The new projects from two-time Palme d’Or winner Ruben Östlund (The Triangle of Sadness, The Square); Irish director Lorcan Finnegan (Vivarium and upcoming Nicolas Cage thriller The Surfer); and Polish filmmaker Agnieszka Smoczyńska, director of Letitia Wright/Tamara Lawrance-starrer The Silent Twins, will be pitching to potential backers at this year’s Cannes Investors Circle, an event organized by the Cannes film market that aims to bring together top art-house talent with producers and financiers.
The 2024 Cannes Investors Circle event, held on May 19 at the Plage des Palmes, will showcase 10 never-before-seen films in various stages of development to an exclusive group of investors and film financing experts. The projects range in budget from €1 million ($1.07 million) to more than €20 million ($21.4 million) and have been specifically curated by the market.
“The aim of the Marché du Film with the Cannes Investors Circle is to support artistically and financially
ambitious film projects,...
The 2024 Cannes Investors Circle event, held on May 19 at the Plage des Palmes, will showcase 10 never-before-seen films in various stages of development to an exclusive group of investors and film financing experts. The projects range in budget from €1 million ($1.07 million) to more than €20 million ($21.4 million) and have been specifically curated by the market.
“The aim of the Marché du Film with the Cannes Investors Circle is to support artistically and financially
ambitious film projects,...
- 4/30/2024
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Palme d’Or winning director Ruben Östlund is among 10 directors selected to present their upcoming feature film projects at the second edition of the Cannes Marché du Film’s Investors Circle initiative.
The one-day event, taking place on May 19, is aimed at connecting elevated, international feature film projects with film financiers and high-net worth individuals with a desire to invest in cinema.
Östlund, who won the Palme d’Or for The Square and Triangle of Sadness, which was also nominated for three Oscars, will attend the event in person.
The Marché du Film did not give details of the projects being showcased, but it is likely the director will be talking about upcoming airplane disaster movie The Entertainment System is Down, which he told Deadline last year he hopes to shoot in early 2025.
Other filmmakers due in Cannes for the event include Japan’s Chie Hayakawa, whose feature film debut...
The one-day event, taking place on May 19, is aimed at connecting elevated, international feature film projects with film financiers and high-net worth individuals with a desire to invest in cinema.
Östlund, who won the Palme d’Or for The Square and Triangle of Sadness, which was also nominated for three Oscars, will attend the event in person.
The Marché du Film did not give details of the projects being showcased, but it is likely the director will be talking about upcoming airplane disaster movie The Entertainment System is Down, which he told Deadline last year he hopes to shoot in early 2025.
Other filmmakers due in Cannes for the event include Japan’s Chie Hayakawa, whose feature film debut...
- 4/30/2024
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
The second edition of the Cannes Market’s Investors Circle will see 10 filmmakers, including Ruben Östlund and Nadav Lapid, present their latest projects to private investors.
The directors and their lead producers will pitch their films, which range from €1-20m in budget, on May 19 at an invitation-only event in the Plage des Palmes.
Alongside Östlund and Lapid is Japanese filmmaker Chie Hayakawa, whose debut Plan 75 received a Camera d’Or special mention in 2022. Other directors include Irish filmmaker Lorcan Finnegan, who is already at the festival for Midnight Screenings title The Surfer, and Italian director Laura Samani who...
The directors and their lead producers will pitch their films, which range from €1-20m in budget, on May 19 at an invitation-only event in the Plage des Palmes.
Alongside Östlund and Lapid is Japanese filmmaker Chie Hayakawa, whose debut Plan 75 received a Camera d’Or special mention in 2022. Other directors include Irish filmmaker Lorcan Finnegan, who is already at the festival for Midnight Screenings title The Surfer, and Italian director Laura Samani who...
- 4/30/2024
- ScreenDaily
The 1983 underground hit follows a woman who works at a pornographic cinema.
UK distributor Other Parties has acquired UK and Ireland rights to the 2k restoration of Bette Gordon’s 1983 underground hit Variety.
The film will have a theatrical release in August this year, followed by a Blu-ray release.
Variety centres around a young woman whose job at a pornographic cinema near Times Square awakens her sexuality. It originally premiered at Toronto and Cannes back in 1983.
Sandy McLeod leads the cast with Will Patton, Richard Davidson, Luis Guzman and the photographer, and subject of recent documentary All The Beauty And The Bloodshed,...
UK distributor Other Parties has acquired UK and Ireland rights to the 2k restoration of Bette Gordon’s 1983 underground hit Variety.
The film will have a theatrical release in August this year, followed by a Blu-ray release.
Variety centres around a young woman whose job at a pornographic cinema near Times Square awakens her sexuality. It originally premiered at Toronto and Cannes back in 1983.
Sandy McLeod leads the cast with Will Patton, Richard Davidson, Luis Guzman and the photographer, and subject of recent documentary All The Beauty And The Bloodshed,...
- 6/15/2023
- by Ellie Calnan
- ScreenDaily
The European Film Academy (Efa) has unveiled 462 film professionals as new members in an announcement timed to coincide with Europe Day on May 9.
The new arrivals will be eligible to vote in the academy’s European Film Awards, the region’s equivalent to the Academy Awards, as well as contribute to its other initiatives across the year.
The Efa said a record number of professionals had accepted to join the organization this year, adding that 50% were female, 49%, were male, and 1% defined as non-binary.
The bigger intake comes amid a drive to revamp the academy which recently announced it would be moving the Efa ceremony to January in 2026, from its traditional December slot, to make it more relevant in the annual film awards season culminating with the Oscars.
The Efa currently now counts 4,600 members based in 52 countries.
The new members mainly hailed from Germany (68), France (38), Switzerland (37), Poland (36), Italy (33), Spain (24), UK (28) and...
The new arrivals will be eligible to vote in the academy’s European Film Awards, the region’s equivalent to the Academy Awards, as well as contribute to its other initiatives across the year.
The Efa said a record number of professionals had accepted to join the organization this year, adding that 50% were female, 49%, were male, and 1% defined as non-binary.
The bigger intake comes amid a drive to revamp the academy which recently announced it would be moving the Efa ceremony to January in 2026, from its traditional December slot, to make it more relevant in the annual film awards season culminating with the Oscars.
The Efa currently now counts 4,600 members based in 52 countries.
The new members mainly hailed from Germany (68), France (38), Switzerland (37), Poland (36), Italy (33), Spain (24), UK (28) and...
- 5/9/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
50% of new members are women, 49% are men and 1% are non-binary.
The European Film Academy has welcomed a record intake of 462 new members, including US-Italian actor Willem Dafoe, Austrian director Marie Kreutzer, and Mia Bays, head of the BFI Film Fund.
The new members have been announced today, May 9, on Europe Day, a day promoted by the European Union for celebrating peace and unity in Europe.
European Film Academy members are invited to join the organisation once per year; it currently has 4,600 members in 52 countries.
Dafoe, who is known for roles in films including Platoon, Spider-Man and The Florida Project, was born in the US,...
The European Film Academy has welcomed a record intake of 462 new members, including US-Italian actor Willem Dafoe, Austrian director Marie Kreutzer, and Mia Bays, head of the BFI Film Fund.
The new members have been announced today, May 9, on Europe Day, a day promoted by the European Union for celebrating peace and unity in Europe.
European Film Academy members are invited to join the organisation once per year; it currently has 4,600 members in 52 countries.
Dafoe, who is known for roles in films including Platoon, Spider-Man and The Florida Project, was born in the US,...
- 5/9/2023
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Triangle Of Sadness Photo: Courtesy of Cannes Film Festival Ruben Östlund's Triangle Of Sadness was the big winner at the European Film Awards earlier this evening in Reykjavik.
The satire about a group of super-rich people stranded on an island, won the prizes for best European film, director, screenwriter, along with the actor's gong for Zlatko Burić.
It was a good night for satire, as Fernando León de Aranoa's Javier Bardem starrer The Good Boss was named best comedy.
The Fipresci prize for European Discovery went to Small Body, directed by Laura Samani, while Vicky Krieps won the actress award for Corsage.
Mariupolis 2, the posthumous documentary by Mantas Kvedaravicius, which was completed by co-director Hanna Bilobrava after he was killed in Ukraine, was named best documentary. The best animation award went to Alain Ughetto's No Dogs Or Italians Allowed.
Documentary Granny's Sexual Life, directed by Urška Djukic...
The satire about a group of super-rich people stranded on an island, won the prizes for best European film, director, screenwriter, along with the actor's gong for Zlatko Burić.
It was a good night for satire, as Fernando León de Aranoa's Javier Bardem starrer The Good Boss was named best comedy.
