Mohammad Rasoulof’s ‘The Seed of the Sacred Fig’ Wins Fipresci Award at Cannes: ‘A Courageous Story’
Mohammad Rasoulof’s “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” won the Fipresci award at Cannes.
The jury of the International Federation of Film Critics called it “a courageous story set in modern-day Iran that deals with the conflict between tradition and progress, depicted in a very powerful and imaginative way.”
Following a rapturous screening and 2024 record 12-minute standing ovation, the film became a Palme d’Or frontrunner, reported Variety.
“The only reason I left Iran – and that was what made me take that decision – was to go on telling the stories of my land. That was really my only motivation.”
“I need to go on telling stories, creating stories. However, this does not mean that I have left the narratives of Iran. Iran is still inside me, and I still can go on telling Iranian stories and conveying them to the rest of the world,” Rasoulof told Variety’s Nick Vivarelli two days ago.
The jury of the International Federation of Film Critics called it “a courageous story set in modern-day Iran that deals with the conflict between tradition and progress, depicted in a very powerful and imaginative way.”
Following a rapturous screening and 2024 record 12-minute standing ovation, the film became a Palme d’Or frontrunner, reported Variety.
“The only reason I left Iran – and that was what made me take that decision – was to go on telling the stories of my land. That was really my only motivation.”
“I need to go on telling stories, creating stories. However, this does not mean that I have left the narratives of Iran. Iran is still inside me, and I still can go on telling Iranian stories and conveying them to the rest of the world,” Rasoulof told Variety’s Nick Vivarelli two days ago.
- 5/25/2024
- by Marta Balaga
- Variety Film + TV
For one of this year’s Variety Global Conversations Summit at Cannes, a group of leading women actors and filmmakers from around the world joined Variety’s Nick Vivarelli to discuss how they got into the business, what motivates them and some of the groundbreaking roles they’ve played.
Egyptian actor Salma Abu-Deif (“El-Asliyyin”) discussed her recent turn in the series “Highest Viewing Rate,” which tells the true story of a girl from a poor family who becomes obsessed with TikTok and uses the platform to escape her daily life.
According to Abu-Deif, the show has impacted some traditionally strict Arab parents who have watched it and gained a better understanding of some issues their children face. “I love that I saw Arab parents saying, ‘Oh, maybe we need to listen to our kids, even if it’s against how we were raised or how we think culture should be.
Egyptian actor Salma Abu-Deif (“El-Asliyyin”) discussed her recent turn in the series “Highest Viewing Rate,” which tells the true story of a girl from a poor family who becomes obsessed with TikTok and uses the platform to escape her daily life.
According to Abu-Deif, the show has impacted some traditionally strict Arab parents who have watched it and gained a better understanding of some issues their children face. “I love that I saw Arab parents saying, ‘Oh, maybe we need to listen to our kids, even if it’s against how we were raised or how we think culture should be.
- 5/21/2024
- by Jamie Lang
- Variety Film + TV
In 2023, Saudi Arabian film agency Film AlUla formed AlUla Creates, a local initiative that provides funding, mentorship and networking opportunities for Saudi filmmakers and fashion designers. And in just one year, AlUla Creates has exploded into a global brand, already hosting 123 international productions in the scenic valleys of AlUla, Saudi Arabia.
“We call it a living museum,” said marketing director at Film AlUla Mahsa Motamedi. “It’s absolutely beautiful.”
As part of the Variety Global Conversations Summit at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, Variety‘s Italy and Middle East correspondent Nick Vivarelli sat down with Motamedi, director Maram Taibah and sister filmmakers Raneem and Dana Almohandes to discuss the impact of AlUla Creates on the Saudi Arabian film industry.
Taibah is one of the many young filmmakers who found support from AlUla Creates. After her sister sent her an Instagram ad for the program, she knew immediately she wanted to join.
“We call it a living museum,” said marketing director at Film AlUla Mahsa Motamedi. “It’s absolutely beautiful.”
As part of the Variety Global Conversations Summit at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, Variety‘s Italy and Middle East correspondent Nick Vivarelli sat down with Motamedi, director Maram Taibah and sister filmmakers Raneem and Dana Almohandes to discuss the impact of AlUla Creates on the Saudi Arabian film industry.
Taibah is one of the many young filmmakers who found support from AlUla Creates. After her sister sent her an Instagram ad for the program, she knew immediately she wanted to join.
- 5/21/2024
- by Jack Dunn
- Variety Film + TV
ITV took a gamble when they snatched the U.K. broadcast rights to the Oscars away from Sky after two decades and it looks like the gamble paid off.
The three-hour plus show averaged 551,000 viewers on Sunday evening. At its peak, around 10.16pm, 1.1 million were watching.
Last year’s show on Sky averaged 95,000 viewers while a highlights cut the following evening garnered 141,000.
ITV1 are set to air highlights of the show on Monday evening while the full simulcast is still available to watch on streaming platform Itvx.
In Italy live Oscars telecast scored a roughly 15% audience share on state broadcaster Rai’s flagship Rai-1 station with a peak of 1.9 million viewers, according to national ratings compiler Auditel. This year marked the return of the live Oscars telecast on Rai after airing exclusively on Comcast-owned Sky Italia for many years.
The Oscars has always been a tricky proposition in Europe,...
The three-hour plus show averaged 551,000 viewers on Sunday evening. At its peak, around 10.16pm, 1.1 million were watching.
Last year’s show on Sky averaged 95,000 viewers while a highlights cut the following evening garnered 141,000.
ITV1 are set to air highlights of the show on Monday evening while the full simulcast is still available to watch on streaming platform Itvx.
In Italy live Oscars telecast scored a roughly 15% audience share on state broadcaster Rai’s flagship Rai-1 station with a peak of 1.9 million viewers, according to national ratings compiler Auditel. This year marked the return of the live Oscars telecast on Rai after airing exclusively on Comcast-owned Sky Italia for many years.
The Oscars has always been a tricky proposition in Europe,...
- 3/11/2024
- by K.J. Yossman
- Variety Film + TV
At last year’s Cannes Film Festival, Leonardo DiCaprio, Harrison Ford and Scarlett Johansson hit the red carpet to premiere their latest big movies. But Hollywood may have a much lighter presence at the 2024 edition of one of the world’s most notable film festivals.
The culprit is the combination of last year’s actors and writers strikes, which created production delays, as well as a tough economy that’s leading studios to tighten the purse-strings. But there will still be stars on the Croisette, in addition to “Barbie” director Greta Gerwig, who will be presiding over the jury.
Based on intelligence from industry insiders on both sides of the Atlantic, the upcoming edition will have a larger emphasis on European auteurs, along the lines of Justine Triet’s “Anatomy of a Fall” and Jonathan Glazer’s “The Zone of Interest,” which were each nominated for five Oscars.
While the...
