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Welcome to Deadline’s International Disruptors, a feature where we’ll shine a spotlight on key executives and companies outside of the U.S. shaking up the offshore marketplace. This week, we’re talking visual effects powerhouse Union VFX, an independent outfit based in London and, more recently, Montréal, which has spent the last 15 years quietly building a reputation for delivering some of the most seamless and invisible visual effects across the film and television spheres. We sit down with three of their heads to talk about how the business has grown, why it’s important to involve VFX teams at early stages and what’s next for the company. 

Adele Lim, screenwriter of Crazy Rich Asians and writer-director of Joy Ride, talked about the realities of bringing Asian stories to mainstream global audiences in a panel, ‘Asian Rising Power in Hollywood’, on the second day of Taiwan Creative Content Fest (TCCF). 

Spoilers for the “Ahsoka” finale, “The Jedi, the Witch, and the Warlord,” are contained in this post. “Ashoka,” the “Star Wars” spin-off series starring Rosario Dawson, concluded last week on Disney+, and boy, I’m still grappling with just how frustrating, colossally disappointing, and underwhelming a whimper it all was.

Rafa Sales Ross Guest Contributor Not even five years have passed since Saudi Arabia first opened up for tourism in 2019 and, yet, the country’s entertainment industry seems to have evolved at an astronomical rate. With multimillion-dollar film and TV project development initiatives available to both local and international companies, high rates of content consumption and an overwhelmingly young population with broad access to smartphones and increasingly affordable internet rates, the kingdom’s media boom currently attracts the attention of entertainment conglomerates both local and multinational.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic In an intimate performance and conversation in Los Angeles Monday night, Olivia Rodrigo admitted that there were tears shed during the making of her new album, “Guts.” But she and producer/co-writer Dan Nigro clarified that it wasn’t just about the emotion in the lyrics. Some of those were tears of frustration as they obsessed over songs and struggled to get her all-important sophomore release just right over its 10-month creation. “We cried just because we were frustrated.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Baz Luhrmann is set to world premiere his upcoming miniseries “Faraway Downs” on the closing night of the upcoming SXSW Sydney Screen Festival, closing the loop on a filmmaking journey that began nearly 20 years ago. “Faraway Downs” is the expanded TV version of the director’s 2008 theatrical release “Australia,” an epic romance starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman that flopped at the domestic box office with less than $50 million.

Ed Meza @edmezavar Ali Kalthami’s satirical drama “Mandoob” (“Night Courier”) examines the class divide in the Saudi capital of Riyadh, telling the story of a hapless delivery man and the desperate avenues he takes to make money. Comedic actor Mohammed Aldokhei plays Fahad, who finds himself in a precarious situation after he is fired from his day job at a call center. Trying to make ends meet, and help his ailing father get necessary medical treatment, Fahad embarks on an illicit scheme to sell stolen liquor while delivering food to wealthy customers.

In the murky realms of Grant Singer’s Reptile, audiences delve into a tale woven with intrigue, and mystery. Penned by Singer, Benjamin Brewer, and Benicio Del Toro, the film attempts to entangle the  viewer in a web of murder and corruption, manifesting through the gritty lens of a small-town investigation. Del Toro is flanked by supporting actors including Alicia Silverstone, Michael Pitt, Ato Essandoh, Justin Timberlake, Matilda Anna Ingrid Lutz, Eric Bogosian, and Domenick Lombardozzi,. However, the atmospheric tension conjured by the film echoes of potential left unexplored, marking it as a journey through familiar terrains desperately grasping for an identity of its own.

Jazz Tangcay Artisans Editor The song most important to Craig Gillespie’s storytelling in “Dumb Money” is Cardi B’s 2020 hit, “WAP.” Set in 2021, the film follows a group of common-man stock traders who take on the titans of Wall Street. Music supervisor Susan Jacobs says, “We had a very particular time period where it was really important to the writers because that was the moment of GameStop.” Paul Dano plays Keith Gill a.k.a Roaring Kitty, the family man who follows stock for a hobby and gains a huge following.

Stuart Gordon is known as a master of horror, earning the title from his work on such seminal 1980s genre films as “Re-Animator,” “From Beyond” and “Dolls.” But the director, who died in March 2020, was also a master storyteller — so his family can be forgiven for sometimes wondering if he was prone to fabulation. “I would compare it to the movie ‘Big Fish’ in how someone might exaggerate,” recalls Jillian Gordon, one of his three daughters.

