France to lift UK ban next week in easing of travel rules amid Omicron surge

The 72nd Berlin International Film Festival has confirmed its various juries, including who will be joining M. Night Shyamalan to award the International Competition prizes.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentXavier Giannoli’s sprawling period piece “Lost Illusions,” Valerie Lemercier’s Celine Dion biopic “Aline” and Leos Carax’s musical romance “Annette” with Marion Cotillard and Adam Driver are leading the race at France’s 47th Cesar Awards, France’s equivalent to the Oscars. Other top Cesar contenders include Cedric Jimenez’s action-packed cop drama “Bac Nord,” Catherine Corsini’s social drama “La fracture,” Yann Gozlan’s thriller Boite noire,” Jacques Audiard’s contemporary love drama “Paris, 13th District” and Arthur Harari’s WW2-set “Onoda: 10,000 Nights in the Jungle.” Audrey Diwan’s Venice Golden Lion-winning “Happening” and Julia Ducournau’s Cannes’ Palme d’Or-winning “Titane” earned four nods each.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentWith a number of remakes and a movie in the pipeline, “Call My Agent!,” the International Emmy Award-winning series set at a Parisian talent agency, has become one of the most powerful television shows to emerge from France.The series’ producers, Mediawan-owned Mon Voisin Productions and Mother Production, are co-producing the highly anticipated U.K. remake with Headline Pictures and Bron Studios (“Joker”) for Amazon Prime Video and Sundance Now.The producers are also in the process of developing a 90-minute film with Nicolas Mercier, one of the two showrunners behind “Call My Agent!” (Mercier took over as showrunner from Fanny Herrero.)“It will open with Andrea [Camille Cottin] in New York and will then move to France — we will give an American point of view on filming in France and it promises to be quite colorful,” says Michel Feller at Mon Voisin Productions.

Just as the Omicron wave may have broken across the U.S. comes word of another version of the more transmissible variant, dubbed BA.2. It’s been nicknamed by some “stealth Omicron,” because it seems to evade identification better than its predecessor.

Travel rules for people arriving in the UK have been changed as a number of major changes have been announced.

Clayton Davis Olivia Colman plays Leda in “The Lost Daughter” like a consummate pro, and her portrayal of a college professor on holiday in Greece, who reveals herself to be “an unnatural mother,” is among the most critically acclaimed performances of the year. With a deceivingly open and unpredictable best actress race ahead of us, the Oscar-winner who surprised awards watchers by defeating Glenn Close could add her second lead statuette to her mantle for her complex portrayal.This year’s race for best actress has taken twists and turns.

A long-gestating, hot-button move to revamp France’s arcane windowing system reached an important stage today as a new agreement between TV channels, streamers and the film industry was signed by Culture Minister Roselyne Bachelot.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentAfter months of heated debates and clashes, the French film industry has set new windowing rules for movies that are released in local theaters.The rules will apply to exhibitors, pay and free TV channels and subscription-based services. They’re expected to be signed by France’s Culture Minister Roselyne Bachelot later on Monday (Jan.

Ben Croll For the past two decades, Raphael Benoliel has been Hollywood’s man in France. With more than 40 projects under his belt, the Nice-born Benoliel has turned his Firstep production banner into a kind of one-stop-shop for international shoots, amassing line producer credits on projects as varied as “Les Miserables,” “Stillwater” and “The Marvelous Mrs.

Ben Croll Founded in February 2021, French startup Dark Matters is set to unveil Gaul’s first virtual production facility. Setting up camp 23 miles from Paris, the 180,000 square-foot studio will open its doors this coming April, offering the local industry five new soundstages equipped for both traditional production and the LED-backed virtual sets made famous by the ILM Stagecraft system used on “The Mandalorian.”Backed by €10 million ($11.3 million) in VC funding from Paris-based firms Anaxago and CapHorn, and benefiting from another $2.2 million in public support, the full-service facility will be split between four core departments, focusing on hardware and software innovation, virtual production and creative development.

Scots holidaymakers hoping to ket off to Spain may need their booster jab to enter the country from next month.

Martin Dale ContributorBrad Pitt has teamed up with Emmy-award winning music producer Damien Quintard to relaunch the historic Miraval Studios, where Pink Floyd, Sting, The Cure and AC/DC recorded their albums. It is being redesigned as an exclusive film and music production and post-production facility in a beautiful setting.The studio is located in a majestic vineyard estate, Château Miraval, that Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie leased in 2008, purchased in 2011 and held their wedding there in 2014.

Kanye West and Julia Fox are enjoying a fashionable moment together for the first time.

A grandad has told of how he ‘wrestled back his life’ after the stress of the pandemic left him overweight with low self-esteem.

Anna Marie de la Fuente Amanda Kramer’s ‘Give Me Pity!’ starring Sophie von Haselberg, is bowing a teaser trailer ahead of its Rotterdam world premiere where the pic closes the event’s Filmmakers in Focus section on Jan. 29.Variety nabbed an exclusive first look at the teaser, courtesy of Alief, which snapped up the global sales rights to the pic in early January.Following its world premiere, the U.K.-French sales agent, distribution and production company will present the film at the Berlinale’s online European Film Market for its market debut in February.“Give Me Pity!” pivots on Variety TV show host Sissy St.