Small MPU – Page 1424

  • News

    France's TF1 to increase film production, financing activity

    2002-05-24T04:05:00Z

    Just as StudioCanal is scaling back its European film production and distribution operations, TF1 seems to be intent on increasing its activity and filling the void.After boldly branching out into distribution through its as yet unamed joint venture with Miramax - which is expected to be headed by Jose Covo ...

  • News

    Dreamworks falls for Millennium Actress

    2002-05-24T04:05:00Z

    Millennium Actress, an animated drama handled by distributor Klockworx, has become the first foreign-language animation to be acquired by Dreamworks SKG.Dreamworks has picked up all rights outside Asia to the film, which won the best animation prize when it premiered at Fant-Asia last July and took the animation award at ...

  • News

    Columbia launches German arthouse distribution division

    2002-05-24T04:05:00Z

    The German office of Columbia TriStar Film has launched Columbia Pictures Art Selection - a classics-style division for the theatrical release of arthouse titles.The first releases will be Ed Harris's biopic Pollock on June 6, Marleen Gorris' Nabokov adaptation The Luzhin Defence (Sept 5) and Fred Schepsi's Last Orders (Oct ...

  • News

    Wild Bunch flies with Purple Butterfly

    2002-05-24T04:05:00Z

    StudioCanal division Wild Bunch is boarding Purple Butterfly, the next film by Suzhou River director Lou Ye, which will topline Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon's star Zhang Ziyi.Produced by Shanghai Film Studios, Purple Butterfly is an Hitchcokian adventure/romance set in Shanghai at the time of the Japanese invasion of China. ...

  • News

    Wildside takes Tongan Ninja

    2002-05-24T04:05:00Z

    France's Wildside Films, the distributor headed by Manuel Chiche, has picked up Tongan Ninja from the New Zealand Film Commission. The off-beat martial arts comedy previously went to Vision Africa for South Africa and to Pacific Entertainment for Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore and to Sar-an for Turkey.

  • News

    Sweden's Film I Vast lines up another busy slate

    2002-05-24T04:05:00Z

    Swedish regional film fund Film I Vast has lined up another busy schedule, including the eagerly awaited new film from Jalla! Jalla! director Josef Fares.The as yet untitled action comedy shoots for Lars Jonsson's Memfis Film in June, where production also starts on Kristian Petri's Details from Gotafilm based on ...

  • News

    Gala brings Trespasser to the UK

    2002-05-24T04:05:00Z

    Gala Films has nabbed all UK rights to Beto Brant's The Trespasser (O Invasor), winner of the Sundance Best Latin American feature this year. Brazilian international sales agent Grupo Novo closed the deal with the arthouse distributor today in Cannes. According to Grupo Novo sales chief Alfredo Calvino, Gala Films ...

  • News

    Sogepaq wraps Asian deals

    2002-05-24T04:05:00Z

    Spain's Sogepaq has closed a range of sales to Asia on four recent pictures from sister company Sogecine.Daniel Calparsoro's Kosovo-set action drama Guerreros has sold to Japan (Gaga), Korea (Cinestar), Hong Kong (Winson), Taiwan (Spring Cinema) and Thailand (MJC Entertainment). Japan's Gaga also picked up English-language sci-fi pic Stranded from ...

  • News

    Kapadia boards St Agnes' Stand

    2002-05-24T04:05:00Z

    The Warrior director Asif Kapadia has boarded Miramax Films' western St Agnes' Stand.Kapadia, who transplanted the spaghetti Western to India for The Warrior, is expected to bring an epic Sergio Leone feel to Agnes, a western story about an injured gunslinger on the run in New Mexico. Reminiscent of Kapadia's ...

  • News

    Belgium unveils film tax plan

    2002-05-24T04:05:00Z

    Belgium is to become the latest European country attempting to use tax as a way of boosting film production.Didier Reynders, the Belgian finance minister is expected today (Friday May 24) to announce the launch of a new tax shelter.The new measures are expected to allow film investors to set off ...

