A Sheffield-based independent production company behind This Is England and Adolescence, known for bold, character-driven drama from the north of England.
Warp Films is an independent British film and television production company based in Sheffield. It makes character-driven drama, and describes its work as stories "that are bold, authentic and global with a very British perspective". Its film credits include This Is England, Dead Man's Shoes, Four Lions, Submarine, Tyrannosaur and Kill List, and its television credits include This Is England '86, Southcliffe, Reunion for the BBC, and Adolescence, a one-shot drama for Netflix that won Best Drama and Production Company of the Year at the Edinburgh TV Awards.
The company began in 2001 as an offshoot of Warp Records, the Sheffield electronic music label, founded by Steve Beckett and Rob Mitchell. Mitchell died of cancer before the idea was realised, and Mark Herbert, who had just produced the first series of Phoenix Nights, took it forward as joint chief executive. It started with short films by Chris Morris and Chris Cunningham, and its short My Wrongs won a BAFTA in 2003. Warp X, a low-budget digital studio for new talent, followed. Herbert describes a shared "Warp DNA" across its projects.
Warp is based in Sheffield, with offices at Park Hill, the large hillside housing complex near the city centre. A 2025 article in the Sheffield Tribune says it has resisted pressure to move to London, and that Herbert had a clear view of the northern settings of both Adolescence and Reunion. It tells how the company came within about two months of closing in 2023, when Covid disrupted the release of Everybody's Talking About Jamie, before its recent success. Prolific North lists senior colleagues including Emily Feller as chief creative officer, Niall Shamma as chief operating officer and chief financial officer, Peter Balm as commercial director, and Leo Martin as head of production.
On culture, the Sheffield Tribune piece describes a close-knit group of collaborators who favour dark, gritty stories set in the north, honest storytelling and complex characters over commercial targets. The company says it invests in developing creative talent. Reunion was written by deaf writer William Mager and made in British Sign Language and English, which shows the company giving space to voices that are underrepresented on screen. These are the company's own claims and a newspaper's account.
Roles in a production company like this include producers and executive producers, development staff who work with writers, production managers and coordinators, heads of finance and legal affairs, and assistants who support them, along with the crews hired for each production. Interests in writing, drama, music, film or business can all lead here. The company's own website is the place to check for openings.
Website: www.warpfilms.com
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