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The final scenes of Joachim Rønning’s “Young Woman and the Sea” are hard to spoil — the film is, after all, based on a true story — and yet, they still surprise. As the film’s own producer, Jerry Bruckheimer, sees it, that’s because the very same history that inspired the Daisy Ridley-starring feature has largely been forgotten. Until, of course: movie adaptation time.

The biographical sports drama follows swimming trailblazer Gertrude “Trudy” Ederle (Ridley), who became the first woman to swim across the English Channel in 1926. Upon the completion of her incredible athletic feat — just one of many we see Trudy tackle in the feature — she was greeted as a hero in her native New York City, care of a ticker-tape parade believed to have been attended by two million people.

“When you see that parade, you can’t believe that you’ve never heard of this athlete,...

Welcome to International Disruptors, a feature where we shine a spotlight on key figures and companies from outside of the U.S. who are shaking up the marketplace. This week, we’re talking to Norwegian director Joachim Rønning, who has worked across projects such as Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales and Kon-Tiki. Rønning tells us why he felt compelled to bring the inspirational story of Trudy Ederle, the first woman to successfully swim the English Channel, to life in Young Woman and the Sea and also what audiences can expect with his next project Tron: Ares.

Joachim Rønning has long been fascinated by the sea. Growing up in the small Norwegian seaside town of Sandefjord, his childhood was filled with memories of sailing and being on the open water. “I’m relaxed on the water,” the director tells Deadline. “There’s something so rewarding about being...

Plot: The extraordinary true story of Trudy Ederle, the accomplished swimmer who was born to immigrant parents in New York City in 1905. Through the steadfast support of her older sister and supportive trainers, she overcame adversity and the animosity of a patriarchal society to rise through the ranks of the Olympic swimming team and complete the staggering achievement – a 21-mile trek from France to England.

Review: After the surprise box office success of The Boys in the Boat, Disney shifted Young Woman and the Sea from a streaming debut to a theatrical release. However, the film barely registered during its limited window in May. The inspirational period sports drama is coming to Disney+, where it will likely garner a much larger audience. Despite a familiar formula that borders on cliche, Young Woman and the Sea is still a rousing underdog tale from the same studio that brought us Remember the Titans and Miracle.

Gertrude Ederle loved the water. “To me, the sea is like a person — like a child I’ve known a long time,” she once said. “ I never feel alone when I’m out there.”

That comfort combined with a dogged sense of determination led the young German American swimmer (played here by Daisy Ridley) to defy odds and sexist naysayers. In 1926, Ederle swam the English Channel in 14 hours and 31 minutes, beating the previous world record, which was held by a man. Her accomplishment helped change perceptions about women in competitive sports. When Ederle returned to New York, the city feted her with a parade on a scale never seen before (or since). They cheered her homecoming and dubbed her the Queen of the Waves.

Like all trailblazers, Ederle’s story began with obstacles and hostility, many of which director Joachim Rønning accords appropriate levels of respect in Young Woman and the Sea.

Director Joachim Rønning talks exclusively to us about his original sci-fi project, Here There Be Monsters, which will be a nautical take on Jaws and The Thing.

First announced in 2018, Here There Be Monsters was billed as an original sci-fi project co-written by Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales co-director Joachim Rønning. At the time, little was revealed about its plot beyond it being a genre film set at sea.

Speaking to Film Stories ahead of the release of his latest movie, the period biopic Young Woman And The Sea, however, Rønning has revealed a telling new detail about Here There Be Monsters. Confirming that it’ll be set at sea – something of a signature location for the Norwegian filmmaker – Rønning added that it’s inspired by a couple of monster movies you might have heard of.

“As a filmmaker, you have to be developing many projects,...

10 Best Women-Led Heist Movies To Watch, If You Enjoyed Kareena Kapoor, Kriti Sanon And Tabu’s Crew On Netflix(Photo Credit –IMDb)

Who says women cannot pull off a masterfully planned heist? Rajesh A Krishnan’s directed comedy-drama Crew is proof of that. The film, starring Kareena Kapoor Khan, Kriti Sanon, and Tabu as Jasmine, Divya Rana, and Geeta Sethi, was recently released on Netflix after its successful run in theatres. The story revolves around the crew of the bankrupt Kohinoor Airlines, who struggle to make ends meet. The three crewmates Geeta, Jasmine, and Divya are fed up with their endless hustle and decide to get down to the business of gold smuggling to end their misery.

While the three got richer, their other colleagues suffered as their months of salaries were unpaid. Finally, Geeta, Jasmine, and Divya hatch a plan to rob their boss, chairman of Kohinoor Airlines, Vijay Walia...

“Pirates of the Caribbean” producer Jerry Bruckheimer has provided more clarity on the current state of the Disney adventure franchise. He already teased in March that a total reboot was going to be the first “Pirates” movie out of the gate in the future because “it’s easier to put together because you don’t have to wait for certain actors.” This reboot is now confirmed to have writer Jeff Nathanson attached. Bruckheimer announced the news in an interview with Entertainment Weekly.

