ITV

Category: International

  • Johny Depp set to star in own production

    Johny Depp set to star in own production

    MUMBAI: Illumination Entertainment‘s Christopher Meledandri and David Kennedy have tied up with Infinitum Nihil partner Christi Dembrowski and Johny Depp to make a film on the life of classic children‘s author and illustrator Dr. Seuss (aka Theodor Geisel).

    Throughout his early years, Geisel drew advertising and comic strips, then political cartoons during World War II. By 1950, Geisel was publishing the books that became worldwide classics. He died of throat cancer in 1991.

    With Depp already having brought to life the Mad Hatter, Peter Pan author J.M. Barrie and Willy Wonka, the iconic Seuss seems a great fit for his chameleonic personality and recent desire to make family films.

    Universal, that will eventually distribute the film, paired with Illumination in last year‘s $543-million grossing Despicable Me, is in the post-production process of an animated adaptation of Seuss‘s The Lorax.
     
     

  • Disney to release 4 films in 3D version

    Disney to release 4 films in 3D version

    MUMBAI: Enthused by the runaway success of the 3D version of The Lion King, Disney has announced that it will re-release four of its classic animated films in 3D that will include two Pixar titles like Beauty and the Beast, Finding Nemo, Monsters, Inc. and The Little Mermaid.

    “Great stories and great characters are timeless, and at Disney we‘re fortunate to have a treasure trove of both,” Walt Disney Studios president Alan Bergman has been quoted to have said.

    The first film to released in the context will be Beauty and the Beast which will release on 13 January next year. It will be followed by Beauty and the Beast that releases on 14 September.

    Whilr Pixar‘s Monsters, Inc will debut on 18 January 2013, six months before prequel Monsters University releases on 21 June. The Little Mermaid in 3D goes will release on 13 September the same year.

  • TFI announces grant recipients

    TFI announces grant recipients

    MUMBAI: The Tribeca Film Institute (TFI) has announced the grant recipients of its inaugural 2011 Tribeca Film Institute New Media Fund, a diverse group of interactive, non-fiction projects exploring everything from the Egyptian Revolution to global health to the “friendly fire” death in Afghanistan of American serviceman Pat Tillman.


    The six projects from the US and around the world have been awarded between $50,000 and $100,000 apiece, with funding effective immediately.


    Through TFI‘s long-term partnership with the Ford Foundation‘s JustFilms initiative, the TFI New Media Fund recognizes and supports non-fiction film projects which go beyond traditional screens, integrating film with content across newer media platforms, from social media to mobile devices to games.


    The recipients of grants totaling $400,000 are 18 Days of Egypt, Map Your World, The Interrupters, Afghan Lives, Dadaab Stories, The Tillman Story.


    The jury awarding the grants comprised of notable figures whose accomplishments span the worlds of technology, film and the arts. Jurors included Andy Berndt (Vice President of Google Creative Lab), Caitlin Burns (Producer and Editor Starlight Runner Entertainment), Idit Harel Caperton (psychologist and epistemologist, Founder of World Wide Workshop and MaMaMedia), John Johnson (Founder of The Harmony Institute, EYEBEAM and BuzzFeed.com) among others.
     
     

  • DiCaprio named global ambassador of IFAW

    DiCaprio named global ambassador of IFAW

    MUMBAI: The actor plans to support various animal conservation issues, but will begin his new role with the “Elephants, Never Forget” campaign.

    Leonardo DiCaprio has been appointed the global ambassador for the International Fund for Animal Welfare‘s (IFAW) Animal Action campaign ‘Elephants, Never Forget‘.

    The campaign has been designed to shut down the slaughter to near extinction of these animals caused by the black market international ivory trade, despite the ivory ban established 1989.

    “Authorities in 85 countries have seized almost 400 tons of ivory on the black market since the 1989 ivory trade ban,” DiCaprio has ben quoted to have said.

    “In the last century, the number of elephants in the wild has declined by 50 percent. Their disappearance could devastate ecosystems and have a lasting impact on the biodiversity of our planet,” he added.

    The ivory trade also fuels ongoing conflict and strife around the world.

    “Elephants are killed by poachers so their tusks can be traded for weapons and drugs by international criminal organizations before becoming trinkets and jewelry for consumers,” DiCaprio explained.

    The IFAW action is part of the organization‘s annual international education program that strives to reach seven million teachers, students and their families in over 15 countries.
     
