Movies

Polish filmmaker Jan Komasa, who scored a best international Oscar nomination earlier this year for “Corpus Christi,” will direct “Anniversary,” a drama of social apocalypse. “Anniversary” will be produced by Nick Wechsler and Chockstone Pictures partners Steve Schwartz and Paula Mae Schwartz. Wechsler and the Schwartzes are no strangers to dark and edgy projects —

Discussing the challenges and opportunities in a landscape radically altered by the COVID-19 lockdown, Richard Lorber of U.S. distrib Kino Lorber said Monday that his company was quickly transforming into a media and technology company due to the focus on its Kino Marquee virtual theatrical exhibition initiative. Speaking at a Cannes Marché du Film Online

MIFA’s Work in Progress presentations offered online delegates a glimpse into some highly anticipated features, series and interactive projects in the second week of Annecy’s online festival. Leading the pack was upcoming America-Canadian animated TV series from Netflix “The Cuphead Show!” – based on the characters in the best-selling Canadian “gun and run” video game

Tokyo-based Flag Co. has acquired all Japanese rights to François Ozon’s “Summer of 85” from Playtime. The film is one of the highlights of the Cannes’ 2020 Official Selection and is also screening at the online market. “Summer of 85” marks Ozon’s anticipated follow up to “By The Grace of God” which won the Silver

STX Entertainment has secured worldwide distribution rights to psychological thriller “Run Rabbit Run,” from Emmy-nominated “Handmaid’s Tale” director Daina Reid (“The Outsider”) and starring Emmy winner Elisabeth Moss (“The Invisible Man”). While STXfilms will directly distribute “Run Rabbit Run” in the U.S., U.K. and Ireland, STXinternational will introduce the project to buyers at the ongoing

Cimarrón, an ambitious pan-Latin American production shingle, is readying new high-profile features by Cannes-prized Agustín Toscano and Sundance best director winner Lucía Garibaldi as it gears up to shoot its first drama series in Mexico and Brazil, backed by two global platforms. Cimarrón, headquartered in Uruguay’s Montevideo and with offices in Brazil and Argentina and

TrustNordisk has closed key international deals on “The Crossing,” its WWII-set Norwegian family drama. The company will be hosting a market screening at Cannes’ virtual Marché du Film on June 24. After selling the film to the U.S. (Menemsha Entertainment) and Former Yugoslavia (Cinemania Group) during the European Film Market in Berlin, TrustNordisk has now

Latido Films, Amazon Prime Video and Vértice Cine have boarded vet Spanish filmmaker Fernando Colomo’s comedy project “Poliamor para principiantes” (“Polyamory for Beginners, or a Swindlers’ Hot Dream”). Produced by Álvaro Longoria at Madrid-based Morena Films, the film will begin shooting in early October. It starr high-profile Spanish thesps María Pedraza (“La Casa de Papel,”

Grasshopper Film has acquired U.S. rights to Camilo Restrepo’s critically acclaimed feature debut, “Los Conductos,” which won the best first film award at this year’s Berlin Film Festival. “Los Conductos” — represented in international markets by Brussels-based Best Friend Forever — was expected to have its North American premiere at New Directors/New Films but the

As coronavirus ravaged Spain in April, the country’s central government took one significant step toward building for a post-COVID future.The COVID-19 pandemic has sparked — paradoxically — a new bullishness in Spain’s international production industry. On May 5, Spain’s government greenlit a critical hike to tax breaks for Spanish and international productions, suddenly and significantly

Library deals, remake rights deals, movie production — Spanish film sales agents are diversifying in multiple ways to battle the uncertainty of current times. The coronavirus pandemic has added another wrinkle to an already complex landscape, with sales agents at the crossroads between traditional distribution and streaming platforms. In February, as the shock waves of

Variety highlights a selection of Spanish titles being moved at this year’s Cannes Marché du Film. ALL THE MOONS (Arcadia Motion Pictures, Kowalski Films, Pris & Batty, Ilargia Films, Noodles Production) A period drama about an orphan girl rescued by a mysterious woman who grants her immortality as a vampire. Sales: Filmax THE AUGUST VIRGIN

In response to Joel Schumacher’s death on Monday, Matthew McConaughey says his career wouldn’t have taken off if the late director hadn’t cast him as the lead in the 1996 film “A Time to Kill.” McConaughey was relatively unknown before starring as Jake Brigance in the courtroom crime drama. He had small roles in “Dazed

The Hong Kong – Asia Film Financing Forum (HAF) has unveiled 22 feature projects shortlisted for its Work-in-Progress Program. The project will take place exclusively online, running Aug. 26-28, 2020 in parallel with this year’s virtual HAF and FilMart Online. Production of all the shortlisted projects has been completed or is near completion. They include

Steve Bing, a producer, philanthropist and screenwriter, has died by suicide in Los Angeles. He was 55. Police and the coroner’s office said a man fitting his age jumped from a Century City apartment building on Monday. Sources told TMZ he had been suffering from depression. Bing, who inherited a fortune of some $600 million

