All articles by Anna Franklin – Page 7
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News
Polish producers battle over Sienkiewicz' Knights
Two Polish production companies - MT Art and Studio A - are going head-to-head with separate adaptations of Polish author Henryk Sienkiewicz' 1905 novel Teutonic Knights. The historical novel is based on Poland's 14th century struggle with invading Teutonic knights. It covers events between the death of the Polish Queen ...
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Reviews
The Romanovs - The Imperial Family
Dir: Gleb Panfilov. Russia. 2000. 150 mins.Prod co: Vera Film Studio. Int'l sales: Vera Film Studio, tel: (7) 095 229 0744. Prod: Vladimir Bychkov. Scr: Gleb Panfilov. DoP: Mikhail Agranovich. Ed: Enzo Meniconi. Music: Vadim Bibergan. Art dirs: Anatoly Panfilov, Alexander Boim. Costume des: Svetlana Titova. Main cast: Alexander Galibin, ...
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Media Most denies sale to gas giant Gazprom
Russia's Media Most has denied reports that it is in talks to sell out to key shareholder, state-owned gas monopoly Gazprom.Local media has speculated that Russian president Vladimir Putin is putting pressure on the company to sell Gazprom a bigger stake, in lieu of unpaid debt, following the government's decision ...
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Reviews
Life As A Fatal Sexually Transmitted Disease
Dir: Krzysztof Zanussi. Poland. 2000. 99mins.Prod co: Tor Film Production. Int'l sales: Mercure Distribution, tel: (33) 1 44 168 120. Scr: Krzysztof Zanussi. Prod: Krzysztof Zanussi. DoP: Edward Klosinski. Editor: Marek Denys. Music: Wojciech Kilar. Art dir: Halina Dobrowolska. Costume des: Jagna Janicka. Sound: Katarina Dzida. Main cast: Zbigniew Zapasiewicz, ...
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Russian authorities drop charges against Gusinsky
Media Most chief Vladimir Gusinsky left Russia to join his family in Spain last week after the criminal case against him of defrauding the Russian government of $10m was dropped due to lack of evidence.Gusinsky spent four days in prison earlier this year when the charges were first brought against ...
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Reviews
His Wife's Diary
Dir: Alexei Uchitel. Russia. 2000. 110mins.Prod co: Rock Film Studio. Int'l sales: Rock Film Studio (+7 812 114 2056). Prod: Alexei Uchitel, Alexander Golutva. Scr: Duna Smirnova. DoP: Yuri Klimenko. Ed: Yelena Andreyeva. Music: Leonid Desyatnikov. Main cast: Andrei Smirnov, Galina Tyunina, Olga Budina, Yvgeny Mironov, Elena Morozova, Dani Kogan.His ...
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Russia's ORT tipped for $85m government loan
The struggle for control of Russia's largest broadcaster ORT entered another round this week as the state-controlled Vneshekonombank said it was considering handing out an $85m loan to the financially strapped channel. The statement came at the same time as the bank admitted that it would probably not be able ...
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Berezovsky unites empire; Gusinsky property seized
Russian tycoon Boris Berezovsky has unveiled plans to unite his media interests into a single holding with Igor Shabdurasulov, a former Kremlin deputy of staff, at the helm.Berevovsky cited Shabdurasulov's availability as a reason for the move and added that, while it would benefit the business side of his media, ...
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Czech Television concentrates film investment
The Czech Republic's largest film financier, Czech Television (CTV), has decided to channel its annual $2.4m (CKr92m) film investment into 8-10 features in 2001, compared to the 14 productions which it is backing this year. "The overall amount we invest will be about the same, about $2.4-2.6m (CKr92-100m)," said CTV ...
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Moscow to close with Storm, premiere Disease
Wolfgang Peterson's The Perfect Storm will close the Moscow International Film Festival (July 19-29) which will also boast world premieres of Life As A Fatal Sexually Transmitted Disease, directed by Krzysztof Zanussi, and Gleb Panfilov's The Romanovs -The Imperial Family.The festival is becoming an annual event for the first time ...
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News
Media Most film arm feels political heat
The continuing financial and political troubles of Vladimir Gusinsky's Media Most Group has spilled over into its film production outfit NTV Profit. Speaking at a press conference in Karlovy Vary this week Igor Tolstunov, general director of NTV Profit, revealed that police had visited his office in Moscow ...
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News
Taboo takes top honours at St Petersburg
Nagisa Oshima's Taboo (Gohatto) won the top prize, the Golden Griffon, at this year's St Petersburg Festival of Festivals. The audience prize, the Silver Griffon, went to Beautiful People directed by Jasmin Dizdar. Canal Plus won a Bronze Griffon from the festival's board of directors for its presentation of a ...
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News
Media Most claims investor will buy out debt
Russia's Media Most group, owned by recently jailed tycoon Vladimir Gusinsky, has claimed that an unidentified foreign investor is seeking to buy out its $211.6m debt to government-controlled utilities giant Gazprom.The beleaguered group has recently been under increasing pressure to pay back the loan. However one of Russia's largest daily ...
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Russian media baron Gusinsky arrested
Russian tycoon Vladimir Gusinsky, head of the country's largest independent media conglomerate Media Most, has been arrested and is being held in a Moscow prison pending charges of defrauding the government of more than $10m. Media Most-owned television channel NTV and daily newspaper Segodnya have been sharply critical of the ...
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Moscow fest launches market; becomes annual event
For the first time in its 43-year history, the Moscow International Film Festival (MIFF) is set to become an annual event from this year. The festival, which will run July 19-29, is also launching a market focusing on European and Russian product.The MIFF has previously been held every two years, ...
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Putin cuts lifeline to Russian film
Russian president Vladimir Putin has decided to axe Goskino, the government body responsible for supporting the film industry, provoking a wave of protest from local filmmakers. Protesters claim that unless the decision is reversed it will signal the death of the struggling Russian film industry which is heavily dependent ...
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Clouds Of May scoops Istanbul's Golden Tulip
Turkish films dominated the 19th International Istanbul Film Festival (April 15-30) where the top honour in the international competition, the Golden Tulip, was awarded to Turkish director Nuri Bilge Ceylan for Clouds Of May (Maysi Sikintisi) (pictured).The film also won the top prize in the national competition as well as ...
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Barrandov Studios set to change owners
Prague's legendary AB Barrandov Studios is close to changing hands, according to local newspaper reports.Owner Moravia Steel is understood to be weeks away from closing a deal with a consortium of North American film industry investors known as the Kodiak Group. The deal would end Moravia's four-year search for an ...
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Russian Oscars fete outsiders
Alexei German's Khrustalyov, My Car hit open road at the Russian Oscars after the event was snubbed by leading Russian directors Nikita Mikhalkov and Alexander Sukorov, who refused to allow their films to compete. Khrustalyov, a black and white film which screened in competition in Cannes two years ago, received ...
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Fire And Sword's Jerzy Hoffman readies Quo Vadis
Jerzy Hoffman, the director of last year's runaway Polish hit With Fire And Sword, is to start shooting next month on the country's biggest production to date, the $12m Quo Vadis.The project, based on the Nobel Prize-winning book by Henryk Sienkiewicz, is scheduled to go into production on May 8. ...