BBC political correspondent Chris Mason will replace Laura Kuenssberg as political editor, the top news job in the corporation.
Kuenssberg will be the new permanent presenter of the BBC’s Sunday morning politics show and will start her role when the show relaunches this September. Mason will start in his role once Kuenssberg stands down after the May 5 U.K. local elections.
Mason has been political correspondent for BBC News for over 10 years, reporting on everything from Brexit to the Coronavirus pandemic, taking in three general elections along the way. He has presented BBC Radio 4’s “Any Questions?” since 2019, and will continue in this role until the summer.
Mason started his career as an ITN trainee and has been a daily broadcast news reporter for nearly 20 years, including a stint as BBC Radio 5 Live’s political reporter, and co-presented the network’s “Question Time Extra Time.” He also...
Kuenssberg will be the new permanent presenter of the BBC’s Sunday morning politics show and will start her role when the show relaunches this September. Mason will start in his role once Kuenssberg stands down after the May 5 U.K. local elections.
Mason has been political correspondent for BBC News for over 10 years, reporting on everything from Brexit to the Coronavirus pandemic, taking in three general elections along the way. He has presented BBC Radio 4’s “Any Questions?” since 2019, and will continue in this role until the summer.
Mason started his career as an ITN trainee and has been a daily broadcast news reporter for nearly 20 years, including a stint as BBC Radio 5 Live’s political reporter, and co-presented the network’s “Question Time Extra Time.” He also...
- 4/13/2022
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Excluisve: Uli Latukefu, the Australian actor who plays one of the versions of Dwayne Johnson in NBC’s new comedy series Young Rock, has joined the cast of Black Site, the thriller that stars Michelle Monaghan, Jason Clarke and Jai Courtney. Pallavi Sharda, Phoenix Raei and Fayssal Bazzi round out the cast of the pic, which marks the feature directorial debut of Sophia Banks and is now shooting in Gold Coast, Australia.
The pic, penned by Jinder Ho, is the first out the gate for Asbury Park Pictures, the joint venture between Basil Iwanyk’s Thunder Road Films and Redbox Entertainment. It centers on a group of officers based at a labyrinthine top-secret Five Eyes black site who must fight for their lives against Hatchet, a brilliant and infamous high-value detainee. When Hatchet escapes, his mysterious and deadly agenda has far-reaching and dire consequences.
Iwanyk, Erica Lee and Mike Gabrawy...
The pic, penned by Jinder Ho, is the first out the gate for Asbury Park Pictures, the joint venture between Basil Iwanyk’s Thunder Road Films and Redbox Entertainment. It centers on a group of officers based at a labyrinthine top-secret Five Eyes black site who must fight for their lives against Hatchet, a brilliant and infamous high-value detainee. When Hatchet escapes, his mysterious and deadly agenda has far-reaching and dire consequences.
Iwanyk, Erica Lee and Mike Gabrawy...
- 2/18/2021
- by Patrick Hipes
- Deadline Film + TV
For its first edition the International Migration Film Festival has assembled a diverse lineup of eight titles tackling the plight of refugees and migrants around the world and running the gamut from feelgood comedy to gut-wrenching dramas and docs.
They will vie for a best feature film award worth €15,000 and also a prize for most inspiring script worth €5,000, both to be decided by a prestigious international jury comprising Turkish director Nuri Bilge Ceylan, who serves as jury president, American actor Danny Glover, Iranian actor Shahab Hosseini, Bosnian actor Emir Hadzihafizbegovic, Danish filmmaker Lone Scherfig, and British costume designer Sandy Powell.
The selection, which will be visible in Turkey June 14-21 on the FestivalScope platform, serves as a nice primer of recent pics tackling the topic, but also as “a reminder to not let people forget about refugees” during this time when the coronavirus pandemic – which has also greatly added to...
They will vie for a best feature film award worth €15,000 and also a prize for most inspiring script worth €5,000, both to be decided by a prestigious international jury comprising Turkish director Nuri Bilge Ceylan, who serves as jury president, American actor Danny Glover, Iranian actor Shahab Hosseini, Bosnian actor Emir Hadzihafizbegovic, Danish filmmaker Lone Scherfig, and British costume designer Sandy Powell.
The selection, which will be visible in Turkey June 14-21 on the FestivalScope platform, serves as a nice primer of recent pics tackling the topic, but also as “a reminder to not let people forget about refugees” during this time when the coronavirus pandemic – which has also greatly added to...