Nathanson also wrote the screenplay for the last “Pirates” movie, 2017’s “Dead Men Tell No Tales,” which was directed by Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg. Rønning and Nathanson, as well as Bruckheimer, have reunited on the new Disney biographical drama “Young Woman and the Sea.”

“He’s cracked it,” Bruckheimer said of Nathanson’s script for the “Pirates” reboot. “He’s got an amazing third act. We just...

You know what I miss? Disney's inspirational true story dramas and sports movies. As easy and often valid as it is to poke holes in their predictable narrative structures and complain about them reducing even the most unbelievable real-life events to a cookie-cutter formula, we could do with some earnest, uplifting pictures about marginalized people defying the odds to realize their dreams right about now. We got some pretty good -- not to mention culturally sensitive -- ones in the '10s, too, including "McFarland, USA" and "Queen of Katwe." Sadly, however, modest to disappointing box office returns have since led to those types of offerings being relegated to streaming only (see also: the underappreciated Willem Dafoe adventure film "Togo").

That was also the original plan for "Young Woman and the Sea," a biographical swimming drama anchored (no pun intended) by none other than Rey Skywalker herself, Daisy Ridley. Luckily,...

Jeremy Thomas (who Tilda Swinton compares to a pirate and William Blake) on Jim Jarmusch: “There’s no more American independent hero than him. He and Sara Driver have been my friends for years, decades.”

In the second instalment with the free-thinking producer and pirate of the high seas (Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg’s Kon-Tiki), Jeremy Thomas, we discuss the filming of Jim Jarmusch’s Only Lovers Left Alive, his “favourite actor” John Hurt, his “very good buddy” Tilda Swinton, Tom Hiddleston and “the great” Mia Wasikowska, and Anton Yelchin “who was such a sweetie”. We also touch upon the opening night of Jeremy Thomas Presents at the Quad Cinema with Jeremy and the Stealing Beauty author Susan Minot, doing a Q&a following the screening of Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Dreamers.

Jim Jarmusch with Tilda Swinton, whom Jeremy Thomas calls “an incredible woman.” Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze

Jim...

"Everything Everywhere All at Once" cleaned up at the 95th annual Academy Awards, taking home seven Oscars including the trophies for Best Picture and Best Director for Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert. So, what are Daniels (as the duo is collectively known) doing next? Why making a Star War, of course!

It's a common refrain in modern Hollywood: a promising director (or directing duo) scores a hit, then immediately gets snatched up by a studio to oversee one of their franchises. Hence, it's understandable people weren't exactly thrilled to learn Daniels are working on "Skeleton Crew," an upcoming live-action "Star Wars" streaming series that takes place concurrently with "The Mandalorian" and its spinoffs. Is this the minds who gave us Daniel Radcliffe: Farting Corpse and a universe where everyone has hotdog fingers leaving their days of being legitimately weird and innovative behind them? In a subsequent Instagram story post...

After years of stops and starts, Tron 3 is moving forward at Disney. Jared Leto, who has championed the project since 2017, will star in the feature, with frequent Disney collaborator Joachim Ronning in talks to direct. The film, titled Tron: Ares, has a script from Jesse Wigutow and will follow 2010’s Tron: Legacy.

Disney released the original Tron in 1982, with Jeff Bridges starring as video game designer Kevin Flynn, who is transported inside his own creation and teams up with Tron, a security program played by Bruce Boxleitner. The film was not considered a box office success, earning 33 million (around 100 million today), but it was admired for its groundbreaking visual effects and remained in the public consciousness for years to come, eventually spawning a sequel, Tron: Legacy.

That second film, from Joseph Kosinski, starred Bridges, Garrett Hedlund and Olivia Wilde, and earned 400 million, not enough to get a planned sequel with...

Jason Clarke and Haley Bennett star.

UK sales agent Altitude has boarded sales for thriller The Prize, directed by Norway’s Espen Sandberg, and starring Jason Clarke and Haley Bennett.

The project is being introduced to buyers this week at AFM, with UTA Independent Film Group handling North American rights.

An American makes a last-minute trip to Sweden to attend the funeral of an old friend – a ranking members of the Nobel Prize selection committee – only to find himself entangled in a web of corruption and murder.

The film shoots in spring 2023 in Finland and Sweden.

Zach Studin is producing,...

Altitude has boarded sales on the Village Roadshow Pictures thriller The Prize, starring Jason Clarke (Zero Dark Thirty) and Haley Bennett (Till). The London-based company will present the project to buyers this week at the American Film Market, with additional support and review from Village Roadshow Pictures’ international sales team.

Written by Chris Sparling (Greenland) with Espen Sandberg (Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales) attached to direct, the pic is billed as a “taut Hitchcockian thriller” about an unwitting American who makes a last-minute trip to Sweden to attend the funeral of an old friend — a ranking member of the Nobel Prize selection committee — only to find himself entangled in the complex web of corruption and murder that exists beneath the surface of this rarified world.

