News

Turkey’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism withdrew its support for Gözde Kural’s drama “Cinema Jazireh” after watching it.

“We fought this decision, but they rejected it. I couldn’t believe it. It’s not even about Turkey, but apparently there were still things they didn’t want to see,” the Turkish director tells Variety.

In the film – set in Afghanistan – after the massacre of her family in a Taliban raid Leyla’s trying to find her missing son. Fearing for her life, she disguises herself as a man. Soon, she meets another loner: a child, stuck in a place where boys have to dress as women. Just like Zabur, who also grew up this way.

“I was maybe 21 years old when I first landed in Afghanistan. I still remember the fear and the loneliness – it stayed with me for a long time. But this fear inspired me to create Leyla.

Italy’s Rai Cinema is the first international distributor to announce the acquisition of “Day Drinker,” the film that marks Johnny Depp’s return to Hollywood following his high-profile legal battles with ex-wife Amber Heard.

“It’s a great action movie featuring an almost unrecognisable Johnny Depp with long grey hair and a beard,” Rai Cinema chief Paolo Del Brocco told reporters on Wed. as he unveiled the 2025/26 lineup of the prominent Italian company that is the film arm of Italian state broadcaster Rai.

Italy’s Leone Film Group and Rai Cinema jointly acquired “Day Drinker” from Lionsgate.

The film from “500 Days of Summer” and “Snow White” director Marc Webb re-teams Depp and Penélope Cruz for a fourth time after previous collaborations on “Blow,” “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” and “Murder on the Orient Express.” Madelyn Cline also stars in the film while Manu Ríos, Arón Piper,...

The 27th Shanghai International Film Festival concluded with clear signals that China’s entertainment industry is accelerating its global ambitions through technological innovation and strategic market consolidation, as the event successfully merged its film and TV markets while showcasing groundbreaking AI applications that could reshape content production worldwide.

Five Key Takeaways 1. Historic Market Merger Creates Industry-Public Hybrid Model

The festival’s most significant development was the historic merger of the Siff Film Market with the Shanghai TV Festival Market, creating a unified International Film & TV Market that reflects broader industry trends blurring traditional content boundaries. Chen Guo, managing director of Shanghai International Film & TV Events Center, described the consolidation as addressing “the industry’s evolving trend where content creation, technological applications, and talent mobility increasingly blur the lines between film and television.”

Housed in the sprawling 93,000 square meter Shanghai Exhibition Center, the merged market introduced a dual-track model combining professional...

Aktan Arym Kubat’s Black Red Yellow has won best feature at Shanghai International Film Festival’s (Siff) Golden Goblet Awards, which also saw a raft of prizes for Chinese films.

The Kyrgyz drama centres on the romance between a traditional carpet weaver and a horse herder and was named best feature at an award ceremony on Saturday (June 21) at the Shanghai Grand Theatre.

Scroll down for full list of winners

Kubat, also known as Aktan Abdykalykov, is known for features such as The Adopted Son, which won the Silver Leopard at Locarno in 1998; The Light Thief, which screened in...

Sometimes the best stories are worth the wait.

Giuseppe Tornatore revealed at a Shanghai International Film Festival masterclass that his beloved Oscar-winning film “Cinema Paradiso” gestated for 11 years before he wrote a single word.

“When I made my first film about the Mafia [“The Professor”], I was already brewing the script for ‘Cinema Paradiso’ in my mind,” Tornatore explained to film scholar Marco Müeller during the conversation at Shanghai, where he served as the head of the main competition jury. “It took 11 years of contemplation before I actually started writing the script.”

When he finally put pen to paper after more than a decade of contemplation, the script poured out in just two and a half months. “I had been thinking about this story for 11 years,” he said. “Once I started writing, it felt like the story was already complete in my mind.”

The evening followed a screening of “Cinema Paradiso,...

The 27th Shanghai International Film Festival has announced its Golden Goblet Awards winners, with Kyrgyzstan’s “Black Red Yellow,” directed by Aktan Arym Kubat, taking home the award for best feature film in the main competition.

Chinese cinema had a strong showing, with multiple wins across key categories. The jury grand prix was shared between Japan’s “On Summer Sand,” directed by Shinya Tamada, and China’s “Wild Nights, Tamed Beasts,” helmed by Wang Tong.

Director Cao Baoping claimed the best director award for the Chinese film “One Wacky Summer,” while Wan Qian earned best actress honors for her performance in “Wild Nights, Tamed Beasts.”

In his acceptance speech, Cao reflected on his decade-long journey since winning the same award at Shanghai in 2015 for “The Dead End,” saying he had been “persistently trying to fuse personal expression with high-intensity narrative.”

The best actor prize went to José Martins for his...

Giuseppe Tornatore is mystified by the love Chinese audiences have shown his films, but he’s not complaining.

The Oscar-winning Italian filmmaker behind “Cinema Paradiso” and “The Legend of 1900” is serving as president of the main competition jury at the Shanghai International Film Festival. Both the films were box office hits in China when released in recent years.

