Universal’s latest earth-stomping dinosaur movie took in $60 million for the three-day weekend, industry watcher Exhibitor Relations reported.

The superhero-family-next-door of “Incredibles 2,” a Pixar/Disney animation, earned $45.5 million.

Together they helped estimated industry receipts to the end of June rise 15 percent against the same month last year.

“Jurassic,” featuring Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard, and “Incredibles,” with voice actors Craig T. Nelson and Holly Hunter, were expected to do well. The former is nearing the $1 billion mark globally, while “Incredibles” is set to become the second-biggest animated film ever in North America, after “Finding Dory.”

But Variety said that two new films, Sony’s “Sicario: Day of the Saldado” and Lionsgate’s “Uncle Drew,” had easily outperformed industry expectations to place third and fourth.

The “Sicario” sequel, an action thriller starring Benicio Del Toro and Josh Brolin, took in $19 million, outperforming the well-reviewed original film by $7 million. Its highly-topical premise has CIA agent Brolin teaming up with hitman Del Toro to fight drug cartels smuggling “terrorists” across the Mexican border.

On a lighter note, “Uncle Drew” draws on the talents of basketball stars present and past — Kyrie Irving, Shaquille O’Neal, Chris Webber, Lisa Leslie and Reggie Miller, with a court-full of others in cameo roles.

Hard-luck streetball team manager Uncle Drew (Irving, in a role that originated in a Pepsi ad) rounds up his old crew ahead of a big tournament in Brooklyn. The film took in $15.5 million.

“Ocean’s 8” from Warner Bros. slipped two spots to fifth place, taking in $8 million in its fourth week out. The female-centric heist film stars Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett and Anne Hathaway.

Rounding out the top 10 were:

“Tag” ($5.6 million)

“Deadpool 2” ($3.5 million)

“Sanju” ($2.6 million)

“Solo: A Star Wars Story” ($2.3 million)

“Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” ($2.3 million)

This year’s spotlight is on Indonesian cinema. Kolektif project manager Gayatri Nadya has assembled a full day of programming and a lively discussion with movie experts and filmmakers.

Recent years have seen a cinematic resurgence in Indonesia as it opens to more foreign investors, builds more theatres, and continuously breaks its own box-office records.

New and exciting Indonesian talent has emerged, making a notable impact on the international festival circuit with a fresh vision that has won high praise from critics and audiences alike.

The Luang Prabang festival’s “visual identity” this year is inspired by vintage travel posters, in support of Visit Laos Year 2018. The main design features a chic Southeast Asian filmmaker location-scouting in Luang Prabang during the festival.

Manilla Chounlamountri, art director of the Vientiane-based Me-Idea Full Service Agency, came up with the concept.

“We feel a lot of pressure to top our previous years’ graphics and we’re confident that our designer has somehow accomplished it once again,” says festival director Gabriel Kuperman.

“I love all the references within the visual. You have the throwback travel-poster feel, the empowered female filmmaker, the backdrop of this gorgeous little town with its mixture of traditional Lao and colonial French architecture, and of course, there’s our intimate festival stuck in there so naturally.”

Last year’s festival welcomed 22,000 attendees with screenings, panel discussions and live performances of dance, theatre and music.

This year’s audience is expected to be even larger as the festival cements its role as one of the largest international events held in Laos, and one of the most important film events in the region.

Intimacy remains a key drawing point, however. At the 2017 festival, 23 of the 32 feature films had directors or producers on hand to speak to audiences after screenings, both in group-sessions and one-on-one.

In terms of Southeast Asian artist development, last year’s Talent Lab, led by the Tribeca Film Institute, involved training on writing grant applications and pitching projects. After an open pitch forum, “Raising a Beast”, written and directed by Lao filmmaker Xaisongkham Induangchanthy and produced by Filipina Abigail Lazaro, was selected by a jury for the TFI Network Market at the 2018 Tribeca Film Festival.

There will also be a master-class on screenwriting and a week-long workshop on animation organised in partnership with the American Film Showcase.

