Axxon Media Takes ‘Happiness,’ ‘Soula’ and ‘Public Enemy No.0’ to Berlinale (EXCLUSIVE)

The European Union is making some big announcements following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterAn “Outlander” prequel series is in development at Starz, Variety has learned exclusively.According to sources, “Outlander” executive producer and showrunner Matthew B. Roberts is attached to write and executive produce the prequel. A writers’ room is currently being assembled with an eye to begin work in the coming weeks.Exact plot details for what the prequel would focus on are being kept under wraps.

Who were the most successful recording artists on a global basis in 2021? BTS of course. You all knew that already, obviously. But now we have confirmation from the good people at the International Federation Of The Phonographic Industry who have done some maths.The trade body has handed the K-pop group its Global Recording Artist Of The Year Award which is, in case you wondered, awarded based on “an artist’s or group’s worldwide performance across digital and physical music formats during the year, from streams to vinyl, and covers their entire body of work”.IFPI actually does the maths to work out a top ten of the most successful recording artists each year, with whoever is in the number one spot getting the Global Recording Artist Of The Year Award.

Made in Chelsea star Miles Nazaire has joined celebrity dating app Raya following his flirty exchanges with TOWIE's Chloe Brockett. The 26 year old, who recently appeared on Celebs Go Dating alongside Ulrika Jonsson and The Apprentice star Ryan-Mark Parsons, has joined the exclusive app which 'provide members with access to exciting people and opportunities around the world'. Miles recently opened up to OK! about how he wanted to get 'a lot more intimate' with The Only Way Is Essex beauty Chloe, 21, after their time on the E4 show came to an end.

Naman Ramachandran U.K. broadcaster ITV has commissioned real-life drama “Stonehouse,” from “A Very English Scandal” writer John Preston, directed by BAFTA-nominated Jon S. Baird (“Stan & Ollie”).

Here’s a collection curated by The Associated Press’ entertainment journalists of what’s arriving on TV, streaming services and music platforms this week.MOVIES— The Ryan Reynolds action comedy “Free Guy,” one of the few big-budget original movies to come out in theaters last year, arrives Wednesday on Disney+. And in Shawn Levy's genially self-aware film, which racked up $331 million at the box office, originality is very much at the heart of a story about a nonplayer videogame character (Reynolds) who breaks free of his coding.

Naman Ramachandran Projects from France-Iran and India were the big winners at this year’s Berlinale Co-Production Market, which is part of the European Film Market.The Eurimages Co-Production Development Award, endowed with €20,000 ($22,628), went to the producers of Caractères Productions from France, and Honare Khiyal from Iran for their project “My Favourite Cake” by directors Behtash Sanaeeha and Maryam Moghaddam. The VFF Talent Highlight Award with prize money of €10,000 went to director Shuchi Talati’s “Girls Will Be Girls.” The film is to be produced by Pushing Buttons Studios, an outfit founded by Indian actors Ali Fazal (“Death on the Nile”) and Richa Chadha (“Gangs of Wasseypur”) and co-produced by Sanjay Gulati and Pooja Chauhan of Crawling Angel Films (2020 Berlinale selection “The Shepherdess and the Seven Songs”) and Claire Chassagne of Dolce Vita Films (2019 Venice and Cairo winner “A Son”).

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentItalian director Matteo Garrone, who was at the 2020 Berlinale with Roberto Benigni-starrer “Pinocchio,” is set to return to the director’s chair in March with coming-of-age adventure drama “Io Capitano,” on which France’s Pathé will be handling international distribution.Garrone’s new pic, whose title translates as “I, Captain,” will be shot in Italy, Morocco and Senegal, marking the first time, Garrone –– a two-time Cannes jury prize-winner, with “Gomorrah” in 2008 and “Reality” in 2012 –– sets a feature film outside of Italy.As is customary with Garrone, story details of “Io Capitano” are being kept under wraps, besides the fact that he wrote the screenplay with regular collaborators Massimo Gaudioso and Andrea Tagliaferri and actor Massimo Ceccherini (“Pinocchio”), who also contributed to the “Pinocchio” screenplay.

EXCLUSIVE: European film giant Pathé, which owns more than 1,000 cinema screens across the continent, will always be a theatrical-first business. That doesn’t mean it can’t also move with the times.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief“Yanagawa,” which this week won the top prize at the Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian Cinemas in France, has been set as the opening title of the 17th Osaka Asian Film Festival in Japan. The festival, which runs as an in-person event, March 10-20, 2022 will close with multinational co-production “Miss Osaka.”Yanagawa, was directed by Korean-Chinese auteur Zhang Lu, and was filmed in China and Japan.

Naman Ramachandran Zhang Lu’s “Yanagawa” (China), Hong Sung-eun’s “Aloners” (South Korea) and Fujimoto Akio’s “Along the Sea” (Japan/Vietnam) were among the top award winners at France’s Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian Cinemas. “Yanagawa,” which opened the 2021 Pingyao Film Festival, won the Golden Cyclo, the festival’s top honor awarded by the international jury.

Black Bitch campaigners are staging a third rally this weekend, saying they have “no intention of giving up the fight”.

Who would have guessed that a pet psychic would be so spot on??

Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker will be joined in Broadway’s upcoming revival of Neil Simon’s Plaza Suite by Danny Bolero (In The Heights), Molly Ranson (Prayer for the French Republic) and, in his Broadway debut, Eric Wiegand, producers announced today.