Iranian Creatives Champion Change for Women Despite Dangerous Consequences: ‘We Need to Continue Fighting’

Brian Cox is opening up about his support for the women of Iran.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent March 20 marks the celebration of Nowruz, the Persian New Year. It’s Iran’s first Spring festivities since the death of Jina “Mahsa” Amini, the 22-year-old Iranian Kurdish woman who died while in police custody for allegedly wearing a loose headscarf. On Nowruz, which means “New Day,” Iranian activist Naza Alakija is paying tribute to Iran’s “Woman. Life. Freedom.” movement with the release of a powerful short film titled “Rise” about a young woman who, like Amini, pushes back agains Iran’s morality police and is kidnapped from the streets of Tehran. Alakija, who is the founder and CEO of London-based Evoca Foundation, produced the short – which features British-Iranian actress Yasaman Mohsani (“Secret Invasion”) as the victim – with partners who have chosen to remain anonymous for fear of retribution from Iran’s security forces, as has the film’s female director.

Marta Balaga “Succession” star Brian Cox gushed about wife Nicole Ansari-Cox at Series Mania, after she expressed solidarity with women of Iran at the fest’s opening, demonstrating the slogan “Woman, Life, Freedom” to the photographers.   “My wife is half Iranian and she was one of the first people to cut her hair as part of the protest. We are living in such a difficult, dangerous time, particularly for women. In Afghanistan, in Iran. It’s unacceptable. I am very proud of my wife: She is a very strong woman with very strong opinions, and she taught me so much,” Cox told Variety during a roundtable interview.  

Ben Croll Based in the northern French town of Lille since 2018, Series Mania has emerged as a key showcase for premium series and a spotlight for international creators — though, given the wider forces shaping the TV business, that spotlight has often shone on talent from the same three or four territories. And so, when programming the latest edition, the Series Mania brass looked to widen the field. “This year, we will introduce our attendees to new narrative modes and visual possibilities,” says general director Laurence Herszberg. “Because we’ve discovered so many series from countries that haven’t often attended the major festivals, with creative outputs that are much lesser-known. We want to celebrate them as well.”

Naman Ramachandran Iran’s Arsalan Amiri, who won two awards at Venice for his debut feature “Zalava,” is back at the Hong Kong — Asia Film Financing Forum (HAF) with his new project, “Janava.” “Zalava,” which was at HAF in 2019, also played at the Toronto, Rotterdam and the Goteborg festivals, among many others. The Farsi-language “Janava” will follow four treasure hunters who embark on a journey to find a lost treasure. Their lives are in danger when they realize a djinn (or genie) is among them and wants to claim the treasure for itself. “My previous film, ‘Zalava,’ focused on the dangerous beliefs of the masses. My second film, ‘Janava,’ focuses on the individual beliefs of characters and how they defy societal norms,” Amiri says. “Belief is my favorite theme to work with. I have faced the good and bad effects of belief in my life — but when these beliefs are warped or taken to extremes by the individual or in politics, it causes the destruction of human societies. My experience living in the Middle East and studying history proves the importance of people’s beliefs. Well, I would also like to make an interesting and entertaining film of course, and this film genre would help to make the concept interesting.”

Angelina Jolie celebrated International Women’s Day in Mexico, launching the program “Women for Bees.” The non-profit is meant to preserve the bees from the Mayan civilization, which are in extinction and are the most ancient breed of bees in the world.Angelina Jolie accessorizes her look with Princess Diana’s favorite Dior bag: See photosAngelina Jolie and her kids cut their hair to support Iranian womenThe photos show Jolie in a white dress surrounded by various women who were also dressed in white. The women are sitting in a circle and were captured mid-conversation.

EXCLUSIVE: Paramount+ is developing Vice City (working title), a new original series from Lionsgate Television, Paramount Television Studios, and Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson‘s G-Unit Film & Television, Deadline has learned.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Kuwaiti-born writer-director Zeyad (also known as “Z”) Alhusaini, whose action movie with comedic undertones “How I Got There” recently won the audience award at Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Film Festival, has joined United Talent Agency for representation in all areas. The groundbreaking film about two best buddies from childhood, named Salem and Asad, who stumble upon a gun shipment and try to seize this opportunity to get rich quick is set entirely in the Persian Gulf. “How I Got There” provides a relatively realistic glimpse of Kuwait’s present-day melting-pot of cultures, and its underworld of gun-running mercenaries, gangs, and terrorists, plus the local rap scene.

A heartwarming TikTok video captured the moment actress Sarah Lancashire met Camilla at Buckingham Palace, who appeared to be a big fan of hit BBC show Happy Valley.

Angelina Jolie revisiting an icon of survival.

