Jason Blum Set for Locarno Film Festival Best Independent Producer Award

Angelique Jackson The American Black Film Festival has announced this year’s Best of ABFF award winners, with “Our Father, the Devil” and “Feel Like Ghosts” among the top honorees.After two years of virtual programing, ABFF returned to Miami Beach for its 26th edition, with live events held June 15-19. The 2022 winners were announced by Emmy nominee Dondré Whitfield, who hosted the ceremony on the final day of ABFF’s in-person program, with a virtual presentation of the event now available to view on its custom-designed online platform, ABFF PLAY, where the festival continues until June 30.The Best of ABFF Awards includes winners in the official film selection categories — narrative and documentary features, web series and the 25th HBO Short Film Award Showcase, decided by a jury led by Michael Quigley, Warner Bros.

Wilson Chapman editorThe Maui Film Festival has announced the slate of films and honorees for its 22nd annual edition.The 2022 festival will feature the Maui premieres of 13 feature films, including “McCurry: The Pursuit of Color,” “Gratitude Revealed,” “Facing Monsters,” “The Story of Everything,” “Pretty Problems,” “Kapo,” “Tango Shalom” and “Pe’Ahi.” The festival opener will be a special surprise, with the film remaining a secret until the screening on July 6.The in-person festival will take place at the outdoors Stardust Cinema, featuring live music, Kahiko style hula and other activities. In addition, 80 short and feature films will be available to stream online through the festival’s Speed-of-Light Virtual Cinema from July 6-31.

Oscar-winner Marlee Matlin, and past Oscar nominees producer Jason Blum and director Jason Reitman are among first-time members elected to the Board Of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences as AMPAS announced its new 2022-2023 Board today.

this year’s honorary Oscar recipients, a job that usually falls to the new board in one of its first meetings.Elected to the Board for the first time:Marlee Matlin, Actors BranchRichard Hicks, Casting Directors BranchDion Beebe, Cinematographers BranchJason Reitman, Directors BranchChris Hegedus, Documentary BranchNancy Richardson, Film Editors BranchMegan Colligan, Marketing and Public Relations BranchJason Blum, Producers BranchMissy Parker, Production Design BranchMarlon West, Short Films and Feature Animation BranchPeter Devlin, Sound BranchPaul Debevec, Visual Effects Branch Incumbent governors reelected to the Board:Ruth E. Carter, Costume Designers BranchDonna Gigliotti, Executives BranchHoward Berger, Makeup Artists and Hairstylists BranchEric Roth, Writers BranchReturning to the Board after a hiatus:Charles Fox, Music Branch

Clayton Davis The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the newly elected Board of Governors for the 2022-2023 year.Elected to the board for the first time are Oscar-winning actor Marlee Matlin, cinematographer Dion Beebe, director Jason Reitman, producer Jason Blum, casting director Richard Hicks and more. In addition, four incumbents were re-elected to the board, including Ruth E. Carter (costume designers), Donna Gigliotti (executives), Howard Berger (makeup artists and hairstylists) and Eric Roth (writers).

Blumhouse founder Jason Blum has said he would have no trouble convincing Robert Englund to reprise his iconic role as Freddy Krueger in a new A Nightmare On Elm Street film if he wanted to – despite the actor having previously indicated such a return would be unlikely.“I could make him come back,” Blum told Screen Rant in a new interview published yesterday (June 20). “I could get anyone back.

Carson Burton Jason Blum, founder and CEO of Blumhouse, will make a $10 million gift to Vassar College to supplement the college’s financial aid funds, Vassar president Elizabeth Bradley disclosed Tuesday.The donation from Blum, who graduated from the college in 1991 and has served on its Board of Trustees since 2015, is the largest gift ever given to the college by a male alum. It is also the lead gift for Vassar’s upcoming fundraising campaign, which will launch this fall.“As we prepare to launch the largest campaign in Vassar’s history, Jason Blum’s gift for financial aid is catalytic and will have a positive impact on innumerable lives of Vassar students for years to come,” Bradley said.Blum, who majored in drama at the college, said his gift reflected his gratitude for the role his Vassar education played in shaping his career.“The courses I took, friends I made and the other activities I was involved in while at Vassar fueled my critical thinking skills and made me more curious about the world,” Blum said.He added: “I want to help ensure that Vassar is able to continue its commitment to admit students with the desire to succeed without regard to whether or not they can pay.”Blumhouse is a prolific production company that pioneered a new model of studio-caliber filmmaking through micro-budget films.

K.J. Yossman “Old” star Vicky Krieps and “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” director Mike Newell are among the stars set to appear at the Galway Film Festival in Ireland next month.Krieps will be on hand to present her new film “Hold Me Tight,” by Mathieu Amalric (“The Grand Budapest Hotel”) while Newell will attend as part of the 30th anniversary for his 1992 feature “Into the West,” which starred Gabriel Byrne and Ellen Barkin.

EXCLUSIVE: Next month’s Micheaux Film Festival in LA will honor Bron co-founder and President Brenda Gilbert with the Oscar Micheaux Trailblazer of Excellence Award and filmmaker and Spike Lee collaborator Ernest Dickerson with the Michael Ajakwe Pioneer of Influence Award.

