With eOne's $230M acquisition of rival Canadian giant Alliance Films completed earlier this month, the executive structure in the UK, where the companies overlapped, is coming into somewhat clearer focus. On the eve of the European Film Market in Berlin, eOne today said that Alliance SVP of worldwide acquisitions and productions, Robert Walak, is leaving the company to pursue other ventures. The well-liked London-based exec was at Alliance since 2003 and oversaw the acquisitions of such important titles as The Twilight Saga series in Spain and The King's Speech and The Woman In Black for the UK. Also leaving is Jon Bourdillon who headed up home entertainment at eOne. He will be replaced by Ken McMahon of Alliance subsid Momentum. Earlier this month, eOne exec Alex Hamilton was named managing director in the UK to oversee the combined film team there. Other exec appointments today include Charlotte Thorp as head of TV sales and business development, Nick Smith as head of digital, Paul Lofting as head of sales, Rebecca Mortimer as head of marketing and Theresa Roberts as head of publicity. When the acquisition of Alliance was complete on January 9, that company's co-founder/CEO, Victor Loewy, and president Charles Layton both left.
Thursday, January 31, 2013
Robert Walak Exiting Alliance Films Following Takeover By eOne
Paramount's Second Animated Film To Be Based On Original Concept
The studio will unveil the details soon, Viacom CEO Philippe Dauman says this morning. But the production to follow the SpongeBob SquarePants movie due in 2014 will be 'based on original IP [intellectual property] and will have consumer products possibilities.' It will put Paramount 'very much on track to begin with one [animated] release per year.' And the CEO tried to reassure investors that he won't break the bank. Viacom will spend less than $100M and budgets 'in some cases [will be] significantly below.' Dauman began planning to build an animation operation at Paramount as he anticipated the possible loss of its distribution deal with DreamWorks Animation when their contract expired at the end of 2012. In August Jeffrey Katzenberg's studio agreed to let Fox distribute its films beginning this year.
Frank Langella Signs On As Ronald Reagan Advisor Paul Nitze In 'Reykjavik'
EXCLUSIVE: Frank Langella, so memorable as Richard Nixon in the stage and screen versions of Frost/Nixon, is back in political mode, and this time he's playing the guy behind The Guy. He's joining the cast of the Scott Free/Participant Media/Headline Pictures-produced Reykjavik. The Mike Newell-directed drama tells the story of the 1986 peace summit between Reagan and Gorbachev in Reykjavik, Iceland. Michael Douglas and Christoph Waltz play Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev and Langella will play Paul Nitze, United States Secretary of the Navy and Reagan's most senior and trusted adviser. Langella is coming off raves for Robot & Frank and he next stars in the Stephen Frears-directed Muhammad Ali's Greatest Fight for HBO in 2014. Langella recently wrapped Grace of Monaco opposite Nicole Kidman for director Olivier Dahan, and the indie Parts Per Billion opposite Gena Rowlands and Rosario Dawson. Langella was also Tony nominated for last last stage turn, Man and Boy, and he released his memoirs Dropped Names. He's repped by ICM Partners.
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Research In Motion Changes Company Name To BlackBerry As It Unveils BlackBerry 10
The company formerly known as Research In Motion says its product line is 're-designed, re-engineered, and re-invented' with the introduction today of the BlackBerry 10 operating system and two devices: the BlackBerry Z10 and Q10. The goal is to make it easy for users to switch between work and personal applications with separate home screens. The Z10 has a 4.2-inch, high-definition touchscreen, while the Q10 has a smaller screen and a physical keyboard. They'll come with 16 GB of memory, and a slot for a memory card. The back opens, so users can replace the battery. The company says they offer simple ways to launch video chats with multiple applications open. A Screen Share application makes it possible for another user to take charge of the screen. Users can focus the camera via touch screen commands, and manipulate images with a built-in picture editor. The Story Maker application can create videos with music and images edited in. The company says it has more than 1,000 BlackBerry 10 apps including Skype, Amazon Kindle, SAP, Angry Birds, Facebook, Twitter, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Reuters, and TuneIn. All of the major studios and music companies will offer content on BlackBerry World. The phones are expected to be available in the U.S. by March, and while carriers will determine pricing CEO Thorsten Heins said it likely will be $150 with a three year contract. He says that musician Alicia Keys will serve as BlackBerry's creative director. 'I broke with you for something with a little more bling,' she said at the rollout event. 'Now we're exclusively dating again.' She says she'll work with app designers and retailers, and people in entertainment and music, to help bridge the gap between a work phone and a play phone.
Heins marked the occasion by changing the company name. 'From today on, we are BlackBerry everywhere in the world,' he said. The company stock symbol will be BBRY. But investors seemed underwhelmed by the rollout: The stock, which had been up 4% this morning, fell to -5%. Heins desperately needs businesses and app developers to embrace Blackberry 10. The company's shares have lost nearly 73% of their value over the last two years as the smartphone pioneer lost market share to Apple's iPhones and a slew of handsets that run Google's Android operating system. IHS Senior Principal Analyst Ian Fogg calls 2013 'the last, best hope for RIM's BlackBerry 10 ' along with endangered specimens like Microsoft's Windows Phone, Nokia's Lumia and Mozilla's Firefox ' to create a viable third smartphone competitor in the market.'
Get Deadline news and alerts FREE to your inbox...Steven Spielberg To Receive Filmmaker Of The Year Award From American Cinema Editors
Universal City, CA, January 30, 2013 'Award winning filmmaker Steven Spielberg has been selected by the Board of Directors of the American Cinema Editors (ACE) to be honored with the organization's prestigious ACE Golden Eddie Filmmaker of the Year Award. The award will be presented at the 63rd Annual ACE Eddie Awards ceremony on Saturday, February 16, 2013 in the International Ballroom of the Beverly Hilton Hotel, it was announced today by the ACE Board of Directors. The previously announced ACE Eddie Award nominees in nine categories of film, TV and documentaries is available online: http://ace-filmeditors.org/ace-eddie-awards/nominees-recipients/.
