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“If we are sentimental, we will fail,” reveals twice Emmy-nominated “The Tattooist of Auschwitz” composer Kara Talve about her initial discussions with co-composer Hans Zimmer and the series’ creative team and their shared desire to steer clear of overly sentimentalizing the drama. “The imagery in this show speaks for itself. The story speaks for itself, right? I mean, we know that the horrors that happened at Auschwitz. It’s just unimaginable and because of that, the music itself has to also be unimaginable and unthinkable,” she explains during our recent webchat. “We really wanted to create this abstract environment that subtly supported the characters, let them lead the performance and never be epic because it just immediately feels wrong and disrespectful. And the last thing we wanted to do was overstep, especially in a series like this. It’s not just a story. It’s literally somebody’s truth, so...

Exclusive: Harvey Keitel tells Deadline there is “a sense of fulfillment achieved” with The Tattooist Of Auschwitz. He stars as Lali Sokolov in the the drama series, which is based on the Heather Morris bestseller and launched strongly on Sky in the UK and Peacock in the U.S.

The limited series follows Jewish-Slovakian Holocaust survivor Sokolov and recounts the love story between him and Gita, whom he met in the Auschwitz concentration camp. The pair fell in love and built a life together, and their story was dramatized in Morris’ novel. Synchronicity Films produced the show in association with Sky Studios for Sky, Peacock and Australia’s Stan.

Sokolov relayed the story that inspired the book and series to Morris over several years before he died in 2006. Having secured the book rights, Synchronicity founder and series EP, Claire Mundell, was focused on getting Keitel to play Sokolov and showed...

Exclusive: Synchronicity Films is adapting Hanif Kureishi’s The Body as a series with the novelist and screenwriter on board as an exec producer and Emmy-nominated director Paul McGuigan attached. There are scripts from crime writer Robert Murphy and the producers will relocate the action from the UK to the U.S. for the series.

Scottish-based drama producer Synchronicity is working on the Kureishi project in the wake of making The Tattooist of Auschwitz, which has launched strongly in the UK, the U.S. and internationally

The book and series were inspired by the memories of Jewish Slovakian Holocaust survivor Lali Sokolov, and follow a love story between him and Gita. The couple met while they were prisoners in Auschwitz. The TV drama is based on Heather Morris’ novel, which has returned to the New York Times and Sunday Times bestseller lists since the launch of the series.

Claire Mundell...

Lali Sokolow kept a secret for 60 years before his story of love and survival in a Nazi death camp was captured in The Tattooist of Auschwitz — the novel that inspired the Peacock limited series of the same name, which released its six episodes on Thursday.

Sokolow, after reaching the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp in 1942, eventually tattooed identifying serial numbers on the arms of fellow Jewish prisoners who were deemed fit to work and weren’t directed immediately to the gas chambers during the Holocaust. And collaborating with the Nazis by taking on the duties of a tattooist to stay alive caused Sokolow a life of guilt, fear and paranoia.

But his three years in Auschwitz also gave Lali the love of his life: Gita Furman, an 18-year-old Slovakian Jewish prisoner he instantly fell for the moment he put a painful needle into her skin to imprint a five-number tattoo. “I tattooed...

Specific images of the Holocaust have endlessly punctuated the film and TV landscape: The barbed wire of a concentration camp. Naked bodies rendered to skin and bone, tossed in discarded piles. Gleeful abuse and random killings by evil Nazis. Hollywood has repeatedly ingrained that imagery when presenting this horrific time in history, so to continue conjuring it adds to the collective trauma of an entire people.

Yet all these displays and more are the Sky Studios and Peacock co-production “The Tattooist of Auschwitz.” That makes it a challenging show to sit through, let alone binge six episodes of, when the event series drops on Peacock on May 2.

The series finds inspiration in Heather Morris’ controversial, bestselling 2018 book of the same name. Morris wrote the debut novel after spending time with a Slovakian Holocaust survivor named Lali Sokolov (nee Ludwig Eisenberg), who was a tattooist at Auschwitz II-Birkenau.

The book, and now the show,...

The Tattooist of Auschwitz has a distinctive way of way of marking death. Each time someone passes, the drama pauses on a moving portrait of their face in life, against the grim toll of a bell. Sometimes, it’s how we learn a character we’ve been following for several episodes has been killed. At others, it’s the only good look we get at people whose names we never even learn before they’re slaughtered.

Always, it’s hard to bear. Their eyes bore right through the camera, their expressions unreadable and their thoughts unknowable. Each stare nonetheless lands as a plea — for us to notice, to remember, to not look away — and the Peacock miniseries takes seriously the responsibility to bear witness.

But the gravity of a noble mission can also become an albatross. In spite of the touching romance at its heart, The Tattooist of Auschwitz feels...