Speaking with Variety, Tornatore says he never specifically targeted Chinese viewers when creating his celebrated works. “When I made these films, obviously I didn’t think specifically about the Chinese audience,” the director says. “I told these stories because I liked them. When I made them, I hoped they would reach audiences, though I wasn’t sure they would.”

“Don’t ask me what the reason is, the explanation for this miracle, because I’ve never understood it,” Tornatore adds. “But I am surprised, admired, and very grateful for the love of the Chinese audience.

The 27th Shanghai International Film Festival (Siff) officially opened on June 13, reaffirming its status as a premier platform for Chinese-language cinema. This year, 43 cinemas across Shanghai and 5 cinemas throughout the Yangtze River Delta will showcase more than 400 films from 71 countries and regions, offering approximately 1,500 screenings. Notably, the Golden Goblet Awards will announce the winners on June 21.

On June 13, Siff brought together the full international jury of the Golden Goblet Awards Main Competition, representing 13 countries and regions across Asia, Africa, the Americas and Europe. They appeared together on stage and spoke to the press, reflecting the festival’s global reach and cultural diversity. World-renowned Italian filmmaker Giuseppe Tornatore will chair the jury panel of the Main Competition section, he said: “Film is the love of everyone and I hope these selected movies can really surprise and enchant me. I think the best of these works are sure to touch the hearts of each jury member.

Cinema from beyond English-speaking borders opens doors to new worlds, packed with raw emotion, bold storytelling, and unique perspectives. These films, crafted in languages from Japanese to Spanish, have shaped global filmmaking and left lasting marks on our hearts.

We’ve curated a list of 20 must-see foreign-language films, each a masterpiece that transcends subtitles. From timeless classics to modern gems, here’s why these stories deserve your attention.

20. Y Tu Mamá También – Spanish (2001) Bésame Mucho Pictures

Two Mexican teens and an older woman embark on a road trip full of lust and life lessons. Alfonso Cuarón’s raw, vibrant film explores youth and desire.

Diego Luna and Gael García Bernal’s chemistry grounds its bold energy. It’s a journey we feel in our bones.

19. Cinema Paradiso – Italian (1988) Rai

A boy in post-wwii Sicily falls in love with movies through his bond with a projectionist. Giuseppe Tornatore’s nostalgic tale...

Shanghai—The 27th Shanghai International Film Festival opened on 13 June with jury president Giuseppe Tornatore hailing the gathering as “a powerful message of peace and coexistence” amid global strife.

The Oscar-winning Italian raised a toast—“To Shanghai! To peace! And to the eternal power of cinema!”—at the Gala Night on 14 June, cheered by a red-carpet crowd that included Andy Lau, Zhang Ziyi and more than 200 other luminaries.

Marking 130 years of world cinema and 120 years of Chinese film, this edition received a record 3,900 submissions from 119 nations; 410 titles are screening in 43 theatres across the city until 22 June.

Twelve features—eleven world premieres and one international—are vying for the Golden Goblet, to be judged by a seven-member panel that pairs Tornatore with artists from China, India, Argentina, Greece and others.

“There is no pre-established rule,” Tornatore told reporters, pledging that the jury will “devote ourselves to the experience” rather than formulas.

The 27th Shanghai International Film Festival kicked off with a galaxy of Chinese stars present and a heartfelt message of peace from jury president Giuseppe Tornatore.

The gala event at the city’s spectacular Grand Theatre opened with an orchestral performance accompanied by a children’s choir. Stars present included the cast of the opening night film, Peter Chan Ho-sun’s “She’s Got No Name,” led by Zhang Ziyi, Mei Ting, Lei Jiayin, Li Xian and Yang Mi; Ni Ni, Tony Leung Ka-fai, Kara Wai Ying-hung, Zhu Yilong and Wu Lei among many others.

The festival was officially declared open by Gong Zheng, the Mayor of Shanghai.

Given the ongoing conflicts around the world, the jury members focused on the connective aspects of cinema. Indian filmmaker Kiran Rao said, “Cinema is like the Tree of Life, eternally nurturing stories and sparking conversations. Its branches stretch across generations, connecting us through images and shared memories.

The Taormina Film Festival wrapped its 71st edition with Axel Monsú’s “For Your Sake” taking home the top prize. The Argentinian film tells the story of a young girl played by Sabrina Melgarejo, whose life is restricted by poverty and an oppressive religion until she decides to make an attempt at taking her destiny into her own hands. The prize for best director went to Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza for their Iraqi set war movie “Warfare,” which plays out in real time and is based on real events experienced by Mendoza who wrote the script with Garland.

The jury – led by Da’Vine Joy Randolph, and including Academy Award winning costume designer Sandy Powell, former Variety vice-president of content Steven Gaydos and Italian actresses Ilenia Pastorelli and Alessandra Mastronardi – gave the acting honors to Ebada Hassan, who starred in Nadia Fall’s “Brides” and Geoffrey Rush for the thriller “The Rule of Jenny Pen,...

