"Are you sure she wants to be found?" A very good question. Mubi has revealed the official trailer for an indie drama titled Crossing, set for release this summer in select US theaters (and eventually streaming on Mubi for everyone else). This first premiered at the 2024 Berlin Film Festival earlier this year, and stopped by the BFI Flare London Lgbtqia+ Film Festival in March. From acclaimed director Levan Akin (And Then We Danced), this is a moving & tender tale of identity, acceptance and unlikely connection that transcends borders. Lia, a retired teacher, has promised to find her long-lost niece, Tekla – a trans woman she hasn't seen in a long time. Her search takes her to Istanbul where she meets Evrim, a lawyer fighting for trans rights, and Tekla starts to feel closer than ever. This looks especially beautiful & heartwarming, with some positive reviews out of the fests. Starring Mzia Arabuli,...
- 6/3/2024
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
“And Then We Danced” director Levan Akin returns with another intense and moving queer drama, “Crossing.” Winner of a jury prize at the 2024 Berlinale Film Festival and will next screen next week at Tribeca Festival, “Crossing” opens in arthouses across the country later this summer. IndieWire shares the exclusive trailer for the film below.
Where “And Then We Danced” centered on the romance between two young male dancers, the Swedish director’s latest bridges the gap between generations: Mzia Arabuli stars as Lia, a retired, world-weary schoolteacher on a journey from Batumi in Georgia to Istanbul in Turkey to find her missing trans niece Tekla, and Deniz Dumanli as Evrim, a trans Ngo lawyer who looks like an Anna Magnani, and is someone the movie at first dupes us into thinking is Lia’s niece. Along for the ride with Lia is Lucas Kankava as Achi, a Georgian teenager who...
Where “And Then We Danced” centered on the romance between two young male dancers, the Swedish director’s latest bridges the gap between generations: Mzia Arabuli stars as Lia, a retired, world-weary schoolteacher on a journey from Batumi in Georgia to Istanbul in Turkey to find her missing trans niece Tekla, and Deniz Dumanli as Evrim, a trans Ngo lawyer who looks like an Anna Magnani, and is someone the movie at first dupes us into thinking is Lia’s niece. Along for the ride with Lia is Lucas Kankava as Achi, a Georgian teenager who...
- 6/3/2024
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
The 21st IndieLisboa International Film Festival will take place from 23rd May to 2nd June in Lisbon. The festival aims to address the gap in film distribution created by the dominance of mainstream productions. Each year, it attracts casual viewers and film professionals worldwide, offering them the chance to discover recent works by emerging talents and revisit films made by renowned directors.
IndieLisboa features 7 sections, with 4 of them being competitive. Additionally, it offers events for industry professionals, including workshops, masterclasses, debates, a script-writing lab, a film fund, a pitching forum, and screenings of works in progress. This year, apart from the retrospective of Palestinian artist Kamal Aljafari, the festival will present 12 short and 13 full-length films that are productions or co-productions of Asian countries.
A Traveler's Needs (2024) by Hong Sang-soo (National Premiere)
South Korea, 90'
The newest film of the prolific director had its world premiere at the 74th Berlin International Film Festival,...
IndieLisboa features 7 sections, with 4 of them being competitive. Additionally, it offers events for industry professionals, including workshops, masterclasses, debates, a script-writing lab, a film fund, a pitching forum, and screenings of works in progress. This year, apart from the retrospective of Palestinian artist Kamal Aljafari, the festival will present 12 short and 13 full-length films that are productions or co-productions of Asian countries.
A Traveler's Needs (2024) by Hong Sang-soo (National Premiere)
South Korea, 90'
The newest film of the prolific director had its world premiere at the 74th Berlin International Film Festival,...
- 5/14/2024
- by Tobiasz Dunin
- AsianMoviePulse
Exclusive: Mubi has tapped Amazon MGM Studios and IFC distribution vet Mark Boxer as their U.S. Head of Distribution. Boxer will be on the Croisette during the run of this year’s Cannes Film Festival scoping out product for Mubi. In the new job, Boxer will be based in the New York office, and he’ll report to Mubi Chief Content Officer Jason Ropell.
The two decades-plus theatrical distribution vet, who first cut his teeth at Savoy Pictures, is known for building out distribution ops and tailoring myriad distribution plans for an array of movies. With Boxer, Mubi gets an internal distribution executive who’ll champion their slate to the fullest, giving their pics the best possible exposure across theaters coast to coast. The hire puts Mubi on a new level of distribution stateside as they make larger investments in features and expand their executive ranks.
Mubi’s upcoming slate,...
The two decades-plus theatrical distribution vet, who first cut his teeth at Savoy Pictures, is known for building out distribution ops and tailoring myriad distribution plans for an array of movies. With Boxer, Mubi gets an internal distribution executive who’ll champion their slate to the fullest, giving their pics the best possible exposure across theaters coast to coast. The hire puts Mubi on a new level of distribution stateside as they make larger investments in features and expand their executive ranks.
Mubi’s upcoming slate,...
- 5/13/2024
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
It’s that time of year again! The annual Rooftop Films Summer Series is back, with IndieWire exclusively debuting the 2024 lineup.
This year’s Summer Series will run from May 17 through August 23, and will include over 40 events, featuring new independent feature films, short film programs, family screenings, and live performances. Programming highlights include the 20th anniversary of “Napoleon Dynamite,” the NYC premiere of “In a Violent Nature,” and an early screening of “War Game.”
Non-profit Rooftop Films annually celebrates independent films and filmmakers with one of the world’s longest running and largest outdoor festivals for indie film. The screenings take place in outdoor venues across New York City’s five boroughs, with “In a Violent Nature” set to debut on Governors Island.
“The 2024 Summer Series isn’t just a celebration of groundbreaking new cinema,” Rooftop Films’ Executive Director Adnaan Wasey said. “It’s also a catalyst for connecting communities...
This year’s Summer Series will run from May 17 through August 23, and will include over 40 events, featuring new independent feature films, short film programs, family screenings, and live performances. Programming highlights include the 20th anniversary of “Napoleon Dynamite,” the NYC premiere of “In a Violent Nature,” and an early screening of “War Game.”
Non-profit Rooftop Films annually celebrates independent films and filmmakers with one of the world’s longest running and largest outdoor festivals for indie film. The screenings take place in outdoor venues across New York City’s five boroughs, with “In a Violent Nature” set to debut on Governors Island.
“The 2024 Summer Series isn’t just a celebration of groundbreaking new cinema,” Rooftop Films’ Executive Director Adnaan Wasey said. “It’s also a catalyst for connecting communities...
- 5/7/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
The independent juries of the 74th Berlin International Film Festival early Saturday unveiled their picks of the best movies at the 2024 Berlinale.
Matthias Glasner’s German family epic Sterben (Dying), and the Iranian feature My Favourite Cake from directors Maryam Moghaddam and Behtash Sanaeeha, both of which are considered frontrunners for the top prize at the official festival ceremony on Saturday night, received multiple awards for the indie juries, as did Dag Johan Haugerud’s Norwegian drama Sex, a critical favorite from this year’s Panorama sidebar.
Sterben, which follows a classical conductor (played by Lars Eidinger) and his very dysfunctional family, won the best film honor from the guild of German arthouse cinemas and the top prize awarded by the jury of Berliner Morgenpost readers representing the Berlin newspaper.
My Favourite Cake, a quiet drama about a 70-year-old widow who takes a chance on new love, won the Fipresci...
Matthias Glasner’s German family epic Sterben (Dying), and the Iranian feature My Favourite Cake from directors Maryam Moghaddam and Behtash Sanaeeha, both of which are considered frontrunners for the top prize at the official festival ceremony on Saturday night, received multiple awards for the indie juries, as did Dag Johan Haugerud’s Norwegian drama Sex, a critical favorite from this year’s Panorama sidebar.
Sterben, which follows a classical conductor (played by Lars Eidinger) and his very dysfunctional family, won the best film honor from the guild of German arthouse cinemas and the top prize awarded by the jury of Berliner Morgenpost readers representing the Berlin newspaper.
My Favourite Cake, a quiet drama about a 70-year-old widow who takes a chance on new love, won the Fipresci...
- 2/24/2024
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The Berlin Film Festival has unveiled the winners of this year’s Panorama Audience Awards, voted on by ordinary viewers at the world’s largest public film festival.
Memories of a Burning Body, the second feature film from Costa Rican director Antonella Sudasassi Furniss, won the top prize for best fiction film, while No Other Land by Basel Adra, Hamdan Ballal, Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor took the Panorama Audience Award for best documentary.
