COMMISSION
The BBC has commissioned feature documentary “ABBA: Against The Odds” to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the iconic Swedish group winning the Eurovision Song Contest, which takes place this year in Sweden. The documentary will be produced by multi-award winning documentary makers Rogan Productions (“Freddie Mercury: The Final Act”) and directed by James Rogan. It will tell the story of ABBA’s greatest period of musical achievement framed between the albums “Arrival” (1976) and “Super Trooper” (1980).
The film is funded by several European broadcasters including BBC, ARD/WDR, France Télévisions, SVT and DR. It will feature access to SVT (Swedish public television) archives including rare footage that captures the band’s rise to fame and the negativity they faced at home.
In the U.K. the film will be shown on BBC One and iPlayer in May. BBC Studios will distribute the film internationally and will present it to buyers at BBC Studios Showcase, taking place in London Feb. 26-27.
Rogan said: “To be able, as a director, to dive into the ABBA story through the extraordinary archive of their voyage through the tumultuous 70s has been a jaw-dropping experience. The sheer joy of working on a documentary about ABBA cannot be understated, as their bitter-sweet songs remain as resonant in our confused times as they did when they were first recorded. This film will capture the scale of the challenge they faced as a Swedish band gaining success and respect on the global stage, and how the unique combination of four talents produced music that defined the decade and changed pop music forever.”
MONEY, MONEY, MONEY
Local franchise movie “Money No Enough 3,” was the top film at the Singapore box office over the Lunar New Year weekend. The comedy drama, produced on a budget of S$2.8million ($2.08 million). grossed S$1.54 million ($1.14 million) over the first three days of Chinese New Year and has now collected S$2.5 million ($1.85 million) since its release on 1 February.
That score makes it the best-performing local movie since the pandemic, the second highest-grossing Singapore film of all time and director Jack Neo’s highest grossing feature since 2017 smash “Ah Boys to Men 4.” Additionally, the film has collected RM7.3 million ($1.53 million) in neighboring Malaysia.
It will next be released theatrically in Taiwan after the festive period, via local distributorSkyFilms.
LAUNCH
U.K. production company Pangaea‘s first project, documentary film “The Sidemen Story,” launches on Netflix on Wednesday. Founded by husband-wife team Luke Hyams and Sunita Mirchandani Hyams in 2022, Pangaea have a number of scripted and unscripted projects in development. Hyams previously worked for YouTube and Disney while Mirchandani Hyams’ 17-year-career has seen her working on a range of projects from big-budget studio formats to indie features.
“Pangaea is more than a company; it’s a passion project that unites cultures through compelling stories. Our mission is to create purposeful entertainment that resonates worldwide, starting with ‘The Sidemen Story,'” said Mirchandani Hyams.
FESTIVAL DATES
The fourth edition of Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea International Film Festival will take Dec. 5-14 in Jeddah, at its new headquarters in Al Balad.
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Elsewhere, the 11th edition of Sundance Film Festival: London is set for June 6–9 at Picturehouse Central.
