Nick Vivarelli Latest Celebrity News & Gossip

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Lebanese singer Nancy Ajram, dubbed the “queen of Arab pop” by Spotify, has inked a publishing deal with U.S. indie music company Reservoir Media and PopArabia, its Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region partner.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Distributor La Vingt-Cinquième Heure has acquired the French rights to Egyptian-American director Dina Amer’s politically sensitive drama “You Resemble Me.” The film tells the story of Hasna Aït Boulahcen, who in 2015 was wrongly believed to be Europe’s first female suicide bomber. The film is a deeply researched character study of the young Muslim woman, who became linked to the November 2015 terrorist attacks in Paris even though she didn’t participate in them.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Montreal-based distributor K-Films Amérique has acquired Canadian rights to Algerian multi-hyphenate Chakib Taleb Bendiab’s upcoming thriller “Algiers” that delves into the local phenomenon of child abduction. “Algiers,” which will go by the title “196 métres” in France, is set to have its theatrical release in movie theatres in Québec in the fourth quarter of 2024, according to a statement. K-Films Amérique is an indie distributor which services the Canadian province of Quebec where French is the official language.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Oscar-nominated Swiss animator Claude Barras (“My Life as a Zucchini”) will be honored by the Locarno Film Festival with its Locarno Kids Award given to personalities credited with infusing younger generations with a love for cinema. Barras’ beloved stop-motion film “Life as a Zucchini,” about an orphaned boy who lives in a foster home, played at Directors’ Fortnight in Cannes in 2016, and went on to be nominated for best animated feature at the Oscars and secured distribution in over 50 territories.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Leading Middle East network MBC Group has ordered an Arabic redo of “The Good Wife” set in Egypt with Tunisian-Egyptian star Hend Sabri (“Finding Ola”) in the lead role. Sabri plays a woman who returns to the legal profession after her husband, who holds a prominent public position, becomes embroiled in scandal.

Marta Balaga Mohammad Rasoulof’s “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” won the Fipresci award at Cannes. The jury of the International Federation of Film Critics called it “a courageous story set in modern-day Iran that deals with the conflict between tradition and progress, depicted in a very powerful and imaginative way.” Following a rapturous screening and 2024 record 12-minute standing ovation, the film became a Palme d’Or frontrunner, reported Variety.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Director Francesca Archibugi, whose feminist fascist-era saga “La Storia” was Italy’s biggest TV event of 2023, is set to return behind camera on World War II drama “The Italian Chapel” set in Scotland’s Orkney Islands. Inspired by a true story, “Italian Chapel” is centered on a clash between the local Orkney community and prisoners of war who are confined there. Against this backdrop, a secret romance springs up between an Italian prisoner and a Scottish islander.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Italian state broadcaster RAI’s new world sales arm is gaining traction in Cannes — following its soft launch in Berlin — with four new titles on its slate, including veteran auteur Roberto Andò’s historical drama “The Blunder” starring Toni Servillo (“The Great Beauty”). In “The Blunder,” which is currently shooting in Sicily, Servillo plays a Sicilian colonel at the head of a ragtag unit trying to outsmart the enemy during the 1860 battle led by Giuseppe Garibaldi that resulted in the unification of Italy (see first-look image, above).

Jamie Lang For one of this year’s Variety Global Conversations Summit at Cannes, a group of leading women actors and filmmakers from around the world joined Variety’s Nick Vivarelli to discuss how they got into the business, what motivates them and some of the groundbreaking roles they’ve played. Egyptian actor Salma Abu-Deif (“El-Asliyyin”) discussed her recent turn in the series “Highest Viewing Rate,” which tells the true story of a girl from a poor family who becomes obsessed with TikTok and uses the platform to escape her daily life.

