Small MPU – Page 749

  • News

    Gold Reel awards go to 18 films crossing $100m

    2006-06-28T12:55:00Z

    Yesterdayat Cinema Expo, Nielsen EDI International handed out its annual Gold ReelAwards.The awardsare given to distributors whose films have crossed $100m at the internationalbox office in the 12 months since the last Cinema Expo.This year18 films achieved the mark, but while this did not match the record number toreceive the ...

  • News

    Fox draws Cine Expo cheers for Night At The Museum

    2006-06-28T13:07:00Z

    Day two of the 15thanniversary Cinema Expo International saw strong response to the presentationfrom Twentieth Century Fox. Paul Hanneman, Tomas Jegeus, Fox Searchlight's Rebecca Keareyand a mix of on-screen and off-screen talent provided introductions to thecompany's product reel and evening screenings.A key scene from The Last King OfScotland, starring Forest ...

  • News

    Justus von Dohnanyi makes directorial debut with Hartz 4.2

    2006-06-28T14:32:00Z

    LeadingGerman actor Justus von Dohnanyi, who has appeared in such films as Oscar-nominatedDownfall, WWII drama Napola andthriller The Experiment, is makinghis directorial debut with the road movie-black comedy Hartz 4.2 (working title) which is shooting on location in Germany andSwitzerland until July 15.The$878,955 (Euros 700,000) production by Lars Buecheland Bernd ...

  • News

    Serotonin, Hope & Glory and Spice Factory partner for Bhopal

    2006-06-28T14:49:00Z

    TheUK's Serotonin Films isworking with partners Hope & Glory Pictures and Spice Factory to producethe drama Bhopal.Ravi Kumar is writing and directing his feature-lengthdebut, with Serotonin's Dominic Norris producing.Thestory follows a young rickshaw puller who gets a menial job at a chemical plantamidst the 1984 Union Carbide industrial disaster in ...

  • News

    Happy Feet draws strong response at Cine Expo

    2006-06-28T15:28:00Z

    Followingthe UIP and Fox presentations, Warner Bros was next in line to present itsproduct reel to exhibitors at Cinema Expo in Amsterdam. WarnerBros Pictures International's Monique Esclavissatrevealed that in the last five years 60-62% of Warner Bros theatrical revenuehad come from international box office. She also stressed the importance oflocal ...

  • News

    New Rome festival to honour Sean Connery

    2006-06-28T16:21:00Z

    SeanConnery will receive the new Rome Film Festival (Oct 13-21)'s first Acting Award,which pays tribute to a major living actor.Connerywill be the subject of a retrospective of 14 films, from his James Bond movie From Russia WithLove (1963) to Finding Forrester (2000).'Iam greatly honoured to be the first actor to ...

  • News

    Mueller tapped to head production at Senator

    2006-06-28T16:29:00Z

    Christoph Mueller, producer of Marc Rothemund'sOscar-nominated Sophie Scholl - The Final Days and managing director with Sven Burgemeister of Munich-based GoldkindFilm, has been appointed as the new head of Senator Entertainment's productionarm Senator Film Produktion as of July 1.Accordingto Senator Entertainment's Marco Weber, Mueller was 'from the outset ourabsolute ideal ...

  • News

    Cambridge Festival to open with UK premiere of Volver

    2006-06-29T04:00:00Z

    The Cambridge Film Festivalwill host more than two dozen UK premieres at its 26th event, running July 6-16.The festival, headquarteredat the Cambridge Arts Picturehouse under festivaldirector Tony Jones, will open with the UK premiere of Pedro Almodovar'sCannes award winner Volver. Tidelandwill close the festival with director Terry Gilliam in attendance. ...

  • News

    Shareholders back AOL, Time Warner merger

    2000-06-23T20:26:00Z

    America Online's merger with Time Warner took a step towards completion this autumn after shareholders at both companies voted on Friday in favour of the mega-deal.AOL shareholders voted 97% in favour of the $123 billion merger, according to a preliminary count. Earlier in the day, Time Warner's shareholders approved the ...

  • News

    TWC hires new general counsel from BMO Merchant Bank

    2006-06-28T00:00:00Z

    Attorney Peter Hurwitz has been hired as general counsel at TheWeinstein Company (TWC).Hurwitz will be based in New York and will assume a broad range oflegal affairs including new business acquisitions, joint ventures andintellectual property matters for TWC and Dimension Films.He will report to Charles Layton, executive vice president officeof ...