All festival events are open to the public and free of charge, and visitors can go easily between the main venues on foot or via a complimentary tuktuk shuttle service.

Keep up to date at http://www.LPFilmFest.org and on the “lpfilmfest” Facebook page.

YouTube’s alliance with two powerhouse names in Hollywood comes as competition intensifies in an online streaming video market with players such as Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, and Apple.

Google-owned YouTube’s subscription service Premium offers ad-free viewing of shared videos along with original content for $12 a month.

Original content has become a battlefront in online video, with Netflix and Amazon Prime spending billions of dollars on shows.

The YouTube series titled “On Becoming a God in Central Florida” will center on the US cult of unbridled entrepreneurship and a woman’s intense pursuit of the American Dream.

The series will be set in the 1990s, and is scheduled for release next year.

YouTube Premium, formerly named YouTube Red, had a hit with its first big original series, “Cobra Kai,” inspired by the “Karate Kid” martial arts underdog film from 1984.

The first episode of “Cobra Kai” has logged more than 40 million views since it was made available at YouTube on May 2 and a second season has been ordered.

Launched in late 2015, YouTube Premium includes an online streaming music service and is seen as part of a broader effort by Google-parent Alphabet to expand how it makes money beyond advertising revenue.

Talented duo Karan Johar and Riteish Deshmukh played hosts in their own inimitable ways, Karan with the classic witty zingers and Riteish with her charismatic character.

As the finale of the event, the IIFA Awards saw India’s most loved actress Rekha (Banurekha Ganesan) put on a nostalgic performance and take the audience back in time.

The night also featured performances from superstars including Ranbir Kapoor, Varun Dhawan, Shraddha Kapoor, Arjun Kapoor, Bobby Deol, Kriti Sanon and Lulia Vantur.

The IIFA paid tribute to two of the most celebrated actors of Indian cinema, the great Shashi Kapoor and the late diva Sridevi Kapoor.

Venerated actor Anupam Kher was presented the prestigious IIFA Award for Outstanding Achievement in Indian Cinema, recognising his immense contribution. And e-commerce firm Myntra presented the Style Icon of the Year award to young Kriti Sanon.

For the fourth consecutive year, the IIFAs were broadcast exclusively on India’s Hindi entertainment channel Colors, with star-studded programming including flashbacks, IIFA Buzz, IIFA Rocks and the Nexa IIFA Awards.

For digitally savvy viewers, it was available on video-on-demand platform VOOT from the house of Viacom18.

IIFA AWARD WINNERS 2018

Best Picture: “Tumhari Sulu”

Best Story: Amit V Masurkar (“Newton”)

Best Direction: Saket Chaudhary (“Hindi Medium”)

Best Debut Director: Konkona Sen Sharma (“A Death in the Gunj”)

Best Actress: Sridevi Kapoor (“Mom”)

Best Actor: Irrfan Khan (“Hindi Medium”)

Best Music Direction: Amaal Mallik, Tanishk Bagchi and Akhil Sachdeva (“Badrinath Ki Dulhania”)

Best Playback Singer Female: Meghna Mishra (“Main Kaun Hoon” – “Secret Superstar”)

Best Playback Singer Male: Arijit Singh (“Hawayein” – “Jab Harry Met Sejal”)

Supporting Actress: Meher Vij (“Secret Superstar”)

Supporting Actor: Nawazuddin Siddiqui (“Mom”)

Best Lyrics: Manoj Muntashir (“Mere Rashke Qamar” – “Baadshaho”)

Written by Kim Eun-sook and directed by Lee Eung-bok, this 24-episode series is the latest work of Hwa&Dam Pictures and Studio Dragon, which created the global hit series “Descendants of the Sun” and “Goblin”. It will premiere in Japan on July 8 and the rest of the world on July 19.

“We have seen so much passion for top quality Korean stories and the pedigree of a title like ‘Mr Sunshine’ is a significant step forward in building a strong Korean content library for our members around the world,” said Rob Roy, vice president of content acquisition.