The culprit is the combination of last year’s actors and writers strikes, which created production delays, as well as a tough economy that’s leading studios to tighten the purse-strings. But there will still be stars on the Croisette, in addition to “Barbie” director Greta Gerwig, who will be presiding over the jury.
Based on intelligence from industry insiders on both sides of the Atlantic, the upcoming edition will have a larger emphasis on European auteurs, along the lines of Justine Triet’s “Anatomy of a Fall” and Jonathan Glazer’s “The Zone of Interest,” which were each nominated for five Oscars.
While the...
- 3/4/2024
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
As the Israel-Hamas war continues to rage in Gaza, repercussions are being felt at the Berlinale, which looks to be one of the most politically charged editions in recent history.
Several filmmakers have already canceled their participation to the festival in protest of Germany’s attitude towards Palestinian voices, while more than 50 Berlinale workers have signed an open letter this week demanding a ceasefire in Gaza and asking that the festival leadership take a “stronger institutional stance” on what the statement calls “the current assault on Palestinian life” and calling on the festival to take a stance that is “consistent with those taken in response to other events that have struck the international community in recent years.”
The war in Gaza followed Hamas’ attacks on Israel on Oct. 7, which resulted in approximately 1,200 deaths and 250 hostages taken. As the death toll continues to rise, with nearly 30,000 Palestinians killed in Gaza...
Several filmmakers have already canceled their participation to the festival in protest of Germany’s attitude towards Palestinian voices, while more than 50 Berlinale workers have signed an open letter this week demanding a ceasefire in Gaza and asking that the festival leadership take a “stronger institutional stance” on what the statement calls “the current assault on Palestinian life” and calling on the festival to take a stance that is “consistent with those taken in response to other events that have struck the international community in recent years.”
The war in Gaza followed Hamas’ attacks on Israel on Oct. 7, which resulted in approximately 1,200 deaths and 250 hostages taken. As the death toll continues to rise, with nearly 30,000 Palestinians killed in Gaza...
- 2/16/2024
- by Ed Meza
- Variety Film + TV
Variety is expanding its international coverage with the appointment of well-respected trade correspondent Alex Ritman as its London Bureau Chief.
Ritman, who is based in London, was U.K. correspondent at The Hollywood Reporter for nine years. During that time, he was nominated for several National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards, co-winning in 2017 for a feature about Leonardo DiCaprio and a major international corruption scandal. He was most recently nominated for a profile of Daniel Radcliffe. Prior to joining THR, Ritman wrote for publications including The Guardian, Time Out, The Sunday Times, Esquire, The Daily Beast, The Los Angeles Times and Little White Lies. He spent several years in the Middle East as the main film writer for The National newspaper.
At Variety, Ritman will contribute to magazine features and web stories with an emphasis on U.K. film and media, production and financial news, as well as industry analysis,...
Ritman, who is based in London, was U.K. correspondent at The Hollywood Reporter for nine years. During that time, he was nominated for several National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards, co-winning in 2017 for a feature about Leonardo DiCaprio and a major international corruption scandal. He was most recently nominated for a profile of Daniel Radcliffe. Prior to joining THR, Ritman wrote for publications including The Guardian, Time Out, The Sunday Times, Esquire, The Daily Beast, The Los Angeles Times and Little White Lies. He spent several years in the Middle East as the main film writer for The National newspaper.
At Variety, Ritman will contribute to magazine features and web stories with an emphasis on U.K. film and media, production and financial news, as well as industry analysis,...
- 12/13/2023
- by Variety Staff
- Variety Film + TV
While attending the third edition of the Red Sea Film Festival, Wayne Borg, managing director of media industries, entertainment and culture at Neom, sat down with U.S. producer Eric Hedayat and Variety‘s Italy and Middle East correspondent Nick Vivarelli to discuss Neom’s key role in Saudi Arabia’s entertainment industry boom.
Coupling state-of-the-art infrastructure with Saudi Arabia’s enticing 40% tax rebate, Neom has solidified itself as a major entertainment and media production hub not only locally to Saudi but internationally in the last two years.
“[Neom] is about critical mass of infrastructure, stages, support facilities and workshops,” said Borg about the fundamental principles of the company. “It’s about a competitive, super attractive production incentive scheme and ensuring the depth and breadth of workers to support the influx of productions we are experiencing now. And, finally, it’s about getting out of the way.”
With over 20 years of experience in the media sector,...
Coupling state-of-the-art infrastructure with Saudi Arabia’s enticing 40% tax rebate, Neom has solidified itself as a major entertainment and media production hub not only locally to Saudi but internationally in the last two years.
“[Neom] is about critical mass of infrastructure, stages, support facilities and workshops,” said Borg about the fundamental principles of the company. “It’s about a competitive, super attractive production incentive scheme and ensuring the depth and breadth of workers to support the influx of productions we are experiencing now. And, finally, it’s about getting out of the way.”
With over 20 years of experience in the media sector,...
- 12/8/2023
- by Rafa Sales Ross
- Variety Film + TV
The SAG-AFTRA strike has shut down scores of film and TV productions as actors hit the picket line. While many sets had already shut down as a result of the WGA writers strike, the actors strike will effectively slow Hollywood down to a crawl as negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers continue.
Read Variety‘s list of newly halted productions below, which will be updated throughout the strike.
Beetlejuice 2
The Tim Burton production, with Michael Keaton reprising his role as the crude ghost, is almost done with shooting in London but was still expected to film one last sequence in Vermont when the strike took place.
The Day of the Jackal
Eddie Redmayne and Lashana Lynch star in this Sky and Peacock series that was shooting around Central and Eastern Europe.
Deadpool 3
The superhero sequel was filming in the U.K., with Hugh Jackman...
Read Variety‘s list of newly halted productions below, which will be updated throughout the strike.
Beetlejuice 2
The Tim Burton production, with Michael Keaton reprising his role as the crude ghost, is almost done with shooting in London but was still expected to film one last sequence in Vermont when the strike took place.
The Day of the Jackal
Eddie Redmayne and Lashana Lynch star in this Sky and Peacock series that was shooting around Central and Eastern Europe.
Deadpool 3
The superhero sequel was filming in the U.K., with Hugh Jackman...
- 7/14/2023
- by William Earl
- Variety Film + TV
Studiocanal has boarded “A Prophet,” a new television adaptation of Jacques Audiard’s acclaimed 2009 film. The eight-episode limited series started filming on July 3, with “Django” director Enrico Maria Artale and a diverse new cast led by Mamadou Sidibé.
The French-language series brings back the award-winning team behind the original film, including creators and writers Abdel Raouf Dafri and Nicolas Peufaillit (“The Returned”), as well as producer Marco Cherqui (“Savages”), in agreement with “A Prophet” producers Why Not Productions and Page 114.
The show, which is filming in Marseille and Puglia, Italy, is produced by Cherqui and Sebastien Janin, former Apple exec and co-founder of Media Musketeers, and co-produced by Ugc, Orange Studio, Entourage Series and Savon Noir, with the participation of Ocs. The key crew includes “Gomorra” cinematographer Ferran Paredes Rubio. Veteran Italian producer Fabio Conversi (“Youth”) is exec producing the series.
