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The first trailer for drama series “Other People’s Money,” which has its world premiere at the Berlin Film Festival, debuts here. Variety spoke to its producers and the creator-showrunner about how they crafted the show, which is inspired by the real story of the biggest tax fraud in European history. Beta Film is handling worldwide sales on the series.

The first four episodes of “Other People’s Money” will world premiere in Berlin at 3.30 p.m. on Feb. 20 at the prestigious Zoo Palast movie theater, followed by a Q&a with cast and crew.

The project started when Michael Polle at X Filme Creative Pool, the company behind “Babylon Berlin,” joined forces with True Content Entertainment’s Ole Søndberg, whose credits include “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.” Their objective was to tell the true story of how a criminal network of mega-rich investors, bankers and lawyers stole 146 billion euros ($150 billion) from European taxpayers.

Ulrich Seidl on Rimini: “I had images in my head of fog, of empty beaches, closed bars and restaurants, and hotels. All of this wrapped in a beautiful wintry sentimentality and loneliness.”

About a day as beautiful as today that should never fade away sings a row of inhabitants in an Austrian nursing home, holding on to their walkers for dear life. So begins Ulrich Seidl’s heartbreaking Rimini (72nd Berlin International Film Festival), co-written with Veronika Franz (The Lodge and Goodnight Mommy with Severin Fiala), shot by Wolfgang Thaler (Maria Schrader’s Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe), with costumes by Tanja Hausner. Rimini is as close to a musical as the director will probably ever get, conjuring up an eternal return of suffering, memories, and curated forgetting.

Ulrich Seidl with Anne-Katrin Titze on costume designer Tanja Hausner: “We first look into the closets of the performer.”

Seidl exposes in...

After playing five strong weeks in New York, “Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe” went on to play other cities in the USA and throughout the…

Continue reading on SydneysBuzz The Blog »...

Variety has been given exclusive access to the trailer for “The Story of My Wife,” which screens in competition at Cannes Festival. Oscar-nominated director Ildikó Enyedi’s film stars Palme d’Or winner Léa Seydoux. Films Boutique is handling world sales rights.

Enyedi’s “On Body and Soul” won the Golden Bear at Berlin in 2017 and was Oscar nominated the following year. Seydoux won Cannes’ Palme d’Or, alongside director Abdellatif Kechiche and co-star Adèle Exarchopoulos, for “Blue Is the Warmest Color” in 2013.

Also in the cast are Gijs Naber (“How to Avoid Everything”), Louis Garrel (“Redoubtable”), Josef Hader (“Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe”), Sergio Rubini (“The Stuff of Dreams”) and Jasmine Trinca (“Honey”).

“The Story of My Wife” is an adaptation of Milan Fust’s 1942 novel of the same name. The story, a variation of the legend of the Flying Dutchman, is set in the 1920s. In it sea...

Brit indie feature film Evie, starring Holli Dempsey, Michael Smiley and Jay Taylor, has just wrapped a four week shoot on locations in Yorkshire and the Llyn Peninsula, Wales.

Directed by Dominic Brunt and Jamie Lundy (making his feature film debut). the brooding psychological horror thriller centres on Evie (Dempsey), who has been burdened with a dark secret for most of her life.

Witness to a family tragedy when they were younger and ripped from an idyllic life by the sea, both Evie and her older brother Tony (Taylor) were put into care. Twenty years later they are reunited, but something terrible from their past follows…

Evie also stars Honey Lundy, Liam McMahon, Joanne Mitchell and Danny-Lee Brunt. Says director Dominic Brunt:

I was drawn to the allegorical aspects of the story and the stunning locations of Yorkshire and the Llyn Peninsula. I’d known Jamie Lundy as a brilliant...

Psychological thriller is co-directed by ‘Emmerdale’ star Dominic Brunt.

UK psychological horror Evie, co-directed by Emmerdale star Dominic Brunt and Jamie Lundy, has wrapped after shooting on locations in Yorkshire and Wales.

Produced by Paper Clip Pictures and Mitchell-Brunt Films Production, the thriller stars Holli Dempsey, best known for her roles in Ricky Gervais’ Derek and After Life, alongside Michael Smiley and Jay Taylor.

The story centres on a brother and sister who reunite 20 years after being separately placed in care, following a family tragedy. But they are soon confronted by something sinister from their past.

