Tokyo Broadcasting System Seeks International Co-Production Partnerships

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentIn the run up to MipTV, Keshet International has unveiled a raft of new shows, spanning factual and foreign-language dramas, including “Ellie Simmonds: A World Without Dwarfism?” from the U.K., “Roomies” from Finland, “Storm Lara” from Belgium and “Family Dinner Date” from Israel. “Storm Lara” is a a real-time thriller produced by Belgium’s A Perfect View which has been commissioned by Flemish streamer Streamz and was part of this year’s Berlinale Series Market Selects. “Storm Lara” revolves around five people whose lives collide during a late-night radio show.Ordered by BBC One and produced by Flicker Productions, “Ellie Simmonds: A World Without Dwarfism?” is a one-off documentary about British Paralympian Ellie Simmonds who travels around the U.K.

Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s Drive My Car scooped the International Feature Film Oscar tonight, becoming the second movie from Japan to take a competitive prize in the category formerly known as Best Foreign Language Film (it’s the fifth for Japan if we count honorary awards given out in the 1950s).

Japan has won the award, and the first time since 2008.It beat out Italy’s “The Hand of God,” Norway’s “The Worst Person in the World,” Denmark’s “Flee” and Bhutan’s “Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom.”———For more of AP’s Oscar coverage visit: https://apnews.com/hub/academy-awards

Not surprisingly, the most celebrated film of the year took one of the most coveted Oscars in the world. No, this isn’t about “Power of the Dog” or the Best Picture race.

Refresh for latest…: After setting a new opening day record for a local title in India, S.S. Rajamouli’s RRR (Rise! Roar! Revolt!) continued a strong run in the home market throughout the weekend and picked up an estimated $3.8M from 16 offshore hubs along with $9.5M from North America.

S.S. Rajamouli’s highly-anticipated Telugu title RRR has come roaring out of the gate, both at home and abroad. With an estimated 137 crore ($18M) on Friday in India, the epic smashed records to set the best opening day for a local film ever. In so doing, Rajamouli topped his own previous record-holder in the market, 2017’s Baahubali 2: The Conclusion. Worldwide, the opening day in India, along with North America and other offshore launches, came in at an estimated 223 crore ($30.5M)

French hip-hop series Le Monde de Demain has scooped the Grand Prize at the Series Mania International Competition.

Manori Ravindran International EditorParamount is the latest studio to plant its flag in the ground at French TV drama festival Series Mania, where international CEO Raffaele Annecchino broke down the company’s international distribution and SVOD strategy.In a keynote moderated by Variety’s Italy and West Asia correspondent Nick Vivarelli, Annecchino detailed plans to focus internationally on premium SVOD service Paramount Plus and FAST offering Pluto TV, which has more than 64 million monthly users. Also in the mix to “compete with our ecosystem,” according to Annecchino, is Paramount’s JV with Comcast, SkyShowtime, which is launching in 20 European markets where Paramount Plus won’t be available.By the end of 2022, both Paramount Plus and SkyShowtime will be in more than 60 markets in Europe.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentLess than two years after joining France Televisions, former Canal Plus executive Manuel Alduy has contributed to bolstering the French public broadcaster’s roster of international series with shows such as “Bardot,” a mini-series biopic of Brigitte Bardot, and “L’Insoumise” about Alice Guy, the first female filmmaker ever. Ahead of France Televisions’ press conference at Series Mania, Alduy said the broadcaster’s first-look initiative with the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) has yielded several prestige projects, including “Bardot.” The EBU represents 113 organizations across the 56 countries, including the BBC in the U.K., ARD in Germany, DR in Denmark, SVT in Sweden, Rai in Italy and the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation.

Naman Ramachandran The India expansion plans for short-form video platform Lomotif are well underway via a partnership with billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Viacom18 media conglomerate.The partnership kicks off with 10-episode science-based reality series “The Inventor Challenge,” which is set for an April debut, with the option of a second season. The series is based on Emmy-winning PBS series “Everyday Edisons,” a format developed by Edison Nation, a company now known as Vinco Ventures.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefBruce Tuchmann-backed Rialto International has launched a branded on-demand streaming service in Japan, focused on independent film, and housed on Amazon’s Prime Video Channels platform.Rialto Channel launched in 1999 in New Zealand, where it was initially branded as The Sundance Channel. It established itself as an award-winning and industry-leading indie film destination for over twenty years.In Japan, the Rialto-branded venue will feature current and iconic independent films.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentDiversity on screen and diversity behind the camera are key factors driving international audiences, according to a consumer survey conducted by Starz, in partnership with the Center for Scholars & Storytellers at UCLA. The poll study, which examined consumer perceptions and demands for diverse and inclusive media representation, will be unveiled at the Starz #TakeTheLead “Transparency Talk” on March 16 to celebrate the Women’s History Month.