“I’m sure you can throw curly ones,” Academy Award-winning actor Geoffrey Rush says as we sit down to talk at the Taormina Film Festival in Sicily. He’s wearing a Mambo Loud shirt of remarkable color and is here to receive a Taormina Excellence Award as well as present his new thriller “The Rule of Jenny Pen,” in which he stars as a judge recovering from a stroke in a care home and tormented by a malign, baby-doll-wielding John Lithgow.

Rush, who starred in Giuseppe Tornatore’s 2013 mystery “The Best Offer,” has a close affinity to Italy and tells me he’s ambitious to improve his Italian.

Why do you want to improve your Italian?

My goal is to be able to watch Totò and actually understand it, because my Neapolitan friend, Gianni, took me through some scenes and said he’s very funny. There’s a dryness to this persona.

Giuseppe Tornatore, the acclaimed Italian director behind “Cinema Paradiso,” said that film evaluation cannot follow predetermined formulas as he leads the international jury for the 27th Shanghai International Film Festival’s Golden Goblet Awards.

“There is no pre-established rule,” Tornatore said Friday during the jury press conference, addressing questions about how the diverse panel would reach consensus. “In a prestigious festival like Shanghai, you know in advance that the films you will see will all be beautiful films… The one that has the right to win is the one that strikes the hearts of all the jurors.”

Speaking at his first visit to Shanghai, Tornatore set expectations for an instinct-driven evaluation process. “I don’t like going to the cinema establishing in advance what I would like to see,” he explained through a translator. “When I enter the cinema and the lights go out, I always feel like I’m an audience member again.

Oscar-winner Giuseppe Tornatore, jury head of the 27th Shanghai International Film Festival (Siff), says he will be looking for films that touch his heart as he chairs selection of this year’s Golden Goblet Award winners.

“When I enter a film screening and close my eyes, I always return to the feeling of being an audience member,” Tornatore said Friday during the Shanghai jury’s meeting with the international media. “I always hope that the film will bring me a pleasant surprise every time I go to the cinema.”

The Italian filmmaker is best known for his Academy Award-winner Cinema Paradiso (1988), a film in which a young boy is swept away by the magic of the movies — and the 69-year-old Tornatore said that was the feeling he would be chasing throughout Siff’s 10-day run.

“Every time I go to the cinema to watch a movie, I don’t want...

Italy’s Taormina Film Festival is set for a standout 71st edition with a rich mix of genres – including some potential discoveries – on display, plus a generous dose of star power within a new format that attempts to revive the storied Sicilian event and put it back on the international map.

Marketing guru Tiziana Rocca, who has close Hollywood ties and is a festivals specialist, is back at the helm eight years after she was forced to step down due to political infighting in 2017 following a five-year stint. Rocca’s first move has been to reintroduce a competitive section comprising 10 titles. They will be judged by a jury that, as previously announced, is headed by Da’Vine Joy Randolph, who won an Oscar for her role in “The Holdovers.”

The Taormina competition, unveiled on Thursday, comprises the world premieres of Whoopi Goldberg and Jeremy Irvine comedy “Leopardi & Co” by Italian director...

Exclusive: Taormina Film Festival will present Monica Bellucci with a Special International Award and celebrate the 25th anniversary of Giuseppe Tornatore’s Sicily-set drama Malèna in which she starred, at its upcoming edition later this month.

Bellucci will receive the honor at a gala event in Taormina’s ancient amphitheater at which the film will be screened. The official poster of the Taormina Film Festival 2025 is also dedicated to Malèna.

The 2000 World War Two-set romantic drama stars Bellucci as a woman living on her own in a small Sicilian town, while her husband is away fighting, whose beauty and sensuality raises suspicion among the other townspeople.

Taormina described Bellucci as one of the “most famous and fascinating icons of Italian and international cinema”, praising her “magnetic charisma, her innate elegance and a unique expressive intensity” and highlighting her credits such as The Passion of the Christ, Irreversible and Spectre.

“We...

Oscar-wining director Giuseppe Tornatore (“Cinema Paradiso”) is putting the finishing touches on a high-profile documentary about Brunello Cucinelli, the fashion designer known as Italy’s “King of Cashmere.”

Rai Cinema has announced that Tornatore’s under-the-radar doc — chronicling Cucinelli’s rise from being a farmer’s son to becoming creative director and executive chairman of a global luxury lifestyle brand with a market capitalization of more than $1.5 billion — has been set for release in Italian cinemas on Dec. 9 via its 01 Distribution arm.

Many details of the Cucinelli project are being kept under wraps, besides the doc’s Italian title which is “Brunello, il visionario garbato” — that translates as “Brunello, the gracious visionary” — and the fact that the film’s score is penned by Oscar-winning Italian composer Nicola Piovani (“Life Is Beautiful”).

The doc is being produced by Rome’s MasiFilm and Rai Cinema. World sales are still being decided.

Shanghai International Film Festival (Siff) has revealed the titles set to compete at its upcoming 27th edition, including the latest features by Cao Baoping, Aktan Arym Kubat and Antonio Ferreira.

They are among 49 titles that will vie for its Golden Goblet Awards, including 12 each from the main competition and the Asian New Talent competition, most of which are world premieres.