The film shot over...

Where Ira Levin’s “The Stepford Wives” ends is where a truly fascinating domestic drama should begin. Have you never wondered if the misogynistic menfolk of Stepford, Conn., having finally realized their collective dream of flawless, submissive android wives with cleavage and housekeeping skills to die for, ever tire of the dull perfection they’ve designed? Life lived without friction and unpredictability isn’t much of a life at all; surely it’s only a matter of time before restless human desire sabotages the idyll. German filmmaker Maria Schrader has, one suspects, given the matter some thought, though her cool, grown-up romantic fantasy “I’m Your Man” twists the scenario’s gender politics and significantly changes the stakes — presenting an independent, idiosyncratic female protagonist with a robot man so perfectly tailored to her needs that she just can’t stand it.

The appealingly peculiar result lands somewhere between “Ex Machina” and...

These days, the only thing constant is change itself, and that extends to the wild world of film festivals. While the pandemic has forced some festivals to go entirely virtual, move dates or outright cancel, or line up ambitious hybrids, this year’s Berlinale is opting to do something totally new: a little bit of all of the above. While Berlin usually follows Sundance with a February festival, the pandemic has forced organizers to develop a brand-new festival format for 2021.

The 71st Berlin International Film Festival is set to take place care of two different events in the coming months: the “Industry Event” from March 1 to 5, which will include the European Film Market (EFM), the Berlinale Co-Production Market, the Berlinale Talents, and the World Cinema Fund in online forms, which will then be followed by the June-set “Summer Special” with numerous film presentations in Berlin, both at indoor and outdoor cinemas.

I don’t know about you, but this writer is more than ready to start looking forward to the Halloween season. And one of the staples of my own ongoing cinematic celebration every year is checking out all the wonderful classic horror movies that Turner Classic Movies airs on their channel. And considering the mess that 2020 has been over the last several months, I thought this year it might be helpful to also include all the genre films that will be playing on TCM throughout the month of September, as it’s never too early to get ready for Halloween.

Check out all the great classic horror movies playing on the small screen over the next two months on TCM, and be sure to set those DVRs so you don’t miss any of the classic films that are sure to get you into the Halloween spirit this year.

Thursday,...

For Berlin-based American writer-producer Anna Winger, creating the Netflix series “Unorthodox” offered a unique opportunity to tell a Jewish story in Germany.

The show, which premiered March 26 on Netflix, is inspired by Deborah Feldman’s 2012 memoir, “Unorthodox: The Scandalous Rejection of My Hasidic Roots,” and follows a young woman who leaves her husband and her insular ultra-Orthodox Hasidic Satmar community in Williamsburg, New York, for a new life in Berlin.

Winger, whose credits include the hit Amazon series franchise “Deutschland 83″ and its two follow-ups, “Deutschland 86” and “Deutschland 89,” co-created with husband Jörg Winger, produced “Unorthodox” via her Berlin-based Studio Airlift shingle.

The series stars Israeli actress Shira Haas as Esty, who leaves an unhappy arranged marriage and travels to Berlin, home to her estranged mother and where she hopes to study music. As she begins to navigate her new life, her husband, portrayed by fellow Israeli actor Amit Rahav,...

When we speak of someone “refusing to be a victim,” it’s usually in praise of their resolve and resilience: It’s a refusal that asserts an identity stronger than the worst adversity you’ve experienced. There’s undeniable power in that, but at what point does defiance twist into denial? This is the fine precipice on which German writer-director Eva Trobisch’s searing debut feature “All Good” balances its frayed-nerve drama — after a self-possessed young woman is raped by a man she hardly knows, and chooses to continue her life without acknowledging that fact. A fascinating flip on themes contentiously raised in Paul Verhoeven’s “Elle,”

Written as a graduation project at the London Film School and a worthy victor in Locarno’s first-feature competition, Trobisch’s finely poised film will likely prompt auspicious comparisons to the early work of Maren Ade as it burns through the festival circuit.

Ruben Östlund’s “The Square” dominated the European Film Awards ceremony in Berlin, winning six prizes: European Film, European Director, European Actor (Claes Bang), European Comedy, European Production Design, European Screenwriter. Östlund took to the stage several times, explaining how he wanted his film to tackle serious issues but still be “wild, entertaining and exciting.” He also thanked his breakout star Claes Bang for adding so much to the screenplay.

