City Tallinn Showbiz Latest News and Updates

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent The Locarno Film Festival, Thessaloniki International Film Festival, Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival, Rotterdam”s IFFR and the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival have joined forces in a new initiative called Launchpad which aims to nurture budding film professionals. The basic purpose of Launchpad is to facilitate the formative process of selected emerging film professionals working in international sales, marketing, traditional and online distribution, exhibition and programming, and funds and commissions. The idea is to give them facilitated access to a network of European film festivals spread throughout the yearly calendar.

EXCLUSIVE: ANIMA, the Filipino studio behind Venice winner On The Job 2: The Missing 8 and Sundance winner Leonor Will Never Die, is joining with Project 8 Projects to co-produce Antoinette Jadaone’s teenage pregnancy drama Sunshine.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Indian director and cinematographer Jatla Siddhartha has assembled several of the biggest names in world cinema in service of “In the Belly of a Tiger.” The film has its premiere next week at the Berlin Film Festival. Pitched as a blend of surreal horror and selfless love, the film is a fictionalization of reportedly real events in rural India, in which a couple arranges to be eaten by a tiger in order to ensure their family’s financial security.

Dancing on Ice 2024 will kick off on Sunday, 14 January with a fresh set of celebrities ready to take to the ice as they battle to be crowned the winner of the ITV show. 11 famous faces are set to take part, including Claire Sweeney, Amber Davies, Ricky Hatton, Miles Nazaire, Adele Roberts and Ricky Norwood, with Holly Willoughby and Stephen Mulhern taking on presenting duties. Two new professional skaters - Amani Fancy and Simon Senecal - have also joined the line-up, following the departure of Matt Evers.

“Each year, First Feature Competition is something truly special. We can’t wait to introduce these emerging talents to the world.”, she adds.

Vended have announced a massive UK and European tour set to kick off in the spring of next year.The band, which includes Slipknot vocalist Corey Taylor‘s son Griffin and Slipknot percussionist Shawn ‘Clown’ Crahan’s son Simon among its bandmembers, will play the first show of their tour on April 25, 2024 at Turock in Essen, Germany.From there, they will make stops in cities including Hamburg, Copenhagen, Oslo, Stockholm, Helsinki, Warsaw, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Zurich, Milan, Barcelona, Madrid, Paris, Antwerp, Birmingham, Liverpool, Dublin, Belfast, Glasgow, Nottingham, Brighton and Swansea. The tour will wrap up on June 2, 2024 at Sub 89 in Reading.Bands Profiler and The Gloom In The Corner are set to serve as opening support for the shows.

EXCLUSIVE: On the heels of his debut feature Calladita (The Quiet Maid)’s November world premiere at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival, rising Spanish filmmaker Miguel Faus has signed with Artists First for management.

EXCLUSIVE: Bombay Berlin Film Productions (BBFP) has revealed that August Diehl has been cast to play the role of German Olympic athlete Otto Peltzer in upcoming biopic The Distant Near. 

At the Award Ceremony of the 27th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (PÖFF), awards were presented to the winners of the festival’s five competition programmes and PÖFF’s youth and children’s film sub-festival Just Film.The jury of the Official Selection Competition, headed by Trine Dyrholm, selected Emma Dante’s drama Misericordia as their favourite, handing the film the Grand Prix for Best Film. Dante adapted her own play of the same name, telling the story of three prostitutes who live in the wasteland by the sea, where a village of outcasts has emerged. Its star Simone Zambelli also scooped the Best Actor Award.

Every November, the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival embraces the cold of the coming winter, Estonia’s capital shining bright in the darkness of night, showcasing the latest the Baltics and beyond can offer. Each year, for over two weeks, the annual festival, now in its 27th year, offers up hundreds of features and shorts presenting them to both the international press and the cinema-going public. Nearly ten years ago, the festival was awarded A-class status, which puts it alongside the likes of Berlin, Cannes, Venice, Karlovy Vary, Warsaw, and San Sebastian. For the past few years, we’ve been invited along to sample its many delights.This year, the festival played host to 185 feature films from 73 different countries, including 51 world premieres and 24 international premieres, distributed among 5 competitive programmes and 14 side programmes.

John Bleasdale Guest Contributor “Being from a small country is not an obstacle but a plus because you have a story no one has heard of,” Lithuanian actor and showrunner Gabija Siurbyte (“Troll Farm”) told the TV Beats panel during this week’s Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event, hosted by the Black Nights Film Festival. It was the kind of optimism and can-do spirit that characterized the industry forum, which comprised an impressive range of industry panels, workshops and pitching sessions, as well as including a few innovations of its own.

Holidaymakers who want to go on a last-minute getaway for under £100 will have to act fast, as a deal offering just that ends this weekend.

