Movies

The filmmakers behind “Tiger” and “Fed Up” are teaming with the producer of “Jiro Dreams of Sushi” on a new investigative documentary into food safety. Entitled “Poisoned,” the film will be directed by Stephanie Soechtig and executive produced by Jeff Benedict and produced by Ross Dinerstein’s Campfire. It will be based on Benedict’s book, “Poisoned:

Record producer Drew Dixon, the subject of HBO Max’s documentary “On the Record,” on the sexual assault allegations against hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons, said the film centers Black women’s narratives and the misogynoir they face, if only for its 95-minute run time. Dixon and filmmakers Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering, who are behind documentaries “The

Sony Pictures Classics has acquired worldwide distribution rights to “12 Mighty Orphans,” a new drama starring Luke Wilson, Martin Sheen, Vinessa Shaw and Robert Duvall. Sheen and Duvall have not shared the screen together since 1979, in Francis Ford Coppola’s landmark “Apocalypse Now.” Adapted from Jim Dent’s bestselling novel, “12 Mighty Orphans” tells the true

Drafthouse Films is stepping back into the world of distribution after a five-year hiatus with the North American co-release of India’s Oscar entry, “Jallikattu.” The company — which is the film distribution arm of the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema — is partnering with XYZ Films, which picked up the phantasmagorical “Jallikattu” for North America back in

Former Warner Bros. Pictures executive JP Richards has taken the top film marketing job at Apple TV Plus. Richards, a longtime marketer under Blair Rich who also departed the studio as the result of a WarnerMedia restructure this year, will report to Apple head of video marketing Chris Van Amburg.  He will take his new,

Thirty years ago, “The Silence of the Lambs” terrified audiences worldwide — along with its two stars. As directed by Jonathan Demme, the R-rated blockbuster didn’t just rely on blood and guts to haunt viewers’ nightmares. It was a cerebral horror movie, one that exorcised our deepest fears to paint a portrait of unadulterated malevolence.

Warner Bros. is returning to a world of pure imagination, forging ahead with plans for a “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” prequel, newly titled “Wonka.” The project has been in development for years, but recently started to pick up steam again. The studio hopes to begin casting the film soon, with the goal of releasing

Anthony Hopkins is expected to be back at the Oscars this year — earning his sixth acting nomination — for his performance in Florian Zeller’s “The Father.” In the drama, which will be released by Sony Pictures Classics on Feb. 26, 2021, Hopkins plays Anthony, a man struggling with dementia in the final years of

Jodie Foster (“The Mauritanian”) and Anthony Hopkins (“The Father”) reunited for a virtual chat for Variety’s Actors on Actors series, presented by Amazon. For more, pick up the Jan. 20 issue of Variety, or stay tuned on Variety.com. A little over 30 years ago, Anthony Hopkins received a script that he thought was a children’s story. But

As a Netflix VP and head of international original series, Erik Barmack shaped today’s fiction TV business. He brought “Money Heist” (“La Casa de Papel”) to Netflix and spearheaded the U.S. streaming giant’s drive into local production the world over. “Dark,” “Elite” “Rain” and “Sacred Games” are some results. Now working out of his own

A national hero at the 2018 soccer World Cup 2018 after famously blocking a penalty shot from Argentine star Lionel Messi, Icelandic-born professional goalkeeper and filmmaker Hannes Þór Halldórsson is poised for another daunting challenge – pitching his first feature as a director, “Cop Secret,” at Sweden’s Göteborg Nordic Film Market. Picked by Göteborg head

Mer Film, the well-established Norwegian film production banner, is reteaming with “Sami Boy” filmmaker Elle Sofe Sara on her feature debut “Arru.” The project will be pitched for the first time at the virtual Nordic Film Market, the industry program of the Goteborg Film Festival, whose full lineup has just been unveiled. “Arru” is a

“Cop Secret,” “Margrete – Queen of the North” and “The Emigrants” are among 12 wide-ranging projects set to be presented at a virtual Nordic Film Market, Scandinavia’s biggest industry showcase which runs alongside the Goteborg Film Festival. “Cop Secret,” directed by Icelandic gaolkeeper turned filmmaker Hannes Þór Halldórsson, is an action comedy following a tough

After more than 50 years, Olympic gold medal-winning sprinter Tommie Smith shared the full story behind his raised-fist salute atop the podium at the 1968 Olympic Games in the documentary “With Drawn Arms” — and, by doing so, offers a greater insight into the meaning behind his silent protest and its aftermath. In observance of

Juno Films has acquired U.S. and Canadian rights to “The Most Beautiful Boy in the World” ahead of its world premiere at this month’s Sundance Film Festival. The film will be of particular interest to cinephiles, as it tells the story of Björn Andrésen, who became internationally recognizable at the age of fifteen with a

