GECs
Focus Features to distribute Iraq doc globally
MUMBAI: Focus Features has acquired the worldwide rights to Patricia Foulkrod’s documentary feature The Ground Truth: After the Killing Ends.
The film tells the stories of a half-dozen Americans – men and women who heeded the call for military service in Iraq — as it charts recruitment and training, combat, homecoming, and the struggle to
reintegrate with families and communities. The conflict in Iraq is a prelude for the even more challenging battles fought by the soldiers returning home — with personal demons, an uncomprehending public, and an indifferent government.
As these battles take shape, each soldier becomes a new kind of hero, bearing witness and giving support to other veterans, and learning to fearlessly wield the most powerful weapon of all — the truth.
Focus Features president James Schamus said, “Patricia has made a searing film, one with exclusive footage that will stun audiences. These soldiers are patriotic Americans articulating stories that must be heard, and we think filmgoers around the world are ready to watch and listen.”
Foulkrod said, “This film has been made from the soldiers’ point of view, and it captures their shattered lives and broken hearts. My intent was to give them a voice, and to inspire viewers to reach out to all soldiers and their families.”
Focus Features made the most critically acclaimed film of last year Brokeback Mountain.
GECs
Sony ties up with EU for MasterChef India finale
GI-tagged European ingredients headline finale week
MUMBAI: Sony Pictures Networks India has struck what it calls a landmark association with the European Union for the finale week of MasterChef India, marking the first such collaboration between the bloc and an Indian television format.
The tie-up will culminate in the “European Union mystery box challenge”, which opens the much-anticipated finale week. The task will see the top six contestant pairs cook with a curated basket of ingredients bearing geographical indications (GIs) from across EU member states: a nod to provenance as well as palate.
Chef Ajay and Chef Guntas, introduced as chef ambassadors to the European Union, will present the mystery boxes and set the brief: use the fewest ingredients from each category and produce a MasterChef-level dish that marries European produce with Indian flavour sensibilities. Precision and restraint, rather than extravagance, will be tested.
For Sony, the move signals a push towards high-value integrations that blur the line between sponsorship and storytelling. The network said the association underscores the show’s growing global stature and its ability to attract world-renowned institutions to Indian screens.
Chef Ajay Chopra, food ambassador in the European Union, described the collaboration as a strategic opportunity to spotlight the heritage and authenticity of GI-tagged European products to India’s vast food-loving audience.
Over the years, MasterChef India has positioned itself as a gateway to global cuisines. The EU partnership sharpens that pitch, turning the finale into a stage for cross-continental culinary diplomacy.
The finale week will air from 2 March, 2026 at 8 pm on Sony Entertainment Television and stream on Sony Liv.