- 6/15/2020
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Turkey, which hosts the largest number of migrants in the world, is launching the International Migration Film Festival that aims to boost awareness of their plight and will also serve as a primer of global cinematic output on this timely topic.
There are currently an estimated roughly 4 million migrants in Turkey, most of whom are refugees from war-torn Syria. The festival is a Turkish government initiative being organized by a team of independent local film event professionals. For its first edition the team has assembled a rich lineup of more than 40 films from 25 countries and recruited some big names including Nuri Bilge Ceylan, who serves as jury president (see interview), F. Murray Abraham, Danny Glover, Lone Scherfig, Matt Dillon and Turkish star Tuba Buyukustun, her country’s first International Emmy Award Nominee, also known across the Middle East as Lamiss.
Abraham, who is the son of a Syrian migrant and...
There are currently an estimated roughly 4 million migrants in Turkey, most of whom are refugees from war-torn Syria. The festival is a Turkish government initiative being organized by a team of independent local film event professionals. For its first edition the team has assembled a rich lineup of more than 40 films from 25 countries and recruited some big names including Nuri Bilge Ceylan, who serves as jury president (see interview), F. Murray Abraham, Danny Glover, Lone Scherfig, Matt Dillon and Turkish star Tuba Buyukustun, her country’s first International Emmy Award Nominee, also known across the Middle East as Lamiss.
Abraham, who is the son of a Syrian migrant and...
- 6/15/2020
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Netflix has swooped in and taken global rights outside Australia to the Cate Blanchett-starring and exec-produced refugee drama series “Stateless,” following its world premiere in Berlin this week.
Australian public broadcaster ABC, which commissioned the six-part series, will air “Stateless” on March 1, with the streaming giant going out later this year. It is believed the show was a straight acquisition for the platform. “Stateless” is produced by Matchbox Pictures along with Blanchett and Andrew Upton’s production banner Dirty Films.
A timely story five years in the making, the series follows four people caught up in an immigration system that severely impacts their lives, with each character confronting issues around protection and border control in a different way. Australia, in particular, has a troubling track record around immigration and its handling of refugees looking to enter the country.
The show’s central quartet includes an flight attendant on the...
Australian public broadcaster ABC, which commissioned the six-part series, will air “Stateless” on March 1, with the streaming giant going out later this year. It is believed the show was a straight acquisition for the platform. “Stateless” is produced by Matchbox Pictures along with Blanchett and Andrew Upton’s production banner Dirty Films.
A timely story five years in the making, the series follows four people caught up in an immigration system that severely impacts their lives, with each character confronting issues around protection and border control in a different way. Australia, in particular, has a troubling track record around immigration and its handling of refugees looking to enter the country.
The show’s central quartet includes an flight attendant on the...
- 2/25/2020
- by Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
New Indie
“The Lighthouse” (Lionsgate) is the kind of movie that yields new discoveries with every viewing, so why not make this new Blu-ray part of your permanent collection? Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson star as keepers of the titular structure, driving themselves and each other insane in a desolate and solitary location. Jarin Blaschke’s Oscar-nominated cinematography adds layers of grotesque delight to writer-director Robert Eggers’ fascinating follow-up to “The Witch.”
Also available: Inspirational sports tale “Sprinter” (FilmRise) features a cameo by Olympic medalist Usain Bolt; Jess Wexler and Adam Pearson play star-crossed co-stars in the uniquely offbeat “Chained for Life” (Kino Lorber); the Helen Hunt thriller “I See You” (Saban/Paramount) premiered at South by Southwest; Tim Heidecker runs for public office in the unsettling mockumentary “Mister America” (Magnolia Home Entertainment).
America’s stoner superheroes snooch one last bootch in “Jay and Silent Bob Reboot” (Lionsgate); Laurence Fishburne...
“The Lighthouse” (Lionsgate) is the kind of movie that yields new discoveries with every viewing, so why not make this new Blu-ray part of your permanent collection? Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson star as keepers of the titular structure, driving themselves and each other insane in a desolate and solitary location. Jarin Blaschke’s Oscar-nominated cinematography adds layers of grotesque delight to writer-director Robert Eggers’ fascinating follow-up to “The Witch.”