The original movie won the grand jury prize at the Cannes Film Festival,...
The French-language series brings back the award-winning team behind the original film, including creators and writers Abdel Raouf Dafri and Nicolas Peufaillit (“The Returned”), as well as producer Marco Cherqui (“Savages”), in agreement with “A Prophet” producers Why Not Productions and Page 114.
The show, which is filming in Marseille and Puglia, Italy, is produced by Cherqui and Sebastien Janin, former Apple exec and co-founder of Media Musketeers, and co-produced by Ugc, Orange Studio, Entourage Series and Savon Noir, with the participation of Ocs. The key crew includes “Gomorra” cinematographer Ferran Paredes Rubio. Veteran Italian producer Fabio Conversi (“Youth”) is exec producing the series.
The original movie won the grand jury prize at the Cannes Film Festival,...
- 7/10/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Roughly a month before Venice Film Festival’s 2023 lineup announcement, the buzz around the competition is heating up with several star-studded films by heavyweight directors in the mix, including Pablo Larrain (“El Conde”), Michael Mann (“Ferrari“), Sofia Coppola (“Priscilla“), Yorgos Lanthimos (“Poor Things”) and Michel Franco (“Memory”).
These titles are believed to have been officially invited to the Lido in competition, according to sources.
Larraín’s follow-up to “Spencer,” “El Conde” depicts dictator Augusto Pinochet as a Vampire with a cast led by Chilean star Alfredo Castro.
Another film with a genre element, Lanthimos’ “Poor Things” is a surrealist science-fiction romance based on an adaptation of Alasdair Grey’s novel of the same name, and starring Emma Stone as Belle Baxter, a Frankenstein-like woman who is brought back to life after her brain is replaced with that of her unborn child. Stone stars opposite Willem Dafoe, Mark Ruffalo, Christopher Abbott and Margaret Qualley.
These titles are believed to have been officially invited to the Lido in competition, according to sources.
Larraín’s follow-up to “Spencer,” “El Conde” depicts dictator Augusto Pinochet as a Vampire with a cast led by Chilean star Alfredo Castro.
Another film with a genre element, Lanthimos’ “Poor Things” is a surrealist science-fiction romance based on an adaptation of Alasdair Grey’s novel of the same name, and starring Emma Stone as Belle Baxter, a Frankenstein-like woman who is brought back to life after her brain is replaced with that of her unborn child. Stone stars opposite Willem Dafoe, Mark Ruffalo, Christopher Abbott and Margaret Qualley.
- 6/21/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Cohen Media Group has scooped rights to “Kidnapped,” the latest movie by revered Italian master Marco Bellocchio, which world premiered in competition at the Cannes Film Festival. The drama reconstructs the true tale of Edgardo Mortara, a young Jewish boy who was kidnapped and forcibly raised as a Christian in 19th-century Italy.
Described by Variety as a “handsomely mounted period drama,” “Kidnapped” opens in 1858, in the Jewish quarter of Bologna, where the Pope’s soldiers burst into the home of the Mortara family. By order of the cardinal, they have come to take Edgardo, their seven-year-old son. The child had been secretly baptized by his nurse as a baby, and the papal law is unquestionable: he must receive a Catholic education.
Edgardo’s parents, distraught, will do anything to get their son back. The Mortaras are supported by public opinion and the international Jewish community, but the Church and the...
Described by Variety as a “handsomely mounted period drama,” “Kidnapped” opens in 1858, in the Jewish quarter of Bologna, where the Pope’s soldiers burst into the home of the Mortara family. By order of the cardinal, they have come to take Edgardo, their seven-year-old son. The child had been secretly baptized by his nurse as a baby, and the papal law is unquestionable: he must receive a Catholic education.
Edgardo’s parents, distraught, will do anything to get their son back. The Mortaras are supported by public opinion and the international Jewish community, but the Church and the...
- 6/8/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Kaouther Ben Hania, the Oscar-nominated director of “The Man Who Sold His Skin” whose latest film “Four Daughters” is competing at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, will next direct “Mimesis,” an epic love story set in Tunisia.
While the plot is under wraps, the story is set in two different periods, the 1990s and the 1940s, paying tribute to cinema and Arab-Muslim cultural heritage. It’s being produced by Nadim Cheikhrouha at Tanit Films, who produced Ben Hania’s “Four Daughters” and her previous film “The Man Who Sold His Skin” which world premiered at Venice where it won best actor for Yahya Mahayni and was nominated for best international film at the Oscars in 2021.
Mahayn starred in the film as a Syrian refugee who accepts to have a large Schengen visa, the document he desperately needs to enter Europe, tattooed on his back by a famous artist, thus...
While the plot is under wraps, the story is set in two different periods, the 1990s and the 1940s, paying tribute to cinema and Arab-Muslim cultural heritage. It’s being produced by Nadim Cheikhrouha at Tanit Films, who produced Ben Hania’s “Four Daughters” and her previous film “The Man Who Sold His Skin” which world premiered at Venice where it won best actor for Yahya Mahayni and was nominated for best international film at the Oscars in 2021.
Mahayn starred in the film as a Syrian refugee who accepts to have a large Schengen visa, the document he desperately needs to enter Europe, tattooed on his back by a famous artist, thus...
- 5/21/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Bill Kramer, the newly appointed CEO of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, kicked off his charm offensive with the international film community at the Venice Film Festival, telling a small audience of journalists that the Academy’s “future is with international cinema as much as it is with American cinema.”
Kramer — who is in Italy this week and will also be at Telluride — is keen to demonstrate the Academy’s support of its international contingent, which makes up more than 25 of its overall membership. Kramer said that international members comprised 50 of the latest class of new Academy members.
Kramer, who was interview by Variety’s Rome-based international correspondent Nick Vivarelli, suggested the org is looking to “educate” and “encourage” its international members to submit to more Oscar categories apart from best international feature film, and cited the multi-category success of films such as “Worst Person in the...
Kramer — who is in Italy this week and will also be at Telluride — is keen to demonstrate the Academy’s support of its international contingent, which makes up more than 25 of its overall membership. Kramer said that international members comprised 50 of the latest class of new Academy members.
Kramer, who was interview by Variety’s Rome-based international correspondent Nick Vivarelli, suggested the org is looking to “educate” and “encourage” its international members to submit to more Oscar categories apart from best international feature film, and cited the multi-category success of films such as “Worst Person in the...
- 8/30/2022
- by Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
Indian media and entertainment company Eros Media World is entering the Saudi Arabian market via a partnership with Riyadh-headquartered Arabia Pictures Group (Apg).
Apg, a content production outfit, focuses mainly on the Mena region. Eros and Apg will explore strategic and business opportunities in the film production, technology, and Web3 spaces, exclusively catering to the Indian entertainment industry. The two companies are already in the advanced stages of testing movie archive digitization and virtual location scouting technologies.
