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Hunter Schafer and Tim Roth are set to star in “Fish,” a genre-bending drama set in a dreamlike Venice, directed by Italian auteur Carlo Hintermann.

Italy’s Minerva Pictures and Tvco will be launching international pre-sales on “Fish” at the upcoming Cannes Marché du Film. The English-language film is expected to go into production in Venice in early 2026.

Roth, who recently wrapped production on Netflix’s hotly anticipated “Peaky Blinders” film opposite Cillian Murphy and Barry Keoghan, will be playing a character called Professor Fish Osborne. He is “a brilliant but reclusive art historian who is undergoing a mysterious transformation: he is slowly becoming a fish,” as the provided synopsis puts it. As the professor’s secret unravels, Billie (Schafer) and other students of his begin to perceive their own identities through new lenses. “Mutation becomes not a curse, but a radical act of liberation,” the synopsis says.

Schafer stars...

Production in Italy has boomed in recent years, and so too have budgets and international investment.

Cast an eye over the titles vying for a Golden Lion at this year’s Venice Film Festival and one thing stands out – the number of Italian films in the main competition.

Six of the 23 films in the main competition are Italian, an increase from the usual three Italian titles that are programmed in the section. While the step change could be a result of the writers and actors’ strikes leading to fewer US productions making the trip to Venice, each of the selected...

Spanish SVOD service Atresplayer Premium has announced at the Berlinale Series Market a raft of new cast members joining the continuation of its award-winning trans series “Veneno,” which played on HBO Max in the U.S. to large acclaim.

Joining the cast of the seven-episode series “Vestidas De Azul” are supporting cast members Susana Abaitua (“Crazy about Her”), Elena Irureta (“Patria”), Luis Callejo (“Jefe”), drag artist Estrella Xtravaganza, Mercedes Sampietro and Anabel Alonso (“7 Vidas”), among others.

The announcement was made at a Q&a on Monday focused on the continuation of the series. It forms part of a Next from Spain event focusing on first looks at four new series.

Currently shooting, Atresmedia,Atresolayer Premium parent, says it plans to begin streaming the new series in the fourth quarter of the year.

The original series was based on the life of Cristina Ortiz Rodríguez (La Veneno), a famous trans personality and singer from Spain.

Franz Rogowski stars in the film which is based on real events.

Italy’s True Colours is launching pre-sales at the EFM of Giorgio Diritti’s Italian-Swiss co-production Lubo, starring Franz Rogowski, for which it has acquired worldwide rights.

Now in post, Lubo is set on the eve of Second World War. Rogowski stars as a young Caucasian man of nomadic ethnicity called to serve in the Swiss army to defend the border with Austria from the threat of the Nazi army who hears his children have been taken away by the authorities and his wife killed in the scuffle.

Franz Rogowski stars in the film which is based on real events.

Italy’s True Colours is launching pre-sales at the EFM of Giorgio Diritti’s Italian-Swiss production Lubo, starring Franz Rogowski, for which it has acquired worldwide rights.

Now in post, Lubo is set on the eve of Second World War, Rogowski stars as a young Caucasian man of nomadic ethnicity called to serve in the Swiss army to defend the border with Austria from the threat of the Nazi army who hears his children have been taken away by the authorities and his wife killed in the scuffle.

Prominent arthouse sales company The Match Factory has closed multiple sales on Italian auteur Gianni Amelio’s Venice competition title “Lord of the Ants” ahead of its Venice premiere on Tuesday.

The Match Factory has sealed deals on Amelio’s latest work – which is a biopic of Italian poet, playwright and director Aldo Braibanti, who was jailed in 1968 due to a Fascist-era anti-gay law – that will ensure the film’s theatrical release in Australia/New Zealand (Palace Films); Japan (Zazie Films); Spain (Surtsey Films); Sweden (TriArt Film) and Greece (Ama Films). Further deals are in negotiation, the company said.

Braibanti was convicted after a complaint from his partner’s father, who later forced his son to be treated with electroconvulsive therapy in an ill-conceived attempt to rid him of his homosexuality. The Fascist-era law that punished Braibanti, which made it a crime to lead innocent or unwary people “morally” astray,...

In spite of a disastrous box office situation, the Italian film industry is staying buoyant thanks to increased exports, a friendly rapport with streaming giants and support from the government of Prime Minister Mario Draghi that is pumping money into a revamp of Rome’s Cinecittà Studios.

“Production never stopped and ailing movie theaters have been able to get subsidies,” says Francesco Rutelli, the former Rome mayor who heads Italy’s motion picture association, Anica. The org recently broadened its member base to include executives from Amazon Prime Video, Disney and ViacomCBS, after Netflix had joined.

