All articles by Adam Minns – Page 40
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UK's Momentum picks up No Man's Land, Strangers
Momentum Pictures, Alliance Atlantis' UK distribution-production arm, has acquired all UK rights to Danis Tanovic's Cannes competition film, No Man's Land.In a separate move Momentum announced that it had acquired all UK rights to The Business Of Strangers, a drama about corporate power games that is sold by Beyond Films ...
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Aline Perry poised to head Sales Co
Aline Perry, former president of PolyGram Film International, has emerged as the front-runner to head UK-based international sales operation The Sales Co.Civilian Content, which in March agreed to acquire a majority stake in the sales outfit, is understood to be wooing the executive as part of plans to move the ...
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Sony Classics has a crush on FilmFour's Crush
Sony Pictures Classics (SPC) has reportedly capped a late flurry of Cannes acquisitions by taking all North American rights to FilmFour's Crush, one of the market's most talked about UK titles. The $6.5m picture, which stars Andie MacDowell, follows the relationship between three middle-aged single women and a younger man. ...
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Advertising slump hits UK's Carlton Communications
UK media concern Carlton Communications has reported a fall in first-half profit amidst a depressed advertising market and has halved its dividend.Advertising revenues fell by 6.3%, compared to an 8% growth in the same period last year. Carlton, a major shareholder in UK commercial TV network, said it could not ...
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Regent, Scottish Screen head for Great Wilderness
The US' Regent Entertainment and UK funding body Scottish Screen have partnered on The Last Great Wilderness from up and coming British director David Mackenzie.Regent will handle US distribution and international sales on the Scottish road movie, which is now in post. Feature Film Co, the UK distributor bought by ...
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Fireworks buys North America on New Zealand's Rain
Fireworks Pictures has picked up North American rights on New Zealand Directors' Fortnight title Rain.The distributor, a subsidiary of CanWest Global Communications, picked up the film from the New Zealand Film Commission. Set over one summer, the coming-of-age story is viewed as an auspicious debut for writer-director Christine Jeffs. ...
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UA walks walks into The Sales Co's No Man's Land
Lightning struck the set of No Man's Land in late summer. It struck again in Cannes, where Danis Tanovic's $1m debut became the underdog hit of the competition and capped its standing ovation by securing North American distribution through UA after a fierce bidding war. The Sales Co also sold ...
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Cannes flooded by low-budget Brits
New UK features may be absent from the festival, but the Croisette is flooded with low-budget films financed by British tax incentives. While grateful for the influx of money, local industry figures are wondering whether such projects are coming together far too hastily - and sacrificing quality as a result.The ...
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Jim Sheridan readies East Of Harlem for June
Jim Sheridan, director of The Boxer, In The Name Of The Father and My Left Foot, is readying to shoot tentatively titled drama East Of Harlem as soon as next month - strike or no strike.Sheridan and regular producing partner Arthur Lappin are setting up the $10m-$11m production with an ...
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BVI finalising first-look with Harbour
Buena Vista International (BVI)'s UK comedy label is finalising a first-look pact with Harbour Pictures, the production outfit behind Women's Institute naked calendar picture, Calendar Girls.Along with Calendar Girls, BVI is backing Harbour's Kinky Boots, a story written by Lizzie Mickery about a 100-year-old traditional shoe factory whose owner diversifies ...
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Slate, FilmFour set for Laurel and Hardy comedy
The Full Monty writer Simon Beaufoy is scripting an original comedy about Laurel and Hardy as one of the debut projects on Andrea Calderwood's FilmFour-bankrolled production outfit, Slate Films.The untitled project, set up with Footprint Films, will be set behind the scenes in the world of 1930s comedy talkies. Also ...
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Lothian & Metzstein to make Soul with Ideal World
Late Night Shopping writer-director team Jack Lothian and Saul Metzstein are to make romantic comedy Northern Soul for Ideal World Films, the Glasgow-based production operation behind their highly regarded Berlin festival debut.The music-fuelled story of a group of young people partying in Blackpool in the north of England will also ...
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Gaga buys Jeepers Creepers from Capitol Films
Japan's Gaga has picked up Jeepers Creepers from UK-based Capitol Films.Capitol has sold a host of overseas territories on the American Zoetrope title, with Spain's Tri-Pictures taking the film as part of a three-picture package including City Of Ghosts and CQ.Jeepers also went to Scandinavia's Scanbox, along with Robert Altman's ...
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Hammer teams with Sturridge to scare up six films
Resurrected UK horror brand Hammer Entertainment has partnered with FirstSight Films, the production outfit of Charles Sturridge, Francesca Barra and Selwyn Roberts, to make a slate of six films over the next three years.The deal is the first step back into feature film production for Hammer after it was bought ...
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Miramax buys Rabbit Proof Fence, Fox grabs Jessica
Buying heated up in the weekend sun at Cannes as an acquisitive Miramax Films put down $4m for North and South American, UK and Italian rights to Phillip Noyce's aboriginal period drama Rabbit Proof Fence.Fox Searchlight Pictures also used the festival to unveil its acquistion of worldwide rights to Charles ...
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UK's FilmFour takes on Borgias, Che Guevara
Joining a pack of film-makers taking on the same ambitious material, the UK's FilmFour is tackling two historical subjects of world-wide renown - Che Guevara and the Borgias.FilmFour's Che will focus on the relationship between Guevara and Fidel Castro, ranging from the Cuban revolutionary's rise to power to his death ...
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Gilliam, Thomas trip out together on fantasy film
Terry Gilliam, in Cannes on the main jury, has teamed with producer Jeremy Thomas on Tideland, an adaptation of US author Mitch Cullin's dark twist on child fantasies such as The Wizard Of Oz and Alice In Wonderland.The often surreal story of a girl who flees from Los Angeles to ...
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Redbus renames as Helkon SK, acquires films
Newly-christened Helkon SK - better known as UK distributor Redbus Film Distribution - has made a trio of acquisitions including Ed Burns' gangster thriller Ash Wednesday and Capitol Films' American Zoetrope production Jeepers Creepers.The company founded by Simon Franks and Zygi Kamasa - now majority owned by Germany's Helkon - ...
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BBC, Cobalt confirm financing pact
BBC Films, BBC Worldwide and Cobalt Media Group, the new name for MM Media Capital Partners, have finalised their co-financing partnership for large-scale, international pictures. The partnership will give the UK broadcaster's film arm, BBC Films, access to at least $150m over three years. The BBC will have a 50% ...
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Messiah aims for Mirror Man smash
Ex-Monty Python member Terry Jones is to write and direct romantic comedy Mirror Man for Messiah Pictures, the UK production company he founded last year.Jones is to shoot the story of a man whose mirror image comes to life and misbehaves early next year, according to Messiah executive producer Alan ...