Clarke is attached to play the role of Dan, and Bennett is set to play the role of Ida. Further casting is yet to be announced.

Exclusive: Legendary got ahead of the scrum and pre-emptively acquired Fight Fast, a spec script by Chris Sparling. The project is a high-concept take on underground fighting that has franchise potential. 

Sparling most recently wrote and produced the Phillip Noyce-directed thriller The Desperate Hour, and his other credits include Intrusion, which he wrote and produced for Netflix; the Espen Sandberg-directed The Prize; and Bed Rest, which he has in post at STX.

He also wrote Greenland, the Gerard Butler-starrer for STX and Thunder Road, and the Gus Van Sant-directed Sea of Trees, which starred Matthew McConaughey and Ken Watanabe. His breakthrough was Buried, the claustrophobic thriller that starred Ryan Reynolds.  

Sparling is represented by UTA, Kaplan/Perrone Entertainment and Lichter, Grossman.

The "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise is no stranger to cool cameos. After all, they had Rolling Stones legend Keith Richards play Jack Sparrow's (Johnny Depp) father in "At World's End" and "On Stranger Tides." In fact, he was set to come back for "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales." Considering Depp has said a number of times that he based the character of Jack Sparrow on Richards, it made total sense to have the man himself as Papa Sparrow. 

As we know, however, Richards didn't return for the 2017 film, which was directed by Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg....

The post Pirates of the Caribbean Didn't Originally Plan on Having a Paul McCartney Cameo appeared first on /Film.

The Worst Person in the World a Norwegian saga of a young willy-nilly woman who finds peace with herself directed by Joachim Trier,

The final film in Trier’s Oslo trilogy, The Worst Person In The World earned its star Renate Reinsve the best actress prize in Cannes, and she went on to a European Film Awards nomination. Reinsve stars as a young woman navigating the troubled waters of her love life and her struggles to find a career path. Trier’s Reprise and Thelma were both submitted for this category — but neither made the shortlist. Norway did make the shortlist last year with Maria Sødahl’s Hope, and was last nominated in 2012 with Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg’s Kon-Tiki.

After its Cannes premiere it went on to play in Serbia at the European Film Festival Palic),Karlovy Vary, Jerusalem, Deauville American Film Festival), Toronto, New York Film, Hamptons, Woodstock and BFI London Film Festivals.

This was emotionally complex and satisfying but in that it was more personal vs. universal I don’t think it will win the Oscar, though it deserves to be nominated and in a different line-up would win.

Watch the trailer here.

Isa MK2 has licensed the movie to Neon for USA, Madman for Australia/ Nz, Cineart for Benelux, Camera for Denmark, Memento for France, Mozinet for Hungary, Gaga for Japan, Front Row for Middle East and Africa, Sf Studios for Norway, M2 for Poland, Alambique for Portugal, Independenta for Romania, Anticipate for Singapore, Elastica for Spain, Triart for Sweden, Frenetic for Switzerland, Hooray for Taiwan, Arthouse Traffic for Ukraine, Mubi for France, Germany, Latin America, Turkey, India.

Exclusive: Oscar nominee James Caan (The Godfather) and Morena Baccarin (Deadpool) will star alongside Pierce Brosnan in hitman thriller Fast Charlie, to be directed by Phillip Noyce (Salt).

Filming is due to get underway in New Orleans next week.

Former James Bond Brosnan will play Charlie Swift who has worked for his ageing mob boss Stan (Caan) for twenty years, skillfully operating as a prolific fixer and efficient hitman. When a rival boss moves to eliminate Stan and his entire team, he fails in wiping the team clean. Now on his own, Charlie will stop at nothing to avenge his friend and has no plans to leave anyone alive. Morena Baccarin is set to play the female lead Marcie, the ex-wife of a mobster killed by Charlie, who forms an unexpected pairing with Charlie in his revenge against the rival mob.

The original screenplay is written by Richard Wenk (The...

Powered by its famed partners, Oslo-based Motion Blur, one of Norway’s top producers of commercials, features and TV shows, has never been that busy with projects both on home turf and in the U.S.

That activity in part rolls off the pulling power of the company’s pedigreed partners: “Karate Kid” helmer Harald Zwart; “Kon-Tiki” and “Pirates of the Caribbean-Dead Men Tell No Tales” co-helmer Espen Sandberg: and producer Espen Horn.

Minority shareholder Sf Studios lends Motion Blur adds financial stability. The genre-bending outfit also boasts a unique bond with Netflix that has translated into three Norwegian-language orders over the past year-and-a -half from the U.S. giant.

Helmed by rising talent Jarand Herdal, chiller “Cadaver,” Netflix’s first Norwegian feature, premiered last October. Motion Blur’s vampire comedy show “Post Mortem: No One Dies in Skarnes” is launching on the giant streamer on Aug. 25. A third Netflix title,...

Artists, Writers and Artisans, the creator-owned graphic fiction publisher, has launched Awa Studios and named Zach Studin as president, starting a new chapter for the group in Hollywood.

