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Marks the first international offshoot of the script development initiative for women and non-binary writers over 40.

The Writers Lab UK and Ireland, the international offshoot of the script development program for woman and non-binary writers over 40, has unveiled its first cohort of screenwriters and projects.

The non-profit organization, that counts Meryl Streep and Nicole Kidman among its supporters, has selected 12 participants that will take part in the lab, set to take place online from June 10-13, with additional sessions spread over the following five months.

Scroll down for the full list of participants

Due to the significant number of writers who applied,...

Slate sales on SXSW winners Alice, Saint Frances, Tito.

Visit Films has concluded a raft of deals on its Afm slate that includes documentaries White Riot and The Sanctity Of Space, and Toronto drama Hearts And Bones starring Hugo Weaving.

Company president Ryan Kampe and director of sales Lydia Rodman have licensed White Riot in the UK (Modern Films), Australia and New Zealand (Icon Film Distribution), Films We Like (Canada) and Benelux (Periscoop). Rubika Shah’s punk rock documentary won the Grierson Award for best documentary at BFI London Film Festival and an international premiere is being lined up for a major festival.

Just as Netflix tries to gain traction in the Middle East by backing local genre series, such as its first Arab original, “Jinn,” from Jordan, and Egypt’s upcoming “Paranormal,” Beirut’s Maskoon Fantastic Film Festival is launching the region’s first platform dedicated to genre films.

Five Arabic-language projects, ranging from a zombie comedy to a supernatural female-empowerment drama, have been selected for the Maskoon Fantastic Lab’s pilot edition, which is set for Nov. 7-8 in Beirut’s Lebanese Academy of Fine Arts. All the projects have a strong sociopolitical subtext, organizers say.

“Arab producers and film festivals haven’t really embraced genre cinema yet,” said Myriam Sassine, the fest’s chief exec. “So we felt the need for a platform to encourage and help those filmmakers who would like to venture into genre”

The fest’s artistic director, Antoine Waked, underlined that, at a time when genre...

Ryan Kampe to show teaser footage fromupcoming adventure doc The Sanctity Of Space, punk rock doc White Riot.

Ryan Kampe’s Visit Films heads to the Croisette with a bumper sales slate led by Tribeca Film Festival Nora Ephron Award winner Initials S.G.

The roster includes Tribeca selection Crshd, SXSW winners Alice, Saint Frances and Tito, SXSW selection The Wall Of Mexico, and Sundance selection Adam.

Visit will screen Lucía Garibaldi’s Sundance World Cinema Dramatic Competition best award-winner The Sharks, about a girl’s sexual awakening in a small beach town. Kampe will also present teaser footage from...

Last night in New York at the 18th Tribeca Film Festival, the winners were announced in the competition categories. The top honours went to Burning Cane which took the Founders Award for Best U.S. Narrative Feature, House of Hummingbird (Beol-sae) which won Best International Narrative Feature and Scheme Birds which was named Best Documentary Feature. Here’s a full list of Tribeca 2019 competition winners:

U.S. Narrative Competition Categories

Founders Award for Best Narrative Feature – Burning Cane, directed by Phillip Youmans. The award was given by Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal on behalf of the jury.

Best Actress in a U.S. Narrative Feature Film – Haley Bennett in Swallow.

Best Actor in a U.S. Narrative Feature Film – Wendell Pierce in Burning Cane.

Best International Narrative Feature – House of Hummingbird (Beol-sae) directed and written by Bora Kim.

Best Cinematography in a U.S. Narrative Feature Film – Phillip Youmans for Burning Cane.

Women claim four short film prizes.

Nineteen-year old Phillip Youmans became the first African American to win The Founders Award for best Us narrative feature at the Tribeca Film Festival when Burning Cane received the top honour on Thursday (2).

Youmans, 19, already the youngest filmmaker to have a feature in the festival (he was 17 when he directed the story of a troubled preacher starring best actor award-winner Wendell Pierce), receives $20,000 sponsored by At&T.

The jury of Lucy Alibar, Jonathan Ames, Cory Hardrict, Dana Harris, and Jenny Lumet said of Burning Cane: “The Founders Award goes to a voice that is searingly original.

“Burning Cane” has won the Founders Award for best U.S. narrative feature and star Wendell Pierce has been awarded the top actor in the category for the 18th Annual Tribeca Film Festival.

Haley Bennett won the festival’s award for best actress in a narrative feature for her performance in “Swallow.” “House of Hummingbird” (Beol-sae) took the prize for best international narrative feature, and “Scheme Birds” won for top documentary feature.

The awards were announced Thursday. Rania Attieh won the Nora Ephron Award and a $25,000 prize for Initials S.G. (“Iniciales S.G.”). The award honors excellence in storytelling by a female writer or director embodying the spirit and boldness of the late filmmaker. Tribeca’s Storyscapes Award went to “The Key,” created by Celine Tricart.

“Burning Cane,” set in the Louisiana swamplands, is directed by Phillip Youmans, who wrote, directed and shot the film at the age of 17. He...