Rome Film Festival Unveils First Edition Under New Management; Fetes James Ivory, Launches International Competition

Japanese director Naomi Kawase will preside over the international jury of the 44th edition of the Cairo International Film Festival, running November 13 to 22.

The Banshees of Inisherin and the bawdy Weird Al Yankovic biopic Weird will open the fest on Saturday, Oct. 22.

Manori Ravindran International Editor New York’s South Asian International Film Festival has appointed Chayan Sarkar as its new president. A filmmaker, entrepreneur and festival director, Sarkar is also the founder of the Indian International Film Festival of Queensland in Australia. He takes over from SAIFF founder Shilen Amin, who will step down as president, but will remain a member of the festival’s board of directors. Sarkar joins SAIFF as the festival enters its 19th year as a leading film festival in the U.S. for new cinema from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal, and within the Indian diaspora. In recent years, SAIFF has become increasingly influential as a platform for South Asian cinema, both in the U.S. and internationally. Fourteen of India’s submissions for the international feature film Oscar have had their North American premieres at the festival.

Italian producer Lorenzo Mieli gave a spirited and often humorous rundown of his career as a producer working with directors such as Luca Guadagnino and Paolo Sorrentino during a keynote talk at the London Film Festival Monday.

Manori Ravindran International Editor In the Stone Age horror movie “The Origin,” a tribe of starving homo sapiens must fight for survival in early Britain. It’s a film set 45,000 years ago, but its message about humanity — told through a genre lens — is as dark as it is timeless. Directed by Scottish helmer Andrew Cumming (“Radiance,” “Clique”) and written by Ruth Greenberg (“The Spark”) in both of their feature debuts, the film — produced by “Saint Maud’s” Oliver Kassman — is launching at the BFI London Film Festival on Thursday with three sold-out screenings. Shot on location in 2020 in the Scottish Highlands, the story follows a group of early humans looking for food and shelter in a new land. They subscribe to their leader’s promise of a better life, but find themselves in a dangerous terrain, where they’re preyed upon by a supernatural force. The cast includes Safia Oakley-Green, Kit Young and Chuku Modu.

Manori Ravindran International Editor The London Film Festival has revealed its jury line-up for this year’s awards. The Official Competition jury is led by “Power of the Dog” and “Cold War” producer Tanya Seghatchian (pictured), while the First Feature Competition (Sutherland Award) jury will be headed up by director and actor Nana Mensah whose directorial debut “Queen of Glory” won the Best New Narrative Director prize at the 2021 Tribeca Film Festival. Elsewhere, Italian filmmaker Roberto Minervini will lead the jury selecting the winner of the Grierson Award for Best Documentary after winning the award in 2018 for his film “What You Gonna Do When the World’s On Fire.”

‘Power Of The Dog’ Producer Tanya Seghatchian To Lead London Film Festival Jury

Brent Lang Executive Editor “Devotion,” a drama about a group of elite fighter pilots during the Korean War, will screen at the opening night of the Urbanworld Film Festival. The Sony Pictures and Black Label Media production was directed by J.D. Dillard and stars Jonathan Majors, who will serve as the festival’s official ambassador. HBO will return as a founding partner of the Urbanworld Film Festival, and Visa will serve as presenting partner. The festival will take place from Oct. 26 to Oct. 30. “This year’s slate is incredibly impressive,” said Karen McMullen, head of programming. “We have some of the top artists in the industry as well as exciting new voices premiering their films at Urbanworld. It has been a privilege working alongside this organization as we move into our 26th year as a festival. We can’t wait to see everyone in person in New York City to help us celebrate our dynamic films and filmmakers.”

Joel Edgerton and Sigourney Weaver are stepping out to promote their new movie.

EXCLUSIVE: Barbara Broccoli, one of the teams of producers behind the powerhouse film Till, about the extraordinary efforts of Maimie Till Mobley to find justice after the lynching of her 14-year-old son Emmett Louis Till, for whistling at Carolyn Bryant, a white woman, by white supremacists in Mississippi in 1955, told Deadline, that audiences must seek out the movie: ”This is not a time for us to look away.”

Dennis Lim, the artistic director of the New York Film Festival, has a confession.

Kendall Jenner posed for a photo on Instagram while relaxing in a Remedy Place ice bath.Elsa Hosk and PICTICULAR hosted a VIP cocktail event during the Venice Film Festival at the Hotel Excelsior pool deck to honor Alberto Barbera, Creative Director of Venice Festival.Olivia Wilde wore the Ray-Ban Original Wayfarer Classic while out and about in Spain and New York City during the press tour for her film . Doja Cat wore a suit and a pointed platform heel by Steve Madden to the Daily Front Row Fashion Media Awards during New York Fashion Week.Rita Ora wore Betsey Johnson Cady Rhinestones Booties to the Zurich Open Air Festival in Switzerland. Patty Jenkins, Alexandra Shipp, Dianna Agron, Jennifer Morrison, Minnie Mills and Thuso Mbedu came together to support the 8th annual Tribeca Chanel Women’s Filmmaker Program Luncheon at Locanda Verde in New York City. Gigi Hadid wore a red Simon Miller set to the U.S. Open in Flushing, New York. Whitney Port wore sunglasses from DMY BY DMY while posing for a picture on Instagram.Jennifer Lopez stunned in a green halter maxi dress by Cult Gaia and the Minel Sandal from JLO Jennifer Lopez while shopping with her daughter Emme at the Melrose Trading Post in Los Angeles, California. Andrew Garfield wore Zayn x Arnette sunglasses to the Emmy Awards in Los Angeles, California.Elyse Walker and Emily P.