Studin, a former John Wells Productions, Lava Bear Films and Lionsgate executive, will oversee entertainment industry partnerships and build film and TV projects based on the company’s expanding IP library.

Awa — backed by James Murdoch’s Lupa Systems; Sister, the media firm owned by James’ sister Elisabeth Murdoch, Stacey Snider and Jane Featherstone; and Lightspeed Venture Partners — was founded by former Marvel executives Bill Jemas and Axel Alonso. Hollywood dealmaker Jon Miller is chairman and general counsel.

The company’s lineup of comic book talent includes J. Michael Straczynski, Mike Deodato and Garth Ennis, who are all founding members of the creative council of Awa, which is committed to giving “creators the freedom, incentive structure and editorial support to pursue their boldest and most original work,...

The famed Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen led the first expedition to reach the South Pole, so when you watch “Amundsen: The Greatest Expedition,” you may think you’ve got a good idea of the movie you have in store: an adventure at once exciting and treacherous, set in the frozen wilderness, with a stoic Nordic hero at its center — the kind of man who might have been played a few decades ago by Max von Sydow. “Amundsen” has scattered moments of tense physical drama, set against glacial Arctic vistas of fantastic authenticity. You really feel like you’re there.

The movie opens with two men in a propeller plane conking out in the middle of the icy nowhere. One of them is the aging Roald Amundsen (Pål Sverre Hagen), who reveals a hawkish profile of calm, imperious, almost sneering indomitability; the other is a man who can no longer feel his feet.

Photo: April Movies As vaccines continue to roll out, movies are beginning to land in theaters again--still, many continue to hit Ott streaming or VOD, including some of the month’s most anticipated movies like Netflix’s ‘Concrete Cowboy’, Prime Video’s ‘Tom Clancy’s Without Remorse’, and Warner Bros.’ ‘Mortal Kombat’ (the last of which will simultaneously release in theaters and on HBO Max). Here, we’ve compiled the most comprehensive and accurate list of every new film coming out in April, when they’ll be released, and where you can watch them--with live updates. Related article: The Complete List of 2021 Oscar Nominations – Celebrations, Surprises & Snubs | The Show Must Go On Related article: My Experience Going To Movie Theaters In Los Angeles, Reopening One Year Later April Movies Release Schedule - In Theaters and Digitally: ‘Amundsen: The Greatest Expedition’ Release Date: April 2 on VOD--click Here to watch Director: Espen Sandberg...

The performances in Maria Sødahl’s stunning piece of auto-fiction are superb. Oscar-shortlisted Hope (Håp) hopes to become the sixth film from Norway (joining Arne Skouen’s Nine Lives; Nils Gaup’s Pathfinder; Berit Nesheim’s The Other Side of Sunday; Petter Næss’s Elling; Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg’s Kon-Tiki) to be nominated by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in what is now called Best International Feature Film. Nicole Kidman recently bought the rights for Hope to star in a series adaptation of the director’s story.

Anja (Andrea Bræin Hovig) returning home to Oslo from directing a successful stage production abroad, is greeted by her youngest child, 10-year-old Isak (Daniel Storm Forthun Sandbye), on the staircase of their building. He is wearing a pig...

"We may as well be on a foreign planet." Samuel Goldwyn Films has released a new official US trailer for the Norwegian adventure drama Amundsen: The Greatest Expedition, from director Espen Sandberg. This is finally arriving in the US on VOD in April after originally opening in Norway back in 2019 (we posted this teaser a few years back). Pål Sverre Hagen stars as the iconic Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen, who explored the North Pole in the early 1900s. Amundsen’s dream of reaching the North Pole haunts him throughout his life. He's obsessed with the idea of discovering the last unchartered lands of the world. While he wins the race against Robert Scott to becomes the first man ever to conquer the South Pole, Amundsen will sacrifice everything to be the first to explore the icy lands of the North Pole. Also starring Katherine Waterston, Jonas Strand Gravli, Trond Espen Seim,...

Exclusive: Samuel Goldwyn Films has acquired U.S. rights to explorer biopic Amundsen: The Greatest Expedition about Norwegian adventurer Roald Amundsen’s epic journeys to the South and North Poles.

Directed by Espen Sandberg (Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales), starring are Pål Sverre Hagen (Kon-Tiki), Christian Rubeck (Genius) and Katherine Waterston (Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them).

The Norwegian and English-language film charts Roald Amundsen’s dream of reaching the North Pole which haunts him throughout his life. He is obsessed with the idea of discovering the last unchartered lands of the world. While he wins the race against Robert Scott and becomes the first man ever to conquer the South Pole, Amundsen will sacrifice everything to be the first to explore the icy wastelands of the North Pole.

Pic is scripted by Ravn Lanesskog. Producers are Kristian Strand Sinkerud, Espen Horn and John M. Jacobsen.

