News

Hot on the heels of Neon acquiring Kleber Mendonça Filho’s acclaimed Palme d’Or potential “The Secret Agent” for North America, Mubi has now swooped in to buy the film for a number of other major territories.

The fast-rising distributor, streamer and production company picked up the film — among the most warmly received of Cannes so far — for Latin America (excluding Brazil), the U.K., Ireland and India, with release plans to be announced soon.

The deal was negotiated between Mubi and mk2, who are handling international sales.

Set in Brazil in 1977, “The Secret Agent” follows Marcelo, a technology expert in his early 40s who is on the run. He arrives in Recife during carnival week, hoping to reunite with his son but soon realizes that the city is far from being the non-violent refuge he seeks.

The film is led by’ Wagner Moura and also stars Maria Fernanda Cândido,...

Kleber Mendonça Filho’s The Secret Agent, one of the more buzzy features to debut in Competition this year in Cannes, has been acquired by Mubi.

The streamer has picked up the film for the UK, Ireland, India, and Latin America, excluding Brazil.

The Secret Agent is led by Wagner Moura and also stars Maria Fernanda Cândido, Gabriel Leon, Carlos Francisco, Alice Carvalho, and Hermila Guedes. The film was produced by Emilie Lesclaux. Co-producers include Nathanaël Karmitz, Elisha Karmitz, Fionnuala Jamison, Olivier Barbier, Leontine Petit, Erik Glijnis, Fred Burke, and Sol Bondy.

The film’s synopsis reads: Brazil, 1977. Marcelo, a technology expert in his early 40s, is on the run. He arrives in Recife during carnival week, hoping to reunite with his son, but soon realizes that the city is far from being the non-violent refuge he seeks.

Filho is best known for his last fiction feature, Bacurau, which debuted...

Art house streamer and distributor Mubi has acquired The Secret Agent, from writer and director Kleber Mendonça Filho (Ghost Portrait, Bacurau, Aquarius), for the U.K., Ireland, India and Latin America, except for Brazil. The political thriller has been a standout in the Cannes Film Festival competition.

The Portuguese-language movie, about a technology expert returning to his hometown in 1977 to reunite with his young son and flee the country, premiered at Cannes on Sunday. The Secret Agent stars Wagner Moura, Maria Fernanda Cândido, Gabriel Leon, Carlos Francisco, Alice Carvalho and Hermila Guedes.

Mubi will unveil release plans for the various territories in the near future. It struck the deal with MK2, which is handling international sales on the movie. Neon has acquired the film for North America.

The Secret Agent is set in Brazil in 1977. “Marcelo, a technology expert in his early 40s, is on the run,” reads a synopsis.

Mubi has acquired UK-Ireland, Latin America excluding Brazil and India rights to Cannes Competition title The Secret Agent.

The company acquired Kleber Mendonca Filho’s political thriller from sales agent mk2 Films, and will announce release plans in the near future.

Neon acquired the film for North America yesterday; Vitrine Films will release in Brazil.

Set in 1977, The Secret Agent follows a technology agent on the run who arrives in Recife, Brazil, during carnival week. Violence in the city disrupts his hoped-for reunion with his son.

Wagner Moura leads the cast, alongside Maria Fernanda Cândido, Gabriel Leon, Carlos Francisco, Alice Carvalho and Hermila Guedes.

Neon has acquired the North American rights to the political thriller The Secret Agent from writer and director Kleber Mendonça Filho.

The Portuguese language pic — about a technology expert returning to his hometown in 1977 to reunite with his young son and flee the country — premiered in competition in Cannes on Sunday, May 18. Neon is planning a North American theatrical release later this year.

The Secret Agent stars Wagner Moura, Maria Fernanda Cândido, Gabriel Leon, Carlos Francisco, Alice Carvalho and Hermila Guedes.

Set in Recife, Brazil in 1977, the thriller follows Marcelo (Moura), a technology expert, as he is on the run from contract killers and federal officials. He arrives in Recife during carnival week, hoping to reunite with his son, only to find the city is unlikely to offer the refuge he seeks.

The Secret Agent is the Brazilian filmmaker’s third film to premiere In competition at Cannes, after Aquarius in 2016 and Bacurau,...

Filmmaker Kleber Mendonça Filho’s Brazilian movie The Secret Agent, which has been rumored to be a finalist for the Cannes Film Festival Palme d’Or, is having its stateside rights scooped up by Neon. A theatrical release is in the works for this year.