It seems as though nearly every streaming service is trying its hand at adapting novels based on the horrors of the Holocaust, including Peacock which is set to premiere The Tattooist of Auschwitz on May 2. The series stars Jonah Hauer-King and Anna Prchniak as lovers who meet amid the soul-crushing terror and uncertainty of Auschwitz, and Jonas Nay as one of the cruel Nazis at the concentration camp. Ahead of the premiere, I had the opportunity to speak with series director Tali Shalom-Ezer and Claire Mundell, who secured the rights for the book back in 2018, before going on to executive produce the series.

A story of finding love amid one of the most horrific times in human civilization, The Tattooist of Auschwitz is the latest joint offering from Peacock and Sky Studios. Billed as a love story in dire circumstances, the gripping, gut-wrenching drama tells the real-life story of Lali and Gita Sokolov, a Holocaust survivor couple from the Auschwitz-Birkenau camp during WWII. Directed by award-winning filmmaker, Tali Shalom-Ezer, The Tattooist of Auschwitz is based on the 2017 novel of the same name by Heather Morris. It follows Lali, a young Slovakian Jewish man who is deported to Auschwitz and given the job of tattooing identification numbers on every prisoners arm. There he meets Gita, a fellow prisoner, thus leading to a love that defies their circumstances and goes above and beyond the horrors of war, eventually lasting a lifetime. Years later, the recently widowed, 80-something Lali meets writer Heather Morris and finds the...

Barbra Streisand is looking to make the final scene in The Tattooist of Auschwitz memorable and poignant as the credits roll after recording a new song, “Love Will Survive,” for the Peacock and Sky original drama.

Marking her first ever recording for a TV series, Streisand has performed the end title anthem for the series about two young Jewish prisoners in the Nazi concentration camp who fall in love and commit themselves to survive the Holocaust together.

Hans Zimmer and Kara Talve composed the original song for the limited series that stars Harvey Keitel, Melanie Lynskey, Jonah Hauer-King, Anna Próchniak and Jonas Nay, and which Streisand recorded to in part recall the memory of the Holocaust and the specter of antisemitism resurfacing again.

“Because of the rise in antisemitism around the world today, I wanted to sing ‘Love Will Survive’ in the context of this series, as a way of...

Barbra Streisand has recorded a new song, “Love Will Survive,” to serve as the end-title theme for “The Tattooist of Auschwitz,” a six-part, Holocaust-themedseries that premieres on Peacock in the U.S. and Sky in other territories on May 2.

The song will come out globally via her longtime label, Columbia Records, on April 25.

It’s Streisand’s first-ever song pegged for a television series. Although she has released a series of archival recordings in recent years, “Love Will Survive” marks her first release of new and original material since her “Walls” album in 2018.

Said Streisand in a statement: “Because of the rise in antisemitism around the world today, I wanted to sing ‘Love Will Survive’ in the context of this series, as a way of remembering the 6 million souls who were lost less than 80 years ago. And also to say that even in the darkest of times, the power of love can triumph and endure.

Peacock and Sky have released the official trailer for the limited drama series The Tattooist of Auschwitz, starring Harvey Keitel, Melanie Lynskey, and Jonah Hauer-King. The six-episode series will be available on Peacock in the US and Sky Atlantic and Now in the UK, Ireland, Italy, Germany, Austria, and Switzerland on May 2, 2024.

Based on the bestselling novel by Heather Morris, The Tattooist of Auschwitz is an event series inspired by the real-life story of Jewish Holocaust survivors Lali and Gita Sokolov. Lali (Jonah Hauer-King) arrived at Auschwitz-Birkenau in 1942, and shortly after arrival, he was made one of the tätowierer (tattooists), charged to ink identification numbers onto fellow prisoners’ arms.

One day, he meets Gita (Anna Próchniak) when tattooing her prisoner number on her arm. They experience love at first sight, and so begins a courageous, unforgettable, and human story.

Under constant guard from a volatile Nazi SS officer, Baretzki (Jonas Nay...

Harvey Keitel plays an elderly Slovakian Jew recalling a real-life story of romance, survival and hope in a Nazi concentration camp, where he tattooed the arms of thousands of fellow prisoners, in the trailer for Peacock and Sky’s The Tattooist of Auschwitz miniseries, which dropped Wednesday.

Keitel plays a modern-day Lali Sokolov recounting how, as a a young man in Auschwitz-Birkenau, he became a tattooist under the protection of a volatile Nazi SS officer Stefan Baretzki, played by Jonas Nay, to increase his chances of staying alive.

“Every time I open my eyes, I’m still there,” an older Lali in the trailer tells novice writer Heather Morris (played by Melanie Lynskey), the author whose book The Tattooist of Auschwitz has been adapted into the six-part series.

The Tattooist of Auschwitz: Jonah Hauer-King as Lali Sokolov in Auschwitz (center)

In July 1942, a younger Lali, played by Jonah Hauer-King,...

Upcoming six-part series “The Tattooist of Auschwitz” is set in one of the most infamous concentration camps in history. And yet, “it’s a love story.”

