Large MPU – Page 718
-
News
Dutch Filmworks strikes deal for King's Black Sheep
Dutch Filmworks has acquiredBenelux rights to Jonathan King's comedy horror Black Sheep from NZ Film.The film, which recentlycompleted its shoot in New Zealand, was previously sold to Icon for the UK,Australia and New Zealand. Jiants has rights for Thailand, Singapore andMalaysia.Produced by PhilippaCampbell, Black Sheep is set on avast sheep ...
-
News
Katapult takes on sales for Puccini For Beginners
Thomas Mai's Katapult FilmSales begins international sales in Cannes on Maria Maggenti's comedy PucciniFor Beginners, which premiered at Sundance.The film receives itsinternational market debut screening and charts the exploits of a commitment-phobicNew York lesbian.Elizabeth Reaser, JustinKirk and Gretchen Mol star.Maggenti wrote thescreenplay, and Eden Wurmfeld produced with InDigEnt's Gary Winick ...
-
News
TFI takes on family film Duke & Claire
TFI International has pickedup live-action family film Duke & Claire from Endgame Entertainment, producers of HotelRwanda and Lord Of War.The story is about a pair ofmismatched dogs shepherding a group of ducklings through the American west on ajourney where they must battle rattlesnakes, wolves and other wilds along theway.The project ...
-
News
Warner Italy starts shooting Lucchetti's political comedy
Shooting has just started onWarner Bros Italy's $7.7m (Euros 6m) political comedy, Mio Fratello e'Figlio Unico.Directed by DanieleLucchetti, the film is about a young seminarian who becomes a fascistand then a left-wing activist. It is inspired by Antonio Pennacchi'snovel Il fasciocomunista.The film is produced byCattleya, and written by Stefano Rulli ...
-
News
Roeg's IFS adds London To Brighton to Cannes slate
Luc Roeg's Independent FilmSales (IFS) announced in Cannes that it will handle sales on London To Brighton,a British thriller about a runaway girl caught up in an undergroundprostitution ring. Vertigo will be releasing the film (currently in post-production)in the UK following its debut at an autumn festival later in the ...
-
News
Korea's Core Studio takes on Lee Myung-se horror project
Korea's Core Studio isfinancing and handling international sales on the first horror film from hotKorean director Lee Myung-se.Entitled M, the $5m film is a supernatural love story between a30-something writer and a mysterious young girl. It's currently being scriptedand production is expected to start in September or October. Core Studio ...
-
News
Lionsgate partners with Lakeshore for Midnight Train
Lionsgate and LakeshoreEntertainment are partnering up on the horror thriller Midnight Train based on a short story by Clive Barker.Patrick Tatopoulos willdirect the tale of a New York photographer who tracks down a serial killer andunearths a devastating secret. Jeff Buhler adapted the screenplay.Lakeshore is producing theproject, its second collaboration ...
-
News
Goldwyn strikes US deal for Conversations With God
Samuel Goldwyn Films hasacquired US theatrical rights from Lightning Entertainment to the spiritual filmConversations With God.Fox Home Entertainment hastaken North American video rights to theadaptation of Neale DonaldWalsch's bestselling series of books about his transformation fromhomeless person to spiritual guru.Henry Czerny stars as Walschalongside Ingrid Boulting.Goldwyn plans an autumnrelease.Stephen Simon ...
-
News
EC approves new Irish and Polish film schemes
The European Commission hasapproved new and amended national aid schemes that support film-making inIreland and Poland under EC Treaty state aid regulations.The Irish Section 481 schemeto support film production, which amends the existing scheme previouslyapproved by the Commission, allows film production companies to obtain 80% taxrelief on investments of up ...
-
News
J&M secures multiple sales to Japan
UK-based sales and financing operation J&M Entertainment has sold a host of titles to Japanese distributors including Nippon Herald, Marubeni and Only Hearts.Marubeni acquired a package including UK thriller Complicity, starring Jonny Lee Miller; Fever, which marks Alex Winter's directing debut; History Is Made At Night, starring Bill Pullman; and ...
