News

Exclusive: Australian actress Markella Kavenagh (The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power) will star alongside Tom Blyth and Sophie Wilde in New Regency’s suspense thriller Watch Dogs, based on the bestselling Ubisoft video game franchise, which wrapped production over the summer.

Details as to Kavenagh’s role are under wraps. Little is known about the film’s plot, other than that it will feature an original story set within the popular game universe.

Mathieu Turi, the esteemed French genre helmer behind 2023’s The Deep Dark, directed from a script by Victoria Bata, which was based on a story by Christie LeBlanc. New Regency’s Chairman and CEO Yariv Milchan and President of Motion Pictures and Television, Natalie Lehmann, produced alongside Margaret Boykin, Head of Content at Ubisoft Film & Television.

Debuting in 2014, Watch Dogs is an action-adventure game immersing players in the world of skilled hackers who...

Upcoming six-part series “The Tattooist of Auschwitz” is set in one of the most infamous concentration camps in history. And yet, “it’s a love story.”

“When Lali says that, you are supposed to question his words. But they did meet there, they did fall in love, they did survive and went on to live in Australia. They had a son and lived well into their 80s. In finding each other, they found a reason to survive,” says executive producer Claire Mundell.

A Synchronicity Films production in association with Sky Studios and All3Media International, “The Tattooist of Auschwitz” is a Sky and Peacock Originals series, based on the bestselling novel by Heather Morris. Featuring Harvey Keitel and Melanie Lynskey, it tells the true story of Holocaust survivors Lali and Gita Sokolov.

When Lali (Jonah Hauer-King) is deported to Auschwitz in 1942, he becomes one of the camp’s tattooists, inking identification...

Conference

An in conversation event with Paramount Global executives Pam Kaufman, president and CEO of international markets and global consumer products and experiences, and Lisa Kramer, president of international TV licensing, Paramount Global Content Distribution, has been added to the NATPE Global conference.

Jens Richter, Fremantle’s CEO of commercial and international and Paulo Koelle, head of Prime Video Latin America, Amazon Studios have also joined the speaker lineup. Other executives who have recently been confirmed include Jeff Sagansky, Sky’s group director of acquisitions, Katie Keenan, Acf Investment Bank’s Richard Gray, Satmohan Panesar, commissioner, factual, ITV Studios, Michael Schmidt, president, Sipur and Ilan Arboleda, co-founder and producer, CreativeChaos vmg.

Speakers also include Patricia Jasin, country manager Colombia and head of international distribution for Warner Bros. Discovery, Latin America/U.S. Hispanic, Sandra Smester, executive VP, programming and content, NBCUniversal Telemundo, Susanne Frank, director of Drama at Zdf Studios and Lindsay Stewart,...

Prime Video’s new thriller series Wilderness is already making a splash by having a truly great bop as its theme tune in Taylor Swift’s ‘Look What You Made Me Do’, but there’s much more to enjoy here than that. The raunchy show follows a young writer called Liv, whose dream life with her handsome and wealthy husband falls apart when they move stateside and she catches him cheating on her. Their “make or break” dream holiday is set to crumble into a nightmare, albeit a scenic one, when Liv sets out to get her revenge.

The cast of Wilderness may be small, but it’s stacked with notable actors, some of whom might seem very familiar to you. If you can’t remember where you’ve seen them before, or just want to know more about them, we’re here to help!

Jenna Coleman as Liv

Blackpool-born...

Jenna Coleman is one of the most talented and charming actresses working in the film and TV industry. The English actress made her TV debut with the 2005 British soap opera Emmerdale, and her first feature film role was a very small one but it was in Captain America: First Avenger. She recently starred in the adaptation of Neil Gaiman‘s DC comics The Sandman as Johanna Constantine and she is currently starring in the Prime Vide thriller series Wilderness. So, if you also love Coleman’s performances here are the 10 best movies and TV shows starring Jenna Coleman that should be on your watchlist.

10. Room at the Top (Not Available in the US) Credit – BBC

Synopsis: Room At The Top is a drama series based on John Braine’s classic book about Joe Lampton, a young man on the make in 1940’s Yorkshire.

9. Dancing on the Edge (Tubi & Prime Video...

A family’s long-standing mystery puts forth new roots in the trailer for Sigourney Weaver’s new drama The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart, which Prime Video released Monday.

The drama is an adaptation of Holly Ringland’s 2018 novel, which tells the story of Alice, who is brought to her grandmother June’s flower farm at age 9 after her parents die in a mysterious fire. Weaver, whose lengthy resumé includes the Alien and Avatar films, plays June.

More from TVLineCruel Intentions TV Series Sets Its Cast, Including a Star of the Original MovieJack Ryan's Final-Season Foe Has 'Unlimited Resources Paired...

“House of the Dragon” star Fabien Frankel plots to steal an expensive painting alongside Greta Bellamacina (“This England”) in a trailer for their new art heist feature “Venice at Dawn.”

