The Hong Kong-Europe-Asian Film Collaboration Funding Scheme being launched this week in Berlin is intended as a major component of an exercise in rehabilitating and internationalizing the Hong Kong film industry.
In unprecedented fashion, the territory’s Film Development Council is getting ready to start giving cash grants to movie projects that don’t necessarily have to shoot in the city or even use one of its three official languages.
Whereas in the 1970s, 80s and 90s, Hong Kong produced over 300 movies a year, for local, regional and international consumption, creating stars including Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh, the 21st century has witnessed a downsizing and recalibration of the Hong Kong production system.
For much of the past two decades the city operated as a highly-skilled but smaller system that sat alongside and fed into the mainland Chinese industry during a period when the Chinese economy...
In unprecedented fashion, the territory’s Film Development Council is getting ready to start giving cash grants to movie projects that don’t necessarily have to shoot in the city or even use one of its three official languages.
Whereas in the 1970s, 80s and 90s, Hong Kong produced over 300 movies a year, for local, regional and international consumption, creating stars including Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh, the 21st century has witnessed a downsizing and recalibration of the Hong Kong production system.
For much of the past two decades the city operated as a highly-skilled but smaller system that sat alongside and fed into the mainland Chinese industry during a period when the Chinese economy...
- 2/17/2024
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
I.E. Entertainment, the global distribution outfit founded and run by industry veterans Indra and Erlina Suharjono, has come on board to handle worldwide sales for Cathay Film Company’s “Coolie.”
The TV miniseries is inspired by the little-known history of enslaved Chinese ‘coolies’ in Cuba in the 1860s. It begins shooting this week in the Dominican Republic and will also include locations in Panama.
I.E. Entertainment will introduce “Coolie” to buyers for the first time at the Asia Television Forum & Market (Atf), which runs this week in Singapore.
The eight-episode English and Chinese language drama series is a global production from Meileen Choo’s Singapore-based Cathay Film Company and features a multinational ensemble cast from Hong Kong, Taiwan, Cuba and Colombia.
Arvin Chen is directing. In-Ah Lee (“Land of Plenty,” “Don’t Come Knockin’” “The Way I Spent the End of the World”) is the series’ executive producer. Ed Buhr...
The TV miniseries is inspired by the little-known history of enslaved Chinese ‘coolies’ in Cuba in the 1860s. It begins shooting this week in the Dominican Republic and will also include locations in Panama.
I.E. Entertainment will introduce “Coolie” to buyers for the first time at the Asia Television Forum & Market (Atf), which runs this week in Singapore.
The eight-episode English and Chinese language drama series is a global production from Meileen Choo’s Singapore-based Cathay Film Company and features a multinational ensemble cast from Hong Kong, Taiwan, Cuba and Colombia.
Arvin Chen is directing. In-Ah Lee (“Land of Plenty,” “Don’t Come Knockin’” “The Way I Spent the End of the World”) is the series’ executive producer. Ed Buhr...
- 12/4/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Arvin Chen is to direct “Coolie,” a limited series featuring enslaved Chinese workers in 19th century Cuba.
The eight-part series is the first to emerge from Cathay Film Company, a recent production venture launched by Singapore-based industry veteran Meileen Choo.
In the mid-1800s, when the African slave trade was outlawed throughout the Americas, plantation owners in Cuba instead began trafficking indentured servants from China and other parts of Asia. These, so-called coolies were often treated as slaves, but some integrated into Cuban society and joined the country’s fight for independence from Spain. The provided a low-cost workforce for farms, restaurants, factories and were instrumental in setting up Chinatowns across the world.
With Hong Kong actor Louise Wong in the lead role as a young woman who departs from southern China to marry a political exile working on a sugarcane plantation in Cuba, the narrative sees her join forces...
The eight-part series is the first to emerge from Cathay Film Company, a recent production venture launched by Singapore-based industry veteran Meileen Choo.
In the mid-1800s, when the African slave trade was outlawed throughout the Americas, plantation owners in Cuba instead began trafficking indentured servants from China and other parts of Asia. These, so-called coolies were often treated as slaves, but some integrated into Cuban society and joined the country’s fight for independence from Spain. The provided a low-cost workforce for farms, restaurants, factories and were instrumental in setting up Chinatowns across the world.
With Hong Kong actor Louise Wong in the lead role as a young woman who departs from southern China to marry a political exile working on a sugarcane plantation in Cuba, the narrative sees her join forces...
- 10/19/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
What’s the darkest moment you’ve ever seen in a rock ‘n’ roll documentary? Up until now, I’d have said the answer was obvious: the sequence in “Gimme Shelter” where Meredith Hunter, in his lime-green suit, rushes the stage at Altamont with a gun in his hand and gets stabbed in the back, half a dozen times, by a member of the Hell’s Angels. For pure heart of darkness, what could top that? But I’ve just seen “Catching Fire” (formerly titled “Anita”), Svetlana Zill and Alexis Bloom’s very good documentary about Anita Pallenberg — beautiful and imperious scenester of the ’60s and ’70s, Hollywood actress and icon of scruffy-chic rock royalty, partner of Keith Richards, muse to several of the other Rolling Stones. And there’s a moment in it that made me suck in my breath in shock and horror as much as “Gimme Shelter” does.
- 5/31/2023
- by Owen Gleiberman
- Variety Film + TV
Updated with latest: The Cannes Film Festival kicked off this year with opening-night movie Jeanne du Barry, and concluded Saturday evening with Justine Triet’s Anatomy of a Fall scooping the Palme d’Or. Deadline was on the ground to watch all the key films. Here is a compilation of our reviews from the fest, which last year saw Ruben Östlund’s Triangle of Sadness win the coveted top prize on its way to an Oscar Best Picture nomination.
Check out the reviews below, click on the titles to read them in full, and keep checking back as we add more.
About Dry Grasses ‘About Dry Grasses’
Section: Competition
Director: Nuri Bilge Ceylan
Cast: Deniz Celiloglu, Ece Bagci, Merve Dizdar, Musab Ekici
Deadline’s takeaway: For Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s many fans, this is another opportunity to slip into his world, spot his sly political references and subside for a...
Check out the reviews below, click on the titles to read them in full, and keep checking back as we add more.
About Dry Grasses ‘About Dry Grasses’
Section: Competition
Director: Nuri Bilge Ceylan
Cast: Deniz Celiloglu, Ece Bagci, Merve Dizdar, Musab Ekici
Deadline’s takeaway: For Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s many fans, this is another opportunity to slip into his world, spot his sly political references and subside for a...
- 5/27/2023
- by Pete Hammond, Damon Wise, Matthew Carey, Stephanie Bunbury and Valerie Complex
- Deadline Film + TV
Every year, the Cannes Film Festival program yields its riches. And every year, documentaries are kept to the selection sidebars, with the exception of just three over the years, two of which won the Palme d’Or: “The Silent World,” co-directed by Jacques Cousteau and Louis Malle in 1956, and Michael Moore’s “Fahrenheit 9/11” in 2004.
This year, out of 16 documentaries in the Official Selection, two are in the Competition, the first time nonfiction titles have joined that storied roster since Moore’s inclusion.
This is progress, but a quick glance at the latest Palme d’Or predictions reveals that Wang Bing’s “Youth” (marking the first 3.5-hours of an eventual 10-hour triptych) and “Olfa’s Daughters” from Kaouther Ben Hania are not high on the list of likely winners. Both are recognized by critics as boundary-pushing examples of the form but seem unlikely to become consensus award picks from Ruben Östlund’s eclectic Competition jury.
This year, out of 16 documentaries in the Official Selection, two are in the Competition, the first time nonfiction titles have joined that storied roster since Moore’s inclusion.
This is progress, but a quick glance at the latest Palme d’Or predictions reveals that Wang Bing’s “Youth” (marking the first 3.5-hours of an eventual 10-hour triptych) and “Olfa’s Daughters” from Kaouther Ben Hania are not high on the list of likely winners. Both are recognized by critics as boundary-pushing examples of the form but seem unlikely to become consensus award picks from Ruben Östlund’s eclectic Competition jury.
