Tropfest New Zealand has been cancelled – for now at least – but the Australian short film festival is still going ahead.

The organisers across the ditch have announced their fifth instalment has been cancelled for financial reasons.

"Given the current economic climate we cannot present Tropfest without a core funder," said Tropfest New Zealand chief executive Suzanne Porter. "We have tried many avenues but have not been able to get to a position of break-even for the 2017 presentation."

The Taranaki Arts Festival Trust has been licensed to run Tropfest in that country. It also runs such events as WOMAD New Zealand and the Taranaki International Arts Festival.

Having battled through a financial shortfall that forced the Australian festival to almost be scrapped late last year – it was revived in February when a new sponsor came on board – Tropfest founder John Polson said he was optimistic about the future of the Kiwi version.

"I have no doubt we will be back in New Zealand before long," he said, adding that "there are no implications for Tropfest Australia".

Finding Dory swims to success

Marlin and Dory in the sequel Finding Dory .

It shows the value of a much-loved animated movie for a long-awaited sequel.

When Finding Nemo opened in 2003, it took a handsome $8 million on its first weekend. It ended up taking $37.3 million, which makes it the third most successful animated movie in this country behind Shrek 2 ($50.3 million) and Toy Story 3 ($42.4 million)

But after countless young viewers watched (and rewatched) that Pixar classic since then, Finding Dory has had an even better opening.

It took $10.2 million with an average of $19,500 a cinema last weekend – hugely impressive given the number of children's tickets that would have been included.

Only three comic book movies have topped Finding Dory's opening this year – Deadpool ($14.9 million), Captain America: Civil War ($13.9 million) and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice ($13.1 million).

Warcraft's surprising results

Australian actor Travis Fimmel (left) and director Duncan Jones on the set of Warcraft. Photo: Doane Gregory

The surprising success of the fantasy adventure movie Warcraft shows just how much influence China is having at the global box office.

The poorly reviewed video game adaptation bombed in the US when it took just $25.4 million ($34 million) on its opening weekend. But in China, it smashed all sorts of records when it opened with $US156 million.

Variety reports that the popularity of the World of Warcraft video game in China was a big factor. So was investment in the movie by four local companies including the state-owned film conglomerate China Film Group, with 26 other companies sponsors.

But the sheer scale of the release was staggering, too: China's Wanda group, which now owns Warcraft producer Legendary Entertainment, opened the movie on 67 per cent of the country's 39,000 screens. In other words, close to 26,000 cinemas.

Opening on a considerably more modest 430 cinemas in Australia last weekend, Warcraft took a solid $3.3 million.

So far it has made $US340 million worldwide. Just $US39 million in the US compares to $US204 million in China.

Mustang wins audience award

Mustang is the story about the demonisation of young female sexuality in a remote Turkish village.

In a timely boost ahead of its opening this week, the Turkish drama Mustang has been voted the audience's favourite narrative feature at the Sydney Film Festival.

Deniz Gamze Ergüven's film centres on five sisters who are lined up to be married after an innocent beachside frolic with their male classmates creates a scandal.

Mustang outpolled, in order, the Danish war drama Land of Mine then three gay coming-of-age stories – Australian director Craig Boreham's Teenage Kicks, which had its world premiere at the festival, France's Being 17 and Canada's Closet Monster.

The audience's favourite documentaries were Aaron Petersen's Zach's Ceremony, Belinda Mason's Constance on the Edge, Morgan Neville's The Music of Strangers: Yo-Yo Ma and The Silk Road Ensemble, Bernard MacMahon's American Epic: Out of the Many, The One and Ros Horin's The Baulkham Hills African Ladies Troupe.

Jackman movie to shoot overseas

It was a chance of shooting in Australia but the word is that Hugh Jackman's new musical about circus owner P.T. Barnum will shoot in the US.

At the CineEurope cinema trade show in Barcelona, debut Australian director Michael Gracey has talked about his vision for what he called a "return to the classic film musical", likening the movie to West Side Story, Mary Poppins and The Sound of Music.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, concept art and musical numbers for the planned 20th Century Fox movie were unveiled, as well as videos of Jackman and the team in rehearsals.

There was also a glimpse of the sets of Ridley Scott's Alien: Covenant, which is filming in Sydney with a cast that includes Michael Fassbender, Katherine Waterston and Demian Bichir.

"I think this will scare the shit out of people," Scott said in a video.

Pioneer admits "we blew it" on 3D

Avatar was groundbreaking for 3D.

One of the greatest advocates for 3D movies revolutionising cinema, Dreamworks Animation boss Jeffrey Katzenberg, has admitted the industry mucked it up.

"Unfortunately, we blew it on 3D," he said at CinemEurope. "It was a game-changing opportunity for the industry.

"When you gave them an exceptional film that artistically, creatively embraced and celebrated the uniqueness of that experience, people were happy to pay the premium."

Katzenberg cited Avatar, Monsters vs Aliens and Life of Pi as examples.

But other producers had "taken the low-road and gimmicked it," he said. "Instantly, we lost goodwill."

Katzenberg believes some of that goodwill may be made up when Avatar 2 opens in two years.

Twitter @gmaddox​