Notizie

Rebranding

Germany’s Leonine Studios has rebranded its television subsidiary Odeon Entertainment as Madame Zheng Production to reflect its primary focus of “equality and diversity in every aspect of the production business, both in front of and behind the camera.” Tina Wagner, previously producer and executive producer at RedSeven Entertainment, and Nina Etspüler, co-head of entertainment at Leonine Studios, are joining the management team and will lead the company under Wagner’s direction along with Martin Schneider, Odeon Entertainment’s long-standing managing director.

Fred Kogel, CEO and co-head of entertainment at Leonine Studios, said: “Ever since Nina Etspüler joined Leonine in Jan. 2021, we have jointly pursued the goal of establishing a production brand that advocates for equality and diversity in front of and behind the camera, in order to firmly anchor these themes, which are essential for Leonine Studios, in the production market. The entertainment sector in Germany, in particular,...

Oscar-winning Russian director Vladimir Menshov, known for crowd pleasers featuring everyday people, died July 5 in Moscow of Covid complications, according to the Russian film studio Mosfilm and Russian media. He was 81.

Born Sept. 17, 1937 in Baku, Ussr (now Azerbaijan), Menshov started his feature career as an actor in 1973. He made his writing debut a year later, followed by his directing debut in 1977. Moscow Does Not Believe In Tears was only his second movie as a director.

The romantic drama revolves around three young single women from small towns who share a room as they try to make lives for themselves in 1958 Moscow. The film, which tracks the women’s lives, careers and romances over the following two decades, was an unlikely box-office hit. Faced with initial criticism because it features a single mother, Moscow Does Not Believe In Tears was broadcast on TV shortly after its theatrical release in early 1980. Despite that,...