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Category: Movies

  • Ten projects selected for 13th Fast Track film financing market at LA Film Festival

    Ten projects selected for 13th Fast Track film financing market at LA Film Festival

    NEW DELHI: Ten projects were selected today for participation in the 13th annual Fast Track film financing market organized by Film Independent.

     

    Held during the Los Angeles Film Festival, Fast Track is designed to help producer-director teams “fast track” their projects forward through sixty meetings with top industry executives–financiers, agents, managers, distributors, granting organizations, and production companies. During three days of intensive meetings, participants gain valuable exposure and build vital relationships as they propel their films towards completion.

     

    Fast Track is supported by Film Independent Artist Development lead funder Time Warner Foundation, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, NEA Art Works, EFILM, Loyola Marymount University School of Film and Television, and Netflix.

     

    “We are thrilled to bring this group of visionary filmmakers together with such esteemed industry executives at the 2015 Los Angeles Film Festival. Our annual Fast Track finance market is a unique opportunity for filmmakers to gain critical support for their films, and for the executives to discover some of the outstanding talent that Film Independent curates and develops year-round through our Artist Development initiatives. This year’s projects are truly exceptional,” said Film Independent director of artist development Jennifer Kushner.

     

    Film Independent presented two Alfred P. Sloan grants to support films that explore science and technology themes or that depict scientists, engineers and mathematicians in engaging and innovative ways at the annual Fast Track Welcome Dinner.

     

    Film Independent’s inaugural Alfred P. Sloan Distribution Grant was awarded to Michael Almereyda’s Experimenter produced by Uri Singer, Fabio Golombek, Isen Robbins, and Aimee Schoof. The filmmakers will receive $50,000 in funds to support the release of the film. Experimenter premiered at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival and was acquired by Magnolia Pictures with a release planned for fall 2015. Additionally, the sixth annual Alfred P. Sloan Fast Track Grant, a $20,000 production grant, was awarded to writer/director Elena Greenlee and producer Márcia Nunes for their narrative fiction film in development, Dark Forest.

     

    The ten projects shortlisted are: A Paso de Mangles by co-writer/director Paola Mendoza; Dark Forest by writer/director Elena Greenlee; Ethel by producer Anil Baral; First Match by producers Chanelle Elaine and Veronica Nickel; Give Me Liberty (writer/producer/director Kirill Mikhanovsky); Last Call (documentary) by director/producer Lana Wilson; Millie to the Moon by director Jen McGowan; Shot in the Dark (documentary) by director Dustin Nakao Haider; The Bad Kids (documentary) by director Lou Pepe; and Wild Nights by director Kyle Henry.

     

    Current industry participants include: Alchemy, Amasia Entertainment, Amazon Studios, And So It Begins Entertainment, Apex Entertainment, Black Label, Bloom Project, Broad Green, CAA, Canana, CBS Films, Chicken & Egg/Gamechanger, Cinedigm, CNN Films, Cold Iron Pictures, Dreambridge Capital, Electric City Entertainment, Electric Entertainment, Endgame Entertainment, Europacorp., Film Finances, Inc., Fluency Studios, Fortitude Int’l/BiFrost, Fox Digital, Fox International Channels, Fox Searchlight, Haven, Heidi Levitt Casting, ICM, Indian Paintbrush, Joanna Colbert Casting, Junto Box Films, Loeb & Loeb, Los Angeles Film Festival, Los Angeles Media Fund, Mosaic, Participant Media, Playback Motion Pictures. Preferred Content, Radiant Films, Rhino Films, River Road, Roadside Attractions, San Francisco Film Society Filmmaker360, Sandbar Pictures, Shoreline Entertainment, Slated, Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions, Straight Up Films, Sundance Documentary Fund, Sundance Institute, Super Crispy Films, The Film Collaborative, Treehouse Pictures, UTA, Vega Baby, Voltage Pictures, WME, and XYZ Films.

  • Scorpions celebrate 50 years of rock with 19th album

    Scorpions celebrate 50 years of rock with 19th album

    MUMBAI: The most successful export from continental Europe with more than 100 million records sold, Scorpions are celebrating 50 years of rock with the release of their 19th studio album, Return To Forever on 11 September, 2015.

