NEWS CANNES BRIEFS
Buyers go Dark with Epic Patrick Ewald and Shaked Berenson’s Epic Pictures Group has licensed the Mischa Barton supernatural thriller Into The Dark to Germany (Tiberius), the Middle East (Eagle) and Peru, Ecuador and Bolivia (Eurofilms).
Locarno honours Milchan Locarno Film Festival will give its best producer award to Arnon Milchan. The US producer has made more than 100 feature films, and Locarno will show the restored version of Once Upon A Time In America as well as The King Of Comedy and Brazil.
Pixel prizes grow Power to the Pixel’s 2012 Pixel Market in London in October will add to the ARTE Pixel Pitch Prize with the beActive prize for comedy, the Cinekid prize for children’s film and the Mozilla prize for non-fiction.
Doha backs 23 films The Doha Film Institute has announced the 23 new films being backed through its 2012 grants. The projects include new works from Morocco’s Hakim Belabbes.
Chicorel builds Bridge Taipei-based producer and sales agent Steve Chicorel is launching Asia Bridge, a banner under Shoreline Entertainment, to handle international sales of Chinese films. Its debut slate includes Cold Steel, Judge D and Little Big Panda.
CORRECTION Patrick Wilson, and not Patrick Stewart as first stated, will star with Christina Hendricks in Zipper. Cargo Entertainment handles international sales and Protozoa Pictures is producing the thriller.
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ScreenDaily.com Abu Dhabi adds studio
BY LIZ SHACKLETON Digital Domain Media Group is collaborating with twofour54 to establish a media school and pur- pose-built studio in Abu Dhabi. Digital Domain will begin pro-
duction of visual effects and anima- tion in existing studios in twofour54 at the beginning of 2013. It will also develop a 150,000sq ft purpose-built studio, to be opera- tional by the end of 2015. The studio will create animated feature films and produce original
Middle East-branded content for global audiences, as well as work on visual and 3D effects for third- party international films. The Digital Domain Institute,
modelled on Digital Domain’s school in Florida, will train stu- dents in digital media production. Twofour54 and the Abu Dhabi
Film Commission announced last week in Cannes the introduction of an incentive scheme in the form of a rebate of up to 30% of qualify- ing spend in Abu Dhabi.
“At first we thought this studio
would focus more on original con- tent, but we can use the 30% rebate to bring in international films,” said Digital Domain chair- man and CEO John Textor. Wayne Borg, deputy CEO of
twofour54, said: “Digital Domain represents the next great leap for- ward for twofour54 and Abu Dhabi — a strong move into dig- ital production and the develop- ment of locally created feature films and TV content.”
BFI London Film Festival revamps with new sections
BY WENDY MITCHELL The BFI London Film Festival (LFF) has announced program- ming changes for its 56th edition, under the leadership of the BFI’s new head of exhibition and festi- val director Clare Stewart. The LFF is offering a clearer
position for its awards by introduc- ing competitive sections Official Competition, First Feature Compe- tition and Documentary Competi-
tion, each with 10-12 films. No financial prizes will be given this year. “It is about better positioning the awards with audiences and industry,” Stewart told Screen. Also, the rest of the programme
will be categorised into seven new themes such as love, adrenaline, challenge, debate, cult, journeys and laughter. “It is important to create a programme environment that invites in new audiences…
What’s informing audience choice in the contemporary marketplace has changed so rapidly in the past few years,” Stewart said. UK films will be included across
the programme, not in a separate section. The LFF has also now added a
partnership with Nintendo. The LFF’s 2012 programme will
be unveiled in early September; the festival runs October 10-25.
Universal kills with Fortissimo
Films deal Universal Pictures International Entertainment (UPIE) has picked up a slew of territories including the UK and France for Chinese- Mongolian epic An End To Killing from Fortissimo Films. UPIE, which is Universal’s
international home- entertainment arm, plans to release the film in early 2013 following its Chinese theatrical release later this year. The deal was brokered by
Fortissimo managing director Nelleke Driessen and UPIE’s director of international acquisitions, Jasper van Hecke. Directed by Wang Ping, the
Mandarin-language film follows a Daoist priest who convinces Genghis Khan to give up violence in his later years. The cast features local stars
including Zhao Youliang, Tu Men, Park Yejin, Geng Le and Yu Shaoqun.
Liz Shackleton Voltage turns up Maximum sales
BY JEREMYKAY Voltage Pictures has announced pre-Cannes sales on the Steven Seagal thriller Maximum Convic- tion which also stars Steve Austin. Nicolas Chartier has closed
Alex Barder’s Strategic Film Partners is in talks with buyers on a slate that includes the Trost brothers’ dance battle film The FP (pictured), which Drafthouse Films released in the US. Paranormal Activity’s Jason Blum served as executive producer. Just Crazy Enough stars Chris Kattan in a comedy about twins — one a family man and the other a mental patient — who switch places. The slate also includes T
ony Tango, I’m Y ours and Crooked Arrows. Jeremy Kay
deals for the UK (StudioCanal), German-speaking Europe and Benelux (Splendid), Australia and New Zealand (Transmission), France (SND), Italy (Minerva), Japan (Klockworx), Scandinavia (Scanbox), Portugal (Luso- mundo), Middle East (Gulf ) and Taiwan (SSG). Voltage licensed rights for
China (Star Alliance), South Korea (Sonamu), India (Tanweer), Tur- key (Kalinos), Greece (Feelgood), Israel (Shapira), Indonesia (Soraya), Latin American pay-TV (Swen), Thailand (IPA), South Africa and Baltic States (Daro) and pan-Asian pay-TV (Star TV). Keoni Waxman recent ly
wrapped shooting in Vancouver on the story, about a former black-ops operative who is decommissioning a prison when mercenaries stage a raid. Phil Goldfine produced and as previously announced Anchor Bay holds North American rights.
DFF_Muhr_Cannes
218X75cm.indd 1 n 4 Screen International at Cannes May 21, 2012
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