An iconic Glasgow restaurant has vowed to train and employ any refugee who seeks a job.

In its sophomore outing, Warner Bros/DC’s The Batman kept a firm grip on the international box office, dropping just 42% to add $66.6M from 76 offshore markets. That brings the overseas cume through Sunday to $224.7M for $463.2M global. As the Robert Pattinson-starrer heads to $500M worldwide this week, in like-for-like markets and using today’s exchange rates, it’s currently tracking 132% ahead of pandemic comp Godzilla Vs Kong and is 44% above Wonder Woman, 36% ahead of The Dark Knight and 24% over Justice League.

Happy Friday International Insiders, Tom Grater here with your weekly round-up of our top international headlines.

LONDON -- Polish Nobel literature laureate Olga Tokarczuk and Israeli novelist David Grossman are both in the running, for a second time, for the International Booker Prize for fiction in English translation.Tokarczuk’s “The Books of Jacob” and Grossman’s “More Than I Love My Life” are among 13 books on the long list for the award, whose 50,000-pound ($66,000) prize money is split between a book’s author and its translator.Both are previous winners: Grossman in 2017 for “A Horse Walks into a Bar” and Tokarczuk for “Flights” in 2018, the same year she was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature.The list announced Thursday features works from 12 countries on four continents, including “Tomb of Sand” by India’s Geetanjali Shree; “Heaven” by Japan’s Mieko Kawakami; “After the Sun” by Denmark’s Jonas Eika; and “Elena Knows” by Claudia Piñeiro of Argentina.Translator Frank Wynne, who is chairing the judging panel, said the books circled the globe and ranged “from the intimate to the epic, the numinous to the profane.”Six finalists are set to be revealed on April 7 and the winner will be announced on May 26.The International Booker Prize is awarded every year to a book of fiction in any language that is translated into English and published in the U.K. or Ireland.

Clayton Davis The “Cinderella” story for “Drive My Car” has been one of the award season’s most enlightening. The Japanese submission captured a nom for best international feature, best picture, director and adapted screenplay.

Big Bang member T.O.P expressed his desire overhaul the K-pop system of training and creating idols and artists.In a new interview with Prestige Hong Kong, the South Korean musician spoke about the “harsh” K-pop system, observing how the current training regime affects younger K-pop idols and their mental well-being.“I, myself, am fortunate that I only spent less than a year as a trainee before I debuted – a relatively short time – but after, I saw all the trainees, the boys and girls, they’re under a very harsh system,” T.O.P said.“They’re told what to do and trained just like robots,” the rapper added. “They might get popular, they might get bigger, but in their heart and in ways we can’t see, they’re being isolated, and feel lonely inside.”To address this, T.O.P expressed his desire to change the system and establish a new type of K-pop record company.

Naman Ramachandran Global entertainment studio International Art Machine is venturing into India with a heavyweight slate fronted by A-listers Shekhar Kapur, Preity Zinta, Amish Tripathi, Dibakar Banerjee and Suparn S. Varma.First up is “Shiva,” a series adaptation of Amish Tripathi’s bestselling Shiva Trilogy novels set in the land of Meluha, beginning with the first book “The Immortals of Meluha,” which will be directed by “Elizabeth” and “Bandit Queen” filmmaker Shekhar Kapur.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentMemento International has sold Ursula Meier’s drama “The Line” to major markets, including the U.S. with Strand Releasing, on the heels of its world premiere in competition at the Berlin Film Festival.A poignant study of acceptance and delicate family bonds, “The Line” stars Valeria Bruni Tedeschi (“La Fracture”) and Stephanie Blanchoud (“Ennemi Public”) as a mother and daughter whose turbulent relationship and explosive fight lead to a retraining order.