Memories of a Burning Body follows a trio of seventy-something women as they discuss their sexuality and their bodies, confronting the taboos and constrictions of living in a sexist and repressive society. Produced by Substance Films in co-production with Playlab Films, Memories of a Burning Body is being worldwide by Bendita Film Sales.
No Other Land, directed by a collective of Israeli and Palestinian filmmakers, traces the Israeli government’s attempts to expel Palestinians in Masafer Yatta,...
Memories of a Burning Body, the second feature film from Costa Rican director Antonella Sudasassi Furniss, won the top prize for best fiction film, while No Other Land by Basel Adra, Hamdan Ballal, Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor took the Panorama Audience Award for best documentary.
Memories of a Burning Body follows a trio of seventy-something women as they discuss their sexuality and their bodies, confronting the taboos and constrictions of living in a sexist and repressive society. Produced by Substance Films in co-production with Playlab Films, Memories of a Burning Body is being worldwide by Bendita Film Sales.
No Other Land, directed by a collective of Israeli and Palestinian filmmakers, traces the Israeli government’s attempts to expel Palestinians in Masafer Yatta,...
- 2/24/2024
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
A film that invokes its title in myriad ways, Levan Akin’s newest film, “Crossing,” is predominantly concerned with the differences that emerge across national and gendered identities. A plea for trans acceptance that never preaches to its audience, Akin’s film grounds the story of trans identity in Georgia and Turkey through the narrative of two disparate characters searching for someone in a city they don’t know.
Opening in Batumi, on the coast of Georgia, the film begins as Lia (Mzia Arabuli) searches for her niece, Tekla.
Continue reading ‘Crossing’ Review: Levan Akin’s Boundary Crossing Film is An Emotional Plea For Trans Acceptance [Berlinale] at The Playlist.
Opening in Batumi, on the coast of Georgia, the film begins as Lia (Mzia Arabuli) searches for her niece, Tekla.
Continue reading ‘Crossing’ Review: Levan Akin’s Boundary Crossing Film is An Emotional Plea For Trans Acceptance [Berlinale] at The Playlist.
- 2/24/2024
- by Christian Gallichio
- The Playlist
NonStop Entertainment has acquired Nordic distribution rights to Mattias J Skoglund’s upcoming horror The Home [working title].
The film will begin production in Gotland, Sweden in spring, produced by Siri Hjorton Wagner for [sic] film. LevelK is handling international sales.
The Home is based on Mats Strandberg’s 2017 novel of the same name, about a man who returns to his small town to care for his dementia-stricken mother, as she experiences terrifying visions of her late abusive husband.
Strandberg is adapting his book in collaboration with Skoglund; co-producers are Elina Litvinova of Three Brothers and Heather Millard of Compass Films. Financing comes from the Svenska Filminstitutet,...
The film will begin production in Gotland, Sweden in spring, produced by Siri Hjorton Wagner for [sic] film. LevelK is handling international sales.
The Home is based on Mats Strandberg’s 2017 novel of the same name, about a man who returns to his small town to care for his dementia-stricken mother, as she experiences terrifying visions of her late abusive husband.
Strandberg is adapting his book in collaboration with Skoglund; co-producers are Elina Litvinova of Three Brothers and Heather Millard of Compass Films. Financing comes from the Svenska Filminstitutet,...
- 2/18/2024
- ScreenDaily
A bitter dispute between factions of the Georgian film industry is coming to a head at the Berlinale. Many leading Georgian filmmakers and industry professionals have joined the independent Georgian Film Institute (Gfi), which was launched in opposition to state body, the Georgian National Film Centre (Gnfc), amid accusations of censorship and creative interference.
Both outfits are at EFM and both are insisting on their right to represent Georgian cinema in the festival.
Gfi is pushing two titles in official selection: Forum Special’s Mother And Daughter, Or The Night Is Never Complete from director Lana Gogoberidze, about her mother,...
Both outfits are at EFM and both are insisting on their right to represent Georgian cinema in the festival.
Gfi is pushing two titles in official selection: Forum Special’s Mother And Daughter, Or The Night Is Never Complete from director Lana Gogoberidze, about her mother,...
- 2/18/2024
- ScreenDaily
In his 2019 breakout feature, And Then We Danced, Swedish writer-director Levan Akin examined gay self-discovery and defiant sexuality against the rigid gender codes of a traditional Georgian dance company. His warmly humanistic new film, Crossing, explores another story of queer identity in an unaccommodating environment, this time using an odd-couple journey to advocate for trans acceptance. Observed with granular detail and imbued with a pulsing sense of place, this novelistic drama takes time to connect its central triangle but does so with a suppleness and restraint that amplify the emotional rewards of its lovely open-ended conclusion.
That sense of place applies to two principal settings as well as the sprawling space in between. It opens in Batumi, on the rocky Black Sea coast of southwest Georgia, and then shifts to the teeming streets and crumbling apartment blocks of Istanbul’s high-density, low-income quarters, where the title expands beyond geographical borders...
That sense of place applies to two principal settings as well as the sprawling space in between. It opens in Batumi, on the rocky Black Sea coast of southwest Georgia, and then shifts to the teeming streets and crumbling apartment blocks of Istanbul’s high-density, low-income quarters, where the title expands beyond geographical borders...
- 2/15/2024
- by David Rooney
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Visiting Istanbul, you can’t help but notice all of the cats: The Turkish metropolis is swarming with strays, some gorgeous and friendly, others haggard and more stand-offish. Entire films have been made about the phenomenon (of which “Kedi” was an especially popular example). But what of the countless other souls — the human ones — who also live on the margins of this modern city? They too are invisible until noticed. But if you look closely, it becomes impossible to unsee the homeless children and street sellers, sex workers and immigrants, many of them struggling to survive.
With “Crossing,” writer-director Levan Akin wants to open our eyes to the easily overlooked. After earning international acclaim with Cannes-selected queer drama “And Then We Danced,” Akin makes a calculated choice to raise awareness of the trans community in Istanbul, but he does so through representation rather than manipulation. “Crossing” tells the engaging if...
With “Crossing,” writer-director Levan Akin wants to open our eyes to the easily overlooked. After earning international acclaim with Cannes-selected queer drama “And Then We Danced,” Akin makes a calculated choice to raise awareness of the trans community in Istanbul, but he does so through representation rather than manipulation. “Crossing” tells the engaging if...
- 2/15/2024
- by Peter Debruge
- Variety Film + TV
In “Crossing,” the new film from “And Then We Danced” director Levan Akin, the earthy spirit of Italian icon Anna Magnani is channeled by not one but two actresses who resemble her. There’s Mzia Arabuli as Lia, a retired schoolteacher on a journey from Batumi in Georgia to Istanbul in Turkey to find her missing trans niece, and Deniz Dumanli as Evrim, the trans Ngo lawyer the movie dupes us into thinking is Lia’s niece. The two women are as far apart on the joie de vivre spectrum as any pair could be — Lia has calcified into an emotionless stone who gives away nothing, while Evrim lives freely and sexually liberated in an otherwise LGBTQ-challenged country — yet “Crossing” movingly bridges the space between them as Lia gets closer to locating her niece with the help a Gen Z Georgian teenager named Achi (Lucas Kankava).
That these two women look so alike,...
That these two women look so alike,...
- 2/15/2024
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
Borders, political, social and societal, are being transversed in Crossing, the new film from And Then We Danced director Levan Akin. The drama, which arthouse streamer Mubi has picked up for the U.S. and U.K., stars Mzia Arabuli as Lia, a retired teacher who sets off to find her long-lost niece Telka, a trans woman.
The search takes her, and her neighbor Achi, to Turkey where they meet Evrim, a lawyer fighting for trans rights.
In the first trailer for the film, Achi convinces Lia to let him join her on her search.
‘Crossing’
“The film is based on a true story I was told whilst researching And Then We Danced,” says Akin, “about a grandmother traveling from Georgia to Turkey in search of her trans granddaughter. Just like with my previous film, making Crossing was very challenging. The existence of LGBTQ+ people in Georgia and Turkey is...
The search takes her, and her neighbor Achi, to Turkey where they meet Evrim, a lawyer fighting for trans rights.
In the first trailer for the film, Achi convinces Lia to let him join her on her search.
‘Crossing’
“The film is based on a true story I was told whilst researching And Then We Danced,” says Akin, “about a grandmother traveling from Georgia to Turkey in search of her trans granddaughter. Just like with my previous film, making Crossing was very challenging. The existence of LGBTQ+ people in Georgia and Turkey is...