Read More:European Film Awards: ‘The Square’ Wins Big in Near-Sweep at the Continent’s Most Prestigious Awards Ceremony

The European Film Academy is often predictive of the eventual Foreign-Language Oscar: Recent winners include “Ida,” “The Great Beauty” and “Amour.” On the other hand, last year’s winner went to “Toni Erdmann” while Asghar Farhadi’s “The Salesman” took home the Oscar.

Andrey Zvyagintsev’s “Loveless” took home awards for European Composer and Cinematography.

Alexandra Borbely won European Actress for Hungarian...

Ruben Östlund’s “The Square” dominated the European Film Awards ceremony in Berlin, winning six prizes: European Film, European Director, European Actor (Claes Bang), European Comedy, European Production Design, European Screenwriter. Östlund took to the stage several times, explaining how he wanted his film to tackle serious issues but still be “wild, entertaining and exciting.” He also thanked his breakout star Claes Bang for adding so much to the screenplay.

Read More:European Film Awards: ‘The Square’ Wins Big in Near-Sweep at the Continent’s Most Prestigious Awards Ceremony

The European Film Academy is often predictive of the eventual Foreign-Language Oscar: Recent winners include “Ida,” “The Great Beauty” and “Amour.” On the other hand, last year’s winner went to “Toni Erdmann” while Asghar Farhadi’s “The Salesman” took home the Oscar.

Andrey Zvyagintsev’s “Loveless” took home awards for European Composer and Cinematography.

Alexandra Borbely won European Actress for Hungarian...

Josef Hader as Stefan Zweig in opening film Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe

The full programme announced for Fokus: Films From Germany has been announced, which will run across venues in Scotland from November 23 to January 31, 2018.

It will open with Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe, charting the life of the Austrian Jewish writer during his years in exile (read our interview with director Maria Schrader here) and feature films including sexual abuse drama The Culpable and Doris Dörrie's award-winning Fukushima, Mon Amour.

Taking in themes that range from war, migration, exploitation and exploring perspectives on Europe, all selected films feature protagonists on a search for something, displaying a thirst for life in spite of the sometimes challenging surrounding environments.

Younger audiences, meanwhile, can enjoy Hördur, which tracks a young woman who finds herself consigned to community service at a horse ranch - which offers her an opportunity for change.

Writer-director Jérôme Reybaud’s first feature film “4 Days in France” is being billed as a movie about a man who leaves his boyfriend for a road trip odyssey dictated by the mobile gay hook-up app Grindr. Yet nearly all of the scenes in this meandering 141-minute picture involve the protagonist Pierre (Pascal Cervo) being accosted on the road and elsewhere by vibrant and judgmental women. The film begins with a shot of Pierre’s sleeping lover Paul (Arthur Igual, “Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe”) as the light from Pierre’s phone illuminates his body. Pierre is soon out the door and driving.

The thirteenth edition of Santiago International Film Festival, Sanfic (August 20–27, 2017), the largest film festival in Chile, will present more than 100 international and Chilean films, including productions shown and awarded in festivals such as Cannes, Berlin and Venice. Among the feature films will be 7 world and 14 Latin American premieres.

Sanfic (Santiago International Film Festival) is opening the festival to international press this year with Variety Dailies and important international guests for their Sanfic Industry section. Guest attending include Kim Yutani (Sundance programmer), Javier Martin (Berlinale delegate), Molly O ́Keefe (Tribeca Film Institute — fiction features) and Estrella Araiza (Industry director of Guadalajara Iff), to name a few. Matt Dillon is its special guest along with the renowned director of photography Rainer Klausmann.

The Summit starring Ricardo Darín, Dolores Fonzi and Erica Rivas, with an appearance of Christian Slater and renowned Chilean actors Paulina Garcia and Alfredo Castro

The opening film of the...

Opening in L.A. and other cities June 16, “Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe” is a stylishly accomplished and intellectually well thought out character study of a man who was the most popular author in the world in the 1920s and 1930s and who, today, is nearly forgotten. Told through six windows of 20 minutes each, this unique storytelling technique gives the film an immediacy as each part of Stefan Zweig’s life plays out in real time.

Stefan Zweig’s books have been made into 23 movies around the world, including his novel, Letter from an Unknown Woman, which was adapted to the screen in 1948 by Max Ophüls and starred Joan Fontaine and Louis Jourdain. His writings have also inspired Wes Anderson’s “Grand Budapest Hotel”.

