Cherokee Nation Announces Tava Maloy Sofsky As New Film Commissioner

CAPE (Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment) and Janet Yang Productions announced the second year of the Julia S. Gouw Short Film Challenge for Asian American and Pacific Islander Women and Non-Binary Filmmakers. The Challenge’s sophomore year kicks off with a Nov. 1st premiere, sponsored by AMC Theatres, where the four short films by year one’s winning filmmakers will be unveiled: 

Trevor Noah’s days as host of The Daily Show are coming to an end but he still knows how to cause a stir.

Dear India, take us back!! We need to earn more to go back to international travel! Want some gummies? Or a personalized video from me? CLICK HERE for all the details at hoo.be/PerezHilton

Paolo Nutini has told his fans that he was 'nervous' as he kicked off his UK tour dates, starting with Manchester, on Saturday night.

EXCLUSIVE: America Ferrera is set to join the A-list ensemble of Sony and Black Bear Pictures’ upcoming dramedy Dumb Money. She joins Paul Dano, Seth Rogen, Sebastian Stan, Shailene Woodley, Anthony Ramos, Vincent D’Onofrio, Dane DeHaan and Pete Davidson, with Craig Gillespie directing.

Ed Meza @edmezavar Cohen Film Collection is continuing its restorations of classic Merchant Ivory productions, among them 1963’s “The Householder,” the first film collaboration between Ismail Merchant and James Ivory. The classics label of Cohen Media Group, Cohen Film Collection is lining up the restorations of four titles that also include the 1977 episodic romantic drama “Roseland,” with Teresa Wright and Christopher Walken, and two films directed by Merchant, “In Custody” (1994), featuring Shashi Kapoor, and “The Proprietor” (1996), starring Jeanne Moreau. Tim Lanza, Cohen Film Collection vice president and archivist, says he chose “In Custody” – Merchant’s feature directorial debut — and “The Proprietor” in particular “because James Ivory was keen to have a rerelease of some of the films that were directed by Ismael Merchant himself.”

Naman Ramachandran Slice-of-life comedy series “Brown Nation” will have its Indian television premiere on Comedy Central during the Diwali holiday frame. The series will bow on Oct. 22, 2022, with all episodes playing back-to-back. Produced in 2016, the series initially played on Netflix. It follows characters Hasmukh and Dimple from Queens, New York, who attempt to balance their work-life troubles, keep their romance alive all whilst living under the same roof with Papaji, Hasmukh’s father-in-law. It stars Rajeev Varma (“Inside”), Shenaz Treasury (“The Big Sick”), Omi Vaidya (“3 Idiots”) and Melanie Chandra (“Hot Mess Holiday”). The series is directed by Abi Varghese and written by Matt Grubb, George Kanatt, and Varghese.

What’s better than a true-crime series about a corrupt business? Well, how about when that business involves male strippers and stars none other than Kumail Nanjiani? Yeah, Hulu’s “Welcome to Chippendales” is a no-brainer.  As seen in the trailer for “Welcome to Chippendales,” Kumail Nanjiani stars as Somen “Steve” Banerjee, an Indian immigrant who comes to the US for the American dream. What starts as a modest dream to run a business turns into a desire to build an empire based on the fact that people like to see sexy dudes dancing around in bowties and cuffs.

Steven Spielberg’s semi-autobiographical, coming-of-age drama The Fabelmans has been announced as the opening film of 44th Cairo International Film Festival, running from November 13 to 22.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Singapore has banned the release of “#LookAtMe,” a feature film by local director Ken Kwek. The InfoComm Media Development Authority said that the film exceeds film classification guidelines because it denigrates a religious community. Supposedly based in true events, the film depicts a man who is offended by a pastor who preaches against homosexuality, but whose behavior contradicts his teachings. The protagonist’s viral video about the aberrant priest lands him in jail, causing the man’s gay identical twin to fight for justice. “#LookAtMe,” premiered at the New York Asian Film Festival and local media report that the film has been selected for next month’s Singapore International Film Festival. But the IMDA ruling means that it cannot now be shown in any form in Singapore unless Kwek is successful with an appeal.

New kids on the block. The Real Housewives of New York City is getting a reboot with a cast of fresh faces for season 14 (in addition to a Legacy spinoff with OG stars), and Bravo finally confirmed which newcomers are taking a bite out of the Big Apple at BravoCon 2022.

