News

Janus Films has acquired all North American rights to Two Prosecutors, Ukranian writer-director Sergei Loznitsa’s Cannes competition entry and Francois Chalais Prize winner.

Based on the novella by Soviet scientist and political prisoner Georgy Demidov, the historical drama is set during Stalin’s Great Purge of 1937 and centres on a newly appointed prosecutor on a quest for justice for a victim of the secret police. Aleksandr Kuznetsov, Alexander Filippenko, Anatoli Beliy, Andris Keišs and Vytautas Kaniušonis star.

The film marks a return to narrative filmmaking for Loznitsa, known for documentaries and dramas exploring Ukrainian history. His previous fiction feature,...

Janus Films has picked up the North American rights to Sergei Loznitsa’s Cannes competition drama Two Prosecutors.

The Ukrainian director’s Soviet-era thriller set during Stalin’s Great Purge in 1937 earned the François Chalais Prize in Cannes. Two Prosecutors centers on a law school grad who tries as a young prosecutor takes on corruption in the Soviet system and winds up facing the consequences.

The drama is based on the novella by Soviet scientist and political prisoner Georgy Demidov and stars Aleksandr Kuznetsov, Alexander Filippenko, Anatoli Beliy, Andris Keišs and Vytautas Kaniušonis.

“Impeccably directed and impressively acted, this slow-burn story of political injustice is filled to the brim with atmosphere — specifically the stifling, claustrophobic atmosphere of the U.S.S.R. at the height of Stalin’s Great Purge,” The Hollywood Reporter film critic Jordan Mintzer said of the historical drama in his Cannes festival review.

Director Loznitsa in...

This is Mubi’s time. With studio specialty divisions almost a relic of the past and international and independent cinema soaring on the awards stage, the arthouse mini-studio founded by Efe Cakarel is cutting a growing swathe across the film landscape. Mubi is back on the Cannes Croisette with three films in Competition and another in Un Certain Regard.

Director Luca Guadagnino, a previous collaborator, is one of the company’s many fans in high places: “Mubi is a great and passionate company,” he says. “They will grow a lot as a business.”

Eye-catching growth has certainly been a hallmark of the company’s last few years.

Jason Ropell

Former investment banker and MIT graduate Cakarel founded the London-based company — then known as The Auteurs — back in 2007. These days, the headcount stands at more than 400 globally across 14 offices. And Cakarel believes that Mubi can become “many times its current size” in coming years.

We’re delighted to exclusively announce that KimStim has acquired all North American rights to the Quay Brothers’ Sanatorium Under the Sign of the Hourglass. A stop-motion/live-action masterpiece inspired by the works of Jewish-Polish author and artist Bruno Schulz, this personal passion project is their first feature since 2005’s The Piano Tuner of Earthquakes.

KimStim plans to release the film theatrically later this year. Ian Stimler negotiated the deal with Thania Dimitrakopoulou, sales executive of The Match Factory, in Cologne.

Sanatorium Under the Sign of the Hourglass first premiered as an Official Selection: Giornate degli Autori at the 2024 Venice International Film Festival. The film is not a direct adaptation of the source material but a visual-poetic homage, blending stop-motion animation with projection-based theatrical staging that’s more about evoking Schulz’s mood and texture than telling a straightforward story.

The narrative centers on Jozef, who embarks on a journey...

The UK Global Screen Fund’s (Ukgsf) next round of awardees from its distribution strand of support includes The Penguin Lessons, Bring Them Down, The Salt Path and Kneecap.

The Ukgsf has issued 18 new awards, administered by the BFI, to support international opportunities for the UK’s independent screen sector. Ukgsf is financed through the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (Dcms), and the awards see a further £413,995 allocated through the £7m per year fund’s international distribution strand.

The international distribution strand is now managed by Jordan Allwood, who joined the team in October from UK sales agent Independent Entertainment and replacesFrancesca Walker.

Unlike most late fall festivals, Thessaloniki in Northern Greece regularly draws packed crowds of passionate and youthful patrons, largely thanks to the city’s significant student population. On Saturday at the festival’s Olympia Theatre, however, a distinct waft of emotion was in the air when Athina Rachel Tsangari arrived to present her latest feature Harvest.

A loose adaptation of British writer Jim Crace’s novel of the same name, Harvest, a psychedelic trip of great ambition and scale, is the first feature from Tsangari in almost a decade. Tsangari, who learned her trade first as a student and later film programmer in Thessaloniki, has spent much of that time outside of Greece and now resides in Los Angeles, where she teaches film directing at CalArts. Saturday’s screening was a homecoming.

“I was crying at the start. It was quite emotional,” she told us the morning after the screening.

Twenty-nine film projects have been selected for the seventh edition of European Work in Progress Cologne (Ewip), the pitching event held from October 14-16.

Among the titles being pitched to an international audience of sales agents, distributors and festival programmers is Bulgarian filmmaker Stephan Komendarev’s seventh feature Made In EU, about a provincial town turning against a seamstress after it appears she is the first local to have contracted Covid.

