All Screen articles in 27 April 2001
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News
Five out of five for Club Des Cinq
Coincidence or moral victory' The five French films in Official Selection at this year's Cannes festival are all set to be distributed locally by members of The Club Of Five (Le Club Des Cinq). This is a new lobby group formed by independent distributors which recently split from the two ...
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News
Korea's Myung launches own sales operation
Myung Film, the company behind Korean box office breakaway Joint Security Area, is to expand its production capacity and launch its own sales outfit in time for Cannes. The new sales division, E Pictures, will handle international distribution of the ten or so domestic Korean films produced annually by Myung. ...
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News
Bridget conquers America; Dundee, Freddy only OK
Bridget Jones's Diary vaulted to the top of the North American box office in its second weekend with an appetising estimated $10.53m at 2,211 sites for an average of $4,739 per site. Distributed domestically by Miramax Films, the comedy from Helen Fielding's best-selling novel had opened behind Spy Kids and ...
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News
Pacifica acquires Dances With Wolves sequel
LA-based development and production outfit Pacifica Film Development, which is backed by German film fund IMF, has acquired the film rights to the soon-to-be-published novel The Holy Road, the sequel to Dances With Wolves written by original author Michael Blake who will also write the screenplay adaptation.To be published on ...
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News
Universal Focus gets US rights to French smash
Universal Pictures has acquired US distribution rights to Christophe Gans' French blockbuster The Brotherhood Of The Wolf (Le Pacte Des Loups) and will release it under its specialised Universal Focus label in late 2001. The $25m film was acquired from StudiCanal, Universal's sister company in Vivendi, and marks the first ...
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News
Miramax buys UK, Manhattan close to US on Enigma
Miramax Films has acquired UK rights to Enigma, the World War II thriller directed by Michael Apted which premiered at this year's Sundance Film Festival. Intermedia co-financed the film with Germany's Senator Film and handled the UK sales to Miramax.Meanwhile Manhattan Pictures International, the recently formed New York-based producer/distributor run ...
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News
Court dismisses RICO claims against Franchise
Franchise Pictures has won a second dismissal in its acrimonious court battle with Germany's Intertainment Licensing GmbH. On Friday, Judge Carlos Moreno of the US District Court issued an order granting Franchise motion to dismiss Intertainment's claims against it under the Federal Racketeering Influenced And Corrupt Organizations Act (known as ...
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Reviews
Captain Corelli's Mandolin
Dir: John Madden. UK-US-FR. 2001. 125 minsWhile its aspirations and ingredients should ensure a strong release in all territories where the original Louis de Bernieres novel was triumphant, Captain Corelli's Mandolin curiously lacks harmony for a work with music as one of its core values. There is discord between its ...
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News
Menegazzi launches Firelight with Zenith deal
Carmen Menegazzi, former head of Columbia TriStar's UK theatrical arm, has partnered on local drama Lifelines with UK media operation Zenith Entertainment for the first project from her production outfit Firelight Films.Menegazzi and Zenith have struck a co-development deal on the £3m project, which is being written by Bridget Lawless. ...
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News
Summit, Momentum, Samuelsons pact for remake
The US' Summit Entertainment and the UK's Momentum Pictures and Samuelson Productions have partnered on a UK remake of Dutch box office hit All Stars.Provisionally titled 30 Things, the comedy about a group of 20 somethings is to go into production this year. Simon Shore, who debuted with gay-themed coming-of-age ...
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News
UK's Film Council appoints clutch of executives
UK film body the Film Council has named Norman Brock and Emma Clarke as part of a raft of appointments.Brock has been appointed production and development executive for the Council's Premiere Fund, a $14m a year tranche of National Lottery cash for films with broad appeal. Brock worked as a ...
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News
Village makes new retreat from Euro exhibition
Village Roadshow has sold its sold 13-screen cinema site in Switzerland to Pathe, and its 45 Hungarian screens at six sites to Intercom, its jointventure partner in the region. The company has also offloaded its remaining 50% property interest in Village Entertainment Park to the Pradera European Retail Fund, and ...
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News
Pentamedia bids to rescue Film Roman deal
Senior officials, including V Chandrasekaran chairman of India's Pentamedia have rushed to the US to renegotiate their deal with Film Roman on a stock and cash basis (Screendaily, Oct 24, 2001). Film Roman has set April 28 as the deadline for repair of the alleged breach of contract by Pentamedia ...
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News
Vivendi grabs control of Canal Plus Poland
Vivendi Universal has obtained majority control of Canal Plus Poland, its Polish pay-TV venture. The move is expected to smooth the path towards a full merger of the service with Wyzja, the UPC-owned group of channels.Belgian investment group Deficom sold its stake to Vivendi Universal for Euros90m, while Polish investors ...
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News
Bac Majestic misses profit targets
Bac Majestic, the French distribution and exhibition group headed by Jean Labadie, reported profits below the target announced at the time of last year's flotation.Pre-tax profits were $1m (Euros1.1m), and net after tax profits were $180,000 (Euros0.2m). But the company blamed the difference on a policy of accelerated film depreciation. ...
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News
Cannes expands out-of-competition line-up
Three more titles have been added to the Cannes festival sidebar Un Certain Regard while the organisers have also announced a special open-air screening of Jean-Pierre Jeunet's Amelie From Montmartre, which goes on French release tomorrow (Wed, April 25). Un Certain Regard now takes in Stanley Kwan's gay drama Beijing ...
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News
Leah Weil named general counsel at Sony Pictures
Leah Weil has been promoted to corporate senior vice president and general counsel for Sony Pictures Entertainment with responsibility for all company legal matters. She was previously executive vice president, legal affairs and deputy general counsel.Reporting to Beth Berke, executive vice president and chief administrative officer, Weil is now the ...
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News
Zentropa signs worldwide deal with Universal Music
Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG) has entered into an exclusive worldwide agreement with Denmark's Zentropa Enterprises to administer its music publishing interests.The deal was struck with Zen Music, the publishing arm of Zentropa. As a result of the deal, UMPG will adminstrate Lars Von Trier's share of the songs from ...
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News
Intermedia buys crime novel for Mark Johnson Prods
Intermedia has acquired movie rights to The Booster, a crime novel by Eugene Izzi, for Mark Johnson Productions to produce. The book was bought to Johnson by producer Louis DiGiaimo who collaborated with Johnson on Donnie Brasco.The Booster is the story of a big time thief who comes out of ...
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News
Ricardo Avila to leave Columbia TriStar Italy
Ricardo Avila is to leave his position as general manager of Columbia TriStar, Italy, after 16 years at the company. "It was a hard and difficult decision to make," he said in a statement. "After 16 years with this company in four different countries around the world it really felt ...