Elsa Keslassy Latest Celebrity News & Gossip

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Pia Lundberg, a Swedish film industry veteran, is set to succeed Jonas Holmberg as the new artistic director of Göteborg Film Festival, Scandinavia’s leading film-TV event. Lundberg most recently served as counsellor for cultural affairs at the Embassy of Sweden in London for the last five years.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent REinvent International Sales has boarded Howard J. Ford’s “River of Blood,” a psychological thriller that’s about to start shooting in Thailand. The company will unveil the project to buyers at the American Film Market.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent “Funny Birds,” an heartwarming comedy-drama starring Andrea Riseborough, Catherine Deneuve and Morgan Saylor, has sold in key territories in the run up to the AFM. Executive produced by Martin Scorsese, the movie is directed by Marco La Via and Hanna Ladoul.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent The Israeli film and TV industry has penned an open letter urging the international community to overcome “polarization” and rally “in the name of humanity” as more than 200 civilians, including infants, children, women and men from different nationalities, are still being held as hostages by Hamas in the Gaza strip. “Time is of the essence; international pressure is crucial and your support is critical,” said the letter.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Aiming to grow its global direct-to-consumer distribution, Paramount+ has set the international rollout plans for its premium and ad tier subscriptions following a launch across more than 45 markets last year. The premium plan will launch in Australia, Brazil, Canada and Mexico on Nov.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Margreth Olin’s “Songs of Earth,” Norway’s Oscar entry for the international feature film race, has been bought by Strand Releasing for North American distribution. The documentary feature, which is executive produced by Wim Wenders and Liv Ullman, played at Toronto where it sold to key territories, and had its U.S.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Annecy Animation Film Festival, which hosted the world premiered of Disney’s “Once Upon a Studio” and welcomed more than 16,000 people during its latest edition, is expanding its scope with a sprawling €26 million ($27.5 million) international institute dedicated to the world of animation. Called the Cité Internationale du Cinema d’Animation, the venue is expected to launch during the second half of 2025 and will boast a 330-seat screening room, an artists’ residency, special areas for training courses and cultural action, a space for temporary exhibitions, a permanent exhibition to showcase the animation film collections from Annecy’s Musée-Château, a bookstore and a gift shop.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Pierre-Antoine Capton, the co-founder and CEO of Mediawan, was named Knight of the Legion of Honor by French President Emmanuel Macron during a ceremony held at the Elysée Palace in Paris. Capton was honored alongside other French figures who have made outstanding contributions to the country’s cultural landscape, including the filmmaker Costa Gavras, actor and novelist Marlène Jobert, contemporary artist Jean-Michel Othoniel, historian Pierre Nora, choreographer Claude Bessy, journalist Jean-Claude Narcy and conductor Jean-Claude Casadesus.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Viaplay Content Distribution has partnered up with German broadcaster ARD Degeto to co-produce “Ronja the Robber’s Daughter,” an epic adventure series. ARD Degeto will join the series’ existing co-production partners, Filmlance International, Film i Väst and Ahil Films.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Cineflix Rights has closed multiple international deals across its slate, including returning seasons of “Last King of The Cross” and “Reginald the Vampire,” as well as the movie “Sugar.” “Last King of The Cross” charts the rise of John Ibrahim from poverty-stricken immigrant to the most infamous nightclub mogul in Sydney’s Kings Cross. Season 2 of the show, which has been acquired by Sky (U.K.), Warner Bros.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Jessica Chastain is set to preside over the jury of the Marrakech Film Festival which will take place Nov. 24-Dec. 2.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Ireland’s Deadpan Pictures (“Northern Lights”) and France’s Thalie Images (“Killer Coaster”) are teaming up on “The Continental Method,” an ambitious spy comedy thriller set against the backdrop of the Paris riots of May 1968. The European half-hour series is inspired by the true story of Conor O’Flaherty, a fresh-faced Irish salesman who became an unlikely spy in Paris. The twelve-part show is penned by John Morton (“Dead Still”) and Victor Lockwood (“Mental”) who are leading a writing team.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Amid a widespread executive exodus, Warner Bros. Discovery’s international boss Gerhard Zeiler sent out a memo to the staff today laying out the company’s new global leadership structure. Following France boss Pierre Branco’s exit earlier this week, WBD has tapped Clément Schwebig to oversee France, Benelux, Afrique, Allemagne, Autriche and Suisse.

The Golden Globes have announced the full list of voters for the 81st Golden Globe Awards, which will take place Jan. 7. It totals 300 journalists. The breakdown, per the organization, is: 47% female, and 60% racially and ethnically diverse, with 26.3% Latinx, 13.3% Asian, 11% Black, and 9% Middle Eastern..

