Team Whistle to Be Acquired by U.K.’s Eleven Sports

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentHulu has acquired U.S streaming rights to Sabrina Van Tassel’s timely documentary “The State of Texas vs. Melissa” which was selected for Tribeca in 2020 and has won a flurry of accolades, including Raindance’s best documentary award.Hulu acquired the documentary from FilmRise, which represents theatrical and digital rights to the film for North America, the U.K.

In its two latest latest acquisitions, TrillerNet has bought Fite, a streaming platform best known for boxing and ring-sports events, and customer engagement platform Amplify.ai.

The Poet” was originally published by Greg Nichols and Matthew Pearl’s Truly*Adventurous banner.Shawn Levy and Dan Cohen from 21 Laps will produce alongside Pouya Shahbazian. Truly*Adventurous’ Nichols and Pearl will executive produce, with Becca Edelman overseeing for 21 Laps.“The Poet” is a true story with shades of “Gone Girl” and “The Gift” that has been told in full for the first time based on hundreds of pages of never-before-seen documents and newly discovered sources.

Also Read: Tiffany Haddish Breaks Down in Tears Over Grammy Win on Set of 'Kids Say' (Video)Crystal co-wrote the screenplay with his fellow “Saturday Night Live” alum and Emmy-award winning writer Alan Zweibel inspired by the short story “The Prize,” also written by Zweibel.

Also Read: Zack Snyder's 'Army of the Dead' Sics a Zombie Tiger on Dave Bautista in New Trailer (Video)Peyton is directing and producing the film through his ASAP Entertainment alongside Jeff Fierson, and Bautista will also produce through his banner Dream Bros Entertainment alongside Jonathan Meisner. The film will also be produced by AGC Studios’ Stuart Ford.

Also Read: 'Rita Moreno' Doc Sells to Roadside Attractions“We are thrilled to be working with Parker and Isabel, who, much like their subjects, are on their own cusp with this emotional and striking first feature,” Vinnie Malhotra, EVP Nonfiction Programming, Showtime Networks, said in a statement.

Cusp,” which is slated for a theatrical release before its network premiere later this year.Set in a small military town in Texas, “Cusp” chases three wild-spirited teenage girls as they live out a fever-dream summer, when the strictures of adolescence clash with the growing desire for personal agency.The documentary premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, where directors Parker Hill and Isabel Bethencourt were granted the Emerging Filmmaker Special Jury Award.“Cusp” is

Showtime Documentary Films has acquired worldwide rights to the documentary Cusp, from first-time feature directors Parker Hill and Isabel Bethencourt. Showtime plans to release the pic in theaters later this year, ahead of its network premiere.

EXCLUSIVE: The Tiffany Haddish and Billy Crystal dramedy Here Today has been picked up by Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions’ Stage 6 Films and will open in theaters on May 7.

Univision, which has been under new ownership since the end of 2020, has teamed with stakeholder Grupo Televisa to create a new global Spanish-language media giant.

Also Read: 'Tom Petty, Somewhere You Feel Free,' 'The Fallout' Win SXSW Audience Awards“Working with RLJE and Shudder to release ‘Offseasons’ is an absolute dream. Over the years they have become an unparalleled force releasing some of the most innovative, original and exciting genre films in the world.

Brent Lang Executive Editor of Film and MediaSister has acquired “Never Far Away,” the new novel from bestselling author Michael Koryta, and will develop it as a feature film. Oscar-winning producer Cathy Schulman, who previously oversaw “Crash,” will produce the thriller for the company.

EXCLUSIVE: Paramount Pictures has secured the home entertainment and television licensing rights to The Space Between starring six-time Emmy Award winner Kelsey Grammer. The film, the directorial debut from Dallas Buyers Club producer, Rachel Winter, will be in select U.S. theaters on April 23, followed by a digital release on June 15.

Emiliano Granada Swiss doc company Lightdox has just acquired world sales rights to documentary “Little Palestine, Diary of a Siege” Abdallah Al-Khatib’s debut, co-produced by Films de Force Majeure and Bidayyat for Audiovisual Arts, premieres in Vision du Réel’s platform on April 21 in  its main International Feature CompetitionA Lebanon, France and Qatar co-production, the film follows the lives of Palestinian refugees living in the district of Yarmouk in Damascus, Syria.

Acorn/Sundance Acquire ‘The Drowning’ AMC Networks streamers Acorn TV and Sundance Now have swooped for the U.S. and Canadian rights to four-part identity thriller The Drowning.

Shortly ahead of MIPTV, Warner Bros. International Television Production (WBITVP) picked up the right to develop and produce Japanese broadcaster Nippon TV's hit gameshow format Sokkuri Sweets.

Danny Elfman has announced ‘Big Mess’, his first new solo album in 37 years – you can listen to Elfman’s new song ‘True’ below.The renowned film and TV composer, whose credits include Tim Burton’s Batman films, Good Will Hunting and The Simpsons, is gearing up to release his first non-soundtrack solo studio album since 1984’s ‘So-Lo’.‘Big Mess’ is set for release on June 11 via ANTI- and Epitaph.

EXCLUSIVE: Greenwich Entertainment has acquired North American distribution rights to well-received Holocaust documentary Love It Was Not, which will play at Hot Docs this month.

Tim Dams Fremantle has taken full ownership of Abot Hameiri, the Israeli production company behind international drama hit “Shtisel” and original formats “Power Couple” and “Hear Me, Love Me, See Me.”Abot Hameiri is also the Israeli producer for global formats such as “Got Talent,” “Survivor” and “The X Factor.” The latter will return on Reshet 13 this summer with Simon Cowell as a judge – the first time “The X Factor’s” creator has served as a judge in a country outside of the U.S.

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorVox Media, the media company whose properties include New York Magazine, announced the acquisition of Cafe Studios, the podcast company co-founded by Preet Bharara, former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.Cafe Studios was founded in 2017 by Preet Bhararaand his brother Vinit Bharara, a serial entrepreneur who previously founded Some Spider Studios and Diapers.com.