- 5/26/2023
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Updated with new title of documentary Catching Fire: The Story of Anita Pallenberg: Were it not for a chance encounter with the Rolling Stones in 1965, we might remember Anita Pallenberg as an exceptional actress and stunning model. Instead, her life was to be defined largely in relation to her ties with the “greatest rock n’ roll band in the world.”
In the documentary Catching Fire: The Story of Anita Pallenberg, which premiered earlier this week at the Cannes Film Festival (under the abbreviated title Anita), the radiant and compelling Pallenberg finally gets her due as a creative force in her own right, a woman of alluring beauty, intelligence, dysfunction, addiction, and yes, an important figure in the world of the Stones at their apex.
Directors Alexis Bloom (L) & Svetlana Zill
Alexis Bloom and Svetlana Zill directed the documentary, which begins with grainy archive of a gorgeous Pallenberg outdoors in a park-like setting,...
In the documentary Catching Fire: The Story of Anita Pallenberg, which premiered earlier this week at the Cannes Film Festival (under the abbreviated title Anita), the radiant and compelling Pallenberg finally gets her due as a creative force in her own right, a woman of alluring beauty, intelligence, dysfunction, addiction, and yes, an important figure in the world of the Stones at their apex.
Directors Alexis Bloom (L) & Svetlana Zill
Alexis Bloom and Svetlana Zill directed the documentary, which begins with grainy archive of a gorgeous Pallenberg outdoors in a park-like setting,...
- 5/25/2023
- by Matthew Carey
- Deadline Film + TV
by Nathaniel R
Memoir alert! For those of you who love showbiz biographies, take note that "Chita: A Memoir" is now on sale. The legendary dancer and multiple Tony winner Chita Rivera, turned 90 earlier this year. She was spurred to write the memoir (with the help of Patrick Pacheco) during the pandemic when there was so much down time.
Rivera and Pacheco are smart and know to drop the goods immediately; The very first chapter is on how she landed the legend-making role of "Anita" in Broadway's original incarnation of West Side Story... aka the greatest musical ever written. "Anita" is one of those roles. If you deliver, your career will never be the same again (just ask Rita Moreno and Ariana DeBose) but it all started with Chita.
Having just started the book, we can't speak to how often the memoir will return to the iconic musical but we...
Memoir alert! For those of you who love showbiz biographies, take note that "Chita: A Memoir" is now on sale. The legendary dancer and multiple Tony winner Chita Rivera, turned 90 earlier this year. She was spurred to write the memoir (with the help of Patrick Pacheco) during the pandemic when there was so much down time.
Rivera and Pacheco are smart and know to drop the goods immediately; The very first chapter is on how she landed the legend-making role of "Anita" in Broadway's original incarnation of West Side Story... aka the greatest musical ever written. "Anita" is one of those roles. If you deliver, your career will never be the same again (just ask Rita Moreno and Ariana DeBose) but it all started with Chita.
Having just started the book, we can't speak to how often the memoir will return to the iconic musical but we...
- 5/14/2023
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
In keeping with tradition, the 2023 edition of Cannes Classics promises to be a feast for cineastes with tributes to global masters and restored versions of all-time classics.
Cannes Classics’ Memories of Jean-Luc Godard strand pays homage to the master who died in 2022 by screening a restored version of “Contempt” (1963); “Godard by Godard,” a self-portrait of the auteur; and the world premiere of “Phony Wars,” a trailer for a film that will never get made, described by the festival as a venture where the filmmaker “transformed his synopses into aesthetic programs.”
Liv Ullman will be present at the strand with “Liv Ullmann – A Road Less Travelled,” a documentary directed by Dheeraj Akolkar.
Japanese master Ozu Yasujiro will be paid tribute to with screenings of “Record of a Tenement Gentleman” (1947) and “The Munekata Sisters” (1950) off restored prints. “Return to Reason” – where four films of painter, photographer and director Man Ray have been...
Cannes Classics’ Memories of Jean-Luc Godard strand pays homage to the master who died in 2022 by screening a restored version of “Contempt” (1963); “Godard by Godard,” a self-portrait of the auteur; and the world premiere of “Phony Wars,” a trailer for a film that will never get made, described by the festival as a venture where the filmmaker “transformed his synopses into aesthetic programs.”
Liv Ullman will be present at the strand with “Liv Ullmann – A Road Less Travelled,” a documentary directed by Dheeraj Akolkar.
Japanese master Ozu Yasujiro will be paid tribute to with screenings of “Record of a Tenement Gentleman” (1947) and “The Munekata Sisters” (1950) off restored prints. “Return to Reason” – where four films of painter, photographer and director Man Ray have been...
- 5/5/2023
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Ariana DeBose will do the thing again this summer, hosting the Tony Awards for a second year in a row. The ceremony will air live on CBS from New York City’s United Palace at 8 p.m. Et on June 11.
“I was honored to serve as host last year and even more so to be asked back,” DeBose said in a statement. “So looking forward to celebrating this incredible season and the people who make the work happen. Here’s to adding some uptown flavor to the magic of the Tony Awards!
“I was honored to serve as host last year and even more so to be asked back,” DeBose said in a statement. “So looking forward to celebrating this incredible season and the people who make the work happen. Here’s to adding some uptown flavor to the magic of the Tony Awards!
- 4/12/2023
- by Kory Grow
- Rollingstone.com
The film stars Philip Keung as a former gangster boss alongside Fish Liew and Ling Man Lung.
Kwan Man Hin’s The Remnant, presented here a Haf work-in-progress project, is the first film to emerge from the Keep Rolling initiative, launched to financially support a selection of Hong Kong titles.
The programme was set up by the Federation of Hong Kong Filmmakers, which comprises nine film industry guilds, during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2021 to support eight original screenplays with a production grant of $535,500 (Hk$4.2m) each. It is supported by the Joseph Lau Luen Hung Charitable Trust and World Universal Culture.
Kwan Man Hin’s The Remnant, presented here a Haf work-in-progress project, is the first film to emerge from the Keep Rolling initiative, launched to financially support a selection of Hong Kong titles.
The programme was set up by the Federation of Hong Kong Filmmakers, which comprises nine film industry guilds, during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2021 to support eight original screenplays with a production grant of $535,500 (Hk$4.2m) each. It is supported by the Joseph Lau Luen Hung Charitable Trust and World Universal Culture.
- 3/15/2023
- by Silvia Wong
- ScreenDaily
A world away from the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on Sunday night, industry leaders from across the Asian movie business were keeping regular tabs on the 95th Academy Awards ceremony via their phones at Hong Kong Filmart, the Eastern Hemisphere’s largest film trade show, eagerly awaiting news of whether regional screen legend Michelle Yeoh would make history as the first woman of Asian descent to win a best actress Oscar.
News of Yeoh’s triumph landed in Southern China at roughly 11 a.m. local time, sending the Malaysian and Hong Kong industry executives at Filmart into a private fits of celebration. Yeoh, who is Malaysian of Chinese descent, got her start during the golden era of the Hong Kong film industry in the 1980s and 1990s, and both Hong Kong and Malaysia have laid claim to her — sometimes contentiously — as a hometown hero. But on Monday, both industries...
News of Yeoh’s triumph landed in Southern China at roughly 11 a.m. local time, sending the Malaysian and Hong Kong industry executives at Filmart into a private fits of celebration. Yeoh, who is Malaysian of Chinese descent, got her start during the golden era of the Hong Kong film industry in the 1980s and 1990s, and both Hong Kong and Malaysia have laid claim to her — sometimes contentiously — as a hometown hero. But on Monday, both industries...
- 3/13/2023
- by Patrick Brzeski and Mathew Scott
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The much-decorated Japanese drama “Drive My Car” was named the best film Sunday at the Asian Film Awards, defeating hot favorite “Decision to Leave.”
Other notable awards went to Japan’s Hirokazu Kore-eda whose “Broker” debuted at Cannes, but which was largely shunned in his home country.
“Decision to Leave,” which started the evening with ten nominations, was nevertheless rewarded with three awards, best screenplay, best production design and best actress for China’s Tang Wei.
