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Several projects in Venice’s inaugural European Gap-Financing Co-Production Market are on the verge of completing their financing.

Venice industry head Pascal Diot expressed satisfaction at the progress achieved at this year’s third edition of the Venice Film Market.

Several projects in Venice’s inaugural European Gap-Financing Co-Production Market are on the verge of completing their financing.

Diot appears to have found a niche in a crowded calendar for the Venice event. “Most markets and festivals are focusing on development money,” the industry boss noted. “I would like to focus much more on completion and distribution. That’s why we have gap financing, the final cut [screenings of work in progress titles], the meetings between sales agents and independent exhibitors, and the Biennale College.”

Dutch outfit Lemming is reporting strong interest on its Chinese-based vampire film Dead & Beautiful from David Verbeek. Producer Leontine Petit is in “serious” negotiations with sales companies after presenting the project in Venice and is also in talks...

Exclusive: Essential Killing partners Element, Ifb on board, targeting spring 2014 shoot.

Polish auteur Jerzy Skolimowski is preparing what he describes to Screen as a “catastrophic thriller” to shoot in 2014.

While production details are being kept under wraps, Skolimowski’s wife and regular creative collaborator Ewa Piaskowska confirmed that the production is aiming for a late April 2014 shoot.

The film is currently being produced under Skolimowski and Piaskowska’s Skopia Film banner, with Element Pictures currently on board as co-producer and an offer of backing from the Irish Film Board.

In its latest round of funding the Ifb pledged €150,000 production support to the project, which will also look to draw funding from other sources.

Both the Ifb and Element collaborated with the feted Skolimowski on his latest film as director, 2010 thriller Essential Killing, starring Vincent Gallo and Emmanuelle Seigner.

That film won three awards at Venice and was sold widely by HanWay, with Tribeca...

This historically haywire film about Frederick I Barbarossa, Holy Roman Emperor, lets its fine subject down

Barbarossa: Siege Lord (2009)

Director: Renzo Martinelli

Entertainment grade: E

History grade: C

Frederick I Barbarossa was King of Germany and later Holy Roman Emperor, ruling from 1155-1190. Operation Barbarossa, the 1941 German invasion of the Soviet Union, was named after him.

People

The film begins with a boy, Alberto, accidentally stumbling into the path of Frederick I when the emperor is hunting wild boar in northern Italy. Armed with a crossbow, Alberto manages to kill the boar just before it gores the emperor. This is fiction. The adult Alberto da Giussano is held to have been a great warrior of the Guelph faction, leading the Lombard League to victory at the Battle of Legnano in 1176. There's no firm evidence that he existed. The early encounter with Frederick and a boar has been invented for the film,...

Starring: Rutger Hauer, Raz Degan, F. Murray Abraham, Kasia Smutniak

Written by: Renzo Martinelli, Giorgio Schottler, and Anna Samueli (Screenplay)

Directed by: Renzo Martinelli

Sword of War is the fictionalized tale of Emperor Frederick I, known as Barbarossa, and his quest for the throne of Charlemagne. The majority of the movie takes place in Northern Italy during the 12th century struggles for freedom. Sadly, they didn’t concentrate on the fierce battles and conquests, but made the story a confusing and boring mish-mash of romance, mysticism, and local politics.

The movie opens with an almost unreadable wall of text in that annoying illuminated calligraphic font which gives you the plot: Barbarossa wants to control all of Italy, but one man puts together a 900 man fighting force called The Company of Death to stop his rule over Milan and the other northern cities. Had they concentrated on the battles and the strategy,...

Barbarossa: Siege Lord

Stars: Rutger Hauer, Raz Degan, F. Murray Abraham, Christo Jivkov, Antonio Cupo, Cécile Cassel, Kasia Smutniak | Written by Renzo Martinelli, Giorgio Schottler | Directed by Renzo Martinelli

Rutger Hauer stars as Germanic Emperor Frederick Barbarossa in this bloodthirsty tale of a deadly medieval siege. Set in Northern Italy, Barbarossa plans to capture the regions of South and Centre and recreate the empire, which many years ago belonged to Charlemagne. As deadly clashes break out between the people of the land, fighting for independence and social status, Barbarossa struggles to keep control. Barbarossa’s problems are further exacerbated when a young man from Milan, along with his army of 900 men known as the “Company of Death”, challenge the Emperors reign.

An ambitious Italian/Romanian co-production, Barbarossa is an epic of historic proportions that despite its flaws is actually a solidly made affair. Originally aired in a 200 minute cut in its native Italy,...

Dutch actor Rutger Hauer's first appearance on the geek radar was as replicant Roy Batty in Ridley Scott's iconic Blade Runner back in 1982.

