Documentary
Nilesh Maniyar & Shonali Bose premiere ‘A Fly On the Wall’ at Busan Film Festival
Mumbai: Having co-written landmark titles such as The Sky is Pink and Margarita with a Straw acclaimed filmmaker duo Nilesh Maniyar and Shonali Bose’s latest work, a feature documentary, is set to have its world premiere at the prestigious 29th Busan International Film Festival.
The film has been selected for the wide-angle documentary competition section, which highlights unique and inspiring cinematic documentary filmmaking voices from around the globe.
In this powerful and heartfelt film directed by the duo, a friendship walks the distance between life and death. With just a week to go before their friend Chika Kapadia’s appointment for physician-assisted suicide, Nilesh encourages Shonali to turn the camera on herself too and become part of the story. Alongside editor Tushar Ghogale they weave a profound tale of the choice of dignity in death and friendship. The film is set against the stunning backdrop of Switzerland, a location ironically familiar for many iconic Bollywood films.
Speaking about their selection at Busan, Director Nilesh Maniyar said, “Chika was a friend who gave more than he took. And what a life-altering impression he left on me in his last days. Hence it was only apt to tell his story via a lens of friendship that Chika and Shonali shared for 25 long years. With the premiere at Busan, we hope to further the conversation about the right to dignity in death, as in life.”
“Fulfilling Chika’s dying wish and shooting this film has been the hardest challenge of my filmmaking career. This film is my love letter to Chika and to life. I am honoured to premiere it at Busan, a festival that values such deeply personal stories.” added Filmmaker Shonali Bose.
A Fly On the Wall marks the third feature film collaboration between Maniyar and Bose presented at the Busan Film Festival, following The Sky Is Pink and Margarita with a Straw.
Documentary
Netflix and Warner Music ink landmark documentary deal
The streaming giant has just unlocked one of the richest vaults in music history. Its rivals should be worried
CALIFORNIA AND NEW YORK: Netflix and Warner Music Group have signed an exclusive multi-year deal to produce documentary series and films drawn from the label’s storied artist roster, the companies announced on Friday — a move that hands the streaming platform access to one of the most formidable catalogues in music history.
Warner Music Group represents legends including David Bowie, Cher, Fleetwood Mac, Aretha Franklin and Joni Mitchell, alongside contemporary superstars such as Charli XCX, Coldplay and Bruno Mars. That is a staggering breadth of material for a platform hungry for prestige content and subscriber growth to match.
Under the agreement, Warner Music will work with Unigram, the production company aligned with the label, which will serve as the studio for its long-form projects. Each title will be developed in collaboration with the artists themselves or their estates, ensuring the kind of intimate access that turns a documentary into an event.
The deal reflects an intensifying race between music-rights owners and streaming platforms eager to turn deep catalogues into premium visual content. Music documentaries have become a vehicle for fan-driven, culturally resonant programming — a trend underscored by Taylor Swift’s “Eras Tour” film, which grossed over $260 million globally and reminded every platform chief just how lucrative the genre can be.
Netflix already boasts formidable credentials in music storytelling, with “Homecoming: A Film by Beyoncé” and “Quincy” among its highest-profile releases. The Warner deal sharpens that edge considerably. Rival platforms have not been idle: Disney+ has released “The Beach Boys”, while Max has drawn attention with “Stax: Soulsville U.S.A.” Apple Music, meanwhile, has pushed into original content through its Apple Music Live series, producing documentaries and livestreamed concerts featuring Harry Styles and Billie Eilish.
The battle for music’s visual soul, then, is well and truly on. Netflix has just made its boldest move yet.
