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All articles by Melanie Rodier – Page 40
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Rai Trade deals with Brazil and Australia
Italy's Rai Trade has struck two multi-picture distribution deals with Brazil and Australia and has closed a score of sales on its new titles, including cult director Maurizio Nichetti's latest comedy Honolulu Baby. Under the output deal, the Rome-based sales agent sold eight films to Brazil's Top Tape and 10 ...
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3000 soldiers join Mogador Lovers
Italy's Poetiche Cinematografiche has started shooting The Mogador Lovers, a love and war story which is being directed by the head of Morocco's national film body, Souheil Ben-Barka.Set in the 1930s, the film tells the story of a young Frenchwoman, the daughter of a judge stationed in Morocco, who defies ...
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Nos Miran adds Hera Film
Italy's Hera Film has boarded the Spanish thriller Nos Miran, which is currently shooting in Madrid under the direction of Norberto Lopez Amado.The thriller, budgeted at Euros2.6m is being produced by Spain's BocaBoca Producciones. The story follows a police inspector's investigations into the cases of missing persons, tracking his subsequent ...
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Irons boards Callas Forever
Jeremy Irons is set to join the cast of Callas Forever, Italian director Franco Zeffirelli's upcoming drama about the last months in the life of Greek opera diva Maria Callas.The $20 million film, written by Martin Sherman and Zeffirelli, is scheduled to begin shooting in July, with opera singer Teresa ...
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Italian domestic films lose flavour
In what has been branded as 'one of the worst years ever' for Italian films at the local box office, national film body, Anica, said that while overall takings increased last year, the box office continued to be heavily dominated by US fare and suffered from a low number of ...
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France's Films de L'astre buys Honolulu Baby
France's Films de L'astre has acquired local distribution rights to Honolulu Baby, the latest feature from cult Italian actor-director Maurizio Nichetti. RAI Trade, which is handling worldwide rights, has also sold the film to Greece and all other French-speaking territories.Honolulu Baby is a Mr Bean-style comedy about an engineer who ...
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Gladiator to re-enter the arena in Italy
In an attempt to cash in on Gladiator's multiple Oscar nominations, distributor UIP has decided to re-release the sword-and-sandal epic in Italy two weeks before the Academy Awards ceremony takes place.A spokesperson for UIP said the distributor had officially taken the decision after the Oscar nominations were announced on Wednesday. ...
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Hannibal chews up Italian box office
In a record-breaking opening of a US film at the Italian box office, Hannibal has grossed a chilling $3,678,089 (l7,705,597,000) in three days from 322 theatres, taking an average $11,423 per screen. Previous all-time highs were registered by The Blair Witch Project ($3,593,327) and Titanic ($3,094,541).Distributor FilmAuro's impressive takings were ...
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Medusa hit comedy moves from screen to console
Italian mini-major Medusa is seeking a US co-production partner to develop a line of video games spun off from its film properties. It is already preparing its first title, set to feature the money-spinning comic trio Aldo, Giovanni & Giacomo. Medusa plans to release the game, which is being ...
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Palace, Istituto Luce strike two-pronged pact
Italian state distributor Istituto Luce and Australia's Palace Films have signed a two-pronged deal under which they will co-produce features and jointly distribute Italian titles in the Australian market.The deal, which is expected to lead to the creation of a jointly owned company in the next few months, marks a ...
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Cappon replaces Celli as RAI director general
Italian state broadcaster RAI has promoted deputy director Claudio Cappon to the position of director general, replacing former chief Pier Luigi Celli who quit on Friday.RAI's unprecedented speed in appointing Cappon served to quash a political storm which arose when the newly-departed director said that the broadcaster was "ungovernable"."We have ...
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Italy's Buskin Film acquires Mother Viper
Rome-based sales outfit Buskin Film has picked up worldwide rights to Mother Viper, an English-language World War II drama which is written and composed by the award-winning Life Is Beautiful team.Directed by Italy's Sergio Citti, Mother Viper is about a woman's betrayal of her young daughter and her husband, played ...
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Italy's Buskin Film snaps up Berlin trio
Fledgling Italian sales outfit Buskin Film has picked up worldwide rights to three films which are set to screen at the upcoming Berlin Film Festival: Peter Del Monte's Against The Wind (Controvento), Luciano Emmer's A Long, Long, Long Night Of Love and Rosalia Polizzi's Reconciled.Against The Wind, produced by Italy's ...
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Italian authority clears TMC deal with conditions
Italy's Antitrust Authority has said that it will wave through Telecom Italia and publishing giant Seat Pagine Gialle's proposed takeover of Cecchi Gori-owned broadcaster Telemontecarlo (TMC), if a law court greenlights the deal, and providing both companies comply with four regulatory conditions.Last week, Italy's communications watchdog vetoed the takeover because ...
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Italian box office up but local fare slides
Italian box office takings grew 5.5% to $378m (L779.5bn) in 2000, according to figures from box office service Cinetel, but local product's share of the market slipped to 17.48% compared to 23.90% in 1999.Italian films and co-productions grossed $61.6m (L127bn) in 2000, down 18% from $75m (L154.6bn) in 1999, as ...
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Italian watchdog rules against TMC takeover
Italy's Communications Authority has vetoed the takeover of Cecchi Gori-owned broadcaster Telemontecarlo (TMC) by publishing giant Seat Pagine Gialle and Telecom Italia.Seat, which recently merged with Telecom Italia's internet division Tin.it, agreed last August to buy 75% of TMC from the Cecchi Gori group for L750bn ($350m), with an option ...
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Bavaria Media sets up Italian production outpost
Bavaria Media, the international production and rights arm of Germany's Bavaria Film, has established a new operation in Rome to spearhead European co-productions and increase the visibility of Italian product abroad.The Rome outfit, which represents the mini-major's first venture outside a German-speaking territory, will aim to develop and co-produce four ...
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Unbreakable broken as local comedy hogs number one
Homegrown comedy Chiedimi Se Sono Felice (Ask Me If I'm Happy) has largely eclipsed Hollywood fare such as Unbreakable at the Italian box office, grossing $3,040,867 in its fourth weekend from 269 theatres.Co-directed by and starring local comic trio Aldo, Giovanni & Giacomo, the film has taken a massive $23m ...
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Italy to take record nine films to Berlin festival
Next month's Berlin International Film Festival is set to screen a bumper crop of nine Italian films including two competition titles, Italian film promotion body Italia Cinema announced on Wednesday.The body confirmed that Giuseppe Tornatore's coming-of-age film Malena and Ferzan Ozpetek's drama Ignorant Fairies (Fate Ignoranti) have made the official ...
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Living Blood wins Italy's St Vincent prize
Edoardo Winspeare's Living Blood (Sangue Vivo) has taken the top award, the Grolla d'Oro, at the prestigious St Vincent Prize, which is designed to promote Italian cinema abroad. Living Blood, a tale of two brothers set in southern Italy against a backdrop of crime and music, was recently selected for ...