The partnership aims to tap into Vision 2030, the Saudi Arabian government’s strategic framework to move away from Saudi Arabia’s dependence on oil to diversify its economy and develop public service sectors such as health, education, infrastructure, recreation, media and tourism, which is driven by the country’s General Entertainment Authority.
Bollywood films have been playing well in Saudi ever since Akshay Kumar’s “Gold” became the first Bollywood title released...
Apg, a content production outfit, focuses mainly on the Mena region. Eros and Apg will explore strategic and business opportunities in the film production, technology, and Web3 spaces, exclusively catering to the Indian entertainment industry. The two companies are already in the advanced stages of testing movie archive digitization and virtual location scouting technologies.
The partnership aims to tap into Vision 2030, the Saudi Arabian government’s strategic framework to move away from Saudi Arabia’s dependence on oil to diversify its economy and develop public service sectors such as health, education, infrastructure, recreation, media and tourism, which is driven by the country’s General Entertainment Authority.
Bollywood films have been playing well in Saudi ever since Akshay Kumar’s “Gold” became the first Bollywood title released...
- 8/16/2022
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Short Film
Ahead of World Refugee Day on June 20, Unhcr, the Un Refugee Agency has released “Uprooted,” a powerful short film featuring and made by Ukrainian refugees now living in Germany. The film shows loud noises – a door slamming, the sirens of an ambulance, the bangs of a firework display – and how they can trigger terrifying memories of war. Some 50 refugees from Ukraine, including writers, choreographers, designers, casting producers, styling assistants, set dressing, make up, music and all the talent featured in the film, were involved in the project.
“Uprooted”, released Monday on Unhcr’s social media platforms, is being shown in select cinemas across the U.K. It was directed by Stink Films’ Andzej Gavriss who wrote the concept with Ukrainian choreographer, Konstantin Koval and Don’t Panic London’s creative partner, Rick Dodds. Production took place in Berlin, Germany.
Unhcr spokesperson, Joung-Ah Ghedini-Williams said: “The Ukrainian refugee cast...
Ahead of World Refugee Day on June 20, Unhcr, the Un Refugee Agency has released “Uprooted,” a powerful short film featuring and made by Ukrainian refugees now living in Germany. The film shows loud noises – a door slamming, the sirens of an ambulance, the bangs of a firework display – and how they can trigger terrifying memories of war. Some 50 refugees from Ukraine, including writers, choreographers, designers, casting producers, styling assistants, set dressing, make up, music and all the talent featured in the film, were involved in the project.
“Uprooted”, released Monday on Unhcr’s social media platforms, is being shown in select cinemas across the U.K. It was directed by Stink Films’ Andzej Gavriss who wrote the concept with Ukrainian choreographer, Konstantin Koval and Don’t Panic London’s creative partner, Rick Dodds. Production took place in Berlin, Germany.
Unhcr spokesperson, Joung-Ah Ghedini-Williams said: “The Ukrainian refugee cast...
- 6/13/2022
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Pride
“Trixie Motel,” starring drag legend and “RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars” winner Trixie Mattel, “Book of Queer,” “Generation Drag” and “Control” are among the new Discovery+ originals commemorating U.K. Pride Month in June. 2022 marks 50 years of Pride in the U.K. and a dedicated content collection celebrating the Lgbtqia+ community is available via Discovery+ in the U.K. and Ireland from June 1.
Eight-parter “Trixie Motel” follows Mattel and her partner and property co-owner, David Silver, as they tackle the massive overhaul of a mid-century motel in Palm Springs, California and secures “free labour” from friends including Lisa Vanderpump, Zooey Deschanel, Iggy Azalea and Belinda Carlisle. Six-parter “Generation Drag” is a documentary series, executive produced by Tyra Banks, that follows five teen and tween drag performers from across the U.S. A as they prepare for drag ball Dragutante.
Five-parter “The Book of Queer” highlights some of history’s...
“Trixie Motel,” starring drag legend and “RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars” winner Trixie Mattel, “Book of Queer,” “Generation Drag” and “Control” are among the new Discovery+ originals commemorating U.K. Pride Month in June. 2022 marks 50 years of Pride in the U.K. and a dedicated content collection celebrating the Lgbtqia+ community is available via Discovery+ in the U.K. and Ireland from June 1.
Eight-parter “Trixie Motel” follows Mattel and her partner and property co-owner, David Silver, as they tackle the massive overhaul of a mid-century motel in Palm Springs, California and secures “free labour” from friends including Lisa Vanderpump, Zooey Deschanel, Iggy Azalea and Belinda Carlisle. Six-parter “Generation Drag” is a documentary series, executive produced by Tyra Banks, that follows five teen and tween drag performers from across the U.S. A as they prepare for drag ball Dragutante.
Five-parter “The Book of Queer” highlights some of history’s...
- 6/1/2022
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Speaking about the matter for the first time in public, Asghar Farhadi forcefully denied that he plagiarized his 2021 film “A Hero.”
“My film was not based on the documentary,” the Iranian Oscar-winning directed said on Tuesday afternoon at the Cannes Film Festival. “I think the matter will no doubt be cleared up. And I’m sorry it has created so much ill feeling.”
An Iranian court is hearing a case involving a former student, Azadeh Masihzadeh, who has accused Farhadi of copying the idea for his movie from a documentary that she showed him in a 2014 workshop in Tehran.
“A Hero,” which won the Grand Prize in Cannes last year, tells the story of a man who finds and returns a bag filled with gold coins while he’s been temporarily released from prison. But once his deed as a good samaritan receives media attention, police suspect he could be lying.
“My film was not based on the documentary,” the Iranian Oscar-winning directed said on Tuesday afternoon at the Cannes Film Festival. “I think the matter will no doubt be cleared up. And I’m sorry it has created so much ill feeling.”
An Iranian court is hearing a case involving a former student, Azadeh Masihzadeh, who has accused Farhadi of copying the idea for his movie from a documentary that she showed him in a 2014 workshop in Tehran.
“A Hero,” which won the Grand Prize in Cannes last year, tells the story of a man who finds and returns a bag filled with gold coins while he’s been temporarily released from prison. But once his deed as a good samaritan receives media attention, police suspect he could be lying.
- 5/17/2022
- by Ramin Setoodeh
- Variety Film + TV
Documentary
Liam Gallagher will feature with his sons Lennon and Gene in one-hour Sky special “Liam Gallagher 48 Hours at Rockfield,” where the former Oasis band member heads to the Rockfield Studios in Wales for 48 hours of music and memories. The show is ahead of the release of Gallagher’s new album “C’Mon You Know” and a summer of gigs including a return to Knebworth. Gallagher will perform exclusive tracks from the upcoming album, plus two Oasis classics. In-between the studio sessions Gallagher chats candidly about music, song writing and his upcoming tour.
