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In one single, bold move, Costa Rica has secured SVOD distribution in one of its largest international markets — Spain — by launching a dedicated channel on

popular streaming platform Filmin.

To be unveiled at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, the new Costa Rica Channel, Canal Costa Rica, will spotlight a curated selection of up to 20 recent and standout feature films, documentaries and shorts from the small but increasingly prolific territory.

This initiative represents an innovative path to international distribution and underscores the growing support for cinema from the Costa Rican government, a rising wave of local productions and the country’s increasing creative ambition.

Indeed, Costa Rica is emerging as a leading filmmaking force in Central America.

“After the great experience we had with Chile last year, we were encouraged to repeat the experience with Costa Rican films,” says Filmin co-founder and chief creative officer Jaume Ripoll, who noted that...

While some refuse to believe that AI could ever truly replace writers and actors in Hollywood, it may only be a matter of time before it evolves into being a full-on threat. After all, that’s what both the (mostly) out-of-work SAG-AFTRA and WGA think, as they made it a focal point of their strikes. But there might be something else going on right under the industry’s nose, as Angel and Charmed actress Charisma Carpenter has come across an initiative that could also be costing agencies across the industry work.

Enter the “100 Actors Program” from Largo.ai, which makes the claim that they “accelerate your filmmaking with AI-power insights!” How? For starters, their About Us page claims they team with “highly recognized scientists from Epfl to provide next-generation storytelling tools for the audiovisual industry using artificial intelligence.” And what does that mean exactly? Well, it’s about as scary as it sounds,...

“Bridgerton” glided to center stage when it premiered on Netflix in late 2021, and its classical quartet covers of pop hits captivated audiences as much as they gelled with the show’s modernized Regency-era landscape. Now, Season 2 will offer more of the same, with Capitol Records set to release a soundtrack and series covers — of artists like Harry Styles and Nirvana — March 25, the same day “Bridgerton” returns to Netflix.

Under music supervisor Justin Kamps and composer Kris Bowers, Vitamin String Quartet return with reimaginings of Nirvana’s “Stay Away” and Robyn’s “Dancing on My Own,” after previously covering songs like Ariana Grande’s “Thank U, Next” and Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy” in Season 1.

Other covers in Season 2 include Madonna’s “Material Girl,” Rihanna’s “Diamonds,” Alanis Morissette’s “You Oughta Know,” Miley Cyrus’ “Wrecking Ball,” and Harry Styles’ “Sign of the Times,” which Kamps previously admitted was the most...

76 women sign open letter to commissioners that claims British drama is “overwhelmingly written by men”.

A group of more than 70 female writers has accused UK drama bosses of failing to give them opportunities to ‘graduate’ from soaps to flagship primetime shows (reports Broadcast).

In an open letter to TV drama commissioners, 76 women, whose work ranges from EastEnders and Casualty to Midsomer Murders, Hollyoaks and Us series How To Get Away With Murder, claimed British drama is “overwhelmingly written by men”.

The letter was prompted by a recent ITV drama release that set out 10 upcoming shows for 2018, but featured just one written by a woman – Gwyneth Hughes’ adaptation of Vanity Fair. The broadcaster has since announced a second series of Kate Brooke’s detective drama Bancroft.

The signatories, who include The Coroner creator Sally Abbott, writer and actress Sarah Solemani and Debbie Moon, who devised Cbbc’s Wolfblood, said there is an “untapped resource” of female writers who have cut...