This move — which is unique in Europe — indicates the level of friendly dialogue between film producers and streaming platforms in Italy, best encapsulated by Paolo Sorrentino’s “The Hand of God,” Italy’s international Oscar nominee. Sorrentino’s Netflix original film was released theatrically in November across the country before dropping on the platform...

At 81, Italian horror maestro Dario Argento is busier than ever.

The director of a string of cult chiller classics starting in the 1970s, including “The Bird With the Crystal Plumage,” “Suspiria” and “Deep Red,” was at Cannes last July with his acting debut in Gaspar Noe’s “Vortex,” about a pair of old lovers. Argento was also celebrated last year with a new book by Italian critic Steve Della Casa and a retro at New York’s Lincoln Center. This spring he’s set to be honored with a big show at Italy’s National Museum of Cinema in Turin.

More significantly, having returned to the director’s chair after a decade, Argento is back with “Dark Glasses,” which he describes as a classic thriller, or giallo, as the violent crime genre is known in Italy.

“Dark Glasses,” which is set in present-day Rome, screens on Feb. 11 as a Berlinale Special Gala,...

“Paper & Glue,” the feature-length documentary that follows French artist Jr as he plasters his provocative large-scale images of people in such places as the favelas of Rio de Janeiro, the U.S.-Mexico border wall and a California supermax prison, has won the top prize at Uruguay’s inaugural arts film festival, Arca, which wrapped on Friday, Jan. 14. The prize is a bespoke sculpture by celebrated Uruguayan artist and festival host Pablo Atchugarry, valued at 60,000 euros.

“By exploring the great capacity of art to challenge perspectives and unite communities, [“Paper & Glue”] highlights the power of art and the work of the artist, which makes visible and gives voice to those who do not have it,” the festival’s jury commented.

Special mentions were also awarded to “La Intención del Colibri,” the feature debut of Uruguayan filmmaker Sergio de León, which chronicles the love story between late artist Ulises Beisso and his partner Juan Arrospide,...

Italian auteur Gianni Amelio (“Open Doors”) will shoot a biopic of Italian poet, playwright and director Aldo Braibanti, who was jailed in 1968 due to a Fascist-era anti-gay law. The Match Factory has boarded the pic and is launching international sales in Cannes.

Amelio is best-known for the Oscar-nominated “Open Doors” (1990) and also “Stolen Children,” which won the 1992 Cannes Grand Prix, as well as “Hammamet,” a portrait of disgraced late Italian Prime Minister Bettino Craxi’s final years in Tunisia.

Braibanti was convicted after a complaint from his partner’s father, who later forced his son to be treated with electroconvulsive therapy in an ill-conceived attempt to rid him of his homosexuality. The Fascist-era law that punished Braibanti, which made it a crime to lead innocent or unwary people “morally” astray, was repealed in 1981.

Amelio’s new film, titled “Il signore delle formiche,” which translates as “The Ants Man,” features an...

by Nathaniel R

Sophia Loren just won her 7th Best Actress statue at home in Italy

Strangely we never saw any of the trades print a full list of Italy's David Di Donatello nominations this year, always just linking to the Italian site which does not have the list displayed in a way where you can copy and paste it easily. Alas. Hidden Away, a biopic of an obscure artist, led the nominations and came out the big winner too. Bad Tales was not far behind in the nomination count but won only one prize. Netflix's Italian original Rose Island had the third most nominations.

The awards were held a few days ago (oops) so it's past time to share the winners. Sophia Loren's Oscar hopes may not have panned out stateside but she won yet again in Italy for The Life Ahead. A few notes after the jump.

Non-fiction film strategist and documentary filmmaker directed Cesar’s Last Fast.

The International Documentary Association (IDA) has appointed Richard Ray Perez executive director to replace the outgoing Simon Kilmurry, who announced last year that he was stepping down.

Perez is a non-fiction film strategist and documentary filmmaker (Cesar’s Last Fast) who most recently served as director of acquisitions and distribution strategies at GBH | World Channel where he curated and acquired documentaries for the platform’s three original series.

Prior to World Channel, he was director of creative partnerships at Sundance Institute where he led artist-based filmmaking programmes including Stories of Change,...

Italy’s David di Donatello Winners

Winners have been crowned for the 21 David di Donatello awards, the Italian film awards ceremony. Hidden Away, Giorgio Diritti’s drama about Italian painter Antonio Ligabue, won Best Film and Director. Sophia Loren picked up best lead actress for The Life Ahead, while Elio Germano picked up best actor for Hidden Away. Sam Mendes’ 1917 scooped best foreign film. Special awards were presented to Monica Bellucci Targhe, Diego Abatantuono and Sandra Milo. You can see the full list of winners here.