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent The National Film Board and the City of Paris have set strict guidelines for film and TV shoots before, during and after the Olympic and Paralympic Games, which will unfold July 26 to Sept. 8. While the sporting celebration will span roughly six weeks, the restrictions impacting filming will stretch over nearly a year, starting this winter until Oct.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent “Anatomy of a Fall,” Justine Triet’s Palme d’Or winning film, is one of the five movies shortlisted by France’s Oscars committee to represent the country in the international feature film race. The movie, which was acquired by Neon at Cannes, was pre-selected alongside “The Taste of Things” (previously titled “The Pot-au-Feu,” a culinary romance starring Juliette Binoche which won best director at Cannes for French-Vietnamese filmmaker Trần Anh Hùng); “The Scent of Green Papaya”; Clement Cogitore’s “Goutte d’or”; Thomas Cailley’s supernatural coming-of-age drama “The Animal Kingdom”; and Denis Imbert’s “Sur les chemins noirs.” The year’s selection committee includes sales agents Sabine Chemaly and Tanja Meissner, producers Charles Gillibert and Patrick Wachsberger, directors Olivier Assayas and Mounia Meddour, and Oscar-winning composer Alexandre Desplat.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Mipcom, the Cannes-set international TV showcase, will pay tribute to Arthur Essebag, the well-known French TV host and founder of Satisfaction Group. Essebag will receive the international format awards at a gala ceremony on Oct. 15.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Shane Atkinson’s “LaRoy,” a crime thriller laced with dark comedy, swept three major prizes at the 49th edition of the Deauville American Film Festival. The movie, which marks Atkinson’s feature debut and showcases Coen brothers influences, won the Grand Prize, the Audience Award and the Critics Award. It stars John Magaro as Ray, who decides to kill himself after discovering his wife has been cheating on him.

William Earl Variety has promoted Elsa Keslassy to Executive Editor of International, according to an announcement from Variety‘s co-editors-in-chief Ramin Setoodeh and Cynthia Littleton. In her new role, Keslassy will lead the magazine’s global team of award-winning correspondents, while helping guide its reporting at the leading international film and television festivals and markets.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent The global box office jumped by 27% in the first quarter of 2023, according to a new report by the International Union of Cinemas released during the CineEurope exhibition conference in Barcelona. UNIC, which covers 43,000 screens across 39 territories, is predicting a 23-percent growth at the global B.O. over the course of 2023. Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) saw the largest spike in B.O., with a 32-percent year-on increase during the first quarter of the year. Several European and international titles managed to break box office records between 2022 and the first half of 2023; for instance, James Cameron’s “Avatar: The Way of Water” became the highest grossing film of all time in the EMEA region with almost $800 million at the B.O., while Ruben Östlund’s Palme d’Or-winning “Triangle of Sadness” grossed over $25 million from 40 international markets.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent “The Inseparables,” Jérémie Degruson’s ambitious animated feature competing this week at Annecy festival, has been sold to a raft of territories by Octopolis and nWave. Based on an original idea by Joel Cohen and Alec Sokolow, the Oscar-nominated writers of “Toy Story,” “The Inseparables” follows the misadventures of Don, a runaway puppet with a boundless imagination and, DJ Doggy Dog, an abandoned stuffed animal toy in need of a friend. Don and DJ Doggy Dog cross paths in Central Park and pair up against all odds for an epic adventure of friendship in New York City. The film was penned by Bob Barlen and Cal Brunker. Budgeted at $25 million, “The Inseparables” was produced by nWave Studios in Belgium, Octopolis in France and A Contracorriente Films in Spain.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Anders Jensen, the CEO of leading Nordic streaming service, has stepped down from his position and is being replaced by Jorgen Madsen Lindemann with immediate effect. Madsen Lindemann is the former CEO of MTG, which is the previous parent company of Viaplay Group and also listed on Nasdaq Stockholm. Jensen’s exit comes as the company announced the downgrade of its short-term outlook for 2023 and has withdrawn its long term operational and financial guidance. During his tenure, Jensen spearheaded the streamer’s global roll-out, including in the U.S., and ramped up the output of scripted and unscripted originals.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent “The Pot Au Feu” from French-Vietnamese director Trần Anh Hùng may be one of the most radical films competing for a Palme d’Or at this year’s Cannes. The sensorial movie, set in late-19th century France, opens with a mouthwatering cooking sequence that runs nearly 40 minutes and portrays a slow-cooking romance with a minimalist plot. Yet, Hùng, best known for his Cannes’ Golden Camera-winning “The Scent of Green Papaya” and Venice Golden Lion-winning “Cyclo,” tells Variety he’s always been confident “The Pot Au Feu” would strike a chord beyond the foodie niche, and it has. The movie earned some of the competition’s strongest reviews on the heels of its world premiere and a U.S. deal is currently being negotiated by Gaumont. Variety‘s Guy Lodge praised the film for holding its audience “entirely on the pleasures of beauty, vicarious indulgence and, eventually, the human care inherent in haute cuisine.”