If the 1977-set political thriller takes home Cannes’ big prize, it will give Neon a sixth consecutive Palme d’Or win following last year’s Anora, Justine Triet’s 2023 winner Anatomy of a Fall, 2022’s Triangle of Sadness, 2021’s Titane and 2019’s Parasite. Out of that bunch, Anora and Parasite won Best Picture Oscars.

The Secret Agent premiered in competition at Cannes on Sunday to 100% fresh reviews on Rotten Tomatoes. The pic stars Wagner Moura, Maria Fernanda Cândido, Gabriel Leone, Carlos Francisco, Alice Carvalho and Hermila Guedes.

Set in Recife, Brazil in 1977, The Secret Agent follows Marcelo (Moura), a technology expert in his early 40s,...

Neon has acquired the rights to “The Secret Agent,” a political thriller from writer-director Kleber Mendonça Filho and starring “Narcos” actor Wagner Moura that premiered in competition at the Cannes Film Festival.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Set in Recife, Brazil in 1977, “The Secret Agent” stars Moura as Marcelo, a technology expert in his early 40s, on the run. He arrives in Recife during carnival week, hoping to reunite with his son but soon realizes that the city is far from being the non-violent refuge he seeks.

In his positive review for TheWrap, Steve Pond called the film a messy romp.”Its messiness is part of its charm and part of the point; a film that took itself more seriously than this one wouldn’t let a climactic gun battle turn into an almost cartoonish grand guignol splatter-fest,” he wrote.

The film was produced by Emilie Lesclaux. Co-producers include Nathanaël Karmitz,...

Neon has acquired the North American rights to Kleber Mendonça Filho’s “The Secret Agent.”

The film premiered in competition at Cannes on Sunday. Wagner Moura, Maria Fernanda Cândido, Gabriel Leone, Carlos Francisco, Alice Carvalho, and Hermila Guedes star.

Neon plans for a North American theatrical release later this year.

“The Secret Agent” is set in Recife, Brazil, in 1977 and follows Marcelo (Moura), a technology expert in his early 40s, who is on the run. He arrives in Recife during carnival week, hoping to reunite with his son but soon realizes that the city is far from being the non-violent refuge he seeks.

Variety chief film critic Peter Debruge said, “Mendonça began his career as a reporter and critic, and that sensibility infuses every frame, striking an enticing balance between originality and homage.”

The film was produced by Emilie Lesclaux. Co-producers include Nathanaël Karmitz, Elisha Karmitz, Fionnuala Jamison, Olivier Barbier,...

Neon has acquired North American rights to Kleber Mendonca Filho’s Cannes Competition title The Secret Agent.

Neon is planning a theatrical release in the territory for later in 2025. mk2 Films handles international sales.

Set in 1977, political thriller The Secret Agent follows a technology agent on the run, who arrives in Recife, Brazil during carnival week. His hoped-for reunion with his son is disrupted by violence in the city.

Wagner Moura leads the cast, alongside Maria Fernanda Cândido, Gabriel Leon, Carlos Francisco, Alice Carvalho, and Hermila Guedes.

Emilie Lesclaux produced the film for Brazil’s Cinemascopio. Co-producers are Nathanaël Karmitz,...

“Black Adam” and “Aladdin” star Marwan Kenzari and “The Monkey” and “Orphan Black” star Tatiana Maslany have begun principal photography on romantic comedy “Any Other Night,” directed by Dutch helmer Michiel Ten Horn from a script by Patrick Whistler.

The international coproduction comes from producers Mike MacMillan of Lithium Studios, Sol Bondy of One Two Films, Erik Glijnis and Leontine Petit of Lemming Film and Karen Harnisch of Film Forge. International sales are handled by recently launched boutique French sales outfit Lucky Number.

The film takes place on the night of a crippling transit strike in Berlin, when two strangers are thrown together as their lives are falling apart. Sam (Kenzari) is a flailing cab driver, struggling to make it all work. Maggie (Maslany) is freshly dumped. But after loading all her worldly possessions into the back of Sam’s decaying van-cab, what should have been a simple fare becomes a wild,...

Exclusive: Bankside has inked a slew of sales on Ido Fluk’s Köln 75 following its Special Gala premiere at the Berlinale this month.

The largely well-received film has sold to Bulgaria (Beta), Canada (Level Film), Czech/Slovak (Aqs), Eastern Europe excluding Poland (HBO), Former Yugoslavia (Discovery), France (Metopolitan), Hungary (Budapest Film), Israel (Naschon/Red Cape), Italy (Lucky Red), Middle East (Front Row), Scandinavia (Sf Studios), South Korea (The Coup) and Spain (Selecta Vision).

