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Winehouse biopic tempts Rapace BY ANDREAS WISEMAN
Noomi Rapace is in talks to play the late UK soul icon Amy Winehouse in a biopic that is gathering heat at AFM. August Rush director Kirsten Sheridan has written the script and is due to direct the feature, a CAA package co-repped by UTA that has a handful of sales companies and financiers circling. Producers are Ireland-based Subotica Films, producers of Jake Paltrow’s Young Ones and music biopic Jimi: All Is By My Side, and US outfit
City Entertainment, exec-producers on NBC mini-series Rosemary’s Baby. Music rights are in negotiation. Sheridan was Oscar nominated for 2002 drama In America, which she co-wrote with her father Jim Sheridan and sister Naomi. The script for Amy Winehouse (working title) comes hot on the heels of Asif Kapadia’s doc Amy, which has been a box-office and festival hit but also generated controversy for its portrayal of the relationship between Winehouse and
her father, Mitch, who is understood to be lining up a separate project dedicated to his daughter. Rapace will soon reprise her role
Banks flies with Rita Hayworth
Teresa Palmer, page 4
NEWS Berlin Syndrome First look at rising star Teresa Palmer in Cate Shortland’s latest feature » Page 4
FEATURE Digital dozen Screen profiles 12 websites seeking to change the way the film industry does business » Page 10
Chinese whispers Assessing the market for independent and arthouse releases in China » Page 24
SCREENINGS
» Page 42
Barks is Hilary Shor’s Everything BY ANDREAS WISEMAN
Les Miserables star Samantha Barks, Jack Davenport (Pirates Of The Caribbean) and Kate Walsh (The Perks Of Being A Wallflower) are among new cast to join producer Hilary Shor’s (The Paperboy, Children Of Men) comedy drama Everything Carries Me To You. Production is due to get underway in London next March on the story of a young ballet dancer (Barks) who falls for a seductive photographer (Davenport), forcing
BY JEREMY KAY
Elizabeth Banks will play a Second World War photographer stranded on a Pacific Island in Rita Hayworth With A Hand Grenade, which Radiant Films International has introduced to AFM buyers. Art director and set designer Sloane U’Ren will direct the prestige adventure drama, which regular Coen brothers collaborator Robert Graf is producing. UTA Independent Film Group represents North American rights. Shooting is set to commence this spring on the story of Caroline Baker, a pioneering female war photographer who is shot down over a South Pacific island and finds herself marooned with only a Japanese soldier for company. Over the course of three decades, the unlikely pair go from being sworn enemies to reluctant allies as they endure their predicament. This is a banner year for Banks, who has earned plaudits for her performance in Love & Mercy. She also directed and starred in the $285m worldwide summer hit Pitch Perfect 2 and is on board to direct the third film in the franchise. “I am delighted to be partnering with veteran producer Robert Graf, who brings his years of experience working with the Coen brothers to this project,” said Radiant head Mimi Steinbauer. Banks is represented by UTA, Untitled Entertainment and attorney PJ Shapiro.
as Elizabeth Shaw in Ridley Scott’s sequel to Prometheus and is reportedly set to play opposite Christian Bale in hot AFM package Enzo Ferrari. The Swedish-born actress has never shied away from challenging roles; she rose to fame as Lisbeth Salander in the Millennium trilogy and is committed to portraying Maria Callas in biopic Callas. Rapace is repped by CAA, Shelley Browning at Magnolia and attorney Howard Fishman at Hirsch Wallerstein.
TODAY
her to choose between her career and romance. Emma Holly Jones is set to make her feature debut on the film, which is also produced by Tom Butterfield (London Town). Freddie Fox, Ashley Madekwe and David O’Hara also star on the project, in part inspired by a Pablo Neruda poem. Carnaby handles international sales. “Samantha Barks and Jack Davenport bring a unique and captivating quality to our lead characters,” said Jones.
K5 clears path for Land Of Mine BY ANDREAS WISEMAN
Mel Brooks and Mel B attended the buyers’ presentation for GFM Films’ AFM sales title Blazing Samurai this week. Both are voicing characters in the animated feature alongside Ricky Gervais as the villainous cat Ika Chu and Michael Cera as lead canine Hank. Open Road Films will release in the US on August 4, 2017. Sony Pictures International Releasing previously acquired several major territories.
Gotti bags UK, Spain, India deals Highland Film Group, here selling Arnold Schwarzenegger revenge drama 478, has closed key sales on crime biopic Gotti starring John Travolta, led by a deal with Lionsgate UK. Rights have also gone to CIS (Top Film), Scandinavia (Mislabel), Italy (MovieOn), Spain (Inopia), Latin America (Swen) and the Middle East,
India, Turkey and Greece (Italia). Further deals closed in South Africa (Ster Kinekor), ex-Yugoslavia (MCF), Indonesia (Prima) and Estonia (Prorom). Production is scheduled for early 2016 with Randall Emmett, George Furla and Marc Fiore producing, and Kevin Connolly directing. Jeremy Kay
Oliver Simon and Daniel Baur’s K5 has inked key deals on writerdirector Martin Zandvliet’s wellreceived Danish drama Land Of Mine. Zandvliet’s feature, which had already sold to Sony Pictures Classics for the US and Latin America, has sold to France (BAC), Italy (Notorious), Australia and New Zealand (Palace), Spain (A Contracorriente), Japan (Kino), the Middle East (Falcon) and Benelux (Paradiso), with a UK deal being finalised. Co-production territories Scandinavia and Germany are already set with Nordisk Film and Koch Media, respectively. Inspired by true events, Land Of Mine depicts a group of young German PoWs in Denmark who are forced to clear landmines from the Danish coastline. The film opened Toronto International Film Festi-
val’s Platform strand before playing at London, Rome and Tokyo, where last weekend the film’s rising lead actors Roland Moller (A Hijacking) and Louis Hofmann (Alone In Berlin) shared the best actor award. Mikael Rieks (Applause) produced for Nordisk Film Production with Malte Grunert (A Most Wanted Man) co-producing under his Amusement Park Film banner in association with K5 International. Backers include Denmark’s DFI. K5 partner and head of sales Carl Clifton said: “Land Of Mine is a brilliant film that has audiences on the edge of, and frequently out of, their seats from start to finish. It’s a simple, powerful story that is superbly told, wonderfully acted and incredibly moving. We anticipate closing out our remaining territories during AFM.”
NEWS
Pantelion promises a wild break for Sundown Lena Headey
Headey enters The Woods BY JEREMY KAY
Myriad Pictures’ genre label Scoundrel Media will finance and handle worldwide sales on The Woman Of The Woods, a thriller to star Lena Headey. The film tells of a couple preparing to separate who take their young daughter on a camping trip, only for the child to succumb to an evil force. Russell Friedenberg wrote and will direct the thriller and Heather Rae produces. Myriad senior vicepresident of marketing and acquisitions Audrey Delaney and COO Kevin Forester negotiated the deal with Rae. “We loved this contemporary gothic thriller script and are excited to work with Heather and Russell,” said Myriad president and CEO Kirk D’Amico. Myriad’s sales slate includes Jeepers Creepers 3, SXSW selection Hangman and Robert Carlyle’s feature directorial debut The Legend Of Barney Thomson.
BY JEREMY KAY
Pantelion has begun talks with international buyers here at AFM on the teen sex comedy Sundown starring Camilla Belle, Teri Hatcher and Sara Paxton. Fernando Lebrija directed the comedy about two high-school friends on spring break in Mexico where one of them loses a family heirloom to a local gangster.
Thunderbird gets into an Entanglement BY JEREMY KAY
Vancouver-based Thunderbird Films continues its push into sales, acquiring worldwide rights to the comedy Entanglement starring Jess Weixler and Thomas Middleditch. The company will begin talks here on the story of a man searching for meaning who uncovers a family secret that leads him to a special woman. Resonance Films’ Jason James directed Entanglement, which is produced by James with Amber Ripley of Goodbye Productions.
Sundown, which screened Wednesday and screens again on Monday, also features DJs Steve Aoki, Paul Oakenfold, Adrian Lux and Chris Lake. Lebrija, Leonardo Zimbron and Sandro Halphen produce and the cast includes Jordi Molla, John Michael Higgins and Devon Werkheiser. “In the vein of Risky Business and 21 & Over, Sundown will take
audiences on the hilarious wild ride of a spring break gone bad,” said Anne-Marie Ross, president of international at Pantelion. The company, a joint venture between Lionsgate and Mexico’s Grupo Televisa, launched in 2010 and has found success in the US with breakout Instructions Not Included, Cantinflas and From Prada To Nada.
Green-Light has Urge BY JEREMY KAY
Los Angeles-based Green-Light International has come on to handle sales at AFM on the Pierce Brosnan thriller Urge. President Christian de Gallegos and his sales team will screen the film, which also stars Ashley Greene. Aaron Kaufman directed and CEO Warren Goz of US-based financier-producer Sculptor Media served as producer on Urge, about a tycoon who lures friends to his island retreat and gives them a drug that can only be taken once. Green-Light founders Jeff Elliott and Chad Moore serve as executive producers.
AFM BRIEFS Firebrand launches Seagal’s Weapon Sci-fi action title The Perfect Weapon starring Steven Seagal is part of the inaugural slate for Firebrand, the subsidiary label launched by US-based Boundless Pictures to handle elevated genre pictures budgeted up to $10m.
Hartnett goes with Gut Montreal-based Caramel Films and Hollywood’s Mednick Productions have cast Josh Hartnett in Daniel Roby’s police thriller Gut Instinct. Caramel is handling international sales on the intertwined stories about a drug mule, an undercover cop and an investigative reporter. UTA Independent Film Group represents US rights.
Arclight closes A Few Less Men deals
Urge
Green-Light International’s film sales slate includes the thriller Imperium starring Daniel Radcliffe and Toni Collette. In post are drama-thriller Custody with Viola Davis and sci-fi horror Antibirth starring Natasha Lyonne and Chloë Sevigny.
Arclight Films has announced the start of shooting in Perth, Australia, on A Few Less Men and closed key pre-sales in Australia and New Zealand (Studiocanal), Italy (Lucky Red), the Middle East (Italia Films) and others. Mark Lamprell’s sequel to A Few Best Men will again star Xavier Samuel, Kris Marshall and Kevin Bishop.
» Full stories on ScreenDaily. com
TF1 books Babysitting 2 sales BY MELANIE GOODFELLOW
First Look: Teresa Palmer in Shortland’s Berlin Syndrome Memento Films International has released the first image of Teresa Palmer in Cate Shortland’s Berlin Syndrome, in which the actress plays a backpacking photojournalist whose holiday romance takes a sinister turn. The Paris-based sales company also revealed a first round of pre-sales to Turkey (Bir Film), ex-Yugoslavia (Megacom), South Korea (Yejilim) and the Middle East (Falcon). Melanie Goodfellow
4 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
TF1 International has been racking up sales on Babysitting 2 (aka All Gone South), in which the original film’s gang of madcap, accident-prone friends wreak havoc on an upscale resort in Brazil, before heading off for a disastrous excursion into the Amazon jungle. The sequel has sold to Germany and Austria (Square One), Benelux (Cineart), Switzerland (Pathé), Greece (Odeon), Turkey (Associated Euromedia), Portugal (Pris Audiovisuais), the CIS and central Europe (All Media Company), Poland (Kino Swiat), the Middle East (Falcon), Latin America (Antonio Fernandes Filmes) and Japan (Nikkatsu). Philippe Lacheau, who codirects alongside Nicolas Ben-
Babysitting 2 (aka All Gone South)
amou, reprises his role as Franck opposite Alice David as his girlfriend Sonia, and Tarek Boudali and Vincent Desagnat as his pals. The original Babysitting, in which Franck is left in charge of his boss’s wayward son, was a breakout hit in 2014, grossing
more than $20m worldwide on a budget of just $3.3m. Babysitting 2, produced by Christophe Cervoni of Paris-based Axel Film and Marc Fiszman, will be market screened during AFM. Universal will release in France on December 5.
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Grindstone grabs Flying Monkeys
Signature acts theatrical
By Jeremy Kay
By Andreas Wiseman
Grindstone Entertainment Group has acquired North American rights from Buenos Aires-based FilmSharks to Wicked Flying Monkeys. Alberto Mar directed the animation set within L Frank Baum’s Wizard Of Oz universe. The Book Of Life director Jorge Gutierrez wrote the story, created character designs and served as executive producer. Fernando de Fuentes and Jose C Garcia de Letona produced the Anima Estudios and Discreet Arts production. FilmSharks chief Guido Rud and Gaston Cami of Anima Estudios brokered the deal with Grindstone head of acquisitions Stan Wertlieb. FilmSharks previously closed deals with the UK (eOne Films), Australia and New Zealand (Rialto Distribution), CIS and eastern Europe (Top Film), the Middle East (Shooting Stars) and Turkey (Tanweer Group).
Ambitious UK distributor Signature Entertainment, the home entertainment specialist with eyes on the theatrical market, has concluded deals on Beta’s thriller Colonia, starring Emma Watson, and the Shia LaBeouf action film Man Down from The Solution. Director Florian Gallenberger’s Colonia sees Watson and Daniel Brühl star as a couple caught up in a terrifying Chilean cult in the 1970s. Man Down follows a
soldier traumatised by war as he searches for his family in postapocalyptic America. Kate Mara, Gary Oldman and Jai Courtney also star. Both films are set to get at least limited theatrical runs in the UK. Signature head of acquisitions Elizabeth Williams said: “We are thrilled to be releasing Colonia and Man Down. Having been blown away by the films at TIFF, we know our excitement will be matched by movie-goers and our
partners when we bring them to market.” Earlier this week Signature announced a six-film slate deal with US financiers Emmett/ Furla/Oasis Films. The first project to come out of the partnership will be Shadow Warrior. While no details have been confirmed on the film, it is set for release at the end of 2016. The two companies previously signed on upcoming Bruce Willis title Precious Cargo, also slated for a 2016 release.
Raven bites on Hexecutioners Toronto-based Raven Banner Entertainment has picked up worldwide rights to Foresight Features’ thriller The Hexecutioners and has introduced the film to AFM buyers. Jesse Thomas Cook directs from Tony Burgess’s screenplay about two women working for an assisted suicide company who unwittingly summon up spirits. Jeremy Kay
Finecut picks up Na mystery By Liz Shackleton
Na Hong-jin
6 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
Seoul-based sales company Finecut has picked up international rights to Gokseong, the latest film from The Chaser director Na Hong-jin. In post-production, the film stars Kwak Do-won as a
police officer who is desperate to save his daughter when mysterious murders occur in their village. The cast also includes Hwang Jung-min, Chun Woo-hee and Japanese actor Jun Kunimura. The film is produced by Fox Inter-
national Productions and co-produced by Side Mirror Co. Na’s debut feature The Chaser played out of competition at Cannes in 2008, with his followup The Yellow Sea screening in Un Certain Regard in 2011.
