VideoAmp Acquires Elsy in Bid to Simplify Audience Measurement Tasks

A group led by Todd Boehly, who also owns a stake in the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Los Angeles Lakers, dick clark productions and who is currently the caretaker CEO of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, has agreed to terms to acquire the English soccer club Chelsea in a deal worth almost $5 billion.

EXCLUSIVE: Wolfe Releasing has acquired North American rights to the Italian LGBTQIA+ dramedy Blessed Boys (La Santa Piccola) from Minerva Pictures, ahead of its North American premiere at the 2022 Tribeca Festival on June 11th, with plans to release it in theaters and on digital this fall.

Leo Barraclough International Features EditorGlobal Screen has acquired the animated family feature film “The Last Whale Singer” for global distribution, and will launch pre-sales at the Cannes Film Market. The movie is an epic and emotional family entertainment adventure written and directed by Reza Memari, creator of hit movie “Richard the Stork.” The film’s characters are based on designs by Uwe Heidschötter, best known for films such as Academy Award nominated and BAFTA Award winning “Revolting Rhymes,” the Academy Award nominated and Golden Globe winning “Missing Link,” and the Annie Award nominated “Zog.” The film is produced by Maite Woköck (“My Fairy Troublemaker”) at Telescope Animation.Memari, co-CEO at Telescope Animation, said: “This is the story of a young humpback whale who, after the sudden loss of this parents, is confronted with a seemingly impossible task: to discover the song that will save the oceans from destruction.

Christopher Vourlias Progress Film, the historic distributor established in 1950 to handle the release of films produced by communist East Germany’s state-owned film studio, has announced plans to relaunch theatrical distribution and international sales.The company has also acquired Sergei Loznitsa’s “The Natural History of Destruction,” which will have its world premiere as a special screening at the Cannes Film Festival. Progress is handling world sales as well as distribution in Germany, where it’s planning a theatrical release.Based on WWII archive footage, “The Natural History of Destruction” puts forward the questions: Is it morally acceptable to use civilian populations as a means of war, and is it possible to justify mass destruction for the sake of higher “moral” ideals? Those questions remain as relevant today as they were 80 years ago, becoming ever more urgent amid Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor“POV,” the Emmy-winning PBS documentary series, has announced the acquisition of environmental thriller “Delikado” as part of its upcoming 35th season.The film, which premiered April 29 at the Hot Docs Canadian Intl. Documentary Festival, is the directorial debut of award-winning journalist Karl Malakunas.

EXCLUSIVE: Sony Pictures’ 3000 Pictures has preemptively acquired film rights to I Think My Mother-In-Law Is Trying to Kill Me—a psychological thriller, based on a Reddit short story by Nick Moorefox.

Leo Barraclough International Features EditorMunich-based Global Screen has acquired family entertainment film “School of Magical Animals 2” for worldwide distribution. A first teaser will be presented at the Cannes Market for the project, which has a budget of more than $13 million.

EXCLUSIVE: Quiver Distribution has acquired North American rights to the dramedy Small Town Wisconsin, starring David Sullivan (Sharp Objects), Bill Heck (The Ballad of Buster Scruggs), Kristen Johnson (3rd Rock from the Sun), Tanya Fischer (Life on Mars) and Cooper J. Friedman (9-1-1: Lone Star), slating it for wide release in theaters and on digital platforms on June 10th.

Leo Barraclough International Features EditorMenemsha Films has taken distribution rights in North America to Thomas Roth’s drama “Schaechten – A Retribution” in a deal with Berlin-based sales company Picture Tree Intl. PTI has debuted the film’s trailer, and will hold an invitation-only private screening of the film for buyers in Cannes.Neil Friedman, president of Menemsha Films, said: “The film ‘Schaechten’ is a true discovery.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorThe Fox-owned streaming outlet Tubi plans to expand its relationship with Nielsen to help advertisers measure viewing of Tubi programming across a wider array of venues, a critical demand that has increased from Madison Avenue as more viewing takes place via mobile and broadband.Tubi plans to utilize Nielsn’s Digital Ad Ratings to expand coverage of streaming devices, including computer, mobile and connected TV. The company said the expanded pact represents ” a step towards increased industry coverage” provided by Nielsen One, a new product being developed by the measurement giant that will track viewership acorss linear and digital screens and is expected to be made more widely available to the market by the end of 2022.

K.J. Yossman Charlotte Rampling starrer “Juniper” has been picked up by distributor Parkland Entertainment in the U.K. and Ireland.In “Juniper,” Rampling plays Ruth, a “funny, rude, fearless, flirtatious” grandmother who unexpectedly descends on her grandson Sam and his father after Sam is suspended from boarding school.

BMG has acquired a 50% stake in the song catalogues and, on the recordings side, a stake in the so called neighbouring rights income of Bobby Gillespie, Andrew Innes and the estate of Robert Young for their work with Primal Scream. The deal covers all eleven of the band’s albums.“Primal Scream are one of the most influential bands of the past 30 years with a cultural resonance which continues today”, says Alistair Norbury, BMG President Repertoire & Marketing UK.

Joaquin Phoenix is looking to bring his advocacy for animals to the big screen.

Kristine Simsone “Samuel’s Travels,” directed by Latvian/Armenian filmmaker Aik Karapetian, has been acquired by HBO Central Europe. The deal was signed by the Copenhagen-based LevelK, who picked up international sales rights on the film in September, according to Film New Europe.

EXCLUSIVE: Sony Pictures’ Stage 6 Films has acquired international rights (outside of China) to the dark comedy Bodies Bodies Bodies, from director Halina Reijn (Instinct).

Neon said Wednesday that it has acquired North American rights to The Royal Hotel, the social thriller that marks the next film from The Assistant writer-director Kitty Green. Her Assistant star Julia Garner will topline the pic alongside Jessica Henwick. Hugo Weaving also stars.

Gravitas Ventures, of Canada-based Anthem Sports & Entertainment, has acquired the North American rights to the Diane Keaton-starring comedy film “Mark & Rita” — set to premiere Aug. 12 — as it expands into a new theatrical release label Gravitas Premiere.The label will acquire four to six “cast-driven, high production value films” per year, releasing them wide theatrically, according to the company’s announcement.“We are delighted to launch Gravitas Premiere with the acquisition of ‘Mack & Rita,’ which solidifies our commitment to championing the cinematic in-theater experience,” said Gravitas Ventures Founder and CEO Nolan Gallagher.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorWarner Bros. Discovery said profit rose in the first quarter despite declines in traditional TV audiences, as revenue from advertising and distribution rose thanks in part to the company’s streaming inititiatives.Warner Bros.

EXCLUSIVE: RLJE Films has acquired North American rights to the Western Murder at Yellowstone City, directed by Richard Gray (Robert the Bruce), for release in theaters and on demand on June 24.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorAs TV networks race to find a new yardstick to measure modern video audiences, one top buyer of commercial time says it’s already waiting at the finish line.Horizon Media, an independent Madison Avenue media agency that works for big-spending clients like Berkshire Hathaway’s Geico and Anheuser-Busch InBev’s Corona, said it intends to commit “up to 15% of its deals” in the industry’s coming upfront market using new measurement currencies that don’t rely on the sector’s longtime tabulator of audiences, Nielsen. Horizon issued a request for information to various media companies in the fourth quarter of 2021, and expects to work “with media entities including Paramount, NBCUniversal, Warner Bros.