MOTION PICTURE ASSOCIATION APPLAUDS AUSTRALIA’S 30 PERCENT LOCATION OFFSET INCREASE
FILM & TV PRODUCTION OFFSETS BOOST AUSTRALIAN ECONOMY BY $16.5 BILLION, OLSBERG SPI STUDY SAYS
2022 MOTION PICTURE ASSOCIATION – ASIA PACIFIC SCREEN ACADEMY FILM FUND RECIPIENTS ANNOUNCED
ALLIANCE FOR CREATIVITY AND ENTERTAINMENT SHUTS DOWN ILLEGAL GERMAN STREAMING SITES HDFILME AND XCINE
Linda Gozali Received Special Award for Services in Support of Protecting Creative Rights
How Vietnamese Filmmaker Bui Kim Quy Faced Death, Real & Imagined, in Her Film “Memoryland”
BY SILVIA WONG When her second film Memoryland held its world premiere at the Busan International Film Festival’s New Currents competition last month, Vietnamese director Bui Kim Quy had to give it a miss due to her health conditions. “I was diagnosed with lung cancer after the shoot wrapped in late 2018. Since then I have been undergoing treatment …
Why is New Zealand’s National Library Declaring War on Authors?
By Hugh Stephens At first blush, one would think that a natural symbiotic link would exist between authors, publishers, librarians and readers. After all they are all part of what I could call the literature ecosystem, the chain of content that leads from the creation of a work to its dissemination to its consumption, either …
Local Content Production and Sensible Regulation: New Studies Demonstrate the Close Relationship
By Hugh Stephens In the past several years there has been an exponential explosion of content in the audio-visual space driven primarily if not almost exclusively by online streaming services, both national and international. Names such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney +, Paramount +, HBO Max, Hulu and many more are well known to consumers …
A GOLDEN KEY? Film Fund serves as common link between some of the region’s most promising stories for the screen
By Andrew Pike What does a story about an Indonesian school girl with big dreams, a tale of a modern day pilgrim searching for a place to call home, and an account of two miners from Vietnam confronting the ghosts of the past, have in common? The answer: All are exciting new feature film projects …
“Game of Thrones” Prequel “House of the Dragon” Reveals First Teaser
BY THE CREDITS “Gods, kings, fire, and blood.” These are the first words we hear spoken in the House of the Dragon teaser, the long-awaited prequel to Game of Thrones that focuses on House Targaryen. Set 200-years before the flagship series, when Dany, Jon Snow, and the rest of the Westeros battled for that spiky throne, House of the Dragon will …
Brad Pitt & George Clooney Reuniting in Upcoming Thriller for Apple
Apple has won a bidding war for one of the hottest projects out there—Spider-Man writer/director Jon Watts’ thriller starring Brad Pitt and George Clooney as two lone wolf fixers who get assigned to the same job. Pitt and Clooney are also on board as producers through their respective labels, Plan B Entertainment and Smokehouse Pictures, respectively. …
Singapore’s Copyright Act Revisions: A Step in the Right Direction, But….
Singapore’s long awaited and long debated revisions to its copyright law were tabled in Parliament at the beginning of July with a view to enactment by the end of summer. This follows a two-month public consultation by the Law Ministry and Intellectual Property Office. The revisions have been in the works for some time, beginning …
Appeal Against Canada’s First Successful Pirate Site-Blocking Order is Dismissed: Good News for Copyright Protection in Canada
In a unanimous decision, on May 26 Canada’s Federal Court of Appeal (FCA) dismissed the appeal by internet service provider (ISP), Teksavvy, against Canada’s first site blocking order for copyright infringement issued in November 2019. At the time, I commented that the site blocking order marked a significant step forward for the protection of copyrighted content in …
Blocking Offshore Pirate Content Sites: The Philippines is Joining a Growing International Consensus
In the ongoing struggle against content piracy, a global scourge that undermines and competes unfairly with legitimate content producers and distributors, blocking offshore web and streaming sites that distribute pirated content has proven to be an effective tool in many countries. It provides a remedy to deal with scofflaws that cannot be reached by domestic …
MPA celebrates World IP Day 2021
We have created an animated gif (as attached) that illustrates how audiences, by paying for their entertainment through legitimate channels, help fund the development of new ideas, and in turn, the production of original films and television shows for their enjoyment. Many of our most popular movies and television shows started with that initial brilliant …
Vietnamese Filmmaker Duong Dieu Linh on a Filmmaker’s Life During the Pandemic
Korean Copyright Reform: Don’t Stifle Korean Filmmaking
The Korean film industry is one of the major artistic and cultural successes in Asia. The industry was propelled to prominence in Europe and North America through the 2019 film “Parasite”, which won the Palme d’Or at Cannes and Best Picture (plus three other awards) at the 2019 Academy Awards. Korean films have come a long way …
[FICCI FAST TRACK COVERAGE] INAUGURAL: THE ROLE OF THE DIGITAL ECONOMY TO REVITALIZE ECONOMIC GROWTH
The inaugural session of the 5th Edition of FAST TRACK DIGITAL, organised by FICCI and presenting partner, the Motion Pictures Association, was hosted virtually this morning, 25th November 2020. Moderated by Dr. Ashish Kulkarni, Founder, Punnaryug Artvision, the session sought to discuss how important a role the digital economy would play in revitalizing economic growth. …
Twenty-five Years of US-Vietnam Cooperation—Don’t Let “Decree 06” and Ongoing Piracy Spoil It!
How time flies! That is a truism we are all familiar with, but it was brought home to me forcefully when I was reminded by friends still living in Vietnam that this year, 2020, marks the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the United States and Vietnam. These two nations fought one of …
The Digital-Piracy Dilemma
In the world of film, one of the most important things copyright owners can do is market their content online to increase awareness and revenue. At the same time, they have to protect their content from internet piracy, which chips away at sales. This is an often-discussed dilemma — but two recent peer-reviewed papers (here and here) …
“Brave New World” VFX Supervisor & Producer Thomas Horton on Peacock’s Ambitious New Series
SEPTEMBER 1, 2020 BY BRYAN ABRAMS For visual effects supervisor Thomas Horton, Peacock’s new series Brave New World, which premiered on July 15, presented a serious challenge. Horton was tasked with overseeing the streaming channel’s ambitious adaptation of Aldous Huxley’s legendary sci-fi novel, which despite being published in 1932 still contains so many unkillable themes and …
Go Behind-the-Scenes of Christopher Nolan’s “Tenet” in Thrilling New Video
AUGUST 26, 2020 BY BRYAN ABRAMS If you don’t want to know anything about Christopher Nolan’s Tenet, then this is not the video for you. If you are inclined to find out a bit more about his latest, Warner Bros. has just done you a major solid. Stars John David Washington, Robert Pattinson, Elizabeth Debicki, Kenneth Branagh and, of course, Nolan …
New “Mulan” Spot Teases the Streaming Event of the Season
AUGUST 18, 2020 BY THE CREDITS Disney is going to make history on September 4. That’s because this is the date they’re releasing Niki Caro’s epic, live-action remake of Mulan on Disney+. Disney decided to offer Caro’s sweeping, stunning film on its streaming platform rather than wait for the situation at theaters to improve. Mulan will be getting …
Filmmakers Champion Development Of China’s Film Industry At MPA Film Workshop
New Zealand’s Ongoing Copyright Review Process: MBIE’s Revised Objectives Paper Withdrawn
July 20, 2020 BY HUGH STEPHENS Earlier this month it was reported that the department of the New Zealand government responsible for leading the current review of the Copyright Act (1994), the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) had issued a welcome statement withdrawing the revised objectives paper for the review it had released …
India Screen Sector Generated Close to USD 50 Billion (INR 349k Cr) in 2019
Putting Amazon on USTR’s “Hit List”
JUNE 24, 2020 BY HUGH STEPHENS Getting recognized by the US Trade Representative’s Office (USTR) in its annual “Notorious Markets” piracy and counterfeiting report is not the sort of recognition that most companies seek. USTR’s hit list, one might even say *hit list, is best avoided. When you consider that among the entities on the …
Cinematic Soul Food Movies Where Black Lives Do Matter
JUNE 17, 2020 BY DESSON THOMSON The tsunami-like effect of the Black Lives Matter movement is not only sweeping us forward towards an uncertain future but, like a riptide, pulling us backward through ignored history. It is a time to look forward as constructively as we reassess the trajectory of the journey that stretches behind …
Writer/Director JD Chua & Producer Juan Foo on Singapore’s First Creature Feature Circle Line
BY BRYAN ABRAMS JD Chua had the distinction of being director Michael Mann’s only intern when he was in Hollywood, the man who made, in a seven-year period, three of the best films of the 1990s—The Last of the Mohicans (1992), Heat (1995), and The Insider (1999). As a child, one of Chua’s favorite films was Mann’s The Last of the Mohicans. “I …
Keanu Reeves & Carrie-Anne Moss on The Matrix 4
JUNE 8, 2020 BY THE CREDITS It was in mid-May when we heard the hopeful news that the cast of The Matrix 4 had signed 8-week extensions, suggesting that Warner Bros. was feeling optimistic that the cast and crew could get back to filming in the near future. Principal photography had begun on Lana Wachowski’s …
The Trailer For HBO’s Lovecraft Country Reveals a Series That’s Sadly Perfectly Timed
JUNE 4, 2020 BY THE CREDITS We all can see with our own eyes what’s happening in America right now. In the middle of a global pandemic that has devastated the world and the country, taking the lives of more than 100,000 Americans and disproportionately affecting Black, Hispanic, Latino and Indigenous communities, we are also …
Mission: Impossible 7 Eyeing a Return to Filming in September
JUNE 3, 2020 BY THE CREDITS The cast and crew of Mission: Impossible 7 have their own difficult mission ahead of them; restarting their massive, complicated shoot after production was shuttered due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Speaking with the BBC (via Deadline), first assistant director Tommy Gormley said he believed that filming would begin again in September, …
The Many Lives of Indonesian Director Kamila Andini
BY STEPHEN JENNER Talking with multi-award-winning Indonesian filmmaker Kamila Andini might lead one to believe that she either possesses the power of time travel or that she’s in some way leading parallel lives, such is her unbelievably heavy workload. When Indonesia imposed stay at home restrictions, Andini had just arrived back from Melbourne, Australia, where she had …
How Critic Youn Sung-eun Found New Ways to Promote Korean film
BY THE CREDITS What does a freelance film critic do when there are no films to release? For South Korea’s Youn Sung-eun, the situation forced her hand to dive into a new business venture earlier than she anticipated – only this time she’ll be the one creating the content. “I’m not naturally an optimistic person, so …
My Blueprint for a Dynamic, Flourishing Vietnamese Film Industry
By Linh Duong As a country with 4,000 years of complicated history, 54 ethnic groups, mixed culture and cuisines, rich geography ranging from mountains to large valleys to river deltas and, as is well-known, more than 3,000 km of coastline, Vietnam offers a rich source for great screen stories. However, to me, it often feels …
Japan’s Production Incentives Are A Win For Both The Local And International Production Sectors
By Taro Imai At this moment, many film productions have been suspended due to COVID-19. In February, I was due to shoot my Philippine-Japan co-production film called Purple Sun, directed by Carlo Enciso Catu, in Sapporo and Saga, but the shoot has had to be postponed until next winter. It’s a difficult time for independent …
From Public Health to Film, How Thai Filmmaker Nirattisai Ratphithak Found His Path
BY THE CREDITS Like nearly every other industry, the filmmaking world has undergone an unprecedented global shutdown due to the coronavirus pandemic. We’ve been talking to filmmakers all over the world to find out how they’ve been handling the stoppage in work, making the most of their quarantine, and their hopes for the future. Those …
How Filipino Filmmaker Keith Sicat is Using Quarantine to Help Fellow Filmmakers (And Entertain Himself in the Process)
May 7, 2020 BY THE CREDITS “The beautiful thing is, you have to keep occupied right?” So says Filipino writer/director Keith Sicat, speaking from the six-week-long lockdown in Manila. With three projects primed to go into production at the beginning of the year, Sicat now spends in time between project development, teaching filmmaking, and keeping his …
With Her Amazon Directing Gig on Hold, Indian Filmmaker Tannishtha Chatterjee Embraces Other Creative Pursuits
BY THE CREDITS It’s often two-thirty in the afternoon before actor, writer, and director Tannishtha Chatterjee finds time to turn her attention to creative pursuits. “Till lunchtime…I’m cooking, cutting vegetables, cleaning, dusting and bathing Radhika.” Radhika is Chatterjee’s four-and-a-half-year-old daughter. For the last six weeks, it’s been just the two of them tucked away in her Mumbai …
Spike Lee Reveals Poster & Release Date for His Netflix Movie Da 5 Bloods
The Credits May 7, 2020 You have to love a surprise Spike Lee film announcement, which is what the news of Da 5 Bloods will be for most folks. Lee teased his new Netflix film in a Tweet, revealing both the poster and the June 12 release date. The film tracks four African-American Vietnam veterans who return …
Andy Serkis Reveals Interesting Nuggets About The Batman
Bryan Abrams May 11, 2020 Like every other major production, filming on Matt Reeves‘ hotly-anticipated The Batman was suspended in mid-March. Reeves and his talented cast and crew had begun production in London and had filmed around 25% of the total feature before production had to be shut down due to the spread of the novel coronavirus. …
See How They Created This Epic Lightsaber Duel inStar Wars: The Clone Wars
The Credits April 29, 2020 If you’re a Star Wars fan who hasn’t yet made the leap to their animated series, last Friday’s episode of Star Wars: The Clone Wars might be the thing that finally gets you to give it a chance. The episode, “The Phantom Apprentice,” contained—truly—one of the greatest lightsaber duels in Star Wars history. The …
Russo Brothers Share Epic Trove of Brand New Avengers: Endgame Videos & Photos
The Credits April 28, 2020 Are you prepared for just an astonishing amount of juicy behind-the-scenes videos and photos from Avengers: Endgame? The Russo Brothers have prepared an epic meal for you, either way, celebrating the fact that it was a year and two days ago that their historic film came out. Yes, a year ago …
China’s Wanda Film To Build More Cinemas Despite Heavy 2019 Losses, Coronavirus Impact
Why ‘Extraction’ Director Didn’t Imagine Chris Hemsworth as His Star (at First)
Stunt-Coordinator-Turned-Director Sam Hargrave on His Action-Packed Debut Extraction
Julie Jacobs April 24, 2020 If you’re searching for an edge-of-your-seat movie experience to escape the current COVID-19 reality for a couple of hours, look no further than Extraction, streaming on Netflix beginning April 24. The film stars Chris Hemsworth as Tyler Rake, a fearless mercenary who is called upon to rescue the kidnapped son …
Film News Roundup: Universal Pictures Developing Supernatural Romance ‘Dan and Sam’
Local OTT service provider signs partnership with U.S. media giant on content supply
Netflix Reveals First Images of Steve Carell’s Space Force + Release Date & Cast
This short film on self-isolation, featuring India’s superstars, is a must watch
Audi Australia Premieres ‘The Drive’, A Four-Hour Slow TV Film For Social Media