     

    Produced by Mikael Nord Andersson and Martin Hansen, the 19-song collection will be available in various formats including digital, Deluxe CD, and vinyl.

     

    The North American configuration boasts three exclusive tracks alongside four bonus tracks previously available only in specific territories. The first single, ‘We Built This House’releases digitally on 3 July, and will be available to fans as an instant-grat for the album preorder, available at Amazon:http://smarturl.it/Scorps_RTF_Amzn and iTunes:http://smarturl.it/scprns_rtf_itns. Scorpions embark on a 16-city North America tour this fall.

     

    “We have been overwhelmed with the amazing response to our new album across the globe and can’t wait to finally release Return To Forever in North America. We have always had such a special connection with our incredible fans and are so excited to get them the new album and return to play live this fall,” said Klaus Meine.

     

    Scorpions have also launched an official D2C store with exciting offerings for fans featuring brand new t-shirt and sweatshirt designs coupled with the CD and Vinyl versions of Return To Forever. Also included in each bundle is an exclusive ‘fanified’poster that will feature every fan’s name on it who pre-orders Return To Forever through the D2C site by 14 August.

     

    Return To Forever celebrates a global return for Scorpions as the album is already available in many parts of the world breaking and remaining in the Top 10 in multiple markets including Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Japan and Switzerland, with continued chart activity in Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Holland, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK.

     

    When Klaus Meine (vocals), Rudolf Schenker (rhythm guitar) and Matthias Jabs (lead guitar) conceived this record, the idea was to revisit their past, recording updated outtakes and unfinished song ideas from their most famous 80’s sessions.

     

    Jabs explains, “There had been quite a few unused songs over the years that were really good, but in the end didn’t make the cut back then due to the limited space on vinyl. We focused on eight songs, which were partly finished which we then recorded from scratch. During the work, new song ideas were
    added. We were having so much fun we suddenly found ourselves in the middle of the songwriting process once again. And in the end, it turned out to be a brand-new Scorpions album after all.”

     

    “In the end, it tells our story. We’ve built this house called Scorpions brick by brick and often quite arduously. From the first days in Hannover, the first concerts abroad, until this very day. We’ve weathered severe storms, but the house withstood everything, turned out to be weatherproof and stable. However, building the house was never just cumbersome, but joyful as well. The joy of music, the joy of having experienced and still experiencing it all, the joy of and the thankfulness for the fan’s affection,” said Meine.

     

    The fact that the 50th band anniversary was coming up, hit Rudolf Schenker rather accidentally. “Not long ago I found an old cash account book of my mom’s, in which she meticulously recorded the earnings and expenses of the band from fifty years ago. My parents had lent me the money for the first equipment back then, so they kept a of record of my earnings so I could pay them back in installments. Fifty years is a long time for a working band. Apart from us, only the Rolling Stones, the Beach Boys and The Who have managed to do it. So the timing for the new album is perfect; We’re celebrating half a century of Scorpions with the record and the upcoming tour,” he said.

     

    Founded in Hannover, West Germany in 1965, Scorpions were part of the first wave of metal in the 1970S with their debut album, Lonesome Crow, released in 1972. The band rose to arena status with seminal releases Lovedrive, Virgin Killer and Animal Magnetism. In the 80S, Scorpions amassed a string of Billboard chart toppers from Love at First Sting and Blackout, including multiple Top 10 singles ‘Rock You Like a Hurricane’and ‘No One Like You’, as well a string of successful singles such as ‘Send Me an Angel’,’Still Loving You’ and ‘Winds of Change.’

     

    Celebrated across the globe, the iconic rock act have sold more than 100 million albums worldwide, and have received multiple honors including World Music Award winners, a postage stamp in Brazil, their Star on Hollywood Rock Walk, Echo honors, most recently they were honored with the Lower Saxon State Award.

     

    Scorpions Return to Forever 50th Anniversary Tour, featuring longtime members Klaus Meine, Rudolf Schenker and Matthias Jabs, alongside James Kottak (drums) and Pawel Maciwoda (bass), kicks off in September 2015 with dates in four continents. For these milestone shows, Scorpions have built a career-spanning setlist of Scorpion’s hits, anthems, ballads and vintage classics. North American dates also feature special guests Queensryche.