Indian web series “Made In Heaven” is the talk of the town for exploring the opulence and the dogmas of Indian society through seven exceptional stories.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Perhaps it’s coincidence, or serendipity, but two of the best-reviewed shows on television happened to both return at the same time with new seasons last week — and both put Native storytelling and Indigenous characters front and center. FX’s “Reservation Dogs” and AMC’s “Dark Winds” have a few things in common — starting, of course, with Zahn McClarnon, who stars as Navajo tribal police officer Joe Leaphorn in “Dark Winds” and recurs as Officer Big in “Reservation Dogs.” And both also share acclaim from viewers and critics: “Reservation Dogs” sports a 99% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes’ reviews aggregator, while “Dark Winds” boasts a remarkable 100% ranking.

Guild Wars 2‘s narrative team took a leaf out of Elden Ring‘s book with the massively multiplayer online role-playing game’s upcoming expansion, Secrets of the Obscure.In an interview with TRG, Guild Wars 2 narrative director Bobby Stein and narrative lead Indigo Boock spoke on the significance of the conclusion of the Dragon Cycle storyline. “This is kind of a metaphor for us as a studio,” explained Boock.

Will Tizard Contributor In Karlovy Vary Film Festival competition entry “We Have Never Been Modern,” Czech director Matej Chlupacek takes on both the dangers of Utopian bubbles and the power of unbending faith in traditional gender concepts. The story, set in a Slovak company town built by a visionary industrialist, takes place on the eve of World War II, as a murder mystery threatens to upset the idealized community. The factory director’s wife Helena, played by Eliska Krenkova, is an aspiring doctor who is soon to give birth. But her rosy future is suddenly darkened by the discovery of the body of a newborn intersex baby in the factory’s courtyard.

EXCLUSIVE: The direct effect Artificial Intelligence may have on our lives and the future of storytelling was the topic discussed during the central keynote on the final day of the Eastern Promises industry program at this year’s Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.

A trans man has to navigate the complexities of gender transition treatment while also chronicling the Afghani Taliban in Monica Villamizar and Jordan Bryon’s intensely personal and political “Transition.” Despite its relatively straightforward title, this documentary, which premiered at Tribeca, is a staggering work that, somehow, manages to contextualize not only Bryon’s personal transition but also juxtapose that life against the deeply segregated Taliban fighters that he is chronicling for The New York Times.

Ashley Park is the main character — not only in her new film “Joy Ride”, but in real life too.

Jazz Tangcay Artisans Editor Filmmaker Victoria Bousis has partnered with Unique Network to enhance the immersive film experience of her award-winning film “Stay Alive, My Son.” Inspired by true events and based on the memoirs of Pin Yathay, “Tu Vivra, Mon Fils” (“Stay Alive, My Son”), Bousis says she wanted to “leverage technology to break the rules of traditional storytelling and educating audiences about Cambodia’s history.” The film, which will screen at Siggraph in August and is currently on the festival circuit, uses augmented reality and a virtual world that audiences experience through a VR headset.

Jean Elie is a talented actor, producer, and writer with Haitian roots. He gained recognition for portraying Ahmal Dee, Issa Rae’s brother, on HBO’s Insecure and for his guest appearance on ABC’s American Crime. In addition to acting, Jean has collaborated with major companies like Puma, Showtime, Anheuser Busch, HBO, and Prime Video as a brand influencer. 

Karen Idelson The Irish animation industry has become increasingly robust over the last 10 years, despite the pandemic and other challenges thrown at the entertainment business. It reflects an overall passion in the country for animation and storytelling as well as a commitment by the Irish government to support the business through economic incentives.  Much of those incentives have come through Enterprise Ireland. Established in 1998 by the Industrial Development Act, Enterprise Ireland is a state-sponsored economic development agency that works with Irish businesses to help them grow and develop. It’s been instrumental in working with the Irish animation industry, helping shops grow through a series of loans, grants and other initiatives.  

In the world of action cinema, the Transformers series has always been a cinematic spectacle to behold. Transformers: Rise of the Beast, the latest in this high-octane franchise, doesn’t stand out amongst the previous films as anything more than a cash grab. Directed by Steven Caple Jr. and written by a team that includes Joby Harold, Darnell Metayer, and Josh Peters, the film boasts a stacked cast including Anthony Ramos, Dominique Fishback, and Lauren Luna Velez, with voice acting by Michelle Yeoh, Peter Dinklage, Peter Cullen, Ron Pearlman, Coleman Domingo, Pete Davidson, Liza Koshy, MJ Rodriguez, John DiMaggio, and Cristo Fernandez.

Channing Tatum is opening up the current Hollywood industry and the future of streamers.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Channing Tatum told Forbes in a recent interview that streaming has made him a little fearful due to the changes in storytelling it has brought onto the industry. The actor has remained committed to the theatrical experience through the pandemic, releasing his feature directorial debut “Dog” in February 2022 to a strong $61 million at the domestic box office. While “Magic Mike’s Last Dance” was originally conceived as an HBO Max premiere, Warner Bros. changed coursed and and opened it exclusively in theaters in February. “The movie industry is just changing so much,” Tatum said. “It’s a different era now and it’s just getting crazier with the streamers. I do fear a little for the storytelling of it all. I think there will be less good storytelling and a lot more product out there.”