The Fipresci prize for European Discovery went to Small Body, directed by Laura Samani, while Vicky Krieps won the actress award for Corsage.
Mariupolis 2, the posthumous documentary by Mantas Kvedaravicius, which was completed by co-director Hanna Bilobrava after he was killed in Ukraine, was named best documentary. The best animation award went to Alain Ughetto's No Dogs Or Italians Allowed.
Documentary Granny's Sexual Life, directed by Urška Djukic...
- 12/10/2022
- by Amber Wilkinson
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Ruben Östlund’s latest satire, Triangle of Sadness, dominated the European Film Awards with four wins, including Best Film, the evening’s top prize.
Östlund also picked up the Best Screenplay and Best Director Awards for his work on the film, and Zlatko Burić nabbed Best Actor for his leading role.
The film, which picked up this year’s Palme d’Or, follows Carl (Harris Dickinson) and Yaya (Charlbi Dean), a celebrity model couple who are invited on a luxury cruise for the uber-rich, helmed by an unhinged boat captain (Woody Harrelson). What first appeared Instagrammable ends catastrophically, leaving the survivors stranded on a desert island and fighting to stay alive.
In other top prizes, Vicky Krieps won the Best Actress award for the well-received period drama Corsage, and the Javier Bardem starrer, The Good Boss, won Best Comedy.
The awards ceremony, overseen by the European Film Academy, took place...
Östlund also picked up the Best Screenplay and Best Director Awards for his work on the film, and Zlatko Burić nabbed Best Actor for his leading role.
The film, which picked up this year’s Palme d’Or, follows Carl (Harris Dickinson) and Yaya (Charlbi Dean), a celebrity model couple who are invited on a luxury cruise for the uber-rich, helmed by an unhinged boat captain (Woody Harrelson). What first appeared Instagrammable ends catastrophically, leaving the survivors stranded on a desert island and fighting to stay alive.
In other top prizes, Vicky Krieps won the Best Actress award for the well-received period drama Corsage, and the Javier Bardem starrer, The Good Boss, won Best Comedy.
The awards ceremony, overseen by the European Film Academy, took place...
- 12/10/2022
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
The 35th European Film Awards have officially unveiled this year’s nominations.
Lukas Dhont’s queer coming-of-age drama “Close,” Ali Abbasi’s serial-killer thriller “Holy Spider,” and Ruben Östlund’s Palme d’Or-winning “Triangle of Sadness” lead the 2022 nominations, with each film garnering nods in top categories: Best European Film, Best Director, and Screenwriter.
Marie Kreutzer’s “Corsage” lands three nominations, including Best Actress for Vicky Krieps. “Alcarràs” has two nominations, while Venice Golden Lion winner “Saint Omer” picked up one nod for Best European Director for Alice Diop.
The European Film Academy hosts the award ceremony on December 10 in the Icelandic capital of Reykjavík.
German director Margarethe von Trotta will be honored with the European Lifetime Achievement award, and Palestinian filmmaker Elia Suleiman is set to be celebrated with the European Achievement in World Cinema Award. Italian director Marco Bellocchio will receive the Award for European Innovative Storytelling for the limited series “Exterior Night.
Lukas Dhont’s queer coming-of-age drama “Close,” Ali Abbasi’s serial-killer thriller “Holy Spider,” and Ruben Östlund’s Palme d’Or-winning “Triangle of Sadness” lead the 2022 nominations, with each film garnering nods in top categories: Best European Film, Best Director, and Screenwriter.
Marie Kreutzer’s “Corsage” lands three nominations, including Best Actress for Vicky Krieps. “Alcarràs” has two nominations, while Venice Golden Lion winner “Saint Omer” picked up one nod for Best European Director for Alice Diop.
The European Film Academy hosts the award ceremony on December 10 in the Icelandic capital of Reykjavík.
German director Margarethe von Trotta will be honored with the European Lifetime Achievement award, and Palestinian filmmaker Elia Suleiman is set to be celebrated with the European Achievement in World Cinema Award. Italian director Marco Bellocchio will receive the Award for European Innovative Storytelling for the limited series “Exterior Night.
- 11/8/2022
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Film is directed by Mario Martone and stars Pierfrancesco Favino.
Italy has selected Mario Martone’s Nostalgia as its entry for the best international feature film category at the 2023 Academy Awards.
Based on the novel by Ermanno Rea, Nostalgia is set in Martone’s hometown of Naples and stars Pierfrancesco Favino as a man who returns to his origins after four decades of being away.
The film premiered in competition at this year’s Cannes film festival. It is produced by Picomedia, Mad Enertainment and Medusa Film, with True Colours handling international sales.
The other 11 titles under consideration by the...
Italy has selected Mario Martone’s Nostalgia as its entry for the best international feature film category at the 2023 Academy Awards.
Based on the novel by Ermanno Rea, Nostalgia is set in Martone’s hometown of Naples and stars Pierfrancesco Favino as a man who returns to his origins after four decades of being away.
The film premiered in competition at this year’s Cannes film festival. It is produced by Picomedia, Mad Enertainment and Medusa Film, with True Colours handling international sales.
The other 11 titles under consideration by the...
- 9/26/2022
- by Orlando Parfitt
- ScreenDaily
“Rule 34,” a challenging and sexually explicit film from Brazilian director Julia Murat, has emerged as the surprise winner of the Golden Leopard award at this year’s Locarno Film Festival — an edition where typically audacious and formally ambitious work dominated the program. Marking a strong ceremony for female filmmakers, the main competition jury at the Swiss festival also handed an impressive three awards — best director and a brace of acting prizes — to gritty coming-of-age drama “I Have Electric Dreams,” an auspicious debut feature from Costa Rican writer-director Valentina Maurel.
A character study of a young female law student pursuing a parallel calling in amateur online pornography — while defending female abuse victims in her day job — “Rule 34’s” title stems from the popular online meme that “if it exists, there’s a porn version of it.” Murat’s film wasn’t among the buzzier entries in this year’s competition,...
A character study of a young female law student pursuing a parallel calling in amateur online pornography — while defending female abuse victims in her day job — “Rule 34’s” title stems from the popular online meme that “if it exists, there’s a porn version of it.” Murat’s film wasn’t among the buzzier entries in this year’s competition,...
- 8/13/2022
- by Guy Lodge
- Variety Film + TV
Rule 34International Competition(Jury: Michel Merkt, Laura Samani, Prano Bailey-Bond, Alain Guiraudie, William Horberg)Golden Leopard: Rule 34 (Julia Murat)Special Jury Prize: Gigi la legge (The Adventures of Gigi the Law) (Alessandro Comodin)Best Direction: Valentina Maurel (Tengo sueños eléctricos)Best Actress: Daniela Marín Navarro (Tengo sueños eléctricos)Best Actor: Reinaldo Amien Gutiérrez (Tengo sueños eléctricos)Filmmakers Of The Present( Jury: Annick Mahnert, Gitanjali Rao, Katriel Schory )Golden Leopard: Svetlonoc (Nightsiren) (Tereza Nvotová)Special Jury Prize: Yak Tam Katia? (How Is Katia?) (Christina Tynkevych)Prize for Best Emerging Director: Juraj Lerotić (Sigurno mjesto (Safe Place))Best Actress: Anastasia Karpenko (How Is Katia?)Best Actor: Goran Marković (Safe Place)Special Mention: Den siste våren (Franciska Eliassen)First Feature(Jury: Boo Junfeng, Shahram Mokri, Madeline Robert)Best First Feature: Sigurno mjesto (Safe Place) (Juraj Lerotić)Special Mention: Love Dog (Bianca Lucas) and De noche los gatos son pardos (Valentin Merz)Pardi Di Domani(Jury: Walter Fasano,...
- 8/13/2022
- MUBI
The jury comprised of Michel Merkt, Prano Bailey-Bond, Alain Guiraudie, William Horberg and Laura Samani have bestowed the big daddy prize of them all in the Golden Leopard to Brazilian filmmaker Julia Murat‘s Regra 34. Her third fiction feature tells the story of Simone, a 23-year-old who studies criminal law and advocates for women’s rights and at night she performs in front of a live sex cam. One night watching a film awakens her dark impulses for a more dangerous means of sexual gratification.
The jury gave the Special Jury Prize to Alessandro Comodin for Gigi La Legge while Belgium/France/Costa Rica co-production Tengo Sueños Eléctricos was handsomely rewarded with three prizes winning by Best Direction (Valentina Maurel), Best Actress (Daniela Marín Navarro) and Best Actor (Reinaldo Amien Gutiérrez).…...