While nominations were geographically diverse, the awards on Sunday skewed heavily towards North East Asia –Japan, Korea and Greater China – to the total exclusion of films from India, Indonesia and The Philippines. Snubs included the exclusion of Indonesia’s “Autobiography” and Happy Salma, both of which have been widely lauded on the festival circuit.
The awards ceremony returned to Hong Kong after detours to Macau and Busan and a Covid hiatus in previous years.
Other notable awards went to Japan’s Hirokazu Kore-eda whose “Broker” debuted at Cannes, but which was largely shunned in his home country.
“Decision to Leave,” which started the evening with ten nominations, was nevertheless rewarded with three awards, best screenplay, best production design and best actress for China’s Tang Wei.
While nominations were geographically diverse, the awards on Sunday skewed heavily towards North East Asia –Japan, Korea and Greater China – to the total exclusion of films from India, Indonesia and The Philippines. Snubs included the exclusion of Indonesia’s “Autobiography” and Happy Salma, both of which have been widely lauded on the festival circuit.
The awards ceremony returned to Hong Kong after detours to Macau and Busan and a Covid hiatus in previous years.
- 3/12/2023
- by Patrick Frater and Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Disney and Marvel’s Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, starring Paul Rudd, fell to third place at China’s theatrical box office in its second weekend on local screens, earning just $7 million. Hong Kong courtroom thriller A Guilty Conscience, meanwhile, topped the charts with an $8.5 million opening, according to box office tracker Artisan Gateway. And sci-fi blockbuster The Wandering Earth 2, which has been in cinemas since China’s Lunar New Year holiday over a month ago, climbed back into second place with an $7.4 million haul, lifting its total to $568 million.
Chinese viewers have rewarded Ant-Man 3 with strong social scores — 8.8 on Maoyan, 8.7 at Alibaba’s Taopiaopiao and 6.1 on Douban — but its earnings are coming in far below the first two titles in the franchise. After nine days in release, Ant-Man 3 had earned $31.4 million. Maoyan currently projects the film to finish with a total of around $40 million. The original...
Chinese viewers have rewarded Ant-Man 3 with strong social scores — 8.8 on Maoyan, 8.7 at Alibaba’s Taopiaopiao and 6.1 on Douban — but its earnings are coming in far below the first two titles in the franchise. After nine days in release, Ant-Man 3 had earned $31.4 million. Maoyan currently projects the film to finish with a total of around $40 million. The original...
- 2/27/2023
- by Patrick Brzeski
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Hong Kong courtroom drama film “A Guilty Conscience” edged aside Chinese and Hollywood tentpole films to top the mainland China box office in its opening weekend.
According to data from consultancy service Artisan Gateway, the film earned $8.5 million (RMB58.4 million) in its opening three days between Friday and Sunday.
“The Wandering Earth 2,” which has been in cinemas for over a month, earned $7.4 million to elevate its cumulative total to $568 million.
“Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania,” which opened on top a week earlier, collected $7.0 million, giving it a 10-day cumulative of $31.4 million.
Zhang Yimou’s “Full River Red” placed fourth with $5.5 million over its sixth weekend. Its cumulative since Jan. 22 now stands at $648 million.
Bring up fifth place was another Lunar New Year release, “Boonie Bears: Guardian Code” with $3.9 million over the weekend, good for a cumulative of $207 million.
The weekend total box office was a modest $39.6 million, the smallest...
According to data from consultancy service Artisan Gateway, the film earned $8.5 million (RMB58.4 million) in its opening three days between Friday and Sunday.
“The Wandering Earth 2,” which has been in cinemas for over a month, earned $7.4 million to elevate its cumulative total to $568 million.
“Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania,” which opened on top a week earlier, collected $7.0 million, giving it a 10-day cumulative of $31.4 million.
Zhang Yimou’s “Full River Red” placed fourth with $5.5 million over its sixth weekend. Its cumulative since Jan. 22 now stands at $648 million.
Bring up fifth place was another Lunar New Year release, “Boonie Bears: Guardian Code” with $3.9 million over the weekend, good for a cumulative of $207 million.
The weekend total box office was a modest $39.6 million, the smallest...
- 2/27/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Milestone has only previously been surpassed by Hollywood blockbusters.
Courtroom drama A Guilty Conscience has made history at the Hong Kong box office as the first local film ever to reach Hk$100m ($12.75m), a figure only previously achieved by Hollywood tentpoles.
The feature from first-time director Jack Ng reached the milestone on February 21, just 32 days after its release on January 21 – the eve of Chinese New Year.
Only a handful of Hollywood films have previously hit Hk$100m at the Hong Kong box office, with recent titles including Top Gun: Maverick and Avatar: The Way Of Water. Others include Marvel...
Courtroom drama A Guilty Conscience has made history at the Hong Kong box office as the first local film ever to reach Hk$100m ($12.75m), a figure only previously achieved by Hollywood tentpoles.
The feature from first-time director Jack Ng reached the milestone on February 21, just 32 days after its release on January 21 – the eve of Chinese New Year.
Only a handful of Hollywood films have previously hit Hk$100m at the Hong Kong box office, with recent titles including Top Gun: Maverick and Avatar: The Way Of Water. Others include Marvel...
- 2/23/2023
- by Silvia Wong
- ScreenDaily
Cinema box office in Hong Kong rebounded over the recent Chinese New Year holiday period. They failed to recover to pre-pandemic levels, but local titles performed strongly.
Data from Hong Kong Box Office Limited showed gross revenues between Saturday and Tuesday amounted to HK50.89 million (6.52 million). That is a 19 improvement on the equivalent four-day period in 2020, when Covid was just starting to arrive in the city and revenues fell to HK42.89 million (5.50 million). But the number was still 17 below the 2019 figure of HK61.47 million (7.88 million).
Cinemas in the territory were closed during Lunar New Year holidays in both 2021 and 2022 due to the government’s anti-covid measures.
Unlike mainland China, Hong Kong has no film import quotas and does not operate blackout periods when foreign films cannot be released. The holiday period chart for Hong Kong contains a mix of local, U.S. and Japanese and none of the films that...
Data from Hong Kong Box Office Limited showed gross revenues between Saturday and Tuesday amounted to HK50.89 million (6.52 million). That is a 19 improvement on the equivalent four-day period in 2020, when Covid was just starting to arrive in the city and revenues fell to HK42.89 million (5.50 million). But the number was still 17 below the 2019 figure of HK61.47 million (7.88 million).
Cinemas in the territory were closed during Lunar New Year holidays in both 2021 and 2022 due to the government’s anti-covid measures.
Unlike mainland China, Hong Kong has no film import quotas and does not operate blackout periods when foreign films cannot be released. The holiday period chart for Hong Kong contains a mix of local, U.S. and Japanese and none of the films that...
- 1/26/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
The Asian Film Awards Academy, in collaboration with Bali International Film Festival (Balinale), with the financial support of Create Hong Kong and Film Development Fund, we are honoured to present our flagship film roadshow – Asian Cinerama in Jakarta for the first time. We bring together six Hong Kong films in a variety of genres to showcase the rich and vibrant creativity of contemporary movies produced out of Hong Kong.
The program — Asian Cinerama — Hong Kong Focus — will run from Thursday 15 Sept to Sunday 18 September at Plaza Indonesia Xxi, Jakarta, it will open with Glenn Chan’s directional debut Shadows, a breath-taking psychological thriller features an outstanding ensemble of actors. The film discourses the evil that is subconsciously embedded in our minds the terrifying consequences that ensue when the evil is unleashed. The film has been hailed as ‘one of the best films of the year’. The film’s producer and scriptwriter,...
The program — Asian Cinerama — Hong Kong Focus — will run from Thursday 15 Sept to Sunday 18 September at Plaza Indonesia Xxi, Jakarta, it will open with Glenn Chan’s directional debut Shadows, a breath-taking psychological thriller features an outstanding ensemble of actors. The film discourses the evil that is subconsciously embedded in our minds the terrifying consequences that ensue when the evil is unleashed. The film has been hailed as ‘one of the best films of the year’. The film’s producer and scriptwriter,...