Scroll down for competition titles

A trio from China are running in the main competition, including Cao Baoping’s Tianjin-set crime comedy drama One Wacky Summer; Qiu Sheng’s latest China-France collaboration My Father’s Son; and Wang Tong’s feature debut Wild Nights,...

Shanghai’s 27th International Film Festival has unveiled a 49-title Golden Goblet roster selected from a record 2,800 submissions representing 119 countries and regions, signalling robust international appetite for the mainland’s biggest cinema event.

The films will compete across five sections—main feature, Asian New Talent, documentary, animation and short film—after programmers sifted through 3,900-plus entries in total. Notable contenders include Poland’s “Loss of Balance,” Germany’s “Luisa,” and Shinya Tsukamoto’s Japanese drama “On Summer Sand,” underscoring the mix of European art-house voices and Asian auteurs that typifies the Shanghai selection.

Festival organisers confirmed that Hong Kong director Peter Chan’s period crime epic “She’s Got No Name,” starring Zhang Ziyi, will open the ten-day gathering on 13 June and play simultaneously in more than 100 cinemas city-wide the following night, a move aimed at boosting public engagement. The full screening timetable drops on 3 June, with tickets available from 5 June through Damai and Taopiaopiao.

The 27th Shanghai International Film Festival (Siff) has unveiled its Golden Goblet Awards selection, with 49 films competing across five categories.

This year’s edition has set new records, with competition sections receiving over 2,800 submissions from 119 countries and regions, marking notable increases in entries from the Americas and Africa. Short film submissions alone rose 18% year-over-year.

The main competition features 12 titles spanning diverse territories. These include Chilean-u.K.-French co-production “After the Fog” directed by Miriam Heard, Kyrgyzstan’s “Black Red Yellow” from Aktan Arym Kubat, and Brazil’s “Cyclone” directed by Flavia Castro. Chinese cinema is well-represented with entries including “My Father’s Son” (Qiu Sheng), “One Wacky Summer” (Cao Baoping), and “Wild Nights, Tamed Beasts” (Wang Tong). The section also features Poland’s “Loss of Balance” (Korek Bojanowski), Germany’s “Luisa” (Julia Roesler), Japan’s “On Summer Sand” (Shinya Tamada), Argentina-Spain-Chile’s “The Reborn” (Santiago Esteves), Portugal-Brazil’s “The Scent...

Exclusive: Detective Chinatown hitmaker Chen Sicheng is set to direct Sherlock Of China and produce a trio of new feature films through his own Beijing-based As One Production.

Sherlock Of China (unrelated to Chen’s successful Detective Chinatown franchise) is inspired by the investigations of a pioneering forensic police officer and will go into production this year.

The three projects on which Chen serves as producer are With Her Eyes, directed by Dai Mo and based on a sci-fi short story by The Three-Body Problem’s Liu Cixin, who is the screenwriter together with Giuseppe Tornatore; Being Toward Death, for...

Joaquin Phoenix, Juliette Binoche, Pedro Pascal, Riz Ahmed and Guillermo del Toro are among a group of figures to have added their names to a letter condemning the film industry for its “silence” over the ongoing and deadly impact of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza.

The letter, published on the first day of Cannes and initially signed by more than 370 actors and filmmakers, also condemned Israel’s killing of Fatma Hassona, the protagonist of festival-bound doc “Put Your Soul in Your Hand and Walk.”

The new signatories also includes the likes of Rooney Mara, Jim Jarmusch, Omar Sy, Peter Straughan, Camille Cottin, Michael Moore, Boots Riley and Alice Rohrwacher.

The letter urged cinema — which it said was a “breeding ground for socially committed works” — to use its art form to “draw lessons from history, to make films that are committed” and to be “present to protect oppressed voices.”

The...

Maura Delpero’s Italian WW2 drama Vermiglio won best film at the 70th David Di Donatello awards, Italy’s version of the Oscars, held at Rome’s historic Cinecittà film studio on Wednesday night. Delpero also took best directing honors en route to a 7-trophy sweep.

The film, which had its world premiere in competition at the Venice Film Festival last year, beat out the two award frontrunners, Paolo Sorrentino’s Parthenope, a sumptuous, occasionally surreal tribute to his hometown of Naples, and Andrea Segre’s The Great Ambition, a political biopic about Italian Communist Party leader Enrico Berlinguer, which lead the pack going into the David awards with 15 nominations each. Parthenope went away empty-handed, but The Great Ambition took two awards: Best actor for Elio Germano, who play Berlinguer, and best editing for Jacopo Quadri.

Tecla Insolia won best actress for her starring role in Nicolangelo Gelormini’s Sicilian...

Women dominated Italy’s David di Donatello Awards with Maura Delpero’s Venice Silver Lion winner “Vermiglio” taking top honors and Valeria Golino’s female empowerment drama “The Art of Joy” and Margherita Vicario’s directorial debut “Gloria!” also scoring multiple statuettes.

“Vermiglio,” which is set at the end of World War II in an Alpine village where the arrival of a soldier causes disruption in the dynamics between three sisters, was the night’s big winner taking best picture, best director, screenplay, producer, cinematography, sound and the David’s newly introduced casting category.