Disney have two new Pirates of the Caribbean movies in the works, one of which hails from longtime scribes Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio and is set to be directed by Dead Men Tell No Tales‘ Joachim Ronning, who’ll be flying solo without regular filmmaking partner Espen Sandberg, while the other is a female-driven spinoff from Birds of Prey duo Margot Robbie and Christina Hodson.

From almost the second that both projects were announced, though, fans were furious that an actor to have appeared in all five installments so far had been dropped altogether despite being such an integral part of the mythology ever since 2003’s Curse of the Black Pearl. You can completely understand the backlash, too, because having always played a key role in a series that’s raked in over $4.5 billion at the box office, there are plenty of reasons to doubt whether or not audiences...

The very existence of two Pirates of the Caribbean movies that don’t involve Johnny Depp have already been greeted by a mixture of apathy and fury by the actor’s army of fans, who have been very active making their opinions known online recently in case you hadn’t noticed. While you can put forth the argument that no star is technically bigger than the brand, and plenty of franchises have recast top to bottom before, Captain Jack Sparrow is unquestionably the main selling point of the series.

At least the sixth installment in the main timeline has the presence of Jerry Bruckheimer attached to produce and Dead Men Tell No Tales‘ Joachim Ronning returning to direct without partner Espen Sandberg, giving it a sense of familiarity. But the second is being developed by Birds of Prey duo Margot Robbie and Christina Hodson, with the term ‘female-driven spinoff’ more...

Bookmark this page for all the latest international feature submissions.

Submissions for the best international feature film award at the 2021 Academy Awards have started to come in, and Screen is keeping a running list of each film below.

Scroll down for the full list

The 93rd Academy Awards is set to take place on April 25, 2021. It was originally set to be held on February 28, before both the ceremony and eligibility period were postponed for two months due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Submitted films must have been released in their respective countries between the expanded dates of October 1, 2019, and December 31, 2020. (Last year it was October-September.

Bookmark this page for all the latest international feature submissions.

Submissions for the best international feature film award at the 2021 Academy Awards have started to come in, and Screen is keeping a running list of each film below.

Scroll down for the full list

The 93rd Academy Awards is set to take place on April 25, 2021. It was originally set to be held on February 28, before both the ceremony and eligibility period were postponed for two months due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Submitted films must have been released in their respective countries between the expanded dates of October 1, 2019, and December 31, 2020. (Last year it was October-September.

Exclusive: Joker and The Matrix co-producer Village Roadshow Pictures has optioned and is looking to fast-track The Prize, a spec feature written by Buried and Greenland scribe Chris Sparling with Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales co-helmer Espen Sandberg aboard to direct.

The conspiracy thriller follows an American private investigator who travels to Stockholm after the suspicious death of an old friend, a ranking member of the Nobel Prize selection committee, only to become entangled in a dangerous web of corruption and crime that exists beneath the surface of the powerful and rarefied circle.

Sparling and Zach Studin (McCarthy) will produce. Jillian Apfelbaum will oversee for Village Roadshow. UTA Independent Film Group will handle U.S. sales.

Sparling script Greenland, the action-thriller starring Gerard Butler, is currently on release. Contained thriller Buried with Ryan Reynolds was a breakout hit in 2010. Sandberg is well known for projects including Max Manus,...

Picture Tree Intl. has acquired international sales rights to the Norwegian romantic comedy “Diana’s Wedding,” directed by Charlotte Blom, and will selling the film at Cannes Market Online.

Nordisk Film will handle distribution in the Scandinavian territories, with a theatrical release in Norway scheduled for Sept. 25.

The film, described as a “bittersweet tribute to love,” tells the story of Liv and Terje, and the unconventional, stormy marriage they embark on the very same day as Diana Spencer and Prince Charles exchange vows in London. To their daughter, Diana, they are probably the worst parents in the world, they constantly fight yet are miraculously still in love by the time Diana is preparing for her own marriage 30 years later.

“Diana’s Wedding” is director Blom’s second feature after “Staying Alive” in 2015. She worked from a script she wrote with Mette M. Bølstad. The two leads are played by Marie Blokhus,...

Rakuten and The H Collective have set Deadpool and Homeland star Morena Baccarin to lead survival thriller Beast for Oscar nominated Kon-Tiki co-director Espen Sandberg. Beast is the first film under the Rakuten H Collective Studio joint venture that was launched last August. Principal photography will begin in late March in New Zealand.

The story is based on Aaron W Sala’s Blacklist script, and is described as the hard-hitting tale of a woman who survives a plane crash and is stranded on a seemingly deserted island in the South Pacific. She must fight to get back to her children, face her inner demons and a real threat of unimaginable proportions.

Sherryl Clark and Kenneth Huang are producing for The H Collective alongside Rakuten Chairman and CEO Mickey Mikitani.

Sandberg, whose credits also include Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, says Beast merges horror, thriller, action and dramatic elements,...

“Deadpool” and “Homeland” actress Morena Baccarin will star in the survival thriller “Beast,” to be directed by Espen Sandberg, who co-helmed Oscar-nominated “Kon-Tiki” and “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales.”