Other projects include German director Frédéric Halambek’s second feature Marielle, starring child actor Laeni Geiseler as a girl with the telepathic ability to know what her parents are...

Callum Turner, Riley Keough, Jamie Bell, Lukas Gage, Tracy Letts, Elena Anaya and Pamela Anderson have joined ‘Rosebush Pruning’ from filmmaker Karim Aїnouz.

They join the previously announced Elle Fanning on the cast. Keough and Turner come on board to replace Kristen Stewart and Josh O’Connor.

Aïnouz is directing from a script by Efthimis Filippou. Viola Fügen and Michael Weber are producing for The Match Factory, which is also handling worldwide sales for the film.

Commenting on his upcoming feature, Aïnouz said: “I’m so excited to bring this audacious and delicious script to life, which challenges our notions of the traditional family and the patriarchy, with this brilliant ensemble of actors who I have long admired.”

Also in news – Matthias Schoenaerts set for villain role in ‘Supergirl’

The adaptation rights have been acquired from Kavac Film and Simone Gattoni of Kavac Film is producing. Annamaria Morelli produces for The Apartment...

An array of big name talent has joined Elle Fanning in “Rosebush Pruning” from “Motel Destino” and “Firebrand” director Karim Aïnouz for Mubi, The Match Factory and Fremantle company The Apartment.

Callum Turner (“Masters of the Air,” “The Boys in the Boat”), Riley Keough (“Daisy Jones & The Six,” “Zola”), Jamie Bell (“All of Us Strangers, Rocketman”), Lukas Gage (“The White Lotus,” “Euphoria”), Tracy Letts (“Lady Bird,” “Ford vs Ferrari”), Elena Anaya (“The Skin I Live In,” “MotherFatherSon”) and Pamela Anderson (“The Last Showgirl,” the forthcoming “The Naked Gun”) are set to start in the film, which was first announced last year and is now shooting in Spain. Kristen Stewart and Josh O’Connor were originally attached to the project in lead roles alongside Fanning, but have been replaced by Keough and Turner, respectively.

Aïnouz is directing from a script written by Efthimis Filippou (“Kinds of Kindness,” “The Killing of a Sacred Deer,...

Callum Turner and Riley Keough have joined the cast of Karim Aïnouz’s Rosebush Pruning, replacing Kristen Stewart and Josh O’Connor who were originally announced on the project during Cannes alongside Elle Fanning.

Fanning remains on board alongside Masters of the Air star Turner and Daisy Jones & The Six actress Keough, whose involvement was unveiled as filming is underway in Spain.

The swap-out is believed to be for scheduling reasons with Stewart currently immersed in post-production on her long gestated passion project The Chronology of Water.

In further newly-announced cast additions, Jamie Bell (All of Us Strangers), Lukas Gage, Tracy Letts, Elena Anaya (The Skin I Live In) and Pamela Anderson, who is enjoying a buzzy big screen comeback with The Last Showgirl, have also joined the production.

Originally announced with the title format Rosebushpruning, the movie, for Mubi, The Match Factory...

Executives from companies including Anton Corp, Charades, The Match Factory and Netflix are among the speakers set for San Sebastian International Film Festival’s third annual Creative Investors’ Conference, which takes place September 24 and 25.

Organised in collaboration with CAA Media Finance, the conference line-up includes Bobby Allen, svp of production at Mubi; Louis Balsan, evp for distribution and acquisitions at production-financing firm Anton Corp; Caroline Benjo, partner at Haut et Court; Teresa Moneo, director of international original film at Netflix; Christine Vachon of Killer Films; Michael Weber, managing director of The Match Factory; Fabien Westerhoff, CEO of Film Constellation; Bronte Payne...

San Sebastian Creative Investors’ Conference

The San Sebastian Festival will host its third annual Creative Investors’ Conference on September 24 and 25 in collaboration with CAA Media Finance. Execs set for the conference include Bobby Allen of Mubi, Jeffrey Clifford of Heyday Films, Axel Kuchevatzsky of Infinity Hill, Bronte Payne of LuckyChap Entertainment, Michael Weber of The Match Factory, Teresa Moneo of Netflix, Vincent Maraval of Goodfellas and Danny Perkins of Elysian Film Group. The festival has said topics of discussion will include an analysis of the current landscape of the US and European film industries, international opportunities for the Spanish market, and an examination of the Korean film marketplace. Roeg Sutherland, Sarah Schweitzman, and Nick Ogiony from CAA Media Finance will participate in the Conference and moderate talks. Jose Luis Rebordinos, director of the San Sebastian International Film Festival, said he is “thrilled” to have the “support of the Spanish government...

CAA Media Finance’s Roeg Sutherland, Goodfellas’ Vincent Maraval and Recorded Picture Company’s Jeremy Thomas are set for the San Sebastian Festival’s 2024 Creative Investors’ Conference, co-organised for the third year running in collaboration with CAA Media Finance.

