Cohen Media Group Makes A Splash With The Acquisition Of International Sales Stalwart HanWay Films

EXCLUSIVE: LA-based sales and distribution company VMI Worldwide has picked up international distribution rights to the horror-thriller The Retaliators and will launch sales at the Toronto Film Festival.

Variety.The French language film was directed by Christian Carion (“Joyeux Noel”) and is playing in the Official Selection at the Toronto Film Festival.“Driving Madeleine” stars Dany Boon (“Bienvenue chez les ch’tis”) who plays Charles, a taxi driver in Paris who is struggling under mounting stress. His debts are coming due, his driver’s license is in danger of being suspended because of numerous fines, and his marriage is falling apart. He has no way of knowing his life is about to be transformed when he picks up Madeleine, a 92-year-old woman who is soon to move into a care facility.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Cohen Media Group has acquired U.S. distribution rights to “Driving Madeleine,” a stirring new drama directed Oscar-nominated filmmaker Christian Carion (“Joyeux Noel”), and starring Dany Boon (“Bienvenue chez les ch’tis”). The film is playing in the Official Selection at the Toronto Film Festival. Besides “Joyeux Noel,” Carion’s wide-ranging films include the Cold War spy thriller “Farewell,” the World War II tale “Come What May,” the mystery “My Son,” and the rural drama “The Girl from Paris.”  “Driving Madeleine” stars Boon as Charles, a taxi driver in Paris who is struggling under mounting stress. His debts are coming due, his driver’s license is in danger of being suspended because of numerous fines, and his marriage is falling apart. He has no way of knowing his life is about to be transformed when he picks up Madeleine, a 92-year-old woman who is soon to move into a care facility. She asks Charles to make certain stops during what may be her last ride through the city. Charles grumbles but is slowly charmed by Madeleine’s warmth and fascinated by her tales as she slowly reveals the dramatic and shocking story of her life.

K.J. Yossman Nicely Entertainment has tapped ex-TF1 exec Rachel Siegenthaler for vice president of international sales. Siegenthaler will remain in Paris for the newly-created role, which will be focused on expanding L.A.-based Nicely’s European presence. The role will include responsibility for EMEA and Asia sales and co-productions, which include ten movies set to debut at Mipcom next month. The Mipcom slate includes “Cloudy with a Chance of Christmas” (pictured above), “A Christmas to Treasure,” “A Royal in Paradise” and “Baked with a Kiss” as well as family documentary “Beyond the Reef,” which introduces audiences to the Great Barrier Reef. The feature, which is set to be released in IMAX, is narrated by Shuang Hu.

Ed Meza @edmezavar Coming off a year of major international growth, Paris-based animation giant Cyber Group Studios is presenting a wide-ranging lineup of new and returning shows at this year’s Unifrance Rendez-Vous in the French seaside town of Biarritz. Among Cyber Group’s current high-profile titles is the new super-powered kid comedy series “50/50 Heroes,” which has sold to ITV in the U.K. and Discovery in Latin America. Commissioned by France Televisions and Disney, “50/50 Heroes” follows the high jinks of Mo and Sam, a half-brother and sister duo, aged 11 and 9, who share super powers. Cyber Group has been expanding its global operations over the past year with a number of major acquisitions, partnerships and joint ventures that have resulted in a number of new projects.

EXCLUSIVE: Bankside Films has boarded international sales for Steve Buscemi-directed Venice Film Festival drama The Listener, starring Tessa Thompson (Creed).

Executives from China Film Group were recently treated to a screening of footage from Disney/20th Century Studios’ Avatar: The Way Of Water, receiving a surprise greeting from filmmaker James Cameron in the process. China Daily reported the news which Deadline has confirmed.

Vivienne Chow Taiwan at Venice 2022 — Venice Immersive Competition “All That Remains” – Director: Craig Quintero Among the latest explorers in the VR realm is Riverbed Theatre, a “total theater” company that was formed in Taipei in 1998 and combines visual and performing arts. “All That Remains” is directed by the company’s artistic director Craig Quintero. The film challenges audiences’ perceptions of truth by questioning the possibilities beyond the everyday patterns that are constructed from known facts and familiarity. The idea is to nudge viewers out of their comfort zone. It positions itself as a meditation on the malleability of facts and the increasingly fluid boundary between truth and fiction as humans are facing unprecedented alienation from each other. The film was financially backed by a grant from the Taiwan Creative Content Agency (TAICCA). 