- 2/15/2024
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Hot Swedish helmer of Georgian descent Levan Akin is due to kickstart Berlin’s Panorama Feb. 15 with his feature drama “Crossing.” Nine years earlier, he walked the Berlinale red carpet with his youth sci-fi “The Circle,” showcased at Generation. Next to him were his Swedish producers of Rmv Film – Abba’s Benny Andersson and his son Ludvig Andersson.
The latter who met Akin over 20 years ago, has stayed by his side since his debut pic “Certain People” in 2011, serving also as executive producer on the 2019 Swedish Oscar entry “And Then We Danced,” and as co-producer this year of “Crossing”.
“Rmv Film spotted Levan from his very first film and has supported him all along,” confirms French Quarter’s Mathilde Dedye, producer of “Crossing” and “And Then We Danced,”, who believes “trust and continuity to be very important for the development of auteurism.”
“I met Ludvig through Levan and he is...
The latter who met Akin over 20 years ago, has stayed by his side since his debut pic “Certain People” in 2011, serving also as executive producer on the 2019 Swedish Oscar entry “And Then We Danced,” and as co-producer this year of “Crossing”.
“Rmv Film spotted Levan from his very first film and has supported him all along,” confirms French Quarter’s Mathilde Dedye, producer of “Crossing” and “And Then We Danced,”, who believes “trust and continuity to be very important for the development of auteurism.”
“I met Ludvig through Levan and he is...
- 2/14/2024
- by Annika Pham
- Variety Film + TV
The Swedish Film Institute (Sfi) has appointed Svt executive Anna Croneman as its new CEO.
Croneman will start in the role in mid-April. She is a permanent replacement for temporary CEO Asa Sjoberg.
Sjoberg had been in the role since the departure of Anette Novak, who left the role abruptly in September 2023.
”I have worked as a commissioner of tv-drama and feature films at Svt for seven wonderful years and I guess I am ready for the next big challenge,” said Croneman. ”The film industry is in a troubled state, from the pandemic, with new players entering and changing viewer habits.
Croneman will start in the role in mid-April. She is a permanent replacement for temporary CEO Asa Sjoberg.
Sjoberg had been in the role since the departure of Anette Novak, who left the role abruptly in September 2023.
”I have worked as a commissioner of tv-drama and feature films at Svt for seven wonderful years and I guess I am ready for the next big challenge,” said Croneman. ”The film industry is in a troubled state, from the pandemic, with new players entering and changing viewer habits.
- 2/13/2024
- ScreenDaily
Paris-based sales and production outfit Totem Films has closed a slew of sales ahead of the Berlinale premieres of their Competition title “My Favourite Cake,” and the Panorama opening film “Crossing.”
Maryam Moghaddam and Behtash Sanaeeha’s “My Favourite Cake” sold to Cherry Pickers for Benelux, Camera for Denmark, Arizona for France, Triart for Sweden, Cineworx for Switzerland and Bir for Turkey.
Levan Akin’s “Crossing” sold to Imagine for Benelux, New Story for France, Lucky Red for Italy, Avalon for Spain and Cineworx for Switzerland. As announced previously, a multi-territory deal was also signed with Mubi.
Other territories are in discussion and Totem will continue selling the films at the European Film Market in Berlin.
Totem will also be launching sales in Berlin for “Queen Mom,” which is in post-production. The film is directed by Manele Labidi (“Arab Blues”) and stars Camélia Jordana, Sofiane Zermani, Damien Bonnard and Rim Monfort.
Maryam Moghaddam and Behtash Sanaeeha’s “My Favourite Cake” sold to Cherry Pickers for Benelux, Camera for Denmark, Arizona for France, Triart for Sweden, Cineworx for Switzerland and Bir for Turkey.
Levan Akin’s “Crossing” sold to Imagine for Benelux, New Story for France, Lucky Red for Italy, Avalon for Spain and Cineworx for Switzerland. As announced previously, a multi-territory deal was also signed with Mubi.
Other territories are in discussion and Totem will continue selling the films at the European Film Market in Berlin.
Totem will also be launching sales in Berlin for “Queen Mom,” which is in post-production. The film is directed by Manele Labidi (“Arab Blues”) and stars Camélia Jordana, Sofiane Zermani, Damien Bonnard and Rim Monfort.
- 2/12/2024
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
Totem Films, the Paris-based sales and production company known for arthouse breakouts such as “Compartment No. 6” and “Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry,” has boarded sales on “My Favourite Cake” by Maryam Moghaddam and Behtash Sanaeeha. The Iranian writing-directing duo’s latest feature was just announced in competition at the upcoming Berlinale.
The film stars newcomer Lily Farhadpour as Mahin and renowned Iranian actor Esmail Mehrabi as Faramarz.
Seventy-year-old Mahin lives alone, until she decides to break her solitary routine and revitalize her love life. But as she opens up to romance, an unexpected encounter quickly evolves into an unforgettable evening.
Moghaddam and Sanaeeha said: “’My Favourite Cake’ is based on the reality of the everyday lives of middle-class women in Iran. The realities of women’s lives in Iran have hardly ever been told, yet this is a playful tale about hope and joy in life, as well as the absurdity of death.
The film stars newcomer Lily Farhadpour as Mahin and renowned Iranian actor Esmail Mehrabi as Faramarz.
Seventy-year-old Mahin lives alone, until she decides to break her solitary routine and revitalize her love life. But as she opens up to romance, an unexpected encounter quickly evolves into an unforgettable evening.
Moghaddam and Sanaeeha said: “’My Favourite Cake’ is based on the reality of the everyday lives of middle-class women in Iran. The realities of women’s lives in Iran have hardly ever been told, yet this is a playful tale about hope and joy in life, as well as the absurdity of death.
- 1/24/2024
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
A Different Man.The Berlinale have begun to announce the first few titles selected for the 74th edition of their festival, set to take place from February 15 through 21, 2024. This page will be updated as further sections are announced.COMPETITIONAnother End (Piero Messina)Architecton (Victor Kossakovsky)Black Tea (Abderrahmane Sissako)La Cocina (Alonso Ruiz Palacios) Dahomey (Mati Diop)A Different Man (Aaron Schimberg)The Empire (Bruno Dumont)Gloria! (Margherita Vicario)Suspended Time (Olivier Assayas)From Hilde, With Love (Andreas Dresen)My Favourite CakeLangue Etrangère (Claire Berger)Small Things Like These (Tim Mielants)Who Do I Belong To (Meryam Joobeur)Pepe (Nelson Carlos De Los Santos Arias)Shambhala (Min Bahadur Bham)Sterben (Matthias Glasner)Small Things Like These (Tim Mielants)A Traveler’s Needs (Hong Sang-soo)Sleep With Your Eyes Open. ENCOUNTERSArcadia (Yorgos Zois)Cidade; Campo (Juliana Rojas)Demba (Mamadou Dia)Direct ActionSleep With Your Eyes Open (Nele Wohlatz)The Fable (Raam Reddy...
- 1/23/2024
- MUBI
Berlinale co-directors Carlo Chatrian and Mariette Rissenbeek are going out with a bang in their final year, with a lineup unveiled today featuring the latest works by Olivier Assayas, Bruno Dumont, Mati Diop, Hong Sang-soo, Abderrahmane Sissako, Jane Schoenbrun, Alonso Ruizpalacios, Matias Pineiro, Travis Wilkerson, Kazik Radwanski, Annie Baker, and more.
When the co-directors were asked by Screen Daily about their departure, Chatrian said, “It’s quite simple. Mariette and I had a mandate of five years. It is true that at the beginning I said that I was willing to go on because there was a shared will with the [German] Ministry [of Culture] to go on. But then the people who have the responsibility to see the future of the Berlinale thought this structure of two leaders was not the right one and I don’t consider myself able to run the festival alone. And that was the decision of the Ministry.
When the co-directors were asked by Screen Daily about their departure, Chatrian said, “It’s quite simple. Mariette and I had a mandate of five years. It is true that at the beginning I said that I was willing to go on because there was a shared will with the [German] Ministry [of Culture] to go on. But then the people who have the responsibility to see the future of the Berlinale thought this structure of two leaders was not the right one and I don’t consider myself able to run the festival alone. And that was the decision of the Ministry.
- 1/22/2024
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Art house streaming platform Mubi has picked up all rights in North America, the U.K., Germany and Latin America for Crossing, the new feature from Swedish director Levan Akin (And Then We Danced).
Mubi snatched up Crossing ahead of this year’s Berlin Film Festival, where it will have its world premiere, opening Berlin’s Panorama sidebar.
