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May162024 by cineverseNo Comments

All eyes are on Coppola in Cannes. Sound familiar?

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BY JAKE COYLE Francis Ford Coppola on Thursday will premiere at the Cannes Film Festival a film on which he has risked everything, one that’s arriving clouded by rumors of production turmoil. Sound familiar? On Thursday, Coppola’s self-financed opus “Megalopolis” will make its much-awaited premiere. Other films are debuting in Cannes with more fanfare and hype, but none has quite the curiosity of “Megalopolis,” the first film by the 85-year-old filmmaker in 13 years. Coppola put $120 million of his own money into it. Forty-five years ago, something very similar played out when Coppola was toiling over the edit for “Apocalypse Now.” The movie’s infamous Philippines production, which would be documented by Coppola’s late wife, Eleanor, was already legend. T...

May152024 by cineverseNo Comments

Asian Content Attracts and Retains 80% of Region’s VOD Audiences, Report

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By Patrick Frater Asian audiences are increasingly turning to homegrown content in their streaming choices. Asian titles powering 80% of premium VOD engagement and customer acquisition, according to new research from research and consultancy firm Media Partners Asia. “The Rise of Asian Content” is based on passive tracking of 40,000 users by sister company AMPD in nine major Asian markets – Japan, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand – over 15 months between Jan. 2023 and March 2024. “Content originating from Korea, Japan, China, Indonesia and Thailand drives 70-75% of premium VOD engagement, acquisition and hits in Asia,” said MPA lead analyst Dhivya T. “While the impact and travelability of K-dramas and anime is well...

May152024 by cineverseNo Comments

Catching Fire: The Story of Anita Pallenberg review – rockn’roll ‘muse’ in the spotlight

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Peter Bradshaw Anita Pallenberg endured many things, including the condescension of being labelled “muse” to the Rolling Stones. She became the girlfriend of Brian Jones who abused her, married Keith Richards who neglected her and then co-starred in the movie Performance with Mick Jagger, who fell unrequitedly in love with her. Now this documentary tells Pallenberg’s strange, sad, melodramatic story, with Scarlett Johansson voicing Pallenberg’s memories from her unpublished autobiography entitled Black Magic, discovered in manuscript after her death in 2017. Born to a wealthy, cultured German family in Rome, Pallenberg did a bit of modelling and was then discovered by director Volker Schlöndorff. After she played a few minor movie roles, including opposite Jane Fonda in Bar...

May152024 by cineverseNo Comments

Sundance Winner ‘Gaucho Gaucho’ Sells Across Europe for Charades (EXCLUSIVE)

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By Alex Ritman Paris-based sales house Charades has sold the Argentinian Western-inspired documentary “Gaucho Gaucho” across much of Europe. The film — which won a Sundance Jury Prize in January and recently played at CPH:DOX — has landed deals with Tandem (France), Filmin (Spain), Selmer Media (Sweden, Norway, Iceland, Finland, Denmark), M2 (Romania, Poland, Hungary. Ex-Yugoslavia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Bulgaria), Praesens (Switzerland) and Bantam Films (Benelux). Variety understands a U.K. sale is currently under discussions. Directed by Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw, the duo behind the box office hit “The Truffle Hunters,” “Gaucho Gaucho” explores the story of a community of cowboys and cowgirls in Northern Argentina who live outside the mo...

May142024 by cineverseNo Comments

Films Boutique Reveals First Sales, First Look Image for Agnieszka Holland’s Franz Kafka Biopic ‘Franz’ (EXCLUSIVE)

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By Leo Barraclough Berlin-based sales agency Films Boutique has closed first sales and released the first-look image from Oscar-nominated Polish filmmaker Agnieszka Holland‘s biopic of the Czech novelist Franz Kafka, “Franz.” The project has sold to September Film in Benelux, Filmin in Spain, Vertigo in Hungary, MCF Megacom for the former Yugoslavia and Movies Inspired in Italy. The film was previously acquired for theatrical distribution by Bac Films Distribution in France, X Verleih in Germany and Austria, Bioscop in Czech Republic and TVP in Poland. Kafka, a German-speaking Jewish Bohemian famous for surrealist and nightmarish visions, wrote “The Metamorphosis,” “The Trial” and “The Castle,” among others. The film started shooting in Prague on April 12, inc...

May142024 by cineverseNo Comments

Sarah Paulson Calls Out Actor Who Emailed Her Six Pages of Notes After Watching Her: It Was ‘Outrageous’ and ‘I Hope I See You Never

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By Michaela Zee Sarah Paulson will never forget the actor who sent her six pages of unsolicited notes after watching her in a play. Paulson recently appeared on the “Smartless” podcast, where she and hosts Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes and Will Arnett discussed the theater custom of celebrities coming backstage to meet with the cast. When Bateman asked the group if they would accept criticism from these visitors, Paulson recalled the “outrageous” experience she had after a show. “I did do a play once. The last time I was on stage, I did a play called ‘Talley’s Folly’ at the Roundabout, and the actress — and I’m going to say this, and I’m not going to ask you to cut this out, because I don’t f—ing care — this actress came to the play. Her name is Trish Hawkins — Hi, T...

May142024 by cineverseNo Comments

Megalopolis’ Official Trailer Reveals Francis Ford Coppola’s ‘Best Work Ever

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By Patrick Frater Our new film ‘Megalopolis’ is the best work I’ve ever had the privilege to preside over,” reads a quote attributed to iconic director Francis Ford Coppola attached to the official trailer for his new epic film. The picture, which will premiere in competition on Thursday at the Cannes Film Festival, has been a project many years in the making for the director, who first began work on the screenplay in the 1980s. The legendary filmmaker behind “The Godfather” and “Apocalypse Now” has invested $120 million of his own money into the film. The trailer starts with a voice-over musing about the decline of empires – “when does an empire die? Does it collapse in one terrible moment? No, no. But there comes a time when people no longer believe in it...