ITV

Category: International

  • Iron Man 3 creates 2000 jobs in N. Carolina, $179.8 million in spending

    Iron Man 3 creates 2000 jobs in N. Carolina, $179.8 million in spending

    MUMBAI: A new analysis released on the economic impact of Marvel‘s Iron Man 3 filming in North Carolina finds that the film is responsible for $179.8 million in spending and 2,043 jobs in the state.

    The analysis was conducted by MNP LLP and assesses the economic impact of the production filming in North Carolina between December 2011 and December 2012. The analysis also finds that the production is responsible for $104.1 million in labor income across North Carolina, and that spending associated with the film engaged 719 vendors in 84 communities across the state.

    "These findings are just the latest evidence of the economic benefit that film and television production has meant for North Carolina. Thanks to a reliable and refundable production incentive, North Carolinians have been able to reap the benefits of direct spending and job creation across the state. Marvel‘s Iron Man 3, like so many productions that choose to shoot in North Carolina, generated hundreds of millions of dollars in spending for local businesses in dozens of communities and thousands of jobs for North Carolina workers," said Motion Picture Association of America chairman and CEO Chris Dodd.

    Iron Man 3 received $20 million in support through state tax incentives. This investment by the state resulted in the following economic benefits:

    – $8.99 in economic output for every dollar of tax credit received by the production.
    – $6.50 in gross state product for every dollar of tax credit received by the production.
    – 102 full-time equivalent positions for every $1 million in tax credit received by the production.
    – $5.20 in labor income for every dollar of tax credit received by the production.

    In addition, several of the businesses hired directly by the production have reported the film to have had a significant effect during the filming period. For example, Master Craftsmen Services, a furniture restoration company, reported to WRAL that Iron Man 3 represented 10 – 15 per cent of the company‘s business the year in which filming occurred and Tidewater Storage Trailers reported that roughly 10 per cent of its business was generated by the production of Iron Man 3 in the first six months of 2012.

  • Chris O’Dowd to work with Adam Driver in ‘The Coward’

    Chris O’Dowd to work with Adam Driver in ‘The Coward’

    MUMBAI: Chris O‘Dowd popularly known for his performance in "Bridesmaids" will now star opposite Adam Driver in "The Coward", an adaptation of the Nick Jones play being directed by Max Winkler, reported by the Hollywood Reporter.
     
    Big Beach‘s Marc Turtletaub and Peter Saraf are going to look at producing and financing the indie, with Scot Armstrong and Ravi Nandan‘s American Work Inc. also co-producing the feature film.
     
    O‘Dowd worked with Driver on HBO‘s ‘Girls‘ and is starring in the cable channel‘s Christopher Guest show ‘Family Tree‘, which debuts in May.
     
    The actor also will appear in ‘Thor: The Dark World‘, now in postproduction, and is set to shoot the indie ‘St. Vincent de Van Nuys‘ with Bill Murray.

  • DreamWorks Experience to unveil in Macao, China

    DreamWorks Experience to unveil in Macao, China

    MUMBAI: As part of a new partnership between DreamWorks Animation and Sands China, the studio will debut its DreamWorks Experience at the Sands Cotai central resort in Macao beginning 1 July. With the new license agreement, popularly known characters Shrek the ogre, Po the panda and other characters will appear, as reported by the Hollywood Reporter.
     
    The DreamWorks Experience will see characters from Kung Fu Panda, How to Train Your Dragon, Shrek and Madagascar attending events, shows and other offerings throughout Cotai strip resorts on the Sands Cotai Central and the Venetian Macao properties. It is supported on a wide range by the Macao Government tourist office.
     
    "All of us at DreamWorks Animation are excited to bring the DreamWorks Experience to this amazing integrated resort city," said DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg.
     
    "Sands China is pleased to bring the hugely popular DreamWorks Experience to Macao," said Sands China president and CEO Edward Tracy.

  • Baseball player turned actor Brad Lesley dies at 54

    Baseball player turned actor Brad Lesley dies at 54

    MUMBAI: Brad Lesley nicknamed as "The Animal" died on 27 April due to kidney failure in Marina del Rey at the age of 54.
     
