All articles by Jeremy Kay – Page 1364
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Saw II hacks down Zorro at domestic box office
Lions Gate's horrorsequel sliced up the competition and shunted Sony's adventure sequel TheLegend Of Zorro into second placewith an estimated $30.5m opening that offered a hint of optimism for the autumnbox office.Despite mediocre reviews thepicture scored a superb debut that far exceeded the $18.3m launch of its 2004predecessor. Saw II ...
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Universal endorses Christie/AIX digital projector
Following similar recent moves by Walt Disney Studios andTwentieth Century Fox, Universal Pictures has agreed to supply features to theDCI-compliant digital projection systems deployed by Christie/AIX.Under the non-exclusive agreement Universal will provide titlesfrom its slate and will pay virtual print fees to Christie/AIX for each titleprojected on deployed systems as ...
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Rubin's First Independent signs US DVD distribution deal with Visual
Gary Rubin's FirstIndependent Pictures has signed a multi-year distribution agreement with VisualEntertainment, a Universal Music Group division set up to distributeindependent features on DVD and video in the US.The slate kicks off withHuck Botko and Andre Gurland's comedy Mail Order Wife, Gary Sinyor's comedy Bob The Butler starring Tom Green, ...
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LGFI acquires international rights to First Descent
Lions Gate FilmsInternational has picked up worldwide rights excluding the US to MD Films'snowboarding documentary First Descent and will give the title its market premiere at AFM next week.Universal Pictures holds domestic theatrical and home entertainment rights andwill release the picture on Dec 2.First Descent chronicles the riseof snowboarding seen ...
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ContentFilm International boosts AFM slate with The Moguls
ContentFilmInternational has lined up a prestigious slate of titles for AFM including workby Peter Greenaway, Keith Gordon and Paul Verhoeven, as well as comedy pick-up TheMoguls from Michael Kuhn's QwertyFilms.Following parent company ContentFilm's decision to shift its focus towardslibrary content with last summer's acquisition of Fireworks International,ContentFilm International's managing director ...
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Arclight takes international rights on Bobby
Arclight Films has acquiredinternational sales rights to Emilio Estevez' Bobby Kennedy assassination dramaBobby, which boasts an all-starcast including Anthony Hopkins, Demi Moore, Elijah Wood, Sharon Stone, LindsayLohan, Nick Cannon and Freddy Rodriguez.Arclight's president of international sales Jonathan Deckter will commencesales at the AFM next week on the Bold Films production, ...
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Bleiberg bulks up with Champagne Spy, Love & Dance
Ehud Bleiberg's fledglingBleiberg Entertainment is to co-produce and handle worldwide sales on theespionage documentary The Champagne Spy and the drama Love & Dance.The Champagne Spy, a BleibergEntertainment production in association with July August Productions, followsan Israeli agent who goes undercover to sabotage an Egyptian weapons programmeand becomes addicted to his ...
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SKE enters Breach with Universal
Sidney Kimmel Entertainment(SKE) has come aboard as co-financer on Universal's spy thriller Breach, written and to be directed by Billy Ray in hisfirst feature since Shattered Glass.Kimmel International will commence sales at AFM on the project and Universalwill oversee production and retain all North American rights.Based on true events, Breachstars ...
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The Legend Of Zorro poised to take over the world
All eyes will be on TheLegend Of Zorro this weekend as the adventure sequel launches on more than5,900 prints in 50 territories mostly through Sony Pictures ReleasingInternational (SPRI).The distributor opens the picture day-and-date with North America in France on685 prints on Oct 26, Germany and Russia a day later on ...
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Lightning strikes for Adam & Eve
Lightning Entertainment haspicked up international sales on Jeff Kanew's romantic comedy Adam & Eve and is partnering up with National Lampoon for adomestic theatrical release.New Line Home Entertainment will release on DVD and video the story of a collegestudent who dates a virgin and battles to stay faithful until she ...