Frankel plays Dixon while Bellamacina is Sally. After the duo have a drunken encounter at a bar, they come up with a plan to swipe a costly piece of art from Sally’s ex-boyfriend Stephen (“After Life” star Tom Basden). “There’s this huge house and he owns this painting which is worth millions of pounds – money, money, money,” Sally tells Dixon. “Tomorrow the house is going to be empty, the painting will be there and we could steal it.” Naturally high-jinks ensue.

YouTube turned actor Tanya Burr (“Twist”) co-stars as Stephen’s best friend while actor and director Celyn Jones (“The Almond and the Seahorse”) leads a Greek chorus of bumbling detectives as Detective Symonds.

Fabien Frankel, Greta Bellamacina...

Neil Gaiman’s Good Omens, Eurovision: The Story of Fire Saga and James Bond’s No Time to Die are just a handful of the productions that have been filmed in Scotland, and a new report confirms that TV and film is blossoming north of the border.

Screen Scotland’s report reveals that the industries contributed more than £568m (697m) to the country’s economy in 2019, a figure it hopes to double by the end of the decade.

Amazon Prime has made two series of Good Omens and the forthcoming Anansi Boys, also based on a book by Neil Gaiman. Douglas Mackinnon, showrunner on both titles, told the BBC:

“There were lots of discussions, and of course it all came down to money and practicalities but the bottom line was we could make it in Scotland, and at the top level.”

Screen Scotland’s report, focusing on 2019 before the pandemic closed down multiple productions,...

Exclusive: Erik Barmack’s Wild Sheep Content has boarded Synchronicity Films and Mr. B Films’ feature Kill, which has entered principal photography.

Former Netflix International senior exec Barmack, who launched Wild Sheep two years ago, described Kill as “uniquely international, genre, and big in scope,” stating it will “deliver for all partners.” The feature, the debut film from director Rodger Griffiths, is the second Synchronicity project that Wild Sheep has partnered on, following YA TV series One More Kill from Sugar Rush’s Holly Phillips.

Meanwhile, Deadline can reveal that CAA Media Finance is handling worldwide sales for Kill and Library Pictures International and Great Point Media have also boarded the project, which is supported by Screen Scotland and Northern Ireland Screen.

The thriller explores the sins of a father, Don, and the revenge of his three sons, who are out to avenge their mothers’ murder and put an end...

The BBC has launched the official trailer for the Jamie Dornan led thriller series ‘The Tourist.’

Dornan stars as a British man who finds himself in the glowing red heart of the Australian outback, being pursued by a vast tank truck trying to drive him off the road. An epic cat and mouse chase unfolds and the man later wakes in hospital, hurt, but somehow alive. Except he has no idea who he is. With merciless figures from his past pursuing him, The Man’s search for answers propels him through the vast and unforgiving outback.

The character-driven six-part thriller is created and written by acclaimed writers Harry and Jack Williams.

The series also stars Danielle Macdonald, Shalom Brune-Franklin, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson and Alex Dimitriades. Damon Herriman has also joined the series playing Lachlan Rogers.

Also in trailers – David Tennant is in for one hell of an adventure in trailer...

Stan Original The Tourist, starring Jamie Dornan, Danielle Macdonald, Shalom Brune-Franklin and Damon Herriman, will premiere January 2.

The six-part mystery-thriller is created and written by Harry and Jack Williams of Two Brothers Pictures, producers of Fleabag whose credits also include Baptiste, The Missing and Lair.

Dornan stars as a British man (‘The Man’) who finds himself in the glowing red heart of the Australian outback, pursued by a vast tank truck trying to drive him off the road. An epic cat and mouse chase unfolds and The Man later wakes in hospital, hurt, but somehow alive – except he has no idea who he is. With merciless figures from his past pursuing him, The Man’s search for answers propels him through the vast and unforgiving outback.

Also starring are Ólafur Darri Ólafsson (Trapped, The Missing) and Alex Dimitriades (The End, The Cry) and Damon Herriman (Mindhunter, Justified).

The Williams brothers executive produce with Christopher Aird,...

“The Cry” producer Synchronicity Films has optioned the forthcoming non-fiction book, “The Hidden Case of Ewan Forbes: The Transgender Trial that Threatened to Upend the British Establishment,” with plans to develop a scripted miniseries.

Produced alongside Brazen Productions, the series will be written by BAFTA-winning trans writer Sukey Fisher (“Soundproof”), who will adapt University of London professor Zoë Playdon’s upcoming hybrid of social history, biography and gender theory, which is published out of the U.K. this month by Bloomsbury Publishing and in the U.S. by Scribner.

The book is based on the real story of Aberdonian doctor, farmer and baronet Ewan Forbes-Sempill — born Elisabeth Forbes — who in 1952 corrected the sex on his birth certificate in order to marry the love of his life, Isabella “Patty” Mitchell.

Ewan’s marriage, the couple’s freedom and Ewan’s gender became highly politically charged when his inheritance of the Forbes...

Fremantle has swooped in for Nordic Entertainment Group’s unscripted assets, Variety can reveal.

The Rtl Group-owned “Got Talent” producer will use their new assets — 12 companies in all across Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark — to form Fremantle Nordics. The deal, which is subject to regulatory approval, is expected to close later this year.

