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Inglorious Basterds and National Treasure star Diane Kruger is set to play legendary German actress and singer Marlene Dietrich in a new biopic TV series from In the Fade director Fatih Akin.
Akin’s Bombero International are producing the five-part series, with the working title Marlene, together with German mini-major UFA Fiction, based on the biography of Dietrich, Meine Mutter Marlene (My Mother Marlene), written by Dietrich’s daughter Maria Riva. Akin will adapt the book for the screen in his first television project. Kruger will also executive produce.
Kruger starred in Akin’s In the Fade as a woman who takes revenge for the racially-motivated killing of her ethnic Turkish husband. The film premiered at Cannes in 2017, where Kruger won the best actress prize.
“With Fatih’s talent and ability to see inside the soul of every person, I’m certain that...
Inglorious Basterds and National Treasure star Diane Kruger is set to play legendary German actress and singer Marlene Dietrich in a new biopic TV series from In the Fade director Fatih Akin.
Akin’s Bombero International are producing the five-part series, with the working title Marlene, together with German mini-major UFA Fiction, based on the biography of Dietrich, Meine Mutter Marlene (My Mother Marlene), written by Dietrich’s daughter Maria Riva. Akin will adapt the book for the screen in his first television project. Kruger will also executive produce.
Kruger starred in Akin’s In the Fade as a woman who takes revenge for the racially-motivated killing of her ethnic Turkish husband. The film premiered at Cannes in 2017, where Kruger won the best actress prize.
“With Fatih’s talent and ability to see inside the soul of every person, I’m certain that...
- 9/30/2022
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Fatih Akin’s Marlene Dietrich Miniseries Starring Diane Kruger Goes into Production With UFA Fiction
Fatih Akin has teamed up with Berlin-based UFA Fiction on his miniseries about German star Marlene Dietrich, starring Diane Kruger.
Based on the biography “My Mother Marlene,” by Dietrich’s daughter, Maria Riva, the five-part series, tentatively titled “Marlene,” is produced by UFA Fiction and Akin’s Bombero International in Hamburg.
Currently in production, the miniseries chronicles Dietrich’s life as an artist, lover, German emigrant and mother as well as a woman who created her own rules and lived by them, whatever the cost.
“‘Marlene’ will be not only the first series I have written and directed but also the greatest challenge in my film career,” said Akin, the series’ creator.
“It is the continuation of my successful collaboration with Diane Kruger. Nobody is better cast than her. Marlene was not only a cinematic icon, but a woman in exile, German immigrant in America, resistance fighter and so much more.
Based on the biography “My Mother Marlene,” by Dietrich’s daughter, Maria Riva, the five-part series, tentatively titled “Marlene,” is produced by UFA Fiction and Akin’s Bombero International in Hamburg.
Currently in production, the miniseries chronicles Dietrich’s life as an artist, lover, German emigrant and mother as well as a woman who created her own rules and lived by them, whatever the cost.
“‘Marlene’ will be not only the first series I have written and directed but also the greatest challenge in my film career,” said Akin, the series’ creator.
“It is the continuation of my successful collaboration with Diane Kruger. Nobody is better cast than her. Marlene was not only a cinematic icon, but a woman in exile, German immigrant in America, resistance fighter and so much more.
- 9/29/2022
- by Ed Meza
- Variety Film + TV
Berlin-based sales agency Picture Tree Intl. has added to its European Film Market slate “Love Thing,” starring top German actor Elyas M’Barek, whose credits include “The Collini Case.” Also on the slate is “Soul of a Beast,” which debuts its trailer below.
Despite the virtual nature of the EFM, the company has taken additional office space at the Marriott Hotel in Berlin’s Potsdamer Platz.
“Love Thing,” which also stars Lucie Heinze, Peri Baumeister and Alexandra Maria Lara, is directed and written by Anika Decker, whose last feature “High Society” sold widely. Decker scripted box office successes like “Rabbit Without Ears,” which grossed $85 million.
“Love Thing” is produced by German production-distribution powerhouse Constantin Film, which has set its release for July 7. The producers are Rüdiger Böss and Philipp Reuter; the co-producers are Anika Decker and Jan Decker; and the executive producer is Martin Moszkowicz. Picture Tree will present a first teaser trailer to select buyers.
