Cultivate Entertainment Partners Hires Devorah Moos Hankin As Producer, Ups Robert Szertics To VP Of Management

The fallout from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues, as Poland and Sweden have said they will refuse to play Russia in World Cup qualifying playoff matches.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentSF Studios has boarded “Forever,” a football-themed film directed by Anders Hazelius, the award-winning director of “Thunder in My Heart” and the popular TV series “Tunna Blå Linjen.”Tackling friendship, love and football, “Forever” is based on a script by Jessika Jankert (“So Damn Easy Going”) and produced by Stefan Lindén (“Eagles”) and Erik Lundqvist (“Pink Cloud Syndrome”) for SF Studios.“Forever” stars emerging actors Flutra Cela and Judith Sigfridsson as Mila and Kia, a pair of teenage best friends and aspiring football professionals. When the girls get a new demanding football coach Lollo (Agnes Lindström Bolmgren), they slowly start to drift apart.

Paradox Interactive has released an external report into its own work culture following issues of harassment that were raised last year in a staff survey.As reported by Eurogamer, the report was compiled by Gender Balance – a Swedish firm that specialises in discrimination, harassment and equality issues – and its results confirm that there are cultural issues within Paradox that foster misconduct.“We believe that complete transparency is the best way to move forward and address the issues and behaviours that have been identified,” Paradox chief of staff Mattias Lilja said in response to the report and the recommendations from Gender Balance.In a separate interview with Direkt, which was provided to Eurogamer with the English translation, Lilja said: “We are now getting to the bottom of this and we are getting a concrete picture of the problem.”“The report is a first step for us to really address these issues and bridge the trust gap that exists. Everyone should feel safe at Paradox and thrive, that is our responsibility to ensure.”Lilja continues to address the report, saying that Gender Balance expected more severe cases and found fewer but discovered behaviour of “inappropriate/nasty jargon” that “affects women to a greater degree than men, which is completely unacceptable.

Manori Ravindran International EditorEntertainment One has hired Left Bank executive producer Sharon Hughff to serve as creative director of scripted television out of the U.K.In her new role, she will oversee the scripted team and pipeline from the U.K., while spearheading efforts to expand the slate into buyers in the U.K. as well as Europe and Asia.

The UK TV skills crisis has been laid bare by research from ScreenSkills showing the vast majority of production companies struggling immensely to find key roles such as Production Manager and Production Co-ordinator on non-scripted shows.

Wilson Chapman editorForbes Entertainment and Entertainment One have partnered to produce multiple projects based on the alleged bitcoin laundering operation of Heather Morgan and Ilya Lichtenstein, the companies announced Wednesday.As reported by The New York Times, Morgan and Lichtenstein were arrested on Feb. 8 under charges relating to a 2016 hack of the Bitcoin virtual currency exchange.

The bitcoin money laundering scandal, which has made headlines in the national news recently, will be the subject of two projects from Entertainment One and Forbes Entertainment. The companies have teamed to produce a scripted series and a documentary about the scandal following the Feb. 8 arrest in Manhattan of so-called “crypto couple,” Heather Morgan and Ilya “Dutch” Lichtenstein, who are awaiting trial on charges alleging they tried to launder $3.6 billion in stolen bitcoin. The scripted project is co-produced by eOne, Forbes Entertainment and Tucker Tooley Entertainment, and the documentary hails from eOne’s Blackfin and Forbes Entertainment.

Sasha Urban editorSTX Films has released the trailer for its upcoming action thriller “The Contractor,” starring Chris Pine. The film will be released in theaters and digitally on April 1.After special forces sergeant James Harper (Pine) is involuntarily discharged from the army, he contracts with an underground military operation and finds himself entangled in a dangerous conspiracy that leaves him fighting for his life.