Never Have I Ever Director Kabir Akhtar on Filming Mindy Kaling’s New Netflix Series
‘Coronavirus & Me’ Set as First Original Series at Iwonder Documentary Streamer
Copyright Industries and Creators in the Age of COVID-19: The Impact and the Response
hughstephensblog Posted on March 23, 2020 As I sit here looking out my window at fresh daffodils and cherry blossoms, it is hard to imagine that a potentially deadly virus is stalking the land. Of course I am lucky to be where I am, on Vancouver Island where spring has arrived; in other parts of …
Read Christopher Nolan’s Passionate Piece on the Importance of Movie Theaters
Universal to Make ‘Trolls World Tour,’ ‘The Hunt,’ ‘Invisible Man’ Available Early on Home Entertainment
With movie theaters closing or reducing seating capacity due to coronavirus, Universal Pictures will make its movies available on home entertainment on the same day as the films’ global theatrical releases. The initiative will kick off with DreamWorks Animation’s “Trolls World Tour,” which is scheduled to debut on April 10 in the U.S. The company will also make films …
Motion Picture Association Statement on Daren Tang Nomination to Lead World Intellectual Property Organization
WASHINGTON – The following is a statement from Motion Picture Association Chairman and CEO Charles Rivkin on the nomination of Daren Tang of Singapore to be Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). “The Motion Picture Association congratulates Daren Tang on his nomination as the next Director General of WIPO. Copyright is at the …
“If you visit pirate websites, even the law can’t protect you”
The majority of adults and teenagers who access pirated content are experiencing cybercrimes including the theft of their personal details, fraud and viruses. That’s according to research released today by Creative Content Australia (CCA), coinciding with the launch of CCA’s 30-second anti-piracy ad – “Piracy. You’re Exposed” – in cinemas and on subscription and free-to-air …
Breaking news on one of our inaugural MPA APSA Academy Film Fund recipients, Asghar Farhadi (A Separation)
Two-Time Oscar Winner Asghar Farhadi Lines Up New Film ‘A Hero’, Memento To Launch Must-Have Arthouse Pic At EFM EXCLUSIVE: Two-time Oscar winner Asghar Farhadi is heading into production on new film A Hero, we can reveal. The Farsi-language project will enter pre-production in two months and is due to shoot in Shiraz, Iran, this summer. Paris-based Memento Films …
AUSTRALIAN SCREEN SECTOR GENERATED USD 15.1 BILLION (AUD$22.5 BILLION) IN 2017-18
South Korea Requests Interpol Red Notice to Track Down Pirate Site Operator
South Korean authorities say they have requested their first-ever Interpol ‘Red Notice’ in an effort to apprehend the suspected operator of a torrent site that indexed around 455,000 copyright works. Information released by the Ministry of Culture and National Police suggests that the unnamed person is Australian. Police are demanding his or her arrest and …
Netflix Snaps Up Rights to Studio Ghibli Films Outside North America, Japan
Given the profound global popularity of Hayao Miyazaki’s classic works, the pickup represents a major win for the streaming giant in the international markets that it now depends on for growth. Netflix has acquired exclusive streaming rights to the full film catalog from beloved Japanese animation house Studio Ghibli for everywhere in the world outside …
WarnerMedia’s Jessica Kam on finding the best local-language content in Asia
How does a producer decide on what content to focus in a region as diverse as Asia? It’s about quality not quantity, says WarnerMedia Entertainment Asia Pacific’s Jessica Kam. Jessica Kam is relishing her new role at WarnerMedia Entertainment Asia Pacific. As part of the company’s restructuring in the region, which involved the merger of …
International Copyright Highlights of 2019
Every year at this time I take a peek in the rearview mirror and look back at the main copyright highlights of the past year, at least the ones that I have written about in my blog. I also check back on the “year-end reflections” post written the previous year, and it is remarkable how …
ATF: Singapore’s Robot Playground, Malaysia’s R&D Team up for ‘Spectrum’
Pleased to hear that leading Singapore animation studio Robot Playground are gearing up to co-produce a series of short films for Southeast Asia. Robot Playground created an anti-piracy video “Say No To Piracy” in partnership with the MPA, Starhub, the Centre for Content Protection, Cathay Cineplexes, Golden Village and Shaw Theatres.” Singapore "Say No To …
Independent film is in jeopardy, but Congress can help
To be a film producer is to be, at some level, a risk-taker. It’s simply the nature of the business, where films are both creative endeavors and multimillion-dollar investments – where risk is part and parcel of reward. Deciding to finance and produce a film requires significant experience, hopefully some good instincts, and an iron …
MPA APSA Academy Film Fund – 13th Asia Pacific Screen Awards
The MPA APSA Academy Film Fund Fund celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. It was created to support the development of new feature film projects by APSA Academy members and their colleagues from the culturally diverse Asia Pacific region. The fund awards four development grants of US$25,000 annually, and is wholly supported by the …
Max Eigenmann wins Best Actress in the 13th Asia Pacific Screen Awards
By Celso de Guzman Caparas Max Eigenmann received the Best Performance by an Actress award for the film Verdict, written and directed by Raymund Ribay Gutierrez, during the closing ceremony of the 13th Asia Pacific Screen Awards in Brisbane, Australia on Nov. 22. She is the third Filipino actress to win after Nora Aunor (2012, Thy Womb) and Hasmine …
Young Filipino filmmaker wins award in 2019 International Emmys
By Don Tagala A young Filipino filmmaker won an international award during the 2019 International Emmys in New York City for his 1-minute video about a displaced Muslim student survivor of the Marawi siege in the Philippines in 2017. Breech Asher Harani, 28, was among this year’s JCS International Young Creatives Award for his video …
‘Manta Ray’ Producer to Receive Southeast Asia Co-Production Grant
By Mathew Scott Venice-winning Thai producer Mai Meksawan is among the big names to benefit from a new Singapore-based initiative aimed to produce “quality stories for the world.” Venice-winning Thai producer Mai Meksawan (Manta Ray) has been handed a slice of the inaugural Southeast Asia Co-Production Grant, and he revealed that the figure, up to …
How might Aussie producers best take advantage of the global streaming boom?
By Marcus Gillezeau Marcus Gillezeau, an International Digital Emmy and AACTA Award-winning independent producer, writer and EP, suggests Australia needs a ‘whole-of-country’ approach to reap the benefits of the streaming age. The launch of Disney + and Apple TV+ this month have landed bang in the middle of the annual Screen Producers Australia (SPA) conference, …
Motion Picture Association Names Belinda Lui President and Managing Director, Asia-Pacific Region
Jon Kuyper on producing ‘Mad Max: Fury Road’, Ridley Scott series
BY LIZ SHACKLETON US producer Jon Kuyper outlined the differences between producing $100m studio movies and an $8m straight-to-DVD project at the MPA-DHU workshop (Oct 22) at TIFFCOM. He also touched on producing Ridley Scott’s upcoming TV series for TNT, Raised By Wolves, and how all the rules change when budgeting and scheduling episodic drama. During his …
Asia Pacific Screen Awards: Chinese Films Dominate Nominations List
By Pip Bulbeck Wang Xiaoshuai‘s ‘So Long, My Son‘ has a record number of six nominations including for best film, where it will be up against such high-profile Oscar submissions as Bong Joon-ho’s ‘Parasite‘ and Kantemir Balagov’s ‘Beanpole.’ Five films submitted for consideration in the best international feature film Oscar category, including South Korea’s Parasite (Gisaengchung), Russia’s Beanpole (Dylda) …
Netflix’s Lost in Space season 2: Trailer, plot, release date, cast and more
By Bonnie Burton There’s more danger ahead for the Robinson family with Netflix’s Lost in Space reboot, which returns for season 2 on Dec. 24. In Lost in Space, the Robinson family isn’t just close, it’s full of geniuses. Father John Robinson is a former Navy SEAL, mother Maureen is both an aerospace engineer and mission commander, and …
The Official Oscar Campaign For Avengers: Endgame has Begun
BY THE CREDITS Disney has officially launched its Oscar campaign for Avengers: Endgame, zeroing in on a slew of categories for their massive, globe-dominating mega-hit. Disney’s official For Your Consideration website details the categories they’re (currently) focused on. Superhero movies can and should be nominated for Best Picture if they’re good enough, as we learned last year when Ryan …
U.S.-China co-production “Abominable” tops North American box office in opening weekend
LOS ANGELES, Sept. 29 (Xinhua) — A U.S-China co-production, “Abominable,” dominated the box office in North America in its opening weekend, collecting a solid 20.85 million U.S. dollars during the first three days of release. It’s the biggest opening for an original animated movie in North America so far this year. The animated family film …
Apple TV Plus to Launch on Nov. 1, Cost $4.99 per Month
Apple has finally revealed key details about its upcoming video subscription service: The company used a press event for the introduction of the new iPhone Tuesday to announce that its Apple TV Plus service is going to launch in 100 countries on Nov. 1. The service will be priced at $4.99 per month, and Apple is granting loyal customers a …
TIFF 2019: Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite Gets Under Your Skin
There are no gentle super pigs (Okja), jellied roach bars (Snowpiercer), or colossal monsters (The Host), yet writer/director Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite manages to shock and surprise aplenty. There are dastardly deeds, masterful performances, and diabolical twists. The film reminds you that there is a very, very good reason this South Korean auteur is considered one of the …
OTT platforms may dethrone TV as the first stop for entertainment in India
By Sangeeta Tanwar Thanks to the growing popularity of online video content, a number of Indians may soon turn their backs on the TV. As many as 80% of those who subscribe to over-the-top (OTT) services say all their entertainment needs are being met through online content, according to a report published by consultancy firm KPMG India and …
Pay TV subs topped 1bn in 2018 as OTTs see significant revenue growth
By James Pearce IPTV reached 257m subs and surpasses satellite TV Cable accounts for half of all pay TV according to Digital TV Research SVOD holds 53% share of OTT revenues Pay TV subscribers topped one billion worldwide by the end up 2018, up 26 million during the year, according to Digital TV Research. IPTV added …
Buses caught showing pirated ‘Hello, Love, Goodbye’
BY ABS-CBN NEWS MANILA — Authorities caught several buses showing pirated copies of the Star Cinema hit “Hello, Love, Goodbye” and confiscated several USB flash drives during a raid on a transport terminal in southern Metro Manila on Wednesday, the government’s anti-film piracy arm said. Metro Manila Bus Co and Saulog Transit could be charged …
Hirokazu Kore-eda’s ‘The Truth’ With Catherine Deneuve, Juliette Binoche to Open Venice Film Festival
Palme d’Or-winning director Hirokazu Kore-eda’s hotly anticipated new film, “The Truth,” starring Catherine Deneuve, Juliette Binoche and Ethan Hawke, will open the 76th edition of the Venice Film Festival. “The Truth,” which marks the director’s first work set outside his native Japan, will screen on the Lido on Aug. 28 in competition. Kore-eda won the Palme d’Or at Cannes in …
The Matrix 4 is a Reality! Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss & Lana Wachowski Returning
BY BRYAN ABRAMS Time to take the red pill. While we’ve long thought that Warner Bros. would be rebooting The Matrix for a new generation, meaning, it would restart the seminal sci-fi franchise rather than carry on with the storyline that began with Lana and Lilly Wachowski’s game-changing 1999 film, we’re happy that that’s not the case. Variety reports …
Apple TV+ Reveals First Trailer for Star-Studded The Morning Show
BY THE CREDITS We’ve finally got our first look at Apple TV’s star-studded upcoming series The Morning Show,and we’re eager to see more. Starring Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon, and Steve Carrell(how’s that for a lineup?), The Morning Show gives us an inside look at the brutally cutthroat world of morning TV, and what happens when a co-anchor on a popular …
Netflix Reveals Final Trailer for The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance
BY THE CREDITS The last look we got at Netflix’s The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance was during Comic-Con, when the upcoming 10-episode series was one of the buzziest titles in San Diego. Now Netflix has released a new trailer for us to feast our eyes on, and we’re no less excited about this return to Jim Henson and …
The Comic Book Easter Eggs in Avengers: Endgame Revealed
BY BRYAN ABRAMS Now that Avengers: Endgame is available for digital download, there’s been a bunch of fresh material thanks to the bonus features. Bloopers? Check. A glimpse at Robert Downey Jr.’s screentest to nab the role of Tony Stark in 2008’s Iron Man? Yes. How the Endgame team created Chunky Thor? Yup. And now Marvel has released a brand new …
Home Owners to Be Held Liable For Pirate Boxes, Malaysia Says
The National Film Development Corporation Malaysia says it is preparing proposals that would hold home owners responsible for the use of pirate boxes in their property. Controversially, the chairman of the government department says it won’t even matter if the owner of the building is renting his property to someone else, piracy must be tackled. …
SMC2019 Welcomes Tropfest Junior Winner Kat Alexander
The Media Resource Centre is proud to announce it will host 2019 Tropfest Junior winner, Kat Alexander, at the upcoming Screen Makers Conference in Adelaide as part of her prize package. 15-year-old Kat of Pearl Beach, New South Wales, impressed judges with her short-film entry, Rewire; a Pinocchio-like tale of a female humanoid who breaks free …
HBO dominated the 2019 Emmy nominations, thanks to Game of Thrones
After Netflix beat out HBO last year for total Emmy nominations, HBO returned to its usual dominant position in 2019, earning a whopping 137 total Emmy nominations, thanks to Game of Thrones’ final season. The network secured a total of 32 nominations for Game of Thrones, breaking the previous record held by NYPD Blue (26 nominations in 1994). HBO’s other 105 nominations …
Netflix Expands Chinese Content With Series, Film Additions
Global streaming giant Netflix is growing its Chinese-language content with six new licensed titles. These will arrive on the service in the second half of 2019. Netflix is not permitted by China to operate its video streaming platform in mainland China. But it nevertheless perceives an appetite for Chinese-language content that can be accessed by international audiences, those in Chinese-speaking parts …
Todd Phillips Reveals the Plot of Joker is Entirely Original
The plot for Todd Phillips‘ Joker has been a well-guarded secret for a long time now. Even the excellent trailer left us with way more questions than answers. The script was co-written by Phillips and Scott Silver, and only the broad strokes have been more or less known for a while now. The film centers on Joaquin Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck, …
The Official Timeline of All the Marvel Movies
Watching all of the Marvel movies in the order they occurred can be a little tricky. TIME tried to sort everything out this April, starting with Captain America: The First Avenger back in the 40s then jumping to 2008 for Iron Man. Marvel has now slid Iron Man up 2 years placing those events in 2010. Captain Marvel will pop up in 1995, but …
Greater professionalism across the board key to China’s unique and fast evolving film industry.