Despite the virtual nature of the EFM, the company has taken additional office space at the Marriott Hotel in Berlin’s Potsdamer Platz.
“Love Thing,” which also stars Lucie Heinze, Peri Baumeister and Alexandra Maria Lara, is directed and written by Anika Decker, whose last feature “High Society” sold widely. Decker scripted box office successes like “Rabbit Without Ears,” which grossed $85 million.
“Love Thing” is produced by German production-distribution powerhouse Constantin Film, which has set its release for July 7. The producers are Rüdiger Böss and Philipp Reuter; the co-producers are Anika Decker and Jan Decker; and the executive producer is Martin Moszkowicz. Picture Tree will present a first teaser trailer to select buyers.
- 2/2/2022
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
Philipp Kadelbach, director and co-creator of the series “We Children From Bahnhof Zoo,” says his initial impulse when approached to helm the series was to steer well clear of what he saw as a fool’s errand, given the iconic status in Germany and elsewhere of Uli Edel’s 1981 feature film “Christiane F.,” which – like the series – is based on the book “Christiane F.: Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo.”
“I said, ‘I’m not going to do this. I’m not crazy.’ Because it’s like a monument for so many people. And everybody would start attacking me because I’ve gone to tell this story again, and they really loved it,” he tells Variety.
However, having read Annette Hess’ scripts, he saw how she had approached the material in a different way. The film felt like it had a voyeuristic approach to the subject, he says. He resolved to...
“I said, ‘I’m not going to do this. I’m not crazy.’ Because it’s like a monument for so many people. And everybody would start attacking me because I’ve gone to tell this story again, and they really loved it,” he tells Variety.
However, having read Annette Hess’ scripts, he saw how she had approached the material in a different way. The film felt like it had a voyeuristic approach to the subject, he says. He resolved to...
- 4/9/2021
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
Amazon Prime Video Takes U.S., Most of Europe on ‘We Children From Bahnhof Zoo’ After Fremantle Deal
Fremantle has near sold the world outside Asia on “We Children From Bahnhof Zoo” – thanks to a raft of sales that include a worldwide deal with Amazon Prime Video for the U.S., English-speaking territories and all Europe’s outstanding major markets.
Taking in further sales to HBO Europe, Nent Group and Russia’s More TV, the series, produced by Constantin Television and Amazon Studios and a modern reworking of the story of Christiane F., has currently closed more than 40 territories, Fremantle announced Monday.
Co-produced by the Czech Republic’s Wilma Film and Italy’s Cattleya, “We Children From Bahnhof Zoo” will open on Prime Video in the U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, Spain and Benelux from April 9, and Italy on May 7.
HBO Europe has licensed 15 territories in Central and Eastern Europe, where it operates channels and streaming services, led by Poland and Hungary and the Baltic States.
Taking in further sales to HBO Europe, Nent Group and Russia’s More TV, the series, produced by Constantin Television and Amazon Studios and a modern reworking of the story of Christiane F., has currently closed more than 40 territories, Fremantle announced Monday.
Co-produced by the Czech Republic’s Wilma Film and Italy’s Cattleya, “We Children From Bahnhof Zoo” will open on Prime Video in the U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, Spain and Benelux from April 9, and Italy on May 7.
HBO Europe has licensed 15 territories in Central and Eastern Europe, where it operates channels and streaming services, led by Poland and Hungary and the Baltic States.
- 3/22/2021
- by John Hopewell and Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
Berlin-based Picture Tree International (Pti) has acquired global sales rights to Leander Haussmann’s highly anticipated East German laffer “A Stasi Comedy.”
Set in the early 1980s, the film centers on East Germany’s infamous state security service, the Staatssicherheitsdienst or Stasi, and young agent Ludger, played by David Kross, who is sent to infiltrate the counterculture scene in East Berlin’s Prenzlauer Berg district, home to artists, bohemians and free-thinking radicals. Decades later, Ludger is confronted with the possibility of his secret Stasi past coming to light.
Written and directed by Haussmann, “A Stasi Comedy” is the third installment in the celebrated filmmaker’s East German-themed comedy trilogy that began with “Sonnenallee” (“Sun Alley”) in 2000 and followed with “Nva” in 2004.
“After 30 years, it should be finally allowed to laugh about the Stasi,” Haussmann said.
“A Stasi Comedy” is produced by Ufa Fiction in co-production with Constantin Film, which is...