Naman Ramachandran Bangladeshi filmmaker Nuhash Humayun’s “Pett Kata Shaw” won best international feature at the 31st Raindance Film Festival‘s jury awards. British documentary filmmaker Kit Vincent won best U.K.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Tallinn Black Nights, one of the biggest film festivals in Northern Europe, has revealed the full lineup of its Official Selection Competition, with films by Emma Dante, Călin Peter Netzer, Gust Van den Berghe and Rezo Gigineishvili in the running. There are seven international premieres and 13 world premieres. The festival’s 27th edition runs Nov.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor French sales powerhouse Charades Films, which is attending MIA Market in Rome this week, has acquired international rights to Emma Dante’s third feature “Misericordia.” The film will premiere in competition at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival on Nov. 11, and will hit theaters via Teodora on Nov. 16 in Italy.

Alissa Simon Film Critic Sometimes films highlight little-known events in their country of origin that wind up catalyzing a re-evaluation of their nation’s history. Finnish director Klaus Härö’s “Never Alone” is shaping up to be that sort of film. It follows the deportation from Finland of eight Austrian-Jewish refugees by the Gestapo during World War II and the work of Abraham Stiller, a pillar of the Helsinki Jewish community, who tried to stop it from happening.

Emiliano De Pablos “A Hunt for Hedgehogs,” the new film by Hungarian director Mihály Schwechtje and “Rock Bottom,” the feature debut of Spaniard María Trénor mark two potential highlights of San Sebastian’s pix-in-post sidebar WIP Europa, that runs Sept 25-27. In 2020, the San Sebastian Film Festival, the highest-profile film event in the Spanish-speaking world, launched two new pix-in-post showcases, WIP Latam and WIP Europa, replacing respectively Films in Progress and Glocal in Progress sidebars.

Filipino filmmaker Jun Robles Lana is making his second appearance at Toronto International Film Festival with Your Mother’s Son, which is receiving its world premiere in the Centrepiece section. 

The Weeknd got a bit of a shock when he turned the microphone to a fan at a recent concert.

A collection of European festivals including Locarno, Thessaloniki, Tallinn Black Nights, Rotterdam, and Karlovy Vary, have partnered to create a new network aimed at integrating film professionals.

Italy-based sales agent Lights On has acquired world rights for Dreaming & Dying, directed by Singaporean filmmaker Nelson Yeo, ahead of its world premiere in Locarno Film Festival’s Concorso Cineasti del presente.

EXCLUSIVE: The Europe-based Pop Up Film Residency mentorship program has unveiled the filmmakers and mentors who will participate in its summer 2023 edition.

The Locarno Film Festival has announced the line-up for the 21st edition of its Open Doors program, which will focus on filmmakers from underrepresented countries in Latin America and the Caribbean for the second year running.

Ed Meza @edmezavar Norwegian distributor Fjong Film has picked up Hilmar Oddson’s award-winning Icelandic dark comedy “Driving Mum.” While French-U.K. sales and production company Alief has already sold the film widely in Europe, the Norwegian deal marks its first sale in Scandinavia. The Tallinn Black Nights Grand Prix winner, a theatrical hit in Iceland and Estonia, follows aimless protagonist Jon (Þröstur Leó Gunnarsson), who, grappling with immeasurable grief, finally comes of ripe age while fulfilling his mother’s (Kristbjörg Kjeld) final wish. Fjong Film CEO Nina Tryggvadottir, who was born in Iceland, connected with the unconventional road movie, acquiring all rights for the title.

Christopher Vourlias If there’s anything to be learned from the massive, industry-shaping disruptions of recent years — from the unprecedented challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic to the lingering fallout from the war in Ukraine — it’s that “the role of the big festivals in the industry ecosystem is crucial,” according to Tiina Lokk, director of the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival. “When festivals were canceled or changed their dates due to COVID, the cycle of film releases went down the drain, which had a direct impact on cinemas and the whole business model,” Lokk tells Variety. While streaming platforms and Zoom meetings offered a “temporary remedy,” she adds, “it was not a real substitute for live interaction, contacts in a business climate.”

Christopher Vourlias With Jonathan Glazer’s Auschwitz-set Holocaust drama “The Zone of Interest” competing for the Palme d’Or and a host of Polish producers bringing buzzy upcoming projects to the Marché du Film, the Polish industry should again have Cannes talking. Here’s a rundown of some of the highlights: The Zone of Interest(Competition)Director: Jonathan GlazerProducers: James Wilson, Ewa Puszczyńska (JW Films, Extreme Emotions)Sales: A24The veteran British filmmaker’s first film in nearly a decade, which will compete for the Palme d’Or, is a Holocaust drama loosely based on the novel by Martin Amis that’s sure to be among the festival’s most talked-about films.

