All articles by Tim Dams – Page 79
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Tartan launches with Hell into US
The UK's Tartan Films is tomake its debut as a US distributor with Catherine Breillat's Anatomy Of Hell,which it will release on August 27.The UK distributor andproducer announced plans to launch into US distribution earlier this year.Other titles set so far for a US release include Ji-Woon Kim's Tale Of ...
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Worst year ever for European films in EU
2003 was the worst year for the circulation of Europeanfilms within the EU on record, according to new figures from the EuropeanAudiovisual Observatory.Only 6.3% of admissions to European films were earned in EUcountries outside of their home markets - down from 9.9% last year.UK/US co-productions Johnny English and Love Actually ...
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Cannes says strikers will not derail festival
The Cannes Film Festival will not be derailed by a rowbetween the French government and showbiz workers protesting changes tounemployment benefits, organisers said on Sunday.The departure of a number film reels for Cannes was delayedfor several hours at the weekend after a hundred protesters blockaded the Pariswarehouse where they were ...
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Iranian authorities halt Makhmalbaf shoot
Awardwinning Iranian director Mohsen Makhmalbaf's has been prevented from shootinghis latest film, Amnesia, by the country's Ministry of Culture andIslamic Guidance.The scriptreflects two decades of pain and sufferings of the Iranian people and artists,and according to financier Wild Bunch, took Makhmalbaf years to write.It wasfinally completed last autumn when he ...
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Pathe in Crash deal with Arclight
Pathe Distribution has acquired the UKrights to Paul Haggis' feature debut Crash, starring SandraBullock, Don Cheadle, Matt Dillon, Jennifer Esposito, Brendan Fraser, JasonIsaacs, Ludacris, Thandie Newton, Ryan Phillippe and Larenz Tate.Crash uses a layered structure to tell the stories of amulti-racial group of characters in contemporary LA whose lives inter-connectthrough ...
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Alliance Atlantis acquires leading Spanish distributor
Canada'sAlliance Atlantis Communications has agreed to buy Spanish distributor AurumProducciones for about $54m.Thedeal will extend the Canadian firm's reach in Europe, where it already alreadyowns Momentum Pictures in the UK."Thisacquisition is part of our clearly articulated strategy to expand intocontinental Europe," said Patrice Theroux, president and chief operatingofficer. "We believe ...
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Cannes market set for record attendance figures
Cannes' Marche du Film has said that it expects arecord number of 8500 participants at this year's event withpre-registration figures already up by ten per cent compared to 2003.The highest increases are from the UK, the US, Asia, Spain,South Africa and Finland.The Marche also reports that the number of buyers ...
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Cannes market predicts record attendance
Cannes' Marche du Film has said that it expects arecord number of 8500 participants at this year's event withpre-registration figures already up by ten per cent compared to 2003.The highest increases are from the UK, the US, Asia, Spain,South Africa and Finland.The Marche also reports that the number of buyers ...
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Video Island DVD service strikes UK Post Office deal
UK online DVD rental service Video Island has signed a dealwhich will allow the service to be promoted in many of the UK's 17,000post offices.The exclusive partnership deal was signed withPostmasternetwork, a commercial group which supports local Postmasters. 90% ofPost Offices are run independently by local Postermasters.Postmasternetwork members will promote ...
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Bond producer to chair UK young filmmaker initiative
BarbaraBroccoli, producer of the James Bond films, has been appointed chair of First Light, the UK FilmCouncil's filmmaking initiative for young people.Broccoli, of EON Productions, produced the Bond hits GoldenEye,Tomorrow Never Dies, The World Is Not Enough and Die Another Day with Michael G. Wilson. They are currentlyworking on ...
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UK Film Council to study impact of film on economy
The UK Film Council is backing a six month study to probethe contribution and trickle down effect of the UK screen industries -including film, television, games and commercials - to the economy.The study will look to uncover the size, scale and impact ofthe UK screen industries on each nation and ...
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Malkovich thumbs a ride with Hitchhiker's Guide
John Malkovich has reportedly joined the cast of TheHitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy, theSpyglass/Disney version of Douglas Adams's cult sci-fi novel.Malkovich will play a cult leader, created for the film bythe late Adams, according to a report on the BBC.The $50-$60m film alsostars Hip-hop star and actor Mos Def, ZooeyDeschanel ...
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The Truth About Love located in Bristol
Romantic comedy The Truth About Love, starring Jennifer Love Hewitt, Dougray Scott and Jimi Mistry, begins filming in the UK this month.Directed by John Hay (There's Only One Jimmy Grimble) and produced by Tracey Adam at Lex Filmed Entertainment, The Truth About Love is billed as a film in which ...
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UK Film Council unveils Development Fund recipients
UK Film Council's Development Fund has unveiled details of its third year of slate funding to a selection of film companies.Recipients include: Fragile Films (£200,000), Ruby Films (£255,000), Tall Stories (£100,000), NFTS (£12,000), Riverchild Films (£65,000), October Films (£90,000), Gruber Films (£100,000) and Recorded Picture Company (£100,000).Little Bird has been ...
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HBO Films wraps up Mrs Harris
Production has wrapped in Los Angeles on Mrs Harris, starring Annette Bening and Sir Ben Kingsley.The Number 9 Films and Killer Films production is produced for HBO, and is written and directed by playwright Phyllis Nagy.A tale of love and obsession, Mrs Harris explores the story of Jean Harris (Bening), ...
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Warner Bros strikes mobile distribution deal with Vodafone
Warner Bros. Online and mobile phone company Vodafone have signed a distribution deal which will bring Warner Bros. Entertainment brands as well as current information on upcoming projects to Vodafone customers across the world.The global agreement covers 16 countries. Initially, Warner Bros. Online will provide Vodafone with games, screensavers, alerts ...
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Script Factory launches training scheme for film professionals
Screenwriting organisation The Script Factory is launching SCENE insiders, a new international training programme for European film professionals at the Edinburgh, London and Warsaw International Film Festivals in 2004 and at Gothenburg, Sweden in January 2005.SCENE insiders is targeted at directors, producers, distributors, readers, developers and story editors from the ...
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Chomet secures Dimension backing for Scottish animation
Belleville Rendez-Vous director Sylvain Chomet has confirmed plans to set up his own animation company, Studio Django, in Edinburgh, Scotland.The first two productions announced by Studio Django are 2D project Barbacoa and an unnamed 3D project in collaboration with Miramax division Dimension Films. Dimension chairman Bob Weinstein flew the Chomets ...
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EU cinema admissions fall 5% in 2003
Cinema attendance in the European Union's 15 member states dropped by 5% in 2003, according to first estimates from the European Audiovisual Observatory.Provisional data shows that admissions in eight of the biggest EU states fell to 890.5m last year. Germany registered the steepest drop of -9.1% to 149 million. The ...
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UK video industry bankrolls anti-piracy outfit
The UK video industry has raised £1.2m to bankroll a new company to help fight piracy.The Industry Trust for IP Awareness Ltd has been registered as a non-profit making company with the objective creating a fighting fund to tackle copyright theft, which it says is costing the film and video ...