Disney APAC President; ‘Star Trek: Lower Decks’ Amazon Deal; MBC CEO Steps Down – Global Briefs
Disney Appoints APAC Chief
Disney has named Luke Kang as President, Asia Pacific, following the departure of Uday Shankar, which was announced in October and becomes effective from December 31. Kang will not, however, be taking on Shankar’s responsibilities in India, with a separate appointment set to be made for the territory by Rebecca Campbell, Chairman, International Operations and Direct-to-Consumer for Disney. Kang will oversee the studio’s business in Australia/New Zealand, Greater China, Japan, Korea and Southeast Asia.
‘Star Trek: Lower Decks’ Heads To Amazon
Animated series Star Trek: Lower Decks will premiere on Amazon Prime Video in numerous international regions including the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Europe, Japan, and India. All 10 episodes of the first season, which is produced by CBS, will launch on January 22, 2021. Directed by Mike McMahan, the show focuses on the supporting crew serving on one of Starfleet’s least important ships; Tawny Newsome, Jack Quaid, Noel Wells and Eugene Cordero are among the voice cast.
MBC Group CEO Steps Down
Sam Barnett has returned to the role of CEO at Dubai-based broadcaster MBC Group, 12 months after he resigned from the company after a 17-year stint. He replaces current CEO Marc Antoine d’Halluin who has stepped down but will take up a separate position as an advisor to the board. Separately, MBC has also appointed Majid Al Ibrahim as a board representative.
‘Zappa’ European Cinema Release
Event cinema specialist Piece of Magic Entertainment has picked up European rights (excl. UK, Ireland, German-speaking territories, and Poland) to Alex Winter’s documentary Zappa. The company is planning theatrical releases in all of its territories, pandemic allowing. The film was acquired from Great Point Media, which is handling sales.
‘Beforeigners’ Season 2 Underway
Paul Kaye, Ann Akin, Jade Anouka, Billy Postlethwaite and Philip Rosch have joined Nicolai Cleve Broch and Krista Kosonen for Season 2 of Beforeigners, which is currently filming in Norway. The HBO Europe series comes from Banijay-owned Rubico TV and follows Oslo’s multi-temporal police team who are brought back together by another unusual case. It is created by Eilif Skodvin and Anne Bj?rnstad (Lilyhammer) and directed by Jens Lien.
IFFR Cinemart Line-up
The International Film Festival Rotterdam has unveiled the projects that will take part in its various industry strand this year. The event will run February 1-5 in an online incarnation due to ongoing pandemic related disruption. A total of 17 films have been selected for CineMart, its flagship program. You can view the full list here.
‘Jacir’ Cast
Leila Almas Rose, Jonathan Stoddard and Mark Jeffrey Miller have joined the cast of drama Jacir, which is set to shoot in Memphis, Tennessee. Written and direted by Jordanian-American Waheed AlQawasmi, his debut, the English-Arabic-language film follows Jacir (Malek Rahbani), a Syrian refugee who has resettled into a rough neighborhood in Memphis. Amy Williams is producing with Al Kapone and Kurt Clayton.
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