News

Italian distribution company I Wonder Pictures has acquired the Mexican drama-thriller “On the Road,” directed by David Pablos, which world premieres Sept. 4 in the Horizons section of the Venice Film Festival.

The film’s producers include Inna Payán and “Andor” star Diego Luna. Berlin-based sales agency M-Appeal is handling world sales.

“On the Road” follows Veneno, a rebellious young drifter, who frequents roadside diners where he sleeps with truck drivers. Urgently needing a ride, he meets Muñeco, a hard-edged driver who keeps to himself. He convinces Muñeco to take him deep into the hyper-masculine world of long-haul trucking across the north of Mexico.

As they travel together and an unexpected intimacy builds between them, shadows from Veneno’s past resurface, putting both their lives at risk.

The film stars non-professional actor Victor Miguel Prieto and Osvaldo Sánchez (“Pedro Páramo”).

I Wonder Pictures titles include “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” “The Zone of Interest,...

The 1987 musical biopic La Bamba chronicled the life and career of Mexican-American rock pioneer Ritchie Valens. Now, according to Variety, a remake of the film is in the works.

Lou Diamond Phillips starred as Valens in the original, which was nominated for a Golden Globe and earned Los Lobos a 1987 chart-topper for their version of Valens’ 1958 single “La Bamba,” which was based on a Mexican folk song. Valens was also known for the ballad “Donna” and the rave-up “Come On, Let’s Go,” two late-Fifties radio hits.

Valens died in a plane crash on Feb.

Prime Video Latin America has snapped up streaming rights to Katina Medina Mora’s latest film “Latido” (“Heartbeat”), starring Oscar-nominated Marina de Tavira (“Roma”).

This is the third feature from Medina Mora, whose credits include episodes of Netflix hit “Emily in Paris,” Apple TV+’s “Swagger” and romantic drama, “LuTo,” her debut feature picked up by Netflix. Its trailer debuts exclusively on Variety.

“Latido,” which has its world premiere at the Mill Valley Film Festival and its Mexican premiere at the Morelia Film Festival, turns on 45-year-old Leonor, played by De Tavira, who works for an Ngo that supports young athletes. Leonor has struggled for years to conceive. She meets 16-year-old Emilia, a gifted ballet dancer, played by Camila Calónico, who aces her audition but whose world falls apart when she finds out she is pregnant. Leonor and Emilia make a pact to share the pregnancy process. What starts as...

Three first features from Spain’s burgeoning next generation of female filmmakers, led by Cannes Critics’ Week winner Laura Ferrès, is one highlight at this year’s Málaga Work in Progress, an Málaga Festival industry centerpiece where productions such as “The Platform” first saw the light of day.

Playing in Malaga Wip, “The Platform” was acquired by Latido Film which sold the title to Netflix at Toronto. It has gone on to rank as the third most-watched non-English movie ever on Netflix.

At least three titles – Spanish road movie “Devil Dog Road,” horror pic “The Hidden City,” the neo-noir “Foremost by Night” – boast genre gristle. Some titles turn on gender oppression (“As Neves”), female self-discovery (“Mara’s Vacation”) or sexual diversity (“I Trust You”). Many, especially from Spain, have social-issue overtones.

Production companies range from established indie forces – Madrid’s Aquí y Allí, Buenos Aires’ Magma Cine, Portugal’s Ukbar Filmes – to on-the-rise outfits,...

Artists including British-Japanese pop singer Rina Sawayama, indie singer-songwriter Soccer Mommy and sister duo Tegan and Sara are among the artists partnering with nonprofit #iVoted to offer fans a chance to attend free concerts in an effort to drum up participation from young voters across the United States in the upcoming midterm elections.

The #iVoted Early sweepstakes, which is presented alongside the Nov. 8 #iVoted Festival, encourages fans to a selfie outside their nearest polling place, or at home with a blank and unmarked ballot for a chance to win tickets...

