All News articles – Page 4961
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The Ring remake lords it over the UK box office
The UK/Ireland box office chart saw a new champion over the weekend as UIP's The Ring made a strong debut with $3.5m (£2.2m) from 396 sites - including previews of $478,046 (£300,213) from 311 locations.The horror title, the only new entry to make the top 15 this weekend, showed by ...
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Toho takes over Virgin Cinemas Japan
Major Japanese distributor and exhibitor Toho announced on Tuesday a deal with Virgin Cinemas Japan to acquire its chain of multiplex cinemas. The $83m (Y10bn) deal will take effect by the end of March.Launched in September 1997, Virgin Cinemas Japan now operates eight multiplexes with 81 screens in suburban areas, ...
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Italy mourns the King of Commedia
Legendary Italian actor Alberto Sordi, a figurehead of the Commedia all'Italiana, has died in Rome at the age of 82.With his instantly recognisable thick Roman accent and deep voice, Sordi began his 60-year acting career at the age of 16.He was a symbol of national pride for several generations of ...
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UK film industry focuses on training
UK support body the Film Council and training body Skillset are to launch a major initiative to improve film skills and training in the UK, seen as key to improving the British film industry's worldwide standing.Stewart Till, deputy chairman of the Film Council and Skillset, and CEO/chairman of UIP, this ...
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Mukta Arts plans $18m Indian film school
Mumbai-based film Production Company Mukta Arts is launching a film school named Whistling Woods International. "Today most of us in the industry are products of individual and instinctive talent without much professional training," Mukta Arts' Subhash Ghai told Screendaily. "We want to change that. If the Hindi film industry needs ...
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Celestial to launch 24-hour Chinese movie channel in March
Hong Kong's Celestial Pictures is set to roll out its 24-hour Chinese movie channel, Celestial Movies, in Malaysia and Brunei on March 3, with launches in other territories around the world to follow over the coming year. The channel will be carried on Malaysian satellite platform Astro, which is majority ...
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AFM conference assesses film funding jigsaw
In the wake of Germany's Neuer Markt collapse, global television's retreat from film buying and the general economic downturn, independent production and distribution companies are being forced to reassess their business models and rely on a funding jigsaw from an ever broader and enterprising array of sources, a wide-ranging AFM ...
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Italy tests product placement as film financing alternative
Rome's Blue Star Movie has sealed a landmark multi-million dollar product placement deal with Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, with the multinational agreeing to fund an international short film and potentially a European feature-length picture. Blue Star Movie head Pete Maggi said Johnson & Johnson is investing "over Euros 10m" ...
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Bollywood's most ambitious film unveiled
With a budget of $22m, Indian film Director Rajkumar Santoshi's version of Mahabharat is likely to be the most expensive Indian film ever made.Although shooting is not scheduled to start until 2004, pre-production has been underway for some time. The sets started being built at Hyderabad's Ramoji Film City midway ...
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US turns up the heat on Asian remakes
Hollywood's fervour for remaking Asian genre titles is reaching fever pitch. Dimension Films has acquired North American and remake rights to Cinema Service's comedy-drama that has the working title Teacher Mr Kim. And separately, Cineclick Asia is finalising a deal with Los Angeles-based production and distribution group Mosaic Media for ...
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More Canadian tax bacon for producers
Hot on the heels of a hike in the federal production labour-based tax credit, the Canadian province of British Columbia has sweetened its own tax credit lure. The British Columbia Production Services Tax Credit (PSTC), which offers an 11% rebate on eligible labour costs in the province, will now include ...
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Devdas scoops Indian Oscars
Film Producer Bharat Shah's $10m Devdas may not have won an Oscar nomination but it did win 11 Indian Oscars at the 48th Filmfare awards. The awards included best film, director (Sanjay Leela Bhansali), actor (Shah Rukh Khan), actress (Aishwarya Rai) and best actress in a supporting role (Madhuri Dixit). ...
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Fortissimo Eyes up horror sequel
Fortissimo Film Sales has picked up world sales rights to The Eye II, the sequel to Danny and Oxide Pang's stylish horror hit The Eye."We are thrilled at the level of interest from buyers. In many cases we have had bids even before the first film has been released in ...
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Dario Argento set to shoot The Card Player
Cult Italian director Dario Argento is lining up a new thriller, entitled The Card Player. Produced by Medusa, the film starts shooting in March with hot Italian actress Stefania Rocca (Casomai, Resurrection) in the lead role. Worldwide distribution rights are being handled by Adriana Chiesa Enterprises. Argento's last film, Sleepless ...
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Polanski's The Pianist triumphs at the BAFTAs
Roman Polanski's The Pianist completed a dazzling weekend last night, winning the best film and director trophies at the British Film Academy Awards in London. On Saturday night in Paris, the film swept the Cesar awards taking best film, director and actor prizes. Brody, who won the Cesar but lost ...
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Daredevil still flies high
Fox/Regency's Daredevil heroically held off the competition and clung on top spot over the weekend with an $18.9m haul that took its running total after 10 days to $70.3m, according to studio estimates released today (Feb 23). The Marvel Comics adaptation, which stars Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner, is set ...
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Pianist waltzes off with Cesar sweep
Roman Polanski's Palme d'Or winner, The Pianist, swept the 28th Cesar Awards in Paris Saturday night. In the major categories the film took Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor in what ended up to be a trouncing of odds-on favorite 8 Women. Francois Ozon's musical murder mystery had ...
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Arclight's Twins Effect secures multiple berths
Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment has picked up North American and Latin American rights in all media on The Twins Effect, the made-in-Hong Kong martial arts vampire picture sold by sales newcomer Arclight Films.The Twins Effect is directed by Dante Lam and features Hong Kong teen singing sensations Charlene Choi and ...
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Israel's Broken Wings takes flight at AFM
UK-basedsales agent Pathe International has sold Nir Bergman's darkly comic Israelidrama Broken Wingsto Optimum Releasing for the UK, Diaphana for France and to Cine Video Y TV forMexico in deals finalised at the American Film Market.On the backof the film's outing in Berlin, where it went to Sony Pictures Classics ...
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French projects set to animate Cartoon Movie market
Reflecting the strong French animation market, over a quarter of the 47 animation feature projects looking for financing or distribution at this year's Cartoon Movie market in Babelsberg (March 13-15) have been initiated by French animation studios. Among the 13 French projects, four are from Les Armateurs (Crossroad - The ...