Alamode Film holds distribution rights for German-speaking Europe and will be releasing the film in March on more than 200 screens, September Film for Benelux and Madness for Poland. Discussions are ongoing for distribution in both UK and U.S.

The English and German-language pic tells the story behind one of the best-selling jazz records of all time, Keith Jarrett’s 1975 Köln Concert, how it almost didn’t happen, and how one formidable German teenager, Vera Brandes,...

Bankside Films and Heretic are co-repping worldwide sales on Miguel Ángel Jimenéz’s “The Birthday Party,” featuring a star-studded cast led by four-time Academy Award nominee Willem Dafoe. The companies will be introducing the film to buyers and showing a promo during the European Film Market.

Written and directed by Jimenéz, with additional writing credits going to Giorgos Karnavas and Nikos Panayotopoulos, “The Birthday Party” is based on the novel of the same name by Panos Karnezis. Variety has been given exclusive access to a first look image from the film, which is currently in post-production.

Set in the late 1970s somewhere in the Mediterranean, “The Birthday Party” stars Dafoe as Marcos Timoleon, an Onassis-like tycoon who’s throwing a lavish, extravagant birthday celebration for Sofia, his daughter and sole heiress, on his exclusive private island.

Used to ruthlessly controlling everything and everyone around him whatever the cost, Marcos is...

“Probably the best co-producers in the world?” is the provocative title of one of the International Film Festival Rotterdam panels during “Pulling Focus,” IFFR Pro’s day dedicated to the global influence of Dutch cinema held on February 4.

The Dutch don’t normally boast; their lack of egotism is what can make them such excellent collaborators. Nonetheless, leading producers in the Netherlands agree they are indeed now adept at co-production - and that is partly because it has become a market necessity.

“Over the last 10 or 15 years, the Dutch have really oriented themselves toward the international market. In the past,...

French media executive Romain Bessi, who as Variety exclusively announced has been named CEO of the alliance of independent production companies known as the Creatives, said on Tuesday that the group is now searching for financing that will allow it not only to remain competitive in a difficult market but to continue to grow its reach.

“We need to invest in people, in development. We need to invest in a few things in order to grow faster and grow stronger,” Bessi told an industry audience at Rome’s Mia Market. “For that, we need a partner. We don’t want to sell the Creatives. We want to find a partner to join us and reach another level.”

The Creatives was launched in 2021 as a long-term partnership between its member companies to forge co-productions, launch strategic joint ventures, share information and combine networks.

The decision to hire Bessi, who played a...

Filming has begun in Scotland on Big Beach’s adaptation of Borges And Me starring Fionn Whitehead, Luis Gnecco, and Alan Cumming.

Marc Turtletaub directs from a screenplay by Oren Moverman in which the memoir’s author Jay Parini finds himself stuck in a Morris Minor chauffeuring the brilliant, blind Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges through Scotland in 1970.

As a young student, Parini harbours dreams of becoming a writer and struggles to make sense of the 70-year-old, irrepressible Borges, until events take a surreal turn, leading the men to a place where they find common ground. The cast includes Peter Mullan and Harriet Sansom Harris.

Fionn Whitehead and Luis Gnecco are set to star in Borges and Me, an adaptation of Jay Parini’s memoir of his 1970s journey through the Scottish Highlands with renowned Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges. Parini is best known for his historical novel The Last Station, which was adapted as an Oscar-nominated feature by Michael Hoffman in 2009.

Dunkirk actor Whitehead, fresh off his performance as Pip opposite Olivia Colman’s Miss Havisham in the FX/BBC production of Great Expectations, will play Parini, with Chilean-Italian Gnecco, best known for his roles in Neruda, No, and A Fantastic Woman, as Borges. The cast also includes Alan Cumming, Peter Mullan, and Harriet Sansom Harris.

In Borges and Me, Parini, a 23-year-old shy student who dreams of becoming a writer, finds himself stuck in chauffeuring the brilliant, blind Borges, aged 70, through Scotland. At first, Parini is at a loss to make sense of the wild,...

Leading Dutch independent production company Lemming Film has restructured, promoting producers Erik Glijnis and Tom van Blommestein to the new positions of head of film and head of TV series respectively.

The restructure comes as Lemming manages a busy development and production slate (see below for more details).

Glijnis has worked at Lemming since 2016 and has producing credits including Sweet Dreams, which premiered in Locarno in 2023 and was the Dutch Oscar candidate, Do Not Hesitate, Milk and Dead And Beautiful.