The Conference runs Sept. 24-25 at San Sebastian’s Tabakalera center.

Other high-profile execs confirmed as the world’s film industry debates ways forward for growth –despite still lagging post-pandemic box office recovery and the contraction of global streamer investment – are Netflix’s Teresa Moneo, Mubi’s Bobby Allen, Anton Corp.’s Louis Balsan, Charades’ Yohann Conte, Caroline Benjo at France’s Haut et Court, David Davoli at Anonymous Content, Infinity Hill’s Axel Kuchevatzsky, Good Chaos’ Mike Goodridge, Matías Mosteirín at K&s Films, Bronte Payne at Margot Robbie’s LuckyChap Entertainment, Killer Films’ Christine Vachon and Michael Weber at The Match Factory.

Sutherland, from CAA Media Finance as well as...

Animation veterans Stephen and Timothy Quay return to feature films — and to the works of Polish Jewish writer Bruno Schulz — with Venice premiere “Sanatorium Under the Sign of the Hourglass.”

Sold by the Match Factory, watch its exclusive clip here:

They discovered Shulz back in the 1970s; incidentally, that’s also when Polish filmmaker Wojciech Jerzy made a film based on the same story.

“When we visited poster designer Andrzej Klimowski in Warsaw, he introduced us not only to Schulz, but also his contemporaries Gombrowicz and Witkacy, along with the music of Krzysztof Komeda and Ewa Demarczyk,” they recall, mentioning other important Polish artists. The Quay brothers prefer to be quoted together.

“Suddenly, the world of Bruno Schulz materialized into our psyches and into our hands. It was particularly through his ‘Treatise on Tailor’s Dummies’ that we found an entry point into what animation could bring to the world...

The Match Factory has hired former Netflix executive Marc van den Bosch-Mprah in the newly created role of VP acquisitions.

Based in Berlin, van den Bosch-Mprah will lead The Match Factory’s worldwide acquisition strategy and report to general manager Michael Weber. His appointment is effective immediately.

Van den Bosch-Mprah was most recently at Netflix, where he spent the last two years as head of acquisitions and co-production for Germany, Austria and Switzerland. There, he spearheaded the negotiation of a long-term partnership for Constantin’s theatrical releases in German-speaking Europe, and co-produced movies, series and documentaries, including Netflix’s first...

World sales and production outfit the Match Factory, part of streaming and production company Mubi, has appointed former Netflix manager Marc van den Bosch-Mprah as VP acquisitions.

The newly-created role is based in Berlin and van den Bosch-Mprah, effective immediately, will report into Michael Weber, general manager, to lead the Match Factory’s worldwide acquisition strategy.

Van den Bosch-Mprah was most recently at Netflix, where he spent the last two years as head of acquisitions and co-production in German-speaking Europe, spearheading the negotiation of a long-term partnership for Constantin’s theatrical releases in the territory, co-producing movies, series and documentaries, including Netflix first Swiss production “Early Birds.”

Van den Bosch-Mprah has more than 15 years’ experience in the film and TV industry. Prior to joining Netflix, he had managerial roles at European broadcast giant Rtl, Warner Bros. and Viacom.

Weber said: “Marc’s expertise in acquisition strategy, sales and local...

The Match Factory has appointed former Netflix manager Marc van den Bosch-Mprah as VP Acquisitions, with immediate effect.

Van den Bosch-Mprah will report to The Match Factory general manager Michael Weber, in the Berlin-based role which will see him lead the company’s worldwide acquisition strategy.

The experienced exec was most recently at Netflix, where he spent the last two years as Head of Acquisitions & Co-Production (Dach).

In that role, he spearheaded the negotiation of a long-term partnership for Constantin’s theatrical releases in German-speaking Europe, co-producing movies, series and documentaries, including Netflix first Swiss production Early Birds.

Van den Bosch-Mprah brings 15 years of experience in the industry, which also includes managerial roles at Rtl, Warner Bros, and Viacom.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Marc to The Match Factory team,” said Weber.

“His expertise in acquisition strategy, sales and local co-production aligns perfectly with our goal of enhancing our global presence.

The Match Factory has taken international sales rights to German filmmaker Türker Süer’s “Edge of Night,” and has debuted a clip from the film (above). The film will make its world premiere in Venice Film Festival’s Horizons Extra section, and its North American premiere at the Toronto Film Festival.

The film centers on Sinan, a young lieutenant in the Turkish army, who is asked to hand over his brother Kenan to a military court. Burdened by the tragic death of their father, both brothers embark on a journey through a land marked by political unrest. As they confront their beliefs, Sinan’s convictions are put to the ultimate test on the night of the coup. In a country where the state demands absolute loyalty, the brothers must decide if they are ready to face the sacrifices required by their duty and their conscience.

The film, starring Ahmet Rıfat Şungar and Berk Hakman,...