'Steven Spielberg is a cinematic treasure,' stated the ACE Board of Directors. 'For over four decades he has been moving audiences around the world with his unique, powerful brand of storytelling. As one of the most successful directors in history, he has brought us beloved films, which have not only delighted us but have been indelibly woven into our cultural fabric. Throughout it all, he has worked side by side with the great Michael Kahn, A.C.E., forming a director-editor partnership that has lasted decades. It is our pleasure to recognize him with the ACE Golden Eddie Filmmaker of the Year honor, especially in a year where he has, once again, created a masterpiece with his latest film, Lincoln.'
Spielberg is one of the entertainment industry's most successful and influential filmmakers and a principal partner of DreamWorks Studios. He is the top-grossing director of all time, having helmed such blockbusters as JAWS, E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, the Indiana Jones franchise and Jurassic Park, earning billions at the box office. He is a three-time Academy Award® winner, having won his first two for Best Director and Best Picture for Schindler's List, which received a total of seven Oscars® that year. He won his third Oscar® for Best Director for the WWII epic drama Saving Private Ryan. It was also one of the year's most honored films, earning four additional Oscars®, as well as two Golden Globes for Best Picture and Best Director. He also earned Academy Award® nominations for Best Director for Munich, E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, Raiders of the Lost Ark and Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Throughout his career he has also earned a staggering eleven DGA Award nominations, making him the most honored member of the DGA. Last year he successfully took on the challenge of working in 3D animation with The Adventures of Tintin, which won the Golden Globe for Best Animated Feature. Last year he also directed War Horse, which earned six Oscar® nominations including Best Picture. Most recently, Spielberg directs two-time Academy Award® winning actor Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln, based in part on Doris Kearns Goodwin's 'Team of Rivals,' with a screenplay by Tony Kushner. The film opened November 9th to critical acclaim and has earned over $145 million at the domestic box office to date. It will release internationally in early 2013.
ACE, the entertainment industry's honorary society of film editors, is comprised of over 700 accomplished editors working in film and television. The ACE Eddie Awards recognize outstanding editing in nine categories of film, television and documentaries. Nominees for the 63rd Annual ACE Eddie Awards will be announced on January 11th. Tickets to the black-tie ceremony are available by calling the ACE office at (818) 777-2900. To apply for credentials to cover the ACE Eddie Awards, please send your email to ace.credentials@gmail.com.
Sony Pictures Classics Acquires 'For No Good Reason'
NEW YORK (January 30, 2013) ' Sony Pictures Classics announced today that they have acquired all North American rights to Charlie Paul's directorial debut, FOR NO GOOD REASON from Itch Film. Foreign sales are being handled by Independent Film Sales. Charlie Paul, who has been a director in advertising for years and is a former artist himself, spent 10 years making FOR NO GOOD REASON. Produced by Itch Film's co-founder Lucy Paul, the intimate documentary portrait focuses on Ralph Steadman and features Johnny Depp observing Steadman's fascinating working process at his home studio.
Ralph Steadman is most frequently celebrated for his brilliant illustrations accompanying the writings of Hunter S Thompson, and their collaborations defined the Gonzo school of journalism that emerged to pick at the scabs of the American establishment during the turbulent eras of Vietnam and Nixon. Among his many achievements, Steadman has drawn political and satirical work informed by a deep social conscience, illustrated classics such as Alice in Wonderland and Animal Farm, printed etchings on writers from Shakespeare to Burroughs, and published books on the lives of Sigmund Freud, Leonardo da Vinci and God. FOR NO GOOD REASON presents Steadman as a driven artist with a voracious creative instinct.
The film also features a phenomenal and inventive soundtrack with collaborations from Slash, All American Rejects, Jason Mraz, Lynval Golding, Ed Harcourt, James Blake, Crystal Castles and more. Grammy nominated and two time Ivor Novello winner, Sacha Skarbek is the music director.
'Working with Ralph Steadman and using his art as the palette to construct this film, created the perfect canvass for me to make something personal, profound and very beautiful,' says Director Charlie Paul.
'Ralph Steadman is one of the most profound and innovative artists of our generation. We have always admired his work and in this wonderful film, Charlie Paul opens Steadman's studio and unique creative process to both his admirers and new fans in the process,' states Sony Pictures Classics.
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Apple Unveils 128GB Version Of iPad 4
They'll have twice the maximum memory of the current fourth-generation iPads, but they're not for bargain hunters: The Wi-Fi-only model of the new 128GB iPad will carry a suggested retail price of $799, while the ones that also handle cellular connections will go for $929. They'll be available next Tuesday at Apple's online and bricks-and-mortar outlets. The company's targeting businesses that need extra storage to handle memory-intensive applications and files including 3D CAD, X-rays, film and music editing, and blueprints. The additional memory means that 'enterprises, educators and artists have even more reasons to use iPad for all their business and personal needs,' Apple SVP Worldwide Marketing Philip Schiller says. Apple's unusual decision to upgrade the iPad midway though its life cycle has led to some speculation that the company will wait longer than expected to introduce a fifth-generation iPad. The current model was unveiled in October. But investors appear to like the move: Apple shares ' which are down nearly 35% since mid-September ' are up 1.2% in early trading while the overall market is flat.
Music Box Acquires Roger Michel's 'Le Weekend'
The Hyde Park On Hudson helmer's Le Weekend stars Jim Broadbent, Lindsay Duncan and Jeff Goldblum and just finished its Paris shoot. The plan is for Music Box to release the relationship drama in the U.S. theatrically this summer. The Hanif Kureishi-scripted pic centers on a long-married British couple (Broadbent and Duncan) who return to Paris for the first time since their honeymoon to revitalize their marriage. While there, they run into an old friend (Goldblum) who transforms their thoughts on life and their love for one another. Embankment Films' Tim Haslan negotiated the deal with Music Box's William Schopf and Ed Arentz.