The film follows Lia, a retired teacher living in Batumi, Georgia, who sets out to fulfill her recently deceased sister’s last wish: to find Tekla, her long-lost daughter. The road trip takes her to Istanbul where she meets up with Evrim, a trans rights lawyer who might be the key to finding Lia’s niece. Mzia Arabuli, Lucas Kankava and Deniz Dumanli star. The film was produced by Sweden’s French Quarter Film in co-production with Rmv and Svt in Sweden, Adomeit Film of Denmark, France’s Easy Riders Films, Bir...
Mubi snatched up Crossing ahead of this year’s Berlin Film Festival, where it will have its world premiere, opening Berlin’s Panorama sidebar.
The film follows Lia, a retired teacher living in Batumi, Georgia, who sets out to fulfill her recently deceased sister’s last wish: to find Tekla, her long-lost daughter. The road trip takes her to Istanbul where she meets up with Evrim, a trans rights lawyer who might be the key to finding Lia’s niece. Mzia Arabuli, Lucas Kankava and Deniz Dumanli star. The film was produced by Sweden’s French Quarter Film in co-production with Rmv and Svt in Sweden, Adomeit Film of Denmark, France’s Easy Riders Films, Bir...
- 1/18/2024
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Martin Scorsese is going down as one of the most consistent directors ever, for no matter how you receive a movie of his, he still maintains his vision and his passion for the craft. The director has cemented himself in film culture with movies like Taxi Driver, Goodfellas, Raging Bull, etc. At 81 years old, Scorsese is still garnering acclaim and accolades for his latest film, Killers of the Flower Moon, which is also featuring a breakout performance by Golden Globe-winner Lily Gladstone. Scorsese would recently receive a special Best Director Award from the National Board of Review, which would bring his former Gangs of New York star, Daniel Day-Lewis, into the public spotlight.
Variety is reporting that Scorsese is set to be honored at the Berlin Film Festival next month with a Golden Bear Award. His ceremony will also be screening his film The Departed. Interestingly, The Departed is also...
Variety is reporting that Scorsese is set to be honored at the Berlin Film Festival next month with a Golden Bear Award. His ceremony will also be screening his film The Departed. Interestingly, The Departed is also...
- 1/17/2024
- by EJ Tangonan
- JoBlo.com
The Berlin Film Festival is staying true to its political roots.
The 74th Berlinale on Wednesday unveiled its Panorama, Generation and Forum sidebars, and the selection is packed with features and documentaries with a strong political bent, as is to be expected from a fest that prides itself on the social relevance of its official lineup.
Gender roles and gender politics are in focus in several of the Panorama titles, including the section’s opening film Crossing from director Levan Akin (And Then We Danced), in which an unlikely duo travels to Istanbul in search of a young trans woman; the Norwegian feature Sex from Dag Johan Haugerud, about two chimney sweeps living in monogamous, heterosexual marriages whose experiences change their views on sexuality; Bruce Labruce’s The Visitor, a provocative remake of Pier Paolo Pasolini’s 1968 classic Teorema; and Anthony Schatteman’s debut feature Young Hearts, a Generation Kplus title,...
The 74th Berlinale on Wednesday unveiled its Panorama, Generation and Forum sidebars, and the selection is packed with features and documentaries with a strong political bent, as is to be expected from a fest that prides itself on the social relevance of its official lineup.
Gender roles and gender politics are in focus in several of the Panorama titles, including the section’s opening film Crossing from director Levan Akin (And Then We Danced), in which an unlikely duo travels to Istanbul in search of a young trans woman; the Norwegian feature Sex from Dag Johan Haugerud, about two chimney sweeps living in monogamous, heterosexual marriages whose experiences change their views on sexuality; Bruce Labruce’s The Visitor, a provocative remake of Pier Paolo Pasolini’s 1968 classic Teorema; and Anthony Schatteman’s debut feature Young Hearts, a Generation Kplus title,...
- 1/17/2024
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The Berlinale has announced the full line-ups of its Panorama, Forum and Generation sidebars for the 74th edition running from February 15 to 24. (scroll down for full list)
Panorama will showcase 31 titles including one series and 25 world premieres.
Highlights include Swedish-Georgian director Levan Akin’s Crossing, his first feature since 2019 Cannes breakout And Then We Danced, which opens the selection.
The drama revolves around a retired teacher whose search for her long-lost niece Tekla takes her to Istanbul where she becomes acquainted with a trans rights lawyer.
Other buzzy titles set for a world premiere include André Téchiné’s My New Friends, starring Isabelle Huppert as a solitary police officer, and and Myriam El Hajj’s documentary Diaries From Lebanon, following three people as they navigate their country on the brink of revolution.
A number of Sundance titles will also be making a Panorama splash including Nathan Silver’s Between The Temples,...
Panorama will showcase 31 titles including one series and 25 world premieres.
Highlights include Swedish-Georgian director Levan Akin’s Crossing, his first feature since 2019 Cannes breakout And Then We Danced, which opens the selection.
The drama revolves around a retired teacher whose search for her long-lost niece Tekla takes her to Istanbul where she becomes acquainted with a trans rights lawyer.
Other buzzy titles set for a world premiere include André Téchiné’s My New Friends, starring Isabelle Huppert as a solitary police officer, and and Myriam El Hajj’s documentary Diaries From Lebanon, following three people as they navigate their country on the brink of revolution.
A number of Sundance titles will also be making a Panorama splash including Nathan Silver’s Between The Temples,...
- 1/17/2024
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
The Berlinale has completed the lineup for its Panorama, Generation, Forum and Forum expanded sections, with new films from Levan Akin and Andre Techine, plus the debut feature of US playwright Annie Baker.
Swedish filmmaker Akin, who scored an international hit in 2019 with And Then We Danced, will open the Panorama strand with Crossing, about two people travelling from Georgia to Istanbul in search of a young transgender woman.
Scroll down for the full list of Panorama, Generation and Forum features
Also among the 31 films in Panorama are My New Friends from French filmmaker Techine, starring Isabelle Hupert, Hafsia Herzi...
Swedish filmmaker Akin, who scored an international hit in 2019 with And Then We Danced, will open the Panorama strand with Crossing, about two people travelling from Georgia to Istanbul in search of a young transgender woman.
Scroll down for the full list of Panorama, Generation and Forum features
Also among the 31 films in Panorama are My New Friends from French filmmaker Techine, starring Isabelle Hupert, Hafsia Herzi...
- 1/17/2024
- by Ben Dalton¬Orlando Parfitt
- ScreenDaily
When Martin Scorsese is lauded with Berlin Film Festival’s Honorary Golden Bear next month, the awards ceremony will be accompanied by a screening of his 2006 film “The Departed.”
The crime thriller, which won four Oscars including best picture and director, stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson and Mark Wahlberg. The film tells the story of an Irish mob boss who plants a spy within the Massachusetts State Police just as the police assign an undercover cop to infiltrate the gang. What follows is a race to expose the other’s identity first.
The Berlinale on Wednesday also announced that Levan Akin’s “Crossing” will open this year’s Panorama section, which will focus on “bridges between lived experiences and cinematic possibilities.” “Crossing” follows an unlikely duo who travel “from Batumi, Georgia to the urban, labyrinthine Istanbul in search of a young trans woman named Tekla,” according to the fest’s description.
The crime thriller, which won four Oscars including best picture and director, stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson and Mark Wahlberg. The film tells the story of an Irish mob boss who plants a spy within the Massachusetts State Police just as the police assign an undercover cop to infiltrate the gang. What follows is a race to expose the other’s identity first.
The Berlinale on Wednesday also announced that Levan Akin’s “Crossing” will open this year’s Panorama section, which will focus on “bridges between lived experiences and cinematic possibilities.” “Crossing” follows an unlikely duo who travel “from Batumi, Georgia to the urban, labyrinthine Istanbul in search of a young trans woman named Tekla,” according to the fest’s description.
- 1/17/2024
- by Ellise Shafer
- Variety Film + TV
Actors Ewan McGregor, Sidse Babett Knudsen, Renate Reinsve, Anders Danielsen Lie, directors Ruben Östlund, Ernst de Geer, Ramata-Toulaye Sy and Cannes Film Festival honcho Thierry Frémaux are some of the stellar guests set to walk the red carpet at the 47th edition of Sweden’s Göteborg Film Festival.
This year’s Göteborg Fest unspools from Jan. 26 to Feb. 4.
For his last run as artistic director of Scandinavia’s biggest film festival, Jonas Holmberg has selected 240 films from 82 countries, and what he calls “one of the strongest lineups ever” for Göteborg’s main Nordic competition strand. Among the highly anticipated titles vying for the coveted Best Nordic Film Dragon Award worth Sek 400,000, is Norway’s “Handling the Undead” by Thea Hvistendahl, set to kickstart the festival on the heels of its Sundance world premiere.
