Shooting People campaigns to support 1 Day

From a press release from Shooting People:

Shooting People, the Independent Filmmakers' Networking Community, encourages its 35,000 members to see director and writer Penny Woolcock's '1 Day' film on its Friday 06 November opening after some cinemas withdraw the film on police advice.

'Our independent filmmakers are gravely concerned about the actions of the West Midlands police, who have stepped in to advise cinemas not to screen the small British independent film '1 Day'. We have started a campaign amongst our 35,000 members and call on those cinemas to reinstate the screening of this important film,' said Cath Le Couteur, Co-founder, Shooting People

'On Monday night, Shooting People put on a free screening of its patron Penny Woolcock's film '1 Day'. Penny arrived at the screening very distressed at the news that police were advising cinemas not to screen the film and that it was being pulled from Birmingham, Birmingham, Walsall, Wolverhampton and Coventry. Independent filmmakers up and down the country are speechless that the police suddenly seem to have new powers to effectively censor films,' said James Mullighan, Creative Director Shooting People

There's a report about the film's withdrawal in the Dudley News:

Odeon in Birmingham were the first to announce they were not showing the movie, which was released last Friday, after taking ‘police advice’.

And now Showcase have followed suit, by pulling it from Midland cinemas.

Karen Fox, general manager of Showcase UK Theatres, said: “Showcase has made the decision not to screen the film 1 Day at its cinemas in the West Midlands region.

“However, we are screening the film in our other UK locations.”

The police, however, deny advising cinemas not the screen the film.

There's an interview with Penny Woolcock on the BBC Birmingham website (published before the controversy arose):

Young men would quite reasonably ask me what the film was going to be about. I’d reply that I didn’t know because I needed them to be open with me, that I couldn’t as a white middle class, middle aged woman write a script about their lives out of my head. “Yes, but what it is about?” “I don’t know yet, I need you to talk to me.” “Yes, but what it is about?” And so it went on and on in frustrating circles.

Eventually, I met a couple of people who actually liked me and things really took off. Dylan Duffus who plays Flash says he knew within 30 seconds that I was not a grass. Through him I met lots of people and heard lots of stories. I asked lots of questions and I made lots of notes. As I got to understand the slang I realised how clever it was – it is intended to keep secrets. Money can also be paper, scrilla, p’s or don’s. Most people speak several languages, school English, street talk, code and patois.

I went home with all my notebooks full and wrote the script. Everything in my script is true although it did not all happen to one person in one day. Very early on I had the idea of containing the story in 24 hours and have Flash chased by his own side, the ‘other’ side, his three baby mothers and his family.