Set during the US expedition to Korea in the late 19th century, “Mr Sunshine” tells the story of a Korean boy born into a family of a house servants running away to board an American warship, later to return to his homeland as a US marine officer. He ironically falls in love with an aristocrat’s daughter and discovers the dark scheme to colonise the country that he once ran away from.

Lee Byung-hun, who played Storm Shadow in the “GI Joe” series and Han Cho Bai in “Red 2”, is cast in the role of US marine officer Eugene Choi, while Kim Tae-ri who came into the spotlight with The Handmaiden, will play the aristocrat’s daughter, Ko Ae-shin.

Yoo Yeon-seok, Kim Min-jung, and Byun Yo-han also play key roles.

“Ant-man and the Wasp,” the sequel to 2015’s “Ant-Man,” is the 20th release in a decade from the Marvel Cinematic Universe series of comic book movies, and the first to feature a woman in the title.

“We always knew that the next one was going to be ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp,'” Kevin Feige, the president of Disney-owned Marvel Studios, told AFP at a global press day for the movie in Pasadena, southern California on Sunday.

“It’s finally time to see her suit up and be the hero that she said earlier she wanted to be.”

The 2015 movie featured Evangeline Lilly’s Hope van Dyne as a wannabe superhero and she returns in the sequel leaner, meaner and ready to step up on an equal footing with Paul Rudd’s Ant-Man.

Lilly told AFP the original plan was to introduce the Wasp’s origin story in Marvel’s 2016 release “Captain America: Civil War” along with Ant-Man and the other Avengers.

“I got a call saying, ‘We’ve decided not to put you in Civil War and there was this moment I could tell where the feeling in the room was like, ‘I’m sorry – don’t be offended.’

“I was like, ‘Are they going to give me a move? Is that what they’re saying?’ And they said, ‘We really want to dedicate a film to introducing this female superhero and we don’t want her just to be a side note.”

The surprise of double-billing came later, when Marvel sent her a screen capture with The Wasp in the title.

Early estimates have “Ant-Man and the Wasp” opening domestically on around $75 million over the weekend of July 6 — a considerable improvement on the $57 million the first film took.

The 31-year-old stars are reported to be tying the knot in northeastern Scotland, with co-stars Emilia Clarke, who played Daenerys Targaryen, and Peter Dinklage, who played Tyrion Lannister, arriving at nearby Aberdeen on Friday.

The couple, who met on set in 2012, announced the engagement in the Times newspaper last September, and the wedding date was submitted to the local registry office last month.

The ceremony is to be held at the remote Wardhill Castle in Aberdeenshire, which has been in Leslie’s family for 900 years, according to the Daily Mail.

She left the show in 2014, but Harington’s iconic character has appeared in every episode.

Harington told L’Uomo Vogue that the on-screen romance contributed to the pair getting together, after filming in Iceland in 2012.

“The country is beautiful … the Northern Lights are magical … it was there that I fell in love,” he said.

“If you’re already attracted to someone, and then they play your love interest in the show, it becomes very easy to fall in love.”

Destination Mekong has announced the launch of the inaugural Asia Film Destination Conference next Tuesday up in Nakhon Phanom in Northeast Thailand as part of the Mekong Mini Movie Festival, which runs in parallel with the 2018 Mekong Tourism Forum.

Emceed by storyteller and early “Lonely Planet Book” author Joe Cummings, and chaired by Pongpanu Svetarundra, permanent secretary of the Ministry of Tourism and Sports of Thailand, the conference sets out to explore the power of movie productions and user-generated videos and how they can be integrated with destination marketing.

The first edition of the Asia Film Destination Conference is dedicated to the late Anthony Bourdain, a visionary storyteller who in many ways was a trailblazer in how we create travel content today, video in particular. His work with the CNN brought remote spots of the globe into peoples’ homes and inspired many to travel and explore the world with a new sense of curiosity.

Tourists today, the organisers note, are always on the lookout for new destinations and new experiences and movies, as well as social media clips, often inspire them to visit destinations for the very first time.

Recent research suggests that movies can have a strong influence on tourist decision-making and that films do not only provide short-term tourism revenue but can build long-term prosperity in a destination.