Netflix Greenlights Norwegian Sci-Fi Comedy

Netflix has greenlit Blasted, a Norwegian comedy sci-fi directed by Martin Sofiedal. The script from Emanuel Nordrum follows a bachelor party that stumbles into an alien invasion. Project comes from Are Heidenstrøm (The Wave) at Miso Film. Starring are Axel Bøyum and Fredrik Skogsrud. Netflix is planning to release in 2022.

Erik Poppe To Helm Quisling Feature

Utøya: July 22 director...

Other winners include Italian star Sophia Loren and two Netflix features.

Giorgio Diritti’s Hidden Away was the big winner at Italy’s David di Donatello awards on Tuesday (May 11), winning seven awards including best picture, best director and lead actor for Elio Germano.

The drama, which chronicles the difficult life of Italian painter Antonio Ligabue, is produced by Palomar with Rai Cinema, and premiered at the 2020 Berlinale, where Elio Germano won the Silver Bear for best actor. The film, which was the frontrunner going into the night with 15 nominations, also picked up prizes for cinematography, hair artist and sound.

Giorgio Diritti’s biopic “Hidden Away,” about crazed primitivist painter Antonio Ligabue, was the big winner at Italy’s 66th David di Donatello Awards, the country’s top film prizes.

The Davids were held with an in-person ceremony aired from two venues amid a strong spirit of restart as Italian movie theaters gradually begin to reopen.

“Hidden Away,” which was the frontrunner with 15 nominations, scored seven statuettes including best picture, director and actor honors won by Elio Germano who tackles “the fiendishly difficult role” of the self-taught artist “with customary gusto,” as Variety critic Jay Weissberg noted in his review.

The best actress statuette went to Sophia Loren for her role as Madame Rosa, a former prostitute and Holocaust survivor, in Netflix Original “The Life Ahead,” directed by her son Edoardo Ponti. The Italian icon’s return to the big screen after a decade had been snubbed by the Oscars earlier this year.

Italy’s 66th David di Donatello Awards are set to celebrate on May 11 a year of resilience for Cinema Italiano that also looks likely to germinate some creative renewal, just as Italian movie theaters start to reopen and production is booming.

Giorgio Diritti’s biopic “Hidden Away,” about crazed primitivist painter Antonio Ligabue, Gianni Amelio’s wistful “Hammamet,” which reconstructs the Tunisian self-exile of scandal-plagued Italian leader Bettino Craxi, and dark drama “Bad Tales” by the D’Innocenzo Brothers lead the crowded field for Italy’s equivalent of the Oscars, with no clear frontrunner.

Significantly, “Hidden Away,” which scooped 15 nominations, and “Bad Tales,” which scored 13, both star actor Elio Germano. And Germano also plays the lead in another standout title in the Davids race, Netflix Italian Original “The Incredible Story of Rose Island,” which landed 11 noms, including one for the pic’s producer, multihyphenate Matteo Rovere, whose Groenlandia Group is having a banner year.

Giorgio Diritti’s biopic of an obscure artist “Hidden Away,” Gianni Amelio’s “Hammamet,” about scandal plagued Italian leader Bettino Craxi, and dark drama “Bad Tales” by the D’Innocenzo Brothers lead the race for Italy’s David di Donatello Awards, the country’s top film prizes, for which this year there is no clear frontrunner.

Interestingly, “Hidden Away,” which scooped 15 nominations, and “Bad Tales,” which tallied 13 noms, both star actor Elio Germano. Germano also stars in another film in the Davids race, Netflix Italian Original “The Incredible Story of Rose Island,” which scooped 11 nominations, including one for Matteo Rovere, its producer.

During a virtual press conference Piera Detassis, who heads the David nods, underlined the strong presence this year of women directors, citing Susanna Nicchiarelli’s “Miss Marx,” a biopic of Karl Marx’s proto-feminist daughter Eleanor, and also Emma Dante’s Sicily-set “The Macaluso Sisters,” that are both nominated for film and director.

Italian twins Damiano and Fabio D’Innocenzo, who made a splash in Berlin last year with “Bad Tales,” are back on set with dark thriller “America Latina” toplining Elio Germano, who was at Berlin 2020 with two pics: “Bad Tales” and “Hidden Away,” for which he scored a Silver Bear.

Shooting started March 1 on “America Latina.” Its story details are being kept under wraps other than it’s “a love story and like all love stories it’s obviously a thriller,” as the brothers cryptically put it recently speaking to the Italian press.

