Cologne-based sales company The Match Factory has expanded and restructured its acquisition and development team. Former head of sales, Thania Dimitrakopoulou, has been promoted to vice president of acquisitions and sales. Claudia Solano comes on board as senior manager of acquisitions, and Cécile Tollu-Pollonowski, a long-time partner with the company, has been appointed as head…
Sundance Debut ‘Starling Girl’ Acquired for International Sales by Architect (EXCLUSIVE)
New sales agent and financier Architect has come on board to represent international sales on writer-director Laurel Parmet’s Sundance-premiering “The Starling Girl.” The film was acquired for North America by Bleecker Street in a deal negotiated by UTA and WME, and will release in cinemas later this year. Architect will launch international sales at this…
‘It’s Hard to Get Personal Films Made‘: Rebecca Miller Makes Her Movie Comeback With ‘She Came to Me,’ Eight Years After ‘Maggie’s Plan’
If you ask Rebecca Miller, it’s getting harder and harder to make movies about people in a room talking. That particular brand of intimate, personal storytelling, the kind the director of “Maggie’s Plan” and “The Private Lives of Pippa Lee” is known for, is a challenging prospect for financiers weighing up a Darwinian landscape for…
Sundance Prizewinning ‘Scrapper’ Starring Harris Dickinson Sells to Major Markets for Charades (EXCLUSIVE)
Charades has secured a flurry of deals on Charlotte Regan’s British dramedy “Scrapper,” which won the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance. Starring Harris Dickinson (“Triangle of Sadness”) as a downbeat dad, “Scrapper” has been sold to Spain (Caramel), Australia (Madman), Poland (Against Gravity), Baltics and CIS (Arthouse), Greece (Cinobo) and Airlines (Aardwolf). “Scrapper” has already…
‘Liaison’ Producer Leonis Sets William Boyd’s Period Spy Thriller ‘Paris Interzone,’ Andrew Haigh in Talks to Direct (EXCLUSIVE)
Leonis Productions, the Newen Studios-owned French banner created by Jean-Benoit Gillig, is developing a raft of international shows on the heels of “Liaison,” Apple TV+’s first French original. The company reached a milestone with “Liaison,” a thriller series created and entirely penned by Virginie Brac (“Spiral”) and directed by Stephen Hopkins. Vincent Cassel and Eva Green…
LeBron returns in win, lauds new Lakers additions
Speaking for the first time since the NBA trade deadline, LeBron James shared his impressions of the revamped Lakers roster, which picked up a win Wednesday against the Pelicans to enter the All-Star break on a high note.
‘Avatar 2’ Dominates Visual Effects Awards With Nine Wins, Guillermo del Toro’s ‘Pinocchio’ Wins Three
“Avatar: The Way of Water” topped the 21st Annual VES Awards with nine wins, including for photoreal feature. Meanwhile, Guillermo del Toro’s “Pinocchio” was named best animated feature and took home three awards total. On the TV side, Amazon’s “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” won three awards and was named best…
Oscar-Nominated Alexander Rodnyansky Boards Ukrainian Freedom Fighters Drama ‘The Dissident’ (EXCLUSIVE)
Alexander Rodnyansky, the Oscar-nominated producer behind “Leviathan” and “Loveless,” has boarded “The Dissident,” a Cold War drama that follows a former Ukrainian resistance fighter trying to rebuild his life after his release from a Soviet prison camp. The film marks the fiction feature debut of directors Andriy Alferov, a renowned Ukrainian film critic, and Stas…
Poland’s Małgorzata Szumowska, Michał Englert to Co-direct Drama ‘Let Me Out’ (EXCLUSIVE)
Polish directorial duo Małgorzata Szumowska and Michał Englert have set drama “Let Me Out” as their next film. Spanning 45 years, the film will focus on Adam, trying to be a good husband and father in a small town in Poland. But Adam starts to feel increasingly uncomfortable in his body, one that doesn’t reflect…
Jean-Claude Van Damme’s ‘Darkness of Mans’ Sells to Saban Films (EXCLUSIVE)
Saban Films has acquired the U.S., U.K. and other international rights to Jean-Claude Van Damme action-spy thriller “Darkness of Man.” Directed by James Cullen Bressack, the film sees Van Damme playing Interpol operative Russell Hatch, who witnesses the death of his last informant in a routine raid gone wrong. Years later, he takes on a…