PRIME which stars Meryl Streep and Uma Thurman, will be the first film released in Ireland on digital when Momentum Pictures opens it today at 59 cinemas, 11 of which will be showing it on digital. According to Kevin Cummins, director of operations at Digital Cinema Limited, Prime marks the start of the first countrywide digital cinema distribution system in the world.
Among the venues showing the film on digital is Dublin's newest cinema, Movies@Dundrum, which has a number of screens equipped for digital presentation. The others are the Gate in Cork city; Reel Pictures in Blackpool, Co Cork; UCI Blanchardstown in Dublin;, The Eye in Galway; the Gaiety in Sligo; the Omniplex in Clonmel; the Capitol in Thurles; SGC in Dungarvan; Slaney Plaza in Enniscorthy; and Storm in Portlaoise. Prime is reviewed on page 8-9. www.digitalcinema.ie
Blu flu hits Cannes
Opening night at the Cannes Film Festival is generally chaotic, with throngs lining the streets and traffic gridlocked across the town. With Tom Hanks and Audrey Tautou leading The Da Vinci Code cast up the red carpet, and Opus Dei said to be planning a protest against their film, next Wednesday's opening will be particularly busy. To complicate matters, disgruntled French police officers are planning a short strike in Cannes as the ceremony begins. They will stage a 55-minute picket at the foot of the red-carpeted steps in what has been described as a "symbolic" operation.
Producer's sidebar show
Irish producer Julie le Brocquy has had a 25-minute short film selected for the Directors Fortnight sidebar programme at the Cannes Film Festival. The film, My Beautiful Rambutan Tree in Tanjung Rambutan, is set and was shot in Ipoh, Malaysia by writer-director U-wei Bin HajiSaari. It deals with a young brother and sister whose playful activities turn unexpectedly serious. The film was produced by le Brocquy and Julia Fraser, her partner in le Brocquy Fraser Productions, which co-produced the Golden-Globe-winning Afghan drama, Osama.
Tsunami drama under way
HBO Films and BBC2 have joined forces to make Tsunami, a drama set during the disaster that hit Thailand in late 2004. Production is now underway in Phuket and Khaolak on the film, which follows the disaster and its aftermath from the vantage point of survivors, media and relief workers. The ensemble cast features Tim Roth, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Sophie Okonedo, Toni Collette, Hugh Bonneville and Gina McKee. Bharat Nalluri, whose recent TV credits include Spooks, Hustle and Life on Mars, is directing the film, which is produced by Finola Dwyer (no relation).
Putting art on screen
The Arts Council, the Irish Film Board and Filmbase invite applications for tender for the 2006 series of Documenting the Arts, six creative documentaries on aspects of art and culture in a contemporary or historical context. Further information is available at www.filmbase.ie
Tricky role for Pearce
Guy Pearce will play master escapologist Harry Houdini in Australian director Gillian Armstrong's Death Defying Acts, a lavish production set in 1926, when Houdini was at the height of his fame and touring the world with his elaborate escape performances. Catherine Zeta-Jones will co-star as a Scottish psychic with whom he gets involved in a passionate affair. Among the actors who have played Houdini on screen are Tony Curtis (in Houdini), Harvey Keitel (Fairytale: A True Story), Paul Michael Glaser (The Great Houdinis), Wil Wheaton (Young Harry Houdini) and Norman Mailer (Cremaster 2).
Pearce recently finished work on Factory Girl, in which he plays Andy Warhol, with Siena Miller as Edie Sedgwick.
Comedy no laughing matter
The seven-year run of The West Wing concludes with transmission of the final episode in the US on Sunday night, but Aaron Sorkin, the writer who originated the series, has a new show ready to roll in the autumn. Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip is a drama set behind the scenes of a late-night comedy sketch show along the lines of Saturday Night Live. Bradley Whitford, who played deputy chief of staff Josh Lynam in The West Wing, stars in the new series with Matthew Perry and Amanda Peet.
Quote of the week
From Paul Giamatti in the New York Times on filming the thriller, Shoot 'Em Up, with Clive Owen: "I learned how to fire a sniper rifle, which I'm sure will be useful at some point."
