Malaga Focus on Peru Boosts Opportunities for ‘Diógenes’ Director Leonardo Barbuy’s Historical Drama ‘Toro Mata’ (EXCLUSIVE)

Naman Ramachandran Director Mike Newell (“Four Weddings and a Funeral,” “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire”) has set an August shoot at U.K. locations for “China Court.” The film will be directed by Newell from a script by Brian Kinsey, based on the 1961 novel “China Court: The Hours of a Country House” by Rumer Godden.  The film centers around a house, China Court, and the family that inhabits it. The film follows generations of the family over a century, up to the death of the matriarch in 1961. Characters move seamlessly in and out of each other’s timelines as they grow up, fall in love, fall out with each other and – always – pass on to those who follow them the consequences of their actions.

The wolf of the courtroom. Leonardo DiCaprio took the stand to testify in former Fugees rapper Pras Michel’s money-laundering case.

Leonardo DiCaprio took the stand at Washington, D.C.'s federal courthouse on Monday as a witness in the trial of former Fugees member Prakazrel «Pras» Michel.Pras is accused of allegedly funneling money to Barack Obama's 2012 presidential reelection campaign through straw donors and working with fugitive Malaysian financer Low Taek Jho, also known as Jho Low. Five years later, prosecutors say Pras tried to squelch an investigation into Low under former President Donald Trump’s administration. Additionally, Low is being accused of masterminding an international money laundering and bribery scheme that stole billions from the Malaysian state investment fund known as 1MDB.Both Michel and Low are facing charges in the United States, but Low remains at large, so Michel is on trial alone.CBS News reports that DiCaprio, who is not accused of any wrongdoing, testified to a grand jury on Monday and discussed his relationship with Low in a bid by prosecutors to show that Low used stolen money to curry favor with actors, models, and politicians in the United States. According to prosecutors, Low and DiCaprio wereintroduced by the stepson of former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak, who was charged in Malaysia in connection with the 1MDB corruption scandal. DiCaprio recalled to jurors first meeting Low when when he attended his Las Vegas birthday party in 2010.

Leonardo DiCaprio took the stand on Monday (April 3) to testify about his relationship with accused billionaire Jho Low in a federal trial against Fugees member Pras Michel.

Malaysian financier Jho Low tried to funnel up to $30 million to President Barack Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign as part of a far-reaching influence operation.“I basically said, ‘Wow, that’s a lot of money,'” DiCaprio testified.The “Titanic” star was testifying in the trial of rapper Prakazrel “Pras” Michel of The Fugees hip hop group, who US prosecutors accuse of illegally taking tens of millions of dollars to lobby the US government on behalf of Low and the Chinese government.DiCaprio is one of several prominent figures linked to Low, who is suspected of embezzling $4.5 billion from Malaysia’s 1MDB sovereign wealth fund.The financier, who was known to pay Hollywood celebrities to party with him, supported DiCaprio’s charitable foundation and helped fund “The Wolf of Wall Street,” the 2013 movie in which DiCaprio starred.DiCaprio has been cooperating with the US government’s investigation.He managed to enter the courthouse without being spotted by news crews that had been staking out his arrival.Michel is accused of profiting from an alleged embezzling scheme by Low, as well as a Chinese government influence campaign aimed at repatriating dissident Guo Wengui.Michel faces 11 criminal counts for trying to influence the administrations of Obama and former President Donald Trump. Michel has denied the allegations.The Fugees won two Grammy Awards for their best-selling 1996 album “The Score.” But by 2012, prosecutors said, Michel was in dire need of cash.Prosecutors said Michel agreed to funnel money into Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign and hide the source of the funds.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The high-profile film and TV production facilities Iskandar Malaysia Studios have been sold to Singapore’s GHY Culture & Media. GHY has paid RM8.8 million ($1.98 million) for an 80% stake in Studio Management Services, investment company, to RK Media Ventures Sdn Bhd and CL Media Holdings. According to a regulatory filing GHY and SMS must pay a further RM26.5 million ($5.99 million) within five days to state-owned Granatum Ventures to buy 100% of Iskandar Malaysia Studios. That gives a total purchase price of RM35.3 million ($8 million) for a controlling 80% stake. The remaining minority can be bought out in five years. The filing said that Iskandar Malaysia Studios’ net asset value at the end of 2022 was RM32 million ($7.23 million).