The jury gave the Special Jury Prize to Alessandro Comodin for Gigi La Legge while Belgium/France/Costa Rica co-production Tengo Sueños Eléctricos was handsomely rewarded with three prizes winning by Best Direction (Valentina Maurel), Best Actress (Daniela Marín Navarro) and Best Actor (Reinaldo Amien Gutiérrez).…...
- 8/13/2022
- by Eric Lavallée
- IONCINEMA.com
Brazilian filmmaker Julia Murat clinched the Golden Leopard prize in the main international competition of the 75th Locarno Film Festival with her latest feature Rule 34.
The film follows Simone, a young law student who finds a passion for defending women in abuse cases. Yet her own sexual interests lead her to a world of violence and eroticism.
Rule 34 is Murat’s third feature film after Pendular, which picked up the Fipresci Prize at the 2017 Berlinale. The Brazillian filmmaker’s first film, Found Memories, debuted at Venice.
Locarno’s Golden Leopard comes with a Chf 75,000 cash prize to be shared equally between the director and the producer. Murat produced the film alongside Tatiana Leite.
This year’s Golden Leopard competition jury was comprised of Swiss producer Michel Merkt, British filmmaker Prano Bailey-Bond, French filmmaker Alain Guiraudie, American producer William Horberg, and Italian director Laura Samani.
In other main competition awards, the...
The film follows Simone, a young law student who finds a passion for defending women in abuse cases. Yet her own sexual interests lead her to a world of violence and eroticism.
Rule 34 is Murat’s third feature film after Pendular, which picked up the Fipresci Prize at the 2017 Berlinale. The Brazillian filmmaker’s first film, Found Memories, debuted at Venice.
Locarno’s Golden Leopard comes with a Chf 75,000 cash prize to be shared equally between the director and the producer. Murat produced the film alongside Tatiana Leite.
This year’s Golden Leopard competition jury was comprised of Swiss producer Michel Merkt, British filmmaker Prano Bailey-Bond, French filmmaker Alain Guiraudie, American producer William Horberg, and Italian director Laura Samani.
In other main competition awards, the...
- 8/13/2022
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
‘Small Body’ Producer Tomsa Films Boards Andrei Epure’s First Feature ‘Don’t Let Me Die’ (Exclusive)
Paris-based Tomsa Films will co-produce Andrei Epure’s first feature “Don’t Let Me Die.” The company, created in 2018, is also behind Laura Samani’s acclaimed Cannes Critics’ Week premiere “Small Body” and documentary “Zaho Zay.”
“Don’t Let Me Die” follows the consequences of a woman’s death in front of her apartment building. Her neighbor, Maria, is interrogated by the police and eventually takes charge of the funeral. She finds herself entangled in a maze of bureaucracy as she tries to escape the feeling that she is being haunted.
Produced by Alexandru Teodorescu and Ana Gheorghe of Bucharest-based production company Saga Film, the project has received production funding from the Romanian Cnc and is about to apply for financing in France. At the moment, production is scheduled to start at the beginning of 2024.
“I was riding the bus one day and some strangers were talking about a Romanian...
“Don’t Let Me Die” follows the consequences of a woman’s death in front of her apartment building. Her neighbor, Maria, is interrogated by the police and eventually takes charge of the funeral. She finds herself entangled in a maze of bureaucracy as she tries to escape the feeling that she is being haunted.
Produced by Alexandru Teodorescu and Ana Gheorghe of Bucharest-based production company Saga Film, the project has received production funding from the Romanian Cnc and is about to apply for financing in France. At the moment, production is scheduled to start at the beginning of 2024.
“I was riding the bus one day and some strangers were talking about a Romanian...
- 8/7/2022
- by Marta Balaga
- Variety Film + TV
Ten world premieres among 17 international competition titles.
The Locarno Film Festival (August 3-13) has revealed the line-up for its 75th edition, which includes the world premiere of Russian filmmaker Aleksandr Sokurov’s Fairytale.
The international competition will comprise 17 films, including 10 world premieres, which will vie for the coveted Golden Leopard awards.
Scroll down for full line-up
These titles include Fairytale, a Belgium-Russia co-production written and directed by Sokurov, whose films have played in Competition at Cannes five times with features including Russian Ark in 2002. His debut The Lonely Voice Of a Man received the Bronze Leopard in Locarno in 1987.
The...
The Locarno Film Festival (August 3-13) has revealed the line-up for its 75th edition, which includes the world premiere of Russian filmmaker Aleksandr Sokurov’s Fairytale.
The international competition will comprise 17 films, including 10 world premieres, which will vie for the coveted Golden Leopard awards.
Scroll down for full line-up
These titles include Fairytale, a Belgium-Russia co-production written and directed by Sokurov, whose films have played in Competition at Cannes five times with features including Russian Ark in 2002. His debut The Lonely Voice Of a Man received the Bronze Leopard in Locarno in 1987.
The...
- 7/6/2022
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
Switzerland’s Locarno Film Festival has revealed the lineup for its 75th edition, sticking to its promise of discovering new talent.
A slew of debuting filmmakers will showcase their works, from Italy’s Nicola Prosatore with “Piano Piano” to Caterina Mona, focusing in “Semret” on an Eritrean single mother working at a Zurich hospital and dreaming of becoming a midwife.
Thomas Hardiman’s U.K.’s proposition “Medusa Deluxe,” a murder mystery set in a competitive hairdressing competition — boarded by New Europe Film Sales — is also bound to generate some excitement.
“‘Medusa Deluxe’ is one of the coolest debuts of the year,” the company’s CEO Jan Naszewski enthused to Variety.
“I’m sure it will rock the Piazza Grande and give the festival a great spark.”
But Locarno will also bring in heavyweights, starting with a screening of the much-anticipated Brad Pitt vehicle “Bullet Train,” directed by “Atomic Blond” helmer David Leitch,...
A slew of debuting filmmakers will showcase their works, from Italy’s Nicola Prosatore with “Piano Piano” to Caterina Mona, focusing in “Semret” on an Eritrean single mother working at a Zurich hospital and dreaming of becoming a midwife.
Thomas Hardiman’s U.K.’s proposition “Medusa Deluxe,” a murder mystery set in a competitive hairdressing competition — boarded by New Europe Film Sales — is also bound to generate some excitement.
“‘Medusa Deluxe’ is one of the coolest debuts of the year,” the company’s CEO Jan Naszewski enthused to Variety.
“I’m sure it will rock the Piazza Grande and give the festival a great spark.”
But Locarno will also bring in heavyweights, starting with a screening of the much-anticipated Brad Pitt vehicle “Bullet Train,” directed by “Atomic Blond” helmer David Leitch,...
- 7/6/2022
- by Marta Balaga
- Variety Film + TV
The Hand Of God won four prizes including best film, best director and best supporting actress.
Paolo Sorrentino’s The Hand Of God won four prizes at the 67th David di Donatello awards, including best film (the first Netflix title to do so), best director and best supporting actress for Teresa Saponangelo.
The Oscar-nominated coming-of-age drama also shared the cinematography prize with Gabriele Mainetti’s Venice competition title Freaks Out, which won six awards in total, including prizes for the producers, production design, hairdressing, make-up and VFX.
The two films both had the highest number of nominations with 16.
The in-person...
Paolo Sorrentino’s The Hand Of God won four prizes at the 67th David di Donatello awards, including best film (the first Netflix title to do so), best director and best supporting actress for Teresa Saponangelo.
The Oscar-nominated coming-of-age drama also shared the cinematography prize with Gabriele Mainetti’s Venice competition title Freaks Out, which won six awards in total, including prizes for the producers, production design, hairdressing, make-up and VFX.
The two films both had the highest number of nominations with 16.
The in-person...
- 5/4/2022
- by Gabriele Niola
- ScreenDaily
The David di Donatello Awards were held in Rome on Tuesday evening, the first time Italy’s equivalent to the Oscar has had a fully in-person ceremony in the pandemic era. Taking top honors was Paolo Sorrentino’s The Hand Of God which scooped Best Film and Director as well as Best Supporting Actress for Teresa Saponangelo and a tie for Best Cinematography. In the latter category, The Hand Of God shared the win with Freaks Out, a fantasy drama that likewise debuted in Venice.
Sorrentino’s autobiographical drama launched on the Lido last September where it won the Grand Jury Prize. A Netflix title, it went on to myriad festival and critics prizes and was also nominated for an Oscar as Best International Feature.
Freaks Out, directed by Gabriele Mainetti, also picked up prizes for Producer, Production Design, Hair and Makeup. Other titles to figure in the David di...
