All News articles – Page 5135
-
News
Michael Jackson to make movies with Mark Damon
Michael Jackson is gettinginto film production through an unlikely alliance with international salesveteran Mark Damon. The pop superstar's Neverland Entertainment willinvest between $15m and $20m in Damon's production, financing and salesoutfit MDP Worldwide Entertainment Inc which is publicly traded on the TorontoStock Exchange.The agreement will seeNeverland become a major shareholder ...
-
News
British Academy bestows awards on Fellowship
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring was the big winner at last night's British Academy Film Awards with five awards including best film and best director for Peter Jackson.Moulin Rouge, which like Lord Of The Rings had 12 nominations, went away with three lower profile prizes ...
-
News
Shochiku fights back with Samurai epics
After a production slowdown lasting 18 months, Japanese publicly-quoted movie powerhouse Shochiku is back in business, bringing to the AFM a new slate that includes a brace of high-profile Samurai epics.The Japanese company is making a teaser available on Tasogare Seibei (working title), which is set to be the first ...
-
News
Boorman's wizardry casts Overseas spell
Director John Boorman is going back to Camelot with Knight's Castle, a $35m family fantasy movie about a boy's quest for Excalibur, being financed byFirst Look Media and Cinerenta.Based on the book by Edward Eager, the film is being produced with Boorman and Kevin Corrigan's Merlin Films and sold internationally ...
-
News
Columbia TriStar buys international on Mindhunters
Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group has acquired the majority of international rights to Renny Harlin's action thriller Mindhunters from Intermedia. CTSMPG bought rights in France, Italy, the UK, Japan, Korea, Latin America and Australia & New Zealand among other territories to the movie that is being distributed by Dimension Films ...
-
News
Murdoch's Star goes theatrical across Asia
Star TV, Rupert Murdoch's pan-Asian satellite broadcast group, is making a major play to become a theatrical film distribution and production player across Asia.Under the management of the former Media Asia deputy general manager Peter Poon and production head group Michael Mak, the outfit has launched Fortune Star Pictures Limited.Stressing ...
-
News
New French buyer debuts with Filmax titles
The paint may still be wet on the shingle, but brand new production and distribution company Wild Side Films has made two purchases in its first market outing. By picking up Second Name and Oblivion from Spanish mini-major Filmax, the new company announces its arrival on the international market scene.Second ...
-
News
New Latin buying group bids on seven big titles
Sun Distribution Group, a new Latin American buying consortium, has made its debut at the AFM with bids for up to seven of the largest films on offer, it says. The Buenos Aires-based distributor aims to acquire all Latin American rights to around eight theatrical titles its first year and ...
-
News
MGM joins Korean remake rush
Korean seller Cineclick Asia has sold Hollywood remake rights on its hit martial arts comedy Hi Dharma to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM).The film, about conflict and compromise between gangsters and some ass-kicking monks, was one of the top five in Korea last year, scoring a gross of $20.4m from its 207-print Nov ...
-
News
Madonna's Maverick Pictures teams with Splendid
Splendid Pictures, the new production and sales outfit formed on the merger of Germany's Splendid Medien and LA-based Cutting Edge Entertainment, has announced its first-look deal with Maverick Films, the film production arm of Madonna's company Maverick.Splendid will finance and produce Maverick's projects for the next year with an option ...
-
News
The Works scores with Bend It Like Beckham
UK-based sales outfit The Works has closed a slew of deals on its eagerly awaited comedy Bend It Like Beckham, directed by Gurinder Chadha, including a sale to Metropolitan Filmexport in France.The film, which stars Parminder Nagra, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Shaznay Lewis and Juliet Stevenson in a story of an ...
-
News
Myriad on the road with Coppola's Zoetrope
Myriad Pictures and Francis Ford Coppola's American Zoetrope unveiled three new films yesterday to be financed and sold in international territories by Myriad, which has taken over the ten-picture Zoetrope slate from financially troubled VCL. United Artists handles domestic rights on the film.They are Zoetrope's long-delayed On The Road, a ...
-
News
Nothing Is Everything for Hadida's Metropolitan
Senator International has sold French rights on the Vincenzo Natali directed Nothing to Samuel Hadida's Metropolitan Filmexport. The film, which Senator is financing with Japan's Klockworx, is currently in pre-production while Natali finishes Company Man for Pandora and Miramax. A May start is possible.The Canadian Natali has seen his ...
-
News
Klockworx girds for Iron Ladies' return
Japan's Klockworx has become the first buyer to commit to Iron Ladies: The Early Years, the new picture to be handled by Fortissimo Film Sales.The film, to be directed by Yongyooth Thongkonthun, is both a sequel and a prequel to his smash Thai comedy The Iron Ladies. The original film ...
-
News
Female Gangster flick clicks with Japan's KNACK
Sales house Cineclick Asia has secured a major Japanese deal on one of its bigger titles and is now shooting to become a heavyweight player outside its native Korea.It sold Japanese rights on female gangster tale My Wife Is A Gangster to KNACK, a company more usually associated with animation ...
-
News
Optimum raps with Biggie & Tupac, Lawless Heart
UK independent distributor Optimum Releasing has acquired the UK rights to veteran documentarian Nick Broomfield's Sundance hit, Biggie And Tupac, in a deal struck with Luc Roeg of the Artists Independent Network . Lions Gate Films has domestic rights on the film.The film investigates the still unsolved murders of rap ...
-
News
Queen Of The Damned reigns over North America
Queen Of The Damned, Warner Bros' film of the Anne Rice novel, topped the box office in North America over the weekend with an estimated $15.2m take on 2,511 screens. Based on the third book in Rice's Vampire Chronicles, the $30m film is notable as the last film role for ...
-
News
Artist House buys Morvern Callar for Japan
Artist House, the Japanese publishing group, is set to make an imprint both as both new buyer and seller. It has already acquired Japanese rights to LynneRamsay's Cannes-bound Morvern Callar and is now embarking on its own production of TheTesseract, starring Jonathan Rhys-Meyers and Saskia Reeves.Along with its specialistfeatures arm ...
-
News
Jackie Chan sci-fi actioner tops Media Asia slate
Media Asia, under the new management of hotels andentertainment investor Peter Lam, has unveiled a far-reaching development slatefor 2002-3, headed by $40m Jackie Chan picture, Titanium Rain, a sci-fi action title. The futuristic picture has atimeframe of over 400 years and is set in China and outer space. Production isdue ...
-
News
Fonlupt dives into Kormakur's The Sea with Flach
Former Ciby 2000 executiveJean-Francois Fonlupt's Emotion Pictures is teaming with Blue Eyes Productions for The Sea, the nexteffort from 101 Reykjavikdirector Baltasar Kormakur. Eric Lagesse, head of Flach Pyramide International, whorecently picked up the film for global sales enthuses, 'It'ssomething hot from a cold place!' Indeed, the film is anIceland-set ...