All articles by Melanie Rodier – Page 5
-
News
Eagle Pictures secures Italian rights to Apocalypto
EaglePictures has acquired Italian rights to Mel Gibson's upcoming film, Apocalypto, marking one of Icon's firstmajor international deals on the picture.Apocalypto - a Greek term meaning "anunveiling" or "new beginning" -is set 3,000 years ago in Central America before its conquest byEuropeans.Thefilm, which Gibson is directing, producing and financing, will ...
-
News
Roberto Faenza to make historical drama The Viceroys
Italian auteur Roberto Faenza, whose last picture I Giorni Dell'Abbandono screened incompetition at the Venice Film Festival, is currently lining up an ambitioushistorical adaptation which Luchino Visconti had originally planned to bring tothe big screen.The $9.8m (Euros 8m) film, entitled The Viceroys, is an adaptation of Federico De Roberto's 1894 ...
-
News
Italian industry looks overseas for production
While Italianfilm-makers continue to struggle with trickling government funds for homegrownprojects, Italians producers and financiers are becoming more and more involvedin international productions.Foremost among themis Massimo Pacilio's Rome-based Movieweb, a co-producer on Oliver Parker's Fade To Black, an atmospheric thrillerthat follows Orson Welles' exploits in seedy post-World War Two Italy.The ...
-
News
De Laurentiis turns another page of the Manual Of Love
Italianproducer Aurelio De Laurentiis is lining up a sequel to hit Manual of Love, which earned almost $17m (Euros 15m) at the local box office and was sold to15 countries worldwide.Thenew film, which is expected to be called Manual of Love, Other Stories, will once again be directed by Giovanni ...
-
News
Rome unveils ambitious programme for festival
Organisers of the new Rome Film Festival have unveiled an ambitious international programme with a $10m budget.Officially called "Cinema Festa Internazionale di Roma", the event is pushing itself as a high-profile international event for the public, rather thanthe industry - like the London or Tribeca festivals.The Roman challenge was the ...
-
News
Phone film first dropped after exhibitor backlash
Italian exhibitors have stopped plans to release a full-length feature film on mobile phone just a week after its theatrical debut in the territory.The 3 Italia mobile network was this week due to offer Sidney Pollack's The Interpreter to customers for around $10.50 (nine euros) for unlimited viewings. The proposal ...
-
News
Italian exhibitors lift boycott after phone film rethink
Italian exhibitors today withdrewa boycott of The Interpreter, imposedin protest at plans to stream the film on mobile phones just a week after itslocal theatrical release.The 3 Italia mobile network had planned to offer customers the full-lengthfeature film on Monday for just $10.50 (nine euro) with unlimited viewing.As a result, ...
-
News
Italian home entertainment company buys into theatre distribution
Italy's Mondo Home Entertainment has acquired a 51% stake in ambitious local theatrical distributor Moviemax.MondoHE is Italy's leading company in the home entertainment and video-on-demand sector. Itsparent company, Mondo TV, is Italy's premier animation outfit was only thesecond entertainment company after Mediaset to be listed on the Milan StockExchange.The$3m (Euros ...
-
News
Italian film industry pledges support for second Oscar choice
Italian film organisation Anica says Italy fully supports theselection of Cristina Comencini's Don't Tell as the country's candidatefor the best foreign language film Oscar, despite reports of fiery argumentswithin the local movie industry.Italy had initially selected Saverio Costanzo's Middle East drama Private, but the picture was ruled ineligible by the ...
-
News
Italians unveil replacement Oscar contender
Followingdays of polemics, Italy has selected Cristina Comencini's drama Don't Tell(La Bestia Nel Cuore)as its candidate for the best foreign language film Oscar. The countryhad previously selected Saverio Costanzo's Middle East drama Private, but the picture was ruledineligible by the Academy Of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, since the filmwas ...
