All articles by Mike Goodridge – Page 116

  • News

    Lions Gate acquires North America on Secretary

    2002-02-12T06:52:00Z

    Lions Gate Films hasacquired North American rights to Sundance Film Festival favourite Secretary, about the S&M relationship between a lawyer andhis secretary. The film was in dramatic competition at Sundance and won aspecial jury prize for originality. Directed by Steven Shainberg, the filmstars James Spader and Maggie Gyllenhall.Peter Block, president ...

  • News

    Senator Int'l picks up worldwide on Vaya Con Dios

    2002-02-11T23:37:00Z

    Senator International hasacquired worldwide rights (excluding German-speaking territories) to the Germanromantic comedy Vaya Con Dioswritten and directed by Zoltan Spirandelli.Recent winner of fourBavarian Film Awards including best new director, best new actor and best newactress, the film tells the story of three monks who leave their bankruptmonastery to find their ...

  • News

    Ocean's Eleven steals past $100m overseas

    2002-02-11T23:36:00Z

    Warner Bros celebrated itsfirst international smash of the new year as Ocean's Eleven stole past the $100m mark outside North America overthe weekend with a healthy $21m gross in 32 territories. Its total is now$111m.Playing on 3,827 screens,the film drew an estimated 3.75m admissions over the three days. It opened ...

  • News

    Harry strides past $600m in international b.o.

    2002-02-11T02:31:00Z

    Warner Bros' HarryPotter & The Sorcerer's Stone aka Harry Potter & The Philosopher's Stone crossed the $600m mark at the international boxoffice over the weekend, becoming only the second film in history to do so afterTitanic. The film is now poisedto become the third highest worldwide grosser in history, with ...

  • News

    CDP's Winterstern named chairman of Signpost Films

    2002-02-11T02:29:00Z

    HenryWinterstern, the co-founder and managing partner of Canada's CDP CapitalEntertainment, has been appointed chairman of the board at Stewart Till'snew company Signpost Films. He will play an integral role in identifyingstrategic partners and providing deal expertise for Signpost.Signpost is backed by CDPCapital Communications (a member of fund management group CDP ...

  • News

    Arnie does some damage at lowkey box office

    2002-02-10T23:30:00Z

    Three critically lambastednew entries topped the North American box office over the weekend and it wasnot a spectacular one, down some 22% on the same weekend last year when Hannibal made its record-breaking debut.At the top of the heap withan estimated $15.2m was Collateral Damage, the Arnold Schwarzenegger-starrer from Warner ...

  • News

    Full list of AFM seminars & finance conference

    2002-02-10T06:38:00Z

    The American Film Market(AFM) will host six seminars and a finance conference at this year'sevent (Feb 20-27), sponsored bylegal advisory firm Coudert Brothers.The programme is as follows:Feb 22 AFM FinanceConferencePanels: The Future Of FeatureFilm Financing IPanelists: Lewis Horwitz(moderator), Paul Brooks, Martin Katz, Edward S Labowitz, John W MillerThe Future Of ...

  • News

    Jean Prewitt promoted to CEO of AFMA

    2002-02-10T06:37:00Z

    Jean Prewitt, the presidentof AFMA, has been promoted to chief executive officer of the independet filmand TV trade organization. Prewitt, who joined the organization in April 2000,will retain the title of president as well."Over the last twoyears, Jean has exhibited exemplary leadership in solidifying AFMA's role inrepresenting the independent film ...

  • News

    Guardian teams with Mainline for new sales outfit

    2002-02-08T00:37:00Z

    Richard S Guardian, theveteran sales executive who has held stints with Overseas Filmgroup, HBOEnterprises and most recently Beyond Films, has teamed up with video and TVdistributor Mainline Releasing to launch Lightning Entertainment, a newLA-based boutique focusing on worldwide distribution of mid-budget independenttheatrical films.Mainline principals RichGoldberg and Marc Greenberg will provide ...

  • News

    WGA nominates Rings, Park, Mind, Rouge

    2002-02-08T00:35:00Z

    The Writers Guild Of America(WGA) unveiled its nominations for the 2001 WGA awards this week just daysafter it was revealed that two of the year's most acclaimed screenplays-from the independent breakthrough hits Memento and In The Bedroom - had been deemed ineligible.The original screenplaynominees are Julian Fellowes for Gosford Park, ...

