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17 articles
BFI extends Us distribution pilot to Toronto
21 minutes ago
Pilot P&A fund launched at Sundance extends to Toronto.
The BFI has extended its P&A support for UK films seeking Us distribution to a crop of titles bowing at the Toronto International Film Festival (Sept 4-14).
The BFI will make awards of up to £25,000 ($42,000) to Us distributors who pick up UK premieres, to help them strengthen the marketing campaigns for the Us releases of the films.
Films must have budgets under £2m ($3.3m).
The Toronto titles to benefit from the scheme are Michael Winterbottom’s The Face of an Angel, Gerard Johnson’s Hyena, Liv Ullman’s Miss Julie, Debbie Tucker Green’s Second Coming and Morgan Matthews’ X+Y.
The initiative was launched as a pilot at Sundance and extended to cover SXSW. Four films which had their world premieres and applied to the scheme have all secured Us theatrical distribution deals: Hong Khaou’s Lilting (Strand Releasing); Stuart Murdoch’s God Help the Girl (GoDigital »
- michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
Sweden enters Force Majeure to Oscar race
1 hour ago
Ruben Östlund’s Force Majeure has been chosen to compete for an Academy Award nomination as Best Foreign-Language Feature.
The fourth feature from director-writer Östlund, Force Majeure (Turist) world premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in the Un Certain Regard section receiving the jury prize.
The film centres on a family on holiday at a ski resort and the dynamics between them in the wake of an avalanche.
Best Foreign-Language Film Academy Award submissions 2015
It screen at the Toronto International Film Festival this month and will compete at the 50th Chicago Film Festival, which has a focus on Scandinavia this year.
Force Majeure has already sold to 40 countries by international sales agent Coproduction Office, with Magnolia Pictures handling Us distribution.
Producers are Erik Hemmendorff and Marie Kjellson for Plattform Produktion in collaboration with numerous European producers and film institute, and with production funding from the Swedish Film Institute’s previous film commissioner Lars G. Lindström. It premiered »
- michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
Kudos pacts with Honour producer
1 hour ago
Kudos is planning to produce more drama series told from a British Asian perspective after expanding a partnership with Parti Productions.
The Broadchurch producer is building on a deal struck to develop Sathnam Sanghera’s novel Marriage Material for the BBC with feature film producer Nisha Parti’s company in September.
The Shine Group indie and Parti now plan to nurture Asian talent on and off screen and develop projects for UK and international broadcasters.
In addition to Marriage Material, which follows a Sikh family living in Wolverhampton in the 1960s, the companies are developing a TV adaptation of Sanghera’s The Boy With The Topknot, set in the Midlands town during the 1980s.
Kudos chief executive Jane Featherstone said that Parti had a wealth of knowledge of film trends and a keen eye for fresh talent. “She has the ability to identify and conceptualise content that speaks to a diverse audience,” she added.
Parti »
Wild Bunch Benelux renamed September Film Distribution
1 hour ago
Name change follows move into co-production among other developments
Wild Bunch Benelux has been renamed September Film Distribution, effective today (Sept 1).
The film distribution company, founded nearly six years ago by Paris-based Wild Bunch and Pim Hermeling, has since become a leading arthouse distributor with titles such as The Hunt, Melancholia, The Broken Circle Breakdown and Nymphomaniac.
The distributor ended its collaboration with the French company in 2010 but retained the name.
However, several development at the firm have led to the decision to rebrand.
September Film Distribution will continue to focus on the acquisition of director-driven films and release arthouse productions theatrically and on DVD, VOD and other platforms.
But it recently set up a film distribution office in Belgium; purchased the Cartoons movie theatre in Antwerp; and developed large arthouse cinema complex Da Kade in Utrecht, the Netherlands.
It has also set up a production company and has a growing slate of films including Nicole van Kilsdonk’s Ventoux »
- michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
Yellow Bird execs launch new production company
3 hours ago
Good Company Films will combine the producers behind The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and Lar von Trier’s Dancer in the Dark; three projects already in development.
