Movies

This last half-decade, few French screenwriters have run up such an illustrious list of co-write credits as Noé Debré. Thomas Bedigain’s writing partner on Jacques Audiard’s Cannes Palme d’Or winner “Deephan,” Debra co-penned Bedigain’s own debut, “The Cowboys,” “Racer and the Jailbird,” by Michael Roskam, and “Le Brio,” directed by Yvan Attal. He has now

France’s Julien Trauman has never been afraid to play with genre, and in his latest short, the MyFrenchFilmFestival participant “At Dawn,” he employs aspects of psychological thriller, survival, coming-of-age and fantasy filmmaking. “At Dawn” kicks off the night before when a group of teens, one about to leave town, are imbibing heavily around a beach-side

France’s Baptiste Petit-Gats is an hyphenate that keeps himself plenty busy editing, photographing, writing and directing. The bulk of his editing gigs up until now have been in documentary film work, evident in the way he shot and edited his own short film, participating in the MyFrenchFilmFestival, “Flowers.” In the film, Petit-Gats tells the heartbreaking

French filmmakers Fanny Liatard and Jérémy Trouilh met at university while studying political science before diverging towards separate careers. Trouilh trained in documentary filmmaking; Liatard worked on urban artistic projects in Lebanon and France. They eventually joined back up to film three shorts: “Gagarine,” a Sundance Channel Shorts Competition Jury Prize winner in 2016; “The

Paris-born Emmanuel Blanchard studied and then taught history before becoming a documentary filmmaker responsible for films such as “Bombing War,” “Le diable de la République” and “Après la guerre.” He’s currently directing “Notre-Dame de Paris”, a 90-minute animated part-doc, part-fiction film on the building of the world-famous Paris cathedral. Competing at MyFFF, “The Collection” is

January 19, 2019 2:03AM PT The latest anime feature in the decades-old franchise is strictly for diehard fans. Late in “Dragon Ball Super: Broly,” the 20th Japanese anime feature in a 35-year-old franchise that also has spawned scads of TV series, trading cards, video games, mangas, and limited-edition collectibles, a supporting character complains, “I don’t

Loco Films has come on board “Paper Flag” (“Les Papiers de drapeaux”), the feature debut of 18-year old French director Nathan Ambrosioni. The film explores the ambivalent relationship between two siblings and the concept of freedom. Guillaume Gouix (“The Returned”) stars as a young adult who has just got out of jail after 12 years

The most famous diarist of the Holocaust, Anne Frank, began to write down the drama of her daily life with no ulterior motive (apart from her teenage ambition to write fiction). But in March 1944, the year before she died in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp, she heard a radio broadcast by a member of the

In today’s film news roundup, “Spider-Man: Far From Home” sets a studio record, Chris Meledandri and Glenn Close are honored, an art-house streaming service is unveiled, and “Cliffs of Freedom” gets a release. TRAILER STATS The first “Spider-Man: Far From Home” trailer has set a record as the biggest digital launch in Sony Pictures history

January 18, 2019 5:18PM PT Frank Grillo is set to star in the action-thriller “Hell on the Border” with Wes Miller directing. Miller also penned the script with Curtis Nichouls, Henry Penzi, and Sasha Yelaun producing. Ron Perlman is also on board to co-star. Plot details are unknown at this time. Production is currently underway

January 18, 2019 4:37PM PT Lee Unkrich, who won Academy Awards for “Toy Story 3” and “Coco,” is departing Pixar Animation Studios after 25 years to spend more time with his family. Unkrich joined Pixar in 1994 after working as an assistant editor in television on “Silk Stalkings” and “Renegade.” He served as editor on

Following the biggest fourth-quarter worldwide subscriber gain ever and some controversy around increased prices in the U.S., Netflix looks to keep its momentum going into 2019. From Jan. 18 through March, the streaming site will release 10 original films, including action-packed thrillers, a post-apocalyptic sci-fi, quirky comedies, inspirational dramas, an artistic horror movie and a viral

January 18, 2019 3:54PM PT Warner Bros. is pushing back the production start date of its third “Fantastic Beasts” movie several months from July to the late fall, a spokesperson said Friday. Actors have been notified about the change in dates. The untitled third “Fantastic Beasts” movie has not yet set a release date. “Fantastic

January 18, 2019 2:31PM PT Brian Grazer and Ron Howard’s Imagine Documentaries has set a first-look pact with Apple to develop non-fiction features and series. The deal comes as Imagine is investing heavily in the premium non-fiction arena. The company in June recruited RadicalMedia veteran Justin Wilkes to head Imagine Documentaries as president. The deal

M. Night Shyamalan’s “Glass” is heading for a solid opening of about $47 million at 3,841 North American locations during its first four days, early estimates showed Friday. The performance is slightly below Universal’s forecasts of $50 million for its supernatural thriller, which took in $3.7 million at 3,200 North American sites in Thursday night