- 9/4/2022
- by Adam Symchuk
- AsianMoviePulse
By numbers, her work in the Hindi film industry seems quite scanty — at 33 films in around a decade and a half. But the statistics fail to reveal that, save around five, all were box-office hits, and some of them broke new ground, making her one of the most popular and successful actresses of all times — and a fashion icon too.
Though she struck gold right from her debut as female lead, and went on to become an “in demand” actress for everything, from frothy romances to tear-jerkers, Sadhana is most remembered for her trademark hairstyle — the famous “Sadhana cut” of fringes or short bangs (itself inspired by the elfin and charming Audrey Hepburn) — and pioneering form-fitting kurtas and churidar pyjamas.
But in her comparatively limited outings, Sadhana, who was born on this day in 1941, showcased her acting prowess. She could essay roles of a rich heiress to a village belle...
Though she struck gold right from her debut as female lead, and went on to become an “in demand” actress for everything, from frothy romances to tear-jerkers, Sadhana is most remembered for her trademark hairstyle — the famous “Sadhana cut” of fringes or short bangs (itself inspired by the elfin and charming Audrey Hepburn) — and pioneering form-fitting kurtas and churidar pyjamas.
But in her comparatively limited outings, Sadhana, who was born on this day in 1941, showcased her acting prowess. She could essay roles of a rich heiress to a village belle...
- 9/2/2022
- by Glamsham Bureau
- GlamSham
Preparing for an upcoming flight isn’t just limited to packing your clothes and toiletries — have you thought about how you’re going to keep yourself entertained? The idealist in all of us might say we’re gonna read that book we’ve been putting off, but depending on the length of your flight, that may be easier said than done. If it’s on the longer side, it can be easy to get distracted and start to really feel the minutes crawling by.
The good news is that in recent years,...
The good news is that in recent years,...
- 8/19/2022
- by Jon Adams
- Rollingstone.com
TV series adaptations of “Fearless” and “Cold War,” two of the highest-profile Hong Kong action movies of the 21st century, are now in development.
The shift into TV represents a major expansion and diversification for Edko Films, the studio headed by legendary producer-financier-executive Bill Kong.
The original 2006 “Fearless” was an iconic portrait of martial arts ace Huo Yianjia that was directed by Ronny Tong and starred Jet Li. It received studio-level distribution in many territories through Buena Vista, Uip and Sony Pictures Releasing.
“Cold War” is a 2012 crime action film involving a mole inside the Hong Kong police. It was written and co-directed by Longman Leung and Sunny Luk and had Aaron Kwok, Tony Leung Ka-fai and Charlie Young in lead roles. It spawned a sequel movie in 2016 with an even higher profile cast that included Chow Yun-fat and Eddie Peng.
“We have often received inquiries from abroad about buying...
The shift into TV represents a major expansion and diversification for Edko Films, the studio headed by legendary producer-financier-executive Bill Kong.
The original 2006 “Fearless” was an iconic portrait of martial arts ace Huo Yianjia that was directed by Ronny Tong and starred Jet Li. It received studio-level distribution in many territories through Buena Vista, Uip and Sony Pictures Releasing.
“Cold War” is a 2012 crime action film involving a mole inside the Hong Kong police. It was written and co-directed by Longman Leung and Sunny Luk and had Aaron Kwok, Tony Leung Ka-fai and Charlie Young in lead roles. It spawned a sequel movie in 2016 with an even higher profile cast that included Chow Yun-fat and Eddie Peng.
“We have often received inquiries from abroad about buying...
- 5/19/2022
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Move aside, Billie Eilish; it’s time for Anita to take back the stage. Lok Man Leung’s “Anita” delivers a loving tribute to Anita Mui — legendary Cantopop singer, actress, and activist. Much like Eilish, Mui too had a seamless start to her career. After years of performing on the streets, Mui underwent a fateful vocal cord surgery that lowered her pitch by an octave. Mui’s new voice charmed audiences though – and she skyrocketed to fame by winning the New Talent Singing Awards at the tender age of 19. She then polished her baritone pitch and outfits with Cantopop factory Capital Artists and fashion heavyweight Eddie Lau. She collaborated with movie icons too – like Stanley Kwan, Leslie Cheung, and Maggie Cheung, to name a few – in her first forays into the film industry. By the age of twenty-six, she already reaped the coveted markers of success in both music and...
- 4/29/2022
- by Grace Han
- AsianMoviePulse
In a 15+ film collection, Pacific Art Movement’s 11th San Diego Asian Film Festival (Sdaff) Spring Showcase returns to in-person programming at the Ultrastar Cinemas in Mission Valley, San Diego from April 21 through 28, 2022. This year’s showcase recognizes the impact of Asian, Asian American, and Pacific Islanders (Aapi) on popular culture. Audiences will enjoy eight days of films from China, Indonesia, the Philippines, South Korea, and Vietnam including a four-film retrospective on director and actress Kinuyo Tanaka. The showcase opens with the biopic Anita on April 21 telling the captivating story of the “Madonna of Hong Kong”. Closing night features Free Chol Soo Lee which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival this January. Other programming includes live Q&As from filmmakers and a panel discussion with the authors of Rise: A Pop History of Asian America From The Nineties To Now.
“Our 11th Spring Showcase marks more than just a return in-person for the Asian,...
“Our 11th Spring Showcase marks more than just a return in-person for the Asian,...
- 4/4/2022
- by Rhythm Zaveri
- AsianMoviePulse
We trust that you'll let us know if we got anything wrong. Feel free to add things you noticed in the comments
We've reviewed the Oscar ceremony, but we also have to talk records broken or interesting trivia. Coda broke a ton of records (not all of them flattering) by taking Best Picture with just three nominations. But there's a lot more than just that...
list of winners if you haven't seen that
Picture
• Coda is now the lowest grossing film of all time to win the Best Picture prize with a recorded gross of 1 million (globally). It's also, not coincidentally the first film distributed by a streaming service to ever win Best Picture. The previous lowest grossing winners since modern box office tabulations began were The Hurt Locker which had earned 17 million in US domestic release (49.2 globally). Nomadland, which arrived during the pandemic, was something of a hybrid between...
We've reviewed the Oscar ceremony, but we also have to talk records broken or interesting trivia. Coda broke a ton of records (not all of them flattering) by taking Best Picture with just three nominations. But there's a lot more than just that...
list of winners if you haven't seen that
Picture
• Coda is now the lowest grossing film of all time to win the Best Picture prize with a recorded gross of 1 million (globally). It's also, not coincidentally the first film distributed by a streaming service to ever win Best Picture. The previous lowest grossing winners since modern box office tabulations began were The Hurt Locker which had earned 17 million in US domestic release (49.2 globally). Nomadland, which arrived during the pandemic, was something of a hybrid between...
- 3/28/2022
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
"Ten years of hard work to perfect three minutes on stage, right?" Cmc Pictures has unveiled an official trailer for a biopic drama titled Anita, from Hong Kong filmmaker Lok Man Leung. This recently premiered as the Closing Night film at the Busan Film Festival in Korea, and is opening in theaters worldwide later this week (on November 12th). The film traces the life of Anita Mui, Hong Kong's "disappeared" Cantopop star. The film opens with her final concert and looks back on her life and legacy. The very definition of a cultural icon during Hong Kong's golden age, Anita dedicated almost her whole life to music. Behind stardom, her personal life, passion at work and the love for friends made her an irreplaceable role model as the "Queen of Cantopop". Starring Louise Wong as Anita. This looks like everything you'd expect from a popstar biopic. Here's the main international...
- 11/8/2021
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
“Most sales companies gave me news of postponing, only moving their dates later and later.”
Busan’s 2021 Asian Contents & Film Market (Acfm) wrapped yesterday (October 14), after a four-day hybrid event.
International sales meetings were held online while domestic participants in the Asian Project Market (Apm) and E-ip Market had meetings on-site in Busan.
Last year’s market was held entirely online, and most Korean sales agents have not traveled overseas since after the Berlinale in 2020.
