Walter Presents Takes U.K. to Russia’s Top TV Show, ‘Russian Affairs’ (EXCLUSIVE)

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.

Good Morning Britain, Ross Kemp opened up about her progress.In the emotional interview, Ross told Susanna Reid that he has not been able to see Barbara since lockdown began in the UK.The British actor and filmmaker admitted that there has been a ‘marked decline’ in her health. ‘The nature of the disease is that she initially knew exactly who I was and in three minutes she turned to me and asked me who I was.

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 CorrespondentThe actor at the center of a row over alleged racism behind the scenes at British soap opera “Hollyoaks” has quit the show, it has emerged.Rachel Adedeji, who has alleged that she was subject to racist comments while working on the long-running Channel 4 drama, resigned last year, it has now been revealed.

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentRussian actor Chulpan Khamatova is known internationally for key roles in “Good Bye, Lenin!,” and more recently Aleksei Alekseivich German’s drama “Under Electric Clouds,” and Ralph Fiennes-directed Rudolf Nureyev biopic “The White Crow.” Last month, as Russia was deep in lockdown, Khamatova found herself embroiled in controversy sparked by TV series “Zuleikha Opens Her Eyes” in which she plays a young woman deported to Siberia during the Stalin-era

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”).

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.

A painting by the Russian artist Ivan Aivazovsky has sold for £2,295,000, becoming the highest value painting sold in an online-only sale.

Salford council is set to award Russian state-owned energy giant Gazprom a £1.8m contract to supply the city’s schools, libraries and leisure centres over the next two years.