Sky Studios Ups Jane Millichip to Chief Content Officer for Entire Group

BERLIN -- The Australian photographer and actress June Newton — also known under her pseudonym Alice Springs — has died at 97, the Helmut Newton Foundation said Saturday in Berlin.Newton, who was also the wife of the late photographer Helmut Newton, died Friday in her home in Monte Carlo.

BERLIN -- The American author John Naisbitt, whose 1982 bestselling book “Megatrends” was published in dozens of countries, has died at 92, the Austrian news agency APA has reported.Naisbitt died in his home at Lake Woerthersee on Thursday, a friend of the family told APA.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorJason White has worked to capture attention for Nike, Apple’s Beats and cannabis products. Now he’s bringing his marketing acumen to the world of TV.White has been named chief marketing officer for ViacomCBS’ MTV Entertainment Group, a heady job that involves touting MTV, Comedy Central and Smithsonian Channel among other popular media brands.

Shout! Studios has picked up the North American rights to Natalie Morales' drama Language Lessons, which also stars and is written by Mark Duplass. Actress-turned-director Morales debuted Language Lessons at the Berlin Film Festival and earned the audience award at the SXSW Film Festival.

Also Read: 'Tom Petty, Somewhere You Feel Free,' 'The Fallout' Win SXSW Audience Awards“Language Lessons,” which earned strong reviews out of Berlin, is described as bittersweet, honest and at times darkly funny in how it explores platonic love and the complications of a long-distance relationship. The film was shot in secret during the pandemic with skeleton crews in Los Angeles and Costa Rica.The film is a production of Duplass Brothers Productions and was produced by Mel Eslyn.

Shout! Studios has acquired North American rights to Language Lessons, the drama that marks the feature directing debut of Natalie Morales. She co-stars with Mark Duplass, who also penned the script. The pic, which had its world premiere at this year’s Berlin Film Festival and won an audience award at SXSW, will now hit theaters and additional platforms later this year as part of the deal that includes digital, VOD, broadcast, and home entertainment rights.

Christopher Vourlias Cercamon has closed major sales for “What Do We See When We Look at the Sky?,” from Georgian director Alexandra Koberidze, which had its world premiere in competition at the Berlin Film Festival.The Dubai-based indie specialist has sealed a multi-territory deal with MUBI, the global distributor and streaming service, which includes the U.S., where the film will be released this fall, Canada, Italy, India, Turkey, and Latin America.Pic has also been sold to the U.K.

EXCLUSIVE: Cinema Guild has secured the North American distribution rights to Expedition Content, a documentary that premiered in the Forum section at the 2020 Berlin International Film Festival and had its U.S. debut as part of Film at Lincoln Center’s Art of the Real. Directed by Ernst Karel and Veronika Kusumaryati, the doc will be released in theaters later this year.

EXCLUSIVE: Lady Diana biopic Spencer, starring Kristen Stewart as the former Princess, has cast the supporting roles of Sarah Ferguson, the former wife of Prince Andrew, and Earl Spencer, Diana’s father.

Sky Studios has expanded the remit of chief content officer Jane Millichip from just the UK to all of Europe.

Manori Ravindran International EditorLong-time Sky executive Jane Millichip has been promoted to chief content officer for Sky Studios, overseeing all of Europe.Millichip, the former managing director of distributor Sky Vision, was tapped as the studio’s chief content officer for the U.K. in July 2020.

CBS Studios and German producer Syrreal Entertainment are teaming to create a series for RTL streamer TV Now in which David Hasselhoff will star as himself in a fictional international conspiracy story.

Bleecker Street has picked up the U.S. rights to Maria Schrader's I'm Your Man, which stars Dan Stevens and Maren Eggert and premiered in competition at the Berlin International Film Festival.

Sky Studios has launched Transistor Films, a factual and unscripted content production company headed by award-winning producer Danny Tipping. The company, based in London, launches this week with executive producer Ned Parker, series producer Zoe Hines and development executive Jason Oates joining it.

Sky Studios has launched wholly-owned production outfit Transistor Films with the team behind Crime+Investigation UK and Netflix series I Am A Killer.

Manori Ravindran International EditorComcast-backed Sky Studios has launched a new production outfit.

Damon Wolf, the head of Lionsgate Motion Picture Group worldwide marketing, is exiting his role. The news was just revealed by group chairman Joe Drake in a note to staff. There’s no word on a replacement.

International buyers dove into Wash Me in the River. The upcoming action-thriller, starring Robert De Niro, John Malkovich, and Jack Huston from Midnight in the Switchgrass director Randall Emmett, was snatched up by European and Asian buyers at Berlin's European Film Market.