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FEATURE ONLINE REVOLUTION
Danny Boyle’s Steve Jobs
TECH-TONIC SHIFTS In 2013, Screen profiled a new generation of business-to-business websites seeking to capitalise on rapid technological changes in the industry. Colin Brown reports on how far things have come
T
he extent to which tech culture has seeped into film industry consciousness became evident with the release of Danny Boyle’s Steve Jobs. Unlike so many Hollywood biopics, this is not your typical life-spanning chronicle designed to show greatness in the making. Instead, Aaron Sorkin’s screenplay examines Apple’s iconic leader through the backstage events leading up to three seminal keynote presentations. Not only have tech titans become household stars, it seems that even their product launches are considered sexy enough for film audience consumption. Tech is very much the mainstream now and Hollywood is happily riding in its global wake. Indeed, Boyle’s film arrives at something of a watershed moment in terms of cinema’s relationship with those start-up entrepreneurs bent on creative destruction and business disruption. Four years ago — just weeks after Jobs succumbed to pancreatic cancer — Screen International profiled more than a dozen business-to-business websites that had sprung up to address the industry’s various operational pain-points. In contrast to their belligerent peers in Silicon Valley, these pioneers all started out cautiously. They had good reason for tiptoeing around industry conventions and playing nice with the film hierarchy. To talk openly of predictive data analytics being applied to storytelling, for example, or of syn-
10 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
thesising face-to-face sales meetings through online exchanges was to attack the romantic, humanistic core of cinema. But go to an industry reception today and you are just as likely to be serenaded with the elevator pitch for the next Airbnb or Uber-inspired concept as you are the next Imitation Game. “Four years ago, if you told people you were building an online marketplace, you would get a response akin to, ‘Great idea, it’ll never work!’,” observes Steven Polster, CEO of media licensing company RightsTrade. “Today, the scepticism has nearly evaporated. Some of the same clients who swore they would never be comfortable listing their ‘avails’ are now our biggest supporters.” Up in the cloud Certainly, based on interviews with the CEOs and founders of many of the same companies Screen International profiled four years ago, it is clear that cloud-based tools and platforms are now woven into the industry fabric. Professional livelihoods no longer feel as threatened. “For the most part the companies we work with embrace new technology — so long as it solves their problems,” says Rob Delf, CEO of Rightsline Software. However, there remains a wellspring of residual fears, particularly among the incumbent players. “There’s a lot of mistrust from content owners that we have inherited from
‘Some of the same clients who swore they would never be comfortable listing their “avails” are now our biggest supporters’ Steven Polster, RightsTrade
older industry practices where many people got burned with empty promises,” says Klaus Badelt, the film composer who also cofounded the self-described ‘Super VoD aggregator’ Kinonation. “You need to make everyone comfortable on this ride, and resist the urge to pull the rug from under them, no matter how exciting the revolution is. So there’s a lot of education we’re doing, in addition to the actual product we have built.” Part of that education is steering audiences away from video tools they may already be familiar with from home usage, but that are ill-suited to the business rigours of cinema. “Despite their concerns with regard to piracy, some professionals turn to well-known consumer video solutions. They ignore how very easy it is to download files from these platforms,” says Jérome Paillard, executive director of Marché du Film and its Cinando site. According to Vincent Bruzzese, founder and CEO of entertainment research firm C4, “There are two barriers to overcome when introducing new tools and/or technology into any industry: generating an understanding of, and comfort level with, their use and proving their effectiveness. The first barrier is an effect of time and repetition, but the second one is harder to overcome. We speak as if these tools have been perfected but they haven’t — as an example, measurement of social media ‘buzz’ and the implications of it »
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Billion-dollar company Jones & Sunn is going public. Chairman Ho has promised CEO/mistress Chang to become a major shareholder of the company. As the IP team enters the company to audit, a series of inside stories start to be revealed.
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Streetwise exorcist Fat becomes an overnight sensation when his extraordinary exorcism is recorded and gone viral, which catches not only a lot of attention from the media, but also the underworld.
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Feature ONLINE REVOLUTION
are wrong more often than they are right.” Also on an educational mission is Slated, the film financing and introduction platform that uses algorithms to help score the strength of scripts and film packages to make it easy for ‘syndicates’ of investors to align themselves behind the hottest projects on its site. While people are employed to read and assess the scripts, statistical analysis is then applied to their insights in order to project probable market outcomes. “Being datadriven and creative are not mutually exclusive. In fact it allows for more rapidly detecting quality, original material,” insists Slated CEO Stephan Paternot. “Since launching our project scoring system we’ve seen countless first and second-time film-makers surge up the rankings due to their great script scores.” Tech evangelists Four years ago, the idea of using Moneyball-style computational horsepower to create some kind of objective currency for evaluating material would have seemed anathema to the film business. Most still preferred ‘film comps’, pre-sales estimates and other subjective hunches. But if there
are still cries of heresy today, those voices are being drowned out by the tech evangelists. “I used to have a huge moral dilemma when I thought what people like Orwell or Huxley would say about the standardisation of processes and unification of information. But not any more,” says Tomas Prasek, co-founding director of software company Eventival. “We are like a Swiss army knife or a map, and like every tool it’s beyond good and evil. In some hands it will just be a toy — or worse. In others, it will lead to progress.” Apple’s own evolution is as good an illustration as any of this potential. What began under Jobs as a personal computer manufacturer has grown into the world’s largest public company. By all accounts, Apple is now mulling a move into the creation of films and TV shows. If content production feels like a hubristic overreach, then it’s worth recalling Jobs was also the man behind Hollywood’s most consistently successful business start-up in recent memory: Pixar. And since then, Apple has kept accumulating years of viewing data and entertainment payment histories from one of the largest and most s loyal customer bases on the planet. n
CLICK BAIT Colin Brown highlights 12 online services aspiring to assist with everything from financing and rights management to screenings and networking
C4 8 c4-rd.com
After 15 years in the entertainment research game, including years spearheading OTX and Motion Picture Group, Vincent Bruzzese created C4 last year, convinced that the film industry remains behind the curve when it comes to understanding consumers. The company, which is backed by the film producer Michael Benaroya, brings a Silicon Valley ‘big data’ sensibility to the business of script analysis, screening research, tracking and advertising testing. “I don’t believe that one can apply an algorithm to art,” says Bruzzese, “but I do believe that the expectations and demands of audiences can be predicted at early stages in the film’s development. People consciously and subconsciously have expectations from the genre/sub-genres of content that they enjoy. And as such, these triggers need to be met/ exceeded, however the film-maker wants to accomplish this, creatively. “Through our examination of viewers’ wishes from content, we are able to identify what they want and therefore we can help the content creator to create commercially successful work. If the creative community was equipped with this information at an early stage, they could better develop and protect their vision.”
‘I don’t believe that one can apply an algorithm to art, but I do believe that the expectations and demands of audiences can be predicted at early stages in the film’s development’ Vincent Bruzzese
Launch date 2014 Key executives Vincent Bruzzese, CEO; Kristen Simmons, chief information officer; Miriam Brin, EVP of content. Cost to users Undisclosed. Ownership structure Privately owned with backing from producer Michael Benaroya. Business model Research consultancy aimed at Hollywood studios and large production companies.
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Feature ONLINE REVOLUTION
EVENTIVAL 8 www.eventival.com
Jérome Paillard
CINANDO 8 www.cinando.com
Now in its 11th year of servicing film professionals on the international sales and distribution circuit, Cinando has more than 60,000 users — many of them courtesy of their registration with the Cannes Marché du Film and other partnered movie markets around the world. Available in three languages — English, Spanish and Chinese — Cinando is in a constant bid to keep up with marketplace shifts and demands. “Because users are very often on the move when they need a contact, info on a film or even a screening time in a market, our technology now allows them to download the full database in their device. It was still inconceivable a few years ago to have data and photos of 60,000 people and 40,000 films stored in a mobile phone. For us it became possible two years ago,” says executive director Jérome Paillard. Other upgrades have included a feature allowing users to exchange data across different platforms, a white-label digital video library for festivals and a new website back office where users can manage their data using dashboards and reporting tools. “While working constantly with data and figures, we do not forget the human aspect of our activity, which will always be the engine that moves the industry forward. Isn’t our main job to run a market in real life?” Launch date 2003 Key executives Jérome Paillard, executive director; David Capaldi, head project manager. Cost to users $95 (€85) per year, but is included with the registration at the Cannes Marché and other film market partners. Ownership structure Owned and operated by the Marché du Film. Business model Supported by the EU’s Creative Europe programme as well as advertising and subscriptions.
A logistical toolbox for all manner of event planning, Eventival started life in a French farmhouse room and has since grown to become “the most frequently used film festival management software around the world,” says co-founder and director Tomas Prasek. “Dawna Cha [founding partner] and I gave Eventival all we knew in the beginning, but now the most valuable input is from our clients. As a result of this, we keep adding features all the time — I don’t think Eventival has taken a single nap for six years. “At first, it used to be only film festivals. Two years ago, Eventival began to be discovered by conference organisers, film and literary award organisers, clubs and interest associations, and most recently also NGOs and music festivals. “We think we really know how to organise and simplify the life of people who work with a lot of data when organising dynamic and often unpredictable events. We want to keep doing just that, only in a lot of other fields. “Our biggest lesson was that delivering the service well has to be complemented with a diplomatic insistence on its use. We used to lose customers because we did not manage
Mathilde Henrot
FESTIVAL SCOPE 8 www.festivalscope.com
As an online viewing platform, Festival Scope is for film professionals only, allowing buyers, programmers and critics on-demand access to programming from selected festivals on the international circuit. Rights-holders and film institutes can arrange ‘private’ screening rooms for their high-profile films, even before their international launch, as well as request detailed screening reports and contact viewers directly. Access is also granted to producers looking for new talent both in front of and behind the camera. “One
to help them get beyond that magic point where they suddenly realise they do not want to work without Eventival. It doesn’t happen any more because we are putting a lot more effort into the initial year.”
‘Eventival is the most frequently used film festival management software in the world’ Tomas Prasek
key differentiating element of Festival Scope — that still remains unique — is the curated approach, enabling users to discover films,” say founding partners Mathilde Henrot and Alessandro Raja. “It enables rights-holders to combine their ‘push’ sales strategy with our ‘pull’ strategy, and hence enhance distribution and promotion opportunities.” Following several requests, Festival Scope implemented an ‘online video library’ service for festivals, allowing industry and press guests at a festival to access a selection of films for free during or immediately after the festival. It has also ventured beyond B2B into special event consumer-facing initiatives like the online theatre Sala Web with this year’s Venice Film Festival: 15 films in the official selection were made available as secure streams from the day of their world premiere and for a limited time for a worldwide audience of 400 people per film. The next step is mobile. “We are going to launch our iPad application
Launch date Established in the UK in 2008 and operated from France for its first year; in 2009, the company relocated to Prague. Key executives Tomas Prasek, co-founder & director; Dawna Cha, co-founder & business development director. Cost to users The annual service fee for film festivals ranges from several hundred to several thousand US dollars for the flagship service. Ownership structure Privately owned. Business model Main source of revenue is an annual service fee plus income from additional programming or consulting work.
very soon. It took us a while but it’s beautiful and addictive,” say Henrot and Raja. Launch date 2010 Key executives Alessandro Raja, CEO and founder; Mathilde Henrot, founding partner. Cost to users $78 (€70) per year or $10 (€9) per month, excluding VAT. Ownership structure Privately owned, and supported by the MEDIA Pilot Projects and the RIAM network (Research and Innovation in Audiovisual and Multimedia), co-financed by CNC and Oséo. Business model Subscription service aimed at film professionals.
» 14 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
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SCREENING TOMORROW! Friday, November 6, 9:00 AM Loews 3 Also Screening Saturday, Nov. 7, 9:00 AM, Loews 1
HOLLYWOOD STORM PRESENTS
ALEXANDER NEVSKY
BLACK ROSE KRISTANNA LOKEN
ADRIAN PAUL
ROBERT DAVI
MATTHIAS HUES
Two Tough Cops. One Impossible Mission. HOLLYWOOD STORM PRESENTS A HOLLYWOOD STORM / CZAR PICTURES PRODUCTION ALEXANDER NEVSKY KRISTANNA LOKEN "BLACK ROSE" ROBERT DAVI ADRIAN PAUL ROBERT MADRID MATTHIAS HUES POLINA BUTORINA DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY RUDY HARBON EDITOR STEPHEN ADRIANSON MUSIC BY SEAN MURRAY EXECUTIVE PRODUCER SHELDON LETTICH EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS BRYAN GOERES ALEXANDER IZOTOV ROBERT MADRID STORY BY ALEXANDER NEVSKY WRITTEN BY BRENT HUFF AND GEORGE SAUNDERS PRODUCED AND DIRECTED BY ALEXANDER NEVSKY © 2015, HOLLYWOOD STORM, LLC.
International Sales: LIGHTNING ENTERTAINMENT. AFM Office: Loews Hotel 8th Floor, Escondido Suite
Feature ONLINE REVOLUTION
INDIELOOP
KINONATION
8 www.indieloop.tv
Incubated through New York University’s Cinema Research Institute and its Launchpad Accelerator for start-up ideas, IndieLoop seeks to apply the same peer-topeer ‘sharing economy’ principles that made Airbnb a global phenomenon. Much like that couch-surfing service, IndieLoop is a trusted community marketplace for film-makers to find the right crew and affordable equipment. A key selling point is the ability for freelance film-makers to both brand themselves and share their portfolios of work. An NYU graduate film-maker herself, co-founder Dagny Looper sees many parallels between film producers and entrepreneurs: “Both must charge forward in a single-minded belief that their product will find value in a seemingly saturated marketplace, often with no monetary payout unless they find largescale success.” Now in beta-testing across the indie film community of New York, IndieLoop stumbled on a disconnect in the way that freelancers present their skills, particu-
8 www.kinonation.com
‘We must give filmmakers an appealing option to find sustainable work’ Dagny Looper
larly early on in their careers. “Asking a film-maker to describe themselves would inevitably lead to the aspirational description, which often differed substantially from what they actually do to earn money. As so much of art and film is about perception, in order to make freelancing in film more sustainable we must give film-makers an appealing option to find sustainable work without marring their ability to represent themselves as ‘aspirational’. After all, that’s why they went into this crazy entrepreneurial world in the first place.” Launch date 2015 Key executives Dagny Looper, CEO; Colin Whitlow, chief product officer. Cost to users Fee structures are being tested. Ownership structure Privately owned. Business model Revenue from job postings, subscription services and equipment rental fees.
