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This year, Spain has more titles at the Berlinale’s two TV showcases, Co-Pro Series and Berlinale Market Selects, than any other country in the world— a total of four shows, beating the U.S. with one, and even Germany, which has three.

On top of that, running Feb. 19-20 at the fest’s CinemaxX screening hub, the Spanish showcase at the Berlinale

Market Series highlights three more shows and features a panel, in what may be the big- gest national TV showcase at 2024’s Berlin Festival.

What this bullish presence says about the state of the state of Spanish TV production is an- other matter. Seven key takes:

Second-Phase Boom

Spain’s Berlin bonanza is only natural. Netflix scored its first global TV blockbuster with Spain’s “Money Heist” in 2018, and now the country is now riding a second wave as a strong supplier of the global streamer. In...

Series from Atresmedia TV, Rtve, Movistar Plus+, Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi (“La Mesías”), Zeta Studios (“Elite”) and director Carlota Pereda and Morena Films (behind Sundance hit “Piggy”) will unspool or be unveiled at the Berlinale. They underscore the breadth and depth of Spanish TV output:

“Death to Love,”

Carlota Pereda dazzled at Sundance with first feature, “Piggy.” Now, Pereda’s at the Berlinale Co-Pro Series on Feb. 20 with her debut series, “Death to Love,” in which afemale vampire struggles over centuries to end a toxic relationship with her vampire female lover and culminates in a modern-day climax. “A visceral and romantic proposition,” Pereda says.

“Dressed in Blue: Veneno Season 2,”

The Sundance world premiere “La Mesías” sealed the standing of Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi as most probably the coolest creative duo in Spain. This time around, they produce, with Mikel Rueda, a director on “Veneno,” and Claudia Costafreda and Ian de la Rosa,...

“I’ve been staying open, you don’t wanna grow,” Brittany Howard sings on the title track from her second solo record. The song is a hard-funk failing-relationship jeremiad that might leave the “you” in question reduced to a puddle on the floor by the time it’s done. But whoever she’s singing to should’ve known better. Staying relentlessly open has been Howard’s guiding principle going all the way back to her breakout moment fronting Athens, Alabama garage-rockers Alabama Shakes in the early 2010s.

She’s a...

The 2024 Art Directors Guild nominations have been unveiled, mirroring the Oscars shortlists for crafts thus far.

The 28th annual Excellence in Production Design Awards celebrates production design achievements in theatrical motion pictures, television, commercials, music videos, and animated feature films. The 2024 Adg Awards winners will be announced at a ceremony on February 10 at the Ray Dolby Ballroom, Ovation Hollywood, with Emmy-nominated actor and comedian Max Greenfield hosting.

As previously announced, legendary production designer Lawrence G. Paull will be inducted into the Adg Hall of Fame as part of the ceremony.

“It’s our honor and privilege to gather the guild to recognize the excellence among our members,” award show producers Michael Allen Glover, Adg and Megan Elizabeth Bell, Adg said in a joint statement.

In the Period Feature Film category, Wes Anderson’s lush “Asteroid City” is up against Martin Scorsese’s gritty “Killers of the Flower Moon,” with...

The Art Directors Guild has unveiled nominations for its 28th annual Excellence in Production Design Awards, which celebrate the year’s best achievements in theatrical motion pictures, TV, commercials, music videos and animated features. See the full list below.

The guild divides its top film prizes into Fantasy, Period and Contemporary Feature categories. Since the trophy show launched in 1996, the winner of one of those has gone on to win the Art Direction/Production Design Oscar in 18 of the 27 years. It had a run of nine in a row snapped last year, when All Quiet on the Western Front went on to score the Academy Award after the Art Directors lauded Everything Everywhere All at Once (Fantasy), Babylon (Period) and Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (Contemporary).

Winners will be announced February 10 at Ovation Hollywood’s Ray Dolby Ballroom. The late production designer Lawrence G. Paull, a Blade Runner Oscar...

The Art Directors Guild (IATSE Local 800) has revealed the nominations for its 28th annual Excellence in Production Design Awards, which will be handed out Feb. 10 at the Ray Dolby Ballroom in Ovation Hollywood.

The production designers on Asteroid City, Killers of the Flower Moon, Maestro, Napoleon and Oppenheimer were nominated in the category for a period movie. For a fantasy film, the nominees are Barbie, The Creator, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Poor Things and Wonka. And the Adg chose Beau is Afraid, John Wick: Chapter 4, The Killer, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One and Saltburn as its contemporary film noms.