Van Blommestein joined Lemming in 2020 having formerly worked at Nl Film and Endemol Shine. His credits include Zenith season 2, Floor Rules,...

International sales outfit LevelK has secured deals for “Mr. K,” Tallullah H. Schwab’s surreal drama which world premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in the competitive Platform section.

The film stars Crispin Glover as a traveling magician who finds himself trapped in a Kafka-esque nightmare and is unable to leave the hotel where he’s staying.

“Mr. K” has been picked up in several territories, including Germany, Austria (Neue Visionen), Poland (Hagi Film), Benelux (Paradiso) and Cis (Silver Box Ltd). LevelK is negotiating more deals.

The film has also just been selected to compete at the Busan International Film Festival in the Flash Forward section.

Glover, who has a large following on social media, has already garnered early buzz around the movie on Reddit and TikTok, among other platforms. Schwab is an Oslo-born Dutch filmmaker who previously directed the short “The First Cut,” the TV series “Pie” and feature film “Confetti Harvest.

Exclusive: Acclaimed actor Willem Dafoe, who recently starred in Oscar-nominated pic Poor Things and can next be seen in Tim Burton’s upcoming Venice opener Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, has just wrapped filming tycoon family drama The Birthday Party from Greek production house Heretic.

The project, which has been kept under wraps until now, is directed by Miguel Angel Jimenéz based on the novel of the same name by Panos Karnezis. Dafoe stars along side Emma Suarez, Joe Cole and Vic Carmen Sonne. Additional cast includes Christos Stergioglou, Carlos Cuevas, Antonis Tsiotsiopoulos, Fransesc Garrido, Maria Pau Pigem, Pelle Heikkilä and Elsa Lekkakou.

The story is set in the late 1970s somewhere in the Mediterranean where Marcos Timoleon, an Aristotle Onassis-like tycoon, is throwing a lavish, extravagant birthday party for Sofia, his daughter and sole heiress, on his exclusive private island. The party is a perfect excuse for various people in his...

The Sundance queer drama “Sebastian,” directed by up-and-coming Finnish-British director Mikko Mäkelä, has been bought by Kino Lorber for U.S. distribution, along with a string of international buyers.

Represented in international markets by LevelK, the film made its world premiere in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition at this year’s Sundance Film Festival.

“Sebastian” follows Max (Ruaridh Mollica), a 25-year-old freelance writer and aspiring novelist who seems well on his way to success in London’s cultural spheres. Yet by night, he finds a different kind of exhilaration as a sex worker with the pseudonym Sebastian, meeting men via an escorting platform. Max uses his experiences as Sebastian to fuel his stories, and the worthy debut novel that he has been longing to write finally seems within reach. But Max increasingly struggles to remain in control of his double-life, leading him to reckon with whether Sebastian is merely a...

UK sales outfit Bankside Films has unveiled a first look image of Mala Emde in the role of Vera Brandes in Ido Fluk’s The Girl From Köln, as well as a slew of key deals on the film as the company heads into the European Film Market (EFM).

The feature, currently in post-production, tells the little-known story of one of the best-selling jazz records of all time, US pianist Keith Jarrett’s 1975 Köln Concert, and how one formidable German teenager, Vera Brandes, was instrumental in its creation. Bankside will be showing a sales promo to buyers at the EFM.

Swimming Home is an adaptation of Deborah Levy’s 2011 novel, written and directed by debut UK flmmaker Justin Anderson.

The UK-Dutch co-production premiered in the Tiger competition of this year’s International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR).

The film centres around a war reporter played by Mackenzie Davis, on a family holiday with her husband (Christopher Abbott), a poet, and their teenage daughter. Returning home to their villa with a friend (Nadine Labaki) they find a naked stranger, Kitti (Ariane Labed) floating in the pool. Invited to stay, Kitti’s presence comes to emphasise the tensions within the family.

Anderson studied...

Swimming Home is an adaptation of Deborah Levy’s 2011 novel, written and directed by debut UK flmmaker Justin Anderson.

The UK-Dutch co-production premiered in the Tiger competition of this year’s International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR).

The film centres around a war reporter played by Mackenzie Davis, on a family holiday with her husband (Christopher Abbott), a poet, and their teenage daughter. Returning home to their villa with a friend (Nadine Labaki) they find a naked stranger, Kitti (Ariane Labed) floating in the pool. Invited to stay, Kitti’s presence comes to emphasise the tensions within the family.

Anderson studied...

Finnish-British director Mikko Mäkelä isn’t shying away from sexual content in “Sebastian,” which has its world premiere on Sunday at Sundance Film Festival.

