Latest news with #FrontRowFilmedEntertainment
Broadcast Pro
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Broadcast Pro
Animotion Media Group and Front Row partner to bring ‘Finnick 2' to MENA audiences
'Finnick 2' is scheduled for release in cinemas across the MENA region this fall, with a digital rollout to follow on major platforms. UAE-based Animotion Media Group has announced a strategic partnership with Front Row Filmed Entertainment to distribute the upcoming animated feature Finnick 2 across the Middle East and North Africa. Under the agreement, Front Row has secured theatrical, television and digital rights for the sequel, marking a significant step in expanding the family-friendly franchise throughout the Arabic-speaking world. Following the success of the original film, Finnick 2 continues the adventures of the mischievous yet lovable Finnick and his fearless companion, Christine. This new instalment sees the pair facing an unexpected magical crisis after Finnick accidentally activates an ancient walking stick, causing him to lose his invisibility and putting the secret world of the Finns at risk. Their journey to restore balance unfolds as a vibrant tale filled with fantasy, humour and emotional depth, offering audiences a heartwarming experience. The film will be released in cinemas across the region with Arabic subtitles and will be supported by a culturally tailored marketing campaign designed to engage family audiences. A digital release is set to follow on major streaming platforms, ensuring widespread accessibility for viewers across formats. The film is directed by Denis Chernov and the voice cast of the film includes Veronika Golubeva, Boris Dergachev, Mikhail Khrustalyov and Ida Galich. Julia Nikolaeva, General Manager of Animotion Media Group, said: 'Finnick 2 is a celebration of imagination, courage, and friendship. We're proud to bring this world of adventure to audiences around the globe. Our collaboration with Front Row ensures that families across the MENA region can enjoy Finnick 2 in theatres, on TV and online, brought to life through a culturally relevant release strategy.'
Broadcast Pro
28-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Broadcast Pro
Palestinian documentary ‘No Other Land' to stream in MENA from April 1
This film by a Palestinian-Israeli collective of four young activists has been made as an act of creative resistance on the path to greater justice. No Other Land, an acclaimed documentary chronicling the friendship between a Palestinian activist and an Israeli journalist amidst the ongoing conflict in the occupied West Bank, will be available across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) starting April 1. The film can be rented or purchased on OSN Store via set-top boxes and Apple TV, priced at Dh19.99 for rental and Dh49.99 for purchase. Front Row Filmed Entertainment recently secured distribution rights for the documentary across the MENA region. Front Row plans to imminently release the film theatrically in select cinemas, followed by a premium VOD release across the MENA. Directed by Palestinian activist Basel Adra and Israeli journalist Yuval Abraham, No Other Land follows Adra's journey as he documents the destruction of his hometown, designated for military training. With the support of Abraham, the film amplifies the urgent reality of displacement and resistance. The film is an act of resistance documenting the ongoing conflict in the region. A co-production between Palestine and Norway, it had its world premiere at the 74th Berlin International Film Festival, where it won both the Panorama Audience Award for Best Documentary and the Berlinale Documentary Film Award. Since then, it has amassed 68 awards from global film festivals, including honors from the Boston Society of Film Critics, the European Film Awards and the Gotham Independent Film Awards. The documentary reached a historic milestone by winning Best Documentary Feature at the 2025 Academy Awards—making history as the first documentary to claim an Oscar without a traditional distribution deal. Facing hurdles in securing US distribution, the filmmakers opted for self-distribution in collaboration with Cinetic Media, which facilitated theatrical bookings. The film premiered on February 2 in a single-screen debut, grossing $26,000, and subsequently expanded to 120 screens, surpassing $1.2m in box office earnings over four weeks. No Other Land provides an intimate portrayal of life in Masafer Yatta, a rural area of the West Bank where Palestinian villagers face the ongoing threat of expulsion by Israeli Defense Forces, who claim the land for military training. The documentary follows the journey of Adra, a young Palestinian activist from Masafer Yatta, as he fights against the mass displacement of his community. Since his childhood, Adra has captured the demolition of homes and the forced removal of residents under military occupation. His story intersects with that of Abraham, an Israeli journalist who supports his efforts. Despite their collaboration, the stark disparity between their lives — Adra's under occupation and Abraham's in freedom — strains their partnership. Filmed over four years from 2019 to 2023, the documentary wrapped production in October 2023, offering a deeply personal and urgent account of life under occupation.
