Liam Neeson And Diane Kruger Starrer ‘Marlowe’ At San Sebastián; ITV Studios France Hire; BBC Kids; ‘Dodger’ Specials; German Comedy Deal — Global Briefs

Neil Jordan’s ‘Marlowe’: Liam Neeson And Diane Kruger Feature To Debut At San Sebastian

The Official Selection of the San Sebastian Festival will close with the world premiere of Marlowe, the latest film by Irish filmmaker Neil Jordan. The film will debut on September 24 at the Kursaal Auditorium with the film’s stars Liam Neeson and Diane Kruger in attendance. Based on the novel The Black Eyed Blonde by John Banville, the film is set in 1930s Los Angeles and follows private eye Philip Marlowe (Neeson) as he receives a commission to find the missing lover of a beautiful heiress. The film is produced by Alan Moloney, Gary Levinsohn, Mark Fasano, Billy Hines, Philip Kim, and Patrick Hibler. Shot in Barcelona and Dublin, the film is a co-production between Parallel Films, Hills Productions, and Davis Films, with support from Fís Éireann / Screen Ireland.

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ITV Studios France Names New COO As Sébastien Petiot Exits

Newen France Deputy Managing Director of Unscripted Operations Céline Roux will succeed Sébastien Petiot as Chief Operating Officer of ITV Studios France. Her appointment at the firm, which produces the local version of The Voice and several original shows, comes after former Endemol Shine France chief Thierry Lachkar joined last December as CEO. The departing Petiot has decided to leave to focus on new projects, according to ITV Studios. The company added that Roux’s hire would “enable ITV Studios France to enter a new phase of growth in the French market, consolidating its position in the unscripted programmes sector and documentaries, accelerating its development in new areas such as drama, serving both historical clients and platforms.” French industry veteran Roux has worked for the likes of TF1 Group and its subsidiary Newen, and has worked as a producer on shows such as European procedural fiction Crossing Lines and animated series Les Mini Ninjas and Kikoumba.

Streamer BBC Kids Launches Today In South Africa

BBC Studios’ streaming service BBC Kids goes live today in South Africa following a deal with Switch Media and MTN, as BBC Studios continues to deepen the commercial focus of its children’s platforms. The service targets families and children aged 0-12. It is already live in Australia, the U.S. and Taiwan, where it launched on streaming service MyVideo on July 1. In South Africa, it will be downloadable via the App Store or Play Store, available to MTN customers through daily, weekly or monthly subscription packages and will offer pre-school series such as Hey Duggee, Sarah & Duck and JoJo & Gran Gran, and older-skewed shows such as Jamie Johnson, Harry Potter: A History of Magic and The Bagel and Becky Show. In the UK, former Turner Kids chief Patricia Hildago has been overseeing a radical restructure since becoming boss of BBC Children’s, with BBC Studios now focused on growth in commercial kids genres such as animation, high-end drama and pre-school.

CBBC Sets Specials For Comedy-Drama ‘Dodger’

Anita Dobson (EastEnders), Robert Lindsay (My Family) and cult comedy star Matthew Holness (Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace) are among the guest stars of three CBBC specials of the channel’s comedy-drama Dodger. Production has wrapped in Bristol on the 45-minute standalone episodes, which include a Christmas special. The Universal International Studios-produced show follows the exploits of the infamous pickpocket Dodger, who’s played by Billy Jenkins (Peaky Blinders). David Threlfall, Alex Kingston (Doctor Who) and Rhys Thomas are among the existing cast also the specials. Also guesting are Mark Benton (Waterloo Road), Rufus Jones (Home) and Jane Horrocks (Absolutely Fabulous). Rhys Thomas and Lucy Montgomery have written the specials, with Thomas also directing all three. Season one ended with Dodger being deported to Australia in a ship filled with convicts, and the first episode will show Dodger’s ingenious escape back to London to reunite with Fagin. The second is the Christmas special and the third will see Dodger’s gang sent to a private school to be rehabilitated through education. NBCUniversal Global Distribution is handling international sales.

Bavaria Fiction Ties With Gerda Film For Comedy Formats

Bavaria Fiction and Gerda Film, the company run by Chris Geletneky and Benjamin Seikel, are teaming to jointly develop comedy films and series. Geletneky, head writer and creative producer of German comedy formats such as Ladykracher, Pastewka and ZDF Sketch History, will work closely with Bavaria’s Peter Güde, who is behind Vorsicht vor Leuten, Falk and Deutsch-Les-Landes and is executive producer of Mord mit Aussicht and Grumpy Old Cops to create the formats. Bavaria Film and ZDF Studios joint venture Bavaria will then take on overall responsibility for the projects, with Güde and Gerda’s Benjamin Seikel exec-producing. Marcus Ammon, Managing Director of Content at Bavaria Fiction said: “We see the great demand from broadcasters and streamers for comedy formats in all shapes and forms. Consequently we are further expanding our field of comedy together with Peter.”

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