Delpero, who is the first woman to win the best director David in the 70-year history of the awards – and only the third female filmmaker to win best film – underlined the anti-war aspect of “Vermiglio”

“When I thought about writing it, someone asked me if it wasn’t anachronistic to talk about war,” she said.

“Unfortunately,...

Maura Delpero’s Vermiglio took home Best Film and Director at the 70th edition of Italy’s David di Donatello Awards on Wednesday evening, in an historic win for a female director.

Delpero is the first woman to win the David di Donatello Best Director prize in the history of the awards, and only the third female filmmaker to win Best Film.

The film picked up seven David di Donatellos in total which also included Best Original Screenplay, Casting, Producer, Cinematography and Sound.

Set in a remote mountain village in 1944, Vermiglio revolves around a family whose life is disrupted by the arrival of a deserted soldier. The feature world premiered in Venice where it won the Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize and went on to be Italy’s 2025 Oscars submission.

It was an historically strong night for female directors.

Other big winners included Italian actress and singer-songwriter Margherita Vicario who won Best First Film,...

Exclusive: Abigail Spencer (Suits), Holt McCallany (Mindhunter), and Lucas Till (MacGyver) have been tapped for supporting roles in Clean Hands, the true-life drama from writer-director Jake Allyn on which we were first to report last month.

The trio is set to star opposite previously announced leads Zach Braff and Esther McGregor, with production now underway.

Set in Hagerstown MD, a Baltimore suburb along the infamous “Heroin Highway,” Clean Hands explores the American drug crisis through the lens of a father-daughter duo caught on opposing sides of the law, based on the harrowing story of hero drug cop turned recovery advocate Kevin Simmers (Braff) and his daughter Brooke (McGregor).

Spencer will portray Kevin’s wife Dana, while McCallany will play Maryland Congressman David Trone and Lucas Till will play Sheriff’s Deputy Dormer.

Producers include Conor Allyn of Margate House Films, Brian Loschiavo of Riverside Entertainment, James Suttles and Jason Winn of WW / Sf Entertainment,...

Italy’s Taormina Film Festival will pay homage to its Sicilian setting by celebrating the 25th anniversary of Giuseppe Tornatore’s steamy period drama “Malena” that launched Monica Bellucci’s international career.

The storied event, now headed once again by marketing guru Tiziana Rocca, will host a screening of a restored copy of the film about a 13-year-old boy’s obsession with a small-town siren in World War II Sicily that becomes the sad odyssey of a woman punished for her beauty, and is featuring a still of Bellucci in “Malena” on its poster.

“On the 25th anniversary of the release of Malena, we are happy and proud to dedicate this year’s Taormina Film Festival poster to one of the most iconic films in contemporary Italian cinema,” said Rocca in a statement, adding that “Malena” “has left an indelible mark on the collective imagination, portraying with extraordinary delicacy and...

Chinese distributor Hishow Entertainment is launching a marketing, distribution and exhibition program, We Love Cinema, to promote arthouse titles in the mainland China market.

The Beijing-based company has also recently acquired Best International Oscar winner I’m Still Here, directed by Brazilian auteur Walter Salles, along with Salles’ 1998 film Central Station, adding to its expanding roster of prestige titles.

In addition to acquiring specialist titles for mainland China theatrical distribution, the We Love Cinema program involves building a marketing strategy and loyalty program for cinema fans. The company is developing online communities and a WeChat mini app through which members can enjoy exclusive contents and bonuses including early screenings, Q&As with filmmakers, limited edition merchandise and special gifts.

The program also involves establishing a network of arthouse-friendly cinemas, working towards a platform releasing strategy, starting off with release in a select number of cinemas for each title, potentially expanding wider...

Netflix’s Melo Movie, at first glance, reads as an account of varied love stories. However, to proclaim it as a simple romantic comedy-drama is reductive and ignores the other forms of love that frequently sway the boat. Tucked in among the romantic stories of connection and disconnection, familial bonds, and friendships—a burgeoning subject matter of K-drama—is a meta-commentary on cinema and its acknowledgement as a singular cultural artifact. It periodically pauses to assess and draw conclusions on the deep influence of cinema on its own narrative anatomy.

Spoilers Ahead

What is the story all about?

Ko Gyeom grows up with the dream of watching every single film that has ever been made in the world. With his knowledge of and passion for films, he is easily someone who seems to be destined for a successful career in cinema. At 26, therefore, he turned up to audition for a film.

Chinese sales agent Rediance is expanding into distribution, attending EFM as a buyer for China for the first time, on the lookout for commercial auteur films, both new releases and library titles.

It has established a new Beijing-­based joint venture, in collaboration with Zhijiang Pictures Media (Zhejiang) and China Magic Film, for theatrical distribution and marketing in mainland China, aiming to handle six to eight films per year. Rediance will act as the international interface, responsible for acquisitions.

“Many international films such as Anatomy Of A Fall and How To Make Millions Before Grandma Dies have done incredibly well in Chinese theatres,...

