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Takashi Shimizu Times Two: Well Go USA Make Pre-Venice Pick-up of ‘Tormented’
Texas-based Asian genre film specialists Well Go USA have made a two-picture pick-up deal with Fortissimo Films for Takashi Shimizu’s last pair of films - both Marco Mueller's Lido selected items. Via their output deal with Variance films, look for the Venice Film Festival 2011 selected Tormented to be shown in theaters while 2010's The Shock Labyrinth will probably go the direct to VOD route.
2011 TIFF: Debuts from Pablo Giorgelli, Haofeng Xu, Susan Youssef, Ruslan Pak, Tomas Lunak, Ryan O’Nan Included in Discovery Programme
Among the noteworthy mentions that are headed to Venice, they've got a must-see three in Tomáš Lunák's Alois Nebel, Susan Youssef's Habibi and Ruslan Pak's Hanaan. From Cannes Directors' Fortnight section they've nabbed Karl Markovics' Breathing, Rúnar Rúnarsson's Volcano, Rebecca Daly's The Other Side of Sleep and they've got the Camera D'Or winner Las Acacias which played in the Critics' Week.
2011 TIFF: Masters includes Cannes’ Kaurismäki and Dardennes with Venice’s Akerman and Sokurov
Even when you include Gus Van Sant's Restless, there are no surprises this morning with the names mentioned in the Masters programme finally released today. From Cannes, Aki Kaurismäki, the Dardennes, Bruno Dumont, Robert Guédiguian and a must-see masterwork from Nuri Bilge Ceylan make the cut, while from the upcoming Venice film festival we'll be heavily inclined to see Chantal Akerman's Almayer's Folly and Alexander Sokurov wrap up his trilogy of films about 20th-century rulers with Faust.
Rohal Finds ‘Scoutmasters’ in Knoxville and Oswalt
Guatemalan Handshake and Catechism Cataclysm helmer Todd Rohal's Sundance workshopped screenplay has received the greenlight. According to Deadline, production on the to be retitled Scoutmasters commences this week with Johnny Knoxville and Patton Oswalt toplining the dark comedy with a supporting cast rounded out by Rob Riggle (21 Jump Street), Maura Tierney (television's ER) and Patrice O'Neal with the hope that the production squeezes in a part for Robert Longstreet.
Renner and Wasikowska Get Wet on Luca Guadagnino’s ‘A Bigger Splash’
I Am Love has opened some huge doors for Italian helmer Luca Guadagnino. Currently keepoing busy with docu films Inconscio italiano (showing at Venice this month) and Bertolucci on Bertolucci (docu due out next year), he has been developing Auntie Mame and Corsica 72 as his potential feature film projects - but now it's a remake of Jacques Deray's “The Swimming Pool" - the 1969 pic starring Alain Delon, Romy Schneider and a very young Jane Birkin that looks to be his next.
