Small MPU – Page 1232
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News
'Father of Korean cinema' starts 98th film
Following the worldwide success of his previous feature Chunhyang, Veteran Korean director Im Kwon-taek has started production of his 98th film. Titled Chwi-hwa-seon in Korean, the film chronicles the true story of 19th century painter Jang Seung-eop, whose free lifestyle and eccentric personality earned him as much fame as his ...
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News
Apes start taking over the planet again
20th Century Fox's Planet Of The Apes re-imagining, under the direction of Tim Burton, opened day and date in Japan, Hong Kong and Thailand to massive box office figures.Even while it was smashing numerous records over the three-day weekend (Friday 27 July-Sunday 29) in North America, Apes was showing muscular ...
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News
Telemontecarlo's future questioned after takeover
As Italian tyre and cable manufacturer Pirelli, backed by the Benetton retail empire, took over Telecom Italia, Europe's fifth-biggest telecom group, this weekend, the future of the telecom's financially beleaguered TV station, Telemontecarlo, was again called into question.Just two months ago, Italy's highest appeals court cleared Telecom Italia and multimedia ...
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News
India's Zee TV to enter film production
Following the success of its maiden venture Gadar/I>, India's leading satellite television operator Zee TV has plans to enter film production as a backward integration policy for its networks. The company has announced plans to produce five $5m films a year. At present, the company has two movies in production ...
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News
Germany's Das Werk expands international network
German postproduction group Das Werk has taken a 25% stake in the Belgian high-end video and film post-production company ACE Digital House, as part of its creation of an international network of postproduction companies. A cash payment of Euro 1.5m (20%) was supplemented with 5% in Das Werk shares. Over ...
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News
RTL sees share value slide after profit warning
Shares in RTL crashed today after the broadcasting giant joined the long list of companies warning of ad-related slowdowns.The pan-European broadcaster issued a profits warning forecasting that earnings before interest, tax and depreciation will fall by 10%-15% this year, hurt by falling advertising markets. The thinly traded shares tumbled from ...
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News
Hollywood studios go bananas over internet piracy
Twentieth Century Fox has sent letters to internet service providers (ISPs) asking them to disable the accounts of people showing Planet Of The Apes (pictured left) on the world wide web.The Fox move is one of the most visible to date as Hollywood studios become more aggressive in their drive ...
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News
Hindi film Dattak to open at Toronto
Dattak, a Hindi feature film by well-known and award-winning director Gul Bahar Singh for the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC), will be screened at the Toronto Film Festival. The film, about a guilt-ridden young non-resident Indian "adopting" an old man because he had abandoned his own father, stars A K ...
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News
Miramax picks up Carolina for the US
Miramax Films has finalised a deal for US rights on Marleen Gorris' Carolina, which started shooting last week after being postponed from the spring.The story of a Southern girl trying to make it in Hollywood is the first feature from the alliance between US producer Martin Bregman and UK sales ...
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News
Kinowelt looks for partners in bail-out bid
The RTL Group has been named by a German newspaper as a possible strategic partner to bail out debt-ridden Kinowelt Medien. In addition, Munich-based Sueddeutsche Zeitung quoted a Kinowelt spokesman as saying that the company was "currently in talks with various possible strategic partners" and "first results" of the negotiations ...
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News
EM.TV offloads holding in Crown Media
In yet another stage of its restructuring, beleagured German media concern EM.TV & Merchandising has offloaded its holding in Crown Media Holdings to Hallmark Entertainment for a total $ 103m. The 8.2% shares in Crown Media had been held by EM.TV via its 100% subsidiary The Jim Henson Company which ...
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News
Spain's Albaladejo wins LA Latino Film Festival
Miguel Albaladejo's El Cielo Abierto (Ten Days Without Love) won the top prize at the fifth Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival on Sunday. The Spanish film was named best picture by a jury composed of Pedro Armendariz Jr, Quinn Coleman, Manuel Perez Estremera and Gabriel Figueroa Jr. Albaladejo also ...
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News
Aizea is first Euro film to use DTS/16mm system
A 29-minute German/Spanish short Aizea: City Of The Wind becomes the first European film to use the DTS/16mm sound technology when it premieres this week at the Hollywood Film Festival in Los Angeles.The system, pioneered by Digital Theatre Systems (DTS), combines DTS 5.1 six channel digital surround sound with 16mm ...
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Reviews
The Parole Officer
Dir: John Duigan. UK. 2001. 90 mins. Few television comedians manage to become film stars, and fewer still succeed outside their home turf. But The Parole Officer should serve lengthy time at the British box-office on the strength of Steve Coogan's huge popularity as a stand-up comic and small-screen character ...
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News
Toronto has Novocaine and six more world premieres
The Toronto International Film Festival has announced a further seven world premieres including new films from Mike Figgis, John Dahl, Gregor Jordan, Bruce McDonald and Yvan Attal. Topping the list is Novocaine (pictured), the Artisan Entertainment-produced feature debut of screenwriter David Atkins. The crime thriller stars Steve Martin as ...
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News
Bollywood beats the summer heat
Only a few years ago, the arrival of an Indian film in the UK box office charts was big news - now it is an increasingly common occurrence. Following hot on the heels of Bollywood hit Lagaan, yet another Indian success has entered the top 15. Yaadein arrived at number ...
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News
Highbinders gets off to flying start
Production has got underway in Ireland on The Highbinders, the Jackie Chan starring action-comedy that is the biggest budget film ever to emerge from Hong Kong.The $35m picture is produced by Emperor Multimedia Group (EMG) and is directed by Gordon Chan with veteran stuntman Sammo Hung responsible for directing the ...
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News
Moscow gets Moulin Rouge's European kick-off
Twentieth Century Fox has chosen Moscow as the first city in its European roll-out of Moulin Rouge as an indication of the growing strength of the Russian exhibition sector. The film, which is distributed in Russia by Gemini Kinomir, will have its premiere in Moscow on August 2 - nearly ...
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UK films earmarked for product placement
Already an established feature of Hollywood blockbusters, product placement remains a largely neglected revenue stream from UK film productions. But that seems finally set to change with the rising number of product placement companies focusing on film. The latest to join the fray is Earmark, which will compete with the ...
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North Korean films to get South Korean release
Two North Korean films appear likely to secure a release in South Korean theaters in the second half of this year, following the groundbreaking release of Shin Sang-okk's Pulgasari in Summer 2000.Despite the almost total lack of interest on the part of South Korean audiences during last year's one-week run ...