That trend is abundantly apparent this year in Cannes, where several major pacts were closed prior to the official launch of the Marche du Film on Thursday.

On Tuesday, two key deals were announced for IM Global and Alliance Films’ Ends of the Earth, with CBS Films snapping up domestic rights and Sony Pictures Acquisitions buying rights to multiple international territories.

SPA, a major market force these days, picked up rights in markets including German-speaking Europe, Scandinavia, Eastern Europe, Italy, Australia/New Zealand, Latin America and South Africa.

Ends of the Earth is from Automatik, the production and film financing joint-venture backed by IM Global and Alliance. Alliance holds rights to Ends of the Earth in Canada, the U.K. and Spain.

The movie, which is being shot in Europe, is described as having elements of Lost Boys and Chronicle and features both found footage and narrative styles to tell the tale of two best friends traveling through Europe. They encounter what is described as an “impossible phenomenon” that changes their lives.

The film is co-written and co-directed by Derek Lee and Clif Prowse and features a cast of up-and-comers. IM Global’s Stuart Ford, Brian Kavanaugh-Jones and Alliance’s Charles Layton are exec producing. Telefilm Canadia provided backing.

Automatik, headed by Kavanaugh-Jones, acquired worldwide rights to the movie after seeing a promo circulated by the filmmakers’ reps at Verve.

There are a raft of other Cannes titles that have closed deals with key distributors from around the globe in recent days, with one buyer quipping, “the market will be over by the weekend.”

“All the big distributors from Germany head to L.A. two weeks before Cannes and have their pitch meetings,” said Martin Moszkowicz, head of film and television at German indie giant Constantin Film, which was one of the few international buyers that did not pick up any titles ahead of the Cannes market.”"“They go back, get their budgets approved and everything sorted and by the time Cannes starts, the real business is pretty well over.”

Also on Tuesday, Universal Pictures International announced it has bought rights to Kathryn Bigelow’s U.S. Navy SEALs pic in multiple territories, including the U.K., France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Scandinavia, South Africa and Spain. Sony Pictures releases the film, about the hunt for Osama bin Laden, stateside on Dec. 19.

Megan Ellison financed and produced Bigelow’s untitled film through her Annapurna Pictures, while her new sales company Panorama, headed by Kim Fox, is debuting the project to foreign buyers at Cannes. But with a deal already in place between Universal International and Panorama, many territories aren’t even available.

The cast includes Jessica Chastain, Joel Edgerton, Fares Fares, Jason Clarke and Mark Strong.

Another project heading into Cannes with a significant deal in place is Intrepid Pictures’ Oculus. FilmDistrict has picked up domestic rights to the film, directed by Mike Flanagan and based on his acclaimed short film of the same name.

Intrepid’s Trevor Macy and Marc D. Evans are producing and fully financing Oculus, which Focus Features International is debuting to foreign buyers in Cannes. Intrepid’s Anil Kurian will executive produce.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

The seasoned filmmaker (director of movies like The Fly, Videodrome, and A History of Violence) was at Cannes for the premier of his upcoming sci-fi film, Cosmopolis, as well as that of his son’s first feature, Antiviral.

Both films were shot using (RED competitor) Arri Alexa cameras, of which Cronenberg said: “what you do as a director, how you work with the actors and what the lens do and what the light does is exactly the same” between digital and film.

Like others in the digital camp, the director extolled the convenience of the medium, saying that most film developers have shut down, forcing him to send film canisters off to LA. There you have it, then, one fewer person on Christopher Nolan’s side, a director who opted for film in The Dark Knight Rises because of the picture quality edge and IMAX resolution afforded by the over century-old medium.

What’s the one thing Cronenberg will miss? “The smell when you open those film cans.”

Source: The Verge

They and a host of other stars were on hand to see Moonrise Kingdom, the new film from US director Wes Anderson, launch the annual cinema showcase.

Bruce Willis, Bill Murray and Britain’s Tilda Swinton joined other cast members at the movie’s glitzy premiere.

