All articles by Jeremy Kay – Page 1234

  • News

    River, Water take top prizes at Sundance Film Festival 08

    2008-01-28T01:48:00Z

    Tia Lessin and Carl Deal's Hurricane Katrina tale Trouble The Water won the 2007 Sundance Film Festival's Grand Jury Prize: Documentary award and Courtney Hunt's tale of immigrant smuggling in Frozen River took the Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic prize at the awards night ceremony in Park City on Saturday [Jan ...

  • News

    Manda Bala film-makers win Microsoft HDi Grant during Sundance

    2008-01-28T01:46:00Z

    Director Jason Kohn and producer Jared Goldman received the Microsoft HDi Grant during the Sundance Film Festival last week from the Sundance Institute and Microsoft Corp for their 2007 festival entry Manda Bala (Send A Bullet).The prize is worth an estimated $100,000 and provides the film-makers with the resources to ...

  • News

    Robert Elswit wins ASC Oustanding Achievement Award for Blood

    2008-01-28T01:43:00Z

    Robert Elswit won top honours in the 22nd Annual American Society Of Cinematographers' (ASC) Outstanding Achievement Awards for feature film for There Will Be Blood on Saturday [Jan 26].Elswit beat out Roger Deakins for The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford and No Country For Old Men, ...

  • News

    Brian Burkin joins SPE's international production division

    2008-01-28T00:40:00Z

    Brian Burkin has joined Sony Pictures Entertainment's International Motion Picture Production division as senior vice president business affairs and operations.Burkin, who started his career in private practice and served nine years as senior vice president of business affairs at Miramax Films, will assume responsibility for negotiating deals and managing relationships ...

  • News

    RKO is latest producer to sign interim agreement with WGA

    2008-01-28T00:37:00Z

    The Writers Guild of America (WGA) has singed another interim agreement following deals late last week with Lionsgate and Marvel, this time with RKO Pictures subsidiary RKO Productions.RKO Productions' filming schedule, to be announced next week, includes several original screen projects, as well as the financing, production, and distribution of ...

  • News

    Coen Brothers take top honours at DGA Awards

    2008-01-28T00:36:00Z

    Joel and Ethan Coen boosted their chances of Academy Awards glory next month after they won the Directors Guild Of America (DGA) award for outstanding directorial achievement in feature film 2007 for No Country For Old Men.The DGA honour is a very strong indicator of Oscar success - all but ...

  • News

    Meet The Spartans, Rambo lead North American box office

    2008-01-28T00:07:00Z

    Fox's comedy spoof Meet The Spartans starring Sean Maguire and Carmen Electra narrowly squeezed out Lionsgate/The Weinstein Company's (TWC) action saga Rambo to open top on an estimated $18.7m at the weekend.Rambo took $18.2m and sees Sylvester Stallone reprise his role as the die-hard former Green Beret who assembles a ...

  • News

    Sweeney Todd slays competition to lead international box office

    2008-01-27T23:28:00Z

    DreamWorks' blood soaked musical adaptation Sweeney Todd grossed knocked I Am Legend off its perch and grossed approximately $18.7m through Warner Bros Pictures International (WBPI) from 1,760 screens in 11 markets for an early $30m running total.Weekend business was boosted by a suitably red-blooded number one UK launch that generated ...

  • News

    Universal, Working Title seal two-picture deal with Joe Wright

    2008-01-25T19:29:00Z

    Universal Pictures and Working Title Films have signed a two-picture deal with Joe Wright, whose latest film Atonement was nominated for seven Oscars this week and is in the running for 14 BAFTA awards including best director.Separate from that two-picture agreement, Universal is partnering with Dreamworks and Working Title on ...

  • News

    Baumberger named president of Paramount Pictures Studio Group

    2008-01-25T03:27:00Z

    Paramount Pictures has named Randall Baumberger president of the Studio Group.Baumberger will report to Paramount COO Frederick Huntsberry and takes charge of the day-to-day management of Paramount's Studio Group, which includes environmental health and safety, facilities and plant operations, studio group finance, studio group legal, studio operations and technical services.Baumberger ...