  • News

    Spain's MediaPro buys 60% stake in Ovideo

    2002-05-24T04:05:00Z

    Spanish audiovisual company MediaPro has bought out 60% of film and TV producer Ovideo TV.The company has also bought a 20% share in Italian producer and consultancy Gruppo Comunicazione Italia (GCI) with an option to raise the stake later this year.The deals follow MediaPro's announced full-fledged entry into feature film ...

  • News

    Sollet's Long Way finds US home

    2002-05-24T04:05:00Z

    Samuel Goldwyn and Fireworks have bagged Peter Sollet's Long Way Home ahead of its Un Certain Regard screening for their US joint distribution venture IDP.The title - sold by Studio Canal's division Wild Bunch which also co-produced along with Forensic Films - has been hotly pursued by US distributors.Long Way ...

  • News

    Miramax Australia makes debut acquisition with debut film

    2002-05-24T04:05:00Z

    Miramax Films has acquired the Australian and New Zealand distribution rights to Anthony Mir's directorial debut You Can't Stop The Murders, marking the first acquisition for Miramax's newly formed Australian office under Victoria Treole.The film is a comedy which also features stand-up comedian Mir alongside fellow comedians Gary Eck ...

  • Reviews

    REVIEW: Demonlover

    2002-05-23T00:00:00Z

    Dir: Olivier Assayas. France 2002. 129mins. Screened in CompetitionDemonlover is the latest victim of the French tradition whereby a highly respected director over-reaches drastically, eliciting critical calumny and press-show booing - something that has happened in Cannes to the likes of Beineix, Carax and Kassovitz. It is a shame to ...

  • Reviews

    Enough

    2002-05-24T00:00:00Z

    Dir: Michael Apted. US. 2002. 115 mins. One of a handful of non-traditional chick-flicks hitting US screens this summer, Enough starts out as a promisingly taut woman-in-peril thriller but eventually degenerates into a questionable cross between a female Rocky and a Mission: Impossible-style action romp. Still, younger female moviegoers will ...

  • News

    Polanski's Pianist tops list of Cannes winners

    2002-05-26T00:00:00Z

    A roar of approval, but applause that fell a long way short of a prolonged standing ovation, greeted Roman Polanski's Palme d'Or win at Cannes 2002 with The Pianist.Jury president David Lynch opened the evening's ceremonies by saying that there were not enough prizes to go round, but that the ...

  • News

    The full list of Cannes winners

    2002-05-26T00:00:00Z

    Cannes 2002 PrizesPalme d'OrThe Pianist Dir: Roman PolanskiGrand Jury PrizeThe Man Without A Past Dir: Aki KaurismakiBest ActressKati Outinen in The Man Without A PastBest ActorOlivier Gourmet in The Son (Dirs: Luc & Jean-Pierre Dardenne)Best Direction (joint)Im Kwon-Taek for ChihwaseonPaul Thomas Anderson for Punch ...

  • News

    Irreversible wins shock value but no awards

    2002-05-26T00:00:00Z

    Anger and outrage followed the bombshell detonated by Gaspar Noe's Irreversible, a tale of rape and revenge that is depicted more brutally than any film that has been shown at the Cannes festival. That it did not win a single prize probably reflected its jury-dividing content, outweighing Noe's awesome technical ...

  • News

    India's location shooting rules to be relaxed, as local production soars

    2002-05-26T00:00:00Z

    As a result of meetings held in Cannes last week, the Indian Ministry of Information and Broadcasting is considering relaxing the rules for international companies planning to shoot films in India.Senior government officials met several filmmakers who showed interest in shooting in India but were put off by the red ...

  • News

    Serbian Government introduces national film fund

    2002-05-27T04:05:00Z

    The Serbian Government has launched a Euros 1.5m prototype film fund, with six local features receiving an award equivalent to 30% of its budget.Goran Markovic's The Cordon, Srdjan Koljevic's Red Coloured Gray Truck, Dusan Kovacevic's The Professional, Milos Petricic's An Almost Ordinary Story, Srdjan Karanovic's Loving Glances and Milos Radovic's ...