Salvador Calvo’s “Adú” leads the way at Spain’s annual Goya Awards nominations with 14 nods, including for best film and best director. “Las niñas” and “Akelarre” followed with nine nominations each, while “Rosa’s Wedding” has eight. In the running for the best film Goya are “Adú,” a Netflix acquisition; “Ane” by David Perez Sanudo; “La

Brazil’s beleaguered film industry is getting some vital help from a new partnership between the Hubert Bals Fund (HBF) and Brazilian non-profit Projeto Paradiso, the International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) has announced. The new alliance, designed to bolster the position of Brazilian filmmakers in the international film circuit, introduces an annual fellowship of €10,000 euros

PBS’ American Masters documentary “How It Feels to Be Free” – which counts Alicia Keys among its roster of exec producers – salutes the careers of six Black female entertainers who used their celebrity to promote civil rights and challenge racists stereotypes. The documentary – which premieres today on PBS and is set to become

After reading the script for Emerald Fennell’s revenge thriller “Promising Young Woman,” costume designer Nancy Steiner pictured a leading lady who was “disheveled” or, in gentler terms, “less-than put together.” After all, Cassie — the film’s main character portrayed by Carey Mulligan — is depressed. The 30-year-old medical school dropout never recovered from a mysterious

Think Jam will undergo a global restructuring, one that will consolidate the leadership of the entertainment marketing agency’s operations under current U.S agency heads Stella Ferguson and Louise Brennand. As part of the overhaul, Think Jam is embracing an office-less business model and a “work from anywhere” approach. That came about due to the COVID-19

Most entertainment industry jobs no longer qualify for exemption to COVID-19 rules, such as the need to self-isolate for 10 days, for those seeking to enter the U.K. From 4 A.M. local time on Monday, the U.K. government removed a number of previously exempt job categories, including advertising productions, performing arts professionals, television production, and

Documentary feature “Inside the Red Brick Wall,” which chronicles one of the most dramatic chapters of the 2019 Hong Kong protests, bagged the best film at the 27th Hong Kong Film Critics Society Awards. The best director prize went to Peter Chan Ho-sun for “Leap,” a sports drama based on the trajectory of China’s national

International sales agency The Open Reel has acquired Lebanese filmmaker Selim Mourad’s “Moss Agate” (“Agate mousse”), which is in the Rotterdam Film Festival’s Tiger competition. In the film, a visit to a cosmetic-surgery clinic and the discovery of a lump in his testicle and an abscess in his mouth confront filmmaker Selim Mourad with transience

The Venice Film Festival is tweaking its sections as it gears up for its upcoming 78th edition in September. After announcing that “Parasite” director Bong Joon Ho will preside over the main jury, the Lido on Monday opened up for film submissions and said in a statement that the fest’s Sconfini section — which had

Twenty-nine projects from across Asia have been selected to take part in March’s Hong Kong-Asia Film Financing Forum (HAF), which will go virtual for the second time. Scheduled to take place March 15-17, 2021, HAF will run concurrently with the Hong Kong FilMart. Both events were postponed last year to August due to the pandemic

In keeping with the Festival de Málaga’s drive to continually evolve and introduce new initiatives, the festival in southern Spain has launched Hack MAFIZ Málaga, a new industry event aimed at digital content creators. Applicants will have to go through a gauntlet of audiovisual challenges to secure their participation, which culminates in the festival’s 24th edition,

More than 40 prominent U.K. film industry figures, including “Tenet” director Christopher Nolan and “Small Axe” filmmaker Steve McQueen, have written to U.K. Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak requesting further support for the beleaguered exhibition sector. The letter in the Sunday Times, a follow up to the U.K. Cinema Association’s December 2020 ‘Keep the

Stienette Bosklopper of the Netherlands’ Circe Films and Meike Martens of Germany’s Blinker Filmproduktion have boarded “Do Fish Sleep With Their Eyes Open?,” the latest film from director Nele Wohlatz, whose 2016 documentary hybrid “The Future Perfect” won best feature in Locarno. The co-production partnerships add European support and financing muscle to an Argentine project produced

Catalan auteur Carla Simón, a 2017 Berlinale Generation Kplus winner with “Summer 1993,” is preparing her third feature, “Romería,” which has been selected among 17 new feature projects to be offered at Rotterdam Film Festival’s CineMart co-production market, to be held Feb. 1-5. “Romería” (the Spanish name for a popular pilgrimage) will be produced by

Capital Motion Picture Group has picked up North American and U.K. rights to Cold War thriller “The Man on the Other Side,” directed by Marcus Lim. The Canada-based full-service distributor said that it plans to release the film in 2021. The deal was announced by producers Militancy Films Singapore and Germany’s Doghouse Filmproductions. International rights