The Scandinavian Nent Group has had its unscripted assets on the sales block since early 2020. The companies included are Strong Productions (Denmark); Grillifilms, Moskito Television and Production House (Finland); Monster, Novemberfilm, One Big Happy Family, Playroom, Rakett and Strix TV (Norway); Baluba and Strix Television (Sweden).

One of the best known formats from Nent’s unscripted roster is “The Farm,” which has aired in 50 territories, and throws a group of men and women on a farm to hack country life.

The companies join Fremantle’s existing Nordic production outfits, which operate as Fremantle in Denmark, Norway,...

Broadcast

“Friends: The Reunion Special” has broken viewership records at Sky One, becoming the network’s most watched show ever with more than 5.3 million tuning in to see the one-off special, which was available exclusively on Sky and its Now streaming service in the region.

The special now stands as Sky’s most watched program across live, recorded and downloaded viewing from the past two years. “Friends: The Reunion” is second to only “Game of Thrones” for the largest ever audience across Sky’s entire portfolio of entertainment channels and for the most-watched piece of content in its first 24 hours from launch on Now.

In further evidence of the show’s sustained popularity, the reunion special now stands alone as the best organic performing content across Sky and Now’s social channels as well, with the #FriendsReunion tag trending locally as well as globally on the day of launch.

Acquisition...

All3Media, the production and distribution group owned by Discovery and Liberty Global, has acquired Nent Studios’ U.K. distribution business, formerly known as Drg, from Nordic Entertainment Group.

Financial terms weren’t disclosed.

“The acquisition of Nent Studios’ U.K. distribution business adds more than 10,000 hours of premium content, including over 100 formats, to the All3Media International catalog with high-profile titles such as Doc Martin, The Cry, Yorkshire Vet, Manhunt, Catchphrase and Don’t Tell the Bride,” the company said.

All3Media CEO Jane Turton said: “Nent Studios UK has a deep, high quality distribution catalogue and I’m really pleased that Louise Pedersen and All3Media International ...

All3Media, the production and distribution group owned by Discovery and Liberty Global, has acquired Nent Studios’ U.K. distribution business, formerly known as Drg, from Nordic Entertainment Group.

Financial terms weren’t disclosed.

“The acquisition of Nent Studios’ U.K. distribution business adds more than 10,000 hours of premium content, including over 100 formats, to the All3Media International catalog with high-profile titles such as Doc Martin, The Cry, Yorkshire Vet, Manhunt, Catchphrase and Don’t Tell the Bride,” the company said.

All3Media CEO Jane Turton said: “Nent Studios UK has a deep, high quality distribution catalogue and I’m really pleased that Louise Pedersen and All3Media International ...

Exclusive: Synchronicity Films is following up its BBC drama The Cry with another Helen Fitzgerald television adaptation — this time based on her 2009 novel Bloody Women.

The production company has signed up Lorna Martin, the co-creator of Women on the Verge alongside Sharon Horgan, to adapt the novel into an eight-part, darkly comedic thriller. All3Media International is distributing as part of its first-look deal with Synchronicity.

Bloody Women tells the story of 33-year-old Cat Marsden, who on the morning of her wedding is taken to a police station and shown a severed penis. She tries not to laugh but she can’t help herself. On close inspection, she confirms that it almost certainly belongs to her ex, Johnny. She also confirms that she slept with him in the hours before his death, the days leading up to her wedding. What she can’t confirm is whether or not she’s responsible for mutilating and murdering him.

Exclusive: Sigourney Weaver is to lead an adaptation of Holly Ringland’s book The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart for Amazon.

The streamer has ordered a series adaptation of the Ringland’s debut Australian novel with Weaver starring in and exec producing.

It marks the latest Australian original for Amazon Prime Video.

The seven-part series, a tale of female resilience, friendship, and the power to overcome tragedy, is produced by Made Up Stories, Amazon Studios and Endeavor Content and will be filmed in Australia.

The series will be adapted for screen by Australian writer Sarah Lambert (Lambs of Gods), who serves as the series showrunner with Glendyn Ivin (The Cry) set to direct.

It will be executive produced by Jodi Matterson, Bruna Papandrea, Steve Hutensky and Allie Goss of Made Up Stories, Sigourney Weaver, Sarah Lambert and Glendyn Ivin. The series will be produced by Barbara Gibbs and co-executive produced by Lucinda Reynolds.

“The Cry” producer Synchronicity Films has optioned the rights to Graeme Armstrong’s acclaimed debut novel “The Young Team,” with BAFTA-winning “The Last Czars” helmer Adrian McDowall on board to direct.

Emerging British writer Ben Tagoe is on board as screenwriter, while Armstrong — whose own personal experiences inform his novel — will serve as consultant on the project.

Published by Picador Books in 2020, “The Young Team” is set in the housing schemes of Airdrie, North Lanarkshire — Scotland’s former industrial heartland — where teenage boys are sucked into a world of gangs, booze and blades culture. The story turns on 15-year-old Alan ‘Azzy’ Williams, who joins the Young Team (Ytp) just as a brutal conflict with their rivals, the Young Toi (Ytb) escalates.