Industrial Light & Magic’s Hal Hickel will take part in a free online discussion about the making of Disney Plus hit series “The Mandalorian” for the VIEW Conference on Saturday, June 27, at 2:30 p.m. Pacific Time. The program is what conference organizers are calling their 2020 Premier PreVIEW, looking ahead to the 2020 VIEW

I’ll never forget the one time I got to talk to Joel Schumacher, the fluky, baroquely skilled, stylishly protean Hollywood filmmaker who died Monday at 80. It was June 1985, and I was one of the journalists attending the New York press junket for “St. Elmo’s Fire,” the post-teenage soap opera that already felt like

In today’s film news roundup, three projects — “The Culling,” “Atlantis” and “A Savannah Haunting” — are unveiled; “Transhood” wins the Audience Award at AFI Docs; the WGA East announces 15 candidates; and the Visual Effects Society honors five members. PROJECT LAUNCHES Universal Pictures is developing the thriller “Atlantis with “Jurassic World” director Colin Trevorrow

“Irresistible” is the second film written and directed by Jon Stewart, but unlike the first, the deadly serious and surprisingly accomplished true-life Iranian prison drama “Rosewater” (2014), this one comes straight out of Stewart’s satirical-political wheelhouse. Set shortly after the 2016 presidential election, it’s a close-to-the-bone tall tale — slightly exaggerated but still basically plausible

Abbey Lee, Nikki Amuka-Bird and Ken Leung have boarded the cast of M. Night Shyamalan’s top-secret movie. They join previously announced stars Eliza Scanlen, Thomasin McKenzie, Aaron Pierre, Alex Wolff and Vicky Krieps. Shyamalan will write, direct and produce the untitled film, which will be released by Universal Pictures. Like most Shyamalan movies, plot details

Tim Cappello — aka the Sax Man from Joel Schumacher’s 1987 film “The Lost Boys” — only met Joel Schumacher two times. But the musician has fond memories of shooting the boardwalk concert scene with the director, who died Monday. Cappello’s scene in the cult classic movie is just under two minutes long as the

Kiefer Sutherland, Corey Feldman and more celebrities are mourning the death of one of director Joel Schumacher, director of films including “St. Elmo’s Fire,” “The Lost Boys” and “Falling Down,” who died on Monday from a year-long battle with cancer. He was 80. Schumacher, a costume designer-turned-director, famously took over the Batman franchise when director

“The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run,” Paramount and Nickelodeon’s animated adventure based on the absorbent underwater fry cook, is skipping its planned theatrical debut. It will instead launch on premium digital rental services in early 2021 before landing exclusively on CBS All Access, the streaming service owned by the studio’s parent company, ViacomCBS. It

Michael Keaton is in early talks to return to portray Batman alongside Ezra Miller in Warner Bros.’ “The Flash.” Keaton first played the Caped Crusader in Tim Burton’s 1989 “Batman” and returned to collaborate with Burton in 1992’s “Batman Returns.” He left the role during the development of the third film, “Batman Forever,” with Val

Geraldine Viswanathan is getting past heartbreak by opening an art gallery in a new trailer for “The Broken Hearts Gallery,” released three weeks before the romantic comedy opens. The footage, which dropped Monday, starts with Viswanathan’s character being forlorn over love and unable to get out of bed, prompting a roommate to declare, “We’re getting

REinvent is rolling into Cannes’ virtual Marché du Film with a pair of stylish horror film movies, Henrik Dahlsbakken’s “Project Z” whose teaser is featured above, and Tord Danielsson’s “The Other Side.” Produced by Filmbros, “Project Z” follows a group of film students who bring along three unemployed actors to make a zombie movie at

Open Road Films, which declared bankruptcy two years ago, is relaunching with funding from Raven Capital Management. It will release Liam Neeson’s thriller “Honest Thief” later this summer. The companies announced the news on Monday, the first day of the Cannes Virtual Market. Open Road was sold in late 2018 for $87.5 million to Raven, after parent

Variety has been given exclusive access to the trailer for Cannes Official Selection title “Sweat,” Magnus von Horn’s follow-up to his Cannes Directors’ Fortnight player “The Here After.” The film follows three days in the life of fitness motivator Sylwia Zając, a social media celebrity who has hundreds of thousands of followers. Though she’s surrounded

Endeavor Impact has partnered with Michael B. Jordan and others to launch a virtual summer education program for participants from marginalized communities and those outside of major entertainment markets. The Summer Series program will take the place of Endeavor Impact’s Fellowship Program, which aimed to provide jobs, mentoring and education programs within the company to

Uruguay’s relatively new cash rebates, which attracted the likes of Keanu Reeves-produced Netflix series “Conquest” to shoot in the capital of Montevideo, is primed for expansion by the new film-friendly government led by new President Luis Lacalle Pou, who was sworn in on March 1. “The government is deeply committed to supporting the audiovisual industry,