“As was already the case with ‘A Moment in the Reeds,’ I wanted to provide a very frank and honest portrayal of queer sexuality,” he tells Variety, referencing his 2017 debut.

“For so long, queer sexuality has been shied away from and censored. It has been such a balancing act for queer filmmakers and a very unfair one, because we want to provide representation for ourselves, but we also don’t want to alienate audiences and people who finance our films. Luckily, things have improved a great deal.”

In Mäkelä’s sophomore film – competing in Sundance’s World Cinema Dramatic Competition – aspiring writer Max (Ruaridh Mollica) leads a double life as sex worker Sebastian, hoping to use his experiences in a novel. But while Max tries to...

The queer drama is directed by UK-Finnish director Mikko Makela.

LevelK has boarded international sales rights to UK feature Sebastian ahead of its world premiere in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition at Sundance Film Festival this month.

The film is the second feature from UK-Finnish director Mikko Makela. It follows a freelance writer rising through London’s cultural world who finds exhilaration at night as a sex worker under the pseudonym Sebastian.

Ruaridh Mollica leads the cast, alongside Screen Rising Stars Scotland talent Hiftu Quasem and Jonathan Hyde.

September Films will distribute the film in the Netherlands, with Aurora handling distribution for Finland.

The European Film Academy has unveiled its new board which has been voted in under updated guidelines aimed at ensuring a more balanced geographical representation of its members.

Three incumbent board members have been re-elected for a fresh two-year term running from 2024-25. Mike Downey (Ireland/UK) will continue as chair of the board with Joanna Szymańska (Poland) joining Ada Solomon (Romania) as Deputy Chair.

Another eight new members have been voted in for the next two years, while a further six incumbent members will continue their mandate until the end of 2024.

The new structure has increased board representation of members in countries in Northeastern and Southeastern Europe such as Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, Slovenia.

A new seat representing members from transnational populations is dedicated to Sámi filmmakers from 2024-2025, followed by Romani filmmakers for 2026-2027.

Anne-Lajla Utsi (Sápmi/Norway), who is head...

Board has greater representation of filmmakers from North- and Southeastern Europe.

Eight people have been voted onto the board of the European Film Academy following a restructure to improve representation from across Europe.

They include Giorgos Karnavas, co-founder of Athens- based production company and sales firm Heretic; Tine Klint, founder of Copenhagen sales company LevelK; and Hanka Kastelicová, HBO Max’s VP documentaries for Emea, from the Czech Republic.

Also joining the board are Lithuanian producer Marija Razgutė, whose most recent film Slow world premiered at Karlovy Vary this year; Turkish producer and festival director Başak Emre; Spain’s Paz Lázaro,...

Exec has previously headed sales for HanWay, Protagonist and eOne.

Lemming Film, the Netherlands-based producer of festival titles including Sweet Dreams and Milk, has appointed Charlotte van Weede as managing director.

Van Weede was previously sales director for ITV Studios’s global entertainment division whose catalogue includes formats such as The Voice and Love Island.

Before that, she worked at Anton Capital as head of distribution and Global Road as president of international sales. Van Weede has also worked as a feature film consultant at the Dutch Film Fund and spent four years as SVP of eOne Features in London...

Ena Sendijarević’s “Sweet Dreams,” Netherlands’ submission in the Academy Awards international feature category, has secured North American distribution via Dekanalog.

The film had its world premiere at Locarno, where it won the Pardo for best performance for Renée Soutendijk (“Suspiria”) and the second prize of the junior jury. The film debuted in North America in Toronto’s Centrepiece section and won the Silver Hugo new directors award at Chicago. It opened the Nederlands Film Festival, where it won another six awards, including best film, best director and best leading role.

Set on a remote Indonesian island, “Sweet Dreams” explores the final days of European colonialism. It follows Dutch sugar plantation owner Jan and his wife Agathe, who are at the top of the food chain. Jan, upon returning from his nightly visit to his native concubine Siti, suddenly drops dead in front of his wife. Desperate to keep the privileges of her status quo,...

Lithuanian-based producer Uljana Kim’s credits include Mantas Kvedaravičius’ ‘Mairupolis’ documentaries

Lithuanian-based producer Uljana Kim, whose credits include the Mariupolis documentaries, will be honoured with the Eurimages Co-Production award at the European Film Awards, held in Berlin on December 9.

The producer, who was born in Korea, founded her production company Studio Uljana Kim in 1997 and was the first female producer in Lithuania at the time.

