As the Cannes Film Festival celebrates its parties and standing ovations, audiences in Hollywood and New York prepare to wallow in despair. And they’ll enjoy it (almost).
The festival called Bleak Week this week will deliver 43 films to an expected audience of 10,000 at theaters including the restored Egyptian in Hollywood, the Aero in Santa Monica and the Paris in New York.
Created by the American Cinematheque, Bleak Week will feature celebrities and Q&a sessions explaining why their projects deal with existential dread, nihilism and “uncomfortable truths,” as Bleak Week creative director Grant Moninger puts it.
Not surprisingly, there surely also will be post-screening alcoholic consumption for filmgoers seeking to ease the pain.
As the Cinematheque details it, Bleak Week was not prompted by Gaza, student protests, geomagnetic storms or the possible loss of yet another studio (Paramount).
Rather, its announced purpose is to honor an important if long-ignored...
The festival called Bleak Week this week will deliver 43 films to an expected audience of 10,000 at theaters including the restored Egyptian in Hollywood, the Aero in Santa Monica and the Paris in New York.
Created by the American Cinematheque, Bleak Week will feature celebrities and Q&a sessions explaining why their projects deal with existential dread, nihilism and “uncomfortable truths,” as Bleak Week creative director Grant Moninger puts it.
Not surprisingly, there surely also will be post-screening alcoholic consumption for filmgoers seeking to ease the pain.
As the Cinematheque details it, Bleak Week was not prompted by Gaza, student protests, geomagnetic storms or the possible loss of yet another studio (Paramount).
Rather, its announced purpose is to honor an important if long-ignored...
- 5/16/2024
- by Peter Bart
- Deadline Film + TV
Code of Silence: Keff Revisits Time of Turmoil
For his directorial debut, Keff revisits the pinnacle of turmoil during the 2019 Hong Kong protests as a backdrop for a pseudo gangland thriller and romantic drama in Locust. Much like its protagonist, a mute young man in-between two distinct worlds, it’s a film set in the eye of this storm. But those who stand for nothing fall for anything, which seems to be the moral code threaded between these themes in a country wobbling on the precipice of political erosion. The story takes place across the strait in Taipei, when, in June of 2019, a thin membrane between these realms suddenly erodes, and the disastrous energy out of Hong Kong touches down in this other house which has inherited the wind.…...
For his directorial debut, Keff revisits the pinnacle of turmoil during the 2019 Hong Kong protests as a backdrop for a pseudo gangland thriller and romantic drama in Locust. Much like its protagonist, a mute young man in-between two distinct worlds, it’s a film set in the eye of this storm. But those who stand for nothing fall for anything, which seems to be the moral code threaded between these themes in a country wobbling on the precipice of political erosion. The story takes place across the strait in Taipei, when, in June of 2019, a thin membrane between these realms suddenly erodes, and the disastrous energy out of Hong Kong touches down in this other house which has inherited the wind.…...
- 5/16/2024
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
New U.A.E.-based distribution and production studio The Plot Pictures is headed for the Cannes Marche du Film after snapping up Middle East, North Africa and Turkey (Menat) rights to a slew of indie titles across different genres.
They include “Locust,” a first feature film from Taiwanese American multidisciplinary artist Keff that is playing in Critics Week, and Nick Hamm’s epic “William Tell.”
The Plot Pictures CEO Pratixa Shah and head of sales Ozge Conduroglu – who was previously with Starz Play Arabia – are assembling a slate spanning “different genres, regions, and languages,” as Shah put it in statement. “We are agnostic to language and country of origin,” she said, noting that “the hyper local is often what global audiences are looking for, even if it is not local to them.”
The studio, which officially launched in Dubai in March, are co-producers on “Locust.” The film is set in Taiwan where,...
They include “Locust,” a first feature film from Taiwanese American multidisciplinary artist Keff that is playing in Critics Week, and Nick Hamm’s epic “William Tell.”
The Plot Pictures CEO Pratixa Shah and head of sales Ozge Conduroglu – who was previously with Starz Play Arabia – are assembling a slate spanning “different genres, regions, and languages,” as Shah put it in statement. “We are agnostic to language and country of origin,” she said, noting that “the hyper local is often what global audiences are looking for, even if it is not local to them.”
