You are viewing the archive: “QED International”

Cannes: QED Ups John Friedberg To EVP International Sales

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Friday May 3, 2013 @ 1:45pm PDTTags: Cannes Film Festival, John Friedberg, QED International

As EVP of International Sales John Friedberg will lead QED’s sales efforts at Cannes, working closely with CEO Bill Block who announced Friedberg’s promotion today. Friedberg’s responsibilities will include spearheading distribution strategies for the company’s film slate, as well as managing relationships with QED’s international partners and overseeing day-to-day operations of the international sales department. Friedberg joined QED in 2006 and his responsibilities have crossed into all areas of the company including production, finance, business affairs, sales and distribution. He was promoted to VP of International Sales in 2011.

QED’s Cannes sales slate includes David Ayer’s Fury, starring Brad Pitt and Shia Labeouf; Ten, also directed by David Ayer and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sam Worthington and Mireille Enos; Fading Gigolo, directed by John Turturro and starring Turturro and Woody Allen; rom com Are We Officially Dating? starring Zac Efron and Imogen Poots; and the supernatural thriller Haunt starring Jacki Weaver.

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Brad Pitt To Star In David Ayer’s World War II Movie ‘Fury’

By MIKE FLEMING JR | Wednesday April 3, 2013 @ 1:32pm PDTTags: Big Deals Film, Brad Pitt, David Ayer, Fury, QED International
Mike Fleming

Brad PittEXCLUSIVE: Brad Pitt is in final negotiations to star in Fury, the David Ayer-directed drama that will start production in September. This is the Ayer script that Bill Block‘s QED International paid $1 million to acquire back in February. It was QED’s biggest spec deal ever, and when an indie company hooks a star like Pitt, it’s money well spent. Fury is a WWII script by the End Of Watch writer-director, and QED will produce with John Lesher and his Le Grisbi Productions banner. Ethan Smith, Block and Lesher are producing and they are eyeing a fall production start. QED is selling foreign.

David AyerThe action takes place in 1945 as the Nazi regime collapses and the five-man crew of an American tank called Fury battles a desperate German army. Ayer and QED reteam after the action thriller Ten, which Ayer directed and which stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sam Worthington and Mireille Enos. Open Road will release it next January. Lesher produced Ayer’s End Of Watch. Pitt most recently starred in and produced World War Z, but he’s back in the WWII territory of Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds. Read More »

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QED & Groundswell Productions Team For Bruce Lee Origin Movie

By DOMINIC PATTEN | Tuesday February 19, 2013 @ 11:21am PSTTags: BIrth of the Dragon, Bruce Lee, Groundswell Productions, QED International

QED International and Groundswell Productions have joined forces for Birth Of The Dragon, which will focus on Bruce Lee’s career-defining 1965 no-holds-barred TKO battle with kung fu master Wong Jack Man. Written by Oscar nominees Christopher Wilkinson and Stephen … Read More »

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Sundance: QED Picks Up ‘Breathe In’ International Rights

By DOMINIC PATTEN | Wednesday January 30, 2013 @ 3:27pm PSTTags: Breathe In, Drake Doremus, QED International, Sundance Film Festival

QED International announced today that it will handle non-North American distribution of Drake Doremus’ Sundance Film Festival title Breathe In. President of international sales Daniel Diamond … Read More »

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Sundance: QED Picks Up ‘Toy’s House’ International Rights

By DOMINIC PATTEN | Friday January 25, 2013 @ 10:52am PSTTags: QED International, Sundance Film Festival, Sundance Wrap-Up, Toy House

Three days after CBS Films acquired domestic rights to Toy’s House at the Sundance Film Festival, QED International has scooped up non-North American rights to the coming-of-age comedy. It’s the first deal for John Hegeman, the former New Regency marketing boss who was appointed QED’s president of worldwide marketing and acquisitions just ahead of Sundance. Park City was his first task with the new title. Here’s today’s release on Toy’s House:

LOS ANGELES (January 25, 2013)  – QED International has acquired international distribution rights to TOY’S HOUSE, it was announced today by Worldwide President of Marketing and Acquisitions John Hegeman. Under the agreement, QED will distribute TOY’S HOUSE in all markets outside North America. The film premiered to rave reviews at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival and has just been picked up for US distribution by CBS Films which is eyeing a 2013 release date.

