Principal photography wrapped on THE DEVIL’S HARVEST, the sweeping epic romance from producer / writer / director George Mendeluk in Kiev on January 30th.
Shot on location in Ukraine and London, THE DEVIL’S HARVEST is an action-packed, dramatic tale of love and the importance of family, set against the backdrop of political upheaval in 1930s Ukraine. Yuri (Max Irons) is an artistic soul born into a family of Cossack warriors, who struggles to win the approval of his grandfather Ivan (Terence Stamp), father Yaroslav (Barry Pepper) and the heart of Natalka (Samantha Barks.) Yuri finds his life changed forever with the invasion of the Red Army and the subsequent persecution of his family and fellow countrymen as Stalin’s regime of terror extends across Eastern Europe.
THE DEVIL’S HARVEST features an ensemble cast which includes Max Irons (The White Queen, The Host, Red Riding Hood), Samantha Barks (Les Misérables), Golden Globe® nominee Barry Pepper (The Lone Ranger,Broken City, True Grit, Saving Private Ryan) and Academy Award® nominee Terence Stamp (The Adjustment Bureau, Valkyrie). Adding to the stellar British cast, are Tamer Hassan (Dracula), Aneurin Barnard (The White Queen) and Tom Austen (Ironclad).
In addition to directing, George Mendeluk co-wrote the screenplay alongside Richard Bachynsky Hoover, from Hoover’s original story. Mendeluk produces with Jaye Gazeley and Chad Barager. Camilla Storey co-produces. Ian Ihnatowycz is the executive producer, while Richard Bachynsky executive produced in Ukraine. Douglas Milsome (Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, The Shining) is the cinematographer and Daniel Hubbard (Captain Phillips, The Bourne Ultimatum) handled the casting.
Mendeluk commented “I grew up with my mother describing how she and her family survived the terror of the Holodymor – the engineered famine/ genocide wrought by Stalin in Ukraine -- where 7 million perished at a time when the world looked the other way. As you see in today’s media, his long shadow stills affects Ukraine today, but our story is essentially one of love triumphing over all that life throws at it”.
Ian Ihnatowycz, who privately financed the film added “We wanted to show a side of the period between the World Wars that has really been ignored, where the Ukrainian population was decimated by the Bolsheviks, and George rightfully wanted to use the experience of one disparate family as the core story. We also decided on filming on authentic locations in Kiev, despite the attentions of factions who even today want this period of history suppressed. I am relieved that the photography is now completed”.
Mendeluk began his career in the film industry as a writer, first stepping in to the field in 1972. He has since amassed an array of film and television credits, directing a number of industry greats which include Oscar® winner Christopher Plummer, Terence Howard and Patrick Dempsey as well as Golden Globe® winner William Shatner and Oscar® nominees Hal Holbrook and Ava Gardner in The Kidnapping of the President and Academy Award ® nominee Anne Archer and Elysium’s Michael Shanks in Judicial Indiscretion.