The film is one of 22 in contention for Cannes’ prestigious Palme d’Or award.

Reactions to Anderson’s latest have been broadly positive, with The Guardian’s Peter Bradshaw saluting “a soufflé of strangeness [that] rises superbly”.

The Telegraph’s David Gritten was similarly effusive, describing it as “a mood elevator of a movie” and “an ideal opener” for this year’s event.

Moonrise Kingdom was a suitable curtain-raiser for a festival in which US films and directors are heavily represented.

The main competition line-up contains six US-based movies, among them a new thriller starring Brad Pitt and an adaptation of Jack Kerouac’s seminal novel On the Road.

“American cinema is back in force,” said Cannes’ artistic director Thierry Fremaux, when he announced the programme last month.

The US invasion continues on Friday with an out of competition screening of the latest DreamWorks animation, Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted.

Only one British film – The Angel’s Share, directed by Ken Loach – is up for the Palme d’Or. Yet British talent is well represented in other areas.

On Thursday the Critic’s Week sidebar launches with Broken, a London-based drama from acclaimed theatre director Rufus Norris, starring Tim Roth and Cillian Murphy.

Source: BBC News

2Pac, wearing only his 6-pac and low riding baggy jeans, thrilled a new audience and stunned his fans when he appeared in a hauntingly reincarnated ‘hologram’ shouting, “What the fu-k is up Coachella?”

So lifelike was his performance that The Brief had to conjure an urban legend: what if Tupac is still alive? What if he is actually hiding out in Cuba as some of his fans insist? After all, nobody saw his corpse. And what about Tupac’s prolific posthumous output? But bizarre theories aside, audiences at Coachella had only Dr. Dre to thank for making Tupac’s virtual appearance as badass as real life.

Don’t take my word for it; watch and come back:

Did you think you saw a ghost? Me too. And, frankly, we did. We saw a variation of a ghost illusion. Pepper’s Ghost to be exact. A visual effect discovered back in the 19th century that relies on an angled piece of glass to create a ghostly image. And as back to the future as it may sound, virtually the same thing that was happening back in 1862 happened in 2012 at Coachella. With one technical difference: “In the Victorian era, Pepper’s Ghost was used to reflect actual, physical objects or actors, making them appear “dimensional” in ways that projected or computer-generated imagery, typically used today, do not.”*

Dr. Dre had a spectacular vision. To bring the illusion of Tupac “back to life” to perform at Coachella. First stop Digital Domain – the Hollywood visual effects company that won an Academy Award for the work they did on The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Four months later, Digital Domain handed over computer generated graphics of Tupac’s physical characteristics and movements which were captured from recorded performances.*

About the difficulty in creating those graphics, Ed Ulbrich, C.E.O. of Digital Domain, said “To create a completely synthetic human being is the most complicated thing that can be done… performances of the rapper’s hits ‘Hail Mary’ and ‘2 of Amerikaz Most Wanted,’ weren’t simply old ones captured on film and repurposed: This is not found footage. This is not archival footage. This is an illusion.”*

But still a giant step from Coachella. To bring the computer graphics and projection to the stage, Dr. Dre enlisted AV Concepts in San Diego. They utilized the Musion Systems Ltd. patented Mylar screen - which steps up all the above to a gangsta spectacle that transcends.

Visionaries are inspiring. The rest of us can steal. Now that you know how and where it can be done, you only need the right brand, a budget over $100,000 and you can envision an out-of-home experience that may blow peoples’ minds. Just imagine:

1. A flash mob over mobile going out to 6 cities across North America.
2. They congregate to witness a staged event of (say) Michelangelo painting the Sistine Chapel. (Easy for me to say!)
3. Whilst ambassadors for Chanel hand out samples of their heavenly new fragrance. And you can download the Sistine Chapel as a free screensaver.
Or,
4. More mundane and done by AV Concepts with other CEO’s dead and alive - Steve Jobs makes one of his otherworldly new product presentations for 2013.