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While Causeway is positioned as an intimate account of the troubled return home from Afghanistan of an injured U.S. Army engineer played by Jennifer Lawrence, this minor-key drama only really blossoms after its stealth transformation into a balanced two-hander about damaged people finding mutual solace. Brian Tyree Henry’s soulful work brings out richer shadings in Lawrence’s guarded stoicism and vice versa. Debuting director Lila Neugebauer surrounds herself with top-tier recruits from her New York stage background to flesh out this melancholy reflection on trauma and trust, set against the sleepy background of blue-collar New Orleans.

Neugebauer made a name for herself with incisive theater work in the past decade, notably her immersive staging of Sarah DeLappe’s The Wolves, about a high school girls’ soccer team; the Edward Albee diptych At Home at the Zoo; and Tracy Letts’ fragmented character study Mary Page Marlowe.

Miami-based international sales agent FiGa Films has swooped on worldwide rights to satirical comedy “Love & Mathematics” by Claudia Sainte-Luce ahead of its world premiere at the Toronto Intl. Film Festival. In February, the busy Sainte-Luce debuted her previous film, “The Realm of God” (“El Reino de Dios”), at the Berlinale.

Produced by Christian Kegel of Jaqueca Films, “Love & Mathematics” turns on the ambitions and aspirations of upper-middle-class Mexican society and stars Roberto Quijano, Diana Bovio and Daniela Salinas.

Penned by playwright and screenwriter Adriana Pelusi, “Love & Mathematics” marks the first time Sainte-Luce has directed from someone else’s screenplay. This is her fifth feature. Set in the city of Monterrey, Mexico, the wry comedy follows Billy Lozano, who’s suffering from an existential crisis as his glory years in a hit boy band are now past him. In his late 30s and miserable in his marriage, his daily routine consists...

If you’ve been putting off watching the terrifically adventurous Brendan Fraser-led “The Mummy” again, now’s the time to prioritize it. The 1999 film is one of a bevy of movies leaving HBO Max in June, the full list of which you can read below.

Also leaving HBO and HBO Max this month is a bevy of Tyler Perry’s Madea movies, “Rounders,” “She’s All That” and “Real Steel.”

If you’re looking to prioritize some selections, “Presumed Innocent” is one of Harrison Ford’s most underrated films (featuring one of his best performances) and the Melissa McCarthy/Jason Bateman comedy “Identity Thief” is good for some solid laughs.

Check out the full list of what’s leaving HBO Max below.

Also Read:

Here’s What’s New on HBO and HBO Max in June 2022

June 9:

12 Strong, 2018

June 30:

2 Guns, 2013

20 Feet From Stardom, 2013 (HBO)

All Dogs Go To Heaven,...

Miami-based FiGa Films has picked up worldwide sales on Andrés Kaiser’s found-footage doc “Time Theorem” (“Teorema de Tiempo”), which will have its world premiere at Dok.Fest München on May 8.

Doc will also receive a market screening at the Cannes Marché du Film on May 18.

“We could not believe that ‘Time Theorem’ was a documentary when we first watched it,” said FiGa Films CEO, Sandro Fiorin, adding: “Fiction could only hope for such a twisted story.”

“Andrés is supremely talented, the way he and his producer put this film together is truly remarkable. We are lucky to be part of the team,” he continued.

According to Kaiser, the doc relates the story of his grandparents and their lives as amateur filmmakers between Mexico and Switzerland from the 1940s to the 1980s. “It’s a story that reflects on how we use images as a tool to build our own personality,...

Spanish satire starring Javier Bardem one of the big winners at the Ibero-American film awards held in Madrid.

The Good Boss produced by The Mediapro Studio and Reposado PC took home four prizes at the Platino Awards on Sunday (May 1), the Ibero-American equivalent to the Oscars which took place in Madrid.

This satire about the petty boss of an industrial scales factory won best film, best director and screenplay for Fernando León de Aranoa, and best actor for Javier Bardem following its success at Spanish Film Academy awards the Goyas in February when it won six prizes.