Having just read his memoir, The World of Yesterday and having been on my own private search for what it means to have to leave your...

This weekend, the entire specialized industry is huddled in Cannes in search of the next big things. On the home front, just three noteworthy films opened, each on a single Manhattan screen. Two of them, the Bryan Cranston-starring “Wakefield” and Steve James’ financial world set documentary “Abacus: Small Enough to Jail,” showed some life.

Eleanor Coppola’s “Paris Can Wait” had a promising second-weekend expansion, and looks to be the standout over the next month and more. Still, results remain minor after a couple post-awards months led by “Gifted” and “The Zookeeper’s Wife.”

Opening

Wakefield (IFC) – Metacritic: 60; Festivals include: Telluride, Toronto 2016

$14,120 in 1 theater: PTA (per theater average): $14,120

Bryan Cranston has become an omnipresent force in TV, Broadway, and features. This film, opening many months after its September festival premieres, “Wakefield” puts him front and center as a Manhattan law partner who zones out of his suburban life...

Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy 2 kicked off the summer movie season in grand fashion last weekend, with an opening weekend of $145 million, far surpassing the $94.3 million take of the original Guardians of the Galaxy movie. This weekend, these intergalactic superheroes took on two new movies in wide release, Warner Bros. King Arthur: Legend of the Sword and 20th Century Fox's Snatched, with Lowriders also managing to crack the top 10 in limited release. Still, none of these newcomers could come close to the superhero ensemble Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, which had no trouble repeating with $63 million.

Box Office Mojo reports that this superhero sequel dropped 57% this weekend, playing in 4,347 theaters for a respectable $14,494 per-screen average. The $200 million budgeted movie has now taken in $246.1 million domestically and $630.5 million worldwide. After just two weekends, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 already quite close to surpassing both the domestic ($333.1 million) and worldwide take ($773.3 million) of its predecessor.

As specialized distributors head to Cannes, Eleanor Coppola’s French valentine “Paris Can Wait” (Sony Pictures Classics) scored with arthouse moviegoers. It’s only the fourth 2017 limited release to break the increasingly rare $20,000 per-theater-average mark.

These days, movies with older audience appeal are sustaining the market — and will likely form the core demo for similar available new films at Cannes. Eleanor Coppola (“Apocalypse Now” documentary “Heart of Darkness”) makes her narrative film debut at 81 with her semi-autobiographical first screenplay, starring Diane Lane as the wife of a self-involved film producer (Alec Baldwin).

New York also saw a handful of other small but still promising initial results, led by Cate Blanchett stunt-theater piece “Manifesto” (Film Rise), Israeli marriage story “The Wedding Plan” (Roadside Attractions) and “Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe” (First Run).

Netflix’s timely Tribeca documentary “Get Me Roger Stone,” an eye-opening portrait of Donald Trump’s flamboyant dark knight,...

Like a continental “Goodbye to All That,” Maria Schrader’s “Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe” is an elegiac look at literary exile. Zweig, a German Jew who saw the writing on the wall when Hitler ascended to power, espoused peaceful ideals that were increasingly at odds with reality; the world benefited from his presence, but he struggled to find his place in it. Schrader and actor Josef Hader honor that alienation while also spotlighting moments of bliss throughout Zweig’s later years.

Among the author’s many well-versed fans is Wes Anderson, who has made no secret of the fact that he based much of “The Grand Budapest Hotel” on Zweig’s life and work. That film takes a similarly mournful look at Europe on the verge of war, though it isn’t as despairing — Zweig and his wife took their lives in 1942, thousands of miles from their home, with...

Heading into last weekend, it was virtually guaranteed that Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 was taking the top spot at the box office, the only real question was how much it would earn. Early box office projections had the superhero sequel taking in as much as $160 million in its opening weekend, a huge jump from the $94.3 million that the original Guardians movie made. But the sequel fell just short of those projections, only taking in $146.5 million, just a bit more than the Sunday estimate of $145 million. This weekend, it will go up against two new releases, Warner Bros.' King Arthur: The Legend of the Sword and 20th Century Fox's Snatched, neither of which are expected to put up much of a fight against this Marvel Phase Three adventure, which should easily repeat with $79.2 million.