Also available: Inspirational sports tale “Sprinter” (FilmRise) features a cameo by Olympic medalist Usain Bolt; Jess Wexler and Adam Pearson play star-crossed co-stars in the uniquely offbeat “Chained for Life” (Kino Lorber); the Helen Hunt thriller “I See You” (Saban/Paramount) premiered at South by Southwest; Tim Heidecker runs for public office in the unsettling mockumentary “Mister America” (Magnolia Home Entertainment).
America’s stoner superheroes snooch one last bootch in “Jay and Silent Bob Reboot” (Lionsgate); Laurence Fishburne...
- 1/24/2020
- by Alonso Duralde
- The Wrap
Zenia Starr in ‘The End’ (Photo credit: Foxtel).
Zenia Starr made her screen debut in Mark Grentell’s 2013 cricket comedy Backyard Ashes but this year has been the first when she has worked virtually non-stop.
The Indian-born, Australian-raised actor modestly credits that to a number of factors including audiences’ growing appetite to see diversity on screens and those producers and directors who were willing to take a risk in hiring her.
Equally graciously she also thanks her agent, Catherine Poulton Management, luck and “maybe some divine intervention.”
After a string of roles in the ABC’s The Unlisted, the second series of Seven Network’s Drop Dead Weird, Stan’s upcoming The Gloaming, Foxtel’s The End and Maziar Lahooti’s debut feature Below, she says: “It’s the most momentum I’ve ever had.”
Playing a Mumbai resident in Anthony Maras’ Hotel Mumbai alongside Dev Patel, Armie Hammer, Jason Isaacs...
Zenia Starr made her screen debut in Mark Grentell’s 2013 cricket comedy Backyard Ashes but this year has been the first when she has worked virtually non-stop.
The Indian-born, Australian-raised actor modestly credits that to a number of factors including audiences’ growing appetite to see diversity on screens and those producers and directors who were willing to take a risk in hiring her.
Equally graciously she also thanks her agent, Catherine Poulton Management, luck and “maybe some divine intervention.”
After a string of roles in the ABC’s The Unlisted, the second series of Seven Network’s Drop Dead Weird, Stan’s upcoming The Gloaming, Foxtel’s The End and Maziar Lahooti’s debut feature Below, she says: “It’s the most momentum I’ve ever had.”
Playing a Mumbai resident in Anthony Maras’ Hotel Mumbai alongside Dev Patel, Armie Hammer, Jason Isaacs...
- 12/19/2019
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Kate Mulvany as Frankie in ‘Lambs of God’ (Photo: Mark Rogers).
Kate Mulvany has a stellar CV as a playwright, screenwriter and stage, film and TV actor – but several years ago she was afraid that screen roles were drying up.
Happily that changed when she was cast as an Army captain who suspects the death of her husband in Afghanistan was covered up in the Foxtel/Goalpost Pictures’ drama Fighting Season.
Now she is on screen in Foxtel/Lingo Pictures’ miniseries Lambs of God as Frankie, the sister of Father Ignatius (Sam Reid), who is kidnapped by nuns played by Ann Dowd, Jessica Barden and Essie Davis.
Her acting career continues to flourish as she makes her Us TV series debut in Amazon’s The Hunt, which follows a group of Nazi-hunters living in New York City in 1977.
“I thought roles might dry up for actors who are over...
Kate Mulvany has a stellar CV as a playwright, screenwriter and stage, film and TV actor – but several years ago she was afraid that screen roles were drying up.
Happily that changed when she was cast as an Army captain who suspects the death of her husband in Afghanistan was covered up in the Foxtel/Goalpost Pictures’ drama Fighting Season.
Now she is on screen in Foxtel/Lingo Pictures’ miniseries Lambs of God as Frankie, the sister of Father Ignatius (Sam Reid), who is kidnapped by nuns played by Ann Dowd, Jessica Barden and Essie Davis.
Her acting career continues to flourish as she makes her Us TV series debut in Amazon’s The Hunt, which follows a group of Nazi-hunters living in New York City in 1977.
“I thought roles might dry up for actors who are over...
- 7/22/2019
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Fayssal Bazzi. (Photo: Amelia J Dowd)
Actor Fayssal Bazzi’s father is Lebanese and his mother is Syrian, so for much of his career he was determined to avoid being typecast as Arabic characters, particularly criminals and terrorists.
After scoring the lead role in Mark Grentell’s comedy-drama The Merger, he has enjoyed a higher profile and portrayed a diverse range of characters.
