FilMart Returns, Buoyed by Positive Current Trends But Against Backdrop of Industry and Regional Change

feel like it belongs to her.The latest song to get the Clarkson treatment during the Kellyoke segment of her daytime talk show was the TikTok viral track “abcdefu” by GAYLE. However, didn't just belt out a better version than the original (don't take it personally, GAYLE, it's just ), she also changed a very significant lyric—and the switch appears to be directed towards her ex-husband .Here's the original lyric: “A-B-C-D-E, F-U and your mom and your sister and your job and your broke-ass car and that shit you call art.”Here's what Clarkson sang: “A-B-C-D-E, forget you and your dad and the fact that you got half.

Hi everyone, As I mentioned at our first All-Hands meeting last month, I’m committed to direct and honest communication with all of you. The music business is filled with new possibilities: more fans are engaging with artists and songs than ever, our reach is enormous, and new business models are constantly emerging.

Jana Kramer is making SOMETHING work with her ex-husband, and it sounds like the duo couldn’t be better right now.

Parents have to stick together. Blac Chyna is all about keeping things cool when it comes to coparenting with her exes, Rob Kardashian and Tyga.

The Writers Guild of America is taking on the robots.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Indonesian horror feature “Losmen Melati” (aka “Motel Melati”) has set theatrical releases in Malaysian and Singaporean cinemas on April 6, and April 13, respectively, following its release in Indonesia on Thursday.  The film is co-directed by Mike Wiluan and Billy Christian. It tells the story of a secluded and enigmatic guest house, run by its mystifying owner, Madam Melati. As she lures in unsuspecting visitors to the guest house, they are confronted with their worst nightmares, never to be seen again.  The movie features a cast of Alexandra Gottardo (“Tanah Air Beta”), Kiki Narendra (“Perempuan Tanah Jahanam”), Fandy Christian (“Letters for You”) and Samuel Panjaitan (“Ghost also Selfie”). Presented by streamer Catchplay and Infinite Studios, “Losmen Melati” is co-distributed by Clover Films and Golden Village Pictures in Singapore.

Good afternoon Insiders, here we are again and it’s Max Goldbart helming a busy week’s newsletter. Scroll down for the biggest news and analysis from team Deadline International, and sign up to the newsletter here.

I, like most of the casting community, have spent time reading over the latest articles on the current state of casting (and the comments on those articles). It has been gut wrenching to read and try to digest, especially as someone who learned this industry in the southeast where self-tapes have been the prominent form of auditions since I started in 2007 working as a casting assistant and in extras casting. 

Although Filmart felt quiet on its first morning, with many attendees glued to their phones watching the Oscars, it soon turned into a reasonably vibrant market, with sales companies locked in back-to-back meetings, new project announcements and a few star appearances to liven up proceedings. 

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The Hong Kong Trade Development Council said Thursday that 7,300 executives from 41 countries had attended its FilMart and Entertainment Pulse events this week (March 13-16). “The revived physical marketplace was as vibrant and active as in the past,” organizers claimed. In 2019, the last year that FilMart was held as an in-person event, the TDC reported “close to 9,000 visitors from 52 countries and regions.” For 2023, it reported “over 700 exhibitors from 30 countries and regions,” including a record Mainland China exhibitor tally exceeding 330. Those numbers compared with 888 exhibitors from 35 countries and regions in 2019, including 264 exhibitors from China.

Naman Ramachandran The future is Web3 was the consensus at a high-powered panel discussing the subject at Hong Kong’s FilMart on Wednesday. Weighing in with their knowledge and experience were Evan Auyang, group president, Animoca Brands; Jenefer Brown, executive VP and head of global products and experiences, Lionsgate; Lucas Cheungmanaging partner, Hong Kong, Gusto Collective and Jaeson Ma co-founder, 88rising, OP3N and EST Media. For the benefit of the lay people in the audience, Ma provided a handy definition of what exactly Web3 is. Ma explained that web1 was a phase where people could search for and read content, web2 is where companies were able to publish content and web3 is all about ownership.

