Directors Guild of America president Thomas Schlamme and national executive director Russell Hollander have spoken out against the death of George Floyd and racism in the U.S. “As our nation mourns the senseless killing of George Floyd and so many other people of color, the Directors Guild of America stands in solidarity with those peaceful
Movies
A day ahead of the Cannes Film Festival’s announcement of the Official Selection of films set to receive the ‘Cannes 2020’ label on June 3, the festival’s artistic director Thierry Fremaux penned a letter to contextualize this year’s unlikely edition. While the festival’s physical edition was canceled in April following the French government’s ban on
“Just Mercy,” the 2019 film about the work of civil rights attorney Bryan Stevenson, has been made available for free rental on digital platforms during the month of June by Warner Bros. Pictures. Destin Daniel Cretton directed the real-life legal drama, which stars Michael B. Jordan as Stevenson, who defends Walter McMillian (Jamie Foxx) in
The Malaysian government has authorized a return to production for film and TV productions from June 10. “Previously, I had said shooting of films, TV and advertisements can resume after Hari Raya. It’s been decided, these productions can resume starting from June 10, 2020,” senior minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said on Tuesday. “However, every production
Lynn Chen’s “I Will Make You Mine” proves yet again that black-and-white films are often anything but. Overseeing a debut that’s nuanced and gently wry (and shot to sumptuous effect), she brings fine shading to the story of three very different women and the thwarted musician who still exerts some gravitational pull in their lives,
Canada’s production community is working towards a bespoke insurance solution as the country looks to jumpstart production after it ground to a halt in March amid the coronavirus outbreak. Variety can reveal that producers’ trade body, the Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA), is developing a proposal for a “market-based solution” that asks the federal government
Contrary to her movie’s title, the protagonist in “Feral” hardly fits any indigent stereotype: She’s young, attractive, kempt, modishly dressed, in fact by all appearances rather closer to the cliché of the college-educated, gentrifying if still “quirky” Brooklyn hipster. No one would guess that Annapurna Sriram’s Yasmine is homeless, a deceiving appearance that’s one of
Secuoya Group president Raul Berdonés and Madrid region politicians laid a symbolic stone Tuesday morning for Phase II and III of construction on Madrid Content City. Built around Tres Cantos’ Secuoya Studios north of Madrid, which already house Netflix’s first European Production Hub, Madrid Content City weighs in as one of the most ambitious studio,
“Mission: Impossible 7” is set to restart filming in September after shutting down filming earlier this year due to COVID-19 — and the film’s outdoor scenes are set to shoot first. Actor Simon Pegg, who plays Benji Dunn in the franchise, tells Variety that a September restart is “the plan” for the film. “That will begin
Even tantalizing glimpses of 20th-century Anglo-Irish modernist Eileen Gray’s most iconic designs, including scenes shot in the seminal E-1027, a seaside villa she built for her former lover Jean Badovici on France’s Côte d’Azur, fail to compensate for the rest of the treacle comprising “The Price of Desire.” Essentially a recounting of how envious Swiss
TV producer Krishnendu Majumdar has been confirmed as chair of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, becoming the first person of color to hold the role in BAFTA’s 73-year history, and the youngest chair in 35 years. The decision, which was made at BAFTA’s digital Annual General Meeting last night, was expected as
New Zealand drama film “Poppy” resumed production on Friday, becoming the first local film in the country to start up after a hiatus caused by the coronavirus outbreak. The film was in its final week of shooting when New Zealand’s ‘Level 4’ lockdown took effect on March 23. With the country now returned to a
In today’s film news roundup, “40 Years of Rocky” gets a release date, Pierce Brosnan’s “The King’s Daughter” finds a home and the 2020 Lower East Side Film Festival unveils its programming. RELEASE DATE Virgil Films has set a June 9 digital release date for the documentary “40 Years of Rocky,” which chronicles the behind-the-scenes
I’m an unabashed fan of “The Trip” and its three sequels. They’re the British talk-verité road comedies in which Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon, playing heightened versions of their quicksilver acid-tongued middle-aged selves, drive around some lovely European country (England, Italy, Spain, Greece), stopping for lavish lunches at Michelin-star restaurants as they slice and dice
Bad Robot Productions and the Katie McGrath & JJ Abrams Family Foundation announced charitable donations to a number of organizations “committed to anti-racist agendas.” In a statement posted on the Bad Robot Instagram page on Monday, they announced a pledge of $10 million over five years to various organizations. For starters, they will donate $200,000
