STAKE

Newen Studios, the Paris-headquartered production and distribution group, has taken a majority stake in London-based production house, Rise Films, the outfit behind “All That Breathes,” which won the top documentary prizes at Sundance and Cannes this year. The move is part of Newen’s premium documentary ambitions and U.K. expansion plans.

Founded in 2006 by Teddy Leifer, Rise’s credits also include Emmy winners “The Invisible War” and “The Interruptors” and Oscar “Icarus.” The company is debuting in factual drama with “Thank You & Goodbye,” about the phone-hacking scandal that rocked Rupert Murdoch’s media empire, a collaboration with the creative team behind the BBC’s “The Salisbury Poisonings.”

Rise Comedy, a joint venture with Rise Films, which is run by Sam Leifer, creator of ITV comedy “Plebs,” will continue to be operated independently.

Earlier this year, Newen strengthened its strategic partnership with European producer and financier Anton and is receiving $56 million to co-invest in the distribution rights of audiovisual and film projects.

CO-PRODUCTIONS

Off The Fence (OTF) has revealed a raft of natural-history programming co-productions. “The Future From Above” (4 x 60′), a co-production between OTF Studios, Sky, EarthxTV and Korea’s Borderless, with funding from Skylife TV and Korean content agency KOCCA, focuses on how the world could look in 2050 if mankind embraces the technology and thinking needed to transform every aspect of lives. OTF/EarthxTV co-production “Ocean Mysteries” (8 x 30′), in which marine biologist, scuba diver and wildlife expert Tom ‘The Blowfish’ Hird combines stunts and pop-science demos with natural history footage and analogies to unravel the mysteries behind a cast of ocean creatures.

“Wild Hope” (8 x 30′), produced by HHMI Tangled Bank Studios and Part2 Pictures in a co-production with Wild Elements, is an OTF acquisition that tells stories of change makers and allies who are tackling the threats to wild creatures and habitats. Feature documentary “The Endangered Generation” (working title), which comes to OTF via a new producer relationship with Australia’s Sweetshop & Green, is narrated by Oscar-winning actor Laura Dern (“Jurassic Park”), and follows scientists, artists and leaders who explore the deep connections that bind humankind to life, the world, and one another.

FESTIVAL

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has approved the Haifa International Film Festival as an academy qualifying festival for the short film award. From this year’s edition, the winner of the best independent short feature at Haifa will be eligible to compete for best short film at the Oscars. The eligibility for consideration exempts the winning film from the academy’s requirements of theatrical distribution in the U.S. Tomer Shushan’s film “White Eye,” which premiered at the festival in 2019, was Oscar nominated in the live action short film category.

The 38th Haifa International Film Festival will take place from Oct. 8-17, 2022.

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