Mark Addy and Yasmin Al-Khudhairi Lead London Table Read for Indie Film 'First Christmas'

Mark Addy and Yasmin Al-Khudhairi headlined a live table read of the upcoming British feature "First Christmas" at St Paul's Church in London's Covent Garden on Oct. 1, in an unconventional bid to close the film's financing.

More than 100 guests attended the event. The cast also included Eleanor Tomlinson ("Poldark"), Ian McNeice ("Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls"), Sarita Choudhury ("And Just Like That…"), Dave Benson Philips, Dean-Charles Chapman ("Game of Thrones"), Samuel Anderson ("Amandaland") and "Taskmaster" creator Alex Horne.

Director Keith Kopp and producer Luke Allen staged the reading before financing was fully secured — a reversal of the conventional route, in which producers assemble a cast only after deals close. The strategy responds to a familiar problem: independent film financing remains difficult for U.K. producers seeking investment, distribution and greenlights.

Why stage a table read before the money is in place?

The filmmakers wanted to demonstrate the material's commercial strength directly to industry partners rather than describe it on paper. The producers are now working to secure the final tranche of financing and an international sales partner, with production planned to begin shooting in the coming months.

"There's no shortage of good independent films trying to get made, but the challenge is finding ways to stand out and giving the right partners the confidence to come on board," Allen said. "We felt that bringing the cast together and allowing people to experience the script in this way, rather than simply read about it, was a much better way to demonstrate what we're building. We are asking people to invest in our creative vision, so there's something very powerful about actually showing it to them in this way."

Who else is behind the film?

The producing team includes U.S. producer Alyssa Roehrenbeck, who recently had two films premiere at SXSW. One of them, "Wishful Thinking," starring Maya Hawke and Lewis Pullman, won the Grand Jury Prize and is scheduled for release through Sony Pictures Classics. Her other recent project, "A Simple Machine," is receiving a limited U.S. theatrical release this autumn.

Samuel Anderson and Jeremy Wilson [Watson] also produce. The screenplay is written by Laurence Guy.

What is 'First Christmas' about?

"First Christmas" is a darkly comic family drama centered on a widowed father who brings his estranged adult children and their families together for Christmas, only to find that unresolved grievances and family tensions are not easily set aside for the festive season.

The film "draws on their shared experiences of grief and the often-uncomfortable humor that accompanies family loss," according to a statement. The idea emerged following a screening of Kopp's previous feature, "Translations," which received a U.K. theatrical release and won awards at the Riverside Intl. Film Festival.

If the final financing and a sales partner come through in the coming months, "First Christmas" could offer U.K. independents a template for selling a film by showing it — cast and script live on stage — before a single frame is shot.