Elaine Constantine to direct debut feature Northern Soul

Christian Mckay and British soul singer Lisa Stansfield are attached to star in Elaine Constantine’s debut feature, Northern Soul, set against the backdrop of the UK’s Northern Soul Movement in the 1960s.

The story follows two young men whose lives were changed forever by the Northern Soul Movement which developed in the industrial landscape of the North of England. Constanine is currently casting the film’s two leads and plans to use original Northern Soul records from the ’60s and ’70s.

A regular photographer for Vogue and The Face, Constantine has also directed commercials, pop videos and short documentary projects. She wrote and directed her first short film Cold Water in 2005 and has directed three shorts about the Northern Soul movement in the last decade.

Post Production house LipSync has come on board as an equity partner. Debbie Gray is producing for Constantine’s production company Stubborn Heart Productions. Henry Normal, executive producing for Baby Cow Films.

The film will be financed via an EIS scheme, which is being set up by London accountants Nyman Libson Paul.

“When Northern Soul exploded out of the North of England it touched young lives in a way that nothing had done before. As a young teenager, dancing to this music gave me an overwhelming feeling of belonging and euphoria. It’s this same feeling of excitement and belonging to something different and special that I want to give to the audience of the film,” said Constantine, who grew up in Bury, Lancashire.

Northern Soul also provided the backdrop for Ipso Facto’s 2010 Soulboy, starring Martin Compston.