The TV adaptation of Armstrong’s Times-bestselling and Waterstone’s Book of the Month novel will follow Azzy during three crucial years of his life, looking at the world...

Leading producers Tony Ayres and Belinda Chayko have assembled an extraordinary Australian cast for Fires, a drama series that presents personal tales from the front lines of the country’s recent catastrophic fire season.

The series, which is now shooting in Victoria state is produced by NBCUniversal -backed Tony Ayres Productions and Matchbox Pictures. Australian Broadcasting Corporation is on board as local broadcaster. International rights are handled by NBCUniversal Global Distribution.

The project is helmed by three leading film directors: Michael Rymer, Ana Kokkinos and Kim Mordaunt.

The ensemble cast includes: Eliza Scanlen, Sam Worthington, Richard Roxburgh, Sullivan Stapleton, Miranda Otto (“Homeland”), Hunter Page-Lochard, Anna Torv, Kate Box, Helana Sawires, Daniel Henshall and Noni Hazlehurst.

They are joined by newcomers Ameshol Ajang, Stacy Clausen and Nyawuda Chuol.

Fires” is structured as an anthology that weaves character studies inspired by true stories into a narrative about the Australian bushfires of 2019-...

Nicely Entertainment has hired Nent Studios U.K. executive Scott Kirkpatrick as executive VP of distribution and co-productions.

Kirkpatrick joins the Los Angeles-based Nicely following his departure from the Scandinavian Nent Group-backed distributor and producer, which was previously known as Drg. Kirkpatrick was senior VP of North American sales, co-production and global digital strategy for the outfit, which sells ITV’s “Doc Martin” and BBC and ABC Australia’s “The Cry.”

His appointment at Nicely Entertainment, which is just over a year old, marks a reunion for Kirkpatrick and founder Vanessa Shapiro, who previously worked together at MarVista Entertainment, where Kirkpatrick served as executive director of distribution. Previously, he worked at Icap Media as VP of sales and media brokerage, and Bennet Media Worldwide as director of international sales.

“I’m delighted that Scott and I will be working together again. He’s a talented executive with deep industry experience...

All3Media is believed to be in late-stage discussions to buy “The Cry” producer Nent Studios U.K., the production and distribution outfit formerly known as Drg.

Sources tell Variety that the Liberty Global and Discovery-backed super-indie — whose programming portfolio includes dramas “It’s a Sin” and “Fleabag,” as well as reality show “The Circle” and Oscar-nominated film “1917” — is in exclusive closed-door talks with Nent Studios U.K., which has been on the sales block since November.

It’s believed that All3Media is eyeing the Nordic Entertainment Group-backed company for a few key formats, as well as AVOD rights on its library, which spans around 13,500 hours of content. Key unscripted shows from Nent Studios U.K. include “Don’t Tell the Bride,” “The Farm” and “Catch Phrase.” On the scripted front, the outfit’s big success in recent years has been the BBC and ABC Australia co-commissioned drama “The Cry...

Synchronicity Films, the company behind BBC One’s Jenna Coleman series The Cry, has signed a first-look deal with All3Media International for all upcoming scripted television projects.

The agreement gives distributor All3Media International first-refusal on deficit financing and distributing Synchronicity’s slate. It also gives Synchronicity access to development financing options.

Claire Mundell, who founded Glasgow-based Synchronicity in 2005, said: “This partnership will help supercharge our ambition for growth, enabling us to push our scripted slate forward with confidence in the international marketplace.”

As well as The Cry, the company made Josh O’Connor feature Only You, while its development slate includes an adaptation of Heather Morris’ The Tattooist of Auschwitz and Mayflies by Andrew O’Hagan.

In today’s Global Bulletin, ViacomCBS licenses “The Stand” globally, Jonty Claypole steps down as BBC director of arts, Compact Pictures divides its production business, Saloon Media joins BriteSpark East on “World’s Most Scenic River Journeys” and Leonine Studios hires Patrick Phelan as the company’s new director of world sales.

Licensing

ViacomCBS Global Distribution Group has licensed the nine-episode series adaptation of Stephen King’s “The Stand” in more than 100 markets globally. Key deals include Starzplay for much of Europe, HBO Nordic, HBO Portugal, M-net in Africa, Cosmote TV in Greece, Síminn in Iceland, Wavve and Tcast Co., Ltd in Korea, Amediateka in Russia, Israel’s Yes and Voot Select in India.

“The Stand” unspools in a post-apocalyptic version of a world torn asunder by plague and a mystic fight between good and evil. Its high profile cast includes Alexander Skarsgård, Whoopi Goldberg, James Marsden and Odessa Young.

“Penguin Bloom,” the Toronto International Film Festival player led by Naomi Watts, has been acquired by Netflix in key territories.

The streamer will roll out the film in North America, the U.K., France and select countries in Asia on Jan. 27.

Oscar nominee Watts stars in the real-life survival story of Samantha Bloom, an active and vibrant Australian mom who is paralyzed from the chest down on holiday with her family. Her struggle to forge ahead is helped along by a wounded baby magpie her kids take in, named Penguin.

