Earth, the high-end BBC/Greenlight Media documentary feature, will get
its German big -screen roll-out via RTL’s Universum Film, the company
announced at the Berlinale Film Festival in Berlin.
BBC Worldwide and Greenlight yesterday signed a major deal with
Universum to distribute the feature-length movie in German-speaking
territories, including Germany, Austria and Luxembourg.
The US$15m 90-minute high-definition film is based on the TV
documentary Planet Earth, and follows the theatrical release of Deep Blue,
based on the TV documentary series Blue Planet, another copro with
Greenlight.
Directed by Alastair Fothergill, Earth is due for release in summer 2007
and follows the migratory journeys of four animal families as they head
from the North Pole to the south across land, sea and air, following the
Sun’s influence on our planet.
Tania Reichert-Facilides, MD of Universum Film, said: “This outstanding
picture will be the highlight in our 2007 release slate.” Universum joins
Earth’s other distributors, including GAGA in Japan, Gaumont in France,
Wanda in Spain and Frenetic in Switzerland.
The BBC said Universum fought off “stiff competition” for the German –
speaking rights from other major distributors. The deal was brokered by
Reichert-Facilides and Greenlight president André Sikojev.