“When Lali says that, you are supposed to question his words. But they did meet there, they did fall in love, they did survive and went on to live in Australia. They had a son and lived well into their 80s. In finding each other, they found a reason to survive,” says executive producer Claire Mundell.

A Synchronicity Films production in association with Sky Studios and All3Media International, “The Tattooist of Auschwitz” is a Sky and Peacock Originals series, based on the bestselling novel by Heather Morris. Featuring Harvey Keitel and Melanie Lynskey, it tells the true story of Holocaust survivors Lali and Gita Sokolov.

When Lali (Jonah Hauer-King) is deported to Auschwitz in 1942, he becomes one of the camp’s tattooists, inking identification...

Spain’s Movistar Plus+, the pay TV/SVOD service of telco giant Telefónica, has picked up the Sky and Peacock original series “The Tattooist of Auschwitz,” starring Harvey Keitel and based on the bestselling novel by Heather Morris.

The six-part limited series is one of the key draws on the sales slate of All3Media International, which hosts a showcase at the London TV Screenings on Feb. 29.

It is produced by Synchronicity Films in association with Sky Studios and All3Media International, tells the real-life story of Lali and Gita Sokolov, who met while prisoners in the Auschwitz concentration camp during the Holocaust of World War II.

Harvey Keitel in “The Tattooist of Auschwitz”

Keitel plays Lali, a Slovakian Jew who, in his 80s, meets aspiring writer Heather Morris (Melanie Lynskey) and finds the courage to tell his story. As a young man in 1942, Lali (Jonah Hauer-King) is deported to Auschwitz,...

Melanie Lynskey is continuing her TV reign, and this time, is part of a decades-sweeping true story.

The “Yellowjackets” and “The Last of Us” star is part of the ensemble cast of “The Tattooist of Auschwitz,” based on the novel of the same name. Lynskey portrays real-life author Heather Morris, who interviewed Holocaust survivor Lali Sokolov (Harvey Keitel) about meeting his future wife Gina (Anna Próchniak) in a concentration camp. The novel is inspired by the real-life love story of Lali and Gita Sokolov, who met while prisoners in the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp during the Holocaust.

The official synopsis reads: “‘The Tattooist of Auschwitz’ is an event series inspired by the real-life story of Jewish Holocaust survivors Lali and Gita Sokolov. Lali (Jonah Hauer-King) arrived at Auschwitz-Birkenau in 1942, and shortly after arrival, he was made one of the tätowierer (tattooists), charged to ink identification numbers onto fellow prisoners’ arms. One day,...

Harvey Keitel plays an Auschwitz survivor who recalls the demons of his past and falling in love in a hellish Nazi death camp in the trailer for The Tattooist of Auschwitz, the Peacock and Sky limited series that unveiled a trailer on Thursday.

The six-parter sees Keitel playing an elderly Lali Sokolov, a Slovakian Jew who arrived at a nightmarish Auschwitz-Birkenau, the Nazis’ largest concentration and extermination camp during the Holocaust, in 1942 and worked as tätowierer (tattooist), who inked identification numbers onto fellow prisoners’ arms.

“But I found something there, someone,” a stoic Lali, around 60 years later, tells Heather Morris, the young novice writer (played by Melanie Lynskey in the series) whose popular novel, The Tattooist of Auschwitz, inspired the limited series.

As Lali tells Morris about his Auschwitz years, where as a young man he is played by Jonah Hauer-King, he introduces Gita Sokolov (Anna Próchniak), whose arm he...

Paramount+ has released the trailer for the final season of “Star Trek: Discovery,” debuting April 4 with the first two episodes.

The series’ description reads, “The fifth and final season will find Captain Burnham and the crew of the U.S.S. Discovery uncovering a mystery that will send them on an epic adventure across the galaxy to find an ancient power whose very existence has been deliberately hidden for centuries. But there are others on the hunt as well…dangerous foes who are desperate to claim the prize for themselves and will stop at nothing to get it.”

The cast includes Sonequa Martin-Green, Doug Jones, Anthony Rapp, Mary Wiseman, Wilson Cruz, David Ajala, Blu del Barrio and Callum Keith Rennie. Elias Toufexis and Eve Harlow are featured as recurring guest stars.

CBS Studios produces in association with Secret Hideout and Roddenberry Entertainment. Executive producers include Alex Kurtzman, Michelle Paradise, Heather Kadin,...

Apple TV+ has unveiled the trailer for “The New Look,” a new historical drama series starring Ben Mendelsohn as Christian Dior and Juliette Binoche as Coco Chanel. Inspired by true events, the series from Todd A. Kessler chronicles the fashion designers and their contemporaries as they launched modern fashion, set against the World War II Nazi occupation of Paris.

The first three episodes will premiere on Feb. 14, followed by one episode dropping every Wednesday through April 3. Per the release, “The New Look” follows “the pivotal moment in the 20th century when the French city led the world back to life through its fashion icon Christian Dior. As Dior rises to prominence with his groundbreaking, iconic imprint of beauty and influence, Chanel’s reign as the world’s most famous fashion designer is put into jeopardy. The interwoven saga follows the surprising stories of Dior’s contemporaries and rivals from Chanel to Pierre Balmain,...