Manori Ravindran International Editor The David Tennant-starring “Litvinenko” has sold into AMC+ and Sundance Now in the U.S., along with a host of other buyers in 80 international markets. The drama has pre-sold ahead of its debut on ITV’s forthcoming U.K. streaming service ITVX, which launches this fall, and NENT Group’s Viaplay streaming service in the Nordics, Netherlands, Poland and Baltics. Written by George Kay (“Lupin”) and produced by Patrick Spence, ITV Studios and Tiger Aspect Productions, the drama tells the story of Alexander Litvinenko, the former Russian Federal Security Services and KGB officer, whose death from polonium poisoning in November 2006 triggered one of the most complex and dangerous investigations in the history of the Metropolitan Police.

New kids on the block. The Real Housewives of New York City is getting a reboot with a cast of fresh faces for season 14 (in addition to a Legacy spinoff with OG stars), and Bravo finally confirmed which newcomers are taking a bite out of the Big Apple at BravoCon 2022.

Bravo has unveiled the brand-new cast of its rebooted “Real Housewives of New York City” franchise. Sai De Silva, Ubah Hassan, Erin Lichy, Jenna Lyons, Lizzy Savetsky, Jessel Taank and Brynn Whitfield will all be joining for Season 14. The news was revealed at a “Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen” taping on Sunday night during BravoCon, when the ladies surprised fans by walking on stage. Andy Cohen said he wanted the new cast to better reflect New York City, and indeed it does. Lyons identifies as gay, and Taank will be the first Indian Housewife.The new cast of #RHONY is revealed at a #BRAVOCON22 taping of #WWHL. pic.twitter.com/frimsJYX9m Production is set to begin this fall and the highly-anticipated show will premiere in 2023. According to its official logline, Season 14 will follow “an all-new group of seven dynamic women who run in the same social circles, thriving in one of the most diverse and electric cities in the world. From fashion and real estate, to philanthropy and social influence, these women have made their mark in NYC and will now share their lives as they juggle careers, family life and jam-packed social calendars in the city that never sleeps.”

Paramount+ has dropped a fresh trailer for Tulsa King, its upcoming mob drama starring Sylvester Stallone. The trailer debuted on-air Sunday during the Buffalo Bills vs. Kansas City Chiefs game on CBS.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Kamila Andini’s “Before Now and Then” (aka “Nana”) topped the nominations for the Asia Pacific Screen Awards, with nods in four categories including best film and best director. The film, about a gentlewoman’s memories of escaping from a Communist purge, narrowly headed three films with three nominations each: “Poet” (aka “Akyn”) by Kazakhstan’s Darezhan Omirbayev; “This Is What I Remember” (aka “Esimde”) by Kyrgyzstan’s Aktan Arym Kubat; and Philippines director Lav Diaz’s “When The Waves Are Gone” (“Kapag Wala Nang Mga Alon”). APSA casts its net wide, seeking honors for cinematic excellence from 78 countries and territories defined as Asia Pacific. The awards will be presented at a ceremony at HOTA on Australia’s Gold Coast on Nov. 11, 2022.

Naman Ramachandran “Declaration” (“Ariyippu”) a festival hit film by acclaimed filmmaker Mahesh Narayanan and popular actor-producer Kunchacko Boban, has been snapped up by Netflix. The film bowed at Locarno and is playing at the BFI London Film Festival. This week it plays in the Busan International Film Festival’s A Window on Asian Cinema strand. The Malayalam-language film follows Hareesh (Boban) and Reshmi (Divya Prabha), an immigrant couple from Kerala working in a medical gloves factory near Delhi, and who aspire to go abroad for a better life. During the COVID-19 lockdowns, when an old video resurfaces among the factory workers, it opens up a Pandora’s box that threatens the couple’s jobs and marriage.

Manori Ravindran International Editor New York’s South Asian International Film Festival has appointed Chayan Sarkar as its new president. A filmmaker, entrepreneur and festival director, Sarkar is also the founder of the Indian International Film Festival of Queensland in Australia. He takes over from SAIFF founder Shilen Amin, who will step down as president, but will remain a member of the festival’s board of directors. Sarkar joins SAIFF as the festival enters its 19th year as a leading film festival in the U.S. for new cinema from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal, and within the Indian diaspora. In recent years, SAIFF has become increasingly influential as a platform for South Asian cinema, both in the U.S. and internationally. Fourteen of India’s submissions for the international feature film Oscar have had their North American premieres at the festival.