  • Sony Music acquires music rights to SRK-Kajol’s ‘Dilwale’

    Sony Music acquires music rights to SRK-Kajol’s ‘Dilwale’

    MUMBAI: Sony Music has acquired the music rights of Rohit Shetty’s Dilwale, which will reunite the iconic couple Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol after five years.

     

    The duo were last seen on the big screen in Karan Johar’s 2010 drama My Name Is Khan, the music rights of which were also with Sony Music.

     

    Sony Music India marketing director Sanujeet Bhujabal said, “Our relationship with India’s romantic couple begins with Kuch Kuch Hota Hai in 1998 to Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham in 2001 then My Name is Khan in 2010. And now in 2015 with Dilwale, it just gets bigger! The music of these blockbuster films have been etched in peoples mind and Dilwale promises more than that. It’s a great opportunity for us to team up with the best in the industry. We together along with Rohit Shetty, Red Chillies and Pritam promise to create a musical storm in 2015 too.”

     

    Produced by Shah Rukh’s Red Chillies Entertainments and Rohit Shetty Productions, Dilwale also stars Varun Dhawan, Kriti Sanon, Boman Irani and Vinod Khanna among others.

  • Katherine Waterston to star opposite Eddie Redmayne in ‘Harry Potter’ spinoff

    Katherine Waterston to star opposite Eddie Redmayne in ‘Harry Potter’ spinoff

    MUMBAI: Katherine Waterston will star opposite Eddie Redmayne in Warner Bros. Pictures’ Harry Potter spinoff Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, set in J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding world.

     

    Waterston will play the pivotal role of Tina, short for Porpentina, a witch who – unlike the beloved characters from Rowling’s Harry Potter books – works her magic in the U.S. She meets magizoologist Newt Scamander (Redmayne) when he stops in New York City on his travels to find and document magical creatures.

     

    Warner Bros. Pictures president of creative development and worldwide production Greg Silverman said, “Katherine Waterston is a rising star, who was a revelation in our film Inherent Vice, earning the praise of both critics and audiences. We are thrilled to have her back in the Warner Bros. family, especially in one of our most anticipated titles for 2016, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.”

     

    David Yates (director of the last four Harry Potter films) will direct from Rowling’s screenplay, inspired by Newt Scamander’s Hogwarts textbook Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.

     

    The film is being produced by David Heyman, producer of all eight Harry Potter features; Rowling; Steve Kloves, who scripted all but one of the Harry Potter films; and Lionel Wigram, who served as an executive producer on the last four installments of the franchise.

     

    Waterston recently starred in Paul Thomas Anderson’s Inherent Vice, for which she shared in an Independent Spirit Award for Best Ensemble. She also stars in the upcoming biopic Steve Jobs, under the direction of Danny Boyle.

     

    Warner Bros. Pictures will release Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them in 3D and Imax on 18 November, 2016.

  • BO: ‘Hamari Adhuri Kahani’ disappoints with Rs 15.8 crore opening weekend

    BO: ‘Hamari Adhuri Kahani’ disappoints with Rs 15.8 crore opening weekend

    MUMBAI: Vishesh Films and the men behind the banner, Mahesh and Mukesh Bhatt are known to follow this sequence of one hit after a couple of flops. And, on that count as well as for the reason that Mahesh Bhatt had penned the script after a gap of almost a decade and a half, expectations were aplenty.

     

    However, Hamari Adhuri Kahani has come as a big disappointment with the film’s main culprits being the story and the scripting.

     

    What’s more, it is a totally regressive film for no reason and at an unjustifiable cost. For a change, critics as well as the audience seem to be on the same side on this one. The film has managed to collect Rs 15.8 crore for its opening weekend.

     

    Dil Dhadakne Do, a pretentious movie about a Delhi Punjabi family trying to put up a show of affluence despite dire situation, does not go well with the audience in general. The film finds patronage in few metros at select multiplexes. The film has many flaws and takes it audience for granted. It creates a number of tracks of various characters including a parallel love story but fails to sum them up in the end. The film has managed to put together Rs 54.4 crore for its first week thanks to lack of any challenging opposition and increased admission rates (which the distributor planned to continue throughout the week instead of the opening weekend as is the practice with major films but relented after the response to the film, which was weak). The film will scrap the bottom after its second weekend.