Christopher Vourlias Dmytro Sukholytkyy-Sobchuk, whose feature debut “Pamfir” premiered in Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight section, and director and former political prisoner Oleh Sentsov (“Rhino”) are among the Ukrainian filmmakers who say they’re “distraught” by the inclusion of a Russian film in the main competition at the Transilvania Film Festival.In a statement posted on Monday to the Facebook page for “Pamfir,” the filmmakers spoke out against the selection of Russian director Lado Kvataniya’s “The Execution” as one of 12 features competing for the Transilvania Trophy, criticizing the “illusion of cultural reconciliation” created by the festival’s decision and insisting that “art does not exist outside of politics.” The filmmakers noted that Kvataniya’s psychological thriller was produced with the support of the state-backed Russian Film Fund as well as Kinoprime, the $100 million film fund bankrolled by Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich, who has been sanctioned by the U.K.

“Live with Ryan & Kelly” last Friday.“As we prepare to launch the largest campaign in Vassar’s history, Jason Blum’s gift for financial aid is catalytic and will have a positive impact on innumerable lives of Vassar students for years to come,” President Bradley said.“The courses I took, friends I made and the other activities I was involved in while at Vassar fueled my critical thinking skills and made me more curious about the world,” Blum said of his time at the college. “I want to help ensure that Vassar is able to continue its commitment to admit students with the desire to succeed without regard to whether or not they can pay.”Blum is the founder and CEO of Blumhouse, the horror giant through which he has produced over 150 movies and television series with theatrical grosses amounting to more than $5 billion, including “Halloween,” “Paranormal Activity,” “Insidious,” “Happy Death Day,” “Sinister” and “The Purge,” among many other films.

K.J. Yossman He’s no doubt still pinching himself after his tea with Queen Elizabeth II a few weeks ago but there’s no time to rest for Paddington Bear.

B.J. Novak’s feature directorial debut, “Vengeance,” does not begin like you would expect B.J.

Amanda Seyfried is supporting husband Thomas Sadoski on his big night!

K.J. Yossman Sundance Film Festival director Tabitha Jackson appeared in person at the London outpost of the festival on Thursday, just two days after confirming she’s stepping down from her role.When asked by Variety what she plans to do next, Jackson, who has worked at Sundance since 2013 and took on the festival director role in 2020, replied: “A hammock, a cocktail and to think about how to support arts going forward.”During her appearance at Sundance London, where she was interviewed by “Best Girl Grip” podcast host Nicole Davis, the British executive didn’t touch on why she had chosen to resign from the role, to which she was appointed only two years ago.However, in reply to Davis’s question about what is the “biggest learning curve of your career so far,” she hinted at what may have driven the decision when she replied: “This two-year learning curve, being director of the festival during this pandemic and this time and all the messiness and complexity that comes with that.” She noted that the London edition of the festival was the first in-person Sundance she had attended in her role as director, the previous editions having moved online due to the pandemic.Jackson also revealed that when she had first been offered the role as director she had almost turned it down.

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentThe Locarno Film Festival will pay tribute to Greek-French director Costa-Gavras with its Pardo alla carriera lifetime achievement award.The longtime Paris-based master of politically engaged cinema will be on hand at the prominent Swiss fest dedicated to indie filmmaking to receive the prize during a ceremony on its Piazza Grande square on Aug. 11 followed by an audience-led conversation the next day.Locarno will also host screenings of two of Costa Gravras’ lesser known films: “Un homme de trop” (“Shock Troops”) from 1967, and “Compartiment tueurs” (“The Sleeping Car Murders”), which is his 1965 debut feature.In a career spanning nearly 60 years, Costa-Gavras — which is short for Konstantinos Gavras — has become known for highly political works, such as 1969’s “Z,” about the military’s coup d’etat in Greece, which won the foreign film Oscar in 1969; and 1982’s “Missing,” which starred Jack Lemmon and Sissy Spacek in a story inspired by the military overthrow of Chilean President Salvador Allende.

Julia Roberts and Ethan Hawke are hard at work on the set of their new film Leave the World Behind.

Angelique Jackson In its 26th year, the American Black Film Festival (ABFF) is more star-studded than ever, with a robust lineup of Black film and television stars and creators.After two years of COVID-related pivots, the festival returns to South Beach in Miami for a five-day engagement full of special screenings, panel discussions and events celebrating the Black film and television community. Among the talent joining ABFF festival ambassador Issa Rae, who will debut her new HBO Max series “Rap Sh!t” at the festival are Chanté Adams, Yahya Abdul- Mateen II, Kenya Barris, Gina Prince-Bythewood, Ben Crump, Michael Ealy, DeVon Franklin, Kasi Lemmons, Judge Greg Mathis, LisaRaye McCoy, Kyla Pratt, Trevante Rhodes, Kendrick Sampson, Robin Thede, Judge Lynn Toler, Susan Kelechi Watson and Salli Richardson Whitfield, among many others.

Tabitha Jackson, the director of the Sundance Film Festival and Public Programming, will exit from her role at the Sundance Institute, the non-profit’s CEO Joana Vicente announced Tuesday, while also elevating Kim Yutani to a senior leadership role. Jackson was named director of the Sundance Film Festival in 2020 and has been with the Institute since 2013, and she will depart shortly after the upcoming Sundance Film Festival: London, which takes place later this week.

Matt Donnelly Senior Film WriterTabitha Jackson is resigning her post as director of the Sundance Film Festival.Jackson has been a veteran of the premiere American festival since 2013, and departs after only two years in the top job. She replaced longtime leader John Cooper in the role in 2020, weeks before the coronavirus pandemic upended the event and the rest of Hollywood.Sundance Institute CEO Joana Vicente announced Tuesday that Jackson will leave her post shortly after the imminent London edition of the fest.