Returning to Shanghai for its 6th iteration, the Global Film Industry Value Chain Development sought answers as to how the Chinese film industry could find long term growth and sustainability. Organized the Motion Picture Association, Shanghai Jiao Tong University and Winston Baker, and held on the eve of the Shanghai International Film Festival, the day-long …
What the $50 Million Success of ‘Capernaum’ in China Means for Arab Cinema
With Nadine Labaki’s Oscar-nominated drama smashing all records for Arab films thanks to the Middle Kingdom, regional producers are already getting calls from Chinese distributors looking to emulate its success.While there may have been a disappointing turnout for Arab films at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, where few major Middle East features screened across the …
APSA Script Plan Over Ten Years
Created in 2010 by the Motion Picture Association and the Brisbane-based Asia Pacific Screen Academy, the MPA APSA Academy Film Fund is celebrating its 10th anniversary after awarding a total of US$1 million in 40 grants to support the development of film production projects across the Asia Pacific region. While there are many development funds, …
Blockbusting future for online movies
A forum at the Shanghai International Film and TV Festival discussed new trends in the production and marketing of online films on Wednesday. Ever since the debut of online movies in 2014, China has seen huge potential in the genre, producing more than 1,500 online movies last year. According to Lu Yang, general manager of …
The One Tech Platform Used in Game of Thrones, Avengers: Endgame & (Much More)
BY HUGH HART From a remote outpost in Adelaide, Australia, a handful of techies in 2005 brought together far-flung filmmakers so they could critique VFX shots—not in the same room, but on the same screen. Today, cineSync software plays a behind the scenes role in nearly every spectacle-driven popcorn movie including this summer’s Men In Black, Spider-Man, X-Men and Godzilla sequels …
Future Still Looks Bright for Film & TV Co-productions Between China and Europe
The trade tension between the U.S. and China has made Hollywood quite nervous lately. This doesn’t seem to have affected the ties between the Chinese film industry and Europe. On May 19th, the Marché du film collaborated with the Sino-European producers association Bridging the Dragon and organized the fourth Sino-International Company Meetings. With the aim …
Quasi ban imposed on award-winning Indonesian film
The Indonesian film Kucumbu Tubuh Indahku (Memories of My Body) is winning awards and accolades around the world. But at home in Indonesia, few may get to see this evocative masterpiece because of an overblown call to censor it. Its creator, Garin Nugroho, knew the film would be provocative because of its political content, but …
Dance Film ‘Memories of My Body’ Takes a Battering From Conservatives in Indonesia
Muslim groups in Indonesia are calling for a ban on the film “Memories of My Body,” a drama from the country’s best-known art house director, Garin Nugroho. The groups say that the film is “sexually deviant” and promotes “LGBT values.” The film depicts the story of a young man from a dance troupe that performs Lengger Lanang, a …
Asia Pacific Screen Communities Highlight Importance Of Creativity During World IP Day Celebrations
MPA APSA ACADEMY FILM FUND CELEBRATES TEN YEARS FUNDING ASIA PACIFIC STORIES
Infringing Website Lists: Another Valuable Tool in the Anti-Piracy Toolbox
Source: shutterstock.com In March the Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG), “an advertising industry initiative to fight criminal activity in the digital advertising supply chain”, released an update in its campaign against ad-supported pirate websites, called Winning the Fight Against Ad-Supported Piracy. This updates an earlier study about which I wrote last year in a blog on “Tightening up Online Advertising …
A VIP invite to the Thai film awards reveals the feature film business in South East Asia is growing.
Often when travelling to another country for work, it’s easy to get so caught up in the preparation, flight-transfer-time-zone-zonk that you can find yourself stuck, alone and bored, searching for dinner and something to do. On this trip, I lucked-in. I’d been invited to Thailand by the Motion Picture Association (MPA) to run a filmmaking …
Tropfest winner Brendan Pinches’ Q&A
Given a documentary had never before won Tropfest, were you surprised, even shocked, when Be You T. Fool, your first ever short, was declared the winner? Yeah, I’d always associated Tropfest with comedies. I only really submitted the film because I’d seen that a couple of documentaries had been finalists in 2018. You had the idea …
What does piracy means to you?
Tropfest attendees and finalists on their thoughts about how piracy affects the Australian film industry.
Looking Back at International Copyright Developments in 2018
It’s that time of year when we cast an eye back over the past year (probably in a vain attempt to try to predict what the New Year will bring), reflecting on important developments in global affairs–including those affecting international copyright. Last year I wrote a similar blog and it is always instructive to look back at …
Japanese Producer Masakazu Kubo Receives 2018 MPA Asia Pacific Copyright Educator Award At CineAsia
MPAA CHAIRMAN & CEO CHARLES RIVKIN CELEBRATES THE GLOBAL POWER OF STORYTELLING AT ASIA PACIFIC SCREEN AWARDS
Film & Television Industry Clocks Up USD 108.4 Billion Contribution To Chinese Economy
Screen Community Encourages Adoption Of Site Blocking To Protect Creative Content
Court order makes it easier for copyright owners to curb access to piracy websites
Donald Trump To Appoint MPAA Chief Charles Rivkin To Key U.S. Advisory Panel On Trade
Crazy Rich Asians Director Jon Chu Wrote a Beautiful Letter to Coldplay Asking to use “Yellow”
Crazy Rich Asians made history this past weekend. As we wrote yesterday, the film had the biggest box office opening for a PG-13 romantic comedy since Think Like a Man. Based on the novel by Kevin Kwan, both Kwan and director Jon Chu told THR they turned down a a big payday to gamble on releasing the film in theaters. Crazy …
Fighting Digital Copyright Piracy: A Tripartite Solution (Rights-Holders, Technology Firms, Governments) is Needed.
In the ongoing struggle in the digital world between the creators of content and those who apparently believe that it is their right to take for nothing what others are expected to pay for, in the process depriving the whole value chain of creativity from author to performer to producer to investor to distributor of …
The WIPO Internet Treaties: New Zealand Will Soon Join 97 Other Countries as a Member (Thanks to the CPTPP)
Now that India has announced that it will join the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Internet Treaties (the WCT and the WPPT)[i], the number of acceding states will reach 97. Many emerging economies and virtually every OECD country (Iceland, Norway and New Zealand being the exceptions) is a member. And New Zealand is about to become a …
India Joins WIPO Internet Treaties: A Major Step Forward
On July 4, the Indian government announced that India will accede to the two WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization) Internet treaties, the WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT), 1996 and the WIPO Performance and Phonographs Treaty (WPPT), 1996. The Press Information Bureau statement indicated that accession to the Treaties will allow India to enable creative rights holders to secure …
Paradise in Flames – A Project Developing Under MPA-APSA Academy Film Fund
I believe, it is the most exciting and elating moment in a filmmaker and a screenwriter’s creative journey when one comes to point of starting a reconnaissance trip for a dream project. This became possible because of the MPA-APSA script development award that has been conferred on me in 2017. The envisioned film’s setting is …
Copyright Developments Down Under: There’s a Lot Going On
The wheels of copyright change are grinding away in Australia, both through legislative review and court actions. I hesitate to call the process “copyright reform” because one person’s reform is another’s regressive step. The government has chosen the term “copyright modernisation” and a public consultation has been launched with a final submission date of July 4. The …
Is the Era of “Permissionless Innovation” and Avoidance of Regulation on the Internet Finally Over? It’s High Time.
It would be the ultimate under-statement to say that recent events concerning the appalling breaches of privacy permitted and indeed orchestrated by Facebook have raised public awareness to new heights over what happens when internet intermediaries are allowed to do just about whatever they want. Despite Mark Zuckerberg’s apologies about “mistakes” and pledges do better in …
Is an economy based on free incompatible with freedom?
As a long time critic of Silicon Valley business models and the state of internet governance, I have been swamped with communications from friends and colleagues expecting me to be overjoyed with the attention on Facebook which has dominated discussion this week. And I suppose part of me is, but mostly I am worried. I …
On the Internet, Everyone Is A ____(fill in the blank)
Lots of words come to mind, none of which I plan to explore here other than to note, in passing, that the likelihood of the blank being filled with a word not generally used in proper company is likely to produce fundamental changes in internet governance. It is now abundantly clear that absence of real …
My Tropfest experience
Two Piece was written in an afternoon at my favourite cafe. I’d just bought a new laptop for my birthday, replacing my 10-year-old brick of a mac, and had downloaded some fresh screenwriting software. Inspired by a fraught trip I’d recently had searching for a new dress with my mum, the story of 13-year-old Ava shopping …
Writer/Director Atsuko Hirayanagi On Synchronicity & Inspiration In Her Feature Oh Lucy!
Originally, writer/director Atsuko Hirayanagi‘s Oh, Lucy! was written and produced as a short, winning the Jury Prize for International Fiction at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. Now she has expanded it into a full-length feature, and Oh, Lucy! has just been released across the country to universally positive reviews. Shinobu Terajima, an A-list actress in her native Japan, was nominated for …
Canada and New Zealand: Both Wrestling with Offshore Piracy and Both Seeking an Effective Solution
Canadians and Kiwis have a lot in common. For one thing, they both live in the shadow of larger neighbours who tend to take them for granted. It is particularly galling when a stranger mistakes a Canuck or a Kiwi for one of those culturally-dominant larger neighbours because of an unfortunate similarity of accent. Here …
From Hamilton to Los Angeles, an unforgettable experience
2017 Tropfest NZ winners of the MPA first prize trip to Los Angeles for a film immersion course. Last year, when it was unexpectedly announced that Tropfest NZ was back on for 2017, my partner Sash and I were thrilled and immediately started talking about what story we would like to tell to create a …
Screen Sector Contributes Massive USD33.3 Billion to India’s Economy and Supports 2.36 Million Jobs
MPAA Chairman And CEO Charles Rivkin unveils new report on China’s growing film and television industry
CineAsia Salutes Australia’s Graham Burke With MPA Copyright Educator Award
Site Blocking in Japan—A Call for Action
In my last blog I discussed the growing problem of online piracy in Japan, and the importance of site blocking as a potential remedy. Site blocking has proven to be a particularly effective remedy against rogue pirate sites that set up in jurisdictions beyond the reach of domestic law, as I have outlined in previous …
Online Piracy in Japan: How Big is the Problem—and what’s an Effective Solution?
Source: shutterstock.com Japanese people are rightly noted for their honesty. We have all heard the stories of wallets left on park benches being returned or just left for the owner to find. This theory was tested last year with the results shown on Youtube. Out of 15 “inadvertent” wallet drops in Tokyo, all 15 were picked up and …
Collaboration The Key To Both Growing And Protecting The Film Industry In Japan
Last week, I had the privilege of returning to Tokyo for the 30thTokyo International Film Festival and the 7th Annual MPA Seminar for global stakeholders committed to improving copyright. As with other trips to this world-renowned Film Festival, this most recent visit was extremely productive. The Seminar began with the MPA providing an assessment of the …
TROPFEST COMES TO DC
Last night, the MPAA, along with the Australian Embassy, hosted a celebration of the global short film festival phenomenon, Tropfest. The evening included a screening of select Tropfest short films and remarks from MPAA Chairman Senator Chris Dodd and Deputy Head of Mission to the Embassy of Australia Ambassador Katrina Cooper on the relationship between …
Not All Smooth Sailing for Vietnam’s Emerging Online Video Trend
The influence of foreign pop culture is growing on young Vietnamese. The local youth lifestyle appears to be evolving towards ever more internationalized trends. This is impacting on every aspect of the entertainment industry, including cinema. As Vietnam “catches up with what’s up in the world,” Vietnamese are consuming more international movies and television shows …
App Piracy Stifles Innovation, Harms Consumers
Mobile applications – the fun, useful programs that tell you how to get home, give you awesome bunny ears, introduce you to the love of your life, and let you text your friends across the world, and are cheap (maybe 99 cents) or even free – are being pirated like crazy. But why? And if …
Four Projects Hand Picked from 105 Submissions as 2017 MPA APSA Academy Film Fund Winners Announced
Hugh Stephens Blog: Jonathan Taplin’s “Move Fast and Break Things”: A Sombre Warning—And a Call for Action
Jonathan Taplin’s new book Move Fast and Break Things, published in April of this year, (the title is based on Facebook’s internal motto, since modified to make the company appear more responsible) has been attracting considerable attention as he embarks on the usual book launch media tour, in this case Down Under in Australia and New Zealand, and …
Piracy gradually fading from the radar as film industry stakes increase
Barely a decade ago, Chinese sidewalks were strewn with pirated disks, which a riff-raff of unlicensed peddlers eagerly pushed to passers-by. At that time, the annual box-office receipts of the country’s film industry was around 3.3 billion yuan, which happens to be the takings of Mermaid (2016), the reigning box-office champion in China. It is no coincidence …
Shanghai Industry Talk-Fests Offer Much Food For Thought
4th Global Film Industry Value Chain Development Forum: Investing in the film industry is a high risk business, and doubly so if you’re operating in an unfamiliar market like China where the laws, customs and business etiquette can seem difficult to fully comprehend. Fortunately for those attending the 4th Global Film Industry Value Chain Development Forum on …
MPAA Studios Prevail In Civil Actions Against Xunlei For Infringement Of Copyright
Copyright and Film in the 21st Century: Laws, Policies and Technologies
I was recently privileged to participate in an international forum on copyright organized in Shanghai by the World Intellectual Property Organization and the National Copyright Administration of China, and to share my thoughts on the continued development of copyright and film in the 21st Century. I can say without hesitation or doubt that the continued …
MPA-BJIFF Film Workshop Highlights Strengthening Ties Between U.S. & Chinese Film Industries
It is an honor to be invited to participate on industry panels, but the MPA-BJIFF Workshop: Feature Film Pitching Competition and Coaching, is particularly special for me. Not only do I have the opportunity to speak to young filmmakers about my experiences as well as work with, and foster the growth of the next wave of filmmaking …
MPA & APSA Team Up To Support New Asia Pacific Filmmakers
The Motion Picture Association (MPA) Asia Pacific and the Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA) and its Academy have renewed their partnership to help develop new filmmakers in the Asia Pacific community. The announcement came April 20 during the MPA-BFM Film Workshop at the Beijing International Film Festival and featured news that the eighth round of …
Creative Communities Across the Asia Pacific Celebrate Movies and Music to Mark World IP Day
Strong Copyright The Engine Of Creative Innovation Heralded During World IP Day In Asia Pacific
Hugh Stephens Blog: Disabling Access to Large-Scale Pirate Sites (Site Blocking)—It Works!
