Alliance Communications Corporation Studio Pictures Bids For National Lottery Film Funding.TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 27, 1997--(TSE See Tokyo Stock Exchange. TSE 1. See Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE). 2. See Toronto Stock Exchange (TSE). , ME AAC (Advanced Audio Coding) An audio compression technology that is part of the MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 standards. AAC, especially MPEG-4 AAC, provides greater compression and better sound quality than MP3, which also came out of the MPEG standard. .A., TSE, ME AAC.B., NASDAQ NASDAQ in full National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations U.S. market for over-the-counter securities. Established in 1971 by the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD), NASDAQ is an automated quotation system that reports on :ALLIF.) A group of Britain's most dynamic and talented producers whose work includes The Commitments, Dance With A Stranger and Restoration, have formed a new company, Studio Pictures. Studio Pictures will bid for National Lottery National Lottery n → Lotto nt funding which is being awarded by the Arts Council An arts council is a government or private, non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the arts mainly by funding local artists, awarding prizes, and organizing events at home and abroad. in May 1997 to secure the successful future of the British Film Industry. Studio Pictures forms the core of the consortium which includes Alliance Communications Corporation ("Alliance"), Electric Pictures and a development deal with BBC Films BBC Films is the feature film-making arm of the BBC. It has co-produced some of the most successful British films of recent years and is now firmly established at the forefront of UK film-making; producing approximately eight films a year. . Studio Pictures intends to produce over 50 new British films during the first six years, amounting to a projected total investment of (180 million of which over (120 million would be new money, more than three times the Arts Council's allocation. Its operations will generate a brand new development fund of nearly (10 million over six years and will fund an imaginative industry training program of around half a million pounds over the same time scale. The consortium is being led by George Faber who, as former Head of BBC BBC in full British Broadcasting Corp. Publicly financed broadcasting system in Britain. A private company at its founding in 1922, it was replaced by a public corporation under royal charter in 1927. Single Drama, is one of the UK's leading producers and commissioners, responsible most recently for Priest, Persuasion and Cold Comfort Farm Cold Comfort Farm is a comic novel by Stella Gibbons, published in 1932. It parodies the romanticised, sometimes doom-laden accounts of rural life popular at the time, by writers such as Mary Webb. . As Managing Director of Studio Pictures, George will draw on his considerable experience in attracting top filmmaking talent and his widely acknowledged expertise for being able to spot and develop new talent. Four of the producer shareholders have been responsible for some of the most original independent film productions in the UK in recent years. They comprise Roger Randall-Cutler of The First Film Company (Dance With A Stranger, The Commitments), Marc and Peter Samuelson of Samuelson Productions (Tom and Viv, Wilde), Jonathan Cavendish of Little Bird (Into the West, A Man of No Importance A Man of No Importance may refer to:
Studio Pictures has teamed up with a talent-based production company, Natural Nylon, formed by British actors Ewan McGregor and Jonny Lee Miller Jonny Lee Miller (born Jonathan Lee Miller on November 15, 1972 in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey, England) is an English actor. Early life Miller's grandfather was Bernard Lee, famous for playing the character M in the earlier James Bond films. (Trainspotting), and Jude Law. As a shareholder in the franchise, Natural Nylon represents cutting-edge British film actors committed to stay and build the UK film industry. Studio Pictures has formed a strategic relationship with BBC Films (Truly, Madly, Deeply, The Snapper snapper, name for members of the Lutianidae, a family of spiny-finned food and game fishes found chiefly in tropical coastal waters. Snappers are carnivorous, active, and voracious, with large mouths and sharp teeth. Most species travel in dense schools. , Land and Freedom) which will provide the company with a significant development fund and a firm commitment to broadcast some of Studio Pictures' films. Studio Pictures Release International sales will be provided by Alliance, Canada's leading entertainment company (Black Robe, Welcome to the Dollhouse Welcome to the Dollhouse is a 1995 coming of age, black comedy. An independent film, it launched the career of writer-director Todd Solondz, who went on to make Happiness (1997). , Exotica ex·ot·i·ca pl.n. Things that are curiously unusual or excitingly strange: such gustatory exotica as killer bee honey and fresh catnip sauce. ), which will also provide financing for the company and its production slate. It has brought more British films to Canada (including Truly, Madly, Deeply, Shallow Grave, Naked, Howard's End) than any other distributor and its cable network, Showcase, is a major outlet for British drama. Internationally, Alliance has a reputation for innovative marketing skills employed in the supply of quality independent films, which will enable it to maximize sales of Studio Pictures' films. The British distribution of Studio pictures will be carried out by Electric Pictures which is run by Liz Wrenn. As a UK distributor, Electric has established an enviable reputation for the successful marketing of independent films, releasing over 100 top quality films including Orlando, Blood Simple and Priest. Commenting on today's announcement, George Faber said, "there's a new wave of energy sweeping the British film industry. The creative talent is there in abundance. We have some of the best film makers, actors and writers in the world, but, to date, we have not had the sound business base to keep them here and harness their energy. The inclusion of the BBC is a recognition of the consortium's commitment to quality and innovation. "Studio Pictures will bring to British cinemas over fifty new films, providing top British entertainment from top British talent. We're building a new British studio for the new millennium which will reinvest all profits for continued production long after the Arts Council's funding has ended." Alan Yentob, Director of Programmes, BBC, also commented, "we have a long working relationship with George Faber and believe that ties with Alliance and Studio Pictures' creative vision will match with our own. Together we will be in a strong position to bring to the public a number of original and imaginative film projects with a sound commercial base." Robert Lantos, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Alliance said, "our participation in Studio Pictures' bid for National Lottery funding in the UK, together with our investment in Electric Pictures, is a clear demonstration of our commitment to the British film industry and its success. Alliance will invest resources and capital in order to ensure that Studio Pictures plays an important role in that success. With George Faber and our other producer partners we share a common vision of a strong film industry that reflects the unique culture that is its home." Alliance Communications Corporation is a worldwide filmed entertainment company. Headquartered in Toronto with offices in Montreal, Vancouver, Los Angeles, Paris and Shannon, Alliance shares trade in Toronto and Montreal under AAC, and on the NASDAQ exchange under the symbol ALLIF. CONTACT: Alliance Communications Corp. Jennifer Stark, 416/ 967-1174 or Alliance Communications Corp. Lauren Lewis, SSA (Serial Storage Architecture) A fault tolerant peripheral interface from IBM that transfers data at 80 and 160 Mbytes/sec. SSA uses SCSI commands, allowing existing software to drive SSA peripherals, which are typically disk drives. , 818/ 501-0700 |
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