Anni Fernandez, who stepped down CEO of Sweden’s Yellow Bird last week, has quickly resurfaced as the CEO and producer at new Danish production outfit Good Company Films.
Based in Copenhagen, Fernandez has launched the new company with Vibeke Windeløv, Stinna Lassen and Ole Søndberg.
Windeløv has produced more than 35 titles for directors including Lars von Trier and Susanne Bier and joins the company as executive producer.
Lassen, who recently finished producing the first season of new crime series The Team, joins Good Company as a producer.
Søndberg, founder of Yellow Bird and executive producer of the Wallander and Millennium franchises, joins as executive producer.
In a joint statement, the partners said: “Scandinavian film has during the past years enjoyed a tremendous amount of success, and it is our »
- michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
Bectu takes Living Wage campaign to exhibitors
4 hours ago
Exclusive: Bectu turns to Curzon, other venues, as Ritzy deal nears.
Media and entertainment union Bectu is nearing a deal with Picturehouse/Cineworld after a protracted pay dispute between the exhibitor and staff at the Ritzy Cinema in Brixton, London.
Last week, Bectu members at the Ritzy rejected Picturehouse’s latest pay proposal by a vote of 24 to 23. However, both sides have expressed optimism that a resolution is near and officials are due to meet on Wednesday (Sept 3) to continue talks.
“Whilst we are disappointed with this outcome [of the latest ballot], we are pleased that we are close to finding a resolution,” Picturehouse commented last week.
Ritzy staff have conducted 13 strike actions since the dispute began earlier this year.
Bectu is now turning its campaign for exhibitors to pay the London Living Wage on Curzon Cinemas and other independent venues.
A Bectu official described discussions with Curzon as “constructive”.
The spokesman added: “At the moment the Ritzy and Curzon cinemas »
- andreas.wiseman@screendaily.com (Andreas Wiseman)
Lars von Trier to make TV series
4 hours ago
Lars von Trier is readying an English-language TV series called The House That Jack Built.
The series will be the first to be directed by the controversial auteur behind Antichrist and Dancer In The Dark since his acclaimed Danish TV production, The Kingdom, 20 years ago.
The news was revealed by Zentropa-producer Louise Vesth during the press conference for Von Trier’s Nymphomaniac Volume 2 - Director’s Cut at the Venice Film Festival.
Von Trier’s regular producer Peter Aalbæk Jensen described it as “a TV series without precedent”.
He added that The House That Jack Built would be “a TV series as you have never seen it before and never will again. You better hold your breath.”
Von Trier will start working on the script this autumn with shooting currently set for 2016.
The series will be produced by Louise Vesth for the Zentropa Group with executive producer Peter Aalbæk Jensen.
The project »
- andreas.wiseman@screendaily.com (Andreas Wiseman)
Lars von Trier to make English-language TV series
4 hours ago
Lars von Trier is readying an English-language TV series called The House That Jack Built.
The series will be the first to be directed by the controversial auteur behind Antichrist and Dancer In The Dark since his acclaimed Danish TV production, The Kingdom, 20 years ago.
The news was revealed by Zentropa-producer Louise Vesth during the press conference for Von Trier’s Nymphomaniac Volume 2 - Director’s Cut at the Venice Film Festival.
Von Trier’s regular producer Peter Aalbæk Jensen described it as “a TV series without precedent”.
He added that The House That Jack Built would be “a TV series as you have never seen it before and never will again. You better hold your breath.”
Von Trier will start working on the script this autumn with shooting currently set for 2016.
The series will be produced by Louise Vesth for the Zentropa Group with executive producer Peter Aalbæk Jensen.
The project »
- andreas.wiseman@screendaily.com (Andreas Wiseman)
Efa reveals People's Choice 2014 shortlist
4 hours ago
Nymphomaniac and Philomena among selected films.
The European Film Academy has opened voting for its People’s Choice Award 2014, allowing film fans across Europe to elect their favourite film of the past 12 months.
