‘Parasite’ Producer Barunson E&A Makes First Foray Into Indonesia With Investment In Visinema’s ‘13 Bombs’

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Mark Francis, a veteran TV and streaming executive in Asia, has joined Indonesia’s Vidio streaming platform as its chief content officer and strategy officer. The appointment comes as the platform repasses 4 million subscribers and reclaims a lead in the Indonesian streaming market. Based in Jakarta and reporting directly to CEO Sutanto Harton, Francis is expected to oversee the freemium streamer’s content strategy and programming.

French President Emmanuel Macron has come out in support of Gérard Depardieu whose star has fallen in France in recent days following the airing of a documentary investigating multiple allegations of sexual assault against the actor.

The Bequeathed, starring Hellbound actress Kim Hyun-joo. Here’s everything we know about the show.The Bequeathed, based on a popular webtoon by Kang Tae-kyung, is co-written by Hellbound and Train to Busan creator Yeon Sang-ho, alongside Hwang Eun-young and series director Min Hong-nam.The series focuses on Yoon Seo-ha (Kim Hyun-joo), who inherits a family graveyard after the death of her uncle.

G-Dragon is starting a new chapter.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor U.K. based sales and distribution outfit Blue Finch Films has boarded worldwide rights to thriller “Steppenwolf” from writer-director Adilkhan Yerzhanov, whose credits include the Cannes selected titles “The Owners” and “The Gentle Indifference of the World.” The film will have its world premiere at next month’s International Film Festival Rotterdam as part of the Big Screen Competition. “Steppenwolf” is a brutal story of an unlikely duo who will stop at nothing to find what they are looking for.

Naman Ramachandran An in conversation event with Paramount Global executives Pam Kaufman, president and CEO of international markets and global consumer products and experiences, and Lisa Kramer, president of international TV licensing, Paramount Global Content Distribution, has been added to the NATPE Global conference. Jens Richter, Fremantle’s CEO of commercial and international and Paulo Koelle, head of Prime Video Latin America, Amazon Studios have also joined the speaker lineup. Other executives who have recently been confirmed include Jeff Sagansky, Sky’s group director of acquisitions, Katie Keenan, ACF Investment Bank’s Richard Gray, Satmohan Panesar, commissioner, factual, ITV Studios, Michael Schmidt, president, Sipur and Ilan Arboleda, co-founder and producer, CreativeChaos vmg.

EXCLUSIVE: Critical Content, the company behind series such as Netflix’s Ginny & Georgia and Sly, is looking to bolster its formats business and co-productions with the hire of former Zodiak exec Stéfanie Gelinas.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Fifth Season, the production and distribution company previously known as Endeavor Content, has secured a $225 million strategic investment from Toho International, the Japanese film and TV studio behind current box office hit “Godzilla Minus One.” The investment gives Toho a 25% equity stake in the company and leaves Korean entertainment conglomerate CJ ENM as Fifth Season’s majority owner. Former parent company, Endeavor Group Holdings continues as a strategic shareholder. CJ ENM and Fifth Season will work with Toho to both produce global content and participate in content produced in Japan.

Beginning as a simple two-hander in which a young working-class caretaker comes under the spell of his returning boss — a charismatic military man who has designs on getting into local politics — Makbul Mubarak’s debut film Autobiography soon develops into a tense psychological thriller about the way populist leaders groom and abuse their people. It works on its own terms, as a simple yet dark father-son allegory set within Indonesia’s military culture, but there’s a universality here that’s hard to miss.

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.

Naman Ramachandran The popular Singapore Comic Con (SGCC) is back with an array of internationally renowned creators and characters. BBC Studios’ hit family animation “Bluey” is returning to the SGCC main stage and this time she will be joined by her sister Bingo in a new, refreshed “Bluey Live Experience,” which debuted last year.

A second woman has filed an official complaint against French actor Gérard Depardieu accusing him of sexual assault.

