Small MPU – Page 1921

  • News

    Malaysia's KRU Studio backs US thriller Deadline

    2008-06-13T05:31:00Z

    Malaysia's KRU Studio is co-producing US psychological thriller Deadline, starring Brittany Murphy, marking its first foray into financing Hollywood films. Directed by newcomer Sean McConville, the film is currently shooting in Louisiana and also stars Thora Birch, Tammy Blanchard and Marc Blucas.KRU, which is co-producing with US indie outfit Enso ...

  • News

    Screen Australia appoints Fitchett, Brady to interim roles

    2008-06-13T09:41:00Z

    Chris Fitchett has been put in charge of production support and investment on an interim basis at the new super agency Screen Australia, while Tait Brady is temporarily in charge of marketing. Fitchett, whose responsibilities also include development, is the existing chief executive of the Australian Film Commission (AFC). This ...

  • News

    Icewhole adds to industry panel judging online shorts

    2008-06-13T11:12:00Z

    Icewhole.com, the new social networking site for aspiring film-makers and actors, have added new experts to its Independent Panel of Judges.The panel includes more than 170 producers, directors, writers, casting directors, talent agents, and actors including Morgan Freeman, Richard Attenborough, Derek Jacobi, Marjane Satrapi and David Yates.Each month, Icewhole.com gives ...

  • News

    Serbia gets two competitive festivals in Novi Sad and Sopot

    2008-06-13T11:37:00Z

    After last year's first National Film Festival of Serbia which was held in Novi Sad, organized by Film Center Serbia under the concept of Cinema City, in co-operation with lauded music festival Exit, a complete confusion started when Film Center Serbia left the concept of Cinema City to Exit and ...

  • News

    Swedish government pumps $16.5m into commercial films

    2008-06-13T11:43:00Z

    From an initiative by the Swedish Film Institute and the Swedish Association of Film Producers, the Swedish government decided yesterday to allocate $16.5m (Euros 10.7m) for a new one-time subsidy scheme, to benefit features with a strong commercial potential.The money comes from the budget for audience-related support, which has since ...

  • News

    UIP, MBS kickstart joint training programme

    2000-10-18T17:41:00Z

    UIP and the pan-European Media Business School (MBS) kicked off the inaugural edition of their joint training initiative in Seville, Spain on Tuesday, describing it as the "first international marketing and distribution training programme given by practitioners and for practitioners."MBS director Juan Pita, UIP president and COO Andrew Cripps and ...

  • News

    Nordisk plans two features based on Welfare State

    2008-06-13T11:45:00Z

    Scandinavian major, Nordisk Film, has acquired Swedish writer Leif GW Persson's The Fall of the Welfare State (Välfärdsstatens fall) - a trilogy he wrote between 2002-2003) - which it will develop, finance and produce as one or two features for theatrical and a six-part television series.Swedish veteran producer Hans Lönnerheden, ...

  • News

    Fortissimo picks up Baksy; Rezo sells Everybody to France

    2008-06-13T16:31:00Z

    Fortissimo Films will handle international distribution on Guka Omarova's second feature Baksy (Native Dancer) which had its world premiere in competition at the Kinotavr Open Russian Film Festival in the Black Sea resort of Sochi on Thursday night.The Russian-Kazakh-French-German co-production between the CTB Film Company, Kazakhfilm, Les Petites Lumieres, Kinofabrika, ...

  • News

    Shane Meadows among experts for Skillset's EIFF talks

    2008-06-13T16:50:00Z

    Training body Skillset will be hosting a series of Masterclasses as part of its Trailblazers initiative at the Edinburgh International Film Festival.Trailblazers, now in its second year, will host classes, breakfast sessions and panels with the likes of directors Shane Meadows, Paul Andrew Williams and Don Boyd andcinematographer Brian Tufano. ...