Disabling Access to Large-Scale Pirate Sites (Site Blocking)—It Works! As I wrote back in August, recent studies conducted by Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) and the Information Technology and Information Foundation (ITIF) have demonstrated convincingly that blocking offshore pirate websites works in terms of changing consumer behaviour (i.e. directing consumers away from infringing content to sources of legitimate content) …
Female filmmakers find significant representation in MPA APSA Academy Film Fund
As a member of the selection committee to decide the four recipients of the first MPA APSA Academy Film Fund in 2010, I was, like many others, inspired by the words of Asghar Farhadi, following his acceptance of the Best Foreign Language Film at the Academy Awards. Farhadi’s film A Separation, which won the Academy Award …
The Tropfest booster – shot on my short film learning curve
One of the many things I’ve learnt making short films, is that before you set out to make your film, have an idea of which festival(s) you’re making your film for. From my experience, every festival has its own particular flavour, and as soon as I had the idea for The Mother Situation, I knew it …
Hugh Stephens Blog: Is the TPP really “dead”? Maybe not if you believe in “Twelve minus One”
Late last year, after Mr. Trump’s election but before his inauguration, I wrote a blog on the “Demise of the TPP and its Impact on Copyright”. The President-elect had declared the TPP to be “a potential disaster for our country” and “the death blow for American manufacturing”. He stated that he would notify the TPP partners of the intent …
It pays to wake-up to the “business” of show business
On the 18th of February, on a balmy evening in New Plymouth, a large audience gathered in a grassy outdoor amphitheater to enjoy sixteen short films from a new generation of New Zealand filmmakers. All were excited to be sharing their stories and talent through the hugely influential platform Tropfest. Their focus that night, and no …
UK Search Code Of Practice: A Welcome First Step But Not ‘Mission Accomplished’
Awards season is a time of celebration in the film industry; the Baftas and the Oscars are providing a fantastic showcase of the very best that big screen can deliver to audiences all over the world. This moment when we celebrate the creativity that inspires and entertains us is also right to announce an important …
Luke Hemsworth on Playing Legendary Wild West Gunslinger in Hickok
Luke Hemsworth‘s younger brothers Chris (Thor) and Liam (The Hunger Games) are known for blockbusters, and now Luke Hemsworth (Westworld) is making a name in some smaller projects. His latest is the title role in Hickok, a western about the legendary gunslinger, co-starring Kris Kristofferson and Trace Atkins. In an interview, Hemsworth explained why Wild Bill Hickok wears his …
How having a story to tell set me off on my Tropfest and Los Angeles film adventure
In December 2015, in a slightly harried, last-minute fashion, I submitted a film to Tropfest New Zealand. I got a couple of hours sleep, woke up and caught a plane to another city for a conference for my day job. I almost didn’t bother submitting the film. For me, it was simply a labor of …
A Conversation with Director Mostofa Farooki and APSA Chairman Michael Hawkins
Last week, the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), along with the Embassy of Australia, hosted a screening of the acclaimed Iranian drama film A Separation. The film was one of the first projects funded by the Motion Picture Association’s Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA) Academy Film Fund—a program that provides four $25,000 grants each year …
Tackling Piracy in Australia: Village Roadshow’s New and Innovative Strategy
In a blockbuster speech delivered on October 10 to the Australian International Movie Convention meeting in Gold Coast, Queensland, Graham Burke, Co-Executive Chairman and Co-CEO of Australia’s largest entertainment company, Village Roadshow, took aim at the high rate of film piracy among Australian consumers and declared war on illegal downloading and streaming. Burke outlined a five point …
My Tokyo Weekend With Japan’s Next Generation Of Filmmakers
My trip to Tokyo as a guest speaker for the MPA had been arranged many months ago. It was an exciting opportunity and one that I’d been looking forward for some time. Still, stepping off the long flight from New York, I found myself juggling the many demands of executive producing the television show I’d …
India’s Rajkumar Akella Saluted at CineAsia with MPA Copyright Educator Award
The Dressmaker’s Costume Designer’s Stunning Creations
The Dressmaker, directed by Jocelyn Moorhouse and adapted from Rosalie Ham’s beloved novel, stars Kate Winslet as Tilly Dunnage, a chic, sophisticated dressmaker who returns from Paris to her small Australian outback town to find out the truth behind the scandal she was at the center of as a child. We speak to costume designer …
Wolverine 3 Director James Mangold Shares Title, Poster, Page of Script
What did we when we wanted updates on movies before the age of social media? Oh right, we waited for set visit interviews to run in major magazines and on websites, which most often wouldn’t run until the promotional window opened a few weeks before the film came out. Obviously times have changed. Wolverine 3 director James …
Vietnam’s new film classification system offers new horizon of opportunities for local filmmakers
Vietnam’s new regulation on film classification will take effect on January 1st2017. The long expected regulation is seen as a relaxation of the government’s discretion in film censorship. It is hoped that it will encourage a greater expression of creativity and allow more diverse film entertainment in an increasingly affluent Vietnam marketplace. The new guidelines …
Capturing the Next Million Users – How Live TV Will Carve the Future of OTT
India’s digital story is unfolding day by day. Our Internet user growth rate is over 40% – as against a global growth rate of 9%. The number of mobile Internet users in India is approximately 400 million and rapidly growing, especially in smaller towns and rural India. In fact these markets will really power the …
The Future Of Online Content Delivery In Asia: Boom Or Bust?
The internet has prompted an exciting revolution in content delivery. Internet video streaming and downloads are on track to account for over 80% of all consumer internet traffic by 2019. As an entrepreneur, this is a huge opportunity! As the Co-Founder and Chairman of Asia’s fastest-growing subscription video service, iFlix, which launched operations in 2015, …
Tales of an Aussie sales agent in Shanghai
I’d been to Shanghai and Beijing twice in the last several months and after a hectic start to the year I was looking forward to being at home for a while. However, an invitation to speak alongside some of the biggest players in the Chinese film industry was too good to pass up. I first …
Indonesia’s Film Industry – Open for Business
2016 is shaping up to be a great year for Indonesian filmmakers. Forward-looking policy developments over the past year are sending out all the right signals that the Government is doing all it can to ensure the continued growth and expansion of the film industry. Positive changes, some already implemented and others recently announced, include …
Screen Content Fueling India’s Digital Economy Say Experts at Fast Track India
Governments and Creative Economies: Building for the Future
Governments often incentivize specific industries, such as agriculture, textiles, or petrochemicals, because of the jobs those industries help create and the wider impact on societal development from having created those jobs. This is particularly true for the entertainment industries, and most notably for content creation. When governments lay the groundwork for sustained economies correctly, the …
Score One for the Good Guys: Protecting Singapore’s Creativity
The creative industries – books, magazine, theater, music, movies and TV, computer software and the like – are an essential component of Singapore’s national ambitions for future economic sustainability. Over the years, in fact going back a generation, those ambitions have sometimes fallen victim to the bad guys; people who make their living by engaging …
Representatives Of The U.S. And Japanese Film Industries Renew Collaboration To Promote & Protect Content At CinemaCon
Executives from the Motion Picture Association (MPA) and the Content Overseas Distribution Association (CODA), a key representative of Japan’s film and television industry made up of content providers and copyright-related organizations, met at CinemaCon to renew an agreement to work together to protect artists and creators from around the world from content theft. The renewal …
Washington Screening of “The Dark Horse” Showcases New Zealand Creativity and Talent
Last night, the MPAA joined the New Zealand Embassy and Broad Green Pictures to co-host an educational presentation and screening of James Napier Robertson’s “The Dark Horse” in Washington, D.C. The event showcased New Zealand’s homegrown creativity and talent, while providing a forum to discuss the value of partnerships between the American and New Zealand film …
The Number of Online Services to Expand, Benefiting Consumers and Creators
The number of online platforms for legally viewing movies and TV shows continues to grow steadily, making more creative content from all over the world available to more audiences than ever before. There are now more than 480 unique legitimate online services available in countries around the world and 120 such services available in the United States (many …
Twelve Months Since Tropfest
This weekend Tropfest will again rock the picturesque natural amphitheatre that is the TSB Bowl of Brooklands in New Plymouth, New Zealand. Having won Tropfest in 2015, I’m reflecting on the year that’s passed – and what a year it’s been! Tropfest N.Z. is managed by the Taranaki Arts Festival Trust and sponsored by the …
My Day At Tropfest Australia And Why Making Short Films Doesn’t Mean Getting Short Changed
Late last year, the ‘Drawcard’ team found out we were one of only 16 finalists from over 600 entries selected to screen at the 24th annual Tropfest. A week later, to our white privileged horror, we found out that Tropfest had been cancelled and our celebration turned to dismay. It was akin to cancelling Christmas, Hanukkah …
The Independent Filmmaker’s Creative Rights Toolkit
When I started out as a filmmaker 22 years ago, things were much simpler. There was television and there was film. Period. Your work was reaching its audience through either one of two platforms. Today, one can’t even begin to count the number of ways an audience consumes entertainment, both legally and otherwise. In fact, …
2015 MPA APSA Academy Film Fund Recipients Hand Picked from 86 Submissions Across 28 Countries
Korea’s Next Gen Filmmakers Reflect on Busan Workshop
In October, the BIFF-MPA Film Workshop in Busan revealed some of Korea’s new generation of young filmmakers with new stories to tell and cinematic visions to share. Awards were presented to filmmakers competing in the feature film pitch competition, where they presented new feature film project ideas to a panel of local and international film …
MPA Joins With The Australian Embassy to Celebrate the Asia Pacific Screen Awards in Washington
On November 10th, the Motion Picture Association joined with the Australian Embassy in Washington to celebrate the Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA)with a screening of Iraqi Kurdish filmmaker Shawkat Amin Korki’s powerful feature film, “Memories on Stone.” The filmmaker himself made the trip to Washington to join MPAA Chairman and CEO Senator Chris Dodd, Australian Ambassador …
MPAA AND SAPPRFT HOST THE 5TH ANNUAL CHINA INTERNATIONAL CO-PRODUCTION SCREENINGS
This week, for the fifth year in a row, the Motion Picture Association joined with China’s Film Bureau of the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (SAPPRFT) to highlight and celebrate the incredible success of Sino-Foreign film co-productions during the annual China International Co-Production Film Screenings. These events were also supported by …
Co-pro Forum in Sydney Fast Tracks Engagement between Australian and Chinese Film Industries
New Asian Feature Films in the Spotlight at 2015 MPA-APSA-BIFF Project Pitch Reception in Busan
The Number of Legal Online Services for Movies and TV Shows around the Globe Keeps Climbing
From well-known services such as Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime and iTunes, to over-the-top devices like Amazon’s Fire TV Stick, Apple TV, Roku and Chromecast, today’s consumers are increasingly turning to digital services to watch movies and TV shows. And film and television industries everywhere are working harder than ever to get their content to them …
Special Screening of The Longest Ride Celebrates World Intellectual Property Day in Vietnam
INFOGRAPHIC: HOW TO MAKE A FILM
When people think about making movies, the words that often come to mind are “lights, camera, action!” It’s true – the physical production and shooting of a film is a huge, integral, and economically impactful part of what it takes to make a movie. But what is often overlooked is the tremendous amount of work …
Hong Kong Film Industry Snapshot
PART 1: HUGE POTENTIAL FOR HK INDUSTRY IF OBSTACLES OVERCOME By Ricky K.K. Wong, Vice Chairman MPDA and CEO Cine-Century Entertainment Cine‐Century Entertainment (CCE) has been active in Hong Kong since 1989 and is best known for its innumerable fast‐action kung fu and police/triad movies starring and helping to launch the careers of many distinguished actors including Kill …
Next Generation Of Vietnamese Filmmakers Share Career Plans And Dreams
Sharing global best practice production skills was the focus of a one-day Hanoi Spring 2015 Film Workshop hosted by the Motion Picture Association (MPA) and the Embassy of Denmark and held at L’Espace in Hanoi on March 17, completing a 10-day film production training course aimed at building knowledge and skill levels for Vietnam’s leading …
MPA Grand Prize Awarded at MPA-BFM Film Workshop during 5th Beijing International Film Festival
Screen Industry Injects Over USD2 Billion (HKD15 Billion) into Hong Kong Economy
Infographic: Demand for Movies Continues to Rise Around the Globe
Today, we released our annual Theatrical Market Statistics Report for 2014. Commenting on the latest figures, MPAA Chairman and CEO Senator Chris Dodd added, “This is not just an American story of success, but a worldwide story about the value of craft, creativity and the importance of a story well told.” And the report shows just what …
LOCAL INDUSTRY FINDS BENEFIT IN RELEASE OF AUSTRALIAN ECONOMIC CONTRIBUTION REPORT
It is useful to have the Deloitte Access Economics Report on the Economic Contribution of the Film and Television Industry in Australia commissioned by the Australian Screen Association and released last week. Susan Prior, Australian Actor, speaks at the launch of the Economic Contribution of the Film and Television Industry in Australia report on February 10, 2015 …
Global Best Practice Production Skills Focus for Vietnamese Filmmakers during Film Workshop in Hanoi
LEADING VIETNAMESE FILMMAKERS REFLECT ON CONVERSATION WITH LORD DAVID PUTTNAM
Lord David Puttnam is a busy man. He recently took time out from his role as the UK Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy to Vietnam (as well as to Laos, Cambodia, and Burma) to speak to us about filmmaking, and our conversation really did resonate and will perhaps be remembered as a turning point in the …
Lord David Puttnam & Leading Vietnamese Filmmakers Exchange Ideas for Flourishing Creative Community
Vietnamese Filmmaker Duong Dieu Linh on a Filmmaker’s Life During the Pandemic
China’s Wanda Film To Build More Cinemas Despite Heavy 2019 Losses, Coronavirus Impact
Why ‘Extraction’ Director Didn’t Imagine Chris Hemsworth as His Star (at First)
Film News Roundup: Universal Pictures Developing Supernatural Romance ‘Dan and Sam’
Local OTT service provider signs partnership with U.S. media giant on content supply
Netflix Reveals First Images of Steve Carell’s Space Force + Release Date & Cast
This short film on self-isolation, featuring India’s superstars, is a must watch
Audi Australia Premieres ‘The Drive’, A Four-Hour Slow TV Film For Social Media
Never Have I Ever Director Kabir Akhtar on Filming Mindy Kaling’s New Netflix Series
‘Coronavirus & Me’ Set as First Original Series at Iwonder Documentary Streamer
Read Christopher Nolan’s Passionate Piece on the Importance of Movie Theaters
Court order makes it easier for copyright owners to curb access to piracy websites
Donald Trump To Appoint MPAA Chief Charles Rivkin To Key U.S. Advisory Panel On Trade
