Category: Movies

MUMBAI: UTV Motion Pictures‘ Telugu co-production with Krishna Productions, Athidhi has opened to record box-office collections across Andhra Pradesh.

ANTALYA (Turkey): Eminent filmmaker Shekhar Kapur, whose Elizabeth: The Golden Age was the opening film of the Third International Eurasia Film Festival, received a special honour for his contribution to cinema.

Kapur‘s Oscar-winning Elizabeth I had also been screened in Antalya some years earlier. The festival held from 19-28 October featured the premieres of more that 80 international films.

Both the opening and the closing films of the Third International Eurasia Film Festival, the international section of 44th Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival, had an Indian presence though neither is an Indian film. Apart from Elizabeth: The Golden Age, the opening film Ang Lee‘s Lust, Caution stars Indian actor Anupam Kher in a short role.

Though there was only one entry from India in the Festival, Frozen by Shivajee Chandrabhushan, the Indian presence could also be seen in some other films – the Franco-British Far North directed by India-born Asif Kapadia; and the American-British co-production A Mighty Heart by Michael Winterbottom stars Archie Panjabi of Indian origin and Bollywood actor Irrfan Khan.

The other Indian presence was in terms of Neel Chaudhuri, who has earlier been the deputy editor of the Cinemaya Asian film quarterly published from Delhi. He was a member of the critics‘ jury.

Meanwhile, Youth without Youth by Francis Ford Coppola screened as a gala screening, has been partly shot in India.

The Turkish film Egg by Semih Kaplanoglu which was competing in both the International Eurasia Film Festival as well as the 44th Antalya Golden Orange Filmfest, bagged the maximum number of awards – eight – including the Netpac jury award, which it shared with Under the Bombs (Sous Les Bombes) by Phillipe Aractingi.

This is the first time that the Network for Promotion of Asian Cinema has instituted this award in the Eurasia Festival. A French-British-Lebanese co-production, Under the Bombs‘ also won the Critics‘ Award.

The Best Film award in the international section went to The Band‘s Visit by Eran Kolirin which is an Israel-French co-production.

The best director award went to Abdellatatif Kechiche for the French film The Secret of the Grain (La Graine et le Mulet). You – The Living by Roy Andersson of Sweden won a special jury award.

MUMBAI: Subhash Ghai-promoted Mukta Arts has agreed to buy 50.01 per cent stake in Manish Goswami‘s newly started movie company at par value.

MUMBAI: UTV has launched its Hollywood and world cinema home video collection with five titles from the Miramax library.

MUMBAI: Conversion to digital projection systems is the way ahead and the film exhibition industry is unanimous on this.This was the prime inference drawn in a panel discussion on ‘Digital Cinema‘ at the IBE Expo 2007.

Electronovision Consulting principal partner Patrick von Sychowski kickstarted the discussion with a presentation outlining an introduction to digital cinema worldwide.

Sychowski, who is currently consultant to Adlabs for its planned chain of digital cinemas, said that the US currently leads in total number of digital screens (3642), followed by Europe (703) and Asia (294). “99 per cent of all these installations use the 2K image projectors,” he said, while asserting that digitalisation which started in 1999, has seen a rapid growth worldwide post 2004.

The discussion then veered towards the scenario in India in which the panel consisting of chief players in the digital exhibition scenario expressed their views on the current and future projections for growth.

Cinemeta Entertainment CEO Raj Grover said, “We intend to get into metros and tier-I, tier-II cities across the country. A chain of about 50 cinemas is in the pipeline across Gujarat, wherein we are acquiring single theatres, thus taking up their complete management rights. Currently, we are in the process of choosing the right format and standard for projection.”

Real Image which started off as audio and post-production has also become a significant player in South India, thanks to their Qube technology. Director Senthil Kumar said, “Although digital cinema is in the transition phase, it is driving local and national advertisers to this medium. It‘s helping them target audiences better. This meanwhile, is also helping us evolve a territory specific business models like we have done in Tamil Nadu.”

UFO Moviez CTO Makarand Karanjkar however adopted a different stance. He said that UFO is an infrastructure provider and a facilitator between the distributor and exhibitor to make their business viable, cutting down costs significantly for them. “We figured out the business model first and then made the technology work for us,” he said.

