All articles by Sandy George – Page 53
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New Zealand set for arthouse exhibition boost
US exhibitor Reading Cinemas is to open a local version of its Angelica Film Center in New Zealand's capital Wellington.The Angelika Film Center is an iconic six screen arthouse multiplex in downtown New York.The news comes as Reading's Australian and New Zealand subsidiary prepares to open a new cinema complex ...
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Arclight to sell Fat Pizza worldwide
Arclight has picked up all international sales rights except Australia, New Zealand, Greece and Singapore on Fat Pizza, the highest grossing local comedy in Australia this year.A politically incorrect comedy adaptation of a cult SBS television series, Fat Pizza took many observers by surprise when it opened in the second ...
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Perfect Creature takes shape for Arclight
Arclight Films has picked up international rights on a vampire horror film being produced by Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring and Whale Rider producer Tim Sanders and directed by Glenn Standring (The Irrefutable Truth About Demons).Called Perfect Creature, the film will be sold by Arclight's genre ...
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Placid Lake makes ripples in Oz
Tony McNamara's The Rage In Placid Lake is gathering critical plaudits in Australia.The Australian film was the most popular feature at the recently wrapped 52nd Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) and its script has just won both the adapted feature film category and the top prize at the Australian Writers ...
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Oz exhibitors rally round Gibson's Passion
Australian exhibitors appear to be rallying behind Mel Gibson's controversial film The Passion.The film, about the last hours of Jesus, has been attacked in the US by some religious organisations. Four minutes footage from The Passion screened at the Australian International Movie Convention this week; the full length film is ...
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Another Oz studio planned
A major new studio facility is set to be built in Australia - the fourth in the country. Paul Hathaway, a business consultant and engineer, and his property developer brother Michael Hathway, are confident they will have all the necessary final approvals by the end of this year to construct ...
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Zombie debut earns Melbourne festival praise
A self-financed debut film about zombies has been awarded the 2003 FIPRESCI Award for Emerging Filmmakers at the Melbourne International Film Festival. Undead, directed by Queensland brothers Michael and Peter Spierig, was earlier this year picked up for distribution in the US by Lions Gate. It set to be released ...
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Oz cheaper than Canada for runaway shoots says report
A Hollywood producer would save significant amounts of money shooting a big budget film in Australia compared to Canada, according to a report published this week.The report, which was produced by Sydney's best-known film accountancy firm for the Australian Government, concludes that a Hollywood producer would save 7.5% if he ...
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Oz producers bemoan lack of homegrown hits
An air of despondency is beginning to settle over Australian producers as, one by one, 2003's crop of local films fail to take off at the box office. The two latest Australian releases, Roadshow's comedy Bad Eggs and 20th Century Fox's Danny Deckchair, while only just out of the starting ...
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Zipser takes investment role at Australia's FFC
Deborah Zipser is returning to Australia from LA to become an investment manager in the Sydney headquarters of the Film Finance Corporation (FFC).For the last four years she has worked as a lawyer at The Motion Picture Bond Company, most recently as head of business and legal affairs. She joins ...
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Arclight, Spice Factory launch Oz film fund
Sydney-based sales agent Arclight Films International and prolific UK production company Spice Factory are to launch an Australian film fund. The news was revealed by Arclight managing director Gary Hamilton and Spice Factory joint director Michael Cowan on July 31 during the final outing of a two-city road show that ...
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Arkles buys Nemesis Game for NZ
New Zealand distributor Arkles Entertainment has acquired local rights to the UK/NZ/Canadian co-production Nemesis Game and plans to release it in October. The film has been on release for some time in the US.Nemesis Game is about a university student whose life comes under threat due to a fascination with ...
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Dimsey steps down from Film Victoria after seven weeks
Ross Dimsey, the general manager of industry development and investment at State Government agency Film Victoria, has stepped down after a mere seven weeks in the job. Those who are closely involved are being tight-lipped about what exactly happened. A statement released by Film Victoria says that the role was ...
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Ghost House scares up New Zealand business
Rob Tapert and Sam Raimi, producers of the New Zealand shot Xena: Warrior Princess, have returned to the country to shoot the horror pic Boogeyman. Tapert and Raimi say they have produced over 300 hours of action drama in New Zealand from 1993-2001 under the Pacific Renaissance Pictures banner and ...
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Hard Word director commits to Quiet Man
Writer/director Scott Roberts has joined the team behind The Quiet Man, a vehicle for Australian comedian Alexander Gutman, better known under his stage name Austen Tayshus. Roberts' debut film The Hard Word, starring Guy Pearce and Rachel Griffiths, has just opened in several key US cities. Robert Lewis Galinsky describes ...
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Dendy adds two titles to Australian release slate
Dendy Films has acquired Australian and New Zealand rights to writer/director Tod Williams' Door In The Floor and to Capturing The Friedmans, the Grand Jury Prize winner in documentary at this year's Sundance Film Festival.Door In The Floor is an adaptation of John Irving's novel A Widow For One Year ...
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Paul Oneile joins Australia's Film Finance Corporation
Paul Oneile, former chair and chief executive of UIP, has been appointed to the board of Australia's principal feature film investment company, the Film Finance Corporation (FFC), and Geoff Levy been re-appointed chair for a further six months.Oneile has held senior executive roles or has served on the boards of ...
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Australian strike action threatens film production
A breakdown in negotiations between Australian performers and producers over the new film and television agreements could lead to strike action - but only a long-running dispute is likely to affect Australian films because of how few are heading into production. Offshore films shooting in Australia are covered under a ...
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New Zealand producers seek new chief executive
Jane Wrightson has resigned from her post as chief executive of New Zealand's Screen Production and Development Association to take up the role of chief executive of the Broadcasting Standards Authority from mid-August.Wrightson, former chief executive of New Zealand On Air, former chief film censor and one-time commissioning editor for ...
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Asia Pacific Film Festival postponed until 2004
The 4th Sydney Asia Pacific Film Festival, scheduled for August, has been postponed until next year because SARS and other international uncertainties prevented organisers from travelling widely and accessing films."As a principal focus of the festival this year was to be Hong Kong, the SARS situation made it doubly difficult," ...