Small MPU – Page 266

  • News

    Irish Arts Minister boosts production fund by $2.8m

    2007-10-01T16:33:00Z

    In his first major announcement since he took on responsibility for film in June, Irish Minister for Arts, Sport & Tourism, Seamus Brennan, has confirmed additional funding of $2.8m(Euros 2m) for the Irish Film Board (IFB), to encourage international film and television projects to shoot in Ireland. The extra money ...

  • News

    Warner Bros acquires French rights to La Verite

    2000-09-04T18:56:00Z

    Warner Bros France has picked up French-speaking rights to highly-anticipated local comedy La Verite Si Je Mens 2 - La Grande Distribution, the sequel to the 1997 hit title, through its French offshoot PECF (Production et Edition Cinematographique Francaise).La Verite Si Je Mens - directed by Thomas Gilou and produced ...

  • News

    UKFC Development Fund restructures single-project funding

    2007-10-01T17:39:00Z

    The UK Film Council's Development Fund, which will hand out an average of $8m (£4m) per year through 2011, has announced a number of changes to the way it funds single projects. Tanya Seghatchian, the Harry Potter and My Summer Of Love producer who took over as head of the ...

  • News

    Prolific NYC-based Plum sets up fourth picture this year

    2007-10-01T23:15:00Z

    New York-based Plum Pictures has lined up its fourth production this year, the comedy Bart Got A Room with William H Macy and Cheryl Hines.Alia Shawkat and Steven Kaplan also star in the coming-of-age story about a nerdy high school student who tries to find a prom date while his ...

  • News

    HarperCollins strikes alliance with New York producer Sharp

    2007-10-02T00:21:00Z

    HarperCollins Publishers has truck a strategic alliance with New York-based producers Sharp Independent to collaborate on the adaptation of HarperCollins titles.The alliance is another example of film companies allying themselves with publishing houses to access and exploit material. In 2005, Focus Features partnered up with Random House to create Random ...

  • News

    Cinetic strikes Canadian distribution pact with Maximum Films

    2007-10-02T06:07:00Z

    Robert Lantos' fledgling Toronto-based sales and distribution company Maximum Films has struck a three-year deal with New York's Cinetic Media to release Cinetic films in CanadaThe agreement further boosts the prestige factor associated with Maximum's pipeline following recent deals with Fortissimo Films, Magnolia Pictures, and IFC.It also realises Cinetic's stated ...

  • News

    Overture takes on Springer and Monroe

    2007-10-02T06:22:00Z

    Rob Springer has joined Overture Films as senior vice president of sales operations and Kevin Monroe has come aboard as vice president of business and legal affairs. Springer assumes responsibility for the operational aspect of the studio's distribution unit, which includes box office research, reporting and analysis, as well ...

  • News

    Ben Ammar preparing bid for Italian distributor

    2007-10-02T06:28:00Z

    French-Tunisian financier Tarak Ben Ammar is reportedly in advanced talks to acquire a majority stake in Italian independent distributor Eagle Pictures.The Milan and Rome based company - operated by Ciro and Steffano Dammicco - is one of Italy's top five independent distributors and was responsible for the massive 2004 rollout ...

  • News

    Czechs crown Menzel's King Of England for Oscar

    2007-10-02T09:56:00Z

    The Czech Film and Television Academy has selected Jiri Menzel's I Served The King Of England as the Czech submission for the foreign-language film category at the Academy Awards. The Czech academy also considered Jan Sverak's Empties and Alice Nellis' Little Girl Blue. Since its premiere, I Served The King ...

  • News

    Kevin Sullivan moves to First Look in marketing post

    2007-10-02T09:58:00Z

    Former Blockbuster Online director of product Kevin Sullivan has been appointed First Look Studios' vice president of home entertainment marketing. Sullivan will report directly to First Look's executive vice president worldwide marketing Brooke Ford and is expected to start work on the first quarter 2008 releases of King Of California ...