“Bad Tales,” in which Germano played the sadistic father in a dysfunctional suburban family, won the Berlin 2020 best screenplay award.

“America Latina” is being co-produced by Lorenzo Mieli’s The Apartment, a Fremantle company, and Vision Distribution, which will release the film theatrically in Italy. Le Pacte is also on board and will be distributing France.

Vision Distribution, which...

Thomas Vinterberg’s “Another Round” took home the top prize at the 33rd European Film Awards.

The Danish dramedy swept Saturday’s virtual ceremony, nabbing additional wins for best director and best actor for Mads Mikkelsen, who plays an alcoholic high school teacher. Vinterberg also won best screenplay for the feature, along with co-writer Tobias Lindholm.

When accepting the top award, Vinterberg said, “None of my films ever could ever have been made without the support systems of my country and of European filmmaking in general. My first film was about child abuse, my second one about the same and now we’ve made a film about four heterosexual white males teaching youngsters to drink. It could never have been possible outside of this continent and I’m super proud to be awarded in this continent.”

The filmmaker dedicated his win to the memory of his 19-year-old daughter Ida, who...

Other winners included ‘Undine’ actress Paula Beer and documentary ‘Collective’.

Thomas Vinterberg’s Another Round swept the European Film Awards on Saturday (December 12), winning four awards including best film, director, screenplay and actor for Mads Mikkelsen.

Scroll down for full list of winners

Accepting the best screenplay prize via video link, sat alongside co-writer Tobias Lindholm, Danish filmmaker Vinterberg said: “In a time of confinement, financial crisis and death, our attempt to make a life-affirming film has somehow succeeded.”

Best actor winner Mikkelsen dedicated his award to “a shining light who is not here anymore”, Ida Vinterberg – the daughter of...

Thomas Vinterberg’s “Another Round,” about a group of high school teachers who decide to live their lives in a perpetual state of inebriation, has been named the best European Film of 2020 at the European Film Awards.

The film also won awards for Vinterberg’s direction, Vinterberg and Tobias Lindholm’s screenplay and Mads Mikkelsen’s lead performance. The film is Denmark’s entry in the Oscar race for Best International Feature Film.

Paula Beer won the best actress award for Christian Petzold’s German ghost story “Undine.”

French director Emmanuel Courcol’s “The Big Hit” was named European Comedy of the year, in a category that only had three nominees rather than the usual six. The hand-drawn French film “Josep” won the award for animated feature, while “Collective” won the documentary award.

Nonfiction director Mark Cousins was given the first Efa Award for Innovative Storytelling for his 14-hour, 40-chapter...

Update, writethru: Thomas Vinterberg’s Another Round swept the European Film Awards this evening, winning in each of its categories: Film, Director, Actor (Mads Mikkelsen) and Screenwriter (Vinterberg and Tobias Lindholm). The drama that’s Denmark’s entry for the International Feature Oscar is also the biggest film at the Danish box office this year and has continued to scoop prizes from San Sebastian to London.

The story of four weary high school teachers who test the theory that a constant level of modest inebriation opens our minds to the world, takes them on a journey of self-discovery with both tragic and uplifting consequences.

On accepting the top prize during the virtual Efa ceremony, Vinterberg said, “None of my films ever could ever have been made without the support systems of my country and of European filmmaking in general. My first film was about child abuse, my second one about...

The European Film Awards, unfolding virtually this year, revealed its major winners during a ceremony on Saturday, December 12. The European Film Academy previously doled out prizes for below-the-line crafts, short films, and more throughout the week. The 33rd annual European Film Awards this year were emceed by German TV host Steven Gätjen out of Berlin. Nominees and winners Zoomed in from around the world, to some technical difficulties.

With four nominations each, European Film winner “Another Round,” “Corpus Christi,” and “Martin Eden” led the way. Also nominated in the main category were “Berlin Alexanderplatz,” “The Painted Bird,” and “Undine.” This year, the Academy upped the number of nominees in the European Film and European Documentary from five to six. Documentary nominees are “Acasa, My Home,” “Gunda,” “Little Girl,” “Saudi Runaway,” and “The Cave,” with “Collective” winning the prize.

Earlier this week, Polish filmmaker Agnieszka Holland was elected as the new...

Polish director Agnieszka Holland also named new European Film Academy president.

Italian drama Hidden Away has won two of the first European Film Awards of 2020, which are being staggered across four nights of virtual ceremonies due to the virus crisis.

Further winners in the first ceremony, which focussed on the technical categories, included The Personal History Of David Copperfield, Berlin Alexanderplatz and The Platform.