“Harvest,” directed by Athina Rachel Tsangari and starring Caleb Landry Jones, has been acquired by Mubi in several key territories ahead of its premiere in competition at Venice Film Festival.

Mubi will distribute the film in the U.K., Ireland, Germany, Austria, Benelux and Latin America with release plans to be announced in the coming months.

Based on Jim Crace’s Booker prize shortlisted novel of the same name, “Harvest” takes place “over seven hallucinatory days” when a “village with no name, in an undefined time and place, disappears,” according to its official synopsis. “Townsman-turned-farmer Walter Thirsk and befuddled lord of the manor Charles Kent are childhood friends about to face an invasion from the outside world: the trauma of modernity.”

Along with Landry Jones — who broke out in Martin McDonagh’s “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri” and won the Cannes best actor award for his performance in 2021’s “Nitram” — “Harvest” stars Harry Melling,...

Mubi has acquired key territories on Athina Rachel Tsangari’s Harvest ahead of its world premiere in Competition at Venice Film Festival.

It has bought the film for UK-Ireland, Germany, Austria, Benelux and Latin America. Mubi will announce release plans in the coming months.

Adapted by Tsangari and Joslyn Barnes from Jim Crace’s novel of the same name, Harvest is a tragicomic take on a Western, in which a village in an undefined time and place disappears over seven hallucinatory days.

The cast includes Caleb Landry Jones, Harry Melling and Frank Dillane, plus Screen Stars of Tomorrow Arinze Kene,...

Swedish director Ruben Östlund, who won Cannes Film Festival’s Palme d’Or for “The Square” and “Triangle of Sadness,” was among the guests at the German Films and Medienboard Reception on May 18 in the garden of the Mondrian Hotel in Cannes.

Östlund, who is in the Riviera resort to promote his latest production, “The Entertainment System Is Down,” was accompanied by Philippe Bober of Coproduction Office, one of the film’s producers, and Erik Hemmendorf of Plattform Produktion, Östlund’s Swedish producer. (They are pictured above.)

German Films, which is celebrating its 70th anniversary this year, was represented at the event by managing director Simone Baumann, and Medienboard, which is a film fund for the Berlin-Brandenburg region, was represented by its CEO Kirsten Niehuus. Variety was the media partner for the reception.

Among the other guests attending were Karim Aïnouz, director of “Motel Destino,” which plays in this year’s Competition section at Cannes.

Fremantle’s Rome-based company The Apartment has boarded Karim Aïnouz’s next feature Rosebushpruning in partnership with The Match Factory, Mubi, Kavac Film and Rai Cinema.

It marks the first big film announcement for The Apartment since the arrival of Annamaria Morelli as its CEO in February, following the departure of founder Lorenzo Mieli.

As announced in Cannes this week, Kristen Stewart, Josh O’Connor, and Elle Fanning are signed to co-star in Rosebushpruning, which shoots later this year.

Aïnouz is directing from a script written by Efthimis Filippou, adapted from Marco Bellocchio’s debut feature Fists in the Pocket, a satirical drama about a dysfunctional family.

Viola Fügen and Michael Weber are producing Rosebushpruning for The Match Factory, which is also handling worldwide sales for the film.

The adaptation rights have been acquired from Kavac Film also attached at the production team with Simone Gattoni.

Fremantle’s The Apartment will partner with The Match Factory, Mubi, Kavac Film and Rai Cinema to produce Karim Aïnouz’s next feature film “Rosebushpruning.”

Directed by Aïnouz, the film’s lead cast includes Kristen Stewart (“Love Lies Bleeding,” “Spencer”), Josh O’Connor (“Challengers,” “God’s Own Country”) and Elle Fanning (“Teen Spirit,” “The Great”). Aïnouz is directing from a script written by Efthimis Filippou (Kinds of Kindness, Dogtooth, The Lobster), which is an adaptation from Marco Bellocchio’s debut feature Fists in the Pocket.

Viola Fügen and Michael Weber are producing “Rosebushpruning” for The Match Factory, who are also handling worldwide sales for the film. The adaptation rights have been acquired from Kavac Film also attached at the production team with Simone Gattoni. The Apartment, a Fremantle Company, is co-producing, with Annamaria Morelli as executive producer. Rachel Dargavel for Crybaby Films is co-producing in the UK. Mubi is financing production alongside...

Fremantle’s The Apartment boarded Karim Aïnouz’s next feature Rosebushpruning, as co-producer, with The Match Factory, Mubi, Kavac Film and Rai Cinema.

The cast for the film, first announced last year, includes Kristen Stewart, Josh O’Connor and Elle Fanning.

Brazilian director Aïnouz is in Cometition at Cannes with Motel Destino, having last year premiered Firebrand in Compeition. Aïnouz is directing from a script by Kinds Of Kindness and Dogtooth writer Efthimis Filippou who has adapted Marco Bellocchio’s debut feature Fists In The Pocket.

Viola Fügen and Michael Weber are producing Rosebushpruning for The Match Factory, who are also...