Known as the queen of Italian pop, Mina has sold over 150 million records worldwide and remains a music legend who’s been captivating fans since the ’60s. Her new album, Gassa d’Amante, drops on November 22, and its title — named after an essential sailing knot — represents the solid and yet easily untangled nature of love. Just like the knot, the album explores the twists and turns of love in all of its beauty and complexity. At 84, Mina is still going strong, and she’s as iconic as ever.

Mina, born Mina Anna Mazzini, is one of the most adored pop stars in Italy. She is a cult figure who can be compared to Liza Minelli and Bette Midler; a musical diva who is as great a superstar to the Italians as Lady Gaga or Taylor Swift today. Like a 21st century Greta Garbo, she lives in exile in Lugano, Switzerland,...

In a world dominated by Hollywood blockbusters, many films from beyond the English-speaking lands fly under the radar. From the most comforting and heartwarming films to awe-inspiring and thrilling movies are being made in different parts of the world. They fail to reach a widespread audience because of accessibility issues and because people are not welcoming to the idea of foreign-media consumption. With the boom of K-pop and Korean dramas, Korean media does not fall into the unwelcome category of things. However, many countries have made exceptional films.

Why Watch Non-English Movies?

When Hollywood as an entertainment industry churns out gems left, right, and center; American audiences are not very likely to tap into the international cinematic landscape. Frequently, foreign language cinema is passed up for pretentious people’s activity. This perception leads to many cinematic gems being undiscovered. As South Korean director Bong Joon Ho rightfully said in his...

Exclusive: Chinese producer-distributor Hishow Entertainment has been on an acquisitions spree, snapping up several prestige festival titles for distribution in mainland China, including Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis, which it plans to give a wide theatrical outing before the end of the year.

The film, which premiered in competition at this year’s Cannes film festival, will first screen at China’s Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Film Festival, taking place in Xiamen, November 13-16.

Hishow has also acquired French director Laetitia Dosch’s Dog On Trial, a highly-acclaimed debut feature that premiered in Cannes Un Certain Regard; Rooney Mara starrer La Cocina, from Mexico’s Alonso Ruizpalacios, which premiered in Berlin; and Matteo Garrone’s Io Capitano, a Venice 2023 competition title that was nominated in the Best International Feature category of this year’s Oscars.

Starting with Megalopolis, the company is planning to roll these titles out theatrically in...

Giuseppe Tornatore’s “Cinema Paradiso” is and will always be cherished by cinephiles. After all, it beautifully captures their deep love for cinema and the art of filmmaking in the most heartfelt way. It shows a child from a small Italian town falling in love with cinema, because of his friendship with a local film projectionist. He gets to watch all kinds of movies and experiences the madness and chaos it entails. “Cinema Paradiso” opens in an era when people exclusively used film reels to make movies. The child protagonist sees the film’s material change from flammable to fire-resistant as the art advances into different eras.

The kid, Toto, grows up witnessing the changes in censorship in cinema and builds a personal connection with both sublime and obscene. Back then, films were integral to the social fabric of a community. So, he learns cinema’s importance as a medium...

The 16th edition of the Lumière Film Festival kicked off in high style, with a glittering lineup of stars including Benicio del Toro, Tim Burton, Monica Bellucci and Vanessa Paradis plus high-profile directors Costa-Gavras and Giuseppe Tornatore gracing the red carpet in Lyon.

Bellucci, who’s in town to present a new documentary about the stage play in which she portrays Maria Callas, was among the last to take to the red carpet. After taking a few steps, she turned back with a playful gesture as if she had forgotten something, reached through the curtain, and drew out Tim Burton, to the delight of the 5,000-strong crowd: Burton’s unannounced appearance drew massive applause.

The pair famously met and fell in love in Lyon in 2022, when Burton was the recipient of the festival’s lifetime achievement Lumière Award, which was handed to him by Bellucci. The Italian actress has since...

Watching a restored version of “Cinema Paradiso” (1988) with the director, Giuseppe Tornatore present, was an event that baptized me into the experience of movies, what they mean, and what they can do. Set in the small Italian town of Giancaldo, the relationship between the two protagonists, Toto, a young boy, and Alfredo, the old projectionist in the only movie theatre in town called Cinema Paradiso, seems to follow a very familiar yet comforting template — the lost boy and the unexpected guardian. Salvatore ‘Toto’ Di Vitta is a vivacious young child of eight, full of energy he does not know where to direct it, thereby causing trouble for everyone around him.

Toto falls asleep at his job as the altar boy and pesters Alfredo to let him into the projection booth. He also begs Alfredo to give him some of the spliced-off reels of kissing scenes the priest had censored, and later,...

When rumors circulated that his planned films on Frank Sinatra and Jesus have been postponed, there was speculation that Martin Scorsese might retire. The legendary director has now put those rumors to rest: “I’m not saying goodbye to cinema at all,” he said during a press conference Monday at the Museum of Cinema in Turin, Italy. “I still have more films to make, and I hope God gives me the strength to make them.”

