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The remake of Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds is still very much an active project...

To answer your question: no, nothing's sacred.

There's not a great number of people who get to the end of Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds and reckon that it needs a fresh approach. But the team at Michael Bay's Platinum Dunes appear to be on that very short list.

For some time now, there's been talk of a remake of The Birds, but after hearing nothing for a while, we thought the idea had been quietly dropped. Yet we thought wrong. News now reaches us that the new The Birds has found a director, and very much remains an active project.

Dutch director Diederik Van Rooijen is the man chosen to take on directing duties. It'll mark his English language feature debut, having enjoyed success in Holland with films such as Taped.

Little is known thus...

A high octane thrill ride of a remake like Gareth Edwards. upcoming Godzilla can temporarily make one forget that there are hundreds of haphazard money grab remakes hovering just on the horizon. One of the most glaring of these potential crapfests is the updated version of Alfred Hitchcock.s The Birds coming from Mandalay Pictures and Michael Bay.s Platinum Dunes. There have been directors of varying quality attached to this unneeded project in the past, but the latest to sign on could be the most inspired choice yet, as Dutch director Diederik Van Rooijen will fly with The Birds as his English-language studio debut. Even after reading it and typing it, my brain is still having trouble mulling it over. Van Rooijen is quite an accomplished director in his own country, though American audiences may know him from the solid 2012 thriller Taped (which has an English remake coming) or...

The remake of "The Birds" has been revived with filmmaker Diederik Van Rooijen ("Taped," "Daylight") coming onboard to direct the project for Universal Pictures and Platinum Dunes.

The new film is expected to be a much closer adaptation of the short story by Daphne Du Maurier, to which Universal owns the rights and which inspired Hitchcock's famous 1963 movie.

Tippi Hedren starred in the Hitchcock film about an increasingly vicious birds that terrorize a small town.

Numerous writers have worked on the remake over the past decade, so it's unknown what form the project will take at this time.

Source: Heat Vision...

A remake of Alfred Hitchcock's tale of avian terror has been rumored and talked about since way back in 2007, but it's been quite some time since we've heard anything about it. Now it looks like The Birds reboot is back on track. Read on for details!

Variety reports that Platinum Dunes and Mandalay Pictures have tapped Dutch filmmaker Diederik Van Rooijen (Taped) to direct a modern day version of The Birds, replacing previously attached directors Martin Campbell and Dennis Iliadis.

The original plotline followed a San Francisco socialite who moves to a small northern California town that is suddenly under attack from various types of birds. Plot details for the remake are unknown at this time.

Michael Bay will produce along with his Platinum Dunes producing partners Andrew Form and Brad Fuller with Peter Guber and David Zelon also producing through Mandalay Pictures.

Universal Pictures executive vice president of...

A remake of Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds has been talked about numerous times over the years, but the project looks to be moving forward with the news that a director has been selected. According to Variety, Dutch filmmaker Diederik Van Rooijen (Taped) is on board to direct for Michael Bay’s Platinum Dunes and Mandalay Pictures.

There are no additional details at this time, but we’ll let readers know as soon as we hear anything of interest. Released in 1963, here’s a clip from the Alfred Hitchcock classic:

“Nothing equals The Birds for sheer terror when Alfred Hitchcock unleashes his foul friends in one of his most shocking and memorable masterpieces. As beautiful blonde Melanie Daniels (Tippi Hedren) rolls into Bodega Bay in pursuit of eligible bachelor Mitch Brenner (Rod Taylor), she is inexplicably attacked by a seagull. Suddenly thousands of birds are flocking into town, preying on...

After languishing in development for years, Universal Pictures and Platinum Dunes are finally moving forward on their remake of The Birds, bringing aboard director Diederik Van Rooijen.

The 1963 original classic The Birds, directed by Alfred Hitchcock, centered on a socialite who moves from San Francisco to a small town in Northern California, which comes under attack by a number of different bird species. Tippi Hedren, Jessica Tandy, Rod Taylor and Suzanne Pleshette starred in the thriller.

The script has been worked on by a number of writers, including Paul Harris Boardman, Scott Derrickson, Juliet Snowden, Stiles White and Leslie Dixon, although it isn't known which draft is being used.

Michael Bay is producing alongside his Platinum Dunes partners Bradley Fuller and Andrew Form, and Mandalay Films' Peter Guber and David Zelonalso. No production schedule was given.

