Chile Showbiz Latest News and Updates

Anna Marie de la Fuente Chile’s Daniela Ramirez, International Emmy-nominated for her performance in HBO Max’s three-part limited series “Isabel: The Intimate Story of Isabel Allende,” is attached to star in the upcoming sci-fi thriller series “La Isla.” The series will be directed by Claudia Huaiquimilla, among the pioneering Mapuche filmmakers emerging from Chile who made her international debut with her well-received pics, “Bad Influence” and “My Brothers Dream Awake,” the latter premiering at the 74th Locarno Film Festival. Among the stellar Chilean projects being presented at Conecta Fiction, the premier television event taking place in Toledo, Spain, “La Isla” received the highest grant given out by Chilean goverment org CNTV last year. Sales agent Esperanza Garay has also signed on to rep the film.

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.

WOODZ has cancelled three Latin American stops of his 2023 ‘OO-LI’ world tour, in Mexico, Peru and Chile.Today (June 27), K-pop agency EDAM Entertainment announced in a statement on WOODZ’s official Fan Cafe website that the singer’s upcoming July shows in Mexico City, Mexico (July 6), Lima, Peru (July 12) and Santiago, Chile (July 14) have been canceled due to “unforeseen local issues”.“We are very sorry to all the fans who have been looking forward to the concerts,” EDAM continued, adding that all tickets will be “100 per cent refunded”.

Whitney Cinkala L.A. Rams Coach Sean McVay, RedBird Capital Partners founder Gerry Cardinale and NCAA Champion and MVP of the 2023 NCAA Championship Angel Reese have been added to the program for Variety and Sportico’s co-branded Sports and Entertainment Summit, presented by City National Bank, on July 13 in Los Angeles. The collaboration marks an expanded day of programming for the event. Already announced speakers include NBA all-star, entrepreneur and philanthropist Russell Westbrook; NBA all-star and producer Blake Griffin; Olympic gymnast Jordan Chiles; and ESPN’s Rosalyn Durant. A keynote conversation with McVay will cover the 2022 Super Bowl Champion team, how the incredible fan energy provides inspiration for them and what the team is excited about heading into the new season.

Pedro Pascal is looking back at his career in Hollywood, following his incredible success in HBO’s ‘The Last of Us,’ and with his upcoming projects, including Ridley Scott’s ‘Gladiator’ alongside Paul Mescal, and his performance in ‘Strange Way of Life’ directed by Pedro Almodóvar, and co-starring Ethan Hawke.During his most recent interview with Variety, the Chilean star was asked about his impact and influence on the Latin population, as well as being an advocate for the LGBTQ community. “I want to be able to fulfill the assignment and continue to fulfill the assignment,” the actor said to the publication.“It’s the best part.

Emiliano De Pablos Story House Pictures co-founder Andreas Gutzeit, head writer-showrunner on Beta/RTL smash hit series “Sisi,” is prepping “Disgrace,” a fast-paced thriller mini-series set during Argentina’s 1978 Soccer World Cup. Gutzeit will serve as “Disgrace’s” showrunner and head writer, re-teaming with Swantje Oppermann and Florian Puchert, part of the German writing team with Gutzeit behind “Dignity,” the critically lauded and pioneering Story House’s Chile-Germany co-production. At a development and scriptwriting stage, with a pilot script available, “Disgrace” features among the 10 projects playing at the Pitch Copro Series sidebar in Conecta Fiction 2023, which takes place June 26-29 in Toledo, the capital of Spain’s Castilla-La Mancha.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Roughly a month before Venice Film Festival’s 2023 lineup announcement, the buzz around the competition is heating up with several star-studded films by heavyweight directors in the mix, including Pablo Larrain (“El Conde”), Michael Mann (“Ferrari“), Sofia Coppola (“Priscilla“), Yorgos Lanthimos (“Poor Things”) and Michel Franco (“Memory”). These titles are believed to have been officially invited to the Lido in competition, according to inside sources. Larraín’s follow-up to “Jackie,” “El Conde” depicts dictator Augusto Pinochet as a Vampire with a cast led by Chilean star Alfredo Castro.

Emiliano De Pablos The Larraín brothers’ indie company Fábula, producer of Oscar winning “A Fantastic Woman,” is preparing tragi-comic docudrama “Los guardaespaldas de Superman” (“Superman’s Bodyguards”). The four-episode, half-hour crime-adventure series, directed by Sebastián Radic (“Instrucciones para Mi Funeral”) and scripted by Rodrigo Bastidas and Rodrigo Muñoz, focuses on a trip Christopher Reeve’s made to Chile in 1987, under Pinochet’s dictatorship, to save the lives of 78 people under death threat. “Superman’s Bodyguards” is one of the five projects selected to form part of Pitch Docudrama, a showcase at Conecta Fiction 2023 edition, which takes place June 26-29 in Toledo, the capital of Spain’s Castilla-La Mancha, just south of Madrid.