“I just want to play characters whose ethnicity is incidental and I’ve been lucky to be able to do that in the past few years,” he tells If.
Earlier this year he played the son-in-law of Damon Herriman’s seedy night club owner in the second season of FX/Foxtel’s Mr Inbetween, created by and starring Scott Ryan and directed by Nash Edgerton. That was his second collaboration with Herriman following Abe Forsythe’s 2015 Cronulla race riot drama Down Under.
Currently he is in Adelaide shooting Stateless,...
Actor Fayssal Bazzi’s father is Lebanese and his mother is Syrian, so for much of his career he was determined to avoid being typecast as Arabic characters, particularly criminals and terrorists.
After scoring the lead role in Mark Grentell’s comedy-drama The Merger, he has enjoyed a higher profile and portrayed a diverse range of characters.
“I just want to play characters whose ethnicity is incidental and I’ve been lucky to be able to do that in the past few years,” he tells If.
Earlier this year he played the son-in-law of Damon Herriman’s seedy night club owner in the second season of FX/Foxtel’s Mr Inbetween, created by and starring Scott Ryan and directed by Nash Edgerton. That was his second collaboration with Herriman following Abe Forsythe’s 2015 Cronulla race riot drama Down Under.
Currently he is in Adelaide shooting Stateless,...
- 6/23/2019
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
‘H is for Happiness’.
Seven films supported by the Melbourne International Film Festival (Miff) Premiere Fund will make their premiere at this year’s iteration, including Maziar Lahooti’s Below and Paul Ireland’s Measure for Measure.
The Premiere Fund provides minority co-financing to new Australian quality theatrical (narrative and documentary) feature films that then premiere at Miff, and over its history, has invested in more than 70 projects.
The seven films include:
Director John Sheedy’s H is for Happiness, which as previously announced, will form the festival’s Family Gala. The film tells the story of a relentlessly optimistic and hilariously forthright girl who hatches a variety of outlandish schemes to make her fractured family happy again. This charming adaptation of award-winning novel My Life as an Alphabet stars Miriam Margolyes (Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries), Emma Booth (Hounds of Love), Richard Roxburgh (Rake), Deborah Mailman (The Sapphires) and...
Seven films supported by the Melbourne International Film Festival (Miff) Premiere Fund will make their premiere at this year’s iteration, including Maziar Lahooti’s Below and Paul Ireland’s Measure for Measure.
The Premiere Fund provides minority co-financing to new Australian quality theatrical (narrative and documentary) feature films that then premiere at Miff, and over its history, has invested in more than 70 projects.
The seven films include:
Director John Sheedy’s H is for Happiness, which as previously announced, will form the festival’s Family Gala. The film tells the story of a relentlessly optimistic and hilariously forthright girl who hatches a variety of outlandish schemes to make her fractured family happy again. This charming adaptation of award-winning novel My Life as an Alphabet stars Miriam Margolyes (Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries), Emma Booth (Hounds of Love), Richard Roxburgh (Rake), Deborah Mailman (The Sapphires) and...
- 6/18/2019
- by jkeast
- IF.com.au
‘Phi and Me’.
Screen Australia has provided almost $800,000 in production funding for five online projects, featuring talent such as Mark Grentell, Enzo Tedeschi, Rosie Lourde, Kristy Best, Geraldine Hickey and Diana Nguyen.
Online investment manager Lee Naimo said: “I’m excited to support such a wide range of original ideas in this slate, including Cloudy River presenting a contemporary perspective on relationships and Lgbtqi+ experiences, and Deadhouse Dark breaking the mould with a series of online horror films.”
“We have been impressed by the quality of the applications coming through and have started to see teams coming with fully formed pilots and very clear plans for producing and marketing their work. Creators are becoming very aware of their audience, with some teams leveraging their existing online fanbases or transferring audiences from live acts to screen projects. This innovation is evident in finance plans too, where we are seeing much more...
Screen Australia has provided almost $800,000 in production funding for five online projects, featuring talent such as Mark Grentell, Enzo Tedeschi, Rosie Lourde, Kristy Best, Geraldine Hickey and Diana Nguyen.
Online investment manager Lee Naimo said: “I’m excited to support such a wide range of original ideas in this slate, including Cloudy River presenting a contemporary perspective on relationships and Lgbtqi+ experiences, and Deadhouse Dark breaking the mould with a series of online horror films.”