Kinonation is very much a technology company first, says co-founder Klaus Badelt. “We’re doing distribution ‘as a website’, operating entirely in the cloud, with no old-school post-production, sales or accounting departments. Instead, we’re aiming at making VoD distribution as simple as an app, globally accessible and infinitely scalable. The cost to distribute a title is minimal with our technology, thus we can take on virtually every title. It’s this combination of tools, infrastructure and philosophy which shapes our unique IP.” A noted film composer, Badelt sees parallels with what happened in the music industry when power shifted to consumers and cloud services arose to accommodate them. In his mind, the film industry has not caught up with this new paradigm. “While we see lots of activity in the greater segment of online film services, most seem to run the actual service offline. We are a technology platform and are ‘compet-
Klaus Badelt
ing’ with a decades-old chain of manual systems. They still handle hard drives, enter data and do laborious manual work. You need to run this technology-only, or your cost is similar to the old-world industry and you’re just another distributor or lab. “Also, aside from traditional film and TV content, lifestyle and speciality formats can now be distributed — something the old distribution industry mostly couldn’t afford to risk doing, but it’s now an exploding market. We’re also seeing rapid growth with thousands of DVD publishers now seeking to migrate their catalogues to VoD. We offer them worldwide distribution for zero conversion cost — it’s a huge leap forward for them.” Launch date 2012 Key executives Roger Jackson, Robyn Klein & Klaus Badelt, co-founders. Cost to users The basic service is free. Ownership structure Privately owned. Business model Kinonation takes a 20% cut of VOD revenues from films on its distribution network. Users can choose between this simple revenue share or a one-time service fee.
MEDIAPEERS / DL3 MEDIA STORE 8 www.mediapeers.com
One year ago, Deluxe Entertainment acquired Mediapeers and integrated it into its rich end-to-end ecosystem of digital media solutions and content services. The Berlin-based web exchange, a B2B cloud software provider that enables clients such as Lionsgate and FremantleMedia to market and sell their movie and television assets more effectively to the global market, was also rebranded as the DL3 Media Store. As part of the absorption, both Telepool and Fintage House sold their stakes in Mediapeers, which was launched in 2007. “At our core we operate the same multi-tenant platform,” says cofounder and managing director Moritz Viehweger, “but we added rights and contract management, extended existing features dramatically and made UI customisation easy.
‘We have seen a tremendous change in the appreciation of technology in sales and distribution’ Moritz Viehweger
Everything we’ve done over the past four years has been to aid our customers in the transition to digital.” Viehweger believes the company’s competitive edge lies in an all-in-one holistic approach that combines data from products, assets, licensees and deals — one that has great potential in adjacent content markets such as
advertising, corporate media and games. “We have seen a tremendous change in the appreciation of technology in sales and distribution,” Viehweger adds. “For any successful distributor it is no longer a question of if they need a content, marketing and rights management system, but merely which one suits them best.”
Launch date 2007 Key executives Moritz Viehweger, founder and co-CEO; Holger Hendel, founder and co-CEO. Cost to users Undisclosed. Ownership structure Acquired by Deluxe Entertainment Service Group in 2014. Deluxe is a wholly owned subsidiary of MacAndrews & Forbes Holdings. Business model Software-as-a-service fees.
» 16 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
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DISCOVER MACEDONIA A Land Where Nature Creates Art
280 sunny days a year Low taxes Low operational costs Competitive labor cost advantage Exceptional and skilled production companies and crew Post-production service for films CGI, VFX, SFX
www.filmagency.gov.mk contact@filmfund.gov.mk
Feature ONLINE REVOLUTION
Ilann Girard
OLFFI 8 www.olffi.com
Over the last few months, Paris-based OLFFI has completely revamped its website and adopted a ‘freemium’ model for what has evolved into a global onestop-shop for all public funding questions related to film and TV projects. Its database now encompasses 700 support schemes across 70 countries. “We have built an unmatched search engine for public funding and regulatory information that we offer as a widget,” says president and co-founder Ilann Girard. “We are now teaming up with other platforms and media players to supplement their offer.” While the basic database is free to use, OLFFI will add a premium subscription service next year as well as an ad hoc consultancy. Additional revenue will come from global sponsors and film funds advertising on country pages. “Most producers do not want to pay for information but are keen to search for information with the proper tools,” says Girard. “Given the importance of public funding for independent production, they are keen to consider paying for consultancy and are responding positively to
RIGHTSLINE SOFTWARE 8 www.rightsline.com
Last year, when the three co-founders of Amazon’s film festival submission service Withoutabox entered the rights management business with the creation of Critical Mass Studios, their first move was to buy Rob Delf ’s Rightsline. Their stated objective was to be at the centre of the
our offer to facilitate their online application to public film funds. We are developing OLFFI into a worldwide hub for public funding. Not only will we help producers apply for financing, we will also help film funds and organisations scan projects and process applications based on their eligibility criteria. “We are providing tools to independent producers that used to be exclusive to studio executives. While some countries still fear the competition that our technology offers, most see it as a way to administer equal access to information and optimise the activity generated by their support. By bringing more transparency to producers’ dealings, we help them focus on creative issues. By analysing the iterations of our users we can also help film funds to better design their funding programmes.” Launch date 2012 Key executives Ilann Girard & Joëlle Levie, co-founders. Cost to users Database is free; subscription fees to be established. Ownership structure Privately owned with additional equity raised from investors. Business model A ‘freemium’ model in which the ad-supported database serves as a gateway to premium subscription services and ad hoc consultancy fees.
value chain for rights, serving as the common nexus for rights holders, licensors, distributors, promoters and brands in a world made ever more complex with the emergence of countless digital platforms. The immediate goal was to develop the technology for studio customers, offering them real-time availability calculations in a way that fit into their own legacy systems — which could still be as basic as an Excel spreadsheet. The next target was to be independent film-makers.
18 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
RIGHTSTRADE 8 www.rightstrade.com
In four years, RightsTrade has gone from concept to the world’s largest online marketplace for film and television licensing, says CEO Steven Polster. The company won MIPTV’s annual competition this April for best B2B start-up for the TV and video industry. Since coming over from Miramax two years ago, Polster has overseen a rapid succession of upgrades. Features include: a screening service for sales agents and content owners for pre-release and library content; a database of more than half a million real-time available rights; and the release of the ‘DealWizard’, “which transformed RightsTrade from a screening and referrals site, into a place where negotiating, drafting and signing deals becomes as easy as renting a room on Airbnb”. Currently, RightsTrade has more than 8,000 participants from 150 countries who view more than 3,000 screenings each month. “Since we are seeing about 500 new members join each month, we could have over 12,000 members by the next Cannes film market,” says Polster. “We were fortunate in that we were able to learn from others who tried to create an online marketplace over the past 10-15 years. We knew we needed
“In 2012 our entire system was rewritten with an eye on becoming the most configurable, user-friendly rights management system for the largest (and smallest) rights-holders around the world,” says Delf, who is now also president of Critical Mass Studios. “Since our merger, our brand hasn’t changed but our access to the resources we need to offer the most advanced and robust enterprise software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform has grown. We are a team of 30 in North America and Europe.” Delf claims Rightsline is the only company in its space that offers a fully transparent API to any partners seeking to marry its technology with their own systems. “For a long time, the industry has needed an efficient way of managing ‘avails’ for large MSOs and aggregators,” he says. “At times, Rightsline becomes the system of Title Record; in other cases Rightsline sits between two legacy systems and acts as a better-built user interface. Our SaaS system is flexible and configurable so we don’t need to over-
a system that could scale with reliable rights information and our partnership with FilmTrack, the market leader in rights management, gave that to us out of the gate. We also knew this had to be more than just an exchange — this business doesn’t operate from a price list. RightsTrade had to solve real administrative problems that are slowing up deals, but not dumb deals down. “While our focus is to lower the cost of doing business, we also happen to operate in an area of the industry where there is still limited access to hard data on how to price or acquire content. Looking ahead, RightsTrade clients could opt-in to securely pool their sales data, and in return have access to an agnostic, consolidated industry-wide analysis of sales by genre, territory, platform... which would prove extremely valuable and help make better-informed decisions.” Launch date 2011 Key executives Steven Polster, CEO; Laurie Woodrow, sales & client relations. Cost to users Subscription fees are tiered by volume of titles with prices starting at $250 a month for producers, up to $25,000 a month for enterprise integrations. The service fee is between 5% and 10%. Ownership structure Privately held company in which rights management hub FilmTrack holds a minority position. Business model A dual SaaS and transactional fee revenue model.
‘Our system is flexible and configurable so we don’t need to overload a customer’ Rob Delf
load a customer not ready to jump in for the entire product.” Launch date Founded 1999, relaunched 2009. Key executives Rob Delf, CEO. Cost to users Undisclosed monthly fee. No long-term contracts required. Ownership structure Merged in 2013 with Critical Mass Studios. Business model Software delivered to support end-users on a monthly cost basis.
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Feature ONLINE REVOLUTION
SCORE REVOLUTION 8 www.scorerevolution.com
A platform focused solely on film music, Score Revolution has carved out its own niche as the destination for the licensing of instrumental scores. Not just for use in movies, but also in trailers, promos, TV shows and advertising campaigns, as well as lower-value web-based uses. The searchable website has agreements with three of the four major global music publishers to represent their film music, as well as deals with Warner Bros Pictures, Lionsgate, Lakeshore and Constantin among others. Its catalogue stands at approximately 15,000 tracks. “Originally we were concentrating our efforts on high-value licences — mainly in the trailer and advertising areas. The problem with those licences is that they are the most difficult to win and can be hard to rely on for steady revenue,” says co-founder and CEO Christine Russell. “We found that there was a great deal of interest in the catalogue from the lower dollar/high-volume users. We realise that this can be a real growth area for us and has the potential to stabilise our revenue stream. It also informed our decision to create a mirror site to Score Revolution called Score Revolution Xpress, which separated out tracks that can be licensed for $2,500 and under. “We understood from the beginning that although film music’s great advan-
SLATED 8 www.slated.com
As an online ‘market network’ of film professionals, Slated boasts some eyecatching numbers: 15,000 producers, 10,000 writers, 9,000 directors, 1,500 investors, 500 sales agents and 200 distributors. Collectively, these members have had 109 Oscar nominations and 18 wins between them. Two-thirds of the films sold at this year’s Sundance, not to mention another two-thirds of films that won prizes there, all involved
tage was its quality both in terms of the talent of the composers and production quality, its disadvantage is that it is not specifically tailored toward the uses that we are marketing for. “This prompted us to create volumes that iterate on some chosen tracks to tailor them more towards the trailer market in particular. We call this ‘trailerising’ our tracks.” On the technology side, Score Revolution received a patent for its music search engine, a validation of uniqueness that also serves as a potential game-changer,
Slated members in some producing capacity. Films listed on the platform attracted $322m in production financing last year. Slated’s mission now is to convert such a potent community into a frictionless marketplace that overcomes many of the real-world obstacles to getting even more films financed and seen by paying audiences. Until Slated came along, only one side of that equation was being adequately addressed through technology. “The biggest disruption to date has
20 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
‘There was a great deal of interest in the catalogue from the lower-dollar/high-volume users. We realise this can be a real growth area’ Christine Russell
been on the distribution side,” observes Stephan Paternot, the co-founder who took over the reins as CEO in early 2014. “We’ve obviously gone from cable company/TV network linear programming ‘push’ experience, to a consumer-driven on-demand, on-all-devices, all-you-caneat ‘pull’ model. What hasn’t changed much yet is sourcing, packaging, financing and selling of content.” Slated’s activities have been refocused with all that in mind. “The biggest strategic shift we made was in recognising that producers are our key customers, which meant relocating to Los Angeles to be closer to our community and focusing our efforts on making the platform as effective for them as possible. Secondly, we chose to go from being an ‘invite-only’ community to being open to everyone in the industry. What this meant was removing the social-vetting barriers that frustrated so many and replacing it with a more egalitarian scoring system.” Those scores not only allow members
believes Russell. “With the granting of that patent, we are making decisions about creating a white-label version that could be offered to any company that is looking to manage or monetise its own catalogue of music assets.” Launch date 2013 Key executives Christine Russell, CEO. Cost to users The cost for a piece of music depends on the type of media, the piece being used, duration, territory and budget constraints. Ownership structure Privately owned. Business model Fee split with rights-holders, depending upon the size and stature of catalogue. Does not participate in any performance royalties.
