“The Zone of Interest” producer Ewa Puszczyńska has teamed up with France’s Elzévir Films and Ireland’s Copper Alley Prods. on “Safe and Silent,” backed by Arte France. “I decided to join the project because of the quality of the script. It made me excited and so was Arte when they decided to come on board,”
Movies
Filmax has taken global distribution rights for “My Friend Eva,” the latest from Spanish director Cesc Gay whose ‘Truman’ proved a notable hit overseas, scoring substantial theatrical returns in several territories. Set against the backdrops of Barcelona and Rome, this romantic comedy boasts Nora Navas (“Libertad”) Juan Diego Botto (“The Suicide Squad”) and Rodrigo de
A lonely widower wrestling with the loss of his wife finds himself in the thralls of a mental health crisis, setting the stage for a moving tale of grief and acceptance in Mamadou Dia’s “Demba,” which premieres Feb. 17 in the Encounters section at the Berlin Film Festival. “Demba” follows its titular protagonist, an archivist
In the grasslands of Southern Ukraine, between Crimea and mainland Ukraine, a natural history researcher named Yura (Dmytro Bahnenko) is hoping to track down and photograph a groundhog. If he succeeds, the land can be protected as a European reserve. This apparently simple premise — the kernel at the outset of “The Editorial Office” —
There’s a slim overlap in the Venn diagram of Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Patti Smith. Into that nearly infinitesimal space fits Abel Ferrara’s obliquely reflective, geopolitical documentary “Turn in the Wound.” For that alone it deserves attention, though the Ukrainian president and the American poet/punk rocker aren’t Ferrara’s subjects so much as they are his featured
Lionsgate has acquired domestic rights to the Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Lily James and Himesh Patel comedy “Greedy People.” The film explores what happens when the eccentric residents of a small, picturesque island town are faced with a sensational murder and the discovery of $1 million next to the body. This sparks a series of increasingly bad
Before demonstrating himself to be one of Mexico’s most original and exciting new filmmaking talents, Alonso Ruizpalacios washed dishes in a bustling big-city kitchen. That experience informs every second of the “Museo” director’s fourth feature, “La Cocina,” a thrilling in-spirit adaptation of Arnold Wesker’s 1957 play “The Kitchen,” transposed from midcentury London to modern-day New
Since the beginning of the Academy Awards in the late 1920s, Hollywood filmmakers have been making socially conscious films. Many of the best of those have scored the film town’s top honor — Oscar best picture. This year, that winner could be “Oppenheimer,” a film that boldly and starkly dramatizes the creation of man’s most
Expanding on the scope of his impressive but constrained 2018 debut (the demonic-possession-meets-therapeutic-improv-exercise “Luz”) while retaining that film’s bird-flipping attitude toward unnecessary niceties like coherent plotting or narrative logic, German director Tilman Singer makes what ought to be his breakthrough with “Cuckoo” an energetically outlandish fusion of stylish atmospherics, old-school reproductive horror and pro-flickknife advertorial.
101 Studios, the film and TV production entity run by David Glasser, has named Gray Krakower as executive vice president of brand partnerships. Karkower joins the company behind “Yellowstone” and many spinoffs in the lucrative Taylor Sheridan universe from Endeavor/IMG. There he served clients as a VP of global licensing and branding, working on accounts
One of the most reliably charming presences on the circuit all season has been Robert Downey Jr. as he speaks about “Oppenheimer,” particularly Christopher Nolan. While some perceive the filmmaker as introverted, Downey has been regularly bringing out a side of the director that is playful – even downright giggly at times. The two nominees
The producers behind “Killers of the Flower Moon,” “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,” “Maestro” and more Oscar-nominated films sat down to break down their respective projects at Variety FYC Fest: The Producers. The conversations were moderated by Variety’s senior artisans editor Jazz Tangcay and senior awards editor Clayton Davis. ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ Producer Daniel Lupi
“I think that the six or seven months I spent with Sofia at this time in my life — as a mother, as a wife, having felt like wanting to quit and give up — she pushed me into knowing you have everything that you need inside of you to continue this next chapter and
Prince William is set to attend the BAFTA Awards solo this Sunday as his wife Catherine, Princess of Wales, is still recovering at home after a serious abdominal surgery last month. William has been president of BAFTA – better known as the British Academy of Film and Television Arts – since 2010. Last year he
The Academy’s tendency to award trophies to Holocaust movies has long been whispered about — and even occasionally joked about by cheeky comedians. In 2009, shortly after Kate Winslet won a Golden Globe for her performance as a former Auschwitz guard in “The Reader,” presenter Ricky Gervais pointed to her in the audience and deadpanned,
