Rapid Eye Movies

Rapid Eye Movies is a German film label based in Cologne that has been active since 1996. It operates across film distribution, production and music, and is a member of the AG Verleih, the German association of film distributors. The company is best known for bringing highly aesthetic and extraordinary cinematic works to German audiences, with a particular emphasis on Asian cinema. From its founding, Rapid Eye Movies focused on releasing films in cinemas. In its early years it distributed genre-defining anime such as Ghost in the Shell and Perfect Blue, as well as Hong Kong films like Where a Good Man Goes. Over time its theatrical slate shifted toward arthouse productions from Japan (Sakuran, Dolls, Nobody Knows) and Korea (I'm a Cyborg, But That's OK, Samaria), alongside commercial Indian films, the so-called Bollywood cinema. The label played a significant role in establishing major Asian arthouse directors in Germany, including Johnnie To, Takeshi Kitano, Takashi Miike, Kim Ki-duk and Park Chan-wook. In recent years it has also opened up to European cinema, distributing films such as Attenberg by Athina Rachel Tsangari, Alps by Yorgos Lanthimos, the Belgian-Flemish production Bullhead and the Ukrainian deaf drama The Tribe, as well as music documentaries like Searching for Sugar Man. In the late 1990s the company added VHS and DVD distribution, which has since become its main field of activity. It has established several film series, including "Nippon Classics", "Pink Cinema" (dedicated to pinku eiga), "Pictures coming to eat you" and "Bollywood". Its Bollywood releases regularly reached top-twenty positions in the German DVD charts. Rapid Eye Movies is considered largely responsible for the success of popular Indian films in Germany; the theatrical release, later DVD release and television broadcast of Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham – In guten wie in schweren Tagen is credited with triggering a Bollywood boom in the country, and the label is described as the German market leader for Bollywood. As a publisher, the company launched the Bollywood – Rapid Eye Magazin in 2006, which was discontinued in 2007. In 2008 it published the German edition of Anupama Chopra's book King of Bollywood – Shah Rukh Khan und die Welt des indischen Kinos, and in 2009 the photo book Om Shanti Om – Die Magie des indischen Kinos with photographs by Cologne photographer Jochen Manz. In film production, its first co-produced feature was Underwater Love – A Pink Musical in 2011, with cinematography by Christopher Doyle and music by Stereo Total. Today Rapid Eye Movies continues to distribute films theatrically and on home video and VOD, with upcoming releases such as Für immer 16, Hard Boiled, The Killer and Barrio Triste, and titles like Drive My Car available on VOD and DVD/Blu-ray. The label also runs the "Zeitlos" film series, presenting classic and cult films in cinemas.

Rapid Eye Movies was founded in 1996 as a German film label based in Cologne. From the outset, the company concentrated on distributing highly aesthetic and extraordinary cinematic works, with a strong focus on Asian cinema. It is a member of the AG Verleih, the German association of film distributors. In its early years, Rapid Eye Movies released genre-defining anime such as Ghost in the Shell and Perfect Blue, as well as Hong Kong films like Where a Good Man Goes. The label played a crucial role in introducing German audiences to major Asian directors, including Johnnie To (Heroic Trio, Running Out of Time, The Mission, Where a Good Man Goes), Takeshi Kitano (Sonatine), Takashi Miike (Audition, Dead or Alive, Visitor Q), Kim Ki-duk (The Isle) and Park Chan-wook (Joint Security Area). Later, its theatrical focus shifted toward arthouse productions from Japan (Sakuran, Dolls, Nobody Knows) and Korea (I'm a Cyborg, But That's OK, Samaria), as well as commercial Indian films, known as Bollywood. In the late 1990s, the company expanded into VHS and DVD distribution, which eventually became its main business area. It established several film series, including "Nippon Classics", "Pink Cinema" (dedicated to pinku eiga), "Pictures coming to eat you" and "Bollywood". Its Bollywood releases regularly achieved top-twenty positions in German DVD charts. Rapid Eye Movies is widely credited with triggering a Bollywood boom in Germany through the theatrical release, subsequent DVD release and television broadcast of Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham – In guten wie in schweren Tagen, and it is considered the German market leader for Bollywood films. In recent years, the label has also embraced European cinema, distributing films such as Attenberg by Athina Rachel Tsangari, Alps by Yorgos Lanthimos, the Belgian-Flemish production Bullhead and the Ukrainian deaf drama The Tribe. Music documentaries like Searching for Sugar Man have also been part of its repertoire. As a publisher, Rapid Eye Movies launched the Bollywood – Rapid Eye Magazin in 2006, which was discontinued in 2007. In 2008, it published the German edition of Anupama Chopra's book King of Bollywood – Shah Rukh Khan und die Welt des indischen Kinos, and in 2009 the photo book Om Shanti Om – Die Magie des indischen Kinos with photographs by Cologne photographer Jochen Manz. In terms of film production, the company's first co-produced feature was Underwater Love – A Pink Musical in 2011, with cinematography by Christopher Doyle and music by Stereo Total. The label continues to distribute films theatrically and on home video and VOD, and runs the "Zeitlos" film series, presenting classic and cult films in cinemas.

• 2011

  Releases its first co-produced feature, Underwater Love – A Pink Musical.

• 2009

  Publishes the photo book Om Shanti Om – Die Magie des indischen Kinos.

• 2008

  Publishes the German edition of Anupama Chopra's book King of Bollywood.

• 2007

  Discontinues the Bollywood – Rapid Eye Magazin.

• 2006

  Launches the Bollywood – Rapid Eye Magazin.

• 1996

  Rapid Eye Movies is founded as a German film label in Cologne.

• 1996

  Begins distributing films theatrically, focusing on Asian cinema.

• 1990

  Late 1990s: expands into VHS and DVD distribution.

German market leader for Bollywood films and a key distributor of Asian arthouse cinema.

• Ghost in the Shell (theatrical distribution)

• Perfect Blue (theatrical distribution)

• Where a Good Man Goes (theatrical distribution)

• Sakuran (theatrical distribution)

• Dolls (theatrical distribution)

• Nobody Knows (theatrical distribution)

• I'm a Cyborg, But That's OK (theatrical distribution)

• Samaria (theatrical distribution)

• Attenberg (theatrical distribution)

• Alps (theatrical distribution)

• Bullhead (theatrical distribution)

• The Tribe (theatrical distribution)

• Searching for Sugar Man (theatrical distribution)

• Underwater Love – A Pink Musical (co-production)

• Drive My Car (VOD and DVD/Blu-ray)

• Hard Boiled (upcoming theatrical release)

• The Killer (upcoming theatrical release)

1. 1Rapid Eye Movies official websiterapideyemovies.de
2. 2Rapid Eye Movies – Werapideyemovies.de
3. 3Rapid Eye Movies – Wikidatawikidata.org
4. 4Rapid Eye Movies – Wikipedia (German)de.wikipedia.org