Oscar-Nominated Alexander Rodnyansky Boards Ukrainian Freedom Fighters Drama ‘The Dissident’ (EXCLUSIVE)

In the Oscar-nominated documentary A House Made of Splinters, Eva, a girl living in an orphanage in Eastern Ukraine, plays “catch” with a friend, tossing soap bubbles back and forth. As light seeps through a curtained window, Eva cradles the filmy orbs, her hands lathered in soap to keep the bubbles from bursting.

Frank Doelger’s eco-thriller drama The Swarm has made a splash on German TV.

Paul Mescal has clocked his first Olivier Award nomination for his leading performance in Rebecca Frecknall’s buzzy stage adaptation of A Streetcar Named Desire. Scroll down for the full list of nominees.

Foo Fighters-themed pinball machine.The company released a short trailer on February 24 announcing the pinball machine, simply writing “Fighting Soon” on their social media.The trailer doesn’t show the actual machine, but has custom-drawn animations of the band as they battle aliens together.The video is soundtracked by Foo Fighters’ ‘All My Life’ and features cartoon versions of frontman Dave Grohl, guitarists Chris Shiflett and Pat Smear, bassist Nate Mendel, keyboardist Rami Jaffee and late drummer Taylor Hawkins.A small number of limited-edition pinball machines will be on sale and available to Stern All-Access members at 11am EST on February 28. Find them here.Other recent Stern Pinball titles include Rush, Iron Maiden, Metallica and KISS.Earlier this month, Foo Fighters paid tribute to their late drummer Taylor Hawkins on what would have been his 51st birthday.Hawkins was found dead in a hotel room in Bogota, Colombia in March 2022 while Foo Fighters were on tour in the country.The band lead the tributes to Hawkins, tweeting a black-and-white photo of him accompanied by the caption: “Miss you so much.”At the end of last year, Foo Fighters shared a message with fans, confirming they would continue to perform together following Hawkins’ death.

It has been one year since Russia invaded Ukraine. It was February 24 2022 when president Putin launched the invasion of the neighbouring country from the north, east and south, sending in around 20,000 armed soldiers.

Pete Doherty performed a section of The Pogues‘ ‘Dirty Old Town’ in Ukrainian on The Last Leg last night (February 24) – see a snippet below.The singer was appearing on the show, hosted by Adam Hills, on the one year anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.To close the show, he performed ‘Dirty Old Town’ solo, incorporating the Ukrainian language into its final chorus.He ended the performance by exclaiming “Slava Ukraini!” which translates as “Glory to Ukraine!”Watch the performance below.A really lovely touch by @petedoherty performing Dirty Old Town in Ukranian. Also lovely to see he seems to have fought the demons that have haunted him for past 2 decades.

The Eurovision Song Contest, to take place in the UK in May, has been pledged a £10m ($12m) cash boost from the British government. 

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor U.S. film financier Grandave Capital will invest in the documentary “Romano Artioli – The Last Great Dreamer,” about the one-time owner of the Bugatti and Lotus automobile brands, Romano Artioli. In 1952, Artioli, a 20-year-old technician in Italy watched in astonishment as Bugatti ceased production in Molsheim, France. Artioli studied mechanical engineering and went on to repair cars, before eventually setting up an automotive retail and import business. By the mid-1980s, this business became so successful that Artioli was able to begin discussions with the French government about buying the Bugatti brand. In 1987, his dream became a reality.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Global indie streamer distributor and producer MUBI has acquired all rights in several key European territories to “Passages,” the erotic drama by Ira Sachs that bowed with a splash at Sundance and just had its European premiere at the Berlin Film Festival. Following the world premiere of “Passages” at Sundance MUBI last month snapped up all rights for the U.S., U.K., Ireland and Latin America to the U.S. indie darling director’s first film shot in France. Now MUBI has acquired additional European territories on “Passages” including for Germany, Austria, Italy, Turkey and Benelux. The Benelux pickup is in partnership with Belgium’s Imagine Film Distribution.

Katie Reul editor The Elephant Whisperers Kartiki Gonsalves’ documentary debut, “The Elephant Whisperers,” released on Netflix, shines a spotlight on the ways in which climate change and human encroachment are rapidly destroying the habitats of Asian elephants. The film’s dire warning is subtly woven into a heartfelt narrative about forging family in unlikely places with elephant caretakers Bomman and Bellie at its core. The duo raise an orphaned elephant named Raghu, whom they’ve cared for since infancy, as well as another calf named Ammu. “[Bomman and Bellie] are still understanding the process of what the Oscars exactly are, but they’re just overwhelmed with messages and calls and really happy to share their lives with such a large audience,” Helmer Kartiki Gonsalves told Variety. “I don’t think they’ve ever had this kind of recognition before.”