Blanca Portillo won...

Spanish satire starring Javier Bardem one of the big winners at the Ibero-American film awards held in Madrid.

The Good Boss produced by The Mediapro Studio and Reposado PC took home four prizes at the Platino Awards on Sunday (May 1), the Ibero-American equivalent to the Oscars which took place in Madrid.

This satire about the petty boss of an industrial scales factory won best film, best director and screenplay for Fernando León de Aranoa, and best actor for Javier Bardem following its success at Spanish Film Academy awards the Goyas in February when it won six prizes.

Blanca Portillo won...

Neon has picked up rights to Dorothy Baker’s 1962 novel Cassandra at the Wedding and has set Sarah DeLappe to adapt for the screen.

The book follows Cassandra Edwards, a graduate student at Berkeley: gay, brilliant, nerve-wracked, and miserable. At the beginning of the novel, she drives back to her family ranch in the foothills of the Sierras to attend the wedding of her identical twin, Judith, to a nice young doctor from Connecticut. Cassandra, however, is hell-bent on sabotaging the wedding.

DeLappe wrote Bodies, Bodies, Bodies for A24, which recently premiered at SXSW. She also penned the play The Wolves, which received the American Playwriting Foundation’s inaugural Relentless Award, and was a finalist for the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

Neon will produce the adaptation with Brad Becker-Parton and Greg Nobile on behalf of Seaview, along with Early and Leslie Conliffe from Intellectual Property Group.

The book deal was...

In a competitive situation, Neon has won the rights to develop Dorothy Baker’s 1962 novel “Cassandra at the Wedding,” in partnership with Seaview and John Early.

The novel follows Cassandra Edwards, a graduate student at Berkeley, who is gay, brilliant, nerve-wracked, and miserable. She drives to her family ranch in the foothills of the Sierras to attend the wedding of her identical twin, Judith, to a young doctor from Connecticut. Cassandra has plans to sabotage the wedding.

Sarah DeLappe, who wrote “Bodies, Bodies, Bodies” for A24 which recently premiered at SXSW, and also wrote the Pulitzer-nominated play, “The Wolves,” will adapt for the screen and executive produce. Neon will produce the film, with Brad Becker-Parton and Greg Nobile on behalf of Seaview, along with Early and Leslie Conliffe from Intellectual Property Group.

The deal was negotiated by Mason Speta at Neon and Conliffe, on behalf of McIntosh & Otis who are...

Fasten your Seatbelt: De Michele Embarks on a Bumpy First Ride

A thematic continuation of Alberto de Micheleʼs last short film, The Wolves (2011), for his feature length film debut, the Italian born filmmaker blends together the caper film sub-genre with what are crumbs of a semi-personal docu. The Last Ride of the Wolves explores the process of planning and executing a final hit by a gang of Italian professionals (known as the Wolves), and this debut works best as an exercise in aestheticism and experimentation rather than the true story account on which this is ultimately based on.

With very little exposition or character development, Pasquale (played by de Micheleʼs eponymous real-life father) is an old crook who nearly squandered his entire fortune on gambling, while Alberto, the director himself, doubles as Pasqualeʼs driver.…...

We've all seen several heist movies over the years, and we know the formula: if the plan gets explained, something goes wrong, if the plan is kept a secret, it seems to go wrong but Surprise, that was part of the plan and everything went right after all. Throw in some characterization for the thieves and, if time allows, the police, and you can make quite the thriller. It's almost a foolproof recipe, and used frequently for the past 70 years, in films and television series. So director Alberto De Michele is already to be commended for finding a unique angle into this sub-genre. In his debut feature The Last Ride of the Wolves (a follow-up of sorts to his 2011 short The Wolves), we...

[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...

“Drive My Car” filmmaker Hamaguchi Ryusuke, director Karim Ainouz (Berlin-winner “Central Airport Thf”) and actor Connie Nielsen (“Wonder Woman”) will join president M. Night Shyamalan on the international jury of the Berlin Film Festival.