  • News

    UKFC funds national festivals including Birds Eye View, Doc/Fest

    2008-06-16T06:00:00Z

    The UK Film Council has announced the latest recipients backed by Lottery funding as part of the national strand of its Film Festivals Fund. The funding will total $1.4m (£740,000) over the next three years.Backed festivals are:$341,000 (£175,000) to Birds Eye View, the women-centric festival in London, Glasgow, Manchester and ...

  • News

    Festival report: Shanghai International Film Festival

    2008-06-14T13:16:00Z

    Shanghai-born Wong Kar-wai heads up the international competition jury for this year's Shanghai International Film Festival(SIFF), replacing the late Anthony Minghella.Sixteen films compete for the festival's main Jin Jue Award, which is heavy on European entries. Local films are represented by Hasichaolu's Urtin Duu and Gao Qunshu's Old Fish (a.k.a. ...

  • News

    Sony's German arm lines up local comedy

    2008-06-15T07:02:00Z

    Deutsche Columbia Pictures Film Produktion, Sony Pictures Entertainment's (SPE) local German production arm, has begun pre-production on the comedy Friendship (Freundschaft) with the Oscar-winning Munich-based production company Wiedemann & Berg Filmproduktion and actor Til Schweiger and Tom Zickler's Barefoot Films. Written by Oliver Ziegenbalg and to be directed by commercials ...

  • News

    Shanghai fest has muted opening in wake of earthquake

    2008-06-15T13:17:00Z

    The 11th Shanghai International Film Festival (June 14-22) held its opening ceremony at the Shanghai Grand Theatre on Saturday night, with a much quieter tone than at previous editions. As China is still engaged in relief and reconstruction work following the Sichuan earthquake, the atmosphere of the opening day was ...

  • News

    Disney teams with Castle Hero, Ying Dong on second Chinese film

    2008-06-16T01:19:00Z

    Walt Disney Studios is teaming up with China’s Castle Hero Pictures and Ying Dong Media on its second Disney branded Chinese collaboration, the tentatively titled nature drama Touch Of The Panda.The parties announced the project on Monday [June 16] at the Shanghai International Film Festival and said the film has ...

  • News

    Marvel's Hulk is incredible with $54.4m three-day US opening

    2008-06-16T01:23:00Z

    Almost five years to the day after Ang Lee's ill-fated Hulk opened in North America, Marvel Studios took a big stride towards exorcising that painful memory as The Incredible Hulk stormed to the top through Universal and led a bumper box office weekend with a muscular $54.4m estimated launch.Marvel Studios ...

  • News

    Tony Barbieri's Em, Issac Julien's Derek win at Seattle

    2008-06-16T01:43:00Z

    Tony Barbieri's Em won the 34th Seattle International Film Festival's grand jury prize and Isaac Julien's Derek Jarman essay Derek took top documentary honours at the closing awards ceremony on Sunday [June 15].Everything Is Fine from Canada's Yves-Christian Fournier took the New Directors Showcase Prize for a director of a ...

  • News

    Wright takes up acting head role at The Sales Co

    2000-10-18T18:08:00Z

    Jane Wright, head of business development for BBC Films, is stepping in as acting chief executive at UK-based The Sales Co following Alison Thompson's decision to move to Pathe International.Wright, who has been a director of the company for two years, will join The Film Consortium chief executive Chris Auty, ...

  • News

    John Hadity named chair of PGA East's executive board

    2008-06-16T01:51:00Z

    John Hadity has succeeded David Picker as chair of the Producers Guild Of America East's executive board following a recent election.Meanwhile Dana Kuznetzkoff and Mark Marabella will serve as the board's vice chairs and succeed Lydia Dean Pilcher and Harvey Wilson.Wilson was one of five members elected to the board's ...

  • News

    The Happening leads international with $32.1m, but Hulk is stronger

    2008-06-16T01:54:00Z

    M Night Shyamalan's mystery The Happening took the international box office crown at the weekend thanks to an estimated $32.1m through Fox International from 5,714 screens in 88 markets.However the clear pound-for-pound champion was Marvel Studios' The Incredible Hulk, which grossed $31m through UPI in 3,165 venues in 38 territories ...