All Africa articles – Page 155

  • News

    Driessen and Mackey promoted at Fortissimo

    2007-01-15T14:56:00Z

    Sales company Fortissimo Films has announced that Nelleke Driessen has been promoted to managing director of the company, based at its head office in Amsterdam. She had been the co-managing director since 2004 and joined Fortissimo as an executive in 2000. Also, Fortissimo has promoted Nicole Mackey to executive vice ...

  • News

    The Works takes sales and UK rights to The Killing Of John Lennon

    2007-01-15T14:49:00Z

    The Works International has taken on international sales rights to Andrew Piddington's The Killing Of John Lennon. Sister company The Works UK Distribution has taken UK rights to the film. Jonas Ball stars as Mark David Chapman, John Lennon's killer. The feature was shot during a three-year period on location ...

  • News

    Berlinale unveils more world premieres in Competition section

    2007-01-15T14:16:00Z

    Berlinale programmers have now confirmed another eight titles in the official Competition section, including new works by International Jury President Paul Schrader, Clint Eastwood, Gregory Nava and Stefan Ruzowitzky. Schrader's The Walker, which stars Woody Harrelson as an escort to lonely society ladies who is accused of murder, will be ...

  • News

    EFP's sales programme backs 11 at Sundance

    2007-01-15T14:04:00Z

    European Film Promotion's Film Sales Support programme has backed the promotion of 11 European films at this year's Sundance Film Festival. The 10 European sales agents and production companies are given grants up to $6,470 (Euros 5,000) to promote European films to buyers. After Switzerland recently joined the EFP-backing MEDIA ...

  • News

    Rotterdam to host 44 world premieres

    2007-01-15T13:45:00Z

    The International Film Festival Rotterdam, which kicks off its 36th year on Jan 24, has announced that this year's programme includes 44 world premieres, 23 international premieres and 30 European premieres. The full programme will be unveiled Jan 18, but world premieres already confirmed include Ragnar Bragason's Children follow-up Parents ...

  • News

    Middle East box office reveals multiplex-driven market boom in 2006

    2007-01-15T11:40:00Z

    The shopping mall boom in the UAE, Turkey and Egypt is fuelling a surge in admissions in the Middle East, offset by a sharp decline in Lebanon following its war-torn summer. While the Gulf is dominated by predictable Hollywood product, homegrown cinema is on the rise in Turkey and Morocco. ...

  • News

    Nordisk establishes own distribution channels post split

    2007-01-15T11:04:00Z

    Danish major Nordisk Film announces company structure after 17-year relationship with Columbia Tristar-Sony Pictures Releasing International ends.As of Jan 1, Danish major Nordisk Film established its own outlets to handle productions and acquisitions in Sweden, Norway and Finland. This comes in the wake of its split from Columbia Tristar-Sony Pictures ...

  • News

    French films take $390m at world's box offices in 2006

    2007-01-14T12:52:00Z

    French export body Unifrance announced its global figures Friday at the annual Rendez Vous event held in Paris. For 2006, French films sold 55.8 million tickets at the world box-office. Those sales brought in just over $390m (Euros 300m.)The score represents a drop of 23% off of 2005 which saw ...

  • News

    Berlin announces International Forum films

    2007-01-13T11:41:00Z

    New features by Serbian filmmaker Srdan Golubovic, Malaysia's Amir Muhammad and Germany's Ann-Kristin Reyels will have their world premieres at this year's International Forum of Young Cinema in Berlin. Golubovic's thriller The Trap, his second feature after the outstanding 2001 debut Absolute Hundred, was produced by Belgrade-based Bas Celik with ...

  • News

    Berlinale's Generation Kplus to open with The Last Mimzy

    2007-01-12T15:25:00Z

    Generation, the Berlinale's programme for children and young people's films, has set its line-up of 25 feature films, including three world premieres and 10 international premieres, from 22 countries. The competition for Generation Kplus (previously Kinderfilmfest) will open in the Zoo Palast cinema on Feb 9 with the international premiere ...

