Senegal Showbiz Latest News and Updates

Guy Lodge Film Critic On the final weekend of a bustling 18-day event, the in-person edition of this year’s Melbourne Film Festival has drawn to a close with an awards ceremony that saw a whopping $300,000 AUD (over $191,000 USD) in prize money handed out across six categories. The biggest individual award of $140,000 AUD (nearly $90,000 USD) was presented to the winner of the fest’s international Bright Horizons competition: “Banel & Adama,” an arresting debut feature by Franco-Senegalese filmmaker Ramata-Toulaye Sy.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Carrousel Studios, the newly launched production company of “Lupin” star Omar Sy, “Fast X” director Louis Leterrier and “Gangs of London” producer Thomas Benski, has appointed Cécile Gaget as CEO. A seasoned executive, the Paris-based Gaget previously worked at Wild Bunch as head of film, and also worked at Anton Capital and Gaumont where she spearheaded international sales and co-productions.

Crocked Abdallah Sima has spoken for the first time since limping off during Rangers win over Hearts in the Scottish Cup semi-final.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent “Dahomey,” the Berlinale Golden Bear-winning film helmed by French-Senegalese director Mati Diop, has been sold to a raft of international territories by Les Films du Losange. Along with being acquired by Mubi in key markets, “Dahomey” has been acquired in Australia & New Zealand (Rialto), China (Hugoeast), Spain (Filmin), Portugal (Nitrato Filmes), Greece (One From the Heart), Scandinavia (NonStop Entertainement), Benelux (Cinéart), Bulgaria (Beta Films), Ex-Yugoslavia (Discovery), Hungary (Mozinet), Czech Republic (Film Europe), Romania (Voodoo), Baltic Countries (Taip Toliau), Poland (New Horizons), Ukraine (Kyivmusicfilm), Taiwan (Joint Entertainment), Indonesia (PT Falcon) and Sudu Connexion in Africa.

Canal+ Group has acquired a stake in Senegalese production company Marodi TV, which is a key player in the West African drama series scene.

Naman Ramachandran Four African screenwriters will pitch stories spanning genres at the 15th edition of Series Mania in Lille, France. Pitching this year are Kelly-Eve Koopman (South Africa) with urban fantasy “Facing the Mountain”; Moreetsi Gabang (Botswana) with crime drama “Outreach”; Tiah Beye (Senegal/Côte d’Ivoire) with comedy-drama “Brouteure” (“The Yahoo Girl”); and Wanjiru Kairu (Kenya) with political satire “Serikali Saidia!” The shows are under the aegis of the AuthenticA Series Lab, a training program for African episodic screenwriters from Realness Institute.

Actor and producer Omar Sy (Lupin), director-producer Louis Leterrier (Fast X) and producer and Pulse Films founder Thomas Benski (American Honey) are launching Carrousel Studios with bases in Paris, London, LA and Senegal.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent “Lupin” star Omar Sy, “Fast X” director Louis Leterrier and “Gangs of London” producer Thomas Benski have launched Carrousel Studios, a European independent production company with offices in Paris, London, Los Angeles and Senegal. The banner will finance and produce film and TV projects, with an emphasis on elevated action, thrillers, sci-fi, fantasy and comedy. The company will look to tap into tax credits, European incentives and brands to finance content.

French director Claire Denis is set to return to West Africa for her next feature film, an adaptation of late French playwright Bernard-Marie Koltès’s 1980 work Black Battles With Dogs (Combat de nègre et de chiens).

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent A rare flagship indie producer left on the French market, Bruno Nahon‘s Paris-based company Unité is preparing to conquer international audiences with “Rematch,” a period psychological thriller chronicling the historical battle between world chess champion Garry Kasparov (Christian Cooke, “That Dirty Black Bag”), and IBM’s supercomputer Deep Blue in 1997. The sprawling show, directed by Yan England (“The Red Band Society”) and co-created with Nahon and André Gulluni (“Sam”), was commissioned by Arte in France and has already been sold by Federation Studios to major outlets around the world, including HBO Europe for Spain, Portugal, the Nordics, Iceland, Baltics, Central Europe, Greece and the Netherlands.