Rob Holmes, chief executive of award-winning destination film production company GLP Films, will kickoff the conference with an overview of the power of film to tell the story of a destination.

In the Greater Mekong Sub-region, various films have put destinations in the region on the map in recent years, starting with the “Tomb Raider” movies with Angelina Jolie in Cambodia, “The Beach” with Leonardo DiCaprio in Thailand, “Rambo” in Myanmar, “Kong” in Vietnam to the hit Chinese comedy film “Lost in Thailand”. “Lost in Thailand” in particular, has resulted in large numbers of Chinese tourists flocking to Thailand.

Deepak Ohri, chief executive officer of Lebua Hotels & Resorts, will present a case study of “Hangover 2”, which was filmed at the Bangkok property and put the hotel in movie theatres worldwide.

Sirinart Theenanondh, chief of Thailand Department of Tourism’s film business promotion, will explain how countries like Thailand compete for movie productions, while Titiporn Manenate, director of Tourism Authority of Thailand’s international advertising, will demonstrate how Thailand has used film and video to attract visitors to visit Thailand.

Gopinath Parayil, chief executive and founder of The Blue Yonder from India, shows how his award-winning films have introduced community-based tourism projects in his country, while Lao-based filmmaker Cyril Eberle, who directed films like “A Day in a Buddhist Temple” as well as the upcoming documentary “A Little Land of Mines”, explains how visual storytelling can make a positive impact and create positive change.

Video bloggers also have the power to influence consumers on where and how to experience a destination, especially in a world where user-generated content receives increased trust from consumers. Video blogger Art Thomya shows how brands can work with travel bloggers and what kind of content can promote destinations.

The Mekong Mini Movie campaign is a clear example of how film can promote destinations. In just four months, people have shared and tagged more than 300 mini movies of 60 seconds or less with #MekongMoments and #Minis on their own social media platforms, including Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

These films, which inspire people all over the world with shared experiences to visit the member countries of the Mekong Region, have already reached more than 6 million people worldwide.

“Today, video is a powerful medium in promoting a destination. It has the chance to awaken wanderlust in the viewer by showing the essence and uniqueness of a place in a just a few short moments. But the power of inspiring people via film goes beyond promoting destinations; it can also drive change. In partnership with WWF and Khiri Travel, the Mekong Mini Movie Festival is creating awareness of sustainable tourism and conservation, focusing on the festival’s mascot, the endangered Mekong Dolphin,” comments Jens Thraenhart, executive director of the Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office and chair of Destination Mekong, the initiator of the Mekong Mini Movie Festival and the 1st Asia Film Destination Conference.

The annual campaign that continues until the end of the year is giving out the first set of country and category prizes right after the Film Destination Conference. The Mekong Mini Movie Festival Award Ceremony is chaired by Weerasak Kowsarut, minister of Tourism and Sports of Thailand. One of the prizes is the Industry Choice Award, which allows Mekong Tourism Forum delegates to vote for their favourite Mekong Mini Movie during the screening. Other prizes include the Editors Choice Awards, judged by an expert jury and the respective Tourism Ministries of the Mekong member countries.

Winners will receive the specially designed Dolphin Trophy created by Thai designer Thanwin Kamyeam in addition to once-in-a-lifetime trips in the region worth up to $16,000 each.

Submissions to the next set of prizes will close in October 2018. The final prizes of the 2018 Mekong Mini Movie Campaign will be announced at the 2019 Asean Tourism Forum in Halong Bay, Vietnam on January 15.

Go a little deeper

– Find out more about the Mekong Minis and how you can participate at http://www.MekongMinis.com.

– Information on the Asia Film Destination Conference can be found at http://MekongTourismForum.org

– Registration is free at https://www.zipeventapp.com/e/MekongTourismForum2018.

“White Sun” is a stark film that discusses complex social, political, personal issues, with simple ease and startling honesty. The movie opens with the death of the head of a remote village, and traces his steep funeral journey down the picturesque mountainside.

Among the chief pallbearers, are his two sons who have become estranged due to political differences – Suraj, who lived with his father and worked in the army, and Chandra, who left home and joined the Maoist rebels.