“Post-pandemic, it’s possible we will continue to be hybrid with online market screenings but what everybody agrees is that the most important thing is to be able to meet,...
Busan’s 2021 Asian Contents & Film Market (Acfm) wrapped yesterday (October 14), after a four-day hybrid event.
International sales meetings were held online while domestic participants in the Asian Project Market (Apm) and E-ip Market had meetings on-site in Busan.
Last year’s market was held entirely online, and most Korean sales agents have not traveled overseas since after the Berlinale in 2020.
“Post-pandemic, it’s possible we will continue to be hybrid with online market screenings but what everybody agrees is that the most important thing is to be able to meet,...
- 10/15/2021
- by Jean Noh
- ScreenDaily
The festival has learned of one confirmed case of Covid-19 amongst its attendees to the opening ceremony.
The 26th Busan International Film Festival (Biff) wrapped today (October 15) with Wang Er Zhuo’s Chinese film Farewell, My Hometown and Kim Se-in’s Korean title The Apartment With Two Women winning the two New Currents awards.
The latter film picked up four other awards including actress of the year for Im Jee-ho.
The socially-distanced festival, which required Pcr tests and/or proof of full vaccination from guests, learned of one confirmed case of Covid-19 amongst its attendees to the opening ceremony, October...
The 26th Busan International Film Festival (Biff) wrapped today (October 15) with Wang Er Zhuo’s Chinese film Farewell, My Hometown and Kim Se-in’s Korean title The Apartment With Two Women winning the two New Currents awards.
The latter film picked up four other awards including actress of the year for Im Jee-ho.
The socially-distanced festival, which required Pcr tests and/or proof of full vaccination from guests, learned of one confirmed case of Covid-19 amongst its attendees to the opening ceremony, October...
- 10/15/2021
- by Jean Noh
- ScreenDaily
The Busan International Film Festival announced joint winners in both of its prestige sections, the New Currents competition for emerging Asian filmmakers and the Kim Jiseok showcase for works by the region’s more established directors.
Korean-made “The Apartment With Two Women” and Chinese film “Farewell, My Hometown,” both first features, shared the New Currents award.
In the Kim Jiseok award section Brillante Mendoza’s boxing drama “Gensan Punch” split the first prize with Aparna Sen’s “The Rapist.” In the same section, a special mention was made for “The Bargain,” by China’s Wang Qi.
The announcements were made on Friday morning at a press conference at which festival organizers critiqued matters such as levels of audience attendance, two delayed screenings and a new community outreach program.
They confirmed that just one guest tested preliminary positive for Covid-19 while in Busan. Festival staff will be subjected to a further two weeks of additional testing.
Korean-made “The Apartment With Two Women” and Chinese film “Farewell, My Hometown,” both first features, shared the New Currents award.
In the Kim Jiseok award section Brillante Mendoza’s boxing drama “Gensan Punch” split the first prize with Aparna Sen’s “The Rapist.” In the same section, a special mention was made for “The Bargain,” by China’s Wang Qi.
The announcements were made on Friday morning at a press conference at which festival organizers critiqued matters such as levels of audience attendance, two delayed screenings and a new community outreach program.
They confirmed that just one guest tested preliminary positive for Covid-19 while in Busan. Festival staff will be subjected to a further two weeks of additional testing.
- 10/15/2021
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
The short life and brilliant career of Hong Kong singer, actress and social activist Anita Mui is celebrated in the middling biopic “Anita,” starring 31-year-old model Louise Wong in her film debut. This handsomely decorated and lushly filmed portrait nails the look and electric atmosphere in Hong Kong’s entertainment industry during its 1980s and ’90s heyday but only fitfully captures the sassy energy and fearless spirit that made Mui an adored figure who became known as the “Madonna of the East” and the “Daughter of Hong Kong.” Archival footage of Mui sprinkled throughout the film highlights the difference.
“Anita” joins a long list of productions about Mui (Miu Yim-fong), who died from cervical cancer in Dec. 2003 at the age of 40. Among these are the lengthy Chinese TV series “Anita Mui Fei” (2007) and “Dearest Anita” (2019), a fact-based drama inspired by members of the Mui Nation online fan club. This big-budget...
“Anita” joins a long list of productions about Mui (Miu Yim-fong), who died from cervical cancer in Dec. 2003 at the age of 40. Among these are the lengthy Chinese TV series “Anita Mui Fei” (2007) and “Dearest Anita” (2019), a fact-based drama inspired by members of the Mui Nation online fan club. This big-budget...
- 10/14/2021
- by Richard Kuipers
- Variety Film + TV
The Hamptons Intl. Film Festival will open with the world premiere of Matthew Heineman’s “The First Wave” on Oct. 7 and buzzy titles including Pablo Larrain’s “Spencer” as the Saturday centerpiece film and Jane Campion’s “The Power of the Dog” in the additional spotlight selection. The in-person festival ends Oct. 13 with Wes Anderson’s “French Dispatch.” The festival takes place in the Hamptons on the Eastern End of Long Island, N.Y. from Oct. 7-13. Masks and proof of vaccination are required in theaters.
Spotlight Titles
Newly announced Spotlight titles include the East Coast premiere of Joe Wright’s “Cyrano,” Maggie Gyllenhaal’s directorial feature debut of “The Lost Daughter,” Academy Award-winning director Pedro Almodóvar’s “Parallel Mothers,” Rebecca Hall’s directorial debut “Passing” and Campion’s “The Power of the Dog.”
Signature Programs
As part of the Signature Programs, the Conflict and Resolution section will include Jonas Poher Rasmussen’s “Flee,...
Spotlight Titles
Newly announced Spotlight titles include the East Coast premiere of Joe Wright’s “Cyrano,” Maggie Gyllenhaal’s directorial feature debut of “The Lost Daughter,” Academy Award-winning director Pedro Almodóvar’s “Parallel Mothers,” Rebecca Hall’s directorial debut “Passing” and Campion’s “The Power of the Dog.”
Signature Programs
As part of the Signature Programs, the Conflict and Resolution section will include Jonas Poher Rasmussen’s “Flee,...
- 9/15/2021
- by Jennifer Yuma
- Variety Film + TV
Asia’s largest film festival, the Busan International Film Festival aims to become both more relevant in the wider Asia region and simultaneously more in touch with its local community.
This year, it has been downsized compared with the pre-pandemic era. But its 2021 edition will still weigh in at 223 films (features and shorts) from 70 territories.
All feature films will get multiple in-person screenings across six complexes with a total of 29 screens. That’s an improvement on 2020, when films only screened once in theaters. But restrictions remain: each venue will be limited to 50% capacity and all tickets must be reserved online and in advance.
The 26th edition of the festival is set to run Oct. 6-16, 2021.
New festival director, Huh Moon-young admitted that the coronavirus conditions in Asia-Pacific currently make it “almost impossible” for many visitors from Asia to travel to the festival. He forecast just 20-30 European and U.S.
This year, it has been downsized compared with the pre-pandemic era. But its 2021 edition will still weigh in at 223 films (features and shorts) from 70 territories.
All feature films will get multiple in-person screenings across six complexes with a total of 29 screens. That’s an improvement on 2020, when films only screened once in theaters. But restrictions remain: each venue will be limited to 50% capacity and all tickets must be reserved online and in advance.
The 26th edition of the festival is set to run Oct. 6-16, 2021.
New festival director, Huh Moon-young admitted that the coronavirus conditions in Asia-Pacific currently make it “almost impossible” for many visitors from Asia to travel to the festival. He forecast just 20-30 European and U.S.
- 9/15/2021
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Series
Banijay Nordic company Jarowskij has unveiled “A Class Apart,” a new eight-part drama series commissioned by Viaplay, which Banijay Rights will distribute internationally. Based on an original idea from Henrik Schyffert and Gustaf Skördeman, the series unspools within a secret society at on of Sweden’s top boarding schools. After a hazing ritual goes wrong and an alumni is found dead, a student from a nearby disadvantaged public school is accused of murder. The series was written by Michaela Hamilton (“Eagles”) and Erik Eger and stars Aliette Opheim (“Caliphate”) and Valter Skarsgård (“Lords of Chaos”). Eger, Andrea Östlund (“The Restaurant”) and David Berron direct. Jarowskij, Brommamamma, Viaplay, Film I Väst and Banijay Rights all co-produce.