Glendyn Ivin directs from a script by Shaun Grant and Harry Cripps, based on the book by Bloom’s husband Cameron Bloom and Bradley Trevor Greive.

Andrew Lincoln, Jacki Weaver, Rachel House, Leeanna Walsman, Lisa Hensley, Griffin Murray-Johnston, Felix Cameron and Abe Clifford-Barr co-star.

Ivin directed the short film “Cracker Bag,” which was awarded the Palme d’Or at Cannes,...

Nordic Entertainment Group (Nent) is putting its U.K. production and distribution business, Nent Studios U.K., on the block in order to focus on the growth strategy for streamer Viaplay.

Richard Halliwell, Nent Studios U.K. CEO, is involved in the sale process, which currently has expressions of interest from more than 20 U.K. and international businesses, the company said.

The Nent Group is divesting Nent Studios U.K. along with a number of other production businesses. Growth plans for Viaplay include launching in Poland and the U.S. in 2021 as well as significantly growing subscriber numbers in the Nordic region and internationally.

Nent Group’s remaining studios operations will focus on delivering content for Viaplay. A new owner for Nent Studios U.K. means this business can continue to serve the global market, the company said.

Nent Studios U.K.’s first original drama series, “Close to Me,” commissioned...

Shannon Murphy’s feature debut Babyteeth leads the early Aacta Awards race, scoring nods in 12 out of 13 film categories, while Mystery Road and Stateless are ahead in television.

The Australian Academy revealed the first round of nominees for the annual awards over the weekend, to be presented across two ‘reimagined’ events later this month.

Television and documentary craft nominations, visual effects and animation, casting, hair and make-up and subscription television presenter categories are yet to be announced, expected on November 12.

Despite the disrupted year for film, some 19 narrative features are nominated so far.

However, six dominate alongside the aforementioned Babyteeth: Justin Kurzel’s True History of the Kelly Gang, with 10 nominations, John Sheedy’s H is for Happiness with nine, Leigh Whannell’s The Invisible Man and Unjoo Moon’s I Am Woman close behind with eight and seven nominations respectively, and Natalie Erika James’ Relic with five. Each will...

Exclusive: Synchronicity Films, producer of Jenna Coleman-fronted BBC drama The Cry, is developing a TV adaptation of Andrew O’Hagan’s 2020 novel Mayflies.

Synchronicity has attached Andrea Gibb to pen the limited series after she recently worked on BAFTA-winning BBC drama Elizabeth Is Missing, starring Glenda Jackson.

Mayflies is a heart-breaking story about an extraordinary lifelong friendship forged between James and Tully in a small Scottish town in 1986.

Their companionship takes them to Manchester, where they spend a magical weekend steeped in music and everything that inspires them in working-class Britain.

They make a vow to each other that weekend to go at life differently. But then, 30 years on, half a life away, the phone rings. Tully has the worst kind of news.

Synchronicity founder Claire Mundell said: “His depiction of a life-long friendship spanning the exuberance and promise of youth to the painful realities of later life is at once life-affirming,...

High-end international co-production, a growth area over the last few years, has seen a significant downturn during the pandemic, but how soon will it return?

Recent data from Ampere Analysis shows that two years ago, in the last quarter of 2018, a boom time for international drama, 8% of scripted commissions were co-productions, with 64 recorded during this period.

By the second quarter of 2020, as the pandemic took hold, this number plunged to 26 – with co-pros falling to account for just 5% of all scripted series.

While this drop off is inevitable, for many it’s a situation that’s not easily rectifiable, given the variables in legislation, quarantining and state-driven insurance measures from territory to territory.

Claire Mundell, managing director of Synchronicity Films, admits it would be much harder now to make her company’s four-part U.K./Australian co-production thriller “The Cry.”

“Projects shot in three different countries with all the Covid protocols...

Ruth Underwood.

Glasgow-based Synchronicity Films, which co-produced with December Media The Cry, the BBC/ABC psychological thriller directed by Glendyn Ivin, has opened an Australian arm.

Former BBC drama development exec Ruth Underwood is heading the Melbourne office with the remit to produce high-end drama for the domestic and international markets, including potential UK-Australian co-productions.

Its first project is an adaptation of The Cry author Helen FitzGerald’s latest novel Ash Mountain. Set in Australia, the tome follows Fran, a single mother who returns to her sleepy hometown to care for her dying father when a devastating bush fire breaks out.

Nent Studios UK represents the international distribution rights for Ash Mountain. The Times‘ reviewer Mark Sanderson hailed a “compassionate novel about the consequences of crime [which] bursts with black humour and features a bravura portrayal of a bush fire that eventually descends on the community like the wrath of God.

Glasgow-based Synchronicity Films, which has credits including ABC/BBC miniseries The Cry, is opening Melbourne-based offshoot Synchronicity Australia.