     

    Tanu Weds Manu Returns is the flavor of the season and the reason is Kangana Ranaut, the force behind the film with her captivating performance in a dual role. While the comparison to the first version may be unfair, which many feel was much better, this one will be five times bigger hit at the box office as things stand. Finally, the figures speak; opinions may differ. The film has an amazing third week befitting a Salman Khan starrer (or better) adding Rs 20.18 crore in its third week to take its three week tally to Rs 138.13 crore for three weeks.

    Piku adds Rs 1.05 crore in its week to take its five-week total to Rs 79.77 crore, whereas Gabbar Is Back collects Rs 30 lakh in its fifth week thus taking its five-week total to Rs 80.05 crore. 

  • Ajay Devgan to lend support to Bulgarian Tourism

    Ajay Devgan to lend support to Bulgarian Tourism

    MUMBAI: After announcing southeastern European country Bulgaria as the shoot location for his next directorial film Shivaay, Ajay Devgn will now promote the country’s tourism.

     

    Devgn and his team are currently in picturesque Bulgaria for the film’s recce.

     

    Being the first within the industry to zero in the exotic location, Bulgaria tourism minister Nikolina Angelkova has announced that the actor-filmmaker will be lending his support to promote Bulgarian tourism. Devgn will take part in local activities and will shoot a promotional video when he returns for the shoot, which will be shown in India.

     

    Devgn said, “The Bulgarian Tourism Ministry has been really supportive to me and my team. To show our appreciation, I will be lending a helping hand to promote Bulgarian tourism. It’s a great initiative.”

     

    Along with directing the film, Devgn is also playing the lead in Shivaay. Sayesha, grandniece of Dilip Kumar and Saira Banu will be seen making her debut with Shivaay. 

  • Christie partners Shanghai International Film Festival

    Christie partners Shanghai International Film Festival

    MUMBAI: Christie will serve as the exclusive digital projection partner for the 18th Shanghai International Film Festival (SIFF) for the seventh consecutive year. 

     

    The Christie Solaria CP4230 DLP 4K Digital Cinema Projector will screen the opening and closing films at the event, which takes place from 13 – 31 June, 2015.

     

    Known as China’s only non-specialized competitive international film festival accredited by the Paris-based Fédération Internationale des Associations de Producteurs de Films (FIAPF), the festival kicked off in style with the screening of veteran Hong Kong director Derek Yee’s new film, I Am Somebody, while China-Russian co-production Ballet in the Flames of War will close the event.

     

    Shot on location at Zhejiang Hengdian World Studios, I Am Somebody is a comedy about the lives of extras working at China’s largest film studio. The film is self-financed by Yee and stars unknowns but has numerous star cameos, including celebrities Daniel Wu and Anita Yuen. On the other hand, closing film Ballet in the Flames of War is a romance set during the Second World War. Directed by China’s Yachun Dong and Russia’s Nikita Mikhalkov, the film opened the Chinese Film Festival in Moscow last month.

     

    Christie Asia Pacific vice president Lin Yu said, “Christie is honored to present this premium movie-screening experience to all the guests at this year’s SIFF. With over 85 years of experience in the movie industry, Christie’s digital cinema projectors have achieved illustrious success in the entertainment industry. Every year, the best film professionals around the world gather in Shanghai for this dazzling event and we are delighted to be associated with the SIFF, which is one of the most prominent film festivals in the world.”

     

    A star-studded lineup of local and international movie celebrities is expected to attend this year’s SIFF red carpet ceremonies, including Gong Li, Zhang Ziyi, Fan Bingbing, Yao Chen, Jackie Chan, Aaron Kwok, Leon Lai, Liu Ye and Eddie Peng.

  • DreamWorks & Technicolor’s VoD platform to offer Bollywood fare

    DreamWorks & Technicolor’s VoD platform to offer Bollywood fare

    MUMBAI: DreamWorks Animation and Technicolor’s video on demand (VOD) JV company M-GO has launched its Bollywood collection comprising a slate of more than two dozen films.

     

    The library of titles, presented in association with Indian film distributor FilmKaravan, features the 2015 release Ek Paheli Leela, starring Sunny Leone.

     

    The reincarnation-themed Ek Paheli Leela, produced by T-Series and distributed by Saavn in North America, is part of an initial assortment of more than two dozen feature Bollywood titles now offered on M-GO, with some available in 4K.