Analyst Urges Big Media CEOs To Address Violence Concerns In Earnings Calls
This is unusual: Wall Street analysts typically pump CEOs for financial numbers when they hold quarterly conference calls to discuss the latest earnings reports. But as Big Media companies gear up for their announcements, BTIG's Richard Greenfield says this morning that investors need 'a better understanding of how management teams of the leading media companies evaluate the potential impact/risks to their businesses' following the horrific shootings in Newtown. Citizens and policy makers are debating whether movies, TV shows and video games contribute to a culture of violence. Greenfield says he doesn't see an 'immediate threat' to Big Media revenues and profits. Still, he wants CEOs to address three issues: Do they believe violent media are part of the problem, and would they participate in a third party, cross industry study of a possible connection? What are the chances that the government will increase regulations on TV content, and are they OK with that? And do they believe that advertisers might boycott violent shows? Although gruesome programs such as Walking Dead, Criminal Minds, and Sons Of Anarchy are popular, Greenfield recalls how grassroots uprisings like the one last year to oppose Hollywood's proposals to limit Internet piracy can 'rapidly change corporate behavior.'
Monday, January 28, 2013
Berlin Film Festival Completes Competition Jury With Tim Robbins, Susanne Bier & More
The Berlin Film Festival has rounded out the panel of judges who will hand out Golden and Silver Bears next month. Wong Kar Wai is jury president this year and his The Grandmaster officially opens the festival out of competition on February 7. Joining him on the jury are actor/director Tim Robbins whose Dead Man Walking was a Berlin contender in 1996; Danish director Susanne Bier; German director Andreas Dresen, a Silver Bear winner for Grill Point in 2002; American director and cinematographer Ellen Kuras; Iranian-born director and artist Shirin Neshat and Greek director and producer Athina Rachel Tsangari. Among the titles vying for prizes in Berlin are Jafar Panahi's Closed Curtain, Steven Soderbergh's Side Effects, David Gordon Green's Prince Avalanche and Bruno Dumont's Camille Claudel 1915. Coincidentally, Dumont also had a film in the running in Cannes in 2006 when Wong was jury president there, and that picture, Flandres, won the Grand Prize that year. The Berlin fest runs from February 7-17.
Hotel Video Supplier LodgeNet Interactive Files Prepackaged Chapter 11
LodgeNet says that hotels, hospitals and other institutions that receive its interactive TV programming and broadband services will continue to do so 'without interruption.' It has negotiated a $15M debtor-in-possession financing plan with some of its existing lenders. If the bankruptcy court in New York approves it, then it should 'satisfy the customary obligations of LodgeNet's business during the course of the restructuring process,' the company says. The announcement follows a recent $60M investment by a group led by Colony Capital. The deal was negotiated by former Fox and Gemstar-TV Guide exec Rich Batista, who became LodgeNet's CEO in September ' and left two weeks ago. If all goes as planned, then unsecured creditors will receive full payment in cash at the end of the restructuring. But owners of LodgeNet common stock and Series B Preferred shares are out of luck. The common shares ' which traded for more than $35 in early 2007, and more than $4 last April ' fell to less than three cents on Friday. LodgeNet has been in the dog house since last spring when it disclosed weaker than expected earnings and withdrew its guidance for the year. Its longtime CEO Scott Petersen resigned in June. Batista's successors, co-CEOs Frank Elsenbast and James Naro, say that the recapitalization effort 'is advancing on schedule' with help from Colony and 'an expanded strategic partnership with DIRECTV.' LodgeNet serves about 1.5M hotel rooms worldwide, reaching 500M travelers a year, along with many U.S. healthcare facilities.
Scandinavian Helmers Form Creative Alliance With Parts & Labor
BREAKING: Six of Scandinavia's most prominent directors: Lone Scherfig, Per Fly, Ole Christian Madsen, Dagur Kari, Thomas Vinterberg and Janus Metz have joined forces with producers Lars Knudsen and Jay Van Hoy's newly minted Parts & Labor International; and Danish producers Nikolaj Vibe Michelsen & Jacob Jørgensen to form a co-op called Creative Alliance. Creative Alliance will develop designed to get each director to helm at least one English language film for the international marketplace.
Said the filmmakers: 'We are eager to join forces and develop films together. To share our energy and expertise ' as well as challenging each others craft and talent to ensure that every film reaches its full artistic and commercial potential.'
The company's aim is to combine the best of Scandinavian film traditions and practices with the strength and scale of the film industry in the United States. All films made under the Creative Alliance banner will be developed out of Denmark and Creative Alliance will provide the resources and supportive environment for the directors towork together on individual projects, harnessing their collective experiences and individual strengths. Knudsen, Van Hoy, Michelsen and Jørgensen will maintain an active role in the development of the films as well. Creative Alliance will be developing high quality films for an international audience.
Creative Alliance will develop films at all budget levels. The company has secured the necessary equity for the development of all six films and is working with the Danish Film Institute and other Scandinavian and European funding bodies.
Said the Parts & Labor duo: 'We have developed aninnovative business model which will make it possible for European directors to develop and direct films in the US with support from funding bodies at home.'
Get Deadline news and alerts FREE to your inbox...Sunday, January 27, 2013
Producers Guild 2013 Awards: 'Argo' Wins, Also 'Homeland', 'Searching For Sugar Man', 'Wreck-It Ralph', 'Game Change', 'Modern Family', 'Amazing Race', 'Colbert Report'
UPDATED WITH ALL WINNERS AND SPEECHES: The Producers Guild of America announced its 24th annual film, 
television, and digital award winners tonight during a ceremony at the Beverly Hilton. Cheers erupted when Warner Bros' Argo won the top feature film honor, the Darryl F. Zanuck Award. Ben Affleck exclaimed: 'I am surprised.' The thriller now takes the lead in what is still a very close Best Picture Oscar race. Because the PGAs since its start in 1990 have selected 16 of the 22 winners to that the Academy Award ' a 73% success rate. And since 2008 (when No Country For Old Men won) the PGA has been on a 5-year hot streak.
