Month: March 2022

Spotify paid $7 billion in royalties to rights holders — primarily labels and publishers, but also distributors, performing rights organizations and others — in 2021, the company announced on Thursday in its annual “Loud and Clear” report. That total is more than any other service — with more than 180 million paying subscribers, Spotify is
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Less than two years after joining France Televisions, former Canal Plus executive Manuel Alduy has contributed to bolstering the French public broadcaster’s roster of international series with shows such as “Bardot,” a mini-series biopic of Brigitte Bardot, and “L’Insoumise” about Alice Guy, the first female filmmaker ever. Ahead of France Televisions’ press conference at Series
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Paramount Plus, which is the global streaming service of recently rebranded Paramount — formerly ViacomCBS — has forged a three-year partnership with Gaumont, the storied French studio behind Netflix’s “Lupin” and “Narcos,” to jointly produce a slate of high-end original shows for its growing subscribers around the world. Under the partnership Gaumont will produce these
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Very few The Mediapro Studio shows, indeed very few Spanish series in general, have lit a fire on the open market like “The Head,” an Antarctic-set thriller which lifts off as a murder mystery to constantly evolve into other realms.  Starring Álvaro Morte, “Money Heist’s” Professor and Japanese pop idol Tomohisa Yamashita, written by Alex
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The BBC World Service has sought and will receive £4.1 million ($5.4 million) in additional funding to counter disinformation around the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine. The emergency funding would to help the BBC “continue bringing independent, impartial and accurate news to people in Ukraine and Russia in the face of increased propaganda from the
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At a time when journalists are under attack in many parts of the world and the odious term “fake news” has become part of the global lexicon, Spain’s Mediacrest presents the topical drama series “Fake” at a key event in France-based Series Mania, the invitation-only Spain Pitching Breakfast, on Thursday. Leading the charge is industry
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A wider representation of gender roles, more training opportunities for women filmmakers, and reaching out to women audiences are all ways forward to promote women-centric stories in Southeast Asian cinema, say women filmmakers from the region. The lively discussion involving Thai-American director Pailin Wedel (“Hope Frozen”), Indonesian actor Marissa Anita (“Ali & Ratu Ratu Queens”),
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UGC, the long-running French film studio whose biggest hits include “Amelie Poulain,” has successful branched into TV series by acquiring stakes in a flurry of talent-driven production companies such as Itineraire Productions (“HPI”) and Headline Pictures (“Call My Agent!’s” British remake) in the U.K. Opting for a different approach to Gaumont’s or large media groups
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The India expansion plans for short-form video platform Lomotif are well underway via a partnership with billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Viacom18 media conglomerate. The partnership kicks off with 10-episode science-based reality series “The Inventor Challenge,” which is set for an April debut, with the option of a second season. The series is based on Emmy-winning PBS
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In music’s metal subculture, the late singer Ronnie James Dio may still count as the genre’s most widely beloved figure, which makes him ripe for a documentary. He was almost completely uncontroversial, which doesn’t necessarily bode as well for such a treatment. The dude who popularized the so-called “devil horns” hand gesture was no demon.
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Eric B. Fleischman’s Defiant Studios has landed film slate financing from SOLIS Studios and Maurice Fadida’s Kodiak Pictures, Variety has learned. Defiant, behind genre titles like “The Knocking” (pictured above during production) and “Offseason,” will make multiple features under the partnership, with the first to shoot this summer. This is the first significant move by
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“CODA,” “Encanto” and “West Side Story” were received top honors at the 37th annual Artios Awards. The Casting Society honors excellence in casting across feature films, television and theater. The organization held a virtual ceremony on Wednesday, also celebrating its 40th anniversary. To kick off the virtual ceremony, a montage commemorating the anniversary as shown,
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Australia, that powerhouse in entertainment, feted 15 Oscar nominees from Down Under and New Zealand at the Australian consul general’s residence Wednesday in Brentwood. While celebrating the noms — 10 for Australia and five for New Zealand — Peter Ritchie, head of Australians in Film, said, “My mission here in L.A. is to open doors
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Bruce Tuchman-backed Rialto International has launched a branded on-demand streaming service in Japan, focused on independent film, and housed on Amazon’s Prime Video Channels platform. Rialto Channel launched in 1999 in New Zealand, where it was initially branded as The Sundance Channel. It established itself as an award-winning and industry-leading indie film destination for over
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Isidore Montag/Getty Images Leave it to Ralph Lauren, purveyor of the great American lifestyle, to make his show guests feel right at home—by literally recreating his home. Lily Collins, Janelle Monáe, and Jessica Chastain are just a few of the A-listers who made their way upstairs to a private space at the Museum of Modern
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Marvel’s upcoming series “Moon Knight” features four of six episodes directed by Mohamed Diab, the Egyptian screenwriter and filmmaker best known for his feature directorial debut “Cairo 678” and his 2021 Venice world premiere “Amira.” The Marvel series incorporates elements of Ancient Egyptian mythology in telling the story of Marc Spector (Oscar Isaac), a mercenary
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Ron Perlman sent a video message to Ted Cruz on Twitter in which the “Hellboy” actor slammed the Texas senator for his questions at the Supreme Court confirmation hearings of Ketanji Brown Jackson. On March 22, the second day of Jackson’s confirmation hearings to replace Justice Stephen Breyer on the Supreme Court, Cruz questioned Jackson
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