Director Roger Michell has started principal photography on his next feature, Venus, which is described as a "coming of very-old-age story."

The film reunites Michell (Notting Hill, Changing Lanes) with producer Kevin Loader and writer Hanif Kureishi, who previously worked together on feature film The Mother and TV series The Buddha of Suburbia.

Venus stars Peter O'Toole, Leslie Phillips, Richard Griffiths, Vanessa Redgrave and newcomer Jodie Whittaker. O'Toole and Phillips star as veteran English actors in their 70s whose comfortable lives are shaken up by the arrival of one man's grand-niece, played by Whittaker.

The project is shooting for eight weeks on location in and around London and at Ealing Studios.

Venus is a Free Range Films production for FilmFour, the UK Film Council's Premiere Fund (which is providing £1 million in funding), and Miramax Films. Miramax will distribute the film in North America with Buena Vista on board for the UK release. The Works is handling international sales.