MALAGA — Dark Star Pictures, the L..A.-based distribution company, has secured North America distribution rights to “On the Go,” which showcases the acting talents of “Elite’s” Omar Ayuso, here playing a Grindr addict with vengeance in his heart. Celebrating its world premiere at last August’s Locarno Film Festival, “On the Go” was acquired for world
Movies
Ireland’s film and TV scene may be booming with both local projects and big Hollywood productions, but much of this is being supported by a groundswell of rising Irish talent working behind the camera. From writers working on hit shows such as “Bad Sisters,” to costume designers on Universal’s latest monster horror to a director
In her feature film debut, “As Neves,” writer-director Sonia Méndez follows a group of teenagers in a Galician village struggling with the disappearance of a friend following a drug-fueled party and heavy snowfall that has cut off Internet access, complicating the search. In her feature debut, which screens in competition at the Malaga Film Festival,
New York-based doc specialist Cargo Film & Releasing has acquired “Balomania,” which will have its world premiere in the main competition at leading European doc fest CPH:DOX on March 15. Variety is debuting the trailer (below). “Balomania” is Danish filmmaker Sissel Morell Dargis’ debut feature and will join Cargo’s lineup of award-contending non-fiction including SXSW
EST N8, the film and TV sales venture formed by U.S.-based EST and Thailand’s N8 company, has hired Chatsuree ‘Chat’ Sripamorn for an Asian sales roles. Reporting to Tenten Wei, she will represent the company at next week’s FilMart. Sripamorn has previously worked at three of the top Thai entertainment companies Mono Next, GMM Studios
Lionsgate is expanding the “Twilight” franchise with a new animated series, Variety has confirmed. Michael Burns, vice chairman of Lionsgate, shared the news during a Q&A at the Morgan Stanley media conference on Tuesday, revealing, “We’re going to go out with the ‘Twilight’ series, an animated series, I think there’ll be a lot of interest in that.”
Bollywood A-list star Rani Mukerji was in refreshingly candid form at Mumbai’s FICCI Frames media industry conference, proffering frank opinions on the Indian theatrical business. The usual Hindi-language domination of the all-India box office was reversed for a period in 2021-22, when films from the south of India, including “RRR,” “Kantara,” “Ponniyin Selvan” and “Vikram”
An OSHA investigator testified on Tuesday that “Rust” armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed was not given enough time to make sure that there were no live rounds on set. Lorenzo Montoya was the first witness called by the defense in the involuntary manslaughter trial underway in Santa Fe, N.M. Gutierrez Reed is accused of causing the
Getting Hugh Jackman to reprise his role as Wolverine in the third “Deadpool” movie had been in the works long before Ryan Reynolds made the official announcement. In fact, Karan Soni, who plays Dopinder in all three movies, says he wasn’t shocked when Jackman joined franchise. “When we were making the second one, Ryan was
Lex Luthor met Lex Luthor as Nicholas Hoult was the latest guest on the “Inside of You” podcast with host Michael Rosenbaum. Hoult is taking on the role of Lex Luthor in James Gunn’s upcoming “Superman,” which is now filming in Atlanta. Rosenbaum spent seven seasons playing a younger version of the villain on “Smallville.”
Former Nickelodeon star Drake Bell is coming forward in the upcoming Investigation Discovery series “Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV” to allege he was a victim of Brian Peck‘s sexual abuse. Peck worked as a dialogue coach on Nickelodeon’s “All That” and “The Amanda Show,” the latter of which starred Bell from
Kirsten Dunst said in a new interview with Marie Claire that she’s finally at a stage in her career where she no longer feels “nervous” speaking her mind, adding: “I feel at home sharing everything on set now.” It’s a big change from Dunst’s experience on the “Spider-Man” set decades ago. As a young actor,
Kal Penn admits he didn’t know much about Anna Nicole Smith’s physician, Dr. Sandeep Kapoor, before he was approached to star as the doctor in the indie adaptation of his memoir, “Trust Me, I’m a Doctor.” “But then I read the doctor’s autobiography and found it interesting and compelling,” Penn told me Monday night at
Disney CEO Bob Iger acknowledged that the company is behind Netflix in terms of technical capabilities — and that the Mouse House is in the process of catching up. “We need to be at their level in terms of technology capability,” Iger said about Netflix, speaking Tuesday at the 2024 Morgan Stanley Technology, Media &
The Academy and the Award by Bruce Davis For “The Academy and the Award,” Bruce Davis, executive director of the Academy for over twenty years, was given unprecedented access to its archives, and the result is a revealing and compelling story of the men and women, famous and infamous, who shaped one of the best-known
There’s two things that make a star shine — the light they emit, and the inevitability of being seen. I called my mom and yelled into the phone, “The lady who cast Ralph Macchio in ‘Karate Kid’ wants to meet me!” I met Bonnie Timmermann, the legendary casting agent, at a dinner with my husband
Sony’s “Madame Web” is one of the biggest flops in comic book movie history. The Dakota Johnson-led tentpole has only grossed $40 million so far at the domestic box office, and its worldwide gross remains under the $100 million mark after three weekends of release. Critics also eviscerated the film (it boasts a 12% score
Paramount Animation has entered an exclusive, multi-year first-look development deal with writer, director and producer Jeff Rowe. The pact extends the relationship between the studio and the filmmaker following the success of last summer’s “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem,” which Rowe directed and co-wrote. The agreement covers Rowe’s development and directing services, as well as his
Kate Winslet championed intimacy coordinators in a recent interview with The New York Times. The Oscar winner said having an intimacy coordinator on set would’ve benefitted her every time she was required to perform a sexual situation on camera, be it more graphic scenes featuring full frontal nudity or far tamer scenes with just kissing.