January 18, 2019 12:24PM PT Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions has acquired all international rights to “The Tomorrow Man,” a romantic drama with John Lithgow and Blythe Danner, Variety has learned. The deal is in advance of the film’s world premiere on Wednesday, Jan. 30 at the Sundance Film Festival. It does not include North American

January 18, 2019 12:00PM PT Things got ugly this awards season, enough to give you pause about what might still lie ahead once Oscar nominations are announced next week. “Fasten your seatbelts, it’s going to be a bumpy ride,” etc. But as the phase one dust finally begins to settle, what does the landscape look

January 18, 2019 11:53AM PT Newcomer and transgender actor Zach Barack appears in a ground-breaking supporting role in Sony/Marvel’s “Spider-Man: Far From Home,” sources confirm to Variety. Barack can be seen in the new trailer, which was released on Tuesday. Tom Holland is returning to play Peter Parker, with Zendaya and Marisa Tomei also coming

January 18, 2019 10:50AM PT Reggaeton sensation Nicky Jam is set to join the cast of Will Smith and Martin Lawrence’s upcoming “Bad Boys” sequel, “Bad Boys for Life.” Jam, who will play one of the villains in the Sony pic, joins series newcomers Vanessa Hudgens, Alexander Ludwig, Charles Melton, Jacob Scipio, DJ Khaled, and Paola

PARIS — With the annual Rendez-Vous with French Cinema now well underway and its month-long MyFrenchFilmFestival about to kick-off, UniFrance has announced an ambitious slate of measures designed to more fully support French productions on VOD platforms in 2019. “Digital distribution is part of everything we do now,” said Quentin Deleau-Latournerie, the organization’s aptly titled

PARIS —  In his first feature since 2010’s “The Clink of Ice,” filmmaker Bertrand Blier returns with a somber, existentialist farce reminiscent of the last century’s most celebrated absurdist theater. Vladimir and Estragon, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, meet Taupin and Foster (Gérard Depardieu and Christian Clavier). One is homeless, the other well off, though that dynamic

Given its impact on Hollywood moviemaking, it’s hard to believe that the first movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe debuted just over a decade ago, reviving “Iron Man” star Robert Downey Jr.’s career in the process. But Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige, who will receive the PGA’s David O. Selznick award for his industry-changing body

January 18, 2019 10:30AM PT Gaumont is reteaming with “The Intouchables” and “C’est La Vie” production banner Quad on Mohamed Hamidi (“One Man and His Cow”)’s concept company “Queens of The Field.” The movie is set in a small rural town which is on the verge of losing its funding along with its field. The

In the span of one year, Toby Emmerich ascended to the chairman role at Warner Bros. Picture Group, shepherded the studio’s record-breaking slate at the worldwide box office, and was selected as the latest recipient of the PGA’s Milestone Award, a kudo that has previously gone to execs including Donna Langley and Robert Iger. Among

“A Star Is Born” has always been a great talent vehicle, including the new Bradley Cooper–Lady Gaga version, which Warner Bros. opened Oct. 5. Previous versions showcased big-name talent, but there’s also a stellar lineup of people who almost made the film but didn’t, including Cary Grant, Cher, Elvis Presley, Whitney Houston, Denzel Washington, Tom

Midway through their first year as co-presidents of the Producers Guild, Gail Berman and Lucy Fisher are pleased with their guild’s progress tackling some of the industry’s thorniest issues — sexual harassment and inequality among them — but fully aware how much more work needs to be done. Luckily, as producers and former studio bosses,

With backing from longtime Hollywood player Sandy Climan, Khaled Sabawi has quietly launched Open Screenplay as a free online platform for aspiring screenwriters. Open Screenplay is aimed at helping writers create better stories through its story-writing process and tools. It has launched a contest with a $2,000 prize and has more than 100 screenplays in various

January 18, 2019 9:11AM PT Kevin Hart is ready to show off his serious side. The comedian will star in Sony Pictures’ “Fatherhood,” a big-screen adaptation of the Matt Logelin bestseller “Two Kisses for Maddy: A Memoir of Loss & Love.” The film, which centers on a widower who must raise his daughter after his

Hong Kong studio Edko Films has picked up international rights to “One Second,” the newest movie by top Chinese director Zhang Yimou. The film will have its world premiere in competition in Berlin, it was announced this week. “One Second” is pitched as Zhang’s personal love letter to cinema, and as a return to his

The inevitable comparison for SF Studios’ “The New Nurses,” at least from a Danish broadcast perspective, is “Something’s Rockin,’” another 2018 TV 2 Charlie show which was retro but forward-looking. “Something’s Rockin’” described the birth of an independent radio with culture in Denmark. Produced by SF Studios’ Senia Dremstrup (“Norskov”),  “The New Nurses” talks cleverly