Based on Aaron W. Sala’s Blacklist script, “Beast” is about a woman who survives a plane crash and is stranded on a seemingly deserted island in the South Pacific. “She must fight to get back to her children, face her inner demons and a real threat of unimaginable proportions,” according to a statement from the producers.

Sherryl Clark and Kenneth Huang are producing for The H Collective alongside Rakuten’s Mickey Mikitani. Shooting will begin in late March in New Zealand. “Beast” is the first film under the joint venture between Rakuten and The H Collective, who first partnered in August.

Sandberg said: “For me ‘The Beast’ is a story about a woman who is forced...

The upcoming survival thriller The Beast, co-produced by Japanese internet giant Rakuten and Los Angeles-based film outfit The H Collective, has found its director and star.

Norwegian filmmaker Espen Sandberg, best known for Kon-Tiki and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, has signed on to direct, while Morena Baccarin is set to play the lead. The casting was announced Wednesday in Berlin ahead of the start of the Berlin International Film Festival and European Film Market. Christine Crokos was previously attached to helm The Beast but has left the project.

Described as a "hard-hitting survival thriller," The Beast ...

The upcoming survival thriller The Beast, co-produced by Japanese internet giant Rakuten and Los Angeles-based film outfit The H Collective, has found its director and star.

Norwegian filmmaker Espen Sandberg, best known for Kon-Tiki and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, has signed on to direct, while Morena Baccarin is set to play the lead. The casting was announced Wednesday in Berlin ahead of the start of the Berlin International Film Festival and European Film Market. Christine Crokos was previously attached to helm The Beast but has left the project.

Described as a "hard-hitting survival thriller," The Beast ...

Principal Photography set for late March in New Zealand.

Tokyo-based internet services company Rakuten and The H Collective have hired Morena Baccarin to star in the survival thriller Beast for Espen Sandberg.

Beast marks the first film under the joint venture between Rakuten and The H Collective after the parties announced their partnership in August.

The H Collective president of production Sherryl Clark and chairman Kenneth Huang are producing alongside Rakuten chairman and CEO Mickey Mikitani. Principal Photography is scheduled to begin in late March in New Zealand.

Based on Aaron W. Sala’s The Black List screenplay, Beast is...

The Santa Barbara International Film Festival has announced the lineup for its 35th edition, which will take place from January 15 to 25. There will be 47 world premieres and 71 U.S. premieres, with 50 countries represented overall, in addition to starry tributes that serve as an awards season stop for top Oscar contenders. Among those feted in their respective categories will be Renée Zellweger (American Riviera Award), Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver (Outstanding Performers of the Year Award), Laura Dern (Cinema Vanguard Award), Brad Pitt (Maltin Modern Master Award), along with the winners of the Virtuosos Award: Awkwafina, Taron Egerton, Cynthia Erivo, Beanie Feldstein, Aldis Hodge, George MacKay, Florence Pugh, and Taylor Russell.

The Sbiff is also unique in its yearly celebration of below the line talent. The crafts artists who’ve won the Variety Artisans Award this year are Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez (“Frozen II”), Michael Giacchino (“Jojo Rabbit”), Kazu Hiro...

Sf Studios has boarded Nordic distribution and worldwide sales rights to a pair of action-thriller films and a series based on Ilkka Remes’ bestselling novel “6/12,” which will be directed by Antti J. Jokinen (“Flowers of Evil”) and headlined by Jasper Pääkkönen.

Titled “Omerta,” the new Finnish franchise will be produced by the banner Cinematic and will revolve around a secret unit of European special forces. The two feature films will be titled “Omerta 6/12” and “Omerta 7/12,” and will be released in the fall of 2021 and 2022 by Sf Studios across Scandinavia. The TV series has been ordered by C More in Sweden.

“Omerta 6/12” begins as a hostage thriller, with a Serbian terrorist group executing a coordinated attack on the presidential reception ball on Dec. 6, Finland’s Independence Day. The storylines of “Omerta 6/12” and “Omerta 7/12” will take place in Helsinki, Moscow, Brussels and Minsk, and will be shot in several languages, including Finnish,...

Torun, Poland – Norwegian cinematographer Pål Ulvik Rokseth is making his mark with such recent high-profile films as Paul Greengrass’ “22 July” and Espen Sandberg’s “Amundsen,” both of which landed him in the main competition at the EnergaCamerimage Intl. Film Festival of the Art of Cinematography in Torun, Poland. Rokseth spoke to Variety about the challenges of shooting “Amundsen,” working with Sandberg and the difficult experience that was “22 July.” How did you get involved in “Amundsen”? I knew about the movie and was very interested in what kind of approach Espen Sandberg was going to take, telling the story of Roald Amundsen. I got the script from Espen Horn, one of the producers, and I was truly amazed at how the film was angled – not at all the action movie I thought it would be, but rather a character study, not only of Amundsen, but also his brother Leon and people...