Jack Dunn In 2023, Saudi Arabian film agency Film AlUla formed AlUla Creates, a local initiative that provides funding, mentorship and networking opportunities for Saudi filmmakers and fashion designers. And in just one year, AlUla Creates has exploded into a global brand, already hosting 123 international productions in the scenic valleys of AlUla, Saudi Arabia. “We call it a living museum,” said marketing director at Film AlUla Mahsa Motamedi.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent A new Saudi Arabian film studio with deep pockets and Hollywood connections is launching from the Cannes Film Festival with a slate of film and TV projects. The Los Angeled-based 3SIX9 Studios – announced at an event on a yacht in the bay of Cannes – is co-founded by actor and producer Daya Fernández, who serves as CEO; Inga V.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent A new Italian distribution and international sales company called PiperFilm is launching in Cannes, having scored rights for Italy to Paolo Sorrentino’s Cannes competition title “Parthenope.” Former Vision Distribution managing director Massimiliano Orfei is president of PiperFilm, while Luisa Borella, who is also a former top-level Vision Distribution executive, serves as the new media company’s COO. PiperFilm is adopting an innovative distribution model by striking an agreement with Netflix under which the streaming giant will have the first exclusive post-theatrical window for Italy on their titles, while Warner Bros.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Brazilian directors Eryk Rocha and Gabriela Carneiro da Cunha’s “The Falling Sky” delves into lives of the Amazonian Yanomami people, who live in the heart of the Amazon rainforest where they are contending with a harsh humanitarian crisis caused by the massive invasion of wildcat miners searching for gold and cassiterite, a mineral used in electronics. This unique doc – which launches in Directors Fortnight – is inspired by the thoughts, expressed in an eponymous book, of Davi Kopenawa, a shaman and spokesman for the Yanomami who performs the reahu ritual, a collective ceremony to hold up the sky and prevent it from falling.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Sudanese first-timer Mohamed Kordofani’s “Goodbye Julia,” a timely morality tale that takes place just before the 2011 secession of South Sudan, has won top awards for both fest feature film and best screenplay at the eighth edition of the Critics Awards for Arab Films that will be handed out today at the Plage des Palmes in Cannes. The first Sudanese film ever to screen in Cannes’ official selection, where it premiered in Un Certain Regard last year, “Goodbye Julia” (pictured) is the story of two women — one from the North, the other from the South — who are brought together by fate in a complex relationship that attempts to reconcile differences between northern and southern Sudanese communities in the war-ravaged country.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent The Johnny Depp-directed film “Modì,” about Italian artist Amedeo Modigliani, has secured a distribution deal in Italy, where it will be released by emerging production/distribution player Be Water. Above is a first-look image from the set of the film, which is now in post.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent On Sept. 12, 2022, the day before Jean-Luc Godard died by assisted suicide at 91 in his home in Rolle, Switzerland, the Godfather of French New Wave completed his final 18-minute film, “Scénarios,” which premieres on today in Cannes. “Scénarios” — which comprises two components called “DNA, Fundamental Elements” and “MRI, Odyssey” — is followed by “Exposé du Film Annonce du Film ‘Scènario,’” a 34-minute, behind-the-scenes doc about the making of Godard’s last short.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Saudi Arabia leads this year’s Arab cinema contingent at Cannes with pioneering director Tawfik Alzaidi’s “Norah” launching internationally from Un Certain Regard plus a clutch of films in other sections by directors from Egypt, Palestine and Morocco. They collectively reflect both the vibrancy and the many hurdles that filmmakers face in the region.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent The persistent vibrancy of Italian cinema, despite increasing financing difficulties, is undisputable if you look at the range of the country’s current output and what’s percolating in the pipeline. It spans from highly sophisticated new works by maestros such as Paolo Sorrentino and Luca Guadagnino to crassly commercial global megahits like Netflix Italy original “The Tearsmith” and promising fresh fare from Cinema Italiano’s next generation.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Italy’s film industry is fighting to stay vibrant amid disruption caused both by politics and market forces.After reaping the rewards of a protracted growth spurt, local producers are facing a forced slowdown as the country’s right-wing government dithers with modifications they plan to make to several key regulations, most significantly to the country’s currently stalled tax incentives for film and TV production. At a packed protest event held in early April at Rome’s Cinema Adriano multiplex, industry figures from all sectors – including producers, writers, actors and big-name directors such as Paolo Sorrentino and Marco Bellocchio – lashed out against having to wait endlessly for the culture ministry to approve new guidelines so production companies can apply for the 40% tax credits that basically drive the business.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Arab cinema continues to break new ground with a fresh crop of social dramas, several of which depict female empowerment in different forms. These range from the tale of a young woman who fakes being dead so she can leave everything behind, to a rape-revenge thriller titled “Beretta,” just like the semi-automatic pistol used by Suad, its mute protagonist. Below is a compendium of promising upcoming Arabic-language films in various stages that will be surfacing either at festivals or on streamers.