Over the past five years, the winner of the Adg’s period film prize has gone on to win the Oscar for production design twice: In 2020, for Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, and in 2021 for Mank. The production design Oscar went to the winner of...

Brittany Howard is back with “Red Flags,” the newest single from her upcoming album What Now. Additionally, she’s confirmed that the album will arrive on February 2nd, 2024 via Island Records.

If you’re the type to conveniently gloss over the signs of a romantic partner’s potential shortcomings, Howard can relate. On “Red Flags,” the Alabama Shakes singer comes to terms with a relationship’s inevitable demise: “The best time that I ever had/ That’s when the worst times started,” she sings over a soulful, futuristic beat.

“In my past relationships, I’ve had a tendency to see red flags as part of some parade just for me — something for me to run right through without paying any attention,” Howard explains in a press release. “To me ‘Red Flags’ sounds very dystopian, which makes sense for a song that feels like end-of-times as far as me emotionally maturing.

Quick Links What Happened in Season 1 of Our Flag Means Death? Season 2, Episode 1 "Impossible Birds" Season 2, Episode 2 "Red Flags" Season 2, Episode 3 "The Innkeeper" Season 2, Episode 4 "Fun and Games" Season 2, Episode 5 "The Curse of the Seafaring Life" Season 2, Episode 6 "Calypso's Birthday" Season 2, Episode 7 "Man on Fire" Recap Season 2, Episode 8 "Mermen" Recap

Everyone's favorite queer pirate rom-com, Our Flag Means Death, is back for a raucous Season 2 if the teaser trailers were any indication: love letters in a bottle, pirate queens, and wedding objections among them. When the Season 1 finale left the rag-tag crew of the Revenge scattered across the high seas after the English Navy attacked the ship, one thing was for certain: the friendships and romances fostered on deck under co-captains Stede Bonnet (Rhys Darby) and Blackbeard/Edward Teach (Taika Waititi) would never be the same. And if one thing is for certain -- Season 2 delivered on all of that and more.

Our Flag Means Death season 2 has three episodes left, with the finale releasing on October 26. The second season began with a three-part premiere and the remaining episodes will debut in pairs, with the finale arriving on its own. The eight-episode order is shorter than the first season's 10 episodes, and season 3 will mark the end of the beloved series.

With Our Flag Means Death season 2 well underway on Max, viewers are wondering how many episodes of the series' sophomore season are left before the finale releases. It's no surprise given the way the buccaneer rom-com captivated audiences with its unexpectedly queer and often hilarious first season. Our Flag Means Death centers on gentleman-turned-pirate Stede Bonnet (Rhys Darby), who renounces his fortune in favor of a life on the high seas. During his misadventures, he crosses paths with the Caribbean's most infamous pirate: Captain Blackbeard (Taika Waititi), also known as Ed Teach.

Here’s some pirate math: If a pirate workplace comedy has over 2,000 VFX shots in the first season and only about 1,000 VFX shots in Season 2, how has the scope grown? By being smarter about how it uses them.

“We had a better methodology in how we used our skies and our oceans,” “Our Flag Means Death” VFX supervisor David Van Dyke told IndieWire. “There were certain things that we did [in Season 1] that were a little self-imposed, and we had to kind of roll up our sleeves and grind our way out of mistakes. This season, we knew what to stay away from and we were able to use our pennies more effectively.”

That in turn allowed the Max series to tackle much more ambitious VFX challenges as the scope of the Pirate Republic widens to include the legendary Zheng Yi Sao (Ruibo Qian) and her pirate navy, seas that match the...

Tessa Majors sings these solemn words over sturdy acoustic-guitar strums: “I want you to know that I came. I want you to know how I’m still here.”

As the song’s narrator, she’s struggling to watch a loved one tormented by inner thoughts and, despite her best attempts, is unable to rescue them from their suffering. Titled “Stay,” it was one of many works Tess — as her family and friends called her — had been diligently refining and retooling over the past few years. Recorded on her iPhone, she...

It’s Friday, Friday, gotta get down on Friday — especially when it’s New Music Friday! We’re breaking down this week’s best new tracks to keep on your radar.

