ITV

Category: International

  • AFTRA president re-elected for two-year term

    MUMBAI: Roberta Reardon was unanimously re-elected for a second two-year term as national president of the American Federation of Television & Radio Artists (AFTRA) at the union‘s biennial national convention in Chicago last Saturday.

    All revenue raised as a result of the fee increase has been exclusively designated for organising efforts to increase employment opportunities for union performers and broadcasters.


    The three-day 62nd National Convention, held at the Hyatt Regency, also saw the re-election of national first vp Bob Edwards, a satellite radio host from Washington; second national vp Ron Morgan, an actor from Los Angeles; national treasurer Matt Kimbrough, a Los Angeles actor; and national recording secretary Lainie Cooke, a New York actor.


    All officers serve two-year terms. AFTRA‘s next national convention will be held in 2011 in Seattle, followed by Washington in 2013.

  • TIFF announces 18 intl titles for fest schedule

    MUMBAI: The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) to be held in September has announced the names of 18 international films to screen at the festival.

    Of them, eleven will be part of the fest‘s ‘Contemporary World Cinema‘ programme that will represent “an annual snapshot of trends in world cinema” while several of them contain stories of children and adolescents like Blessed, Heiran and Down For Life.

    Seven other films included in TIFF‘s “challenging, boundary-pushing” vision programme include I Am Love, Hiroshima and Trash Humpers.

  • Australian arts site mistakenly hacked: MFF

    MUMBAI: The organizers of the Melbourne Film Festival (MFF) have said that hackers who were protesting against the visit of exiled Uighur leader Rebiya Kadeer to Australia mistakenly crashed the website of an arts festival with a similar name.

    A group known as Global Hack Attack hijacked the Melbourne International Art Festival‘s site and replaced the home page with a Chinese flag and message condemning Kadeer.

    Festival general manager Vivia Hickman said that she suspected the attack had mistakenly been directed at their site instead of the Melbourne International Film Festival that was to be attended by Kadeer.

    Hackers have already hit the film festival‘s site twice in protest against the screening of Kadeer biopic Ten Conditions of Love and her associated visit. The US-based leader of the World Uighur Congress, who China blames for inciting riots in Xinjiang region which killed at least 197 people last month, arrived here Tuesday despite strong protests from Beijing.

  • Jay Chou fills in for Stephen Chow in ‘Green Hornet’

    MUMBAI: In Columbia Pictures‘ forthcoming film version of The Green Hornet,” to be directed by Michel Gondry, pop star Jay Chou has been signed up to team up with Seth Rogen. Chou will play the role of Kato after Stephen Chow.

    The Green Hornet that will have a screenplay written by Rogen and Evan Goldberg will be produced by Neal H. Moritz and is slated for release in 2010.


    Chou has promised to essay the role that was made famous by Bruce Lee but won‘t imitate him.

  • Lifetime acquires cable rights of three Sony films

    MUMBAI: Lifetime Networks has acquired exclusive basic cable rights to three Sony pics: the drama Obsessed, The Ugly Truth and Julie & Julia. The three films are slated for a TV premiere two years later in 2011 on Lifetime and Lifetime Movie Network.

    Though the details on the deal were not disclosed, the license fee for these films is expected to land in the $20 million-$30 million range depending on the final tally for Truth and Julia.


    Julia that stars Meryl Streep is expecting a $20 million opening weekend.


    While Truth has grossed $60 million to date, Obsessed amassed $68.3 million in its box-office run.


    Interestingly, Lifetime also has a library of female-oriented features that include Bridget Jones‘s Diary, Bend It Like Beckham, Because I Said So, Beauty Shop, Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and You‘ve Got Mail.

  • ‘Home Alone’ maker John Hughes dies at 59

    MUMBAI: Chicago-based filmmaker, known for films like Sixteen Candles (1984), The Breakfast Club (1985) and Ferris Bueller‘s Day Off (1986) expired yesterday of a heart attack in New York. He was 59.

    Hughes suffered the heart attack while taking a morning walk while visiting family members in Manhattan, his representatives said. His biggest box-office success was Home Alone which he wrote and produced. The comedy incidentally grossed $285.8 million and had two sequels following.


    Working as an advertising copywriter, he began writing short stories, magazine articles and jokes for stand-up comedians like Rodney Dangerfield. He was eventually became the editor at National Lampoon.


    Hughes made his directorial debut the following year with Universal‘s Sixteen Candles that starred Ringwald as a resilient teen whose family forgets her 16th birthday. Hughes followed up with Breakfast Club in which a group of high school misfits discover common ground while serving detention. Later he directed Weird Science in which two high school nerds create the women of their dreams.

  • Fox on look out for Abdul replacment

    MUMBAI: The makers of ‘American Idol‘ are on the search of a replacement for Paula Abdul before the series begins airing January next. This was stated by Fox network‘s entertainment chairman Peter Rice.

    While Victoria Beckham and Katy Perry are booked for the judge‘s seat, other guest judges would be announced soon. Fox has lined up guest judges comprising female pop stars and performers to sit in for Abdul while it looks out for contestants.


  • Ed Bernero to launch TV Production Company

    MUMBAI: Ed Bernero, executive producer of Criminal Minds has inked a two-year deal with ABC Studios. Under the pact, Bernero is going to launch a TV production company by the name of Bernero Productions for which he has taken Rob Kim as his partner.

    Under the ABC Studios pact, Bernero will remain show-runner on Minds and develop series projects.


    Incidentally, Bernero was a cop in Chicago for 10 years before he headed to Hollywood in 1996 where he co-created and executive produced the NBC series Third Watch before helming Minds.

  • Police seize 35,000 pirated DVDs in Sydney

    MUMBAI: Police and investigators from the Australian Federation Against Copyright Theft (AFACT) raided two video stores in Campsie and Fairfield, Sydney where pirated movies were allegedly being sold for $10 each. The raid yielded 35,000 pirated DVDs.

    The police also seized over 20,000 DVDs, two computers, 22 DVD-R burners and two printers from the two shops and a house where too the act of piracy was in progress. The seized DVDs included infringing copies of Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince and The Hangover.

  • Niki Caro to helm ‘Buttercup’

    MUMBAI: Director Niki Caro has been asked to helm Buttercup being produced by Michael London‘s Groundswell Productions. Brian Koppelman and David Levien who had written Ocean‘s Thirteen.


    Despite the dramatic subject matter, the project contains elements of comedy that humanize the protagonists.


    Earlier too London, Koppelman and Levien had got together for the The Illusionist. Recently, Koppelman and Levien directed Solitary Man.