Sally Caplan hasagreed to staywith the UK Film Council which will see her stay onuntil May 2010as head of the Premiere Fund.

She has been in the role since 2005.

Caplan was previously president of Icon Film Distribution. Prior to that, she worked as senior vice president of acquisitions and business affairs at Momentum Pictures.

The Premiere Fund invests $12m (£8m) of National Lottery money into mainstream, commercially-driven films encouraging the involvement of British creative talent.

Recent successes include How to Lose Friends and Alienate People; St Trinian's; The Escapist; Death Defying Acts; Happy-Go-Lucky; and Becoming Jane.

The fund is backing three British films from new and established British directors. Daniel Barber's Harry Brown , Sam Taylor-Wood's Nowhere Boy and Stephen Poliakoff's 1939 are all receiving National Lottery funding for production.

Harry Brown is a new British crime thriller starring Michael Caine and Emily Mortimer and marks the feature film debut for upcoming director Daniel Barber, Oscar-nominated in 2008 for his short film Tonto Woman.

Nowhere Boy is directed by Sam Taylor Wood. Wood's debut short film Love You More, was produced by Anthony Minghella and nominated for the Palme d'Or Award at Cannes in 2008.

Nowhere Boy sheds new light on the previously untold story of John Lennon's early life and his relationship with his mother and aunt. The cast includes newcomer Aaron Johnson and Academy Award nominated actress Kristin Scott Thomas.

Political thriller 1939 marks writer/director Stephen Poliakoff's return to theatrical film after a break of almost 17 years. The pre-World War II thriller stars award-winning actress Romola Garai, Bill Nighy and Julie Christie.