Marcus Lim Chinese TV producer Linmon Media struck a decidedly international tone during the presentation of its 2023-24 slate at FilMart, with presenters speaking about their Chinese-language projects in only English and Korean, and handing out sleek project literature in multiple languages. Apart from a slate of romance, medical and crime dramas targeted at domestic audiences, the studio is actively remaking its hit female-led contemporary drama “Nothing but Thirty” in Thailand, Indonesia and Hong Kong, having previously licensed the remake rights to Korean pay TV network JTBC. The drama, which follows the lives of three women as they transition from their 20s into their 30s, is emblematic of the Linmon slate, which is heavy on female-centric contemporary romance dramas.

Naman Ramachandran Singapore-based media and entertainment company mm2 Asia and Taiwan’s Man Man Er are starting development on series ”Tales of Mystery” (working title), a series borne from the strategic partnership of the pair with Taiwanese intellectual property company Million Star (Huaxing) Entertainment, which was revealed in December 2022. The series was announced at Hong Kong’s ongoing FilMart market. The project is adapted from the bestselling supernatural book series of the same name by popular Taiwanese writer Teensy, who is also the author and creator of “Agent From Above,” which has been adapted into a series for Netflix by mm2.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Hong Kong-based indie sales agent Good Move Media has added Japanese music drama “Plastic” to its FilMart slate. The film is directed by Miyazaki Daisuke, the Japanese helmer behind “Yamato (California),” which had festival play in 2016, and 2019 slacker youth title “Tourism” in 2019. The new picture is the story of teenagers Juna and Ibuki, who set out to find the psychedelic rock band Exne Kedy. Exne Kedy is a fictional creation from musician Ide Kensuke, who previously released punky album “Kensuke Ide With His Mothership — Contact From Exne Kedy and the Poltergeists,” but the band is actually credited as performing and providing part of the music track in the film. “Plastic” is recently completed and headed for a theatrical release in Japan in July.

EXCLUSIVE: MakerVille, the recently launched entertainment subsidiary of Hong Kong media group PCCW, is set to make a splash at Filmart, unveiling an ambitious slate of movies and premium series, following its debut feature Mad Fate, which had its world premiere at Berlin film festival. 

Marcus Lim Africa is turning out to be an unlikely market for Chinese television producers, according to one production executive. Hou Hong Liang, chairman of Chinese television production company Daylight Entertainment revealed his amazement at meeting African fans of Chinese television stars in a recent trip to the continent, even as he bemoaned the lower profitability of the region. “We had African fans coming to the airport to meet the cast for one of our recent productions. I was amazed to see we had fans in Africa. I thought they wouldn’t understand our culture, but they did. I don’t think Africa is a true market yet, our IP is not valued as much. We have to nurture the audience, so we sell our IP at a lower price to African broadcasters.”

Top executives from Asian media companies including CJ ENM, Zee Entertainment Enterprises, BEC World and Bona Film Group discussed Asia’s changing media landscape on the first day of Hong Kong’s Filmart. 

Roberto Stabile, head of special projects, Directorate General for Cinema and Audiovisual-Ministry of Culture at Cinecittà, told Variety. “This support will increase the presence of Italian audiovisual content not only in cinemas, but also on streaming platforms, online distribution, television, everything,” he added.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Despite a barnstorming address celebrating the re-opening of Hong Kong and China by Bona Film Group COO Jiang De Fu, it is clear that the film industry in China is still suffering its own version of long-COVID, with box office tracking at around half of 2018 levels. “The Chinese box office was RMB60.7 billion ($8.89 billion at current rates of exchange) in 2018. And 83 films made over RMB100 million. 16 films that made over RMB1 billion. Post-pandemic, in 2022, China’s box office was RMB29.9 billion. [Just] 41 films made over RMB100 million. [And] 8 films made over RMB1 billion. We are now only at 50% of the level in 2018,” said Jiang aty a presentation on the first day of Hong Kong’s FilMart.

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag admitted that he was pleased with Jadon Sancho's contributions from the attacking-midfield position during Sunday's goalless draw with Southampton at Old Trafford.