Morrissey has announced plans for a tour celebrating the 40th anniversary of his music career.The jaunt dubbed the ’40 Years Of Morrissey’ tour, will kick off in Mexico City on September 10 before calling at venues in Peru, Colombia, Chile, Argentina, and Brazil.From there, the former Smiths frontman will head to North America, performing several shows in Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, Washington DC and New York.He will conclude his tour stateside with a four-night residency at New York City’s United Palace, which wraps up on October 25. You can view the full list of dates below.A pre-sale for Morrissey’s 40th anniversary tour will begin tomorrow, (June 22) at 10am local time before tickets will go on general sale on Friday (June 23).

Easy Life and Mahalia have been announced as headliners for a new event titled Corona Sunsets Festival, set to take place in Hertfordshire.Taking place in Hatfield Park on Saturday, September 2, the one-day event will see Franc Moody, Newton Faulkner, Frankie Stew & Harvey Gunn and Elder Island along with the headliners. A line-up of DJs are set to be announced in the coming weeks.The festival will also feature live art installations and culinary experiences all inspired but the sunset which are designed to connect attendees with nature during golden hour.Tickets for the event will go on sale on June 14 at 10am.

In 2017, we put a feature together on the burgeoning Chilean New Wave of cinema: Beyond Pablo Larraín: 6 Chilean Directors You Should Know. They included filmmakers you probably are very familiar with, including Sebastián Lelio and Sebastián Silva.

As an animated anthology series, Star Wars: Visions gives animation studios from around the world an opportunity to bring their perspective and inspirations to the Star Wars universe. Chilean director Gabriel Osorio brought Patagonian influences to the story of his episode “In the Stars.” The short follows two sisters living in hiding from the invading Empire. As the last of their kind, they must fight back when they are discovered. Using the Empire as a colonizing force, Osorio brought in elements of the actual story of how Patagonia was colonized and used the appearance of stop motion for the animation to give the short a “handcrafted feel.”

Naman Ramachandran Banijay has signed an agreement to acquire a majority stake in live entertainment player Balich Wonder Studio. Founded in 2013, Milan-based Balich is credited for the organization of the highest number of Olympic Games Ceremonies in the world and other events including the 2022 Qatar FIFA World Cup; Pan American Games ceremonies in Perù 2019 and Chile 2023; 2016 Rio Olympic Games ceremonies; and 2014 Sochi Olympic Games closing and Paralympic Games ceremonies. It has also delivered a range of exclusive events for top brands including Louis Vuitton, Formula 1, Ferrari, Dolce & Gabbana, UEFA, MSC, Maserati, Bulgari, IWC, Azimut Benetti and many others.

Banijay has moved into the live events space by acquiring a majority stake in the company that claims to have “organized the highest number of Olympic Games ceremonies.”

EXCLUSIVE: Veteran Actor Alfredo Castro (The Club, No, From Afar) is in the middle of what could be described as a mid-career boom, but he doesn’t think it’ll bring him many plaudits in his native country.

Alicia Keys is taking a moment to enjoy the Colombian capital. She shared some photos of herself and her husband Swizz Beatz taking in some of the most iconic locations in Bogotá.Alicia Keys surprised fans with Karol G and Goyo during her first concert in ColombiaKarol G on the importance of representing Latinas: ‘We have our side of the story’Alicia Keys pays homage to Tina Turner in a moving tributeA post shared by Alicia Keys (@aliciakeys)Keys shared various photos on Instagram, showing herself and her husband having a great time in the city. The photos show the two in matching varsity jackets, with Keys wearing pink and Swizz wearing yellow.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Pablo Larraín is in Italy where the prolific Chilean auteur – whose body of work comprises “Spencer” with Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana and “Jackie,” in which Natalie Portman portrayed Jackie Kennedy, as well as scathing criticisms of the Chilean dictatorship “Post Mortem,” “No,” and “Neruda” – is being honored by Italy’s National Museum of Cinema with a lifetime achievement award. Prior to his masterclass conducted on Tuesday by museum president Domenico De Gaetano, Larraín spoke to Variety about his two latest projects: Netflix movie “El Conde” which is tipped to launch from Venice, and “Maria,” the biopic of late great soprano Maria Callas, to be played by Angelina Jolie, which is now in prep.

aespa.aespa’s label, K-pop agency SM Entertainment, announced today (June 7) in a statement on social media that member Giselle will not be in attendance at Governors Ball 2023. The girl group are set to perform on the festival’s second day, alongside headliner Odesza, Rina Sawayama, Lauv, Finneas and more.“We are sorry to inform aespa’s US fans that Giselle will not be able to join the group for their upcoming Governors Ball performance due to health issues,” SM Entertainment said in its statement.