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Elle Fanning (“The Great”), Christopher Abbott (“Poor Things”) and Nadia Tereszkiewicz (“The Crime is Mine”) are set to headline “The Maid of Orleans,” Sarah Elizabeth Mintz’s daring follow up to “Good Girl Jane.” Loosely inspired by Mintz’s real-life experiences, “The Maid of Orleans” will explore sexual power dynamics on and off set. Jessica Chastain’s Freckle Films (“The Eyes of Tammy Faye,” “George and Tammy”) is set to produce alongside Fanning’s Lewellen Pictures (“The Great,” “The Girl from Plainville”). Memento International will introduce the hot project to buyers at the Cannes Film Market. Filming is scheduled to begin early 2024 in France.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent “Solo,” a stylish queer romance drama directed by Canadian helmer Sophie Dupuis (“Underground,” “Family First”) has been boarded by SND, the film arm of France’s second biggest commercial network M6. “Solo” is headlined by two up-and-coming talent, Theodore Pellerin (“Killer Game,” “Kaiser Karl”) and Felix Maritaud (“BPM (Beats per Minute)”). SND will launch sales on the project at Cannes Film Market. The edgy film follows Simon, a rising star of Montreal drag queen scene who is simultaneously facing the disappointment of two impossible loves — one of a passionate but destructive crush with Oliver, and the other of a cold and distant relationship with his mother Claire, who has returned home after a 15-year absence.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Keshet International has scored a pair of high profile deals on its true crime documentary series, “My Name is Reeva: I Was Murdered by Oscar Pistorius.” Directed by Warren Batchelor (“204: Getting Away With Murder”), the three-part docu series tells the intimate story of Reeva Steenkamp who was allegedly murdered by her then-boyfriend Oscar Pistorius on Valentine’s Day in 2013.  “My Name is Reeva” has been sold by Keshet International to Channel 4 in the U.K. and SBS in Australia. Channel 4 has licensed the linear and SVOD rights for its streaming service All 4, while SBS has picked up broadcast and streaming rights and will premiere it on April 17. Discussions are ongoing with other potential broadcast partners.  

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Mariëtte Rissenbeek, who heads over the Berlin International Film Festival along with Carlo Chatrian, has decided to step down after next year’s edition. Rissenbeek’s contract expires in March 2024, and she has opted to not renew it, according to the German culture ministry, which is the main financier of the festival. German Culture Minister Claudia Roth said she regretted Rissenbeek’s decision, but praised her for prompting a “generational change” within the leadership of the cultural institution. Rissenbeek, an industry veteran who previously worked as managing director of promotion agency German Films, has reached retirement age in Germany (at 67). The executive will step down after the 74th edition of the festival which she’s due to prepare with Chatrian.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent France engaged in a record 144 international co-productions in 2022, while the number of majority French movies produced dropped by 10% to 208 titles, according to a study unveiled by the National Film Board (CNC). For the first time since 2003, half of the movies produced in France were international co-productions (with 33 countries) last year, compared with 42.1 % in 2021 and 39.6 % between 2017 and 2019. Investment in films dropped by 12.8% to €1.18 billion ($1.30 billion) compared with 2021, while foreign investment broke a 10-year record. In France, TV channels as well as streamers (since the start of 2022) are required to invest a percentage of annual revenue on French and European productions. As such, they invested a total of €280.78 million in 159 films in 2022, a 8.3 % drop compared with the average invested between 2017 and 2019.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Wild Bunch International, the sales company behind “Titane” and “Happening” (pictured), has renamed itself as Goodfellas. In a brief press release, the company said “there are no other changes to the structure created in 2019.” Wild Bunch International was launched in 2019 as a standalone sales company by French film industry veterans Vincent Maraval and Brahim Chioua. The pair had previously co-founded Wild Bunch, which is now owned by German entrepreneur Lars Windhorst and ran by former NBCUniversal vice chairman Ron Meyer and former beIN Media Group executive Sophie Jordan. Wild Bunch International was created shortly after Wild Bunch completed its restructuring plan. Under their three-year deal, Wild Bunch had a minority stake in the new banner and allowed it to use the Wild Bunch brand. The three-year pact ended in November and the two companies no longer have corporate ties. But Goodfellas said it will continue working with Wild Bunch on select project through a new deal.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent The Cannes Screenplay List, an initiative backed by the talent platform Wscripted in partnership with MUBI, will be back for a third edition at the Cannes Film Festival’s Marché du Film. An international jury comprising filmmakers Mounia Meddour (“Papicha”, “Houria”), Funa Maduka (“Waiting for Hassana”), and Camille Griffin (“The Silent Night”) will sift through submitted feature scripts from women and non-binary writers. The final List of top scripts will be presented to producers during during the Cannes Marché du Film, in collaboration with MUBI.