Former BBC Drama Development Producer Ruth Underwood has been hired to head up the new outfit, which has locked its debut project as a TV adaptation of The Cry writer Helen FitzGerald’s upcoming noir thriller Ash Mountain. The book is set to be published August 20 in the UK and March 2021 in Australia; it is a portrait of small-town life in rural Victoria, where a catastrophic event changes things forever.

Nent Studios UK will represent international distribution rights for Ash Mountain.

The move follows The Cry – which starred Jenna Coleman as a schoolteacher whose four-month old baby disappears while she and her fiancé visit Australia – being mounted as a UK-Australia co-production, shooting in the latter. Underwood, who also had roles at Kudos and Shed media Group, will be tasked with setting up future co-pros.

Tony Ayres Productions (Tap) is developing The Fires, a six-part anthology series drawing on the experiences of those directly affected by the Australian megafires of last summer.

The company, which has an exclusive deal with NBCUniversal International Studios, a division of Universal Studio Group, has ABC already on board with the series in Australia.

The creative team includes Tony Ayres, Andrea Denholm and Liz Watts. The writing team, led by International Emmy Award-winning showrunner/writer Belinda Chayko includes Jacquelin Perske (The Cry), Mirrah Foulkes (Judy and Punch), Steven McGregor (Mystery Road) and Anya Beyersdorf.

The Fires is a serialized anthology inspired by the stories of the people who survived last summer’s catastrophic fire season and continue to endure the aftermath. Each episode is based around character studies...

Exclusive: Oscar-nominated Girl With A Pearl Earring writer Olivia Hetreed is to adapt Shankari Chandran’s debut novel Song Of The Sun God for Synchronicity Films, producer of Jenna Coleman-fronted BBC drama The Cry, and Australia’s Dragonet Films.

Hetreed is working on a six-part series based on the 2017 novel, which is a family saga that brings to light an untold story of the conflict in Sri Lanka during the country’s two-decade-long civil war.

The novel is set across three generations, beginning in 1948 when the country gained independence, and journeying to the present day. Hetreed’s adaptation will focus on the youngest generation through Leela, a young woman living in London, who is disconnected from her culture and long-held family secrets.

Set against the backdrop of the controversial Sri Lankan presidential election of Autumn 2019, Leela embarks on a quest to find her Aunt Dhara, a former frontline medic...

Michael Dorman and Jessica de Gouw in ‘The Secrets She Keeps.’

When Lingo Pictures’ The Secrets She Keeps premieres on BBC1 at 9pm on July 6, it will mark a milestone as the first Australian-produced TV drama to screen in primetime on the BBC’s flagship channel – at least in recent memory.

The BBC acquired the UK rights to the psychological thriller commissioned by Network 10, starring Laura Carmichael, Jessica de Gouw, Michael Dorman and Ryan Corr, in February but did not disclose the channel or timeslot.

According to Screen Australia’s records, the only other Australian drama to air on primetime on BBC1 was The Cry, a UK co-production.

Five Bedrooms and A Place to Call Home screened during the daytime on the channel. Picnic At Hanging Rock was on BBC2, Romper Stomper on BBC3 and Mystery Road, Safe Harbour and The Slap on BBC4.

Delighted with the prestige slot,...

‘Think of the sky like a looking glass, what you see is who you are.’

If the sight of Eva Green dressed in witchy velvet and hosting a 19th century séance doesn’t prompt an instant ‘oh yes’ from the depths of your heart, then back to your Top Gears and your Linekers Gary, go.

Everybody else, settle down for The Luminaries, a new six-part adventure-romance arriving on BBC One on Sunday the 21st of June. After episode two airs the next day on Monday the 22nd at the same time, the hour-long instalments will come out weekly in the Sunday night slot.

If you prefer to binge though, the whole lot will also be available to stream on BBC iPlayer after the first ep.

The Luminaries stars Eve Hewson and Himesh Patel as Anna and Emery, two young emigrants seeking their fortune in the 1866 New Zealand Gold Rush. When...

Joel Edgerton will produce and star in Thomas M Wright’s ‘The Unknown Man’.

Amid turbulent times for the sector, Screen Australia has some positive news, announcing production funding for three feature films, four television series, a children’s series and two online projects.

Overall, the projects, including Thomas M Wright’s The Unknown Man, produced by See-Saw Films and Anonymous Content, and starring Joel Edgerton and Sean Harris, will share in $8.5 million of production funding.

Other projects include family drama The Midwife from Playmaker Media for Nine; a comedy created by Kitty Flanagan called Entitled for the ABC, and the debut feature film from artist Del Kathryn Barton, Puff, produced by Causeway Films.

“We’re blown away by the projects in this slate and it’s great to see such a wide range of genres. I am particularly delighted to support Puff, the directorial debut of renowned artist Del Kathryn Barton,...

Glendyn Ivin (Photo credit: Stephen MaCallum).

While Glendyn Ivin was directing a Tvc in Melbourne over four days last week he felt the mood shift among the crew as the coronavirus deepened.

“I could feel the energy drop and the doubt set in. Jobs were being cancelled and schedules emptying by the minute,” the director of The Cry, Safe Harbour and Gallipoli tells If.