IBE Expo convenor Anil Chopra said that digitalisation has brought in a certain uniformity in the fragmented film exhibition business. “The viability of the market is such that it is resulting in savings, thus driving growth in India. B and C class theatres, with shoddy projection systems are embracing digitalisation with open arms. Not only does this allow them to release films on the same day across the country, but it‘s also saving on costs.”

When asked about the digital standard to be adopted, Kumar asserted, “India cannot afford the Hollywood approved DCI. There is certainly room for a second standard.” The exhibition business has already seen much debate over Dolby, DTS and SDDS, he pointed out.

UFO‘s Karanjkar, however, cautioned, “We must consider whether there is an agenda to the deployment of a new standard or whether it is merely a gatekeeping exercise.”

MUMBAI: SET has acquired exclusive world satellite rights of five movies from Yash Raj Films.Chak De India, Tara Rum Pum, Jhoom Barabar Jhoom, the recently released Laaga Chunari Main Daag and the much anticipated comeback film of Madhuri Dixit Aaja Nachle are the YRF offerings SET has picked up.

Commenting on the acquisition SET India CEO Kunal Dasgupta says, “These acquisitions underline the fact that we believe in bringing only the biggest and the best of entertainment to our viewers. This also reaffirms the strong relationship we share with eminent producer-director Yash Chopra since well over a decade. We are proud that the association continues on and here’s hoping for many more!”

Says Yash Chopra, “I have shared an excellent relationship with SET over the last 11 years and in continuation of that association we have finalized this five film deal with SET.”

MUMBAI: Shemaroo Entertainment released the comedy hit Dhamaal in DVD format for Rs 199 and the VCD for Rs 49. This comedy has brought the hit ‘jodi‘ of ‘Munnabhai‘ fame – Sanjay Dutt and Arshad Warsi – together once again.

The DVD has bonus features which includes – making of the film and cast and crew interviews. The story revolves around four friends who live and work together, where their idea of work is doing small time con jobs.

Considering that the film has mass appeal, the affordable pricing may be an attractive bargain for home viewers.

MUMBAI: The first meeting of the Organizing Committee for IFFI-2007 was held on 25 October under the chairmanship of information & broadcasting minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi. The meeting deliberated on the various issues related to IFFI-2007 and reviewed the level of preparedness for the event.

The organising committee took the following decisions:

The opening and closing functions will be simple and elegant in keeping with the practice in most of the prestigious international film festivals. The focus will be on the opening and closing film. There will be no entertainment programme at these functions. The awards ceremony will be held at the closing function. This would be followed by the screening of the closing film.

Two new theatres with a seating capacity of 300 seats are being built in the Festival Complex. Two public theatres are being upgraded and provided with the latest projection facilities, thereby making another 400 seats available for the festival.

The total number of delegates that may be registered has been fixed in proportion to the availability of theatre seats.

The registration system for all delegates has been made completely on-line. Delegate cards will be prepared well in advance so that there are no long queues at the registration counter.

For the first time a ticketing system has been introduced whereby every delegate will have to book in advance for any films that he/she would like to see. A maximum of three tickets for every delegate and five for every media person will be issued.

The delegate registration fee for late registration has been considerably enhanced to Rs 1000. Students, will however, be given a concession of 50 per cent.

The Indian Panorama will have 21 features and 15 non-feature films selected by a peer Jury headed by KS Sethumadhavan, and Arun Khopkar respectively. Indian Retrospectives will showcase Retrospective on the films of Tapan Sinha and Vijay Anand. Homages section will focus on Cinematographer KK Mahajan, actress Vanamala Devi and music director OP Nayyar.

Among the highlights of foreign section are, 14 feature films from Asia, Africa and Latin America in the Competition Section. Cinema of the World will have about 60 award winning feature films from 40 countries.

Master Classes, Technical Retrospective. Foreign Retrospectives and Country Focus will be the other features of IFFI-2007.

For the first time, two programmers from the Goa government will be curating for IFFI with two separate sections called – India 60 which will celebrate India‘s 60th anniversary with three feature films and two documentary films and a retrospective package on Volker Schlondorff, the eminent German film maker.

The Film Market will be organized by NFDC with the participation of CII and FICCI. The NFDC is organizing a buyer‘s lounge and co production market. FICCI is organizing a seminar and master class on animation and visual effects. CII will organise ‘The Big Picture‘ Conference.

A new initiative is being undertaken by NFDC in partnership with DFF where international consultants and experts will advise and work with selected filmmakers to develop scripts of international quality.