MOTION PICTURE ASSOCIATION APPLAUDS AUSTRALIA’S 30 PERCENT LOCATION OFFSET INCREASE
FILM & TV PRODUCTION OFFSETS BOOST AUSTRALIAN ECONOMY BY $16.5 BILLION, OLSBERG SPI STUDY SAYS
2022 MOTION PICTURE ASSOCIATION – ASIA PACIFIC SCREEN ACADEMY FILM FUND RECIPIENTS ANNOUNCED
ALLIANCE FOR CREATIVITY AND ENTERTAINMENT SHUTS DOWN ILLEGAL GERMAN STREAMING SITES HDFILME AND XCINE
Linda Gozali Received Special Award for Services in Support of Protecting Creative Rights
Filmmakers Champion Development Of China’s Film Industry At MPA Film Workshop
India Screen Sector Generated Close to USD 50 Billion (INR 349k Cr) in 2019
AUSTRALIAN SCREEN SECTOR GENERATED USD 15.1 BILLION (AUD$22.5 BILLION) IN 2017-18
Motion Picture Association Names Belinda Lui President and Managing Director, Asia-Pacific Region
Asia Pacific Screen Communities Highlight Importance Of Creativity During World IP Day Celebrations
MPA APSA ACADEMY FILM FUND CELEBRATES TEN YEARS FUNDING ASIA PACIFIC STORIES
Japanese Producer Masakazu Kubo Receives 2018 MPA Asia Pacific Copyright Educator Award At CineAsia
MPAA CHAIRMAN & CEO CHARLES RIVKIN CELEBRATES THE GLOBAL POWER OF STORYTELLING AT ASIA PACIFIC SCREEN AWARDS
Film & Television Industry Clocks Up USD 108.4 Billion Contribution To Chinese Economy
Screen Community Encourages Adoption Of Site Blocking To Protect Creative Content
Screen Sector Contributes Massive USD33.3 Billion to India’s Economy and Supports 2.36 Million Jobs
MPAA Chairman And CEO Charles Rivkin unveils new report on China’s growing film and television industry
CineAsia Salutes Australia’s Graham Burke With MPA Copyright Educator Award
Four Projects Hand Picked from 105 Submissions as 2017 MPA APSA Academy Film Fund Winners Announced
MPAA Studios Prevail In Civil Actions Against Xunlei For Infringement Of Copyright
Creative Communities Across the Asia Pacific Celebrate Movies and Music to Mark World IP Day
Strong Copyright The Engine Of Creative Innovation Heralded During World IP Day In Asia Pacific
India’s Rajkumar Akella Saluted at CineAsia with MPA Copyright Educator Award
Screen Content Fueling India’s Digital Economy Say Experts at Fast Track India
2015 MPA APSA Academy Film Fund Recipients Hand Picked from 86 Submissions Across 28 Countries
Co-pro Forum in Sydney Fast Tracks Engagement between Australian and Chinese Film Industries
New Asian Feature Films in the Spotlight at 2015 MPA-APSA-BIFF Project Pitch Reception in Busan
Special Screening of The Longest Ride Celebrates World Intellectual Property Day in Vietnam
MPA Grand Prize Awarded at MPA-BFM Film Workshop during 5th Beijing International Film Festival
Screen Industry Injects Over USD2 Billion (HKD15 Billion) into Hong Kong Economy
Global Best Practice Production Skills Focus for Vietnamese Filmmakers during Film Workshop in Hanoi
Lord David Puttnam & Leading Vietnamese Filmmakers Exchange Ideas for Flourishing Creative Community
How Vietnamese Filmmaker Bui Kim Quy Faced Death, Real & Imagined, in Her Film “Memoryland”
BY SILVIA WONG When her second film Memoryland held its world premiere at the Busan International Film Festival’s New Currents competition last month, Vietnamese director Bui Kim Quy had to give it a miss due to her health conditions. “I was diagnosed with lung cancer after the shoot wrapped in late 2018. Since then I have been undergoing treatment …
Why is New Zealand’s National Library Declaring War on Authors?
By Hugh Stephens At first blush, one would think that a natural symbiotic link would exist between authors, publishers, librarians and readers. After all they are all part of what I could call the literature ecosystem, the chain of content that leads from the creation of a work to its dissemination to its consumption, either …
Local Content Production and Sensible Regulation: New Studies Demonstrate the Close Relationship
By Hugh Stephens In the past several years there has been an exponential explosion of content in the audio-visual space driven primarily if not almost exclusively by online streaming services, both national and international. Names such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney +, Paramount +, HBO Max, Hulu and many more are well known to consumers …
A GOLDEN KEY? Film Fund serves as common link between some of the region’s most promising stories for the screen
By Andrew Pike What does a story about an Indonesian school girl with big dreams, a tale of a modern day pilgrim searching for a place to call home, and an account of two miners from Vietnam confronting the ghosts of the past, have in common? The answer: All are exciting new feature film projects …
“Game of Thrones” Prequel “House of the Dragon” Reveals First Teaser
BY THE CREDITS “Gods, kings, fire, and blood.” These are the first words we hear spoken in the House of the Dragon teaser, the long-awaited prequel to Game of Thrones that focuses on House Targaryen. Set 200-years before the flagship series, when Dany, Jon Snow, and the rest of the Westeros battled for that spiky throne, House of the Dragon will …
Brad Pitt & George Clooney Reuniting in Upcoming Thriller for Apple
Apple has won a bidding war for one of the hottest projects out there—Spider-Man writer/director Jon Watts’ thriller starring Brad Pitt and George Clooney as two lone wolf fixers who get assigned to the same job. Pitt and Clooney are also on board as producers through their respective labels, Plan B Entertainment and Smokehouse Pictures, respectively. …
Singapore’s Copyright Act Revisions: A Step in the Right Direction, But….
Singapore’s long awaited and long debated revisions to its copyright law were tabled in Parliament at the beginning of July with a view to enactment by the end of summer. This follows a two-month public consultation by the Law Ministry and Intellectual Property Office. The revisions have been in the works for some time, beginning …
Appeal Against Canada’s First Successful Pirate Site-Blocking Order is Dismissed: Good News for Copyright Protection in Canada
In a unanimous decision, on May 26 Canada’s Federal Court of Appeal (FCA) dismissed the appeal by internet service provider (ISP), Teksavvy, against Canada’s first site blocking order for copyright infringement issued in November 2019. At the time, I commented that the site blocking order marked a significant step forward for the protection of copyrighted content in …
Blocking Offshore Pirate Content Sites: The Philippines is Joining a Growing International Consensus
In the ongoing struggle against content piracy, a global scourge that undermines and competes unfairly with legitimate content producers and distributors, blocking offshore web and streaming sites that distribute pirated content has proven to be an effective tool in many countries. It provides a remedy to deal with scofflaws that cannot be reached by domestic …
MPA celebrates World IP Day 2021
We have created an animated gif (as attached) that illustrates how audiences, by paying for their entertainment through legitimate channels, help fund the development of new ideas, and in turn, the production of original films and television shows for their enjoyment. Many of our most popular movies and television shows started with that initial brilliant …
Korean Copyright Reform: Don’t Stifle Korean Filmmaking
The Korean film industry is one of the major artistic and cultural successes in Asia. The industry was propelled to prominence in Europe and North America through the 2019 film “Parasite”, which won the Palme d’Or at Cannes and Best Picture (plus three other awards) at the 2019 Academy Awards. Korean films have come a long way …
[FICCI FAST TRACK COVERAGE] INAUGURAL: THE ROLE OF THE DIGITAL ECONOMY TO REVITALIZE ECONOMIC GROWTH
The inaugural session of the 5th Edition of FAST TRACK DIGITAL, organised by FICCI and presenting partner, the Motion Pictures Association, was hosted virtually this morning, 25th November 2020. Moderated by Dr. Ashish Kulkarni, Founder, Punnaryug Artvision, the session sought to discuss how important a role the digital economy would play in revitalizing economic growth. …
Twenty-five Years of US-Vietnam Cooperation—Don’t Let “Decree 06” and Ongoing Piracy Spoil It!
How time flies! That is a truism we are all familiar with, but it was brought home to me forcefully when I was reminded by friends still living in Vietnam that this year, 2020, marks the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the United States and Vietnam. These two nations fought one of …
The Digital-Piracy Dilemma
In the world of film, one of the most important things copyright owners can do is market their content online to increase awareness and revenue. At the same time, they have to protect their content from internet piracy, which chips away at sales. This is an often-discussed dilemma — but two recent peer-reviewed papers (here and here) …
“Brave New World” VFX Supervisor & Producer Thomas Horton on Peacock’s Ambitious New Series
SEPTEMBER 1, 2020 BY BRYAN ABRAMS For visual effects supervisor Thomas Horton, Peacock’s new series Brave New World, which premiered on July 15, presented a serious challenge. Horton was tasked with overseeing the streaming channel’s ambitious adaptation of Aldous Huxley’s legendary sci-fi novel, which despite being published in 1932 still contains so many unkillable themes and …
Go Behind-the-Scenes of Christopher Nolan’s “Tenet” in Thrilling New Video
AUGUST 26, 2020 BY BRYAN ABRAMS If you don’t want to know anything about Christopher Nolan’s Tenet, then this is not the video for you. If you are inclined to find out a bit more about his latest, Warner Bros. has just done you a major solid. Stars John David Washington, Robert Pattinson, Elizabeth Debicki, Kenneth Branagh and, of course, Nolan …
New “Mulan” Spot Teases the Streaming Event of the Season
AUGUST 18, 2020 BY THE CREDITS Disney is going to make history on September 4. That’s because this is the date they’re releasing Niki Caro’s epic, live-action remake of Mulan on Disney+. Disney decided to offer Caro’s sweeping, stunning film on its streaming platform rather than wait for the situation at theaters to improve. Mulan will be getting …
New Zealand’s Ongoing Copyright Review Process: MBIE’s Revised Objectives Paper Withdrawn
July 20, 2020 BY HUGH STEPHENS Earlier this month it was reported that the department of the New Zealand government responsible for leading the current review of the Copyright Act (1994), the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) had issued a welcome statement withdrawing the revised objectives paper for the review it had released …
Putting Amazon on USTR’s “Hit List”
JUNE 24, 2020 BY HUGH STEPHENS Getting recognized by the US Trade Representative’s Office (USTR) in its annual “Notorious Markets” piracy and counterfeiting report is not the sort of recognition that most companies seek. USTR’s hit list, one might even say *hit list, is best avoided. When you consider that among the entities on the …
Cinematic Soul Food Movies Where Black Lives Do Matter
JUNE 17, 2020 BY DESSON THOMSON The tsunami-like effect of the Black Lives Matter movement is not only sweeping us forward towards an uncertain future but, like a riptide, pulling us backward through ignored history. It is a time to look forward as constructively as we reassess the trajectory of the journey that stretches behind …
Writer/Director JD Chua & Producer Juan Foo on Singapore’s First Creature Feature Circle Line
BY BRYAN ABRAMS JD Chua had the distinction of being director Michael Mann’s only intern when he was in Hollywood, the man who made, in a seven-year period, three of the best films of the 1990s—The Last of the Mohicans (1992), Heat (1995), and The Insider (1999). As a child, one of Chua’s favorite films was Mann’s The Last of the Mohicans. “I …
Keanu Reeves & Carrie-Anne Moss on The Matrix 4
JUNE 8, 2020 BY THE CREDITS It was in mid-May when we heard the hopeful news that the cast of The Matrix 4 had signed 8-week extensions, suggesting that Warner Bros. was feeling optimistic that the cast and crew could get back to filming in the near future. Principal photography had begun on Lana Wachowski’s …
The Trailer For HBO’s Lovecraft Country Reveals a Series That’s Sadly Perfectly Timed
JUNE 4, 2020 BY THE CREDITS We all can see with our own eyes what’s happening in America right now. In the middle of a global pandemic that has devastated the world and the country, taking the lives of more than 100,000 Americans and disproportionately affecting Black, Hispanic, Latino and Indigenous communities, we are also …
Mission: Impossible 7 Eyeing a Return to Filming in September
JUNE 3, 2020 BY THE CREDITS The cast and crew of Mission: Impossible 7 have their own difficult mission ahead of them; restarting their massive, complicated shoot after production was shuttered due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Speaking with the BBC (via Deadline), first assistant director Tommy Gormley said he believed that filming would begin again in September, …
The Many Lives of Indonesian Director Kamila Andini
BY STEPHEN JENNER Talking with multi-award-winning Indonesian filmmaker Kamila Andini might lead one to believe that she either possesses the power of time travel or that she’s in some way leading parallel lives, such is her unbelievably heavy workload. When Indonesia imposed stay at home restrictions, Andini had just arrived back from Melbourne, Australia, where she had …
How Critic Youn Sung-eun Found New Ways to Promote Korean film
BY THE CREDITS What does a freelance film critic do when there are no films to release? For South Korea’s Youn Sung-eun, the situation forced her hand to dive into a new business venture earlier than she anticipated – only this time she’ll be the one creating the content. “I’m not naturally an optimistic person, so …
My Blueprint for a Dynamic, Flourishing Vietnamese Film Industry
By Linh Duong As a country with 4,000 years of complicated history, 54 ethnic groups, mixed culture and cuisines, rich geography ranging from mountains to large valleys to river deltas and, as is well-known, more than 3,000 km of coastline, Vietnam offers a rich source for great screen stories. However, to me, it often feels …
Japan’s Production Incentives Are A Win For Both The Local And International Production Sectors
By Taro Imai At this moment, many film productions have been suspended due to COVID-19. In February, I was due to shoot my Philippine-Japan co-production film called Purple Sun, directed by Carlo Enciso Catu, in Sapporo and Saga, but the shoot has had to be postponed until next winter. It’s a difficult time for independent …
From Public Health to Film, How Thai Filmmaker Nirattisai Ratphithak Found His Path
BY THE CREDITS Like nearly every other industry, the filmmaking world has undergone an unprecedented global shutdown due to the coronavirus pandemic. We’ve been talking to filmmakers all over the world to find out how they’ve been handling the stoppage in work, making the most of their quarantine, and their hopes for the future. Those …
How Filipino Filmmaker Keith Sicat is Using Quarantine to Help Fellow Filmmakers (And Entertain Himself in the Process)
May 7, 2020 BY THE CREDITS “The beautiful thing is, you have to keep occupied right?” So says Filipino writer/director Keith Sicat, speaking from the six-week-long lockdown in Manila. With three projects primed to go into production at the beginning of the year, Sicat now spends in time between project development, teaching filmmaking, and keeping his …
With Her Amazon Directing Gig on Hold, Indian Filmmaker Tannishtha Chatterjee Embraces Other Creative Pursuits
BY THE CREDITS It’s often two-thirty in the afternoon before actor, writer, and director Tannishtha Chatterjee finds time to turn her attention to creative pursuits. “Till lunchtime…I’m cooking, cutting vegetables, cleaning, dusting and bathing Radhika.” Radhika is Chatterjee’s four-and-a-half-year-old daughter. For the last six weeks, it’s been just the two of them tucked away in her Mumbai …
Spike Lee Reveals Poster & Release Date for His Netflix Movie Da 5 Bloods
The Credits May 7, 2020 You have to love a surprise Spike Lee film announcement, which is what the news of Da 5 Bloods will be for most folks. Lee teased his new Netflix film in a Tweet, revealing both the poster and the June 12 release date. The film tracks four African-American Vietnam veterans who return …
Andy Serkis Reveals Interesting Nuggets About The Batman
Bryan Abrams May 11, 2020 Like every other major production, filming on Matt Reeves‘ hotly-anticipated The Batman was suspended in mid-March. Reeves and his talented cast and crew had begun production in London and had filmed around 25% of the total feature before production had to be shut down due to the spread of the novel coronavirus. …
See How They Created This Epic Lightsaber Duel inStar Wars: The Clone Wars