Peacock has set May 2 as the premiere date for The Tattooist of Auschwitz, the streamer’s original limited series based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Heather Morris. Additionally, the series will air on Sky Atlantic and Now in the UK, Ireland, Italy, Germany, Austria and Switzerland on the same day.

The Tattooist of Auschwitz is an event series inspired by the real-life story of Jewish Holocaust survivors Lali and Gita Sokolov. Lali (Jonah Hauer-King) arrived at Auschwitz-Birkenau in 1942, and shortly after arrival, he was made one of the tätowierer (tattooists), charged to ink identification numbers onto fellow prisoners’ arms during the Holocaust. One day, he meets Gita (Anna Próchniak) when tattooing her prisoner number on her arm. They experience love at first sight, and so begins a courageous, unforgettable and human story. Under constant guard from a volatile Nazi SS officer Baretzki (Jonas Nay), Lali and...

Two-time Oscar winner Hans Zimmer and Kara Talve (“Prehistoric Planet”) will compose the score for Sky and Peacock series “The Tattooist of Auschwitz.”

Based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Heather Morris, the limited series is inspired by the true-life story of Lale and Gita Sokolov. It follows Lale (Jonah Hauer-King), who arrived at Auschwitz-Birkenau in 1942, where he was made one of the tattooists charged to ink identification numbers onto fellow prisoners’ arms. He meets Gita (Anna Próchniak) when tattooing her prisoner number, and they experience love at first sight. Under constant guard from a volatile SS officer Baretzki (Jonas Nay), Lale and Gita became determined to keep each other alive. Some 60 years later, Lale (Harvey Keitel) meets novice writer Heather Morris (Melanie Lynskey). Recently widowed, Lale finds the courage to tell the world his story.

The six-episode series is produced by Synchronicity Films in association with Sky Studios and All3Media International.

The Tattooist of Auschwitz, a co-production of Sky Studios and Peacock, has secured Harvey Keitel for the lead role of the modern-day Lale Sokolov in the upcoming adaptation of the Heather Morris novel of the same name, TVLine has learned.

The series is inspired by the heartbreaking real-life story of Lale and Gita Sokolov. “Lale (The Little Mermaid‘s Jonah Hauer-King) arrived at Auschwitz-Birkenau in 1942, and shortly after arrival, he was made one of the tätowierer (tattooists), charged to ink identification numbers onto fellow prisoners’ arms,” reads the official description. “One day, he meets Gita (Baptiste‘s Anna Próchniak) when...

Harvey Keitel has signed on to star in the Sky and Peacock TV adaptation of the Heather Morris novel “The Tattooist of Auschwitz.”

Keitel joins previously announced cast members Jonah Hauer-King, Anna Próchniak, Melanie Lynskey and Jonas Nay in the series. Per the official description, the show “is inspired by the heart-breaking true-life story of Lale and Gita Sokolov. Lale (Hauer-King) arrived at Auschwitz-Birkenau in 1942, and shortly after arrival, he was made one of the tätowierer (tattooists), charged to ink identification numbers onto fellow prisoners’ arms. One day, he meets Gita (Próchniak) when tattooing her prisoner number on her arm. They experience love at first sight, and so begins a life-affirming, courageous, unforgettable, and human story. Under constant guard from a volatile SS officer Baretzki (Jonas Nay), Lale and Gita became determined to keep each other alive.”

Keitel will star as Lale 60 years after the events at Auschwitz-Birkenau. He meets...

New Zealand author Heather Morris' 2018 novel "The Tattooist of Auschwitz" is getting the adaptation treatment. Sky and Peacock are teaming up to bring the project to the small screen. The best-selling novel tells the true story of Lale Sokolov, a Jewish prisoner of war tasked with tattooing identification numbers onto the arms of prisoners at the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp during World War II. It's a devastating story that focuses on the romance between Sokolov and his fellow prisoner Gita. It's based on a true story that inspired Morris for her novel (originally written as a screenplay), leading her to meet with Sokolov over years before writing it.

The book has attracted readers of over 15 languages across the globe ... but has also earned its share of criticism. The story has often been slammed for its historical inaccuracy, and accused of memorializing certain events of the Holocaust — but the book has a...

Exclusive: Anonymous Content has hired longtime literary agent and former UTA partner Bec Smith as a partner and manager in their Los Angeles-based lit team. We revealed Smith’s impending exit from UTA last month.

The respected veteran has amassed a client roster including directors and writers such as Coline Abert, Levan Akin, Jane Anderson, Benedict Andrews, Emily Atef, Anthony Chen, Eva Husson, Ellen Kuras, Katrin Gebbe, Sebastian Junger, Julia Leigh, Phillip Noyce, Joshua Oppenheimer, Jennifer Peedom, Maria Schrader, Tali Shalom-Ezer, Dawn Shadforth, Kirsten Sheridan, Goran Stolevski, Warwick Thornton and Max Werner.