The U.K.’s $4.5 billion film and high-end TV industry has turned its attention to when production can restart now that the country’s official coronavirus safety protocols have been published. It’s likely that a number of major productions will be up and running as early as July, while September or October is a more realistic timeline
A court in England has ruled in favor of Watership Down Enterprises, the estate and family of author Richard Adams, in an action brought against producer Martin Rosen, who wrote and directed the 1978 animated film of Adams’ novel “Watership Down.” In a judgment issued on May 27, Rosen and companies controlled by him were
Mexico’s largest indie production facility, Estudios GGM, is opening new soundstages as it restarts production activity in June. News comes as the country has begun to emerge from its Covid-19 lockdown. The new stages, measuring between 10,000 to 13,000 sq. ft., will complement the studio’s six other soundstages. Construction of one soundstage is nearly complete
Forget about spelling them. There are words in “Spelling the Dream” that mere mortals may not even be able to say, even after a spelling bee pronouncer repeats it, gives the language of origin, repeats it again and uses it in a sentence. But the young’uns in this entertaining documentary — about the dominance of
Movie theater closures and the uncertainty created by COVID-19 will have a devastating impact on the box office, according to a new note from research company MoffettNathanson. The Wall Street analyst firm predicts that revenues from ticket sales will be cut in half, falling from $11.4 billion in 2019 to $5.5 billion in 2020. That’s
The Venice Film Festival’s independently-run Venice Days section has promoted longtime chief programmer Gaia Furrer to the role of artistic director of the section modeled on the Cannes Directors’ Fortnight. Furrer (pictured) will now take the reins and call the shots regarding the lineup of Venice Days, known in Italy as the Giornate Degli Autori.
Spike Lee released a short film showcasing police brutality with clips of the deaths of George Floyd and Eric Garner along with footage from his 1989, Oscar-nominated film “Do the Right Thing.” Titled “Will History Stop Repeating Itself?,” Lee posted the video on his Twitter account by saying, “3 Brothers-Radio Raheem, Eric Garner And George
Midway through the year is the perfect time to take stock of what an embarrassment of riches our film culture has become. The movie year, after all, tends to be back-loaded, with most of the films that become awards contenders premiering at fall festivals and opening during the last three months of the year. But
A reopening of mainland Chinese cinemas may shortly become reality, but for some operators, that moment could come too late as the prospect of bankruptcy looms. A new survey from industry body, the China Film Association, published by the South China Morning Post, suggests that 40% of cinemas could permanently shut down as a result
In an effort to get the public back into cinemas, national film support body the Korean Film Council (KOFIC) has begun providing discount coupons. The coupons provide consumers with a KRW6,000 ($4.89) subsidy when they buy a movie ticket from any of the major cinema chains and many of the independent operators. With tickets averaging
Director James Cameron and producer Jon Landau arrived in Wellington, New Zealand on Sunday morning local time in preparation for the resumption of filming of the “Avatar” film series. Some 54 passengers were on board a chartered Air New Zealand plane, departing Friday night from LAX, and flying for nearly 13 hours direct from Los
“We dance in the streets because we don’t have anywhere to go now.” There is much that sticks and stutters and loops in the mind after watching “Dark City Beneath the Beat,” a bright, ebullient and simultaneously seething musical documentary dedicated to the Baltimore club scene, but that’s the line that lingers longest. An apparent
Following the death of George Floyd, many celebrities have come together to raise money for the Minnesota Freedom Fund and match donations made by others. Floyd died on May 25 in Minneapolis after a police officer kept his knee on his neck for several minutes, despite Floyd saying he couldn’t breathe multiple times. The officer
In a reaffirmation of its ambitions to hold an on-site event this year, France’s Lumière Festival, run by filmmaker and film historian Bertrand Tavernier and Cannes Festival head Thierry Frémaux, has formally announced dates for its 2020 edition The Lumière Festival 2020 has also unveiled its first program highlights: Tributes to French screenwriter Michel Audiard
Los Angeles has traditionally prided itself in being ahead of entertainment trends that develop around the country. But the area has been a little bit behind in at least one: the reopening of drive-in theaters during the pandemic. While other states and even surrounding counties had allowed drive-ins to resume operation, Los Angeles County had