Little Door opens in Cardiff

A pair of senior execs behind high-end BBC1 period drama The Last Post have launched their own female-led drama production company in Wales.

Elwen Rowlands

Little Door Productions has been set up by producers Elwen Rowlands and Hayley Manning in Cardiff and will produce television drama and film, targeted at both the local and international market.

The company has received investment from the Great Point Ventures Enterprise Investment Fund as well as from the Ffilm Cymru Wales Company Support Scheme.

Little Door already had an unnamed series commissioned for a UK broadcaster, which will begin shooting in Cardiff next year, with additional projects in commissioned development.

Rowlands has worked in production and commissioning for a range of UK broadcasters and prodcos. Her credits include Doctor Who, Life On Mars, Vera, Wide Sargasso Sea and The Last Post, made by Bonafide films, where she was creative director.

Hayley Manning

Meanwhile, Manning has worked on a number of feature films with a series of European financiers, distributors and international coproducers. Most recently she was Bonafide head of production and financial controller.

Rowlands said: “It’s an opportune time to be launching a drama indie in the Nations and Regions as we witness a growing need for companies with a genuine footprint there. We have an exciting mix of truly talented individuals on our slate and look forward to bringing their ideas to audiences global and local”.

Manning added: “The industry is booming so it is a very exciting time to be launching Little Door. Although we feel very strongly about producing shows out of Cardiff and investing in talent locally, our focus is on delivering projects for the international market”.