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent German actors Elisa Schlott (“Das Boot” TV series), Max Riemelt (“Sleeping Dog”) and Alma Hasun (“Corsage”) are set to star in Italian director Silvio Soldini‘s drama “The Tasters,” which reconstructs the untold true story of the women conscripted to be Adolf Hitler’s food tasters. Shooting is set to start on Friday in Italy’s northern Alto Adige region on the Nazi-era drama, which is being pre-sold at the Cannes Marché du Film by Rome-based Vision Distribution, headed by sales agent Catia Rossi.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Los Angeles-based Scatena & Rosner Films has acquired worldwide rights to horror film “The Hermit,” starring Lou Ferrigno as a cannibalistic pig farmer in his first role playing a creature since CBS TV series “The Incredible Hulk.” They will be launching sales on the chiller, which is now in post, at the Cannes Marché du Film. “The Hermit” is directed by U.S.-based Italian helmer Salvatore Sclafani and produced by Los Angeles- and New York-based Gerry Pass via his Chrome Entertainment shingle in tandem with Sclafani’s First Child Prods.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Italian-born and Texas-based director Roberto Minervini is known for making hard-hitting documentaries that dissect the backwaters of American society, such as his so-called Texas trilogy comprising “The Passage,” “Low Tide” and “Stop the Pounding Heart.” His most recent doc, “What You Gonna Do When the World’s on Fire?,” about a community of Black people in New Orleans during the summer of 2017 – when a string of brutal killings of Black men sent shockwaves throughout the country – launched from the Venice competition section in 2018. “The Damned,” which premieres on Thursday in Cannes’ Un Certain Regard and is Minervini’s first fiction feature, is set during the American Civil War in the winter of 1862.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof has left Iran and traveled to Europe clandestinely after being sentenced to eight years in prison by the country’s authorities, who pressured him to pull his latest work “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” from the Cannes Film Festival and harassed the film’s producers and actors. “We are very happy and much relieved that Mohammad has safely arrived in Europe after a dangerous journey,” said Jean-Christophe Simon, CEO of Films Boutique and Parallel45, who are distributing the film.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Italian-born Texas-based director Roberto Minervini is known for a distinguished career making documentaries including his so-called Texas trilogy comprising “The Passage,” “Low Tide” and “Stop the Pounding Heart.” His most recent doc “What You Gonna Do When the World’s On Fire?” about a community of Black people in New Orleans during the summer of 2017, when a string of brutal killings of Black men sent shockwaves throughout the country, launched from the Venice competition in 2018. “The Damned,” which is Minervini’s first feature film, is set during the American Civil War in the winter of 1862.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent The Venice Film Festival will honor Australian director and screenwriter Peter Weir – whose body of work comprises “Dead Poets Society,” “The Truman Show,” and “Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World” – with its 2024 Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement. “With a total of only thirteen movies directed over the course of forty years, Peter Weir has secured a place in the firmament of the great directors of modern cinema,” Venice artistic director Alberto Barbera said in a statement.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent French director Jonathan Millet riffs on manhunt tropes in “Ghost Trail,” the psychological thriller that will be the Cannes Critics’ Week opener. Variety has been given an exclusive first-look clip from the film, which is inspired by real-life events. “Ghost Trail” is the story of a Syrian man named Hamid who is part of a secret group pursuing fugitive leaders that perpetrated horrors in the name of the Syrian regime during the country’s civil war.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Isabelle Huppert will preside over the main jury of the upcoming Venice Film Festival. The revered French actor has a longstanding rapport with the Lido, having won Venice’s Coppa Volpi for best actress twice, first with “Story of Women” in 1988, and subsequently with “La Cérémonie” in 1995, both directed by Claude Chabrol.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Multi-hyphenate Nicole Ansari-Cox has a lot going on. The London-based actor, producer, writer and activist just shot Southern Italy-set rom-com “Under the Stars” directed by Michelle Danner where she stars alongside Toni Colette, Andy Garcia and Alex Pettyfer. In addition, she appears in Austrian director Kat Rohrer’s “What a Feeling” that premiered recently at the BFI FLARE: London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Iranian authorities are exerting heavy pressure on director Mohammad Rasoulof to pull his latest work “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” from the Cannes Film Festival by harassing the film’s producers and actors who have been summoned for questioning and banned from leaving the country. Human rights lawyer Babak Paknia, who is Rasoulof’s lawyer, said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, that several unspecified actors and producers on “Sacred Fig” were summoned and questioned last week by authorities.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Sudanese director Mohamed Kordofani’s “Goodbye Julia,” a timely morality tale that takes place just before the 2011 secession of South Sudan, leads the way in nominations for the eighth edition of the Critics Awards for Arab films, winners of which will be announced during the Cannes Film Festival. The first Sudanese film ever to screen in Cannes’ official selection, “Goodbye Julia” is the story of two women — one from the North, the other from the South — who are brought together by fate in a complex relationship that attempts to reconcile differences between northern and southern Sudanese communities in the currently war-ravaged country.