Movies

The Festival of Far East Film in Udine will open with a world premier screening of “IWeirDo,” a romantic comedy that is curiously prescient about the coronavirus and human obsessions. Entirely shot on an iPhone XS, the film chronicles the meeting of two obsessive compulsives; a young man who is constantly washing his hands, and

Sony Pictures International Productions and Amazon Prime Video have closed a multi-picture deal with celebrated Spanish cineaste Álex de la Iglesia to produce a new horror feature film anthology, “The Fear Collection.” Put through Pokeepsie Films, De la Iglesia and Carolina Bang’s Madrid-based production company, the deal will see De la Iglesia direct and/or produce

Japanese police have arrested Shinji Aoba, the man suspected of the arson attack on Kyoyo Animation last July. The arrest came after he was judged sufficiently recovered from his own burn injuries to face scrutiny. The blaze at the animation production studio killed 36 people and injured another 33. Aoba was found near the scene

Paul Feig has reflected on the vitriolic response to his women-led “Ghostbusters” reboot, claiming it was similar to criticism faced by Hillary Clinton during her 2016 campaign for president. In a discussion with Julia Cunningham on “The Jess Cagle Show” on SiriusXM, Feig discussed the vocal negativity that arose following the casting of Kristen Wiig,

In today’s film news roundup, the Sundance supernatural film “Run Sweetheart Run” finds a home, Sundance programmer David Courier retires and “Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice” gets a week of free screenings. ACQUISITION Amazon Studios has bought Shana Feste’s supernatural film, “Run Sweetheart Run,” starring Ella Balinska, from Blumhouse Productions and Automatik. It

The Tribeca Film Institute has suspended operations and enacted a small wave of layoffs amid ongoing coronavirus havoc, insiders familiar with the decision told Variety. TFI is a non-profit devoted to funding and education aspiring filmmakers, serving as an educational outfit alongside the annual Tribeca Film Festival. Fewer than 10 people were laid off as

After NASA confirmed their plan to work with Tom Cruise and Elon Musk’s SpaceX on a film that would be shot in outer space, sources tell Variety the project has found its director. Doug Liman, who worked with Cruise on “Edge of Tomorrow” and “American Made” has come on to direct the mystery movie, which

Writers Guild of America leaders are seeking a wide variety of improvements to script fees and health plan contributions for writers as the guild holds master contract negotiations with studios. “Whether writing theatrical tentpoles, features for streamers, or indie passion projects, taken together these proposals would ensure screenwriters secure gains and protections they need and

Jon M. Chu has only recently begun to accept the success of his groundbreaking 2018 rom-com “Crazy Rich Asians” — although he still can’t enjoy it. The hang-up, he reveals on Variety’s “#REPRESENT: Success Stories,” comes from enduring brutal critical reception for his previous features, including “Jem and the Holograms” in 2015. “I got torn a

While many fests have been canceled this year due to the coronavirus crisis, the Jerusalem Film Festival has postponed its 37th edition to kick off Aug. 20. The festival, which was initially scheduled to take place in mid-July will instead run Aug. 20-30, in compliance with the health guidelines issued by the Ministry of Health

“Doctor Strange” helmer Scott Derrickson will direct the sequel to Jim Henson’s fantasy musical “Labyrinth” for TriStar Pictures. Lisa Henson of The Jim Henson Company is producing. Brian Henson is executive producing. Derrickson is executive producing with his frequent collaborator, C. Robert Cargill. Blanca Lisa, vice president of feature film production, is shepherding the project

Being able to buy a washer/dryer, refusing to play into stereotypes for roles, the ability to say “no” — that’s how a few of Hollywood’s most prominent Asian Americans have defined success over the course of their careers. In honor of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month in May, Variety gathered prominent AAPI creatives Kumail Nanjiani

Focus Features is delaying the release of Edgar Wright’s thriller “Last Night in Soho.” The film has been moved back seven months from Sept. 25, 2020 to April 23, 2021. “Haunted by someone else’s past, but we’ll see you in the future… It’s true, #LastNightInSoho is not quite finished yet due to Covid 19,” Wright

May is Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, and for the first-ever installment of Variety‘s “#REPRESENT: Success Stories,” five Asian American creatives — Kumail Nanjiani, Hasan Minhaj, Lulu Wang, Jon M. Chu and Ally Maki — gathered for a lively virtual roundtable centered on their careers thus far in Hollywood. Reflecting on the launch of his

New Zealand will get a new, large, film production complex with the opening next month of X3 Studios, near Auckland. Developer, Xytech Studio Management says that the site has been purpose built for large scale ‘build the world’ productions, in which the entirety of a film or show is conducted in a controlled studio environment.

