UK’s Odeon Cinemas Expands Family Offer
In a bid to bolster its draw for families, the UK’s Odeon Cinemas is expanding the scope of its “adults pay kids prices” deal. The scheme will see admits for one adult and one child from as little as £10 for an Odeon Cinema and £15 for an Odeon Luxe throughout 2024. The AMC-owned chain says it’s making the investment into its family offerings as data has shown that affordability and convenience are the biggest concerns for families when considering activities, particularly over the summer holidays. With the opening weekend of Inside Out 2 marking Odeon’s busiest since National Cinema Day last September, turnstiles have been on fire. The UK gross for IO2 through Sunday stands at $40.2M while such titles with family appeal on deck include Despicable Me 4 on July 12 and Harold and the Purple Crayon on August 2. Later in the year, there’s Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, Transformers One, Paddington in Peru, Moana 2, Wicked and Mufasa: The Lion King.
France’s Fête Du Cinéma Off To Record Start
France’s Fête du Cinéma kicked off on Sunday with record numbers, drawing more than 1.4 million moviegoers. That’s the best score for the reduced-price ticket scheme in over 20 years. Yesterday also saw the most admissions for any day in more than five years, according to exhibitors org the National Cinema Federation. Major titles currently playing include Inside Out 2, which through Sunday has grossed $22.4M in France; new entries A Quiet Place: Day One and The Count of Monte-Cristo; and the continued run of smash local title, Un P’tit Truc en Plus. The Fête du Cinema runs through Wednesday.
MBC’s ‘Top Chef’ To Film At NEOM
Middle Eastern broadcaster MBC Group will film the eighth season of culinary competition show Top Chef with Saudi Arabia’s NEOM Media Industries. Filming will take place at NEOM Media Village. To date, MBC’s version of the Bravo series has shot at locations in the UAE, Lebanon and Saudi. “Bringing the show to NEOM is not merely a change of location; it is a significant step in redefining the future of filming in the Kingdom,” said Samar Akrouk, MBC Director of Production and MBC Studios General Manager. Akrouk was promoted to her current role earlier this year after the exit of Christina Wayne.
Prime Video Germany’s ‘Dinner For Five’ Cast
Prime Video Germany’s upcoming original Dinner for Five (working title) has added cast. Ulrich Noethen, Vladimir Korneev, Wotan Wilke Möhring, Sönke Möhring, Nikola Kastner, Tom Beck, Michael Kessler, Dietrich Hollinderbäumer, Max von Pufendorf, Britta Hammelstein and Barbara Meier will join leads Alicia von Rittberg, Kostja Ullmann, Moritz Bleibtreu, Frederick Lau, Jacob Matschenz and Christoph Schechinger in the UFA Fiction series. Based on a screenplay by Tommy Wosch and Dominik Moser, the series is set in early 20th century England, where a young, emancipated woman invites five marriage candidates to her castle. Before she can make her choice, one is murdered. Six episodes will launch on Prime Video next year.
‘We Will Dance Again’, ‘War And Justice’ Win At Doc Edge Fest
New Zealand’s Oscar-qualifying Doc Edge Film Festival has awarded prizes to October 7th documentary We Will Dance Again and to ICC feature War and Justice. We Will Dance Again, which chronicles first-hand accounts of the October 7 Hamas terror attack on Israel’s Nova Music Festival, has been named Best International Documentary in the In Truth We Trust category. The film, which will air on BBC and Paramount+ later this year, also received a prize for Best International Editing. We Will Dance Again is told through the eyes of more than a dozen survivors, many of whom videotaped their experiences as the massacre unfolded. Yariv Mozer directs. The prize for Best International Director went to Marcus Vetter and Michele Gentile for doc War and Justice, about the founding of the International Criminal Court and how the organization deals with conflicts such as Ukraine and Gaza.