-
News
UGC signs on for Boorman's Memoirs Of Hadrian
Rome-basedproduction outfit Movieweb has signed a co-production deal with France's UGC onJohn Boorman's new film, Memoirs ofHadrian.TheEuros 21m movie is adapted from Margherite Yourcenar's historical novel of the same title, a fictionalautobiography of the Roman emperor written as a series of letters to hisnephew, Marcus Aurelius.Spanishactress Paz Vega is currently ...
-
News
Benigni's Tiger takes pole position in Italy
As expected, The Tiger and The Snow, the new filmfrom Italy's top grossing comic Roberto Benigni, landed at number one at thelocal box office on its opening weekend, earning $3,740,934 for Rai Cinemalabel 01 Distribution.However, with noother major pictures opening over the weekend, some local analysts felt thefilm underperformed - ...
-
News
Cecchi Gori announces comeback - again
Almost fiveyears after his spectacular fall from grace, Italian former moviemogul Vittorio Cecchi Gori has announced - again - that he is back At a pressconference held in his luxurious Rome residence, Palazzo Borghese, theflamboyant producer said he expects several imminent legal victoriesthat will finally turn the tide and put ...
-
News
Italian industry rallies behind cinema strike
Leading lightsin the Italian film industry joined a nationwide strike on FridayOctober 14, which closed down all cinemas, theatres and opera houses fora day and sent thousands to the streets to picketoutside theItalian Parliament. Those that tookpart included producers Aurelio De Laurentiis, DomenicoProcacci, RaiCinema chief Giancarlo Leone and actor-director Roberto ...
-
News
Private disqualified as Italian Oscar candidate
Italy's Oscar candidate, SaverioCostanzo's Private,has been ruled ineligible by the Academy Of MotionPicture Arts & Sciences for the foreign-language film Oscar category thisyear, since the picture was not shot in Italian. Private is adrama about the Middle East conflict, which focuses on an Israeli patrolwho takes over the home of ...
-
News
Italian film industry to strike in protest at funding cuts
All cinemas in Italy will be closed on Friday October 14as part of a strike by the national film industry to protest against massivenew cuts to government funding.In its 2006budget proposal, the Silvio Berlusconi government has set out a paltry Euros 50mto support film - compared to Euros 84m last ...
-
News
Focus unveils raft of Tiger And The Snow sales
Focus Features has pre-soldRoberto Benigni's latest comedy The Tiger and The Snow to a raft ofterritories ahead of its widely-anticipated Italian release on October 14.The film has been sold toFrance (Pathe), Germany (Telemunchen), Benelux (A-Film), Greece (Odeon),Iceland (Sena), Portugal (Lusomundo), Scandinavia (Nordisk), Switzerland (AscotElite), Turkey (Ozen).AQS has acquired rights forBulgaria, ...
-
News
Nexo takes Italian rights to Sorry, Haters
Italiandistributor Nexo has picked up local distribution rights to Jeff Stanzler's Sorry,Haters, marking the first international deal for the film.Produced byInDigEnt, Sorry, Haters is a psychological thriller set in New Yorkwhich stars Robin Wright Penn. The picture,produced by Stanzler, Jake Abraham, Karen Jaroneski and Gary Winick, had itsworld premiere at ...
-
News
Focus does roaring trade on The Tiger And The Snow
Focus Features has pre-soldRoberto Benigni's latest comedy The Tiger And The Snow to a raft of territories ahead of its widelyanticipated Italian release next week on Oct 14.The film has been sold to France (Pathe), Germany (Telemunchen), Benelux (A-Film), Greece (Odeon), Iceland (Sena), Portugal (Lusomundo), Scandinavia (Nordisk), Switzerland (Ascot Elite),and ...
-
News
Benigni unveils Tiger And The Snow in Rome
Roberto Benigni has unveiledin Rome his widely anticipated Baghdad-set comedy, The Tiger and The Snow,which opens in Italy on October 14 on a huge 800 screens.The film stars two-timeAcademy Award-winner Benigni as a poet desperately trying to woo back the womanof his dreams. He suddenly finds himself with her in ...