BYE-BYE BUNYA
Australian TV producer Bunya Leisure says that Sophia Zachariou will step down as co-managing director, after a five-year stint. Bunya Leisure is one half the Bunya Group of firms and was established by Zachariou, David Jowsey and Greer Simpkin in 2019.
Zachariou is presently in post-production on “The Workplace” (Amazon) and “Girls in Black” (ABC) and can ship these sequence earlier than she departs the corporate. Different productions from Bunya Leisure embrace the six x half-hour sketch comedy sequence “The Moth Impact” (Amazon) and the comedy sequence “Good Shorts.”
In 2020 Zachariou additionally created the Bunya Expertise Indigenous Hub, in partnership with Netflix and Display screen Australia, which funded and developed 10 First Nations writers and administrators to additional develop their TV tasks. The Hub was later prolonged to incorporate a partnership with SAFC, Display screen NT and Display screen NSW.
Jowsey and Simpkin will proceed as co-MDs of Bunya Leisure. The separate Bunya Group entities, Bunya Productions (“Thriller Street,” “Candy Nation,” “Limbo”) and the distribution firm Darkish Matter, will stay below their stewardship.
“We now have beloved [Zachariou’s] vibrant contribution over the previous 5 years. She leaves the corporate in nice form, with a robust manufacturing and improvement slate. We want Sophia each success along with her future endeavors,” mentioned Jowsey and Simpkin.
LOVING LIMBO
“Limbo” was the massive winner on Monday on the Movie Critics Circle of Australia, which handed out its annual FCCA Awards for Australian Movies of 2023 at a ceremony in Sydney. “Limbo” claimed six out of 9 complete awards, together with finest movie and finest director for Ivan Sen. Simon Baker gained the very best actor prize for his function within the movie. Finest supporting actor and finest supporting actress had been awarded to Rob Collins and Natasha Wanganeen, respectively, for his or her performances in “Limbo.”
Zar Amir Ebrahimi gained the very best actress prize for “Shayda,” with the movie additionally successful finest screenplay for Noora Niasari. Rachel Ward took dwelling finest documentary function for “Rachel’s Farm,” which she directed and starred in.
HIGHER ORBIT
Chinese language director Lu Chuan (“Kekexili: Mountain Patrol,” “Metropolis of Life and Loss of life,” “Chronicles of the Ghostly Tribe”) has joined the Stars Collective mentor committee, a part of the Stars Collective movie funding operation in Hollywood that’s operated by China’s Starlight Media.
The Stars-Hana Funding fund is partnering with “main recreation firms together with Tencent and Tencent-owned DreamSky Know-how, in addition to HYJZ, Forevernine, and different globally famend gaming firms with a whole lot of tens of millions of customers,” to concurrently develop a sequence of video video games.
It studies that, as producer, it’s creating diversifications of upcoming movies and IP that embrace: “Each Home is Haunted” from Sam Raimi and Roy Lee; “The Burden” from James Wan and Sam Raimi; “Searching Season” from James Wan and Don Murphy; James Wan’s “The Name of Cthulhu,” “Mass Extinction” and “GMO”; “The Goxfather” with Jon Chu; and “Reminiscence Misplaced in House,” based mostly on the bestsellers by Tong Hua.
Stars Collective holds a 25-year unique picture-related merchandising license within the Higher China area for the upcoming “The Garfield Film” encompassing all classes, besides theme park and stage rights.
ENTERTAINING TOKYO
Mitsubishi Property and Tokyo Broadcasting System have damaged floor on an leisure trade hub in central Tokyo that can span 205,800 m2 (2.2 million sq. ft) together with workplace, theatre, retail and resort area, property publication Mingtiandi studies.” We goal to turn out to be a base that delivers the very best content material to the world, together with establishing services the place entertainment-related firms, startup firms, and creators can collect,” the businesses mentioned in a press release. The companions are reported to be committing JPY 200 billion ($1.34 billion) to the mission.
“Situated in a conventional leisure space, Akasaka Leisure Metropolis additionally contains an 18-storey, 38,150 m2 block which can embrace 12 flooring of resort area and 6 ranges for theatres. The builders plan to include a 4,900 m2 plaza linked on to Akasaka station on Tokyo Metro’s Chiyoda Line,” Mingtiandi mentioned.