Disney's Wreck-It Ralph won best animated film and Sony Pictures Classics' Searching For Sugar Man best documentary feature. Showtime's Homeland won best drama series. ABC/Twentieth TV's Modern Family won best comedy series. HBO's Game Change won for best long-form TV. The PGA Awards categories also include animated movies, feature documentaries, non-fiction programs, talk shows, competition shows, sports programs, children's programs, as well as digital TV series. This year, the Producers Guild awards special honors to The Weinstein Company's Bob and Harvey Weinstein (who cried onstage), Bad Robot's J.J. Abrams, Working Title's Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner, and Def Jam founder Russell Simmons. the PGA recognized several producers with honorary awards including Bob and Harvey Weinstein (Milestone Award), Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner (David O. Selznick Achievement Award in Theatrical Motion Pictures), J.J. Abrams (Norman Lear Achievement Award in Television), Russell Simmons (Visionary Award), and BULLY (Stanley Kramer Award).The 2013 Producers Guild Awards Chair is Michael DeLuca.
On the scene are Deadline Awards Columnist Pete Hammond and Awardsline's Anthony D'Alessandro:
The show kicked off with PGA President Mark Gordon featured in an opening video clip singing a parody of The Sound Of Music's 'Do Re Mi' with Hawk Koch, Paula Wagner, Michael DeLuca, Norman Lear and others complaining about the challenges of producing films. The lyrics included this line: 'When your job is on the brink, you will be trashed on Nikki Finke.' Deadline reporters say 'The place went nuts.' (I'm truly flattered by the diss, PGA.)
No doubt the longest acceptance speech of the night belonged to Harvey and Bob Weinstein in part because they received the Milestone Award from Robert De Niro, Quentin Tarantino, and Robert Rodriguez. De Niro took the podium first alone, saying 'They've been my neighbors in Tribeca and have always been there for me' They're enormous. But I'm not afraid of 'em! (Harvey said it was OK for me to say that.)' De Niro ribbed about their Silving Linings Playbook: 'When they came to me with a movie about mental illness, I asked which brother do they want me to portray?' Next came Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez who said: 'Talking about them is like talking about how your family sacrificed everything for you. I watched Bob build Dimension, and when he believes in you as a filmmaker, he gives it his all. I can't think of any producers who sit with you and go through it line by line.' Rodriguez then launched into a gruff imitation of Bob Weinstein. 'He told me not to do test screenings for Sin City and he never questioned when I wanted to go from horror films to family films.' Rodriguez recalled how ecstatic Bob became over the first Friday grosses of Spy Kids 3D. Quentin Tarantino took the mike and said: 'It is safe to say my filmography and my career would not be the same without the Weinstein Brothers. Bob is always there to hear me when Harvey can't. To me, Harvey is the only game in town.'
Everybody in the ballroom rose to their feet when Bob and Harvey took the stage. Bob spoke first, 'There isn't a chance in hell I would be up here if it wasn't for Harvey. That's what he told me to say.' Bob launched into the origins of their partnership, how he was making $35,000 in 1988 at Miramax and Harvey less. 'Brad Grey worked for us and even then he thought we worked for him.' Bob mentioned how he almost took a $60+K exhibitor booking jib in 1988 and abandon his and his brother's dream of a film studio. But then Bob passed on the job. The brothers gave it another go for a year and in 1989 released My Left Foot, Cinema Paradiso and Sex, Lies, And Videotape and never looked back. He also thanked former New Line heads Bob Shaye and Michael Lynne. 'If Macys needed Gimbels, if Ali needed Frazier, then we needed them,' said Bob. And to his brother Harvey, Bob said: 'Like all geniuses, you are murder to live with. There is a 60-40 chance that he and I will have a fight before the night is done. Also thank you to Miriam and Max,' ended Bob with a note to his parents.
Harvey took the mike and said: 'I had no idea he was that funny!' In a teary speech, Harvey remembered how Bob and he went to the Cannes Film Festival for the first time, shared a mattress, and had Sean Connery ensure they weren't kicked out of a screening. He called Tarantino the company's 'Babe Ruth' and mentioned De Niro's generosity post 9/11. He covered numerous topics from how the power of movies obtained Nelson Mandela's freedome, the executives and agents like Brad Grey and Robert Newman who have passed through their Miramax and Weinstein hallways, as well as 'my kids who are the best marketing research team in the world.'
J.J. Abrams accepted the PGA's Norman Lear Achievement Award. Jennifer Garner presented, recounting when Abrams first called her in late 2000 with the script of the TV show Alias. ('The more he imagines, the taller his hair gets.') A clip showed off Abrams' TV and film work, including Felicity, Lost, Alias, Mission: Impossible 3, Super 8, and Star Trek. 'Typical week!' quipped Abrams, winking at the headlines he made about his new Star Wars directing job for LucasFilm. 'I stand before you accepting the Norman Lear Award. What the hell has happened to our standards?' The producer recalled watching Norman Lear's sitcoms as a kid in his family's living room, particularly All In The Family. 'Like life itself, the nuanced dialogue mattered more tham 3D itself.' Abrams poignantly segued to his late mother's memorial service last June. 'I walked into my father's house and there was one guest who arrived first. It was Norman Lear. We laughed and drank. I was there once again in my parent's living room ' with Norman Lear.'
Bradley Cooper presented the Stanley Kramer Award to the Bully filmmakers, producers Lee Hirsch and Cynthia Lowen, citing the statistic that 'every 7 minutes a child is bullied at school. Bully is about standing up, not standing by. This film continues to change lives.' Director Lee Hirsch thanked Harvey Weinstein for distributing the film. 'You made a lot of promises when you bought the film, and you made good on them. If there was one thing Bully gave people something to point at, it was 'This is going on at my school.'' Producer Cynthia Lowen added, 'Bully was the result of those extraordinary voices of those families who were courageous enough to come forward with their painful stories and to make this film create change. We made this film for the brave kids who walk through their schools.'
