Large MPU – Page 1501
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News
Bridget still weighty, The Hole penetrates well
While the top three performers at the UK box office remained unchanged this weekend four new releases managed to make some impact on their opening weekend.Leading the pack was Pathe Distribution's The Hole. The UK-produced thriller, based on the cult novel 'After The Hole' by Guy Burt, took a strong ...
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British Film Commission changes directors
Terri Jones has stepped down as director of the British Film Commission after joining in February last year, to be replaced by former freelance producer Clare Wise.Jones, formerly director of production at UK TV station LWT, is understood to have wanted to return to the TV sector. Wise most recently ...
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TEAM weaves web of distribution deals
Shares in beleaguered film and TV group TEAM Communications climbed 20% to Euros1.27 today after it announced two distribution deals.In the UK it signed a deal with Indigo Film and Television which will see Indigo handle international sales of TEAM's 2000-hour catalogue worldwide, except the Americas. In the US October ...
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Fox adds local duo to Mexican distribution slate
Buoyed by a promising new crop of Mexican films, 20th Century Fox de Mexico has picked up two more home-grown films for local distribution, Nicolas Echevarria's Vivir Mata and Angel Maria Huerta's Inspiracion.Vivir Mata is a romantic comedy shot in Mexico City and stars Daniel Gimenez Cacho (Nadie Hablara ...
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Kinobrasil adds Spanish-language sales arm
Many of Latin America's festival favourites are to be represented at Cannes by new international sales company Kinolatino.The company, which is a subsidiary of Zurich-based Kinobrasil, has already acquired European all rights to: Chilean box office hit, El Chacotero Sentimental; Argentina's Solo Por Hoy which appeared in Berlin's Panorama ...
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Helkon completes $16m Redbus takeover
The UK's Redbus Film Distribution has announced the finalisation of its $16m takeover by Germany's Helkon Media and that it will beat first-quarter expectations with a pre-tax profit of $1.1m.A significant slice of Helkon's final $8m payment to Redbus will go to Cliff Stanford, the Internet mogul who owns Redbus' ...
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New talent finds its home in Directors Fortnight
Marie-Pierre Macia in her second year as chief selector of the Directors' Fortnight (La Quinzaine Des Realisateurs) has picked an eclectic mixture with very few well-known directors. The biggest names are Amos Kollek, in Cannes last year with Fast Food, Fast Women and Sandrine Veysset, who previously directed festival favourite ...
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MM Media Capital renamed Cobalt Media Group
Two year-old financing company MM Media Capital Partners (MCP) has changed identity, renaming itself Cobalt Media Group in light of its reorganisation as a finance, sales and distribution company. The new name is effective May 1.Founded in 1999 by NatWest/Coutts Bank's Rodney Payne, Hal Sadoff and Myles Nestel with financial ...
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Senator Int'l makes first pick-up: Das Experiment
Senator International, the new Los Angeles-based sales company run by Joe Drake, has acquired worldwide rights excluding German-speaking Europe and Japan to Oliver Hirschbiegel's surprise hit Das Experiment. Marking the first film picked up by the new outfit since its formation earlier this year, Das Experiment has grossed $7.6m since ...
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Goldcrest dips into features with WW2 POW film
UK-based Goldcrest Films International has acquired all international rights to $14m war drama To End All Wars, starring Robert Carlyle and Keifer Sutherland.The deal marks a step into the theatrical arena for Goldcrest, which has been quiet on the features front since splitting with Guy Collins' IAC Films. The film, ...
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Amelie charms French audiences across Europe
UGC International's Amelie From Montmartre opened well in French-speaking Europe, making Cannes selector Thierry Fremaux's decision to programme the film as a special open-air screening a popular one.Handled by UFD, the Jean-Pierre Jeunet-directed charmer achieved 125,000 admissions from 432 copies on the first day on nationwide French release, giving a ...
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Yes TV signs content deals for Hong Hong VoD pilot
The UK's video-on-demand (VoD) operator, Yes Television has struck deals with Buena Vista International, BBC Worldwide and MTV Networks Asia to supply programming for its new Hong Kong service. Local content is set to come from AOL Time Warner's CETV, Mei Ah Film Production, Universe Films, Sun TV, Regentact and ...
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This week in Screen International
News UK films CannedWhile Bridget Jones conquered America, Cannes could not find a UK film worthy of selection. Has British film-making sold its soul for the sake of a few dollars more' News Focus Set me free"Handcuffing us in how we do business is ridiculous in this day and age." ...
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Bogosian, Koteas, Plummer join Egoyan's Ararat
Eric Bogosian, Christopher Plummer and Elias Koteas have joined the cast of Atom Egoyan's Ararat which is set to shoot mid-May in Toronto. The Serendipity Point film, backed by Alliance Atlantis, follows the production ofa historical drama about the Armenian Genocide and the ripple effect of the production on the ...
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Financial briefs (Germany)
Odeon FilmFilm and TV production group Odeon Film is forecasting an operating profit $630,000 (Euros700,000) in the current financial on sales of $45.1m (Euros50.1m) after reporting an EBIT loss of $1.44m (Euro1.6m) for 2000. For 2002 it is forecasting an EBIT $1.53m (Euros1.7m). Director of production Reinhard Klooss said the ...
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Chapman heads Birmingham festival
The Birmingham Film and TV Festival has appointed Barbara Chapman as its director.Chapman, the festival's film programmer for the last three years, replaces Sarah McKenzie, who left last year to join the British Film Commission. Part of Chapman's brief is to add new elements to the festival such as a ...
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Besson's Europa wins Hellman distrib contract
Philippe Hellman's specialist acquisitions and production outfit UGC Ph has struck an output deal with Luc Besson's new company Europa Corp, to handle French theatrical distribution.Hellman, who is a co-founder of UGC, previously released his films through UFD, a joint venture between UGC and 20th Century Fox.The first titles to ...
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UK admissions down 8.7% for first quarter
UK cinema admissions were down 8.7% in the first quarter this year, according to the latest figures from cinema advertising body the CAA.Admissions hit 8.3 million during the period, compared to just over nine million during the same period last year. Average admissions per week during the entire quarter this ...
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Les Visiteurs cause heavy losses at Gaumont
Beleaguered French major, Gaumont announced plans to produce some ten films over the next 18 months as it concentrates its efforts on production and distribution. But two of its big productions forced the company into massive losses for last year.Gaumont announced net losses of $60.1m (FF437m) compared with a profit ...
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Driven drives lacklustre US box office with $13.1m
Franchise Pictures' bang-em-up car-racing actioner Driven opened at the number one spot in the North American box office last weekend with an okay $13.1m from 2,905 sites. Directed by Renny Harlin and starring and written by Sylvester Stallone, the movie was poorly received by critics and its opening hardly looks ...