Leading Actors, Filmmakers Talk Representation and Uplifting Diverse Voices at Red Sea Women in Cinema Summit at Cannes

CAA on Thursday announced the speakers and attendees set for its seventh annual CAA Amplify Summit, the invitation-only convening of artists, thought-leaders, and executives of color from leading organizations in entertainment, sports, media, brands, and technology, and beyond.

EXCLUSIVE: The National Film Authority of Ghana has re-teamed with regional operator Silverbird Cinemas to mount the Africa Cinema Summit in the nation’s capital, Accra. 

When it came to delivering one of the most twisted and politically thrilling Fargo seasons ever, creator Noah Hawley says it didn’t entail him ripping up a ton of scripts to get there.

Ahead of its Season 2 premiere, MTV Entertainment Studios has renewed Mike Judge‘s Beavis and Butt-Head for a third seaon, it was announced today. Production is already underway on Season 3 of the adult animated series for premiere on Comedy Central in 2025.

Selena Kuznikov “The Voice” will return for its 27th season next spring, with new additions to its coaching team. Original coach Adam Levine will reclaim his red chair, alongside new coach Kelsea Ballerini and returning coaches Michael Bublé and John Legend. Ballerini, a multiple Grammy Award-nominated, multi-platinum artist and Grand Ole Opry inductee, is no stranger to “The Voice,” previously serving as season 16 battle advisor and filling in as coach during season 20, both instances for Team Kelly Clarkson.

Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Film Foundation has announced that Mohammed Al-Turki is stepping down as its CEO to focus on personal projects and his career as an independent film producer and businessman.

Andy Cohen is talking about The Real Housewives of New Jersey after news of Season 14 canceling a traditional reunion and rumors of a possible Season 15 reboot.

Lily Collins was one of the famous faces to attend Dior's latest fashion collection launch yesterday evening at one of Scotland's swankiest castles in Scotland.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Distributor La Vingt-Cinquième Heure has acquired the French rights to Egyptian-American director Dina Amer’s politically sensitive drama “You Resemble Me.” The film tells the story of Hasna Aït Boulahcen, who in 2015 was wrongly believed to be Europe’s first female suicide bomber. The film is a deeply researched character study of the young Muslim woman, who became linked to the November 2015 terrorist attacks in Paris even though she didn’t participate in them.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Oscar-nominated Swiss animator Claude Barras (“My Life as a Zucchini”) will be honored by the Locarno Film Festival with its Locarno Kids Award given to personalities credited with infusing younger generations with a love for cinema. Barras’ beloved stop-motion film “Life as a Zucchini,” about an orphaned boy who lives in a foster home, played at Directors’ Fortnight in Cannes in 2016, and went on to be nominated for best animated feature at the Oscars and secured distribution in over 50 territories.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Leading Middle East network MBC Group has ordered an Arabic redo of “The Good Wife” set in Egypt with Tunisian-Egyptian star Hend Sabri (“Finding Ola”) in the lead role. Sabri plays a woman who returns to the legal profession after her husband, who holds a prominent public position, becomes embroiled in scandal.

Marta Balaga Mohammad Rasoulof’s “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” won the Fipresci award at Cannes. The jury of the International Federation of Film Critics called it “a courageous story set in modern-day Iran that deals with the conflict between tradition and progress, depicted in a very powerful and imaginative way.” Following a rapturous screening and 2024 record 12-minute standing ovation, the film became a Palme d’Or frontrunner, reported Variety.

the Associated Press in a video posted on their Instagram, Rowland told her side of the story. “The woman knows what happened, I know what happened,” she said. “I have a boundary and I stand by those boundaries, and that is it.”She also noted that there were “other women that attended that carpet who did not quite look like me and they didn’t get scolded or pushed off or told to get off.”On Tuesday, a video went viral of Rowland appearing to scold a security guard at the red carpet premiere of the French-Italian film “Marcello Mio.”Photos from the event show Rowland smiling as she walked up the red carpet steps to go into the theater — before she got into a heated exchange with a female security guard.The former Destiny’s Child member looked upset and angry as she pointed her finger at the woman.

Jack Dunn In 2023, Saudi Arabian film agency Film AlUla formed AlUla Creates, a local initiative that provides funding, mentorship and networking opportunities for Saudi filmmakers and fashion designers. And in just one year, AlUla Creates has exploded into a global brand, already hosting 123 international productions in the scenic valleys of AlUla, Saudi Arabia. “We call it a living museum,” said marketing director at Film AlUla Mahsa Motamedi.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent A new Saudi Arabian film studio with deep pockets and Hollywood connections is launching from the Cannes Film Festival with a slate of film and TV projects. The Los Angeled-based 3SIX9 Studios – announced at an event on a yacht in the bay of Cannes – is co-founded by actor and producer Daya Fernández, who serves as CEO; Inga V.

Marta Balaga German Films celebrated its 70th anniversary at Cannes on Sunday, with its guests looking back but also looking forward. “It has gotten much better,” Managing Director Simone Baumann told Variety at the event. “We’ve had Oscar-winning ‘All Quiet on the Western Front,’ Oscar-nominated ‘The Teachers’ Lounge’ [for best international feature], films by Wim Wenders and with Sandra Hüller! Sure, Wim showed a Japanese movie and Sandra a French one [‘Perfect Days’ and ‘Anatomy of a Fall’], but it doesn’t matter: It’s more ‘mixed’ these days and I am proud of it, to be honest.” At Cannes, 11 German productions and co-productions have been selected this year, including Match Factory’s main competition offerings “Motel Destino” by Karim Aïnouz – who also attended the bash – and Miguel Gomes’ “Grand Tour.” Run Way Pictures is behind Mohammad Rasoulof’s anticipated “The Seed of the Sacred Fig.” As festivals get “more competitive,” underlines Baumann, international collabs are here to stay.

Annika Pham According to the European Audiovisual Observatory, Switzerland is ranked third in Europe for its yearly output of documentaries, with more than 70 titles in 2023. On May 19, it will unveil four of its most promising features at the Swiss Cannes Docs Showcase. The event is jointly organized by the national promotional agency Swiss Films, Visions du Réel —the country’s sole non-fiction film festival—and Cannes Docs.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent The Johnny Depp-directed film “Modì,” about Italian artist Amedeo Modigliani, has secured a distribution deal in Italy, where it will be released by emerging production/distribution player Be Water. Above is a first-look image from the set of the film, which is now in post.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent On Sept. 12, 2022, the day before Jean-Luc Godard died by assisted suicide at 91 in his home in Rolle, Switzerland, the Godfather of French New Wave completed his final 18-minute film, “Scénarios,” which premieres on today in Cannes. “Scénarios” — which comprises two components called “DNA, Fundamental Elements” and “MRI, Odyssey” — is followed by “Exposé du Film Annonce du Film ‘Scènario,’” a 34-minute, behind-the-scenes doc about the making of Godard’s last short.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Saudi Arabia leads this year’s Arab cinema contingent at Cannes with pioneering director Tawfik Alzaidi’s “Norah” launching internationally from Un Certain Regard plus a clutch of films in other sections by directors from Egypt, Palestine and Morocco. They collectively reflect both the vibrancy and the many hurdles that filmmakers face in the region.