Related Story Shocker! Anonymous Content CEO Dawn Olmstead & COO Heather McCauley Resign; Protesting Settlement To Former Top Producer Keith Redmon? Related Story UTA Partner & Top Talent Agent Brian Swardstrom Leaving Agency For New Ventures; Will Produce With 'Nomadland's Peter Spears To Start Related Story UTA Signs Cecillia Aldarondo, Filmmaker Behind SXSW-Premiering Documentary 'You Were My First Boyfriend...

Production is underway on “The Tattooist of Auschwitz.” “Yellowjackets” Emmy nominee Melanie Lynskey is set to play the book’s real-life author, Heather Morris, and Jonah Hauer-King of the upcoming “Little Mermaid” remake has been cast as the title character, Lale Sokolov. The period drama hails from Sky and Peacock, which announced the casting news Thursday.

Sokolova was a Jewish prisoner who was given the job of tattooing identification numbers on fellow prisoners’ arms in the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp during World War II. Morris wrote about his love of fellow prisoner Gita in her 2018 bestselling book about their moving true story.

Polish actress Anna Próchniak, whose credits include the BBC series “Baptiste” and the film “Warsaw 44,” will play Gita. German actor Jonas Nay of “Deutschland 83” will play Auschwitz guard Stefan Baretzki. Tali Shalom-Ezer is attached to direct all six episodes.

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Jonah Hauer-King (“The Little Mermaid”) and Anna Próchniak (“Baptiste”) are set to headline the limited event series adapted from Heather Morris’s “The Tattooist of Auschwitz” for Sky and Peacock.

The Peacock Original series, which is produced by Synchronicity Films, will be entirely directed by Tali Shalom-Ezer, whose past credits include “Princess.” Claire Mundell and Jacquelin Perske are set to executive produce.

A global bestseller, “The Tattooist of Auschwitz” has sold more than 12 million copies around the world.

The cast of the series, whose title is also “The Tattooist of Auschwitz,” will be completed by Critics Choice Awards winner Melanie Lynskey (“The Last of Us”) and Jonas Nay.

The six-part show tells the powerful true-life story of Lale Sokolov, a Jewish prisoner who is given the job of tattooing identification numbers on fellow prisoners’ arms in the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp during World War Two. One day, he meets Gita when...

Exclusive: Madam Secretary alum Geoffrey Arend and Brandon Scott (Dead To Me) are set as series regulars opposite Billy Bob Thornton in the upcoming fourth and final season of Amazon’s hit legal drama Goliath, and Obba Babatundé (S.W.A.T.) and Elias Koteas (Chicago P.D.) have been cast in recurring roles.

Created by David E. Kelley and Jonathan Shapiro, Goliath season 4 sees Billy McBride (Thornton) taking on a case that tackles a timely global crisis impacting an entire generation. Goliath also stars Nina Arianda (Stan & Ollie) as Patty Solis-Papagian, Tania Raymonde (Cliffs of Freedom) as Brittany Gold, Diana Hopper (Bit) as Denise McBride and Julie Brister (Review) as Marva Jefferson.

Arend will play Griffin Petock, a charismatic manipulator and defense attorney representing three key players in a series of cases.

Scott will portray Robert Bettencourt, a young, ambitious senior associate at white-shoe law firm Margolis & True, always seemingly in personal and professional conflict.

For Ellen Page and Kate Mara, teaming on the romantic drama “My Days of Mercy” was a chance for two friends to work together both on and off-screen. The film, which first premiered at 2017’s Toronto Film Festival, is opening in select theaters and on digital platforms July 5. A new trailer for the movie is debuting exclusively on Variety.

“My Days of Mercy” centers on Lucy (Page), the daughter of a man who is sitting on death row for the murder of his wife. While protesting the death penalty, Lucy strikes up a relationship with Mercy (Mara), despite having opposite stances on the matter. As their families struggle to accept their love, their relationship grows, opening up the opportunity for healing.

In an interview with Variety, Page said audiences will be able to relate to Lucy’s journey through pain and trauma.

“She begins in a space where she doesn...

My Days of Mercy Trailers Tali Shalom-Ezer‘s My Days of Mercy (2017) U.S. and U.K. movie trailers stars Ellen Page, Kate Mara, Elias Koteas, Amy Seimetz, and Beau Knapp. Plot Synopsis My Days of Mercy‘s plot synopsis: “Two young women (Ellen Page and Kate Mara) from opposite sides of fierce protests over [...]

Continue reading: My Days Of Mercy Movie Trailers: Ellen Page & Kate Mara are on Opposite Sides of the Death Penalty Debate...

