Glasgow Film Festival removes Russian films from line up due to ongoing conflict

The Berlin International Film Festival has joined fellow events including Cannes and Venice in saying it will not ban Russian movies at the next edition of its fest, but will block official Russian delegates.

Naman Ramachandran The Berlin Film Festival has issued a strongly worded statement that condemns Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but has taken a stance against boycotting filmmakers based on their origin.“The Berlinale staunchly condemns Russia’s war of aggression, which violates international law, and expresses its solidarity with the people in Ukraine and all those who are campaigning against this war,” the festival said in a statement on Wednesday.“The Russian invasion and attacks on civilian targets such as hospitals, schools and homes have caused a humanitarian and human rights catastrophe in Ukraine. Our thoughts and sympathy are with the victims, the suffering population, and the millions who have fled Ukraine.” “The Berlinale has developed into a setting for intercultural encounters and a platform for critical discussion of current or historical world events.

Anna Marie de la Fuente Documentaries about the conflict in Ukraine, the Cuban migrant situation and the Palestinian refugee crisis were among top winners at MiradasDoc, Spain’s foremost documentary film festival which wrapped its 15th edition on March 12. Based in Tenerife, Canary Islands, the festival was an in-person event running March 4-12, while its market (March 8-11) remained virtual for the second consecutive year.The best international documentary prize went to “Option Zero” (“La Opcion Cero”) by Cuban filmmaker Marcel Beltran while the best debut feature award was extended to “Trenches” by French journalist Loup Bureau who has covered the Arab Spring in Egypt, the Syrian War and the Russian-Ukrainian conflict in the Donbas region. “Trenches” follows the intrepid young men and women who are fighting Russian-backed separatists in Ukraine’s Donbas region.

J. Kim Murphy The Kyiv-based Molodist International Film Festival has penned an open letter to the film community calling on other festivals to join in a boycott of Russian films as a response to the invasion of Ukraine by Russian military forces.The festival’s statement cites an ongoing effort by modern Russia to “separate culture from politics” and to “[use] that same culture to distract the West from Russia’s wars, human rights violations, censorship and persecution of political dissidents.”“There are Russian filmmakers and intellectuals who have been truly vocal in their dissent and criticism of Russia’s aggression toward Ukraine throughout these years, and we know some of them personally,” the statement reads.

The Sarajevo Film Festival is the latest international film organization to show its support for Ukraine as the festival has announced it will include Ukrainian films and filmmakers in its regional programs. The beloved European festival originally started off as regional event for Balkan films and has since evolved to incorporate Southeast Europe and the Causcasus region.

Wyatte Grantham-Philips editorThe Sun Valley Film Festival, which will be returning in-person for its 11th annual event from March 30 to April 3, has announced additional awards and films that will be screened this year.Variety will present this year’s Pioneer Award to Danny Strong on April 1. As a writer, director, actor and producer, Strong has earned two Emmys, a Golden Globe, two WGA awards, a PGA Award and a Peabody Award — with credits ranging from both parts of “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay” to “Dopesick.” Previous Pioneer Award winners include Shaka King, Aaron Paul, Eliza Hittman and Mark Duplass.Also on April 1, the Rising Star Award will be given to Netflix’s “Outer Banks” cast members Chase Stokes, Madelyn Cline, Madison Bailey, Jonathan Daviss, Rudy Pankow, Austin North, Drew Starkey and Carlacia Grant.

Reflection, a film set during the war in Donbass in eastern Ukraine in 2014 [via Variety].Switzerland’s Visions du Réel docs festival has announced that its selections for its April event will comprise four works directed and/or produced in Ukraine. Simon Lereng Wilmont’s A House Made Of Splinters, which won a directing prize at Sundance in January, is one of the included films.In November, the Stockholm Film Festival will host film screenings, director visits and masterclasses in order to promote the country’s cinema.The Czech Republic’s Karlovy Vary Intl.

