All News articles – Page 5231
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Hong Kong's first completion bond specialist opens
Hong Kong's first consultancy to specialise in completion bonds made its bow at the Hong Kong Filmart, signalling a growing trend in the territory towards international co-productions and joint financing.Film financing and Completion Bond Consultants (FFCBC), the entertainment arm of Hong Kong's Grande Insurance, will serve as a "one stop ...
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E Sun group grabs power at Media Asia
Ending a period of intense speculation and rumour-mongering about the direction of Media Asia, one of Hong Kong's most ambitious production and distribution operations, it has emerged that investment group E Sun has become the largest shareholder. E Sun's move allows a series of reallocations of management and operational responsibilities. ...
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Universal sells Loews Cineplex stake for a dollar
Universal Studios has sold its 25.5% stake in exhibitor Loews Cineplex for $1. The studio, a division of Vivendi Universal, sold more than 15m shares to investment bank Goldman Sachs, in a tax move to offset capital gains. The stake was worth approximately $1.8m based on a share price of ...
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York Entertainment starts international sales arm
US video distributor York Entertainment has created an international sales arm to license its library of urban features to international territories. To that end, the company has hired Corie VanDeutekom, formerly director of international sales for Carlton America, as vice president of international sales.VanDeutekom will launch the international sales company ...
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Rival Palm Springs Festival set for October
Craig Prater, former executive director of the Nortel Networks Palm Springs International Film Festival, has launched a rival - and competitive - festival in the Palm Springs region called Festival Of Festivals.Set to take place this year between Oct 25 and Nov 4, the new event will screen films in ...
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Kuhn realises Euro studio dream with Fox, Citibank
Former PolyGram Filmed Entertainment (PFE) chief Michael Kuhn is back at the helm of a European-based film powerhouse after unveiling backing from US studio 20th Century Fox and financing house Citibank in London.Kuhn's London-based production and financing outfit Kuhn & Co has struck a multi-picture distribution deal with Fox, which ...
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Cinema Expo closes on bullish note
"It doesn't get a whole lot better than this."That was the message to delegates attending Cinema Expo in Amsterdam from distributors unveiling what has been a well-received array of product - much to the relief of embattled European exhibitors."There is a higher than normal degree of anticipation," said Richard Segal, ...
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Tomb Raider set for top spot at French box office
With over 221,000 tickets sold on its first day on release (June 27) in France, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider looks set to kick Pearl Harbor off the top slot at the French box office in its first week. Tomb Raider is the fourth biggest opener in France since the beginning ...
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Intertainment to focus on hands-on production
Troubled German rights trader Intertainment aims to be more of a "hands on" producer in the future, through such production alliances as the one forged last year with veteran US producer Arnold Kopelson.Speaking at the shareholders general meeting yesterday, Intertainment CEO Barry Baeres explained that, due to the prevailing market ...
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French theatrical subsidies law extended
The French government has amended the law which limits financial support to smaller theatres in order to allow larger exhibitors to benefit from the same subsidies.Current legislation limits local subsidies to theatres which sell less than 2,200 tickets on average per week. The new regulation now puts the cap at ...
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Toho Towa, TV Asahi invite Korean Friend to Japan
Friend, the record-breaking Korean action drama, has secured a release in Japan after Toho Towa and TV Asahi put up a massive $2.1m.The film by Kwak Kyun-taek is represented by Cineclick Asia, which also sold the film for Hong Kong to Mandarin, which is believed to have paid close to ...
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Balian and Wiederspiel quit Tobis StudioCanal
On the eve of this year's Filmfest Muenchen, the German distribution sector has been rocked by the news of the sudden departure of Haig Balian and Albert Wiederspiel from Canal Plus' German theatrical arm Tobis StudioCanal (TSC) "due to insurmountable differences".For the time being, TSC will be managed solely by ...
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Hollywood legend Jack Lemmon dies
American film icon Jack Lemmon has died in Los Angeles aged 76, his publicist has announced. Lemmon, a two-time Academy Award winner, died at USC Norris Cancer Hospital on Wednesday night (June 27, 2001).Since his silver screen debut in 1954 comedy It Should Happen To You, opposite Judy Holliday and ...
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De la Iglesia goes solo to set up Stray Bullets
Spanish director Alex de la Iglesia has launched his own production company, Panico Films, through which he plans to set up new feature film project Balas Perdidas (literally, Stray Bullets), according to statements he made in Argentina this week.In an interview with La Nacion newspaper, de la Iglesia said that ...
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Three more sign up for Carpenter's Pencil
Tristan Ulloa (The Nameless), Maria Adanez (Cha Cha Cha) and Luis Tosar (Flowers From Another World) have signed on to star in director Anton Reixa's The Carpenter's Pencil (El Lapiz Del Carpintero). The project marks the first co-production between Madrid outfits Morena Films and Sogecine, together with Galicia-based start-up Portozas ...
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Finn steps down as WT2 reshuffles exec deck
Jon Finn is stepping down as co-head of WT2, the low-budget division of production powerhouse Working Title Films which debuted with Billy Elliot.Natascha Wharton will continue at the division as head of WT2. Working alongside her will be Rachel Prior, promoted from story editor to development executive. Finn, who came ...
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Seven Arts to merge with Hollywood Partners.com
Peter Hoffman's Seven Arts Pictures is to merge with US Internet outfit Hollywood Partners.com, it was announced on Wednesday.Hoffman is to join Hollywood Partners with a five-year exclusive commitment to serve as chief executive of the joint companies. Hollywood Partners is to acquire Seven Arts' overhead agreement and first-look deal ...
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Lara Croft continues UIP's hot streak
After a lacklustre domestic performance, just $32.3m in its first three weeks, sci-fi comedy Evolution has surprised many at the start of its international roll-out by scoring a $2.7m (£1.9m) opening weekend in the UK. Directed by Ivan Reitman, most famous for 1984 smash hit Ghostbusters, and starring David Duchovny, ...
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Japanese networks team to launch VOD service
Three of Japan's five television networks - Fuji TV, TBS and TV Asahi - have agreed to form a groundbreaking joint venture to provide film and other content via broadband. In addition to feature films for a VOD service, content will include TV dramas, animation, sports and news. Programmes will ...
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German distributors get inaugural culture awards
Distributor Arsenal Filmverleih, Berlin's fsk Kino & Peripher Filmverleih and Rapid Eye Movies in Cologne have each been selected for the Germany government's 2001 Distributor Awards.The German ministry of culture will present the awards in Dresden in October. The prizes, each of which carries $94,000 (DM200,000), were launched by culture ...