Small MPU – Page 3873

  • News

    Hot Canadian actor Noble dies at 25 in poisoning accident

    2004-08-11T04:00:00Z

    The promising young Canadianactor Andre Noble, who starred in John Palmer's gay and lesbian festival hit Sugar, died on Jul 30 from inadvertent poisoning. He was25.Born in the Canadian fishingvillage of Centreville, Newfoundland, in 1979, Noble studied at the Sir WilfredGrenfell School of Fine Arts in Newfoundland before moving to ...

  • News

    Tiffany Bair joins Samuel Goldwyn & Roadside Attractions

    2004-08-11T04:00:00Z

    Tiffany Bair has joinedSamuel Goldwyn Films and Roadside Attractions as director of publicity.In the new position, Bairwill develop stories and oversee publicity efforts on the West Coast, workingalongside vice president of publicity and marketing RJ Millard.Bair began her career atFirst Look Pictures as a theatrical and home entertainment publicist working ...

  • News

    Toronto announces more high wattage world premieres

    2004-08-10T00:00:00Z

    Jiminy Glick In Lalawood, Vadim Jean's big screen treatment of Martin Short'soutrageous alter ego talk show host, will close the 29th Toronto InternationalFilm Festival (TIFF) on Sept 18.The world premiere, some ofwhich was shot at TIFF two years ago, is one of several announced by festivalorganisers today (August 10) in ...

  • News

    SPC closes multi-territory deal on Heroes

    2004-08-11T04:00:00Z

    Sony PicturesClassics has acquired North American, UK, Italian and German rights to DanHarris' coming-of-age story Imaginary Heroes, which makes its world premiere atToronto next month.Harris'directorial debut stars Sigourney Weaver, Jeff Daniels, Emile Hirsch andMichelle Williams in a tale about a dysfunctional American family on a shakycourse of self-discovery.Illana Diamantand Art ...

  • Reviews

    Niceland

    2004-08-11T00:00:00Z

    Dir. Fridrik ThorFridriksson. Ice-Ger-Den-UK. 2004. 87mins.A modern fairytale for disenchanted adults, thelatest Fridrik Thor Fridriksson opus looks pretty and cute but lacks the edgeand authenticity that distinguish most of his previous contributions.Wrapped up inToyland colours for the first half, their tonality soiled later when the storyshifts to a junkyard, Fridriksson's ...

  • News

    Discoveries finds Duck Season

    2004-08-11T00:00:00Z

    Discoveries - the annualfilm programme established by BBC Four, Optimum Releasing and the EdinburghInternational Film Festival to showcase up-and-coming international filmmakersand actors for UK audiences - has acquired Mexican coming-of-age comedy Duck Season.Directed by first timewriter-director Fernando Eimbcke, the former Critics' Week title will premiereat the Edinburgh festival this month.Duck ...

  • Reviews

    Wall (Mur)

    2004-08-11T00:00:00Z

    Dir/scr: SimoneBitton. France. 2004. 99minsA poetic reflectionof the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Simone Bitton's documentary focuses itsattention on the massive wall put up by the Sharon government to separate theJewish community from the Arab and, arguably, defuse the terrorist threat.Born a Jew into the Arabian culture ofMorocco but brought up in Israel, ...

  • News

    Local title is hot in Chile

    2004-08-12T04:00:00Z

    In a summer marked by local box office successes across ahost of international territories, Latin American country Chile has not beenleft out.Local drama Machucalaunched last Thursday (Aug 5) in the country and has quickly become the mostsuccessful Chilean film ever, selling over 100,000 tickets in less than a week.The film's ...

  • News

    Euro cinema foundation suspends operations

    2004-08-12T04:00:00Z

    The MonteCinemaVeritaFoundation, which was one of the backers of this year's Locarno competitionfilm The Hunter (Okhotnik) byKazakhstan's Serik Aprymov, has suspended operations and laid off coordinatorLaurence Hoffmann in order to restructure its organisation.Over the last ten years, theSwiss Foundation has supported the production and post-production of film projectsfrom the South ...

  • News

    Impact of DVD boom on Cinema measured

    2004-08-12T04:00:00Z

    The DVD boom is having a major impact on cinema-going -but it is a positive one and probably more pronounced in Australia than in anyother territory."As DVD sales continue to grow, and as rental behaviourstays strong, more people - not less -are attending the cinema," Video Ezy chief executive Stephen ...