     

  • Speilberg on JBFC board

    Speilberg on JBFC board

    MUMBAI: The Jacob Burns Film Center (JBFC), a non-profit cultural arts organization dedicated to independent film exhibition and promoting 21st-century literacy, has inducted Steven Spielberg to its board.


    Spielberg is arguably the JBFC‘s highest-profile board member; others include Jonathan Demme and author Esmeralda Santiago.


    “For the past 10 years our goal has been to transform education to equip children to succeed in the digitally and globally connected 21st century. It is very gratifying that Steven Spielberg not only recognizes the importance of our work but wants to join us in redefining literacy in America,” said JBFC founder and executive director Stephen Apkon in a statement.


    Last month, the JBFC hosted a tribute to Spielberg when celebrating the center‘s 10th anniversary.


    “I have not heard of anything like the Jacob Burns Film Center happening anywhere else in the world,” said Spielberg in a statement.


    “What makes the JBFC different from every other well-intentioned organization that brings community and film together is its educational outreach to under-resourced schools. They reach so deeply into the community to give kids a chance to find themselves early on and before it‘s too late, because that‘s all the kids really want. I am thrilled to be on the board and look forward to the work we will do together,” he added.


    Located in Pleasantville, NY, the JBFC aims to teach students how to communicate using visual and aural media media while learning collaboration, innovation, problem solving, cross-cultural understanding and risk taking.

  • Take Shelter tops five releases this week

    MUMBAI: This week saw the release of five new films viz Take Shelter, Kenneth Lonergan‘s Margaret, Nick Broomfield and Joan Churchill‘s doc Sarah Palin: You Betcha!, Sergei Loznitsa‘s acclaimed Russian drama My Joy and Renaud Barret and Florent de La Tullaye‘s doc Benda Bilili!


    And the winner is Jeff Nichols‘ Take Shelter. The Sony Pictures Classics release, that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year has been winning rave reviews at festivals ever since. The film grossed $56,171 from the three screens where it was released.


    Shelter is the story of a young husband and father who begins being plagued by a series of apocalyptic visions that threatens the comfortable existence he has with his loving wife. Part family drama, part psychological thriller, the film manages to succeed as an otherworldly blend of Field of Dreams and Noah‘s Ark.


    After years of delay Kenneth Lonergan‘s Margaret finally hit theaters this weekend with little fanfare. The film, that stars Anna Paquin as a woman caught up in the aftermath of a bus accident, was released on 2 screens by Fox Searchlight in New York. The result was a weak $7,496 gross.


    Faring even worse was Sarah Palin: You Betcha! That grossed less than what Margaret did despite releasing in six screens. The film, that was released by Freestyle – a distribution company that releases films via service deals for the filmmakers grossed $7,374.


     The other openers fared vewry poorly with Benda Bilili! grossing just $1,722 on its sole screen release and My Joy that released on only one New York screen and made a gross of $2,800.

  • Take Shelter tops five releases this week

    MUMBAI: This week saw the release of five new films viz Take Shelter, Kenneth Lonergan‘s Margaret, Nick Broomfield and Joan Churchill‘s doc Sarah Palin: You Betcha!, Sergei Loznitsa‘s acclaimed Russian drama My Joy and Renaud Barret and Florent de La Tullaye‘s doc Benda Bilili!


    And the winner is Jeff Nichols‘ Take Shelter. The Sony Pictures Classics release, that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year has been winning rave reviews at festivals ever since. The film grossed $56,171 from the three screens where it was released.


    Shelter is the story of a young husband and father who begins being plagued by a series of apocalyptic visions that threatens the comfortable existence he has with his loving wife. Part family drama, part psychological thriller, the film manages to succeed as an otherworldly blend of Field of Dreams and Noah‘s Ark.


    After years of delay Kenneth Lonergan‘s Margaret finally hit theaters this weekend with little fanfare. The film, that stars Anna Paquin as a woman caught up in the aftermath of a bus accident, was released on 2 screens by Fox Searchlight in New York. The result was a weak $7,496 gross.


    Faring even worse was Sarah Palin: You Betcha! That grossed less than what Margaret did despite releasing in six screens. The film, that was released by Freestyle – a distribution company that releases films via service deals for the filmmakers grossed $7,374.


