All News articles – Page 5253
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Hart Sharp pacts with UK's FilmFour
UK film giant FilmFour and New York-based production outfit Hart Sharp Entertainment have formed a co-production alliance to produce a slate of specialised US features, expanding FilmFour's US production ambitions and cementing the international reputation of Hart Sharp whose credits includeBoys Don't Cry and You Can Count On Me.Under the ...
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Writers and producers talks into second extra day
Hollywood writers and producers continued talking throughout Wednesday (2 May), amid a news blackout from both negotiating teams.The Writer's Guild of America's contract with producers had been due to expire at 12.01am on 2 May Los Angeles Time (8.01am GMT). The continuation of the talks follows a marathon 17 hour ...
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Boyle unveils $15m sci-fi picture for DNA
Director Danny Boyle is to re-team with Alex Garland, writer of the cult book which spawned The Beach, for British sci-fi film 28 Days Later.Boyle is to start shooting in August on the $15m project for DNA Films, the UK National Lottery franchise which his regular producer Andrew Macdonald heads ...
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UK actors next to threaten strike
UK performers union Equity has given six months notice on its cinema film agreement with UK the Producers Alliance for Cinema & Television (PACT), in a move which could lead to a UK actors' strike. Like the potential US actors strike, the dispute centres on residual payments to actors. Equity ...
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Venice festival launches second competition
In a ground-breaking restructuring of the oldest international film event, Venice film festival chief Alberto Barbera has announced that he will establish two official competition sections at the next edition of the festival. The two Lion awards will carry equal weight."The new structure is an attempt for the festival to ...
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Optimum, Mosaic team up for Ginger Snaps release
UK distributor Optimum Releasing is to theatrically release dark comedy thriller Ginger Snaps as a joint venture with video outfit Mosaic Entertainment.Optimum and Mosaic aim for the June release to kick off an ongoing distribution partnership. The Toronto title, acquired by Mosaic Entertainment from the US' Lions Gate Films, tells ...
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Cambridge festival relaunched by City Screen
The Cambridge Film Festival, a stalwart of the European festival scene before its demise in 1996, is to be resurrected by London-based independent exhibition chain City Screen.This year's festival, which runs for 11 days (July 12-22) at City Screen's Cambridge Arts Picture House, kicks off with the UK premiere of ...
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Lousberg to head Film Council's Euro strategy
UK film body the Film Council has appointed Jan-Jacob Lousberg as European business executive to spearhead its European strategy.Lousberg, previously a story editor and acquisitions and development executive at Fine Line Features in the UK, will have a key role in meeting the council's stated aim of investing at least ...
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USA Films to unleash Pandaemonium in America
Barry Diller's USA Films has picked up US rights to Julien Temple's Pandaemonium, a romantic drama about 19th Century English poets Coleridge and Wordsworth.The John Hannah, Linus Roache and Samantha Morton-starring picture was sold by Etchie Stroh's Moonstone Entertainment. It premiered at Toronto last year and is now on ...
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News Corp talks with GM get serious
News Corp boss Rupert Murdoch's talks to gain control of US satellite broadcast giant DirecTV moved up a gear this week when the board of General Motors gave its approval for merger talks between its Hughes Electronics division and News' nascent Sky Global Networks operation.Although talks have been ongoing for ...
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Nordisk pulls all the Strings
Nordisk Film and director Anders Ronnow-Klarlund's Revival ApS have started production on Strings, an animated feature using marionettes.While, in the era of 3D digital effects and synthespians, puppets on strings may seem old-fashioned Klarlund argues that it is perfect for his story. "I'm fascinated by the idea that our lives ...
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US writers talks continue past deadline
Talks to avert the screenwriters strike in Hollywood are continuing beyond the contract deadline.The Writer's Guild of America's contract with producers had been due to expire at 12.01am Los Angeles Time (8am GMT)."The talks are continuing and we're working very hard to reach an agreement," said Cheryl Rhoden, spokeswoman for ...
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Paltrow to produce her first film for Miramax
Gwyneth Paltrow will take a producing credit for the first time on Me Times Three, a film of the novel by New York Times style reporter Alex Witchal, which was acquired this week by Miramax Films. Bobby Cohen, who produced Bounce and View From the Top both starring Paltrow, will ...
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Meyer & Yershov share top job at Lions Gate Int'l
Following the departure of Joe Drake in March, Nick Meyer and Sergei Yershov have been named co-presidents of Lions Gate Films International as part of a restructuring. They will share responsibility for the international sales, distribution, marketing, finance and co-productions of Lions Gate strategy.The joint appointment scotches speculation about which ...
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French exhibs raise cost of loyalty cards
French exhibitors MK2 and Gaumont are to increase the price of their cinema loyalty card Le Pass from $13.48 (FF98) to $16.23 (FF118) as of June.The move is the latest development in the bitter battle being fought for market share by France's exhibition groups. Loyalty cards, introduced first by UGC, ...
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ESICMA boards Lopez vehicle
Spanish production outfit ESICMA has boarded Sergi Lopez-starrer The Women Or The Children by director Manuel Poirier.Women is only the second project to get the greenlight at ESICMA under new head Pau Calpe. Calpe took over the reins from former head Juan Gordon in 1999. The company is backed by ...
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Admissions climb in EU, but Europe's share tumbles
Overall cinema admissions in Europe grew by 36 million or 4.4% last year. That contrasts with the trend in the US last year where admissions fell by 3%.But the market share achieved by European-made films dropped from 29.2% to 22.5%, a thumping fall of 46 million from 236 million to ...
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Alliance Atlantis takes world on Virginia's Run
Alliance Atlantis haspicked up world rights on Virgina's Run from Knightscove Entertainment. Directed by Peter Markle, the family-oriented equestrian drama stars Gabriel Byrne and Joanne Whalley. The screenplay is by Valarie Trapp, David Henry Lucas and Markle. It is being produced by Knightscove Entertainment in association with Wardenclyffe Entertainment and ...
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Columbia buys Shiri for North and South America
Shiri, the blockbuster Korean spy movie, has been bought by Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group (CTMPG) for North America and Latin America.The deal, which is expected to be confirmed today, is the first Korean picture to be handled by CTMPG.The film, which was top grossing film in Korea in 1999, ...
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Pussy Power roars again after Zentropa rethink
A new company Innocent Pictures is to lick Zentropa's porn for women label Pussy Power into commercial shape.Pussy Power will become a label under Innocent Pictures, which will be 50% owned by Zentropa. Innocent's Nicolas Barbano, a journalist and TV-show host, will act as distributor and creative producer, while local ...