Diederik Van Rooijen is best known for directing foreign films such as Taped, Daylight,...

Dutch helmer Diederik Van Rooijen has signed on to direct the re-imagining of the Alfred Hitchcock classic The Birds, which Platinum Dunes and Mandalay Pictures are producing for Universal. Van Rooijen is best known as the writer and director of the Dutch television series Penoza, which has been remade for U.S. audiences as ABC's Red Widow. He also directed in his homeland the thriller Taped, which has an English-language adaptation in the works at Sony with Doug Wick and Lucy Fisher (The Great Gatsby) producing. The Birds would mark his studio feature debut. Naomi Watts has

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While you may not recognize the name of Dutch director Diederik van Rooijen there's a very good chance that you're either familiar with his work already or will be very soon. You see, van Rooijen was the writer and director of Dutch television series Penoza, a series that has since been remade for Us television as Red Widow. And last year he released taut thriller Taped, a feature film that also now has a Us version in the works. So the man knows a thing or two about putting mass audiences onto the edges of their seats. And he's doing it again with Daylight.Young lawyer Iris discovers that she has an older, autistic half-brother Ray, who is in prison for the atrocious murder of his...

[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...

Another Fantastic Fest has come to a close. It's been a grueling week of madness, movies and mayhem...and I can't wait to do it again next year.

As I've written before, the main problem with film fests is you can never see everything you want. But that's okay because you end up being exposed to things you didn't know about — and that's usually a good thing. I missed plenty, but Kayley Viteo and I did see a lot of films at FF2012 and we've reviewed our favorites already (to find them, just plug "Fantastic Fest" into the search box). I know Kayley has some more reviews coming, but I'm going to take this opportunity to touch on some of the rest of the many things I saw this year.

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Dead Sushi: The latest flick from Noboru Iguchi just didn't do it for me, I hate to say. I usually...

Dutch director Diederik Van Rooijen delivers a stripped-down, no-nonsense chase thriller through deepest darkest Argentina, boasting tight, assured direction and a pair of knockout central performances. Being in the wrong place at the wrong time, and witness to something that you'd frankly rather not have seen, has long been an effective thriller movie staple. From Billy Wilder's Some Like It Hot through Michelangelo Antonioni's Blow Up to Peter Weir's Witness, it's a fast and incredibly impactful way of putting ordinary people into extraordinary and oftentimes extremely dangerous situations, for the sake of heightening the drama and delivering white knuckle thrills. In Taped, Van Rooijen delivers exactly such a premise - a situation anyone could seemingly find themselves in - and ramps up the tension...

I have extremely mixed feelings about director Diederik Van Rooijen's Taped. This is one of those movies with some real deal-breaker moments, moments where characters do things so stupid as to be almost beyond forgiving, but those moments are usually followed by a scene that brings you right back over and has you again rooting for its beleaguered protagonists. Things start off extremely well, especially once you realize that what seems to be yet another found-footage film quickly turns into something much more interesting. The home movie that Johan and Saar are making for their daughter back home contains the meatiest and most heartfelt emotional beats, as each of them puts on their game face and acts the happy vacationer, but little tics and half-smiles give away that something is definitely out of sync. Once the murder occurs, the found footage approach shifts to a traditional shooting style, complete...

Austin, TX-Wednesday, September 12, 2012- Fantastic Fest is thrilled to announce the final installment of programming for Fantastic Fest 2012, including the world premiere screening of The Collection. Fantastic Fest will take place September 20-27 in Austin, Texas at the Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar.

American Mary (2011)

Us Premiere

Directors – Jen and Sylvia Soska, 95 mins

Disillusioned with her chosen profession and perpetually broke, medical student Mary Mason finds herself drawn into a shady world of underground surgery and body modification.

Antiviral (2012)

Us Premiere

Director – Brandon Cronenberg, 110 mins

Syd March makes people sick, infecting them with viruses harvested to order from celebrities, but gets more than he bargained for when his most famous source dies from a virus Syd has just infected himself with.

Berberian Sound Studio (2012)

Us Premiere

Director – Peter Strickland, 92 mins

Strange things occur after a British audio technician is summoned to Italy to work on a gory giallo film.

Besties (2012)

World Premiere

Director – Rebecca Perry Cutter,...

Wow! I literally just jumped up for joy hearing this final wave. I think that this might be my favorite selection of films since I have been attending. Films like American Mary, Antiviral, Berberian Sound Studio, the remake of Who Can Kill A Child? – Come Out and Play and the World Premiere of the sequel to The Collector! These films plus a few others just caps off what I’m sure will be my favorite Fantastic Fest yet!