The Credits April 29, 2020 If you’re a Star Wars fan who hasn’t yet made the leap to their animated series, last Friday’s episode of Star Wars: The Clone Wars might be the thing that finally gets you to give it a chance. The episode, “The Phantom Apprentice,” contained—truly—one of the greatest lightsaber duels in Star Wars history. The …
Russo Brothers Share Epic Trove of Brand New Avengers: Endgame Videos & Photos
The Credits April 28, 2020 Are you prepared for just an astonishing amount of juicy behind-the-scenes videos and photos from Avengers: Endgame? The Russo Brothers have prepared an epic meal for you, either way, celebrating the fact that it was a year and two days ago that their historic film came out. Yes, a year ago …
Stunt-Coordinator-Turned-Director Sam Hargrave on His Action-Packed Debut Extraction
Julie Jacobs April 24, 2020 If you’re searching for an edge-of-your-seat movie experience to escape the current COVID-19 reality for a couple of hours, look no further than Extraction, streaming on Netflix beginning April 24. The film stars Chris Hemsworth as Tyler Rake, a fearless mercenary who is called upon to rescue the kidnapped son …
Copyright Industries and Creators in the Age of COVID-19: The Impact and the Response
hughstephensblog Posted on March 23, 2020 As I sit here looking out my window at fresh daffodils and cherry blossoms, it is hard to imagine that a potentially deadly virus is stalking the land. Of course I am lucky to be where I am, on Vancouver Island where spring has arrived; in other parts of …
Universal to Make ‘Trolls World Tour,’ ‘The Hunt,’ ‘Invisible Man’ Available Early on Home Entertainment
With movie theaters closing or reducing seating capacity due to coronavirus, Universal Pictures will make its movies available on home entertainment on the same day as the films’ global theatrical releases. The initiative will kick off with DreamWorks Animation’s “Trolls World Tour,” which is scheduled to debut on April 10 in the U.S. The company will also make films …
Motion Picture Association Statement on Daren Tang Nomination to Lead World Intellectual Property Organization
WASHINGTON – The following is a statement from Motion Picture Association Chairman and CEO Charles Rivkin on the nomination of Daren Tang of Singapore to be Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). “The Motion Picture Association congratulates Daren Tang on his nomination as the next Director General of WIPO. Copyright is at the …
“If you visit pirate websites, even the law can’t protect you”
The majority of adults and teenagers who access pirated content are experiencing cybercrimes including the theft of their personal details, fraud and viruses. That’s according to research released today by Creative Content Australia (CCA), coinciding with the launch of CCA’s 30-second anti-piracy ad – “Piracy. You’re Exposed” – in cinemas and on subscription and free-to-air …
Breaking news on one of our inaugural MPA APSA Academy Film Fund recipients, Asghar Farhadi (A Separation)
Two-Time Oscar Winner Asghar Farhadi Lines Up New Film ‘A Hero’, Memento To Launch Must-Have Arthouse Pic At EFM EXCLUSIVE: Two-time Oscar winner Asghar Farhadi is heading into production on new film A Hero, we can reveal. The Farsi-language project will enter pre-production in two months and is due to shoot in Shiraz, Iran, this summer. Paris-based Memento Films …
South Korea Requests Interpol Red Notice to Track Down Pirate Site Operator
South Korean authorities say they have requested their first-ever Interpol ‘Red Notice’ in an effort to apprehend the suspected operator of a torrent site that indexed around 455,000 copyright works. Information released by the Ministry of Culture and National Police suggests that the unnamed person is Australian. Police are demanding his or her arrest and …
Netflix Snaps Up Rights to Studio Ghibli Films Outside North America, Japan
Given the profound global popularity of Hayao Miyazaki’s classic works, the pickup represents a major win for the streaming giant in the international markets that it now depends on for growth. Netflix has acquired exclusive streaming rights to the full film catalog from beloved Japanese animation house Studio Ghibli for everywhere in the world outside …
WarnerMedia’s Jessica Kam on finding the best local-language content in Asia
How does a producer decide on what content to focus in a region as diverse as Asia? It’s about quality not quantity, says WarnerMedia Entertainment Asia Pacific’s Jessica Kam. Jessica Kam is relishing her new role at WarnerMedia Entertainment Asia Pacific. As part of the company’s restructuring in the region, which involved the merger of …
International Copyright Highlights of 2019
Every year at this time I take a peek in the rearview mirror and look back at the main copyright highlights of the past year, at least the ones that I have written about in my blog. I also check back on the “year-end reflections” post written the previous year, and it is remarkable how …
ATF: Singapore’s Robot Playground, Malaysia’s R&D Team up for ‘Spectrum’
Pleased to hear that leading Singapore animation studio Robot Playground are gearing up to co-produce a series of short films for Southeast Asia. Robot Playground created an anti-piracy video “Say No To Piracy” in partnership with the MPA, Starhub, the Centre for Content Protection, Cathay Cineplexes, Golden Village and Shaw Theatres.” Singapore "Say No To …
Independent film is in jeopardy, but Congress can help
To be a film producer is to be, at some level, a risk-taker. It’s simply the nature of the business, where films are both creative endeavors and multimillion-dollar investments – where risk is part and parcel of reward. Deciding to finance and produce a film requires significant experience, hopefully some good instincts, and an iron …
MPA APSA Academy Film Fund – 13th Asia Pacific Screen Awards
The MPA APSA Academy Film Fund Fund celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. It was created to support the development of new feature film projects by APSA Academy members and their colleagues from the culturally diverse Asia Pacific region. The fund awards four development grants of US$25,000 annually, and is wholly supported by the …
Max Eigenmann wins Best Actress in the 13th Asia Pacific Screen Awards
By Celso de Guzman Caparas Max Eigenmann received the Best Performance by an Actress award for the film Verdict, written and directed by Raymund Ribay Gutierrez, during the closing ceremony of the 13th Asia Pacific Screen Awards in Brisbane, Australia on Nov. 22. She is the third Filipino actress to win after Nora Aunor (2012, Thy Womb) and Hasmine …
Young Filipino filmmaker wins award in 2019 International Emmys
By Don Tagala A young Filipino filmmaker won an international award during the 2019 International Emmys in New York City for his 1-minute video about a displaced Muslim student survivor of the Marawi siege in the Philippines in 2017. Breech Asher Harani, 28, was among this year’s JCS International Young Creatives Award for his video …
‘Manta Ray’ Producer to Receive Southeast Asia Co-Production Grant
By Mathew Scott Venice-winning Thai producer Mai Meksawan is among the big names to benefit from a new Singapore-based initiative aimed to produce “quality stories for the world.” Venice-winning Thai producer Mai Meksawan (Manta Ray) has been handed a slice of the inaugural Southeast Asia Co-Production Grant, and he revealed that the figure, up to …
How might Aussie producers best take advantage of the global streaming boom?
By Marcus Gillezeau Marcus Gillezeau, an International Digital Emmy and AACTA Award-winning independent producer, writer and EP, suggests Australia needs a ‘whole-of-country’ approach to reap the benefits of the streaming age. The launch of Disney + and Apple TV+ this month have landed bang in the middle of the annual Screen Producers Australia (SPA) conference, …
Jon Kuyper on producing ‘Mad Max: Fury Road’, Ridley Scott series
BY LIZ SHACKLETON US producer Jon Kuyper outlined the differences between producing $100m studio movies and an $8m straight-to-DVD project at the MPA-DHU workshop (Oct 22) at TIFFCOM. He also touched on producing Ridley Scott’s upcoming TV series for TNT, Raised By Wolves, and how all the rules change when budgeting and scheduling episodic drama. During his …
Asia Pacific Screen Awards: Chinese Films Dominate Nominations List
By Pip Bulbeck Wang Xiaoshuai‘s ‘So Long, My Son‘ has a record number of six nominations including for best film, where it will be up against such high-profile Oscar submissions as Bong Joon-ho’s ‘Parasite‘ and Kantemir Balagov’s ‘Beanpole.’ Five films submitted for consideration in the best international feature film Oscar category, including South Korea’s Parasite (Gisaengchung), Russia’s Beanpole (Dylda) …
Netflix’s Lost in Space season 2: Trailer, plot, release date, cast and more
By Bonnie Burton There’s more danger ahead for the Robinson family with Netflix’s Lost in Space reboot, which returns for season 2 on Dec. 24. In Lost in Space, the Robinson family isn’t just close, it’s full of geniuses. Father John Robinson is a former Navy SEAL, mother Maureen is both an aerospace engineer and mission commander, and …
The Official Oscar Campaign For Avengers: Endgame has Begun
BY THE CREDITS Disney has officially launched its Oscar campaign for Avengers: Endgame, zeroing in on a slew of categories for their massive, globe-dominating mega-hit. Disney’s official For Your Consideration website details the categories they’re (currently) focused on. Superhero movies can and should be nominated for Best Picture if they’re good enough, as we learned last year when Ryan …
U.S.-China co-production “Abominable” tops North American box office in opening weekend
LOS ANGELES, Sept. 29 (Xinhua) — A U.S-China co-production, “Abominable,” dominated the box office in North America in its opening weekend, collecting a solid 20.85 million U.S. dollars during the first three days of release. It’s the biggest opening for an original animated movie in North America so far this year. The animated family film …
Apple TV Plus to Launch on Nov. 1, Cost $4.99 per Month
Apple has finally revealed key details about its upcoming video subscription service: The company used a press event for the introduction of the new iPhone Tuesday to announce that its Apple TV Plus service is going to launch in 100 countries on Nov. 1. The service will be priced at $4.99 per month, and Apple is granting loyal customers a …
TIFF 2019: Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite Gets Under Your Skin
There are no gentle super pigs (Okja), jellied roach bars (Snowpiercer), or colossal monsters (The Host), yet writer/director Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite manages to shock and surprise aplenty. There are dastardly deeds, masterful performances, and diabolical twists. The film reminds you that there is a very, very good reason this South Korean auteur is considered one of the …
OTT platforms may dethrone TV as the first stop for entertainment in India
By Sangeeta Tanwar Thanks to the growing popularity of online video content, a number of Indians may soon turn their backs on the TV. As many as 80% of those who subscribe to over-the-top (OTT) services say all their entertainment needs are being met through online content, according to a report published by consultancy firm KPMG India and …
Pay TV subs topped 1bn in 2018 as OTTs see significant revenue growth
By James Pearce IPTV reached 257m subs and surpasses satellite TV Cable accounts for half of all pay TV according to Digital TV Research SVOD holds 53% share of OTT revenues Pay TV subscribers topped one billion worldwide by the end up 2018, up 26 million during the year, according to Digital TV Research. IPTV added …
Buses caught showing pirated ‘Hello, Love, Goodbye’
BY ABS-CBN NEWS MANILA — Authorities caught several buses showing pirated copies of the Star Cinema hit “Hello, Love, Goodbye” and confiscated several USB flash drives during a raid on a transport terminal in southern Metro Manila on Wednesday, the government’s anti-film piracy arm said. Metro Manila Bus Co and Saulog Transit could be charged …
Hirokazu Kore-eda’s ‘The Truth’ With Catherine Deneuve, Juliette Binoche to Open Venice Film Festival
Palme d’Or-winning director Hirokazu Kore-eda’s hotly anticipated new film, “The Truth,” starring Catherine Deneuve, Juliette Binoche and Ethan Hawke, will open the 76th edition of the Venice Film Festival. “The Truth,” which marks the director’s first work set outside his native Japan, will screen on the Lido on Aug. 28 in competition. Kore-eda won the Palme d’Or at Cannes in …
The Matrix 4 is a Reality! Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss & Lana Wachowski Returning
BY BRYAN ABRAMS Time to take the red pill. While we’ve long thought that Warner Bros. would be rebooting The Matrix for a new generation, meaning, it would restart the seminal sci-fi franchise rather than carry on with the storyline that began with Lana and Lilly Wachowski’s game-changing 1999 film, we’re happy that that’s not the case. Variety reports …
Apple TV+ Reveals First Trailer for Star-Studded The Morning Show
BY THE CREDITS We’ve finally got our first look at Apple TV’s star-studded upcoming series The Morning Show,and we’re eager to see more. Starring Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon, and Steve Carrell(how’s that for a lineup?), The Morning Show gives us an inside look at the brutally cutthroat world of morning TV, and what happens when a co-anchor on a popular …
Netflix Reveals Final Trailer for The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance
BY THE CREDITS The last look we got at Netflix’s The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance was during Comic-Con, when the upcoming 10-episode series was one of the buzziest titles in San Diego. Now Netflix has released a new trailer for us to feast our eyes on, and we’re no less excited about this return to Jim Henson and …
The Comic Book Easter Eggs in Avengers: Endgame Revealed
BY BRYAN ABRAMS Now that Avengers: Endgame is available for digital download, there’s been a bunch of fresh material thanks to the bonus features. Bloopers? Check. A glimpse at Robert Downey Jr.’s screentest to nab the role of Tony Stark in 2008’s Iron Man? Yes. How the Endgame team created Chunky Thor? Yup. And now Marvel has released a brand new …
Home Owners to Be Held Liable For Pirate Boxes, Malaysia Says
The National Film Development Corporation Malaysia says it is preparing proposals that would hold home owners responsible for the use of pirate boxes in their property. Controversially, the chairman of the government department says it won’t even matter if the owner of the building is renting his property to someone else, piracy must be tackled. …
SMC2019 Welcomes Tropfest Junior Winner Kat Alexander
The Media Resource Centre is proud to announce it will host 2019 Tropfest Junior winner, Kat Alexander, at the upcoming Screen Makers Conference in Adelaide as part of her prize package. 15-year-old Kat of Pearl Beach, New South Wales, impressed judges with her short-film entry, Rewire; a Pinocchio-like tale of a female humanoid who breaks free …
HBO dominated the 2019 Emmy nominations, thanks to Game of Thrones
After Netflix beat out HBO last year for total Emmy nominations, HBO returned to its usual dominant position in 2019, earning a whopping 137 total Emmy nominations, thanks to Game of Thrones’ final season. The network secured a total of 32 nominations for Game of Thrones, breaking the previous record held by NYPD Blue (26 nominations in 1994). HBO’s other 105 nominations …
Netflix Expands Chinese Content With Series, Film Additions
Global streaming giant Netflix is growing its Chinese-language content with six new licensed titles. These will arrive on the service in the second half of 2019. Netflix is not permitted by China to operate its video streaming platform in mainland China. But it nevertheless perceives an appetite for Chinese-language content that can be accessed by international audiences, those in Chinese-speaking parts …
Todd Phillips Reveals the Plot of Joker is Entirely Original
The plot for Todd Phillips‘ Joker has been a well-guarded secret for a long time now. Even the excellent trailer left us with way more questions than answers. The script was co-written by Phillips and Scott Silver, and only the broad strokes have been more or less known for a while now. The film centers on Joaquin Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck, …
The Official Timeline of All the Marvel Movies
Watching all of the Marvel movies in the order they occurred can be a little tricky. TIME tried to sort everything out this April, starting with Captain America: The First Avenger back in the 40s then jumping to 2008 for Iron Man. Marvel has now slid Iron Man up 2 years placing those events in 2010. Captain Marvel will pop up in 1995, but …
Greater professionalism across the board key to China’s unique and fast evolving film industry.
