Rising Russian Talents Ready for Global Liftoff

Russian theater director of embezzling state funds and imposed a three-year suspended sentence Friday in a case widely seen as politically motivated. Kirill Serebrennikov, 50, one of the most prominent theater and film directors in Russia, and his associates were found guilty of fraud and embezzling 129 million rubles (over $1.8 million) of state funding for a theater project.

Tom Grater International Film ReporterKirill Serebrennikov, the prominent Russian filmmaker behind The Student and Leto, has been found guilty of criminal fraud by a Moscow court after a controversial trial.Supporters of Serebrennikov claim the decision is politically motivated.

Christopher Vourlias Producer Ilya Stewart was in the early days of financing “Petrov’s Flu,” the latest feature from Russian director Kirill Serebrennikov (“Leto”), when he chose to bypass state funding bodies.

Russia’s best-known theater and film director, and his associates were charged with embezzling 133 million rubles (about $2 million) of state funding for a theater project. The prosecution on Monday amended the amount of allegedly embezzled funds to almost 129 million rubles (over $1.8 million) and asked the court to collect the money from the accused.

Christopher Vourlias The Key Buyers Event: Digital Edition, a virtual platform for Russian content hosted by film promotion body Roskino, wrapped this week with a slew of sales and an affirmation that global players are increasingly looking to tap into the Russian market.The online market welcomed some 600 international participants from 70 countries, with the largest number of buyers coming from the U.S., U.K., France, Germany, Spain, Japan and China.

Tom Grater International Film ReporterEXCLUSIVE: The Riki Group, a leader in Russia’s animation market that has been operating for 16 years, has appointed Mark Zavadskiy to the role of CEO.He will be responsible for running the company’s business units including two animation studios, digital content production, licensing and publishing agencies.

Leo Barraclough Senior International CorrespondentShout! Studios has take North American rights to World War II epic “The Last Frontier,” while U.K. rights have gone to Signature Entertainment.

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentKyrgyz and Russian director Nurbek Egen is best known for feature films “The Wedding Chest” and “The Empty Home,” and he more recently transitioned to TV with the 2017 series “Two Against Death.” He is now making a play for international audiences with high-end show “Sherlock: The Russian Chronicles,” produced by Russia’s Yellow, Black and White group, and penned by Oleg Malovichko (“Sputnik”).

Christopher Vourlias When Russian toon house Wizart Animation began enlisting collaborators for its upcoming series “Snow Queen: Keepers of Wonders,” a small-screen spinoff of the blockbuster animated film franchise, it wasted no time in recruiting talent from abroad. Brad Breeck, the composer from Disney XD’s “Gravity Falls,” came on board to assist with the soundtrack, while TV and comic-book writer Matthew Wayne was tapped as a script doctor.

Christopher Vourlias This week the Key Buyers Event: Digital Edition, organized by Russian film promotion body Roskino, launched its virtual showcase of new Russian productions with some 400 international participants slated to take part, including buyers, commissioners and producers from 55 countries.Exports of Russian films have been growing at a healthy 25% clip annually in recent years, according to Roskino, but a key question for many foreign buyers is how to market and sell those films in

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentWalter Presents, the expanding streaming service for non-English language drama, has acquired U.K.

Christopher Vourlias Russian film promotion body Roskino has organized a virtual content market showcasing the latest Russian productions to international buyers. Unspooling from June 8-15, the Key Buyers Event: Digital Edition features a program of live presentations, pitches, panel discussions, and matchmaking sessions, along with a dedicated co-development and co-production section and a screening room with more than 150 hours of Russian film, TV, digital and animated content.

Leo Barraclough Senior International CorrespondentThe Key Buyers Event: Digital Edition, a market showcase for the Russian film and TV industry, launched Monday with a welcome video from actress Anya Chipovskaya, the event’s ambassador, sent to its 400 international participants, including buyers, commissioners and producers from 55 countries.In the video Chipovskaya appears as an A.I.

Christopher Vourlias Vadim Vereshchagin, CEO of leading Russian production and distribution company Central Partnership, says it’s time for the world to give a second look to Russian cinema—particularly the slick commercial titles that are racking up boffo box office back home.“The key thing for us right now is to explain to the foreign buyers primarily, ‘Look, we’ve got great films. We’re not asking the same amount of money as Hollywood independent studios would.