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Lightning adds Junebug, Wal-Mart doc to AFM slate
Lightning Entertainment hasbulked up its AFM slate by taking international rights to Phil Morrison'sfamily drama Junebug and RobertGreenwald's documentary Wal-Mart: TheHigh Cost Of Low Price.The Los Angeles-based salesand distribution outfit swooped on Junebugfollowing the demise of UK-based sales house Renaissance Films. The picture,which earned a Special Jury Prize at Sundance ...
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Horizon lines up vintage Daiei slate for AFM
Rob Straight'sVancouver-based Horizon Entertainment is bringing a slate of vintage titlesfrom the Daiei library to the AFM through its partnership with Kadokawa HeraldPictures, including 1968 horror title YokaiDaisenso and its 1968 and 1969 sequels. In addition, Horizon willoffer Takashi Miike's $10m children's fantasy epic The Great Yokai War, a remake ...
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Arclight picks up Brooks' Looking For Comedy
Arclight Films has acquiredinternational rights to Albert Brooks' comedy Looking For Comedy In The Muslim World and will commence sales atthe AFM next week.Brooks stars as a comedianworking for the US government who travels to India and Pakistan to discover what makes Muslims laugh.Brooks directed and wrotethe project, which is ...
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De Niro to star in Levinson's What Just Happened'
Robert De Niro will star inBarry Levinson's comedy What JustHappened' for 2929 Productions which is based on Art Linson's book andscreenplay about his experiences in Hollywood.2929 will fully finance theproject and the company's sales chief Shebnem Askin will commence internationalsales at the AFM next week. No domestic distributor is attached ...
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Drum is audience favourite at Mill Valley
The Mill Valley FilmFestival's inaugural audience award for dramatic feature went to Zola Maseko'sApartheid drama Drum.The strong audience response to the picture has prompted producer ChrisSievernich to begin discussions with North American distributors for a platformrelease.Sievernich's Armada Pictures International holds worldwide rights to theproject starring Taye Diggs and Jason Flemyng.Lisa ...
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Warner Bros restructures home entertainment divisions
Adopting a streamlinedapproach to the global multi-media delivery of its properties, Warner Bros hasconsolidated its home video, online, wireless, games, anti-piracy and emergingtechnologies divisions under Warner Bros Home Entertainment Group (WBHEG).Kevin Tsujihara, a highlyregarded new media strategist at Warner Bros, will head up the division aspresident, reporting directly to studio ...
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Lions Gate lines up stellar voice cast for Foodfight!
Charlie Sheen, Eva Longoria,Wayne Brady, Chris Kattan and Christopher Lloyd have joined the voice cast ofThreshold Animation Studios and Lions Gate Family Entertainment's upcominganimated comedy Foodfight!As previously announced,Hillary and Haylie Duff have committed to the project set after hours in asupermarket populated by talking products.Lions Gate FamilyEntertainment has scheduled an ...
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Lions Gate checks into Hostel with Screen Gems
Lions Gate has come on boardas domestic distributor on Screen Gems' upcoming horror picture Hostel from Eli Roth and will launch itwide on Dec 21.Quentin Tarantino served as executive producer on the picture, which stars JayHernandez as an American tourist who becomes ensnared in an underground torturering.Lions Gate, which distributed ...
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Film Sales Company heads for Middletown
Andrew Herwitz' The FilmSales Company has bulked up its AFM slate after picking up worldwide rightsexcluding the UK to the sibling drama Middletown starring Matthew Macfayden.Macfayden, currently starring as Charles Darcy opposite Keira Knightley in PrideAnd Prejudice, will star in theIreland-set tale about the torrid relationship between two brothers.Brian Kirk ...
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Mayhem Project signs first two screenwriter deals
The Mayhem Project, the independent production and financecompany launched in June 2005 by executive Anthony Mosawi, has signed its firsttwo screenwriter deals.Todd Farmer will write the screenplay to the feature version of the survivalhorror video game franchise Clock Tower, while Ronnie Christensen will the supernatural story Sanctuary.Both projects will be ...