Month: February 2020

Some exciting things are brewing on St. Petersburg’s New Holland Island, where history and culture converge. Founded at the same time as the city itself, the island was mainly used for military purposes for more than 300 years. But in 2010, entrepreneurs and philanthropists Roman Abramovich and Daria Zhukova formed the initiative New Holland: Cultural

Embattled director Roman Polanski has confirmed to the AFP that he will not be attending the Cesar Awards on Friday. The filmmaker’s latest feature, “An Officer and a Spy,” was nominated for 12 gongs this year, sparking outrage from French feminist groups and ultimately leading the 21-member board of the Association for the Promotion of

Less Is More, the program launched by Le Group Ouest to help young helmers such as Maimouna Doucouré (“Cuties”), has unveiled the trailer of Daria Woszek’s “Marygoround” which will have its world premiere at South By Southwest. The film, which was developed within the framework of Less Is More, revolves around Mary, a lonely grocery store

If you consider running-time alone, Russian content fills a considerable chunk of space in the official sections of the 2020 Berlinale. This is primarily because of Ilya Khrzhanovsky’s mind-boggling large-scale simulation of the totalitarian Soviet system, the “DAU” project, which comprises 14 features — two are unspooling at Berlin, accounting for more than eight hours

The closing film of the Berlinale’s new Encounters sidebar is the fictionalized documentary, “The Metamorphosis of Birds,” the debut feature from Portuguese director Catarina Vasconcelos. “Metamorphosis” explores the director’s family stories, building on elements developed in her debut 2014 short film, “Metaphor, or Sadness Inside Out,” which she filmed during her Master’s degree course in

Helen Mirren, who won an Oscar for her performance as Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II in “The Queen,” says Meghan Markle was “a fantastic addition to the royal family,” and she “applauds” Markle and Prince Harry’s decision to step back from royal duties, she tells Variety. Mirren, who is the subject of an homage at the

BERLIN —  Produced by Primo Filmes in co-production with MPM Film, Tabuleiro Filmes and SP Cine, “Shine Your Eyes,” warmly received at Berlin, tells the story of Amadi (OC Ukeje), a Lagos musician who flies to Sao Paulo to track down his older brother Ikenna (Chukwudi Iwuji), who’s gone missing, and bring him back home.

BERLIN — Handled by TF1 Studio, Freddie Highmore heist thriller “Way Down” has pre-sold most of the world’s key distribution territories. At Berlin, TF1 Studio licensed Latin America with Joao Worcman’s Rio de Janeiro-based Synapse Distribution, which will release the theatrical feature, directed by Jaume Balgueró (“[REC]”) in collaboration with Ledafilms. Israel (Current Flow), Thailand (Sahamongkol

BERLIN —  Robert Montgomery’s “Lady in the Lake” posed the question of whether it’s possible to make a complete film from one POV and yet  create a true emotional connection with an audience if it doesn’t have a face to connect with. “Saudi Runaway” delivers a haunting POV experience via the hands of a woman,

Harvey Weinstein is “in disbelief,” but “not delusional,” about his conviction, as he remains under care at Bellevue Hospital before being transferred to Rikers Island, where he’ll be put behind bars. “He’s still in disbelief of the charges he was convicted of. He’s very consistent about his innocence,” one of Weinstein’s attorneys, Arthur Aidala, told

India’s Alliance Media & Entertainment is in the process of acquiring a library of works by late Iranian auteur Abbas Kiarostami for distribution in the Indian subcontinent from France’s MK2 Films. The deal covers 33 features, documentaries and shorts from Kiarostami’s oeuvre, including “Taste of Cherry,” “The Wind Will Carry Us” and “Where Is My

In today’s film news roundup, Rachel Brosnahan will try science-fiction, documentaries about Herb Alpert and Sasha Joseph Neulinger find homes, and Cameron Boyce’s “Runt” gets a premiere. CASTING Rachel Brosnahan will star with Anthony Ramos in Amblin Partners’ upcoming comedic sci-fi film “Distant.” Will Speck and Josh Gordon will direct from Spenser Cohen’s script about

February 26, 2020 5:39PM PT Netflix is developing an untitled female-led comedy with producer Jon Berg, the former Warner Bros.’ co-president of production. The writing team of Jordan Roter (“The Tear Down,” “Camp Rules”) and Monica Corcoran Harel (New York Times, Marie Claire) has been attached to write the project. Netflix is keeping the logline

Regina King is on a roll. After winning an Oscar for “If Beale Street Could Talk” and starring as masked vigilante Sister Knight in HBO’s “Watchmen,” King is gearing up to make her film directing debut with “One Night in Miami.” Adapted by Kemp Powers from his play of the same name, the film dramatizes a