  • News

    Italian admissions hold steady in 2006 despite weak December

    2007-01-12T15:12:00Z

    Italian admissions for 2006 demonstrated little difference in respect to 2005. Italy's national ticket compiler Cinetel cites a slight 1.65% increase in attendance last year for a total of 92.2m tickets sold. Cinetel's data covers 85% of the Italian market. Analysts here cite the first half of the year as ...

  • News

    Liv Ullmann shelves plans for A Doll's House

    2007-01-12T15:04:00Z

    Norwegian actress-director Liv Ullmann has decided to shelve her $10.7m (Euros 8.3m) star-studded adaptation of Henrik Ibsen's classic play A Doll's House due to lack of support from the Norwegian Film Fund. 'My life will now go on without A Doll's House,' Ullmann said in a faxed statement (the France-based ...

  • News

    Gaumont unveils Warnier's Seeds Of Death at Rendez-Vous

    2007-01-12T12:57:00Z

    Gaumont will premiere Regis Warnier's latest film, Seeds Of Death, on Friday night at Paris' Unifrance Rendez-Vous of French film. The thriller stars Jose Garcia, Marie Gillain, Michel Serrault and Olivier Gourmet and is a sure to be a hot item amongst buyers at the weekend market. Also on Gaumont's ...

  • News

    Pathfinder, Smokin' Aces hit international markets ahead of US

    2007-01-12T02:04:00Z

    Fox International launches action adventure Pathfinder in four international territories this weekend in advance of its domestic opening on April 27; meanwhile Universal/UPI opens crime caper Smokin' Aces in the UK ahead of its US opening on Jan 26.The overseas-first opening policy is becoming more prevalent and was used last ...

  • News

    Keene shifts at Premier

    2007-01-12T00:00:00Z

    Sara Keene has stepped down as one of the chief executives of Premier Public Relations to take on a role as non-executive director. Keene, who founded Corbett and Keene in 1987, will act as a consultant to the board and will continue to run Premier's personal publicity for individual celebrities ...

  • News

    Universal pictures sets up post-UIP Irish team

    2007-01-12T00:00:00Z

    Universal Pictures International (UPI) UK and Eire has appointed an Irish team responsible for the sales, marketing and publicity of the company's products in Ireland, following the closure of UIP in the territory. Eclipse Pictures veteran David Burke is leading the team as general manager. Maryse Fitzpatrick will serve as ...

  • News

    Stephen Frears to lead Cannes jury in 60th year

    2007-01-11T18:24:00Z

    The Festival de Cannes has tapped director Stephen Frears as its jury president for the 60th edition, which runs May 16-27. Fears has directed films including The Queen, My Beautiful Laundrette, The Grifters, High Fidelity, Dirty Pretty Things and 1987 Cannes competitor Prick Up Your Ears. 'Of course, it's an ...

  • News

    Momentum MD Marchand suspended and replaced by Napper

    2007-01-11T17:47:00Z

    UK distributor Momentum Pictures has suspended managing director Xavier Marchand.Former Sony executive Richard Napper has been appointed in his place on an interim basis with immediate effect while the company searches for a permanent replacement. No specific reasons were given for Marchand's suspension, but a spokesperson from Momentum's parent company ...

  • News

    Serbian 2006 box office takings down by 36%, admissions drop 43%

    2007-01-11T17:23:00Z

    The first estimates of Serbian-Montenegrin box-office in 2006 show the biggest decline since the economic embargo imposed by the UN Security Council from 1992 to 1995. From January to November, Serbian theaters sold 1.52m admissions, falling 43% from 2005's 2.65m 2 and earning a total gross of about $4.5m (SD306m), ...

  • News

    Swedish films' local market share slips 9% in 2006

    2007-01-11T16:31:00Z

    In spite of the release of 36 new Swedish features in 2006, local productions sold only 3m cinema tickets - down 300,000 (9%) from 2005 - to control 20% of the theatrical market, against 22.6% the previous year, according to preliminary statistics from the Swedish Film Institute. International blockbusters, led ...