“We have been impressed by the quality of the applications coming through and have started to see teams coming with fully formed pilots and very clear plans for producing and marketing their work. Creators are becoming very aware of their audience, with some teams leveraging their existing online fanbases or transferring audiences from live acts to screen projects. This innovation is evident in finance plans too, where we are seeing much more...
- 5/9/2019
- by jkeast
- IF.com.au
Kate Mulvany (Photo credit: Getty Images)
Kate Mulvany is making her Us TV series debut in The Hunt, which follows a group of Nazi hunters living in New York City in 1977 and is inspired by real events.
Jordan Peele’s Monkeypaw Productions and Sonar Entertainment are producing the 10-part thriller created by David Weil for Amazon Prime Video.
The Fighting Season, Secret City and The Great Gatsby star is playing Sister Harriet, one of the members of The Hunters who set out on a bloody quest to prevent hundreds of high-ranking Nazi officials from creating a Fourth Reich in the Us.
Logan Lerman plays Jonah Heidelbaum, whose grandmother is killed by a mysterious intruder in their apartment. As he tries to track down the killer he becomes swept up with The Hunters. In his TV series debut Al Pacino plays the Nazi hunter who mentors Jonah.
The cast includes Lena Olin,...
Kate Mulvany is making her Us TV series debut in The Hunt, which follows a group of Nazi hunters living in New York City in 1977 and is inspired by real events.
Jordan Peele’s Monkeypaw Productions and Sonar Entertainment are producing the 10-part thriller created by David Weil for Amazon Prime Video.
The Fighting Season, Secret City and The Great Gatsby star is playing Sister Harriet, one of the members of The Hunters who set out on a bloody quest to prevent hundreds of high-ranking Nazi officials from creating a Fourth Reich in the Us.
Logan Lerman plays Jonah Heidelbaum, whose grandmother is killed by a mysterious intruder in their apartment. As he tries to track down the killer he becomes swept up with The Hunters. In his TV series debut Al Pacino plays the Nazi hunter who mentors Jonah.
The cast includes Lena Olin,...
- 4/11/2019
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Exclusive: The cast for Amazon Prime Video’s vengeance-driven Nazi-hunting series executive produced by Academy Award winner Jordan Peele continues to grow with Kate Mulvany joining as a series regular and James Le Gros, Ebony Obsidian, Caleb Emery, Henry Hunter Hall and Jeannie Berlin boarding in key recurring roles. They join an already robust cast including Al Pacino, Logan Lerman, Jerrika Hinton, Josh Radnor as well as Lena Olin, Carol Kane, Saul Rubinek, Tiffany Boone, Louis Ozawa Changchien, Greg Austin and Dylan Baker.
The Hunt, created by David Weil, follows a diverse band of Nazi hunters living in 1977 New York City. The Hunters, as they’re known, have discovered that hundreds of high-ranking Nazi officials are living among us and conspiring to create a Fourth Reich in the U.S. The eclectic team of Hunters will set out on a bloody quest to bring the Nazis to justice and thwart their new genocidal plans.
The Hunt, created by David Weil, follows a diverse band of Nazi hunters living in 1977 New York City. The Hunters, as they’re known, have discovered that hundreds of high-ranking Nazi officials are living among us and conspiring to create a Fourth Reich in the U.S. The eclectic team of Hunters will set out on a bloody quest to bring the Nazis to justice and thwart their new genocidal plans.
- 4/11/2019
- by Dino-Ray Ramos
- Deadline Film + TV
By Giacomo Selloni
The 6th Socially Relevant Film Festival kicked off at the Cinema Village theater on 12th Street in New York City last Monday night in fine fashion. Literally. "The Merger" is a wonderfully sweet and ultimately moralistic comedy from Down Under that centers around the sport of Australian Rules Football, or "Footy."
It's set in the fictional, rural village of Bodgy Creek Australia - a town in trouble. A population decrease, caused by the "greenie-led" closure of the timber mill, has left the footy team short handed. so much so that their only choices are to either merge with another team or fold.
"What's a merger?" asks young Neil Barlow (played by the charismatic 11 year-old (Rafferty Grierson), grandson to the club manager "Bull" Barlow. "That's where one shit team joins with another shit team to make a slightly less shit team," a player responds. The Bodgy Creek Roosters...
The 6th Socially Relevant Film Festival kicked off at the Cinema Village theater on 12th Street in New York City last Monday night in fine fashion. Literally. "The Merger" is a wonderfully sweet and ultimately moralistic comedy from Down Under that centers around the sport of Australian Rules Football, or "Footy."