Set in the early 1980s, the film centers on East Germany’s infamous state security service, the Staatssicherheitsdienst or Stasi, and young agent Ludger, played by David Kross, who is sent to infiltrate the counterculture scene in East Berlin’s Prenzlauer Berg district, home to artists, bohemians and free-thinking radicals. Decades later, Ludger is confronted with the possibility of his secret Stasi past coming to light.
Written and directed by Haussmann, “A Stasi Comedy” is the third installment in the celebrated filmmaker’s East German-themed comedy trilogy that began with “Sonnenallee” (“Sun Alley”) in 2000 and followed with “Nva” in 2004.
“After 30 years, it should be finally allowed to laugh about the Stasi,” Haussmann said.
“A Stasi Comedy” is produced by Ufa Fiction in co-production with Constantin Film, which is...
- 2/17/2020
- by Ed Meza
- Variety Film + TV
“The Golden Glove,” Golden Bear winner Fatih Akin’s film about a real-life serial killer, has been sold to multiple territories, including Japan, Spain and Italy, by German sales agent The Match Factory.
The film is scheduled to world-premiere Saturday in competition at the Berlin Film Festival. Set in the 1970s, the pic tells the story of Fritz Honka, who killed at least four women in Hamburg’s red-light district. Akin’s screenplay is based on the novel of the same name by Heinz Strunk.
The film, which will be released by Pathe in France and Warner Bros. in Germany, has now been acquired by Bitters End in Japan, Vertigo in Spain, Bim in Italy, Cineart in Benelux and Rosebud in Greece. Other buyers include Vertigo in Hungary, Independenta Film 97 in Romania, Art Fest in Bulgaria, A-One Films in the Baltic states, McF MegaCom Film in the former Yugoslavia, and Bio Paradis in Iceland.
The film is scheduled to world-premiere Saturday in competition at the Berlin Film Festival. Set in the 1970s, the pic tells the story of Fritz Honka, who killed at least four women in Hamburg’s red-light district. Akin’s screenplay is based on the novel of the same name by Heinz Strunk.
The film, which will be released by Pathe in France and Warner Bros. in Germany, has now been acquired by Bitters End in Japan, Vertigo in Spain, Bim in Italy, Cineart in Benelux and Rosebud in Greece. Other buyers include Vertigo in Hungary, Independenta Film 97 in Romania, Art Fest in Bulgaria, A-One Films in the Baltic states, McF MegaCom Film in the former Yugoslavia, and Bio Paradis in Iceland.
- 2/8/2019
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
Variety has been given exclusive access to first-look footage from Fatih Akin’s horror film “The Golden Glove,” which has its world premiere at the Berlin Film Festival. Akin has previously won the Golden Globe, Berlin’s Golden Bear, Venice’s Special Jury Prize, and Cannes’ screenplay award.
Set in Hamburg’s St. Pauli district in the 1970s, the film tells the true story of serial killer Fritz Honka. Akin’s screenplay is based on the novel of the same name by Heinz Strunk.
The action centers on Honka’s favorite bar, the Golden Glove, where schmaltzy German songs move the boozy barflies to tears and drinking is a reflex against pain and longing.
At first glance, Honka – played by Jonas Dassler – is a pitiful loser. The man with the broken face carouses through his nights in the Golden Glove, chasing after lonely women. None of the regulars suspects that...
Set in Hamburg’s St. Pauli district in the 1970s, the film tells the true story of serial killer Fritz Honka. Akin’s screenplay is based on the novel of the same name by Heinz Strunk.
The action centers on Honka’s favorite bar, the Golden Glove, where schmaltzy German songs move the boozy barflies to tears and drinking is a reflex against pain and longing.
At first glance, Honka – played by Jonas Dassler – is a pitiful loser. The man with the broken face carouses through his nights in the Golden Glove, chasing after lonely women. None of the regulars suspects that...
- 1/31/2019
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
Awards run, early 2018 theatrical release planned.
Magnolia Pictures has acquired North American rights to Faith Akin’s revenge drama In the Fade starring Cannes best actress winner Diane Kruger.
The film will navigate an awards-qualifying run this autumn ahead of a theatrical release in early 2018.
Kruger plays a German mother seeking revenge for the murder of her family at the hands of Neo-Nazis. Denis Moschitto, Johannes Krisch, Ulrich Tukur, Samia Chancrin, and Numan Acar also star.