EXCLUSIVE: Participant’s Chloé Zhao-exec produced limited scripted series about Vincent Chin had found its writers and director.

France’s Asacha Media Group has acquired compatriot SRAB Films, the firm behind Ladj Ly’s Oscar-nominated Les Misérables.

Cohen Media Group hopes a Spanish film can dent the tough market for foreign language fare, Bleecker Street is out with a hostage drama and A24 presents Owen Kline’s directorial debut about a teenage cartoonist as the arthouse market flexes more muscle than it has in weeks.

Charles S. Cohen’s Cohen Media Group, which owns the Landmark Theatres chain of art-houses, has acquired HanWay Films, the U.K.-based international film sales giant founded by Jeremy Thomas and long run by his partner Peter Watson.

Manori Ravindran International Editor Cohen Media Group has acquired producer Jeremy Thomas’ prestigious international sales company HanWay Films in a major deal. Cohen Media Group owns Landmark Theatres in the U.S. and British distributor-exhibitor Curzon. HanWay Films was founded by “The Last Emperor” producer Thomas and is co-owned with his partner Peter Watson. Under the deal, HanWay Films will continue to be branded as an independent label selling theatrical titles to its distribution partners worldwide. It’s still unclear how much an exclusive tie-in there will be to parent company-owned Curzon.

In this newly-created role, Ghee will help AMG’s senior advertising and marketing executives to strategically work with brands for significant partnerships with the AMG portfolio, including theGrio digital, broadcast, and television network platforms, as well as the HBCU GO streaming app and the global HBCU GO sports network. Ghee is based at the AMG offices in New York City.

“Minions: The Rise of Gru,” were in for a surprise after the ending was altered to have Gru, the main villain of the Illumination franchise, turned from an evil man to a good dude.The Chinese version of the animated film has an array of post-credit scenes in which a variety of subtitles say Gru “eventually became one of the good guys” who was “dedicated to raising his family.”In the United States, viewers find out how Gru tricked the police and learned to defeat his enemies to become the ultimate villain.Since “Minions” takes place before the “Despicable Me” series, Gru is not supposed to be the hero.Other post-credit scenes also feature the cops arresting Gru’s mentor, Wild Knuckles.In the Chinese adaptation, though, the police are not deceived and instead apprehend Knuckles, who is later jailed for two decades for his crimes.

Altitude has boarded international sales and UK and Irish distribution on Oscar-winning documentarian Laura Poitras’s Nan Goldin bio-pic All The Beauty And The Bloodshed, ahead of its world premiere at Venice and North American debut at Toronto.

BAFTA Launch Filmmaking Campaign With Digital Cinema Media BAFTA and Digital Cinema Media have launched a new campaign titled ‘Behind every BAFTA’ based around a national cinema ad that highlights the diverse range of skills that contribute to the production of award-winning films, games, and television with the aim to inspire the next generation of creative talent. DCM’s creative arm DCM Studio produced the ad, which is narrated by double BAFTA-winner Big Zuu and features rare behind-the-scenes content and clips from films including Skyfall, Get Out and 1917. The ad premieres on Friday, August 19, across the UK and will run for seven weeks, appearing alongside films such as Jordan Peele’s latest NOPE, Olivia Wilde’s Venice-bound Don’t Worry Darling, and the Brad Pitt-starrer Bullet Train.

Naman Ramachandran BAFTA and Digital Cinema Media (DCM) have partnered on a cinema campaign, which premieres Aug. 19 across the U.K., to inspire the next generation of creative talent by showcasing the diverse range of skills and knowledge that goes into making award-winning films, games and television.

Naman Ramachandran Blue Finch Films has boarded international sales, excluding North America, on LGBTQ+ body horror “Swallowed.”The film is directed by Carter Smith, known for cult horror film “The Ruins.” It follows two childhood friends, Benjamin and Dom, who are on the verge of being separated as the former is leaving rural Maine for Los Angeles. Dom has a plan to send Benjamin off with a pocketful of cash — all they have to do is deliver a package across the border. But things spiral wildly out of control when the package turns out to be something far more dangerous than they could have ever imagined.