It's set in the fictional, rural village of Bodgy Creek Australia - a town in trouble. A population decrease, caused by the "greenie-led" closure of the timber mill, has left the footy team short handed. so much so that their only choices are to either merge with another team or fold.
"What's a merger?" asks young Neil Barlow (played by the charismatic 11 year-old (Rafferty Grierson), grandson to the club manager "Bull" Barlow. "That's where one shit team joins with another shit team to make a slightly less shit team," a player responds. The Bodgy Creek Roosters...
- 3/19/2019
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
Sigrid Thornton and Aaron Pedersen.
Screen Australia has announced $4 million worth of production investment for one film, two television series and three online projects. They include a film adaptation of book Penguin Bloom, starring Naomi Watts and produced by Bruna Papandrea’s Made Up Stories; a second season of ABC series Mystery Road; Nine’s Seachange reboot; and Roborovski, a Vr project from Tilda Cobham-Hervey and Dev Patel.
Penguin Bloom, to be directed by Glendyn Ivin, is based on the book by Bradley Trevor Greive and has been adapted for the screen by Shaun Grant and Harry Cripps. It follows the true story of a family from Sydney’s Northern Beaches. Watts is Sam Bloom, a young mother who has a near-fatal accident that leaves her unable to walk. As her family struggles to come to terms with their new situation, an injured magpie chick dubbed “Penguin” enters their lives and helps them to cope.
Screen Australia has announced $4 million worth of production investment for one film, two television series and three online projects. They include a film adaptation of book Penguin Bloom, starring Naomi Watts and produced by Bruna Papandrea’s Made Up Stories; a second season of ABC series Mystery Road; Nine’s Seachange reboot; and Roborovski, a Vr project from Tilda Cobham-Hervey and Dev Patel.
Penguin Bloom, to be directed by Glendyn Ivin, is based on the book by Bradley Trevor Greive and has been adapted for the screen by Shaun Grant and Harry Cripps. It follows the true story of a family from Sydney’s Northern Beaches. Watts is Sam Bloom, a young mother who has a near-fatal accident that leaves her unable to walk. As her family struggles to come to terms with their new situation, an injured magpie chick dubbed “Penguin” enters their lives and helps them to cope.
- 2/27/2019
- by jkeast
- IF.com.au
‘Ladies in Black.’
As the Australian feature films and feature docs released in cinemas this year have surpassed the calendar 2017 total exhibitors generally are happy with the diversity of product and the number of titles that have resonated with mainstream audiences.
While some say there have been too many niche and small-scale films, the consensus is that local films overall have held their own in a fragmented theatrical market and in the face of competition for eyeballs from the burgeoning Netflix and Stan.
Their outlook for 2019 is even more optimistic – if distributors and exhibitors are smart with their dating.
Through Wednesday, Oz films and feature docs including holdovers have racked up $54.2 million, according to the Motion Picture Distributors Association of Australia (Mpdaa), beating last year’s $49.4 million, which was a market share of 4.1 per cent.
So the industry will finish the year ahead of the 2009 total of $54.8 million. The stand-out...
As the Australian feature films and feature docs released in cinemas this year have surpassed the calendar 2017 total exhibitors generally are happy with the diversity of product and the number of titles that have resonated with mainstream audiences.
While some say there have been too many niche and small-scale films, the consensus is that local films overall have held their own in a fragmented theatrical market and in the face of competition for eyeballs from the burgeoning Netflix and Stan.
Their outlook for 2019 is even more optimistic – if distributors and exhibitors are smart with their dating.
Through Wednesday, Oz films and feature docs including holdovers have racked up $54.2 million, according to the Motion Picture Distributors Association of Australia (Mpdaa), beating last year’s $49.4 million, which was a market share of 4.1 per cent.
So the industry will finish the year ahead of the 2009 total of $54.8 million. The stand-out...
- 11/2/2018
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Anthony Lapaglia and Ryan Corr.
Ladies in Black’s Ryan Corr and Anthony Lapaglia will play the leads in refugee detention centre action-drama Below, director Maziar Lahooti’s debut feature.
Rounding out the cast are Phoenix Raei, Alison Whyte (The Kettering Incident), Morgana O’Reilly and Zenia Starr.
Seville International has launched pre-sales on the film, which was adapted by Ian Wilding from his award-winning play of the same name, at the American Film Market.