Stephan Paternot
to be matched more efficiently, they are about to unlock an entirely new form of film funding: online ‘syndicates’ of financiers that are aligned behind a lead investor. Any project on the platform that scores 60+ qualifies for full service financing and is put in front of all investors on the site. Launch date 2012 Key executives Stephan Paternot, CEO; Jason Scoggins, president & chief operating officer. Cost to users Membership free. $995 to obtain a project’s script analysis and financial projections. Ownership structure Privately owned. Investors include Mexican producer Alex Garcia. Business model Revenues derived from multiple sources including analysis services and s film financing management fees. n
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RISE OF THE FOOTSOLDIER
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30/10/2015 14:39
CHINA & HONG KONG NICHE DISTRIBUTION
Small talk Despite another record year at the Chinese box office, buyers, sellers and distributors in the independent and arthouse space have less to celebrate. Liz Shackleton reports
Monster Hunt
C
hina’s meteoric box-office growth has been difficult to ignore over the past year. In April, Universal’s Fast & Furious 7 became the territory’s highest-grossing film ever with a mighty haul of $381m, only to have a local production, Monster Hunt, nudge past it a few months later. In the first nine months of this year, six Hollywood and seven local films have grossed more than $100m, while total box office exceeded $5bn — ahead of the total for the whole of 2014, and on course to reach $6.2bn by the end of the year. But while the eye-popping figures may have hypnotised the global film community and spurred a rash of deal-making, the story for foreign distributors outside of the US studios is much less encouraging. Most of the growth is coming from China’s second and third-tier cities, where audiences are embracing the higher-quality films that local studios are producing and are much less open to foreign product than cities such as Shanghai and Beijing. With the exception of a few global franchises, the space for foreign independent films appears to be shrinking, while Chinese buyers, faced with the triple whammy of import quotas, censorship and growing costs, are much less willing to take a risk on foreign films. “Three years ago, around 20% of foreign films were losing money, but now more than half are losing money,” says Jin Cai, head of Chinese distributor ERG Films, who says she took a hit on distributing Oscar winner The Artist in China in 2012. “The fact is the taste of the Chinese audience still needs time to develop. There might be more diver-
24 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
sity in five years time but for now the focus is on commercial movies — action films and thrillers.” So far this year, the only non-US-studio foreign film in the top 20 is Japanese animation Stand By Me Doraemon, which ranked at number 17 with $83m, according to EntGroup figures. The next highest-grossing foreign indie is Lionsgate’s The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1, a studio-level production that secured a revenue-sharing slot and came in at number 39 with $35m, while EuropaCorp’s Taken 3 ranked at 44 with $32m. India had a surprise hit this year with Rajkumar Hirani’s P.K., ranked at 54 with $18m, while the UK made an appearance via StudioCanal with Paddington (ranked 58 with $16m) and Shaun The Sheep Movie (at 73, with $8m). There are no other independent foreign films in the top 100 in the first nine months of the year. Indies in decline Ironically, the space for indie films has actually declined since the 2012 World Trade Organization (WTO) agreement, under which China expanded the quota for revenue-sharing imports from 20 to 34 films a year, with 25% of box office flowing back to films’ foreign producers. Prior to that agreement, around 40 indie films were distributed each year on a flat-fee (ie, non-revenue sharing) basis, bringing the total to 60 foreign films a year. But in the past three years, the authorities have kept the total number of foreign imports at around 60, which means the space for flat-fee films has shrunk. “We’ve actually seen the number of inde-
‘We’ve seen the number of independent films decline quite dramatically in the past few years’ Jean Prewitt, IFTA
pendent films decline quite dramatically in the past few years,” says Jean Prewitt, president of the Independent Film & Television Alliance (IFTA), which estimates the market share of its members in China has shrunk from 7% in 2012 to just 2% in the first half of 2015. “Our members are being told there are no release slots unless they can reclassify as a non-US film, but that isn’t going to work with a high-profile indie film that is obviously American.” Both IFTA and the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), which represents the US studios, have expressed concern that several aspects of the WTO agreement, such as box-office auditing and transparent censorship, are not being met. IFTA is also concerned that China has not followed through on its promise to allow companies other than state-owned China Film Group and Huaxia to distribute foreign films independently, despite recommitting to this at the US-China Strategic & Economic Dialogue in June. Meanwhile, indie distributors have also been hit by a completely new set of quotas and tighter censorship for online distribution, introduced in April, which have created confusion and prompted many Chinese buyers to freeze their acquisition contracts. Recent talks between the MPAA and China Film Group appear to have resulted in an agreement that international accounting firms can audit box office for revenue-sharing films. But, so far, there are no assurances that the number of flat-fee films is being increased or that they can be distributed by Chinese companies independently of China Film. “We continue to monitor for any developments or news that the informal quota that »
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CHINA & HONG KONG NICHE DISTRIBUTION
Fast & Furious 7
CHINA TOP 20 JANUARY 1 – SEPTEMBER 30, 2015
1. Monster Hunt
Taken 3
Stand By Me Doraemon
Release date
Box office
July 16
$383m (RMB2.44bn)
2. Fast & Furious 7
April 12
$381.1m (RMB2.43bn)
3. Avengers: Age Of Ultron
May 12
$230m (RMB1.46bn)
4. Jurassic World
June 10
$223.1m (RMB1.42bn)
5. Jian Bing Man
July 17
$182.1m (RMB1.16bn)
6. Lost In Hong Kong*
September 25
$166.5m (RMB1.06m)
7. From Vegas To Macau II
February 19
$153m (RMB974m)
8. The Monkey King: Hero Is Back
July 10
$150.1m (RMB956m)
9. Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation*
September 8
$134m (RMB853m)
10. The Hobbit: The Battle Of The Five Armies
January 23
$120.3m (RMB766m)
11. Dragon Blade
February 19
$116.8m (RMB743m)
12. Terminator Genisys
August 23
$113.9m (RMB725m)
13. Wolf Totem
February 19
$109.7m (RMB699m)
14. San Andreas
June 2
$98.9m (RMB629m)
15. SPL 2: A Time For Consequences
June 18
$88m (RMB560m)
16. Wolf Warriors
April 2
$85.4m (RMB544m)
17. Stand By Me Doraemon
May 28
$83.3m (RMB530m)
18. Big Hero 6
February 28
$82.6m (RMB526m)
19. Go Away Mr Tumor
August 13
$80.2m (RMB511m)
20. Tiny Times 4.0
July 9
$76.7m (RMB488m)
*Still on release as of September 30
has limited the total number of imported films permitted to be theatrically distributed is being eliminated,” says IFTA vice-president and general counsel Susan Cleary. French connections If the situation for US indies is bleak, European cinema is having an even harder time gaining a foothold in China. When the flat-fee model was first introduced, Chinese buyers would often take a punt on foreign-language films to test the market and gauge the reaction of Chinese audiences. In recent years it has become much more difficult to find buyers even for French movies, which have a long history of commercial distribution and cultural promotion in China. For the past 11 years, UniFrance has organised the French Film Festival in China, which brings French movies and talent to cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Xian and Chongqing. “Around six French films are distributed in China each year, but they tend to be Englishlanguage action films, which do not represent the diversity of French cinema,” says UniFrance’s China rep Isabelle Glachant. “We believe there is a niche audience that’s interested in other types of films that are not distributed in China, so the festival allows that audience to see those films on the big screen and not just pirated DVDs.” In addition to raising audience awareness, initiatives like these can result in direct business — Cannes Palme d’Or winner Amour was sold to Chinese broadcaster CCTV after screening at the French film festival. Other European organisations, including the British Film Institute (BFI), Italy’s Anica and Spain’s ICAA, have also hosted screenings at festivals
26 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
‘The gold rush is still in full bloom so there is no shortage of new ventures with quality backing being created’ Peter Shiao, Orb Media Group
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1
Source: EntGroup Consulting
and other special events, which are not subject to China’s usual import quotas, as have government bodies and industry associations from Australia, New Zealand, Russia, India and Brazil. But there’s growing recognition among all these organisations that there’s a bigger job to be done than simply introducing Chinese audiences to foreign movies. “Our aim is to introduce Italian cinema to different cities and provinces across China, but our overall approach is much more industry-oriented,” explains Anica’s Beijing-based rep Edoardo Gagliardi. “We are trying to create a two-way exchange by supporting the Chinese industry and getting Italian producers to understand more about the China market.” This recognition that film promotion needs to take place in the context of a wider industry programme has resulted in a rash of activity that brings the Chinese film industry together with its foreign counterparts to discuss areas such as co-production, financing and marketing — all of which is expanding the dialogue way beyond sales and distribution. The past month alone has seen gatherings at the BFI London Film Festival, Rome Film Festival’s MIA market, Busan and Tokyo, while China is always high on the agenda at AFM. Increasingly, foreign producers are being told they may have to change the type of films they make if they really want to secure theatrical distribution in China — a frightening prospect for those who are not prepared to chase the market to the lowest common denominator.
For a growing number of international sales companies — whose business is licensing movies rather than market or audience development — there’s a growing trend towards output deals and long-term relationships in China, rather than ad hoc sales for films that may never get released. While Lionsgate has pacted with Hunan TV, EuropaCorp has been working with Fundamental Films, Robert Simonds’ STX Entertainment with Huayi Brothers and Jeff Robinov’s Studio 8 with Fosun Group. Local knowledge The advantage of a local partner is that they can work with you on co-production and financing — not just buy your movies — and can also fight your corner on quotas and censorship. They can also help their foreign partners get involved in producing Chinese films, which are making huge strides in terms of content and quality. But with so much attention on China, it often seems that all the good partners are already taken. If you’re late to the party, are you out of options? Peter Shiao, CEO of production and finance outfit Orb Media Group, does not believe so. “The good news is that in many respects the gold rush is still in full bloom, so there is no shortage of new ventures with quality backing being created,” Shiao says. “Senior executives are leaving large companies to form their own, so if you spend enough time looking beyond the handful of companies that get all the attention, there are many potential partners to choose from.” Of course, it depends what you have to offer in return, and it’s much harder to find a partner if you’re not selling big-budget, English-language action movies, which can preferably be released in 3D. Chinese producers with films considered specialist or arthouse are also being locked out of the market. The challenge is to cultivate audiences in the big cities that are looking for something beyond Hollywood and mainstream Chinese movies — and that is not easy without a like-minded local partner on board. The tipping point may not arrive until digital distribution in China starts to generate real revenues. Speaking at this year’s Shanghai International Film Festival, IM Global chief Stuart Ford predicted that “five years from now, digital and pay-TV revenues in China will be the single biggest revenue stream of any movie globally”. That day still seems a long way off, especially as China’s online platforms are not profitable and look set for a period of consolidation. But with digital giants such as Alibaba, Baidu and Tencent steaming into the market, new revenue streams could emerge from unexpected sources. Unfortunately, this means that while very few companies are currently making any money in China, there are also very few that can afford not to have a strategy and relationships in s place for when the market matures. ■
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Loews #466
SCREENING TODAY
the Girl in the photographs
THE TRUST
Fairmont 3 5:00 PM
BroadwaY cineplex 4 9:00 AM
9200 sunset boulevard, suite 600, west hollywood, ca 90069 310 271 8400 sales@highlandfilmgroup.com
Spotlight AG CAPITAL
L
aura Walker, a former financing agent at CAA, joined forces earlier this year with prolific Mexican producer-financier Alex Garcia at AG Capital, which funds prestige Englishlanguage content for film and television. She spoke to Screen International about her vision for the company. Since AG Capital was announced in May, it has maintained a discreet profile. Can you update us on your activities? AG Capital runs the English-language film and television initiative for its parent company, AG Studios, and we’ve been making equity investments into projects on the studio’s behalf. AG Studios is a mass-media company with interests in film, television, animation, music, sports — any compelling vehicle for content creation. What are the advantages of having Alex Garcia and his network of businesses on board? We aren’t just looking at a balance sheet. AG Studios provides production service teams with an expertise in many countries. Backed by that knowledge, AG Capital can properly evaluate what a film-maker or showrunner actually needs to make their project. It’s a huge advantage and creators appreciate that we can speak their language. In May, you said the company would aim for prestige titles similar to those produced by Annapurna or Black Label. What are the budgets and are they fully financed or co-productions? Although AG Capital’s main focus in film is production financing, it is our priority to be in business with the best film-makers. We want to support them at any stage, so we’re open to packaged development projects and P&A investment as well. In terms of budget range, we have two initiatives. We’re in negotiations on several films that are above the $20m mark, with proven directors and bankable talent, and we’ll continue that trend as the company grows. We also have an under$5m initiative that is directly tied to a company called Slated [see profile, page 20]. Television is also a big focus at AG Capital. We’re mining our talent relationships with high-end film-makers to see how we can support them in the television space. What is the split between your film and TV projects so far? Fifty-fifty. Film is a big focus, but we’re also making significant strides on television properties as well. Is it easier to assemble TV projects than film now? Do talent see TV as preferable or is film still holding its own? They’re equally challenging because both industries are fighting for the same writers, directors and actors.
28 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
(Clockwise from left) Laura Walker; networking platform Slated, in which AG Capital has invested; AG Capital founder Alex Garcia
Capital gains AG Capital co-head Laura Walker talks to Jeremy Kay about her goals for the recently launched film and TV investment company What kind of feature projects work in today’s independent landscape? I see an interesting shift. Valuable talent are locking themselves into long-term television contracts, so they’re not available to support the independent film marketplace. Therefore, foreign sales agents seem more open than ever to support writers, directors and actors who have been trying to break through the ‘foreign value’ ceiling for years, because they need product for their foreign buyers. Is it important to your talent to get a theatrical release? Yes it’s very important, but the landscape is changing. Are theatrical releases still economically viable today? Absolutely, for the right films. However it’s crucial to be smart about structuring your financing and realistic about what people will go to see at the theatre. What kind of conversations are you having with Netflix and Amazon Studios? Our discussions with them have been wideranging; sometimes we compete with them
‘AG Capital can properly evaluate what a film-maker or showrunner actually needs to make their project’ Laura Walker, AG Capital
for projects, other times we explore cofinancing opportunities. Netflix and Amazon are also having active conversations with us about production support in Latin America, since AG Studios is the largest production services entity in Mexico, Brazil, Colombia and now the Dominican Republic. I gather it’s the first time Slated has done investment syndication. What kind of films will you partner on? AG Studios made an investment in Slated as a platform, because it’s our strong belief the industry can and needs to scale. Slated is the only online platform that provides equity investors with a way to invest in films and participate in success. They currently have 1,600 accredited investors on the website who want viable product. Slated is building out its television model as well. Because AG Studios has a vested interest in Slated and AG Capital is the financing arm of the studio, AG Capital is making investments into a few films under $5m to prove out the syndication platform. We have received interest from several investors on feature film Cruise and we’re in discussions with them about s syndicating now. n
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1 X 109 MINS
For more information, please visit us at the AFM THE LOEWS HOTEL, SUITE 607 or contact us at starzglobal.com Starz and related channels and service marks are the property of Starz Entertainment, LLC. The Dresser Š Playground Television Limited UK 2015. All rights reserved.
PROMOTIONAL FEATURE
AFM is the perfect opportunity for British companies to connect with US partners; (below right) BritWeek in Los Angeles
Access America UK Trade & Investment’s involvement in the American Film Market is one of the many ways it provides year-round support to British companies seeking to do business in the US
A
s the UK’s creative industries play an essential role in driving the country’s economic growth, helping it succeed on the international stage has become one of the government’s leading priorities. Responsible for supplying this dedicated overseas support is UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), which has offices based in key regions across the US including New York, Atlanta, San Francisco and, most crucially for the industry, Los Angeles. Ahead of this year’s American Film Market (AFM), Tim Crouch, UKTI’s vice-consul, US sector lead, explains how his team is helping UK companies navigate the competitive US film and television market. How does UKTI support UK companies that wish to do business in America? Tim Crouch As the commercial arm of the British government, we’re there to provide the best platform for British businesses to do well oversees. In the film industry, this means connections, insight and boosting profiles. Our support is tailored to the needs of an individual company. For a well-established production company that’s already done business in LA, it might be that they are simply trying to get an introduction to a particular company. We make a point of maintaining networks here for the
benefit of British companies, and we’re always happy to open the door. For a company that’s never done business in the US, the support we provide is more practical. We can help with the practicalities around taxation, getting money in and out of the US, or the complexities of visa law. We’re there to be flexible, and help in whatever way works. AFM is a key event. How does UKTI ensure British companies make the most of the opportunities it offers? TC Firstly, we provide some funding support for UK Film Export, which brings over groups of British sales agents looking to sell into international territories. We’ve also got a formal trade mission coming out from the Northern Powerhouse region, led out of Manchester by UK Trade & Investment North West. They have recruited a group of approximately 20 producers, directors, production companies and so on, who will be at AFM for the duration. While they’re Tim Crouch here we lay on
30 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
SNAPSHOT BRITWEEK As well as AFM, UKTI is involved in other US initiatives including its high-profile Britannia Competition, the winner of which will benefit from a full programme of meetings with some of LA’s most influential figures, and BritWeek. Founded in LA in 2007 to celebrate the creative relationships between the US and UK through music showcases, film screenings and theatre performances, BritWeek now takes place in five cities across the US including Orlando, where it will be held from November 8-14. “UKTI provides some support with the programming, and a few of us sit on the BritWeek committees in the different cities where it now takes place,” explains Tim Crouch. “We also host the UKTI BritWeek Business Innovation Awards in LA. BritWeek Orlando is newer, but it celebrates exactly the same things. “There is a strong ex-pat community in Florida and a natural tendency towards the UK, and I think BritWeek utilises that really well to increase our profile and presence in some of those key markets.”
www.britweek.org
events including a briefing on arrival and a networking breakfast, where we get industry insiders in LA to sit down and talk in detail about the way to do business at AFM. We end by having networking drinks, which is a great opportunity for us to bring together our wider industry contacts in LA, and give our British companies a platform to meet, deepen relationships and do business. What particular advice would you give UK companies attending AFM? TC Your success at AFM to some extent is determined before you arrive. It’s important to identify the people you really need to speak to; in some cases you’ll be able to get those meetings set up before you arrive, in other cases you’ll be able to find ways to get in front of people while you’re here. But it’s critical you’ve done that homework before you arrive, to know what kind of things they’re looking for and how they expect to be approached. It’s also important to be open-minded when you arrive. There will be people you meet and connections you make that you couldn’t have predicted, and that can only happen if you’re openminded, actively attending events and making sure you fill your calendar. For more information visit www.gov.uk/ukti
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SCREENING TODAY THURSDAY, NOV. 5th ANGUISH 3:00 PM - LOEWS 3
and FRIDAY NOV. 6, 3:00 PM - LOEWS 2 HER NIGHTMARES COME WHEN SHE IS AWAKE
MARKETRE PREMIE ING SCREEN
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HILARY DUFF CHRIS D’ELIA HANNAH SIMONE SKYLAR ASTIN BRYAN GREENBERG ERIC ANDRÉ JAMIE CHUNG MARIO LOPEZ and RAY LIOTTA
“...the creepiest and most resonant horror film
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since IT FOLLOWS...”