Italian auteur Pietro Marcello – whose 2019 film “Martin Eden” made a splash on the international art-house scene – is shooting “Duse,” a movie about legendary Italian stage diva Eleonora Duse. Valeria Bruni Tedeschi stars as Duse and Noémie Merlant (“Portrait of a Lady on Fire”) plays her daughter.

The Match Factory has acquired international rights to “Duse” and is kicking off sales on this buzzy biopic in Cannes. See an exclusive first-look image above.

Duse, who lived between 1858 and 1924, was considered by many the greatest actress of her time. She performed in many countries, most notably in plays by Gabriele D’Annunzio and Henrik Ibsen.

Marcello’s “Duse” will look at the latter part of her life when she is 60 “and her legendary career is now long over,” says the provided synopsis.

“But in the brutal years between the First World War and the rise of fascism, the Divina chooses to return to...

Chicago – Monday, April 15th is the annual fundraising concert for Chicago’s Porchlight Music Theatre. As part of “Chicago Sings Broadway Pop II,” the company will confer its “Guy Adkins Award” to the award winning actor and musical director, Roberta Duchak. For more information and tickets, click Porchlight.

For more than ten years, Porchlight Music Theatre celebrates an individual who has made an exceptional and lasting contribution to the Chicago music theatre, with the prestigious Guy Adkins Award. Guy Adkins was an award-winning Chicago actor who passed away in 2010, with a number of roles at Chicago Shakespeare, The Goodman, Steppenwolf and more. The Award commemorates Adkin’s spirit and life, in addition to celebrating the many gifts he gave Chicago’s theater community and the world.

Chicago Sings Broadway Pop II

Photo credit: PorchlightMusicTheatre.org/Brett Beiner for Roberta Duchak

The Guy Adkins Awardee Roberta Duchak is an industry-recognized music director,...

Katrin Pors of Denmark’s Snowglobe and Jussi Rantamaki of Finland’s Aamu Film Company are among the 12 producers selected for Ace Leadership Special, the business workshop hosted by the Ace Producers network.

The 2024 edition will take place in Bergen in the Netherlands in June and Mallorca in Spain in September, with online elements over the summer.

Scroll down for the full Ace Leadership 2024 selection

Danish producer Pors produced Hlynur Palmason’s Cannes 2022 title Godland, which became Iceland’s entry for the best international feature award at the 2024 Oscars. Her other credits include Jonas Carpignano’s A Chiara, Dagur Kari...

The Queen’s Gambit’s Harry Melling and Blue Jean star Rosy McEwen have joined Caleb Landry-Jones in Greek filmmaker Athina Rachel Tsangari’s Harvest, as The Match Factory reveals a first look and launches sales at the European Film Market (EFM).

Further cast includes Arinzé Kene, Thalissa Teixeira and Frank Dillane.

Over seven hallucinatory days, a village with no name, in an undefined time, disappears. A townsman-turned-farmer and benevolent lord of the manor (Melling) are childhood friends about to face an invasion from the modernity of the outside world, in this neo-Western.

The feature was written by Joslyn Barnes and Tsangari,...

The Match Factory has acquired international rights to Russian director Victor Kossakovsky’s new documentary Architecton ahead of its Berlinale world premiere.

The film project follows the filmmaker’s farmyard doc Gunda, which played in Berlinale Encounters in 2020, and Aquerala, which world premiered Out of Competition In Venice in 2018.

The Match Factory describes Kossakovsky’s new film as “an epic, intimate and poetic meditation” on architecture and how the design and construction of buildings from the ancient past reveal mankind’s present destruction.

Focusing on a landscape project by the Italian architect Michele de Lucci, Kossakovsky reflects on the rise and fall of civilizations, using imagery from the temple ruins of Baalbek in Lebanon, dating back to Ad 60, to the recent destruction of cities in Turkey following a 7.8 magnitude earthquake in early 2023.

“Victor Kossakosvsky possesses the remarkable ability to amplify seldom-heard voices on the screen. Demonstrating his mastery in previous works like Gunda and Aquarela,...

The Match Factory has acquired the international rights to the Russian director Victor Kossakovsky’s documentary “Architecton,” which world premieres in the competition section of the Berlinale. A24 financed the film and will distribute it in North America.

“Architecton” follows Kossakovsky’s highly acclaimed “Gunda,” which played in Berlinale Encounters in 2020, and “Aquarela,” which screened in Venice’s out of competition section in 2018.

“Architecton” is described as “an epic, intimate and poetic meditation on architecture and how the design and construction of buildings from the ancient past reveal our destruction — and offer hope for survival and a way forward.”

The film centers on a landscape project by the Italian architect Michele de Lucci, which Kossakovsky uses to reflect on the rise and fall of civilizations. He captures breathtaking imagery from the temple ruins of Baalbek in Lebanon, dating back to 60 Ad, to the recent destruction of cities in Turkey following...