The Panama Film Festival (IFF Panama), with support from the Inter-American Development Bank, is unspooling a five-day online festival, running May 22-26, which includes film screenings and round tables. Held on May 22, 23 and 24, three online round-tables – two moderated by festival director Pituka Ortega Heilbron and one by TIFF’s senior director, film,

Many U.K. independent cinemas say they are unlikely to reopen before September. A survey of the sector by U.K. organization the Independent Cinema Office (ICO), found that independent cinemas felt pressure from the commercial exhibition sector and the wider film industry to open before then, when it is not financially viable or even safe for

Agnieszka Zwiefka’s “Wika!” Angeliki Antoniou’s “Green Sea” and Wong Fei-pang’s “Dear Immigrants: What Was Your First Meal?” will all feature at the Marché du Film’s 2020 Goes to Cannes, one of the highest-profile industry events at the Cannes Film Market. This year’s Gors to Event runs June 22-23, at the beginning of the Marché du

Russian film promotion body Roskino has unveiled the program for its digital Key Buyers Event, a virtual content market that will present over 300 projects from more than 120 leading Russian companies to international buyers. Presented with the support of the Ministry of Culture and the Moscow city government, the digital market will run from

When the bottom fell out of the Russian economy during the crisis of 2014, sending the ruble into a tailspin, the shockwaves reverberating across the country had a seismic impact on the film industry. For many accustomed to the old ways of doing business, a dramatic rethink was at hand. “Until 2014…Russian producers were never really

“Suicide Squad” director David Ayer says it would be easy to make a director’s cut of his movie. The 2016 supervillain team-up movie received mostly negative reviews from fans and critics, and many wondered what had been left on the cutting room floor. Since his movie’s release, Ayer has been vocal about how his original

Matthew McConaughey personally delivered a carload of face masks to hospitals fighting coronavirus in Texas. The actor and his wife Camila Alves McConaughey dropped off 110,000 face masks ahead of Memorial Day weekend. McConaughey posted a photo of his car and the boxes of masks on his Instagram account on Thursday. “Thanks to @lincoln for

Following weeks of heated debate and clashes, France’s film and audiovisual guilds as well as labor unions have finally agreed a set of production guidelines for filming during the pandemic. The guidelines were approved by the CCHCST (Central Committee for Hygiene, Security and Working Conditions in the Production of Films, Shorts and Commercials) and have

In a major reboot of its pix-in-post strands, which in turn forms part of a new streamlining, the San Sebastian Film Festival, the highest-profile film event in the Spanish-speaking world, has launched two new pix-in-post showcases, WIP Latam and WIP Europa. WIP Latam replaces Films in Progress, launched in 2003 as a joint venture with

The Producers Guild of India (PGI) has published a comprehensive protocol document that will govern shoots after the coronavirus pandemic subsides. The 37-page “Back to Action’ protocol explains hygiene matters such as mandatory hand-washing, triple-layer mask and gloves, the avoidance of handshakes and shared cigarettes, and how two metres of social distancing should be maintained.

Carole Lombard came to Hollywood from the Midwest at the age of 7 and was making Westerns at Fox by age 9. The legendary star of such classics as “My Man Godfrey” and “Twentieth Century” would rise to become a high-paid performer in the middle of the Depression. Lombard was known for her tomboy style,

South Korean cinemas have reopened. But business is far from normal. Nationwide box office over the weekend trickled in at just 7% of what it was this time last year. And with Hollywood’s direct players and local distributors reluctant to release big titles since the outbreak of coronavirus in the country, screens have been filled

Charades is unveiling a clip for “Shorta,” the anticipated Danish action-packed movie directed by Frederik Louis Hviid and Anders Ølholm. The timely film unfolds in the aftermath of the killing of 19-year-old Talib Ben Hassi while in custody. “Shorta” follows two police officers, Jens and Mike, who are on routine patrol in a minority-heavy neighborhood

The Karlovy Vary Intl. Film Festival, the leading cinema event in Central and Eastern Europe, has unveiled a program of theatrical screenings across the Czech Republic. Sixteen films will play at 96 theaters in almost 80 towns and cities over the course of nine days. The screening program plays under the banner “KVIFF at Your

The Taipei Film Festival will go ahead in June, making it one of the first significant festivals to do so in the post-coronavirus era. While its film selection is international, audiences will be entirely local. Organizers announced Monday that the festival will open on June 25 with the world premiere of Taiwan-made “Silent Forest.” It