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Disney is closing its kids channels in the UK after launching Disney+ and failing to agree on new carriage deals with pay-TV platforms Sky and Virgin Media . Disney Channel, Disney XD and Disney Junior will be taken off air at the end of September, though Disney’s other brands, including Nat Geo and Fox, will continue to broadcast on linear television. A spokesman said: “From October 1st, Disney+ will become the exclusive home for content from Disney Channel, DisneyXD and Disney Junior in the UK.” He added that the “Walt Disney Company remains committed to our kids channels business,” and that the company plans to “execute distribution agreements for Disney channels in many markets where Disney+ is also available.” The news does, however, mark a significant moment for the company, which appears to be increasingly focusing its efforts on streaming at the expense of traditional television. It also follows the announcement that David Levine, Disney’s vice … [Read more...] about Disney To Close Kids Channels In The UK Following Launch Of Disney+

Netflix today hosted an event in Mumbai unveiling a hefty slate of upcoming films, series, documentaries, reality programs, and comedy specials. There were a total of 40 projects touted during today’s showcase, some of which were previously announced, such as the Alfonso Cuaron-exec produced feature The Disciple , which as Deadline revealed Netflix took world rights on following the movie’s premiere at Venice last year. Also on the slate are: the series Bombay Begins from Endemol Shine India, Endeavor Content and Chernin Entertainment; the relationship drama Ajeeb Daastaans , from directors Shashank Khaitan, Raj Mehta, Neeraj Ghaywan and Kayoze Irani; the feature Pagglait from Umesh Bist; and Reliance Entertainment’s Bulbul Tarang. Related Story Fremantle-Owned Wildside Bags Italian Remake Rights To Argentinian Box Office Smash 'Lion's Heart' The full list of titles is below. Accompanying today’s announcement, Monika Shergill, Vice President of … [Read more...] about Netflix India Unveils Slate Of 40 Films & Series

In a competitive situation, ITV has secured the exclusive UK television rights to CBS ’s blockbuster interview between Oprah Winfrey and defected British royals Prince Harry and Meghan Markle . ITV has fought off competition from the likes of Sky and Discovery to land the rights to what promises to be an explosive interview, in which Winfrey makes clear that there is no subject “off-limits.” The ITV deal is reportedly worth around £1 million ($1.4M), with the MailOnline first reporting on February 22 that the broadcaster was the frontrunner to land the interview. Variety first reported on Sky and Discovery’s interest. ViacomCBS Global Distribution Group is repping global sales for the special, which broadcasts on CBS at 8PM Sunday, March 7. It is titled: Oprah with Meghan and Harry: A CBS Primetime Special . ITV will air the special at 9PM on Monday, March 8. Related Story Meghan Markle "Saddened" By Explosive Report Revealing Her Former Kensington … [Read more...] about ITV Wins UK Rights To Oprah Winfrey’s Interview With Prince Harry & Meghan Markle

With The Willoughbys , writer/director Kris Pearn adapted a beloved children’s book of the same name by Lois Lowry, looking to be as faithful as possible to the “subversive” nature of her story, while bringing to it his own personal touch. Pearn’s second feature, following 2013’s Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2 , centers on the Willoughby children, who grew up with parents who could not be more disinterested in them. Exploring the sometimes-wide gap between the families we’re born into and those we choose, it watches as the kids send their selfish guardians off on vacation, setting off on a globetrotting adventure and forging new connections. In conversation with Deadline, Pearn breaks down his narrative and visual approach to the feature—which debuted on Netflix last April—a clever, darkly comedic parable, through which he hoped to say “something real.” Related Story 'The Willoughbys' Review: Ricky Gervais As A Chatty Cat Leads Cool Voice Cast In … [Read more...] about ‘The Willoughbys’ Director Kris Pearn Adapts Children’s Book By Lois Lowry For Netflix, Leaning Into Its “Roald Dahl Subversiveness”

On Welcome to Chechnya , VFX supervisor Ryan Laney introduced game-changing tools with huge implications for the future of documentary filmmaking. Directed by David France, the HBO film spotlights anti-gay purges transpiring in Chechnya in the late 2010s, following LGBT refugees as they make their way out of Russia, with the help of a network of activists. In telling this story, France would have to address a pair of almost paradoxical drives. Because he wanted viewers to invest themselves, emotionally, in the stories of survivors, he knew he needed to give the doc a human face. At the same time, he realized early on that he would have to develop a method of disguise, which would protect the identities of his vulnerable subjects. Related Story 'Welcome To Chechnya' Director David France Talks Dangerous Risks And Lifesaving Hope Of LGBTQ Docu Ultimately, Laney would help the director to fulfill both of these objectives by placing “digital prosthetics” … [Read more...] about How VFX Supervisor Ryan Laney Developed Game-Changing Technology For ‘Welcome to Chechnya,’ Shielding Identities Of LGBT Refugees