“In the Fade is my own reflection of current developments in the world,” Akin, who wrote and directed, said. “On different layers it is a very personal film for me. I am honored that Magnolia will bring the movie to American audiences and I am very excited about this.” Hark Bohm co-wrote the screenplay.
Nurhan Şekerci-Porst, Akin, and Herman Weigel produced. The film is a Warner Bros Pictures presentation of a Bombero International, Warner Bros Film Productions Germany production, in co-production...
Magnolia Pictures has acquired North American rights to Faith Akin’s revenge drama In the Fade starring Cannes best actress winner Diane Kruger.
The film will navigate an awards-qualifying run this autumn ahead of a theatrical release in early 2018.
Kruger plays a German mother seeking revenge for the murder of her family at the hands of Neo-Nazis. Denis Moschitto, Johannes Krisch, Ulrich Tukur, Samia Chancrin, and Numan Acar also star.
“In the Fade is my own reflection of current developments in the world,” Akin, who wrote and directed, said. “On different layers it is a very personal film for me. I am honored that Magnolia will bring the movie to American audiences and I am very excited about this.” Hark Bohm co-wrote the screenplay.
Nurhan Şekerci-Porst, Akin, and Herman Weigel produced. The film is a Warner Bros Pictures presentation of a Bombero International, Warner Bros Film Productions Germany production, in co-production...
- 8/10/2017
- ScreenDaily
If you can stand Giorgio Moroder's oh-so-80s theme song and are willing to accept that movies without CGI can be worth watching (you know, like black-and-white films), The NeverEnding Story will be a worthwhile addition to your hi-def family film collection. This 1984 fantasy film has all the classic elements of the genre from the period when it was made (little people with big ears, animatronics creatures and obvious blue-screen work). These, together with its action-packed story, should provide enough fun to keep the kids happy while parents of the right age enjoy a trip down memory lane.
Want to know more? The NeverEnding Story is the first of three films that were based on a fantasy novel of the same name by German author Michael Ende. This one was directed by Wolfgang Petersen, who later went on to make a name for himself in Hollywood with such films as Air Force One,...
Want to know more? The NeverEnding Story is the first of three films that were based on a fantasy novel of the same name by German author Michael Ende. This one was directed by Wolfgang Petersen, who later went on to make a name for himself in Hollywood with such films as Air Force One,...
- 3/24/2010
- CinemaSpy
Chicago – I think it’s funny that so many parents commented on “Where the Wild Things Are” being too dark and scary. Clearly, they didn’t grow up in the same era of ’70s and ’80s fantasy films as I did when kid’s movies could be honestly terrifying. “The Dark Crystal,” “Labyrinth,” and, of course, “The Neverending Story” recognized that kids need a good cry and a true scare as much as they need to be entertained. Wolfgang Petersen’s excellent adaptation of the beloved book by Michael Ende was dark, complex, and riveting. It’s nice to own it on Blu-ray but it deserved a better release.
Blu-Ray Rating: 3.0/5.0
It seems likely that the HD version of “The Neverending Story” is timed by Warner Brothers to release on the same day as Spike Jonze’s masterful “Where the Wild Things Are” because they are both dark fantasy films...
Blu-Ray Rating: 3.0/5.0
It seems likely that the HD version of “The Neverending Story” is timed by Warner Brothers to release on the same day as Spike Jonze’s masterful “Where the Wild Things Are” because they are both dark fantasy films...
- 3/1/2010
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Cologne, Germany -- Like a middle-aged rocker going out for one more glory ride, Constantin Film is taking another go at its hit Werner franchise, revving up the animated series about a booze-fueled biker for a fifth film.
Based on Rotger Feldmann's cult comics, the first four entries in the "Werner" series have sold more than 13.6 million tickets in Germany, making it one of the most successful local franchises of all time. But while the first two Werner films -- in 1990 and 1996 -- were massive hits, selling nearly 5 million tickets each, the law of diminishing returns quickly kicked in. "Werner 3" (1999) sold around 2.8 million admissions and "Werner 4" (2003) just over a million.
The fifth film, titled "Werner -- Eiskalt!" (Werner -- Ice Cold), will be a mix of animated and real-life sequences and will mix fact and fiction with Feldmann playing himself as a passionate biker and comic book writer. Feldmann will...