Hidden Away, Giorgio Diritti’s portrait of Italian painter Antonio Ligabue, won best cinematography for the work of Matteo Cocco and best costume design, for Ursula Patzak. The film premiered at the Berlinale where Elio Germano...

Italian drama Hidden Away, German literary adaptation Berlin Alexanderplatz, and Spanish sci-fi horror The Platform are among the winners in the technical categories of this year’s European Film Awards.

Hidden Away, Giorgio Diritti’s portrait of self-taught Italian painter Antonio Ligabue, won European Film honors for best cinematography (for cameraman Matteo Cocco) and for Ursula Patzak for best costume design. Dascha Dauenhauer won best original score for her soundtrack to Burhan Qurbani’s Berlin Alexanderplatz, a modern-day adaptation of Alfred Döblin’s 1929 literary classic. The Platform, a dystopian drama, that Netflix picked up worldwide, won the European Film Prize for best visual effects for Inaki Madariaga.

Other ...

Italian drama Hidden Away, German literary adaptation Berlin Alexanderplatz, and Spanish sci-fi horror The Platform are among the winners in the technical categories of this year’s European Film Awards.

Hidden Away, Giorgio Diritti’s portrait of self-taught Italian painter Antonio Ligabue, won European Film honors for best cinematography (for cameraman Matteo Cocco) and for Ursula Patzak for best costume design. Dascha Dauenhauer won best original score for her soundtrack to Burhan Qurbani’s Berlin Alexanderplatz, a modern-day adaptation of Alfred Döblin’s 1929 literary classic. The Platform, a dystopian drama, that Netflix picked up worldwide, won the European Film Prize for best visual effects for Inaki Madariaga.

Other ...

Nominations for feature film and documentary up from five to six.

The nominations for the 2020 European Film Awards have been unveiled, with the size of two key categories extended as a result of the virus crisis.

The categories for best feature and best documentary have each been increased from five to six to offer more exposure to titles and artists impacted by cinema closures and release delays during the pandemic.

Scroll down for full list of nominees

The films nominated in the best European Film category are Thomas Vinterberg’s Another Round, Berhan Qurbani’s Berlin Alexanderplatz, Jan Komasa’s Corpus Christi,...

Running 21 – 27 September, the 38th edition of the event will take a hybrid form, unfolding in cinemas and online, with several Venetian titles shining bright within the line-up. Hidden Away by Giorgio Diritti, which bagged Elio Germano the Silver Bear for Best Actor in Berlin, is today opening the 28th Annecy Italian Film Festival (running 21 – 27 September 2020), an event which will eventually be closed by the Venetian competitor Notturno by Gianfranco Rosi. It’s an edition set to unspool in hybrid form, with films screening in cinemas but also made available free of charge, online. The competition will see eight feature films battle it out, two of which are making their way here straight from the Venice Film Festival: Padrenostro by Claudio...

This year’s selection will be announced over two waves to account for pandemic conditions.

The first 32 features up for the 2020 European Films Awards has been announced with a second wave of “pandemic year” titles due to be revealed in September.

Scroll down for first selection of films

The titles include Armando Iannucci’s The Personal History Of David Copperfield and Viggo Mortensen’s Falling as well as Berlinale award-winners Undine, by Christian Petzold; Hidden Away, by Giorgio Diritti; Bad Tales, by the D’Innocenzo Brothers; Dau. Natasha, by Ilya Khrzhanovskiy and Jekaterina Oertel; and Delete History, by Benoît Delépine and Gustave Kervern.

Leonine is opening Russell Crowe thriller ‘Unhinged’ in Germany.

As cinemas begin to reopen again in many territories, Screen is tracking which films are being released in key territories each week.

Cinema reopening dates around the world: latest updates France, opening Wednesday July 15

The French box office entered its fourth full week of activity on July 15, following the reopening of cinemas on June 22 after their 14-week Covid-19 hiatus.

New films on release this week include Francois Ozon’s young adult drama Summer Of 85. Diaphana Distribution pushed the launch forward from France’s typical Wednesday release day to Tuesday, to...

The foreign press deemed Giorgio Diritti’s movie to be Best Italian Film, also granting it the Best Cinematography Award; Best Director and Best Screenplay went to the D'Innocenzo brothers’ feature. Hidden Away, the story of painter Antonio Ligabue, directed by Giorgio Diritti, was the most popular film amongst the jury of the 60th edition of the Italian Golden Globes, made up of more than 50 correspondents from the Association of Foreign Press in Italy. The film, which won the Silver Bear at the 2020 Berlinale for the performance of lead actor Elio Germano, also pocketed Best Cinematography, thanks to the work of Matteo Cocco. "I hope that this award also provides a good opportunity to kick-start cinema again," stated Diritti. "I see it as a sign for all those who, like me, love film and love sitting in silence to share in a dream, a figment of the imagination, an...