The studio, which officially launched in Dubai in March, are co-producers on “Locust.” The film is set in Taiwan where,...
- 5/8/2024
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Cannes Critics’ Week, spotlighting first and second features, has unveiled the competition and special screenings selection for its 63rd edition running May 15-23.
Scroll down for full list of titles
Artistic director Ava Cahen, now in her third year in the position, announced the selection of 11 features chosen from 1,050 films screened. Seven films will vie for four top prizes in competition, chosen by a jury led by Spanish filmmaker Rodrigo Sorogoyen. Nine are first films that will vie for the Camera d’Or and three are directed or co-directed by women.
The sidebar will open with French director Jonathan Millet...
Scroll down for full list of titles
Artistic director Ava Cahen, now in her third year in the position, announced the selection of 11 features chosen from 1,050 films screened. Seven films will vie for four top prizes in competition, chosen by a jury led by Spanish filmmaker Rodrigo Sorogoyen. Nine are first films that will vie for the Camera d’Or and three are directed or co-directed by women.
The sidebar will open with French director Jonathan Millet...
- 4/15/2024
- ScreenDaily
Cannes Critics’ Week, the sidebar dedicated to first and second films, will open with Jonathan Millet’s psychological thriller “Ghost Trail” and wrap with Emma Benestan’s genre film “Animale.”
“Ghost Trail” and “Animale” are two of the 11 features slated for Critics’ Week, which runs alongside the Cannes Film Festival.
The sole U.S. film of the selection is Constance Tsang’s “Blue Sun Palace,” a bittersweet film about two Chinese immigrants living in Queens who bond following a tragic death and find meaning in each other’s company. “As humble and dignified as its characters, this first, realistic and intimate, film sheds light on a community that is little seen,” said Ava Cahen, Critics’ Week’s artistic director. “Blue Sun Palace” stars Lee Kang-sheng whose recent credits include “Twisted Strings.”
Besides the opening and closing films, the Special Screenings section will comprise of Saïd Hamich Benlarbi’s “Across the...
“Ghost Trail” and “Animale” are two of the 11 features slated for Critics’ Week, which runs alongside the Cannes Film Festival.
The sole U.S. film of the selection is Constance Tsang’s “Blue Sun Palace,” a bittersweet film about two Chinese immigrants living in Queens who bond following a tragic death and find meaning in each other’s company. “As humble and dignified as its characters, this first, realistic and intimate, film sheds light on a community that is little seen,” said Ava Cahen, Critics’ Week’s artistic director. “Blue Sun Palace” stars Lee Kang-sheng whose recent credits include “Twisted Strings.”
Besides the opening and closing films, the Special Screenings section will comprise of Saïd Hamich Benlarbi’s “Across the...
- 4/15/2024
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Cannes Critics’ Week championing work by emerging filmmakers has unveiled the line-up for its 63rd edition running from May 15 to 23.
The traditionally compact parallel selection will showcase 11 features, seven in competition, as well as 13 short films, selected from 1,050 features and 2,150 short films. (scroll down for full list)
The 2024 edition marks Artistic Director Ava Cahen’s third at the helm, with buzzy discoveries under her directorship to date including Tiger Stripes, The Rapture, Aftersun and Love According To Dalva.
Opening and closing films
French director Jonathan Millet’s psychological manhunt thriller Ghost Trail (Les Fantômes) will open the section. It marks his first feature after half a dozen shorts including Tell Me About The Stars.
Adam Bessa, who won the Un Certain Regard prize for his performance in Harka in 2022, stars as a man in pursuit of his former torturer. He never saw his oppressor’s face, but knows his smell,...
The traditionally compact parallel selection will showcase 11 features, seven in competition, as well as 13 short films, selected from 1,050 features and 2,150 short films. (scroll down for full list)
The 2024 edition marks Artistic Director Ava Cahen’s third at the helm, with buzzy discoveries under her directorship to date including Tiger Stripes, The Rapture, Aftersun and Love According To Dalva.
Opening and closing films
French director Jonathan Millet’s psychological manhunt thriller Ghost Trail (Les Fantômes) will open the section. It marks his first feature after half a dozen shorts including Tell Me About The Stars.
