World Briefs

MTV tunes Tillan up to veepee post

By VARIETY STAFF

LATAM

MTV Latam has upped Jose Tillan to VP of music and artists relations, a newly restructured department.

Company said it is merging its music programming department with talent and artist relations. Tillan was formerly talent and artist relations executive director for the Spanish-lingo channel.

In this new position, Tillan will oversee the channel's general music programming strategy and function as the primary liaison between the network and the record labels, artists and management companies based in the U.S., Europe and Latin America.

UNITED KINGDOM

BBC Worldwide has set up an office in Japan, to be headed by Katsuhiko Waza, the former prexy of British Television Inc.

British TV had been the rep for the BBC's commercial division in the market, and its five staff members will also come to Worldwide's office, which will be responsible for all of the Beeb's Japanese business.

CANADA

International sales for Denys Arcand's "Stardom" have been brisk on the heels of its preem as the closing night film at Cannes.

Toronto-based Alliance Atlantis announced that distribution rights have been sold in many of the world's territories, including Japan to Rentrack and Germany to Arthaus.

Momentum Pictures, Alliance Atlantis' joint venture with Kinowelt, will distribute the film in Canada and the U.K.

ARGENTINA

Grupo Clarin, one of Argentina's leading media players, has launched a Brazilian Web site, Cidade Internet, as part of a regional Web push costing a reported $200 million. Clarin has teamed up for its Brazilian venture with newspaper O Dia, one of the strongest in the city of Rio de Janeiro. The paper will provide essential local content.

INDIA

Media company Nimbus Communications has secured exclusive rights to telecast Euro 2000 soccer championships beginning immediately.

The first rights for Soccer World Cup 2002, Asian Games in 2002 and Euro 2004 have also been acquired by the media company.

Nimbus is a Mumbai-based television production and broadcasting company active in sports broadcasting.