Don Kaye Oct 16, 2019

The director of Maleficent: Mistress of Evil says he wanted to make his own movie but keep what audiences loved about the first one.

It was five years ago that Disney released Maleficent, a new live-action take on the classic Sleeping Beauty fairy tale told from the point of view of the seemingly wicked title character. With Angelina Jolie (Eternals) starring, and the Disney marketing might behind it, it was no surprise that Maleficent was a hit, but its $758 million worldwide gross was startling all the same.

With a sequel being inevitable, Disney set out to move beyond the well-worn fable and into an original story. Maleficent: Mistress of Evil finds Maleficent and Princess Aurora (Teen Spirit's Elle Fanning) presiding over their relatively peaceful Moors and its population of magical creatures. But a marriage proposal to Aurora from Prince Phillip (Harris Dickinson) threatens to upend their lives as Phillip’s mother,...

Angelina Jolie has been in far better movies than the “Maleficent” franchise, but they provide an unparalleled platform for her appeal. The same birdlike monstrosity of the first entry, cloaked in feathery gothic opulence and angular sub-human cheekbones, careens through “Maleficent: Mistress of Evil” with the spirit of German Expressionism beating her wings. There’s such delicious flamboyance to this striking villainess that she outshines the latest heavy-handed Disney refashioning of the Sleeping Beauty story all over again.

The “Maleficent” universe is loaded with entrancing surfaces and the illusion of deeper significance, but no amount of far-reaching metaphors and complex mythology can obscure run-of-the-mill storybook intrigue. An overlong blend of kid-friendly “Game of Thrones” warfare and standard-issue metaphors of intolerance, “Maleficent: Mistress of Evil” finds plenty of ways to build on the original premise, but few that resonate any better than the last flamboyant ride.

“Maleficent: Mistress of Evil” is directed by Joachim Rønning,...

The film launched at the 2019 Berlinale.

Norway has chosen Hans Petter Moland’s flashback drama Out Stealing Horses as its submission for the best international feature award at the 2020 Oscars.

The film launched in Competition at the 2019 Berlinale, where it won the Silver Bear for outstanding artistic contribution for Thomas Hardmeier and Rasmus Videbæk’s joint cinematography.

The story is split between 1999, where self-isolated Trond discovers a new neighbour from his past, and Trond’s memories of 1948, when he turned 15 and his father prepared him for his forthcoming disappearance.

It is an adaptation of Per Petterson’s acclaimed 2003 Norwegian novel of the same name,...

As Sf Studios bulks up its pipeline with ambitious in-house productions, the company’s international sales division is now aiming to widen its scope through third-party pickups, with an eye on non-Scandinavian projects.

Spearheaded by Anita Simovic, Sf Studios’ international sales team will be bringing to Cannes a couple pickups: Santiago Requejo’s heartfelt comedy drama “Grandpas,” the company’s first Spanish-language acquisition, and Kasper Torsting’s Wwi-set Danish love drama “A War Within.”

Simovic says the company is now actively seeking projects from independent producers which have definite international potential. “These can be Nordic, but can be of any origin and in any language, as long as we find them commercial from an international perspective,’ says the sales exec, who added that Sf Studios is primarily looking for actioners, thrillers, crime tales, family animation and genre films.

A feel-good Spanish drama, “Grandpas” underscores this new mandate because it “will...

The tectonic shifts being felt across the film industry landscape are reverberating at this year’s European Film Market, where the impact of new technological developments, growing opportunities, new markets and the roles of diversity and inclusion are in the spotlight. “We have been witnessing one of the biggest changes in the film industry during the last 10 to 15 years – not just in Europe, but worldwide,” says Efm director Matthijs Wouter Knol. “Technology-driven innovations and digitization have turned the film and media landscape upside down. They have led to new major players in the industry that will continue to disrupt business models, marketing strategies and audience behavior for years to come.” Unsurprisingly, the Efm Horizon program, which examines the future of the film and media sector and its cross-pollination with the tech and startup industries, has continued to see its attendance grow since its inception two years ago. Efm Horizon filled...

Sf Studios has unveiled the international trailer for “Amundsen,” the high-profile Norwegian adventure and biopic drama about Arctic explorer Roald Amundsen which is directed by Espen Sandberg.

Now in post-production, “Amundsen” is headlined by Pål Sverre Hagen (“Kon-Tiki”) who stars as Amundsen, the legendary explorer who was the first to reach the South and the North Poles. Sverre Hagen stars in the film opposite “Fantastic Beasts” actress Katherine Waterston and Christian Rubeck (“What Happened to Monday”).

“Amundsen” will be distributed by Sf Studios in Norway on Feb. 15, and is expected to be the biggest Norwegian release of 2019, surpassing previous big releases such as “The Wave,” “Kon-Tiki” and “The 12th Man.” The movie is being produced by John M. Jacobsen, Kristian Strand Sinkerud and Espen Horn at Motion Blur Films.

Sf Studios will also distribute the film in Sweden, Denmark and Finland. The company has already pre-sold the movie in a flurry of territories,...