"She's from the other side..." Lionsgate has debuted an official trailer for indie drama My Days of Mercy, formerly known as just Mercy when this premiered at the Toronto Film Festival in 2017. The relationship drama is about the daughter of a man on death row who falls in love with a woman named Mercy, who just so happens to be on the opposite side of her family's political cause. This tests her values as her world begins to unravel. Ellen Page stars as Lucy, and Kate Mara as Mercy, with a cast including Elias Koteas, Amy Seimetz, Brian Geraghty, Beau Knapp, Tonya Pinkins, and Charlie Shotwell. It looks compelling, but it's not a good sign that it has taken two years to get a release and is headed straight to VOD in the end. Here's the first official trailer (+ poster) for Tali Shalom-Ezer's My Days of Mercy, direct from...

Exclusive: Veteran manager/producer Brad Kaplan has joined Link Entertainment as a partner. Kaplan, who comes from Primary Wave Entertainment, will work out of Link’s West L.A. offices which were expanded last month in part to make room for the company’s growing literary department.

“We have had the privilege to work with Brad in the past and he has been a friend for over 15 years,” the Link partners said in a statement. “He is one of the smartest and most genuine people we have had the pleasure to collaborate with. As we expand our literary/production division, we couldn’t ask for a better partner. We have always admired Brad’s incredible taste in both clients and material”.

Kaplan started his career at Silver Pictures where he worked as a production executive and worked on such films as Lethal Weapon 4, Conspiracy Theory, Executive Decision and The Matrix.

Line-up includes introductions from Hugh Grant and Rupert Everett.

The BFI Flare: London Lgbtq+ Film Festival has announced its industry programme, which will run alongside the wider festival, March 21 to April 1.

The Makers, a strand of conversations with prominent individuals in Lgbtq+ cinema, returns with speakers Robin Campillo (director of Bpm (Beats Per Minute), which screens at the Festival, Elizabeth Karlsen (Carol producer) and Francis Lee (God’s Own Country writer/director).

Also included in the programme is Anatomy Of An Episode: The Assassination Of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, in which writer/executive producer Tom Rob Smith will discuss...

Postcards From London to close 32nd edition of London Lgbt Film Festival.

The 32nd edition of the BFI Flare: London Lgbt Film Festival has announced its opening and closing titles ahead of the event in March.

The festival will begin with Tali Shalom-Ezer’s My Days Of Mercy on Wednesday 21 March, and close with Steve McLean’s Postcards From London on Saturday 31 March.

From Princess director Shaolm-Ezer and starring Ellen Page (Juno, Inception, Freeheld) and Kate Mara (House Of Cards, The Martian), My Days Of Mercy is a love story between two women who differ in both their backgrounds and political perspectives.

The film is written by BAFTA nominated writer Joe Barton (The Ritual, iBoy), with Page and Mara producing alongside Christine Vachon and David Hinojosa. Great Point Media are handling international sales.

Postcards From London will have its European Premiere at the Festival; McClean’s first film since his 1994 Sundance hit Postcards From America is about Jim...

Postcards From London to close 32nd edition of London Lgbt Film Festival.

The 32nd edition of the BFI Flare: London Lgbt Film Festival has announced its opening and closing titles ahead of the event in March.

The festival will begin with Tali Shalom-Ezer’s My Days Of Mercy on Wednesday 21 March, and close with Steve McLean’s Postcards From London on Saturday 31 March.

From Princess director Shaolm-Ezer and starring Ellen Page (Juno, Inception, Freeheld) and Kate Mara (House Of Cards, The Martian), My Days Of Mercy is a love story between two women who differ in both their backgrounds and political perspectives.

The film is written by BAFTA nominated writer Joe Barton (The Ritual, iBoy), with Page and Mara producing alongside Christine Vachon and David Hinojosa. Great Point Media are handling international sales.

Postcards From London will have its European Premiere at the Festival; McClean’s first film since his 1994 Sundance hit Postcards From America is about Jim...

Exclusive: We’re still six weeks from the start of the America Film Market, but so far there are 32 films from female directors that will be screened, sold or premiering at the market. Only four of those films — or 13% — were produced in the U.S.: Lynne Southerland's Cinderella and The Secret Prince, Elizabeth Rohrbaugh’s Becks, Rebecca Addelman’s Paper Year and Tali Shalom-Ezer’s My Days of Mercy. The Lili Fini Zanuck-helmed Eric Clapton: Life in 12 Bars also is…...

Sitting down at Deadline’s Toronto Studio to promote Tali Shalom-Ezer’s third feature, My Days of Mercy, actresses Ellen Page, Kate Mara and Amy Seimetz are among the busiest working today, if their Tiff tally is any reflection. In addition to the Israeli director’s intimate drama, each actress has another project screening at this year’s festival. For Page, it’s unusual zombie family drama The Cured; for Mara, it’s would be political drama Chappaquiddick; and for…...

In an exclusive clip from Tali Shalom-Ezer’s drama My Days of Mercy, there is a flirty, yet awkward exchange between two women who are on two different sides of a political cause. My Days of Mercy marks Shalom-Ezer’s American feature debut and stars Ellen Page as Lucy, the daughter of a man who is on death row. Lucy and her sister Martha (Amy Seimetz) are regular attendees at state executions across the Midwest, where they participate in demonstrations that are in…...