Naman Ramachandran Ena Sendijarević’s “Sweet Dreams,” Netherlands’ submission in the Academy Awards international feature category, has secured North American distribution via Dekanalog. The film had its world premiere at Locarno, where it won the Pardo for best performance for Renée Soutendijk (“Suspiria”) and the second prize of the junior jury. The film debuted in North America in Toronto’s Centrepiece section and won the Silver Hugo new directors award at Chicago.

Valerie Wu Intern The Palm Springs International Film Festival has announced its 2024 lineup. Held by the Palm Springs International Film Society, the PSIFF aims to spotlight and celebrate a range of global films. The 35th annual festival’s opening night will host the U.S.

Naman Ramachandran Yosep Anggi Noen, whose “24 Hours with Gaspar” premiered at Busan and is playing at the Red Sea and Singapore festivals, has lined up his next movie, an untitled horror film. The film is produced by Palari Films, the Jakarta-based production company behind Edwin’s “Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash,” which won the Golden Leopard at Locarno in 2021. Noen is no stranger to Locarno glory himself, having been nominated in 2012 for “Peculiar Vacation and Other Illnesses” and in 2016 for “Solo, Solitude” and scored a special mention in 2019 for “The Science of Fictions.” The untitled horror-drama-thriller film, produced by Palari’s Muhammad Zaidy and Meiske Taurisia, will unite acclaimed actors Happy Salma and Putri Marino for the first time.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief “Carmen,” “Foe,” “Limbo,” Australia’s Oscar contender “Shayda,” “Streets of Colour” and “The Royal Hotel” have received the six nominations for best feature film at this year’s Screen Producers Australia Awards. The SPA Awards will be held on Thursday, March 21, 2024, the final evening of the Screen Forever conference. In the documentary feature section, the nominations are “Flyaways,” “Harley & Katya,” “Living With Devils,” “ONEFOUR: Against All Odds,” “The Cape,” “The Giants,” “The Jewish Nazi?” and “The Platypus Garden.” Nominations for best telemovie or miniseries production are “While the Men Are Away,” “The Claremont Murders,” “Wellmania,” “The Messenger,” “Bad Behaviour” and “The Clearing.” “2023 was a year filled with a number of challenges for our industry, but the Australian screen sector continued to delight audiences globally with stories that share our unique culture and creativity,” said SPA CEO Matthew Deaner.

Naman Ramachandran Netflix has acquired Indonesian filmmaker Yosep Anggi Noen’s festival favorite film “24 Hours with Gaspar.” Adapted from a detective novel of the same title that was published in 2017 by Sabda Armandio, “24 Hours with Gaspar” follows the life of private detective Gaspar, who has only 24 hours to live. He discovers clues leading to the mysterious disappearance of Kirana, a childhood friend, and later to Wan Ali, who’s involved in a human trafficking syndicate.

a few months back. “There’s just tremendous opportunities now as the market’s tightening to find source IP where, you know, there’s an installed audience,” he added.

Squid Game: The Challenge appears to have launched with a splash in the UK.

Single’s Inferno.Single’s Inferno follows a group of singles as they live together on a remote island dubbed Inferno, where they try to find love while keeping their personal details hidden from one other.The only way to make it off the island and get themselves to Paradise, which is characterised by luxurious hotel suites, is to find romance by pairing themselves with another contestant.The new trailer for the popular reality dating show’s new season previews a number of the contestants, including one that the panel of emcees describe as “look[ing] like [BLACKPINK‘s] Jennie”.Season 3 of Single’s Inferno will also see season 2 contestant Kim Jin-young – better known as DEX – joining the show as the fifth member of its panel of emcees.DEX will join the reality show’s four original hosts: TV personality Hong Jin-kyung, Island actress Lee Da-hee, Super Junior member Kyuhyun and former Phantom member Hanhae.The third season of Single’s Inferno will premiere December 12 exclusively on Netflix. The number of episodes that the new season will feature is currently unknown.The first season of the reality series debuted in December 2021 and ran for eight episodes.