Sorrentino’s autobiographical drama launched on the Lido last September where it won the Grand Jury Prize. A Netflix title, it went on to myriad festival and critics prizes and was also nominated for an Oscar as Best International Feature.
Freaks Out, directed by Gabriele Mainetti, also picked up prizes for Producer, Production Design, Hair and Makeup. Other titles to figure in the David di...
- 5/4/2022
- by Nancy Tartaglione
- Deadline Film + TV
Paolo Sorrentino’s Oscar-nominated autobiographical drama “The Hand of God” took top honors at Italy’s 67th David di Donatello Awards, winning best picture, director, supporting actress and tying for the best cinematography statuette.
Sorrentino’s Naples-set film about the personal tragedy and other vicissitudes that drove him to become a top notch film director had been the frontrunner along with young helmer Gabriele Mainetti’s second feature, the elegant effects-laden historical fantasy “Freaks Out.”
“Freaks Out” won six prizes, including for its producer, Andrea Occhipinti, as well as cinematographer, set design, and effects.
The cinematography prize, which was a tie, was split between “Hand of God” Dp Daria D’Antonio, marking the first time this David goes to a woman, and Michele Attanasio for “Freaks Out.”
The Davids were held as a fully in-person ceremony at Rome’s Cinecittà studios just as the famed facilities undergo a radical renewal being...
Sorrentino’s Naples-set film about the personal tragedy and other vicissitudes that drove him to become a top notch film director had been the frontrunner along with young helmer Gabriele Mainetti’s second feature, the elegant effects-laden historical fantasy “Freaks Out.”
“Freaks Out” won six prizes, including for its producer, Andrea Occhipinti, as well as cinematographer, set design, and effects.
The cinematography prize, which was a tie, was split between “Hand of God” Dp Daria D’Antonio, marking the first time this David goes to a woman, and Michele Attanasio for “Freaks Out.”
The Davids were held as a fully in-person ceremony at Rome’s Cinecittà studios just as the famed facilities undergo a radical renewal being...
- 5/3/2022
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
As they celebrate being held as a physical event, Italy’s upcoming 67th David di Donatello Awards epitomize the ongoing shift in generations and genres that is underway in Cinema Italiano.
Leading the pack this year are seasoned auteur Paolo Sorrentino’s most personal film “The Hand of God” and young helmer Gabriele Mainetti’s second feature, the elegant effects-laden historical fantasy “Freaks Out,” which is set in 1943 Rome and involves four “freaks” working in a circus when the Eternal City is bombed by Allied Forces. Both pics scored 16 nominations each.
Close behind are Mario Martone’s classic biopic “The King of Laughter,” about popular early 20th-century Neapolitan actor and playwright Eduardo Scarpetta, with 14 noms. Then come Leonardo Di Costanzo’s subtle prison drama “Ariaferma” and “Diabolik,” an adaptation of a comic book about a charming master thief, directed by Marco and Antonio Manetti, both with 11 noms a piece.
“We...
Leading the pack this year are seasoned auteur Paolo Sorrentino’s most personal film “The Hand of God” and young helmer Gabriele Mainetti’s second feature, the elegant effects-laden historical fantasy “Freaks Out,” which is set in 1943 Rome and involves four “freaks” working in a circus when the Eternal City is bombed by Allied Forces. Both pics scored 16 nominations each.
Close behind are Mario Martone’s classic biopic “The King of Laughter,” about popular early 20th-century Neapolitan actor and playwright Eduardo Scarpetta, with 14 noms. Then come Leonardo Di Costanzo’s subtle prison drama “Ariaferma” and “Diabolik,” an adaptation of a comic book about a charming master thief, directed by Marco and Antonio Manetti, both with 11 noms a piece.
“We...
- 4/30/2022
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Paolo Sorrentino’s “The Hand of God” and Gabriele Mainetti’s “Freaks Out” lead the pack at the David di Donatello Awards this year with 16 nominations each.
Here’s the complete list of nominees:
Picture
“Ariaferma” (The Inner Cage), Leonardo Di Costanzo
“The Hand of God,” Paolo Sorrentino
“Ennio,” Giuseppe Tornatore
“Freaks Out,” Gabriele Mainetti
“Qui Rido Io” (The King of Laughter), Mario Martone
Director
“Ariaferma” (The Inner Cage), Leonardo Di Costanzo
“The Hand of God,” Paolo Sorrentino
“Ennio,” Giuseppe Tornatore
“Freaks Out,” Gabriele Mainetti
“Qui Rido Io” (The King of Laughter), Mario Martone
Debut Director
“The Bad Poet,” Gianluca Jodice
“Maternal,” Maura Delpero
“Small Body,” Laura Samani
“Re Granchio” (The Legend of King Crab), Alessio Rigo De Righi, Matteo Zoppis
“Una Femmina” (The Code of Silence), Francesco Constabile
Producer
“A Chiara,” Jon Coplon, Paolo Carpignano, Ryan Zacarias, Jonas Carpignano (Stayblack Productions) — Rai Cinema
“Ariaferma” (The Inner Cage), Carlo Cresto...
Here’s the complete list of nominees:
Picture
“Ariaferma” (The Inner Cage), Leonardo Di Costanzo
“The Hand of God,” Paolo Sorrentino
“Ennio,” Giuseppe Tornatore
“Freaks Out,” Gabriele Mainetti
“Qui Rido Io” (The King of Laughter), Mario Martone
Director
“Ariaferma” (The Inner Cage), Leonardo Di Costanzo
“The Hand of God,” Paolo Sorrentino
“Ennio,” Giuseppe Tornatore
“Freaks Out,” Gabriele Mainetti
“Qui Rido Io” (The King of Laughter), Mario Martone
Debut Director
“The Bad Poet,” Gianluca Jodice
“Maternal,” Maura Delpero
“Small Body,” Laura Samani
“Re Granchio” (The Legend of King Crab), Alessio Rigo De Righi, Matteo Zoppis
“Una Femmina” (The Code of Silence), Francesco Constabile
Producer
“A Chiara,” Jon Coplon, Paolo Carpignano, Ryan Zacarias, Jonas Carpignano (Stayblack Productions) — Rai Cinema
“Ariaferma” (The Inner Cage), Carlo Cresto...
- 4/30/2022
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Germany, US, India among countries represented.
Italy’s TorinoFilmLab (Tfl) has selected 10 fiction feature film projects at an advanced development stage for its 2022 FeatureLab, which will run from June to November this year.
The projects include six debut features and four second features; there are 21 participants across the 10 creative teams, including 14 women, six men and one non-binary person. They were selected from 134 applications from 60 countries.
Scroll down for the full list of projects
Among the selection are Mexican writer-director Marta Hernaiz Pidal with Straight Ahead, On Your Right. The film centres on the meeting between a group of posh teenage...
Italy’s TorinoFilmLab (Tfl) has selected 10 fiction feature film projects at an advanced development stage for its 2022 FeatureLab, which will run from June to November this year.
The projects include six debut features and four second features; there are 21 participants across the 10 creative teams, including 14 women, six men and one non-binary person. They were selected from 134 applications from 60 countries.
Scroll down for the full list of projects
Among the selection are Mexican writer-director Marta Hernaiz Pidal with Straight Ahead, On Your Right. The film centres on the meeting between a group of posh teenage...
- 4/29/2022
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Festival titles ‘The Outfit’, ‘Murina’, ‘Compartment No. 6’ all debut.
Warner Bros’ Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets Of Dumbledore will try to invoke some of the Harry Potter franchise’s past magic as the major title opening at UK-Ireland cinemas this weekend.
The Secrets Of Dumbledore – the third film in the Fantastic Beasts spin-off series – will open in 716 locations, the widest-ever opening for Warner Bros, topping the 709 of The Batman from last month.
It is the eighth-widest opening of all time, just behind the 718 sites of Disney’s Death On The Nile from February.
The previous two Fantastic Beasts films opened in...
Warner Bros’ Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets Of Dumbledore will try to invoke some of the Harry Potter franchise’s past magic as the major title opening at UK-Ireland cinemas this weekend.
The Secrets Of Dumbledore – the third film in the Fantastic Beasts spin-off series – will open in 716 locations, the widest-ever opening for Warner Bros, topping the 709 of The Batman from last month.
It is the eighth-widest opening of all time, just behind the 718 sites of Disney’s Death On The Nile from February.
The previous two Fantastic Beasts films opened in...
- 4/8/2022
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
The 10 producers will receive support in reaching the next level of their careers.