star Lainey Wilson and Ian Bohen both told ET they haven't heard many updates on the recently-confirmed news that Matthew McConaughey will star in a new franchise spinoff. «We'll go back this summer,» Bohen told ET's Cassie DiLaura from the red carpet of Sunday's CMT Music Awards but added that «mums the word» on whether he'd seen any scripts yet. «I haven't got a call yet,» Wilson said about filming the rest of season 5, «but as far as I know they don't even know when they're going to be filming.» Wilson added she was feeling positive about the show's future. «I have a really good feeling that if they do finish things in a way that, you know, they're planning, I will be back in it,» she said.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Cohen Media Group has dropped the trailer for Francois Ozon’s drama “Everything Went Fine” ahead of its theatrical release in New York on April 14 and Los Angeles on April 21, followed by a national expansion. “Everything Went Fine” is based on the autobiographical novel by author Emmanuèle Bernheim who previously collaborated on Ozon’s screenplays for “Under The Sand,” “Swimming Pool” and “Ricky.” The movie follows 85-year-old art collector André Bernheim (André Dussolier) who, after a debilitating stroke, demands that his daughter Emmanuèle (Sophie Marceau), help him end life on his own terms. Faced with a painful decision, Emmanuèle, with the grudging support of her younger sister Pascale (Géraldine Pailhas), begins sorting through the processes and bureaucratic hurdles necessary to fulfill her father’s final wish, as she is forced to reconcile her past with a complicated, stubborn, yet charismatic man.

Auli’i Cravalho got everyone’s attention at the premiere of The Power in New York City on Thursday night (March 23).

While Zach Braff might be best known for his comedic acting roles, his filmmaking ventures, specifically the three he’s written and directed, have primarily dealt with serious family dramas and that specific genre. Of course, everyone knows his 2007 breakout film, “Garden State,” or at least the memes, which tackles a quarter-life crisis and depression.

Florence Pugh gives a sweet kiss to her grandmother, Pat Mackin, at the premiere of her new movie, A Good Person.

Ed Meza @edmezavar The Barcelona-set feature “La nit no fa vigília” and Argentine film “Hidden City” (“Ciudad Oculta”) won the Malaga Festival Work in Progress awards for Spanish and Latin American projects on Friday. “La nit no fa vigília” (which roughly translates to “The Night Does Not Keep Watch”) centers on a young man who lives with and cares for his aging, frail grandmother, but still finds time for a nocturnal social life. It was among the frontrunners to win at the awards ceremony. A joint project from a student collective comprising Laura Corominas Espelt, Laura Serra Solé, Clara Serrano Llorens, Gerard Simó Gimeno, Ariadna Ulldemolins Abad and Pau Vall Capdet, “La nit no fa vigília” also won the industry magazine Cine y Tele prize.

Ed Meza @edmezavar Estíbaliz Urresola Solaguren’s celebrated Spanish feature “20,000 Species of Bees” and Kattia G. Zúñiga’s Panamanian drama “Sister & Sister” took the top prizes at the Malaga Film Festival, garnering the Golden Biznagas for Spanish and Latin American pictures respectively.   “20,000 Species of Bees” also won best supporting actress for Patricia López Arnaiz and picked up theSpanish Cinematographic Informers Association’s Feroz Puerta Oscura award. The film’s success follows two awards in Berlin, including a Silver Bear for Sofía Otero for her portrayal of a young girl going through a gender crisis. For Zúñiga, the Golden Biznaga is sure to help further propel “Sister & Sister,” an autobiographical story about two teenage sisters who travel from Costa Rica to Panama in search of their absent father.

