Latest in Tom Ortenberg

EXCLUSIVE: Open Road Films and Briarcliff Entertainment jointly acquired U.S. and Canadian distribution rights to Separation, a horror film directed by William Brent Bell (The Devil Inside, The Boy) and starring Rupert Friend, Violet McGraw, Mamie Gummer, Madeline Brewer and Brian Cox. The distributor has set an April…

In a pandemic moment where The War With Grandpa gets headlines for topping the weekend box office with just $3.6 million, is it possible for films with stars and reasonable budgets to make a go of it while the two biggest theatrical markets, New York and Los Angeles, remain closed? Next to try will be Honest Thief…

EXCLUSIVE: Good news, movie theaters. Open Road Films’ Liam Neeson action-thriller Honest Thief, which was set to go wide, is going really wide now at 2,000 theaters. However, you’ll have to wait a week later than anticipated. The movie from Ozark co-creator and producer Mark Williams, which was set to open on Oct. 9…

EXCLUSIVE: Open Road Films, back under the oversight of its founder Tom Ortenberg, has acquired domestic on the feature adaptation of the Anna Todd YA sequel After We Collided from Voltage. Open Road has set a limited theatrical day and date release with PVOD for Oct. 23. Cruel Intentions’ Roger Kumble directs off a…

EXCLUSIVE: In a big shot in the arm for the independent distribution game as Virtual Cannes gets underway, Open Road Films is back up and running. Funding is in place from New York-based private equity firm Raven Capital Management. Open Road Films will be led by Raven principal James Masciello with key support from Ma…

EXCLUSIVE: Briarcliff Entertainment has acquired U.S. distribution rights to Honest Thief, a Mark Williams-directed  action thriller that stars Liam Neeson and Kate Walsh. The deal was made by Briarcliff CEO Tom Ortenberg with Solution Entertainment Group CEO Myles Nestel. Briarcliff has set a wide release on Labor…

EXCLUSIVE: Briarcliff Entertainment CEO Tom Ortenberg has completed an acquisition of U.S. distribution rights to the slave rebellion action-thriller Emperor. Briarcliffe has dated the film for a March 27 theatrical release. The film is directed by Mark Amin and written by Amin and Pat Charles, and stars Dayo Okeniyi…

EXCLUSIVE: It was only a year ago in Berlin that newly minted Global Road Entertainment CEO Rob Friedman told international buyers on the first day of the European Film Market that Global Road planned to spend $1 billion in film production over three years. The company would exploit an East-meets-West company that…

EXCLUSIVE: Dolphin Entertainment has acquired Kellie Madison’s horror film script The Wall. Madison will direct. Tom Ortenberg will co-produce through his Briarcliff Entertainment banner. The Wall tells the supernatural story of a young woman who is forced to unlock memories of a traumatic event after removing a…

When it comes to the science of dating a wide release, there are a couple of avenues a distribution head could go. One former major studio distribution boss was known for walking the halls with a calendar in his back pocket, and when another senior executive would ask him when the studio should date a film, he’d whip…

EXCLUSIVE: Tom Ortenberg is leaving Open Road Films, the indie distribution company which steered Spotlight to a Best Picture Oscar win in 2016. The founding CEO of the indie distribution and marketing company formed in 2011 by theater chains AMC Theatres and Regal Entertainment Group, Ortenberg will remain on the…

BREAKING, updating with writethrough: Tang Media Partners has formalized its acquisition of Open Road Films, the indie movie distribution company that steered Spotlight to a Best Picture win in 2016. Deadline reported last week that the deal was imminent. The company’s founding CEO, Tom Ortenberg, continues in that…