Hollywood
Martin Scorsese to receive 2015 Lumi?re Award
NEW DELHI: Eminent filmmaker Martin Scorsese is to receive the 2015 Lumi?re Award.
The filmmaker will receive the distinction during the Lumi?re Festival to be held in Lyon and Grand Lyon (now the Metropolis of Lyon) from 12 – 18 October. The third edition of the Classic Film Market will take place from 14 – 16 October.
For three days, film industry professionals (producers, distributors, cinema operators, television and VOD broadcasters, DVD-Blu-ray publishers, rights holders, institutional organizations) gather to discuss and exchange views on the present state and the future of classic cinema, its challenges and opportunities in a changing environment which will include a Market venue, roundtables, screenings, lunches and meetings.
The Classic Films Market is restricted to cinema industry professionals. There will be a roundtable meets on “Conservation, digitisation, restoration of classic films: how to finance them,” and on “The future of the past: how to find right-owners (orphan works, unclaimed rights)?” and on “Sound restoration. Sharing viewpoints” co-organised by the SACD and the Institut Lumi?re.
The Distributors Day will help filmmakers discover the titles and the upcoming classic films releases of Artédis, EYE International, Gaumont, LCJ Editions, Lost Films, Malavida, Mosfilm, Pathé, Shellac, Sidonis Productions, Swedish Film Institute, Tamasa Distribution and the film presentations of the ADRC and the AFCAE.
The thematic breakfast meet will be on “Conservation, digitization, restoration of classic films: which technical evolutions? Issues and testimonies.” co-organized by the FICAM and the Institut Lumi?re.
Born on 17 November, 1942, Scorsese is one of the most prominent American directors, producers, screenwriters, actors, and film historians, whose career spans more than 45 years.
Part of the New Hollywood wave of filmmaking, he is widely regarded as one of the most significant and influential filmmakers in cinema history.
In 1990, he founded The Film Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation, and in 2007 he founded the World Cinema Foundation.
He is a recipient of the AFI Life Achievement Award for his contributions to the cinema, and has won an Academy Award, a Palme d’Or, Cannes Film Festival Best Director Award, Silver Lion, Grammy Award, Emmys, Golden Globes, BAFTAs, and DGA Awards.
Scorsese’s body of work addresses such themes as Sicilian-American identity, Roman Catholic concepts of guilt and redemption, machismo, modern crime, and gang conflict. Many of his films are also notable for their depiction of violence and liberal use of profanity.
He has directed landmark films such as the crime film Mean Streets (1973), the vigilante-drama Taxi Driver (1976), the biographical sports drama Raging Bull (1980), the black comedy The King of Comedy (1983), and the crime films Goodfellas (1990) and Casino (1995), all of which he collaborated on with actor and close friend Robert De Niro.
Scorsese has also been noted for his collaborations with actor Leonardo DiCaprio, having directed him in five films, beginning with Gangs of New York (2002). Their latest collaboration, The Wolf of Wall Street, was released in 2013.
He won the Academy Award for Best Director for the crime drama The Departed (2006). With eight Best Director nominations to date, he is the most nominated living director, and is tied with Billy Wilder for the second most nominations overall.
Hollywood
Paramount eyes $24bn Gulf support to fund Warner Bros Discovery merger: Reports
Sovereign funds line up funding as media giants chase streaming scale
NEW YORK: Paramount Skydance is in talks to secure nearly $24 billion in equity commitments from Gulf sovereign wealth funds to support its planned takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, according to a WSJ report.
The funding push comes as Paramount Skydance advances its proposed $110 billion deal for Warner Bros. Discovery, which carries an equity valuation of $81 billion and is expected to close in the third quarter of 2026.
At the heart of the financing plan are three major Gulf investors. Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund is expected to contribute roughly $10 billion, while the Qatar Investment Authority and Abu Dhabi-based L’imad Holding are likely to make up the remainder.
Crucially, the proposed investments are structured as non-voting stakes. This means the Gulf backers would not have direct control in the combined entity, a move designed to ease regulatory concerns in the United States. Paramount executives reportedly do not expect the deal to trigger scrutiny from bodies such as the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States or the Federal Communications Commission.
If completed, the merger would bring together a formidable portfolio of entertainment and news assets, including CNN and CBS. The combined entity aims to better compete in a fast-evolving media landscape where streaming platforms are steadily pulling audiences away from traditional television.
The deal reflects a broader shift in global media, where scale is increasingly seen as essential to survive the streaming wars. By pooling content libraries, technology and distribution, Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. Discovery are betting on size and synergy to drive future growth.
The involvement of deep-pocketed Gulf investors also underscores the growing role of sovereign wealth in shaping global media consolidation, particularly at a time when high-value deals demand equally large financial backing.
With shareholder votes and regulatory milestones still ahead, the proposed tie-up remains one of the most closely watched media deals of the year. If it clears the final hurdles, it could redraw the competitive map of the global entertainment industry.
