Polsat seeks IPO of its satellite TV unit
Polish commercial broadcaster Polsat SA has filed papers with financial regulators to carry out an initial public offering of its satellite TV unit Polsat Cyfrowy that analysts believe could be…
Estonia picks The Class as its Oscar choice
This year's Karlovy Vary award winner The Class by Ilmar Raag is Estonia's national nomination for the Best Foreign Language Film award at the Academy Awards next February.
Miklos Jancso plans historical epic on King Mathias
Iconic director Miklos Jancso (www.jancso.film.hu), Hungary's internationally acclaimed filmmaker, is preparing his next feature film, The Justice is Gone!, a large-scale epic about the 15th Century Hungarian King Mathias that…
Wajda film Katyn to represent Poland at Academy Awards
Andrzej Wajda's powerful film Katyń will represent Poland at the Academy Awards, according to a special committee of film professionals that chose the film this weekend from 16 candidates.
Tricks captures grand prize at Polish Film Festival
Tricks, Andrzej Jakimowski's bittersweet story of a fatherless boy who attempts to tempt fate in working-class Poland, captured the "Golden Lion" at the 32nd Polish Film Festival which closed this…
EGEDA offers safe film downloading site
The Spanish Audiovisual Producers' Rights Association, or EGEDA, has entered the world of digital distribution by offering a service that allows producers and distributors to directly manage their rights for…
Czech Republic names its Oscar contestant
The Czech Republic late Friday weighed in with its candidate for the Academy Awards competition. Director Jiří Menzel's new film, I Served the King of England, will be recommended to…
Cinema City expands aggressively in Central Europe
Cinema City International N.V., the largest multiplex operator in Central and Eastern Europe, signed a lease this week for its fourth large cinema in Bucharest. That makes the company's 13th…
Prague cinema launches adopt-a-seat programme to raise funds
The managers of one of Prague's oldest cinemas are using a unique strategy to help foot the costs of renovation. Kino Svetozor (www.kinosvetozor), which opened in 1918, has launched an…
Two film workers accused of pirating Bathory film
A Prague court is hearing the case of two men accused of stealing a copy of renowned Slovak director Jakub Jakubisko's Bathory, Central Europe's most expensive home-grown film to date,…
Colorfront launched as most advanced DI house in Europe
The Hungarian brothers who invented the DI color manipulation system used in many Hollywood blockbusters have announced the launch of Colorfront (www.colorfront.com), a state-of-the-art DI and visual effects post-production facility…
Estonian animation celebrates 50th anniversary
Estonia is celebrating its jubilee anniversary of animation production in November with a series of exhibitions and DVD releases, as well as an industry conference including the first World Championships…
The Karamazov Brothers by Petr Zelenka moves to post-production
Leading Czech director Petr Zelenka is now in post-production with his new film The Karamazovs, played by members of the well-known Prague-based Dejvice Theater.
Scandinavian Day at Gdynia to highlight cooperation
The artistic director of the 32nd Polish Film Festival in Gdynia believes Central Europe filmmakers have much to learn from the close cooperation among the film industries of the Nordic…
More funding means better quality at Gdynia festival
The artistic director of the 32nd Polish Film Festival in Gydnia says this year's screenings by younger directors will be marked by a higher level of quality than in the…
Budapest Film introduces first movie download service
Hungary's first online film downloading portal, Filmklik (www.filmklik.hu), has ended its three-month trial period and is now expanding its inventory to make more than 300 films available by year-end.
Russian box office growth outpacing Central Europe
Russian box office is set to more than double in the next five years according to a survey by the U.K.-based cinema industry analysts Dodona Research (www.dodona.co.uk). That compares with…
Andrzej Wajda film Katyn inaugurates Polish Film Festival
A special showing of Andrzej Wajda's landmark film Katyń will be screened today as part of the grand opening of the 32nd Polish Film Festival in Gdynia. Poland's most prestigious…
Another Czech charged in film piracy case
A second Czech faces charges of copyright infringement as Czech authorities start clamping down on film piracy. Only a month after a 19-year-old student was charged with pirating The Simpsons…
Four films completed during Malta summer schedule
Four feature films have been completed or are winding up production on Malta. The neighbouring island of Gozo also saw some summer activity when the long-running UK series Coronation Street…