New Music Friday – March 31st, 2023

Charlie Puth with Dan + Shay – “That’s Not How This Works”

Chlöe – “In Pieces”, plus In Pieces (Album)

Tyler The Creator – “Dogtooth”

Bebe Rexha – “Call On Me”

Daniel Caesar – “Valentina”

Maisie Peters – “Lost The Breakup”

Ellie Goulding – “Cure For Love”

Melanie Martinez – “Void”, plus Portals (Album)

Other noteworthy artists with releases this week include Sid Sriram – “Do The Dance”, Lauren Jauregui – “Trust Issues”, Afrojack and Mike Williams – Alone”, Josh Ross – “Red Flags”, Stacey Ryan – “Bad For Me”, charlieonnafriday with Lil Tjay – “Same Friends“, Crown lands – “The Shadow”, Jhayco – “Cuerpecito”, Vico C – “Pregúntale A Tu Papá Por Mí”, Irene Diaz – “Lost”, Rodrigo y Gabriela – “The Eye That Catches The Dream”, Cowboy Junkies – “What I...

This quick 90 Day Fiancé recap details everything that happened in 90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way season 4 episode 6, titled, ‘Love Is One Thing’, which aired on March 12, 2023. The ongoing version of the 90Df spin-off features one returning couple, 46-year-old Daniele Gates and Yohan Geronimo, 32, from Love In Paradise: The Caribbean, with Daniele having just moved to the Dominican Republic. A newer couple is Nicole Sherbiny, 38, from Los Angeles, and Mahmoud Sherbiny, 26, from Egypt. The two are not happy together.

90 Day Fiancé's Gabriel Pabon is a 32-year-old trans man in a relationship with Colombian single mom, Isabel Posada, 34. Then there’s Kris Foster, a 40-year-old who thinks she’s 20, who's dating Jeymi Noguera, 30, in Colombia. Big secrets about these two are dropped during every episode. 46-year-old Oklahoma woman Jen Boecher is madly in love with Indian model Rishi Singh, 32, whose family doesn’t know he’s engaged. Then,...

On a recent episode of 90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way, viewers noticed what looked like an open sore in Kris Foster’s ear, and they’re worried about how Kris got the wound and what she’s doing to care for it. New 90 Day Fiancé star Kris traveled to Colombia to finally meet her online love Jeymi Noguera. Though the pair seemed to have a wonderful first night together, Jeymi was not aware of just how many health issues Kris is dealing with. Previews indicate that Kris’ many ailments could be the source of friction in the couple’s relationship.

While watching 90 Day Fiancé’s Kris and Jeymi’s “morning after” scene, a Reddit user InternationalPut8199 shared a screenshot of a visible red spot in Kris’ ear, and assumed the 90 Day Fiancé star wasn’t keeping her ears clean. But hundreds of fans weighed in with...

Since 2020, Mimi Webb has been making waves in the Britpop scene. The singer-songwriter from Canterbury, who started writing songs when she was just a teenager, rose to prominence on TikTok after Charlie D’Amelio featured her debut single “Before I Go” in one of her posts. Quickly, Webb gained a following by sharing the reactions of family and friends to her music. She also established herself as a bedroom pop princess with a knack for taking her massive R&b vocals and filtering them through upbeat dance-pop production to craft her soulful sound.

90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way season 4 is off to a somewhat messy start, but Gabriel "Gabe" Paboga and Isabel Posada's segments have already proven to be a breath of fresh air. The new 90 Day Fiancé couple first met while Gabe was traveling in Columbia, and the two instantly hit it off. Gabe felt so strongly about Isabel that he decided to pack up his life in Florida and move to Columbia permanently to start a new life with her and her two children. While Gabe and Isabel are not yet engaged, Gabe expressed an interest in proposing to Isabel sometime in the near future.

While 90 Day Fiancé's Gabriel and Isabel are completely in love, there are still a few obstacles in the way of their happiness. Gabe revealed during the season premiere that he is transgender and assured viewers that Isabel was completely accepting of this and...

Nick Grad, president of original programming at FX, announced on Thursday that the network has ordered the pilot of an untitled half-hour comedy written by writer/director Lauren Ludwig.

The project is a metaphysical comedy about a group of queer 20-somethings forced by the most unlikely source to confront their generational anxieties and unpack their emotional baggage.

Ludwig will executive produce along with Chris & Paul Weitz through their production company Depth of Field. Andrew Miano, Dan Balgoyen and Ludwig’s producer and manager, Aaron Kogan will also serve as executive producers. The studio is FX Productions.

Ludwig, who’s written for “American Auto,” “Rob Riggle’s Ski Master Academy,” and FX’s “Cake,” recently wrote and produced the queer action film “Heart Shot” for Netflix. With her comedy group, Lost Moon Radio, she directed the comedy series “Passive Aggressive History” — as part of Rachel Dratch’s “Late Night Snack” — for truTV.