As schematic, unlikely and low-key as it is in its portrayal of a lesbian love story against the backdrop of a death penalty drama, My Days of Mercy still exerts a certain pull due to its unblinking evocation of bare-bones working class American life and the slow-burn relationship sensitively etched by Ellen Page and Kate Mara. This first American outing by Israeli director Tali Shalom-Ezer, whose initial feature, Princess, scored at Sundance two years ago, won’t go far commercially but will be embraced in circles particularly attuned to same-sex romance and death penalty subject matter.

It’s unexpected in and of...

Of all the possible twists in the star-crossed -overs genre, falling in love across the chain link fences dividing pro– and anti–death penalty activists is nothing if not novel. Throw in the wrench of sexual awakening, class differences, and the impending death of a parent, and you’ve got a lot of issues to handle in a single movie. The greatest triumph of “My Days of Mercy” is that it handles such heavy subject matter with grace and — mercifully — as light a touch as good taste will allow. Of course, that successful execution only goes so far in a lesbian romance about capital punishment. That’s a tough sell, no matter your politics.

Produced by stars Ellen Page and Kate Mara, along with Killer Films’ Christine Vachon, the film tells the story of a young activist named Lucy (Page) whose life is altered unimaginably by a tragedy that landed her father on death row.

“Moonlight” premiered at the Telluride Film Festival exactly one year ago, followed by a bow in Toronto before making history by winning Best Picture in one of the most exciting Academy Awards ceremonies of all time. While “Moonlight” may have opened more doors for black filmmakers than for queer ones, the film’s central themes of identity, masculinity, and sexuality were firmly rooted in queerness. It turns out, “Moonlight” was only the beginning, as queer cinephiles can look forward to a veritable feast of quality Lgbtq films coming out of the fall festival lineup, beginning with the Toronto International Film Festival.

A very gay-friendly city in an extremely gay-friendly country, Toronto will host some of the most anticipated queer films that have already made waves at Cannes and Sundance. Luca Guadagnino’s “Call Me By Your Name” will play the festival before heading to New York, as well as this...

The Toronto Film Festival has added to its 2017 edition world premieres for Aaron Sorkin's and Brie Larson's directorial debuts.

TIFF also added another six titles to its gala lineup with world premieres for John Curran's Ted Kennedy drama Chappaquiddick, starring Jim Gaffigan and Olivia Thirlby, and the Richard Gere-starrer Three Christs, director Jon Avnet's film about a doctor treating three paranoid schizophrenic patients who all believe they are Jesus Christ.

The festival will also feature world-premiere screenings of Bille August's 55 Steps, starring Helena Bonham Carter and Hilary Swank; Francois Girard's Hochelaga, Terre des Ames; and Tali Shalom-Ezer's My Days...

Like Crazy and Equals director Drake Doremus has found leads for his currently-untitled next project, described as a unique love story. THR reports Charlie Hunnam and Lea Séydoux have joined the film, assumedly as the central focus of the story, which is penned by Rich Greenberg. It will be produced by Scott Free Productions, Ridley Scott’s production studio that worked on Equals. Hunnam can next be seen in James Gray’s The Lost City of Z along with King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, which is an update by director Guy Ritchie on the classic legend. Séydoux, who won best actress at Cannes for Blue is the Warmest Color, can be seen most recently in The Lobster.

In other news, Variety reports Ellen Page and Kate Mara have been cast to star in Princess director Tali Shalom-Ezer‘s latest film, a romantic drama titled Mercy. The film is penned by Joe Barton,...

One of the many joys of film festivals is discovering new talents through their debut features, and Sundance 2015 offered a few that immediately made us fans including Robert Eggers’ The Witch, Tali Shalom-Ezer’s Princess, and Rkss’ Turbo Kid. Rkss — a collective made up of Anouk Whissell, Francois Simard, and Yoann-Karl Whissell — have spent years making short films, and their first feature is every bit the gory, goofy, and entertaining adventure those shorts would have you expect. It was one of last year’s genre highlights, and it just recently hit home video. The new Blu-ray is loaded with special features including a commentary track with all three writers/directors — two tracks actually, one in French and one in English. I’m a mono-lingual American, so I gave a listen to the latter. Keep reading to see what I heard on the Turbo Kid commentary. Turbo Kid (2015) Commentator: Anouk Whissell, Francois Simard...

Among Karlovy Vary's seven world and six international premieres making their way to Czech Republic this Summer, the festival will support up-and-coming as well as veteran European directors in its Official Selection. Central and Eastern Europe's flagship festival is one for moviegoers hungry for discoveries, curiosities and breakouts. We'll see new movies by Dietrich Brüggemann ("Stations of the Cross") and Romanian filmmakers Anca Damian and Florin Şerban, as well as the feature debut of the rising star of Italian cineaste Ferdinando Cito Filomarino. Karlovy Vary's competition sections are the Official Selection, East of the West, Forum of Independents and Documentary, all detailed below. There are more than a few familiar faces in the Independents section, including Sean Baker and his Sundance darling "Tangerine," which opens in the Us this Summer. Tali Shalom-Ezer's "Princess," also at Sundance, is a hard-to-watch adolescent sexual...