Her earlier credits include Valdas Navasaitis’ Courtyard, which premiered in Cannes Director’s Fortnight in 1999, as well as Kristijonas Vildžiūnas’ The Lease and You Am I in 2002 and 2006, respectively.

Kim went on to produce Mantas...

Bosnian-Dutch filmmaker Ena Sendijarević’s Locarno prizewinner “Sweet Dreams,” a droll satire set on a sugar plantation in colonial-era Indonesia, has released its first trailer. Athens-based production and sales outfit Heretic has given Variety exclusive access ahead of the film’s North American premiere in the Centerpiece section of the Toronto Film Festival (see below).

“Sweet Dreams” is set on a remote island in the Dutch East Indies during the waning days of the colonial era. It centers on Dutch plantation owner Jan (Hans Dagelet) and his wife, Agathe (Renée Soutendijk), who are at the top of the food chain. That is, until Jan, upon returning from his nightly visit to his native concubine, Siti (Hayati Azis), suddenly drops dead in front of his wife.

Desperate to keep the privileges of her status quo, Agathe forces her estranged son Cornelius (Florian Myjer) and his heavily pregnant wife, Josefien (Lisa Zweerman...

The Creatives – the Fremantle-backed alliance of 10 leading production companies – have shared the results of the first edition of “The Creative Connection” at the Venice Film Festival.

The companies – which include Lemming Film (Locarno premiere “Sweet Dreams”), Versus Production (Venice’s “Through the Night”), Maipo Film (“Elling”), Razor Film, Komplizen Film (“Spencer”), Spiro (“Foxtrot”), Unité (“Salem”), Haut et Court (“Perfect Days”), Masha (“No Man’s Land”) and Good Chaos (“Triangle of Sadness”) – invited writers and producers to join forces over the course of three workshops.

“Some of [the writers] were surprised we are actually normal people,” joked Haut et Court’s Carole Scotta during a panel at the Venice Production Bridge on Sunday. “We want to create a safe space for the writers to be able to work freely.”

Called “Inspiration,” “Brainstorming” – a series of experimental exercises led by Le Groupe Ouest – and “Collaboration,” the workshops took place in France, Greece and Germany. They...

Heretic has acquired world sales rights to “Sweet Dreams,” the sophomore feature from award-winning Bosnian Dutch director Ena Sendijarević (“Take Me Somewhere Nice”).

Set on a remote Indonesian island during the waning days of the colonial era, the film centers on Dutch sugar plantation owner Jan and his wife, Agathe, who are at the top of the food chain. That is, until Jan, upon returning from his nightly visit to his native concubine, Siti, suddenly drops dead in front of his wife.

Desperate to keep the privileges of her status quo, Agathe forces her estranged son Cornelis and his heavily pregnant wife, Josefien, to travel from Europe and take over the family business. In the midst of a workers’ uprising, Cornelis displays his plans for progressive change. But when Jan’s will puts Siti at the forefront of the family estate, ideals prove to be idle and blood thicker than water.

Crispin Glover, Sunnyi Melles, Fionnula Flanagan star in the film.

LevelK has boarded world sales on Dutch drama Mr. K starring Crispin Glover, which has wrapped filming and is now in post-production.

Back To The Future star Glover plays the eponymous character, a travelling magician who finds himself in a Kafkaesque nightmare when he can’t find the exit of the hotel he just slept in. His attempts to get out only entangle him further with the hotel and its curious inhabitants.

LevelK has released a first look at the film, above. Paradiso will release the title in Belgium.

Written and directed by Tallulah Schwab,...

The festival runs September 16-24.

Glenn Close has been named president of the official selection jury for the 70th San Sebastian International Film Festival.

Close will be joined by French director and casting director Antoinette Boulat; Danish filmmaker Tea Lindeburg; Argentinian producer Matías Mosteirín; Spanish writer Rosa Montero; Mosotho filmmaker Lemohang Jeremiah Mosese and the Icelandic director and screenwriter Hlynur Pálmason.

Wang Chao’s A Woman has also been added to Ssiff’s official selection, becoming the 16th title eligible for the Golden Shell.

The Chinese film is based on Zhang Xiu Zhen’s autobiography Dream and follows an aspiring...

Dams is a journalist and editor with more than 20 years’ experience working in the international film and TV sector.

Screen International has appointed Tim Dams to the newly-created role of European editor.

Dams is a journalist and editor with more than 20 years’ experience working in the international film and TV sector.

As European editor, Dams will focus on expanding Screen’s news and features coverage of major European territories across film, television, streaming and festivals, working closely with the other senior editors and Screen’s network of European correspondents.