Scorsese is in Turin to receive the Museum of Cinema’s prestigious Stella della Mole award Monday night. Friends like Willem Dafoe, Italian director Giuseppe Tornatore and production designer Dante Ferretti will be on hand to honor him.

During a freewheeling conversation with journalists in Turin, Scorsese also shared his thoughts on the upcoming U.S. elections.

“When we filmed Gangs of New York at Cinecittà, we depicted a violent, bloody 19th century America, with...

Italy has selected “Vermiglio” as the country’s entry for Best International Feature Film at the 97th Academy Awards. The movie written and directed by Maura Delpero won the Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize at the 2024 Venice Film Festival and will make its stateside debut at the Hamptons International Film Festival on October 10.

“Vermiglio” is set in 1944, in Vermiglio, a high mountain village of the Italian Alps where war looms as a distant but constant threat. The arrival of Pietro (Giuseppe De Domenico), a refugee soldier, disrupts the dynamics of the local teacher’s family, changing them forever. During the four seasons marking the end of World War II, Pietro and Lucia (Martina Scrinzi), the eldest daughter of the teacher, instantly drawn to each other, led to marriage and an unexpected fate. As the world emerges from its tragedy, the family will face its own.

Italy has won Best International...

The Oscars international feature film race got another strong competitor on Tuesday when Italy announced it would submit “Vermiglio” as its entry for the 97th Academy Awards. Written and directed by Maura Delpero, the film won the Silver Lion in Venice earlier this month.

Delpero’s drama is set in 1944 in the alpine village of the film’s title. When a young Sicilian soldier named Pietro (Giuseppe De Domenico) comes to town, his presence, according to the synopsis provided by Sideshow and Janus Films, “disrupts the dynamics of the local teacher’s family, changing them forever. During the four seasons marking the end of World War II, Pietro and Lucia, the eldest daughter of the teacher, instantly drawn to each other, led to marriage and an unexpected fate. As the world emerges from its tragedy, the family will face its own.”

Produced by Cinedora, Charades and Versus Productions, “Vermiglio” was...

Hungary has picked Lajos Koltai’s biopic Semmelweis as its contender for the 2025 Oscars in the best international feature category.

The feature traces the life of Hungarian doctor Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis, an early pioneer of antiseptic procedures who became known as “the savior of mothers” for his efforts in fighting deadly infections following childbirth. Set in 19th-century Vienna, it shows Semmelweis, played by Miklós H. Vecsei as a passionate, if short-tempered, doctor determined to find the cause of puerperal fever, a mysterious epidemic decimating patients after childbirth. Even after he discovers the cause of the infection and a means to prevent it, his peers and superiors work to discredit him.

Semmelweis was a commercial hit back home, selling more than 350,000 tickets and grossing more than $2 million on its theatrical release, becoming the most successful Hungarian movie of the past five years. Nfi World Sales is handling world sales on the title.

Venice Film Festival jury president Isabelle Huppert expressed support for Nicole Kidman after the actress was unable to accept her Best Actress prize for Babygirl in person, due to her mother’s death.

Kidman had traveled to Italy to receive the award but had to get back on a plane shortly after landing.

“I just wanted to express my compassion to Nicole Kidman, who can’t be here tonight, who had to go back unexpectedly, and I just want to tell her that we really miss her and we love her,” Huppert told the jury press conference.

Isabelle Huppert expresses condolences to Nicole Kidman following her mother’s passing.

Huppert says “we love you, Nicole” and explains why the jury awarded Kidman the Best Actress prize #Venezia81 pic.twitter.com/FKdn5YTIFU

— Deadline (@Deadline) September 7, 2024

Earlier at the awards ceremony, Babygirl director Halina Reijn had read out a message from...

While last year’s strikes created a somewhat subdued energy on the Lido with very few talent able to be present, this year’s 2024 Venice Film Festival proved to hot and steamy. And we’re not just talking about the excessive heat movie stars and fan alike were subjected to. Films like Halina Reijn’s erotic thriller “Babygirl” and Luca Guadagnino’s adaptation of William S. Burrough’s short novel “Queer” aroused audience interest with career-best performances from Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig and highly revealing sexual interplay. However it was Pedro Almodóvar’s “The Room Next Door” that took home the coveted Golden Lion, marking the first time the filmmaker has won a top prize at any major festival throughout his career.

Brady Corbet returned to the Palazzo del Cinema with his four-hour post-wwii epic “The Brutalist,” which screened to rave reception and earned the director the Silver Lion,...

It has not been, it’s safe to say, an all-timer Venice Competition lineup. Despite that, rumor has it that the 81st edition’s jury, presided over by Isabelle Huppert and comprising filmmakers James Gray, Andrew Haigh, Agnieszka Holland, Kleber Mendonça Filho, Abderrahmane Sissako, Giuseppe Tornatore, Julia von Heinz and actress Zhang Ziyi, took some time to come to their decisions during a prolonged deliberation session yesterday.

Speculation was also rife that, insofar as festival juries pay much attention to precedent, due to the string of high-profile US films that have won Venice in recent years they might have been discouraged from awarding the top prize to another American, or even American-led movie.