    The other openers fared vewry poorly with Benda Bilili! grossing just $1,722 on its sole screen release and My Joy that released on only one New York screen and made a gross of $2,800.
     
     

  • Nolan, Bay top runners to helm The Twilight Zone

    MUMBAI: Christopher Nolan, who directed The Dark Knight and director and Transformers 2 maker Michael Bay are being seriously considered to direct The Twilight Zone.


    The production house is looking for a perfect director to helm a forthcoming film project based on television anthology series The Twilight Zone.To accomplish the goal, the studio has been eyeing several high-profile directors to fill the part, it is understood.


    The 2011 edition of Cinema by the Bay opens with Joshua Moore‘s heartfelt debut feature I Think It‘s Raining, includes screenings of dynamic new films by leading filmmakers and is capped with the latest celebration of Bay Area innovators, Essential SF.


    It has come to light that Nolan is currently on top of the priority list and as for Bay, it is rumored that he showed interest in the script. The only obstacle is that he is now concentrating on Pain and Gain.


    Other directors who are also being considered include Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban director Alfonso Cuaron and Deathly Hallows filmmaker David Yates.


     The Twilight Zone will be produced by Leonardo DiCaprio along with Jennifer Davisson Killoran and Michael Ireland.

  • Cinema By The Bay at San Francisco from 3 to 6 Nov

    Cinema By The Bay at San Francisco from 3 to 6 Nov

    MUMBAI: The San Francisco Film Society will present the third annual ‘Cinema by the Bay‘ (CBTB) from 3 to 6 November at the San Francisco Film Society | New People Cinema. The four-day festival will feature new work produced in or about the San Francisco Bay Area provide a compelling window into Bay Area film culture and practice at its best.

    Cinema by the Bay celebrates the passion, innovation and diversity of Bay Area filmmaking, the intelligence and probing spirit of local directors and the incredible depth and breadth of America‘s film and media frontier.

    The 2011 edition of Cinema by the Bay opens with Joshua Moore‘s heartfelt debut feature I Think It‘s Raining, includes screenings of dynamic new films by leading filmmakers and is capped with the latest celebration of Bay Area innovators, Essential SF.

    Said festival programmers, Audrey Chang and Sean Uyehara, “With Cinema by the Bay entering its third year, we are starting to see the festival grow legs. The Film Society‘s hope for CBTB has always been for it to stand alongside all of our seasonal offerings as a full partner and that has certainly happened. We are excited and pleased to celebrate Bay Area film culture in this way.”

    Cinema by the Bay is an essential element of the Film Society‘s year-round programmes highlighting Bay Area film culture. SFFS has long celebrated films produced in the creative heart of the West, giving Golden Gate Awards to the best Bay Area documentaries and shorts, and five years ago inaugurating a dedicated Cinema by the Bay section in the San Francisco International Film Festival.

  • Hollywood happy of Canadian govt.’s move

    Hollywood happy of Canadian govt.’s move

    MUMBAI: The Canadian government‘s reintroduction of the copyright reform legislation to protect against digital piracy has been welcomed by major Hollywood studios.

    The new rules also proposes to bar anyone from making, importing or selling devices that can break digital locks.
    The proposed legislation also seeks to distinguish between personal and commercial use of recorded TV, radio and online content by Canadians.

    "We support the government‘s commitment to give copyright owners the tools they need to combat online content theft, and promote creativity, innovation and legitimate business models," Wendy Noss, executive director of the Motion Picture Association of Canada, Hollywood‘s point-person in Canada, has been quoted to have said.

    Also lining up to applaud the Canadian government‘s move were Canadian exhibitors, major US music labels and video game developers.

    At the same time, Canadian ISPs that fail to retain subscriber traffic records or to forward notices to suspected pirates will be liable for civil damages if Bill C-11 passes through Parliament into law.

    Ottawa‘s latest proposed copyright reform legislation very much falls in line with U.S.-style protections against piracy. Bill C-11, for example, proposes to bar Canadians from picking a digital lock on music, film or any entertainment product protected from duplication.

    This move is a departure from a Canadian legal tradition that stopped short of pursuing consumers that use circumvention devices to access or copy content as Ottawa looked to balance the interests of consumers and copyright holders.

     The Bill will now move through the committee stage of Parliament in Ottawa and undergo likely amendments, before a vote is taken on whether to pass the legislation into law, likely by the end of the year.