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QED Taps Vet John Hegeman To Run Worldwide Marketing And Acquisitions: Sundance

By MIKE FLEMING JR | Wednesday January 16, 2013 @ 10:01am PSTTags: Bill Block, QED International, Sundance Film Festival, Sundance Wrap-Up
Mike Fleming

BREAKING: Former New Regency marketing chief John Hegeman has been appointed by QED International CEO Bill Block to be its president of Worldwide Marketing and Acquisitions. It is a newly created position for QED, and comes as the company completes the David Ayer-directed Ten with Arnold Schwarzenegger, the John Turturro-directed Fading Gigolo with Woody Allen, and the Mac Carter fright film Haunt. Hegeman is a producer on the latter and was part of the Artisan gang that turned The Blair Witch Project into a word-of-mouth phenomenon. Block and Hegeman first worked together at Artisan during that period. Hegeman will brave the teen temperatures at Sundance looking for new talent this week and next. Read More »

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QED Gets Into Script Game, Hires Nick Reimond To Steer Development Push

By MIKE FLEMING JR | Thursday November 29, 2012 @ 4:16pm PSTTags: Bill Block, QED International
Mike Fleming

EXCLUSIVE: QED International is committing to spend serious coin on scripts and pitches that it hopes will translate into features with global appeal. QED CEO Bill Block has hired Nick Reimond to steer that effort as VP of Development and Production.

QED is getting started quickly, wrapping up deals for two spec scripts: the Zina Zaflow-scripted romantic comedy 52 Percent, and Leave, a thriller scripted by Andrew Barrer and Gabriel Ferrari.

Reimond comes to QED from Scott Rudin Productions and before that spent three years at Maguire Entertainment/Material Pictures. He started at Michael De Luca Productions. Reimond will be tasked with bringing in projects as Block intends to make QED a prolific buyer of material at a time when development spending is drying up all over town. Read More »

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Tyler Perry And James Patterson Finalizing Alex Cross Film Sequel With QED: Exclusive

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Wednesday October 17, 2012 @ 7:10pm PDTTags: James Patterson, QED International, Tyler Perry

EXCLUSIVE: I’ve learned that the deal coming together will turn bestselling author James Patterson’s crime novel Double Cross into a 2nd movie starring Tyler Perry as the famous Washington DC crimefighter/psychologist. Perry’s first turn as Alex Cross opens this Friday from QED. … Read More »

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Fright Pic ‘Haunt’ Adds Harrison Gilbertson

By DOMINIC PATTEN | Monday October 15, 2012 @ 10:11am PDTTags: Harrison Gilbertson, Haunt, QED International

EXCLUSIVE: The Australian actor will star in Haunt, the Marc Carter-directed horror film that is set to begin production next month. Harrison Gilbertson’s Ethan character is an introverted … Read More »

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QED To Produce, Finance Fright Film ‘Haunt’

By MIKE FLEMING JR | Monday August 27, 2012 @ 12:55pm PDTTags: Bill Block, Haunt, QED International
Mike Fleming

EXCLUSIVE: QED International has committed to produce, finance and handle international sales for Haunt, an original horror film that Mac Carter will direct from a script by Andrew Barrer. A family that moves into a new home with … Read More »

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QED International Acquires Spec ‘The Fall,’ By Benderspink’s Development Director

By MIKE FLEMING JR | Thursday April 26, 2012 @ 9:25am PDTTags: Benderspink, QED International
Mike Fleming

Management/production companies looking for the next sale-able script, it might be right under your nose. Benderspink director of development Christopher Cosmos just sold his first feature script, The Fall, to Bill Block’s QED International. Benderspink will be attached as a producer, and the company now packaging Alexander, a TV pilot … Read More »

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Brian De Palma To Direct QED’s ‘Key Man’

By MIKE FLEMING JR | Thursday August 18, 2011 @ 12:40pm PDTTags: Bill Block, Brian De Palma, Joby Harold, Open Road Films, Paul Hanson, QED International, The Key Man, Tom Ortenberg
Mike Fleming

EXCLUSIVE: QED International and Safehouse Pictures have set Brian De Palma to direct the Joby Harold-scripted thriller The Key Man. That film was recently set for U.S. distribution with Tom Ortenberg’s Open Road Films and will … Read More »