    Lesley was seen in movies like ‘Mr. Baseball‘, ‘Little Big League‘ and ‘Space Jam‘. His ex-wife Chiho Svimonoff told the media that he had been living in a nursing home for the past seven months, where he was receiving dialysis.
     
    Lesley was a former major league baseball player for the Cincinnati Reds and Milwaukee Brewers from 1982-1985. He later became a television personality in Japan after playing two seasons for the Hankyu Braves. The Japanese loved his style.
     
    He was known for his well-known performances such as Ajimaru "Animal" Resry in the Japanese game show, Takeshi‘s Castle where he would participate in such games as "Devil‘s Domain", "Stuck Up" and his own game "Animal Bang".
     
    Lesley also worked in the films A Boy Called Hate (1995), Buddy (1997), Big Monster on Campus (2000), Brother (2000) and the FX series Son of the Beach (2001).

  • Cox Communications Launches The Full MOVIEPLEX Multi-Platform Experience

    Cox Communications Launches The Full MOVIEPLEX Multi-Platform Experience

    MUMBAI: Cox Communications has launched the full suite of MOVIEPLEX premium movie services from Starz. It now offers all three Starz authenticated online services for Cox Advanced TV Subscribers – STARZ PLAY, ENCORE PLAY, and MOVIEPLEX PLAY. It Offers more than 200 distinct commercial-free movies every month, making MOVIEPLEX a popular premium that offers from Starz complementing its other flagship premium services, STARZ and ENCORE.
     
    The new launch expands the Cox premium offerings from Starz. In October 2012, Cox was the first distributor to launch STARZ PLAY and ENCORE PLAY as extensions of its robust STARZ and ENCORE premium offerings.
     
    "Movies are consistently popular with Cox subscribers and we are very pleased to be able to add the MOVIEPLEX channel and on-demand and online offerings to our lineup," commented executive vice president Len Barlik , product management and development for Cox Communications.
     
    "MOVIEPLEX PLAY is a great addition to STARZ PLAY and ENCORE PLAY for Cox. These TV Everywhere premium services further increase the value of what we offer Cox TV Online and Cox High Speed Internet Bundle customers. Now, they can watch even more of their favorite premium movies anytime, anywhere, as part of the Cox Bundle. Cox has done a terrific job in aggressively launching our new TV Everywhere PLAY services, and we are delighted to expand our offerings with them and provide even greater movie content for its subscribers with MOVIEPLEX," stated president Ed Huguez , affiliate distribution for Starz.
     
    The current and upcoming MOVIEPLEX titles include:
    Ghostbusters
    Ghostbusters II
    Babe
    The Net
    I Know What You Did Last Summer
    Jack
    Spaceballs
    Donnie Brasco
    Ransom
    The Jerk
    La Bamba
    To Live And Die In L.A.
    The River Wild
    Sense And Sensibility
    The Jackal
    Scent Of A Woman
    Red Dawn
    Married To The Mob
    Wag The Dog
    Wolf
    The English Patient
     
    It has no additional monthly charges for the Cox customers who have MOVIEPLEX as a part of their video subscription, MOVIEPLEX ON DEMAND and MOVIEPLEX PLAY provide on-demand and online viewing options for Cox subscribers to enjoy the quality commercial-free movies offered on the MOVIEPLEX services.
     
    MOVIEPLEX PLAY offers robust online access to the best of the quality movie content offered on MOVIEPLEX. With a simple and intuitive layout and design, the application offers a new way to enjoy the wide range of premium content offered on the MOVIEPLEX channels and services. Resume functionality allows the user to seamlessly pick up from where they left off in watching a great movie or TV show on any registered device in the account.
     
    It also features easy set-up of parental controls provides families with options for limiting content accessibility. Menus, screens and commands are optimised for touchscreens to provide a fun, but efficient, means to drop down and swipe through the quality content selection and viewership controls. Facebook and Twitter integrations let fans talk socially about movies just viewed on MOVIEPLEX PLAY.