International producers organisation Ace Producers has selected 10 up-and-coming producers from the EU, Norway and UK for the first edition of its Ace Mentoring Programme EU.
They include Clara Jantzen Kreinoe of Denmark’s Snowglobe Film, who has worked on titles including Jeanette Nordahl’s Wildland and Hlynur Palmason’s A White, White Day; and Thomas Lambert of France’s Tomsa Films, co-producer of Laura Samani’s Cannes 2021 Critics’ Week title Small Body.
Scroll down for the full list of producers
Also selected are Krystyna Kantor, who was...
International producers organisation Ace Producers has selected 10 up-and-coming producers from the EU, Norway and UK for the first edition of its Ace Mentoring Programme EU.
They include Clara Jantzen Kreinoe of Denmark’s Snowglobe Film, who has worked on titles including Jeanette Nordahl’s Wildland and Hlynur Palmason’s A White, White Day; and Thomas Lambert of France’s Tomsa Films, co-producer of Laura Samani’s Cannes 2021 Critics’ Week title Small Body.
Scroll down for the full list of producers
Also selected are Krystyna Kantor, who was...
- 4/7/2022
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
The school half-term holidays saw the release of family-friendly fare at the U.K. and Ireland box office and consequently Paramount’s animated sequel “Sonic The Hedgehog 2” claimed the box office crown. The film debuted with £4.9 million (6.5 million), according to numbers released by Comscore.
The other big family targeted release, Universal’s “The Bad Guys,” debuted in third place with 2.2 million. Debuting in second place was considerably darker fare, Sony’s “Morbius,’ which collected £3.2 million.
After four weeks at the top, Warner Bros.’ “The Batman” dropped down to fourth position in its fifth weekend with £1.2 million and now has a total of £37.8 million.
Rounding off the top five was Universal’s “Ambulance,” which collected £273,015 in its second weekend for a total of £1.1 million.
The big release for the upcoming weekend is the latest film in J.K. Rowling’s Fantastic Beasts franchise, “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore,” which Warner Bros....
The other big family targeted release, Universal’s “The Bad Guys,” debuted in third place with 2.2 million. Debuting in second place was considerably darker fare, Sony’s “Morbius,’ which collected £3.2 million.
After four weeks at the top, Warner Bros.’ “The Batman” dropped down to fourth position in its fifth weekend with £1.2 million and now has a total of £37.8 million.
Rounding off the top five was Universal’s “Ambulance,” which collected £273,015 in its second weekend for a total of £1.1 million.
The big release for the upcoming weekend is the latest film in J.K. Rowling’s Fantastic Beasts franchise, “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore,” which Warner Bros....
- 4/5/2022
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Mystery and an air of magic run through Laura Samani’s dark folktale about a young woman in shock after the stillborn death of her first child
Laura Samani’s debut feature is a movie folktale: hard, weathered and knotted, like a piece of driftwood. In north-east Italy at the beginning of the 20th century, a young woman called Agata (Celeste Cescutti) is in shock after the stillborn death of her first child. Her priest tells her that the child is now doomed to wander Limbo in eternity because the baby died before being baptised.
Agata is shown undergoing a folk redemption or healing ceremony on the beach, but for her it is clearly more like her own kind of desolate emotional funeral; yet Agata hears that there is a church somewhere to the north whose priest has the supernatural power to bring a dead child back to life for a single breath,...
Laura Samani’s debut feature is a movie folktale: hard, weathered and knotted, like a piece of driftwood. In north-east Italy at the beginning of the 20th century, a young woman called Agata (Celeste Cescutti) is in shock after the stillborn death of her first child. Her priest tells her that the child is now doomed to wander Limbo in eternity because the baby died before being baptised.
Agata is shown undergoing a folk redemption or healing ceremony on the beach, but for her it is clearly more like her own kind of desolate emotional funeral; yet Agata hears that there is a church somewhere to the north whose priest has the supernatural power to bring a dead child back to life for a single breath,...
- 4/5/2022
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
Mexican director Joaquin del Paso’s coming-of-age drama “The Hole in the Fence,” set in an all-male religious camp in rural Mexico, scored the Cairo Film Festival’s top prize, the Golden Pyramid, on Sunday capping a vibrant 43rd edition of the preeminent Arab event, which was held in person despite the impending threat of the coronavirus Omicron variant.
Though there were some last minute cancellations, most international attendees made the trek to Cairo undeterred, including jury president Emir Kusturica, U.S. producer Lawrence Bender and Cannes topper Thierry Fremaux – dubbed the “King of the Croisette” by the master of ceremonies. The latter two were honored with lifetime achievement awards during the glitzy closing ceremony in Cairo’s opera house.
“Hole in the Fence,” which world premiered in Venice, is Del Paso’s second work after “Panamerican Machinery,” which had made a splash after launching from Berlin in 2016. “Hole” explores...
Though there were some last minute cancellations, most international attendees made the trek to Cairo undeterred, including jury president Emir Kusturica, U.S. producer Lawrence Bender and Cannes topper Thierry Fremaux – dubbed the “King of the Croisette” by the master of ceremonies. The latter two were honored with lifetime achievement awards during the glitzy closing ceremony in Cairo’s opera house.
“Hole in the Fence,” which world premiered in Venice, is Del Paso’s second work after “Panamerican Machinery,” which had made a splash after launching from Berlin in 2016. “Hole” explores...
- 12/6/2021
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Les Arcs Film Festival, the European film fest programmed by Tribeca’s artistic director Frederic Boyer and set in the French Alps, has unveiled the lineup of its Coproduction Village which will be back as a live event after a virtual 2020 edition. The 13th edition of the industry sidebar will showcase 18 projects in development from 11 countries, including 8 projects directed by female directors.
Projects by female directors represented 34% of projects submitted and 44% of the final selection. There are seven feature debuts, and five projects by more experienced filmmakers. The coproduction Village aims at helping filmmakers find co-producers, sales agents, distributors and other financial partners.
Selected projects, which will all vie for the international ArteKino prize worth €6,000, include Frida Kempff’s historical drama “The Swedish Torpedo” and Johanna Pyykkö’s LGBT coming-of-age “Sweden-Finn,” produced by Swedish banners Momento Film and Verket Produktion, respectively; Stephan Komandarev’s drama “Made In Eu,” produced by...
Projects by female directors represented 34% of projects submitted and 44% of the final selection. There are seven feature debuts, and five projects by more experienced filmmakers. The coproduction Village aims at helping filmmakers find co-producers, sales agents, distributors and other financial partners.
Selected projects, which will all vie for the international ArteKino prize worth €6,000, include Frida Kempff’s historical drama “The Swedish Torpedo” and Johanna Pyykkö’s LGBT coming-of-age “Sweden-Finn,” produced by Swedish banners Momento Film and Verket Produktion, respectively; Stephan Komandarev’s drama “Made In Eu,” produced by...
- 11/18/2021
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Greece’s Thessaloniki International Film Festival (TIFF) took place as a hybrid event from November 4-14.
French director Samuel Theis’ Softie has won the Golden Alexander-Theo Angelopoulos for best film at Greece’s Thessaloniki International Film Festival (TIFF) which took place as a hybrid event from November 4-14. The award is a cash prize of €10,000.
The French production, which premiered in Cannes’ Critics Week, follows Johnny, a sensitive and intelligent 10-year-old boy living with his single mother, as he searches for a father figure in his new school teacher.
The international competition jury headed by Belgian film maker Nanouk Leopold...
French director Samuel Theis’ Softie has won the Golden Alexander-Theo Angelopoulos for best film at Greece’s Thessaloniki International Film Festival (TIFF) which took place as a hybrid event from November 4-14. The award is a cash prize of €10,000.
The French production, which premiered in Cannes’ Critics Week, follows Johnny, a sensitive and intelligent 10-year-old boy living with his single mother, as he searches for a father figure in his new school teacher.
The international competition jury headed by Belgian film maker Nanouk Leopold...
- 11/17/2021
- by Alexis Grivas
- ScreenDaily
Samuel Theis’ “Softie” won the top prize at the 62nd Thessaloniki Film Festival, which wrapped Sunday night with a ceremony in Greece’s second city.
The film, which premiered in Cannes’ Critics’ Week section, was awarded the Golden Alexander and a €10,000 cash prize by a jury comprised of writer-director Nanouk Leopold, sound designer Roland Vajs and actor Michelle Valley.
The Special Jury Award was given to “Clara Sola,” by Natalie Álvarez Mesén, while the Special Jury Award for best director went to Lorenzo Vigas for “The Box.”
