Paolo Taviani, Award-Winning Italian Director, Dies at 92

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor AGC Studios chief creative officer Lourdes Diaz has signed a new multi-year employment agreement and has been elevated to partner with a seat on the board of the independent film and television studio. The promotion comes on the back of founders Stuart Ford, chairman and CEO, and Miguel Palos, chief operating office, themselves signing new multi-year agreements late last year.

David Seidler has sadly passed away.

David Seidler, best known for his Academy Award-winning writing on The King’s Speech, died on Saturday, March 16 while on a fly-fishing expedition in New Zealand.  He was 86 and no cause was given.

Shakar Hussain knows first-hand what it's like to fall on hard times. Shakar, 49, originally from Pakistan, came to the UK aged 10. He grew up in Cheetham Hill before his family settled in neighbouring Crumpsall.

Lori Loughlin won the Grace Prize for A Christmas Blessing and Super Mario Bros. Movie was named Best Family Film at the 31st annual Movieguide Faith & Values Awards Gala & Report. The broadcast aired this evening on Great American Family.

Filipino actress Jaclyn Jose, best known for her role in Brillante Mendoza’s indie feature Ma’ Rosa, which nabbed her the Best Actress gong at Cannes, has died. Jose — who was born Mary Jane Guck — was 60. 

A new coffee shop has opened its doors within one of Manchester's most historic buildings. CoffeeLab has taken up residence inside Colwyn Chambers on the corner of York Street and Mosley Street.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Kevin Spacey will appear as a character named “The Devil” in Italian director Massimo Paolucci’s psychological thriller “The Contract,” which just wrapped principal photography in Rome. The English-language film, described in a statement as having a similar storyline as Alan Parker’s “Angel Heart” and Taylor Hackford’s “The Devil’s Advocate,” also stars Eric Roberts and Vincent Spano, Italian production company TM Entertainment said. Spacey arrived in Rome last December to shoot “The Contract.” Reps for Spacey, Roberts and Spano did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Emiliano De Pablos Brand new sales agency Neo Art International has picked up worldwide sales rights outside Italy to Claudio Amendola’s black comedy film trilogy “Cassamortari” (“Funeral Family”). The film trilogy narrates the story of The Pasti Family, a Roman family who work in the funeral business. The three titles of the saga are set up at Rome-based company Paco Cinematografica, and co-produced with Antonia Nava’s Neo Art Producciones in Barcelona.

Paolo Taviani, the iconic Italian director who helmed numerous films with his brother Vittorio, has died. He was 92.

When “Hacks” returns for a third season it will have been almost two years, yes two years, since its season two premiere. That wasn’t the plan.

EXCLUSIVE: BBC commissioning executives are booked to see the award-winning musical Standing at the Sky’s Edge, which opens Wednesday night at the Gillian Lynne Theatre following its transfer from a sold-out season at the National Theatre. This column told you a year ago that StudioCanal’s RED Production company is developing the musical into a TV drama series.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor The Match Factory has revealed multiple distribution deals for two Berlinale competition titles: German director Matthias Glasner‘s “Dying,” which won the festival’s Silver Bear for best screenplay, and Russian director Victor Kossakovsky‘s documentary “Architecton.” “Dying,” which stars Lars Eidinger, Lilith Stangenberg and Corinna Harfouch, also picked up the Guild of German Arthouse Cinemas and the Berliner Morgenpost Readers’ Jury Award. Variety‘s review describes the film as “a profoundly affecting exploration of life and loss.” The Match Factory closed deals for the film in France (Bodega Film), Italy (Satine Film), Benelux (September Film Distribution), Norway (Selmer Media), Poland (Aurora), CIS (Provzglyad), Ex-Yugoslavia (MCF MegaCom Film), Hungary (Cirko Films), Greece (Cinobo), Romania (Freealize), Taiwan (Andrews Film) and South Korea (Pancinema).

Pedro Pascal took home the SAG Award for outstanding performance by a male actor in a drama series.in a surprise victory, which he said in his acceptance speech was “wrong for a number of reasons.”Pascal won the award for his performance as Joel in HBO‘s The Last Of Us, beating Succession stars Brian Cox, Kieran Culkin and Matthew Macfadyen, as well as The Morning Show’s Billy Crudup.An emotional Pascal took to the stage to accept the award by admitting he had overindulged a little because he hadn’t expected to win.“This is wrong, for a number of reasons. I’m a little drunk.

Lord of the Rings co-stars Elijah Wood and Sean Astin reunited onstage Saturday at the 2024 SAG Awards. And that’s where Wood learned about a missing trophy.

Lily Gladstone made history on Saturday night, being named the winner in the outstanding performance by a female actor in a leading role category at Saturday’s SAG Awards in Los Angeles.

Last weekend, Pedro Pascal won the fan vote to take the Male TV Star of the Year trophy at the People’s Choice Awards for his role as Joel in HBO’s The Last Of Us. Six days later, he won the vote of his peers to land the SAG Award for Male Actor In a Drama Series, his first major industry recognition.

Palme d’Ors don’t grow on trees, so it’s small wonder that the world has fallen for Justine Triet’sAnatomy of a Fall, and the outstanding lead performance of Sandra Hüller, since it won the Cannes Film Festival’s top prize. Hüller’s turn dominates the ‘sort of’ courtroom drama of the film, in which her German novelist — also called Sandra — is accused of pushing her French husband Samuel (Samuel Theis), also a writer, from the top floor of their alpine home. Sandra maintains he fell, or jumped, and the film spends much of its runtime chewing over the truth, though never revealing it.

Naman Ramachandran Prime Video has greenlit a feature-length documentary chronicling the final 12 days of Roger Federer’s professional tennis career. The as-yet-untitled documentary is described by Prime Video as “an intimate follow-along through the final 12 days of Roger Federer’s illustrious career. Originally a home video never intended for public viewing, the film captures Federer at his most vulnerable and candid self, as he says goodbye to a game and the fans that shaped his life for the last two decades.” It features interviews from Federer’s rivals and friends, including Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Over the past few years Italian cinema has been making strides in the global arena and 2024 looks likely to bolster its international standing. New works by top auteurs Paolo Sorrentino and Luca Guadagnino will be launching from the festival circuit just as a fresh crop of directors comes to fore, starting with Margherita Vicario, whose first film “Gloria!” scored a Berlin competition slot.