Iulia Blaga More than 90 film professionals in Romania have requested that the head of the Romanian Film Center (CNC), Anca Mitran, steps down, after an interview in which she said that in recent years Romanian filmmakers have been making art films instead of films for the audience, and that documentaries are not meant to be screened in movie theaters, according to Film New Europe. The first to protest were a handful of documentary filmmakers, including Alexandru Solomon, Andrei Ujica and Andrei Dascalescu, and film editor Dana Bunescu, who launched an open letter signed by Alexander Nanau, Radu Jude, Calin Peter Netzer, Radu Muntean and Stere Gulea, among others.

As we are seeing this film festival season return to what we all knew and loved pre-pandemic, we are so excited to have one of the longest-running U.S.-based film festivals return for its 60th year (yes, 60!!).

Clayton Davis “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Story,” “White Noise” and “The Whale” are among the first films announced for this year’s Middleburg Film Festival in Virginia, celebrating its tenth anniversary. “Everything Everywhere All at Once” breakout star Stephanie Hsu will be given the Rising Star Award, for her incredible performance in The Daniels’ critically-acclaimed dramedy, which has generated awards buzz. The fest will also hold a special screening of the movie after its huge success, becoming A24’s first film to surpass $100 million. The entire festival will be held in person with screenings, conversations and events from Oct. 13-16. Opening the fest on Thursday is Netflix’s “White Noise” starring Adam Driver. Writer and director Noah Baumbach will return after bringing “Marriage Story” (2019), to accept the 10th Anniversary Spotlight Filmmaker Award.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent The 17th annual Rome Film Festival will fete James Ivory with a career honor, a mini retrospective and the Italian launch of the Oscar-winning filmmaker’s personal new documentary “A Cooler Climate.” Ivory is expected in Rome to receive the award and present the doc about his life as a traveler that takes its cue from boxes of film the director shot during a life-changing trip to Afghanistan in 1960. The film premieres beforehand at the New York Film Festival. Rome’s Ivory mini-retrospective will comprise his films “Maurice”; “Mr. and Mrs. Bridge,” starring Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward; “The Remains of the Day”; and “A Room With a View.”

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Russell Crowe will be a guest of honor of the Rome Film Festival’s independently run Alice in the City section where his second directorial effort, the thriller “Poker Face” – in which he stars opposite Liam Hemsworth – is set to have its world premiere. Set in the world of high-stakes betting, “Poker Face” stars Crowe as tech billionaire and gambler Jake Foley, who offers his best friends a chance to win more money than they’ve ever dreamed of. But to play, they’ll have to give up the one thing they spend their lives trying to keep – their secrets. As the game unfolds, the long-time pals will discover what is really at stake.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Iranian action drama “World War III,” which won two awards at the recent Venice festival, will feature among the main competition titles at next month’s Tokyo International Film Festival. The festival will operate as an in-person event with foreign filmmakers, media and other guests in attendance from Oct. 24-Nov. 2, 2022. “World War III” is joined in the competition section by the world premiere of Milcho Manchevski’s “Kaymak,” Spanish director Carlos Vermut’s “Manticore” and Roberta Torre’s “The Fabulous Ones,” Michale Boganim’s “Tel Aviv Beirut,” and Youssef Chebbi’s debut film “Ashkal.”

Naman Ramachandran The BFI London Film Festival’s annual Works-in-Progress showcase, now in its third edition, will present nine new feature films and documentaries by U.K.-based filmmakers. The showcase, which is part of the festival’s U.K. Talent Days focus, will be an in-person event on Oct. 8 screening extracts from each project introduced by their producer to an invited audience of international buyers and festival programmers. The projects are either in production or post-production. Clips will also be available online via a secure platform to a wider pool of invited international industry professionals. The annual Buyers & Sellers event returns as an in-person fixture at which international sales agents can meet with U.K. buyers, and NETWORK@LFF will host masterclasses and events for 12 U.K.-based writers, directors and producers to interact with international filmmakers and industry executives at the festival.

The Santa Fe International Film Festival (SFiFF) has announced its first 15 feature titles. These films are part of the Special Presentation section and will be followed by a full schedule of competition films, short films, panels and events. SFiFF starts October 19 and will run through October 23.