Also serving on the international jury are producer Saïd Ben Saïd (“Benedetta”) and filmmakers Anne Zohra Berrached (“24 Weeeks”) and writer-director Tsitsi Dangarembga (“I Want a Wedding Dress”). The international jury decides the Golden and the Silver Bear winners.

The jury for the festival’s Encounters strand includes Mubi director of content Chiara Marañón and filmmakers Ben Rivers (Venice Fipresci prize winner “Two Years at Sea”) and Silvan Zürcher (Berlin Fipresci prize winner “The Girl and the Spider”). They will choose the winners for the strand’s best film, best director and the special jury awards.

The jury for the Gwff Best First Feature Award includes Gaia Furrer, artistic director of the Venice Film Festival’s Venice...

‘The Good Boss’ leads Icíar Bollaín’s ‘Maixabel’ and Pedro Almodóvar’s ‘Parallel Mothers’.

The Good Boss, directed by Fernando León de Aranoa and starring Javier Bardem, led the Goya nominations from the Spanish Film Academy with 20 nods, an all-time record.

The satire, also Spain’s entry for the Oscars, is ahead of Icíar Bollaín’s Maixabel and Pedro Almodóvar’s Parallel Mothers, on 14 and eight nominations respectively.

The Good Boss is the fifth highest-grossing film in Spain this year with €2.6m. Written and directed by León de Aranoa, it follows the petty boss of an industrial scales factory, played...

by Nathaniel R

"Identifying Features" is available to rent on several services

The nominations for the 63rd annual Ariel Awards (Mexico's Oscars essentially) have been announced. Identifying Features, a drama about a mother travelling across Mexico in search of answers about her son who vanished trying to cross the border made the biggest noise with 16 nominations. In happy news All of the Best Picture nominated films are readily available online to US audiences. We've seen more of the Ariel contenders than usual thanks to their festival appearances and current availability (links in the nomination list if we've written about them). Identifying Features is up against two films we loved, Dance of the 41 and Los Lobos along with Tragic Jungle and a documentary called The Three Deaths of Marisela Escobedo... ...

Gerardo Naranjo’s “Kokoloko” took home the Premio Mezcal for best Mexican film at the hybrid 35th Guadalajara Film Festival (Ficg), which wrapped Friday, Nov. 27.

The love triangle drama signals a return to the big screen for Naranjo who has spent nearly a decade after his 2011 hit “Miss Bala” directing episodes of such high-profile series as “Narcos,” “The Bridge” and “Fear the Walking Dead.”

Shot in 16 mm, Naranjo’s drama about a woman caught between two men, one a violent cousin holding her captive, first debuted at Tribeca where lead Noe Hernandez won the Best Actor prize. The Match Factory handles international sales.

Chilean film and TV writer-director-producer Andres Wood won the Best Ibero-American film prize with his political thriller “Spider,” that tracks the disparate fates of right-wing radicals in the early ‘70s, prior to the coup d’état that heralds the military regime of Augusto Pinochet in Chile. Drama...

Like many of its counterparts worldwide, the Guadalajara Int’l Film Festival (Ficg), Mexico’s largest film festival, faced the quandary of whether to go online, reschedule or cancel altogether because of the pandemic.

It opted for a rescheduled hybrid 35th edition which would serve those either unable or afraid to travel and those without an internet connection in Mexico.

“We struck a deal with Canal 44 to have them air some of our films,” said festival director Estrella Araiza, who is adamant that despite the challenges and complications, the film community will prevail in the end. “We have to believe in cinema,” she declared. Outdoor screenings and restricted indoor cinema screenings are on the schedule while most of the master classes and conferences are online.

Ficg was pushed from its traditional March dates to the fall, where it’s now been running over Nov. 20-27.

Its inauguration on Friday Nov.

Miami-based FiGa Films has picked up worldwide sales rights outside Brazil to “Kevin,” an unprecedented co-production between Brazil and Uganda.

