BFI Sets $18m Funding Award For 11 UK Partner Organizations

First Look, the works-in-progress strand of the Locarno film festival’s industry section, is set to highlight independent UK films for its 2023 edition.

Fire chiefs have issued a warning after a student managed to set their accommodation on fire while cooking breakfast. Emergency services were called to the flat earlier this week.

Naman Ramachandran India’s Clapstem Entertainment, led by director-producer Girish Malik and producer Amardeep S. Reen, has completed film “Band of Maharajas,” which is set for a market screening at Berlin’s European Film Market (EFM). Malik’s directorial debut, ecological drama “Jal” (2013), was in Busan’s New Currents competition. His sophomore feature, refugee and sports themed “Torbaaz” (2020), headlined by Bollywood star Sanjay Dutt, was a Netflix original film. His third film “Band of Maharajas” is the story of three clueless young folk musicians from a remote border village in India who undertake an unplanned and unusual journey to Pakistan that changes their lives and music. The film has the tagline “While countries divide us, music unites us.”

Jason Alexander will make his Broadway directing debut this summer with Sandy Rustin’s comedy The Cottage. Starring will be Eric McCormack, Laura Bell Bundy and Lilli Cooper.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Leonis Productions, the Newen Studios-owned French banner created by Jean-Benoit Gillig, is developing a raft of international shows on the heels of “Liaison,” Apple TV+’s first French original. The company reached a milestone with “Liaison,” a thriller series created and entirely penned by Virginie Brac (“Spiral”) and directed by Stephen Hopkins. Vincent Cassel and Eva Green lead a cast that includes Peter Mullan, Gérard Lanvin, Daniel Francis, Stanislas Merhar, Irène Jacob, Laëtitia Eïdo, Eriq Ebouaney, Tchéky Karyo, Bukky Bakray and Thierry Fremont. “It’s a sprawling French-British thriller set against the backdrop of Brexit, and there’s a metaphor between the love tragedy playing as the primary plot and the political tragedy embodied by Brexit unfolding in the background,” said Gillig.

Bob Odenkirk is going through a midlife crisis in the AMC series, .Adapted from the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, by Richard Russo, the and alum plays Hank Devereaux Jr., head of the English department at the underfunded Railton College, whose life begins to fall apart. Hank's unhappiness is rooted in unresolved issues with his father, a mediocre and entitled student body and the fact that his department is more divided than ever. 's Mireille Enos co-stars as Lily Devereaux, Hank's wife and vice principal of a local high school, who starts to question the path she's on and the choices she's made amid his downward spiral.The newly released trailer reveals the extent of Hank's discontentment as he publicly declares to a class of students that they're swimming in mediocrity and because they're enrolled in a lackluster college like Railton, they «show very little promise.» When his sudden outburst gets out, Hank begins to worry about the impact his unfiltered words could mean for his future at the college and in his personal life.Things get more and more out of control, as Hank attempts to stay afloat while every aspect of his life goes up in flames.

Following Valentine's Day, a new study has revealed the top locations across Scotland to propose to your partner.

Joao Cancelo has labelled speculation that he had a fight with Pep Guardiola as a 'complete lie.' The full-back shockingly left on deadline day of the January transfer window, despite having more minutes under his belt than any other defender for Manchester City this season.

EXCLUSIVE: Vertical’s early bid for the sci-fi thriller Simulant, currently in post-production, paid off for the company with US and UK/IRE distribution rights. Vertical will release the film on May 5th beginning with a DIRECTV On Demand exclusive followed by the day & date release on June 2nd. Myriad Pictures will be selling international distribution rights.

Savvy bargain hunters have been flocking to their nearest Asda store after shoppers reported finding £16 dinner sets are scanning for just £1.30 at the tills.

Helen Flanagan has told fans she has found her 'prince' as she marked Valentine's Day with her children. The former Coronation Street actress took to Instagram the evening before the annual day of love with some adorable images after enjoying an early Valentine's Day 'date with her young son, Charlie.

Mikel Arteta might be plotting Pep Guardiola's downfall this week but the Arsenal boss' management success was very much made in Manchester.

EXCLUSIVE: The BBC has defended its decision to produce glossy adverts for Huawei and Chinese state media, saying the contracts are important to funding its international journalism.

Do The Right Thing filmmaker Spike Lee received a lengthy standing ovation as he cruised on stage at the BFI Southbank in London to receive the BFI’s Fellowship award Monday evening.

Naman Ramachandran Chris O’Dowd (“Puffin Rock”), Amy Huberman (“Derry Girls”), Beth McCafferty and Eva Whittaker (“Wolfwalkers”) lead the voice cast of “Puffin Rock and the New Friends,” the film based on the TV series “Puffin Rock.” Following their collaboration on Oscar nominees “Song of the Sea” and “The Breadwinner,” WestEnd Films is teaming again with Irish animation studio Cartoon Saloon and Northern Ireland’s Dog Ears on the film and is launching sales at Berlin’s European Film Market (EFM), where first footage will be shown to buyers. “Puffin Rock and the New Friends” sees Oona, Baba, May and Mossy joined by a new characters Isabelle, Phoenix and Marvin. When the last Little Egg of the season disappears under mysterious circumstances, Oona and her new friends race against time to bring the Little Egg home before a big storm hits Puffin Rock and puts the entire island in danger.

EXCLUSIVE: Warsaw-based New Europe Film Sales has boarded international sales on Goran Stolevski’s Housekeeping For Beginners starring top Romanian actress Anamaria Marinca as an unmaternal, gay woman who suddenly finds herself responsible for her partner’s two young daughters.  

Environmental Activism Pic ‘Finite: The Climate of Change’ Lands UK Release & Global Sales EXCLUSIVE: Feature documentary Finite: The Climate of Change has secured a UK theatrical release from indie distributor Espresso Media from February 15. Espresso is also handling global distribution, with sales to Japan (NHK) and Estonia (ERR) confirmed. The pic is currently in release in Germany. Directed by climate activist turned filmmaker Rich Felgate, the film follows concerned citizens in Germany who step forward to save an ancient forest from one of Europe’s biggest coal mines. However, the local citizens also form an unlikely alliance with a frustrated community in rural northeast England who are forced into action to protect their homes from a new opencast coal mine.

A man has gone on trial accused of murdering his wife by setting her on fire after she made a trip home to Nigeria from Scotland.

The BFI today announced that it will hand out $16m (£14m) of National Lottery ‘good cause’ funding over three years to enhance film education for 5-18 year-olds across the UK.

BBC One’s finale of BAFTA-winning crime drama Happy Valley took 7.5 million viewers last night in the UK.