Based on Rotger Feldmann's cult comics, the first four entries in the "Werner" series have sold more than 13.6 million tickets in Germany, making it one of the most successful local franchises of all time. But while the first two Werner films -- in 1990 and 1996 -- were massive hits, selling nearly 5 million tickets each, the law of diminishing returns quickly kicked in. "Werner 3" (1999) sold around 2.8 million admissions and "Werner 4" (2003) just over a million.
The fifth film, titled "Werner -- Eiskalt!" (Werner -- Ice Cold), will be a mix of animated and real-life sequences and will mix fact and fiction with Feldmann playing himself as a passionate biker and comic book writer. Feldmann will...
- 7/28/2009
- by By Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
It's becoming more frequent these days - classics reimagined due to Hollywood's starvation for good materials to work with. Now, "The Neverending Story" will be remade. Still, it's not all bad news though, the film would be remade by The Kennedy/Marshall Co. ("The Curious Case of Benjamin Button") and Leonardo DiCaprio's Appian Way company if discussions turned a thumbs up. The original film, which was based on the German-language novel by Michael Ende, was helmed by Wolfgang Petersen ("Troy") and starred Barret Oliver, Noah Hathaway, Alan OPpenheiler and Tami Stronach. The story followed Bastian (Oliver), a boy who opens a world called Fantasia within a book called "The Neverending Story." The more he reads, the more he is intertwined within the story of the hero called Atreyu (Hathaway) and the Childlike Empress (Stronach) and comes to realize his ultimate importance in the story. Petersen adapted the screenplay alongside Herman Weigel.
- 2/26/2009
- Upcoming-Movies.com
COLOGNE, Germany -- Matthias Peipp has been named co-director in charge of rights trading at Germany's No. 1 indie film group, Constantin Filmverleih, Constantin said Friday.
Peipp joins current Constantin Filmverleih director Thomas Peter Friedl and will handle oversight of the sales and acquisition of film and TV rights for the Munich-based company. He will report to Constantin CEO Fred Kogel.
Peipp's appointment is part of Constantin's restructuring of its licensing business. The collapse of rights giant KirchMedia in 2002 meant many of the licenses for Constantin films and TV, once locked up in output deals, have now returned to the company.
"(This) has made it necessary for us to appoint a separate director with responsibility for the license trading operations at the company and to restructure these operations as a result," Kogel said.
Peipp will now head the company's entire licensing operation. Herman Weigel, responsible for the license acquisitions from U.S. majors and Yoko Higuchi, who handles indie acquisitions, will report to Peipp.
Peipp joins current Constantin Filmverleih director Thomas Peter Friedl and will handle oversight of the sales and acquisition of film and TV rights for the Munich-based company. He will report to Constantin CEO Fred Kogel.
Peipp's appointment is part of Constantin's restructuring of its licensing business. The collapse of rights giant KirchMedia in 2002 meant many of the licenses for Constantin films and TV, once locked up in output deals, have now returned to the company.
"(This) has made it necessary for us to appoint a separate director with responsibility for the license trading operations at the company and to restructure these operations as a result," Kogel said.
Peipp will now head the company's entire licensing operation. Herman Weigel, responsible for the license acquisitions from U.S. majors and Yoko Higuchi, who handles indie acquisitions, will report to Peipp.
- 10/20/2007
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
COLOGNE, Germany -- Yoko Higuchi has been named head of licensing at German indie giant Constantin Film, the company announced Monday. Higuchi, who joined Constantin two years ago as an international acquisitions executive, will report to company CEO Fred Kogel. She will continue to oversee Constantin's international acquisitions business together with Kogel and Constantin production executive Herman Weigel. In a statement announcing the appointment, Kogel singled out Higuchi's achievement in building "strategic alliances" between Constantin and all of Germany's major television broadcasters.
MUNICH -- Yoko Higuchi has joined the Acquisitions and Licensing division of Munich-based film house Constantin Film AG, the company said Monday. Higuchi, who has spent the past three years in acquisitions at Munich independent production company and distributor Prokino, will work with Constantin CEO Fred Kogel and head of acquisitions Herman Weigel to oversee international acquisitions and licensing. She will also be a Constantin scout at the Venice and Toronto film festivals, the company's statement said.
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