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Open Road Films Lands Joby Harold Thriller ‘The Key Man’

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Monday July 11, 2011 @ 1:22pm PDTTags: Bill Block, Film Acquisition, Joby Harold, Open Road Films, QED International, The Key Man

EXCLUSIVE: Open Road Films — the new distribution company created by exhibitors AMC Entertainment and Regal Entertainment — just snagged U.S. rights to The Key Man, a thriller written by Joby Harold. QED International is financing the movie, about a single father … Read More »

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Arnold Schwarzenegger Closes Next Film: Worldwide Rights Will Sell At Cannes Fest

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Wednesday May 4, 2011 @ 4:15pm PDTTags: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Cannes, Cannes Film Festival, QED International

EXCLUSIVE: I’ve just learned that QED International has closed a deal with CAA for Arnold Schwarzenegger’s next film, Cry Macho. Bill Block’s financing company can now go to the Cannes Film Festival as the exclusive dealmaker for an Arnold movie (after some initial doubt whether it would be his pic or Lionsgate’s Last Stand). Now the global marketplace will decide whether the 63-year-old former California governor resuming his acting career is still a movie star able to carry a film. The final agreed-upon payday for Schwarzenegger, I’m told, is $12.5 million plus 25% first dollar gross, slightly up from last week’s negotiating position which already was top dollar money. QED is hot right now: it’s also put together I, Alex Cross starring Tyler Perry and Neil Blomkamp’s latest project Elysium. 

Al Ruddy, the 81-year-old Godfather and Million Dollar Baby filmmaker, will produce and Brad Furman (The Lincoln Lawyer) Ruddy bought the 1975 novel by the late N. Richard Nash who’d adapted it into the Cry Macho screenplay. In his heyday, Schwarzenegger was a $25M/25% first dollar gross mega-player — and one deal even threw in his own giant jet. But only the rarest of the rare get those paydays these days. This pic calls for some acting chops for Arnold as a horse breeder who won the Kentucky Derby but whose wife and child get killed. He sinks into an alcoholic depression and winds up working for a hedge fund jerk who offers him a choice of getting fired or bringing back the rich guy’s son living with the ex-wife in Mexico. Unexpected plot twists ensue, including an Arnold-and-kid road trip back home. Read More »

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Arnold’s Payday: $10 Million Plus 25% First Dollar Gross For Schwarzenegger’s Next Film

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Friday April 29, 2011 @ 1:12pm PDTTags: Arnold Schwarzenegger, QED International

EXCLUSIVE: I’ve just learned that CAA is negotiating a deal for Arnold Schwarzenegger’s next movie that will pay him “top-dollar” money — even though no one knows if the 63-year-old is still a star who can open a movie. Filmmaker Al Ruddy — yes, the 81-year-old Godfather and Million Dollar Baby producer — bought a 1975 novel by the late N. Richard Nash who’d adapted it into the Cry Macho screenplay that CAA liked for Arnold. Now the agency and actor (turned California Governor turned actor again) are charging a king’s ransom for his services. I’m told the deal being closed right now with Bill Block’s financier QED International is to pay Schwarzenegger $10 million upfront and 25% first dollar gross on the back end. In his heyday, Schwarzenegger was a $25M/25% first dollar gross mega-player — and one deal even threw in his own giant jet. But only the rarest of the rare get those paydays these days, and the marketplace is still looking to see if Arnold can attract back his fanbase, which was already fading when he jumped into the 2003 California special recall election. Director Brad Furman (The Lincoln Lawyer) also is making this pic his next project, which insiders are describing to me as “The Ransom Of Red Chief meets Ruthless People with the heartbreak of Paper Moon.”

The story revolves around a horse breeder (Schwarzenegger) who won the Kentucky Derby but whose wife and child get killed. He sinks into an alcoholic depression and winds up working for a hedge fund jerk who offers him a choice of getting fired or bringing back the rich guy’s son living with the ex-wife in Mexico. Unexpected plot twists ensue, including an Arnold-and-kid road trip back home. Problem is, the last time Schwarzenegger paired with a young co-star not his offspring, it was The Last Action Hero, and that 1993 movie tanked big-time. (I don’t count Kindergarten Cop.) “But Arnold is so smart about himself, his persona, and what he should play,” an insider tells me. And that’s usually true… Read More »

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