“Perhaps like most people working in the film and television industry as I come towards the end of a production I always start to wonder if it will be my last. Maybe my luck is up and my phone will never ring again.

“I doubt any of us have found ourselves in this industry with job security as a priority. We live from job to job and it’s overall a wonderful thing.

“But this feels different. This is a random, enforced time of doubt and...

This the nest review contains spoilers.

The book world already has a term for Scotland-set detective novels – Tartan Noir. There’s an increasing need for similar to describe the emerging genre of glossy BBC domestic thrillers set north of the border. Trust Me, The Replacement, The Victim, The Cry and now The Nest… all miniseries, all stories about women, all set against the dramatic backdrop of the highlands and the steel-glass shine of regenerated city centres and architect-designed residences.

Visit Scotland Noir, maybe? Minted-Lassie Thrillers?

The Nest’s minted lassie is Emily (Sophie Rundle), a Glasgow music teacher married to local-boy-done-good Dan (Martin Compston). They live in a dream loch-side house and appear to have it all. Love, money, a devoted marriage and quite definitely, a place in the world. What they don’t – and can’t – have, is a child.

We meet Emily and Dan having exhausted their IVF...

The coronavirus couldn't have come at a worse time for currently airing broadcast television hoping to end their full seasons.

Heck, it's not good for upcoming series or pilots under consideration, either.

While it's possible bubble shows might get a second life so their already carved path continues and viewers can snuggle in with what's already comfortable, if production stoppage goes on for a long time, seasons might not end at all and fall TV could get delayed until January 2021.

But amidst all of the chaos, there are silver linings.

We talk about the glut of great programming all the time and how impossible it is to watch what you want. What better time to check out alternatives than when all of your time is spent indoors?

Two streaming networks that I believe are highly valuable have extended their normal seven-day free trial to 30 days. With that much time with each entity,...

Great Point Media, the UK finance, production and sales outfit, has named Toby Melling as Vice President of Television Sales.

In his new role, he will be responsible for licensing Gpm’s film and television product internationally.

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Melling joins from eOne, where he managed content sales into French-speaking territories, Benelux, Africa and the Middle East.

Prior to eOne, he held senior sales positions at ITV Ge, Content Media Corporation, Granada Television International, Pandora, Capitol Films, Granada Lwt International and BBC Enterprises.

Gpm’s TV work to date includes BBC series The Cry.

She-Ra and the Princesses of Power will brave their very last battles when the animated series launches its fifth — and now final — season on Friday, May 15, Netflix has announced.

But worry not, fans will have closure when She-Ra & Co. power down. “I do feel very lucky because we knew from the very beginning what our episode order was, so we got to tailor the story very specifically to how long the show was gonna be,” showrunner Noelle Stevenson told EW.com. “[The series] was tailored to be 52 episodes, the length that it is, and that’s a real blessing for a storyteller...

As a childless twenty-something, the sight of parents struggling with their sprogs – no matter how innocent, how adorable – fills me with empathy, dread, and schadenfreude. These feelings amplify to entertained screeches when watching Breeders, Sky One’s new comedy about the undermentioned awfulness of child-rearing, created by Thick of It favourites Chris Addison and Simon Blackwell. Be warned: this could put you off having kids for a while. I haven’t felt such a staunch aversion to becoming a parent since watching Jenna Coleman carry a pram up those Sisyphean steps in BBC’s The Cry; the pain and aggravation looks like the most annoying kind of horror movie. Breeders, at least, finds the funny in the madness.

Martin Freeman, who plays fed-up father Paul, birthed the idea for the series in a dream about going upstairs to tell off his kids. This is the starting point, opening with Paul readying himself,...

AMC Networks’ streaming service Sundance Now has picked up U.S. rights to the literary adaptation “The Secrets She Keeps.”

Based on a novel by Michael Robotham, the noirish drama builds on a chance encounter between two pregnant women in a supermarket just outside of Sydney. While Meghan is an upwardly mobile social media influencer, Agatha struggles to get by, working a low-wage job without any spousal support. Both have secrets that gradually emerge as their lives collide.

Written by Sarah Walker (“Home and Away”) and Jonathan Gavin (“Offspring”), and produced by Aussie outfit Lingo Pictures, the series will air on Australia’s Network 10 later this year. Dcd Rights is handling international sales for the series, which was recently picked up by the BBC.

“Sundance Now has some of the best curated content in the U.S., so we are thrilled that North American audiences will soon be able to...

‘Rosehaven’s’ Luke McGregor (l) and Celia Pacquola with Rick Kalowski.

In six-and-a-half years as head of comedy at the ABC, Rick Kalowski oversaw a number of series which he believes could have found homes at the commercial free-to-air networks – if they had been offered to them.

“The ABC does an incredible job as the driver of Australian scripted comedy but I truly see no reason why, with the right projects, the love can’t be spread,” he tells If.

Rosehaven would have been a comfortable fit for the Nine or Ten Networks, he thinks, while Frayed would have suited Nine, albeit, he notes, perhaps with some of the fruitier bad language toned down.

The Letdown might have been a good match for Ten’s demographic while Ronny Chieng: International Student could have fulfilled Sbs’s remit..

