Writer/producer Trevor Howis is assembling a new creative and international sales team for his thriller Weekend Warriors.
Howis has parted company with David Hannay and the UK’s The Spice Factory, who were to co-produce the film with his firm Vincero Productions.
As a result, director Brian Trenchard-Smith is no longer involved. In a related move, Howis has resigned as head of development for David Hannay Productions after more than three years.
Howis' screenplay is set in a remote forest valley where an inexperienced junior officer endeavours to save his men and his brother from his battle-hardened psychopathic former mentor who is hell bent on revenge.
“Ultimately we have decided it's better for us and our project to pursue other opportunities on our own and move away from the ‘Ozploitation’ brand, “ Howis told IF.
“It is the toughest decision I have ever had to make but I feel it's the right one. I have learnt an awful lot from David over the past three years and his mentoring has been invaluable. It is now time to move on and do my own thing."
The project would have reunited Hannay with the Los Angeles-based Trenchard-Smith, with whom he collaborated on the films The Man From Hong Kong and Out of the Body, documentaries The Making Of Stone and Kung Fu Killers and TV comedy The Marty Feldman Show.
Howis says he has several directors in mind but has not yet made a decision. He’s also seeking a new sales agent as the film was to have been handled internationally by The Spice Factory’s parent company Stealth Media Group .
He stressed his decision had “nothing to do with anybody's ability or reputation” and said he has developed a "more universal screenplay" with the help of an LA-based script editor.