  • Iron Man 3 sets screen ablaze in overseas market

    Iron Man 3 sets screen ablaze in overseas market

    MUMBAI: Marvel Studios and Disney‘s Iron Man 3 has set the cash registers ringing in the overseas, opening to $195.3 million from 42 markets to beat last year‘s worldwide blockbuster The Avengers, which debuted to $185.1 million globally, revealed The Hollywood Reporter.
     
    Iron Man 3, which has been well received by critics so far, is playing in roughly 80 per cent of the foreign marketplace, excluding major markets Russia and China, where DMG Entertainment put up some of the financing.
     
    The tentpole broke numerous records for 113 IMAX theaters, which took in $7.2 million for a per screen average of $64,000, coming in ahead of any Marvel title, including Avengers.
     
    Box office observers agree that Iron Man 3 is playing more like a sequel to last summer‘s The Avengers — which featured a myriad of Marvel superheroes, including Robert Downey Jr.‘s Iron Man — than a follow-up to Iron Man 2, which posted a foreign opening of roughly $100 million in 2010.
     
    Disney president of worldwide distribution Dave Hollis didn‘t want to guess as to whether Iron Man 3 could reach that number but said the film is clearly off to a stellar start. "To say we are beyond encouraged is an understatement," he stated.
     
    Iron Man 3, another victory for Marvel Studios‘ president Kevin Feig, is breaking a slew of records overseas, scoring the biggest opening weekend ever Asia Pacific and Latin America, and in individual countries including Argentina, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Vietnam, Taiwan, Philippines, Malaysia and Singapore. It also scored the top Marvel opening in another raft of markets.
     
    Teaming Downey with franchise newcomer, Director Shane Black, Iron Man 3 was released at the international box office ahead of its May 3 North American launch, as Iron Man 2 did in 2010. Gwyneth Paltrow and Don Cheadle also are returning cast members.
     
    It saw its biggest gross in the U.K. ($21.5 million), followed by Korea ($19.2 million), Australia ($18.4 million), Mexico ($16.1 million), France ($14.7 million), Brazil ($12.3 million), Italy ($11.2 million), Taiwan ($8.4 million), Philippines ($7.4 million), Japan ($5.4 million), India ($5.2 million), Spain ($5 million), Hong Kong ($4.9 million), Malaysia ($4.6 million) and Indonesia ($4.5 million), among other markets.

  • Helen Mirren crowned top actress at top UK theatre awards

    Helen Mirren crowned top actress at top UK theatre awards

    NEW DELHI: Dame Helen Mirren was crowned best actress at Britain‘s Olivier awards on Sunday for her portrayal of the Queen Elizabeth. A stage version of a novel about a boy with autism was on track to be the top winner of the Olivier awards.
     
    Mirren, 67, has won stellar reviews for starring in "The Audience", Peter Morgan‘s play about the private weekly meetings between Queen Elizabeth and the 12 British prime ministers during the six decades of her reign.
     
    She is no stranger to royalty having won an Academy award for the same role in the 2006 film "The Queen".
     
    The actress said the queen certainly deserved an Olivier award after receiving one of Britain‘s most prestigious entertainment honours, a BAFTA, earlier this month for her support for the film and television industry.
     
    "I think she deserves one for the most committed and consistent performance of the 20th century and probably the 21st century," said Mirren on accepting the award from Harry Potter actor Daniel Radcliffe.
     
    Her co-star, Richard McCabe, won the award for best supporting actor for playing the prime minister Howard Wilson.
     
    But the biggest winner of the 37th Olivier awards was the play "The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time" that opened at the National Theatre in London in 2012 and transferred to London‘s West End theatre district this year.
     
    The play, based on Mark Haddon‘s 2003 award-winning novel, was nominated for eight awards and picked up several in the first half of the glitzy awards ceremony at London‘s Royal Opera House.
     
    Luke Treadaway won the best actor award for playing 15-year-old Christopher, a maths prodigy with autism who sets out to solve the mystery of who killed his neighbour‘s dog.

  • Iron Man 3 rakes in the even before its US release

    Iron Man 3 rakes in the even before its US release

    MUMBAI: The third installment in Marvel’s Iron Man series is breaking records in many markets as reported by the Hollywood Reporter.