That story shifted slightly in the days following the premiere of “The Brutalist,” as the 3h15m-long film, directed by Brady Corbet, starring Adrien Brody and described by Variety’s Owen Gleiberman as “paced with a pleasing...

James Bond producer Barbara Broccoli was one of the guests at a gala dinner hosted by the Doha Film Institute (Dfi) and the Media City Qatar (McQ) on the fringes of the Venice Film Festival on Monday evening.

The veteran producer’s presence added fuel to recent reports that she is attempting to secure Qatari finance for ex-James Bond actor Daniel Craig’s big screen passion project Othello, with well-placed sources hinting on Monday night that talks were ongoing.

Related: ‘Russians At War’ Teaser: Anastasia Trofimova’s Doc Gives Rare Insight Into Life Of Russian Soldiers On The Frontline In Ukraine – Venice

Broccoli — who is co-head of James Bond producer Eon Productions with Michael G. Wilson — has reportedly been working with Craig for some time on the project, billed as a modern adaptation of the Shakespearean classic set in American army barracks in Iraq.

Related: ‘King Ivory’: Melissa Leo,...

French screen icon Isabelle Huppert, president of the 81st Venice Film Festival’s main competition jury, took the stage Wednesday afternoon to share her thoughts on how she will approach her role as the event’s de facto artistic judge-in-chief. The gathering was marked by a triumphant tone from Venice artistic director Alberto Barbera, who sat by Huppert’s side and noted that his glamorous Italian festival will feature more big-name stars on its red carpet over the coming week than in any year of recent memory. But there was also a palpable undercurrent of angst over the myriad tech-driven business challenges that continue to roil the global independent film business.

“I’m worried about the things everyone is worried about — whether cinema can continue to survive — because it’s very weak now,” Huppert remarked early in the sitdown. “It’s very difficult to make a film. A film is not just an individual effort.

French acting legend Isabelle Huppert, who is president of the Venice Film Festival jury this year, was joined by her panelists as artistic director Alberto Barbera hosted the opening press conference for the 81st running of the event this morning. It’s a different look this year, with no one sporting Writers Guild strike T-shirts à la 2023.

This morning’s session was brief but earnest, with many of the jury members speaking about the concerns around the state of contemporary cinema.

“I’m worried about the things everyone is worried about. Making sure that cinema continues to live because it is very weak now,” Huppert said during the session.

“It’s very difficult to make a film. A film is not just an individual effort. It’s really something we deliver to the world. So I am concerned about whether our world will still connect with people. That’s why...

Willem Dafoe, who stars in Tim Burton’s fest opener “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” along with jury members Kleber Mendonça Filho (“Bacurau”) and Giuseppe Tornatore (“Cinema Paradiso”) turned up at the annual Venice Film Festival’s pre-opening party on the rooftop of the Danieli Hotel on Tuesday night.

Co-hosted by the Leone Film Group, Variety and the Danieli Hotel, the glamorous bash brought together a mix of stars, global industry movers and shakers, including hitmaking Italian director Paolo Genovese, Los Angeles-based producer Niels Juul (“Ferrari”) and Bárbara Paz, a Brazilian actor and filmmaker.

Photo by Victor Boyko/Variety via Getty Images

“Here we go again!” said Venice Film Festival artistic director Alberto Barbera from the rooftop boasting a 180-degree view of the Venice Lagoon. “We are here once again to celebrate the pre-opening of the Venice Film Festival,” he continued, before noting that this year’s star-studded lineup is being praised as the strongest in years.

The Venice Film Festival is just over two weeks away, bringing starry talent back to the Lido in water taxis after a year off for many due to the strikes in 2023. The Biennale has unveiled its Conversations and Masterclasses lineup, with a richer program and in a new and larger (250 seats) location at the Match Point Arena, set up at the Tennis Club Venezia on the Lido.

Four Masterclasses will be held by directors and performers, including the actress Sigourney Weaver (recipient of the Golden Lion for Career) on Thursday, August, 29; filmmaker Peter Weir (Golden Lion for Career) on Sunday, September 1, and his 2003 film “Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World” also screens during the festival; actor/filmmaker Ethan Hawke on Monday, September 2; and Pupi Avati, director of closing night film “L’orto Americano” on Friday, September 6. All can be followed via live stream at labiennale.org.

Organized by Cartier,...

Music Box Films has acquired U.S. distribution rights to Carson Lund’s comedy drama “Eephus,” which premiered in Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight. The film was recently announced as an Official Selection of New York Film Festival, where it will have its North American premiere.

Music Box plans for a theatrical release nationwide followed by home entertainment. London- and Paris-based sales and production house Film Constellation handles worldwide sales and negotiated the deal on behalf of the filmmakers.

“Eephus” is set on a small-town New England baseball field called Soldiers Field. As an imminent construction project looms over their beloved baseball field, a pair of Sunday league teams face off for the last time over the course of a day. Tensions flare up and ceremonial laughs are shared as an era of camaraderie and escapism fades into an uncertain future.

Variety highlighted “Eephus” as one of the must-see films of the...