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentAlmost two weeks into Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Europe’s film industry continues to parse the complexities of a boycott on Russian cinema in order to express solidarity with the Ukrainian film community.While some film festivals, such as Stockholm and Glasgow, haven’t hesitated in boycotting Russian state-funded films outright, others like Cannes and Venice are taking a more nuanced approach, banning official delegations, but not necessarily Russian films and directors.The war’s more immediate effect, however, is that Ukrainian cinema is set to gain an increased visibility in the festival arena and beyond.On Monday evening, Rome’s Cinema Troisi hosted a free screening in collaboration with the Venice Film Festival of Ukrainian director Valentyn Vasynovych’s “Reflection” (pictured), set during the war in Donbass, in eastern Ukraine, in 2014. The film, which premiered in competition on the Lido last September, “asks, with brutal austerity, what happens to the soul of a man — and a nation — at war,” as critic Jessica Kiang put it in her Variety review.The Rome event, introduced by Venice Biennale president Roberto Cicutto, is being followed by other screenings of “Reflection,” organized by the fest in Italy.

The traffic cone which sits atop the iconic Duke of Wellington statue in Glasgow city centre has been painted in Ukrainian colours to show support for the warn torn country.

Iron Maiden have announced that their upcoming summer shows in Ukraine and Russia have been cancelled due to the ongoing conflict between the neighbouring countries.The band were set to perform at VDNG in Kyiv, Ukraine on May 29 before visiting VTB Arena in Moscow Russia on June 1 as part of their 2022 ‘Legacy Of The Beast’ world tour.Sharing a statement on social media, Iron Maiden said “the promoters have cancelled the two Iron Maiden shows” due to the “ongoing situation in Ukraine”.“We are very sorry to announce that due to the ongoing situation in Ukraine, the promoters have cancelled the two Iron Maiden shows scheduled for May 29th in Kyiv and June 1st in Moscow on the 2022 Legacy Of The Beast World Tour,” the band tweeted.The band added that ticket-holders would we informed by the respective promoters on refunds, and concluded by stating: “Our priority is, and will always be, the safety of our fans.”Ticket-holders for both shows will be informed by the respective promoters on refunds at the appropriate time. Our priority is, and will always be, the safety of our fans.— Iron Maiden (@IronMaiden) March 3, 2022Since the conflict started, the likes of Iggy Pop, Yungblud, Green Day, Franz Ferdinand and Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds are among the acts who have scrapped dates due to the ongoing crisis.It comes after Ukraine severed diplomatic ties with Russia and declared martial law after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered an attack on the neighbouring nation last Thursday (February 24).Ukraine, which has a population of 44million people, borders both Russia and the European Union.

The Toronto Film Festival said Thursday that it will suspend participation by film organizations and media outlets supported by the Russian state for its next festival, in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Ellise Shafer The Toronto Film Festival has banned all official Russian delegations from its 2022 edition following the country’s invasion of Ukraine, but will welcome work from independent Russian filmmakers into their programming.“As an arts organization dedicated to transforming the way people see the world through film, we support artists and their freedom of expression. TIFF will continue to include films from independent Russian filmmakers in our programming at the Toronto International Film Festival and year-round at TIFF Bell Lightbox,” festival organizers said in a statement to Variety on Thursday.

statement in solidarity with Ukraine and condemned Russia’s military aggression amid calls for boycotts, specifically for artists featured in an art pavilion and exhibition that begins in April (Russia withdrew from the art pavilion earlier this week). But they clarified that they will not “shut its doors to those who defend freedom of expression.” “La Biennale is also close to all those in Russia who are courageously protesting against the war.

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The Cannes Film Festival has taken a position on the war in Ukraine, and will bar Russian delegations at its 75th edition this May. "As the world has been hit by a heavy crisis in which a part of Europe finds itself in a state of war, the Festival de Cannes wishes to extend all its support to the people of Ukraine and all those who are in its territory," reads a statement released on Tuesday.

Cannes Film Festival has released a statement in response to the war in Ukraine saying it will not accept “Russian delegations” this year. Scroll down to read it in full.