Adam Bessa, who won the Un Certain Regard prize for his performance in Harka in 2022, stars as a man in pursuit of his former torturer. He never saw his oppressor’s face, but knows his smell,...
- 4/15/2024
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Watch out for this Spidey. There's a new fan film in the works launching soon titled The Spider, described as a "horror take on Spider-Man." Not to be confused with the other two actual spider horror films opening soon - Sting and Infested. Written and directed by Andy Chen, an up-and-coming young filmmaker who goes under the name "Locust Garden" on social media, the short film features a legit cast. Chandler Riggs (seen in "The Walking Dead" & "A Million Little Things") stars as Spider-Man, along with Caylee Cowan, Matthew Vorce, Kyra Gardner, Holgie Forrester, Carl Addicott, David Rice, Andrew Hernon, Kealani Kitaura, Ronan Arthur & Ben Thomas. With a score by Alexander Taylor. It is an entirely fan-made, non-profit film inspired by Spider-Man. Our pals over at Live for Film also point out that there is actually a "fully mutated Man-Spider" from the comics, and this short also seems similar to...
- 3/15/2024
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Toni Collette will attend Doha Film Institute (Dfi)’s Qumra project development incubator in Qatar in March.
The Australian actress and producer joins the Qumra Masters programme, through which she will take part in a conversation about her career for the audience of 200 Qumra attendees.
Scroll down for the full list of Qumra feature-length projects
Collette will also mentor the creators of the projects in the Qumra lab, most of whom are first- or second-time filmmakers.
She joins previously announced masters Leos Carax, Claire Denis, Atom Egoyan, Martin Hernandez and Jim Sheridan for Qumra’s 10th edition, running from March...
The Australian actress and producer joins the Qumra Masters programme, through which she will take part in a conversation about her career for the audience of 200 Qumra attendees.
Scroll down for the full list of Qumra feature-length projects
Collette will also mentor the creators of the projects in the Qumra lab, most of whom are first- or second-time filmmakers.
She joins previously announced masters Leos Carax, Claire Denis, Atom Egoyan, Martin Hernandez and Jim Sheridan for Qumra’s 10th edition, running from March...
- 2/17/2024
- ScreenDaily
Australian Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning actor and producer Toni Collette (Knives Out) has been announced as a Master at the 10th edition of the Doha Film Institute’s Qumra talent incubator, running from March 1 to 6.
She joins Leos Carax, Claire Denis, Atom Egoyan, Martín Hernández, and Jim Sheridan who were previously announced as Masters for the 2024 edition of the meeting dedicated to supporting new voices from Arab and world cinema.
They join a long list of top professionals to have participated in Qumra since its launch in 2014, which has included James Schamus, Naomi Kawase, Asghar Farhadi, Gael Garcia Bernal and Tilda Swinton.
Additionally, the Dfi has also announced the 40 projects by emerging filmmakers from more than 20 countries, that will participate in the event. (scroll down for full details).
Under the Qumra format, the Masters give a masterclass and provide one-on-one mentorship the talents attached to the projects, alongside a...
She joins Leos Carax, Claire Denis, Atom Egoyan, Martín Hernández, and Jim Sheridan who were previously announced as Masters for the 2024 edition of the meeting dedicated to supporting new voices from Arab and world cinema.
They join a long list of top professionals to have participated in Qumra since its launch in 2014, which has included James Schamus, Naomi Kawase, Asghar Farhadi, Gael Garcia Bernal and Tilda Swinton.
Additionally, the Dfi has also announced the 40 projects by emerging filmmakers from more than 20 countries, that will participate in the event. (scroll down for full details).
Under the Qumra format, the Masters give a masterclass and provide one-on-one mentorship the talents attached to the projects, alongside a...
- 2/17/2024
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Qatar’s Doha Film Institute (Dfi) has announced the recipient projects for its fall 2023 grants cycle, featuring 44 films by first and second-time directors hailing from 32 countries. (scroll down for full list)
The awardee projects span short, medium, feature-length and drama series format, fiction and non-fiction, and are in various stages of development and production.