Gallagher said: “It was great to go back to Rockfield after all these years and see the old firm looking so well. It brought back many memories.”
“Liam Gallagher 48 Hours at Rockfield” was commissioned by Zai Bennett, MD of content for Sky U.K. and Ireland and Phil Edgar-Jones, director of Sky Arts and Entertainment. Shirley Jones is commissioning editor for Sky.
Liam Gallagher will feature with his sons Lennon and Gene in one-hour Sky special “Liam Gallagher 48 Hours at Rockfield,” where the former Oasis band member heads to the Rockfield Studios in Wales for 48 hours of music and memories. The show is ahead of the release of Gallagher’s new album “C’Mon You Know” and a summer of gigs including a return to Knebworth. Gallagher will perform exclusive tracks from the upcoming album, plus two Oasis classics. In-between the studio sessions Gallagher chats candidly about music, song writing and his upcoming tour.
Gallagher said: “It was great to go back to Rockfield after all these years and see the old firm looking so well. It brought back many memories.”
“Liam Gallagher 48 Hours at Rockfield” was commissioned by Zai Bennett, MD of content for Sky U.K. and Ireland and Phil Edgar-Jones, director of Sky Arts and Entertainment. Shirley Jones is commissioning editor for Sky.
- 5/10/2022
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
CAA has signed Tolga Karaçelik, the Turkish director of Sundance-winning film “Butterflies,” for representation in all areas.
Based in Istanbul, writer-director Karaçelik is one of Turkey’s top film creatives and has previously been profiled by Variety. His films “Ivy,” set aboard a stranded cargo ship, and “Butterflies,” a dark comedy prompted by the death of his late uncle, both premiered at the Sundance Film Festival.
“Butterflies” went on to receive the Park City, Utah festival’s Grand Jury Award in 2018, making Karaçelik the first Turkish director to win the prize.
After first getting a law degree in Turkey, Karaçelik went on to study filmmaking in New York before eventually returning to Turkey to film his debut feature “Toll Booth” (2010), about a Turkish toll-station worker with a vivid imagination. The pic won best first film, actor and cinematography at the country’s Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival.
Karaçelik’s second film,...
Based in Istanbul, writer-director Karaçelik is one of Turkey’s top film creatives and has previously been profiled by Variety. His films “Ivy,” set aboard a stranded cargo ship, and “Butterflies,” a dark comedy prompted by the death of his late uncle, both premiered at the Sundance Film Festival.
“Butterflies” went on to receive the Park City, Utah festival’s Grand Jury Award in 2018, making Karaçelik the first Turkish director to win the prize.
After first getting a law degree in Turkey, Karaçelik went on to study filmmaking in New York before eventually returning to Turkey to film his debut feature “Toll Booth” (2010), about a Turkish toll-station worker with a vivid imagination. The pic won best first film, actor and cinematography at the country’s Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival.
Karaçelik’s second film,...
- 5/4/2022
- by Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
BBC Studios, Screenplay, Disney Plus Hotstar Pact for “Doctor Foster” Indonesian Adaptation
BBC Studios property “Doctor Foster” is being adapted by Screenplay Films for Disney Plus Hotstar in Indonesia. “Doctor Foster” is the story of a doctor whose life implodes when she uncovers her husband’s infidelity. The show title in Indonesia will be “Mendua” (Between Two Hearts) and Pritagita Arianegara (“Surga yang Tak Dirindukan 3”) will direct.
Adinia Wirasti (“Critical Eleven”) stars in the lead role of Dr. Sekar M. Atmajaya, with Chicco Jerikho (“Foxtrox Six”) playing her husband Ivan, and Tatjana Saphira (“Sweet Twenty”) in the role of Bella.
Production on the 8 x 45’ Indonesian adaptation is underway with Wicky V. Olindo (“Gundala”) producing, Anthony Buncio as executive producer/showrunner and Thaleb Wahjudi as co-producer. The local adaptation has been developed by Keke Mayang, Sinar Ayu Massie, and Dono Indarto. The series will stream on Disney Plus Hotstar later this year.
BBC Studios property “Doctor Foster” is being adapted by Screenplay Films for Disney Plus Hotstar in Indonesia. “Doctor Foster” is the story of a doctor whose life implodes when she uncovers her husband’s infidelity. The show title in Indonesia will be “Mendua” (Between Two Hearts) and Pritagita Arianegara (“Surga yang Tak Dirindukan 3”) will direct.
Adinia Wirasti (“Critical Eleven”) stars in the lead role of Dr. Sekar M. Atmajaya, with Chicco Jerikho (“Foxtrox Six”) playing her husband Ivan, and Tatjana Saphira (“Sweet Twenty”) in the role of Bella.
Production on the 8 x 45’ Indonesian adaptation is underway with Wicky V. Olindo (“Gundala”) producing, Anthony Buncio as executive producer/showrunner and Thaleb Wahjudi as co-producer. The local adaptation has been developed by Keke Mayang, Sinar Ayu Massie, and Dono Indarto. The series will stream on Disney Plus Hotstar later this year.
- 4/6/2022
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Paramount is the latest studio to plant its flag in the ground at French TV drama festival Series Mania, where international CEO Raffaele Annecchino broke down the company’s international distribution and SVOD strategy.
In a keynote moderated by Variety’s Italy and West Asia correspondent Nick Vivarelli, Annecchino detailed plans to focus internationally on premium SVOD service Paramount Plus and Fast offering Pluto TV, which has more than 64 million monthly users. Also in the mix to “compete with our ecosystem,” according to Annecchino, is Paramount’s Jv with Comcast, SkyShowtime, which is launching in 20 European markets where Paramount Plus won’t be available.
By the end of 2022, both Paramount Plus and SkyShowtime will be in more than 60 markets in Europe. Paramount Plus will also expand into South Korea later this year in partnership with Cj Enm, and in other Asian markets as well as Africa and West Asia (the...
In a keynote moderated by Variety’s Italy and West Asia correspondent Nick Vivarelli, Annecchino detailed plans to focus internationally on premium SVOD service Paramount Plus and Fast offering Pluto TV, which has more than 64 million monthly users. Also in the mix to “compete with our ecosystem,” according to Annecchino, is Paramount’s Jv with Comcast, SkyShowtime, which is launching in 20 European markets where Paramount Plus won’t be available.
By the end of 2022, both Paramount Plus and SkyShowtime will be in more than 60 markets in Europe. Paramount Plus will also expand into South Korea later this year in partnership with Cj Enm, and in other Asian markets as well as Africa and West Asia (the...
- 3/24/2022
- by Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
Music
Singer-songwriter Sam Ryder will represent the U.K. at the 66th Eurovision Song Contest, to be held in Turin, Italy in May 2022 with the song “Space Man.” With over 12 million followers and 100 million likes on TikTok, Ryder is currently the most followed U.K. music artist on the platform. The search for the U.K. representative was led by 2022 partners, the global music management and publishing company TaP Music.
