TIFF Keynotes Include Pedro Almodóvar, Andy Lau & ‘Concrete Utopia’ Stars

With nearly one week to go until the Toronto International Film Festival 2023 (or TIFF 2023) kicks off, the A-listers who are and aren’t attending have been revealed.

EXCLUSIVE: Four years after his last full-length feature — the black comedy Greed, starring Steve Coogan as a venal business tycoon — Michael Winterbottom is back, this time with a political drama set in Tel Aviv, based on real-life people and events that occurred during the 1930s, in the run-up to the foundation of Israel in 1948.

First Dates star Laura Tott has become a mum for the first time, after giving birth to a baby boy.The 29 year old, who got married last year, announced the little one's arrival on Instagram with an adorable black and white video as she revealed his name: Leo Clarke.The tiny baby could be seen in an elephant-printed babygrow whilst a waffle blanket was placed over his body. Laura also shared that her son was born on Monday, August 28 as she excitedly said: "He's here." Her followers were quick to offer their congratulations in the comments, as Leo's aunt wrote: "Welcome to world, you perfect little bean.

It took a while for Linlithgow Rose to get going on Tuesday night in their Lowland League clash at home to Gala Fairydean Rovers - but a five star display after the break saw them run out comfortable 5-0 winners.

The World War Two drama War Sailor — which debuted at last year’s Toronto Film Festival — swept Norway’s Amanda Awards last night, taking four main awards.

A woman who lived with her killer fiancé to help detectives gather vital evidence against him is to launch legal action against police.

EXCLUSIVE: Madeline Zima (Californication) and Leonardo Nam (Westworld) are currently in production in Canada on Love Is the Monster, a new thriller they’re leading for filmmaker Alex Noyer (Sound of Violence) that has landed a SAG-AFTRA Interim Agreement. Others set to star include Moe Jeudy-Lamour (Ted Lasso), Kimberly-Sue Murray (Trader), Kristina Tonteri-Young (Warrior Nun), Milla Puolakanaho (Omerta), Tatu Sinisalo (Sisu) and Sheila Mccarthy (Women Talking).

Korea has selected the disaster thriller Concrete Utopia starring Lee Byung-hun and Park Seo-jun as its entry for the Best International Feature Film category at the 2024 Oscars.

TIFF continues to build out its speaker lineup despite the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes barring a number of participants from this year’s 48th edition.

“We all have our stories; they aren’t there to pull us down, they’re there to push us forward.” Often, we push forward by reflecting on our own lives, taking in the world around us, and attempting to understand the human condition. It is clear that Paul Middleditch is an artist that does just that; as the director from New South Wales, Australia, pulls from his youth in his new film “Uproar.” READ MORE: TIFF 2023: Lulu Wang’s ‘Expats,’ Shawn Levy’s ‘All The Light’ & More Lead Primetime Programme Set in New Zealand in the early 1980s, the film follows Josh Waaka, a 17-year-old who is trying to discover who he is.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Lee Byung-hun-starring disaster movie “Concrete Utopia” topped the South Korean box office over the latest weekend, replacing female led crime caper “Smugglers.” Directed by Um Tae-hwa, “Concrete Utopia” is set in a Seoul that has been largely destroyed by a massive earthquake. One building stands tall among the wreckage and becomes a refuge for those already inside, but the inhabitants must fend of the unwanted attentions of outsiders. It opened on Wednesday, earning $8.40 million between Friday and Sunday and fully $11.3 million over its full opening five days, according to data from Kobis, the tracking service operated by the Korean Film Council (Kofic).

Anna Marie de la Fuente In what marks the most ambitious film from Peru’s leading producer Tondero and, most likely, Peruvian cinema in recent times, Pedro Almodóvar’s El Deseo, Infinity Hill (“Argentina 1985”) and Tondero have joined forces to co-produce a drama based on the hostage crisis that took place at the Japanese embassy in Lima in 1996. El Deseo executive producer Esther Garcia and Infinity Hill co-founder/chief creative officer Axel Kuschevatzky were in Lima to attend Tondero’s 15th anniversary festivities and for Garcia to receive a tribute from the ongoing 27th Lima Film Festival, which runs Aug.

As a nail biting kidnapping plot continued to unfold on Thursday night’s instalment of Emmerdale, Laurel Thomas continued to suffer at the hands of Colin Hamston, who had been holding her hostage in the hopes that she would contact his estranged son Marshall for him. The newly married Laurel, who tied the knot with Jai Sharma last month, was seen strapped to a bed, wrapped in duct tape and gagged as Colin ordered her to contact Marshall, who had distanced himself from his father after Colin failed to accept his sexuality.

As Emmerdale favourite Laurel Thomas found herself at the mercy of Marshall's homophobic father Colin this week, fans at home couldn’t help but share their frustrations at all of the star’s missed opportunities for escape. Things first kicked off on Wednesday when Laurel paid a visit to Colin’s house to collect Marshall’s passport, however the situation soon escalated as Colin locked Laurel in his son’s bedroom and attempted to convince her to contact his estranged son in the hopes of sending him to a conversion camp in America to ‘cure’ his homosexuality.

David Harbour has the fifth and final season of “Stranger Things” in front of him, awaiting strike settlements before production begins.

The Below Deck franchise has surprised viewers over the years by having familiar faces appear on different shows..

Emmerdale fans think they have spotted a fresh blunder as Laurel Sharma found herself being kidnapped by Colin. Viewers watched her head over to the councillor's house to collect his son, Marshall's, passport as they prepared to leave the village following Rishi Sharma's death

Emmerdale viewers blasted a "stupid" plot detail as show stalwart Laurel faced a kidnap ordeal at the hands of Colin. On Tuesday (August 8) viewers saw her visit to the local councillor's home take a dramatic twist when he turned nasty - and refused to let her leave.

Captain Sandy Yawn is known for her no nonsense attitude, cracking the whip with her crew as they sail across the Mediterranean sea, waiting on demanding guests in the most stunning locations.

Antonio Banderas is reminiscing. The Spanish actor took advantage of Throwback Thursdays to share an inspiring story of his days as a young actor. Melanie Griffith concealed her old Antonio Banderas heart-shaped tattoo with new inkStella Banderas keeps going strong with boyfriend Álex Gruszynski after rekindling their loveA post shared by Antonio Banderas (@antoniobanderas)The photo was shared on Instagram, and is a close up shot of his face taken in the ‘80s.