     

    “I am so excited that my fans will now be able to watch Ek Paheli Leela on their favorite digital platforms. I believe in the power of the digital ecosystem and am thrilled that my film will now be available for my fans to watch when they want,” said Leone.

     

    T-Series president Neeraj Kalyan added, “We are proud to be a part of this digital release for our latest title, Ek Paheli Leela on M-GO. Sunny has done an exceptional job and we are glad that this film is the centerpiece of the Indian film category.”

     

    “This partnership with FilmKaravan represents our first concentrated effort to bring even greater variety to our selection of international, foreign language, and independent content. In the increasingly global film community, Bollywood content is incredibly popular with movie fans all over the world, including here in the US,” said M-GO senior vice president of content Cameron Douglas.

     

    “FilmKaravan’s goal is to bring the best of Indian content produced by big studios like Yash Raj Films, Dharma Productions, Excel Entertainment, T-Series and Rajshri, among others, to platforms committed to presenting eclectic programming to their audiences. It gives us great pleasure in partnering with M-GO, one of the fastest growing VOD services, to reach their audiences through aggressive positioning and passionate marketing plans,” said FilmKaravan managing partner Pooja Kohli.

  • Musicians Union sues Paramount for outsourcing jobs

    Musicians Union sues Paramount for outsourcing jobs

    MUMBAI: The American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada (AFM) has filed a suit against Paramount Pictures, Inc for recording the score toSame Kind of Different As Me in Slovakia.

     

    “Only weeks after we filed suit against Paramount for offshoring jobs in other films, they did it again. This total disrespect for musicians is shameful. It is nothing more than corporate greed,” said AFM International president Ray Hair.

     

    The complaint, filed earlier this week in Los Angeles, claims Paramount breached its collective bargaining agreement with musicians that required Paramount films produced in the United States or Canada to be scored in the United States or Canada.

     

    Same Kind of Different As Me, directed by Michael Carney and starring Renée Zellweger, Greg Kinnear and Jon Voight, is in post-production and scheduled for release next April. The film, based on the bestselling novel of the same name, was filmed in and around Jackson, Mississippi but was scored in Bratislava, Slovakia last month.

     

    Hair explained that profitable film producers are increasingly offshoring scores simply to drive up profits at the expense of musicians. He pointed to Same Kind of Different As Me as a prime example of this alarming trend, which cheats musicians.

     

    The AFM is seeking breach of contract damages, including wages and benefits that should have been paid to musicians in the US or Canada.

  • Viacom18 takes ‘digital first’ marketing route for Ajay Devgn’s ‘Drishyam’

    Viacom18 takes ‘digital first’ marketing route for Ajay Devgn’s ‘Drishyam’

    MUMBAI: Ajay Devgn’s Drishyam, which is slated to release this year, has become the talk of the town with its first look trailer launch, which depicts Devgn in the all new avatar of Vijay Salgaonkar.

     

    Produced by Viacom18 Motion Pictures, Drishyam has employed innovative marketing strategy and released the trailer on Facebook, which went viral in no time, scoring one million hits in 24 hours. The trend soon caught up on other social media platforms as well.

     

    Viacom18 Motion Pictures vice president marketing Rudrarup Dutta said, “Drishyamis a film, which is high on content and intrigue. We went ‘digital first’ with the trailer as the target was richer engagement with our audiences. We are delighted with the response on all social platforms, where not only did the trailer generate views but also a high no of likes and shares too setting the pace for a unique and innovative campaign that is to follow.”

     

    Effectively using social media as a platform, the Unlock Drishyam App was launched on Facebook, where the gamer must find clues and answers, which eventually led along Vijay’s trail in the film. Unfolding the game’s mystery gave the gamer insights into the trailer much before its launch. In this exclusive tie up with Facebook, winners had the trailer appear automatically on their timelines.

     

    The concept was extended to on-ground promotions at multiplexes, where in association with Mid-Day, Mail Today and I-next (Dainik Jagran), people saw a ‘real news’ front page cover on the newspapers distributed at theaters, brining alive the real and relatable content of the film.

     

    Drishyam is directed by Nishikant Kamat and also stars Tabu essaying the role of a female police officer IG Meera Deshmukh. The movie is set to release on 31 July.