Sidaway's first film production work was for the
Central Office of Information on documentaries and weekly news programmes. He also wrote television drama series for both BBC and ITV, including
Crossroads. In 1977 Sidaway co-created and co-produced the documentary series
The Game Of The Century which consisted of six 30-minute programmes leading up to the
1978 FIFA World Cup in Argentina. It was first shown on BBC1 commencing on 23 April 1978. He also co-wrote (with Bob Wilson) the accompanying book based on the series. Two further sports documentary series followed,
The Game of The Century, World Cup ’82 (BBC) and
A Choice of Champions (CBS), made for the
1984 Summer Olympics. Between 1981 and 1984 Sidaway produced and co-wrote
The Optimist, a silent comedy series for
Channel 4 (UK). The pilot was independently financed and shot in
Cabo San Lucas,
Mexico in 1981 and was subsequently commissioned for a further six episodes by Cecil Korer, Programme Purchaser and Commissioning Editor for Light Entertainment at Channel 4. The first season was shot entirely in
Los Angeles and was previewed on Channel 4's opening night (2 November 1982). The series commenced on 14 April 1983, following which a second series of six episodes was commissioned and filmed on location in
London in 1984. The episode "The Fall Of The House Of Esher" was nominated for the
Rose d'Or, Montreux in 1985. In 1985 Sidaway co-produced the Irish location shoot for the American soap
Search for Tomorrow for
NBC. At this time he was working extensively in Los Angeles on film and television projects.
The Optimist was co-produced with Charisma Films and until 1987 Sidaway was Head Of Production for Charisma, developing films such as
Sellers On Sellers, based on the life of Peter Sellers and
Extra Time (later written as
United).
Best of British and Winchester Pictures In 1985 Sidaway produced the one-hour special
Around The World In Seven Minutes And Four Times On Saturday, about the
Pathé News and
Movietone News cinema newsreels and their lead commentators
Bob Danvers-Walker and
Leslie Mitchell. He subsequently formed Best of British Films & Television Limited and for four years co-created, co-wrote and produced 67 half-hours of
Best Of British (BBC 1), a history of British film narrated by
John Mills and
Anthony Quayle which commenced on 22 April 1987. He also co-wrote a book based on the first series which looked at the classic films of the
Rank Organisation. In 1990 he co-created, co-wrote and produced 13 episodes of
The World Of Hammer for
Channel 4, a history of
Hammer Film Productions narrated by
Oliver Reed. The company also produced documentaries and video specials, including
Genesis - A History, a ninety-minute co-production with BBC on the music band
Genesis, and
Wicked Willie, the animated series. During 1989 Sidaway formed Winchester Pictures, a rights and development company for feature films and TV movies, and wrote and developed remakes of
Hell Drivers,
The Day The Earth Caught Fire and
Four Sided Triangle as well as supervising development of
Legacy, a film based on the sci-fi thriller "
Quatermass and the Pit". During 1992–1993 he worked at Twentieth Century Fox on
The Day The Earth Caught Fire with co-producer with
Ezra Swerdlow. Having founded Winchester Pictures in 1989, Sidaway took Winchester Entertainment to the
Alternative Investment Market in 1994 and was Head Of Production for the public company. During 1994-95 Sidaway produced and co-wrote
Rainbow, the family entertainment feature film starring
Bob Hoskins,
Dan Aykroyd,
Jacob Tierney and
Terry Finn. Shot on location in
Montreal from September to December 1994, this was the first theatrically distributed all digital feature film. The film was made in association with Sony High Definition at
Sony Pictures Studios in
Los Angeles and was released during 1996. He also co-wrote the novel based on the original screenplay.
Independent productions During 1995 Sidaway co-founded "The International Football Hall Of Fame" to develop and finance a unique football concept, worldwide media business and Manchester-based visitor attraction. Developed in association with Granada Media Group and
Mirror Group Newspapers, the first election took place in 1997-98. During 1999–2000 he co-wrote the TV series
Dark Knight (Channel 5) and developed further film projects. Between 2000 and 2008, some of the films on which Sidaway was Producer or Executive Producer included:
Nouvelle France starring
Gérard Depardieu,
Irène Jacob,
Vincent Pérez,
Tim Roth and
Jason Isaacs;
My First Wedding starring
Rachael Leigh Cook;
Modigliani starring
Andy Garcia;
School for Seduction starring
Kelly Brook and
Emily Woof;
Day Of Wrath starring
Christopher Lambert;
Joy Division starring
Ed Stoppard and
Bernard Hill;
The Piano Player starring
Christopher Lambert,
Dennis Hopper and
Diane Kruger;
Silence Becomes You starring
Alicia Silverstone and
Sienna Guillory;
Save Angel Hope starring
Billy Boyd,
Eva Birthistle and
Bernard Hill; and
Forest of the Gods a Lithuanian-language film based on the classic novel starring
Steven Berkoff. From 2008 to 2010 acted as audio-visual producer and writer on over 60 short films examining climate change and green technologies. In 2008 created the character of
Chuck the Eco Duck and subsequently wrote and produced the pilot about the continuing tales of a caring, socially minded duck and his adventures on the farm and across the world. In 2010 wrote and produced the first series of 13 episodes. In addition wrote and produced the first audio series of 14 shows, which were first broadcast on
Fun Kids radio in the UK. During 2011 and 2012 developed and wrote the film "Iron", based on the birth of the industrial revolution at
Ironbridge Gorge. During 2013 Sidaway was an editor and consulting producer on the documentary "Medjugorge - Myth Or Miracle". ,
Douglas Trumbull and Sidaway in
Beijing, January 27, 2015 On 27 January 2015, Sidaway presented a screening and discussion on high frame rate film making to industry leaders in
Beijing,
China. He organized for respected film production designer
David L. Snyder and innovative film maker
Douglas Trumbull to be present. Trumbull's experimental short UFOTOG was shown in 4K, 3D, 120 fps.
Into The Rainbow / 奇迹：追逐彩虹 / The Wonder: Chasing Rainbows In 2011, Sidaway created and wrote the story for the action fantasy feature film originally titled
The Wonder and wrote the original drafts of the screenplay during 2012. The film was first announced during the American Film Market in October 2012 with
Willow Shields starring. The film shot on location in
Qingdao,
China and
Auckland,
New Zealand between October and December 2015 as a co-production between the two countries. It stars
Willow Shields, Wu Lei,
Joe Chen,
Maria Grazia Cucinotta,
Archie Kao and
Christy Chung. The film was shown at the TIFF Kids International Film Festival during April 2017. The film received its U.S. Premiere with a Gala Screening at the Savannah Film Festival on 4 November 2017. Sidaway also co-wrote the book based on the original story. '' in
Qingdao, September 29, 2015
Friendship Films Friendship Films was initially established in 2015 to produce
The Wonder and thereafter to develop and produce various film and TV projects. During 2018, Sidaway created, wrote and produced the documentary series
Cult-tastic: Tales From The Trenches With Roger And Julie Corman, which consists of thirteen 50-minute episodes on the career of filmmakers
Roger Corman and
Julie Corman. It was filmed over a four month period in Los Angeles, California and features over 130 movies. The series is a co-production between Shout! Studios (the production arm of
Shout! Factory) and Ace Film HK in association with Friendship Films. ==Personal life and death==