Distribution
Abacus Media Rights has closed a series of sales for the CBC/HBO Max original comedy program “Sort Of” ahead of its premiere on CBC’s streaming services Gem and CBC TV in November and in the U.
Banijay Nordic company Jarowskij has unveiled “A Class Apart,” a new eight-part drama series commissioned by Viaplay, which Banijay Rights will distribute internationally. Based on an original idea from Henrik Schyffert and Gustaf Skördeman, the series unspools within a secret society at on of Sweden’s top boarding schools. After a hazing ritual goes wrong and an alumni is found dead, a student from a nearby disadvantaged public school is accused of murder. The series was written by Michaela Hamilton (“Eagles”) and Erik Eger and stars Aliette Opheim (“Caliphate”) and Valter Skarsgård (“Lords of Chaos”). Eger, Andrea Östlund (“The Restaurant”) and David Berron direct. Jarowskij, Brommamamma, Viaplay, Film I Väst and Banijay Rights all co-produce.
Distribution
Abacus Media Rights has closed a series of sales for the CBC/HBO Max original comedy program “Sort Of” ahead of its premiere on CBC’s streaming services Gem and CBC TV in November and in the U.
- 8/18/2021
- by Jamie Lang
- Variety Film + TV
Making a swift start at the Cannes film market, Sony Pictures has nabbed theatrical rights to Edko Films’ musical biopic Anita in five Asian territories.
The film traces the life of Hong Kong singer and screen star Anita Mui, who died at the age of 40 in 2003, but remains one of the biggest names in Cantopop musical history, with a huge fan base throughout Asia.
Sony will distribute the film in Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam near the end of 2021. Bill Kong’s Edko will remain involved in the release in Hong Kong and mainland China.
Anita is the first solo ...
The film traces the life of Hong Kong singer and screen star Anita Mui, who died at the age of 40 in 2003, but remains one of the biggest names in Cantopop musical history, with a huge fan base throughout Asia.
Sony will distribute the film in Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam near the end of 2021. Bill Kong’s Edko will remain involved in the release in Hong Kong and mainland China.
Anita is the first solo ...
Making a swift start at the Cannes film market, Sony Pictures has nabbed theatrical rights to Edko Films’ musical biopic Anita in five Asian territories.
The film traces the life of Hong Kong singer and screen star Anita Mui, who died at the age of 40 in 2003, but remains one of the biggest names in Cantopop musical history, with a huge fan base throughout Asia.
Sony will distribute the film in Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam near the end of 2021. Bill Kong’s Edko will remain involved in the release in Hong Kong and mainland China.
Anita is the first solo ...
The film traces the life of Hong Kong singer and screen star Anita Mui, who died at the age of 40 in 2003, but remains one of the biggest names in Cantopop musical history, with a huge fan base throughout Asia.
Sony will distribute the film in Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam near the end of 2021. Bill Kong’s Edko will remain involved in the release in Hong Kong and mainland China.
Anita is the first solo ...
Hong Kong fashion model Louise Wong stars as the renowned actress and Canto-pop diva.
Sony Pictures has picked up theatrical rights for five Asian territories to anticipated biopic Anita from Bill Kong’s Edko Films.
Sony will distribute the film about the legendary Hong Kong singer-actress Anita Mui in Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam in Q4 of this year. Mui stlll enjoys a huge fan base following her death in 2003. Edko will oversee the release of the film in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong fashion model Louise Wong stars as the renowned actress and Canto-pop diva. Edko has kept the...
Sony Pictures has picked up theatrical rights for five Asian territories to anticipated biopic Anita from Bill Kong’s Edko Films.
Sony will distribute the film about the legendary Hong Kong singer-actress Anita Mui in Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam in Q4 of this year. Mui stlll enjoys a huge fan base following her death in 2003. Edko will oversee the release of the film in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong fashion model Louise Wong stars as the renowned actress and Canto-pop diva. Edko has kept the...
- 7/8/2021
- by Silvia Wong
- ScreenDaily
“Table for Six,” an ensemble comedy directed by and starring Sunny Chan, has joined the Cannes Market and pre-Cannes sales slate of Hong Kong’s Edko Films.
The setup is a familiar one: family gatherings gone wrong. In “Table For Six” big brother Dai (Dayo Wong) nothing is more satisfying than dining with his two younger half-siblings (Louis Cheung and Peter Chan). But when Dai’s old flame (Stephy Tang) shows up as his brother’s girlfriend, kitchen nightmare strikes and it’s up to his part-time girlfriend (Lim Min-chen) to bring the boiling situation back down to a simmer.
Chan (aka Chan Wing-sun) was responsible for the breakout hit comedy “Men on The Dragon” three years ago. The film managed to be poignant and funny as it played on themes of unemployment, mid-life crisis and changing times in Hong Kong, and earned Chan multiple nominations a best director and...
The setup is a familiar one: family gatherings gone wrong. In “Table For Six” big brother Dai (Dayo Wong) nothing is more satisfying than dining with his two younger half-siblings (Louis Cheung and Peter Chan). But when Dai’s old flame (Stephy Tang) shows up as his brother’s girlfriend, kitchen nightmare strikes and it’s up to his part-time girlfriend (Lim Min-chen) to bring the boiling situation back down to a simmer.
Chan (aka Chan Wing-sun) was responsible for the breakout hit comedy “Men on The Dragon” three years ago. The film managed to be poignant and funny as it played on themes of unemployment, mid-life crisis and changing times in Hong Kong, and earned Chan multiple nominations a best director and...
- 6/23/2021
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
A promise made between leading Asian film producer Bill Kong and the late Canto-pop super star Anita Mui will soon be fulfilled. Kong’s Edko Films has finally completed production of “Anita,” its long-awaited biopic of the legendary singer-actress who died 18 years ago.
Recalling a meeting with Mui in 2003, Kong said the beloved Hong Kong icon hoped to make a film that could leave a legacy for future generations. “Director Zhang Yimou and I then designed a role for her in ‘House of Flying Daggers’ (2004). But we could not make her dream come true because she passed,” Kong said in a statement. Mui died of cervical cancer on December 30, 2003.
Kong recalled their decades long friendship and said he has never forgotten their promise. “We met a long time ago. Back then Edko Films was still a small company while Mui was already a super star. But she still helped us...
Recalling a meeting with Mui in 2003, Kong said the beloved Hong Kong icon hoped to make a film that could leave a legacy for future generations. “Director Zhang Yimou and I then designed a role for her in ‘House of Flying Daggers’ (2004). But we could not make her dream come true because she passed,” Kong said in a statement. Mui died of cervical cancer on December 30, 2003.
Kong recalled their decades long friendship and said he has never forgotten their promise. “We met a long time ago. Back then Edko Films was still a small company while Mui was already a super star. But she still helped us...
- 5/27/2021
- by Vivienne Chow
- Variety Film + TV
For the very first time, Iffla is making a section of its 2021 lineup available to audiences in India, with the India Pass. For the price of Rs. 150 ($2), the India Pass will offer access to 24 films from this year’s lineup, including 6 features and 18 shorts. Most expenses associated with this pass are being underwritten by an anonymous donor.
Highlights from the India Pass selection include the Malayalam feature “Biriyaani“, with a powerhouse performance by Kani Kusruti; the poignant Rotterdam selected documentary “A Rifle and a Bag“; and the impressive debut feature “Aise Hee” (Just Like That).
Of note this year is a special program curated by the legendary Uma da Cunha, “Childhood on Edge”, with characters on the verge of the momentous transformation from childhood to adulthood. This program includes three diverse features and one short, “Kanya“.
From the shorts in the India Pass, highlights include the riveting National Award winning...
Highlights from the India Pass selection include the Malayalam feature “Biriyaani“, with a powerhouse performance by Kani Kusruti; the poignant Rotterdam selected documentary “A Rifle and a Bag“; and the impressive debut feature “Aise Hee” (Just Like That).