The National
26-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The National
Oscar-winning film No Other Land to release in the Middle East on April 1
No Other Land, the Oscar-winning documentary film, will be available across the Middle East and North Africa from April 1. The Palestinian-Israeli co-production, which follows the struggles faced by inhabitants of occupied West Bank village Masafer Yatta as they try to protect their homes from demolition by Israeli settlers, will be available to rent and buy on OSN Store as well as Apple TV. The film, which has struggled to find a major distributor in the US, was acquired by Dubai distributor Front Row Filmed Entertainment for the Mena region. No Other Land is co-directed by two Palestinians – Basel Adra and Hamdan Ballal – as well as Israelis Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor. Its triumph at the Academy Awards earlier this month was the first time a documentary has won an Oscar without an American distributor. It was also Palestine's first Oscar win. The film has received many accolades since its premiere last year at the Berlin International Film Festival, where it won best documentary. It has also won top prizes from the Gotham Awards, International Documentary Association and Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards. It has also drawn fury in Israel and abroad. Earlier this month, the mayor of Miami Beach in Florida, US, proposed ending the lease of a movie theatre that screened the documentary. Steven Meiner later dropped his proposal after a majority of city commissioners opposed his plan. No Other Land grabbed global headlines on Monday when Ballal was attacked in his village of Susiya in the West Bank, which features heavily in the film. 'He was attacked by soldier-settlers and then abducted by soldiers – so we have no idea what happened, we just don't know,' co-director Adra told The National. Witnesses of the attack told The National that a dozen masked Israeli settlers, some armed, descended on the village. Ballal suffered injuries to his head and stomach, according to co-director Abraham. The trio were released on Tuesday afternoon from a police station in the West Bank settlement of Kiryat Arba. Ballal had bruises on his face and blood on his clothes, and the three were driven to a hospital in the neighbouring Palestinian city of Hebron. After his release, Ballal told reporters soldiers and settlers beat him and threatened him with guns. 'The soldiers shot three times in the air,' he said. He was blindfolded and had his hands tied while in detention and made to sit under the air conditioning. 'I was freezing all night.' Ballal said he was assaulted by settlers when he filmed them attacking his neighbour's house. 'I went there to document what was happening there.' The global film community had earlier condemned the attack on Ballal, and demanded his immediate release. Front Row Filmed Entertainment also released a statement about the attack. 'We express our unwavering support for Hamdan Ballal, Basel Adra and Yuval Abraham and the No Other Land team,' the distributor said, and urged the film industry to 'unite in solidarity with those who dare to challenge the status quo'.
The National
26-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The National
No Other Land: a timeline of defiance, festival acclaim and a filmmaker's assault
The journey of the Oscar-winning documentary No Other Land to the big screen continues with more twists and turns. Since its premiere at the 2024 Berlin International Film Festival, the film – co-directed by Palestinians Basel Adra and Hamdan Ballal, and Israelis Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor – has drawn acclaim and criticism for its uncompromising portrayal of Palestinian life under Israeli occupation. Responses have ranged from sold-out screenings at international film festivals in Australia and North America to an attempted ban on a scheduled showing in Miami Beach, Florida. Events took a darker turn on Monday when Ballal was assaulted by more than a dozen masked Israeli settlers before being arrested by Israeli forces. With No Other Land set to be shown in regional theatres – after its acquisition by Dubai distributor Front Row Filmed Entertainment – below is a timeline of key events surrounding the documentary. 2019: No Other Land took four years to film beginning in 2019, with production reportedly wrapped up only days before the Hamas-led attacks in Israel on October 7, 2023. The arduous process was made even more challenging because it was independently produced, with footage captured by the filmmakers using their own cameras and phones. This included Adra filming from within his occupied Palestinian village of Masafer Yatta, documenting scenes of demolition by the Israeli army and incursions by illegal settlers, while Abraham filmed from inside Israel, including in Jerusalem. 2024: The documentary has its world premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival, winning the Panorama Audience Award – a harbinger of the international and public acclaim that would follow. In his acceptance speech, Adra drew attention to the dire conditions faced by Palestinians, particularly those in Masafer Yatta. "I'm here celebrating the award, but it's also very difficult for me to celebrate when tens of thousands of my people are being massacred by Israel in Gaza," he said. "Masafer Yatta, my community, is also being bulldozed by Israeli forces. I ask one thing: for Germany, as I'm here in Berlin, to respect the calls of the UN and stop sending weapons to Israel." The Berlin Festival triumph led the No Other Land team to be invited to other prestigious festivals – including in Toronto, New York and Busan. January 2025: No Other Land receives an Oscar nomination in the Best Documentary Feature category. By this point, its inclusion on the shortlist came as little surprise within industry circles – especially after it had already won Best Documentary at New York's Gotham Awards the previous month, a significant milestone given the event is considered the kick-off to Hollywood's major awards season. The Oscar nomination is all the more remarkable as the film was – and remains – without a US distributor. March 2: No Other Land wins Best Documentary Feature at the 2025 Academy Awards – the first Oscar for a Palestinian production. The