Twentieth Century Fox said Wednesday it has established an Asian unit specializing in local productions, starting with India, becoming the latest Hollywood studio to venture into the region.
The new studio will be a joint venture with the Asian satellite broadcaster STAR, called Fox STAR Studios, the two companies said in a joint statement.
Both companies are units of media mogul Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp.
Fox STAR Studios will start out making Bollywood films in Hindi as well in other regional Indian dialects.
STAR India president for strategy and corporate development Vijay Singh will lead the Indian operation.
“We are in discussion for producing not only traditional Bollywood films but also innovating and targeting emerging genres,” Singh said in the statement.
Fox STAR Studios will also branch into the Chinese-language and southeast Asian markets soon, the statement said.
STAR spokeswoman Jannie Poon said Fox STAR Studios will operate from several locations, with its first unit based in India’s Mumbai, home of the Bollywood industry.
Other major Hollywood studios producing Asian movies include Sony Pictures Entertainment with its Columbia Pictures Film Production Asia, which invested in Ang Lee’s Oscar-winning kung fu hit “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.”
Warner Bros. Pictures set up a joint venture with China’s state-run China Film Group and Hengdian Group in 2004, and has invested in Hindi films.
The Walt Disney Co. last year released a Chinese-language children’s movie that mixed live action and computer animation. It has also teamed up with Indian studio Yash Raj Films to make computer-animated movies.
“Se7en” Turns 30, Gets A Special Restoration From David Fincher For Its Re-Release
For David Fincher, seeing “Se7en” in 4K was an experience he can only describe as harrowing. That or a high school reunion.
“There are definitely moments that you go, ‘What was I thinking?’ Or ‘Why did I let this person have that hairdo’?” Fincher said in a recent interview with The Associated Press.
He’s OK with the film being a product of its time in most respects. But some things just could not stand in high-definition resolution.
“It was a little decrepit, to be honest,” said Fincher. “We needed to resuscitate it. There are things you can see in 4K HDR that you cannot see on a film print.”
Ever the perfectionist, he and a team got to work on a new restoration of the film for its 30th anniversary re-release. This weekend the restored “Se7en” will play on IMAX screens for the first time in the U.S. and Canada, and on Jan. 7, the 4K UHD home video version will be available as well.
The dark crime thriller written by Andrew Kevin Walker and starring Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman as a pair of detectives looking for a serial killer was somewhat of a career-reviver for Fincher, whose directorial debut “Alien 3” had not gone well. “Se7en” was not a sure thing: It was made for only $34 million (and only got that when Fincher managed to persuade studio execs to give up $3 million more). But it went on to earn more than $327 million, not accounting for inflation, and continues to influence the genre.
Fincher has over the years overseen several restorations of the film (including one for laser disc) but decided this needed to be the last. It’s why he insisted on an 8K scan that they could derive the 4K from. He wanted to ensure that it wouldn’t have to be repeated when screens get more... Read More