  • News

    Allen promoted to evp, creative advertising and new media, at Searchlight

    2006-06-28T00:00:00Z

    Stephanie Allen has been promoted to executive vice president ofcreative advertising and new media at Fox Searchlight.For the past six years Allen has served as senior vice presidentof creative advertising, where her brief included overseeing online content anddesign for the studio pictures. She reports to chief operating officer NancyUtley.In 2004 ...

  • News

    Gretchen, Evil take top prizes at LAFF

    2006-06-29T08:00:00Z

    Steve Collins' high school comedy Gretchen won Film Independent's Target FilmmakerAward for best feature at the Los Angeles Film Festival's Spirit ofIndependence event tonight.The Target Documentary Award went to Amy Berg for Deliver UsFrom Evil, whichexplores paedophilia in the Catholic Church. Virginia Madsen and Jimmy Smitspresented the awards, which each ...

  • News

    New Line sets $150m Compass for Sept 4 UK start

    2006-06-29T04:00:00Z

    New Line has greenlit production on its ambitious children'sfantasy project The Golden Compass following the casting of British newcomer 12-year-old Dakota BlueRichards in the lead role as Lyra Belacqua.Production on the $150m first instalment of Philip Pullman's HisDark Materials trilogyis scheduled to get underway on Sept 4 in the UK ...

  • News

    Withoutabox hires three international festival liaisons

    2006-06-29T00:00:00Z

    Withoutabox, the worldwide online network whose services include afilm festival submission system that connects filmmakers to more than 2,000events including AFI FEST, the Edinburgh International Film Festival and theDubrovnik International Film Festival, is expanding its reach with theappointment of three international festival liaisons.Mary Davies will oversee the UK and Europe ...

  • News

    Blaine Lourd sets up investment consultancy in LA

    2006-06-29T00:00:00Z

    Investment advisor Blaine Lourd has left AG Edwards to launch hisown investment consultancy Lourd Capital Management (LCM) in Beverly Hills.The company says that it will provide "objective and expert"investment counsel on asset allocation, investment manager selection, andcoordination of client's strategic advisors.Fidelity Investments will act as LCM's primary custodianand will provide ...

  • News

    New US independent Outsider Pictures launches in Los Angeles

    2006-06-29T06:00:00Z

    Former studio marketing and distribution executives Paul Hudsonand Peter Peterson have announced the launch of Outsider Pictures, a SantaMonica-based distributor of independent features and documentaries in North andLatin America.The self-financed company plans to release six to eight pictureseach year and will handle theatrical, home video, and television distribution.Peterson said the ...

  • News

    FBI claim to have smashed global camcorder piracy ring

    2006-06-29T00:00:00Z

    FBI agents claim to have smashed a global piracy ring followingthe arrest of 13 members of an organised network in the New York area.The individuals were part of an international ring allegedlyresponsible for one-half of all camcorded copies of films available on theblack market and on the internet in the ...

  • News

    James Cameron to shoot Avatar next

    2006-06-29T11:39:00Z

    Director James Cameron hasbeen in pre-production on his next two features, Avatar and Battle Angel,but Avatar has won the race and willbe the first to shoot.Cameron told Cine Expoattendees in Amsterdam that he plans to continue to work in the 3D digitalformat for both projects. Cameron hopes to have Avatar, ...

  • News

    Irish Film Board outlines new policies

    2006-06-29T12:27:00Z

    TheIrish Film Board (IFB) will encourage funding applicants to submit projectsearlier in the development process, its executives announced at a presentationyesterday evening. IFBchairman James Morris and CEO Simon Perry introduced a range of new policiesand procedures that will come into effect July 1. Inaddition to setting out some core principles ...

  • News

    Producers upbeat about first Spanish-US Forum

    2000-06-25T22:47:00Z

    The first annual Ibero-American Co-production Forum closed Thursday in Madrid with a sense of optimism about the ramifications of Forum host Telefonica Media's planned $100m production investment in Ibero-American cinema. General reactions to the three-day Forum, which was co-hosted by the Spanish Producers' Federation (FAPAE), were positive. Producers from across ...