Kavaleer Productions to develop John Boorman’s “The Honey Wars”

Best known for directing acclaimed Hollywood movies including Point Blank, Deliverance,  Excalibur and Hope and Glory, Boorman is a celebrated, award-winning British film director, producer and screenwriter. He will be Story Consultant and EP on the film which is currently  in development with support from Screen Ireland/Fís Éireann’s ‘Creative Futures’ scheme.  Boorman helped found and continues to champion Screen Ireland’s predecessor, The Irish  Film Board, in 1981. 

Sir John Boorman said:

I’m so delighted that this story of myth and magic is being brought to life and I hope that it captures the hearts and minds of many children as it did my own.

The Honey Wars (90’), a dark, comedic fantasy based on stories Boorman told his children and adapted for the screen by animation industry veterans Alan Keane & Andrew Kavanagh, invites the audience into a magical world  where the remnants of an old conflict still shape the present in unexpected ways. In the heart  of a forgotten forest, under the sprawling branches of the ancient Grandfather Tree, lies an  incredible story waiting to be discovered.

Boorman’s children – including acclaimed television presenter Charley Boorman – are all behind the project. 

I’m so glad “The Honey Wars” are finally going to be made into a movie. Growing up with my father being such a great storyteller, he used to tell us all sorts of stories but “The Honey Wars” between the fairies and the elves was the one that used to make us laugh and get our imagination going. There is something very special about your father telling you a story that no one else knows! – Charley Boorman. 

The descriptions of nature and the trees is stunningly detailed and the characters of the little people so real. I am amazed at how he captured the fairy land so exquisitely and it brings me back to how we thought we saw the Banshee in Annamoe in Ireland all those years ago. – Dairy Boorman

We are so lucky to have a Dad who entertained us with exciting, extraordinary stories as children. We waited with bated breath every evening to hear ‘The Honey Wars’. We entered into the world of tiny fairies, elves, bees, trees, with such joy. Every twist and turn of the tale weaved an indelible alchemy that lodged within in us. Tales of other worldly creatures awaken our senses. – Katrine Boorman

Hope, a young girl with an extraordinary secret, is a ‘Seer,’ able to see the invisible threads that connect the magical world to our own. Recently uprooted by the loss of her mother  and struggling to find her footing alongside her grieving father, Harry, Hope stumbles upon a  bitter conflict rooted in the haunted past of two warring tribes: the Fairies and the Elves. As Hope navigates her new life and her unique gift, she encounters Alfred, a mischievous  exiled Elf, and Fiona, an outcast fairy with her own burdens. Together, these unlikely comrades  uncover long-buried truths and begin the task of mending the wrongs of the past, laying the  groundwork for an unthinkable reconciliation, and thwarting the machinations of the evil  Esmerelda across a war-ravaged magical universe.  

The Honey Wars is a tale where laughter and mischief intertwine with deeper themes of loss and healing. It is a story that blends heart and humour, where fantastical elements highlight the real emotions and relationships at its core. Hope’s journey is one of understanding the conflicts that shape us and finding the courage to heal them. 

Andrew Kavanagh, Founder and CEO of Kavaleer Productions adds:

Working on this film is  a dream come true and we couldn’t be more honoured and excited that this will be our first  feature-length production. The Honey Wars combines the scope of Lord of the Rings with the  quirkiness of Coraline and is filled with sharply observed characters, wry humour and  unexpected twists- everything you’d expect from a John Boorman story.