Since then he has been in such films as Sin City and Batman Begins and recently landed the role of Van Helsing in Dario Argento's Dracula 3D, due out in 2012.

In 2009, he played the title role of German emperor Barbarossa in director Renzo Martinelli's historical drama Barbarossa: Siege Lord, which Metrodome is bringing to DVD and Blu-ray in the UK on April 4.

The synopsis and a trailer are included below.

Synopsis:

The ultimate knight faces his final crusade...

Rutger Hauer stars as Germanic Emperor Frederick Hohenstaufen - known as Barbarossa (Italian for 'red beard') - in this bloodthirsty tale of a deadly medieval siege.

Set in 12th century Northern Italy, Barbarossa plans to capture the central and southern regions and recreate the empire,...

A look at what's new on DVD today:

"Black Lightning" (2009)

Directed by Dmitriy Kiselev and Aleksandr Voytinskiy

Released by Universal Studios

"Wanted" director Timur Bekmambetov produced this Russian action flick about a man and his flying car, using the same effects team that worked on all of his previous films including "Night Watch." A Russian trailer is here since where we're going, we don't need to understand words.

"7th Hunt" (2010)

Directed by Jon Cohen

Released by Vanguard Cinema

A motley group of young adults are abducted and forced to fend for their survival at an abandoned military training center in the middle of nowhere in Jon Cohen's thriller.

"Alien Vs. Ninja" (2010)

Directed by Seiji Chiba

Released by Funimation

A selection of last year's New York Asian Film Festival, Seiji Chiba's crazy genre mashup may just be "the best and wittiest movie ever to air at 2am on the SyFy Channel" in the future,...

*Full disclosure: a screener copy of this film was provided by Lightning Entertainment.

Director: Renzo Martinelli.

Writers: Renzo Martinelli, Giogio Schottler, and Anna Samueli.

Sword of War was originally released in Italy as Barbarossa in 2009. The sixty year old director Renzo Marinelli has produced an Italian Braveheart here, and possibly even Italian propaganda. Soldiers of the Company of Death scream "freedom!" in either Italian or English at different points in the film to confused excitement. This film did poorly in Italian markets, with Sword of War not recouping even half of its $9 million dollar price tag. Now, this historical epic will wade into a competitive North American DVD market February 22nd. Not really a film for Italian markets, as it is in English and not really a film for North American markets, as it covers obscure Italian and German history, Sword of War is for those harbouring a sweet tooth for historical,...

Venice film festival overshadowed by allegations of nepotism and elitism among jury

Venice film festival, the oldest and one of the most glamorous cinema awards ceremonies in the world, has been overshadowed this year by allegations of nepotism and elitism among the jury, with Silvio Berlusconi's government threatening to intervene and hand pick next year's judges.

In a magazine interview published yesterday, the Italian culture minister launched a stinging attack on American film director Quentin Tarantino, who led this year's jury, calling him "the expression of an elitist, relativist and snobbish culture."

Sandro Bondi also slammed the judges' choice of winners, which did not include any Italian films, and said he would take part in the selection of next year's jury, "since [the festival] is financed by the state". The Italian government contributes €7m (£5.8m) to the festival's €12m budget.

Bondi told the Italian magazine Panorama that Tarantino "pays no attention...

Sandro Bondi pledges to take part in selection of next year's Venice film festival jury after Tarantino's controversial tenure as head

Silvio Berlusconi's culture minister has launched a stinging attack on Quentin Tarantino, who headed the jury at this year's Venice film festival, calling the American director "the expression of an elitist, relativist and snobbish culture".

Sandro Bondi also slammed the prize-giving at Venice – where no Italian films were rewarded – and pledged to take part in the selection of next year's jury, "since it is financed by the state".

Tarantino, Bondi told Italian magazine Panorama on Friday, "pays no attention to the sentiment and the tastes of the people and of tradition, which are now considered unsophisticated and outdated. And that vision influences his critical judgment of films, including foreign films."

Venice's top prize this year went to Sofia Coppola for her film Somewhere, a decision the Italian media...

London -- Irish-American "Tip" O'Neill once remarked that "all politics is local," an observation that almost certainly could have bannered the movie industry across Europe this year as the runners and riders gear up for 2010.

As the Speaker of the House of Representatives, O'Neill believed that accounting for -- and to -- your local constituency equated to political success. He was popular because he listened to his people.

And in every major territory across Europe -- from the U.K. to Germany, France, Italy and Spain -- the movie movers-and-shakers who have lived and died by the local sword in 2009 will be looking at 2010 as a year unlikely to bring change to that outlook.

The U.K. is set to break the billion-pound boxoffice threshold by the end of the year with admissions also beating last year's figures by the end of 2009, with production activity rising during 2009 from the previous year.