Dams started his career with posts at Media Week and Broadcast,...

The US festival runs from September 2-5,

Telluride Film Festival (Tff) has unveiled the programme for its 49th edition, with the US festival running from tomorrow (September 2) to September 5.

Ahead of its play at Toronto and BFI London Film Festival, Sam Mendes’ Empire Of Light will world premiere. Set in an English seaside town during the 1980s, the film follows a love story and an old cinema. Olivia Colman and Colin Firth star, alongside Screen Star of Tomorrow 2020 Micheal Ward, Toby Jones, Tanya Moodie, Tom Brooke and Crystal Clarke. It is produced by Mendes and Pippa Harris’ Neal Street Productions in association with Searchlight.

The film stars Liam Neeson, Diane Kruger and Jessica Lange.

Marlowe, directed by Neil Jordan and written by William Monahan, will have its world premiere at the closing gala of the San Sebastian International Film Festival.

Screening in official competition, Marlowe stars Liam Neeson as the titular private detective asked to hunt down the ex-lover of a mysterious blonde woman, played by Diane Kruger, in 1930’s Los Angeles. It is inspired by John Banville’s novel The Black-Eyed Blonde, based on the character of Philip Marlowe from the novels of Raymond Chandler.

Jessica Lange, Ian Hart, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje and Alan Cumming also star.

It was the debut film of Tajikistan-born Bakhtyar Khudojnazarov.

Wild Bunch International has acquired Venice Silver Lion- winning director Bakhtyar Khudojnazarov’s 1991 feature, Bratan (aka Brothers), which is screening this week in Venice Classics.

The film was the debut feature of Tajikistan-born Khudojnazarov who died in 2015. He went on to make Kosh ba Kosh (international title Odd and Even) which won the Silver Lion in Venice 1993 and his international hit, Luna Papa in 1999.

Bratan has been restored by his friend and colleague, the German filmmaker Veit Helmer, whose credits include Tuvalu and Absurdistan. Helmer has spent many years searching for...

Screen’s latest edition previews the Venice and Toronto film festival line-ups, and talks to the trio behind The Creatives.

Screen’s August-September 2022 edition previews the Venice and Toronto film festival line-ups, and also sees producers Carole Scotta, Mike Goodridge and Leontine Petit discuss their Fremantle-backed venture The Creatives.

Click here to read the digital edition

Read Screen’s other digital editions...

The deals include on titles ‘Talk To Me’, ‘Swimming Home’ and ‘Raised Eyebrows’

London-based sales agent Bankside Films has closed numerous deals off the back of Cannes, on titles including Talk To Me, Swimming Home and Raised Eyebrows.

Horror Talk To Me is directed by Australian YouTube sensations Danny and Michael Philppou (aka RackaRacka), and is in post-production.

It has sold to Altitude (UK-Ireland), the Gp Cinema (Baltics), Premiere Distribution (Benelux), McF (Former Yugoslavia), Alba Films (France), Capelight (Germany), Vertigo Media (Hungary), Koch (Italy), The Coup (Korea), M2 (Poland), Scanbox (Scandinavia), Praesens (Switzerland), A Really Good Film Company (Taiwan and...

On Saturday, film and TV funder Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg celebrated the six films that it funded running in the official program of the Cannes Film Festival.

These were Ruben Östlund’s “Triangle of Sadness,” in Competition, Ali Abbasi’s “Holy Spider,” in Competition, Emily Atef’s “More Than Ever,” in Un Certain Regard, Mia Hansen-Løve’s “Un beau matin,” in Directors’ Fortnight, Sergei Loznitsa’s “The Natural History of Destruction,” in Special Screening, and Mantas Kvedaravicius’ “Mariupolis 2,” in Special Screening.

Commenting on the role Medienboard played in funding the films in Cannes, the organization’s chief Kirsten Niehuus said: “Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg and other film funds play an important role in sustaining high quality cinema in Europe and in international co-productions around the world.”

Speaking about the type of films Medienboard likes to fund, she said: “Not very original but true – we prefer films that bring something original to an audience.

The adaptation of Deborah Levy’s novel will be directed by Justin Anderson.

Ariane Labed, Christopher Abbott and Mackenzie Davis have signed to star in Justin Anderson’s directorial debut Swimming Home, which Bankside Films is introducing to international buyers at Cannes. US rights are being co-repped by UTA Independent Film Group and WME Independent.

The film is an adaptation of the Man Booker Prize-nominated novel of the same name by Deborah Levy and is a dark comedy about a troubled married couple and their teenage daughter whose holiday is transformed by the naked stranger they find floating in the pool of their villa.