  • News

    Williams promoted to chief technology officer at MPAA

    2007-10-02T10:00:00Z

    Jim C Williams has been appointed senior vice president and chief technology officer for the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA). Williams has served as a senior technology executive at the MPAA since he joined in 2002 as vice president of television and video systems standards. In his new role ...

  • News

    Venice: Unimpressed under the umbrellas

    2000-09-04T23:03:00Z

    The violent, shocking or merely technically advanced have become such staples of top festival line-ups that it has become difficult to impress jaded critics and only slightly less cynical audiences.So it is that Venice has awaited with bated breath a selection of films by top names of today - and ...

  • News

    The Last Station gets $1.9m boost from DFFF

    2007-10-02T10:08:00Z

    Michael Hoffman's Tolstoy drama The Last Station, starring Anthony Hopkins, Meryl Streep and Laura Linney, has received the fourth largest amount awarded by the German Federal Film Fund (DFFF) to an international production this year. The allocation of $1.9m (Euros 1.34m) was only surpassed by Speed Racer (Euros 9m), The ...

  • News

    BBC Films restructuring creates board including Langan and Wright

    2007-10-02T10:20:00Z

    As expected, the BBC has announced a restructuring of BBC Films. Jane Tranter, Controller BBC Fiction, has said that the film arm's day-to-day management and decision-making will be the responsibility of a new board, comprised of Christine Langan (comissioning editor, BBC Films), Jamie Laurenson (executive producer, BBC Films), Joe Oppenheimer ...

  • News

    ContentFilm takes on thriller Balibo with LaPaglia

    2007-10-02T10:27:00Z

    ContentFilm International has taken on world rights (outside Australia and New Zealand) to Robert Connolly's thriller Balibo starring Anthony LaPaglia. The film is based on the true events of the Indonesian invasion of East Timor in 1975. LaPaglia plays Australian TV journalist Roger East, who runs a local news agency ...

  • News

    Summer wraps UK shoot for The Works, Vertigo

    2007-10-02T10:38:00Z

    Kenny Glenaan has wrapped principal photography on Summer for The Works International and Vertigo Films. Summer shot for five weeks in and around Bolsover, Derbyshire. Post-production will start in Glasgow next week. Robert Carlyle, Steve Evets and Rachael Blake star with newcomers Sean Kelly, Matthew Workman, Jo Doherty, Christopher Russell, ...

  • News

    Athens gives Golden Athena for best film to Puenzo's XXY

    2007-10-02T11:56:00Z

    The Argentinian production XXY directed by Lucia Puenzo was named best film of the international competition at the 13th Athens International Film Festival (Opening Nights Conn-X) receiving the Golden Athena and a prize of $14,170(Euros 10,000) in cash handed out by the European Youth Jury formed by 11 young European ...

  • News

    BBC Films restructures with new board working under Jane Tranter

    2007-10-02T13:03:00Z

    In London this morning, Jane Tranter, Controller BBC Fiction, spelled out her vision for a newly revamped BBC Films. 'The BBC's commitment to BBC Films is as absolute as it ever has been,' Tranter said.The major change is now that BBC Films will be managed by a new four-member BBC ...

  • News

    Bac founder Labadie plans to legally contest ousting from company

    2007-10-02T14:36:00Z

    Bac Films has announced the departure of its founder and managing director, Jean Labadie. The board of holding company Bac Majestic, of which Bac Films is a 100% subsidiary, revoked Labadie's mandate on September 12 and also put an end to his employee contract as of September 24. Labadie, who ...

  • News

    Park Entertainment takes on sales for Cheung's Bodyguard

    2007-10-02T14:45:00Z

    Park Entertainment is handling world sales for Bodyguard - A New Beginning. UK-based director Chee Keung Cheung has finished principal photography on the action movie, which shot in Hong Kong and northwest England. The cast features Cary Hiroyuki-Tagawa, Richard Ng, Vincent Sze, Mark Strange and Nathan Lewis. Park Entertainment also ...