FiGa Films will be taking the documentary to this week’s American Film Market and early December’s Ventana Sur as part of its slate.

By newcomer Joana Oliveira, the doc pivots on her long-time friendship with a vibrant Ugandan mother of three called Kevin whom she met while studying in Berlin some two decades ago.

“Kevin and I have been friends since 1999 and the idea of attesting her importance in my life through a film has only been possible because someone else also saw it as a story to be told,” said Oliveira, adding that the film was shot in Uganda and Brazil and boasted an international crew from both countries as well as from Germany, Kenya and the U.S.

The film is lead produced by Luana Melgaço...

Exclusive: Erik Feig’s Picturestart is making its first foray into animation, acquiring the rights to Nick Drnaso’s graphic novel Beverly to develop as an animated series. Pulitzer Prize-nominated playwright Sarah DeLappe (The Wolves) is attached to pen the adaptation and executive produce.

Beverly, published in 2016 by Drawn & Quarterly, presents a searing exploration of the sexual anxieties, social insecurities, and cultural malaise of the American suburb as seen through the eyes of its teenage inhabitants. As the thin line between fantasy and reality blurs, Drnaso’s debut novel peels back the civilized facades to reveal the sardonic ironies, simmering tensions and outright violence lurking just beneath the surface.

Drnaso also will executive produce. Ryan Lindenberg and Julia Hammer are overseeing for Picturestart which is developing and producing the project. This marks Picturestart’s push into animation but the project still falls under the company’s mandate of developing, financing and producing discover-of-voice content.

The 2019 Crossroads Guitar Festival — featuring performances by Gary Clark Jr., Bonnie Raitt, Jeff Beck, Sheryl Crow, John Mayer and the fest’s namesake Eric Clapton — will be released as a live album and concert film this November.

Eric Clapton’s Crossroads Guitar Festival 2019 also features appearances by Tedeschi Trucks Band, Lianne La Havas, Jimmie Vaughan, James Bay, Doyle Bramhall II, Robert Randolph, Los Lobos, Albert Lee and the Marcus King Band, whose “Goodbye Carolina” from the fest was shared ahead of the live album’s release.

Among the highlights from...

You’re going to have to steel yourself for this monster of a content update. Between them, Netflix, HBO Max, Hulu, Disney Plus and Amazon Prime have an obscene number of quality titles debuting this weekend.

Be it films or television shows, new releases or old classics, there’s a ton to dig into here. So if you’re ready, let’s dive right in…

Netflix

July 31st

Get Even — Netflix Original

Latte and the Magic Waterstone — Netflix Family

Seriously Single — Netflix Film

The Speed Cubers — Netflix Documentary

Sugar Rush: Extra Sweet — Netflix Original

The Umbrella Academy: Season 2 — Netflix Original

Vis a vis: El Oasis (Locked Up) — Netflix Original

August 1st

A Knight’s Tale

Acts of Violence

The Addams Family (1991)

An Education

Being John Malkovich

Death at a Funeral

Dennis the Menace

Elizabeth Harvest

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

Hardcore Henry

Iron Man: Armored Adventures: Season 1-2

Jurassic Park...

“The Florida Project” excelled at showing how a child’s imagination can provide the mental armor necessary to endure impoverished circumstances, but it never had a monopoly on the concept. “Los Lobos,” the bittersweet new feature from director Samuel Kishi, plays like a thematic variation on the same beguiling premise in the context of the American immigrant experience. The result is .

That means eight-year-old Max (Maximiliano Nájar Márquez) and five-year-old Leo (Leonardo Nájar Márquez) guide the story through a series of drab environments using the only tools at their disposal. Promised by single mom Lucía (Martha Reyes Arias) that their move from Mexico to Albuquerque will result in a trip to Disneyland, they instead find themselves locked in a squalid apartment all day while she juggles a pair of low-income jobs. The line she feeds her Spanish-speaking children to get them hyped — “I want to go Disney!” — embodies the tragicomic...