The winner will be announced at the 27th European Film Awards in Riga, Latvia on Dec 13.
Votes are cast here.
Last year’s winner was Ruben Alves’ The Gilded Cage.
This year’s nominees are:
Beauty And The Beast dir. Christophe GansIda dir. Pawel PawlikowskiNymphomaniac dir. Lars Von TrierPhilomena dir. Stephen FrearsThe 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out Of The Window And Disappeared dir. Felix HerngrenTwo Days, One Night dirs. Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardenne »
- michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
Calinos veterans launch new Turkish distributor
4 hours ago
Two former executives from Calinos Films have set up a new distribution company, Fabula Films, acquiring all Turkish rights.
The outfit will launch at the Toronto Film Festival this week.
Fabula will be headed by CEO Billur Arikan and VP Alkan Avcioglu, who set up the theatrical division at Calinos five years ago.
At the fast-growing Calinos, they worked on films including The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Raid, Intouchables, Beasts of the Southern Wild, The Secret in their Eyes, Before Midnight, and Non-Stop.
“Even though it will be our first market under a new company, we will gear up the acquisitions where we left off,” said Gizem Yetim, who will serve as director of acquisitions. “We will continue to look for director-driven projects and arthouse films with crossover potential.”
“We are a very passionate team and we all have similar tastes” Avcioglu said. “We do not care whether the film is arthouse or commercial. If there »
- wendy.mitchell@screendaily.com (Wendy Mitchell)
Vue converting to Sony Digital Cinema 3D
5 hours ago
Upgrade to take place across the UK, Ireland, Germany and Denmark.
Cinema operator Vue Entertainment International is converting up to 400 of its Sony 4K projection systems at screens in the UK, Ireland, Germany and Denmark to Sony Digital Cinema 3D.
The phased conversion process is scheduled to start this month and will extend over a three-to four-year period, covering a total of 394 screens across the group’s Vue and CinemaxX branded European estate.
Unlike ‘triple-flash’ systems that rapidly present different images to each eye in turn, the Sony Digital Cinema 3D dual lens aims to provide flicker-free 3D images without distracting flashing effects. »
- michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
Sokurov, Probst, Bondarchuk back new St. Petersburg event
5 hours ago
Filmmaker Alexander Sokurov, Efm president Beki Probst and actor-director-producer Fyodor Bondarchuk (Stalingrad) are among the high-profile names backing a new event in St. Petersburg.
The Saint Petersburg International Media Forum (Spimf) will launch next month and will run Oct 1-10.
Russian Ark director Sokurov will coordinate the workshop programme for a Cinema Lab for up to 100 young non-professionals wanting to make films and will invite colleagues from the industry to give masterclasses.
The Lab will be held outside of St Petersburg in the seaside town of Repino and reprises the campus of budding filmmakers Sokurov oversaw during the Kinoforum in 2011.
Probst and Bondarchuk are members of an advisory board, including Mikhail Piotrovsky, the State Hermitage Museum director, and Georgiy Poltavchenko, acting governor of St. Petersburg, who are supporting Roskino in its organisation of the Forum, which will be held in the city’s Old Stock Exchange building on the Vasiliyevsky Island.
Ambitious programme »
- screen.berlin@googlemail.com (Martin Blaney)
James Brown biopic to open Zurich
5 hours ago
Music biopic is director Tate Taylor’s follow-up to Oscar-winner The Help.
The Zurich Film Festival (Sept 25 - Oct 5) is to open its 10th edition with James Brown biopic Get On Up on Sept 25, a day before its release in Switzerland.
Director Tate Taylor and star Chadwick Boseman will be in Zurich to attend the premiere.
Taylor previously walked Zurich’s green carpet with The Help, which closed Zurich in 2011 and went on to win an Oscar for supporting actress Octavia Spencer.
Boseman is best known for playing Us baseball legend Jackie Robinson in sports biopic 42.