Domestic violence, child trafficking, Caribbean myths, cyber terrorism and psychological thrillers were among the weighty subjects presented at the Dominican Republic’s June 25 online pitching sessions during Cannes’ virtual Marche du Film.

Some projects, however, were inspired by the millions of tourists that visit the country each year and one took on the Covid-19 lockdown that has forced families and friends to share confined spaces for months.

The pitching sessions were preceded the day before by the Dr Film Commission’s pitch to detail the country’s generous incentives and let it be known that it was opening for business on July 1, albeit with health and safety protocols in place. Film Commissioner Yvette Marichal led her team that included lawyer Boni Guerrero and Manuela German who fielded legal and technical questions. They were joined by Pinewood Dominican Republic Studio/Lantica Media COO, Albert Martinez, who expanded on the horizon water tank facility’s amenities,...

The sales branch of Italian pubcaster Rai has bolstered the technology used on its virtual platform to make up for the cancellation of various upcoming markets and festivals. RaiCom, the sales branch of Italian pubcaster Rai, has reinforced the technology used on its already-existing virtual platform in order to enable continued international sales and to make up for the cancellation of various upcoming markets and festivals. Before the world came to a standstill to deal with the emergency brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic, RaiCom launched the international sales of the Berlinale-awarded movie Hidden Away by Giorgio Diritti. The feature has already been sold to foreign distributors awaiting the reopening of the cinemas in several territories – namely, China, Switzerland, Austria, Hungary, Taiwan and Latin America. The virtual screenings of titles on the slate are available to international buyers on RaiCom’s virtual market place: the International Sales Videolibrary. The digital.

Painter Man: Diritti Resurrects Famed Italian Artist

Italian director Giorgio Diritti presents his first film in seven years with Hidden Away, a biopic on famed painter Antonio Ligabue, one of the most noted Naive Artists (the term for an artist who has not gone to school to learn their craft) of the last century. Attempting to canvas Ligabue’s lifespan, including his formative years which were marked by severe trauma due to treatment he received for his pronounced physical and mental ailments (many of which were arguably caused due to the abuse suffered as a child), Diritti chooses to leave out certain chapters of his adulthood and instead focuses on his renown as a painter in the 1950s and 60s.…...

Seven critics are participating in this year’s grid.

Screen has launched its jury grid for the Berlinale 2020 Competition films, with Natalia Meta’s The Intruder and Giorgio Diritti’s Hidden Away both marking average scores.

Participating critics on the grid for this year are:

Helena Lindblad, Dagens Nyheter, Sweden Anton Dolin, Meduza, Russia Katja Nicodemus, Die Zeit, Germany Wang Muyan, The Paper, China Rita Di Santo, The Morning Star, UK Paolo Bertolin, Segnocinema, Italy Screen’s own critic

As in previous years, each critic watches each Competition film and awards a star rating on the following scale: four (excellent...

Though hiring a foreigner to run a national institution such as the Berlinale in Germany is rather rare, it’s been happening to other Italians lately.

Carlo Chatrian at Berlin is the most prominent case. But there are several more. In 2018, Italy’s Paolo Moretti, who now heads the Cannes Directors’ Fortnight, became the first non-French national to be appointed general delegate to any of the Cannes sections. Moretti had previously worked all over Europe and was already based in France. But his most formative job was probably programming Venice’s Horizons section for four years, learning the ropes from the Lido’s then-chief Marco Mueller, who now runs China’s much smaller but prestigious Pingyao Intl. Film Festival.

Another Italian, Eva Sangiorgi, was hired in 2018 as the head of the Viennale, Austria’s top film fest. She was the first non-Austrian, and also the first woman, to land that job.

This year’s strong Italian presence at Berlin — a total of nine films in various sections, three of which are in competition — is one of several indicators pointing to an upbeat 2020 for cinema Italiano.

The other positives are that box office is picking up thanks to the Hollywood studios finally releasing more movies day-and-date with the rest of the world in the summer, just as the country’s production pipeline is percolating with a promising mix of new works by masters such as Nanni Moretti and promising up-and-comers like Susanna Nicchiarelli.

Government funding has been increased with more than €400 million ($436 million) allocated for various support schemes, including generous tax incentives for foreign shoots.

