Benjamin Cleary Latest Celebrity News & Gossip

Ben Croll For the past six years the Annecy Animation Film Festival has looked to entrench VR producers within the global animation community.After launching a dedicated showcase in 2016, introducing a full-on competition in 2019, and keeping the VR component active for two years of hybrid and online-only editions, this year’s return to full force will spotlight eight VR projects in competition, alongside three work-in-progress screenings, a pitch session, and a series of wide-ranging conferences dedicated to future of the medium.“Our program reflects the diversity and richness of VR today,” says XR program head Arnaud Miquel. “Annecy has always been a place of experimentation, and from the moment artists take hold of this medium to do something new, we want to support them and give them visibility.” On the competition side, Jean Bouthors’ scripted short “Kidnapped in Vostok” and Rosa Schillaci’s immersive doc “Affiorare” will world premiere in Annecy, joining lauded projects like Hsin-Chien Huang’s “Samsara,” Benjamin Steiger Levine’s “Marco & Polo Go Round,” and Benjamin Cleary & Michael O’Connor’s “Glimpse” in a tight selection with a clear criteria.“We can consider live action, but there must be a contribution from animation in the artistic development of the work,” Miquel explains.

Ben Croll A Coenesque caper-gone-wrong and an interactive mother-daughter saga told in bite-size form, XR titles “Kidnapped in Vostok” (pictured) and “Rock, Paper, Scissors” are among the 17 projects leading distributor Astrea picked up in a recent bout of acquisitions. Both titles are playing in competition at this year’s NewImages Festival, while other recent Astrea pickups include the Stanislaw Lem inspired short “Cosmogonic,” the award winning interactive film “Glimpse” from Oscar winner Benjamin Cleary and VR designer Michael O’Connor, and all five episodes of the “Missing Pictures” series, in which filmmakers Abel Ferrara, Tsai Ming-Liang, Catherine Hardwicke, Lee Myung-Se and Naomi Kawase reflect on the dream projects they could never get made.

EXCLUSIVE:  WME has inked Oscar winner Benjamin Cleary, whose short film Stutterer won the Oscar in 2016.

Glimpse, an interactive animated film from Swan Song writer-director Benjamin Cleary and Michael O’Connor and featuring the voices of Taron Egerton and Lucy Boynton, and a VR project following Alex Hannold, the subject of the Oscar-winning climbing documentary Free Solo, have won the prizes of the Cannes XR program that is part of Cannes’ Marché du Film.

JP Richards has left his post as Apple’s Head of Film Marketing Strategy, having notified his team of his decision this morning, Deadline can confirm.

EXCLUSIVE: James Morosini, the writer, director and star of the splashy SXSW comedy I Love My Dad, has signed with Anonymous Content for management.

EXCLUSIVE: Julio Peña (Through My Window) has signed with Anonymous Content for management.

Netflix APAC Commissions

K.J. Yossman The Irish Film and Television Academy (IFTA) has unveiled its Rising Star nominees for 2022.The nominees are writer and director Benjamin Cleary (“Swan Song,” pictured above), writer and director Colm Bairéad  (“An Cailín Ciúin”), actor Hazel Doupe (“You Are Not My Mother”), writer and director Kate Dolan (“You Are Not My Mother”) and actor Sam Keeley (“Kin”).IFTA’s Rising Star award sets out to put “an international spotlight on Irish professionals who have not only honed their crafts in the formative years of their career but have also excelled in their respective fields.” Previous winners have included Saoirse Ronan, Michael Fassbender and Nicola Coughlan.“This prestigious award shines a light on five superb Irish professionals who are proving themselves to be world-class talents, exemplifying high-quality craft, skill and expertise on the world stage,” said Áine Moriarty, chief executive of IFTA.

Naman Ramachandran Kenneth Branagh’s “Belfast” leads the nominations at the 2022 Irish Film and Television Academy Film and Drama award nominations with 10 nods across categories. “Belfast” is nominated for best film, best director and script for Branagh, with a lead actor nod for Jude Hill, supporting actor recognitions for Ciarán Hinds and Jamie Dornan and a supporting actress nod for Caitríona Balfe, besides craft nominations.