Get On Up follows James Brown’s rise from extreme poverty to his status as the Godfather of Soul. The musician, who died in 2006 aged 73, is best known for songs such as Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag , I Got You (I Feel Good) and Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine.
The film also »
- michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
Park, Xyz team on The Editor
6 hours ago
Exclusive: Midnight Madness thriller from Astron 6 stars Udo Kier, Paz de la Huerta.
UK sales outfit Park Entertainment will launch low-budget horror The Editor in Toronto’s Midnight Madness strand.
Xyz will represent domestic rights and Australia and Germany on behalf of the producers.
Astron 6 co-founders Matthew Kennedy and Adam Brooks co-wrote, co-directed, co-produced and co-star in the giallo homage about a film editor who becomes the prime suspect in a murder case.
Udo Kier and Paz de La Huerta also star. »
- andreas.wiseman@screendaily.com (Andreas Wiseman)
Indie Sales to launch Zucchini, new Jolivet at Toronto
6 hours ago
Exclusive: My Life As A Zucchini is written by Tomboy and Girlhood director Céline Sciamma.
Indie Sales has acquired international rights to feature-length stop motion film My Life As A Zucchini, based on a screen adaptation by filmmaker Céline Sciamma of a popular novel.
The Paris-based company will launch sales on the film at the Toronto International Film Festival (Tiff) alongside another new acquisition, Pierre Jolivet’s new project The Night Watchman, starring Olivier Gourmet.
My Life As A Zucchini is the first feature-length film by Swiss director Claude Barras after a series of well-received animated shorts including Chambre 69 and Land of the Heads.
It is a Swiss-French co-production between Rita Films in Switzerland, Blue Spirit Productions in Paris and Gebeka in Lyon. Gebeka will also distribute in France.
The film is an adaptation of Gilles Paris novel Autobiography of a Zucchini about a young boy adapting to life in a children’s home after his mother »
Mumbai fest campaign raises $250k
12 hours ago
Updated: The social media campaign to save the Mumbai Film Festival, threatened with closure due to a lack of funding, has raised $250,000 in just two days.
Companies and individuals pledging donations include Cinestaan Film Company, founded by Anand Mahindra and Rohit Khattar; high-profile producer-directors Vidhu Vinod Chopra (Broken Horses) and Rajkumar Hirani (3 Idiots); producers Manish Mundra, Vivek Kajaria and Nilesh Navlakha; director Hansal Mehta and author and critic Anupama Chopra.
Organised by the Mumbai Academy of Moving Image (Mami), the festival has been under threat after a five-year deal with Reliance Entertainment ended last year and has not been renewed. A sponsorship deal with American Express has also expired.
Local filmmakers, stars, industry figures and fans of the festival have taken to Facebook and Twitter to raise the $824,000 (Rs50m) that is needed for the event to go ahead this year.
The campaign’s banner reads: “5,000 supporters, Rs10,000 each is all it will take. Lets make it »
- lizshackleton@gmail.com (Liz Shackleton)
Mumbai fest supported by social media
12 hours ago
A social media campaign has been launched to raise donations for Mumbai Film Festival, which is in danger of not taking place this year after losing its funding.
Scheduled to take place October 14-21, the festival has struggled to find backers after a five-year deal with Reliance Entertainment ended last year and has not been renewed. A sponsorship deal with American Express has also ended.
Local filmmakers, stars and fans of the festival have taken to Facebook and Twitter to raise the $824,000 (Rs50m) that is needed for the festival to go ahead this year. The campaign’s banner reads: “5,000 supporters, Rs10,000 each is all it will take. Lets make it happen.”
The Mumbai Academy of Moving Image (Mami), which organises the festival, is meeting with potential sponsors today (September 1). A final call on the fate of the festival will be taken tonight.
Mumbai film festival director Srinivasan Narayanan said: “We at the Mumbai Film Festival are overwhelmed »
- lizshackleton@gmail.com (Liz Shackleton)
17 articles