Box Office Mojo reports that the PG-13 fantasy adventure King Arthur: Legend of the Sword...

For the third year in a row, Marvel kicks of the summer movie season with a new superhero sequel. In 2015, Marvel Studios unleashed Avengers: Age of Ultron in the first weekend in May, with Captain America: Civil War kicking of the summer movie box office season last year. This year, the studio unveils Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, which had no trouble surpassing its predecessor Guardians of the Galaxy ($94.3 million) with an opening weekend haul of $145 million. While the opening weekend is certainly a strong one, it did come slightly under projections.

Back in March, box office analysts predicted a $160 million box office opening weekend for Guardians 2, but it came in slightly under those projections. Still, the $145 million estimate, courtesy of Box Office Mojo, is a solid start to the summer movie season, with the movie earning an impressive $33,368 per-screen average from 4,347 theaters. Still, it falls far below The...

For the last two years (and four of the last five years) Marvel has kept a foothold on the first weekend in May, which kicks off the summer movie season. The studio still holds the May record for the biggest opening with The Avengers' $207.4 million debut, but their most recent May hits, 2015's Avengers: Age of Ultron ($191.2 million) and last year's Captain America: Civil War ($179.1 million) have fallen just short of that mark. This year, the studio releases Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, which is the only movie opening in wide release this Friday, and will definitely hit quite huge, getting the summer season off to a great start. But it may still fall short of The Avengers' all-time Marvel record, opening with a predicted $181.7 million.

Box Office Mojo reports that Marvel is planning on rolling out Guardians 2 in approximately 4,200 theaters, which falls in line with the rollout of the last few Marvel blockbusters.

Stefan Zweig (Josef Hader) - "He was considered one of the greatest travelers, the big European mastermind of the European Union."

In 2000, Max Färberböck's Aimée & Jaguar star Maria Schrader was on the Berlin Film Festival jury with Andrzej Wajda, Gong Li, Walter Salles, and Marisa Paredes when Paul Thomas Anderson's Magnolia won the Golden Bear and the number of translators had an impact on her. In New York, the director of Stefan Zweig: Farewell To Europe and I discussed her creative team, including co-writer Jan Schomburg, cinematographer Wolfgang Thaler, and editor Hansjörg Weißbrich. We followed a Zweig trail from Terence Davies on Max Ophüls' Letter From An Unknown Woman to George Prochnik's influence on Wes Anderson's The Grand Budapest Hotel to Varian Fry, Lion Feuchtwanger and Defying The Nazis: The Sharp's War, directed by Ken Burns and Artemis Joukowsky.

Maria Schrader: "I dedicated the movie to Denis Poncet.

By Jose Solis

Two years after The Grand Budapest Hotel put Stefan Zweig’s writing at the center of the Oscar race, the author himself now is the protagonist of Austria’s submission Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe. Directed by Maria Schrader, the film focuses on Zweig’s exile in South America after fleeing Nazi Germany in the mid-1930s, played with gravitas by Josef Hader, Zweig becomes one of the most powerful male characters of the year, in a performance that works on an intellectual as well as visceral level. Audiences who only know Schrader from her acting work, in films like Aimee & Jaguar, will be caught off guard by her elegant sense of framing, her impeccable pacing and the way she engages the viewer by avoiding going into any biopic stereotypes. I spoke to her about making the film, working with Hader, and what an Oscar nomination could mean for the film.

Deutschland 83 star and Stefan Zweig: Farewell To Europe director Maria Schrader with Anne-Katrin Titze Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze

Maria Schrader's Stefan Zweig: Farewell To Europe (Vor Der Morgenröte – Stefan Zweig In Amerika), co-written with Jan Schomburg, is a sharp and vital depiction of Zweig's life in exile (1936-1942), portrayed by Josef Hader with nuance and grace. Aenne Schwarz is Lotte, the writer's loyal second wife and the good spirit who organizes with their faithful interpreter/guide Vitor (Nahuel Pérez Biscayart) the couple's time in Brazil. Barbara Sukowa is Friderike, the writer's ex-wife. With a great Austrian accent the legendary Rainer Werner Fassbinder star (Berlin Alexanderplatz) and Margarethe von Trotta stronghold says the words unlike any other as she signals the years of the past married life with a single glance.

Josef Hader as Stefan Zweig: "I'm not Thomas Mann. I cannot send away all the petitioners."