EXCLUSIVE: Filmmaker Jessica Kingdon, who recently earned her first Oscar nomination for Ascension, has signed with Anonymous Content for management.

other 2021 film with that title, an Apple release directed by Benjamin Cleary and starring Mahershala Ali, is in the room).But even though their makers would no doubt prefer to have Academy members watch the films on a big screen rather than in their homes,  big films like “Dune,” “West Side Story,” “Nightmare Alley” and “No Time to Die” are available for voters, along with dozens of animated, international and documentary films.Here’s the list of the films that were available in the Academy Screening Room as of Thursday night. Friday’s additions, including “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” will be added once they go up on the platform.ADDAMS FAMILY 2AMERICAN NIGHTAMERICAN UNDERDOGANNETTEARMY OF THE DEADASCENSIONATTICABECOMING COUSTEAUBEING THE RICARDOSBELFASTBELLEBENEDETTABERGMAN ISLANDBILLIE EILISH: THE WORLD’S A LITTLE BLURRYBLACK WIDOWBLUE BAYOUBOOGIEBOSS BABY: FAMILY BUSINESSBRIAN WILSON: LONG PROMISED ROADBRING YOUR OWN BRIGADEBRUISEDCANDYMANTHE CARD COUNTERC’MON C’MONCODACOMING 2 AMERICACOMPARTMENT NO.

Devastating news is just the beginning in “Swan Song.” The dramatic project focuses on painful choices that take place when mortality comes into question. Apple is entering into an already crowded market for prestige projects with the film.

Editors note: Deadline’s Read the Screenplay series debuts and celebrates the scripts of films that will be factors in this year’s movie awards race.

Producer and star Mahershala Ali explains the difficult moral and ethical dilemma at the center of his new film “Swan Song” in an exclusive video featurette. “Swan Song is an amazing love story about two people who adore each other, but one of them – Cameron – is dying,” co-star Naomie Harris explains in the video.“Cameron finds out about a technology to create a perfect duplicate of himself and leave this duplicate behind without his family knowing,” says writer-director Benjamin Cleary.

Jazz Tangcay Artisans EditorWriter and director Benjamin Cleary’s “Swan Song,” which premieres Dec.

EXCLUSIVE: Deadline has the first exclusive tracks from Jay Wadley’s Swan Song score, which is set for digital release via Lakeshore Records on December 17—the same day that the Apple Original Film premieres  in theaters and globally on Apple TV+.

“It started with Ben, with the script being so well written, the characters having the same essence but needing different things,” said Swan Song star and producer Mahershala Ali said of playing two roles in the Apple Original Film.

Benjamin Cleary said his upcoming film Swan Song originated from his experience of losing three friends and his own existential questions about grief.

Death is the natural order of things, but what if you could prevent your families and friends from feeling sadness and grief as a result of your death.

Courtney Howard Writer-director Benjamin Cleary’s “Swan Song” wastes little time posing deep, morally complex and compelling questions: If we could spare our loved ones from oppressive despair and heartache, would we make any sacrifice to do so? If we could clone ourselves without anyone knowing, would we? How do we identify to others and ourselves?Part unconventionally-deconstructed love story, part high-concept sci-fi-tinged melancholic drama, the ultra-sleek, elegantly-realized tale is

Mahershala Ali shows off his sharp pinstriped suit on the red carpet next to Awkwafina at the premiere of Swan Song held at TCL Chinese Theatre on Friday (November 12) in Hollywood.

Not to be confused with the Udo Kier movie released earlier this year with the same name, this “Swan Song,” has a much more star-studded cast (no disrespect to Mr. Kier) and features Mahershala Ali, Naomie Harris, Awkwafina, Glenn Close and Adam Beach.

A staple of awards season returns to Hollywood next month with the 2021 edition of AFI Fest.

Justin Kroll Senior Film ReporterGlenn Close is the latest to join the growing ensemble of Swan Song, an upcoming Apple Original film starring Academy Award-winner Mahershala Ali and Academy Award, Golden Globe Winner Awkwafina and SAG nominee Naomie Harris.Benjamin Cleary, also an Oscar winner for his short film Stutterer, wrote the screenplay and is directing the pic.

Justin Kroll Senior Film ReporterAwkwafina has joined the cast of “Swan Song,” an upcoming Apple Original film starring Academy Award-winner Mahershala Ali and Academy Award, Golden Globe and SAG nominee Naomie Harris.Benjamin Cleary, also an Oscar winner for his short film Stutterer, wrote the screenplay and is directing the pic.

There are few people in the film industry that have had the type of early career as Benjamin Cleary. You may not know his name yet, but the filmmaker has already earned an Oscar for his 2015 live-action short film, “Stutterer.” And to kick off his feature filmmaking ventures, with the upcoming “Swan Song,” he’s already signed up two of the best actors working today and partnered with one of the richest studios on the planet.

Amanda N'Duka pmc-editorial-managerEXCLUSIVE: Oscar-nominated actress Naomie Harris is set to reunite with Moonlight co-star and Oscar winner Mahershala Ali in the Apple TV+ original film Swan Song, which hails from Apple Studios and Anonymous Content.Benjamin Cleary, also an Oscar winner for his short film Stutterer, wrote the screenplay and is directing the pic.