Japan Court Blocks ‘The Cove’ Protests at Theater
By Jay Alabaster
TOKYO (AP) — A court Friday ordered protesters to keep away from a theater that plans to show the Oscar-winning documentary “The Cove,” about a dolphin hunt in a Japanese village.
The movie shows scenes of the bloody but legal dolphin slaughter filmed using hidden cameras, and portrays local fisherman as rough goons. Nationalist groups say it shouldn’t be shown because it is anti-Japanese, distorts the truth and has connections with an anti-whaling group labeled a terrorist organization by the government.
The dispute over the film developed into a debate over free speech after initial screenings were canceled by theaters to avoid noisy protests. After prominent publishers and directors voiced their concern, at least 22 theaters have now agreed to show it.
Yokohama New Theater, a small cinema in a city next to Tokyo which plans to show the film from July 3, has been targeted repeatedly by protesters with bullhorns and signs. There were no protests there Friday after the main group responsible received the court order.
The order was issued by the Yokohama regional court at the request of the theater, according to Miyuki Takamatsu, a spokeswoman for Unplugged, the movie’s Japanese distributor.
Unplugged requested and received a similar order from a Tokyo court earlier this year after repeated protests at its headquarters and at the home of its president, she said.
Nationalists have said the film has connections to Sea Shepherd, an anti-whaling group that has been labeled a terrorist organization by Tokyo for its militant actions against Japanese whalers. The movie includes a sympathetic interview with Sea Shepherd founder Paul Watson.
In the version of the movie intended for release in Japan, a disclaimer has been added saying that the data presented in it were gathered by and are the responsibility of the film’s creators. The movie cites information about mercury levels in dolphins and falsely labeled dolphin meat that has been challenged by government officials.
Weinstein Co. Restructures by Giving Up 200 filmsRyan Nakashima, Business Writer
LOS ANGELES (AP) – Independent movie studio The Weinstein Co. has restructured its debt by giving the rights to 200 movies and about $233 million in receivables to Goldman Sachs and its partner Assured Guaranty, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the matter was meant to be confidential.
The deal finalized this week will also see Goldman Sachs and Assured paid $115 million by Ambac Financial Group, which had initially insured Goldman Sachs’ loan to the company.
The Weinstein Co. was weighed down by interest payments on about $500 million in debt. The deal frees the company of that debt while giving it the use of a new credit line for $100 million from Goldman Sachs to produce new movies, according to the person.
The deal was reported earlier by The Wall Street Journal and website The Wrap.
Among the older titles being given away are “The Reader,” ”Vicky Cristina Barc elona,” and “Halloween.” Meanwhile, The Weinstein Co., founded by brothers Harvey and Bob Weinstein in 2005 with about $1.2 billion in equity and debt, keeps the rights to “Inglourious Basterds,” ”Scream,” and an upcoming slate of films including “Piranha 3-D.”
Goldman Sachs was able to recoup most of the value of its loan to the struggling studio, while Ambac capped a potential liability of $450 million on the loan guarantee that would have been due in 2014 as it seeks to avoid bankruptcy.
The Weinsteins founded The Weinstein Co. after an acrimonious split from The Walt Disney Co., which bought their Miramax Films label in 1993, but had kept them on as managers.
Their new company has largely failed to win over audiences, and its biggest hit, “Inglourious Basterds,” has been offset by a string of duds, including the big-budget musical “Nine.”
Recently, the Weinsteins failed in a bid to buy Miramax back from Disney with the financial backing of superm arket magnate Ron Burkle. They nonetheless remain a dark horse among other Miramax bidders because they have veto power over Miramax sequels to such franchises as “Pulp Fiction” and “Spy Kids.”
Bing’s New Bling: TV, Music from Microsoft SearchJessica Mintz, Technology Writer
BELLEVUE, Wash. (AP) – Microsoft’s Bing search site is getting an entertainment section with click-to-play music, television shows, movies and casual games.