Shooting is due to start in Wa on January 19 produced by Nick Batzias of Good Thing Productions, Veronica Gleeson and Kate Neylon. Madman Entertainment will distribute in Australia.
The plot follows Corr as directionless dreamer Dougie, who is recruited to work in a detention centre for asylum seekers situated in a legal no man’s land. He discovers the centre is home to a ‘Fight Club’-style underground operation where detainees are blackmailed into fighting,...
Ladies in Black’s Ryan Corr and Anthony Lapaglia will play the leads in refugee detention centre action-drama Below, director Maziar Lahooti’s debut feature.
Rounding out the cast are Phoenix Raei, Alison Whyte (The Kettering Incident), Morgana O’Reilly and Zenia Starr.
Seville International has launched pre-sales on the film, which was adapted by Ian Wilding from his award-winning play of the same name, at the American Film Market.
Shooting is due to start in Wa on January 19 produced by Nick Batzias of Good Thing Productions, Veronica Gleeson and Kate Neylon. Madman Entertainment will distribute in Australia.
The plot follows Corr as directionless dreamer Dougie, who is recruited to work in a detention centre for asylum seekers situated in a legal no man’s land. He discovers the centre is home to a ‘Fight Club’-style underground operation where detainees are blackmailed into fighting,...
- 10/31/2018
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
‘Ladies in Black.’
The Australian titles released in cinemas this year including holdovers will overtake the calendar 2017 total in the next week or so, boosted by Bruce Beresford’s Ladies in Black.
Through the end of September the Oz films and feature docs had grossed $47.8 million, according to the Motion Picture Distributors Association of Australia (Mpdaa), within spitting distance of last year’s $49.4 million.
After a second weekend drop of just 10 per cent Ladies in Black’s takings have increased by nearly $800,000 to $5.97 million, including $361,000 on Tuesday, so the 1950s-set comedy-drama distributed by Sony is on course to surpass $12 million.
Distributed by Universal Pictures as an alternate content release, Mark Joffe’s biopic Jimmy Barnes: Working Class Boy rang up $823,000, ranking as the year’s second biggest feature doc behind Paul Damian Williams’ Gurrumul, which made $984,000.
Among the other September debutantes, Mark Grentell’s The Merger collected $405,000 and Benjamin Gilmour...
The Australian titles released in cinemas this year including holdovers will overtake the calendar 2017 total in the next week or so, boosted by Bruce Beresford’s Ladies in Black.
Through the end of September the Oz films and feature docs had grossed $47.8 million, according to the Motion Picture Distributors Association of Australia (Mpdaa), within spitting distance of last year’s $49.4 million.
After a second weekend drop of just 10 per cent Ladies in Black’s takings have increased by nearly $800,000 to $5.97 million, including $361,000 on Tuesday, so the 1950s-set comedy-drama distributed by Sony is on course to surpass $12 million.
Distributed by Universal Pictures as an alternate content release, Mark Joffe’s biopic Jimmy Barnes: Working Class Boy rang up $823,000, ranking as the year’s second biggest feature doc behind Paul Damian Williams’ Gurrumul, which made $984,000.
Among the other September debutantes, Mark Grentell’s The Merger collected $405,000 and Benjamin Gilmour...
- 10/3/2018
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
‘In Like Flynn.’
Robert Slaviero has joined Umbrella Entertainment as head of sales as the distributor continues its commitment to release a sizable slate of Australian feature films and documentaries.
While some distributors have largely shied away from handling local films Umbrella is keeping the faith with three titles scheduled to open in October and eight on the slate for 2019.
“We like working with people who are passionate about their work and who have a commercial sensibility,” Umbrella MD Jeff Harrison tells If, pointing to collaborators including Causeway Films’ Kristina Ceyton and Sam Jennings, Catherine Scott, Carver Films’ Sarah Shaw and Anna McLeish, Paul Ireland and Damian Hill, Steve Jaggi and Justin Dix. “We are very happy with what we’re doing.”
Head of acquisitions Ari Harrison says the firm evaluates up to 50 scripts at any one time and he laments the shortage of projects aimed at older females. “People...
Robert Slaviero has joined Umbrella Entertainment as head of sales as the distributor continues its commitment to release a sizable slate of Australian feature films and documentaries.
While some distributors have largely shied away from handling local films Umbrella is keeping the faith with three titles scheduled to open in October and eight on the slate for 2019.