Given the ratings success of several ABC comedies, Kalowski, who steps down this Friday,...

This year’s TV Drama Vision event (January 29-30) at the Goteborg Film Festival, which in 2020 will present 40 new series, has finalised its line-up. The sold-out showcase, which has grown in international prominence in recent years, will host attendees from CAA, Curtis Brown, Gersh, Wiip and the local Salomonsson agency, as well as buyers from the likes of Entertainment One, Banjay Rights, HBO Europe, and Beta Film. It will also welcome Caroline Benjo and Carole Scotta, co-founders of French outfit Haut et Court, as keynote speakers to discuss working between cinema and episodic. During the two-day event, there will be a panel on the future of the European model of high-end TV production, an overview of cash rebate opportunities in the Nordic region, and a competition of five Nordic drama series, which will be up for a $22,000 prize. The nominated series are: 22 July, Caliphate, When The Dust Settles, Happily Never After,...

Top: Tyroe Muhafidin, Charlie Vickers. Bottom: Tom Budge, Markella Kavenagh.

Aussie actors Tom Budge, Markella Kavenagh, Tyroe Muhafidin and Charlie Vickers will be series regulars in Amazon Studios’ The Lord of the Rings, due to start filming in New Zealand next month.

Kavenagh, whose previous credits include The Cry, Romper Stomper, Picnic at Hanging Rock and True History of the Kelly Gang, was reported as attached to the production from last July. However, Amazon had yet to officially confirm her casting in the series, led by showrunners and executive producers J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay.

The Lord of the Rings will be the first major series for Tyroe Muhafidin, who has previously appeared in a number of short films including Two Sands, as well as the online series Caravan. Vickers, who has been largely based in the UK, was most recently seen in Rachel Ward’s Palm Beach, while...

Ewen Leslie and Emma Booth filming The Gloaming (Photo credit: Stan).

For Vicki Madden, Blake Ayshford, Glendyn Ivin and no doubt myriad other content creators, the challenge is to find unique Australian stories which resonate internationally and can cut through the worldwide glut of English-language drama.

More broadly, Madden calls for more respect for writers from some producers and networks, telling If: “At times there is too much interference and the stories become bland and impersonal.”

Ayshford welcomes increasing collaboration between experienced writers and newer voices and predicts: “I think the next few years could be transformational for our industry and usher in a new generation of voices and stories.”

Ivin is excited by the competition from streaming services but wonders how many consumers can afford to spend more than $100 a month to subscribe to multiple platforms.

However Ivin, the director of The Cry, Safe Harbour and Penguin Bloom, the...

Actor Will Poulter has officially departed from Amazon’s highly anticipated “Lord Of The Rings” series due to scheduling conflicts. Poulter will be replaced with actor Robert Aramayo, who many may recognize from his role as the young Ned Stark on HBO’s “Game Of Thrones”. Aramayo will take on a starring role in the Amazon series which will be a prequel to Tolkien’s infamous trilogy. Aramayo will play a mysterious character named Beldor, described as a young hero. Robert Aramayo will be appearing alongside Markella Kavenagh (The Cry), Maxim Baldry (Years and Years) and Joseph “Benjen Stark” Mawle, his fictitious brother in GoT. As a reminder, the first season of the “Lord of the Rings” series will look back on the Second Age of Middle Earth, a period preceding the original trilogy (and Peter Jackson’s adaptation). Showrunners J. D. Payne and Patrick McKay will have the opportunity...

“The Cry” producer Synchronicity Films has optioned Craig Russell’s “Lennox” book series and will adapt the period Scotland-set thrillers for TV. Robert Murphy – whose extensive series credits include “Dci Banks,” “Inspector George Gently,” and “Vera” – is attached to handle the adaptation.

The “Lennox” series is set in tough inner-city Glasgow in the 1950s. The titular Lennox is a private eye, born in Scotland but raised in America after the Depression. He is billed as “a damaged man in a hard city at a hard time” and finds himself caught between three Glasgow crime bosses – The Three Kings.

“Craig Russell’s Lennox is a fascinating character, taking inspiration from the classic noir detective and infusing him with freshness and bite through intricately researched setting, authenticity of the period and compelling plot,” said Claire Mundell, managing director and creative director of Synchronicity. “We know that Robert will bring his wit and...

UK sales and finance outfit Great Point Media has partnered with U.S. fund manager Mc Credit Partners on a new initiative to finance film and TV projects.

According to the two firms, funds managed by McCp will invest up to $100M in the partnership and Great Point has already committed a minimum of $80M. The commitment marks the first institutional investment for Great Point’s global project finance fund and will be used to back larger-scale media projects.

In September, Great Point Capital partnered with Lionsgate to develop a $100M+ studio complex in Yonkers, New York. Great Point says it is currently assessing seven additional sites for studio development in the UK, U.S. and Europe.

Commenting on the investment, Robert Halmi, Chairman of Great Point Media said, “Since 2013, Great Point Media has produced, financed and distributed more than $600M of content and financed over 170 projects. This commitment from...