Italy’s Leone Movie Group is taking the legacy of its founder, spaghetti Western grasp Sergio Leone, to the next stage.

Because the Rome-based agency run by the maestro’s children, Raffaella and Andrea, celebrates its thirty fifth anniversary, it continues to consolidate its standing as a result of the preeminent supplier of U.S. indie product to Italy. The Leone’s film and TV manufacturing side has been currently rising with a sturdy slate of high-end content material materials for the worldwide market.

Having develop to be the best distribution companion in Italy for U.S. indies comparable to Lionsgate, STX Leisure, Voltage and Black Bear Footage, the Leone Movie Group is now centered on what Raffaella Leone calls the “harder process” of “laying the groundwork for our manufacturing aspect within the worldwide area.”
The group’s Lotus Manufacturing label, which is now run instantly by Raffaella, has a slew of initiatives in various phases, with new motion pictures by James Grey, Isabel Coixet and Gabriele Muccino. Because it ramps up its manufacturing division, LFG is busy forging shut ties with a galaxy of producing companions, from Spain’s Mediapro to Ridley Scott’s Scott Free, to Rodrigo Teixeira’s Brazil-based RT Options and “The White Lotus” producer David Bernad.

“We’re pushed by a powerful need to work as producers with worldwide corporations on an equal footing,” says Raffaella, who’s the company’s co-owner and CEO.

This improve to Leone’s manufacturing side goes down in the direction of a backdrop of upheavals in Hollywood attributable to strikes and mergers. And LFG’s ambitions are unfolding amid consolidation throughout the Italian market the place, following plenty of worldwide buyouts of their rivals, LFG is now one among many few completely Italian-owned companies left standing.

All of the uncertainty and train is opening doorways for non-U.S. avid gamers throughout the world content material materials space.
“Our objective is it to stay an Italian firm, and really do the alternative: purchase or merge with a world firm that might be Spanish or presumably American,” say Raffaella and Andrea. This have to broaden is simply not dictated by “delusions of grandeur,” they add, nonetheless because of “that’s the place the market goes and in addition because of the scale of initiatives we wish to produce.”

A take a look at the LFG manufacturing pipeline:

Untitled James Grey mission

Produced by LFG in tandem with Teixeira (“Armageddon Time”), who said in an announcement: “It’s such an honor to work on a movie with the Leone household. I began my profession within the movie business partly due to Sergio Leone’s legacy. When the chance to co-produce a brand new movie by James Grey with Raffaella and Andrea Leone got here, it was a dream come true.” Particulars of the mission, which can possible be Grey’s subsequent film, are being saved beneath wraps.

Days of Abandonment

Penelope Cruz will star in Coixet’s English-language adaptation of Italian author Elena Ferrante’s novel of the similar title, and a screenplay by “The Affair” co-creator Sarah Treem. “Abandonment” is about to reunite the two excessive Spanish abilities following their collaboration on one different U.S.-set film, the 2008 drama “Elegy.” That film is an adaptation of Philip Roth’s novella “The Dying Animal,” about an affair between a professor (carried out by Ben Kingsley) and his scholar (Cruz).

Deep Crimson remake

LFG has teamed up with “White Lotus” producer Bernad on a latest remake of Dario Argento’s 1975 horror primary.

Siracusa

Filmmaker Gabriele Muccino — whose Hollywood credit score embody Will Smith-starrer “The Pursuit of Happyness” — will direct this English-language adaptation of Delia Ephron’s novel “Siracusa.” The provide supplies follows two {couples} and a child who make a journey on the sun-drenched coast of the Ionian Sea in Sicily, and turns into “a thriller” of varieties, says Raffaella. Muccino’s Sicily-set romantic thriller “Right here Now,” starring Elena Kampouris (“My Huge Fats Greek Wedding ceremony 3”), moreover produced by LFG, will possible be launched in Italy in October.

Scandalo

Paolo Genovese (“Excellent Strangers”) will direct this reconstruction of the love triangle involving director Ingrid Bergman, neo-realism grasp Roberto Rossellini and actor Anna Magnani, based on the e e book “Gli amanti del vulcano” (“The Volcano Lovers”) by Italian journalist Marcello Sorgi. The screenplay is by Francesco Piccolo (“My Sensible Good friend”) and Genovese.

Joan of Arc mission

LFG and Scott Free are creating this mission, promising a model new deal with the French icon. It’s an adaptation of a chapter of a bestselling e e book by Italian historian Alessandro Barbero, who describes Joan as a lady “who headed a military dressed as a person and paid along with her life for that problem to the principles of her time.”