MUMBAI: Four films release this Friday, 26 October. No Smoking directed by Anurag Kashyap, Jab We Met by Imtiaz Ali, Mumbai Salsa by Manoj Tyagi and Bal Ganesh. And that‘s going to be a tough one for audiences. How does one make the right choice? Will it be John Vs Shahid? Or Kareena Vs Ayesha? Will it be Anurag Vs Imtiaz?

Indiantelevision.com did a swot analysis to try and come up with some answers. What three of the films have in common is that new-age directors are helming them. Though of course, Anurag leads the pack, already having proved his talent with a film like Black Friday.

No Smoking is touted as a progressive film whereas Jab We Met is a romantic comedy and Mumbai Salsa offers a funny look at dysfunctional relationships in young corporate India.

But what weighs in favour of Jab We Met is the lead pair in a romantic film. The festive season is on and people are in the mood for feel-good cinema. Also the curiosity surrounding the lead pair‘s personal relationship may get audiences to the theatres.

Yet another commonality being that though all of them have been made with modest budgets, they have been very cleverly marketed. No Smoking remains in the news for its share of contests and what with John Abraham‘s appearances at all the related events, interest level in the film is sustained.

As for Jab We Met, Shahid‘s recent train ride has been splashed across all media properties. The lead pair‘s appearances on television musical shows has also worked in the film‘s favour.

Mumbai Salsa in this respect is lagging behind but word has it that the film will get its share of the pie as the story of the film is well-etched out. But the biggest downer could be the absolutely raw talent in the form of eight newcomers who make their appearance in the film. The only exception being Indraneil Sengupta, the television hottie who plays a vital role in the film.

And as these three films vie for a lion‘s share, an animated Bal Ganesh (directed by Pankaj Sharma) too, decides to release on the same day. What with the Diwali holidays on, this film may well manage to lure young kids to theatres.

And as the battle hots up one still doesn‘t know who will lift the box office ‘World Cup‘. With two blockbusters (Saawariya and Om Shanti Om) set to steamroll their way into theatres on 9 November, the end of the year could prove to be an indicator of times to come.

Will the biggies leave everything, including turnstile records, in their wake? Or will it be a filmy equivalent of a Zimbabwe or Bangladesh that walks away with the box office spoils this festive season? There‘s at least one film lovers‘ blog that has put its money on the minnows.

ANTALYA: Renowned Hollywood director Francis Ford Coppola feels there are too many films being made in Hollywood which are either sequels, re-makes or repetitive and this is leading to skyrocketing budgets.
He has therefore been wanting to give a new kind of experience to his viewers and that was the reason for his long hiatus from filmmaking.

Speaking about the extensive use of Sanskrit in his latest film Youth Without Youth screened at the ongoing International Eurasia Film Festival here, he said that tales told in ancient Indian scriptures in Sanskrit are very simple myths in themselves but hold very deep meaning. These tales showed a larger philosophical aspect to life than the western mind often comprehended.

Youth Without Youth (his first movie since The Rainmaker in 1997) has used Sanskrit shlokas and dialogues as a major highlight of the film. The film is a metaphysical story about a 70-year old professor Dominic Matei (played by Tim Roth) who gets magical powers that transform him back to a 30-year old youngster after he is hit by a bolt of lightening on Easter Sunday in 1938.

The Nazis learn about this and want him, and he has to escape by taking on a new identity. And his own dreams of unfulfilled love torment him since he had not been able to marry the woman he had loved in his younger days. This gets fulfilled when he finds a mystical woman who appears to hang between her present and past lives.

Coppola adapted, produced and directed the film based on the 1976 novel by Romanian-born religious historian and philosopher Mircea Eliade. The film also stars Alexandra Maria Lara, Bruno Ganz, Andre M Hennicke, Marcel Iures, and introduces Alexandra Pirici while Matt Damon makes a special appearance.

Speaking about the research involved and the extensive use of Sanskrit and the shooting experiences in India, Coppola said that Mircea Eliade was a renowned Orientalist. The film, which has been shot mostly in Romania, also has some sequences shot in Mumbai.

“While writing a screenplay, I was also assessing my own place in cinema. I was already 65 and did not know what my place was and what I should do,” he said earlier, addressing a press conference.

When he saw the story by Mircea Eliade, he thought it was like the story of Faust and he liked the interesting ideas of existence, and re-birth.