KATHLEEN ROSE PERKINS
CHRIS PARNELL
“...lives up to it’s title and spreads it around, doing an impressive job of mixing jump shocks and genuine human discomfort.”
“...as scary as anything I’ve ever seen. It has been a while since I jumped as much as I did.”
From the producer of ‘The Strangers’
ANGUISH
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INSPIRED BY TRUE EVENTS
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Mathilde Epstein, VP Int’l Sales Alexandra Cocean, VP Int’l Sales Joseph Dickstein, SVP Acquisitions & Marketing Richard S. Guardian, Consultant-Sales & Acq.
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TOGETHER THEY ARE LETHAL
Lightning AFM Office: Loews Hotel 8th Floor, Escondido Suite Tel: (310) 458 6700 Lightning Ent. Main Office: 8484 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 850, Beverly Hills, CA 90211 +1 323-852-5020 info@lightning-ent.com www.lightning-ent.com
SPOTLIGHT HUMANOIDS
T
wo moments stand out when Fabrice Giger reflects on the pendulum of opportunity that has swung him through an eventful career to where he is now. The first came in 1974. It would be many years before the youngster from Geneva would strike feature production partnerships with China’s Jetavana and Full House from France, yet the passion was already there. “I was nine years old and I was into comics,” says Giger, sitting in a coffee shop close to his Hollywood offices. One fateful day, while accompanying his mother on a shopping trip to a supermarket in a neighbouring town, Giger discovered a copy of Philippe Druillet’s opus Delirius. “He revolutionised sci-fi comic books in the ’70s,” says Giger. “George Lucas was inspired by him.” Alas, Mme Giger was not and she banned her son from reading it. Six months later Druillet teamed up with comic-book author Jean Giraud (aka Moebius) and Jean-Pierre Dionnet to launch Les Humanoïdes Associés (Humanoids) in Paris. “That was my first tipping point,” says Giger. The second would come 14 years later when the young Swiss entrepreneur hung up the successful publishing venture he had established with friends and relocated to Paris to take over the comic-book giant. “We made a lot of money but I realised the advertising world was not for me. I wanted to tell stories.” Giger approached Humanoids owner Hachette and asked to buy the comicbook stable behind the cult Métal Hurlant property, among others. Hachette agreed finally to sell to Giger and his associates in 1988. There was a successful dabble in animation before he sold the studios Sparx and Armada TMT Studio in Vietnam and, after the internet bubble burst, Giger admits to being burnt out. He took his family to India for a year and returned circa 2007 to restructure the company. “I realised we had great IPs,” he says. “We have the ability to develop new
Fabrice Giger
The seeker A childhood obsession led Fabrice Giger to his ownership of influential sci-fi comic-book publisher Humanoids. He tells Jeremy Kay about the company’s ambitious production slate content for the world. We’re the only non-Japanese comic-book publisher in Japan. We’re the only publisher of European properties to successfully publish in the US. So I realised we had something very powerful and could turn this into a mini-studio.” To this end Giger approached one of Hollywood’s most famous genre producers as he sought to exploit his company’s IP. “I went to Gale Anne Hurd and we spent a lot of time together working on Sebastian X,” he says. Martin Campbell is attached to direct the graphic-novel adaptation about an elite cop implanted with the memories of a notorious terrorist, and Voltage Pictures is financing and setting up the project. Hurd and Giger are producing with his associate Pierre Spengler, who produced the original Superman franchise. Screenwriter Bill Marsilii, who co-wrote the Tony Scott-
‘I realised we had something very powerful and could turn this into a mini-studio’ Fabrice Giger, Humanoids
directed thriller Deja Vu, has just turned in the second draft. Besides this, Giger’s now US-based Humanoids has set up two slates, enlisting the help of renowned casting director Mary Vernieu. The first is a three-film producing partnership with Full House, the producers who spun off from Wild Bunch and Films Distribution. In each case a separate company will co-produce. The roster includes Bouncer, a western that Floria Sigismondi (The Runaways) will shoot in early 2016 in Colombia
from a screenplay by Alejandro Jodorowsky and Francois Boucq. Muse, of Spring Breakers notoriety, is the producing partner. Spanish titan Apaches is on board the Second World War vampire project Legion, which Nacho Cerda directs, while RKSS, the Canadian collective behind Turbo Kid, is writing and will direct the darkly comic The Zombies That Ate The World. China’s Jetavana, which is run by Ivy Zhong, is co-financing with various partners a slate of Humanoids adaptations in the $9m-$60m range. The films will be English language and set up as either China-Canada-Europe or CanadaEurope co-productions. Toronto-based Jeff Sackman is advising on Canadian partners and Jetavana will distribute in China via local players. This slate features Savage Highway, the first Humanoids film to be announced, which Giger and Spengler will produce with John Woo’s producer Terence Chang. Rounding out this roster are the $60m space opera Metal and drama-thriller Miss. And if Humanoids was not busy enough, Giger is preparing to release an anthology of US, European and Japanese comicbook art in which creators discuss their influences. The title? The s Tipping Point, of course. ■ (Left) A slew of Humanoids’ titles are lined up for production
32 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
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from the producers of the ring Represented by Inception Film Partners and Industrial Entertainment AFM - Loews, Suite 754
ASK THE EXPERTS
As AFM kicks off, we ask…
‘What is the most memorable AFM poster or marketing stunt?’ Compiled by Andreas Wiseman
“Can we consider bringing George Clooney to pitch The Ides Of March to buyers a marketing stunt?”
“You see plenty of animals on posters at the AFM, but not enough of them come out to support their films. This diva attitude and perception changed when we brought in a real pro — Lassie — to address the media at the Loews. She was even gracious enough to do a floor-by-floor tour.” Dennis Dembia senior vice-president, Rogers & Cowan
andreas.wiseman@screendaily.com
Marina Fuentes Arredonda Co-owner, 6Sales
(Above) Lassie joins co-producer Eric Ellenbogen at AFM George Clooney and The Ides Of March team
“Some choice memories in no particular order: real baby tigers at Epic Pictures; FDR American Badass poster; Jesus walking around the Buyers’ Lounge…” Sejin Croninger VP Worldwide Acquisitions, Global Film Group, Entertainment One
“One thing that always makes me smile is the shuttle bus ride home at the end of a long day. You can watch breakneck promos for Thai westerns, location ads for the Trinidad Film Board or the latest Edward Furlong masterpiece.” Zak Brilliant head of theatrical, Icon Film Distribution
MATTHEW TEMPLE VP PRODUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT, MILI PICTURES
“One thing that caught my eye two years ago in the AFM corridors was Live Nude Girls, by Jay Leggett. It had a film title, key art and scantily clad girls sashaying around AFM as well as taking meetings with the producers, which drew more attention from the buyers than the little movie might have deserved. But it worked — they made profit and the movie sold out.”
34 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
“We were relaunching the Benji franchise at AFM. So to get everyone’s attention we had Benji — an actual dog — arrive with the director Joe Camp in a limo. We hired a camera crew to film them as they walked around AFM. It attracted a big crowd and it got picked up everywhere. Who says dog-and-pony shows don’t work?” Kirk D’Amico CEO, Myriad Pictures
“I remember seeing a poster for a movie — can’t remember its name — and the tagline was ‘In space, no-one can hear you fart’. It was a particular low point.” Lara Thompson EVP worldwide acquisitions and production, Global Film Group, Entertainment One
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Screenings Edited by Paul Lindsell
paullindsell@gmail.com
AFM theatres AMC Santa Monica
Loews HD mini-theatres
1310 3rd Street Promenade, at Arizona Avenue
1700 Ocean Avenue — second floor
Broadway Cineplex
Ocean Screening Room
1441 3rd Street Promenade, just north of Broadway
1401 Ocean Avenue, at Santa Monica Boulevard
Doubletree Screening Room
Tunnel Post Screening Room
1707 4th Street, enter on lobby level
233 Wilshire Boulevard, at northwest corner of 3rd Street
Fairmont Screening Rooms
» Screening times and venues are correct at the time of going to press but subject to alteration. See thefilmcatalogue.com for late changes
101 Wilshire Boulevard, enter from 2nd Street
Market 08:45 Barca Dreams
Documentary. 120mins. Dir: Jordi Llompart. Scr: Jordi Llompart. Cast: Xavi Hernandez, Leo Messi, Andres Iniesta. Filmax International. An extraordinary film about the passionate history of one of the greatest football clubs of all time, FC Barcelona, narrated by some of its main characters and best soccer players ever. Doubletree 2
09:00 All Three of Us
Comedy. 107mins. Dir: Kheiron. Scr: Kheiron. Cast: Kheiron, Leila Bekhti, Gerard Darmon, Zabou Breitman. Gaumont. From a small village in the South of Iran to Parisian housing projects, Kheiron tells us about the extraordinary fate of his parents, eternal optimists Hibat and Fereshteh. AMC Santa Monica 3
Beyond The Known World
Thriller, drama. 100mins. Dir: Pan Nalin. Scr: Dianne Taylor. Cast: David Wenham, Emmanuelle Beart, Chelsea Preston Cayford. Arclight Films. When their 19-year old daughter goes missing
in India, tension-riddled parents Carl and Julie journey together to the Himalayas searching for her. Driven by fear and worry, they piece together clues and what they discover in the end is far from anything else they could have expected. Tunnel Post 1
Crossing Point
Action/adventure, suspense, thriller. 89mins. Dir: Daniel Zirilii. Scr: Paul Dominic, Shawn Lock. Cast: Jacob Vargas, Rudy Youngblood, Luke Goss, Tom Sizemore, Maria Gabriela de Faria, Paulina Gatian, Shawn Lock. Bleiberg Entertainment. Michael and Olivia are Americans vacationing in Baja, Mexico when the trip takes a frightening turn. Olivia is kidnapped by a drug lord, who demands that Michael smuggle a bag full of cocaine — stolen from a rival cartel — over the border into the US within 12 hours… or else Olivia will be killed. Suspecting something is awry, a driven Tijuana cop is on the trail of the missing drugs as well, sending them all on a collision course. Loews 3
The Dead Room
Horror, thriller. 90mins. Dir: Jason Stutter.
42 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
09:00 The People vs. Fritz Bauer
Drama. 105mins. Dir: Lars Kraume. Scr: Lars Kraume, Olivier Guez. Cast: Burghart Klaußner, Ronald Zehrfeld, Sebastian Blomberg, Lilith Stangenberg, Jorg Schuttauf. Beta Cinema. Germany, 1957. Attorney general Fritz Bauer receives crucial evidence on the whereabouts of SS-Obersturmbannfuhrer Scr: Kevin Stevens, Jason Stutter. Cast: Jed Brophy, Jeffrey Thomas, Laura Petersen. Raven Banner Entertainment. When a terrified family flees a desolate southern New Zealand farmhouse, two cynical scientists and a young psychic are sent to investigate their claims of a haunting. There they encounter a powerful spirit that will protect the house’s secrets at all costs. Fairmont 3
Drive She Said
Comedy. 90mins. Dir: Lisa Addario, Joe Syracuse. Scr: Lisa Addario, Joe Syracuse. Cast: Jason Biggs, Janet Montgomery, Ashley Tisdale. The Works. Guy Carter is an insecure expectant father who, unable to find work in
Kill Command
Adolf Eichmann. The lieutenant colonel, responsible for the mass deportation of the Jews, is allegedly hiding in Buenos Aires. Bauer, himself Jewish, has been trying to take crimes from the Third Reich to court ever since his return from Danish exile. Because of his distrust in the German justice system, Fritz Bauer contacts the Israeli secret service, Mossad. Broadway 3
his field, accepts a job chauffeuring prostitutes around Los Angeles. Over the course of one night the reluctant dad finds he just may have the right stuff for fatherhood after all. Broadway 1
Go With Me
Thriller. 90mins. Dir: Daniel Alfredson. Scr: Greg Jacobs. Cast: Anthony Hopkins, Julia Stiles, Ray Liotta, Joe Gangemi. Electric Entertainment. A desperate young woman enlists the help of a hardened ex-logger — the only man in town brave enough to help her take a stand against her sociopathic stalke, an ex-cop turned violent crime lord. AMC Santa Monica 4
Sci-fi, action/adventure. 90mins. Dir: Steve Gomez. Scr: Steve Gomez. Cast: Thure Lindhardt, Vanessa Kirby, David Ajala. Protagonist Pictures. Set in a near future technology-reliant society that pits man against killing machines. An elite army unit is helicoptered to a remote, off-the-grid island training facility. What starts as a simple training exercise for Captain Bukes and his tight-knit unit descends into a terrifying battle to the death as the marines discover the island is overrun by an enemy that transcends the human concept of evil. AMC Santa Monica 5
providing for her and her children, and both he and the villagers discover that she has a dark story to tell, and the power to tell it wordlessly. Broadway 2
The People vs. Fritz Bauer See box, left
The Seven Five
Documentary, True Story. 104mins. Dir: Tiller Russell. Cast: Michael Dowd, Ken Eurell, Walter Yurkiw, Chickie. Kaleidoscope Film Distribution. Meet the dirtiest cop in NYC history. Michael Dowd stole money and dealt drugs while patrolling the streets of 1980s Brooklyn. Fairmont 2
Mountain Cry
Drama. 107mins. Dir: Larry Yang. Scr: Larry Yang. Cast: Yueting Lang, Ziyi Wang, Taishen Cheng. Fortissimo Films. Set in a remote, spectacularly scenic mountain village in China in the mid 1980s, a tale that begins with the sudden violent death of a man under unusual circumstances, leaving behind a mysterious widow. As the local village leaders struggle with how to handle the matter, the widow forms a bond with the hardworking young man who is tasked with
Summer of ‘92
Comedy, drama. 93mins. Dir: Kasper Barfoed. Scr: Kasper Barfoed, Anders August. Cast: Ulrich Thomsen. HanWay Films. A comedy of underdogs, based on the true story of how Richard Nielsen, the Danish football manager, united his unprepared, mismatched team of national superstars and nobodies to win against the reigning world champions, Germany, in the 1992 European Championship Finals. AMC Santa Monica 7
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»
Screenings
Market 09:00 Taj Mahal
Thriller. 91mins. Dir: Nicolas Saada. Scr: Nicolas Saada. Cast: Stacy Martin, LouisDo De Lencquesaing, Gina McKee, Alba Rohrwacher. BAC Films Distribution. One evening, while her parents go out for dinner, 18-year-old Louise, alone in her hotel room at Taj Mahal
Taj Mahal See box, above
The Trust
Heist, comedy. 90mins. Dir: Ben Brewer, Alex Brewer. Scr: Adam Hirsch, Ben Brewer. Cast: Nicolas Cage, Elijah Wood. Highland Film Group. Two evil cops discover a strangely hidden safe, guarded by a gang, and filled with mysterious contents. Little do the crooked cops know their lust for the contents will thrust them into a deadly well of corruption leaving them fighting for their lives, unsure of who to trust. Broadway 4
You Will Kill
Horror, drama. 90mins. Dir: Marwan Mokbel. Scr: Marwan Mokbel. Cast: Tara Shayne, Thomas Garner.
all flights from taking off. Mumbai, hears strange noises out in the corridor. Within minutes, she realises that a terrorist attack is under way. Her only connection to the outside world is her cell phone, which allows her to maintain contact with her father, who is desperately trying to reach her from the other side of a city that has been plunged into chaos. Doubletree 1
Egywood. After a game with a spirit board goes horribly wrong, a vengeful spirit forces Sara to either watch her loved ones die one after the other, or give in to the spirit by killing one of them with her own hands.
