Canneseries Festival to Remain Standalone Event in Spring Without MipTV; Canal+ to Return as Sponsor

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Meryl Streep will receive the honorary Palme d’Or on the opening night of the 77th edition of Cannes Film Festival, Variety has learned. Luring the Oscar winner is yet another feat for this Cannes edition, which will bring together a flurry Hollywood legends. Notably, George Lucas will receive the honorary Palme d’Or during the closing ceremony; Francis Ford Coppola’s “Megalopolis” and Paul Schrader’s “Oh, Canada” are playing in competition; and George Miller‘s “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” and Kevin Costner’s Western epic “Horizon, an American Saga” are playing out of competition.

EXCLUSIVE: The Cannes Film Festival is well known as a place of protest and this year will be no different. However, this edition, the rebellion is coming from within.

There was a fleeting moment in the early and mid-00s when being selected for the Slamdance Film Festival could mean something for a filmmaker’s career. Sure, it wasn’t the same as being part of the more prestigious and larger Park City, Utah film festival, but the edgier offshoot event gave a voice to independent films that didn’t have an industry connection or agency influence to make the Sundance cut.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Vietnamese French director and screenwriter Tran Anh Hung has been named as president of the jury for the upcoming Shanghai International Film Festival. The festival, which runs June 14 to 23, said that his works “blend the expressions of Eastern and Western cultures, with sensitivity, delicacy, and a romantic style.” His films include: 1992’s “Scent of the Green Papaya”; 1995’s “Cyclo,” starring Tony Leung Chiu-wai; 2009 English-language thriller “I Come With the Rain,” starring Josh Hartnett; and “The Taste of Things,” which earned him the best director prize at Cannes last year. The jury president role marks a return and a promotion for the director. He was previously on the Shanghai festival’s jury in 2011, when he also screened his “Norwegian Wood.” SM Cinema, the largest exhibitor in the Philippines, is to open giant screen Imax cinemas in three new venues.

Naman Ramachandran Studiocanal and Editions Albert René have signed an exclusive development agreement for the sixth live-action film of the adventures of beloved French comic book character Asterix. Created in 1959 by René Goscinny and Albert Uderzo, Asterix is celebrating its 65th anniversary in 2024. The series follows the adventures of Asterix and Obelix and their friends who live in a small village in Gaul, the only outpost of resistance against Julius Caesar’s mighty Roman empire.

Canal+ owner Vivendi is still exploring a stock split, as it today posted first quarter revenues up significantly.

Studiocanal is pushing further into TV and film adaptations of literary IP.

K-pop touring cycle is in full swing. Stars including SEVENTEEN, aespa and NCT Dream are touring the world with new tunes in tow – and hitting Asia very soon.While some of those artists are staging their own headline shows, others are on the line-ups of music festivals with both multi-genre and Hallyu-only line-ups.

Greta Gerwig has her jury. This evening, the Cannes Film Festival revealed the rest of the nine-member jury filled with festival veterans and Academy members.

The Tribeca Film Festival has actually been known as the Tribeca Festival for four years now, but perhaps the name change and evolution of the festival has never been more evident than with the announcement of its robust and impressive 2024 TV slate.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent It was in the land that took “Liberté, égalité, fraternité” as its motto that women were first allowed to participate in the Olympic Games, in 1900. This summer, the French capital will come full circle as it hosts the first-ever gender-balanced Olympics. From politicians to business titans to cultural leaders, the most powerful forces in Paris are aligning to make the three weeks of the Games a showcase for the modernity of France.

William Earl “The Gray House,” the Kevin Costner-produced limited series about a female spy ring during the Civil War, will open Monaco’s 63rd annual Monte-Carlo Television Festival in June. The six-episode limited series tells the hidden-history tale of four Southern women — a Virginia socialite and her mother, a formerly enslaved Black woman and a high-end prostitute — who served as key espionage agents for the Union. The foursome are credited as unsung heroes who helped end the nation’s brutal cleavage in 1865.

The rumors are true. After 40 years, the Sundance Film Festival may (and an emphasis on “may”) be leaving the confines of Park City, Utah.

Today, the 2024 Tribeca Festival today unveiled its features lineup, offering a diverse array of narrative, documentary, and animated films. Scheduled to run from June 5-16 in New York City, this year’s Festival promises a thoughtfully curated program and includes everything from timely documentaries addressing political and social concerns to independent narratives showcasing award-winning actors.

As the weather warms up and we get out our summer clothes, some may be tempted to book themselves in for a few sunbed sessions to get a tan.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent In what looks to be another robust year in the making, the 77th edition of the Cannes Film Festival will bring together several iconic filmmakers, including Francis Ford Coppola with “Megalopolis” starring Adam Driver, George Miller with “Furiosa” starring Anya Taylor-Joy, as well as George Lucas who will be feted with an honorary Palme d’Or. Kevin Costner will also be on hand with the first installment of his Western epic “Horizon, an American Saga.” Hollywood may have a lighter presence due to a combination of factors – including last year’s actors and writers strikes, which created production delays, as well as a tough economy — but this year’s festival will see no shortage of glamor and stars on the red carpet.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Leading European distributor Global Screen, part of Telepool, has secured further international sales of high-end drama “Davos 1917” at MipTV. New acquisitions of the six-part thriller include SBS Australia, TVP in Poland and Big Tree Entertainment in India and the subcontinent. “Davos 1917,” which launched at the end of last year on SRF in Switzerland and ARD in Germany, has already been bought by a strong lineup of premium international broadcasters and streamers across North America, Europe and Asia.

MIPTV is coming to an end – but the hard truth is that people did not travel here to Cannes in the numbers of yesteryear to say goodbye. Market organizers RX France said Tuesday that the final MIPTV has attracted 3,500 people including 1,100 buyers. For context, there were over 5,000 in town last year and the event regularly topped 10,000 delegates in the earlier 2000s. MIPCOM in October, by contrast, still hits those numbers and remains a focal point for the international TV industry.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Apple TV+’s “Franklin,” which stars Michael Douglas, has its world premiere at series festival Canneseries on April 10 in Cannes, France. The show is produced by ITV Studios America and Apple Studios.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor French broadcaster M6 has greenlit a French-language adaptation of Turkish crime drama “Persona,” to be titled “Mémoire Vive.” Instead of a male protagonist, as in the Turkish version, it will have a female main character, Esther Lefevre, to be played by Clementine Celarie, whose credits include “Six Women,” “Betty Blue” and “Two Is a Family.” “Mémoire Vive,” which will comprise four hour-long episodes, is being produced by Calt Studio. It is written by Laurent Burtin (“Astrid: Murder in Paris”), Anne-Gaëlle Daval (“Ladies”) and Hélène Lombard (“Call My Agent!”).