All Screen articles in 8 July 2007 – Page 2
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MARV Films: the magic touch
Matthew Vaughn and Kris Thykier of MARV Films are moving into the big league with Stardust and a new Sony deal. Wendy Mitchell reports. Anyone bemoaning the decline of the UK film industry should open their eyes to the banner year at Matthew Vaughn's Marv Films. Marv has made the ...
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Ekachai Uekrongtham: reel to feel
To capture the notion of pleasure on film, Thai director Ekachai Uekrongtham has made a film about Singaporean prostitutes. Silvia Wong reports. To some, Singapore's notorious red-light district is a sordid and dark place. To Ekachai Uekrongtham, Geylang is a 'rich emotional maze'.It was here he chose to shoot his ...
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Upcoming feature documentaries
From star-led projects to nature documentaries, Peter Bowen profiles a selection of upcoming feature docs.SickoMichael Moore's assault on the US healthcare system opened on June 22 in the US, and starts an international rollout in August. Gary Faber, executive vice-president of marketing at The Weinstein Company feels confident that 'with ...
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Tom Collins: immigrant song
Northern Irish film-maker Tom Collins comes home to his favourite festival in Galway with his debut feature, Kings. Wendy Mitchell reports. The 2007 Galway Film Fleadh will be a homecoming for Tom Collins (above left), who will be screening his debut theatrical feature Kings at the event on July 13.The ...
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Reality check
As the theatrical documentary boom slows, distributors are looking for more innovative release strategies. Ahead of the UK's BRITDOC festival (July 25-27), Peter Bowen explores the future for feature documentaries. After a few years of strongly performing feature documentaries, a recent slowdown in the number of breakouts has left many ...
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Editorial opinion: chasing the tale
Story doesn't get the credit it deserves in most contemporary discussions of cinema. Or, come to it, in the industry's own categories of merit.It wasn't always so: between 1940 and 1956, a best story Oscar ran alongside that for best original screenplay; then, in 1957, it was quietly retired, and ...
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Cha cha cha: the dream team
A staggering who's who of Mexican talent is in production on Carlos Cuaron's feature directorial debut Rudo Y Cursi. Chiara Arroyo reports from the first leg of the shoot. Six years after Y Tu Mama Tambien focused international attention on Mexico's film-making scene, many of the same players involved in ...
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Documentary case study: Sicko
Michael Moore's Sicko may be drumming up hype because of its subject matter. But for The Weinstein Company, the director is the real story. Peter Bowen reports. After Fahrenheit 9/11 grossed more than $220m worldwide, it became clear that a Michael Moore film was not your everyday documentary. For his ...
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Box-office opinion: India can strike the right note
India's film industry is facing huge challenges, but a global breakout success may not be far away, says Len KladyIt has been a brutal summer. The movies that were supposed to set box-office records have come up short. And the seasonal surprises, while warmly welcomed, are failing to close the ...
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Catherine Breillat: blood and guts
When she suffered a cerebral haemorrhage while making her latest film, French director Catherine Breillat convinced her producer she would be all right - as long as she sat down. Nancy Tartaglione-Vialatte reports. She may be loved by international arthouse audiences, but French director Catherine Breillat is not beloved at ...
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Festival watch: Bangkok International Film Festival
The Thai government's support for the local industry is focused on the annual international festival (July 19-29). Silvia Wong reportsBacked by a dynamic TV commercial and post-production sector that services the international industry, Thailand has developed a vibrant film business that produces nearly 40 films a year. Most are made ...
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Robert Thalheim: Auschwitz story
A young German director draws on his memories of Auschwitz for a contemporary film about life in the shadow of evil. Martin Blaney reports. It was Alain Resnais' 1959 film Hiroshima Mon Amour that provided the inspiration for Robert Thalheim's And Along Come Tourists.Resnais' juxtaposition of the catastrophic impact of ...
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International box office: mixed signals in Argentina
Increased ticket prices have helped raise total box-office revenues in Argentina but admissions have been falling. Diego Batlle reports. Admissions figures in Argentina dropped by an estimated 7% for the first half of 2007. The period saw 18.2 million admissions as opposed to 19.5 million in 2006.However, total box office ...
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Documentary case study: Air Guitar Nation
Peter Bowen explains why a debut documentary with a jokey-sounding title was the right fit for a new distributor.The plot of Alex Lipsitz's first documentary feature Air Guitar Nation sounds like a joke. A smattering of hopeful US air guitarists, with names like Bjorn Turoque and C-Diddy, follow their dreams ...
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Lola Doillon: coming of age
The latest member of the Doillon dynasty to join the family business tells Nancy Tartaglione-Vialatte what she loves about film-making. Lola Doillon grew up on film sets. Her father, Jacques Doillon, is the award-winning director of Le Petit Criminel and Le Jeune Werther and her sister is the actress Lou ...
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Oscar changes the eligibility rules for documentaries - again
Will the new Academy Awards requirements benefit films with greater resources' Peter Bowen reportsAfter altering the rules in 2005, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (Ampas) is again changing the rules dictating the eligibility of documentary features.In short, a doc must have a seven-day qualifying exhibition in either ...
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Shrek keeps action duo at bay
Shrek The Third continues to hold the top spot despite the release of two highly anticipated action films - Transformers and Die Hard 4.0.The green ogre was up 5% - largely led by an impressive $33.5m opening in the UK - and generated $60.9m over the three-day period. Transformers opened ...
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Worldwide digital 3D screens treble
Hollywood's increasing investment in exclusive 3D movies is driving the surge in custom-made screens, writes Diana Lodderhose. The number of digital 3D cinema screens has nearly trebled during the first six months of 2007, suggesting exhibitors are stepping up to meet Hollywood studios' increasing investment in exclusive 3D movies.According to ...
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Transformers breaks US July 4 box-office record with $29m
Robots have taken over the domestic box office this Independence Day as DreamWorks and Paramount 's Transformers raked in $29.08m on the US national holiday, the biggest July 4 gross to date. The film's performance beats Spider-man 2 at $21.9m in 2004. Transformers - which has a 6.5 day opening ...
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Toronto adds debuts from David Auburn and Helen Hunt
Two high-profile directorial debuts are among five films added to the Toronto International Film Festival's September Special Presentations line-up. Pulitzer Prize winner David Auburn (Proof, The Lake House) has directed his own screenplay with The Girl In The Park. The film features Sigourney Weaver as long-suffering mother who encounters a ...