Channing Tatum is the latest star to weigh in about his worries about the future of streaming.

Shonda Rhimes, the creator of Grey’s Anatomy and Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story, is opening up about the differences between working for a network like ABC and a streaming platform like Netflix.

Todd Longwell It is often said that the secret to becoming a successful entrepreneur is finding a need and filling it. When Santa Monica-based BondIt Media Capital launched in 2013, it zeroed in on the deposits productions must leave with SAG-AFTRA, DGA, IATSE and other guilds to ensure that their members get paid in a timely fashion.  The company co-founders — CEO Matthew Helderman and COO Luke Taylor — knew from their experience working in the production trenches that these deposits, which sometimes take up to six months to be returned, can create a significant cash flow problem for low-budget projects during principal photography. 

EXCLUSIVE: The Natural Resources Defense Council, The Black List, The Redford Center and the CAA Foundation have announced the opening of submissions for the third cycle of their NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship, for the year 2024.

K.J. Yossman Sister co-founder and chief creative officer Jane Featherstone spoke about how difficult it is to back original IP – as opposed to the relentless stream of reboots and spin-offs – in the current climate. “We have to hold our nerve,” Featherstone said. “As producers, we have to try and [walk] that tightrope of kind of giving people what they think they want but surprising people. And I don’t think audiences always do know what they want until they see it, and you can’t always emulate. So we have to be bold and brave.” Featherstone was speaking in Cannes during a keynote speech at MipTV as she accepted Variety’s 2023 International Achievement in Television Award on behalf of Sister, the production company known for original fare such as “Chernobyl” and divorce drama “The Split,” which she runs with Elisabeth Murdoch and Stacey Snider.

The first season of Apple TV+’s “Schmigadoon!” didn’t quite live up to its clever concept or undeniably talented ensemble. In a fascinating twist worthy of a great Broadway show, the second season actually makes the first year better by revealing it to be the foundation on which this year is built.

A programme packed full of storytelling, theatre, music dance, comedy and spoken word will feature in Dumfries and Galloway Arts Festival in May.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has revolved around a core group of character for years now. However, Disney’s CEO Bob Iger is suggesting that will change in the coming years.

wcinkala pmc-editorial-manager Rapper, singer and actor Tobe Nwigwe will participate in a panel about his installment of Audible’s latest original music storytelling podcast and Audible Original, “Origins,” which debuted in the fall and is currently available. The panel, titled “Variety’s Music Storytelling Panel presented by Audible,” will be moderated by Variety’s Selome Hailu and will include Audible’s executive producer of original music-storytelling, Preston Copley. The conversation will explore Nwigwe’s music career, while highlighting the inspiration for “Origins,” the Audible Original series featuring eight groundbreaking artists who answer the question: “Where are you from?” In the series, Nwigwe speaks about his influences and journey breaking into the music industry, and during the SXSW panel Nwigwe will dive deeper into his unique story. The panel will also discuss the creation of the Audible Original, innovating in audio and the unique storytelling opportunities available through this exciting entertainment medium. The panel will take place at the Audible Sound Studio located at the Sunset Room on Saturday, March 11, from 12 – 1 p.m. CT.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Prominent Arab journalist Nakhle Elhage, who ran the Al Arabiya news network for 16 years, is launching a digital startup called Blinx to produce news and short form storytelling content targeting Gen Z and millennials in the Middle East and beyond. Headquartered in a high-tech Dubai Media City studio, Blinx is being dubbed as the first digital native storytelling hub in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). It “will soon launch on multiple platforms,” according to a statement. The digital startup, which is financed by unspecified UAE-based investors, is offering a “more story, less noise approach,” the statement said, with content made by young people “delivering relatable content to a young audience in a way the MENA region has yet to see,” it added.

Netflix’s The Tinder Swindler director Felicity Morris has said the documentary market is going to contract and warned filmmakers against “chasing the next viral story that everyone is talking about.”

Nick Holdsworth Breaking into the world of filmmaking is never an easy prospect.   And when you are a queer filmmaker who wants to focus on LGBTQ subjects, and lives in a traditional, Catholic, former Soviet Eastern European country, the bar to success is set pretty high.  Romas Zabarauskas’ career proves that with grit, determination — and, as he says, “no bitterness” — it is possible to create your own path on the international stage.  The 32-year-old producer and director — currently in production of his first English-language feature, “The Writer,” the second in a trilogy of films examining gay relationships — says being in the public spotlight as a queer filmmaker is a “complex issue.” 

EXCLUSIVE: The three recipients of the 2023 NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship have been chosen and they have some heavy hitters in their corners as mentors.