The Match Factory has locked multi-territory deals on Berlinale titles Architecton by Victor Kossakovsky and Dying by Matthias Glasner, which picked up the festival’s Silver Bear for Best Screenplay.

Christopher Vourlias Following on the heels of a successful post-pandemic reboot one year ago, the Joburg Film Festival kicks off its sixth edition on Feb. 27, with the glitzy capital of South Africa’s media and entertainment industry showcasing a selection of top talents from the host country and across the African continent.

Guy Lodge Film Critic The Berlin Film Festival drew to a close with tonight’s awards ceremony, with French-Senegalese director Mati Diop taking the Golden Bear for her documentary “Dahomey.” Full report to come; full list of winners below.

Winners have been announced at the 74th Berlin Film Festival, with Dahomey by French-Senegalese filmmaker Mati Diop scooping the coveted Golden Bear prize as the best film of the festival’s International Competition. Scroll down for the full list of winners, which were revealed Saturday evening at the Berlinale Palast.

Italy’s Best International Feature Oscar-nominated Io Capitano starts its U.S. run today in ten market on 21 screens, a bit wider than usual for Cohen Media Group but with Academy final voting just started, reviews are gold for the odyssey that director Matteo Garrone calls “a movie about human rights. About the rights of everybody to move, to look for a better life.”

Dahomey,” a highlight of this year’s Berlinale competition and directed by Cannes prizewinner Mati Diop (“Atlantics”), for North America, Latin America, U.K., Ireland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Turkey and India. The feature film is represented in international markets by Films du Losange, which negotiated the deal with Mubi. “Dahomey” marks the sophomore outing of Diop, a French-Senegalese talent who is considered one of the leading figures in international arthouse cinema and of a new wave in African and diasporic cinema.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Jane Campion is championing Matteo Garrone‘s “Io Capitano,” which is Italy’s Oscar-nominated contender for best international feature film. The movie narrates the Homeric journey of two two Senegalese teenagers, Seydou and Moussa, who decide to leave Dakar to reach Europe in pursuit of a better life. It realistically depicts their plight through the pitfalls of the desert, the horrors of detention centers in Libya and the dangers of the sea.

Somebody — or something — is speaking from inside a timber crate. “It’s so dark in here… a night so deep and opaque” read the subtitles; the voice is speaking in Fon, the local language of the West African country that was once called Dahomey and is now Benin. As the slats are nailed down, the voice is increasingly muffled; we are outside, but we are inside too, watching the light disappear.

Jessica Kiang In November 2021, 61 years after Benin gained independence from the French empire, 26 of the many thousands of plundered national antiquities were returned by France to their African home. Inserting an inquisitive, imaginative intelligence into this key moment in the troubled timeline of post-imperial cultural politics, French-Senegalese director Mati Diop fashions her superb, short but potent hybrid doc “Dahomey” as a slim lever that cracks open the sealed crate of colonial history, sending a hundred of its associated erasures and injustices tumbling into the light.

Christopher Vourlias Africa’s growing screen industries are making their mark on the global stage, with three titles in the main competition at this year’s Berlin Film Festival, but how to unlock the continent’s still-untapped potential was a question on the minds of many at a conference hosted on Saturday by the European Film Market. A partnership between EFM and Prudence Kolong’s Stockholm-based consulting firm Yanibes, AfroBerlin was launched to give a platform to filmmakers from Africa and the diaspora and “to find a place where they can share stories and experiences and be heard,” said Kolong, who also organizes the Cannes Film Festival’s AfroCannes industry showcase.

Christopher Vourlias A lonely widower wrestling with the loss of his wife finds himself in the thralls of a mental health crisis, setting the stage for a moving tale of grief and acceptance in Mamadou Dia’s “Demba,” which premieres Feb. 17 in the Encounters section at the Berlin Film Festival. “Demba” follows its titular protagonist, an archivist in a provincial Senegalese town being nudged toward an early retirement after nearly 30 years in the civil service.