Of course, with a healthy budget you can always go the traditional route. But judging from here, you might challenge yourself to thrill people.

MORE VIRTUAL TO DIE FOR
Madonna live with Gorillaz hologram using the same Musion Systems Ltd. patented Mylar screen in this illusion used for the 2006 Grammy Awards. Click and enjoy:

Séance Sources

* Rapper’s De-Light: Tupac ‘Hologram’ May Go On Tour’ Wall Street Journal, TECHNOLOGY Monday, April 16, 2012
* Report: Tupac Hologram at Coachella Cost at Least $100K Rolling Stone Music, April 16, 2012
* “Hologram” in Marketing: An Uncanny Ally? By Andrew Pryor Mashed Marketing, April 23, 2012

—–

Comment to Linda at this address: thebrief@to411.com.
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Toronto is returning to the Bloor Hot Docs Cinema for its 37th edition after the downtown Toronto theater received a makeover from the Hot Docs Canadian International Film Festival.

Long a home for its Midnight Madness sidebar, the remade Bloor Hot Docs Cinema will this year show mostly premieres of documentaries and Vanguard program selections.

Midnight Madness selections now screen at the Ryerson Theater.

Elsewhere, the Visions sidebar will be folded into the avant-garde Wavelengths program, to be curated by Andrea Picard.

That gives Wavelengths short films, as well as feature films not previously booked into the Visions program.
And the Real to Reel program of non-fiction films has been renamed TIFF Docs.

The festival is also adding the TIFF Cinematheque sidebar of classic film titles from Canadian and international film vault.

And the Canada First! program has been jettisoned for the 2012 edition, as first-time features from Canadian filmmakers go elsewhere in the festival lineup, including the Discovery section for emerging directors.

The Toronto International Film Festival is set to run from Sep. 6 to Sept. 16, 2012.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Now in its 30th year, the company has more to celebrate beyond a new name and fresh look. Mergers, acquisitions, geographic expansions, a new executive team and a growing repertoire of services have increased its success and heightened its profile.

The company’s current growth and plans to enter new markets are cited as key reasons for its name change. Sim Video merged with Bling Digital in 2009 with the intention to create a company that could provide the most comprehensive equipment and file-based workflow solutions in the industry. Today, the fully merged company is working on top productions like Steven Speilberg’s Falling Skies in Vancouver, Vampire Diaries in Atlanta, and the massive Guillermo del Toro feature Pacific Rim in Toronto.

Founder and CEO, Rob Sim said of the name change, “SIM is a company that has worked hard to be at the forefront of our industry, and that means we are always evolving. While our name has served us well over years, the word ‘video’ seemed a little out of place with cameras like the Arri Alexa, Sony CineAlta and RED cameras winning over the industry,” said Sim. ”We have one of the most impressive inventories of digital cinema tools and cutting-edge services available, and yet our name didn’t imply it. After exploring some options, we ultimately focused on choosing a name that simply reflected how the industry and our clients refer to our services today – and SIM Digital was born.”

SIM has experienced significant growth in the past few years and is looking to expand its Bling workflow service offerings in the LA market in 2012. Sim’s Bling Digital division provides workflow solutions that include: on-set data management, video assist, digital dailies, LTO tape archiving and post-production equipment provision.

“Productions see no boundaries on where or how they shoot today. Our clients need to have access to our equipment and services in any city or country they decide to shoot in, so we’ve made it a priority to be more accessible,” said Jim Martin, CSO, SIM Digital. ”Change is always around us, and that’s what makes this an exciting time for our company. We’re eager to introduce our services to these markets under our new design, and we believe that our revamped identity will serve us well in this digital age.”

The non-refundable film, TV and digital tax credit, worth about $1 million according to the government, will replace the old film tax credit, worth about $8 million, that was cancelled in the provincial budget as a cost-cutting measure.

The new program, announced Friday afternoon, offers a 25 per cent non-refundable tax credit on production costs, but only companies that make a profit will get the money.