“This will be the first time we open with a zombie horror,” notes Holmberg, who looks forward...
This year’s Göteborg Fest unspools from Jan. 26 to Feb. 4.
For his last run as artistic director of Scandinavia’s biggest film festival, Jonas Holmberg has selected 240 films from 82 countries, and what he calls “one of the strongest lineups ever” for Göteborg’s main Nordic competition strand. Among the highly anticipated titles vying for the coveted Best Nordic Film Dragon Award worth Sek 400,000, is Norway’s “Handling the Undead” by Thea Hvistendahl, set to kickstart the festival on the heels of its Sundance world premiere.
“This will be the first time we open with a zombie horror,” notes Holmberg, who looks forward...
- 1/9/2024
- by Annika Pham
- Variety Film + TV
When director Elene Naveriani first read the book upon which “Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry” is based, they immediately recognized a whole community. “It was the story of my mom, the story of my aunt, the story of my neighbor,” Naveriani tells Variety. “I could name so many women around me that they were really going through the same interior kind of struggle, and I found it very important to bring this character to life on screen.”
Playing in Directors’ Fortnight, “Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry” follows 48-year-old Etero (Eka Chavleishvili – the filmmaker’s first and only choice for the character) as she discovers her sexuality and enters into her first relationship later in life. In the film’s startling opening sequence, shopkeeper Etero survives a brush with death, returns to her small corner store, and seduces the first man who walks in – having her initial sexual relation on a momentary whim.
Though Etero...
Playing in Directors’ Fortnight, “Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry” follows 48-year-old Etero (Eka Chavleishvili – the filmmaker’s first and only choice for the character) as she discovers her sexuality and enters into her first relationship later in life. In the film’s startling opening sequence, shopkeeper Etero survives a brush with death, returns to her small corner store, and seduces the first man who walks in – having her initial sexual relation on a momentary whim.
Though Etero...
- 5/22/2023
- by Ben Croll
- Variety Film + TV
“I remember being on set in New Orleans walking the backlot and thinking to myself, ‘wow, this is a high budget, A+ series that has not just the queer romance, but also a problematic one,'” reveals director Levan Akin about working on “Interview with the Vampire.” For our recent webchat he adds, “I had to pinch myself. I mean, I had to pinch myself all the time, just being there in New Orleans, because I’d actually been there 10 years before and I did an Anne Rice tour. So I was just like, I can’t believe I’m back filming this!” Watch our exclusive video interview above.
See ‘Interview with the Vampire’ sticks landing on AMC with ‘bloody, ridiculous, gay glory’ the story always deserved
AMC’s “Interview with the Vampire” was created by Emmy winner Rolin Jones (“Friday Night Lights”), based on the 1976 novel by Anne Rice...
See ‘Interview with the Vampire’ sticks landing on AMC with ‘bloody, ridiculous, gay glory’ the story always deserved
AMC’s “Interview with the Vampire” was created by Emmy winner Rolin Jones (“Friday Night Lights”), based on the 1976 novel by Anne Rice...
- 5/5/2023
- by Rob Licuria
- Gold Derby
Production arm Totem Atelier is moving full speed ahead on several international co-productions.
Paris-based international sales and production house Totem Films is heading into Cannes with two new senior hires and a trio of recently-boarded co-productions.
Margot Hervee will head up sales and acquisitions after spending six years at global platform Mubi. Pablo Carrizosa has come on to handle business affairs for the company’s sales and production branches as well as the new point contact for Spain, Portugal and Latin America in sales and acquisitions. The duo joins Nuria Palenzuela Camon, head of festivals at Totem since the end...
Paris-based international sales and production house Totem Films is heading into Cannes with two new senior hires and a trio of recently-boarded co-productions.
Margot Hervee will head up sales and acquisitions after spending six years at global platform Mubi. Pablo Carrizosa has come on to handle business affairs for the company’s sales and production branches as well as the new point contact for Spain, Portugal and Latin America in sales and acquisitions. The duo joins Nuria Palenzuela Camon, head of festivals at Totem since the end...
- 4/26/2023
- by Rebecca Leffler
- ScreenDaily
Paris-based sales outfit Totem Films has acquired “A Song Sung Blue,” by Chinese director Zihan Geng, and “Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry,” from Georgian filmmaker Elene Naveriani. Both films will premiere in the Directors’ Fortnight section of the Cannes Film Festival.
“A Song Sung Blue” is the feature debut of the Beijing-born Geng. The coming-of-age story follows 15-year-old Xian, who’s left in the care of her estranged father, a struggling photographer, after her mother is compelled to travel to Africa for work. Over the course of a restless summer, Xian befriends 18-year-old Mingmei, the daughter of his father’s assistant-turned-girlfriend, and soon finds herself looking up to the older girl.
Driven by the ignorance and impulse of youth, their friendship will leave an unforgettable mark on the young girl’s life, a journey that “we follow to retrieve the memories of that distant part of our own youth,” according to Geng.
“A Song Sung Blue” is the feature debut of the Beijing-born Geng. The coming-of-age story follows 15-year-old Xian, who’s left in the care of her estranged father, a struggling photographer, after her mother is compelled to travel to Africa for work. Over the course of a restless summer, Xian befriends 18-year-old Mingmei, the daughter of his father’s assistant-turned-girlfriend, and soon finds herself looking up to the older girl.
Driven by the ignorance and impulse of youth, their friendship will leave an unforgettable mark on the young girl’s life, a journey that “we follow to retrieve the memories of that distant part of our own youth,” according to Geng.
- 4/18/2023
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Anonymous Content has hired longtime literary agent and former UTA partner Bec Smith as a partner and manager in their Los Angeles-based lit team. We revealed Smith’s impending exit from UTA last month.
The respected veteran has amassed a client roster including directors and writers such as Coline Abert, Levan Akin, Jane Anderson, Benedict Andrews, Emily Atef, Anthony Chen, Eva Husson, Ellen Kuras, Katrin Gebbe, Sebastian Junger, Julia Leigh, Phillip Noyce, Joshua Oppenheimer, Jennifer Peedom, Maria Schrader, Tali Shalom-Ezer, Dawn Shadforth, Kirsten Sheridan, Goran Stolevski, Warwick Thornton and Max Werner.
Related Story Shocker! Anonymous Content CEO Dawn Olmstead & COO Heather McCauley Resign; Protesting Settlement To Former Top Producer Keith Redmon? Related Story UTA Partner & Top Talent Agent Brian Swardstrom Leaving Agency For New Ventures; Will Produce With 'Nomadland's Peter Spears To Start Related Story UTA Signs Cecillia Aldarondo, Filmmaker Behind SXSW-Premiering Documentary 'You Were My First Boyfriend...
The respected veteran has amassed a client roster including directors and writers such as Coline Abert, Levan Akin, Jane Anderson, Benedict Andrews, Emily Atef, Anthony Chen, Eva Husson, Ellen Kuras, Katrin Gebbe, Sebastian Junger, Julia Leigh, Phillip Noyce, Joshua Oppenheimer, Jennifer Peedom, Maria Schrader, Tali Shalom-Ezer, Dawn Shadforth, Kirsten Sheridan, Goran Stolevski, Warwick Thornton and Max Werner.
Related Story Shocker! Anonymous Content CEO Dawn Olmstead & COO Heather McCauley Resign; Protesting Settlement To Former Top Producer Keith Redmon? Related Story UTA Partner & Top Talent Agent Brian Swardstrom Leaving Agency For New Ventures; Will Produce With 'Nomadland's Peter Spears To Start Related Story UTA Signs Cecillia Aldarondo, Filmmaker Behind SXSW-Premiering Documentary 'You Were My First Boyfriend...
- 3/22/2023
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: UTA partner Bec Smith, a company vet of 16 years, is leaving the agency, we can reveal.
Working in the Motion Picture Literary department, the respected Australian native has built a strong internationally-oriented client list (some of whom she has worked with since their first short films) including Garth Davis, Maria Schrader, Goran Stolevski, Oliver Hermanus, Joshua Oppenheimer, Warwick Thornton, Na Hong-Jin, Eva Husson, Emily Atef, Agnieszka Holland, Phillip Noyce, Ellen Kuras, Benedict Andrews, James Ponsoldt, Anthony Chen, Levan Akin, Katrin Gebbe and Andor director Ariel Kleiman.
We hear Smith is likely to segue to management — there has been interest from multiple companies over the years — where she will be able to flex her producorial instincts. Most of her clients are expected to follow.
The timeline for her departure from UTA is understood to be in the 4-6 week range.
Smith’s exit from UTA coincides with a layer of layoffs at the agency.