Kevin Spacey will appear as a character named “The Devil” in Italian director Massimo Paolucci’s psychological thriller “The Contract,” which just wrapped principal photography in Rome. The English-language film, described in a statement as having a similar storyline as Alan Parker’s “Angel Heart” and Taylor Hackford’s “The Devil’s Advocate,” also stars Eric Roberts and Vincent
A defamation trial against controversial director Roman Polanski is underway in Paris. The 90-year-old Franco-Polish filmmaker is being sued by British actor Charlotte Lewis, who is claiming he defamed her by calling her sexual assault allegations against him a “heinous lie” in a 2019 interview with Paris Match magazine. Lewis first came forward with her
CASTING Cold War thriller “Whispers of Freedom” has set its principal cast, Variety has learned. “Masters of the Air” alum Cameron Ashplant will play the film’s lead, young East German Chris Gueffroy, while Darragh Cowley (who also appeared in “Masters of the Air”) co-stars as his close friend Christian Gaudian. Set in 1980s East Germany,
The Indian media and entertainment industry grew 8% in 2023 to reach a value of $27.9 billion, according to the annual EY report released during the ongoing Frames conference in Mumbai, organized by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI). The growth was 21% above its pre-pandemic levels in 2019. The report
The omission of “My Father’s Dragon” from the 2023 Oscar nominations list for best animated feature sparked murmurings of disapproval from within the industry. The Netflix film — directed by Nora Twomey and a gorgeously hand-drawn adaptation of Ruth Stiles Gannett’s beloved children’s fantasy novel — had been lapped up by critics, many of whom assumed it
Taraji P. Henson is going to keep telling her truth. As she took the stage at the 2024 ABFF Honors on Sunday night, “The Color Purple” star pointed to a tattoo on her left bicep that spells out those words exactly: “The Truth.” “If you are alive and God blessed you with another day to
Originally developed as an eight-episode series, the WWI-era adventure “Lucy Lost” will instead hit the silver screen now that Paris-based powerhouse Xilam Animation has retooled the project as a feature. “Klaus” alum Olivier Clert has boarded as co-writer and director, joining BAFTA-winning screenwriter Helen Blankman for a seaside family tale adapted from “War Horse” author
Feats of derring-do, bouts of inspiration and a hearty show of strength for Nordic animation are but three of many motifs underscoring this year’s Cartoon Movie, which runs over March 5 – 7 in Bordeaux. For this year’s 26th edition, the European animation sector’s flagship co-production and pitch forum will spotlight 55 overall projects while
Brand new sales agency Neo Art International has picked up worldwide sales rights outside Italy to Claudio Amendola’s black comedy film trilogy “Cassamortari” (“Funeral Family”). The film trilogy narrates the story of The Pasti Family, a Roman family who work in the funeral business. The three titles of the saga are set up at Rome-based
Featuring famed directors such as Argentina’s Ariel Rotter and Spain’s Benito Zambrano, who have not only played but won at Berlin and San Sebastian respectively, Malaga’s 19-pic out of competition strand is a testament to the buyer-driven pulling power of Malaga , thanks to its significant market. Multiple other name auteurs pack out the selection,
The incontrovertible and immediate effect of muscular tax credits, entering in force in 2023, have powered to a new level the shoot scene in Bilbao and Bizkaia – the Basque city and surrounding province in Northern Spain. Introduced on Jan. 1, 2023, the new incentives offer an up-to-60% tax deduction for national and international co-productions