Julia MacCary editor Megan Thee Stallion, Bradley Cooper and Yvette Nicole Brown are among the list of celebrities partnering with Caring Across Generations to elevate portrayals of caregiving across film and TV with the Creative Care Council. Brandee Evans, Yves Mathieu East, Richard Lui, Seth Rogan and Lauren Miller Rogen are also taking part in the movement, which is working to change how society values and supports caregiving. The council plans to provide recommendations and feedback on how to raise awareness and strengthen relationships with like-minded partners. “At some point in your life you will either be the person receiving care, or the person facilitating care,” East said. “Caregiving is more common than we know. We shouldn’t play the waiting game when we can take charge now.” 

Ed Meza @edmezavar Panamanian-Costa Rican director Kattia G. Zúñiga, whose debut feature “Las hijas” (“Sister & Sister”) premieres at the Malaga Film festival, is developing a new feature project about women finding their and a tougher attitude late in life through the power of dance. The project re-teams her with “Las Hijas” producer Alejo Crisóstomo. “Rabiosas” (“Raging”, their project, follows a group of 55-year-old friends in Panama who decide to take ballet classes together, as they did when they were schoolgirls, in order to cheer up a friend going through a difficult time and also to get out of the routine of daily life. Inspired by their 26-year-old teacher, however, they soon switch to bolder dancing moves.

Ed Meza @edmezavar Santiago Requejo has not only turned his hit short, “All in Favor,” into a theatrical play set to premiere in Buenos Aires in April, he’s also working on a feature film version. The award-winning work, which was shortlisted for this year’s live-action short film Oscar, sets the scene with a friendly meeting of apartment owners discussing a new elevator that becomes increasingly tense when they find out one of the neighbors has rented his flat to a work colleague with mental health issues. The stage adaptation, which Requejo co-wrote with Javier Lorenzo and Raul Barranco, begins with the story depicted in the short film and expands its. The play (titled “Votemos” in Argentina rather than “Votamos” as in Spain) premieres April 6 at the Teatro Metropolitan in Buenos Aires.

Ed Meza @edmezavar Jose Pozo, director of the celebrated Spanish short “Plastic Killer,” is traveling to the Western U.S. for his next feature film, “Unusual Cowboys,” which he plans to shoot this year. The story follows Milton, a peaceful rancher and occasional musician who loses his daughter in a traffic accident. Her death has a further tragic impact on Milton’s life, leading him to sell his ranch and travel to Montana in search of Caleb, the man who failed to help his daughter in the accident. It’s a film about two men who in other circumstances could have been good friends. Although separated by terrible circumstances, they share a common passion: Music.

Ed Meza @edmezavar David Pujol, whose enchanting drama “Waiting for Dalí” premiered at the Malaga Film Festival on Sunday, has a new feature film project and an international TV series in the works. Pujol has just completed the script for “Rehearsal for a Kiss,” the story of a passionate yet hapless movie theater owner in Barcelona whose love of classic movies has left his cinema in a precarious position. On the verge of losing the family business, he seeks help from his uncle in America, who has made a career for himself as a character actor in Hollywood. A flashy, larger-than-life personality, the uncle returns to his native city after 40 years to help his nephew save the theater while also reconnecting with his own past.

Ed Meza @edmezavar Spanish filmmaker Félix Viscarret, known for tackling such heavy subject matter as the Basque conflict (“Patria”), crime in the Cuban capital Havana (“Four Seasons in Havana: Winds of Lent”) and psychological drama (“Staring at Strangers”), has made perhaps his most personal film yet with a touching and engrossing story of fatherhood and the pitfalls of success.      In “Not Such an Easy Life,” 40-year-old Isaías (Miki Esparbé), a once promising young architect, is struggling to balance career and family, wanting to raise his young children while desperate to achieve the fleeting professional success he once enjoyed as he strives against more ambitious rivals.  

Michelle Yeoh’s mother couldn’t be prouder at her history-making win at the Oscars.