Gebrueder Beetz Renamed Beetz Brothers Ahead Of Sundance; Firm Sets Up Boney M Doc With Temple Hill & Titan Disaster Project

EXCLUSIVE: Former Blue Ant Media execs Solange Attwood and Asha Daniere have launched an “internationally-focused, next generation studio business” out of Canada.

Alex Ritman U.K.-based film production and distribution company Sovereign is expanding across the Atlantic with the launch of a distribution arm in the U.S. With a plan to release two to three titles a year theatrically and across VOD platforms, the first film slated for release from the new entity is Laurent Nègre’s World War II thriller “A Forgotten Man,” which Sovereign also produced. Set in 1945 after the surrender of Nazi Germany, the story follows the Swiss ambassador (played by Michael Neuenschwander) after he leaves Berlin, but finds himself haunted by his past.

The Lost Boys, the previously announced, in-development stage musical adaptation of 1987 horror classic, has set an invitation-only industry presentation for next month, with Frozen‘s Caissie Levy, Dear Evan Hansen‘s Nathan Levy and & Juliet‘s Lorna Courtney in pivotal roles.

The creator of pop group Boney M Frank Farian has died aged 82.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media Writer The union representing Hollywood musicians begins bargaining on Monday with demands for streaming residuals and protections from artificial intelligence. The American Federation of Musicians kicked off the talks with a rain-soaked rally at the Sherman Oaks Galleria, home of the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which bargains on behalf of the major studios. The musicians’ top issues are the same ones that forced Hollywood writers and actors to go on strike last year, paralyzing the industry for six months.

Brian Brobbey has addressed reports linking him with a move to Manchester United - but the 21-year-old says he will be staying in the Eredivisie with Ajax.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief “Sound of Freedom,” the indie action-drama film that earned some $184 million at the North American box office, has set a significant theatrical release in South Korea. Angel Studios, the crowd-funded Utah-based production and distribution firm behind the film, initially set up direct-to-theater releases for the film’s first international outings in the U.K., Australia and Latin America. In Korea, rights have been licensed in conventional fashion by the N.E.W. – Contents Panda group, which plans to give the picture a release from Feb. 21, 2024.

From West End musicals to edge-of-your-seat whodunnits, there's a raft of new shows heading to Manchester over the next 12 months. One of those to hit the stage is The Gap, a brand new play showing at Hope Mill Theatre.

FX has set a March 29 premiere date for Spermworld, a documentary feature on the unregulated online marketplace for sperm, produced by The New York Times and Edgeline Films.

Ethan Shanfeld If you’re eager to see “Stop Making Sense” on the big screen again, well, watch out … you might get what you’re after. Starting Jan. 27, the beloved Talking Heads concert film will return to movie theaters across the U.S., Canada and the U.K.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Be For Films, an independent film sales company based in Brussels, has acquired international rights to German filmmaker Michael Fetter Nathansky‘s “Every You Every Me,” which has been selected in the Panorama section of the Berlinale. “Every You Every Me” won two Work-in-Progress Awards, under its previous title “Mannequins,” at the San Sebastian Film Festival.

When the Oscar shortlist of feature documentaries was announced in December, it was dominated by films that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival – films like Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project, The Eternal Memory, Beyond Utopia and A Still Small Voice. 

Cinema export agency Unifrance’s annual international box office report for 2023 revealed on Tuesday that Russia was the top market in terms of admissions for French cinema last year.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter “Treasure,” a father-daughter road trip drama starring Lena Dunham and Stephen Fry, has sold worldwide rights to Bleecker Street and FilmNation Entertainment. The movie, formerly titled “Iron Box,” will have its world premiere at the Berlin Film Festival. Bleecker Street and FilmNation Entertainment, which recently teamed on “Waitress: The Musical,” will co-distribute the movie theatrically later this year in the U.S.

French cinema saw its fortunes rise at the international box office in 2023 after three difficult Covid-19 and post pandemic years, according to the annual report of export agency Unifrance released on Tuesday.

Oscar documentary branch voters can’t be accused of parochialism. They ventured far and wide to select their shortlist of feature documentaries for 2023, tapping films from countries as varied as a U.N. roll call: Ukraine, Uganda, Poland, Denmark, Tunisia, Canada and the United States.

Alex Ritman After just one weekend of international release, “Priscilla” — Sofia Coppola‘s biopic starring Jacob Elordi as Elvis Presley and Cailee Spaeny as The King’s (then) teenage bride “Priscilla” — has already hit several major milestones for arthouse streamer and distributor Mubi. Produced by Fremantle’s The Apartment, the film currently sits on a box office in excess of $20 million in the U.S., where A24 released the film on Oct.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Disney Brand Television has acquired two more seasons of “Miraculous — Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir,” as well as three original animated specials from ZAG studio and Method Animation, a label owned by Mediawan Kids & Family. Currently in production, the sixth and seventh seasons, as well as the specials will roll out on Disney Channel worldwide in the fall, and will go on to stream on Disney+ globally thereafter. “Miraculous — Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir” follows the adventures of two teens with secret identities, Marinette and Adrien, who transform into superheroes Ladybug and Cat Noir to save Paris from villains.

Well, it’s that time of year again, isn’t it? The Sundance Film Festival hasn’t even happened, the Berlin Film Festival line-up is not even out or complete, and we’re already looking ahead to March and the SXSW Film & Television Festival. There’s no rest for the wicked.

Manchester United outcast Jadon Sancho is edging closer to re-signing for Borussia Dortmund, with the England international dropping the biggest hint yet over a transfer.