Ron Goetz, president of the Saskatchewan Motion Picture Industry Association (SMPIA), said that’s a problem.

“If you have no corporate earnings you have no tax credit,” Goetz said. “So that’s the difficulty, because most film companies don’t make a profit.”

Most of the companies are created for one specific film, Goetz explained.

“It’s not like these single-purpose companies are holding on to significant funds at the end of the day,” he added. “They’re designed to complete that production.”

The NDP turned up the heat on the change in the legislature.

“Why is the government forcing through a plan that will be completely useless in keeping the film industry alive in Saskatchewan and that won’t attract outside investment here?” Danielle Chartier asked Culture Minister Bill Hutchinson.

“Let’s be clear about this,” Hutchinson replied. “In every one of our discussions with the film industry, we have been very clear that the old refundable tax credit wasn’t viable. It obviously wasn’t helping to grow the industry. The industry was seriously in decline. It came at an enormous cost to taxpayers, and it was unfair to every other industry active in this province.”

Hutchinson added that over 98 per cent of the $100 million paid out through the old program was “really just a grant to companies that don’t even pay corporate income tax” in Saskatchewan.

While financial incentives to lure film and TV production have been controversial in other cities and states, especially in an era of budget gaps and fiscal austerity, New York has worked to retain its leading role.

A 2010 study by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities concluded that generous tax credits were not a good value since the best jobs went to people from outside the state.

But film and television production in New York City employs 130,000 people, including the support sectors of construction and food service, according to a report by the Boston Consulting Group, conducted at the city’s request free of charge.

“This report confirms what I’ve been seeing on sets and sound stages around the city – the film and television industry in New York City has never been bigger,” the mayor said in a statement.

In 2011, the industry generated $7.1 billion in direct spending, the study found.

Bloomberg has long argued New York City’s reputation as a cultural hub brings jobs and bolsters its international reputation, generating more tourism.

The state of New York offers a program that provides qualifying film and television productions a 30-percent tax credit on expenditures.

The city has a series of programs designed to complement the state’s tax credit, costing the city between $10 million and $20 million per year, according to its Office of Film, Theatre & Broadcasting.

Bloomberg said the media landscape in the city – which serves as a backdrop for such TV shows as “30 Rock,” “Gossip Girl” and “The Good Wife” – “has shown strong growth throughout the economic downturn.”

Reuters: Vancouver Sun

Traditional TV found a model that works, but online publishers refuse to fully replicate the TV ad load model in their long-form content, and that’s a major loss in revenue and advertising market share. Online video has made huge inroads in the race to make more premium, long-form content available to both consumers and advertisers, but online video will never compete with TV ad dollars if publishers aren’t willing to build in a greater ad load.

Eliminating artificial scarcity
We’ve seen small-scale adoption of the interruption model in online video, largely on sites like Hulu that stream movies and TV shows. Yet many publishers, Hulu included, are constantly “sold out” of inventory. This is partly because of demand, but also because publishers create artificial scarcity.

In truth, greater ad load does not have much effect on video consumption, nor does it scare away video viewers. A recent study by FreeWheel actually found that ad loads within long-form content are on the rise, while completion rates are holding steady at an average of 88 percent. Even Hulu is hitting a 96% completion rate, and it serves more ads than any other video property. There is a clear opportunity to create more revenue by selling more impressions, but publishers have seized upon the idea that demand comes only by limiting supply.

Room for technology innovation
Beyond the obvious lack of inventory, artificial scarcity stymies innovation in the market. Look at audience targeting, which is the strategy du jour in display. When advertisers are forced to buy online video on a per-show basis, it completely eliminates targeting opportunities. Adding more impressions actually makes it easier to slice and dice the inventory into different groups, selling larger campaigns for smaller groups of consumers, and opening certain blocks up to audience targeting.