Working in the Motion Picture Literary department, the respected Australian native has built a strong internationally-oriented client list (some of whom she has worked with since their first short films) including Garth Davis, Maria Schrader, Goran Stolevski, Oliver Hermanus, Joshua Oppenheimer, Warwick Thornton, Na Hong-Jin, Eva Husson, Emily Atef, Agnieszka Holland, Phillip Noyce, Ellen Kuras, Benedict Andrews, James Ponsoldt, Anthony Chen, Levan Akin, Katrin Gebbe and Andor director Ariel Kleiman.
We hear Smith is likely to segue to management — there has been interest from multiple companies over the years — where she will be able to flex her producorial instincts. Most of her clients are expected to follow.
The timeline for her departure from UTA is understood to be in the 4-6 week range.
Smith’s exit from UTA coincides with a layer of layoffs at the agency.
- 2/16/2023
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Paris-based sales outfit Totem Films has boarded the new, as-yet-untitled project from “And Then We Danced” director Levan Akin, which has just wrapped shooting in Istanbul. Totem will present the film to buyers at next month’s European Film Market in Berlin.
The story is “about finding your family, not your blood relatives, but those that accept and love you unconditionally, without prejudice, for who you are,” the production company, French Quarter Film, said.
Akin said of the project: “My whole life, Istanbul and its inhabitants have held a special place in my heart, and I’m very excited to soon be able to share this world and its unique spaces with an audience.”
Totem Films said: “Levan perfectly knows how to capture genuine atmospheres and characters. We launched Totem in Cannes 2019 with ‘And Then We Danced.’ What a joy to continue our collaboration with this tribe!”
Akin’s Georgia-set...
The story is “about finding your family, not your blood relatives, but those that accept and love you unconditionally, without prejudice, for who you are,” the production company, French Quarter Film, said.
Akin said of the project: “My whole life, Istanbul and its inhabitants have held a special place in my heart, and I’m very excited to soon be able to share this world and its unique spaces with an audience.”
Totem Films said: “Levan perfectly knows how to capture genuine atmospheres and characters. We launched Totem in Cannes 2019 with ‘And Then We Danced.’ What a joy to continue our collaboration with this tribe!”
Akin’s Georgia-set...
- 1/25/2023
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
Pluto Film has boarded Giovanni Bucchieri’s debut feature “100 Seasons,” set to world premiere in Intl. Film Festival Rotterdam’s coveted Tiger Competition later this month.
“The film immediately caught us with its honesty, originality, and sensitivity. It offers a colorful mix of passion, tenderness and romance,” Daniela Cölle, CEO and acquisitions head, says.
Produced by Sweden’s French Quarter Film – also behind Anna Odell’s “The Reunion” and Levan Akin’s “And Then We Danced” – and co-produced by Rmv Film, it sees Bucchieri playing with reality and fiction, as well as his own 30-year-old video recordings, in a tale dedicated to his first love, Louise Peterhoff.
Peterhoff, now an established actor seen in such shows as “Peacemaker” and “The Truth Will Out,” as well as Ari Aster’s “Midsommar,” is more than just a memory. Credited as a co-creator, she comes back into Giovanni’s life – as an entirely new character.
“The film immediately caught us with its honesty, originality, and sensitivity. It offers a colorful mix of passion, tenderness and romance,” Daniela Cölle, CEO and acquisitions head, says.
Produced by Sweden’s French Quarter Film – also behind Anna Odell’s “The Reunion” and Levan Akin’s “And Then We Danced” – and co-produced by Rmv Film, it sees Bucchieri playing with reality and fiction, as well as his own 30-year-old video recordings, in a tale dedicated to his first love, Louise Peterhoff.
Peterhoff, now an established actor seen in such shows as “Peacemaker” and “The Truth Will Out,” as well as Ari Aster’s “Midsommar,” is more than just a memory. Credited as a co-creator, she comes back into Giovanni’s life – as an entirely new character.
- 1/18/2023
- by Marta Balaga
- Variety Film + TV
Georgian-German drama “A Room of My Own,” about a young woman looking for a female roommate in Tbilisi after her personal life implodes, has its team thinking about future reactions in the Republic of Georgia. But director Ioseb “Soso” Bliadze and actress/co-writer Taki Mumladze are “ready” to address subjects considered controversial in their home country, they tell Variety, from domestic abuse to same-sex relationships.
“We will fight for this film,” says Bliadze, returning to Karlovy Vary Film Festival after his 2021 release “Otar’s Death.” Now, “A Room of My Own” – a Maisis Peri and Color of May production – will vie for the festival’s Crystal Globe award.
“In our country, conservative voices are getting louder and louder, and our government is backing them up. That’s our answer to them.”
In 2020, Levan Akin’s “And Then We Danced,” featuring a gay love story, became the subject of violent mass protests.
“We will fight for this film,” says Bliadze, returning to Karlovy Vary Film Festival after his 2021 release “Otar’s Death.” Now, “A Room of My Own” – a Maisis Peri and Color of May production – will vie for the festival’s Crystal Globe award.
“In our country, conservative voices are getting louder and louder, and our government is backing them up. That’s our answer to them.”
In 2020, Levan Akin’s “And Then We Danced,” featuring a gay love story, became the subject of violent mass protests.
- 7/3/2022
- by Marta Balaga
- Variety Film + TV
Scheme rewards projects that inspire exhibition growth.
European exhibition network Europa Cinemas has selected 13 projects for the second edition of Collaborate To Innovate, the scheme to reward innovative and collaborative projects developed by exhibitors in the region.
Backed by Creative Europe’s Media programme, Europa Cinemas grants a maximum of €100,000 per project. The 13 new projects, representing 70 member cinemas, will share a total support amount of almost €1 million.
Coming from 16 European countries, the 13 projects cover a wide range of topics: film literacy and young audience development, European film circulation, technological innovation, digital marketing, enhanced cinema-going experience, as well as green practices and inclusion of disadvantaged audiences.
European exhibition network Europa Cinemas has selected 13 projects for the second edition of Collaborate To Innovate, the scheme to reward innovative and collaborative projects developed by exhibitors in the region.
Backed by Creative Europe’s Media programme, Europa Cinemas grants a maximum of €100,000 per project. The 13 new projects, representing 70 member cinemas, will share a total support amount of almost €1 million.
Coming from 16 European countries, the 13 projects cover a wide range of topics: film literacy and young audience development, European film circulation, technological innovation, digital marketing, enhanced cinema-going experience, as well as green practices and inclusion of disadvantaged audiences.
- 6/27/2022
- by Tim Dams
- ScreenDaily
Upcoming animation from ’My Life As A Courgette’ director Claude Barras also among recipients.
Berlin Golden Bear winner Radu Jude’s upcoming feature A Case History is one of 24 features to receive a share of €6.5m (6.87m) in the latest round of Eurimages co-production support funding.
The film, a co-production between Romania and Croatia, has received €150,000 and marks the Romanian filmmaker’s next feature after winning the Golden Bear in 2021 with Bad Luck Banging Or Loony Porn.
Produced by Ada Solomon and Adrian Sitaru of Bucharest-based 4Proof Film, the story will be told in two parts. The first follows a...
Berlin Golden Bear winner Radu Jude’s upcoming feature A Case History is one of 24 features to receive a share of €6.5m (6.87m) in the latest round of Eurimages co-production support funding.
The film, a co-production between Romania and Croatia, has received €150,000 and marks the Romanian filmmaker’s next feature after winning the Golden Bear in 2021 with Bad Luck Banging Or Loony Porn.
Produced by Ada Solomon and Adrian Sitaru of Bucharest-based 4Proof Film, the story will be told in two parts. The first follows a...
- 6/27/2022
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
Mubi’s U.S. lineup for next month has been unveiled, including some essential recent releases, notably James Vaughan’s Friends and Strangers, Radu Muntean’s Întregalde, Alice Diop’s We (Nous), the Isabel Sandoval-led short The Actress, Ougie Pak’s Clytaemnestra, and the new restoration of Hong Sangsoo’s Virgin Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors.
As part of Pride month and fitting as his latest film arrives, Andrew Ahn’s Spa Night is among the selections, alongside And Then We Danced, Being 17, and Lilting. Lee Chang-dong’s Burning, a pair of films by Hirokazu Kore-eda, and Kim Bora’s House of Hummingbird are also in the lineup.
Check out the lineup below and get 30 days free here.
June 1 – Wet Sand, directed by Elene Naveriani | Viewfinder | Pride
June 2 – And Then We Danced, directed by Levan Akin | Pride Unprejudiced: LGBTQ+ Cinema
June 3 – Friends and Strangers, directed by James Vaughan | Mubi Spotlight
June 4 – Final Set,...
