Paramount+’s Marco Nobili: Non-Traditional Pacts Like Formula 1 Deal Key To Driving Business In Asia Pacific — ATF

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Mega media merger mania is once again afoot in Hollywood with very, very early talks between Warner Bros. Discovery‘s David Zaslav and Paramount Global’s Bob Bakish about a potential merger of the two companies. Analysts and industry sources have already raised a number of questions about what a WBD-Paramount combo would look like and the effect it could have on the larger TV and film landscape.

Legendary footballer Rio Ferdinand has shown off his impressive hair and beard transplant. The former Manchester United star, who married his girlfriend Kate Wright back in September 2019 in Turkey, travelled back to the country for the treatment at Dr Emrah Cinik's clinic, reports Daily Star. A viral TikTok video shows the ace sporting legend getting the treatment done.

A celeb chef has shared one important step for cooking a "juicy, gorgeous" turkey this Christmas

Aldi has told shoppers it is selling the 'cheapest' turkey in the UK this Christmas ahead of them going on sale next week.

TOWIE’s James Lock has revealed on his social media that he is heading to Istanbul in Turkey for surgery after he was involved in a brutal accident on a TV show last year.The reality star was left looking unrecognisable after suffering severe face injuries while filming the first season of the UK's The Challenge.The series, which consisted of five episodes and aired earlier this year, left James being rushed to the hospital after sustaining injuries to his face in the very first episode. James could be seen with some serious bruising on his face, puffy cheeks and two black eyes.

Marco Pigossi was just spotted filming a steamy scene at the beach with co-star Ciara Bravo!

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Thailand’s broadcast and streaming group Mono Next and Korea’s Studio Genie have struck a deal to collaborate on content creation and distribution. Production of a Thai remake of a Korean series is on the cards, but has not been finalized. The memorandum was announced on stage at the Asia Television Forum in Singapore on Wednesday, with streaming unit Mono Streaming signing on behalf of the Thai group.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Hollywood’s role in Asian TV has changed in the streaming era and age of hyper-local content. A top-down sales and distribution position has eased into one of co-production, co-financing and acquisition. A high-powered array of western executives offered experienced views and discussed their current positions at a panel session Thursday within the Asia Television Forum & Market in Singapore. “We want to be an additive partner on shows that cannot be created locally, said Georgina Gonzalez, director of scripted series and global series at Universal Int’l Studios, NBCU.

Banijay Asia Unveils Leadership Team Following Endemol Acquisition

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Something Special, the Seoul-based international format agency founded by format specialists Jin Woo Hwang (president and executive producer) and Kim In Soon (EVP & head of content) announce that ITV Studios has optioned the hit Korean celebrity format “Battle in the Box” for France, Australia, New Zealand, and Israel. The deal was unveiled on Wednewday, the first full day of the Asia Television Forum and Market (ATF) in Singapore. “Battle in the Box,” created by Korea’s NMedia and represented globally by Something Special, has previously seen deals announced with Fremantle for Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, the Netherlands, Belgium and Portugal.

Naman Ramachandran Canadian conglomerate, Blue Ant Media has scored sales of some 550 hours of programming to Asia Pacific broadcasters, it was revealed at Singapore’s Asia TV Forum & Market (ATF). Content was sourced from across Blue Ant’s portfolio companies.

Christopher Vourlias The first edition of the Alternativa Film Project wrapped with an award ceremony this weekend in Almaty, the cultural capital of Kazakhstan, with filmmakers from Central Asia and the wider Asia-Pacific region being feted as part of a new initiative launched by the California-based tech company inDrive, best known for its ride-hailing app. The event marked a successful close to what organizers hope will be an ongoing non-profit initiative aimed at supporting emerging filmmakers from under-developed film industries.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor The Match Factory has announced sales to key territories for Michel Franco’s latest feature “Memory,” which stars Jessica Chastain. The Academy Award winning actor is serving as jury president at this week’s Marrakech Film Festival, where she spoke about the film (see here). “Memory” premiered at the Venice Film Festival and was awarded with the Coppa Volpi for best actor to Peter Saarsgard.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief CJ ENM (Hong Kong), a channels and content distributor that is part of the Korean CJ ENM conglomerate, has picked up pay-TV rights in parts of Asia to a handful of Korean series that were co-financed by streaming platform Tving and Paramount+. The deal was struck with Paramount Global Content Distribution. The productions are part of a global strategic partnership between CJ ENM and Paramount Global that was announced in December 2021. The deal was announced on the eve of the Asian TV Forum (ATF), which kicks off next week in Singapore. The series debut first on Tving in Korea and on Paramount+ in the U.S., Canada, U.K., Australia, Latin America, Brazil, Italy, France, Germany, Switzerland and Austria.

Banijay is pushing into the sports game, while CEO Marco Bassetti has criticized private equity firms for “raising expectation into the market.”

A mum has warned others of cheap foreign weight loss surgery after waking up to find her stomach in a bag next to her - which she had to throw in the bin. Rosie Ritchie, 24, flew to Turkey for a £3k gastric sleeve operation with a cosmetic surgery provider.

A mum who was left fighting for her life after undergoing a botched a 'mummy makeover’ in Turkey has spoken out about her traumatising ordeal.

For a Friday that is time for reflection and giving thanks, host Billy Ray and returning original host Todd Garner welcomes WGA president Meredith Stiehm and SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher. They talk with the guys about the lessons learned from the long and brutal six month strike that is finally and mercifully over. The guild leaders advise IATSE and Teamsters negotiators what to expect when their deals expire next July. They also review a negotiation that in their minds never had to turn into such a protracted process. The gains made by their guilds could have been achieved if only the signatories had sent in the CEOs earlier to the bargaining table, and stopped trying to work from a contract and negotiating moves that were hopelessly outdated in the streaming age. Coming in for particular criticism here is AMPTP negotiator Carol Lombardini. After Billy Ray recalled watching Lombardini cancel catering and then announce that the WGA walked away from the table in 2017, Stiehm said this time the head negotiator for studios responded to rejection of an offer by the WGA negotiating committee by presenting the contract to membership and releasing the full offer to the media. Ray and Garner will do one more Strike Talk by the way, and to the editors, that is another thing to give thanks for.

Naman Ramachandran India‘s Film Bazaar, the Singapore-based Asia TV Forum & Market’s (ATF) IP Accelerator Project Market (AIPA) and the Southeast Asian Audio-Visual Association (SAAVA) have formed a project market partnership. Film Bazaar, South Asia’s largest film market is operated by India’s National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) and runs concurrently with the International Film Festival of India (IFFI).

Thanksgiving gobbler.“They don’t eat meat, but they do eat fish, and they’re allowed to eat one of my turkeys on Thanksgiving, but only on Thanksgiving do they eat anything related to meat,” Stewart, 82, told Business Insider of her pescatarian grandkids.The “very good kids” — Jude, 12, and Truman, 11 — also offer a helping hand in Stewart’s coveted kitchen, but they’re not the only plant-based foodies in the family.The celebrity chef’s 58-year-old daughter, Alexis, has been a vegetarian for more than four decades after their family served a lamb from their farm on a platter.“I tried to pass it off as a pork chop, but she knew the difference,” Stewart admitted to Business Insider. “It didn’t go over very well in our family.”Despite being surrounded by herbivores, the culinary aficionado swears she’ll never “go vegan.”“I really don’t enjoy vegan food, and I really love my eggs,” she told the outlet.