Following Deadline’s story about Michael Mann’s forthcoming prequel/sequel novel to his landmark film Heat — he cowrote the book with Edgar winner-Meg Gardiner — has quickly sold rights in major markets around the world. The novel, which hits bookstores August 9, has already sold in 13 major territories including Germany, Japan, France, Italy, Spain, Holland, Hungary, Mexico, Poland, Brazil, Sweden, Czech Republic and the UK. The international rollout of Heat 2 is mirroring Harper Collins’ launch of Quentin Tarantino’s #1 bestselling novelization of his film Once Upon A Time…in Hollywood.

European Film Market has felt lopsided.Sony’s $60 million deal for Tom Hanks’ “A Man Called Otto,” an adaptation of Fredrik Backman’s bestselling Swedish-language novel “A Man Called Ove” — which was made into an Oscar-nominated  Swedish feature — that grabbed headlines early on (Variety understands it boiled down to a bidding war between the studio and Apple), but hasn’t necessarily spawned the usual flurry of deals from Berlin halfway through the festival.One buyer from a major U.K. distributor says the EFM vibe has felt “muted” for a company of its size, with an absence of broad-appeal product available once “Otto” was snapped up by Sony.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentOne of Scandinavia’s leading film distributors, Scanbox Entertainment is changing ownership with a new board including CEO Thor Sigurjonsson. The company was bought back from Scanbox Chairman Joni Sighvatsson. New owners include COO Kim William Beich, commercial director Torben Thorup Jorgensen, and producer Chris Briggs.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterFox Entertainment has acquired the rights to the Gumby franchise.The deal was made between Fox and the estate of Joseph Clokey, the son of Gumby creator Art Clokey. It gives Fox all rights to Gumby and associated characters across film, television and streaming, consumer products, licensing, publishing, and all other categories.“Competition for globally recognized intellectual property is fierce,” said Charlie Collier, CEO of Fox Entertainment. “Uncovering this gem, with its built-in awareness and affinity, and bringing it to Fox, adds meaningful value and creative possibilities to the IP itself and to multiple divisions of our company.

EXCLUSIVE: J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay, the creator-EPs behind Amazon’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, have set up their 2017 Black List screenplay Escape with The Hideaway Entertainment (Cherry), tapping James Watkins (AMC+’s upcoming The Ipcress File, The Woman in Black) to direct.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterDisney Branded Television has brought on Charlie Andrews to serve as executive vice president of live-action and alternative series, Variety has learned.Andrews joins Disney Branded TV from Fox Entertainment, where he most recently worked as head of drama development for the broadcaster before exiting in December. Andrews will begin in his new role on Feb.

EXCLUSIVE: NENT streamer Viaplay is seeking to partner with more major U.S. distribution platforms as it beds in “for the long term,” according to EVP and Chief Content Officer Filippa Wallestam.

Annika Pham Stockholm-based production house Hobab whose buzzy Cannes Directors’ Fortnight “Clara Sola” was snapped by New-York-based Oscilloscope Laboratories, is ramping up its ambitions, with female-led projects.“Our vision is to combine arthouse sensitivity with mainstream appeal, and to help talents – both Nordic and international – grow with care,” said Nima Yousefi, producer and joint owner with Peter Krupenin.Pedigree European shingles Finland’s Tuffi Films, Denmark’s Toolbox and Italy’s Intramovies have boarded as co-producers Hobab’s next Swedish feature drama “Sisters,” from first-time fiction helmer Mika Gustafson.Ruben Öslund’s former alumna at Göteborg’s Valand Academy, Gustafson had her international break with the short film “Mephobia,” followed by the doc-biopic “Silvana,” about rapper and feminist icon Silvana Imam. Due to start lensing in June, “Sisters” is penned by Gustafson with actor-screenwriter Alexander Öhrstrand, seen in “The Bridge” and “The Hunt for a Killer.”The coming of age story follows siblings Laura (16), Mira (12) and Steffi (7), fending for themselves in a Swedish working-class suburban housing estate, as their mother vanishes for lengthy periods.

Endeavor Content-backed Scandinavian indie Nordic Drama Queens has hired the producer behind Netflix’s upcoming The Playlist (Spotify Untold).