Working Title's Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner received the David O. Selznick Achievemen't Award from their Les Miserables co-star Anne Hathaway, who read a witty letter that their frequent collaborator Richard Curtis wrote to her about the pair: 'They are decent men and they calm things down in post production. Love Actually was a disaster until they gave me two months. Fellner said: 'Thirty years ago, we were trolling the streets of Soho, dodging hookers and perverts which in the end prepped us for Hollywood. If we get to do Les Miz 2, all those guys will be in the movie.' Fellner listed his mentors throughout the years including Jeremy Thomas, David Puttnam, Brian Grazer, and Kathleen Kennedy. 'These were people we wanted to be like. This is a tough thing we do. We are blessed. We see ourselves as enablers of really talented people, to make the best version of their projects. Years ago, we were looking for 70% of our budgets from the studios. Today you are lucky to get that percent of your budget from Harvey!' Tim Bevan followed. 'I didn't think 26 years ago I would live a career like David O Selznick. Doing this with someone is a lot better than doing it on your own. People always ask me what my favorite point of filmmaking is. First day of principal photography is always my favorite. Then there's the magic moments in absolute moments of laughter and silence when you are with the cinema audience.'
Russell Simmons accepted the Visionary Award presented by LL Cool J who praised what a force he has been with Def Comedy Jam and Def Poetry Jam. Simmons kept it brief and humble, talking about how he has recently transplanted from New York to LA: 'I've been staying at Brett Ratner's house while I buy one here. Now what I really want to do is earn this award.'
2013 Producers Guild Of America Award Winners
The Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures
Argo (Warner Bros.)
Producers: Ben Affleck, George Clooney, Grant Heslov
Ben Affleck and Gr'ant Heslov accepted the Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstandin'g Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures. (George Clooney was in Berlin.) The Beverly Hilton ballroom erupted in cheers when Nicole Kidman announced that Argo was the winner. Ben Affleck exclaimed: 'I am surprised and I am not even in the PGA. I would be remiss to say that I am still acting.' He went on to thank Harvey Weinstein for all his compliments in his tribute speech and Bob Weinstein who 'showed me longer isn't always better'. Grant Heslov said: 'The hardest thing about this movie is working with two producers who are the Sexiest Men Alive. That puts pressure on me.'
The Award for Outstanding Producer of Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures
Wreck-It Ralph (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
Producer: Clark Spencer
Clark Spencer explained why the film was greenlighted: 'I joined Disney 23 years ago during difficult times and always wondered when I should leave. But I always believed in the studio. There is a renaissance going on at the studio ' and that is John Lasseter.'
The Award for Outstanding Producer of Documentary Theatrical Motion Pictures
Searching For Sugar Man (Sony Pictures Classics)
Producers: Malik Bendjelloul, Simon Chinn
Malik Bendjelloul and Simon Chinn accepted the award from Julianna Margulies. Bendjelloul said: 'This is a film about a man who lived his life as a constructor worker in Detroit not realizing he was more famous in South Africa.' Chinn added: 'It is wonderful that people are discovering the musician Rodriguez.'
The Norman Felton Award for Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television, Drama
Homeland (Showtime)
Producers: Henry Bromell, Alexander Cary, Michael Cuesta, Alex Gansa, Howard Gordon, Chip Johannessen, Michael Klick, Meredith Stiehm
The David L. Wolper Award for Outstanding Producer of Long-Form Television
Game Change (HBO)
Producers: Gary Goetzman, Tom Hanks, Jay Roach, Amy Sayres, Steven Shareshian, Danny Strong
The Danny Thomas Award for Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television, Comedy
Modern Family (ABC)
Producers: Cindy Chupack, Paul Corrigan, Abraham Higginbotham, Ben Karlin, Steven Levitan, Christopher Lloyd, Jeff Morton, Dan O'Shannon, Jeffrey Richman, Chris Smirnoff, Brad Walsh, Bill Wrubel, Danny Zuker
The Award for Outstanding Producer of Non-Fiction Television:
American Masters (PBS)
Producers: Prudence Glass, Susan Lacy, Julie Sacks
The Award for Outstanding Producer of Competition Television
The Amazing Race (CBS)
Producers: Jerry Bruckheimer, Elise Doganieri, Jonathan Littman, Bertram van Munster, Mark Vertullo
The Award for Outstanding Producer of Live Entertainment & Talk Television
The Colbert Report (Comedy Central)
Producers: Meredith Bennett, Stephen Colbert, Richard Dahm, Paul Dinello, Barry Julien, Matt Lappin, Emily Lazar, Tanya Michnevich Bracco, Tom Purcell, Jon Stewart
The Award for Outstanding Sports Program
Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel (HBO)
The Award for Outstanding Children's Program
Sesame Street (PBS)
'The Weight of the Nation for Kids: The Great Cafeteria Takeover' (HBO)
The Award for Outstanding Digital Series
'30 Rock: The Webisodes' (www.nbc.com)
Editor-in-Chief Nikki Finke - tip her here.
Get Deadline news and alerts FREE to your inbox...'Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters' Weak $18M But Opens #1; 'Parker' And 'Movie 43' Flop
SUNDAY 3:30 AM, 4TH UPDATE: Saturday's box office was big after Friday's business slowed when R-rated newcomers dominated North American movie theaters. The turnaround put this weekend around $100M for all moviegoing but that's still -15% from last year. 'Tough sledding for the new films this week ' and next week won't get any easier with the Super Bowl,' one studio exec warned me. First up: fairytale characters who are heavily armed. Not exactly PC for the serious gun control discussion begun in this nation over recent violence in real life and entertainment. Paramount's Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters 3D co-financed with MGM playing on 3,372 theaters opened to $5.9M Friday then went up +40% to $8.4M Saturday. 
That still makes for a disappointing $18M for the weekend, especially with the 3D premium. On 2,000 screens for its midnight opening, this mashed mash-up masquerading as an action comedy made $500K in midnight grosses, less even than Warner Bros' recent disappointing Gangster Squad. Even though Hansel & Gretel will be #1 this weekend, Paramount has another underperformer. The R-rated pic only had one semi-star, machinegun-toting Jeremy Renner. Good thing Paramount claims it only cost $50M (though sources say budget was $83M). Audiences gave it a 'B' CinemaScore which won't hurt or help its prospects. Exit polls showed filmgoers were 55% male with 57% over 25.