Of note this year is a special program curated by the legendary Uma da Cunha, “Childhood on Edge”, with characters on the verge of the momentous transformation from childhood to adulthood. This program includes three diverse features and one short, “Kanya“.
From the shorts in the India Pass, highlights include the riveting National Award winning...
- 5/10/2021
- by Adriana Rosati
- AsianMoviePulse
The Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (Iffla) announced today its full lineup of narrative and documentary features, and shorts for the festival’s 19th edition, which will be held virtually and geo-blocked to California, on May 20-27.
“This is a very special year for Iffla. Taking the festival online has given us the freedom to curate programs we would not have been able to present in a physical setting. We have expanded our reach to all California residents, doubled the shorts program with a strong representation of films from the diaspora, added special programs like “Childhood on Edge”, and curated discussions on timely and pressing topics, celebrating the independent film community from India and the Indian diaspora,” said Christina Marouda, Executive Director.
Iffla will open with the Los Angeles premiere of the powerful female-centric film, Fire in the Mountains, the 2021 Sundance-selected debut feature by Ajitpal Singh that immerses audiences...
“This is a very special year for Iffla. Taking the festival online has given us the freedom to curate programs we would not have been able to present in a physical setting. We have expanded our reach to all California residents, doubled the shorts program with a strong representation of films from the diaspora, added special programs like “Childhood on Edge”, and curated discussions on timely and pressing topics, celebrating the independent film community from India and the Indian diaspora,” said Christina Marouda, Executive Director.
Iffla will open with the Los Angeles premiere of the powerful female-centric film, Fire in the Mountains, the 2021 Sundance-selected debut feature by Ajitpal Singh that immerses audiences...
- 4/16/2021
- by Adriana Rosati
- AsianMoviePulse
The 19th edition Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles has announced an expanded virtual lineup of shorts and narrative and documentary features after canceling 2020’s event due to the pandemic and lockdown.
Taking place from May 20 to May 27, the Iffla boasts 40 films spanning 17 languages, with 16 women directors.
The festival will open with Ajitpal Singh’s “Fire in the Mountains,” which immerses audiences in the splendor of the Himalayas, and close with Akshay Indikar’s “Sthalpuran (Chronicle of Space),” which explores the inner life of its young protagonist, Dighu. Singh and Indikar’s films will be followed by Q&As with Asif Kapadia and Anurag Kashyap, respectively.
Special programs include “Childhood on Edge,” curated by Uma da Cunha; a panel featuring South Asian showrunners; and a screening of Prakash Deka’s “Fireflies” followed by a panel on transgender and non-binary representation in India and the diaspora.
Iffla’s feature lineup includes...
Taking place from May 20 to May 27, the Iffla boasts 40 films spanning 17 languages, with 16 women directors.
The festival will open with Ajitpal Singh’s “Fire in the Mountains,” which immerses audiences in the splendor of the Himalayas, and close with Akshay Indikar’s “Sthalpuran (Chronicle of Space),” which explores the inner life of its young protagonist, Dighu. Singh and Indikar’s films will be followed by Q&As with Asif Kapadia and Anurag Kashyap, respectively.
Special programs include “Childhood on Edge,” curated by Uma da Cunha; a panel featuring South Asian showrunners; and a screening of Prakash Deka’s “Fireflies” followed by a panel on transgender and non-binary representation in India and the diaspora.
Iffla’s feature lineup includes...
- 4/15/2021
- by Ethan Shanfeld
- Variety Film + TV
Who can you turn to when you don’t know who to trust?
From master spy novelist John le Carré – best-selling author of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and A Most Wanted Man – Ewan McGregor (Trainspotting) and Naomie Harris (Skyfall) star in the suspense-filled espionage thriller Our Kind of Traitor, arriving on Blu-ray (plus Digital HD), DVD (plus Digital), and On Demand October 18 from Lionsgate. Featuring an international cast including Stellan Skarsgård (Avengers: Age of Ultron) and Golden Globe®winner Damian Lewis (TV’s “Homeland”), the edge-of-your-seat thriller follows two people whose whole life is turned upside down when they step in to help a stranger. Our Kind of Traitor is written by Hossein Amini and directed by Susanna White.
Now you can own the Blu-ray of Our Kind Of Traitor. We Are Movie Geeks has one copy to give away. All you have to do is leave a comment below...
From master spy novelist John le Carré – best-selling author of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and A Most Wanted Man – Ewan McGregor (Trainspotting) and Naomie Harris (Skyfall) star in the suspense-filled espionage thriller Our Kind of Traitor, arriving on Blu-ray (plus Digital HD), DVD (plus Digital), and On Demand October 18 from Lionsgate. Featuring an international cast including Stellan Skarsgård (Avengers: Age of Ultron) and Golden Globe®winner Damian Lewis (TV’s “Homeland”), the edge-of-your-seat thriller follows two people whose whole life is turned upside down when they step in to help a stranger. Our Kind of Traitor is written by Hossein Amini and directed by Susanna White.
Now you can own the Blu-ray of Our Kind Of Traitor. We Are Movie Geeks has one copy to give away. All you have to do is leave a comment below...
- 10/5/2016
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Exclusive: UK distributor also acquires upcoming sports biopic Borg vs McEnroe, Directors’ Fortnight title After Love and Scottish indie music doc Lost In France.
Curzon Artificial Eye has swooped on four buzz titles at the Cannes Film Festival, acquiring UK and Eire rights to Lars Von Trier’s The House That Jack Built, Shia Labeouf-starrer Borg vs McEnroe, Joachim Lafosse’s After Love and Niall McCann’s Lost in France.
The pre-buy of serial killer drama The House That Jack Built continues the distributor’s long-standing relationship with the controversial Danish director, stretching back to Antichrist and includes Melancholia and Nymphomaniac Volumes I & II. The deal was negotiated with Susan Wendt at TrustNordisk.
The $9.8m project will shoot in Sweden this year, before a Copenhagen shoot in 2017. Zentropa producer Louise Vesth revealed details of the highly-anticipated feature to Screen in Cannes earlier this week, when several early deals were revealed.
The film, originally...
Curzon Artificial Eye has swooped on four buzz titles at the Cannes Film Festival, acquiring UK and Eire rights to Lars Von Trier’s The House That Jack Built, Shia Labeouf-starrer Borg vs McEnroe, Joachim Lafosse’s After Love and Niall McCann’s Lost in France.
The pre-buy of serial killer drama The House That Jack Built continues the distributor’s long-standing relationship with the controversial Danish director, stretching back to Antichrist and includes Melancholia and Nymphomaniac Volumes I & II. The deal was negotiated with Susan Wendt at TrustNordisk.
The $9.8m project will shoot in Sweden this year, before a Copenhagen shoot in 2017. Zentropa producer Louise Vesth revealed details of the highly-anticipated feature to Screen in Cannes earlier this week, when several early deals were revealed.
The film, originally...
- 5/20/2016
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
Exclusive: Shia Labeouf and Sverrir Gudnason star as John McEnroe and Bjorn Borg.
Pretty Pictures has acquired French rights to the newly announced Borg/McEnroe film to be directed by Janus Metz and starring Shia Labeouf as John McEnroe, Sverrir Gudnason as Bjorn Borg and Stellan Skarsgard as Borg’s coach.
Sf Studios handles sales and Pretty Pictures president James Velaise negotiated the deal with Sf head of international sales Anita Simovic.
Pretty Pictures has also boarded Benjamin Ree’s documentary Magnus from TrustNordisk in a deal that Velaise negotiated with sales manager Nicolai Korsgaard. That Tribeca hit documentary is about chess champion Magnus Carlsen.
Velaise told Screen that Borg/McEnroe “is one of the best scripts we’ve read in a long time, combined with very good ideas on the casting front and an excellent director.
“Both actors are the spitting image of Borg and McEnroe. Having grown up with all these tennis players, I’m instinctively...
Pretty Pictures has acquired French rights to the newly announced Borg/McEnroe film to be directed by Janus Metz and starring Shia Labeouf as John McEnroe, Sverrir Gudnason as Bjorn Borg and Stellan Skarsgard as Borg’s coach.