The award for best actress went to Sofia Kokkali for her performance in “Moon, 66 Questions,” by director Jacqueline Lentzou. Aliocha Reinert won the prize for best actor for his role in Golden Alexander winner “Softie.” The award for best screenplay went to Laurynas Bareiša for his film “Pilgrims,” while a special mention was given to Alexandre Koberidze for “What Do We See When We Look at the Sky?...
The film, which premiered in Cannes’ Critics’ Week section, was awarded the Golden Alexander and a €10,000 cash prize by a jury comprised of writer-director Nanouk Leopold, sound designer Roland Vajs and actor Michelle Valley.
The Special Jury Award was given to “Clara Sola,” by Natalie Álvarez Mesén, while the Special Jury Award for best director went to Lorenzo Vigas for “The Box.”
The award for best actress went to Sofia Kokkali for her performance in “Moon, 66 Questions,” by director Jacqueline Lentzou. Aliocha Reinert won the prize for best actor for his role in Golden Alexander winner “Softie.” The award for best screenplay went to Laurynas Bareiša for his film “Pilgrims,” while a special mention was given to Alexandre Koberidze for “What Do We See When We Look at the Sky?...
- 11/14/2021
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
Event running in French ski resort of Les Arcs will showcase more than 120 films.
France’s Les Arcs Film Festival (December 11-18) has announced the programme for its first physical edition in two years, after the Covid-19 pandemic forced its cancellation in 2020, while its industry events took place online.
Unfolding in the French Alps, the convivial, European cinema-focused festival was unable to take place after the government ordered ski resorts to remain closed due to a fresh wave of the virus.
It returns this year with a packed programme that will showcase more than 120 European works.
“We’re all eager...
France’s Les Arcs Film Festival (December 11-18) has announced the programme for its first physical edition in two years, after the Covid-19 pandemic forced its cancellation in 2020, while its industry events took place online.
Unfolding in the French Alps, the convivial, European cinema-focused festival was unable to take place after the government ordered ski resorts to remain closed due to a fresh wave of the virus.
It returns this year with a packed programme that will showcase more than 120 European works.
“We’re all eager...
- 11/10/2021
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- ScreenDaily
Panah Panahi’s “Hit the Road,” Laura Wandel’s “Playground” and Liz Garbus’ “Becoming Cousteau” have won the feature competition awards at the 65th BFI London Film Festival.
Phoebe Waller-Bridge and BFI chief executive Ben Roberts led a judging panel to award “True Things” filmmaker Harry Wootliff the £50,000 Iwc Schaffhausen bursary, which recognizes emerging talent.
Family road trip movie “Hit the Road” won best film at the festival’s official competition.
Malgorzata Szumowska, official competition president, said: “The best film award recognises inspiring and distinctive filmmaking that captures the essence of cinema. The essence of life. At all times in cinema history, but perhaps during a pandemic especially, we are looking for ways to connect to life. Our choice is for a film that made us laugh and cry and feel alive.”
“Playground,” the harsh world of playground politics as seen through the eyes of a seven-year-old girl, won the...
Phoebe Waller-Bridge and BFI chief executive Ben Roberts led a judging panel to award “True Things” filmmaker Harry Wootliff the £50,000 Iwc Schaffhausen bursary, which recognizes emerging talent.
Family road trip movie “Hit the Road” won best film at the festival’s official competition.
Malgorzata Szumowska, official competition president, said: “The best film award recognises inspiring and distinctive filmmaking that captures the essence of cinema. The essence of life. At all times in cinema history, but perhaps during a pandemic especially, we are looking for ways to connect to life. Our choice is for a film that made us laugh and cry and feel alive.”
“Playground,” the harsh world of playground politics as seen through the eyes of a seven-year-old girl, won the...
- 10/17/2021
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
The 65th BFI London Film Festival in partnership with American Express has announced the full 2021 programme line-up that will be presented both in cinemas and virtually.
Opening and closing films have previously been announced with Netflix’s ‘The Harder They Fall opening the festival. Directed by Londoner Jeymes Samuel, the film will receive its World Premiere at Lff gala venue the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall, with Samuel expected to attend along with the key cast. The Festival closes with Joel Coen’s adaptation of Shakespeare’s classic play, ‘The Tragedy of Macbeth’ from Apple Original Films and A24. The film will receive its European Premiere at the Lff, with Joel Coen expected to attend. Both films will be available at Lff partner cinemas across the UK, with ‘The Harder They Fall also going to a wider network of cinemas.
This year’s headline galas will include the dark...
Opening and closing films have previously been announced with Netflix’s ‘The Harder They Fall opening the festival. Directed by Londoner Jeymes Samuel, the film will receive its World Premiere at Lff gala venue the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall, with Samuel expected to attend along with the key cast. The Festival closes with Joel Coen’s adaptation of Shakespeare’s classic play, ‘The Tragedy of Macbeth’ from Apple Original Films and A24. The film will receive its European Premiere at the Lff, with Joel Coen expected to attend. Both films will be available at Lff partner cinemas across the UK, with ‘The Harder They Fall also going to a wider network of cinemas.
This year’s headline galas will include the dark...
- 9/7/2021
- by Zehra Phelan
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
The 65 British Film Institute (BFI) London Film Festival has unveiled its full program and the headline galas include several films that have been gaining fame recently.
Among the galas are Pablo Larrain’s “Spencer,” with Kristen Stewart; Jane Campion’s “The Power of the Dog,” with Benedict Cumberbatch; Reinaldo Marcus Green’s “King Richard,” with Will Smith; and Wes Anderson’s “The French Dispatch,” featuring a host of stars including Timothée Chalamet, Tilda Swinton and Léa Seydoux.
The galas also include Kenneth Branagh’s “Belfast,” Paul Verhoeven’s “Benedetta,” Eva Husson’s “Mothering Sunday,” Edgar Wright’s “Last Night in Soho,” Maggie Gyllenhaal’s “The Lost Daughter,” Joanna Hogg’s “The Souvenir: Part II” and Sarah Smith and Jean Philippe-Vine’s “Ron’s Gone Wrong.”
Special presentations include Clio Barnard’s “Ali & Ava,” Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s “Drive My Car,” Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s “Memoria,” Julia Ducournau’s “Titane,” Jacques Audiard’s “Paris, 13th District,...
Among the galas are Pablo Larrain’s “Spencer,” with Kristen Stewart; Jane Campion’s “The Power of the Dog,” with Benedict Cumberbatch; Reinaldo Marcus Green’s “King Richard,” with Will Smith; and Wes Anderson’s “The French Dispatch,” featuring a host of stars including Timothée Chalamet, Tilda Swinton and Léa Seydoux.
The galas also include Kenneth Branagh’s “Belfast,” Paul Verhoeven’s “Benedetta,” Eva Husson’s “Mothering Sunday,” Edgar Wright’s “Last Night in Soho,” Maggie Gyllenhaal’s “The Lost Daughter,” Joanna Hogg’s “The Souvenir: Part II” and Sarah Smith and Jean Philippe-Vine’s “Ron’s Gone Wrong.”
Special presentations include Clio Barnard’s “Ali & Ava,” Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s “Drive My Car,” Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s “Memoria,” Julia Ducournau’s “Titane,” Jacques Audiard’s “Paris, 13th District,...
- 9/7/2021
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
BenedictionThe lineup has been unveiled for the 2021 edition of the Toronto International Film Festival, which will take place over 10 days (September 9-18) both in-person and physically in Toronto, and digitally across Canada. Wavelengths - FEATURESFutura (Pietro Marcello, Francesco Munzi, Alice Rohrwacher)The Girl and the Spider (Ramon Zürcher, Silvan Zürcher)Neptune Frost (Saul Williams, Anisia Uzeyman)A Night of Knowing Nothing (Payal Kapadia)Ste. Anne (Rhayne Vermette)The Tsugua Diaries (Maureen Fazendeiro, Miguel Gomes)Wavelengths - SHORTSThe Capacity for Adequate Anger (Vika Kirchenbauer)Dear Chantal (Querida Chantal) (Nicolás Pereda)earthearthearth (Daïchi Saïto)Inner Outer Space (Laida Lertxundi)Polycephaly in D (Michael Robinson)“The red filter is withdrawn.” (Minjung Kim)Train Again (Peter Tscherkassky)Midnight Madness After Blue (Dirty Paradise) (Bertrand Mandico)Dashcam (Rob Savage)Saloum (Jean Luc Herbulot)Titane (Julia Ducournau)You Are Not My Mother (Kate Dolan)Zalava (Arsalan Amiri)TIFF DOCSAttica (Stanley Nelson)Beba (Rebeca Huntt)Becoming Cousteau...