It’s the latest move in Microsoft Corp.’s campaign to convince Web surfers that for some online tasks, at least, Bing is best.
Microsoft has been struggling to challenge Web search and advertising leader Google Inc. for years. Rather than taking on Google head-on, Microsoft has tried to position Bing as a better alternative for accomplishing certain kinds of online tasks: shopping, planning trips, looking for local businesses and searching for health information.
The strategy seems to be working. Bing is still the No. 3 search engine behind Google and Yahoo, but its share of U.S. Web searches is creeping up. Microsoft says use of Bing’s shopping and other priority areas grew faster than use of the site overall.
Now, Microsoft is making a push into entertainment. The company has struck deals with television networks, video Web sites such as Hulu, recording labels, game makers and other content companies. When people search for a show, a song or a casual game on Bing, they’ll often be able to watch, listen or play right from the search results, without having to go to another site.
Yusuf Mehdi, a senior vice president in Microsoft’s online business, said the idea was to merge the search box with a universal remote control.
People will be able to listen to 5 million songs for free on Bing once, before being prompted to sign up for a Zune pass, Microsoft’s $15-per-month unlimited streaming music service. Bing will also give people access to more than 1,000 TV episodes and about 100 casual video games, such as checkers or “Bejeweled.”
Bing is also beefing up entertainment-related search results, with detailed artist pages and lyrics for music search results; TV guides that show every time and channel a favorite show might be playing in a week; and a page that helps people not only buy movie tickets, but plan for parking and find nearby restaurants.
Bing’s basic search results page will also get a minor facelift in the next few weeks. Microsoft is adding new tabs across the top to help people more quickly zero in on the kind of answers they’re looking for.
Rumblefish to Sell Songs for Use in YouTube Videos
LOS ANGELES (AP) – Independent music licensing company Rumblefish is giving YouTube uploaders a way to add songs to their videos without infringing on copyrights.
Starting Tuesday, the company will sell songs from its catalog of artists for $1.99. Included in the sale will be a license allowing the video creator to legally use the music in their video forever.
One catch is that the video can’t be used to make money. If an uploader wants to make advertising revenue on his video, he’ll have to upgrade to a commercial license.
Another catch is that the work of major label artists is not included.
Privately held Rumblefish will be selling the licensed songs at its new website, www.FriendlyMusic.com.
Mexico seeks Extradition of ProducerE. EdusaARDO CASTILLO
MEXICO CITY (AP) – Mexico has formally requested the extradition of American reality TV producer Bruce Beresford-Redman on charges of killing his wife at a Cancun resort, an official said Wednesday.
The Foreign Relations Department official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment publicly on the case. He said Mexico has submitted its request to U.S. authorities, but for the moment there were no more details.
A spokesman for Richard Hirsch, Beresford-Redman’s attorney in California, said nothing formal had been received and he could not comment on the official’s statement. Hirsch said previously his client would resist extradition.
Extradition requests from foreign governments are received by the U.S. State Department, where spokesman Darby Holladay said Wednesday the agency does not comment on extradition cases.
A Mexican judge issued an arrest warrant for Beresford-Redman in the April 8 killing of his wife, Monica, whose body was found in a sewer of a luxury Cancun resort. Investigators have said her body showed signs of asphyxiation and evidence of a heavy blow to the right temple.
The former “Survivor” producer and co-creator of “Pimp My Ride” reported her missing two days before the body was found.
Beresford-Redman, 38, has denied killing his wife. “I am incensed at the suggestion that I could have had anything to do with her death,” he said in a statement released last month. “I am innocent.”
He returned to Southern California in May even though Mexican authorities had confiscated his passport. He had not been charged at the time, however, and was not barred from leaving the country. It is not clear where he crossed the border or how he did so without his passport.
AP writer Anthony McCartney in Los Angeles contributed to this report.
Newcomer Puts on Moves for ‘Footloose’ Remake
LOS ANGELES (AP) – A new face in Hollywood is stepping into Kevin Bacon’s shoes for a remake of “Footloose.”