The cinematography...

Edge Entertainment has acquired Maria Schrader’s Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe for the Nordic region (excluding Denmark except for pay-tv rights) and the Baltics.

Edge Entertainment has acquired Maria Schrader’s critically acclaimed Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe for the Nordic region (excluding Denmark except for pay-tv rights) and the Baltics.

A 2017 release is planned.

The film had its world premiere in Locarno and is Austria’s submission for the foreign-language Oscar race.

Josef Hader and Barbara Sukowa star in the story of Stefan Zweig, one of the most read German-language writers of his time. Having to escape the Nazi regime in his homeland Austria, Zweig travels between Buenos Aires, New York and Brazil. As a Jewish intellectual, Zweig struggles to find the right stance towards the events in Nazi Germany, while searching for a home in the new world.

“Zweig’s vision for a borderless Europe has gained further resonance in the past few years...

While it’s futile to analyze the Oscar race in general — especially many months in advance — we do give special credence to a specific section of the Academy Awards: the Best Foreign Language Film submissions. Often one of the few categories during the ceremony that will actually highlight perhaps underseen works, we’re now giving you a chance to get ahead of the game with a full overview.

As close as cinema gets to a World Cup or Olympics, each country is able to submit their choice to compete for the award, with a few guidelines. Notably, each film must have been released in its respective country from October 1st of the previous year to September 30th of this year.

With that date recently passing, The Academy has confirmed a record 85 countries that have submitted a proper selection. Notable inclusions are Maren Ade‘s Toni Erdmann, Pedro Almodóvar‘s Julieta,...

Yesterday afternoon, the long list of countries submitting films for contention in Best Foreign Language Feature at the Oscars was revealed. With 85 movies in play, this is a record breaking group. Honestly, from what I could see, only three snubs seemed to be here, which was Belgium not choosing The Unknown Girl, Korea not choosing The Handmaiden, and Romania not choosing Graduation. Aside from those, all of the expected suspects are here for consideration. That gives us the first bit of information in trying to narrow down what will be nominated. My predictions will have to be updated (look for that either at the end of this week or next week), but that will be taken care of. For now, we just know the players. What you’ll see below are more contenders than ever before. Among the higher profile titles are Canada’s It’s Only the End of the World from Xavier Dolan,...

Eighty-five countries have submitted films for consideration in the Foreign Language Film category for the 89th Academy Awards. Yemen is a first-time entrant.

The 2016 submissions are:

Albania, “Chromium,” Bujar Alimani, director;

Algeria, “The Well,” Lotfi Bouchouchi, director;

Argentina, “The Distinguished Citizen,” Mariano Cohn, Gastón Duprat, directors;

Australia, “Tanna,” Bentley Dean, Martin Butler, directors;

Austria, “Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe,” Maria Schrader, director;

Bangladesh, “link=tt5510934 auto]The Unnamed[/link],” Tauquir Ahmed, director;

Belgium, “The Ardennes,” Robin Pront, director;

Bolivia, “Sealed Cargo,” Julia Vargas Weise, director;

Bosnia and Herzegovina, “Death in Sarajevo,” Danis Tanovic, director;

Brazil, “Little Secret,” David Schurmann, director;

Bulgaria, “Losers,” Ivaylo Hristov, director;

Cambodia, “Before the Fall,” Ian White, director;

Canada, “It’s Only the End of the World,” Xavier Dolan, director;

Chile, “Neruda,” Pablo Larraín, director;

China, “Xuan Zang,” Huo Jianqi, director;

Colombia, “Alias Maria,” José Luis Rugeles, director;

Costa Rica, “About Us,” Hernán Jiménez, director;

Croatia, “On the Other Side,...

The official submissions for the foreign language Oscar are in from around the world, and the Academy has deemed a record 85 eligible to compete. Last year, 81 submissions were released theatrically in their home countries between October 1, 2014 and September 30, 2015. (This year’s deadline for submissions was October 3, 2016.)

Several Academy foreign committees comprised of members from all the branches will whittle down the films to a shortlist of nine and finally, five Oscar nominees. (Last year’s winner was Cannes prize-winner “Son of Saul,” directed by Hungarian Lazlo Nemes.) Many countries pick films that do well on the festival circuit as their strongest Oscar contender; others do not.

