New Line Cinema Triggers State of Emergency
VIS entertainment plc Signs Hollywood Movie Deal.
New Line Cinema, the company behind the blockbuster film, The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, has joined forces with Zide/Perry Entertainment to bring VIS entertainment plc’s (VIS) hottest new game, State of Emergency, to the screen, it was announced today by Toby Emmerich, president of production for New Line Cinema.
The news comes as the game, launched last week in the US, and launched tomorrow in Europe is attracting considerable consumer interest and marks a formidable success for the Scottish based digital entertainment company, VIS, founded by 32 year old Chris van der Kuyl six years ago.
State of Emergency is set in an Orwellian future in which social and economic chaos has left a city in the hands of a monolithic corporation that only a handful of resistance fighters have the courage to take on. State of Emergency will be adapted by Damian Shannon and Mark Swift and produced by Zide/Perry’s Warren Zide and Craig Perry, the Team behind the blockbuster ‘American Pie’ films.
“State of Emergency is an action franchise waiting to happen,” Emmerich said.
“To be able to create a franchisable action movie that appeals to young audiences based on a highly successful video game is something we’ve been looking for and State of Emergency is a perfect fit,” Zide added. “We’re thrilled to be producing this movie for New Line, which has shared our enthusiasm from the beginning.”
State of Emergency, one of the most anticipated video games of the new year, was developed by the Dunfermline studio of Scottish-based VIS , headquartered in Dundee.
Commenting on the movie deal Chris van der Kuyl, President of VIS stated;
“The opportunity to partner with both NewLine and Zide/Perry, two of Hollywood’s most successful companies, gives the Team at VIS the ability to take the this franchise to the next level. The partnership between Rockstar, a division of Take 2 Interactive Inc (NASDAQ: TTWO) our publishers, and VIS which has created a game with such potential can only be enhanced by the addition of our new partners.”
And van der Kuyl paid tribute to his 100 strong workforce at VIS;
“They are a phenomenally talented bunch of individuals and this is truly an honour for them as much as it is for the company – I’d like to thank them all and intend to get them partying very,very soon indeed.” He also noted that the success was a strong vote of confidence in the Scottish games industry.
Lyndsey Posner of ICM London negotiated on behalf of VIS Entertainment. While New Line’s Erik Ellner and Cale Boyter, along with Zide/Perry attorney Jason Sloane were instrumental in finalizing negotiations. Executive vice president of production Richard Brener, and creative executive Cale Boyter will oversee the project for New Line.
Shannon and Swift previously wrote Freddy Vs. Jason for New Line. Their deal was negotiated by Jeff Frankel of Colden & McKuin.
Zide/Perry produced the blockbuster American Pie films and is currently producing the sequel to New Line’s hit thriller, Final Destination. Zide/Perry’s Dan Pancotto was instrumental in bringing State of Emergency to Zide/Perry.
Founded in 1967, New Line Cinema is among the entertainment industry’s leading independent producers and distributors of theatrical motion pictures. New Line licenses its films to ancillary markets including cable and broadcast television as well as to international venues. The company, which is a subsidiary of AOL Time Warner Inc., operates several divisions including in-house theatrical distribution, marketing, home video, television acquisitions, production, licensing and merchandising units.
The news comes as the game, launched last week in the US, and launched tomorrow in Europe is attracting considerable consumer interest and marks a formidable success for the Scottish based digital entertainment company, VIS, founded by 32 year old Chris van der Kuyl six years ago.
State of Emergency is set in an Orwellian future in which social and economic chaos has left a city in the hands of a monolithic corporation that only a handful of resistance fighters have the courage to take on. State of Emergency will be adapted by Damian Shannon and Mark Swift and produced by Zide/Perry’s Warren Zide and Craig Perry, the Team behind the blockbuster ‘American Pie’ films.
“State of Emergency is an action franchise waiting to happen,” Emmerich said.
“To be able to create a franchisable action movie that appeals to young audiences based on a highly successful video game is something we’ve been looking for and State of Emergency is a perfect fit,” Zide added. “We’re thrilled to be producing this movie for New Line, which has shared our enthusiasm from the beginning.”
State of Emergency, one of the most anticipated video games of the new year, was developed by the Dunfermline studio of Scottish-based VIS , headquartered in Dundee.
Commenting on the movie deal Chris van der Kuyl, President of VIS stated;
“The opportunity to partner with both NewLine and Zide/Perry, two of Hollywood’s most successful companies, gives the Team at VIS the ability to take the this franchise to the next level. The partnership between Rockstar, a division of Take 2 Interactive Inc (NASDAQ: TTWO) our publishers, and VIS which has created a game with such potential can only be enhanced by the addition of our new partners.”
And van der Kuyl paid tribute to his 100 strong workforce at VIS;
“They are a phenomenally talented bunch of individuals and this is truly an honour for them as much as it is for the company – I’d like to thank them all and intend to get them partying very,very soon indeed.” He also noted that the success was a strong vote of confidence in the Scottish games industry.
Lyndsey Posner of ICM London negotiated on behalf of VIS Entertainment. While New Line’s Erik Ellner and Cale Boyter, along with Zide/Perry attorney Jason Sloane were instrumental in finalizing negotiations. Executive vice president of production Richard Brener, and creative executive Cale Boyter will oversee the project for New Line.
Shannon and Swift previously wrote Freddy Vs. Jason for New Line. Their deal was negotiated by Jeff Frankel of Colden & McKuin.
Zide/Perry produced the blockbuster American Pie films and is currently producing the sequel to New Line’s hit thriller, Final Destination. Zide/Perry’s Dan Pancotto was instrumental in bringing State of Emergency to Zide/Perry.
Founded in 1967, New Line Cinema is among the entertainment industry’s leading independent producers and distributors of theatrical motion pictures. New Line licenses its films to ancillary markets including cable and broadcast television as well as to international venues. The company, which is a subsidiary of AOL Time Warner Inc., operates several divisions including in-house theatrical distribution, marketing, home video, television acquisitions, production, licensing and merchandising units.