- 8/4/2021
- MUBI
Titles include a new film from ‘Host’ director Rob Savage.
Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) has added 35 feature titles to its line-up for 2021, predominantly across the TIFF Docs, Midnight Madness and Wavelengths strands.
The new titles include 11 world premieres, consisting of eight in TIFF Docs and three in Midnight Madness.
Titles in the latter include Dashcam, the new film from Rob Savage, director of 2020 pandemic horror hit Host. Savage was named a Screen Star of Tomorrow in 2013.
Also in the Midnight Madness section is Kate Dolan’s You Are Not My Mother, inspired by the mythology of the Changeling, which...
Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) has added 35 feature titles to its line-up for 2021, predominantly across the TIFF Docs, Midnight Madness and Wavelengths strands.
The new titles include 11 world premieres, consisting of eight in TIFF Docs and three in Midnight Madness.
Titles in the latter include Dashcam, the new film from Rob Savage, director of 2020 pandemic horror hit Host. Savage was named a Screen Star of Tomorrow in 2013.
Also in the Midnight Madness section is Kate Dolan’s You Are Not My Mother, inspired by the mythology of the Changeling, which...
- 8/4/2021
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
New nonfiction films from directors Liz Garbus, Stanley Nelson, and E. Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin will screen at the Toronto International Film Festival as part of the TIFF Docs program, TIFF organizers announced on Wednesday.
Nelson’s documentary “Attica” will serve as the opening-night film in the section, while other docs at the festival will include Garbus’ “Becoming Cousteau,” Barry Avrich’s “Oscar Peterson: Black + White,” Penny Lane’s “Listening to Kenny G” and Vasarhelyi and Chin’s “Rescue.”
The festival’s Midnight Madness section will open with the Cannes Palme d’Or winner “Titane,” by Julia Ducournau, while TIFF has also added three Special Presentations films that also premiered in Cannes: Nadav Lapid’s “Ahed’s Knee,” Bruno Dumont’s “France” and Ari Folman’s “Where Is Anne Frank?”
In the Contemporary World Cinema section, additions include Juho Kuosmanen’s “Compartment No. 6” and Khadar Ayderus Ahmed’s “The Gravedigger’s Wife.
Nelson’s documentary “Attica” will serve as the opening-night film in the section, while other docs at the festival will include Garbus’ “Becoming Cousteau,” Barry Avrich’s “Oscar Peterson: Black + White,” Penny Lane’s “Listening to Kenny G” and Vasarhelyi and Chin’s “Rescue.”
The festival’s Midnight Madness section will open with the Cannes Palme d’Or winner “Titane,” by Julia Ducournau, while TIFF has also added three Special Presentations films that also premiered in Cannes: Nadav Lapid’s “Ahed’s Knee,” Bruno Dumont’s “France” and Ari Folman’s “Where Is Anne Frank?”
In the Contemporary World Cinema section, additions include Juho Kuosmanen’s “Compartment No. 6” and Khadar Ayderus Ahmed’s “The Gravedigger’s Wife.
- 8/4/2021
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
Small Body is the tale of a young woman who goes on an epic journey with precious cargo strapped to her back. She encounters highway robbers and non-binary loners, singing fishwives and superstitious coalminers. The precious cargo is the small body of the title, for the heroine, Agata (Celeste Cescutti) has given birth to a stillborn daughter. It is her mission to reach a mythical sanctuary where stillborn babies can miraculously take their first breath and thus be baptized.
The setting is northeast Italy and is filmed in the various dialects and languages of that territory of fluctuating borders. Agata is from a fishing village, at one point declaring: ‘My sister’s hair smells like the sea’. When the story shifts geographically, language changes and interpreters are necessary to progress to her destination. First-time director Laura Samani gives each place a distinctive look, whether it’s the bleached expanses of...
The setting is northeast Italy and is filmed in the various dialects and languages of that territory of fluctuating borders. Agata is from a fishing village, at one point declaring: ‘My sister’s hair smells like the sea’. When the story shifts geographically, language changes and interpreters are necessary to progress to her destination. First-time director Laura Samani gives each place a distinctive look, whether it’s the bleached expanses of...
- 7/13/2021
- by Jo-Ann Titmarsh
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Un Certain Regard looks set to be hailed as The section of this year’s Cannes Film Festival.
Cannes has sailed over the half-way mark, with hopes high it won’t be scuttled by another wave entirely. Initially assailed by Covid-19 tests and overcome by sheer delight to be back on the Croisette, critics and buyers are now beginning to realise that while Cannes 74 is a landmark event in many ways, thus far the 24-film Competition itself, stuffed with auteurs and old friends of the festival, is not shaping up to be a vintage year (such as 2019).
Eleven films have yet to show,...
Cannes has sailed over the half-way mark, with hopes high it won’t be scuttled by another wave entirely. Initially assailed by Covid-19 tests and overcome by sheer delight to be back on the Croisette, critics and buyers are now beginning to realise that while Cannes 74 is a landmark event in many ways, thus far the 24-film Competition itself, stuffed with auteurs and old friends of the festival, is not shaping up to be a vintage year (such as 2019).
Eleven films have yet to show,...
- 7/12/2021
- by Fionnuala Halligan
- ScreenDaily
An old tradition, known as "the theory of Limbo", almost as old as Christianity itself, said that dead, unbaptised children were suspended between salvation and damnation, uncleansed of original sin, doomed to wander forever through Limbo. This tradition was softened in Catholicism only in the 21st century. Laura Samani goes back to the little-known history of Christianity, basing the plot of her Small Body on the existence of sanctuaries in which miracles were supposed to take place. Stillborn babies could be brought back to life for just one breath – enough time to baptise them.
The director begins her story with a tragedy that takes place somewhere at the turn of the 20th century. Agata (Celeste Cescutti), who lives in a fishing village on one of the Italian islands, gives birth to a stillborn child. Waking up after this misfortune, Agata asks about her firstborn daughter and is met with cold indifference.
The director begins her story with a tragedy that takes place somewhere at the turn of the 20th century. Agata (Celeste Cescutti), who lives in a fishing village on one of the Italian islands, gives birth to a stillborn child. Waking up after this misfortune, Agata asks about her firstborn daughter and is met with cold indifference.
- 7/9/2021
- by Mateusz Tarwacki
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
The Italian film industry, which did not pause during the pandemic, is clearly a top priority within the country’s post Covid-19 recovery plan. The plan sees Rome’s Cinecittà Studios set for a €300 million ($358 million) cash injection earmarked by the European Union’s post-pandemic recovery fund for a radical overhaul of the famed facilities.
In June European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and Italian premier Mario Draghi jointly visited the Cinecittà lot and held a press conference in its vast Studio 5, known as the late, great Federico Fellini’s second home. Italian culture minister Dario Franceschini announced still undeveloped plans to upgrade and expand the iconic studios “in order to adequately meet the growing international demand” for studio space.
Meanwhile Cinema Italiano will be out in full force at Cannes. Veteran auteur Marco Bellocchio will present his personal doc “Marx Can Wait” out-of-competition and be feted with an...
In June European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and Italian premier Mario Draghi jointly visited the Cinecittà lot and held a press conference in its vast Studio 5, known as the late, great Federico Fellini’s second home. Italian culture minister Dario Franceschini announced still undeveloped plans to upgrade and expand the iconic studios “in order to adequately meet the growing international demand” for studio space.
Meanwhile Cinema Italiano will be out in full force at Cannes. Veteran auteur Marco Bellocchio will present his personal doc “Marx Can Wait” out-of-competition and be feted with an...
- 7/9/2021
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Italian director Laura Samani first came to Cannes in 2016 with a short made in film school titled “The Sleeping Saint” that premiered at the Cinéfondation and made a splash. She’s now back, this time in Critics’ Week, with her first feature “Small Body,” about a grief-stricken young woman who travels from her island village to a remote mountain sanctuary where she believes she can free her stillborn baby’s soul.
Samani spoke to Variety about the standout elements she wove into the “Small Body” story: female empowerment, Catholic culture and gender fluidity.
How did the project originate?
In 2016 I found out about the existence of a Catholic sanctuary in my region, Friuli Venezia-Giulia, where up until the end of the 19th century, particular miracles were said to occur: that stillborn children could be brought back to life for just one breath, during which they could be baptized. I also...
Samani spoke to Variety about the standout elements she wove into the “Small Body” story: female empowerment, Catholic culture and gender fluidity.
How did the project originate?
In 2016 I found out about the existence of a Catholic sanctuary in my region, Friuli Venezia-Giulia, where up until the end of the 19th century, particular miracles were said to occur: that stillborn children could be brought back to life for just one breath, during which they could be baptized. I also...