The funeral brings the latter back to his village, after a decade away. But the differences are still deep with his brother, and the older villagers. There is also Durga, the woman Chandra married before he left, and who ran the whole household until the death, when her gender made her an outsider.

Finally, there are the two children Badri and Pooja, who get caught in the maelstrom of the funeral drama. Even as the radio-report of the country’s first Constitution brings hope to the people, it is obvious that at the individual level, the scars of the long Civil War still remain.

The director, who took four years to make the film, uses the metaphor of death to bring alive many burning issues, among them political unity, social castes, women’s rights and children’s education.

Whether he deals with Maoist guerillas, Nepali police, Civil War, social weddings or funerals, the director’s sharp eye and clever vision are impeccable. The performances are another highlight of the film, not just from the superstar protagonist Chandra, but the many nonprofessionals, among them the old villagers and the two kids.

Entry is Bt20. For reservations, please filmforum17@gmail.com or visit https://goo.gl/forms/ur87ZdgE5B9nT9FJ2 and http://www.TKPark.or.th.

From Wednesday, iflix member can stream and download all six episodes of the docu-series on any device, iflix said in a press statement.

Among other things, the series exose the world of Miss Tiffany’s, where transgenders-women open up about their battles for acceptance in Thai society.

The series let views learn about an app designed for sugar babies searching for their sugar daddy. Views can also meet the fisherman in Malaysia who reveal a shocking truth about their community.

Views will be allowed to dive into a culinary world where the main course is bugs, Coconuts TV on iflix takes an in depth, uncensored look at the most fascinating and undiscovered phenomena in Southeast Asia.

iflix Global Director of Short Form Content, Craig Galvin said: “Both iflix and Coconuts share a common passion for bringing unconventional, compelling and deeply relevant stories about Asia to our audiences. The series showcases real people and places overlooked or even shunned by traditional news media, taking an unfiltered and youth-oriented approach to news and subculture – offering a perspective on the region you don’t often get to see.”

Coconuts Media Founder and CEO, Byron Perry added: “Our goal with Coconuts TV on iflix is to knock your socks off with weird and wondrous documentary stories that you can’t get anywhere else… and we humbly hope we’ve achieved that. Not only did we want to shed light on these untold people and phenomena, we also wanted our audience to give a damn about them. It’s been tremendous to partner with iflix, and we can’t wait for the world to see this show.”

Now available to over one billion consumers across 27 territories throughout Asia, the Middle East and Africa, iflix has established itself as the clear market leader in video streaming. Offering consumers a vast library of top Hollywood, regional, and local TV shows and movies, including many first run exclusives and award-winning programs, each subscription allows users to access the service on up to five devices, including phones, laptops, tablets, and television sets, for viewing wherever, whenever.

COCONUTS TV EPISODIC OVERVIEW

SEXY TIME

Let’s talk about sex baby. Explore the many facets of how sex has shaped South East Asia’s modern culture, music, and society. Conventional, consensual, or condescending?

MARGINALIZED

True grit, survival, adaptation, & passion – the formula to cultivate greatness. Follow the rise of superstars from historically marginalized groups within society, exposing the difference between who we are and who we want to be.

NEEDLES ‘N’ KNIFES

Dive under the skin and into the depths of needle-sharing fisherman and unfold the deadly razor-sharp thrill of the famed balisong butterfly knife. Two different stories, two different kinds of highs.

ANIMALS AND US

Unveil spirituality, mindfulness, and healing with a legendary horse riding, kickboxing, drug-fighting monk. Then explore a volcanic active region where nature knows no kings nor gives no mercy to the wildlife around it.

WHEELS OF CHANGE

The only assurance in life is change. Follow the rise of gender equality in Malaysian motorsports and the demise of the iconic Filipino jeepney. Witness the evolution and how steadfast communities adapt to these fast times.

BIRDS AND BUGS

Has anyone told you about the birds and the… bugs? Access the underbelly of Asia’s fascination for cockfighting, songbirds, and the renaissance of mainstream insect-eating culture.