Not too long ago, it would have been considered a box office suicide mission to pit any new release against a superhero movie. But this weekend’s showdown of Sony’s comic book adaptation “Madame Web” versus Paramount’s musical biopic “Bob Marley: One Love” demonstrates that’s no longer the case — superhero tentpoles no longer hold all
Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority (GEA) has launched a new film fund called Big Time Investment to boost production of quality Arabic movies and announced a slate of Egyptian feature films toplined by a biopic of Egyptian icon Umm Kulthum who is considered the Arab world’s greatest singer. Prominent Egyptian director Marwan Hamed, whose epic
“Do I look like every other politician?” Regina King‘s Shirley Chisholm says in response to being told she sounds like every other politician in the trailer for “Shirley.” Out March 22, the Netflix film tells the story of Shirley Chisholm, the first Black woman elected to the United States Congress, and chronicles her trailblazing 1972
Korean entertainment conglomerate CJ ENM has appointed Jung Jhong-hwan, as president of content, global business. He is expected to spearhead growth of global content production and distribution and continue the group’s multi-studio approach to business. Jung previously served as the head of global integration, within CJ ENM. He oversaw the establishment and growth of CJ
‘Made in England: The Films of Powell and Pressburger,’ the documentary executive produced and narrated by Matin Scorsese, has been acquired by Mubi ahead of the film’s world premiere at the Berlin Film Festival. The arthouse streamer, distributor and production company has bought all rights for Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Latin
Kirsten Niehuus, head of German film fund Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg, is confident that the changes to film funding proposed by the German government recently will have a “very positive effect on the production scene in Berlin-Brandenburg.” The proposed changes to the funding system were presented last week to German lawmakers in the Bundestag by commissioner for
In an exclusive one-on-one interview with Variety, Fernando Medin, president and managing director of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) Latin America and U.S. Hispanic, drilled down on the company’s programming and growth strategy for the region where it launches its rebranded streaming platform, Max, on Feb. 27. This will be WBD’s first major international roll-out of
Film production and distribution company KRG Studios is teaming with acclaimed filmmaker Anjali Menon on a Tamil-language feature film. Menon’s London Film School graduation short “Black Nor White” (2002), starring Archie Panjabi (“The Good Wife”) and Rez Kempton (“The Mummy”), won the BFI award at the Palm Springs film festival. Her directing credits include “Manjadikuru”
BAFTA has responded strongly after a man crashed the final category at the film awards on Sunday night. The man, an alleged social media prankster who Variety has opted not to name, joined “Oppenheimer” director Christopher Nolan, producers Emma Thomas and Charles Roven and star Cillian Murphy on stage after Michael J. Fox named the
U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak‘s participation on GB News‘ “People’s Forum” last week is the subject of an impartiality investigation by the country’s media regulator Ofcom. In the show, which aired on GB News on Feb. 12 and described by GB News as a “grilling,” Sunak answered the questions of pre-selected studio audience members on
Saudi Arabia’s Film AlUla has announced it is adding a state-of-the-art music recording studio alongside its moviemaking studios. The film commission for the swathe of northwest Saudi Arabia roughly the size of Belgium that also comprises a lush oasis and vast sandstone canyons currently has filmmaking facilities that include two large soundstages, a backlot, and production
The Locarno Film Festival has formed an advisory board for its industry side and recruited a roster of top indie industry figures including former Amazon Studios film executive Ted Hope, Bobby Allen, who is senior VP of content at Mubi, and former European Film Market chief Beki Probst as members. Locarno’s industry advisory board will be
“Poor Things” director Yorgos Lanthimos will reteam with Element Pictures on a remake of South Korean fantasy comedy “Save the Green Planet,” Variety has learned. Lanthimos — whose latest film, “Poor Things,” is nominated for 11 Oscars and just won five BAFTAs (including best actress for Emma Stone) — is expected to start shooting the
As the European Film Market starts to unwind, the verdict is already in: Even if global economics are rocky, buyers are back and on the lookout. This week, dealmaking has been happening on both star-driven packages as well as arthouse and foreign-language movies. In a sign that the theatrical business is rebounding, Sony just scooped
Playtime has had a busy EFM, where it’s locked a raft of major deals on “The Devil’s Bath,” a period psychological thriller in competition at the Berlin Film Festival. “The Devil’s Bath” is directed by Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala, the Austrian filmmaking duo behind “Goodnight Mommy.” Set in rural Austria in 1750, “The Devil’s Bath”
