Dominican Republic Cinema Gains Momentum at Huelva Festival As It Raises Its International Profile

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Though the Red Sea Film Festival will feature a slew of films from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region – including 11 feature films from Saudi Arabia – there is a rich roster of international fare set to launch locally from Jeddah. Kaleem Aftab, the festival’s director of international programming, says they received lots more submissions for this year’s third edition.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor AGC Intl., the international sales and distribution arm of Stuart Ford’s fast-growing independent content studio AGC Studios, has picked up world rights from Image Nation Abu Dhabi, MBC Studios and VOX Studios on Yasir Al Yasiri‘s “HWJN,” and from O3 Medya and Dhafer L’Abidine’s Double A Productions on L’Abidine’s “To My Son.” Saudi fantasy romance ‘HWJN’ will open the Red Sea Film Festival on Nov. 30, while the emotional family drama “To My Son” will premiere in Red Sea’s Arab Spectacular section.

Stuart Ford’s AGC International has picked up world rights to two Arab-produced titles, HWJN by Yasir Al-Yasiri and To My Son byDhafer L’abidine, ahead of their debuts at Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Film Festival. 

Anna Marie de la Fuente Among the Copia Final titles in Ventana Sur, the Dominican Republic’s “Tiger” (“Tiguere”) by lauded filmmaker José María Cabral (“Woodpeckers”) casts a harsh light on the machismo culture of the Caribbean nation and by extension, Latin America. Shot in a lush mountain retreat, “Tiger” is set in a boot camp where families drop off their teenage sons with the hope that they learn to become “real men.” It is led by boot camp head Alberto, who decides that his son Pablo, an aspiring artist, is ready to join the camp.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Filmmakers of “Supernova: The Music Festival Massacre” have unveiled a first-look trailer of the harrowing documentary film, which charts the dramatic events that took place during Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack at a music festival in Southern Israel through the eyes of survivors.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Melita Toscan du Plantier has been the driving force behind the Marrakech Film Festival ever since her late husband, revered French producer Daniel Toscan du Plantier, wrote to Morocco’s king two decades ago expressing “his ambition for a big international festival in Morocco,” as she recounts. The festival’s 20th edition is currently underway in the ancient Moroccan city, despite the Israel-Hamas conflict that has caused cancellations of several other fests in the region as well as the earthquake that hit the country in September.

Anna Marie de la Fuente The Dominican Republic (DR) has been making bold strides in its film industry, reporting dynamic growth and earning kudos both at home and internationally. Ironically, what spurred its growth was a global pandemic. As many countries remained in lockdown, DR opened its borders to more location shoots by June 2020.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent After skipping Venice due to the actors’ strike, a busy Willem Dafoe is back on the festival trail, attending the 20th edition of the Marrakech Film Festival with his wife, filmmaker and actor Giada Colagrande. He spoke to Variety about his ties to Morocco, why he’s “happy to be promoting and starting to work again” now that the strike is over, and his role in Tim Burton’s upcoming “Beetlejuice 2.” How does it feel to be back in Marrakech? I’m happy to be back. Morocco for me is “The Last Temptation of Christ,” a film that was a beautiful experience.

Miss Universe 2022 R’Bonney Gabriel, the Miss Universe Organization (MUO), and formalwear marketplace Queenly are teaming up to donate all of R’Bonney’s outstanding outfits from her reign. The looks will be sold on Queenly’s platform, with the proceeds donated to Houston’s Magpies and Peacocks.

Mariana Downing began making headlines after winning Miss Dominican Republic in 2023. The beauty queen and model has been the talk of the town for months for multiple reasons, being her past relationship with Marc Anthony one of them.her past relationship with Marc Anthony one of them.When the salsa singer’s wife was confirmed as a part of the Miss Universe selection committee, many began speculating if having Nadia as a juror would affect Mariana’s score.

Anna Marie de la Fuente The Dominican Republic’s Bou Group is in production on its latest pic under its unprecedented multi-year distribution deal with The Walt Disney Company, “Cazatesoros.” According to the adventure caper’s director, Héctor Manuel Valdez, who co-founded Bou Group with José Ramón Alamá and Vicente Alamá, the pact with Disney came about following several years as regional box office leaders. “They contacted us in 2020 after our company had previously produced commercial successes such as ‘Todos los hombres son iguales,’ ‘Colao,’ ‘Trabajo sucio’ and ‘Que león,’ (the highest-grossing film in the history of the Dominican Republic), among others,” said Valdez.

Emily Longeretta The ATX TV Festival is beginning to roll out its programming for Season 13. The event, taking place May 30-June 2 in Austin, Texas, will include both “Suits” and “Halt and Catch Fire” reunions. The creatives and cast of “Suits” will get back together, marking five years since the series finale.

Emiliano De Pablos Disney+ has picked up Latin American rights to Diego Yaker’s Argentine-Spanish revenge thriller “Una jirafa en el balcón” and is planning a theatrical release in Argentina and Uruguay. Barcelona-based indie studio Filmax is handling Spanish distribution and international sales rights on the film. Hitting the final straits of its shoot, “Una jirafa en el balcón” is filming in Barcelona over Nov.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor More than 800 film industry professionals in Germany and Austria have signed an open letter opposing antisemitism, with the number of signatories continuing to grow. The signatories include a wide range of directors, writers, producers and other film industry professionals.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Beta Cinema has sold the North American rights for “Adios Buenos Aires” to Outsider Pictures, which plans to release the charming comedy drama in spring 2024 throughout the U.S. and Canada.

Emiliano De Pablos The 49th edition of Huelva Ibero-American Film Festival, Spain’s largest confab for films from Latin America, Spain and Portugal, will honor Mexican star Cecilia Suárez with its City of Huelva Award. With leading roles in Netflix’s “The House of Flowers” and HBO Latin America’s “Capadocia,” Suárez has also be seen in ABC’s drama “The Promised Land” and has worked on films by as Tommy Lee Jones (“The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada”), James L.

Keanu Reeves is set to perform at Rock For People in the Czech Republic with his band Dogstar, it was announced today.The trio formed in the early 1990s, and became a firm cult favourite, with their alternative rock style and impressive tours alongside the likes of David Bowie and Bon Jovi.After two studio albums and 20 inactive years, the band reunited earlier this year, with their new studio album ‘Somewhere Between The Power Lines And Palm Trees’ being released last month. They are currently touring the US, with their final show taking place in Nashville, Tennessee on December 20.In a statement, Michal Thomes, the Festival Director at Rock For People spoke on the forthcoming performance by the John Wick star, saying: “Having Dogstar perform with the stellar Keanu Reeves on bass is a real dream come true for me.”And it isn’t the first time the group were sought after by the festival.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Film Festival has revealed details of the Red Sea Souk, the fest’s industry market that will offer meeting and networking opportunities revolving around new Arab and African product. The Souk will take place Dec. 2-5 alongside the Nov.

Will Tizard Contributor Like the cinematography sector overall this year, the profession’s prime annual festival, Poland’s Camerimage, has come through major challenges in 2023, says the event’s founder, Marek Zydowicz. Launching in the historic town of Torun on Nov.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Film Festival has announced the bulk of its lineup from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), signaling that the event is forging ahead with its third edition despite the Israel-Hamas war that has caused cancellations of several movie celebrations across the Arab world. The fest’s third edition, set to run Nov.