Augusto Góngora, the journalist, author and television host documented in the Sundance winning film The Eternal Memory, is being mourned in his native Chile after his death at 71.

Clayton Davis Senior Awards Editor The nominations for the Emmys are still weeks away. But there’s growing excitement in the Latino community as multiple lead actors continue to look well-positioned to receive deserved recognition. Two of the top contenders in the lead drama actor race — Pedro Pascal as the hardened survivor Joel from HBO’s apocalyptic video game adaptation “The Last of Us” and Diego Luna as the rebel hero Cassian in the “Star Wars” prequel series “Andor” from Disney+ — are Latino and star in buzzy sci-fi and fantasy series. Read: Variety’s Awards Circuit for the latest Emmy predictions in all categories.

Lily Moayeri A theme song sets the tone for a series. This is certainly the case for HBO’s awards favorite, “The White Lotus,” which won an Emmy for “Aloha” last year. The jungle sounds, exotic tones, yodels and screams laid over percussive rhythms and high-pitched flutes became instantly identifiable and an echo of the contentious characters vacationing at the Hawaii-based titular resort. Considering how iconic “Aloha” became, changing the theme for the Sicily-based second season was a bold choice. Chilean Canadian composer Cristobal Tapia de Veer drew his original musical ideas from the script and from conversations with series creator Mike White. White “wanted the music to feel like it was boiling under these characters,” de Veer says from his studio in Montréal.

Lily Moayeri The impact of “Renaissance,” the main title theme for the second season of “The White Lotus,” is felt far beyond the screen. Since the season’s premiere in Fall 2022, “Renaissance” has ushered in the Killers as they arrived on stage and Dominic Fike has closed his sets with it. But where the song has really hit is on the dance floor. Grammy-winning DJ/producer Tiësto, a huge fan of the series, began including it in his sets toward the end of 2022. His “Renaissance” remix got its official release, with HBO’s blessing. For the second season, Chilean Canadian composer Cristobal Tapia de Veer drew his original musical ideas from the script and from conversations with series creator Mike White. White “wanted the music to feel like it was boiling under these characters,” de Veer says from his studio in Montréal.

Max is touting strong viewership for its true-crime limited drama series Love & Death.

Fabula’s “Superman’s Bodyguards,” “Sisi” head writer Andreas Gutzeit’s thriller “Disgrace” and “Hildur,” from Finland’s Matti Laine, who scored with “The Paradise,” all feature at this year’s   still vastly expanded Conecta Fiction & Entertainment, the Europe-Latin America TV and networking forum, now in its seventh edition. They will be presented to an audience of producers and distributors at the industry centerpiece at Conecta Fiction.   Set up at Juan de Dios and Pablo Larraín’s Fábula, producer of Oscar winning A fantastic Woman” and “Spencer,” “Superman’s Bodyguards” tells the true story of Christopher Reeve’s perilous mission to Chile to attempt to save the lives of 78 Chilean actors under death threat from an extreme right faction in a Chile still ruled by Augusto Pinochet.  

Prime Video Australia is remaking The Office as a female-led comedy starring stand-up Felicity Ward in the role Ricky Gervais first made famous.

Katherine Tulich “The Office” comedy franchise will see middle management led by a woman for the first time in an Australian version that will play on Amazon’s Prime Video. Australian comedian and actor Felicity Ward (“Wakefield,” “The Inbetweeners 2”) will portray Hannah Howard, the MD of packaging company Flinley Craddick in “The Office Australia.” In a post-COVID plot twist, Howard gets news from head office that her branch will be shutting down and that staff will have to work from home. She goes into survival mode, making promises she can’t keep and launches outlandish plots in order to keep her “work family” together. The Australian adaptation is the 13th iteration of the show that was originally created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant. Other international retreads have included those in France, Canada, Chile, Israel and the Middle East.

The Hollywood Reporter’s actor roundtable, Pedro Pascal shared his experience of getting an eye infection. The 48-year-old former Game of Thrones actor disclosed that he allowed fans to take selfies with their fingers in his eyes, which led to conjunctivitis.“I remember, earlier on, because of Game of Thrones and the way my character died, people were super into taking selfies with their thumbs in my eyes,” the Chilean actor told the publication.Pascal said fans wanted to recreate the scene where Gregor “The Mountain” Clegane gouged his character’s eye out in a dramatic fight.

Mr. Bungle, Melvins and Spotlights last week.Mr.

