Month: February 2023

Berlin-based X Filme Creative Pool will adapt one of the most successful German-language podcasts, “Zeit Crime” (“Zeit Verbrechen”) into an anthology series for Paramount +. Awarded the German Podcast Prize, “Zeit Crime” is based on the criminal investigations of Sabine Rückert and Andreas Sentker. According to producer Jorgo Narjes, it currently boasts 5 million streams
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Richard Armitage (“The Hobbit” trilogy), Michelle Keegan (“Brassic”) and “Absolutely Fabulous” star Joanna Lumley are set to lead the cast of new Netflix series “Fool Me Once.” Based on the Harlan Coben novel of the same name and produced by Nicola Shindler’s Quay Street Productions, the eight-part series stars Keegan (pictured above on set) as
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J.K. Rowling claims people have deeply misunderstood her position on transgender women — and the best-selling author says she’s not preoccupied with how the controversy will affect her legacy. Rowling, speaking on the topic for the podcast “The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling,” said she “never meant to upset anyone” with comments broadly seen as
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New Disney+ original series “The Good Mothers,” which provides a fresh female take on the Calabrian mob, marks a case of truly organic collaboration between the U.K. and Italy to ensure that a great story didn’t risk losing an iota of authenticity.  The show, which is competing in the “Berlinale Series” section, depicts the Calabrian mob through
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COMMISSIONS The BBC Studios Natural History Unit has commissioned three series for BBC One, BBC Two and iPlayer. “Mammals” (6 x 60’), coproduced by France Televisions, ZDF and BBC America, offers insights into the most widespread animal group in the world. “Big Little Journeys” (3 x 60’), coproduced by PBS, follows the real-life adventures of
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German production outfit MMC Studios (“Amelie”) is backing romanic drama “Dear Eszter,” from writer/director Alex Balassa. Bastian Griese and Lucas Hamacher will produce the film for MMC Studios in Cologne, alongside Balassa. The film’s co-producers include Peter Seres (“World War Z”) at Hungary’s Punk Films, as well as Ondrej Beranek (“The Chronicles of Narnia”) from
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The Copenhagen Intl. Documentary Film Festival, also known as CPH:DOX, has unveiled the full program of its 20th edition, which includes 200 new films, more than half of which are world premieres, sealing CPH:DOX’s reputation as one of the leading events of its kind in Europe. For the first time, all 13 films competing for
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Shout! Studios has acquired U.S. and Canada rights to Studiocanal and Working Title’s cross-cultural British romantic comedy “What’s Love Got to Do with It?” with a view to releasing it in late spring, it was revealed at Berlin’s European Film Market on Tuesday. Directed by veteran Indian filmmaker Shekhar Kapur (“Elizabeth”), “What’s Love Got to Do With It?”
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Banijay’s Endemol Shine Israel and Munich-based producer Neuesuper (“8 Days”) have inked German adaptation rights to Israeli hit comedy series “Nevsu,” to air on public broadcaster ZDF.  Israel’s “Nevsu” won the International Emmy Award for best comedy series in 2018. Its German adaptation, “I Don’t Work Here,” sees three generations from two worlds come together
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Crime shows look for a new angle, argued Berlinale Series participants on Monday.  There is no shortage of new offerings, from Berlinale Market Selects’ “Two Sides of the Abyss,” Serbia’s “The Fall” or South Africa’s “Donkerbos,” created by Nico Scheepers, to China’s melancholic, decades-spanning “Why Try to Change Me Now,” with Golden Bear winner Yinan
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ZDF Studios has signed a deal to distribute the second season of the remake of the iconic Spanish horror series “Stories to Stay Awake” (“Historias Para No Dormir”). The series is a reboot of the classic series created by Spain’s Chicho Ibáñez Serrador in the 1960s which proved a milestone in Spanish horror, introducing Spain
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Berlinale’s Co-Pro Series title “Tipping Point” heads to the end of the world – Svalbard – to tell a story of a young activist at war with her oil exec father, until he is murdered.  Chasing a piece of stolen software which can be used either to destroy the world or improve it, just like the
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Singapore-based film marketing and distribution firm Continental Entertainment Pte. Ltd. (CEPL), which holds global distribution rights for Bangladeshi auteur Mostofa Sarwar Farooki’s “Saturday Afternoon,” will release the film in the U.S. and Canada through Reliance Entertainment. The Bengali-and-English-language film takes its cue from the brutal terrorist attack on the Holey Artisan Bakery in Dhaka in
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Nikolaj Lie Kaas’ series “Agent,” shown at Berlinale Series, centers around Joe, who has high hopes for his famous clients. But it’s not another remake of a certain French smash. “I started writing it before ‘Call My Agent!’ even came out. Then I saw it on Netflix and went: ‘Oh, for f**k’s sake…’,” Danish actor-turned-director
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First-time writer-director Malika Musaeva is set to make history at this year’s Berlin International Film Festival, where her female-centered coming-of-age drama “The Cage is Looking for a Bird” is the first Chechen-language film ever selected by the venerable German fest. Musaeva’s debut, which world premieres Feb. 22 in the festival’s competitive Encounters section, focuses on
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“Snow,” an Austrian-German co-production and one of 16 titles presented in the Berlinale Series Market Selects showcase, weaves the timely issue of climate change and local folklore into a suspenseful mystery drama set in the picturesque Austrian Alps. Brigitte Hobmeier stars as Lucia, a physician who with her husband and children moves to the village,
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CNN’s morning show isn’t peeling away from Don Lemon. The anchor will return to “CNN This Morning” on Wednesday, despite delivering a set of controversial remarks last week, the latest maneuver in what has become a more difficult than expected effort by the Warner Bros Discovery-backed outlet to shake up its programming. “I sat down
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Just weeks after becoming the most-awarded artist in the history of the Grammys, Beyoncé’s reign continued at the 54th annual NAACP Image Awards, where she added three more awards to her trophy case. During Monday night’s non-televised virtual experience, Queen Bey was named this year’s outstanding female artist, while her hit record “Renaissance” won outstanding
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“Back to the Future” stars Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson and Tom Wilson recently reunited to celebrate the beloved film at Fan Expo Portland, which ran from Feb. 17 to Feb. 19. The stars shared their reunion on Instagram, with Thompson posting several photos and videos from the event. “Wow honestly had the
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Political assassinations, war, espionage, royal scandals, teen angst and magic: new German series are setting the bar ever higher in terms of challenging and risky subject matter. The Berlinale Series Market’s Up Next: Germany showcase on Monday presented four forthcoming series projects that look set to entice international buyers: Sperl Film’s political drama “Herrhausen –
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The stars are aligning on political thriller “The Chauffeur’s Son,” a six-part series from acclaimed Spanish creative duo Isaki Lacuesta and Isa Campo.  It is one of five projects that has pulled down a muscular €1.5 million ($1.6 million) grant from Catalonia’s ICEC film-TV aimed at ensuring potential production partners that the series can bring
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Stars have been a theme throughout Pentatonix’s career. The a cappella group covered Nicki Minaj’s “Starships” early on, performed “Stars” from the musical “Finding Neverland,” and named their holiday television special “Christmas Under the Stars.” So it’s only fitting that the group — comprised of Scott Hoying, Kirstin Maldonado, Mitch Grassi, Kevin Olusola and Matt
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Elsa Zylberstein, one of the most famous – and bankable — faces of French cinema, known for her Cesar-winning performance in “I’ve Loved You For So Long,” is preparing to emerge as a major film producer. Having recently set up banners in France and the U.S., Zylberstein is actively developing a raft of films and
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