Leading Chinese sales/distribution company H.G.C. Entertainment has come on board Espen Sandberg’s “Amundsen,” the high-profile Norwegian historical drama about Arctic explorer Roald Amundsen.

Sold by Sf Studios, “Amundsen” is headlined by “Fantastic Beasts” star Katherine Waterston. Sandberg is the Norwegian director of Golden Globe- and Oscar-nominated “Kon-Tiki” and “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales.”

H.G.C. Entertainment will release “Amundsen” in China and will be selling the movie across Asia excluding Japan and Taiwan. Sf Studios has also pre-sold “Amundsen” to Bonton Film for the Czech Republic and Slovakia, Cai Chang Intl. for Taiwan and Stars Media Intl. for the ex-Yugoslavia countries including Albania. The deal with H.G.C. Entertainment was negotiated by Martin Ilievski at Sf Studios and Ying Li, president of H.G.C. Entertainment.

The film is currently in post and Sf Studios will present a promo to buyers at the Afm on Nov.

China’s Hgc Entertainment Group is launching a trio of completed Chinese animation movies at this week’s American Film Market. It will also handle Asian sales of Norwegian adventure film “Amundsen.”

“The Wind Guardians” is the story of a blind boy whose mother makes a dreadful trade with a monster in order to restore her son’s sight. He has to understand and break the spell that has transformed her. Directed by Liu Kuo, the film was released this summer and earned $17 million in Chinese theaters.

Franchise film “Yugo & Lala IV” earned only fractionally less, $15.4 million, on its theatrical run. The latest installment sees a smart and lively girl team up with her father to search for her mother in a mysterious world.

“One Hundred Thousand Bad Jokes II” is adapted from a popular Chinese comic series of the same name and is a sequel to the Tencent-backed 2016 predecessor.

Disney is exploring a sixth iteration of its “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise and has met with the “Deadpool” writing team of Rhett Reese & Paul Wernick about the pic, a source tells Variety.

Disney has no comment and no deal is in place yet. The five previous “Pirates” movies hauled $1.5 billion domestically and $3.07 billion internationally, with the North American market representing a progressively smaller share. The domestic total for 2017’s “Dead Men Tell No Tales” hit $172 million, while foreign markets delivered $622 million.

All five films have grossed more than $650 million worldwide, with “Dead Man’s Chest” and “On Stranger Tides” both topping the $1 billion mark.

“Dead Men Tell No Tales” centered on Johnny Depp’s swashbuckling Jack Sparrow battling deadly ghost sailors, led by the Javier Bardem’s Captain Salazar. Kaya Scodelario and Brenton Thwaites joined the cast, with Orlando Bloom returning as Will Turner and Geoffrey Rush as Captain Hector Barbossa.

"The greatest polar explorer in history!" Sf Studios has unveiled the first teaser trailer for the upcoming biopic film Amundsen, profiling the life of iconic Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen. Amundsen is a legendary name in Scandinavia, however not many people from America seem to know about him. He was the first to reach the South Pole in 1911, and the first person to reach both the North & South Poles in 1926, along with many other daring accomplishments exploring the coldest places on Earth. Pål Sverre Hagen plays Roald, and the cast includes Katherine Waterston, Jonas Strand Gravli, Trond Espen Seim, Ole Christoffer Ertvaag, Christian Rubeck, and Mads Sjøgård Pettersen. The film is also the solo directing debut of Espen Sandberg, who co-directed Kon-Tiki and Dead Men Tell No Tales previously. This looks awesome! Definitely seems like they went all out to tell this story. I'm looking forward to seeing more. Here's the...

‘Kon-Tiki’ director Espen Sandberg reunites with Pål Sverre Hagen.

Screen can reveal the first English-subtitled teaser trailer for Amundsen, the biopic of Arctic explorer Roald Amundsen.

Amundsen was the leader of the first expedition to reach the South Pole in 1911, and the first person to reach both the North and South Poles in 1926.

The film will portray his all-consuming drive as a polar explorer, and reveal the tragedy he brought on himself and others by sacrificing everything in the icy wastelands to achieve his dream.

Amundsen re-teams Kon-Tiki director Espen Sandberg and lead actor Pål Sverre Hagen, with Katherine Waterston...

Disaster thriller was a box-office hit in Sweden this summer.

Swedish thriller The Unthinkable (The Blomstertid Now) has sold to Signature Entertainment for the UK and Mongrel Media for Canada.

Sf International has now sold the disaster thriller to more than 70 countries. The film was a box-office hit in Sweden this summer for the company’s distribution arm, Sf Studios, racking up more than 100,000 admissions.

Other deals struck include German-speaking territories (Ascot Elite), French-speaking territories (Wild Bunch), Italy (Bim Distribuzione), Spain (Adso), Turkey (Filmarti), Japan (New Select), China (Times Vision), Taiwan (Movie Cloud) and South Korea (Lumix).

The Unthinkable will...