Sf Studios handles sales and Pretty Pictures president James Velaise negotiated the deal with Sf head of international sales Anita Simovic.
Pretty Pictures has also boarded Benjamin Ree’s documentary Magnus from TrustNordisk in a deal that Velaise negotiated with sales manager Nicolai Korsgaard. That Tribeca hit documentary is about chess champion Magnus Carlsen.
Velaise told Screen that Borg/McEnroe “is one of the best scripts we’ve read in a long time, combined with very good ideas on the casting front and an excellent director.
“Both actors are the spitting image of Borg and McEnroe. Having grown up with all these tennis players, I’m instinctively...
- 5/18/2016
- by wendy.mitchell@screendaily.com (Wendy Mitchell)
- ScreenDaily
It all started with Exposed. I’m not sure what brought this 1971 Swedish sexploitation film to the suggestion portion of my Netflix account (presumably the roster of Jess Franco films recently added), but after reading the description, I figured it was worth a shot: “A pretty young teen finds her innocence lost when an unguarded night of revelry yields shameful secrets, and a stack of nude pictures that could ruin her life. But to get her hands on the negatives, she’ll have to expose herself even further.” That is indeed the basic plot of the film, which plays out exactly as one would expect for such fare. But what was unexpected while watching Exposed (also known as the much less enticing Diary of a Rape), was the 21-year-old star of the film. Her name is Christina Lindberg.
Exposed, for lack of a better phrase, is what it is. It...
Exposed, for lack of a better phrase, is what it is. It...
- 9/25/2015
- by Jeremy Carr
- SoundOnSight
The doe-eyed , baby-faced Swedish actress Christina Lindberg is best known for starring as Frigga in the 1974 rape and revenge classic Thriller, A Cruel Picture, which was released in the U.S. under the title They Call Her One Eye. Born in 1950, the voluptuous Ms Lindberg was an incredibly popular nude model in men’s magazines before beginning her movie career, which lasted from about 1970 to 1975. Her debut was the 1971 hit Maid In Sweden followed by more successful “soft-core” sex dramas such as Anita The Swedish Nymph, Exposed, Campus Swingers, Swedish Wildcats, Young Playthings and a dozen or so more. She went to Japan in 1973 and co-starred in Sex And Fury and Sex In Japan. Otherwise all of her movies were made in Sweden where she has lived her entire life. Christina refused to act in the hardcore sex films that began to dominate the industry by the mid-1970’s and...
- 5/21/2015
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
"I helped create you." The sinister side of artificial intelligence is teased in the first trailer for AMC's sci-fi series, Humans, premiering Sunday, June 28th at 9:00pm Est:
Press Release (via TV By the Numbers) -- New York, NY – May 14, 2015 – "AMC today announced its new eight-part drama series “Humans” will premiere Sunday, June 28th at 9:00 p.m. Et/Pt. Set in suburban London, “Humans” takes place in a parallel present where the latest must-have gadget for any busy family is a Synth – a highly developed, artificially intelligent servant eerily similar to its living counterpart. Penned by British writing partners Sam Vincent and Jonathan Brackley (“Spooks,” Spooks: The Greater Good) and based on the award-winning Swedish sci-fi drama “Real Humans,” the series explores the emotional impact that comes as the lines between humans and machines become increasingly blurred. This bold new series is produced in conjunction with the...
Press Release (via TV By the Numbers) -- New York, NY – May 14, 2015 – "AMC today announced its new eight-part drama series “Humans” will premiere Sunday, June 28th at 9:00 p.m. Et/Pt. Set in suburban London, “Humans” takes place in a parallel present where the latest must-have gadget for any busy family is a Synth – a highly developed, artificially intelligent servant eerily similar to its living counterpart. Penned by British writing partners Sam Vincent and Jonathan Brackley (“Spooks,” Spooks: The Greater Good) and based on the award-winning Swedish sci-fi drama “Real Humans,” the series explores the emotional impact that comes as the lines between humans and machines become increasingly blurred. This bold new series is produced in conjunction with the...
- 5/14/2015
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
How would you program this year's newest, most interesting films into double features with movies of the past you saw in 2014?
Looking back over the year at what films moved and impressed us, it is clear that watching old films is a crucial part of making new films meaningful. Thus, the annual tradition of our end of year poll, which calls upon our writers to pick both a new and an old film: they were challenged to choose a new film they saw in 2014—in theatres or at a festival—and creatively pair it with an old film they also saw in 2014 to create a unique double feature.
All the contributors were given the option to write some text explaining their 2014 fantasy double feature. What's more, each writer was given the option to list more pairings, with or without explanation, as further imaginative film programming we'd be lucky to catch...
Looking back over the year at what films moved and impressed us, it is clear that watching old films is a crucial part of making new films meaningful. Thus, the annual tradition of our end of year poll, which calls upon our writers to pick both a new and an old film: they were challenged to choose a new film they saw in 2014—in theatres or at a festival—and creatively pair it with an old film they also saw in 2014 to create a unique double feature.
All the contributors were given the option to write some text explaining their 2014 fantasy double feature. What's more, each writer was given the option to list more pairings, with or without explanation, as further imaginative film programming we'd be lucky to catch...
- 1/5/2015
- by Notebook
- MUBI
New Release
Alan Partridge
R, 1 Hr., 30 Mins.
Steve Coogan’s hilariously acidic creation, the buffoonish radio host Alan Partridge, is finally back. And like so many reunions, this one starts off all smiles and quickly grows tiresome. Coogan’s alter ego is as deliciously petty as ever. But the plot swirling around him — a fired co-worker (Colm Meaney) takes the station hostage — is unimaginative and endless. (Also available on iTunes and VOD) B- —Chris Nashawaty
Anita
Not Rated, 1 Hr., 17 Mins.
Freida Mock’s documentary about Anita Hill is an important reminder of a shameful chapter in American politics — when blame-the-victim...
Alan Partridge
R, 1 Hr., 30 Mins.
Steve Coogan’s hilariously acidic creation, the buffoonish radio host Alan Partridge, is finally back. And like so many reunions, this one starts off all smiles and quickly grows tiresome. Coogan’s alter ego is as deliciously petty as ever. But the plot swirling around him — a fired co-worker (Colm Meaney) takes the station hostage — is unimaginative and endless. (Also available on iTunes and VOD) B- —Chris Nashawaty
Anita
Not Rated, 1 Hr., 17 Mins.
Freida Mock’s documentary about Anita Hill is an important reminder of a shameful chapter in American politics — when blame-the-victim...
- 4/2/2014
- by EW staff
- EW - Inside Movies
Warning: Spoilers Galore.
By not simply rolling to "The End," "They all lived happily ever after," etc. after Frodo made a three-pointer chucking The One Ring into Mount Doom, Peter Jackson set a pretty bad precedent in "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King." Every time it seemed like all was well and we were fading to credits, another five-minute scene would roll in. Toss in a few Oscars and you've got a bunch of blockbuster directors wanting to add 20 endings to their genre films, too.
With "Man of Steel" currently keeping people from validating their parking for way longer than they should, let's take a look at five recent flicks that just kept going and going and going ...
'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo' (2011)
Ending #1: Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig) discovers the killer was Martin (Stellan Skarsgård), goes to his house and is almost murderized by the dude,...
By not simply rolling to "The End," "They all lived happily ever after," etc. after Frodo made a three-pointer chucking The One Ring into Mount Doom, Peter Jackson set a pretty bad precedent in "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King." Every time it seemed like all was well and we were fading to credits, another five-minute scene would roll in. Toss in a few Oscars and you've got a bunch of blockbuster directors wanting to add 20 endings to their genre films, too.
With "Man of Steel" currently keeping people from validating their parking for way longer than they should, let's take a look at five recent flicks that just kept going and going and going ...
'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo' (2011)
Ending #1: Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig) discovers the killer was Martin (Stellan Skarsgård), goes to his house and is almost murderized by the dude,...
- 6/17/2013
- by Max Evry
- NextMovie
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.