Returning to Shanghai for its 6th iteration, the Global Film Industry Value Chain Development sought answers as to how the Chinese film industry could find long term growth and sustainability. Organized the Motion Picture Association, Shanghai Jiao Tong University and Winston Baker, and held on the eve of the Shanghai International Film Festival, the day-long …
What the $50 Million Success of ‘Capernaum’ in China Means for Arab Cinema
With Nadine Labaki’s Oscar-nominated drama smashing all records for Arab films thanks to the Middle Kingdom, regional producers are already getting calls from Chinese distributors looking to emulate its success.While there may have been a disappointing turnout for Arab films at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, where few major Middle East features screened across the …
APSA Script Plan Over Ten Years
Created in 2010 by the Motion Picture Association and the Brisbane-based Asia Pacific Screen Academy, the MPA APSA Academy Film Fund is celebrating its 10th anniversary after awarding a total of US$1 million in 40 grants to support the development of film production projects across the Asia Pacific region. While there are many development funds, …
Blockbusting future for online movies
A forum at the Shanghai International Film and TV Festival discussed new trends in the production and marketing of online films on Wednesday. Ever since the debut of online movies in 2014, China has seen huge potential in the genre, producing more than 1,500 online movies last year. According to Lu Yang, general manager of …
The One Tech Platform Used in Game of Thrones, Avengers: Endgame & (Much More)
BY HUGH HART From a remote outpost in Adelaide, Australia, a handful of techies in 2005 brought together far-flung filmmakers so they could critique VFX shots—not in the same room, but on the same screen. Today, cineSync software plays a behind the scenes role in nearly every spectacle-driven popcorn movie including this summer’s Men In Black, Spider-Man, X-Men and Godzilla sequels …
Future Still Looks Bright for Film & TV Co-productions Between China and Europe
The trade tension between the U.S. and China has made Hollywood quite nervous lately. This doesn’t seem to have affected the ties between the Chinese film industry and Europe. On May 19th, the Marché du film collaborated with the Sino-European producers association Bridging the Dragon and organized the fourth Sino-International Company Meetings. With the aim …
Quasi ban imposed on award-winning Indonesian film
The Indonesian film Kucumbu Tubuh Indahku (Memories of My Body) is winning awards and accolades around the world. But at home in Indonesia, few may get to see this evocative masterpiece because of an overblown call to censor it. Its creator, Garin Nugroho, knew the film would be provocative because of its political content, but …
Dance Film ‘Memories of My Body’ Takes a Battering From Conservatives in Indonesia
Muslim groups in Indonesia are calling for a ban on the film “Memories of My Body,” a drama from the country’s best-known art house director, Garin Nugroho. The groups say that the film is “sexually deviant” and promotes “LGBT values.” The film depicts the story of a young man from a dance troupe that performs Lengger Lanang, a …
Infringing Website Lists: Another Valuable Tool in the Anti-Piracy Toolbox
Source: shutterstock.com In March the Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG), “an advertising industry initiative to fight criminal activity in the digital advertising supply chain”, released an update in its campaign against ad-supported pirate websites, called Winning the Fight Against Ad-Supported Piracy. This updates an earlier study about which I wrote last year in a blog on “Tightening up Online Advertising …
A VIP invite to the Thai film awards reveals the feature film business in South East Asia is growing.
Often when travelling to another country for work, it’s easy to get so caught up in the preparation, flight-transfer-time-zone-zonk that you can find yourself stuck, alone and bored, searching for dinner and something to do. On this trip, I lucked-in. I’d been invited to Thailand by the Motion Picture Association (MPA) to run a filmmaking …
Tropfest winner Brendan Pinches’ Q&A
Given a documentary had never before won Tropfest, were you surprised, even shocked, when Be You T. Fool, your first ever short, was declared the winner? Yeah, I’d always associated Tropfest with comedies. I only really submitted the film because I’d seen that a couple of documentaries had been finalists in 2018. You had the idea …
What does piracy means to you?
Tropfest attendees and finalists on their thoughts about how piracy affects the Australian film industry.
Looking Back at International Copyright Developments in 2018
It’s that time of year when we cast an eye back over the past year (probably in a vain attempt to try to predict what the New Year will bring), reflecting on important developments in global affairs–including those affecting international copyright. Last year I wrote a similar blog and it is always instructive to look back at …
Crazy Rich Asians Director Jon Chu Wrote a Beautiful Letter to Coldplay Asking to use “Yellow”
Crazy Rich Asians made history this past weekend. As we wrote yesterday, the film had the biggest box office opening for a PG-13 romantic comedy since Think Like a Man. Based on the novel by Kevin Kwan, both Kwan and director Jon Chu told THR they turned down a a big payday to gamble on releasing the film in theaters. Crazy …
Fighting Digital Copyright Piracy: A Tripartite Solution (Rights-Holders, Technology Firms, Governments) is Needed.
In the ongoing struggle in the digital world between the creators of content and those who apparently believe that it is their right to take for nothing what others are expected to pay for, in the process depriving the whole value chain of creativity from author to performer to producer to investor to distributor of …
The WIPO Internet Treaties: New Zealand Will Soon Join 97 Other Countries as a Member (Thanks to the CPTPP)
Now that India has announced that it will join the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Internet Treaties (the WCT and the WPPT)[i], the number of acceding states will reach 97. Many emerging economies and virtually every OECD country (Iceland, Norway and New Zealand being the exceptions) is a member. And New Zealand is about to become a …
India Joins WIPO Internet Treaties: A Major Step Forward
On July 4, the Indian government announced that India will accede to the two WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization) Internet treaties, the WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT), 1996 and the WIPO Performance and Phonographs Treaty (WPPT), 1996. The Press Information Bureau statement indicated that accession to the Treaties will allow India to enable creative rights holders to secure …
Paradise in Flames – A Project Developing Under MPA-APSA Academy Film Fund
I believe, it is the most exciting and elating moment in a filmmaker and a screenwriter’s creative journey when one comes to point of starting a reconnaissance trip for a dream project. This became possible because of the MPA-APSA script development award that has been conferred on me in 2017. The envisioned film’s setting is …
Copyright Developments Down Under: There’s a Lot Going On
The wheels of copyright change are grinding away in Australia, both through legislative review and court actions. I hesitate to call the process “copyright reform” because one person’s reform is another’s regressive step. The government has chosen the term “copyright modernisation” and a public consultation has been launched with a final submission date of July 4. The …
Is the Era of “Permissionless Innovation” and Avoidance of Regulation on the Internet Finally Over? It’s High Time.
It would be the ultimate under-statement to say that recent events concerning the appalling breaches of privacy permitted and indeed orchestrated by Facebook have raised public awareness to new heights over what happens when internet intermediaries are allowed to do just about whatever they want. Despite Mark Zuckerberg’s apologies about “mistakes” and pledges do better in …
Is an economy based on free incompatible with freedom?
As a long time critic of Silicon Valley business models and the state of internet governance, I have been swamped with communications from friends and colleagues expecting me to be overjoyed with the attention on Facebook which has dominated discussion this week. And I suppose part of me is, but mostly I am worried. I …
On the Internet, Everyone Is A ____(fill in the blank)
Lots of words come to mind, none of which I plan to explore here other than to note, in passing, that the likelihood of the blank being filled with a word not generally used in proper company is likely to produce fundamental changes in internet governance. It is now abundantly clear that absence of real …
My Tropfest experience
Two Piece was written in an afternoon at my favourite cafe. I’d just bought a new laptop for my birthday, replacing my 10-year-old brick of a mac, and had downloaded some fresh screenwriting software. Inspired by a fraught trip I’d recently had searching for a new dress with my mum, the story of 13-year-old Ava shopping …
Writer/Director Atsuko Hirayanagi On Synchronicity & Inspiration In Her Feature Oh Lucy!
Originally, writer/director Atsuko Hirayanagi‘s Oh, Lucy! was written and produced as a short, winning the Jury Prize for International Fiction at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. Now she has expanded it into a full-length feature, and Oh, Lucy! has just been released across the country to universally positive reviews. Shinobu Terajima, an A-list actress in her native Japan, was nominated for …
Canada and New Zealand: Both Wrestling with Offshore Piracy and Both Seeking an Effective Solution
Canadians and Kiwis have a lot in common. For one thing, they both live in the shadow of larger neighbours who tend to take them for granted. It is particularly galling when a stranger mistakes a Canuck or a Kiwi for one of those culturally-dominant larger neighbours because of an unfortunate similarity of accent. Here …
From Hamilton to Los Angeles, an unforgettable experience
2017 Tropfest NZ winners of the MPA first prize trip to Los Angeles for a film immersion course. Last year, when it was unexpectedly announced that Tropfest NZ was back on for 2017, my partner Sash and I were thrilled and immediately started talking about what story we would like to tell to create a …
Site Blocking in Japan—A Call for Action
In my last blog I discussed the growing problem of online piracy in Japan, and the importance of site blocking as a potential remedy. Site blocking has proven to be a particularly effective remedy against rogue pirate sites that set up in jurisdictions beyond the reach of domestic law, as I have outlined in previous …
Online Piracy in Japan: How Big is the Problem—and what’s an Effective Solution?
Source: shutterstock.com Japanese people are rightly noted for their honesty. We have all heard the stories of wallets left on park benches being returned or just left for the owner to find. This theory was tested last year with the results shown on Youtube. Out of 15 “inadvertent” wallet drops in Tokyo, all 15 were picked up and …
Collaboration The Key To Both Growing And Protecting The Film Industry In Japan
Last week, I had the privilege of returning to Tokyo for the 30thTokyo International Film Festival and the 7th Annual MPA Seminar for global stakeholders committed to improving copyright. As with other trips to this world-renowned Film Festival, this most recent visit was extremely productive. The Seminar began with the MPA providing an assessment of the …
TROPFEST COMES TO DC
Last night, the MPAA, along with the Australian Embassy, hosted a celebration of the global short film festival phenomenon, Tropfest. The evening included a screening of select Tropfest short films and remarks from MPAA Chairman Senator Chris Dodd and Deputy Head of Mission to the Embassy of Australia Ambassador Katrina Cooper on the relationship between …
Not All Smooth Sailing for Vietnam’s Emerging Online Video Trend
The influence of foreign pop culture is growing on young Vietnamese. The local youth lifestyle appears to be evolving towards ever more internationalized trends. This is impacting on every aspect of the entertainment industry, including cinema. As Vietnam “catches up with what’s up in the world,” Vietnamese are consuming more international movies and television shows …
App Piracy Stifles Innovation, Harms Consumers
Mobile applications – the fun, useful programs that tell you how to get home, give you awesome bunny ears, introduce you to the love of your life, and let you text your friends across the world, and are cheap (maybe 99 cents) or even free – are being pirated like crazy. But why? And if …
Hugh Stephens Blog: Jonathan Taplin’s “Move Fast and Break Things”: A Sombre Warning—And a Call for Action
Jonathan Taplin’s new book Move Fast and Break Things, published in April of this year, (the title is based on Facebook’s internal motto, since modified to make the company appear more responsible) has been attracting considerable attention as he embarks on the usual book launch media tour, in this case Down Under in Australia and New Zealand, and …
Piracy gradually fading from the radar as film industry stakes increase
Barely a decade ago, Chinese sidewalks were strewn with pirated disks, which a riff-raff of unlicensed peddlers eagerly pushed to passers-by. At that time, the annual box-office receipts of the country’s film industry was around 3.3 billion yuan, which happens to be the takings of Mermaid (2016), the reigning box-office champion in China. It is no coincidence …
Shanghai Industry Talk-Fests Offer Much Food For Thought
4th Global Film Industry Value Chain Development Forum: Investing in the film industry is a high risk business, and doubly so if you’re operating in an unfamiliar market like China where the laws, customs and business etiquette can seem difficult to fully comprehend. Fortunately for those attending the 4th Global Film Industry Value Chain Development Forum on …
Copyright and Film in the 21st Century: Laws, Policies and Technologies
I was recently privileged to participate in an international forum on copyright organized in Shanghai by the World Intellectual Property Organization and the National Copyright Administration of China, and to share my thoughts on the continued development of copyright and film in the 21st Century. I can say without hesitation or doubt that the continued …
MPA-BJIFF Film Workshop Highlights Strengthening Ties Between U.S. & Chinese Film Industries
It is an honor to be invited to participate on industry panels, but the MPA-BJIFF Workshop: Feature Film Pitching Competition and Coaching, is particularly special for me. Not only do I have the opportunity to speak to young filmmakers about my experiences as well as work with, and foster the growth of the next wave of filmmaking …
MPA & APSA Team Up To Support New Asia Pacific Filmmakers
The Motion Picture Association (MPA) Asia Pacific and the Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA) and its Academy have renewed their partnership to help develop new filmmakers in the Asia Pacific community. The announcement came April 20 during the MPA-BFM Film Workshop at the Beijing International Film Festival and featured news that the eighth round of …
Hugh Stephens Blog: Disabling Access to Large-Scale Pirate Sites (Site Blocking)—It Works!