While the movie industry seemingly buckles, Disney’s seemingly cutting back on any physical media anymore, and Best Buy is apparently ending its run of selling DVDs and Blu-Rays, companies like the Criterion Collection are staying the course. As usual, the boutique, cinephile-friendly company always aims to release and rediscover classic movies in the annals of film history, and they’re doing much the same with their May 2024 announcements.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Matteo Garrone’s Oscar-nominated immigration epic “Io Capitano” is gaining traction in movie theaters across the African continent, and will soon be touring villages in Senegal with the director in tow as part of an itinerant cinema initiative called Cinemovel. Shot over 13 weeks in Senegal, Italy and Morocco with a cast of non-professional actors, the Italian auteur’s latest feature — the title for which translates to “Me Captain” — narrates the Homeric journey of two young African men, Seydou and Moussa, who decide to leave the Senegalese capital of Dakar to go to Europe.

Cameroon coach Rigobert Song has denied the suggestion that he has fallen out with Andre Onana after he was dropped for the crucial Africa Cup of Nations win over Gambia last week.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent “Dahomey,” a documentary directed by Cannes prizewinner Mati Diop (“Atlantique”) and slated for the Berlinale competition, will be represented internationally by Paris-based Les Films du Losange. The feature marks the directorial comeback of the French-Senegalese talent after winning the Grand Prize at Cannes with “Atlantique” in 2019.

Several Manchester United fans have unpacked their grievances with Andre Onana after the goalkeeper conceded three goals against Senegal amid an underwhelming display.

Abdallah Sima will be assessed by Senegal after picking up a hip injury during the African Cup of Nations.

Former Manchester United defender Saidy Janko has slammed the "unacceptable" events that led to their plane making an emergency landing.

Marta Balaga As the battle for international feature film Oscar heats up, female directors behind this year’s submissions urge Academy members to stay open-minded. “Many outstanding films won’t be noticed simply because people don’t watch them. Established directors, big production companies or rich distributors are in a better starting position, but I encourage Academy voters to go for bold and diverse choices,” says Estonia’s Anna Hints, who’s behind crowd-pleasing doc “Smoke Sauna Sisterhood.” “The safest choice is not always the best,” echoes Tizza Covi, who co-directed Austrian selection “Vera” with Rainer Frimmel.

Manchester United may not miss Andre Onana for any first-team matches despite seeing the goalkeeper depart for the Africa Cup of Nations.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Sting, Isabella Rossellini, and U.S. director Roger Ross Williams (“The Apollo,” “Life Animated”) came out to support the recent New York launch of Matteo Garrone’s Venice prizewinning immigration epic “Io Capitano” at the Museum of Modern Art. The movie – which is Italy’s now shortlisted Oscar candidate for best international feature film – narrates the Homeric journey of two two Senegalese teenagers, Seydou and Moussa, who decide to leave Dakar to reach Europe in pursuit of a better life.

Variety Staff Follow Us on Twitter Want to know which international features vying for Oscar gold are worth watching? Variety‘s team of critics has been on the ground at Cannes, Berlin, Venice, Toronto and other major film festivals, on the hunt for the best of the best. In December, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences unveiled its shortlist of 15 films eligible for the second round of voting in the Best International Feature Film category.

EXCLUSIVE: Activist Artists Management has brought on Grant Pennel as a Talent Manager, also signing Moustapha Fall, the Senegalese actor who earned praise for his debut performance in Matteo Garrone’s Golden Globe-nominated Io Capitano.

Phoebe Violet has always dreamt of one day walking the catwalk but never in her wildest dreams did she think a Chanel runway would appear on her street.

Philippe Clement revealed he’s planning talks to convince Abdallah Sima to stay at Rangers.

Karim Debbagh‘s leading Tangier-based line producer Kasbah Films has secured a raft of U.S. and U.K. projects that will lense in Morocco, including “Lords of War,” the sequel to “Lord of War,” starring Nicolas Cage as the world’s most notorious arms dealer.

Fashion house Chanel has shared the first details about it's ultra-exclusive catwalk show being held in Manchester city centre this week. And it includes clues to the iconic Manchester bands, moments and a certain club that may have inspired it.