ISTRIA GOLD

LONDON, 2019: After undercover cop Marco Mihailic is drummed out of the Metropolitan Police he seeks refuge with his family in Croatian Istria. He finds a world utterly changed from his childhood, and one in which his beloved grandfather Nino's truffle-dealing escapades have got him into the kind of trouble that he can no longer handle.

ROMAN ISTRIA, AD 81: 18-year-old Lucia desperately needs to escape the gladiatorial games, and her beloved English mastiffs are her way out. Although trained to kill in the arena, her loyal companions Brutus and Britannica have a secret ability that is the key to Lucia's freedom: their ability to smell out beds of truffles. They will help make her fortune and take Lucia and her family away from the violence and horror of the games.

ISTRIA, 1943: Brothers Pino and Nino Mihailic have seen waves of invaders beat, kill and imprison their innocent neighbours in war-torn Istria. Driven by fear and revenge, they join Tito's Partisans. Within a year Pino's star is riding high after a series of guerrilla victories, but Nino sees another way out of this war: his dog and the lucrative truffles they find in the countryside.

Mike Downey is a filmmaker, activist and author. As a filmmaker, he has worked with the likes of James Ellroy, Colm Tóibín and David Grossman. He is currently Chairman of the European Film Academy and is a member of the BAFTA council. In 2021, he was awarded an OBE for his services to World Cinema and has served on boards and as artistic director for some of the most prestigious film festivals and organisations around the world.