Loews 2
boys”) do anything “to be seen and to be feared” in a white world.
The Adderall Diaries
AMC Santa Monica 5
Drama. 105mins. Dir: Pamela Romanowsky. Scr: Pamela Romanowsky. Cast: James Franco, Amber Heard, Ed Harris. Kathy Morgan International (KMI). A gripping account of a young man who must navigate the unstable terrain of truth and identity led by three sources of inspiration: a new romance, the best friend who shares his history and a notorious murder trial that reminds him of his own past.
Big Dance Family
Documentary. 88mins. Dir: Adam Tysoe. Scr: Debbie Shuter. Cast: Entity. 4Square Films. After their incredible opening performance in the 2015 final of ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ in front of more than 13 million viewers, Entity are now
the UK’s most successful and controversial under-16 dance crew and they are also the stars of Big Dance Family. This film is the captivating story of their journey to the IDO World Championships 2014. Broadway 4
The Call Up
Action/adventure, sci-fi. 93mins. Dir: Charles Barker. Scr: Charles Barker. Cast: Max Deacon, Morfydd Clark,
Ali Cook, Parker Sawyers, Tom Benedict Knight, Boris Ler, Douggie McMeekin, Adriana Randall. Altitude Film Sales. When a group of elite online gamers each receive a mysterious invitation to trial a state-of-the-art virtual reality video game, it is a dream come true and impossible to resist. Arriving at the test site, the group step into hi-tech gear and prepare for a revolutionary, next-level gaming experience that brings modern warfare to life with frightening realism. But what starts out like a dream encounter quickly takes a turn for the sinister. Once the group are attacked by enemy combatants, they soon realise this is no game after all. AMC Santa Monica 7
Curse of Sleeping Beauty
Fantasy, suspense, thriller. 87mins. Dir: Pearry Teo. Scr: Pearry Teo. Cast: Ethan Peck, Natalie Hall, India Eisley. Bleiberg Entertainment. Thomas Kaiser inherits an ancestral mansion that has been in his family for generations — only
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Anne of Green Gables See box, right
AMC Santa Monica 1
11:00 2 Nights Till Morning
Drama. 88mins. Dir: Mikko Kuparinen. Scr: Mikko Kuparinen. Cast: Marie-Jose Croza, Mikko Nousiainen, Arly Jover. Wide Management. While on business trip, Caroline, a French architect, and Jaako, a Finnish DJ, meet in Vilnius, Lithuania and end up spending the night together. But their relationship, which they first thought was only a one night stand, takes an unexpected turn when a volcanic ash cloud prevents
44 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
Beeba Boys
Thriller. 103mins. Dir: Deepa Mehta. Scr: Deepa Mehta. Cast: Randeep Hooda, Sarah Allen, Waris Ahluwalia, Paul Gross, Ali Momen. Mongrel International. Gang leader Jeet Johar and his young, loyal and often-brutal crew dress like peacocks, love attention, and openly compete with an old style Indo crime syndicate to take over the Vancouver drug and arms scene. Blood is spilled, hearts are broken and family bonds shattered as the Beeba Boys (“nice
Market 11:00 Anne of Green Gables
Family. 90mins. Dir: John Kent Harrison. Scr: Susan Coyne. Cast: Ella
Ballentine, Martin Sheen. Breakthrough Entertainment. Based on the globally beloved classic children’s novel, the story of a
fiercely imaginative little girl who, with her irrepressible spirit, touches the lives of everyone that she meets. Loews 1
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Screenings
When they stop taking their meds, they end up in the same psychiatric hospital. As the chemistry between them stirs up their emotions, it intensifies their mania. Despite doctors’ and parents’ attempts to separate them, they pursue their beautiful but destructive romance. AMC Santa Monica 2
Unspoken
Market 11:00 Fatal Intuition
Thriller, drama. 109mins. Dir: Yun Jun-hyung. Scr: Yun Jun-hyung. Cast: Joo Won, Yoo Hai-jin, Lee You-young. Finecut. Jang-woo had only his sister to live for until she is brutally murdered. During a ritual to send her spirit to heaven, he comes across a suspicious man, who manages to escape from the scene. He begins to suspect a
to learn that he has also inherited an ancient curse stemming back to the Crusades. Fairmont 1
Daughter Of God
Thriller. 102mins. Dir: Gee Malik Linton. Scr: Gee Malik Linton. Cast: Keanu Reeves, Ana de Armas. Fortitude International. After Isabel watches a man step into thin air on the subway platform, she is certain that she has witnessed a miracle. The next day, Detective Joey Harper is found dead in her neighbourhood with one of her shoes nearby. His partner, Detective Scott Galban, is assigned to the case. As he investigates further, he begins to unravel secrets about Joey that the police force would rather remain hidden. Broadway 3
local pharmacist and keeps an eye on him. Although Jang-woo is absolutely convinced that the pharmacist is the killer, no one believes him because the pharmacist is considered the kindest man in town. But he gets help from a possessed woman named Si-eun who foresees how people die. Their pursuit begins and Si-eun predicts yet another murder. Doubletree 2
Excess Flesh
Thriller, drama. 103mins. Dir: Patrick Kennelly. Scr: Sigrid Gilmer. Cast: Bethany Orr, Mary Loveless, Wes McGee, Kristin Minter, Jill Jacobson. Acort International. Obsessed with her sexy roommate, Jill violently imprisons Jennifer in their apartment in a twisted attempt to bring them closer together. Loews 3
Fatal Intuition
Connie Nielsen, Sir Derek Jacobi, Jake Fairbrother. GFM Films. A British Special Boat Service commando tracks down an international terrorist cell.
A troubled man runs away to Mexico and is recruited to join a paramilitary group of teens fighting the drug cartels. He proves himself to the group but questions their motive.
AMC Santa Monica 3
AMC Santa Monica 6
Jack of the Red Hearts
Touched With Fire
Drama, family. 100mins. Dir: Janet Grillo. Scr: Jennifer Deaton. Cast: AnnaSophia Robb, Israel Broussard. Mission Pictures International. A teenage con artist tricks a desperate mother into hiring her as a live-in companion for her autistic daughter.
Romance, drama. 106mins. Dir: Paul Dalio. Scr: Paul Dalio. Cast: Katie Holmes, Luke Kirby. Myriad Pictures. Carla and Marco are poets whose art is fuelled by their emotional extremes.
Thriller, horror. 100mins. Dir: Sheldon Wilson. Scr: Sheldon Wilson. Cast: Jodelle Ferland, Neal McDonough, Sunny Sujic, Jessie Fraser. Arclight Films. In a small town, teenager Angela stumbles upon an old house. She has heard about a history of mysterious occurrences here and the town’s citizens all avoid going near it. A widowed mother has just moved in with her young son who hasn’t spoken since his father died. They hire Angela to be the nanny. As Angela spends more time with the boy and in the house, she discovers her mysterious connection to it. Tunnel Post 1
Urge
Thriller. 89mins. Dir: Aaron Kaufman. Scr:
Aaron Kaufman. Cast: Pierce Brosnan, Ashley Greene, Justin Chatwin, Danny Masterson. GreenLight International. A group of friends take a lavish weekend getaway to an island where they experiment with a designer drug that makes them lose their ability to control all urges. What starts as a little fun, soon goes horribly wrong as their impulses turn out to be less innocent than expected. Ocean
13:00 Are You Here
Horror. 90mins. Dir: Pak Kei Wong. Scr: Patrick Kong. Cast: Yam Yam Sui, Hee Ching Paw, Lan Law, Jacaqulin Ch’ng, Sammy Sum. Young Live Entertainment (HK) Co. Man, Lung, Kiang and Fun’s online game design company faces closure as the business has been quiet for a while. One day, Mrs Wong shows her deceased son’s unfinished online game of Ouija board to them, and hopes they can fulfill his unfinished dream. They gladly accept the business. But since then, they have been on a bad luck streak… AMC Santa Monica 6
Fairmont 3
Lace Crater
Comedy, horror. 81mins. Dir: Harrison Atkins. Scr: Harrison Atkins. Cast: Lindsay Burdge, Peter Vack, Keith Poulson, Chase Williamson. Visit Films. During a drug-fuelled weekend with friends, Ruth has a one-night stand with a ghost. Soon after, she begins to feel a bit strange. Doubletree 1
See box, above
The Memory of Water GFM Stratton Promo Reel
See box, right
Action/adventure, thriller. 15mins. Dir: Simon West. Scr: Duncan Falconer. Cast: Dominic Cooper, Austin Stowell, Gemma Chan, Tyler Hoechlin, Tom Felton, Thomas Kretschmann,
Mercury Plains
46 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
Thriller. 102mins. Dir: Charles Burmeister. Scr: Charles Burmeister. Cast: Scott Eastwood, Angela Sarafyan. Carnaby International Sales and Distribution.
Market 11:00 The Memory of Water
Drama. 88mins. Dir: Matias Bize. Scr: Julio Rojas, Matias Bize. Cast: Elena Anaya, Benjamin Vicuna,
Nestor Cantillana, Sergio Hernandez, Silvia Marty, Antonia Zegers. Global Screen. A tragic accident forces young couple Javier and Amanda to question
their lives and their relationship. When a second chance for both of them arises, they realise that the past they share should not be forgotten. AMC Santa Monica 1
»
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BLACK AND WHITE STRIPES:
Directors: Marco and Mauro La Villa (Hang the DJ) Cast: Juventus F.C., the Agnelli family
THE JUVENTUS STORY
The epic story of Juventus F.C., Italy’s legendary soccer team, and the Agnelli family, their passionate owners and managers since 1923. Owned by Italy’s famous Agnelli family, Juventus boasts over 250 million fans globally. The documentary follows Juventus and the Agnellis as they fight to become the best team in Italy and the world. It’s a journey to hell and back, filled with ruthless competition, family tragedy, and the greatest sports scandal in history.
FINE CUT - MARKET SCREENING: Sat. November 7 / 5:00 PM / Doubletree 1
LACE CRATER
Director: Harrison Atkins Producer: Joe Swanberg (Drinking Buddies, Digging for Fire) Cast: Lindsay Burdge (A Teacher), Keith Poulson (Somebody Up There Likes Me), Peter Vack (6 Years) During a drug-fueled weekend with friends, Ruth has a one-night stand with a ghost. Soon after, she begins to feel a bit... strange. “[A] quirky tale of paranormal contact.” – The Hollywood Reporter “A real breath of fresh air in a genre that can sometimes feel stale.” – Modern Horrors
MARKET SCREENING: TODAY / 11:00 AM / Doubletree 1
MOM AND ME
Director: Ken Wardrop (His & Hers) Cast: The men and mothers of Oklahoma, USA In this compelling portrait of the love between tough guys and their mothers, the only people stronger than the men are the women who raised them. “Deeply affecting (...) each portrait melds to create a heartrending whole.” – The Guardian “Veers very close to Errol Morris, if not John Waters, territory.” – The Hollywood Reporter
MARKET SCREENING: Sun. November 8 / 1:00 PM / Doubletree 1
HOW HE FELL IN LOVE
OFFICIAL SELECTION
LOS ANGELES FILM FESTIVAL 2015
Director: Marc Meyers (Harvest) Cast: Matt McGorry (Orange is the New Black, How to Get Away with Murder), Amy Hargreaves (Homeland, Blue Ruin) A casual affair between a young musician and a married woman turns into an intimate and profound connection that threatens to derail their lives. “The type of mature drama that’s rarely seen in American movies.” – LA Daily News “Absorbing and complex.” – The Huffington Post
MARKET SCREENING: Sat. November 7 / 3:00 PM / Tunnel Post 1
TANNA
I SMILE BACK
A MONTH OF SUNDAYS
MY NAME IS EMILY
STARRING
ANTHONY LAPAGLIA STARRING
TWO TRIBES. ONE LOVE.
SARAH SILVERMAN
STARRING
EVANNA LYNCH
Ryan Kampe rk@visitfilms.com +1 646 548 4700
Lorna-Lee Sagebiel lls@visitfilms.com +1 646 421 4574
AFM OFFICE Loews Hotel Room 530
www.visitfilms.com info@visitfilms.com
Screenings
Attack of the Lederhosenzombies
Market 13:00 The Daughter
Drama. 96mins. Dir: Simon Stone. Scr: Simon Stone. Cast: Geoffrey Rush, Ewen Leslie, Paul Schneider, Miranda Otto, Anna Torv, Odessa Young, Sam Neill. Mongrel International. In the last days of a dying logging town Christian returns to his family home for
his father Henry’s wedding to the much younger Anna. While home, Christian reconnects with his childhood friend Oliver, who has stayed in town working at Henry’s timber mill and is now out of a job. As Christian gets to know Oliver’s wife Charlotte, daughter Hedvig and father Walter, he discovers a secret that could tear Oliver’s family apart. AMC Santa Monica 3
Horror, comedy. 90mins. Dir: Dominik Hartl. Scr: Armin Prediger. Cast: Laurie Calvert, Gabriela Marcinkova, Margarete Tiesel. EastWest Filmdistribution. Steve, a young professional snowboarder, ruins a high-paying photo shoot by playing a silly prank. He, his girlfriend Branka and fellow snowboarder Joschi are left behind on the mountain. They seek shelter in an apres-ski tavern that is hosting an all-night party. Things go from bad to worse when a scientific experiment unleashes an epidemic of zombies and mutant wildlife. Broadway 3
Bikini Body Conscious Living/Just Leo/ Strippers
Comedy. 95mins.