Pedro Pascal was noticeably absent at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. The Chilean actor is one of the biggest stars in Hollywood, and the world is captivated by his every move.

Anna Marie de la Fuente Sonora, among the top podcast platforms in Spain, has tapped leading Chilean scribes Enrique Videla and Paula del Fierro to write a couple of serial podcasts for it. Their credits include Amazon Original “La Jauria” (“The Pack”), showrun by Lucía Puenzo (“The German Doctor”) and produced by Pablo and Juan de Dios Larrain’s Fabula. Both are also co-writers of Movistar’s “Los Prisioneros” and Chilean-German co-production, “Dignidad.” “We’re delighted to add Chilean creative talent to Sonora. The original content that Del Fierro and Videla will write for our platform will join one of our most outstanding fiction creations, ‘Retornados,’ a science fiction thriller written and directed by Chilean scriptwriter, Julio Rojas,” said Gabriel Sáenz de Buruaga, CEO and founding partner of Sonora. Rojas is also one of the writers on “La Jauria” and the scribe of Spotify’s most successful Spanish-language podcast, “Case 63.”

The ladies of Aespa just made their Cannes Film Festival debut!

Ed Meza @edmezavar The 12th edition of Chile’s Sanfic Industria is set to kick off Aug. 20 alongside the Santiago Film Festival with new lab sections and a series focus on Chilean TV productions.   Among Sanfic Industria’s 11 sections will be the new Series Lab, which will select up to six Latin American scripted series projects. Creators and producers will receive advice from Sanfic Industria participants on the development of their works and strengthening international prospects. Industry reps will also take part in pitching sessions and one-on-one meetings for selected projects that will also be eligible for prizes and incentives. Also new is Sanfic ODS Lab, which aims to promote sustainable development goals among Latin American, Spanish and Portuguese projects. Producers, directors and scriptwriters are invited to present audiovisual projects with themes related to sustainable development and that are in an advanced state of development. Selected projects  will also receive incentives to strengthen their development and international prospects.

Naman Ramachandran Global distributor, streamer and production company MUBI has acquired Felipe Gálvez’ “The Settlers,” which bowed on Tuesday at the Cannes Film Festival’s Un Certain Regard section. MUBI has acquired the film for North America, U.K., Latin America, Turkey, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Benelux and India. MUBI will release the film theatrically in the U.S., U.K., and additional territories with release plans to be revealed soon. “The Settlers” is set in Chile at the beginning of the 20th century. A wealthy landowner hires three horsemen to mark out the perimeter of his extensive property and open a route to the Atlantic Ocean across vast Patagonia. The expedition, composed of a young Chilean mestizo, an American mercenary, and led by a reckless British lieutenant, soon turns into a ‘civilizing’ raid.

Mubi has picked The Settlers, the latest pic from Chilean filmmaker Felipe Gálvez for North America, the UK, Latin America, Turkey, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Benelux, and India.

Anna Marie de la Fuente With the writers’ strike dragging on, unscripted content is expected to dominate programming grids. A panel organized by C21 Media at the L.A. Screenings Independents on the format’s outlook in Latin America could not have been more timely. Rising costs, shifting consumer tastes, the advent of streaming platforms and the sway of social media have indeed posed new challenges, even to such mainstays as Banijay’s “Big Brother.” One of Banijay’s biggest reality shows, it first broadcast in 1999 in the Netherlands and was syndicated to more than 60 countries worldwide. “It was a gigantic challenge when we decided to produce ‘Big Brother’ again after 10 years had passed since the last edition,” said Guillermo Pendino, VP content and programming, FTA Brands, Latam Sur, Paramount (Argentina-Chile). “It was no longer the same world, there were the platforms, the social networks and you had to speak to a new audience, an audience that didn’t even know what ‘Big Brother’ was because they were still very young the last time it was broadcast,” he noted. “From Paramount we see the unscripted format as a great opportunity, especially at Telefe Argentina and Chilevisión,” he said.

William Earl Variety and Sportico will partner for the first time to present a co-branded Sports and Entertainment Summit, presented by City National Bank, on July 13 in Los Angeles. Their collaboration marks an expanded day of programming for the event. NBA All-Star, entrepreneur and philanthropist Russell Westbrook; NBA All-Star and producer Blake Griffin; Olympic gymnast Jordan Chiles; Fox Sports’ Mark Silverman and ESPN’s Rosalyn Durant are among the event’s headlining speakers. Westbrook will speak to his growing business, philanthropic and entertainment interests off the court as part of his company Russell Westbrook Enterprises, which includes advertising company RW Digital, production company Zero World Media and his Why Not? Foundation aimed at helping at-risk youth through structured educational opportunities, workforce development and accessible mental health resources.