This reimagined dark twist on the classic Grimm tale kept moving its release date ' never a good sign ' from March 2nd, 2012, to January 11th, to now. 'This should really set up the international,' a studio exec gave me as an excuse back then. 'Jeremy Renner's international profile should be in great shape after being in Mission: Impossible 4, then The Avengers, then The Bourne Legacy.' Nope. Renner's Bourne grossed only so-so: he just can't carry a movie solo. It didn't help that guns are falling out of favor. So I was surprised that Paramount didn't change the TV ads to delete that shoot-em-up nonsense and instead show more comedy. Then again, this new film picks up the fairy tale 15 years after Hansel and Gretel's evil encounter at the gingerbread house. They've become bounty hunters tracking and killing wicked witches. Tommy Wirkola directed and co-wrote the script with Dante Harper. Will Ferrell's and Adam McKay's Gary Sanchez Prods produced.
Major studios are great marketers but only if they have the goods. To announce the IMAX release, Paramount debuted pic on MGM's Skyfall IMAX screens ' but without generating any buzz. The studio also negotiated coverage of an exclusive custom content piece with talent intros that launched at all Regal theatres on January 18th with Django Unchained, Broken City, and The Last Stand. Problem is, filmgoers only turned out for Quentin Tarantino's pic. On opening night, the first 100 Hansel And Gretel fans at all Cinemark XD theatres across the country received a free movie shirt, while the first 60,000 Regal IMAX 3D audience members received a collector's print of exclusive movie art. Kinda late for that. Media-wise, Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton did the usual press junket and talk show circuit plus Hispanic and African-American targets. Street teams visited nearly 50 high profile sporting events covering the NBA, NFL, NGL and College Football. New Years Day featured male-targeted cable marathons. H&G also had presence three weeks in a row in NFL playoff games. There was partnering with MTV. The online campaign focused on movie's red band trailer. A custom Hansel & Gretel Play & Win sweepstakes on Xbox aligned with the rabid Halo 4 audience. And still pic's grossed domestically underwhelmed.
But international prospects look good after Russia opened to huge $8.6M. Latin America and Southeast Asia are debuting after a strong lead by Brazil and Mexico. These markets represent 30% of the international box office.
#2 is last week's PG-13 suspense thriller topper Mama from Universal in 2,682 theaters. Developed and presented by Guillermo Del Toro and starring Zero Dark Thirty's Best Actress Oscar likely Jessica Chastain as a brunette, pic had a second Friday of $3.8M and $6.2M Saturday for a weekend of $13.2M (-54%) for an expected cume through Sunday of $49M.
#3 is The Weinstein Company's R-rated Oscar-buzzed Silver Linings Playbook in 2,641 theaters with a $2.3M Friday and $4.3 Saturday for a $9.3M weekend and $68.8M cume through Sunday. 'Notice that Silver Linings is going to beat Zero Dark Thirty this weekend which is pretty impressive in my book,' a Weinstein exec gushed to me. 'It is the best hold of the top films by far and that is after 11 weeks!'
#4 is another R-rated Oscar-touted pic. Zero Dark Thirty financed by Annapurna Pictures and distributed by Sony Pictures. Playing in 2,929 theaters, it made $2.3M Friday and $4.3M Saturday for a $9M weekend and cume of $69.1M through Sunday.
#5 is FilmDistrict's barely registering R-rated crime drama Parker despite a 'B+' CinemaScore which could help word of mouth. It was directed by Taylor Hackford and stars Jason Statham and Jennifer Lopez who only is in shadow on the main one-sheet and whose film career truly is DOA. in 2,224 theaters. Parker opened to $2.1M Friday and +40% for $3.1M Saturday for a lousy weekend of $7.2M. FilmDistrict licensed the U.S. distribution rights and knew pic would only gross in the single digits. Film had been tracking strongest with males ages 17-34 so primary media focused heavily on channels and programming tailored to men as well as actions fans and Hispanics. Based on the series of bestselling novels by Donald E. Westlake, Parker was financed by Sierra/Affinity, Incentive Filmed Entertainment, and Sidney Kimmel Entertainment. Doubtful whether future films based on the franchise will be made given this outcime. Current Entertainment's Steven Chasman produced along with Sidney Kimmel, Les Alexander and Jonathan Mitchell via their Alexander/Mitchell banner, and Taylor Hackford.
Falling from #6 to #7 is Relativity's $6M R-rated ensemble comedy Movie 43 that earned a dreaded 'D' CinemaScore from audiences to hurt word of mouth. Playing in 2,023 theaters, its gimmick is 12 directors, 30 name actors, and 18 writers working on different shorts stitched together. I'm already hearing a lot of them regret taking part. Movie 43 debuted at $1.8M Friday and +10% to $2M Saturday for a weekend of $4.0M. That's only half what Relativity predicted. 'If you are going to take a creative risk, what better way to do it than on a $6M budget with the opportunity to work with a large pool of writers, directors and actors including Peter Farrelly and Charles Wessler ' two comedic geniuses.' Actors worked for scale and the production moved to accommodate schedules. This explains why the film was shot over 3 years. Seriously, how much longer is Relativity going to keep claiming its risk is mitigated by international pre-sales, outputs and Netflix before P&A spend? Meanwhile Ryan Kavanaugh, listed as a producer, may well be in the Witness Protection Program because he's mercifully stopped publicizing himself. With Alliance Films distributing in Canada, Relativity owns worldwide rights and Lionsgate International handled international sales and distribution. Movie 43 has supposedly taken in $10M overseas.
