Indie Streamer Nebula Launches Film Studio, Names Valentina Vee Director of Motion Pictures in First Overall Deal (EXCLUSIVE)

EXCLUSIVE: OBB Pictures, the company behind Roku’s A Very Demi Holiday Special and Netflix’s Mountain Queen: The Summits of Lhakpa Sherpa, is formalizing its relationship with Dexton Deboree.

Katcy Stephan Raimi Productions, the genre-focused company run by Sam Raimi and Zainab Azizi, has signed a first-look film and television deal with Ara Keshishian and Petr Jákl’s development and financing company ZQ Entertainment. The deal extends the long-standing relationship between the two companies, which most recently collaborated on the upcoming thriller “Locked,” directed by David Yaroveksy and starring Bill Skarsgård and Anthony Hopkins, and the horror-thriller “Don’t Move,” which was acquired by Netflix earlier this month.

K.J. Yossman Candid Broad Productions and 222 Pictures have signed a transatlantic multi-picture co-pro deal. Candid Broads Productions is a female-pioneering prod-co based in London and founded by Oriane Pick while 222 pictures is led by creative producer Sean Patrick Burke and executive producer Tiffany Burke.

EXCLUSIVE: A group of filmmakers are launching an AI film and animation studio and has snagged some A-list advisors.

Cate Blanchett has revealed that her new political comedy film Rumours was named after the seminal Fleetwood Mac album.While attending a press conference at the Cannes Film Festival on Sunday (May 19), Blanchett opened up about the film and its title. After receiving a four-minute standing ovation following its premiere the night before (May 18), Blanchett said that the film was named after Fleetwood Mac’s celebrated 1977 album.Blanchett remarked, per Variety: “I did confirm something with [director] Galen [Johnson] last night, and it’s weird that it never came up in rehearsal, which is: ‘Why the hell is this movie called Rumours?’.

Ellise Shafer Cate Blanchett‘s new film “Rumours” took its name from the iconic Fleetwood Mac album, it was revealed on Sunday at a Cannes Film Festival press conference. The dark comedy, directed by Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson and Galen Johnson, follows a group of world leaders who meet at the G7 — a political and economic meeting of the minds between Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States — but get lost in the woods while trying to compose a joint statement.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Manila-based production outfit Parallax Studio and entertainment company Saga Film Studios have formed a joint venture that will distribute the two-part Western epic “Horizon: An American Saga” in the Philippines. The deal is the first of a number of acquisitions planned by the joint venture. The “Horizon: An American Saga” films are directed by and star Academy Award winner Kevin Costner.

As Megalopolis looks to seek a U.S. distribution deal, pic’s filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola was asked to comment on the state of the film industry and whether the movie’s best destination is on streaming.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Microsoft‘s Activision has launched a new internal, standalone studio with one mission: creating a new narrative-based and genre-defining AAA franchise. Titled Elsewhere Entertainment, the studio will be headquartered in Warsaw, Poland, with additional staff in the United States.

Raven-Symoné is extending her partnership with Disney!

Ethan Shanfeld Raven-Symoné has signed a multiyear overall deal with Disney Branded Television that includes a pilot greenlight for a “Raven’s Home” spinoff series titled “Alice in the Palace.” Disney also announced that “Raven’s Home,” itself a spinoff of “That’s So Raven,” will not return for a seventh season. The sixth and final season aired from April to September 2023.

Alex Ritman Bond legend Pierce Brosnan has lined up a new project, and this time it’s being directed by his own son. Thriller “Wolfland” marks the second feature from actor-turned-filmmaker Sean Brosnan (“My Father Die”), working from a script he co-wrote with Matt D’Elia.

Congratulations are in order for Ant McPartlin and his wife Anne-Marie who have welcomed their first child together. The pair, who tied the knot back in a stunning ceremony in 2021, revealed on Instagram that they’d welcomed a baby into the world on Tuesday, 14 May, as they introduced their little bundle of joy into the world. As Ant shared the happy news, the doting dad, 48, also revealed what he and Anne-Marie have named their little one as he opened up about expanding their family.

EXCLUSIVE: Iranian-American multidisciplinary producer James Shani launches creative studio, RICH SPIRIT, which will partner with BIPOC artists and filmmakers to produce a wide range of original projects from narrative films to documentaries, music videos, donate its services to nonprofits, execute commissioned work for brands, and fund early-stage founders in the technology and media space.

Fresh from skewering his employer, Seth Meyers has been rewarded with a new contract at NBC.

EXCLUSIVE: Three and a half decades into his career as a playwright and film and TV writer, Jon Robin Baitz has never been busier, coming off one series, with three others in production or preproduction. Baitz has now signed a big multi-year deal with 20th Television, the studio behind the four series, which all hail from Ryan Murphy Productions. Noone is commenting but I hear the pact — said to be in the premium top range for writing talent — spans five years.

EXCLUSIVE: Fox is tripling down on The Floor.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter The quiz series “The Floor” has been renewed for Seasons 2 and 3 at Fox, with host Rob Lowe entering into an unscripted first-look deal with the network. “Fans loved the first season of ‘The Floor’ so much that we’ve ordered two more seasons of this breakthrough game show with plans already underway to make our epic battle of the brains even bigger and bolder,” said Michael Thorn, president of the Fox Television Network. “It’s also been a massive win to have a huge star like Rob Lowe as our host, and both our viewers and competitors can’t wait to see him back in action.” Under Lowe’s new deal, he will develop new unscripted series for Fox that would be produced by the network’s unscripted studio, Fox Alternative Entertainment.

EXCLUSIVE: Production, finance, and sales company Panorama Motion Pictures will make its Cannes market debut with a slate of projects from Catalyst Studios and other independent producers.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer The Cinemart, the production company behind Amazon’s “Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets” and Netflix’s “Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal,” has signed an overall deal with Banijay‘s Truly Original. Under the new pact, The Cinemart will expand its development and production operations in premium documentaries and other genres of unscripted programming through Truly Original, a subsidiary of Banijay backed by co-CEOs Steven Weinstock and Glenda Hersh.