The Match Factory has acquired international sales rights to Russian director Victor Kossakovsky’s documentary Architecton which world premieres next month in the Berlinale’s Competition section

Architecton is billed as a meditation on architecture and how the design and the construction of buildings from the ancient past reveal our destruction — and offer hope for survival and a way forward.

Kossakovsky’s previous films include 2020 Berlinale Encounters title Gunda and Aquarela, which played out of competition at Venice in 2018.

Architecton is produced by Heino Deckert for Germany’s Ma.ja.de. A24 financed and will distribute the film in North America.

If you’re a fan of combat sports, be prepared to see some adjustments in your entertainment lineup. Fite is rebranding as “TrillerTV,” and Fite+ will become TrillerTV+.

7-Day Free Trial $7.99+ / month fite.tv

Company leaders say the newly-named service will offer even more sports categories beyond fighting.

“TrillerTV is everything you know and trust from Fite, but with doors open for even more sports,” said Michael Weber, Co-Founder and COO of TrillerTV. “Our original name served us well, as have our loyal customers, promoters, and athletes to whom we are super grateful. The time has come to give even more to expand the experience we’ve built from the ground up to celebrate the passion and precision that makes us all love sports.”

The company has distributed its events on Fite+ and Aew Plus (international streaming only). Fans will also see a rebrand of the Fast channel Fite 24/7, which becomesTrillerTV 24/7.

Christopher Nolan’s The Prestige tends to fall between the stage boards when it comes to the director’s oeuvre. It’s not as blockbuster as his Batman trilogy or as critically acclaimed as Oppenheimer (which sold so well on Blu-ray it led to a major studio shortage) but it no doubt stands as one of his finest achievements: narratively, technically and, yes, magically. And it took years to get to the screen. Distracted and delayed off and on since the days of Memento, The Prestige would end up a feat that stands alone–ironically enough when you think about it…–in Christopher Nolan’s filmography.

But this is just the Pledge. So how did Christopher Nolan turn The Prestige into a minor masterpiece? How did he pull the rabbit out of the hat? Let’s find out: Wtf Happened to this movie?!

Christopher Nolan first got wind of The Prestige – Christopher Priest’s 1995 novel,...

Because the fall festivals had fewer actors and writers on hand due to the strikes, more independent movies came into the season looking for buyers. And even with AMPTP buyers getting cold feet on some with interim agreements, many titles have already found homes, making it one of the busiest fall festival seasons across Venice, Toronto, and Telluride in recent memory.

Below is the running list of movies that have found buyers.

Movies Acquired After the Festivals

“Ezra”

Section: TIFF Gala Presentations

Distributor: Bleecker Street

Date Acquired: Nov. 6

Bleecker Street’s second TIFF acquisition is “Ezra,” the family dramedy from director Tony Goldwyn that stars Bobby Cannavale, Rose Byrne, and Robert De Niro. The distributor is planning a 2024 theatrical release.

“Ezra” follows a once successful late-night comedy writer turned less-successful stand-up comic also struggling through the failure of his career and marriage. After moving in with his father, Stan (De Niro...

Ketchup Entertainment announced today that they have acquired North American rights to the critically-acclaimed and award-winning Memory, written and directed by the internationally acclaimed filmmaker Michel Franco. The film stars Academy Award ® winner Jessica Chastain, Peter Sarsgaard, Brooke Timber, Merritt Wever, Elsie Fisher, Jessica Harper and Josh Charles. It premiered in Competition at the 80th Venice Film Festival earning an eight-minute standing ovation, with Sarsgaard going on to receive the Volpi Cup for Best Actor from the Jury. It also screened to great acclaim at the Toronto International Film Festival. The film is screening at AFI this Saturday, October 28th with Franco and Sarsgaard in attendance and will open theatrically this December.

Memory follows Sylvia (Jessica Chastain) a social worker who leads a simple and structured life until Saul (Peter Sarsgaard) follows her home from their high school reunion. Their surprise encounter will profoundly impact both of them as they...

Jessica Chastain and Peter Sarsgaard have both officially entered the Oscar race for their extraordinary performances in Michel Franco’s “Memory.” However, the awards campaign has announced that Sarsgaard’s riveting turn as a man suffering from Alzheimer’s disease will be submitted for supporting actor consideration at the major ceremonies, including the Golden Globes, SAG and Academy Awards. His Oscar-winning co-star Chastain (“The Eyes of Tammy Faye”) will vie for lead actress.

Written and directed by Franco, the film was recently acquired by Ketchup Entertainment for North American distribution and will receive an Oscar-qualifying run in December. It premiered at the 80th Venice Film Festival, where Sarsgaard received the Volpi Cup for best actor from the Jury, joining the ranks of past honorees such as Brad Pitt (“The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford”) and River Phoenix (“My Own Private Idaho”). It was later screened at the Toronto,...

Just as it was beginning to look like the dance card for this season’s Oscar race was full, the release date for a highly acclaimed film that was not expected to drop until 2024 has been set for December 2023.