Here are the Top 10 films based on weekend estimates:
1. Hansel And Gretel: Witch Hunters 3D (MGM/Paramount) NEW [Runs 3,372] R
Friday $6.0M, Saturday $8.4M, Weekend $18.0M
2. Mama (Universal) Week 2 [Runs 2,682] PG13
Friday $3.8M, Saturday $6.2M, Weekend $13.2M (-54%), Cume $49.0M
3. Silver Linings Playbook (Weinstein) Week 11 [Runs 2,641] R
Friday $2.3M, Saturday $4.3M, Weekend $9.3M, Cume $68.8M
4. Zero Dark Thirty (Annapurna/Sony) Week 6 [Runs 2,929] R
Friday $2.3M, Saturday $4.3M, Weekend $9.0M, Cume $69.1M
5. Parker (FilmDistrict) NEW [Runs 2,224] R
Friday $2.1M, Saturday $3.1M, Weekend $7.2M
6. Django Unchained (Weinstein) Week 5 [Runs 2,007] R
Friday $1.2M, Saturday $2.2M, Weekend $4.8M, Cume $146.1M
7. Movie 43 (Relativity) NEW [Runs 2,023] R
Friday $1.8M, Saturday $2.0M, Weekend $4.0M
8. Les Miserables (Universal) Week 5 [Runs 2,210] PG13
Friday $1.0M, Saturday $1.9M, Weekend $4.1M, Cume $137.4M
9. Gangster Squad (Warner Bros) Week 3 [Runs 2,590] R
Friday $1.1M, Saturday $1.8M, Weekend $4.1M, Cume $39.5M
10. Broken City (New Regency/Fox) Week 2 [Runs 2,622] R
Friday $1.0M, Saturday $1.8M, Weekend $3.8M (-54%), Cume $15.1M
Editor-in-Chief Nikki Finke - tip her here.
Get Deadline news and alerts FREE to your inbox...PGA Win: Is 'Argo' Now Oscar Frontrunner?
It's starting to get serious. This wild ride of an awards season may not be predictable, according to conventiona wisdoml. But in the end the winner of the Producer Guild's Best Picture award Saturday night was completely predictable in my opinion. After all, Warner Bros' Argo features a key role for a Hollywood movie producer who rises to the occasion and helps make a difference in the world, winning the hearts and minds of a 
group of producers. Imagine that. This is the first guild to weigh in so we have a tentative frontrunner in Argo now for the Academy Awards' Best Picture. Had producer/director/star Ben Affleck not been snubbed for a Best Director Oscar, the word 'tentative' wouldn't even be used. When I talked to Affleck in the Beverly Hilton ballroom moments after his picture won, he still seemed to be reeling from the roller coaster ride he's been on, but clearly happy. (Co-producer Grant Heslov suggested they should call their fellow producer George Clooney in Berlin and tell him the good news.) 'When I didn't get the Best Director nomination after everybody told me I would, I was depressed. But then that same day I won at Critics Choice which was really torturous because everyone kept asking me all night how I felt,' Affleck told me. 'Then we win at the Globes.' Argo was also named the year's Best Picture at the Critics Choice Movie Awards. And today it was also recipient of the Golden Tomato as Rotten Tomatoes' winner for 'Best Reviewed Film In Wide Release' with a 96% positive score. And now it has the PGA under its belt.
It was a fun show marked by some terrific speeches, especially from Norman Lear Achievement In Television winner J.J. Abrams and The Weinstein brothers Harvey and Bob who received the guild's prestigious Milestone Award. The new 'p.g.a. mark' on film productions was a source of talk and pride ' but the PGA's 'mark' on this awards season could be just as significant. This Guild is an Oscar bellwether that has predicted right the last 5 straight years and in 2009 sent The Hurt Locker and in 2010 The King's Speech on their way to eventual Best Picture Oscar triumphs. Or is this a year when the Guilds may not matter as much. The race does not yet appear out of reach for competitors like The Weinstein Company's Silver Linings Playbook, Fox's Life Of Pi, or DreamWorks' Lincoln. The latter may be feeling a severe case of frontrunner-itis after many pundits had made it the favorite ' thus setting it up to fail. It has yet to score a major precursor victory. And, outside of a sure-thing Best Actor win for Daniel Day-Lewis at tomorrow's next big acid test, the SAG Awards, it is facing an uphill climb to prevail there for Ensemble Cast which is more likely to go to Silver Linings or Les Miserables or Argo with a cast of about 130 parts.
An Oscar strategist for another film immediately emailed me in a bit of a panic after the PGA's Argo win and wrote, 'Oh no. Now what?' Actually with a year as fractured as this has been, and with a full month to go before the Oscar telecast, the race may still have a few more surprises in store. At this morning's lively PGA producers panel at the Landmark Theatre, I talked to a couple of Academy members who said they expected Argo to win PGA but Lincoln to prevail at the Oscars. Of course, that could still happen even though Lincoln's momentum has been slowed to say the least. But Oscar often has his own ideas. And, although not unprecedented, a film whose nomination count is consideraby less than the leaders generally cannot be considered the favorite. Lincoln, leading with 12, Life Of Pi with 11, and Silver Linings and Les Mis with 8 apiece, all beat Argo's 7. And Argo doesn't have a directing nomination: no film has won Best Picture without a Best Director nomination since Driving Miss Daisy 23 years ago ' and that was an abberation even then.
But something's in the air. Argo could be emerging as a kind of consensus choice in a year of outstanding films, a beneficiary of a severely split vote. It is significant that the PGA uses the same preferential vote counting system as the Academy so there is a high level of correlation between the two groups. Assuming it comes up short at SAG, Argo will be tested next Saturday when Ben Affleck is up for a DGA award. A win there could set up a very interesting Oscar night. DGA ballots aren't due back until Friday so how this PGA victory affects that vote is anyone's guess at this point.
Awards Columnist Pete Hammond - tip him here.