- 7/8/2021
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Past winners of the first feature prize include Jim Jarmusch, Mira Nair, Naomi Kawase, Steve McQueen, Houda Benyamina and Lukas Dhont.
The Cannes Film Festival has named French actress Mélanie Thierry as jury president for the 2021 Caméra d’Or award reserved for all first features premiering across Official Selection and the parallel sections of Directors’ Fortnight and Critics’ Week.
”Nothing is as fragile or as miraculous as a first movie. This testifies to the courage and the faith of all the directors who, after such a long period of seclusion, succeeded in providing us with a window on the outside world,...
The Cannes Film Festival has named French actress Mélanie Thierry as jury president for the 2021 Caméra d’Or award reserved for all first features premiering across Official Selection and the parallel sections of Directors’ Fortnight and Critics’ Week.
”Nothing is as fragile or as miraculous as a first movie. This testifies to the courage and the faith of all the directors who, after such a long period of seclusion, succeeded in providing us with a window on the outside world,...
- 6/30/2021
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- ScreenDaily
The lineup for the 2021 Cannes Critics’ Week (La Semaine de la Critique) has been announced. See also the full lineup of the Official Selection.Opening FILMRobust (Constance Meyer): When his right-hand man and only mate has to go away for a few weeks, Georges – an ageing film star – is given a substitute, Aïssa. The disillusioned actor and the young female security guard forge a special relationship.COMPETITIONAmparo (Simón Mesa Soto): Colombia 1998, Amparo, a single mother, struggles to free her teenage son after he is drafted by the army and assigned to a war zone. She is thrown into a race against time in a society ruled by men, corruption and violence.Feathers (Omar El Zohairy): When a magician’s trick goes wrong at the six-year-old Mando’s birthday party, an avalanche of coincidental absurdities befalls the boy’s family.The Gravedigger’s Wife (Khadar Ayderus Ahmed):...
- 6/7/2021
- MUBI
The Cannes Film Festival’s parallel Critics’ Week section is celebrating its 60th anniversary in 2021 with a lineup that is heavy on French talent and nonexistent when it comes to U.S. filmmakers. This year’s Critics’ Week selection includes 13 world premieres, seven of them in competition. As always, Critics’ Week is made of up first and-second time directorial efforts. The selection committee says it received 1,620 short films and watched 1,000 features in 2021. The lineup was selected by Critics’ Week artistic director Charles Tesson and his committee. Each section of the Critics’ Week lineup is made up of about 30 percent of films directed by women.
“The competition is very international and showcases films with many different styles and topics,” Tesson said in a statement (via Variety). “Many films tackle relationships, friendships, family bonds — especially mothers with their children, loved ones we lost, or fighting to get back into our lives.”
Critics...
“The competition is very international and showcases films with many different styles and topics,” Tesson said in a statement (via Variety). “Many films tackle relationships, friendships, family bonds — especially mothers with their children, loved ones we lost, or fighting to get back into our lives.”
Critics...
- 6/7/2021
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
With most of the main Cannes Film Festival lineup now confirmed, it’s now time for the sidebars to be unveiled. First up is the lineup for the Critics Week aka Semaine de la Critique. A spotlight on new filmmakers, in recent years they’ve featured works by Julia Ducournau (who now has a film in competition this year with Titane), Hlynur Pálmason, Oliver Laxe, Agnieszka Smoczyńska, Jonas Carpignano, Myroslav Slaboshpytskiy, Ritesh Batra, and more.
This year’s slate is full of a new class of emerging filmmakers, with the opening selection, Constance Meyer’s Robuste starring Gérard Depardieu and Déborah Lukumuena, the Adèle Exarchopoulos-led Zero Fucks Given by Julie Lecoustre & Emmanuel Marre, and more. The jury this year is headed by Cristian Mungiu.
Check out the lineup below and see more about each film at the links here.
Opening Film
“Robuste,” Constance Meyer
Special Screenings
“Anaïs in Love,...
This year’s slate is full of a new class of emerging filmmakers, with the opening selection, Constance Meyer’s Robuste starring Gérard Depardieu and Déborah Lukumuena, the Adèle Exarchopoulos-led Zero Fucks Given by Julie Lecoustre & Emmanuel Marre, and more. The jury this year is headed by Cristian Mungiu.
Check out the lineup below and see more about each film at the links here.
Opening Film
“Robuste,” Constance Meyer
Special Screenings
“Anaïs in Love,...
- 6/7/2021
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
The Cannes Film Festival’s parallel Critics’ Week section has unveiled its lineup for the 60th edition, which will run from July 7-15. There are seven feature films in competition, each of which is a debut meaning they are all eligible for the Camera d’Or. Romanian filmmaker and former Palme d’Or winner Cristian Mungiu is president of this year’s jury which will award the Nespresso Grand Prize, The Louis Roederer Foundation Rising Star Award and the Leitz Cine Discovery Prize for short film. Scroll down for the full list of films.
The section will open with Gérard Depardieu-starrer Robuste (Robust) from Constance Meyer (the first time since 2004 that a film directed by a French woman has opening-night honors). Closing the proceedings is Tunisian filmmaker Leyla Bouzid with Une Histoire D’Amour Et De Désir (A Tale of Love and Desire). Among the Special Screenings is...
The section will open with Gérard Depardieu-starrer Robuste (Robust) from Constance Meyer (the first time since 2004 that a film directed by a French woman has opening-night honors). Closing the proceedings is Tunisian filmmaker Leyla Bouzid with Une Histoire D’Amour Et De Désir (A Tale of Love and Desire). Among the Special Screenings is...
- 6/7/2021
- by Nancy Tartaglione
- Deadline Film + TV
Critics’ Week, the Cannes Film Festival parallel strand dedicated to first and second films, follows the official selection’s lead in announcing an expanded lineup after taking a year off.
The 2021 program — which marks the sidebar’s 60th edition — will feature 13 world premieres, seven of them in competition, chosen from nearly 1,000 films by Charles Tesson, artistic director, and his committee. The lineup is heavy on French talent, with no American directors in the mix.
Constance Meyer’s “Robust” (previously titled “Misfit”), a drama-comedy starring Gérard Depardieu and Déborah Lukumuena (“Divines”), will open the 2021 edition of Critics’ Week. Set in contemporary Paris, “Robust” stars Depardieu as a lonely film star in decline, who forms an unexpected bond with Aïssa, a semi-pro wrestler earning a living as a security officer.
Leyla Bouzid’s “A Tale of Love and Desire” will close the edition and will also be part of the Special Screenings section,...
The 2021 program — which marks the sidebar’s 60th edition — will feature 13 world premieres, seven of them in competition, chosen from nearly 1,000 films by Charles Tesson, artistic director, and his committee. The lineup is heavy on French talent, with no American directors in the mix.
Constance Meyer’s “Robust” (previously titled “Misfit”), a drama-comedy starring Gérard Depardieu and Déborah Lukumuena (“Divines”), will open the 2021 edition of Critics’ Week. Set in contemporary Paris, “Robust” stars Depardieu as a lonely film star in decline, who forms an unexpected bond with Aïssa, a semi-pro wrestler earning a living as a security officer.
Leyla Bouzid’s “A Tale of Love and Desire” will close the edition and will also be part of the Special Screenings section,...
- 6/7/2021
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Parallel section will showcase 13 first and second features and 10 short films.
Cannes Critics’ Week 2021 has unveiled the line-up of its 60th edition, following last year’s hiatus due to the pandemic, running July 7 to 15 alongside the Cannes Film Festival.
It will showcase 13 features, seven of them in competition, as well as 10 short films.
French director Constance Meyer’s debut feature Robust, co-starring Gérard Depardieu opposite Divines discovery Déborah Lukumuena will open the section on July 7. Depardieu plays an ageing actor star in decline who hires Lukumuena’s character, a semi-professional wrestler, as a bodyguard at short notice. The seemingly disparate...
Cannes Critics’ Week 2021 has unveiled the line-up of its 60th edition, following last year’s hiatus due to the pandemic, running July 7 to 15 alongside the Cannes Film Festival.
It will showcase 13 features, seven of them in competition, as well as 10 short films.
French director Constance Meyer’s debut feature Robust, co-starring Gérard Depardieu opposite Divines discovery Déborah Lukumuena will open the section on July 7. Depardieu plays an ageing actor star in decline who hires Lukumuena’s character, a semi-professional wrestler, as a bodyguard at short notice. The seemingly disparate...
- 6/7/2021
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- ScreenDaily
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.