Politics often intervene: Brazil’s submission was expected to be Cannes competition film “Aquarius,” starring Sonia Braga, but it was embroiled in controversy over filmmaker Kleber Mendonça Filho’s support of outgoing impeached president Dilma Rousseff. Bruno Barreto’s Brazil selection committee went...

The official submissions for the foreign language Oscar are in from around the world, and the Academy has deemed a record 85 eligible to compete. Last year, 81 submissions were released theatrically in their home countries between October 1, 2014 and September 30, 2015. (This year’s deadline for submissions was October 3, 2016.)

Several Academy foreign committees comprised of members from all the branches will whittle down the films to a shortlist of nine and finally, five Oscar nominees. (Last year’s winner was Cannes prize-winner “Son of Saul,” directed by Hungarian Lazlo Nemes.) Many countries pick films that do well on the festival circuit as their strongest Oscar contender; others do not.

Politics often intervene: Brazil’s submission was expected to be Cannes competition film “Aquarius,” starring Sonia Braga, but it was embroiled in controversy over filmmaker Kleber Mendonça Filho’s support of outgoing impeached president Dilma Rousseff. Bruno Barreto’s Brazil selection committee went...

Eighty-five countries have submitted a film for consideration in the 60th anniversary year of the foreign language film category.

The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Science said on Tuesday that this season also marks the first time Yemen has submitted a film, Khadija Al-Salami’s I Am Nojoom, Age 10 And Divorced.

The 89th Oscars will take place on February 26, 2017, at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood. László Nemes’ Hungarian entry Son Of Saul won the award last February.

Foreign-language Academy Award Submissions

(Country, Title, director)

Albania, Chromium, dir Bujar Alimani;

Algeria, The Well, Lotfi Bouchouchi;

Argentina, The Distinguished Citizen, Mariano Cohn, Gastón Duprat;

Australia, Tanna, Bentley Dean, Martin Butler;

Austria, Stefan Zweig: Farewell To Europe, Maria Schrader;

Bangladesh, The Unnamed, Tauquir Ahmed;

Belgium, The Ardennes, Robin Pront;

Bolivia, Sealed Cargo, Julia Vargas Weise;

Bosnia and Herzegovina, Death In Sarajevo, Danis Tanovic;

Brazil, Little Secret, David Schurmann.

Bulgaria, Losers, [link...

Nine-person Foreign Language jury selects Cannes hit from director Maren Ade.

Germany has selected Cannes hit Toni Erdmann by Maren Ade as its submission for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar.

Ade’s well-sold comedy about a father who tries to reconnect with his adult daughter stars Sandra Huller and Peter Simonischek.

The film, considered by many to be a strong contender to make the final shortlist, is a production by Komplizen Film, in co-production with the Austrian coop 99 Filmproduktion, knm (Monaco) and Missing Link Films.

The decision was taken by an independent jury appointed by German Films, comprising Karsten Stöter, Katharina Rinderle, Julia Weber, Jasna Vavra, Christoph Preßmar, Dunja Bialas, Felicitas Darschin, Sven Burgemeister and Heide Schwochow.

The nine-person jury said of its decision: “Toni Erdmann stood out among the eight submitted films with its resolute artistic signature. A bold and stylistically confident cinematic display of character on the pulse of the times. Maren Ade manages...

Best Foreign-Language Film contenders announced.

Germany has unveiled the eight films it will put forward for Best Foreign-Language Film consideration at the 89th Oscars.

The titles are:

At Eye Level by Evi Goldbrunner, Joachim DollhopfLook Who’s Back by David F. WnendtFog In August by Kai WesselPower To Change – Die Energierebellion by Carl-a. FechnerThe People Vs. Fritz Bauer by Lars KraumeThe Diary Of Anne Frank by Hans SteinbichlerToni Erdmann by Maren AdeStefan Zweig: Farewell To Europe by Maria Schrader

An independent jury will meet in Munich on Aug 23, with the chosen title revealed on Aug 25.

Maren Ade’s comedy-drama Toni Erdmann received its world premiere at Cannes in May, where it topped Screen’s jury grid of critics.

David Wnendt’s Hitler satire Look Who’s Back has proved a box office hit in Germany, making $21.8m (€19.6m) following its October 2015 release, and has since sold to Netflix.

Kai Wessel’s Fog In August, which deals with...

Best Foreign-Language Film contenders revealed.

