The Party’s Just Beginning, the debut feature film from Doctor Who and Guardians Of The Galaxy actress Karen Gillan, has been picked up for US distribution by The Orchard. The indie distributor is planning a fall rollout for the film.
In addition to having written and directed the film, Gillan stars as a young woman who is unable to come to terms with the suicide of her best friend, drowning her pain in booze, drugs and casual, one-night stands. But a chance meeting with a vacationing Londoner (Lee Pace) and a wrong-number telephone call begins to drive her towards confronting her own pain head-on and that is something she actively pushes back against. Gillan shot the film primarily in her hometown of Inverness in the Scottish Highlands.
“Totally and completely thrilled to team up with The Orchard on my directorial debut,” Gillan stated in a press release. “I greatly admire the films that The Orchard put out into the world and I’m honored to have The Party’s Just Beginning be one of them.”
The Party’s Just Beginning had its US debut this past spring at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York City, where it received positive notices. It was certainly among the list of favorites from the festival for both myself and The Big Picture Podcast co-host Natasha Bogutzki. (You can listen to our Tribeca Wrap-Up episode here.) Although the film plumbs some dark depths, it does so with an honesty and an assured steady hand not often seen in a directorial debut.