Anti-Nazi satire from Stations of the Cross director Dietrich Bruggemann and a new documentary from Mark Cousins among titles.Scroll down for competition line-ups

The 50th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (July 3-11) has unveiled the competition titles in its Official Selection, East of the West, Forum of Independents and Documentary sections.

The main competition will comprise seven world premieres and six international premieres, including the new film from Stations of the Cross director Dietrich Brüggemann, Heil, a satirical comedy centred on neo-Nazis.

Polish documentary director Marcin Koszałkaʼs will present his feature debut, The Red Spider, a psychological thriller inspired by true events from the 1950s that delves into the mechanisms that give rise to a mass murderer.

Danish documentary maker Daniel Dencik will present his first feature, Gold Coast, about a young anti-colonial idealist who sets out for Danish Guinea to set up a coffee plantation - but not everything goes to plan. The music is...

My first Sundance is in the books and it went much too quickly. As evidenced by the fact I’m still publishing reviews, my eyes were obviously bigger than my stomach. Still, I’d rather see too many movies than too few, and there were some hidden gems in this year’s lineup. Here are my Top Five films, along with a couple of honorable mentions because I’m feeling generous (and sleep deprived).

Honorable Mentions:

The Stanford Prison Experiment

Written by Tim Talbott

Directed by Kyle Patrick Alvarez

This ultra-glossy dramatization of the infamous Zimbardo psychology experiment didn’t disappoint. Tense throughout, Alvarez uses an impressive supporting cast and impeccable editing to create a palpable sense of impending doom. It’s a frightening peek into the human psyche executed with relentless precision. With the right marketing, this film could make a serious awards run next autumn.

The Forbidden Room

Written by Guy Maddin,...

Princess (2014) Film Review from the 37th Annual Sundance Film Festival, a movie directed by Tali Shalom-Ezer, starring Keren Mor, Shira Haas, Ori Pfeffer, and Adar Zohar Hanetz. Sexual abuse and the exploitation of minors seems to be one of the more resounding themes of this year’s Sundance Film Festival, and this film fits right into [...]

Continue reading: Film Review: Princess: Unsettling, Captivating Film Opens Eyes [Sff 2015]...

Princess

Written & Directed by Tali Shalom-Ezer

Israel, 2014

Evoking the same unsettling brilliance of Atom Egoyan’s best work, Princess is a challenging psychological drama that blurs the lines between fantasy and reality. Israeli filmmaker, Tali Shalom-Ezer, takes on the unspeakable subject of child molestation in a brave, creative way, empowering rather than pitying her victim. This is a haunting, beautiful film that shines a unique light on a very dark subject.

Adar (Shira Haas) is a bright but disaffected 12 year-old girl who spends most of her time sleeping or avoiding school. Her mom, Alma (Keren Mor), works as a nurse, which means her boyfriend Michael (Ori Pfeffer) and Adar spend most of their days alone together. Michael is playful and gregarious with Adar, engaging her more as a peer than a protector. There’s nothing overtly wrong with their rambunctious play sessions, but every time Michael calls Adar his “little...

Twelve year-old Adar (Shira Haas) lives with her mom, Alma (Keren Mor), and while her father left some time ago her mom’s boyfriend, Michael (Ori Pfeffer) has become a permanent part of their lives. He’s unemployed and spends his days at home, and over time he and Adar have developed a routine of playful role-playing where they take on personas and pretend to fight. He only refers to her as a he, his prince, but shortly after Adar gets her first period the game takes a darker turn. Michael crosses a devastating line, and the next day Adar’s aimless wandering brings her in contact with a boy named Alan (Adar Zohar-Hanetz) who bears a striking resemblance to her. Their silent introduction consists of mirrored movements and shared smiles, and when she brings him home to stay a few days her mom and Michael tentatively approve unaware of how his presence will affect them all...

With January being the traditional low point of the movie season, cinephiles from around the world look to the Sundance Film Festival for some glimmer of hope. America’s preeminent independent film festival has graduated some heavy-hitters over the years, including Whiplash, Ida, and Boyhood from last year’s class. 2015’s program boasts an unprecedented balance between drama and comedy premieres, ensuring that everyone from general audiences to discerning film students will leave happy. Like any good buffet table, however, Sundance simply has too much good stuff to consume, unless you don’t mind unbuckling your belt in a crowded movie theater. With that in mind, here are a few of the more hotly-anticipated titles from this year’s festival.

The Psychology Triumvirate

Psychology buffs rejoice! This year’s Sundance is presenting three movies that might someday be found in a Psych 101 course syllabus. From the U.S. Dramatic Competition,...