Even with such chart-topping titles as Jurassic World and The Avengers: Age of Ultron, 2015’s unadjusted cumulative box office is up only six percent over 2014 and only one percent over 2013. In a recent presentation, a top Movio executive suggested that the film industry is “leaving money on the table” by not paying more attention to underserved sectors of the movie going audience, namely women.
Hula Post recently provided editorial systems, facilities and support to editor Melissa Kent for her work on Captive, Paramount Pictures’ new thrilling drama. Kent spent six months cutting the film at Hula’s Burbank facility, followed by an additional two weeks on Paramount Pictures lot in Hollywood. Hula provided Avid workstations and storage at both sites.
Rough Riders Studios’s feature documentary South Bureau Homicide will be making its world premiere at the 2015 Saint Louis International Film Festival November 14 at the Hi-Pointe Backlot Theatre. Special screenings for the community are being set up in St. Louis and in the neighboring community of Ferguson.
Indian post house Nube Studio has opened with a Baselight Two grading workstation as its centerpiece. The color-driven facility is providing services for commercials, music videos, television and film throughout the region.
Carmike Cinemas has acquired all of Sundance Cinemas for $36.0 million in cash, subject to customary working capital and other adjustments. The transaction simultaneously closed upon signing of the purchase agreement. Carmike now operates 274 theatres with 2,909 screens in 41 states.
Sony Pictures Animation’s monster hit Hotel Transylvania 2, currently topping charts and setting records at the worldwide box office, marks the return of the Drac Pack in an all-new comedy adventure. Like its hit 2012 predecessor, the new film is directed by Genndy Tartakovsky and features the voice talents of Adam Sandler, Andy Samberg, Selena Gomez, Kevin James, and many others. Also back for the sequel are supervising sound editor Geoffrey G. Rubay and his sound team from Sony Pictures Post Production Services.
Cinematographer Michael FitzMaurice recently concluded principal photography on the feature thriller Monolith. The Sky Italia Productions' project was shot in punishing desert conditions (Kanab, Utah and Mojave Airport, California), and is currently in post. In Monolith, the nail-biter story follows a young mother as she labors through the night to free her infant son from a monolith SUV before the desert sun comes up.
The Aerigon aerial remote camera platform, outfitted with a Red Dragon camera, was used by the Natural History Film Unit to capture some of the sweeping overhead images for the latest Taylor Swift video, Wildest Dreams. Staged as a period piece film shoot on the African Savannah, the richly produced music video incorporates stunning aerial scenes of wildlife, thanks in part to the stability and lift capacity of Aerigon, which allows filmmakers to use the cameras and lenses they need for their shots, including full in-flight camera controls.
Reading International will open the first Angelika Film Center & Café on the West Coast October 9. Dedicated to exhibiting quality films and events, the sleek and modern Angelika Film Center & Cafe is a unique venue for San Diego’s culturally rich community offering diverse programming and a creative menu of craft beverages and bites.
When Fujinon added the PL 19-90mm zoom lens to its Cabrio line, the company anticipated resistance from the cinema community. As Mike Nichols, business development manager for sales and rental house AbelCine puts it, “Most feature film DP’s are accustomed to primes and prefer a more traditional cinema-style lens, particularly in a narrative set up. And while the removable servo is convenient, DPs may not yet see it as a lens that’ll work in a cinematic set up.” That’s starting to change.