-
News
here! picks up comic strip adaptation Ethan Green
here! Films has picked up worldwide rights to George Bamber's romanticcomedy The Mostly Unfabulous Social Life Of Ethan Green.Based on Eric Orner's cult comic strip, the project stars Daniel Letterle as asocially inept 'professional assistant' who spins a web of lies in order tohold on to the new man in ...
-
News
UK Film Council awards $1.2m from Development Fund
The UK Film Council hasannounced funding for nine new film projects through its Development Fund.The total investment in thenine films is $1.2m (£628,339). The projects funded are:Mrs Ratcliffe'sRevolution written by PeterStraughan and Bridget O'Connor, to be directed by Bille Eltringham;Ghetta Life, written by Christopher Browne;West Is West from writer Ayub ...
-
News
Klockworx snaps up Japanese rights to Ong Bak 2
Thailand's SahamongkolfilmInternational has sold hotly anticipated Tony Jaa vehicle Ong Bak 2 to Japan's Klockworx.Jaa will star in and serveas action choreographer on the $12-$15m film and is also considering whether todirect. Prachya Pinkaew, director ofthe original Ong Bak and TomYum Goong, will produce. Jaa'smentor and action choreographer Panna Rittikrai ...
-
News
Tillinger named production president at Scorsese's Sikelia
Emma Tillinger has been named president of production for MartinScorsese's New York-based Sikelia Productions.Tillinger will oversee all aspects of Scorsese's production operation and workwith him on the development of projects.Scorsese is currently in post-production on The Departed starring LeonardoDiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson and Mark Wahlberg, which will be releasedby ...
-
News
Rai Cinema boards Salvatores's Naima
Rai Cinema has boardedOscar-winning director Gabriele Salvatores's next film, a $25.5m (Euros20m) English-language drama about a ship's last voyage.The film, with a workingtitle is Naima, is written byUmberto Contarello and Salvatores, who won a best foreign language Oscar for Mediterraneo.Naima is a romantic adventure drama about an Irish shipcaptain and ...
-
News
Element closes slew of deals for Mr Brooks
Element Films International(EFI) has closed a raft of deals on thepsychological thriller MrBrooks starring Kevin Costner in theunlikely role of a compulsive killer. The co-production of LosAngeles-based Element Films, Costner's TIGProductions and ThomasAugsberger's Eden Rock Media is currentlyshooting in the US.Bruce A Evans directs thestory of a jaded killer pursued ...
-
News
Spanish exhibitors' federation responds to ruling
The Spanish exhibitors'federation has called for the creation of a commission to ensure that thelandmark ruling handed down last week against five multinational distributors accusedof anti-competitive practices gets carried out.In last week's decision bySpain's Anti-Trust Court, Disney/Buena Vista, Sony Pictures, Hispano Fox, UIPand Warner Sogefilms were fined $3m (Euros 2.4m) ...
-
News
Rezo signs up for Sokurov's Alexandra
France's Rezo Films hassigned with legendary Russian director Aleksandr Sukourov for his upcoming Alexandra.The film, about agrandmother who goes in search of her grandson fighting in Chechnya will shootin the Caucasus in July and August.Alexandra is in keeping with Sokourov's previous films about familyties Father And Son and MotherAnd Son. ...
-
News
David and Kastner launch UK-based sales company 111 with Opa!
Alki David and ElliottKastner have launched 111 pictures, a new sales company kicking off in Cannes.The company's first title isUdayan Prasad's Opa!, a romanticcomedy about an American archaeologist (Matthew Modine) who falls in love witha local woman (Agni Scott) when he takes a research trip to a Greek island. TheUS-UK ...
-
News
Da Vinci goes global with international launch
The Da Vinci Code floodsthe international marketplace this weekend, opening day-and-date (orthereabouts) with its US launch on nearly 12,000 screens spread across almostevery territory. The international opening is thewidest ever for distributor Sony Pictures Releasing International (SPRI) and itgives the film an even broader global launch than the summer's first ...