Claire Foy and Richard E. Grant are set to lead a new period drama directed by Peter Glanz. Titled “Savage House,” the eighteenth century black comedy also stars Bel Powley (“A Small Light”) and Jack Farthing (“The Lost Daughter”). Kila Lord Cassidy (“The Wonder”), Richard McCabe (“Napoleon”), Vicki Pepperdine (“Poor Things”) and Pip Torrens (“The
How late is too late? It’s a question that besets Mahin (Lily Farhadpour) a 70-year-old retired nurse who sleeps late, whose late husband is late by 30 years, and who is beginning to wonder if her loneliness might become untenable as late-life gets later still. But the question could also be asked of “My Favourite
Helen Mirren ripped AI to shreds while being honored Thursday night at the American Cinematheque Awards. After being presented with the lifetime achievement award by her “Mosquito Coast” and “1923” co-star Harrison Ford at the Beverly Hilton gala, Mirren began to read her acceptance speech from a piece of a paper. “Ladies and gentlemen and
Brazil’s film industry hits Berlin with a new stride in its step, bringing 46 producers and 80-plus films and projects, according to promotional org Cinema do Brasil, led by chairman André Sturm and manager, Maria Marta. It is also in the process of receiving part of Brazil’s Paulo Gustavo Law funding, which is pouring RS2.8
It may not match last year’s sheer quantity in competition strands, but Spain still boasts a high quality presence at the Berlinale. Following, highlights the festival and EFM: “Every You Every Me,” (Michael Fetter Nathansky) A factory worker strives to reconnect with her distant husband, exploring the rediscovery of love within the complexities of relationships. From
Going into Berlin’s European Film Market, Spain’s biggest sales agents are under no illusion just how tough international markets have become. “Paradoxically, in one of the best moments for Spanish productions, we are finding that some of our top dramas are getting hard to sell unless selected in Cannes, Venice or Berlin,” says Latido Films
Sebastian Stan corrected a journalist at the Berlin Film Festival press conference for his new film, the psychological thriller “A Different Man,” when they used insensitive language to describe a character with facial disfigurement. The film follows Edward (Stan), who, after undergoing facial surgery, becomes fixated on another man playing him in a stage production
Top Brazilian titles at the Berlin Festival and EFM: “Betânia,” (Marcelo Botta) Botta’s feature debut, produced by Salvatore Filmes, associate produced by Ventre Studio, selected for Berlin’s Panorama. Set in stunning but barren Brazilian sand dunes, Betânia, 65, rebuilds amid global collapse. After losing her husband to a salty diet common in electricity-deprived areas, she seeks solace
“The Outrun,” the adaptation of Amy Liptrot’s deeply raw and lyrical 2016 memoir about addiction, recovery and nature, premiered in Sundance this year to stellar reviews, with many awards prophets already suggesting that the film could take Saoirse Ronan — who stars in and produces the film — back to the Oscars in 2025. For producer Sarah
A new film industry superclass is emerging in Spain: movies powered or co-backed by its streaming giants. Perhaps the biggest example, Netflix Spain’s Andes flight disaster “Society of the Snow,” scored two Academy Award nominations last month. Now, in the run-up to Berlin, London-based Film Constellation has acquired most world sales rights to “The Captive,”
As the Israel-Hamas war continues to rage in Gaza, repercussions are being felt at the Berlinale, which looks to be one of the most politically charged editions in recent history. Several filmmakers have already canceled their participation to the festival in protest of Germany’s attitude towards Palestinian voices, while more than 50 Berlinale workers have
Christopher Nolan is in the market to make a horror film, provided there is a good enough idea. Nolan was speaking at an in-conversation event at at London’s British Film Institute (BFI) on Thursday, attended by a rapt, sold-out audience. In response to a question from an audience member whether he would consider making a
In January, when Netflix unveiled its slate of Chinese-language original productions for 2024, all of them turned out to be Taiwanese. Not Chinese. And not from Hong Kong, a territory that once produced over 300 movies a year in multiple Chinese dialects. That’s because, as China has made business dealings harder for Western entertainment and
U.K. sales and distribution outfit Blue Finch Films has boarded worldwide rights to thriller “Cold Wallet.” In the film, after losing everything in a cryptocurrency scam, a ragtag team of vigilante Redditors attempt to kidnap the kingpin who cheated them But when the home invasion takes a turn for the worst, they become victims in
Culturally pluralistic and gender-diverse Taiwan is the backdrop for “The Chronicles of Libidoists,” a new film by Gilles Yang, a director whose three previous films have also explored the erotic. The story is inspired by “The Little Mermaid,” the traditional fairy tale in which a mermaid princess falls in love with a human prince. But