The batting average for Italian movies at the local box office, where 2019 admissions were up 14%, is still too low. There were 29 feature films last year that did not even gross much more than €1 million ($1.09 million). Still, the picture could be worse.

Antonio Ligabue holds an unusual place in the annals of mid-20th-century Italian art, championed by those who feel his boldly-colored, largely naive paintings are the product of a self-taught artist whose mental incapacities prove that natural spirit transcends training and intellect when wielding a paint brush. Wherever one falls on Ligabue’s talents, making a film about his life would always be tricky given the difficulty of depicting on-screen a linguistically challenged, differently-abled man prone to frequent eccentric outbursts without falling into the trap of implying we should celebrate his output simply because he was what would have been called in the past “simple minded.”

Yes, Elio Germano tackles — he seems to almost always tackle — the fiendishly difficult role with customary gusto, and the screenplay works hard to develop sympathy, yet Giorgio Diritti’s mélange of impressionistic episodes and straightforward biopic recreations make “Hidden Away” more a record of...

The star attraction to be touted by Rai’s commercial arm at Berlin’s European Film Market is the Giorgio Diritti biopic on Ligabue, starring Elio Germano. Hidden Away, in Competition at the 70th Berlinale, is RaiCom’s star attraction at the European Film Market, which opens on 20 February. Directed by Giorgio Diritti, the film is is a biopic focusing on Antonio Ligabue, one of the biggest Italian painters of the 20th century, and is the fourth feature by the sixty-something Bologna-born director, who first revealed his talent in 2005 with The Wind Blows Round. Stepping into the shoes of the rejected artist who suffered from rickets and a goitre is Elio Germano, clearly in pursuit of further acknowledgement of his exceptional acting skills. This isn’t the first time that Germano has played an important figure in Italian culture: in 2014 he took on the role of Giacomo Leopardi in the namesake.

Variety has been given an exclusive clip from Berlin Film Festival competition film “Volevo Nascondermi” (Hidden Away) by Giorgio Diritti. The film stars Cannes award-winner Elio Germano (“La nostra vita”) as the 20th century Naïve artist Antonio Ligabue.

Diritti describes Ligabue’s story as a “bitter fairy tale” in which “a significant bond with life and the ability to never give up constantly emerge.”

Ligabue was an “outcast,” Diritti says, which “caused his marginalization and probably also his mental disorders.” The director sees the film as a reflection on “the value of diversity.” “Retracing the path of his life, it appears evident that his being seen as ‘different’ was the source of many of his problems but also the generative nucleus of his artistic identity and success,” he says.

“The story of Toni Ligabue has an intrinsic and strong value of spectacle due to the extraordinary events that characterized his life,...

The Berlinale lineup already includes films from Jia Zhangke, Matías Piñeiro, and more, but now the competition slate has arrived and it’s an incredibly promising selection. Headed by Carlo Chatrian, it includes many of our most-anticipated films of the year with Christian Petzold’s Undine, Hong Sang-soo’s The Woman Who Ran, Tsai Ming-Liang’s Days, Philippe Garrel’s The Salt of Tears, Abel Ferrara’s Siberia, and Caetano Gotardo & Marco Dutra’s All the Dead Ones, plus recent festival favorites: Kelly Reichardt’s First Cow and Eliza Hittman’s Never Rarely Sometimes Always.

Check out the lineup below and return for our coverage.

Competition

Berlin Alexanderplatz

Germany / Netherlands

by Burhan Qurbani

with Welket Bungué, Jella Haase, Albrecht Schuch, Joachim Król, Annabelle Mandeng, Nils Verkooijen, Richard Fouofié Djimeli

World premiere

Dau. Natasha

Germany / Ukraine / United Kingdom / Russian Federation

by Ilya Khrzhanovskiy, Jekaterina Oertel

with Natalia Berezhnaya, Olga Shkabarnya, Vladimir Azhippo,...

The Berlin International Film Festival on Wednesday morning revealed the main competition lineup and gala selections for festival’s 70th edition.

The festival, which begins February 20, will screen 18 films in competition, including movies from Sally Potter, Kelly Reichardt, and Eliza Hittman. Six are from female directors.

Among the gala presentations is Pixar’s” Onward.” The Dan Scanlon-helmed urban fantasy includes the voices of Tom Holland, Chris Pratt, Julia-Louis Dreyfus, Octavia Spencer, Mel Rodriguez, Kyle Bornheimer, Lena Waithe, and Ali Wong.

