which have recently screened at international film festivals include Sean McAllister's A Syrian Love Story, winner of the Grand Jury prize at Sheffield Doc/Fest; Yorgos Lanthimos’ The Lobster which premiered In Competition at Cannes; Andrew Haigh’s 45 Years won two Silver Bear awards at the Berlin Film Festival and is currently playing to full cinemas on UK release; Scott Graham’s BI which screened at the Edinburgh International Film Festival; John Maclean’s Slow West, John Crowley’s Brooklyn, Louise Osmond’s Dark Horse and Jerry Rothwell’s How to Change the World which all premiered at Sundance.

The BFI is the lead organisation for film in the UK with the ambition to create a flourishing film environment in which innovation, opportunity and creativity can thrive by:

• Connecting audiences to the widest choice of British and World cinema

• Preserving and restoring the most significant film collection in the world for

• today and future generations

• Investing in creative, distinctive and entertaining work

• Promoting British film and talent to the world

• Growing the next generation of film makers and audiences

About BBC Films
BBC Films is at the forefront of independent filmmaking in the UK, developing and co-producing around twelve films a year. Headed up by Christine Langan, BBC Films was awarded the Michael Balcon BAFTA for Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema in 2015.

Recent releases include Bill Condon’s Mr. Holmes; Rufus Norris’ London Road; Ben Palmer’s Man Up; Thomas Vinterberg’s Far from the Madding Crowd, Alan Rickman’s A Little Chaos, Carol Morley’s The Falling, Simon Curtis’ Woman in Gold, Saul Dibb’s Suite Française, and Morgan Matthews’ X + Y.

Upcoming releases include Richard Bracewell’s family comedy Bill; John Crowley’s romantic drama Brooklyn starring Saoirse Ronan; Nicholas Hytner’s comedy drama The Lady in the Van starring Maggie Smith; and Anthony Wonke’s documentary Being AP.

BBC Films’ eclectic back catalogue includes Pride, Saving Mr. Banks, Philomena, Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa, My Week with Marilyn, We Need To Talk About Kevin, Jane Eyre, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, Made in Dagenham, An Education, In the Loop, Fish Tank, My Summer of Love, Truly Madly Deeply, and Billy Elliot.

Twitter @BBCFilms

About Creative Skillset
Creative Skillset empowers the Creative Industries to develop skills and talent; it does this by influencing and shaping policy, ensuring quality and by securing the vital investment for individuals to become the best in their field and for businesses to grow. As the industry skills body for the Creative Industries, it works across film, television, radio, fashion and textiles, animation, games, visual effects, publishing, advertising, marketing communications and performing arts. 

Creative Skillset’s Film Skills Fund, as part of its film skills strategy, is funded by the BFI with National Lottery funds and through the Skills Investment Fund, which comprise industry and government co-investment. The film skills strategy focuses on addressing the vital skills and training needs of the industry to deliver maximum economic and cultural return: creating jobs, strengthening skills, building skills for the future and ensuring world-class film education.

About EDICIS
EDICIS is a brand new communications, marketing and content group based in Wales and London. It brings together the established creative and marketing credentials of OTM, WLP and 3Sixty Publishing in London and joins them with the world class content creation and digital delivery resources of Dragon Digital in Wales. The Agency is ideas led and marries communication strategy and planning with creative realization and digital delivery. It supports film making in Wales and has backed a number of shorts and full length features there working along side Ffilm Cymru Wales on The Cinematic Scheme, Beacons Scheme and Female Directors Lab.

About S4C
S4C is the only Welsh language television channel in the world. As a public service broadcaster, it commissions independent production companies in Wales to make the majority of its programmes, and BBC Wales produce around ten hours a week of programming for the channel too. S4C broadcasts over 115 hours of programming for people of all ages every week – from sports, drama and music to factual, entertainment and events. S4C is available through all of the main television platforms, and is also widely available on digital platforms. While it is a Welsh language channel, S4C offers provision for those who don’t speak Welsh through subtitling and, for some broadcasts, an English language audio feed which is available via the red button.

S4C is an advocate for new Welsh drama and actively supports talents in the industry to produce new, innovative and engaging material for broadcast on the channel and beyond. In partnership with many other establishments within the creative industries, it supports innitiatives to allow writers and film producers to hone their skills and create new creative content. This includes the Y Labordy scheme, in conjunction with Ffilm Cymru Wales, which supports scriptwriters, and a recent new partnership with The Iris Prize to produce their first ever LGBT short films in the Welsh language and a growing partnership with BAFTA Cymru to celebrate and develop skills.