Also, for those keeping score, Michael picked 7 movies that are definitely showing while I picked 6. However, this could change once the secret screenings show. Again, Fantastic Fest starts next Thursday and we plan to have reviews, interviews and possibly video & audio blogs. Anyway, here’s the announcement:

From the Press Release:

Fantastic Fest is thrilled to announce the final installment of programming for Fantastic Fest 2012, including the world premiere screening of The Collection.

If the films announced so far weren't enough to get you to travel to Austin later this month, this last wave of programming should have you packing your bags immediately! Read on for details.

From the Press Release:

Fantastic Fest is thrilled to announce the final installment of programming for Fantastic Fest 2012, including the world premiere screening of The Collection. Fantastic Fest (official site here) will take place September 20-27 in Austin, Texas, at the Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar.

Related Story: Fantastic Fest 2012: First Wave of Films Announced

Related Story: Fantastic Fest 2012: Second Wave of Films Announced

Related Story: Fantastic Fest 2012: Short Films Announced

American Mary (2011)

Us Premiere

Directors - Jen and Sylvia Soska, 95 mins

Disillusioned with her chosen profession and perpetually broke, medical student Mary Mason finds herself drawn into a shady world of underground surgery and body modification.

Antiviral (2012)

Us Premiere

Director - Brandon Cronenberg,...

Back in March, we expressed a reasonable level of bewilderment when Columbia Pictures announced their plan to purchase rights to an English-language remake of Diederik Van Rooijen‘s Dutch thriller Taped — a film that, at the time of the aforementioned notice, hadn’t even been in theaters in its home country for more than a single week. American remakes of foreign commodities are, of course, far from uncommon these days, but to gamble so soon on an unproven product seemed, at the very least, a bit premature.

Perhaps wisely, then, Red Wagon Entertainment’s Douglas Wick and Lucy Fisher — the project’s principal producers — proceeded to put on the brakes a little, as today’s announcement of the hiring of screenwriter Brian Nelson is the first thing we’ve heard on this project since early March. And it’s a good hire, I’d say — Nelson‘s résumé, which includes...

At this year's 17th Annual Stony Brook Film Festival, Peter Miller and William Hechter's documentary about blues singer and songwriter Doc Pomus, "A.K.A. Doc Pomus," took home the Festival's highest honor. The festival ran from July 19th-28th and featured 33 full length and short films from around the world. Full list of Stony Brook Film Festival winners: Grand Prize Winner: "A.K.A Doc Pomus"- Directed by Peter Miller and William Hechter Audience Choice Award: "Wunderkinder"- Directed by Marcus O. Rosenmüller. Written by Stephen Glantz and Rolf Schübel from a story by Art Bernd Jury Award Best Feature: "Shuffle"- Written and directed by Kurt Kuenne "Taped"- Written by Marnie Blok and Diederik Van Rooijen Audience Choice Best Short: "Bordando La Frontera"- A Film by by René Rhi Jury Award Best Short: ...

Columbia Pictures has acquired the rights to develop the Dutch thriller Taped, into an English-language motion picture to be produced by Red Wagon Entertainment’s Douglas Wick and Lucy Fisher, it was announced today by Hannah Minghella, president of production for Columbia Pictures.

In the Dutch film, a young couple, while vacationing in Buenos Aires to recapture their romance, inadvertently tapes the murder of an innocent man by a corrupt cop, forcing them to find resources they didn’t know they had to fight for their lives to escape.

Commenting on the announcement, Minghella said, “We’re huge fans of Taped . and believe that Doug and Lucy have just the right take on the material to adapt it for English speaking audiences.”

Through Red Wagon, Wick and Fisher are currently producing The Great Gatsby, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, and Carey Mulligan, with Baz Luhrmann directing, and Wettest County, a...

Columbia Pictures and Red Wagon Entertainment's Doug Wick and Lucy Fisher are teaming up for the American remake of Dutch thriller Taped. Per Variety, "Nl Films, the Dutch production company behind 'Taped', will exec produce the remake. Company is owned by Endemol and Alain de Levita, who produced the original film. Negotiations were handled by Nl producer Sytze van der Laan. "We're huge fans of 'Taped' -- and believe that Doug and Lucy have just the right take on the material to adapt it for English-speaking audiences," said Columbia production prexy Hannah Minghella, who will oversee the project for the studio along with Jonathan Kadin." The original film, "follows a young couple vacationing in Buenos Aires who inadvertently tape the murder of an innocent man by a corrupt cop...