The first screenings in the programme are the Oscar entries for Luxembourg, Ukraine, Panama, Netherlands and Algeria.

Screen International is hosting an exclusive series of online screenings focused on the international feature awards race.

This initiative is designed to enable each country to organise an event around their submission.

The first screenings in the programme are the Oscar entries for Luxembourg (Io Sto Bene), Ukraine (Bad Roads), Panama (Plaza Catedral), Netherlands (Do not Hesitate) and Algeria (Heliopolis). More titles will be added during this year’s awards season.

Sign up for the screenings here

For the second year, Screen is partnering with Archipel Market,...

Gravitas Ventures, a Red Arrow Studios company, has acquired the U.S. rights from production company Augenschein Filmproduktion to distribute Franka Potente’s directorial debut, “Home.”

Starring Jake McLaughlin, the drama tells the story of Marvin Hacks (McLaughlin), who comes home after more than 20 years in prison and soon finds out that his hometown has not forgotten his crime. Despite the confrontation and hostility from the locals, Marvin attempts to win back his place in society and is welcomed back by his shabby, run-down family home.

Kathy Bates, Lil Rel Howery, Aisling Franciosi, Derek Richardson, James Jordan and Stephen Root also star.

“Home” premiered at the Rome Film Festival last year, followed by Tallinn Black Nights, San Francisco and the Munich Film Festival ahead of its theatrical release in Germany this year. The film will have a theatrical release in 10 cities plus all major cable and digital platforms. It will be released Dec.

Gravitas Ventures has acquired U.S. rights to the dramatic feature Home—starring Jake McLaughlin, Oscar winner Kathy Bates and more—from production company augenschein Filmproduktion, setting it for a day-and-date release on December 3rd.

The first feature written and directed by award-winning German actress Franka Potente will hit theaters in 10 cities, in addition to all major cable and digital platforms.

It tells the story of Marvin Hacks (McLaughlin), who comes home after spending more than 20 years in prison to find out that, even after two decades, his small American hometown has not forgotten the atrocity he committed. Despite the confrontation and hostility from the locals, Marvin will do what it takes to win back his place in society. He is welcomed back to his shabby, run-down family home by his terminally ill mother,...

Neon has taken U.S. rights to Ninja Thyberg’s debut feature Pleasure, which debuted to strong reviews at Sundance Film Festival this year. The distributor will release stateside in 2022.

The film takes a look at the Los Angeles porn industry through the lens of newcomer Bella Cherry (Sofia Kappel). Strong, self-confident but naive, Bella believes she can mold the corrupt system to satisfy her needs. But, in the end, she must confront whether she’ll pay with her soul for stardom, or not.

Plattform Produktion and Eliza Jones, Markus Waltå, and Erik Hemmendorff produced the film. The film’s executive producers are Pape Boye and Violaine Pichon of Versatile. The co-producers are Leontine Petit and Erik Glijnis of Lemming Film, Peter Possne and Caroline Ljungberg of Film i Väst, Anna Croneman of Svt, and Frédéric Fiore and Eric Tavitian of Logical Pictures, as well as Grand Slam Film.

The...

Thyberg “happy and relieved” to find US distributor that will release “raw and uncut” version of porn industry drama.

Neon has picked up US rights to Ninja Thyberg’s feature debut and porn industry drama Pleasure and will release the director’s original verion “as intended”.

Pleasure will screen at AFI Fest in Los Angeles next month and stars Sofia Kappel as a newcomer to the porn industry who must reckon with how far she is willing to go to find stardom.

It originated as a short film of the same name in 2013 Cannes Film Festival where it won the Canal+ Award.

Keep track of all the submissions for best international feature at the 2022 Academy Awards.

Entries for the 2022 Oscar for best international feature are underway, and Screen is profiling each one on this page.

Scroll down for profiles of each Oscar entry

The 94th Academy Awards will take place on March 27, 2022 at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. This is the first time since 2018 that the ceremony will take place in March, having moved to avoid conflicting with the Winter Olympics.

An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the US with a predominantly non-English dialogue...

Keep track of all the submissions for best international feature at the 2022 Academy Awards.

Entries for the 2022 Oscar for best international feature are underway, and Screen is profiling each one on this page.

Scroll down for profiles of each Oscar entry

The 94th Academy Awards will take place on March 27, 2022 at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. This is the first time since 2018 that the ceremony will take place in March, having moved to avoid conflicting with the Winter Olympics.

An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the US with a predominantly non-English dialogue...