Love Me, Love Me

American director Roger Kumble (“Merciless Intentions”) will direct the first instalment of the phenomenally worthwhile Wattpad novels trilogy by Stefania S. “Love Me, Love Me” services on 16-year-old June, who turns into entangled in a love triangle with two boys who’re best associates and uncovers hidden truths. Lotus is producing with Amazon MGM Studios in collaboration with Wattpad Webtoon Studios. Prime Video will launch globally.

Leone Movie Group “perceive the significance of viewers engagement and fandom, which is crucial to our studio,” says Aron Levitz, president of Wattpad Webtoon Studios. “We take nice satisfaction in partnering with such a legendary studio and are excited to proceed making content material with Leone Movie Group and the gifted crew at Lotus Manufacturing,” he gives.

The Leone Movie Group milestones:

1989

Sergio Leone models up a corporation to help make “Leningrad,” his long-gestating dream mission, nonetheless he died that yr. In the course of the following years, two of his three children, Raffaella and Andrea, go into enterprise selling TV movies as Leone Movie Group after chopping their enamel managing rights of two Westerns they inherited from their father: “As soon as Upon a Time within the West” and “Duck, You Sucker!”  

2001

After a decade all through which they solid relationships with U.S. indies and geared up product to most Italian broadcasters, accu-mulating a substantial library, Raffaella and Andrea make the leap into theatrical with Steven Soderbergh’s “Site visitors.” In addition they start broadening their market train from TV to additional platforms, along with pay TV and residential video.  

2009

LFG strikes into native manufacturing with youth comedy “Generazione 1,000 Euro.”  

2012

LFG indicators its first multi-year output deal for theatrical with DreamWorks (Amblin/Storyteller). 

2013

Shingle inks a multi-year output address Summit Leisure and, by extension, Lionsgate. Pacts with FilmNation and totally different U.S. avid gamers observe.

Begin of shut collaboration with RAI Cinema’s 01 Distribution. First key titles are “Rush” and “The Wolf of Wall Avenue.”  

LFG flotation kicks off on Dec. 19 as Ennio Morricone’s ranking for “As soon as Upon a Time within the West” performs inside Milan stock alternate.

2014

LFG acquires manufacturing agency Lotus.

2015

Lionsgate gives LFG a mandate to develop to be their govt producer on “John Wick 2,” the first of plenty of giant U.S. productions they’ve serviced in Italy.

2016

Lotus produces its first TV sequence, “Immaturi,” and begins creating worldwide displays. Its newer TV sequence embody Disney+’s “The Lions of Sicily” (2023) and upcoming Naples-set current “Uonderbois,” about youngsters who roam city’s underbelly led by a Robin Hood-like character, moreover for Disney+.  

2018

Lionsgate’s family drama “Surprise” scores its best European haul in Italy with $13.8 million. Gabriele Muccino’s ensemble dramedy “A Casa Tutti Bene” (“There Is No Place Like Dwelling”) is Italy’s excessive native hit.  

2019

LFG sees success in Italy with “Mia and the White Lion,” “Vice,” “Inexperienced Guide” and “After.” 

Shingle inks distinctive first-window 30-month address Amazon. Sky has second window.

2020

Muccino’s “Gli Anni Più Belli” (“The Greatest Years”) sees its high-grossing launch decrease transient by the COVID-19 pandemic.

2021

LFG-produced teen romancer “Time Is Up” starring Bella Thorne is the highest-grossing limited-event launch of the yr in Italian cinemas.

Partnership with Amazon extended due to stellar outcomes achieved by LFG-distributed product on the Prime Video platform, espe-cially with the “After” film franchise. “They’re the gold commonplace in distribution,” says “After” producer Nicolas Chartier, head of Voltage Footage. “And their father is my favourite director!”

The Prime Video partnership expands with the launch of a curated Leone “As soon as Upon a Time” channel of excessive Italian titles from LFG’s library.

2022

Raffaella Leone takes the reins at Lotus.

2023

LFG releases 11 titles theatrically, 4 of which self-produced, amongst them Micaela Ramazzotti’s “Felicità” (“Happiness”), which premieres on the Venice Movie Competition.

2024

Italian billionaire Leonardo Maria Del Vecchio buys a 13.78% of LFG by the use of his LMDV Capital, “pushed by a need to assist the group keep in Italian palms and develop,” says Raffaella Leone.

Raffaella Leone is awarded the Cavaliere del Lavoro (Order of Benefit for Labour) medal in recognition of the prominence she has attained as an Italian entrepreneur.