Karlovy Vary’s Eastern Promises Industry Section Announces Award Winners

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Amid deep concerns about the risks posed by artificial intelligence, the Biden administration has lined up commitments from seven tech companies — including OpenAI, Google and Meta — to abide by safety, security and trust principles in developing AI. Reps from seven “leading AI companies” — Amazon, Anthropic, Google, Inflection, Meta, Microsoft and OpenAI — are scheduled to attend an event Friday at the White House to announce that the Biden-Harris administration has secured voluntary commitments from the companies to “help move toward safe, secure, and transparent development of AI technology,” according to the White House.

B.I has announced a list of countries he is set to visit on his upcoming 2023 ‘Love Or Die’ Europe tour.On July 17, the singer unveiled a poster for his upcoming 2023 ‘Love or Die’ Europe tour, marking his first official tour in the region. Set to take place later this year, B.I will be performing in 14 countries.B.I’s tour will feature shows in the UK, France, Germany and more.

Gabby Douglas is back! The Olympic Gold medalist has announced that she's returning to gymnastics and gearing up for a 2024 Olympics run. The 27-year-old athlete took to Instagram on Thursday after a lengthy hiatus, sharing a pair of black-and-white images of herself leaping high above a balance beam. In the caption, she reflected on her social media absence and «facing darkness and fears.» Douglas said that she «did a lot of journaling, reflecting, soul searching» since stepping away from the platform last year, only to find herself «back where it all began.» «It’s so easy to suppress and run away from facing darkness and fears,» she confessed.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Les Films du Losange has unveiled the trailer for “Un Silence,” Joachim Lafosse’s thought-provoking film starring Daniel Auteuil and Emmanuelle Devos that will world premiere in competition at San Sebastian Film Festival. Tackling themes of abuse, the timely film revolves around Astrid (Devos), the wife of an acclaimed lawyer (Auteuil). Silenced for 25 years, her family balance suddenly collapses when her children initiate their own search for justice. One of Belgium’s leading filmmakers, Lafosse is best known internationally for 2012’s “Our Children,” a heart-wrenching drama based on a true story starring Emilie Dequenne and Tahar Rahim. “Our Children” represented Belgium in the Oscars race. “Un Silence” will mark Joachim’s follow up to “The Restless,” which competed at Cannes in 2021 and also explored imploding family dynamics.

Hallmark Channel is going big with their 2024 plans – and just announced a Christmas themed cruise!

Crystal Globe CompetitionJury members:Dora Bouchoucha, TunisiaPatricia Clarkson, USAJohn Nein, USAOlmo Omerzu, Czech Republic / SloveniaBarry Ward, IrelandGRAND PRIX – CRYSTAL GLOBE (25 000 USD)The financial award is shared equally by the director and producer of the award-winningfilm.“Blaga’s Lessons” (“Urotcite na Blaga”)Directed by: Stephan KomandarevBulgaria, Germany, 2023SPECIAL JURY PRIZE (15 000 USD)The financial award is shared equally by the director and producer of the award-winningfilm.“Empty Nets” (“Toorhaye khali”)Directed by: Behrooz KaramizadeGermany, Iran, 2023BEST DIRECTOR AWARDBabak Jalali for the film “Fremont”USA, 2023BEST ACTRESS AWARDEli Skorcheva for her role in the film “Blaga’s Lessons” (“Urotcite na Blaga”)Bulgaria, Germany, 2023BEST ACTOR AWARDHerbert Nordrum for his role in the film “The Hypnosis” (“Hypnosen”)Sweden, Norway, France, 2023SPECIAL JURY MENTION“Dancing on the Edge of a Volcano”Directed by: Cyril ArisGermany, Lebanon, 2023PRÁVO AUDIENCE AWARD“The Edge of the Blade” (“Une affaire d’honneur”Directed by: Vincent PerezFrance, 2023Proxima CompetitionJury Members:Dana Linssen, NetherlandsMarija Razgutė, LithuaniaŠimon Šafránek, Czech RepublicBarbara Wurm, AustriaMeng Xie, People’s Republic of ChinaPROXIMA GRAND PRIX (15 000 USD)The financial award is shared equally by the director and producer of the award-winningfilm.“Birth”Directed by: Yoo Ji-youngSouth Korea, 2022PROXIMA SPECIAL JURY PRIZE (10 000 USD)The financial award is shared equally by the director and producer of the award-winningfilm.“Guras”Directed by: Saurav RaiIndia, Nepal, 2023SPECIAL JURY MENTION“Brutal Heat” (“Brutální vedro”Directed by: Albert HospodářskýCzech Republic, Slovak Republic, 2023CRYSTAL GLOBE FOR OUTSTANDING