Get Deadline news and alerts FREE to your inbox...Saturday, January 26, 2013
'Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters' Opens #1 Friday But Disappoints For $17M Weekend; 'Parker' And 'Movie 43' Flop
SATURDAY 7 AM, 2ND UPDATE: Friday's business slowed overall as R-rated newcomers populated the box office. 'Tough sledding for the new films this week and next week won't get any easier with the Super Bowl,' one studio exec emailed me. First up: fairytale characters who are heavily armed. Not exactly PC for the serious gun control discussion begun in this nation over recent violence in real life and entertainment. Paramount's Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters co-financed with MGM playing on 3,372 theaters opened to $5.9M Friday and a disappointing $17M for the weekend. On 2,000 screens for its midnight opening, the action comedy made $500K in midnight grosses, less even than Warner Bros' recent disappointing Gangster Squad. Even though it'll be #1 this weekend, it's still an underperforming R-rated 3D movie with only one semi-star, machinegun-toting Jeremy Renner. Good thing pic only cost $50M. Audiences gave it a 'B' CinemaScore which won't hurt or help is prospects, and was 55% male with 43% under age 25 and 57% over 25. International prospects look good after Russia opened to huge $8.6M. Latin America and Southeast Asia are opening after a strong lead by Brazil and Mexico. These markets represent 30% of the international box office.
#2 is last week's PG-13 suspense thriller topper Mama from Universal in 2,682 theaters. Developed and presented by Guillermo Del Toro and starring Zero Dark Thirty's Best Actress Oscar likely Jessica Chastain as a brunette, pic has a second Friday of now $3.8M (-62%) and a weekend of $11.7M (-58%) for an expected cume through Sunday of $47.5M.
#3 is The Weinstein Company's R-rated Oscar-buzzed Silver Linings Playbook in 2,641 theaters with a $2.3M Friday and $8.3M weekend and $67.8M cume through Sunday. 'Notice that Silver Linings is going to beat Zero Dark Thirty this weekend which is pretty impressive in my book,' a Weinstein exec gushed to me. 'It is the best hold of the top films by far and that is after 11 weeks!'
#4 is another R-rated Oscar-touted pic. Zero Dark Thirty financed by Annapurna Pictures and distributed by Sony Pictures. Playing in 2,929 theaters, it made $2.3M Friday for a $8.0M weekend a cume of $68.1M through Sunday.
#5 is FilmDistrict's barely registering R-rated crime drama Parker directed by Taylor Hackford and starring Jason Statham and Jennifer Lopez (who isn't even featured on the main one-sheet and whose film career truly is DOA) in 2,224 theaters. Parker opened to $2.1M Friday and weekend of $6.3M.
#6 is Relativity's little $6M R-rated comedy Movie 43 in 2,023 theaters features 10 directors and a slew of name actors. Movie 43 debuted at $1.8M Friday and weekend of $4.7M. It'll make its money back but that's very little money. Full analysis later.
Here are the Top 10 based on Friday estimates:
For more estimates listed by title, see box office results here...Editor-in-Chief Nikki Finke - tip her here.
Get Deadline news and alerts FREE to your inbox...Global Showbiz Briefs: 'Skyfall' China B.O., Alberto Sciamma's 'Bite' & More
'Skyfall' On Track To Beat 'Quantum's China Cume In 7 Days
As of Thursday night, Skyfall's 4-day cume in China was $17.9M, handily breaking the coveted 100M yuan mark. The film opened Monday and is playing on 8,079 screens in the country's widest release ever. Sony says the 23rd James Bond film that has already broken the $1B mark internationally, is on track to outgross the last Bond film, Quantum Of Solace, in its first seven days in China. The movie's release on Monday, at $5.1M, was almost three times that of Quantum. It came out amid reports of some tweaks by the local censors and calls by film industry insiders for reforms to the movie review system. Shi Chuan, a professor at Shanghai University's school of film & TV arts and technology, proposed laws be put in place for censors to follow and said, 'Movie regulators should respect the producers' original ideas, rather than chopping scenes arbitrarily.'
Sciamma To Helm Vampire Thriller 'Bite'
Spanish writer-director Alberto Sciamma (The Killer Tongue, Anazapta, Jericho Mansions) is set to shoot vampire movie Bite in Australia in September. The UK's Spice Factory is co-producing with Iron Sky producer Cathy Overett's Brisbane-based Cathartic Pictures and international rights will be handled by Spice Factory parent, Stealth Media Group. The plot follows criminals who set out to kidnap a billionaire's daughter and more than meet their match. Meanwhile Sciamma and Overett are collaborating on Bullets For The Dead, a zombie Western that will mark the feature debut of Australian writers-directors Joshua C. Birch and Michael Du-Shane. Sciamma met the pair in 2011 when he was artist-in-residence at Griffith University Film School in Queensland, where they were students. They shot a 3-minute zombie Western, 26 Bullets Dead, and Sciamma encouraged them to develop it into a feature, which revolves around a bounty hunter who escorts a fiery young woman and her gang to the sheriff and en route discovers the remains of a massacre and rescues its sole survivor, a preacher. It's due to shoot in Queensland in April/May, with Stealth repping international. - Don Groves
Lucinda Hicks Appointed COO At Dragonfly
Shine Group VP of operations and business development Lucinda Hicks is moving over to the company's Dragonfly Film and Television as COO in March. Hicks will oversee all commercial, operational and business-related activities at the production company behind shows like One Born Every Minute, The Hotel and The Plane Crash. Hicks joined Shine in 2010 as VP global business development and has identified new companies and partnerships for the now News Corp.-owned group. She succeeds outgoing COO Steve Nam. Hicks' Shine Group responsibilities will be assumed by Tim Robinson.
Olivier Gers Departs Endemol Worldwide Brands
In the latest executive departure at Endemol, Olivier Gers is stepping down as CEO of the commercial division, Endemol Worldwide Brands. Gers joined Endemol in 2010 with a focus on extending the Big Brother producer's IP and commercial activities across multiple platforms. Gers' departure follows Endemol Group COO and Endemol France CEO Virginie Calmels' resignation last week. The company earlier this week named former international operations managing director, Martha Brass, as the group's COO and former group finance director, Edwin van Es, as CFO.