    The Robert Downey Jr starrer has continued to give a strong performance since Thursday when it opened in supplementary foreign markets, grossing $23.3 million to bump its two-day international total to an astounding $36.5 million.

    The Disney  and Marvel Studios tent-pole, returning Downey in the title role, is racing ahead of Iron Man 2 in many international markets, prompting box-office observers to speculate that the ‘threequel‘ is benefiting mightily from last year‘s mega blockbuster The Avengers, which starred Downey‘s character along with other Marvel superheroes.

    Iron Man 3 is opening internationally a week ahead of its North American debut on 3 May, similar to Iron Man 2, which posted a foreign opening of about $100 million in 2010. Pundits expect Iron Man 3 to post a foreign opening north of $110 million.

    The superhero franchise rolled out in a dozen countries on Wednesday, making $13.2 million. On Thursday, it opened in another raft of markets. In Korea, the movie opened to $3 million — the third-biggest opening of all time behind the final Pirates of the Caribbean movie and the third Transformers.

    Iron Man 3 opened to $3.6 million in the UK, just 9 per cent behind Avengers. while in Argentina, it opened to $700,000, the second-biggest debut of all time behind the final Harry Potter movie.

    By Sunday, the threequel will be playing in 80 per cent of the international marketplace, minus the U.S., China and Russia. Disney said on Friday that the Chinese release date has been shifted from 3 May to 1 May.

  • Jake Gyllenhaal to play a crime reporter in’Nightcrawler’

    Jake Gyllenhaal to play a crime reporter in’Nightcrawler’

    MUMBAI: The ‘Source Code’ actor Jake Gyllenhaal is set to reprise the role of a freelance L.A. crime reporter in the upcoming directorial debut of Dan Gilroy – Nightcrawler as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.
     
    Gilroy is dabbling into direction after having been a screenwriter for the films Real Steel and The Bourne Legacy. Rene Russo, Gilroy‘s wife, is set to co-star in the movie.
     
    Sierra/Affinity will handle international sales on the project at the upcoming Cannes Film Market, with WME Global and CAA representing North American rights. Filming will begin in late October.
     
    Tony Gilroy (Dan’s brother) and Jennifer Fox, who collaborated on Michael Clayton, Duplicity and theBourne series, will produce along with Gyllenhaal.
     
    Michel Litvak and David Lancaster also will produce as well as finance through their Bold Films banner. Gary Michael Walters will serve as executive producer.
     
    The project will include editor John Gilroy (also a brother of Dan and Tony) and cinematographer Robert Elswit.

  • Brian Grazer set to receive Lifetime Achievement Award from PromaxBDA

    Brian Grazer set to receive Lifetime Achievement Award from PromaxBDA

    MUMBAI: Oscar and Emmy award winning producer, Brian Grazer is set to receive the lifetime achievement trophy at PromaxBDA’s upcoming conference as reported exclusively by the Hollywood Reporter.

    Grazer will be given the award onstage during a conversation by Piers Morgan, host of CNN’s Piers Morgan Live.

    “From Splash to Arrested Development, Grazer is one of Hollywood‘s most prominent television producers and filmmakers and has consistently transformed the content landscape with his innovative films and series,” said PromaxBDA president and CEO Jonathan Block-Verk.

    As a writer and producer, Grazer has been nominated for four Academy awards and won the best picture for Oscar A Beautiful Mind in 2002. The movie also earned Grazer the inaugural Awareness Award from the National Mental Health Awareness Campaign.

    Grazer, a longtime partner with Ron Howard in Imagine Entertainment, has also won Emmys as executive producer of 24 (best drama series), Arrested Development (best comedy) and From the Earth to the Moon (best miniseries).

    Over the years, films and TV shows in which Grazer had been a part of was nominated for a total of 43 Oscars and 149 Emmys.

    "I’m honored to accept the 2013 PromaxBDA Lifetime Achievement Award," Grazer said. "For the last three decades, I have been able to share my vision as a filmmaker and a producer while doing something that I truly love and for this I am grateful," he added.