‘The Night’ Producer Mammoth Pictures Launches Screenplay Competition, Winner Will Get Feature Produced

BFI London Film Festival Adds Trio Of Titles 

Naman Ramachandran Executive producer Mary Burke has launched production company Public Dreams Ltd, which aims to bring together the best of film and TV talent to produce distinctive, ambitious, commercial content for the British and global markets. Burke launches the company after five years as senior executive at the BFI Film Fund and 13 years at Warp Films where she amassed more than 40 TV and film credits including “Submarine,” “Saint Maud,” “Phantom of the Open,” “Brian and Charles,” “God’s Own Country,” “Colette” and “Ammonite.” She has won a BAFTA Scotland best feature award for “For Those in Peril” and a BAFTA Cymru in the same category for “Submarine.”

EXCLUSIVE: Jeremy Steckler is exiting his post as President of Film Production at Imperative Entertainment to focus on producing under his newly launched shingle Enhanced Hammer. In addition to leading his production company, he will act as a consultant to Imperative Entertainment on select projects. Steckler arrived at Imperative in July 2019.

official website.Keshishian made his directorial debut with “Madonna: Truth or Dare” and has now shifted his camera to Gomez, who has faced child stardom, mental and physical health challenges, and a flourishing career, all within her first 30 years. “I had no interest in making a traditional pop doc,” says Keshishian.

Michaela Zee editor The American Film Institute has announced that the world premiere of “Selena Gomez: My Mind and Me” is set to open the 36th edition of AFI Fest on Nov. 2. “AFI is proud to launch AFI Fest 2022 with ‘Selena Gomez: My Mind and Me,’ a film as profoundly powerful as it is personal,” AFI President and CEO Bob Gazzale said in a statement. “Selena is a global force in art and entertainment, and we are honored to partner with her, Alek and Apple to shine a light upon her journey in this beautifully crafted celebration of optimism, vulnerability and hopefulness.” Directed by Alek Keshishian (“Madonna: Truth or Dare”), the documentary explores Gomez’s rise to stardom as an actress and singer, along with the personal crises she’s endured throughout her life.

The Chernin Group and Night, Inc. are launching Night Capital, a new investment company with commitments of $100 million, to acquire established consumer-facing companies in partnership with leading talent.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Peter Chernin’s Chernin Group has formed a new investment company, Night Capital, with digital talent-management and media firm Night Inc., whose biggest client is major YouTube creator MrBeast. Night Capital, which has funding commitments of $100 million from TCG, is focused on acquiring majority interests in “consumer-facing companies in partnership with leading talent,” the companies announced. The firm said it will team up with creators who “will be key partners in driving the strategic vision and future business growth,” they said — modeled on the business ventures of MrBeast, aka Jimmy Donaldson, who has launched a national burger chain and a games company.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large “Saturday Night Live” is about to enter another “transition year,” Lorne Michaels told reporters in the Emmys media center on Monday, moments after picking up another win for variety sketch series. Michaels said the show, which enters its 48th season in October, will announce four new cast members next week. Longtime cast members Kate McKinnon, Aidy Bryant, Pete Davidson and Kyle Mooney announced their exits last spring, shortly before the season’s final show. Earlier this month,  three more cast members — Alex Moffat, Melissa Villaseñor and Aristotle Athari — departed the show. Michaels said the transition actually would have happened a few years ago, but the COVID-19 pandemic kept the existing cast longer than expected. “ [COVID[ interfered with the natural order of things I think people might have left earlier, but there was no place to go… And there’s nothing after the show except to go home!”

Josh Duhamel and Audra Mari are tying the knot!

The Queen was described as “very happy” earlier this week when she met with new Prime Minister Liz Truss at Balmoral according to the photographer who has shared the story of the last picture of the late monarch. Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II died at the age of 96 on Thursday at her Scottish home of Balmoral but she was said to have been in good spirits just two days earlier when she greeted the new Prime Minister.

Disney’s D23 Expo wasn’t just about live-action films. The house of the mouse was obviously built on animation, and the studio didn’t forget its roots in tonight’s big promotional event.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer “Better Call Saul” actor Michael Mando has signed on to star opposite Brian Tyree Henry in Peter Craig and Ridley Scott’s upcoming Apple TV+ series “Sinking Spring,” Variety has learned. Based on the book “Dope Thief” by Dennis Tafoya, Apple’s eight-episode series “Sinking Spring” follows long-time Philly friends and delinquents who pose as DEA agents to rob an unknown house in the countryside, only to have their small-time grift become a life-and-death enterprise, as they unwittingly reveal and unravel the biggest hidden narcotics corridor on the Eastern seaboard. Mando will play the co-lead role of Manny Cespedes, a good-hearted friend of Ray’s (Henry), who he first met when they did time together in the Youth Authority, per the official character description.

Better Call Saul alum Michael Mando is set to star opposite Brian Tyree Henry in Apple TV+’s crime drama series Sinking Spring, from Top Gun: Maverick writer Peter Craig. The series is directed and executive produced by Ridley Scott via his Scott Free Productions.

Oscar winner Florian Zeller (The Father), fresh off Venice Film Festival drama The Son, is launching production firm Blue Morning Pictures with backing from European studio Mediawan (Call My Agent).

Selena Gomez teamed up with Apple TV+ to film a documentary about her life.

After years in the limelight, Selena Gomez achieves unimaginable stardom. But just as she reaches a new peak, an unexpected turn pulls her into darkness.

Kaley Cuoco and Zosia Mamet form one of the closes friendships in the entertainment industry, not only playing best friends on screen, but portraying that same role for each other in real life.MORE: Kaley Cuoco adopts badly mistreated horse and shares emotional message with fansThe two have constantly fawned over each other and gushed about their relationship, spanning across their signature "boops" on the nose and matching tattoos.VIDEO: Kaley Cuoco and Tom Pelphrey react to Emmy nominationsHowever, when they appeared on The Kelly Clarkson Show earlier in the year, they talked about the surprising start to their relationship while being as cute as could be.In the run-up to the upcoming season, the show shared an outtake from their conversation that detailed how they first met.MORE: Kaley Cuoco and boyfriend Tom Pelphrey to face bittersweet moment at the EmmysGiven their love for each other, many fans, and the casting team of The Flight Attendant, assumed that the two have known each other for years, but that proved not to be the case."Our meeting story," Kaley gushed as they began to detail their first chemistry read for the HBO Max show, and their cutesy behavior caught the eye of Kelly.

Manori Ravindran International Editor New Zealand rugby icon Jonah Lomu and former Manchester United goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel will be the subjects of two new documentaries from U.K.-based sales agent and distributor Dogwoof and Sylver Entertainment. The companies previously collaborated on “McEnroe,” a documentary about the tennis great John McEnroe, which was released in U.K. cinemas in July and premiered on Showtime on Sept. 2. As development financiers and executive producers on both projects, Dogwoof will be presenting the projects to buyers at the Toronto International Film Festival this week.

Burgeoning Saudi Arabian content company Arabia Pictures Group is joining forces with Greece-based audiovisual group Tanweer on a strategic partnership that will see them cooperate on production and distribution across all formats in the Middle East and North Africa.