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Amazon Studios’ head of international originals, James Farrell, who started overseeing Europe six months ago, said at Series Mania Festival that the service isn’t pulling out of local content but is keeping an eye on costs. Farrell, who previously worked at Amazon Studios in Japan where he backed the creation of the original format behind “LOL” in 2016, said Amazon “won’t cut down on the number of shows or films” they’re doing, but “want to continue to be really good corporate stewards.” “The world is having a tough time. There’s wars, you know, political situations are tough. That means, you know, you got to be thoughtful about what you spend,” said Farrell.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent The International Emmy-winning French series “Call My Agent!” is getting a Spanish-language remake, with Eva Longoria on board to produce and direct. Announced during Series Mania Festival in Lille, the adaptation will be co-produced by Mediawan, Elefantec Global and Longoria’s banner UnbeliEVAble Entertainment. It will mark the first adaptation targeting Latin America and the U.S., following successful remakes in Italy, Canada and the U.K., among others. In addition to producing through UnbeliEVAble Entertainment, Longoria will direct the first two episodes. The news comes right on the heels of Longoria’s feature directorial debut “Flamin’ Hot,” which premiered at SXSW and won the Audience Award.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Jonah Hauer-King (“The Little Mermaid”) and Anna Próchniak (“Baptiste”) are starring in the limited event series adapted from Heather Morris’s “The Tattooist of Auschwitz” for Sky and Peacock. Now in production, the Peacock Original series is being produced by Synchronicity Films and will be entirely directed by Tali Shalom-Ezer, whose past credits include “Princess.” Claire Mundell and Jacquelin Perske are executive producers. A global bestseller, “The Tattooist of Auschwitz” has sold more than 12 million copies around the world. “In Auschwitz, a factory of death and dehumanisation, Lale and Gita’s love story is an act of defiance,” said Shalom-Ezer. “It is the choice to remain human. I’m inspired and honoured to bring this story to life, alongside the talented team of people assembled,” Shalom-Ezer continued.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Vivendi has entered into exclusive negotiations to sell 100% of its publishing house Editis to a subsidiary of Czech Media Invest (CMI) founded by Daniel Kretinsky. Following its latest board meeting on March 8, Vivendi said it has received several bids for the sale of Editis and has chosen the offer brought by International Media Invest, a subsidiary of Kretinsky’s CMI. The deal would have to be approved by the European Commission. Vivendi said the “plan is to distribute the Editis shares to the Vivendi shareholders, and their listing on the Euronext Growth market, is put on hold.” Editis’ evenues dropped by 8% to €789 million in 2022, according to Vivendi. The Paris-based banner is home to Robert Laffont, Plon and Julliard, among others.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent After securing major distribution deals at the EFM, Luc Besson’s next film “Dogman” starring Caleb Landry Jones, is now eyeing a launch in the festival circuit this fall, Variety has learned. The movie’s French release, initially planned for April 19, has been pushed to the fall to allow distributors to prepare a coordinated global release after a launch at an A-category festival. It would mark the first Besson-directed movie to open at a festival in decades. His wild space opera movie “The Fifth Element” was the opening night movie of the 50th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in 1997. Besson’s first film since his 2019 actioner “Anna,” “Dogman” is rumored to mark a return to form for the French director. Based on the trailer which we saw before the Berlinale, the film will be closer to some of his early work, notably “Subway,” “Nikita” and “The Professional” which were character-driven movies with a darker edge.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent LevelK has boarded “Adventures in the Land of Asha,” a Canadian family film which marks the feature debut of Sophie Farkas Bolla. The film is produced by Hany Ouichou (“I’ll End Up in Jail”) and Kim O’Bomsawin (“Je m’appelle humain”). It will have its world premiere at Montreal International Children’s Film Festival and its International Premiere at Buff Film Festival. LevelK is handling worldwide sales on the movie. On a cold winter’s day in 1940, Jules and his family move to live with his uncle, mayor of a settler’s village in northern Quebec. He is banned from school because of his rare skin disease. From that moment on, his greatest wish is to be cured. When his dog Spark runs away into the wild forest, Jules has no choice but to look for him. On his way, he meets Asha, a mysterious young indigenous girl. Together, they venture to the other side of the forest, where nature reveals itself full of life and secrets.