Small MPU – Page 1436
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News
Germany, Luxembourg sign co-production treaty
Co-productions between film producers in Germany and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg were given a boost this week after the signing of a formal co-production treaty between the two countries.Co-productions made under the auspices of the new treaty will be regarded as national films in both states and therefore enjoy ...
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News
Sidney and De la Iglesia retrospectives open 17th Cinema Jove
The 17th youth-oriented Cinema Jove International Film Festival of Valencia, Spain (June 15-22) opened on Saturday night with retrospectives of recently deceased American director and producer George Sidney and popular Spanish filmmaker Alex de la Iglesia.De la Iglesia launched the festival on a joking note, comparing his relatively small body ...
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News
Vivendi prepares to sell set-top box maker
Vivendi Universal is expected to put its Canal Plus Technologies (CPT) unit up for sale in the latest debt debt-reduction move.The business, which produces software for pay-TV encryption and interactive broadcasting and set-top boxes for Canal Plus' channels, is valued at between Euros500m and Euros1bn. That could mean Vivendi's debt ...
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News
Dobson gets senior vp stripes at Warner Theatres
London-based Peter Dobson has been promoted to senior vice president, international film relations, at Warner Bros International Theatres (WBIT) from his previous position as vice president. Reporting to WBIT president Millard Ochs, Dobson will have full responsibility for overseeing the company's film buying, booking and strategic planning throughout Europe and ...
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News
Sutherland, Hunnam, Winstone join Cold Mountain cast
Anthony Minghella has rounded out the star-studded cast for his epic new film Cold Mountain and production is scheduled to begin in Romania on July 15. Donald Sutherland, Jena Malone, Kathy Baker, Ray Winstone, Ethan Suplee, James Gammon and Charlie Hunnam are the new additions to the cast which already ...
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Scooby-Doo takes $1m in three Asian territories
Scooby-Doo complemented its memorable bow in the US over the weekend by storming to the top of the box office in three Asian territories with a combined gross of $955,000 from Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia, according to estimates released yesterday (June 17). In the first international roll-outs for the Warners ...
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News
Vivendi liquidates environment assets
In another bid to cut its debt and raise its status with the financial community, Vivendi Universal is to sell 15% of Vivendi Environnement.The move should cut its stake to 40% and raise up to $1.9bn (Euros 2bn), but the company did not publish a timetable for the disposal saying ...
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News
IEG pumps fresh blood into Jordan's $55m Borgia epic
Neil Jordan's European epic Borgia is back on its feet after partnering with Graham King's Initial Entertainment Group.The $55m production is set to star Ewan McGregor, Christina Ricci, Ian McKellen, Jean Reno, Antonio Banderas and John Malkovich. Initial will handle world sales, with 20th Century Fox retaining North American rights.The ...
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News
Off-screen drama at Czech TV station
The fate of Czech private television station TV Nova, is once again in doubt, as an ongoing off-screen drama took another unexpected twist with the attempted removal of CEO Vladimir Zelezny According to reports, Zelezny has apparently been sacked by his former allies in his ongoing battle with original Nova ...
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Spider-Man swings past Episode II's international revenues
Despite performing below expectations, Spider-Man's UK opening gross helped the Columbia TriStar blockbuster swing past the $200m international box office mark at the weekend.Continuing success in territories where the film still leads the chart, such as Australia, Germany, Italy, Japan and Switzerland, combined with top spot grabbing debuts in the ...
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News
German broadcaster RTL joins film funding institution
German private broadcaster RTL is to become a shareholder in regional public fund Filmstiftung NRW on July 1, contributing some $2.9m to the overall $28.5m annual budget. On the eve of this year's Medienforum NRW, the state of North Rhine-Westphalia's prime-minister Wolfgang Clement, RTL's managing director Gerhard Zeiler and Filmstiftung ...
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Irish government's new film policy considered out of place
Ireland is struggling to retain its attraction as a location for film producers thanks to increasing labour and service costs, growing competition from cheaper foreign locations and now, a new government arts department that seems oddly unenthusiastic about film.Although the country's 2002 production tally looks healthy enough - seven feature ...
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Two Spanish digital TV channels launch, reluctantly
Frustrated subscribers of Spain's failed digital terrestrial TV (DTT) pay platform Quiero TV are enjoying an unintended consolation. They are currently among the only consumers with the technology to view Spain's two new free-to-air DTT platforms, Net TV and Veo Television, which launched on Tuesday. After months of complaining about ...
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News
Chapman honoured for contribution to OZ film
Australian producer Jan Chapman will be awarded this year's prestigious Chauvel Award for her outstanding contribution to local filmmaking. The award will be presented as part of the Brisbane International Film Festival, which begins on July 9. "Her commitment to producing exceptional Australian drama has long been acknowledged in the ...
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News
Alan Parker rallies industry to develop skills strategy
Alan Parker, chairman of UK support body, the Film Council, has called on the film industry to support a major research project that will inform a new and comprehensive skills strategy for the sector.Parker, whose role at the Film Council reflects his support for skills and training in the industry, ...
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Australia's Southern Star predicts debt eradication
Australia's Southern Star Group this week announced that it will be debt free with $12.5m (A$22m) in cash when net proceeds of $35.9m (A$63m) from last year's sale of duplication subsidiary Duplitek to Technicolor are received next month.The company also revealed that revenue for the 12 months to March was ...
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News
Three Oz talent management companies merge
Three of Australia's talent management companies: Morrissey Management, WildCat Personal Management and the Artist & Entertainment Group, have merged to create new entity, Encompass Management..Morrissey has many actors and a limited number of writers and directors on its books, Wildcat is best known for its representation of cinematographers and other ...
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News
Austin, Gladstone promoted in business & legal affairs at Artisan
Erin Austin has been promoted to executive vice president, business and legal affairs, and Jim Gladstone has been promoted to senior vice president, business and legal affairs, at Artisan Entertainment.Austin is charged with overseeing the company's business and legal affairs for acquisition and production of theatrical, home entertainment and TV ...
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Reviews
Paradox Lake
Dir: Przemyslaw 'Shemie' Reut. US. 2002. 85mins.Neither documentary nor fully fledged drama, Paradox Lake is cinema verite at its most infuriating. Shemie Reut's experimental feature is for the most part tedious and trying, yet its terrifically clever final act hints at what it might have been. It's one of those ...
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Reviews
One Night The Moon
Dir: Rachel Perkins. Australia. 2001. 54mins.A showing at the Berlinale continues the remarkable journey of this sub-one-hour, made-for-TV outback musical drama, a collaboration between the lively Sydney-based MusicArtsDance Films (which is now working on Paul Cox's drama-doc Nijinsky), ABCTV's Arts and Entertainment department and OzOpera (the experimental division of Opera ...