Dir: Phillip Penza. Scr: Phillip Penza. Cast: Audrey Beth, Toni L Mitchell, Kamese Rasheed, Selena, Coco. Little Books Little Films. An up-and-coming halfhour talk show featuring a panel of diverse and courageous women that speak straight from the hip about a variety of fun, informative and heartfelt topics. Loews 3
Bite
Horror. 85mins. Dir: Chad Archibald. Scr: Jayme LaForest. Cast: Emma Begovic. Breakthrough Entertainment. While on her bachelorette party getaway, Casey, the bride to be, gets a seemingly harmless bite from an unknown insect. After returning home with cold feet, Casey tries to call off her wedding but before she’s able to, she starts
exhibiting insect like traits. Loews 2
The Callback Queen
Romantic comedy. 89mins. Dir: Graham Cantwell. Scr: Graham Cantwell. Cast: Mark Killen, Amy-Joyce Hastings, Eoin Macken. Princ Films. Kate Loughlin is a vivacious young actress struggling to get her big break in the London film industry. When she lands an audition for the lead role in a massive movie franchise, she goes after the opportunity with all guns blazing while her sleazy agent is trying to pimp her to the director, Vincent Catalano. Determined to prove her strict professionalism, she starts second guessing Vincent’s interest in her. Loews 1
The Daughter See box, left
Henry Ian Cusick (The 100, Lost, The Gospel According to John, Hitman, Not Another Happy Ending)
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credits not contractual Day 1 Big Dance Family.indd 2
48 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
www.screendaily.com
Hellions
Horror, fantasy. 90mins. Dir: Bruce McDonald. Scr: Pascal Trottier. Cast: Robert Patrick, Chloe Rose, Rossif Sutherland, Rachel Wilson, Luke Bilyk. Jinga Films. A pregnant teenager must survive a Halloween night from hell when malevolent trick-or-treaters come knocking at her door. She gives them candy but the Hellions are determined to claim her unborn child. Alone and under siege, she must protect herself and her baby from their predatory quest. Tunnel Post 1
The Hero Chi You
Action/adventure. 104mins. Dir: Jian Zhao. Scr: Jizhong Zhang. Cast: Kai Tan, Dong Han. California Pictures. The powerful Tuxiao tribe try to carry out a massacre of their enemies,
the powerful Jiuli, who suffer great losses, including their fiercest warrior. Chiyou, his son, will now fight for the tribe’s honour. Fairmont 2
Jack
Drama. 95mins. Dir: Elisabeth Scharang. Scr: Elisabeth Scharang. Cast: Johannes Krisch, Corinna Harfouch, Birgit Minichmayr, Sarah Viktoria Frick, Paulus Manker. Picture Tree International. From murderer of a woman to ladykiller, from jailbird poet to society darling — Jack Unterweger was the talk of the town in early 1990s Vienna. His suicide following the conviction for multiple murder left many questions unanswered, and 20 years later, his story has not lost any of its mystery. Doubletree 2
The Masked Saint
Action/adventure. 111mins. Dir: Warren P Sonoda. Scr: Scott Crowell. Cast: Brett Granstaff, Laura Jean Chorostecki. Archstone Distribution. The journey of a professional wrestler who becomes a small-town pastor and moonlights as a masked vigilante fighting injustice. While facing crises at home and at the church, the pastor must evade the police and somehow reconcile his violent secret identity with his calling. Fairmont 3
Most Likely to Die See box, right
Numb
Thriller. 88mins. Dir: Jason R. Goode. Scr: Andre Harden. Cast: Jamie Bamber, Marie Avgeropoulos, Aleks Paunovic, Stefanie
Market 13:00 Most Likely to Die
Horror. 80mins. Dir: Anthony DiBlasi. Scr: Laura Brennan. Cast: Heather Morris, Jake Busey, Perez Hilton, Ryan Doom, Skyler Vallo,
Tatum Miranda, Chad Addison, Marci Miller, Johnny Ramey, Jason Tobias, Tess Christiansen. MarVista Entertainment. A group of former classmates gather for a pre-party at one of
their homes the night before their 10-year high school reunion, and one by one, they are brutally slain in a manner befitting each’s senior yearbook superlative. AMC Santa Monica 4
Ever Carradine (Jay & Silent Bob Strike Again, Bubble Boy, Lost & Found, 24)
WORLD PREMIERE MARKET SCREENING TOMORROW, FRIDAY 6TH NOVEMBER, AMC SANTA MONICA 7, 11:00 For sales please contact Andrew Brown (andrewbrown@4sqf.com) or Billy Hurman (billyhurman@4sqf.com) 4SQUAREFILMS - Loews Santa Monica Hotel, Suite 652 Tel+1 310-458-6700 Ext 652 www.4sqf.com
» 01/11/2015 09:17
www.screendaily.com
November 5, 2015 Screen International at AFM 49
Screenings
Anguish
Horror, thriller. 91mins. Dir: Sonny Mallhi. Scr: Sonny Mallhi. Cast: Ryan Simpkins, Annika Marks, Karina Logue, Cliff Chamberlain. Lightning Entertainment Group. Sixteen-year-old Tess may be young in age,
but she’s already had several lifetimes’ worth of psychological distress, beginning when she was found banging her head into a wall at age five. Tess’s identity is horrifically disordered… because it’s being encroached upon by spirits of the dead.
85mins. Dir: Mark Grove. Scr: Mark Grove. Cast: Casper Van Dien, Cynthia Rothrock. Uptown 6. Saber Raine, an intergalactic gun for hire, must guide three elite soldiers on a rescue mission to find the Aresian prince and princess, kidnapped from their home planet.
Loews 3
Fairmont 1
Stranded
von Pfetten. Cinema Management Group (CMG). When a couple in financial distress discover GPS coordinates that promise to lead to stolen gold they must partner with a pair of mysterious hitchhikers to enter the remote winter wilderness to recover the coins. Ocean
Quackerz 3D
Animation. 85mins. Dir: Viktor Lakisov. Scr: Vadim Sveshnikov. Cast: Robbie Daymond, Michael Gross. Planeta Inform Film Distribution. A conflict flares up between local Mandarin Ducks and the Military Mallards who land on the Chinese island, mistaking it for Hawaii. While the fathers fight and argue, Longway, the Emperor’s son, and Erica, the commander’s daughter, meet and become friends. The kids must ally all the ducks to battle their foe, the daunting Ms Knout,
follower — until he finds the courage to connect in person. When Eve agrees to star in his very own private sex tape, Adam’s dream is about to become reality.
Broadway 1
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ZOOM
Anguish
Black Comedy. 100mins. Dir: Pedro Morelli. Scr: Matt Hansen. Cast: Gael Garcia Bernal, Alison Pill, Jason Priestley, Tyler Labine, Michael Eklund. WTFilms. Three very different people — an action movie director, a model, and a comic book artist — find their stories intersect in earth-shattering ways.
See box, left
AMC Santa Monica 2
Market 15:00
Canada’s crust and threatens their big invitation to a Grade 12 party, the Colleens join forces with legendary man-hunter, Guy Lapointe.
who seeks to destroy the Sun. AMC Santa Monica 1
Rendez-Vous
Drama, thriller, romance. 100mins. Dir: Antoinette Beumer. Scr: Antoinette Beumer. Cast: Pierre Boulanger, Loes Haverkort. Dutch Features Global Entertainment. Simone needs a change. Together with her husband Eric and their two children, she buys a run-down mansion in the south of France, to turn it into a home and Bed & Breakfast. While the chaos of the renovation grows, Simone flees into a thrilling affair with one of the French construction workers, the gorgeous 20-year-old Michel. Slowly she loses control of her life and the French dream turns into her worst nightmare.
Black comedy. 100mins. Dir: Juan Cruz, Jose Corbacho. Scr: Jaime Bartolome. Cast: Ernesto Alterio, Lola Duenas. Filmax International. It’s New Year’s Eve and in one of Madrid’s main train stations, several passengers are taking their seats on the last high speed train of the year. The few passengers who are on board are eager to get to their destinations to celebrate with their loved ones. Halfway through the journey, the train comes to an abrupt halt. As darkness sets in, impatience quickly gives way to a general feeling of unease as it is discovered that a fellow passenger has died in his seat. Doubletree 1
Viceroy’s House Promo
Star Raiders
Drama. 90mins. Dir: Pathe International. Scr: Pathe Distribution. Cast: Pathe Distribution. Pathe International.
Sci-fi, action/adventure.
AMC Santa Monica 7
AMC Santa Monica 5
50 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
Yoga Hosers
Horror, comedy. 100mins. Dir: Kevin Smith. Scr: Kevin Smith. Cast: Johnny Depp, Lily-Rose Depp, Justin Long, Harley Quinn Smith. XYZ Films. Fifteen-year-old yoganuts Colleen Collette and Colleen McKenzie love their smartphones and hate their after-school jobs at the Manitoban convenience store, Eh-2Zed. When an ancient evil rises from beneath
15:00 After Eden
Drama. 80mins. Dir: Hans Christian Berger. Scr: Hans Christian Berger. Cast: Alyssa Reece, Cameron Crosby. Wide Management. Eve is a successful adult film performer whose daily routine consists of feigning youthful innocence to please her invisible audience. Adam is a reclusive university student with a fixation on Eve. He becomes her anonymous
DXM See box, below
Fack Ju Goehte 2
Comedy. 110mins. Dir: Bora Dagtekin. Scr: Bora Dagtekin. Cast: Elyas M’Barek, Jella Haase, Karoline Herfurth, Katja Riemann, Max von der Groeben, Gizem Emre, Volker Bruch. Picture Tree International. Everyone loves Zeki Muller at the Goethe Comprehensive School, but he’s beginning to lose enthusiasm for his accidental vocation: waking up early, delinquent students and endless paperwork. And now, overly ambitious Principal Gerster has set her sights on stealing the Thailand school partnership away from the elite Schiller School. Doubletree 1
Market 15:00 DXM
Sci-fi, action/adventure. 95mins. Dir: Andrew Goth. Scr: Joanne Reay. Cast: Sam Neill, Melia Kreiling, Tom Payne, Antonia CampbellHughes, Ursula Strauss, Dominique Tipper, Oliver Stark, Turlough
Convery, Ryan Doyle, Pedja Bjelac, Simon Paisley-Day. Terra Mater Film Studios. A group of young bioengineers discover that quantum theory can be used to transfer motor skills from one brain to another. They freely spread this technology,
believing it to be a first step towards a new intellectual equality. But as the mysterious past of one of their group is revealed, dark forces emerge that threaten to subvert this technology into a means of mass control. AMC Santa Monica 3
»
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Screenings
Cheeky little Raven accidentally destroyed the stocks the animals need to survive in the winter. To refill the storage, he sets out to win a soapbox car race and earn the prize money. But the tumultuous race through the forest is full of twists and surprises, and in the end Raven has gained something money can’t buy: he understands the value of teamwork, true friendship and responsibility. Broadway 4
River See boc, below
Sacrifice
Market 15:00 Man Down
Thriller, action/ adventure, suspense. 92mins. Dir: Dito Montiel. Scr: Adam Simon. Cast: Shia LaBeouf, Kate Mara, Gary Oldman, Jai Courtney, Terrence Howard. The Solution Entertainment Group. In a savage postapocalyptic America, US Marine Gabriel Drummer
Fast Convoy
Action/adventure. 95mins. Dir: Frederic Schoendoerffer. Scr: Frederic Schoendoerffer. Cast: Benoit Magimel, Reem Kherici. Indie Sales. Seven men, four cars and 1,300 kilos of cannabis leave Malaga, southern Spain, headed for Creil on the outskirts of Paris. But for Alex, Yacine, Majid and the others, what should be a regular run turns into a fatal convoy. When a woman is added to the convoy — Nadia, a young tourist travelling home from Morrocco — she’s dragged into their adventure. Broadway 3
Germaphobia
Thriller, horror. 93mins. Dir: Victoria Sutton.
searches desperately for the whereabouts of his estranged son and wife. Accompanied by his best friend, a hardnosed marine whose natural instinct is to shoot first and ask questions later, the two intercept Charles, an apocalyptic survivor carrying vital information about the whereabouts of Gabriel’s family. Broadway 1
Scr: Victoria Sutton. Cast: Jessica Willis, Gerald Brodin, Jake Bowman. Arrow Productions. Three friends discover an ancient order of monks about to trigger the apocalypse they have been planning for 1,500 years and have to try to save themselves — but can they also save the world?
struggles to write her own story, forever stymied by memories of her youthful relationship with her dad’s best friend, Milan. After 15 years Milan and Alice’s paths cross once again, forcing them to confront events that have long gone unaddressed. Broadway 2
Larry Gaye: Renegade Male Flight Attendant
A story about a woman’s awakening. AMC Santa Monica 2
AMC Santa Monica 6
Raven the Little Rascal — The big Race
The Queens
Childrens, animation, action/adventure. 75mins. Dir: Ute von von Munchow-Pohl, Sandor Jesse. Scr: Katja Grube. Cast: Jan Delay. Sola Media.
Drama, romance. 106mins. Dir: Annie Yi. Scr: Anan Wang. Cast: Hyekyo Song, Shawn Dou. Desen International Media Co.
Comedy. 90mins. Dir: Sam Friedlander. Scr: Mike Sikowitz. Cast: Rebecca Romijn, Stanley Tucci, Mark Feuerstein, Jayma Mays, Jessica Lowndes. Other Angle Pictures. A self-anointed “renegade” male flight attendant must save the day when the airline he works for tries to eliminate flight attendants as a cost-cutting measure. Tunnel Post 1
Man Down
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See box, above
The Girl in the Book
Monster Hunt
Drama. 90mins. Dir: Marya Cohn. Scr: Marya Cohn. Cast: Emily VanCamp, Michael Nyqvist. Myriad Pictures. Assistant editor and aspiring writer Alice Harvey is funny, smart and emotionally selfdestructive. Climbing the ranks at a notable publishing company, she
Fantasy, action/ adventure, family. 115mins. Dir: Raman Hui. Scr: Alan Yuen. Cast: Boran Jing, Baihe Bai, Wei Tang, Eric Tsang, Sandra Ng. Edko Films. Set in a fantasy world where humans and monsters battle to rule the land, the story follows the
54 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
birth and adventure of the new monster king, who would ultimately bring balance to the new world.