Disabling Access to Large-Scale Pirate Sites (Site Blocking)—It Works! As I wrote back in August, recent studies conducted by Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) and the Information Technology and Information Foundation (ITIF) have demonstrated convincingly that blocking offshore pirate websites works in terms of changing consumer behaviour (i.e. directing consumers away from infringing content to sources of legitimate content) …
Female filmmakers find significant representation in MPA APSA Academy Film Fund
As a member of the selection committee to decide the four recipients of the first MPA APSA Academy Film Fund in 2010, I was, like many others, inspired by the words of Asghar Farhadi, following his acceptance of the Best Foreign Language Film at the Academy Awards. Farhadi’s film A Separation, which won the Academy Award …
The Tropfest booster – shot on my short film learning curve
One of the many things I’ve learnt making short films, is that before you set out to make your film, have an idea of which festival(s) you’re making your film for. From my experience, every festival has its own particular flavour, and as soon as I had the idea for The Mother Situation, I knew it …
Hugh Stephens Blog: Is the TPP really “dead”? Maybe not if you believe in “Twelve minus One”
Late last year, after Mr. Trump’s election but before his inauguration, I wrote a blog on the “Demise of the TPP and its Impact on Copyright”. The President-elect had declared the TPP to be “a potential disaster for our country” and “the death blow for American manufacturing”. He stated that he would notify the TPP partners of the intent …
It pays to wake-up to the “business” of show business
On the 18th of February, on a balmy evening in New Plymouth, a large audience gathered in a grassy outdoor amphitheater to enjoy sixteen short films from a new generation of New Zealand filmmakers. All were excited to be sharing their stories and talent through the hugely influential platform Tropfest. Their focus that night, and no …
UK Search Code Of Practice: A Welcome First Step But Not ‘Mission Accomplished’
Awards season is a time of celebration in the film industry; the Baftas and the Oscars are providing a fantastic showcase of the very best that big screen can deliver to audiences all over the world. This moment when we celebrate the creativity that inspires and entertains us is also right to announce an important …
Luke Hemsworth on Playing Legendary Wild West Gunslinger in Hickok
Luke Hemsworth‘s younger brothers Chris (Thor) and Liam (The Hunger Games) are known for blockbusters, and now Luke Hemsworth (Westworld) is making a name in some smaller projects. His latest is the title role in Hickok, a western about the legendary gunslinger, co-starring Kris Kristofferson and Trace Atkins. In an interview, Hemsworth explained why Wild Bill Hickok wears his …
How having a story to tell set me off on my Tropfest and Los Angeles film adventure
In December 2015, in a slightly harried, last-minute fashion, I submitted a film to Tropfest New Zealand. I got a couple of hours sleep, woke up and caught a plane to another city for a conference for my day job. I almost didn’t bother submitting the film. For me, it was simply a labor of …
A Conversation with Director Mostofa Farooki and APSA Chairman Michael Hawkins
Last week, the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), along with the Embassy of Australia, hosted a screening of the acclaimed Iranian drama film A Separation. The film was one of the first projects funded by the Motion Picture Association’s Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA) Academy Film Fund—a program that provides four $25,000 grants each year …
Tackling Piracy in Australia: Village Roadshow’s New and Innovative Strategy
In a blockbuster speech delivered on October 10 to the Australian International Movie Convention meeting in Gold Coast, Queensland, Graham Burke, Co-Executive Chairman and Co-CEO of Australia’s largest entertainment company, Village Roadshow, took aim at the high rate of film piracy among Australian consumers and declared war on illegal downloading and streaming. Burke outlined a five point …
My Tokyo Weekend With Japan’s Next Generation Of Filmmakers
My trip to Tokyo as a guest speaker for the MPA had been arranged many months ago. It was an exciting opportunity and one that I’d been looking forward for some time. Still, stepping off the long flight from New York, I found myself juggling the many demands of executive producing the television show I’d …
The Dressmaker’s Costume Designer’s Stunning Creations
The Dressmaker, directed by Jocelyn Moorhouse and adapted from Rosalie Ham’s beloved novel, stars Kate Winslet as Tilly Dunnage, a chic, sophisticated dressmaker who returns from Paris to her small Australian outback town to find out the truth behind the scandal she was at the center of as a child. We speak to costume designer …
Wolverine 3 Director James Mangold Shares Title, Poster, Page of Script
What did we when we wanted updates on movies before the age of social media? Oh right, we waited for set visit interviews to run in major magazines and on websites, which most often wouldn’t run until the promotional window opened a few weeks before the film came out. Obviously times have changed. Wolverine 3 director James …
Vietnam’s new film classification system offers new horizon of opportunities for local filmmakers
Vietnam’s new regulation on film classification will take effect on January 1st2017. The long expected regulation is seen as a relaxation of the government’s discretion in film censorship. It is hoped that it will encourage a greater expression of creativity and allow more diverse film entertainment in an increasingly affluent Vietnam marketplace. The new guidelines …
Capturing the Next Million Users – How Live TV Will Carve the Future of OTT
India’s digital story is unfolding day by day. Our Internet user growth rate is over 40% – as against a global growth rate of 9%. The number of mobile Internet users in India is approximately 400 million and rapidly growing, especially in smaller towns and rural India. In fact these markets will really power the …
The Future Of Online Content Delivery In Asia: Boom Or Bust?
The internet has prompted an exciting revolution in content delivery. Internet video streaming and downloads are on track to account for over 80% of all consumer internet traffic by 2019. As an entrepreneur, this is a huge opportunity! As the Co-Founder and Chairman of Asia’s fastest-growing subscription video service, iFlix, which launched operations in 2015, …
Tales of an Aussie sales agent in Shanghai
I’d been to Shanghai and Beijing twice in the last several months and after a hectic start to the year I was looking forward to being at home for a while. However, an invitation to speak alongside some of the biggest players in the Chinese film industry was too good to pass up. I first …
Indonesia’s Film Industry – Open for Business
2016 is shaping up to be a great year for Indonesian filmmakers. Forward-looking policy developments over the past year are sending out all the right signals that the Government is doing all it can to ensure the continued growth and expansion of the film industry. Positive changes, some already implemented and others recently announced, include …
Governments and Creative Economies: Building for the Future
Governments often incentivize specific industries, such as agriculture, textiles, or petrochemicals, because of the jobs those industries help create and the wider impact on societal development from having created those jobs. This is particularly true for the entertainment industries, and most notably for content creation. When governments lay the groundwork for sustained economies correctly, the …
Score One for the Good Guys: Protecting Singapore’s Creativity
The creative industries – books, magazine, theater, music, movies and TV, computer software and the like – are an essential component of Singapore’s national ambitions for future economic sustainability. Over the years, in fact going back a generation, those ambitions have sometimes fallen victim to the bad guys; people who make their living by engaging …
Representatives Of The U.S. And Japanese Film Industries Renew Collaboration To Promote & Protect Content At CinemaCon
Executives from the Motion Picture Association (MPA) and the Content Overseas Distribution Association (CODA), a key representative of Japan’s film and television industry made up of content providers and copyright-related organizations, met at CinemaCon to renew an agreement to work together to protect artists and creators from around the world from content theft. The renewal …
Washington Screening of “The Dark Horse” Showcases New Zealand Creativity and Talent
Last night, the MPAA joined the New Zealand Embassy and Broad Green Pictures to co-host an educational presentation and screening of James Napier Robertson’s “The Dark Horse” in Washington, D.C. The event showcased New Zealand’s homegrown creativity and talent, while providing a forum to discuss the value of partnerships between the American and New Zealand film …
The Number of Online Services to Expand, Benefiting Consumers and Creators
The number of online platforms for legally viewing movies and TV shows continues to grow steadily, making more creative content from all over the world available to more audiences than ever before. There are now more than 480 unique legitimate online services available in countries around the world and 120 such services available in the United States (many …
Twelve Months Since Tropfest
This weekend Tropfest will again rock the picturesque natural amphitheatre that is the TSB Bowl of Brooklands in New Plymouth, New Zealand. Having won Tropfest in 2015, I’m reflecting on the year that’s passed – and what a year it’s been! Tropfest N.Z. is managed by the Taranaki Arts Festival Trust and sponsored by the …
My Day At Tropfest Australia And Why Making Short Films Doesn’t Mean Getting Short Changed
Late last year, the ‘Drawcard’ team found out we were one of only 16 finalists from over 600 entries selected to screen at the 24th annual Tropfest. A week later, to our white privileged horror, we found out that Tropfest had been cancelled and our celebration turned to dismay. It was akin to cancelling Christmas, Hanukkah …
The Independent Filmmaker’s Creative Rights Toolkit
When I started out as a filmmaker 22 years ago, things were much simpler. There was television and there was film. Period. Your work was reaching its audience through either one of two platforms. Today, one can’t even begin to count the number of ways an audience consumes entertainment, both legally and otherwise. In fact, …
Korea’s Next Gen Filmmakers Reflect on Busan Workshop
In October, the BIFF-MPA Film Workshop in Busan revealed some of Korea’s new generation of young filmmakers with new stories to tell and cinematic visions to share. Awards were presented to filmmakers competing in the feature film pitch competition, where they presented new feature film project ideas to a panel of local and international film …
MPA Joins With The Australian Embassy to Celebrate the Asia Pacific Screen Awards in Washington
On November 10th, the Motion Picture Association joined with the Australian Embassy in Washington to celebrate the Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA)with a screening of Iraqi Kurdish filmmaker Shawkat Amin Korki’s powerful feature film, “Memories on Stone.” The filmmaker himself made the trip to Washington to join MPAA Chairman and CEO Senator Chris Dodd, Australian Ambassador …
MPAA AND SAPPRFT HOST THE 5TH ANNUAL CHINA INTERNATIONAL CO-PRODUCTION SCREENINGS
This week, for the fifth year in a row, the Motion Picture Association joined with China’s Film Bureau of the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (SAPPRFT) to highlight and celebrate the incredible success of Sino-Foreign film co-productions during the annual China International Co-Production Film Screenings. These events were also supported by …
The Number of Legal Online Services for Movies and TV Shows around the Globe Keeps Climbing
From well-known services such as Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime and iTunes, to over-the-top devices like Amazon’s Fire TV Stick, Apple TV, Roku and Chromecast, today’s consumers are increasingly turning to digital services to watch movies and TV shows. And film and television industries everywhere are working harder than ever to get their content to them …
INFOGRAPHIC: HOW TO MAKE A FILM
When people think about making movies, the words that often come to mind are “lights, camera, action!” It’s true – the physical production and shooting of a film is a huge, integral, and economically impactful part of what it takes to make a movie. But what is often overlooked is the tremendous amount of work …
Hong Kong Film Industry Snapshot
PART 1: HUGE POTENTIAL FOR HK INDUSTRY IF OBSTACLES OVERCOME By Ricky K.K. Wong, Vice Chairman MPDA and CEO Cine-Century Entertainment Cine‐Century Entertainment (CCE) has been active in Hong Kong since 1989 and is best known for its innumerable fast‐action kung fu and police/triad movies starring and helping to launch the careers of many distinguished actors including Kill …
Next Generation Of Vietnamese Filmmakers Share Career Plans And Dreams
Sharing global best practice production skills was the focus of a one-day Hanoi Spring 2015 Film Workshop hosted by the Motion Picture Association (MPA) and the Embassy of Denmark and held at L’Espace in Hanoi on March 17, completing a 10-day film production training course aimed at building knowledge and skill levels for Vietnam’s leading …
Infographic: Demand for Movies Continues to Rise Around the Globe
Today, we released our annual Theatrical Market Statistics Report for 2014. Commenting on the latest figures, MPAA Chairman and CEO Senator Chris Dodd added, “This is not just an American story of success, but a worldwide story about the value of craft, creativity and the importance of a story well told.” And the report shows just what …
LOCAL INDUSTRY FINDS BENEFIT IN RELEASE OF AUSTRALIAN ECONOMIC CONTRIBUTION REPORT
It is useful to have the Deloitte Access Economics Report on the Economic Contribution of the Film and Television Industry in Australia commissioned by the Australian Screen Association and released last week. Susan Prior, Australian Actor, speaks at the launch of the Economic Contribution of the Film and Television Industry in Australia report on February 10, 2015 …
LEADING VIETNAMESE FILMMAKERS REFLECT ON CONVERSATION WITH LORD DAVID PUTTNAM
Lord David Puttnam is a busy man. He recently took time out from his role as the UK Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy to Vietnam (as well as to Laos, Cambodia, and Burma) to speak to us about filmmaking, and our conversation really did resonate and will perhaps be remembered as a turning point in the …