Scotland’s Sands International Film Festival Sets Dates For 2024 Edition

In principle, using the rainy-day, kitchen-sink post-rock of Manchester band The Smiths so prominently in a film like The Killer seems incredibly perverse, given that it’s an exotic, globe-trotting thriller about an American assassin. But in reality, it’s actually very sound choice indeed: legend has it that the band’s singer, Morrissey, had two reasons for naming his band so, the first being that “Smith” is one of the most common and thus unremarkable surnames in the world. The second, and much more subversive theory, suggests that it’s also a reference to David and Maureen Smith, brother-in-law and sister of ’60s serial killer Myra Hindley, the snappily dressed couple whose testimony blew open the Moors Murderers case and whose beatnik likenesses adorn the cover of Sonic Youth’s 1990 album “Goo”.

Five years after his triumphant A Star is Born world premiered at the Venice Film Festival, Bradley Cooper is back on the Lido with Maestro. Except, the director and star is only here in spirit owing to the SAG-AFTRA strike.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Carlo Chatrian is to step down as Berlin Film Festival artistic director after the next edition of the event. In a personal statement posted on the festival website Saturday, he wrote: “For the past four years at the Berlinale, I have been fortunate enough to work along with extraordinary people, as in love with movies as I am, who are totally dedicated to revitalizing one of the world’s great film festivals.

Back in 2009, Yorgos Lanthimos led the so-called Greek Weird Wave with the Oscar-nominated Dogtooth, an unsettling exploration of a family of teenagers kept from the world by their father in a gated estate that they could never leave. The family is rich, so they can have anything they want except the wide world and their freedom; even sex can be bought in. 

Caleb Landry Jones hits the red carpet with longtime girlfriend Katya Zvereva for the premiere of Dogman during the 2023 Venice Film Festival on Thursday (August 31) in Italy.

The Hong Kong International Film Festival Society (HKIFF Society) and CAA China are launching a joint initiative to foster Chinese-language genre projects.

The Telluride Film Festival, a key part of the fall festival circuit launching awards season and perhaps some major Academy Award contenders, announced the wide-ranging lineup of films for its landmark 50th edition. The fest kicks off Thursday and runs through Labor Day and will feature world premieres of Oscar winners Alexander Payne’s The Holdovers (Focus Features), Emerald Fennell’s Saltburn (Amazon) and Free Solo filmmakers Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin’s narrative feature Nyad (Netflix).

EXCLUSIVE: The Love and Hope International Film Festival, based in Barcelona and backed by IMDB, Stage 32, FilmFreeway, and Final Draft, will open its upcoming edition with Guillotine by Iranian-American director Ray Izad-Mehr.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival has announced dual opening night titles, both inspired by faith and local memories, as well as its closing gala presentation. The festival will open with “Snow in Midsummer,” directed by Chong Keat-aun, a former winner of the Golden Horse Film Awards’ best new director prize with “The Story of Southern Islet,” and “Be With Me,” by Hwarng Wern-ying, who previously won Golden Horse prizes for art direction, costume and makeup. The festival, which runs Nov.

Wim Wenders’ Tokyo-based Cannes Competition title Perfect Days has been set as the opening film of this year’s Tokyo Film Festival while Godzilla Minus One, written and directed by Takashi Yamazaki, will close proceedings.

Martin Scorsese has been confirmed as a special guest of the upcoming Marrakech International Film Festival as it gears up for its 20th edition, running from November 24 to December 2.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic Having just wrapped up a short tour of U.S. arenas, Zach Bryan has plans to go much bigger in 2024, both in tour length and, in several cases, venue size.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent The Venice Film Festival will host a Ukrainian Day on Sept. 6 with a series of panels and meetings to support war-torn Ukraine and its film industry.

Naman Ramachandran The popular Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival is returning after a three-year COVID and logistics-related absence with a hub, a refreshed executive team and a host of plans. Hollywood and Bollywood star Priyanka Chopra Jonas continues as festival chair, while media veteran and former Variety contributor Anupama Chopra remains festival director and independent producer Anu Rangachar (Locarno title “Rapture”) heads up the international program.

Edgar Rice Burroughs Inc.has partnered with LA’s Tarzana International Film Festival (Sep 29– Oct 1) to honor the 100-year centennial of the writer’s incorporation.

Jem Aswad Executive Editor, Music Following the release of her new album, “Hood Hottest Princess,” her “Pound” singles and dates supporting Drake and 21 Savage, Sexyy Red has announced dates for her first headlining tour, “Hood Hottest Princess Tour.” Produced by Live Nation, the 20-city tour kicks off on October 16th at The Paradise Rock Club in Boston making stops across the U.S. in Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles and more before wrapping up in San Francisco at The Fillmore on November 29.

The Edinburgh International Film Festival (EIFF) is back.

After months of tension between King Charles and his son Prince Harry, there now seems to be hope of a reconciliation on the horizon with talks ongoing between the Sussexes and Buckingham Palace to broker peace between father and son. According to a well-placed source, Prince Harry is due to fly back to California via London at the conclusion of this year’s Invictus Games trip to Germany next month, with talks likely to take place between the pair on September 17.

EXCLUSIVE: An announcement today from the Points North Institute will provide a major career boost to a diverse group of documentary filmmakers. 

Brent Lang Executive Editor Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin’s “Nyad” will be the opening night film of the Hamptons International Film Festival. The event will take place on Oct. 5, according to HamptonsFilm, which runs the festival.