Thriller. 90mins. Dir: Peter A Dowling. Scr: Peter A Dowling. Cast: Radha Mitchell, Rupert Graves, David Robb, Ian McElhinney. Little Film Company. An American doctor and her husband return to Scotland in order to adopt a baby. They must establish residency for the adoption so they settle in to work and live there for a year. Tora discovers a dead woman who has carvings on her body and seems to have been sacrificed as some
Market 15:00 River
Thriller, suspense. 88mins. Dir: Jamie M. Dagg. Scr: Jamie M. Dagg. Cast: Rossif
Sutherland, Sara Botsford, Douangmany Soliphanh. Kaleidoscope Film Distribution. Accused of murder after intervening in the sexual
assault of a young woman, an American volunteer doctor in Laos is forced to go on the run. Fairmont 2
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Screenings
Hyena Road
Action/adventure. 120mins. Dir: Paul Gross. Scr: Paul Gross. Cast: Rossif Sutherland, Paul Gross. WTFilms. In the most remote and dangerous region of Afghanistan, a platoon of soldiers risk their lives to build a road deep into enemy territory. Broadway 4
I am Wrath
Market 15:00 The Secret
Drama. 106mins. Dir: Barbara Wong. Scr: Barbara Wong, Silver, Skipper Cheng, Daryl Doo. Cast: Leon Lai, Luodan Wang, Sandrine Pinna. Media Asia Distribution. “Maybe no one will ever believe my story. But it really did happen.” Kaifeng wakes up to a terrible hangover. His heart aches for his lost wife, Qiujie, as memories of the accident rush
back to him. It was meant to be a romantic climbing holiday. But an avalanche dooms him to a lifetime of regret. Qiujie, the love of his life and the mother of his son, is gone forever. In despair, Kaifeng turns to a spirit medium for advice on how to bring her back. And to his shock and joy, Qiujie really comes home. But she remembers almost nothing, including their son and the fatal accident..
infatuated with her beauty. Tara, regretting her actions, rejects Patrick, sending him spiralling into madness and delusion.
where the father is involved in the peace negotiations around the Treaty of Versailles. An ominous portrait of emerging evil.
Ocean
Broadway 1
Cardboard Boxer
The Girl in the Photographs
part of an ancient ritual. The carvings resemble those Tora has noticed throughout the village and even in her own home. The police, her father-in-law and her own husband tell her to drop her investigation as she uncovers other dead women and eventually she discovers a link to an ancient Shetland legend which could eventually lead to her own death.
The British Prime Minister, eager to cement her legacy as a peacemaker, appoints Henry Stanfield as Truth Commissioner to Northern Ireland. But Stanfield uncovers some inconvenient truths about those now running the country.
Drama. 88mins. Dir: Knate Gwaltney. Scr: Knate Gwaltney. Cast: Thomas Haden Church, Terrence Howard. Arclight Films. Willy, a homeless man with a heart of gold, struggles on the gritty streets of the skid row district of Downtown Los Angeles. Willy’s better intentions are exploited by a privileged college kid who entices the homeless by offering money in exchange for savage street fighting. Willy is dubbed the “Cardboard Boxer”, but when he refuses to fight a defenceless elderly man, the thing that matters the most to him is taken away and destroyed.
Fairmont 1
Fairmont 2
Broken Vows
The Childhood of a Leader
AMC Santa Monica 7
Thriller. 89mins. Dir: Bram Coppens. Scr: Jim Agnew, Sean Keller. Cast: Jaimie Alexander, Wes Bentley, Cam Gigandet. Cinema Management Group (CMG). The story of Patrick Flynn, whose charm and charisma masks a profound psychosis. Patrick seduces Tara Bloom, instantly becoming
Psycho-drama, thriller. 116mins. Dir: Brady Corbet. Scr: Brady Corbet, Mona Fastvold. Cast: Bernice Bejo, Robert Pattinson, Stacy Martin, Liam Cunningham, Tom Sweet. Protagonist Pictures. An American family settles into the French countryside at the end of the First World War,
The Secret See box, above
The Truth Commissioner
Thriller. 94mins. Dir: Declan Recks. Scr: Eoin O’Callaghan. Cast: Roger Allam, Sean McGinley. Carnaby International Sales and Distribution.
AMC Santa Monica 4
17:00
56 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
Horror. 95mins. Dir: Nick Simon. Scr: Robert Morast, Oz Perkins. Cast: Katharine Isabelle, Miranda Rae Mayo,
Christy Carlson Romano. Highland Film Group. A bored young woman in a sleepy community called Spearfish, starts receiving photographs of brutally murdered young women. Are they real or staged? The culprit is either a serial killer or some creep with a sick sense of humour. Fairmont 3
House of Shadows See box, below
Action/adventure. 92mins. Dir: Chuck Russell. Scr: Paul Sloan. Cast: John Travolta, Christopher Meloni, Sam Tramell. Hannibal Pictures/Hannibal Classics. An out-of-work engineer witnesses his wife’s brutal murder. When the police are unable to bring the killers to justice, he takes the law into his own hands. AMC Santa Monica 4
My Name is Nobody
Drama, action/adventure. 130mins. Dir: Phillip Penza. Scr: Phillip Penza. Cast: Jeff Holder, Robert Cordero, Salhaddin Keskin, Eric Roberts, Lorenzo Lamas, Big
Market 17:00 House of Shadows
Thriller. 85mins. Dir: Rossella De Venuto. Scr: Rossella De Venuto. Cast: Fiona Glascott, Federico Castelluccio. Mirovision. After receiving the news
of the death of uncle, Megan and her husband Leo are forced to go to Apulia to handle the unexpected inheritance that Leo receives. Enchanted by the beauty of the ancient family palace, they decide to
stay for the summer. Left alone at home, Megan is disturbed by mysterious presences. She starts to find in the palace clues of an unsolved mystery in Leo’s family. Loews 3
»
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I M VORLDWIDE
W
15 0 2 M AF
DAY O T G NIN E E R C S
Screenings
Daddy Kane. Little Books Little Films. The true story of a boy becoming a man in 1970s New York. He struggles with racial prejudice, love and loss, and finding out what it takes to survive life from the streets of New York to the military at a very young age. Loews 1
Office
Drama, musical. 115mins. Dir: Johnnie To. Scr: Sylvia Chang. Cast: Eason Chan, Sylvia Chang, Yun Fat Chow, Wei Tang, Ziyi Wang, Yueting Lang. Edko Films. Billion-dollar company Jones & Sunn is going public. Chairman Ho Chung-ping has promised CEO Chang, who has been his mistress for more than 20 years, she will become a major shareholder in the company. As the IPO team enters the company to audit its accounts, a series of inside stories start to be revealed. Broadway 2
Panama
G N I K E M CALL
THU
0 0 : 9 1 5 R S D AY, N O V th
3 S W E O L T A G N I N 03 7 SCREE E T I SU s Loew
DING: ES ATTEN NT IV T U C E X E SIDE M ELIS, PRE ANDRE RELIS@VMIWORLDWIDE.CO AR TIVE U C E X E ES FILS, SAJDL@VMIWORLDWIDE.COM J.D. BE AU
VMI 1419 WILCOX AVENUE LOS ANGELES, CA 90028 USA PHONE: 323.703.1115 FAX: 323.207.8024 SALES@VMIWORLDWIDE.COM WWW.VMIWORLDWIDE.COM
58 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
Drama. 105mins. Dir: Pavle Vuckovic. Scr: Pavle Vuckovic, Jelena Vuksanovic. Cast: Slaven Doslo, Jovana Stojiljkovic, Milos Pjevac, Tamara Dragicevic. Wide Management. Jovan starts dating Maja casually, no strings attached. But over time, her mysterious and shady behaviour begins to disturb him. Jovan starts to follow videos and clues over social networks that hint at Maja’s parallel life. In a web of lies, pride, jealousy and passionate sex, Jovan loses himself, desperately trying to understand who Maja really is. Loews 2
The Phoenix Incident See box, above
Saving Mr Wu
Thriller. 106mins. Dir: Sheng Ding. Scr: Sheng Ding. Cast: Andy Lau, Ye Liu, Ruofu Wu, Qianyuan Wang. Golden Network Asia. Ruthless criminal Zhang Hua and his
Market 17:00 The Phoenix Incident
Sci-fi, thriller. 81mins. Dir: Keith Arem. Scr: Keith Arem. Cast: Troy Baker, Jamie Tisdale, Travis Willingham, Yuri Lowenthal, Liam O’Brien, James C Burns. Odin’s Eye Entertainment. The world’s largest mass UFO sighting occurred in Phoenix, Arizona, on March 13, 1997. Details
gang impersonate police officers to abduct wealthy businessmen. Setting a trap outside a Beijing karaoke club, they hit the jackpot with Hong Kong superstar Wu, forcing him into their car on the pretext of being investigated for a hitand-run. In the Beijing suburbs, Wu is bound, gagged and beaten into compliance by Zhang’s men. Then Wu is made to witness the execution of Dou, Zhang’s last kidnap victim, who failed to have his ransom paid within 24 hours. But Wu steps in to
of the incident and the events that followed have been, and continue to be, the subject of conspiracy theories. At the same time, four friends went missing in the desert. Body remains suggested an animal attack. Now footage has emerged that will not only reveal the true nature of their disappearance but has implications for humankind. AMC Santa Monica 5
save him, promising to pay both men’s ransoms. AMC Santa Monica 6
SKY
Drama. 100mins. Dir: Fabienne Berthaud. Scr: Fabienne Berthaud. Cast: Diane Kruger, Norman Reedus. The Bureau Sales. Romy is on holiday in the US with her French husband, Richard. But the journey quickly turns into a settling of old scores for this worn out couple. After an ultimate fight, Romy decides to break free. Doubletree 1
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WELCOMES YOU TO
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Attending: GREGORY HATANAKA THOMAS BANGERT RICH MALLERY
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11/3/15 1:34 PM
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Early Bird Registration until November 30. Online Film Submission until December 22. WWW.EFM-BERLINALE.DE
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18.10.15 22:55
Screenings
Suite 207, Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel, 1700 Ocean Avenue, Santa Monica, California, 90401
Market 17:00 The Throne
Drama, historical. 125mins. Dir: Lee Joon-ik. Scr: Cho Chulhyun, Lee Song, Oh Sung-hyeon. Cast: Song Kang-ho, Yoo Ah-in. Showbox Corp.
Set in 18th century Korea, long-ruling King Yeongjo’s struggle with his son, Sado, sees the king take extreme measures in order to deal with his heir. Doubletree 2
Lang, Vinnie Jones, Trish Stratus, Cody Hackman. Red Sea Media. An ex-NYPD SWAT leader and his trainee organize a commando team to defend their police compound against an attack by a band of militants. Fairmont 2
The Throne See box, above
Unchained: The True Story of Freestyle Motocross
Documentary. 100mins. Dir: Paul Taublieb, Jon Freeman. Scr: Paul Taublieb. Cast: Tony Hawk, Travis Pastrana, Jeremy McGrath, Josh Brolin, Cary Hart. The Exchange. The adrenaline-soaked, heart-wrenching story of the birth and boom of the most extreme sport on the planet: freestyle motocross (fMX). Tunnel Post 1
WestEnd Promo Screening
No Response. 115mins. WestEnd Films. WestEnd promo reel screening: Shepherds and Butchers, Blackbird, Dancer, By Way of Helena. AMC Santa Monica 2
Scr: RL Scott. Cast: Amin Joseph, Bai Ling, Chris Mulkey. VMI Worldwide. In the international world of gun running loyalty, honour and discretion are valuable commodities, but nothing is more priceless than the bond of family. Power begets enemies and a loved one’s betrayal cuts like a knife. Sides will be chosen, wars will be fought. In the end, there can only be one king.
Call Me King
Action/adventure. 90mins. Dir: RLScott.
Doubletree 1
Synchronicity
Thriller, sci-fi. 101mins. Dir: Jacob Gentry. Scr: Jacob Gentry. Cast: Chad McKnight, Brianne Davis, AJ Bowen, Michael Ironside, Scott Poythress. Magnolia Pictures. A daring physicist travels into the past to stop a mysterious woman from stealing his invention. Once there, he uncovers a surprising truth about the machine, the woman, and his own fractured reality. Tunnel Post 1
Foreclosure
Horror, mystery. 86mins. Dir: Richard Ledes. Scr: Richard Ledes. Cast: Michael Imperioli, Wendell Pierce. California Pictures. The story of a broken family striving to stay together while a curse and the ghosts of a haunted house try to tear them apart. Loews 2
19:00
Animation. 60mins. Dir: Denis Chernov. Scr: Denis Chernov, Dmitry Yakovenko. Art Pictures Studio. The lovably simple
than he ever dreamed.
Loews 3
Wolf Totem See box, right
Kikoriki: Legend of the Golden Dragon (Work in Progress)
residents of peaceful Kikoriki Island are thrown kicking and screaming into a big adventure, when their resident scientist invents an amazing device — a helmet called “the Improverizor,” which takes personality traits from one person and swaps them with someone else’s. But when spineless young Wally tries to use the untested device to cure his cowardice, he ends up even more spineless — by getting accidentally body-switched with a squirmy little caterpillar. Now he’s got more to fear
Gridlocked
Action/adventure, thriller. 110mins. Dir: Allan Ungar. Scr: Rob Robol. Cast: Dominic Purcell, Danny Glover, Stephen
62 Screen International at AFM November 5, 2015
Market 17:00 Wolf Totem
Action/adventure. 121mins. Dir: JeanJacques Annaud. Scr: Alain Godard. Cast: Shaofeng Feng, Ragchaa DOU. Beijing Forbidden City Film Co.
During the Cultural Revolution, a student is sent to Inner Mongolia for re-education, where he develops a deep respect for nature and is obsessed with the ferocious creature of the steppes — the wolf. But the growing
relationship between man and animal — as well as the tribe’s ancient way of life — is threatened when a ruthless government officer decides to eliminate all wolves from the region at all cost.
Editor Matt Mueller, matt.mueller@ screendaily.com, +44 7880 526 547 US editor Jeremy Kay, jeremykay67@ gmail.com, +1 310 922 5908 Chief reporter Andreas Wiseman, andreas. wiseman@screendaily.com, +44 7713 086 674 Production editor Mark Mowbray, mark. mowbray@screendaily.com, +44 7710 124 065 Sub editors Paul Lindsell, Adam Richmond Commercial director Nadia Romdhani, nadia. romdhani@screendaily.com, +44 7540 100 315 Sales manager Scott Benfold, scott.benfold@ screendaily.com, +44 7765 257 260 VP sales and business development, North America Nigel Daly, nigeldalymail@ gmail.com, +1 213 447 5120 US sales and business development executive Nikki Tilmouth, nikki. screeninternational@gmail. com, +1 323 868 7633 International account manager Pierre-Louis Manes, pierrelouis.manes@screendaily. com, +44 7768 237 487 International sales consultant Ingrid Hammond, ingridhammond@mac.com, +39 348 5165 631 Production manager Neil Sinclair, neil.sinclair@ mb-insight.com, +44 7826 942 693 Festival and events manager Jessica Sizeland, +44 7468 707 867, jessica.sizeland@ mb-insight.com Group commercial director, MBI Alison Pitchford, alison. pitchford@screendaily.com Chief executive, MBI Conor Dignam Printer Sinclair Printing, Los Angeles Screen International London 1st Floor Unit F2/G, Zetland House, 5-25 Scrutton Street, London EC2A 4HJ Tel: +44 20 3033 4267 Subscription enquiries Tel: +44 1604 828 706 help@subscribe.screendaily. com
Fairmont 1
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