Norwegian cinema has been enjoying a moment lately, what with Joachim Trier’s crowdpleasing The Worst Person in the World pulling up to Drive My Car in the Oscar race and Kristoffer Borgli’s Sick of Me carving out a rep on the festival circuit. The Hypnosis, Ernst de Geer’s feature debut, sits somewhere between the two of them, fashioning a fitfully funny relationship drama that tilts at some very modern windmills (coaches, gurus, new-tech start-ups, workshops that involve blue-sky thinking) within a framework similar to Kristian Levring’s 2008 Danish drama Fear Me Not, in which a man’s personality changes after he becomes addicted to an experimental drug. The Hypnosis doesn’t quite follow that film’s melodramatic course, but there are similar thoughts raised about the human mind.

Will Tizard Contributor Bulgarian crime story “Blaga’s Lessons” by Stephan Komandarev scored the top prize and $25,000 at the 57th Karlovy Vary Film Festival on Saturday, capping a week of celebrating art film, stars and bold global work. With sold out screenings ranging from Russell Crowe introducing “Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World” to rare Japanese masterworks by Yasuzo Masumura and a tribute to actor Daniela Kolarova, Czech audiences proved once again to be hungry for every kind of film they cannot experience at any other venue. The Crystal Globe competition special jury prize, along with $15,000, went to “Empty Nets,” a German-Iranian gritty love story directed by Behrooz Karamizade.

William Earl Stage 32, the social network designed to support TV and film professionals in more than 185 countries, has reached the milestone of 1 million members as the company expands its offerings. The service was founded in 2011 by Richard “RB” Botto, an actor, producer and screenwriter. The platform features global job boards and 3,000 hours of webinars, classes and labs to support a wide range of entertainment industry careers, including above- and below-the-line disciplines. Among the top markets for Stage 32 are the U.S., Canada, the U.K., France, South Africa, India, Saudi Arabia, Germany, the Netherlands and Australia. The price of the service ranges depending on the level and duration of access. A one-year subscription to its Writers Room plan, offering a database of open film and TV writing jobs, costs about $350.

Come one, come all, Insiders. Jesse Whittock back again this week to take you through the past week in international film and TV. Let’s get started. If you’re not already subscribed, click here and make that right.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Assel Aushakimova’s dark comedy about journalism in Kazakhstan “Bikechess” has won the Karlovy Vary Film Festival’s Works in Progress award, which runs as part of the festival’s industry section, Eastern Promises. The section is focused on feature film projects from Central and Eastern Europe, the Balkans, the former Soviet Union, the Middle East and North Africa. The Kazakh film follows Dina, who works as a journalist for the national television station. The stories she is asked to report on are becoming increasingly absurd and full of praise for the government. Her love life is limited to a few secret meetings with her married camera­man. Dina looks after her young sis­ter, a lesbian activist, who regularly finds herself in trouble with the au­thorities.