The Hollywood Reporter has learned that the North American distribution rights of Michel Franco‘s Memory, which stars Peter Sarsgaard and Oscar winner Jessica Chastain, have been acquired by Ketchup Entertainment, which will release it shortly before the end of the year.

Memory tells the story of Sylvia (Chastain), a social worker who leads a simple and structured life until Saul (Sarsgaard) follows her home from their high school reunion. Their surprise encounter profoundly impacts both of them and opens the door to memories, challenges and revelations that will leave a lasting impact.

The hope and belief of the film’s makers and new distributor is that Academy members will respond...

The second annual Creative Investors Conference runs September 26-28.

Executives from Focus Features, Warner Bros, Plan B and Neon are among the speakers at San Sebastian International Film Festival’s second annual Creative Investors Conference running September 26-28 in collaboration with CAA Media Finance.

There will be a series of ‘Fireside chats’ with Mariano César, SVP content Ge Content Latin America at HBO Max (Warner Bros. Discovery), Jeremy Kleiner, co-president at Plan B, and Killer Films co-founders Pam Koffler and Christine Vachon.

Kiska Higgs, president, production & acquisitions at Focus Features, Sarah Colvin, director of acquisitions at Neon, Jeb Brody, president of production at Amblin Partners,...

The conference is taking place from September 26-28.

Mubi’s Bobby Allen, Blueprint Pictures’ Peter Czernin, Killer Films’ Christine Vachon, Casarotto Ramsay & Associates’ Anna Higgs and Netflix’s Teresa Moneo will all attend the second annual Creative Investors’ Conference at the San Sebastian International Film Festival this month.

Organised in collaboration with CAA Media Finance, it is taking place at the festival from September 26-28 and will comprise of a series of panels and discussions open to industry badge holders, under the Spanish Screenings: Financing & Tech strand.

Scroll down for the full list of participants

Roeg Sutherland, Benjamin Kramer and...

See You On a Venus is a romantic drama film directed by Joaquín Llamas. Starring Virginia Gardner and Alex Aiono, See You On Venus follows Mia and Kyle, two American teenagers who fall in love while they are traveling through Spain in order to find Mia’s birth mother. So, if you loved See You On Venus here are some shows you could watch next.

The Space Between Us (Prime Video) Credit – STXfilms

Synopsis: Sixteen-year-old Gardner Elliot (Asa Butterfield) has lived his whole life with a team of scientists on Mars. He’s always longed to see Earth to find the father he’s never known and to meet a beautiful street-smart girl named Tulsa he’s become friends with online. But when his chance finally comes, doctors discover his heart can’t withstand the Earth’s atmosphere. Eager to find his father, Gardner and Tulsa escape on a cross-country...

A TV documentary titled Barbie Uncovered and an adaptation of Homer’s classic The Odyssey starring Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche are among the titles to receive cash during the latest round of U.K. Global Screen Fund awards.

Financed through the UK government’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport (Dcms), the latest round handed out over £1.2 million in cash awards through the fund’s International Co-production strand, supporting UK producers to work as partners on international co-productions. To date, the strand has now awarded over £5 million to 33 co-productions.

This latest round of awards sees the UK co-producing with 12 territories and will be the first time the fund has supported collaborations with India and Finland. The funding will also support partnerships with Belgium, Denmark, Sweden, France, Italy, Greece, Germany, Ireland, Canada, and New Zealand.

TV doc Barbie Uncovered is an unofficial majority UK co-production with New Zealand. The UK...

Ariane Labed’s ’Sisters’ and Uberto Pasolini’s ’The Return’, starring Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche, have also received backing.

Documentaries Barbie Uncovered, Justice For Magdalenes and Beast are among the nine titles to receive funding from the British Film Institute (BFI) through the UK Global Screen Fund, via the fund’s international co-production strand.

It is financed through the UK government’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport (Dcms). This round, the awards allocate over £1.2m to support UK producers to work as partners on international co-productions. To date the strand has now awarded over £5m to 33 co-productions.

The awards,...

TV documentary “Barbie Uncovered” and an adaptation of Homer’s “The Odyssey” starring Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche are among the latest projects awarded by the U.K. Global Screen Fund.

On “Barbie Uncovered,” an unofficial majority U.K. co-production with New Zealand, the U.K. producers are Ross Wilson from Rw Productions and Alan Clements from Two Media Rivers who will co-produce with New Zealand’s Daniel Story and Cass Avery from Augusto. It will be directed by Eddie Hutton-Mills and focuses on the unknown history of the global icon Barbie and the dramatic and dark story behind the creation of the world’s most famous doll.

On “The Odyssey” adaptation “The Return,” a minority U.K. co-production with Italy, Greece and France made under the European Convention, the U.K. producers are James Clayton and Uberto Pasolini from Red Wave Films who will co‐produce with Italy’s...

Dublin-based company is a prolific Irish partner on international co-productions.

Irish production outfit and prolific international partner Wild Atlantic Pictures has appointed two ex-Screen Ireland executives to its fast-growing team.

