Film Festivals, Human Rights Groups Call for Release of Belarusian Director

It was almost exactly a year ago, in March 2020, atStudio Babelsberg Germany's largest film studio, located just outside Berlin.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentFilm Movement has acquired North American rights to Alexandre Rockwell’s “Sweet Thing,” which won the Berlin Film Festival’s Crystal Bear in 2020.The movie is slated for a theatrical release this summer, followed by a rollout on all digital and home entertainment platforms.

The Berlin Film Festival's planned in-person event this summer is in doubt amid new coronavirus pandemic restrictions set out in Germany's recently updated Infection Protection Act. The changes "now make the planning of the Berlinale Summer Special a bigger challenge," organizers said in a statement on Wednesday.

Manori Ravindran International EditorBerlin Film Festival organizers have said that staging their planned “Summer Special” in-person event in June is proving to be a “bigger challenge” given a recent update to the country’s Infection Protection Act following the ongoing COVID-19 crisis.A statement from the festival on Wednesday said that Berlin directors are currently speaking with German authorities to “determine the next steps for an all-outdoor event.”“The Berlinale also wants to explore the

The Berlin Film Festival’s planned summer event is in doubt due to ongoing Covid-19 restrictions in Germany.

Another classy Chinese action thriller whose dazzling style seems to take place in a deliberate narrative void, Cliff Walkers (previously titled Impasse) marks leading Chinese director Zhang Yimou’s first foray into the espionage genre.

One of our most anticipated films of the year? “Italian Studies,” the collaboration between Academy Award-nominated actress Vanessa Kirby “Pieces of A Woman“) and Adam Leon, the indie filmmaker behind the American indie writer/director behind acclaimed films like “Gimmie The Loot” and “Tramps.” And we’re fortunate enough to unveil the exclusive first-look image from the film.

Marvel fans have reacted with excitement to Chloe Zhao’s Best Director win at the 93rd Academy Awards. Zhao, who took home the prize for her independent road movie Nomadland, also directed the forthcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe film Eternals.

Organizers of Geena Davis’ Bentonville Film Festival, which champions inclusion in all forms of media, will be produced as an annual program by the nascent Arkansas nonprofit BFFoundation. Independent film producer Kristin Mann is set as head of content.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentStrand Releasing has acquired all U.S. rights to Oscar-nominated Cambodian director Rithy Panh’s “Irradiated,” which world premiered at the Berlin Film Festival and won best documentary.

Indiewire reports.The film, which has the reported working title of Soggy Bottom, is set to be the director’s ninth project and his latest following 2017’s Phantom Thread.While there is no official plot synopsis, the film is reportedly rumoured to follow the story of a high school child actor and his encounter with a Hollywood director in the 1970s.

Michaela Coel is set to release her debut novel. The I May Destroy You star’s first book will be titledMisfits: A Personal Manifesto and will be simultaneouslypublished in the U.K.

Venezuelan director announced the appointment Friday.“Opera has long played a seminal role in my life -- from sitting in my youth for untold hours at the feet of my Maestro José Antonio Abreu and my idols in Milan, Berlin and Vienna, to making this beautiful artform a staple in our programming in Los Angeles -- and I couldn’t be more overjoyed to have found, in Paris, my spiritual home for opera,” Dudamel wrote.Alexander Neef, general manager of the Paris Opera, described Dudamel as one of the

Well, the race to summer and Cannes is on. Legendary filmmaker Leos Carax returns to Cannes with his first feature film since the critically acclaimed “Holy Motors” (2012).

This year’s Tribeca Film Festival is expected to be very different than previous events. Not only is it the 20th anniversary of the festival, but it’s also the first year the event will be held outdoors in multiple open-air venues, providing the chance for audiences to experience a film festival in person in the age of COVID.

Also Read: Tribeca Film Festival Heads Outdoors With In-Person Event in JuneLast Month, the Tribeca Film Festival announced it was going ahead with its 20th-anniversary edition this June, moving screenings to outdoor venues and becoming the first major U.S.

Tatsiana Hatsura-Yavorska, the director of the Watch Docs Film Festival in Belarus, has been released from prison and charges against her dropped after an international outcry this week from human rights organizations and festivals.

The 2021 Outfest Fusion QTBIPOC Film Festival kicks off this with panels, workshops, screenings, performances, a one minute movie contest, and networking events.

Sometimes, a short film or commercial can be a low-stakes opportunity to take risks. Many filmmakers use music videos or commercial shorts to either try out certain techniques or often use it as an opportunity to work with a new actor they’ve never collaborated with before.

A collective of human rights organizations, film festivals and industry have called for the release of Tatsiana (Tanya) Hatsura-Yavorska, the director of the Watch Docs Festival in Belarus, who was arrested on April 5 for her role in organizing an underground photo exhibition celebrating health workers.