Jerusalem Film Fest Unveils 2023 Industry ProgramNir Bergman (Broken Wings, Here We Are) and Yona Rozenkier (The Dive, 35 Downhill) will be among the Israeli filmmakers presenting new projects at the Jerusalem Film Fest’s Pitch Point event this year. The annual meeting connecting Israeli directors with international partners is one pole of the festival’s Jerusalem Industry Days, running July 13 to 15. Jurors will be Olivier Père (Arte Cinema France), Thorsten Ritter (Beta Cinema), Kevin Chan (MUBI) and Claudia Solano (The Match Factory), alongside Helge Albers (MOIN, Hamburg Film Fund) and producer Yael Fogiel (Les Films du Poisson). The Industry Days will also host the final pitching session for the Sam Spiegel International Film Lab. Other highlights include a focus on Austria, accompanied by Austrian Films’ Anne Laurent-Delage and Emilie Dauptain and producers  Antonin Svoboda (coop99), Oliver Neumann (FreibeuterFilm), Sabine Gruber (Golden Girls) and Barbara Pichler (KGP Filmproduktion). Filmmakers Sebastian Meise, Barbara Albert and Rainer Frimmel will also be in attendance. The program will also feature an industry talk with Joana Vicente, CEO of Sundance Institute, moderated by Israeli producer Osnat Handelsman-Keren (The Lost Daughter). The Jerusalem Film Festival runs from July 13 to 23.

Gigi Hadid went sleek with her style in an all-black ensemble for the 2023 ANDAM Fashion Awards held at Palais Royal on Thursday (June 29) in Paris, France.

‘Liaison’ Producer Ringside Studios Hires ‘Industry’ Exec

Holly Jones LaLiga Studios, created by Banijay Iberia and Spain’s LaLiga soccer league, is expanding its management team as it has created a new doc co-production, “The Power of Our Fútbol.” Paz Pérez Sanz, Marta Ruiz and Anabel López Antolín are set to join the company as art director, director of new projects, and director of production respectively.  Sanz comes on board after four years at Real Madrid TV, having created assets for multiple TV companies including Movistar Plus+, Cuatro, Telecinco and Canal+ and worked on campaigns for Disney, AXN, Discovery Max, Turner (TNT and Boing), Comedy Central, MTV and Ondas.

James Blake has announced his new album ‘Playing Robots Into Heaven’ and shared its lead single ‘Big Hammer’.‘Playing Robots In Heaven’ is set for release on September 8 via Polydor/ Republic. The album will see Blake return to his electronic roots seen within his earlier works, such as 2013’s ‘Overgrown’ and 2010’s ‘Klavierwerke’.Blake also released its first single ‘Big Hammer’ from the LP.

Eric Nam has announced his massive 66-date ‘House on a Hill’ world tour for 2023 and 2024.Eric Nam will kick off his ‘House on a Hill’ world tour with a 39-date trek across the US and Canada that will run form September to the middle of November. It will feature concerts in over 20 states, as well as four shows in Canada.The Latin American leg of the ‘House on a Hill’ world tour will take place in the latter half of November.

Charna Flam The Sundance Institute has announced the 10 fellows for its 2023 Ignite x Adobe fellowship. Those selected for the yearlong program include Rafaël Beauchamp, Omi Zola Gupta, Dylan Habil, Xiaoxuan Jiang, Alvina Joshi, Milla Lewis, Andrés Lira, Dallin Mello, Leonardo Pirondi and Chloe Xtina. The fellowship is designed to support emerging fiction and documentary filmmakers ages 18 to 25, through the assistance with artistic and professional development. The select fellows receive an artist grant supported by Adobe and Arison Arts Foundation, a one-year complimentary membership to Adobe Creative Cloud, access to Sundance Institute alumni mentors, the opportunity to develop relationships within the Ignite community and access to the Sundance Film Festival.

The 2023 BET Awards will celebrate 50 years of Hip Hop this Sunday, June 25 starting at 8 p.m. ET. Viewers wanting to catch Culture’s Biggest Night can catch the show on BET and will be simulcast on Paramount on BET, BET Her, Comedy Central, MTV, MTV2, Pop, TV Land, Nickelodeon and VH1 in the U.S. BET+ and Paramount+ will be streaming the show to subscribers.

The French film Le Colosse aux Pieds d’Argile and UK-Australia series Ten Pounds Poms took the top fiction prizes at the 62nd annual Monte-Carlo Television Festival, which were handed out Tuesday in Monaco. See the full winners list below.