There’s a clear consumer benefit as well, because more ad opportunities increases the chances of getting the targeting right. For example, let’s say a publisher has campaigns for orange juice, a CPG product like cleaning supplies, and a minivan running on the site at the same time. The ad server detects a mom is on the site, and as she starts a 25-minute TV program, orange juice is served. The mom jumps to another tab to skip the pre-roll ad. There was one opportunity, and it failed.

Targeting algorithms learn based on interactions over time, therefore building more interaction opportunities speeds the rate at which the technology advances. If that same mom skipped the juice ad, but interacted with a CPG ad later in the program, the algorithm can learn.

Then there’s the practice of day parts, which could in turn drive higher ad rates. We know the majority of video viewership occurs from 5 to 11 p.m., the same as TV’s prime time. But with limited supply, it doesn’t make sense to experiment with day parting. Greater availability means publishers can command higher rates for the prime-time inventory, while likely selling through the rest either directly, or through networks and RTB.

Creative experimentation
A greater ad load also opens the door to more advanced creativity, particularly for brand building. Effective advertising should feel like part of the content, rather than take away from it. More ads create the opportunity to develop creative executions based on sequencing. This could mean multiple ads that tell different parts of a story throughout the program, or new creative that is served based on an interaction with a previous ad from the same brand.

The latest Interactive Advertising Bureau protocol is directly tied to standardizing ad pods and sequences, alleviating the stress of multiple ad breaks. Most publishers utilizing modern video ad serving technology should find a greater ad load relatively easy to implement as well. If it still seems like a problem, it’s probably time to invest in a new ad server.

Greater ad revenue is the most obvious benefit of a greater ad load, but the ability to innovate can’t be ignored. Publishers constantly say, “I’m sold out, and there’s no clear benefit to trying anything new.” It’s very difficult to see a benefit without actually trying, so I’ll turn the questions back to publishers. What motivates them to constrain the supply of premium video? Is it solely the user experience, or are they trying to maintain their premium?

Source: Ad Age

“We moved from Vancouver for economic reasons,” Fox line producer Joe Caracciolo told media in Sydney, Australia, according to a report by Screen Daily. “More and more there is pressure on the costs of pictures and the numbers were not adding up [in Canada.]“

Screen Daily reported that Australia provided a $13-million cash incentive to 20th Century Fox to film the movie in star Hugh Jackman’s hometown.

“The Wolverine is expected to generate more than $80 million in production expenditure in [New South Wales] and create more than 720 jobs for NSW-based cast and crew, along with opportunities for up to 1,200 extras,” Australian NSW State deputy premier and Minister for Trade and Investment Andrew Stoner said in a news release.

The Wolverine is the sixth instalment in the X-Men movie franchise, and at least two of the earlier films were filmed in Vancouver. In March, The Vancouver Sun reported that Ontario has overtaken B.C. as a film and television production centre in Canada for the first time in many years despite overall film and television spending on the West Coast increasing 16 per cent in 2011 to nearly $1.2 billion.

Some commentators at the time said that Ontario’s more generous tax credits were luring film companies east, and away from B.C.’s film industry, which employs 20,000 people involved in 281 productions in 2011.

Peter Leitch, chairman of the Motion Picture Production Industry Association of B.C. and president of North Shore Studios, said he prefers B.C.’s model of providing tax credits to all productions, over targeting specific productions as Australia does.

“I think the B.C. model is a better one and provides certainty to encourage private-sector investment and create job growth,” Leitch said in an email. “A decision to provide more incentives to one production over the other would be counterproductive and short-term thinking.”

He said B.C. has many advantages when it comes to getting film and television production jobs, including great crews, great infrastructure and competitive pricing.

“We are not always going to be the ‘low cost’ producer but our goal is to provide the best value over the long term,” Leitch said. “So far it has worked pretty well, although it is becoming more challenging with the high dollar and aggressive tax credits of other jurisdictions.”

British Columbia is the fourth-largest overall film and television production centre in North America, behind Los Angeles, New York and Toronto.

Filming of The Wolverine will begin this year, and the movie is expected to be released in July 2013.

Montreal Gazette