  • News

    Horror rocks Korean box office

    2004-08-12T04:00:00Z

    The top eight positions may have remained unchanged fromlast week but there was still plenty going on in the international market. I, Robot cemented its lead with a hostof massive openings led by the UK, Germany and Russia that saw its weekendearnings nearly three times its nearest rival.South Korean horror ...

  • News

    Korean majors finalise separation

    2004-08-11T00:00:00Z

    After a well-publicised and contentious struggle, SouthKorean major Cinema Service has reached an agreement to secure its formalseparation from the rival CJ Group.Nevertheless, it paid a much higher price than originallyhoped for, as CJ is poised to take over 70% of Cinema Service's exhibition armPrimus.Although Cinema Service will be guaranteed ...

  • News

    German home entertainment market hits new high

    2004-08-12T04:00:00Z

    Turnover in the German homeentertainment market continues to boom with revenues from sell-through andrental videos and DVDs increasing by 14% to Euros 720m in the first half of2004, according to the German Federal Film Board (FFA).The results for videosell-through were particularly impressive with overall turnover rising by 19%from 2003's Euros ...

  • News

    Splendid Film ordered to pay $2.1m to Gold Circle

    2004-08-11T00:00:00Z

    The future liquidity ofSplendid Film is in jeopardy following a decision ordering it to pay $2.1m toLos Angeles-based Gold Circle Films.This turn of events cameafter the 100% subsidiary of Cologne-based Splendid Medien was ordered to paythe amount by an arbitration board of the Independent Film & Televisionalliance as an additional ...

  • News

    Beyond The Sea secures post-production investment

    2004-08-12T04:00:00Z

    Kevin Spacey's Trigger Productions has secured $500,000 for post-production on his Bobby Darin biopic Beyond The Sea as the first move into film from a new UK investment company.The investment comes through Orientrose, a recently-listed cash shell company formed by UK business advisory company Griffin Group. Orientrose also said it ...

  • News

    Montreal claims Clouds world premiere

    2004-08-12T04:00:00Z

    A day afterToronto claimed that it would present the world premiere of John Duigan'swartime romance Head In The Clouds, The Montreal World Film Festival has declared that the film willpremiere ahead of Toronto in Montreal.The film stars Stuart Townsend, Charlize Theron andPenelope Cruz.The picture isone of six new additions announced ...

  • News

    Cinemark opens two new multiplexes in Colombia, Brazil

    2004-08-12T04:00:00Z

    Leading LatinAmerican exhibitor Cinemark International is preparing to open two newmultiplexes in Colombia and Brazil this month.The company willunveil its eight-screen San Rafael Theatre in the Paseo San Rafael Mall in thesoutheastern part of Bogota, Colombia, on Aug 13. The 1,645 seater will beCinemark's fifth property in the country.Two weeks ...

  • News

    Kit Parker Films buys 500-title Weiss library

    2004-08-12T04:00:00Z

    Phoenix-basedclassics distributor Kit Parker Films has purchased all worldwide rights to theWeiss Global Enterprises' (WGE) 500-plus-title library, which includes theSamuel Fuller classics I Shot Jesse James and The Steel Helmet, among others.The Parker acquisition marks the first time Weissproperties have left the family's control since the Weiss Brothers producersestablished the ...

  • News

    Columbia TriStar boards New Zealand thriller

    2000-04-04T06:04:00Z

    Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group has boarded Scott Reynolds' New Zealand thriller Shearer's Breakfast and taken all distribution rights to the $2.1m film outside Germany and Australia.Starring Radha Mitchell (High Art, Pitch Black) as a young woman whose roadside diner is invaded by a host of menacing criminals, Shearer's Breakfast ...

  • News

    Coppola gets lost in a French translation: Marie-Antoinette

    2004-08-12T04:00:00Z

    Sofia Coppola is set todirect Kirsten Dunst and Jason Schwartzman in her first major studio productionMarie-Antoinette for ColumbiaPictures.Filming is scheduled tobegin in February 2005 in France, Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion PictureGroup chairman Amy Pascal said yesterday (11)Dunst is attached to playthe title role and Schwartzman will portray Louis XVI in ...