As the world went into lockdown in March 2020, Ryder uploaded the first of his now famous covers onto TikTok and his vocals quickly caught the attention of celebrity fans including Justin Bieber, Sia and Alicia Keys. Ryder is signed up with Parlophone.
Ryder co-wrote “Space Man” with Grammy-winning songwriter Amy Wadge and Max Wolfgang.
Ryder said: “Having been a fan of Eurovision since I was a kid I am so honored to have been presented with the opportunity to sing...
Singer-songwriter Sam Ryder will represent the U.K. at the 66th Eurovision Song Contest, to be held in Turin, Italy in May 2022 with the song “Space Man.” With over 12 million followers and 100 million likes on TikTok, Ryder is currently the most followed U.K. music artist on the platform. The search for the U.K. representative was led by 2022 partners, the global music management and publishing company TaP Music.
As the world went into lockdown in March 2020, Ryder uploaded the first of his now famous covers onto TikTok and his vocals quickly caught the attention of celebrity fans including Justin Bieber, Sia and Alicia Keys. Ryder is signed up with Parlophone.
Ryder co-wrote “Space Man” with Grammy-winning songwriter Amy Wadge and Max Wolfgang.
Ryder said: “Having been a fan of Eurovision since I was a kid I am so honored to have been presented with the opportunity to sing...
- 3/10/2022
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Broadcast
BBC Studios has inked its first major factual multi-year content deal in Italy with Mediaset, the country’s top private generalist TV network. The BBC’s long-term agreement with Mediaset covers first-window exclusive pre-sales in Italy of its natural history shows including its upcoming “Frozen Planet II,” “Dynasties II” and “Planet Earth III.” The Mediaset package deal also comprises providing an additional annual 25 hours of content for Mediaset’s Focus Channel, for an unspecified number of years. Acquired titles from the BBC Studios catalogue for Mediaset’s portfolio of free-to-air channels include the second season of “Animals with Cameras” and “Mummies Unwrapped” which will air on Mediaset this Spring.
“BBC Studios and Mediaset are united in their ambition to bring premium factual shows to Italian audiences,” BBC Studios sales exec. Salim Mukaddam said in a statement. – Nick Vivarelli
Label
Universal Music Greater China, a division of Universal Music Group,...
BBC Studios has inked its first major factual multi-year content deal in Italy with Mediaset, the country’s top private generalist TV network. The BBC’s long-term agreement with Mediaset covers first-window exclusive pre-sales in Italy of its natural history shows including its upcoming “Frozen Planet II,” “Dynasties II” and “Planet Earth III.” The Mediaset package deal also comprises providing an additional annual 25 hours of content for Mediaset’s Focus Channel, for an unspecified number of years. Acquired titles from the BBC Studios catalogue for Mediaset’s portfolio of free-to-air channels include the second season of “Animals with Cameras” and “Mummies Unwrapped” which will air on Mediaset this Spring.
“BBC Studios and Mediaset are united in their ambition to bring premium factual shows to Italian audiences,” BBC Studios sales exec. Salim Mukaddam said in a statement. – Nick Vivarelli
Label
Universal Music Greater China, a division of Universal Music Group,...
- 3/3/2022
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Iran’s Leila Hatami, Berlin best actress winner for Asghar Farhadi’s Oscar-winning “A Separation,” has called for a wider range of Iranian cinema to be represented internationally.
“More various films should be shown internationally from Iran because usually as everything is commercial, people choose the films which are more touristic [because] it gives you an aspect of the society,” Hatami told Variety. “What I would like is that the art of Iran would be shown more, because you see facts, events, moods in Iran – but you can see that everywhere. You can see it in the news.”
“It’s good to have films about problems of society and such things, but what I appreciate especially is the art of Iranian cinema,” Hatami said. “What has happened internationally usually, you don’t see the best things of a country as you eat, for example, touristic plates, it’s not necessarily the best one,...
“More various films should be shown internationally from Iran because usually as everything is commercial, people choose the films which are more touristic [because] it gives you an aspect of the society,” Hatami told Variety. “What I would like is that the art of Iran would be shown more, because you see facts, events, moods in Iran – but you can see that everywhere. You can see it in the news.”
“It’s good to have films about problems of society and such things, but what I appreciate especially is the art of Iranian cinema,” Hatami said. “What has happened internationally usually, you don’t see the best things of a country as you eat, for example, touristic plates, it’s not necessarily the best one,...
- 2/23/2022
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Variety won 26 National Art and Entertainment Journalism Awards, including entertainment publication for its 115th anniversary issue “Gamechangers” and two journalist of the year awards: senior vice president Tim Gray for print and deputy music editor Jem Aswad for online.
The venerable entertainment publication received 98 nominations.
The awards, presented by the Los Angeles Press Club for work created from July 2020 through June 2021, were handed out virtually Feb. 17 after an in-person event scheduled for Feb. 5 was canceled due to ongoing concerns about the Covid-19 pandemic.
Aswad picked up so many awards, presenters remarked on it throughout the event. He ended up with six more awards in addition to his online journalist of the year award. He won two awards for his story “Inside the Dirty Business of Hit Songwriting,” and one each for “Jason Derulo Cracked TikTok’s Code and Resurrected His Career,” “Learning to Be Ok With the Word ‘Vinyls,’” “These...
The venerable entertainment publication received 98 nominations.
The awards, presented by the Los Angeles Press Club for work created from July 2020 through June 2021, were handed out virtually Feb. 17 after an in-person event scheduled for Feb. 5 was canceled due to ongoing concerns about the Covid-19 pandemic.
Aswad picked up so many awards, presenters remarked on it throughout the event. He ended up with six more awards in addition to his online journalist of the year award. He won two awards for his story “Inside the Dirty Business of Hit Songwriting,” and one each for “Jason Derulo Cracked TikTok’s Code and Resurrected His Career,” “Learning to Be Ok With the Word ‘Vinyls,’” “These...
- 2/18/2022
- by Terry Flores
- Variety Film + TV
Festival
“Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” and “Four Weddings and a Funeral” director Mike Newell and actor Jason Wong are launching the Kingston International Film Festival (Kiff) to support independent film makers in a post-pandemic world. Taking place June 24-26, the festival is a 50:50 partnership between Blue Elephant Films and Rose Theatre which aims to address a decline in the independent film industry by establishing a new platform for emerging talent and creating opportunities which will link new filmmakers and industry experts. Kiff also received early support from Oscar-winning actor Dame Vanessa Redgrave and “Star Trek” actor Marina Sirtis.
The Festival announcement comes in the wake of a BFI report which revealed that investment into the independent film industry in the U.K. has dropped 45% and that just twenty-two films accounted for 78% of UK film production spend. Kiff will be headed by festival directors David Cunningham and...
“Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” and “Four Weddings and a Funeral” director Mike Newell and actor Jason Wong are launching the Kingston International Film Festival (Kiff) to support independent film makers in a post-pandemic world. Taking place June 24-26, the festival is a 50:50 partnership between Blue Elephant Films and Rose Theatre which aims to address a decline in the independent film industry by establishing a new platform for emerging talent and creating opportunities which will link new filmmakers and industry experts. Kiff also received early support from Oscar-winning actor Dame Vanessa Redgrave and “Star Trek” actor Marina Sirtis.
The Festival announcement comes in the wake of a BFI report which revealed that investment into the independent film industry in the U.K. has dropped 45% and that just twenty-two films accounted for 78% of UK film production spend. Kiff will be headed by festival directors David Cunningham and...
- 1/25/2022
- by Jamie Lang
- Variety Film + TV
Variety has scored 98 nominations for the 2021 National Art and Entertainment Journalism awards, leading all publications.
The awards are presented yearly by the Los Angeles Press Club.
“Thank you to the Naej for recognizing the hard and wonderful work of our great team of writers and editors. We’re so honored,” said Claudia Eller, editor-in-chief of Variety.
Variety was nominated twice for print entertainment publication, for its “Hitmakers” and “Gamechangers” issues. Variety.com was nominated for entertainment website. Senior vice president Tim Gray and features editor Chris Willman both earned nominations for print journalist of the year, while deputy music editor Jem Aswad is nominated for online journalist of the year.
Variety scored six nominations across the photography and art category, including two nods for cover art, for the “Death of Cable” and “Power of Women” covers. Photo director Jennifer Dorn, former creative director Raul Aguila and photographer Sophy Holland were...
The awards are presented yearly by the Los Angeles Press Club.
“Thank you to the Naej for recognizing the hard and wonderful work of our great team of writers and editors. We’re so honored,” said Claudia Eller, editor-in-chief of Variety.
Variety was nominated twice for print entertainment publication, for its “Hitmakers” and “Gamechangers” issues. Variety.com was nominated for entertainment website. Senior vice president Tim Gray and features editor Chris Willman both earned nominations for print journalist of the year, while deputy music editor Jem Aswad is nominated for online journalist of the year.
Variety scored six nominations across the photography and art category, including two nods for cover art, for the “Death of Cable” and “Power of Women” covers. Photo director Jennifer Dorn, former creative director Raul Aguila and photographer Sophy Holland were...
- 1/19/2022
- by William Earl
- Variety Film + TV
Sports
Global sports streaming service Dazn and leading Spanish broadcast group Movistar Plus have acquired the audiovisual rights to the country’s top soccer division, Laliga, from the 2022/23-2026/27 seasons at a total cost of €4.95 billion ($5.6 billion). The deal represents a slight increase – around €10 million ($11.30 million) or 1% per season – from the previous cycle. That number is a point of pride for La Liga, which says that it has managed to keep its audiovisual revenues steady at a time when many other major European leagues have peaked in valuation and are likely to decline in future rights cycles.
Under the joint deal, Movistar Plus and Dazn will each broadcast five games per matchday, with Movistar taking three full matchdays for themselves. Details about which matchdays will go exclusively to Movistar have not yet been shared, but it seems likely that the final week of the season will be one, as teams...
Global sports streaming service Dazn and leading Spanish broadcast group Movistar Plus have acquired the audiovisual rights to the country’s top soccer division, Laliga, from the 2022/23-2026/27 seasons at a total cost of €4.95 billion ($5.6 billion). The deal represents a slight increase – around €10 million ($11.30 million) or 1% per season – from the previous cycle. That number is a point of pride for La Liga, which says that it has managed to keep its audiovisual revenues steady at a time when many other major European leagues have peaked in valuation and are likely to decline in future rights cycles.
Under the joint deal, Movistar Plus and Dazn will each broadcast five games per matchday, with Movistar taking three full matchdays for themselves. Details about which matchdays will go exclusively to Movistar have not yet been shared, but it seems likely that the final week of the season will be one, as teams...
- 12/14/2021
- by Jamie Lang
- Variety Film + TV
Edu-tainment
Sony Pictures Television‘s YouTube channel Impossible Science, fronted by magician Jason Latimer, has partnered with the Los Angeles County Office of Education and the Los Angeles Unified School District to provide programming blocks in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (Stem) subjects.
The lesson plans, which are funded via Sony Pictures Global Relief Fund for Covid-19, can be used as part of the Klcs summer and winter learning programming blocks, which are focused on supporting children’s education through home school periods and vacations.
Over 30 bespoke plans, based on existing ‘Impossible Science’ YouTube videos, are available for educators and parents to download via a free-to-access website.
Impossible Science was launched with Latimer at the helm in fall 2020. Since then it has grown exponentially with nearly 220 Stem-inspired videos, amassing over 40 million views worldwide.
Award
David Gulpilil, the iconic Indigenous actor who died earlier this week, is to be given a...
Sony Pictures Television‘s YouTube channel Impossible Science, fronted by magician Jason Latimer, has partnered with the Los Angeles County Office of Education and the Los Angeles Unified School District to provide programming blocks in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (Stem) subjects.
The lesson plans, which are funded via Sony Pictures Global Relief Fund for Covid-19, can be used as part of the Klcs summer and winter learning programming blocks, which are focused on supporting children’s education through home school periods and vacations.
Over 30 bespoke plans, based on existing ‘Impossible Science’ YouTube videos, are available for educators and parents to download via a free-to-access website.
Impossible Science was launched with Latimer at the helm in fall 2020. Since then it has grown exponentially with nearly 220 Stem-inspired videos, amassing over 40 million views worldwide.
Award
David Gulpilil, the iconic Indigenous actor who died earlier this week, is to be given a...
- 12/3/2021
- by K.J. Yossman
- Variety Film + TV
Festival
Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Film Festival (Dec. 6-15), the kingdom’s first full fledged international film event, will close with the world premiere of Kabir Khan‘s Bollywood cricket-themed film “’83.” The film tells the true story of the underdog Indian men’s cricket team led by Kapil Dev, played by Bollywood star Ranveer Singh, which defeated reigning champions the West Indies at the 1983 World Cup finals.
Khan, the film’s leading lady Deepika Padukone, Dev and his winning team members Mohinder Amarnath and Krishnamachari Srikkanth will attend the premiere.
The film, produced by Reliance Entertainment, Phantom Films and Kabir Khan Films, will release across the Gulf region on Dec. 23 and worldwide on Dec. 24.
On the eve of the Red Sea festival, Saudi Arabia’s nascent national film commission has revealed its overall plan to kickstart a local film industry in the kingdom where cinemas and filmmaking were...
Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Film Festival (Dec. 6-15), the kingdom’s first full fledged international film event, will close with the world premiere of Kabir Khan‘s Bollywood cricket-themed film “’83.” The film tells the true story of the underdog Indian men’s cricket team led by Kapil Dev, played by Bollywood star Ranveer Singh, which defeated reigning champions the West Indies at the 1983 World Cup finals.
