The programme for the 57th BFI London Film Festival, in partnership with American Express®, launched today with BFI’s Head of Cinemas and Festivals, Clare Stewart, returning for her second year with a rich and diverse programme of international films and events from both established and upcoming talent over a 12 day celebration of cinema.
The Festival will screen a total of 234 fiction and documentary features, including 22 World Premieres, 16 International Premieres, 29 European Premieres and 20 Archive films. There will also be screenings of 134 live action and animated shorts. A stellar line-up of directors, cast and crew are expected to take part in career interviews, master classes and other special events. The 57th BFI London Film Festival will run from 9-20 October 2013. Read more
The UK Digital Funding Partnership (DFP) has announced the completion of its strategy to support the conversion of independent cinema sites to digital cinema technology.
Working through its VPF-funded deployment partner, dcinex, the DFP has now ensured the full digitisation of almost 300 independent cinema screens across the UK, equipping them with DCI-specified equipment and ensuring that they will be able to take advantage of all the new and exciting opportunities that this technology allows. Read more
The public took a trip to Elysium this Bank Holiday weekend as the Matt Damon sci-fi actioner comfortably topped the box office with £3.1m, including £974k from previews. Factoring in Bank Holiday Monday, it has a cume of £3.6m. The film has a very similar feel to director Neill Blomkamp’s debut film, District 9, and that film opened with £2.3m in 2009 but without previews, so from Friday to Sunday was slightly up on Elysium.
We’re The Millers opened in second place with a solid £1.5m (including £8k from previews) and including Monday, now has a cume of £1.9m. Jennifer Aniston and Jason Sudeikis previously starred together in 2011’s Horrible Bosses, which opened with £2m. Read more
Ben Affleck has been announced as the successor to Christian Bale’s caped crusader Batman in director Zack Snyder’s sequel to the summer’s blockbuster Man of Steel. Affleck will star opposite Henry Cavill, who will reprise his role as Superman to take on Bruce Wayne in what has been considered the ultimate superhero face-off of the century.
The untitled Batman-meets-Superman movie will bring the two superheroes together in one film for the first time, a concept that has excited fans since its announcement earlier this year at San Diego’s annual Comic-Con. Affleck and Snyder will reportedly collaborate to “create an entirely new incarnation of the character” which will exist in the “director’s vision of their universe” established by Snyder in Man of Steel. Read more
Fledgling film fans and budding young cinema enthusiasts have been offered an exciting opportunity by Film Nation UK to take part in their first National Film Festival, building on the previous work undertaken by National Schools Film Week.
The festival will run from 21 October to 8 November delivering a nationwide programme of free film screenings and activities aimed at 5-19 year olds, including interactive workshops and Q&A sessions with industry professionals. Pupils and teachers will be pleased to know that these sessions will be tied into the National Curriculum to maximise their educational potential, and perhaps more notably, allow them to do something new and inspiring during school hours. Read more
The shortlists for the annual 2013 Screen Awards have been announced by Screen International. The Screen Awards were created to recognise and celebrate the UK industry’s exemplary work in marketing, distribution and exhibition at every level and across every platform, with Digital Cinema Media (DCM) and the Cinema Exhibitors Association (CEA) sponsoring new categories in the line-up.
The annual event is returning for its fourth year with 22 awards to be won – including six new categories this year. Digital Cinema Media is proud to sponsor the Brand Partnership of the Year category, a category which aims to further acknowledge the significance of a brand’s involvement with film and recognise top brand-film partnerships from the year. Entries have been judged on how the brand and film both benefited from the partnership and how audiences were involved in compelling ways. The category was also open for partnerships that aren’t single title specific. Read more
For the third weekend in a row the film at the top of the box office was not the best performer from Friday to Sunday. Thanks to two days of previews, Kick-Ass 2 snatched the top spot from Disney animation, Planes.
The comic book sequel grossed £2.5m, including £1m from previews, which is some way off the first Kick-Ass’ £3.8m debut, although that too was heavily preview assisted. Read more
Last week, thousands of festivalgoers donned their sunglasses and boots and flocked to Chelmsford’s V Festival to see the likes of Beyoncé, Kings of Leon and Calvin Harris performing in the Essex countryside. Revellers enjoyed a weekend of sunshine but, in true festival fashion, the bursts of rain and the cold nights had fans rushing back to their tents to avoid the mud and recover before doing it all again the next day.
Those fortunate enough to be in Virgin Media’s exclusive Louder Lounge were able to rest their wellie-worn feet in Cineworld’s “festival film zone”; a converted shipping container transformed into a pop-up cinema offering beanbags, blankets and cinema snacks and drink to film buffs and those who weren’t quite ready to return to their sleeping bags. Read more
This Week, DCM Close Up meets Caoimhin McClafferty, Operations Manager at the Brunswick Moviebowl in Derry. He tells us what’s unique about his cinema and the special events that have been hosted at the venue. To feature your cinema in a future issue, please email rebecca.rau@dcm.co.uk.
How did you end up working in cinema and what do you love about it? Read more
DCM and IGN joined forces this week to introduce the media sector to their exciting new partnership, which combines the reach of digital and the impact of the big screen. The presentation detailed how DCM and IGN can offer brands the opportunity to advertise around specially-created multi-platform branded content spanning cinema, online and mobile channels.
Cinema is an experience that attracts a large number of video game enthusiasts. DCM and IGN reach over 7.7m UK based 18-35 males a month, via cinema admissions, web, mobile and social platforms. Gaming brands will be able to use cinemas as venues to showcase new games, allowing fans to play exclusive interactive content on the big screen pre-launch, or to première product releases. Read more
After last weekend saw seven films in the top 15 crack the £1m barrier, this weekend went ahead and matched it and the top 11 all grossed over £900k.
The top two were also the closest since December 2007, when just £6.2k separated Enchanted and The Golden Compass. This weekend Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa just managed to come out on top with £2.2m, including £744k from previews, beating Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters, in second place by just £38k. The fantasy adventure grossed £2.1m, with £861k from previews. Check out what Mr. Partridge had to say on the Norwich premiere here. Read more
With the search on for a new Batman and talk of a Blackadder movie adaption, DCM Close Up looks at some of the film news hitting the headlines this week.
Who’s Next For Batman? Read more
