Month: June 2022

Brian Gersh has been named president of Network Entertainment USA. He brings three decades of experience in the entertainment industry, having worked as an executive, agent, manager, and producer, where he has greenlit scores of film and television projects around the world. Prior to his promotion, Gersh served as SVP at Network Entertainment USA. “Brian

Nico Santos, from “Crazy Rich Asians” and “Superstore,” will star in Marvel Studios’ “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” in an unspecified role. Stantos joins an already sprawling ensemble, including the returning cast Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Sean Gunn, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Sylvester Stallone and Elizabeth Debicki, as

Netflix has released the first trailer for “Persuasion,” the upcoming period film starring Dakota Johnson, based on the classic 1817 Jane Austen novel. Published after Austen’s death, “Persuasion” was the final completed work of the writer (who, as the trailer for the film reminds us, also penned “Emma” and “Pride & Prejudice”), and is considered

Sorry, Comcast Xfinity customers: Your free access to the Peacock Premium streaming service is going to come to an end. Jeff Shell, CEO of NBCUniversal, said that making Peacock available to Comcast cable and broadband customers for no extra charge helped the fledgling streamer achieve traction after it launched in mid-2020, speaking Tuesday at the

Is Comcast poised to make a big move? The cable and media giant has missed out on some snazzy acquisitions in recent years, failing to outmaneuver Disney to buy the bulk of 21st Century Fox’s entertainment assets and falling just short of nabbing WarnerMedia. Losing out on the latter stunned Comcast CEO Brian Roberts and

When left-wing coalition leader Gabriel Boric was elected to the Chilean premiership in 2021, he was 35 years old. When, a few months later, he was sworn in as the nation’s youngest-ever president — also the youngest state leader in the world — revered Chilean filmmaker Patricio Guzmán was 80. “My Imaginary Country” is Guzmán’s

Music Box Films has acquired North American rights to “Rodeo,” the bold feature debut of Lola Quivoron which premiered in Un Certain Regard at Cannes where it won the Coup de Cœur du Jury special prize. Produced by Charles Gillibert (“Annette”) at CG Cinema and represented by Les Films du Losange, “Rodeo” stars newcomer Julie

Hans Zimmer is starting to hint at his work on the score to “Dune: Part Two.” During awards season, director Denis Villeneuve would often joke how Zimmer would continue to send him music long after fellow Oscar-winner editor Joe Walker had finished working on the film. Said Villeneuve: “[Joe] didn’t hear from Hans for a

Vivendi is on track to own a 57.35-percent stake in Lagardère, the French media, publishing and travel retail conglomerate, following a public tender offer which took place May 27 to June 9. If approved by the anti-trust board, Vivendi will also own 47.33% of the voting rights of Lagardère. As part of the IPO, which

Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions have acquired North American rights to “The Good House” from Amblin Partners, in association with Participant. The film will have its U.S. premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 18, with Roadside Attractions setting a wide release date for September 30 exclusively in theaters. The film, starring Sigourney Weaver and

Revolutionary U.S. producer Jason Blum, known for shepherding hit horror franchises such as “Paranormal Activity” and “The Purge,” and more recently the films “Whiplash,” “Get Out,” and Spike Lee’s “BlacKkKlansman,” will be honored by the Locarno Film Festival with its Raimondo Rezzonico Prize for a producer who epitomizes the indie ethos. The prominent Swiss fest

Hajni Kis’ first feature “Wild Roots” (“Külön falka”) was named best feature film at the Hungarian Film Awards. Kis also won best first feature director and best screenplay with Fanni Szántó. Women were awarded in 12 categories at the awards, perhaps heralding the beginning of a new era in Hungarian filmmaking, Film New Europe reports.

“You’re not gonna like the way this story ends,” announces the teenage narrator of “Don’t Make Me Go” as the film opens, “but I think you’re gonna like the story.” The first half of that sentence is so accurate it complicates the second. The movie’s ending is misguided to the point of being perplexing rather

Roc Espinet “I’m a big fan of 2D, keeping a handcrafted look and strong emotions, like in Ghibli movies. Having said that, I always want to complement it with a contemporary narrative concept and bold and crazy camera movements,” Catalan animator Espinet says. He’s a regular collaborator of Alberto Vázquez (“Unicorn Wars,” “Birdboy”) and has

Fortified by top executive appointments, London-based Academy Award winning Passion Pictures is driving powerfully into long-form animation. It has already produced episodes of cult Netflix series “Love, Death & Robots” – “Life Hatch” and “Ice,” which scored three Emmy Awards – as well as Netflix’s “Headspace,” Disney’s “101 Dalmatian Street” and Nickelodeon’s “Lego City Adventures.”

“Unicorn Wars” (Alberto Vázquez) Alberto Vázquez, the director of “Birdboy: The Forgotten Children,” a Gkids pickup for North America, delivers an apocalyptic anti-war parable narrating the ancestral war between teddy bears bigots and environmentalist unicorns with irreverent visual exuberance and moments of real horror. WIP’S “They Shot the Piano Player” (Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal) Trueba and