  • News

    Nicole Kidman gets

    2002-02-08T00:30:00Z

    Nicole Kidman will receive adistinguished decade of achievement in film award at worldwide exhibitorsconvention ShoWest in March in Las Vegas. The actress will accept her award,which recognizes "Kidman's extraordinary body of work over the lastten years," on stage on March 7 at the Showest gala awards banquet.Other 2002 honorees so ...

  • Reviews

    Paradox Lake

    2002-02-08T00:00:00Z

    Dir: Przemyslaw 'Shemie' Reut. US. 2002. 85mins.Neither documentary nor fully fledged drama, Paradox Lake is cinema verite at its most infuriating. Shemie Reut's experimental feature is for the most part tedious and trying, yet its terrifically clever final act hints at what it might have been. It's one of those ...

  • News

    Miramax takes on Zhang Yimou's Hero

    2002-02-07T20:08:00Z

    The ever-voracious Miramax has pounced on Hero, the big-budget historical adventure whose post-production kept director Zhang Yimou away from Berlin this week. The film is getting good word of mouth in Asia where it is being compared with Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. Miramax grabbed all rights in North America, Latin ...

  • News

    Beatty gets lifetime nod at San Francisco Fest

    2002-02-07T00:34:00Z

    Warren Beatty will receivethe Akira Kurosawa Award for lifetime achievement in film directing at the 45thSan Francisco International Film Festival (Apr 18-May 2). The award will bepresented to Beatty on Thursday April 25 at Film Society Awards Night at SanFrancisco's Argent Hotel.The presentation willinclude a compilation of clips from Beatty's ...

  • News

    FilmFour, Karlsen team Together on two projects

    2002-02-07T00:33:00Z

    FilmFour is teaming withElizabeth Karlsen's production outfit Number 9 on two new projects- an English language remake of Lukas Moodysson's Swedish hit Together and a film of the cult novel The Deadly Percheron by John Franklin Bardin, to which they have optionedthe rights.The Together remake will be set in the ...

  • News

    Fox International ups key execs McLaren, Hanneman

    2002-02-06T01:28:00Z

    20th Century FoxInternational, the recently created division of the studio which combinesinternational theatrical and international home entertainment divisions underStephen Moore, has promoted three of its key executives.Mary McLaren, who waspreviously executive vice president for home entertainment international, hasbeen promoted to executive vice president of business operations for 20thCentury Fox International, ...

  • News

    LAFF and sponsor Target offer top prize of $50,000

    2002-02-06T01:26:00Z

    The 2002 Los Angeles FilmFestival is to introduce a new prize awarded to the director of the bestdramatic feature in competition worth $50,000. IFP/West executive director DawnHudson unveiled the award yesterday which will be furnished by thefestival's key sponsor Target, one of the biggest retail store circuitsin the US.The prize, ...

  • News

    Lagaan gets second US release, now through SPC

    2002-02-06T01:25:00Z

    Sony Pictures Classics willgive Ashutosh Gowariker's Indian epic Lagaan a new theatrical outing in the US in the late springamid buzz that the 223 minute-film received a rapturous reception at itsAcademy Award foreign language film committee screening. The Academy Awardnominations are announced next Tuesday (Feb 12).The film was released on ...

  • News

    Mickie switches back to sales at Alliance Atlantis

    2002-02-06T01:22:00Z

    Charlotte Mickie, to manythe international face of Canada's Alliance Atlantis Communications, hasbeen promoted to managing director, international motion picture sales, at itsEntertainment Group, returning to a sales role at the company which last monthaxed over 80 staff and dramatically reduced its feature film department.Locatedat the company's head office, Mickie will ...

  • News

    Winchester issues profit warning for year to March

    2002-02-05T04:50:00Z

    Winchester Entertainment hasissued a profit warning for the financial year to March 31, 2002, in which itsays it will make a one off write-down of approximately£2 million to itschildren's TV programming assets.However, the board of the companystressed in a statement that the expected low results are due to a number ...