September Films Clinches New C4 Commission

LONDON, January 10: September Films has been commissioned by
Channel 4 to produce the hour-long documentary The Real Elephant Man, based on the work of a Chinese physician named
Professor Xu.

Professor Xu deals with abnormal tumors that other doctors
have been too afraid to challenge, including the famous case of Huang Chuncai,
whose facial tumors are so severe that they’ve caused him to become ostracized
from society. Using Huang’s story as a backdrop, The Real Elephant Man will explore issues of modern China, such as how the
Chinese are competing with western medicine and surgery.

September Films has secured access to the renowned FUDA
Cancer Hospital in China, along with the stories and footage of Professor Xu’s
facial tumor patients. Sheldon Lazarus is the executive producer for September
Films, with Carl Hindmarch as producer and director.

Lazarus, who is also the creative director at September
Films, commented: “This is an incredibly amazing and moving story to film. The
FUDA Cancer Hospital’s ground-breaking work is second-to-none and Huang’s
fascinating life will be explored from birth to present day, using his family
members’ testimony, as well as his own.”

—By Kristin Brzoznowski