Here is the complete list:

Competition

“Berlin Alexanderplatz” (Germany/Netherlands)

Director: Burhan Qurbani

Cast: Welket Bungué, Jella Haase, Albrecht Schuch, Joachim Król, Annabelle Mandeng, Nils Verkooijen, and Richard Fouofié Djimeli

“Dau. Natasha” (Germany/Ukraine/United Kingdom/Russia)

Directors: Ilya Khrzhanovskiy and Jekaterina Oertel

Cast: Natalia Berezhnaya, Olga Shkabarnya, Vladimir Azhippo, Alexei Blinov, and Luc Bigé

“Domangchin yeoja” (“The Woman Who Ran”) (South Korea)

Director: Hong Sangsoo

Cast: Kim Minhee,...

18-strong Competition strand includes films by Sally Potter, Hong Sangsoo, Tsai Ming-Liang, Christian Petzold, Rithy Panh and Philippe Garrel.

The 18-strong competition line-up for the 70th Berlin International Film Festival (Feb 20-Mar 1) has been unveiled by the festival’s new executive director Mariette Rissenbeek and artistic director Carlo Chatrian.

Among the titles selected are new work by Sally Potter, Kelly Reichardt, Hong Sangsoo, Philippe Garrel, Rithy Panh, Tsai Ming-Liang and Silver Bear winner Christian Petzold.

Other intriguing projects include Burhan Qurbani’s Berlin Alexanderplatz and Ilya Khrzhanovskiy and Jekaterina Oertel’s long-gestating project Dau. Natasha.

Six of the 18 films selected...

The Berlin International Film Festival has unveiled its 2020 line-up, with 18 films playing in competition from directors such as Abel Ferrara, Sally Potter, Christian Petzold, Hong Sangsoo, Kelly Reichardt and Eliza Hittman.

Abel Ferrara’s Willem Dafoe starrer “Siberia” is a world premiere in competition, as is Sally Potter’s “The Roads Not Taken.”

Among the U.S. films at the Berlinale, Reichardt’s “First Cow” is an international premiere, and so too is Hittman’s “Never Rarely Sometimes Always.”

Pixar’s latest animation, “Onward”, also has its international premiere out of competition in the Special Galas section.

Previous Berlin Silver Bear winner Christian Petzold’s latest, “Undine”, world premieres, while Iranian director Mohammed Rasoulof, who is not allowed to travel outside his home country, world premieres his latest, “There is No Evil.”

Six out of the 18 films in competition are helmed by female directors.

The 70th edition of the festival...

Films tipped from around the world are mostly directed by men.

Word of mouth is building around the titles close to securing a competition slot at the Venice Film Festival next month. The buzz is dominated by films by male directors, with films by female directors looking to be heading for the sidebars. But the announcement is not due until July 25 and there is still time for this to change.

The festival was criticised for only selecting one film by a female director in competition for 2018, Jennifer Kent’s The Nightingale. Lucretia Martel has been appointed jury president this year,...

With most top Italian production companies — Cattleya, Wildside and Palomar — now owned by non-Italian players, and Italian pubcaster Rai also increasingly thinking internationally, cinema Italiano is striving to break out of national confines more than ever.

This means bigger budgets and auteurs turning toward genre — in particular, crime movies and biopics.

Marco Bellocchio’s Cannes competition entry “The Traitor,” which follows Tommaso Buscetta, the first high-ranking member of Cosa Nostra to break the Sicilian Mafia’s oath of silence, is case in point, with an auteur taking on a genre pic.

Buscetta is played by local A-lister Pierfrancesco Favino, who will next be seen as disgraced late Italian socialist prime Bettino Craxi in upcoming biopic “Hammamet,” directed by veteran auteur Gianni Amelio. The title refers to the Tunisian seaside city where Craxi fled from Italian justice in the 1990s after being indicted for massive corruption.

Italian cinema no longer stems “from self-contemplation,...

Cannes slate includes trio of classics as well as slew of new films, including pictures from Arto Halonen and Tala Hadid.

Wide Management has picked up international sales on Jean Renoir’s 1939 picture The Bitch (La Chienne), which is screening in Cannes Classics this year.

The tale of a humble clerk who falls victim to a prostitute and her violent, scheming pimp, was Renoir’s second sound film.

It recently restored by Les Films du Jeudi - the historic production company of Renoir’s late producer Pierre Braunbreger - and the Cinémathèque Francaise with the support of France’s National Cinema Centre and the DGA and WGA-backed Franco-American Cultural Fund.

“Screening in Cannes Classics gives a masterpiece like La Chienne, which is part of cinema history, a new lease of life and visibility,” said Wide Management’s founding chief, Loic Magneron. “This is a timeless classic that should be seen by new audiences.”

Wide’s slate...