Germany has unveiled the eight films it will put forward for Best Foreign-Language Film consideration at the 89th Oscars.

The titles are:

At Eye Level by Evi Goldbrunner, Joachim DollhopfLook Who’s Back by David F. WnendtFog In August by Kai WesselPower To Change – Die Energierebellion by Carl-a. FechnerThe People Vs. Fritz Bauer by Lars KraumeThe Diary Of Anne Frank by Hans SteinbichlerToni Erdmann by Maren AdeStefan Zweig: Farewell To Europe by Maria Schrader

An independent jury will decide on which film to submit after convening in Munich on Aug 23, with the chosen title revealed on Aug 25.

Maren Ade’s comedy-drama Toni Erdmann received its world premiere at Cannes in May, where it topped Screen’s jury grid of critics.

David Wnendt’s Hitler satire Look Who’s Back has proved a box office hit in Germany, making $21.8m (€19.6m) following its October 2015 release, and has since sold to Netflix.

Kai Wessel’s Fog In...

Best Foreign-Language Film contenders revealed.

Germany has unveiled the eight films that it has shortlisted for Best Foreign-Language Film at the 89th Oscars.

The titles are:

At Eye Level by Evi Goldbrunner, Joachim DollhopfLook Who’s Back by David F. WnendtFog In August by Kai WesselPower To Change – Die Energierebellion by Carl-a. FechnerThe People Vs. Fritz Bauer by Lars KraumeThe Diary Of Anne Frank by Hans SteinbichlerToni Erdmann by Maren AdeStefan Zweig: Farewell To Europe by Maria Schrader

An independent jury will decide on which film to submit after convening in Munich on Aug 23, with the chosen title revealed on Aug 25.

Maren Ade’s comedy-drama Toni Erdmann received its world premiere at Cannes in May, where it topped Screen’s jury grid of critics.

David Wnendt’s Hitler satire Look Who’s Back has proved a box office hit in Germany, making $21.8m (€19.6m) following its October 2015 release, and has since sold to Netflix.

Kai Wessel’s Fog In...

It’s become a great breaking in the new year traditional here at Ioncinema.com. We begin our countdown to the our most anticipated foreign films (anything outside the U.S.) with our own Nicholas Bell curating the best bets for 2016. Here are the titles and filmmakers that didn’t make our final Top 100 cut, but are nonetheless “radar” worthy.

101. El Rey del Once – Daniel Burman

102. The Dancer – Stephanie Di Giusto

103. Le Cancre – Paul Vecchiali

104. While the Women are Sleeping – Wayne Wang

105. Tomorrow – Martha Pinson

106. Spring Again – Gael Morel

107. Crowhurst – Simon Rumley

108. Le Garcon – Philippe Lioret *

109. Marie and the Misfits – Sebastien Betbeder

110. Le Caravage – Alain Chevalier

111. Night Song – Raphael Nadjari

112. Réparer les vivants – Katell Quillevere *

113. Project Lazarus – Mateo Gil

114. Afterimages – Andrzej Wajda

115. Don’t Knock Twice – Caradog James

116. Detour – Christopher Smith

117. The Bride of Rip Van Winkle – Shunji Iwai

118. Three on the Road – Johnnie To

119. Le Vin et le Vent...

Exclusive: Josef Hader and Barbara Sukowa star in feature from Cloud Atlas producer.

Films Distribution has boarded international sales rights to German-language drama Before Dawn, which will chart the life of renowned 20th century writer Stefan Zweig.

The Paris-based sales outfit will co-produce alongside X-Filme, Maha Productions, Dor Film and Ideale Audience, reuniting with producer Stefan Arndt (Cloud Atlas, The White Ribbon), with whom they worked on 2014 drama The Dark Valley.

Before Dawn, currently in post-production, charts the years in exile of the famous Jewish Austrian writer who struggled to reconcile himself to events in war torn 1930’s Europe before taking his own life in Brazil.

Zweig’s works have inspired numerous films including Wes Anderson’s Oscar-winner The Grand Budapest Hotel, Patrice Leconte’s 2013 drama A Promise and Roberto Rosselini’s 1954 drama Fear.

Josef Hader (The Bone Man) stars alongside Barbara Sukowa (Hannah Arendt) in the drama which marks the feature debut of actress Maria Schrader ([link...