Highlights include UK director Ana Naomi De Sousa’s documentary Naseem, Fight with Grace about British-Yemeni featherweight boxer Naseem Hamed, aka Prince Naseem and Naz.
Fiction features in the mix include Iraqi director Mohamed Al Daradji new film Arkala Gilgamesh’s Dream about a street child who dreams of bringing back his dead parents through the mythical figure of Gilgamesh, King of Uruk.
Other highly anticipated upcoming features include Moroccan director Alaa Eddine Aljem’s dark comedy Eldorado, the Taste of the South, which is in production, and Palestinian-French-Egyptian filmmaker Rani Massalha’s The Return of The Prodigal Son.
The awardee projects span short, medium, feature-length and drama series format, fiction and non-fiction, and are in various stages of development and production.
Highlights include UK director Ana Naomi De Sousa’s documentary Naseem, Fight with Grace about British-Yemeni featherweight boxer Naseem Hamed, aka Prince Naseem and Naz.
Fiction features in the mix include Iraqi director Mohamed Al Daradji new film Arkala Gilgamesh’s Dream about a street child who dreams of bringing back his dead parents through the mythical figure of Gilgamesh, King of Uruk.
Other highly anticipated upcoming features include Moroccan director Alaa Eddine Aljem’s dark comedy Eldorado, the Taste of the South, which is in production, and Palestinian-French-Egyptian filmmaker Rani Massalha’s The Return of The Prodigal Son.
- 1/22/2024
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
After languishing in development purgatory for years, the ‘Gears of War’ movie is finally getting its time in the limelight, thanks to Netflix. This film adaptation of the iconic video game series is stirring excitement among fans, especially with whispers about potential castings and direction. Cliff Bleszinski, the genius behind the game, voiced his endorsement for Zack Snyder to take the director’s seat in a chat with ComicBook.com. He’s confident that Snyder’s knack for molding existing IPs would work wonders for the adaptation.
However, Bleszinski’s praise for Snyder has its caveats. While he appreciated Snyder’s classics like the ‘Dawn of the Dead’ remake and ‘300’, he wasn’t particularly taken with ‘Army of the Dead,’ a recent Netflix endeavor by the director. Yet, Bleszinski’s belief in Snyder’s capability for Gears remains unshaken.
The casting grapevine is buzzing with Dave Bautista‘s name. Snyder...
However, Bleszinski’s praise for Snyder has its caveats. While he appreciated Snyder’s classics like the ‘Dawn of the Dead’ remake and ‘300’, he wasn’t particularly taken with ‘Army of the Dead,’ a recent Netflix endeavor by the director. Yet, Bleszinski’s belief in Snyder’s capability for Gears remains unshaken.
The casting grapevine is buzzing with Dave Bautista‘s name. Snyder...
- 11/3/2023
- by Hrvoje Milakovic
- Fiction Horizon
Lanterns on the Lake have announced that their new album, Versions of Us, will be out June 2nd via Bella Union. Featuring Radiohead’s Philip Selway on drums and percussion, it’s the band’s fifth studio album, and their first since the departure of their former drummer, Ol Ketteringham. Alongside the announcement, the group unveiled the album’s lead single, “The Likes of Us.”
Versions of Us is the follow-up to 2020’s Spook the Herd. The album’s nine tracks serve as a platform for the English quintet to explore subjects ranging from new motherhood to destiny to the meaning of life itself. Self-produced there is a sense of intimacy embedded in the songs.
“Writing songs requires a certain level of self-indulgence, and songwriters can be prone to dwelling on themselves,” songwriter Hazel Wilde said in a statement. “Motherhood made me aware of having a different stake in the world.
Versions of Us is the follow-up to 2020’s Spook the Herd. The album’s nine tracks serve as a platform for the English quintet to explore subjects ranging from new motherhood to destiny to the meaning of life itself. Self-produced there is a sense of intimacy embedded in the songs.
“Writing songs requires a certain level of self-indulgence, and songwriters can be prone to dwelling on themselves,” songwriter Hazel Wilde said in a statement. “Motherhood made me aware of having a different stake in the world.
- 2/27/2023
- by Jo Vito
- Consequence - Music
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