achievement is all the more striking given the film was shunned by US studios and self-distributed in American cinemas, despite securing distribution in 24 countries, including the UK and France. "It's such a big honour for the four of us and everybody who supported us for this documentary," co-director Adra said in his acceptance speech. "About two months ago, I became a father. I hope my daughter will not have to live the same life I'm living now – always fearing settler violence, home demolitions, and forced displacements that my community and I face every day under the Israeli occupation. "This is the harsh reality we have been enduring for decades – and still we resist, as we call on the world to take serious action to stop the injustice and to stop the ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people." March 13: Steven Meiner, mayor of Miami Beach, attempts to terminate the lease and pull public funding from O Cinema, an independent picturehouse in the city, for showing No Other Land. The mayor publicly urged the cinema to cancel screenings of the documentary, which continues to be independently distributed by the filmmakers to select cinemas across the US after being shunned by studios. March 16: Dubai film distributor Front Row Filmed Entertainment acquires the rights to No Other Land in the Middle East. According to chief executive Gianluca Chakra, the documentary will be released in cinemas and on streaming platforms, with release dates to be announced soon. "In a world filled with dominant narratives, it is essential to consider diverse viewpoints,' he said. "This film offers a unique perspective, bringing together filmmakers united by a just vision. The footage presented is both striking and unparalleled. We have a duty to make sure it reaches audiences." March 19: Miami Beach mayor Steven Meiner drops his plan to terminate the lease and withdraw public funding from O Cinema for screening No Other Land after five city commissioners oppose his proposal. Meiner had drawn global attention, particularly from the filmmaking community, which viewed the move as a troubling precedent aimed at restricting free speech. Speaking to the Miami Herald, Meiner defended his actions, saying he viewed the screening 'as a public safety threat'. Miriam Haskell, the lawyer representing O Cinema, told the same outlet that the right decision had been reached, describing the mayor's attempt as a clear case of 'viewpoint censorship'. March 24: Ballal is assaulted by more than a dozen masked Israeli settlers marauding through his home village of Susiya in the occupied West Bank. The National's Jerusalem correspondent Thomas Helm reports that the attack ended with Ballal's arrest – along with two other Palestinians – by Israeli forces. While in detention, Ballal was treated for injuries to his head and stomach. 'He was attacked by soldier-settlers and then abducted by soldiers, so we have no idea what happened,' Adra told The National. March 25: Ballal and two other Palestinians detained with him are released from a police station in the West Bank settlement of Kiryat Arba. Ballal has bruises on his face and blood on his clothes, and the three are driven to a hospital in the neighbouring Palestinian city of Hebron, Associated Press journalists at the scene report. Their attorney, Lea Tsemel, says they spent the night on the floor of a military base while receiving only minimal care for the injuries they sustained in the attack. She had earlier said they were accused of throwing stones at a young settler, allegations they deny.
The National
20-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The National
Florida mayor drops plans to close cinema for showing Oscar-winning documentary No Other Land
The mayor of Miami Beach has dropped his plan to terminate the lease and pull public funding from an independent cinema for screening the Oscar-winning Israeli-Palestinian documentary No Other Land. The decision was made on Wednesday after a raucous city meeting at which most attendees opposed Steven Meiner's plan to punish O Cinema for showing the documentary. Meiner said he was withdrawing the proposal and deferring another that encourages film screenings that 'highlight a fair and balanced viewpoint'. At the meeting, five city commissioners opposed his plan, with only one supporting terminating the lease and pulling funding for the non-profit art house cinema. Miami mayor Francis Suarez called into the meeting to support Meiner but was booed after he exceeded the time limit for speaking. Meiner told the Miami Herald that he made the proposal as a public safety measure as he 'legitimately viewed this as a public safety threat'. Lawyer Miriam Haskell, who represented O Cinema, told the Miami Herald that the right decision had been reached as the theatre's legal representatives argued it was a clear case of 'viewpoint censorship'. No Other Land is directed by Palestinian Basel Adra and Israeli Yuval Abraham, and follows journalist Adra's attempts to protect his West Bank village from Israeli settlers. Meiner deemed the film a 'false one-sided propaganda attack on the Jewish people that is not consistent with the values of our city and residents' in a newsletter. The mayor had publicly urged O Cinema to cancel screenings of the documentary, which is being independently distributed by the filmmakers to select cinemas across the US after being shunned by studios. Meiner's proposal garnered global attention, especially within the filmmaking community, which viewed the threat as a troubling precedent aimed at restricting free speech. No Other Land won Best Documentary at the 97th Academy Awards, with Adra using his acceptance speech to call on the world 'to take serious actions to stop the injustice and to stop the ethnic cleansing of Palestinian people'. Last week, Dubai film distributor Front Row Filmed Entertainment announced it had acquired the rights to the documentary in Middle East and North Africa, where it will be released in select cinemas and via streaming. 'In a world filled with dominant narratives, it is essential to consider diverse viewpoints,' said Front Row chief executive Gianluca Chakra. 'This film offers a unique perspective, bringing together filmmakers united by a just vision. The footage presented is both striking and unparalleled. We have a duty to make sure it reaches audiences.'