Khan, the film’s leading lady Deepika Padukone, Dev and his winning team members Mohinder Amarnath and Krishnamachari Srikkanth will attend the premiere.
The film, produced by Reliance Entertainment, Phantom Films and Kabir Khan Films, will release across the Gulf region on Dec. 23 and worldwide on Dec. 24.
On the eve of the Red Sea festival, Saudi Arabia’s nascent national film commission has revealed its overall plan to kickstart a local film industry in the kingdom where cinemas and filmmaking were...
- 11/29/2021
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Trailer
HBO Max will launch Season 2 of award-winning Spanish comedy series “Perfect Life” in the U.S. on Dec. 2, two weeks after its Nov. 19 domestic premiere on Movistar Plus in Spain. The streamer also dropped a new international trailer for the upcoming season, which gives a brief taste of the evolving relationships and real-life challenges facing protagonist Maria and those closest to her, including her best friends Cristina and Esther.
Picking up six months after Season 1 left off, María is now a mother, although motherhood isn’t what she expected, Cristina and her partner are discussing opening their relationship and Esther is staring down her fears of commitment as a question about marriage looms.
Season 2 is once again written, directed and stared by rising star Leticia Dolera, joined by co-scribe Manuel Burque on screenwriting duties. Additionally, two of Spain’s most exciting young filmmaking talents in Lucía Alemany (“La Inocencia...
HBO Max will launch Season 2 of award-winning Spanish comedy series “Perfect Life” in the U.S. on Dec. 2, two weeks after its Nov. 19 domestic premiere on Movistar Plus in Spain. The streamer also dropped a new international trailer for the upcoming season, which gives a brief taste of the evolving relationships and real-life challenges facing protagonist Maria and those closest to her, including her best friends Cristina and Esther.
Picking up six months after Season 1 left off, María is now a mother, although motherhood isn’t what she expected, Cristina and her partner are discussing opening their relationship and Esther is staring down her fears of commitment as a question about marriage looms.
Season 2 is once again written, directed and stared by rising star Leticia Dolera, joined by co-scribe Manuel Burque on screenwriting duties. Additionally, two of Spain’s most exciting young filmmaking talents in Lucía Alemany (“La Inocencia...
- 11/18/2021
- by Jamie Lang
- Variety Film + TV
You could be reading Alberto Dagnino the Riot Act, but nothing would distract the Italian camera operator from the soccer game at hand. He may be at the Cannes Film Festival, but the only screen he’s interested in tonight is inside a local pub.
“Football, you know, is huge in my country,” the 31-year-old begins just as the action heats up. “Oh tira, Madonna!” he screams before swivelling around. “What was I saying?”
The Euros semi-final between Italy and Spain, still at a tense nil-nil, has just resumed after half-time and Dagnino is parked outside Ma Nolan’s, a bustling Irish pub a stone’s throw from the Grand Palais, where Opening Night festivities for Leos Carax’s “Annette” are underway. The Italian and Spanish soccer fans surrounding him — many of whom are also festival delegates — are similarly transfixed on a too-small television inside.
Along with the humidity and holidaymakers,...
“Football, you know, is huge in my country,” the 31-year-old begins just as the action heats up. “Oh tira, Madonna!” he screams before swivelling around. “What was I saying?”
The Euros semi-final between Italy and Spain, still at a tense nil-nil, has just resumed after half-time and Dagnino is parked outside Ma Nolan’s, a bustling Irish pub a stone’s throw from the Grand Palais, where Opening Night festivities for Leos Carax’s “Annette” are underway. The Italian and Spanish soccer fans surrounding him — many of whom are also festival delegates — are similarly transfixed on a too-small television inside.
Along with the humidity and holidaymakers,...
- 7/7/2021
- by Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
Documentary
In a recent study conducted by Sky marking the one-year anniversary Sky Documentaries, two in five Brits admit to watching more documentaries over the last 12 months than ever before. With those numbers in mind, the broadcaster has unveiled five new original commissions and released a first trailer for its highly anticipated upcoming docuseries “Murder at the Cottage: The Search for Justice for Sophie,” announcing that the series will premiere on Sky Crime and streaming service Now on Sunday, June 20.
“Murder at the Cottage” is produced, directed and features six-time Oscar nominated director Jim Sheridan, who spent more than a decade documenting the 25-year-old case of French film and TV producer Sophie Toscan Du Plantier, wife of filmmaker Daniel Toscan du Plantier, who was murdered at her holiday home in Schull, West Cork.
New documentaries announced by Sky include:
“Mother Teresa: For the Love of God?”, a look at the...
In a recent study conducted by Sky marking the one-year anniversary Sky Documentaries, two in five Brits admit to watching more documentaries over the last 12 months than ever before. With those numbers in mind, the broadcaster has unveiled five new original commissions and released a first trailer for its highly anticipated upcoming docuseries “Murder at the Cottage: The Search for Justice for Sophie,” announcing that the series will premiere on Sky Crime and streaming service Now on Sunday, June 20.
“Murder at the Cottage” is produced, directed and features six-time Oscar nominated director Jim Sheridan, who spent more than a decade documenting the 25-year-old case of French film and TV producer Sophie Toscan Du Plantier, wife of filmmaker Daniel Toscan du Plantier, who was murdered at her holiday home in Schull, West Cork.
New documentaries announced by Sky include:
“Mother Teresa: For the Love of God?”, a look at the...
- 6/9/2021
- by Jamie Lang
- Variety Film + TV
In today’s Global Bulletin, BBC Two and BBC Music announce a behind-the-scenes Amy Winehouse doc; Netflix supports a new series development masters program in Italy; M6 commissions a French version of “Domino Effect”; and Red Arrow unveils its MipTV lineup.
Documentary
BBC Two and BBC Music have commissioned a documentary feature celebrating the life and legacy of musician Amy Winehouse. Working titled “Amy Winehouse: 10 Years On,” the film will exploit the benefit of a decade of hindsight to paint a more holistic picture of Amy Winehouse the person, rather than the troubled public figure which is often presented of her.
The special is told largely from the point of view of Janis Winehouse, Amy’s mother. Suffering from Ms, which threatens her long-term memory, Janis was motivated to show the world the Amy she knew, and immortalized her memories on film while she still can.
“I don’t feel...
Documentary
BBC Two and BBC Music have commissioned a documentary feature celebrating the life and legacy of musician Amy Winehouse. Working titled “Amy Winehouse: 10 Years On,” the film will exploit the benefit of a decade of hindsight to paint a more holistic picture of Amy Winehouse the person, rather than the troubled public figure which is often presented of her.
The special is told largely from the point of view of Janis Winehouse, Amy’s mother. Suffering from Ms, which threatens her long-term memory, Janis was motivated to show the world the Amy she knew, and immortalized her memories on film while she still can.
“I don’t feel...
- 3/31/2021
- by Jamie Lang
- Variety Film + TV
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.