Sales: Luxbox Living in an idyllic Andalusia, a couple in love grapples with the realities of making a living through OnlyFans. Screened at Seville and Tallinn. Sales: Begin Again Films. One of the big Spanish action-thrillers hitting this Cannes market, from a specialist (“Sky High”). Pre-sold to France (Kinovista), Germany and Italy (Koch Media) with Tripictures releasing in Spain. Sales: Latido

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Berlin-based sales outfit M-Appeal has closed two multi-territory deals for Bulgarian gay summer-romance film “Liuben,” directed by Venci Kostov. The film has been acquired by TLA Entertainment for North America, France, U.K. and Ireland, and Cinemien for Germany, Austria, German-speaking Switzerland, Belgium, The Netherlands, Luxembourg, Spain, Italy and Sweden. “Liuben,” which has its world premiere at Guadalajara Intl. Film Festival in June, is the first openly gay film from Bulgaria. Roma actors, who are usually absent from Bulgarian cinema, play lead roles in the film.

She found fame on Pop Idol 22 years ago. But more than two decades on and you might do a double take to see Jessica Garlick - that's if you still remember her.The former talent show contestant made it through to the final ten - if that jogs your memory - and if recent pics are to be believed, looks as though she hasn't aged at all in the years since.The now 42-year-old is still rocking her iconic brunette hair with her signature side parting. It was way back in 2001 when Jessica made it into the final 10 contestants of the ITV show.

Naman Ramachandran Writer-director Jesper Ganslandt has signed with CAA for representation. Ganslandt made his debut with “Falkenberg Farewell” in 2006. The coming-of-age film followed a group of friends who grew up in the titular town of Falkenberg and spend a last summer there before moving to the big city. The film debuted at Venice and had a stellar festival run including Toronto, Reykjavik, Tallinn Black Nights and Goteborg. It was nominated for the Nordic Council’s Film Prize, chosen as Sweden’s submission for the Academy Awards, and was nominated in several categories at the Guldbagge Awards in 2007, including best film, best direction and best screenplay. It won the FIPRESCI Award at the IndieLisboa International Independent Film Festival.

EXCLUSIVE: Gravitas Ventures has acquired worldwide rights to the drama On Our Way, the feature directorial debut by Sophie Lane Curtis, toplined by Micheál Richardson, Keith Powers, James Badge Dale and Jordana Brewster. Vanessa Redgrave, Paul Ben-Victor, Ruby Modine and Franco Nero also star. Gravitas will release the film in theaters and on demand on Friday, May 19.

EXCLUSIVE: Upon Entry, from directors Alejandro Rojas and Juan Sebastián Vásquez, will make its North American debut at SXSW later this week, and we’ve got the trailer to go with it (check it out above). 

Holly Jones France-U.K. sales-production-distribution house Alief (“Matadero”) has closed U.K. and Irish theatrical sales for on Tallinn Black Nights Grand Prix winner “Driving Mum, with Newcastle upon Tyne-based exhibition and distribution outfit Tull Stories (“A Clever Woman”) ahead of its bow in at the Glasgow Festival on Monday. Warsaw-based Aurora Films (“I Love My Dad”) has simultaneously snapped up Polish theatrical rights. “We could not be happier to have found the perfect match for ‘Driving Mum’ in the U.K and Ireland, key markets in our company’s DNA. What a joyful day, I’ll finally be able to take my mother to one of our movies in London,” Brett Walker, president of Alief, told Variety.

Spain boasts a bullish presence at the Berlinale. Following, short profiles of its features that have made the festival cut and a selection of top titles being moved at the European Film Market: Director: Estíbaliz Urresola Spain’s Berlin competition player is from Urresola, director of Cannes Critics’ Week short “Chords.” Film takes place in a Basque Country village and is a celebration of female sexual diversity. Catalonia’s Inicia Films (“La Maternal”) produces with Gariza Films (“Nora”). Sales: Luxbox

Christopher Vourlias When a rock festival held in Tallinn in the summer of 1988 was shut down by Soviet authorities, thousands of Estonians took to the streets, waving Estonian flags and singing patriotic songs in a bold show of defiance of Soviet rule. By the festival’s final night, some 200,000 people had joined what would later be dubbed the Singing Revolution, a catalyst for the non-violent movement that swept across Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania in the early-‘90s and paved the way for independence. Even under Moscow’s thumb the Baltics demanded to be heard. For decades the three small nations have drawn on their historical, cultural and economic ties to create a sum that’s bigger than its parts, a collaborative spirit that’s also energized the countries’ growing screen industries, which will share the stage as joint Countries in Focus at this year’s European Film Market.

Holly Jones Munich-based arthouse distribution company Prokino Filmverleih has locked German-language and Swiss rights for the unconventional Icelandic road trip film “Driving Mum” from production-distribution outfit Alief (“Matadero”). The project won the Grand Prix Prize for best film at the Tallinn Black Night Film Festival, earning additional accolades for its affecting score. It was also chosen as an Industry Select title at 2022’s Toronto Festival. The deal, brokered between Miguel Angel Govea, a partner at Alief, and Ira Von Gienanth, managing director of production, acquisitions & sales at Prokino, comes ahead of the feature’s European Film Market screenings in Berlin.