“We like working with people who are passionate about their work and who have a commercial sensibility,” Umbrella MD Jeff Harrison tells If, pointing to collaborators including Causeway Films’ Kristina Ceyton and Sam Jennings, Catherine Scott, Carver Films’ Sarah Shaw and Anna McLeish, Paul Ireland and Damian Hill, Steve Jaggi and Justin Dix. “We are very happy with what we’re doing.”
Head of acquisitions Ari Harrison says the firm evaluates up to 50 scripts at any one time and he laments the shortage of projects aimed at older females. “People...
- 9/18/2018
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
‘The Predator’ (Photo: 20th Century Fox).
Does the world need another iteration of the Predator franchise, 31 years after soldier of fortune Arnold Schwarzenegger first tangled with the extra-terrestrial creature?
That’s debatable in light of the soft launches in the Us, Australia and other territories last weekend for Fox’s $88 million-budgeted The Predator.
Here Shane Black’s action-adventure was beaten by the third weekend of Warner Bros’ blockbuster Crazy Rich Asians although it outpaced the other openers, Roadshow’s A Simple Favour, Disney’s Christopher Robin, WB’s Teen Titans Go! To the Movies and Sony’s Searching.
Meanwhile Mark Grentell’s football-themed comedy/drama The Merger eased by 30 per cent in its second weekend, making $66,000 on 77 screens, playing just one session a day at most locations. The Umbrella Entertainment release starring Damian Callinan, Kate Mulvany and John Howard has scored $301,000 including festival screenings.
Receipts for the top 20 titles totalled $13.5 million,...
Does the world need another iteration of the Predator franchise, 31 years after soldier of fortune Arnold Schwarzenegger first tangled with the extra-terrestrial creature?
That’s debatable in light of the soft launches in the Us, Australia and other territories last weekend for Fox’s $88 million-budgeted The Predator.
Here Shane Black’s action-adventure was beaten by the third weekend of Warner Bros’ blockbuster Crazy Rich Asians although it outpaced the other openers, Roadshow’s A Simple Favour, Disney’s Christopher Robin, WB’s Teen Titans Go! To the Movies and Sony’s Searching.
Meanwhile Mark Grentell’s football-themed comedy/drama The Merger eased by 30 per cent in its second weekend, making $66,000 on 77 screens, playing just one session a day at most locations. The Umbrella Entertainment release starring Damian Callinan, Kate Mulvany and John Howard has scored $301,000 including festival screenings.
Receipts for the top 20 titles totalled $13.5 million,...
- 9/17/2018
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Rafferty Grierson and Damian Callinan in ‘The Merger.’
Glowing reviews and copious publicity for Mark Grentell’s The Merger and Jeremy Sims’ feature documentary Wayne counted for very little as both titles had mediocre openings last weekend.
That surprised and disappointed exhibitors as the business was heavily reliant on the buoyant second weekend of Crazy Rich Asians and a feisty debut by The Nun, a spin-off of The Conjuring franchise.
McQueen, the biopic of the brilliant but tortured British fashion designer Alexander McQueen, had a middling opening. Underlining the challenges facing the ailing art-house market, You Were Never Really Here, Juliet, Naked and The Miseducation of Cameron Post bombed. Clearly each relied on festival screenings as the main revenue source.
Umbrella Entertainment launched The Merger, the warm-hearted comedy-drama about a struggling, small town football team that recruits refugees to survive, on 80 screens, generating $93,000. The total including festival screenings for the...
Glowing reviews and copious publicity for Mark Grentell’s The Merger and Jeremy Sims’ feature documentary Wayne counted for very little as both titles had mediocre openings last weekend.
That surprised and disappointed exhibitors as the business was heavily reliant on the buoyant second weekend of Crazy Rich Asians and a feisty debut by The Nun, a spin-off of The Conjuring franchise.
McQueen, the biopic of the brilliant but tortured British fashion designer Alexander McQueen, had a middling opening. Underlining the challenges facing the ailing art-house market, You Were Never Really Here, Juliet, Naked and The Miseducation of Cameron Post bombed. Clearly each relied on festival screenings as the main revenue source.
Umbrella Entertainment launched The Merger, the warm-hearted comedy-drama about a struggling, small town football team that recruits refugees to survive, on 80 screens, generating $93,000. The total including festival screenings for the...
- 9/10/2018
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.