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Less Is More (LIM), a European development scheme for limited-budget feature films has unveiled its selection of 16 projects, four of which are from Ukrainian writers and filmmakers. The initiative is backed by the MEDIA Programme of the European Union. The French national board (CNC) has come on board to support this year’s special spotlight on Ukrainian projects, alongside the banner Terrarium. The programs, which develops first, second and third feature projects, is organized by the Groupe Ouest, a film org created in 2006 in Brittany, in Northwest France, and headed by Antoine Le Bos and Charlotte Le Vallégant.

Mary Elizabeth Winstead is set to star opposite Ewan McGregor in Showtime and Paramount+’s upcoming limited series A Gentleman in Moscow, an adaptation of Amor Towles’ bestselling novel.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter Mary Elizabeth Winstead has signed on to star opposite Ewan McGregor in the upcoming Showtime & Paramount+ series “A Gentleman in Moscow,” Variety has learned exclusively. McGregor was first reported to be starring in the show back in August 2022. It is an adaptation of the Amor Towles novel of the same name. Production on the limited series is now underway. It will debut on Showtime in the U.S. and on Paramount+ in additional markets around the world. Per the official logline, the series “follows Count Alexander Rostov (McGregor) who, in the aftermath of the Russian Revolution, finds that his gilded past places him on the wrong side of history. Spared immediate execution, he is banished by a Soviet tribunal to an attic room in the opulent Hotel Metropol, threatened with death if he ever sets foot outside again. As the years pass and some of the most tumultuous decades in Russian history unfold outside the hotel’s doors, Rostov’s reduced circumstances provide him entry into a much larger world of emotional discovery. As he builds a new life within the walls of the hotel, he discovers the true value of friendship, family and love.”

King Charles is showing his admiration for fighters in Ukraine.

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent German powerhouse ZDF Studios and U.K.-based Factual Fiction are reteaming for “#DorianGray,” an updated social media spin on Oscar Wilde’s classic, “The Picture of Dorian Gray.” In Wilde’s original, first published as a novella in 1890 in Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine, the self-besotted Dorian Gray sells his soul in exchange for eternal youth, a picture painted of him recording the decay of his soul as in outward appearance he remains physically forever young.  Currently being written by Maiya John, a young London-based screenwriter, the contemporary reimagining is described by ZDF Studios as “a suspenseful ride through the life of a teenager as they construct their identity.” 

The 76th British Academy Film Awards will take place tonight, as stars of film from around the world descend on London to celebrate the best achievements in filmmaking from the past year. The nominations were announced by Captain America actress Hayley Atwell and Ted Lasso’s Toheeb Jimoh via a live broadcast from London on January 19.

Friday, Feb. 17 is a significant date for the members of Foo Fighters, marking the day that drummer Taylor Hawkins would have celebrated his 51st birthday.

Naman Ramachandran U.K.-based MetFilm Sales has acquired worldwide sales rights, excluding the U.S., Germany and France, to Thomas von Steinaecker’s feature documentary “Werner Herzog: Radical Dreamer” and is representing the project at Berlin’s European Film Market. With exclusive behind-the-scenes access into the legendary German film director’s everyday life, rare archive material and in-depth interviews with Herzog and his collaborators — including Christian Bale, Nicole Kidman and his wife Lena Herzog — the film provides a glimpse into his work process and his personal life.  The documentary is presented by Emmy-winning film studio Wavelength, produced by Spring Films and 3B-Produktion in association with Hot Docs Partners. It is produced by Andre Singer, Bernhard Von Hulsen and Maria Willer. Executive producers include Jenifer Westphal and Joe Plummer for Wavelength, Figs Jackman and Chris Smith for Spring Films and Vijay Vaidyanathan.

Foo Fighters have paid tribute to their late drummer Taylor Hawkins on what would have been his 51st birthday.Hawkins was found dead in a hotel room in Bogota, Colombia in March 2022 while Foo Fighters were on tour in the country.The band lead the tributes to Hawkins, tweeting a black-and-white photo of him accompanied by the caption: “Miss you so much.”Miss you so much. pic.twitter.com/rpyYyf93O3— Foo Fighters (@foofighters) February 17, 2023In Hawkins’obituary, NME wrote: “Rage Against The Machine’s Tom Morello, and many others, praised Taylor’s “spirit” in their tributes, and that’s how he’ll be most remembered – as the epitome not just of Foo Fighters’ celebratory attitude to rock’n’roll but the exhilaration of musical fandom too.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent REinvent International sales has closed deals on genre titles from its Chills label, including “Dark Windows,” “Leave” and “Shadow Island,” ahead of the EFM. “Dark Windows,” Alex Herron’s English-language horror thriller, has been sold to the MENA region (ENL / Empire Network Ltd) and Latin America (Gussi). The movie tells the story of teenagers involved in a car crash who decide to stay at a summerhouse in the U.S. countryside to work through their grief and start being stalked by a masked man. “Dark Windows” stars Annie Hamilton (The Wolf of Snow Hollow, Inventing Anna), Anna Bullard, Rory Alexander, Joel Saemundsson and Morten Holst.