Kristen Stewart is standing up for a second silent demonstration during the 2023 Berlinale Film Festival.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Netflix, facing more competition globally in the streaming wars, has cut pricing in more than 100 markets worldwide — in some cases, chopping the price of monthly plans in half — to boost subscriber acquisition and retention. The streamer has reduced prices in countries and territories across Asia, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Netflix is not reducing prices in North America or Western Europe, its most mature markets. All told, the price reductions span more than 100 markets, according to research firm Ampere Analysis (see list, below). Those include Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Ecuador, Kenya, Iran, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Albania, North Macedonia, Slovakia, Yemen, Jordan, Libya, Slovenia and Bulgaria.

The Berlin Film Festival has made one of its highest priorities this year to stand with “the courageous protesters in Iran as they defend themselves against a violent, undemocratic regime.”

Angelina Jolie and her family are raising awareness for the women in Iran. Jolie took to Instagram to raise awareness for the humanitarian crisis that’s affecting Iran, sharing that her and her children Shiloh and Zahara cut a strand of their hair for an art exhibition.Angelina Jolie takes her daughter Zahara Jolie-Pitt shopping in New York CityAngelina Jolie accessorizes her look with Princess Diana’s favorite Dior bag: See photosA post shared by Angelina Jolie (@angelinajolie)The post is made up of a video and some photos that show Jolie’s daughter’s getting some of their hair cut.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian Cinema has unveiled its 85-title lineup for the edition that starts later this month (February 28 to March 7, 2023). Elements include a 10-film competition section, a 10-film documentary film section, a tribute to the Turkish director Semih Kaplanoglu; a thematic section “Asian Diaspora Cinema” offering a panorama of works by directors from Asian countries living in exile; and a Philippines cinema sidebar. Fiction films in competition include: Azerbaijan’s “Cold as Marble,” by Asif Rustamov; China’s “In Our Prime,” by Liu Yulin; Korea’s “A Letter from Kyoto,” by Kim Min-ju; India’s: “Behind Veils,” by Praveen Morshhale; Iran’s “No End,” by Nader Saievar; Mongolia’s “The Sales Girl,” by Sengedorj Janchivdorj; The Philippines’s “Feast,” by Brillante Mendoza; Singapore’s “#LookAtMe,” by Ken Kwek; and Vietnam’s “Memento Mori: Earth,” by Marcus Vu Manh Cuong. The president of the jury is Lee Yong-kwan, president of the Busan film festival.

Naman Ramachandran For Indian filmmaker Sreemoyee Singh, world premiering her Iran documentary “And, Towards Happy Alleys” at the Berlin Film Festival’s Panorama strand is the culmination of a journey that began in 2015. Singh completed a masters degree in film studies at Jadavpur University, Kolkata, India and went on to pursue a PhD on The Exiled Filmmaker in Post Revolution Iranian Cinema, with the objective of understanding the source of “impossible hope” in Iranian films. The filmmaker was also introduced to the poetry of Iran’s Forogh Farrokhzad during the course and “connected deeply” to her verses. A desire to read Farrokhzad’s verses in the original Persian led Singh to learn Farsi.

Berlin Film Festival. At least not according to the co-chiefs of Turkey’s Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival. “The festival’s opening ceremony started with Ukraine, ended with Ukraine and touched on Iran. But I don’t think they ever mentioned Turkey,” said Ahmet Boyacıoğlu, president of the fest that has historically always been the country’s prime local cinema catalyst.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent While Sweden’s Ruben Östlund grabbed some Oscar nominations and took home Cannes’ Palmed’Or last year, two other Scandinavian filmmakers basked in the international spotlight following their Cannes competition premieres: Ali Abbasi with “Holy Spider” and Tarik Saleh with “Cairo Conspiracy” (previously titled “Boy From Heaven”). Abbasi, an Iranian-born Danish helmer, and Saleh, a Swedish director whose father is Egyptian, are part of an exciting new generation of Nordic helmers who are shaking up traditional Scandinavian cinema. These filmmakers are delivering singular and timely movies shot abroad or in different languages, weaving together genres and political elements.

A UK-based Iranian TV channel has had to stop broadcasting from its headquarters in London, after British police warned staff that it could not protect them on UK soil. 

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent The Berlinale red carpet on Saturday became a protest platform against Iran’s repressive regime when a group of Iranian filmmakers and talents, joined by jury president Kristen Stewart, chanted “Women, Life, Freedom!” and demanded the release of imprisoned journalists and an Iranian rapper. Actress Golshifteh Farahani, who is also on the jury; “Holy Spider” actress Zar Amir Ebrahimi; and “The Siren” director Sepideh Farsi were among dozens of Iranian film professionals participating in the protests hosted by Berlinale co-directors Mariette Rissenbeek and Carlo Chatrian. Protesters with signs demanded freedom for female Iranian journalists Niloofar Hamedi and Elaheh Mohammadi who are behind bars, accused of “conspiring against national security” for being the first to report on Mahsa Amini’s death, and for the release of dissident Iranian hip hop artist Toomaj Salehi who has been accused of spreading propaganda and could face the death penalty.