As part of Pride month and fitting as his latest film arrives, Andrew Ahn’s Spa Night is among the selections, alongside And Then We Danced, Being 17, and Lilting. Lee Chang-dong’s Burning, a pair of films by Hirokazu Kore-eda, and Kim Bora’s House of Hummingbird are also in the lineup.
Check out the lineup below and get 30 days free here.
June 1 – Wet Sand, directed by Elene Naveriani | Viewfinder | Pride
June 2 – And Then We Danced, directed by Levan Akin | Pride Unprejudiced: LGBTQ+ Cinema
June 3 – Friends and Strangers, directed by James Vaughan | Mubi Spotlight
June 4 – Final Set,...
- 5/24/2022
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
Exclusive: ICM has just signed The Northman actor Gustav Lindh.
He stars in the Robert Eggers’ directed New Regency/Focus Features movie as Thorir the Proud opposite Nicole Kidman, Alexander Skarsgard and Anya-Taylor Joy. The pic is expected to open this weekend to 10M-12M.
Lindh is a fast-rising star of Swedish film and television. In 2020, he starred in Josephine Bornebusch’s film, Orca, which was filmed and released during the pandemic. In 2019, Lindh starred in the May el-Toukhy’s Danish feature Queen of Hearts alongside Trine Dyrholm, for which he won Best Supporting Actor at the 2020 Bodil Awards. His first feature, The Circle, was directed by Levan Akin, where he starred opposite Josefin Asplund and Sverrir Gudnason. He also has starring roles in Björn Runge’s Burn My Letters and Gustav Möller’s crime series The Dark Heart.
Lindh is also set to star in the lead role of...
He stars in the Robert Eggers’ directed New Regency/Focus Features movie as Thorir the Proud opposite Nicole Kidman, Alexander Skarsgard and Anya-Taylor Joy. The pic is expected to open this weekend to 10M-12M.
Lindh is a fast-rising star of Swedish film and television. In 2020, he starred in Josephine Bornebusch’s film, Orca, which was filmed and released during the pandemic. In 2019, Lindh starred in the May el-Toukhy’s Danish feature Queen of Hearts alongside Trine Dyrholm, for which he won Best Supporting Actor at the 2020 Bodil Awards. His first feature, The Circle, was directed by Levan Akin, where he starred opposite Josefin Asplund and Sverrir Gudnason. He also has starring roles in Björn Runge’s Burn My Letters and Gustav Möller’s crime series The Dark Heart.
Lindh is also set to star in the lead role of...
- 4/22/2022
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Greenwich Entertainment has taken North American rights to dark comedy-drama “Concerned Citizen,” which had its world premiere in the Panorama section of the Berlinale. Salzgeber has taken the rights for Germany and Austria. Berlin-based sales outfit M-Appeal is selling the film.
Idan Haguel’s film, a satirical parable on the insidious ways in which privilege can unleash the prejudice within, centers on Ben, who thinks of himself as a liberal and enlightened gay man, living in the perfect apartment with his boyfriend Raz. All that’s missing to complete the picture is a baby, which the couple are trying to make a reality.
Meanwhile, Ben decides to improve his up-and-coming neighborhood in gritty south Tel Aviv by planting a new tree on his street. But his good deed soon triggers a sequence of events that leads to the brutal police arrest of an Eritrean immigrant. The guilt trip that ensues...
Idan Haguel’s film, a satirical parable on the insidious ways in which privilege can unleash the prejudice within, centers on Ben, who thinks of himself as a liberal and enlightened gay man, living in the perfect apartment with his boyfriend Raz. All that’s missing to complete the picture is a baby, which the couple are trying to make a reality.
Meanwhile, Ben decides to improve his up-and-coming neighborhood in gritty south Tel Aviv by planting a new tree on his street. But his good deed soon triggers a sequence of events that leads to the brutal police arrest of an Eritrean immigrant. The guilt trip that ensues...
- 3/25/2022
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
Bettina Brokemper of Cologne-based Heimatfilm, the German co-producer of Lars von Trier films including “Melancholia” and “Antichrist,” has boarded “Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry,” the third feature from rising Georgian filmmaker Elene Naveriani, which was selected for the Rotterdam Film Festival’s CineMart co-production market.
Based on the novel by Georgian author and feminist activist Tamta Melashili, the film tells the story of a single woman in her late 40s stuck in a small, backward-looking town who discovers love for the first time.
Naveriani, who directed the Rotterdam premiere “I Am Truly a Drop of Sun on Earth” and the Locarno prize winner “Wet Sand,” told Variety that when she first read Melashili’s novel she “imagined how powerful it would be to see this story on the screen, how empowering and controversial.”
“The main character of the story, Etero, is a feminist in her own way – without even realizing it,” she said.
Based on the novel by Georgian author and feminist activist Tamta Melashili, the film tells the story of a single woman in her late 40s stuck in a small, backward-looking town who discovers love for the first time.
Naveriani, who directed the Rotterdam premiere “I Am Truly a Drop of Sun on Earth” and the Locarno prize winner “Wet Sand,” told Variety that when she first read Melashili’s novel she “imagined how powerful it would be to see this story on the screen, how empowering and controversial.”
“The main character of the story, Etero, is a feminist in her own way – without even realizing it,” she said.
- 1/28/2022
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
Efp Shooting Stars Celebrates 25th Anniversary
The 2022 cohort of European Shooting Stars have been confirmed. The initiative, celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, comes from European Film Promotion. The seven actresses and three actors will be unveiled at this year’s Berlin International Film Festival at an event on February 14 at the Berlinale Palast. This year’s selected talents are: Gracija Filipović (Croatia), Marie Reuther (Denmark), Anamaria Vartolomei (France), Emilio Sakraya (Germany), Clare Dunne (Ireland), Hanna van Vliet (The Netherlands), João Nunes Monteiro (Portugal), Timon Sturbej (Slovenia), Evin Ahmad (Sweden) and Souheila Yacoub (Switzerland). They were selected by a five-person jury consisting of Levan Akin, Timka Grin, Sara Serraiocco, Bernard Michaux and Yun-hua Chen.
Screen Ireland Appointment
Screen Ireland has named Irish producer Niamh Fagan to the role of Project Manager within the agency’s creative Production and Development team. Fagan will work across Screen Ireland’s supported feature film and documentary projects,...
The 2022 cohort of European Shooting Stars have been confirmed. The initiative, celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, comes from European Film Promotion. The seven actresses and three actors will be unveiled at this year’s Berlin International Film Festival at an event on February 14 at the Berlinale Palast. This year’s selected talents are: Gracija Filipović (Croatia), Marie Reuther (Denmark), Anamaria Vartolomei (France), Emilio Sakraya (Germany), Clare Dunne (Ireland), Hanna van Vliet (The Netherlands), João Nunes Monteiro (Portugal), Timon Sturbej (Slovenia), Evin Ahmad (Sweden) and Souheila Yacoub (Switzerland). They were selected by a five-person jury consisting of Levan Akin, Timka Grin, Sara Serraiocco, Bernard Michaux and Yun-hua Chen.
Screen Ireland Appointment
Screen Ireland has named Irish producer Niamh Fagan to the role of Project Manager within the agency’s creative Production and Development team. Fagan will work across Screen Ireland’s supported feature film and documentary projects,...
- 1/13/2022
- by Tom Grater
- Deadline Film + TV
European Film Promotion has announced the 10 rising young actors selected for the 25th edition of European Shooting Stars, the promotional event held during the Berlinale that has been instrumental to boosting careers of top talents such as Alicia Vikander, Riz Ahmed, Alba Rohrwacher and George MacKay.
Due to Omicron-related constraints, this year’s Shooting Stars is taking place as a hybrid edition comprising some online events being scheduled before the Berlinale, while others will take place on-site during the festival. One of the program’s highlights will be the European Shooting Stars Awards Ceremony set for Feb. 14 at the Berlinale Palast.
The 10 selected European Shooting Stars for 2022 are: Gracija Filipović (Croatia); Marie Reuther (Denmark); Anamaria Vartolomei (France); Emilio Sakraya (Germany); Clare Dunne (Ireland); Hanna van Vliet (The Netherlands); João Nunes Monteiro (Portugal); Timon Sturbej (Slovenia); Evin Ahmad (Sweden); and Souheila Yacoub (Switzerland).
This year’s roster – three men and seven women – of standout actors,...
Due to Omicron-related constraints, this year’s Shooting Stars is taking place as a hybrid edition comprising some online events being scheduled before the Berlinale, while others will take place on-site during the festival. One of the program’s highlights will be the European Shooting Stars Awards Ceremony set for Feb. 14 at the Berlinale Palast.