  • News

    Sony Classics takes Sundance competition entry Frozen River

    2008-01-25T03:22:00Z

    Sony Pictures Classics has paid high six figures for domestic rights to Courtney Hunt's Dramatic Competition entry Frozen River.SPC had been in talks with William Morris Independent for two days and finally closed the deal at around 8pm on Wednesday night [Jan 23]. The upstate New York-set tale follows two ...

  • News

    WGA signs interim agreements with Lionsgate, Marvel Studios

    2008-01-25T03:16:00Z

    As expected the Writers Guild Of America (WGA) has signed an interim agreement with Lionsgate and with Marvel Studios.The agreement is similar to the deals the WGA struck recently announced with United Artists, Worldwide Pants, Spyglass Entertainment, MRC, Jackson Bites, Mandate Pictures and Sidney Kimmel Entertainment.'We are pleased Lionsgate has ...

  • News

    Daniel Battsek - talking pictures

    2008-01-25T00:00:00Z

    In the two-and-a-half years since Daniel Battsek took over the reins at Miramax Films, the British executive has established a corporate culture that is at once fresh and familiar.Gone are the outbursts, publicity stunts and grand plays of the brilliant, larger-than-life mogul Harvey Weinstein.In their place is an equally mesmerizing ...

  • News

    Schlessel gets new role at Sony as president of worldwide affairs

    2008-01-24T08:59:00Z

    Peter Schlessel has been appointed president of worldwide affairs at Sony Pictures Entertainment and will step down from his role as president of Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions Group (SPWAG).A replacement president for SPWAG will be announced in due course although Schlessel will retain oversight of the Group.In his new role ...

  • News

    Award-winning We Are Together sells to Palm Pictures for North America

    2008-01-24T08:50:00Z

    Palm Pictures today has picked up North American rights to Paul Taylor's documentary We Are Together, which chronicles the lives of the Agape children in South Africa who use music to overcome loss.Palm's managing partner Jan Korbelin brokered the deal with Annie Roney, president of ro*co films international.Palm anticipates a ...

  • News

    Film Sales Company takes on sales to Derek Jarman doc Derek

    2008-01-24T08:47:00Z

    Andrew Herwitz's The Film Sales Company has acquired worldwide sales rights excluding the UK and US distribution rights to Isaac Julien's documentary Derek.The film received its world premiere here last Saturday and explores the life and work of the late UK artist and film-maker Derek Jarman. Tilda Swinton narrates the ...

  • News

    Keke Palmer joins Ice Cube in Dimension's Fred Durst project

    2008-01-24T08:32:00Z

    Keke Palmer has joined Ice Cube as a lead in Dimension Films' Untitled Ice Cube Project based on a true story that Fred Durst will direct from a script by Doug Atchison.Tasha Smith, Jill Marie Jones, Dash Mihok, Matt Craven, Garrett Morris and comedians Earthquake and Michael Colyar have also ...

  • News

    Keke Palmer joins Ice Cube in Dimension's Fred Durst project

    2008-01-24T08:32:00Z

    Keke Palmer has joined Ice Cube as a lead in Dimension Films' Untitled Ice Cube Project based on a true story that Fred Durst will direct from a script by Doug Atchison.Tasha Smith, Jill Marie Jones, Dash Mihok, Matt Craven, Garrett Morris and comedians Earthquake and Michael Colyar have also ...

  • News

    Paramount Vantage seals worldwide rights to American Teen

    2008-01-24T08:25:00Z

    The documentary form reclaimed pole position today [Jan 23] as Paramount Vantage paid approximately $1m for worldwide rights excluding the UK to Nanette Burstein's high school tale American Teen following days of intense interest.Paramount Vantage emerged top of the pack after the film's world premiere last Saturday also attracted attention ...

  • News

    Sundance deal-making speeds up midway through festival

    2008-01-23T06:29:00Z

    Four days of dark pronouncements about the dearth of commercial narrative films at Sundance vanished on Tuesday [Jan 22] as business exploded with a flurry of activity headed by Focus Features' $10m deal for worldwide rights to Andrew Fleming's comedy Hamlet 2.In two other prominent deals, Fox Searchlight reportedly paid ...