Copenhagen-based sales and financing outlet REinvent has inked major deals on the Danish/German thriller “Oxen”, ahead of its screening Feb. 19 as part of the Berlinale Series Market Selects label. The show, produced by Scandi major SF Studios with Germany’s Square One for TV2 Denmark and ZDF, has been acquired by GSN Networks for the
Series from Atresmedia TV, RTVE, Movistar Plus+, Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi (“La Mesías”), Zeta Studios (“Elite”) and director Carlota Pereda and Morena Films (behind Sundance hit “Piggy”) will unspool or be unveiled at the Berlinale. They underscore the breadth and depth of Spanish TV output: “Death to Love,” (“Que muera el amor,” Morena Films,
This year, Spain has more titles at the Berlinale’s two TV showcases, Co-Pro Series and Berlinale Market Selects, than any other country in the world— a total of four shows, beating the U.S. with one, and even Germany, which has three. On top of that, running Feb. 19-20 at the fest’s CinemaxX screening hub,
Prime Video has greenlit a feature-length documentary chronicling the final 12 days of Roger Federer’s professional tennis career. The as-yet-untitled documentary is described by Prime Video as “an intimate follow-along through the final 12 days of Roger Federer’s illustrious career. Originally a home video never intended for public viewing, the film captures Federer at his
“From Hilde, With Love,” which world premiered Saturday in competition at the Berlinale, has debuted its trailer (below). The film, directed by Andreas Dresen, centers on a group of young anti-Nazi activists in Berlin during World War II. (Read Variety‘s review here.) The film, which is being sold by Beta Cinema and is produced by
Chile’s Storyboard Media brings its latest documentary venture to Berlin, a project centered on Jorge González, a Latin American music legend frontman of Los Prisioneros. Set to be shown at the EFM, the doc feature charts the life and legacy of a musician whose songs became anthems of resistance during Pinochet’s dictatorship in Chile, and
European film agencies, festivals and organizations could do more to support Ukrainian filmmakers, the head of Germany’s state film promotion body, German Films, says. Simone Baumann, managing director of German Films — which supports the promotion of national filmmakers at festivals and events worldwide — says there is a lot of talk at festival panels
Four Chinese films dominated the mainland China and global box office charts over the latest weekend. “YOLO,” a comedy drama about weight loss and self-discovery, was crowned as the top earning film worldwide for a second weekend running. “YOLO” took $86.5 million (RMB614 million) between Friday and Sunday, giving it a 9-day cumulative total of
It’s been five years since “Chernobyl,” HBO’s phenomenally successful miniseries about the catastrophic 1986 disaster and a show that garnered both widespread acclaim and a whole host of Emmys, Golden Globes and BAFTA TV awards. Its creator Craig Mazin has since brought us zombies galore in the video game adaptation “The Last of Us,” but
British actor Solly McLeod‘s career is on an upward trajectory with Berlin-premiering “Last Swim” and Viggo Mortensen-directed “The Dead Don’t Hurt,” which premiered at Toronto 2023 and is bound for Glasgow next. Set over a hot summer day in London as the high-school year is ending, “Last Swim,” from feature debutant Sasha Nathwani, follows British-Iranian
“Maestro” and “Saltburn” took home the main prizes at the Make-Up Artists and Hair Stylists Guild (IATSE Local 706) awards. The guild held its 11th annual awards ceremony Sunday night at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. The night kicked off with the honoree awards being presented. Oscar-nominated actor Annette Bening was honored with the Distinguished Artisan
As the Berlinale Series Market celebrates its 10th anniversary, series continue to stand “side by side” with films at the German fest, observes EFM director Dennis Ruh. “BSM continues to be a beacon for all aspects of serialized content, even in years where space feels tighter with less films and series, giving selected titles more
International sales company Iuvit Media Sales has closed multiple deals at the European Film Market in Berlin for the suspense horror slasher “Goldilocks and the Three Bears: Death and Porridge.” Buyers include Gussi Films for Latin America, Pioneer for the Philippines and Front Row for the Middle East. Directed by Craig Rees (“Annabellum,” “Whispers”) and
The fight for diversity and inclusion takes center stage at this year’s European Film Market, which will host a day-long event Feb. 20 as part of a concerted, pan-European effort to open more doors in the continent’s screen industries. This year’s Equity and Inclusion Pathways Seminar is the second of three annual events designed to
SPOILER ALERT: This interview contains spoilers from “Part 6,” the season finale of HBO’s “True Detective: Night Country,” now streaming on Max. After flirting with the supernatural all season, the finale of “True Detective: Night Country” revealed that the show’s killers were very much real human beings. And the two women at the center of creator Issa López’s