SECOND COMING

Distributor, Gkids is celebrating the 20th anniversary of the award-winning Japanese anime classic, “Ghost In The Shell 2: Innocence,” in a new 4K restoration. It will be available in theaters across North America for three nights only from June 23-26.

Directed by Oshii Mamoru (“Ghost in the Shell,” “Angel’s Egg,” and “Patlabor 2: The Movie”), “Ghost In The Shell 2: Innocence,” is a cyberpunk crime drama based on the manga “Ghost in the Shell” created by Masamune Shirow.

Imagined as a standalone return to the world of Ghost in the Shell, the story is centered on the character Batou from the original film. Featuring visuals that demanded five years in production, “Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence” debuted in competition at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival, thus becoming the first and only anime in history to compete for the Palme d’Or.

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GRAND AMBITIONS

Media industry veteran Francis Coady is launching Grand Pacific Entertainment, a new Australia-based venture aiming to develop and fund scripted drama, documentaries, comedy, branded content, music, and podcasts. It starts life with strategic representation by William Morris Endeavor (WME).

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Coady is a former chief marketing and content officer at Havas Media Australia (Vivendi). He has amassed over two decades of deep industry experience in film, TV, digital streaming, and music and says he is now “returning to his entertainment roots.”
 
He was also founder and executive producer of the Bondi Short Film Festival for thirteen years, where he mentored emerging film directors, screenwriters, and producers. His time at Merchantwise Group saw him forging partnerships with major film studios such as Sony Pictures, 20th Century Fox, and Paramount. And in the music industry, Coady managed rock group Thirsty Merc and the global TV children’s group Hi-5, achieving double-platinum albums and multi-episode and film deals with Nickelodeon TV, Hoyts and Network 10.

“I’ve been a passionate writer and executive producer and was delighted when WME decided to represent my company’s development slate. My aim is to help develop premium content that reaches as wider audiences as possible.”

ICONS

British actor Chiwetel Ejiofor and director Michael Winterbottom will receive this year’s Raindance Icon Awards at the festival’s 32nd edition (June 19-28). Ejiofor will be honored at the opening gala U.K. premiere of Tilman Singer’s “Cuckoo” on June 19, while Winterbottom will receive his award at the Jury Awards ceremony on June 27.

FILMING

Prime Video India has commenced filming its new crime thriller, “Matka King,” produced by Siddharth Roy Kapur and Nagraj Manjule, alongside Gargi Kulkarni, Ashish Aryan and Ashwini Sidwani under the Roy Kapur Films banner. The series is directed by Manjule and co-written with Abhay Koranne.

Starring Vijay Varma, “Matka King” is set in 1960s Mumbai and follows a cotton trader who launches a gambling game, transforming the city’s social landscape. The ensemble cast includes Kritika Kamra, Sai Tamhankar, Gulshan Grover and Siddharth Jadhav.

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