The 10 selected European Shooting Stars for 2022 are: Gracija Filipović (Croatia); Marie Reuther (Denmark); Anamaria Vartolomei (France); Emilio Sakraya (Germany); Clare Dunne (Ireland); Hanna van Vliet (The Netherlands); João Nunes Monteiro (Portugal); Timon Sturbej (Slovenia); Evin Ahmad (Sweden); and Souheila Yacoub (Switzerland).
This year’s roster – three men and seven women – of standout actors,...
- 1/13/2022
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
‘Sex Education’ creator Laurie Nunn and ‘Babyteeth’ director Shannon Murphy are also mentors.
Anne Mensah, the vice president of original series at Netflix, and See-Saw’s head of development, film and limited series, Katherine Bridle are among the senior executives taking part in the 2021 BFI Network x Bafta Crew mentoring programme.
This is the third edition of the mentoring scheme, which aims to provide support to 20 filmmakers from across the UK who are from regions and communities underrepresented in the screen industries and are currently working towards debut projects in film and television.
As well as being paired a mentor,...
Anne Mensah, the vice president of original series at Netflix, and See-Saw’s head of development, film and limited series, Katherine Bridle are among the senior executives taking part in the 2021 BFI Network x Bafta Crew mentoring programme.
This is the third edition of the mentoring scheme, which aims to provide support to 20 filmmakers from across the UK who are from regions and communities underrepresented in the screen industries and are currently working towards debut projects in film and television.
As well as being paired a mentor,...
- 11/25/2021
- by Mona Tabbara
- ScreenDaily
Now in its 17th year, the Thessaloniki Film Festival’s Crossroads Co-Production Forum has become a de rigueur stop on the fall circuit for producers, distributors, festival programmers and sales agents from across Europe – and increasingly the rest of the world – as they look to spot promising projects in development from Southeast Europe, the Black Sea, and the wider Mediterranean region.
For Yianna Sarri, who heads Thessaloniki’s industry arm, Agora, the reason is obvious. “They know that they will find the best possible projects in Thessaloniki,” Sarri told Variety.
Recent Crossroads success stories include Christos Nikou’s debut “Apples,” which opened the Horizons strand of last year’s Venice Film Festival, and “Ghosts,” the first feature from Turkey’s Azra Deniz Okyay, which won the Grand Prize at Venice Critics’ Week. Other notable titles in recent years include Mounia Meddour’s Algerian civil-war drama “Papicha,” which premiered in Cannes...
For Yianna Sarri, who heads Thessaloniki’s industry arm, Agora, the reason is obvious. “They know that they will find the best possible projects in Thessaloniki,” Sarri told Variety.
Recent Crossroads success stories include Christos Nikou’s debut “Apples,” which opened the Horizons strand of last year’s Venice Film Festival, and “Ghosts,” the first feature from Turkey’s Azra Deniz Okyay, which won the Grand Prize at Venice Critics’ Week. Other notable titles in recent years include Mounia Meddour’s Algerian civil-war drama “Papicha,” which premiered in Cannes...
- 11/4/2021
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
Festival
Raindance Film Festival, Britain’s largest independent film festival, will return to cinemas this year, reimagined and restructured with a host of new partners and new films. Running Oct. 27 – Nov. 6, this year’s in-person event will partner with several cinemas across London and offer online screenings in the U.K., facilitated by Curzon Home Cinema.
After seeing last year’s data, which showed that about 70% of the festival’s online audience was located outside of London, Raindance has made a concerted effort to continue fostering its online reach, resulting in the new partnership with Curzon, which will host pay-per-view screenings of official competition films on its iOS, Android and Smart TV apps.
Kicking off on Oct. 27, the Raindance opening gala will feature a screening of Lina Roessler’s “Best Sellers,” starring Academy Award winner Michael Caine, Cary Elwes and Aubrey Plaza. Bookending the event on Nov. 6, the closing gala...
Raindance Film Festival, Britain’s largest independent film festival, will return to cinemas this year, reimagined and restructured with a host of new partners and new films. Running Oct. 27 – Nov. 6, this year’s in-person event will partner with several cinemas across London and offer online screenings in the U.K., facilitated by Curzon Home Cinema.
After seeing last year’s data, which showed that about 70% of the festival’s online audience was located outside of London, Raindance has made a concerted effort to continue fostering its online reach, resulting in the new partnership with Curzon, which will host pay-per-view screenings of official competition films on its iOS, Android and Smart TV apps.
Kicking off on Oct. 27, the Raindance opening gala will feature a screening of Lina Roessler’s “Best Sellers,” starring Academy Award winner Michael Caine, Cary Elwes and Aubrey Plaza. Bookending the event on Nov. 6, the closing gala...
- 9/15/2021
- by Jamie Lang
- Variety Film + TV
Berlin-based distributor Salzgeber has bought Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Benelux rights to Adam Kalderon’s Israeli titleThe Swimmer from M-Appeal. The completed film is screening in the Cannes market.
Set in a summer training camp where young athletes compete to qualify for the Olympics, The Swimmer follows a sportsman as he learns how to accept and love himself despite the discriminative tendencies of the high-performance sports environment against LGBTQ sportspeoople.
Salzgeber has a traditional focus on queer and documentary cinema and has handled titles such as And Then We Danced by Levan Akin and No Hard Feelings by Faraz Shariat.
Set in a summer training camp where young athletes compete to qualify for the Olympics, The Swimmer follows a sportsman as he learns how to accept and love himself despite the discriminative tendencies of the high-performance sports environment against LGBTQ sportspeoople.
Salzgeber has a traditional focus on queer and documentary cinema and has handled titles such as And Then We Danced by Levan Akin and No Hard Feelings by Faraz Shariat.
- 7/12/2021
- by Geoffrey Macnab
- ScreenDaily
And Then We Danced Photo: Courtesy of La Quinzaine Welcome to this week's Stay-At-Home Seven, if you're looking for more streaming inspiration, check out our latest Streaming Spotlight, which goes away with the faeries.
And Then We Danced, 1am, Film4, Tuesday June 29
Strong energy, both on and off the dancefloor, drives Levan Akin's tale of love against a backdrop of repression in Georgia. Levan Gelbakhiani, who plays Merab, is a dancer by trade and his footwork skills are matched by a nuanced acting performance as Merab finds himself experiencing a fierce attraction to dancefloor rival Irakli (Bachi Valishvili). Akin has an eye for the intensity of emotion experienced in the first flush of love and the way that the merest glance or touch can hold a wealth of unleashed passion - and he makes a point of contrasting the burgeoning feelings Levan has for Irakli with the former's chaste...
And Then We Danced, 1am, Film4, Tuesday June 29
Strong energy, both on and off the dancefloor, drives Levan Akin's tale of love against a backdrop of repression in Georgia. Levan Gelbakhiani, who plays Merab, is a dancer by trade and his footwork skills are matched by a nuanced acting performance as Merab finds himself experiencing a fierce attraction to dancefloor rival Irakli (Bachi Valishvili). Akin has an eye for the intensity of emotion experienced in the first flush of love and the way that the merest glance or touch can hold a wealth of unleashed passion - and he makes a point of contrasting the burgeoning feelings Levan has for Irakli with the former's chaste...
- 6/28/2021
- by Amber Wilkinson
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
When Ketie Danelia was approached a few years ago with the script for “And Then We Danced,” Levan Akin’s gay romantic drama about a young man’s sexual awakening in the masculine world of Georgian dance, the producer knew the risks. “Everyone was telling me not to take this project, because it’s very dangerous. Which turned out to be true,” she tells Variety.
In a conservative, patriarchal country where the powerful Orthodox Church holds tremendous sway, filming was a challenge. Locations would balk at the last minute, concerned about the potential backlash; far-right groups threatened the cast and crew. When the movie finally premiered in Tbilisi in 2019, after bowing in Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight to rave reviews, police units had to escort moviegoers into the cinema. Yet through it all, Danelia remained undaunted. “I knew why I was doing it,” she says.
“And Then We Danced” is among a...
In a conservative, patriarchal country where the powerful Orthodox Church holds tremendous sway, filming was a challenge. Locations would balk at the last minute, concerned about the potential backlash; far-right groups threatened the cast and crew. When the movie finally premiered in Tbilisi in 2019, after bowing in Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight to rave reviews, police units had to escort moviegoers into the cinema. Yet through it all, Danelia remained undaunted. “I knew why I was doing it,” she says.
“And Then We Danced” is among a...
- 3/2/2021
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
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