Nadine Lustre in Mikhail Red’s Philippines Folklore Horror ‘Nokturno,’ Teaser Unveiled (EXCLUSIVE)

Ed Sheeran has announced the cities, dates and venues for the highly anticipated Asia leg of his ‘+ – = ÷ x’ tour.Ed Sheeran will hold a total of nine concerts across Asia, from January to March 2024. It’ll kick-off in late-January with two show in Japan, before heading to Taiwan and Southeast Asia in February.

Super exciting news has been revealed for fans of Drag Race!

Elon Musk has kicked off his plan to charge users of X, formerly known as Twitter, to post content to the social network. As of Oct. 17, 2023, X said in a post on its website that it has started testing “Not A Bot,” a new subscription tier for new users in two countries: the Philippines and New Zealand.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Dynamic Singaporean producer Jeremy Chua is to receive the FIAPF Award for Outstanding Contribution to Asia Pacific Cinema, at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA) on Nov. 3 on Australia’s Gold Coast.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour” is towering over the global box office with estimates of $126 million to $130 million in its first weekend of release. It’s a seismic start for any concert film, but this is particularly impressive because it was announced just six weeks ago and unspooled on the big screen with minimal marketing dollars. “The Eras Tour” which is produced by Swift and distributed by AMC Theatres, collected a projected $31 million to $33 million from 94 international markets.

Jesse Jo Stark has shared her heartfelt new single ‘Fallout’ ahead of her final debut headlining North American tour date.The melancholic track features confessional lyrics that are both deeply personal and universally relatable. “Don’t buy me a ring / the scariest thing about being all alone / clouds grow / I don’t know how not to have you around / the beautiful thing about the things that come out your mouth fallout / I don’t know how not to have you around,” Stark sings in the song.Directed by Christina Bryson, the accompanying video for ‘Fallout’ features footage of Stark on tour performing the track to her loving fans.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Some twenty aspiring film projects have been selected to participate in the inaugural edition of the Qcinema Project Market (Nov. 18-19) that this year represents and expansion of the QCinema Film Festival in The Philippines’ Quezon City. The selected titles include development projects by several of East Asia’s better known independent and art-house directors and projects.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Big-budget, Korean-language fantasy-crime-action series “Moving” emerged as the big winner on Sunday at the Asia Contents Awards & Global OTT Awards, claiming six prizes, including the ‘best creative’ prize. The Disney+ original, which debuted in August, also received the best visual effects award and the best writer award, which was presented at the Busan Cinema Centre’s main stage to webtoon artist turned filmmaker Kang Full. Actor Ryu Seung Ryong, who portrayed a father with a superpower attempting to save his family, was awarded the best lead actor prize, while the show’s Lee Jung Ha was named best newcomer and Go Youn Jung was named best actress. The 20-episode series has received critical acclaim for its narrative structure, dynamic action sequences and breathtaking storytelling.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief EST N8, a recently-established finance, production and rights sales company, has added a Hong Kong remake of classic film “Tape” and the LGBT comedy-drama “ASOG” to its bulging sales slate at the AFCM market that accompanies the Busan Intenational Film Festival. “Tape” tells the story of three best friends who, following an event at a graduation party that transforms their lives, reunite 15 years later where a case of blackmail forces them to confront a terrible secret from their past. The original film starred Ethan Hawke, Uma Thurman and Robert Sean Leonard and played at the Sundance, Toronto and Rotterdam festivals.In the Cantonese-language remake directed by Bizhan Tong, Selena Lee, Kenny Kwan, and Adam Pak play the contemporary characters while Mason Fung, Summer Chan, and Angus Yeung portray the characters’ younger versions. The script is written by Stephen Belber, Tong, Lee and Bonnie Lo, and is an adaptation of Belber’s own scripts from both the original film and stage play. The writers and director have significantly modernized the script to reflect advances in technology. Producers on the film include Tong, Lee and Belber.

Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) has tweaked its incentive schemes for both international co-productions and offshore production, with the latter cash rebate being increased to 25% with the addition of a cultural bonus. 

Naman Ramachandran The Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) has added a 5% cultural bonus incentive to the existing 20% cash rebate that is part of the Film Location Incentive Program (FLIP), it was revealed at the Busan International Film Festival‘s Asian Contents and Film Market. The cultural bonus will apply if the project showcases Philippines culture and heritage.

Bradley Liew of Epicmedia Productions (Philippines), Stefano Centini of Volos Films (Taiwan/Italy) and Singapore’s Huang Junxiang have reunited to launch two genre projects at the Busan International Film Festival‘s Asian Contents and Film Market. The trio previously teamed on Sundance Midnight hit, “In My Mother’s Skin” by Kenneth Dagatan, which was recently ranked number six on Variety’s Best Horror Movies of 2023. The film was acquired by Amazon Studios and will stream on Prime Video from Oct.

Naman Ramachandran Celebrated Singaporean producer Jeremy Chua and emerging Philippines talent Rafael Manuel have teamed on “Filipinana,” a selection at the Busan International Film Festival‘s Asian Project Market this year. The film will follow 17-year-old girl Isabel, who spends her whole day teeing-up balls for golfers at a country club.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor The Match Factory has sold Sofia Coppola‘s “Priscilla” to distributors worldwide, the sales agency revealed Friday ahead of its North American premiere at the New York Film Festival. The film had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival last month, and won the Coppa Volpi award for best actress for Cailee Spaeny’s performance. Adding to the previously announced sales in France (ARP SAS), The Match Factory has secured distribution in Australia and New Zealand (Madman Entertainment), Spain (Elastica Films and BTeam Pictures), Switzerland (Filmcoopi), CIS (Capella Film), Scandinavia and Iceland (Nordisk Film), Poland (Best Film), Greece (Spentzos Film), Portugal (Nos Lusomundo), Baltics (Kino Pavasaris), Hungary (ADS), Middle East and North Africa (Front Row Filmed Ent.), Israel (Lev Cinemas), former Yugoslavia (MCF Megacom), Ukraine (Arthouse Traffic), Japan (GAGA Corporation), Taiwan (Moviecloud) and worldwide airline distribution (Echo Lake Distribution).

Kathryn Bernado, known as the Queen of Philippines Cinema, and Triangle Of Sadness star Dolly de Leon are both almost unrecognizable in their new movie, A Very Good Girl, which ABS-CBN and Star Cinema are opening at the U.S. box office today (October 6). 

The Match Factory has announced a raft of world sales for Sofia Coppola’s biopic Priscilla ahead of its North American premiere as the Centrepiece selection of the New York Film Festival on Friday.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor The International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam has revealed its lineups for the competitions for short documentary and youth documentary, as well as the rosters for its Best of Fests section and its newly minted Signed section. In total, 100 films have been included in the IDFA program to date. In addition, IDFA Forum, the festival’s co-production and co-financing market, has expanded to a total of 64 projects, including seven by Ukrainian filmmakers.

EXCLUSIVE: It’s just another day in Manila’s Riverbanks Center studios and a stand-in actor is beating off a group of gangsters with an outsized prosthetic penis – thankfully one that is wrapped in a tasteful chiffon scarf. 

It’s not Christmas without Mariah Carey.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Hamaguchi Ryusuke’s “Evil Does Not Exist” collected four nominations for the Asia Pacific Screen Awards, making it the narrow favorite ahead of the three times nominated “Snow Leopard,” by the late Pema Tseden. The narrow lead matches the overall pattern this year’s, where Japanese and Chinese films dominate APSA nominations proceedings. Nominations were announced at midnight on Thursday in Gold Coast, Queensland, where the final awards will be celebrated on Nov. 3. “Evil Does Not Exist,” an eco-drama that premiered in Venice, is nominated in best film, best director, best screenplay and cinematography categories.