Culver City, Calif., February 28, 2012 – Columbia Pictures has acquired the rights to develop the Dutch thriller Taped, into an English-language motion picture to be produced by Red Wagon Entertainment’s Douglas Wick and Lucy Fisher, it was announced today by Hannah Minghella, president of production for Columbia Pictures. In the Dutch film, a young couple, while vacationing in Buenos Aires to recapture their romance, inadvertently tapes the murder of an innocent man by a corrupt cop, forcing them to find resources they didn’t know they had to fight for their lives to escape. Commenting on the announcement, Minghella said, “We’re huge fans of Taped – and believe that Doug and Lucy have just the right take on the material to adapt it for English speaking audiences.” Through Red Wagon, Wick and Fisher are currently producing The Great Gatsby, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, and Carey Mulligan, with Baz Luhrmann directing,...

Douglas Wick, Lucy Fisher to produced remake of Dutch thriller Taped for Columbia Pictures. Columbia's picked up rights to develop the property into an English-language version, with Red Wagon Entertainment's Lucy Fisher and Douglas Wick on board as producers, reports Variety. The original Dutch film is directed Diederik Van Rooijen who scripts with Marnie Blok, and tells of a couple who, while on vacation in Buenos Aires, inadvertently record a corrupt cop murdering an innocent man, leaving them fighting for their lives to escape. Nl Films, who produced the original film, and are owned by Endemol and Alain de Levita, are set to executive produce. Red Wagon recently produced Wettest Country helmed by John Hillcoat (The Road, The Proposition) and are currently working...

Douglas Wick, Lucy Fisher to produced remake of Dutch thriller Taped for Columbia Pictures. Columbia's picked up rights to develop the property into an English-language version, with Red Wagon Entertainment's Lucy Fisher and Douglas Wick on board as producers, reports Variety. The original Dutch film is directed Diederik Van Rooijen who scripts with Marnie Blok, and tells of a couple who, while on vacation in Buenos Aires, inadvertently record a corrupt cop murdering an innocent man, leaving them fighting for their lives to escape. Nl Films, who produced the original film, and are owned by Endemol and Alain de Levita, are set to executive produce. Red Wagon recently produced Wettest Country helmed by John Hillcoat (The Road, The Proposition) and are currently working...

Douglas Wick, Lucy Fisher to produced remake of Dutch thriller Taped for Columbia Pictures. Columbia's picked up rights to develop the property into an English-language version, with Red Wagon Entertainment's Lucy Fisher and Douglas Wick on board as producers, reports Variety. The original Dutch film is directed Diederik Van Rooijen who scripts with Marnie Blok, and tells of a couple who, while on vacation in Buenos Aires, inadvertently record a corrupt cop murdering an innocent man, leaving them fighting for their lives to escape. Nl Films, who produced the original film, and are owned by Endemol and Alain de Levita, are set to executive produce. Red Wagon recently produced Wettest Country helmed by John Hillcoat (The Road, The Proposition) and are currently working...

Trailers are an under-appreciated art form insofar that many times they’re seen as vehicles for showing footage, explaining films away, or showing their hand about what moviegoers can expect. Foreign, domestic, independent, big budget: I celebrate all levels of trailers and hopefully this column will satisfactorily give you a baseline of what beta wave I’m operating on, because what better way to hone your skills as a thoughtful moviegoer than by deconstructing these little pieces of advertising? Some of the best authors will tell you that writing a short story is a lot harder than writing a long one, that you have to weigh every sentence. What better medium to see how this theory plays itself out beyond that than with movie trailers? Taped Trailer I, like many other boys, went through a Patrick Dempsey phase when I was younger. It all started with Can't Buy Me Love...

Veteran Dutch director Dick Maas caused something of a sensation with his 2010 release Sint. A bloody Christmas themed slasher released locally at the height of the holiday season before premiering internationally at the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival, Sint shot up the local box office charts while winning a loyal cult around the globe.And Maas is back now with Quiz, a darkly comic thriller about a game show host whose family is kidnapped following his final show. Barry Atsma - who also stars in upcoming thriller Taped - plays the lead.We ran the first teaser for Quiz a little while back and that has now been followed by a full trailer which you can view - English subtitles included - below....