Paramount Pictures announced Tuesday that Kenny Wormald will take on the role Bacon originated in the 1984 original about a rebellious city youth who busts some moves in his new town, where dancing has been banned.
“High School Musical” heartthrob Zac Efron had planned to star but dropped out of the “Footloose” remake last year.
Wormald’s previous credits include the MTV series “Dancelife.” He will co-star alongside two-time “Dancing With the Stars” champion and country music singer Julianne Hough. The cast also includes Dennis Quaid.
Due in theaters April 1, 2011, “Footloose” will be directed by Craig Brewer (“Hustle & Flow”).
Bruce Cohen, Don Mischer to Produce Oscars
LOS ANGELES (AP) – Hollywood veterans Bruce Cohen and Don Mischer will oversee the next Academy Awards telecast.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said Tuesday that Oscar-winning producer Cohen will produce the Feb. 27 show with Mischer, who will also serve as the telecast’s director. It will be the first time either has worked on the Oscars.
Cohen’s credits include “American Beauty,” ”Milk” and “Pushing Daisies.”
Mischer has produced and directed such events as “We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration,” Kennedy Center Honors, Super Bowl halftime shows, Olympic opening ceremonies and Primetime Emmy Awards.
Asian Filmmakers Offered $100,000 Grants
HONG KONG (AP) — Hollywood’s leading industry group and an Australian film awards event have joined to offer grants for Asian filmmakers worth $100,000.
The Motion Picture Association Asia Pacific is an arm of the Motion Picture Association of America. It said in a statement late Saturday that it will offer four $25,000 grants a year, along with the Asia Pacific Screen Awards, or APSA, an annual prize ceremony run by the Queensland state government.
The grants are open to APSA nominees, winners and jury members to develop new projects.
The first recipients will be announced at the next APSA ceremony, scheduled on Queensland’s Gold Coast on Dec. 2.
CBS and Reliance plan to launch Indian TV channels
Erika Kinetz
MUMBAI, India (AP) — A unit of CBS Corp. and Reliance Broadcast Network, a subsidiary of India’s powerful Reliance-ADA Group, plan to launch television channels in India together, Reliance said.
The joint venture is a first for both CBS Studios International and Reliance Broadcast Network, known until last week as Reliance Media World, as they try to tap India’s fast-growing TV market.
The companies signed a preliminary, nonbinding agreement Sunday to establish a 50-50 joint venture to operate a portfolio of TV channels and hope to close the deal within a month, Reliance said in a June 20 letter to Indian stock exchanges.
They would begin with an English language general entertainment channel that would distribute primarily existing CBS content via cable or direct-to-home satellite broadcasting and later explore owning or operating channels in Hindi and other regional languages, the company said.
CBS’s hit shows include “CSI,” ”America’s Next Top Model” and “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” but Reliance spokesman Gaurav Rahi told The Associated Press on Monday that it was too early to say which shows would be picked for India broadcast.
The venture would have programming rights across India, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, the Maldives and Pakistan, with the potential for further expansion.
CBS joins foreign companies like Viacom Inc., Time Warner Inc., Walt Disney Co. and News Corp. that have jumped into India’s TV market, which is expected to grow at 15 percent a year to become a 521 billion rupee ($11.4 billion) business by 2014.
Television is the largest segment of India’s entertainment industry, with revenues of 257 billion rupees ($5.6 billion) in 2009 — nearly three times what the much-hyped Bollywood film industry pulled in, according to KPMG.
KPMG says India’s TV audience has grown to 500 million viewers — still just 60 percent of households — and the number of channels has mushroomed from 120 in 2003 to over 460 in 2009.
Reliance-ADA Group is run by Anil Ambani, one of India’s richest men. Another subsidiary, Reliance Big Entertainment, last year paid $325 million for a 50 percent stake in Steven Spielberg’s DreamWorks Studios.