Teresa McGrane, formerly deputy CEO at Screen Ireland, joins as chief operating office, and Dearbhla Regan, who was project manager at Screen Ireland until 2022 is the new head of film and talent development.

McGrane spent two decades at Screen Ireland where she played a key role in the development of policies and initiatives since 2001.

Regan most recently executive-produced Irish language Oscar nominee and box office success The Quiet Girl.

The backdrop of Oban, Scotland and Germany will be the lieu of location for Greek filmmaker Athina Rachel Tsangari‘s next feature film. Production is set for August. We first heard about the book to film adaptation of Jim Crace’s Harvest almost three years back and the project still has all three principle production players onboard with: The Match Factory’s Michael Weber, Rebecca O’Brien and Louverture Films’ Joslyn Barnes. Look for casting announcements shortly. This has the 2024 Venice Film Festival competition slot stamped all over it.

On the morning after harvest, the inhabitants of a remote English village awaken looking forward to a hard-earned day of rest and feasting at their landowner’s table.…...

Almost sixty years ago, Italian filmmaker Marco Bellocchio made his feature directorial debut with the psychological drama Fists in the Pocket. Kavac Film recently acquired the remake rights to that film, and The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed that it’s going to be made under the title Rosebushpruning. Kristen Stewart (Underwater), Elle Fanning (The Great), and Josh O’Connor (The Crown) have signed on to star in the film.

Karim Aïnouz, whose period drama Firebrand premiered at the Cannes Film Festival this month, will be directing Rosebushpruning from a screenplay by Efthimis Filippou (Dogtooth). Fists in the Pocket was about a young man suffering from epilepsy plotting the murders of his dysfunctional family.

The Hollywood Reporter notes that Fists in the Pocket proved controversial at the Locarno Festival, where it had its premiere and was condemned by several major cinema figures, but was warmly received by younger critics and audiences, becoming a sleeper hit.

The Match Factory and Mubi team on the adaptation of Marco Bellocchio’s ‘Fists in the Pocket’.

Kristen Stewart, Josh O’Connor and Elle Fanning are to lead Rosebushpruning, a dark satire from Firebrand director Karim Aïnouz, backed by The Match Factory and Mubi.

The upcoming feature is set to begin shooting in spring 2024 and is an adaptation of Marco Bellocchio’s 1965 psychological drama Fists In The Pocket, with adaptation rights acquired from Italy’s Kavac Film.

It is scripted by Efthimis Filippou, who co-wrote Dogtooth, The Killing Of A Sacred Deer and The Lobster with director Yorgos Lanthimos, securing an...

The 2023 Cannes Film Festival may be slowly winding down, but a red hot new project has just landed in the market to spice things up.

Kristen Stewart (Spencer), Josh O’Connor (The Crown, God’s Own Country) and Elle Fanning (Teen Spirit, The Great) are set to lead the cast of Rosebushpruning, the next feature from Karim Aïnouz, whose Jude Law- and Alicia Vikander-starring period drama Firebrand last week had its world premiere in Cannes’ main competition to hugely positive reviews. The Match Factory and Mubi are backing the film.

The Hollywood Reporter understands that Aïnouz will direct from a script written by Efthimis Filippou (Dogtooth, Killing of Sacred Deer, The Lobster) and adapted from Marco Bellocchio’s 1965 debut feature Fists in the Pocket, a dark satire of family and social values now considered a landmark piece of Italian cinema. The adaptation rights were acquired from Kavac Film.

The Match...

The level of solidarity among striking WGA writers has been a powerful force during these first few weeks of the writers strike. Seeing it in action on picket lines is a good reminder for the industry at large that there’s a special camaraderie among those who know what it’s like to stare at a blank screen, search for inspiration and then type away at draft after draft to get the words just right.

That’s true for novelists as much as it is for screenwriters. Often those are one and the same — and because we live in an age where pre-sold IP usually makes it easier to sell a TV project, there have never been more series based on books than there are right now.

I don’t have the numbers to back me up on that, but we’re still living in peak TV times. Which means...

There’s a new wrestling promotion debuting as a part of Fite+’s growing stable — Major League Wrestling.

Now, Mlw’s weekly show “Fusion” will stream on Fite+, as well as all of Mlw’s premium live events, starting with Mlw: Battle Riot V: Special Edition on May 18. The first episode of “Fusion” will stream on May 25.

7-Day Free Trial $7.99 / month fite.tv

“Adding Mlw Fusion to Fite+ is hugely important to what we set out to do – create a one-stop-shop with a low subscription rate for the most exciting promotions in Pro Wrestling and other combat sports,” said Fite COO Michael Weber. “[Mlw founder and CEO Court Bauer] is probably the only major wrestling promoter who spent time as a writer at WWE – and in Fusion you can see that influence week after week in the storylines and the action.”

Reelz debuted Mlw programming in the form of Mlw: Underground, but, due to NBCUniversal...