Veteran TV Director Jeremy Podeswa Talks Working With Scorsese On ‘Boardwalk Empire’ And Why The “Economics Of Streaming” Never Made Sense — Thessaloniki

Italian restaurant group Piccolino has unveiled its "most exuberant restaurant yet" - a new £2mn Piccolino Grande in Wilmslow. The new site features lavish interiors and a huge new Winterised terrace inspired by Tuscany.

January may be the traditional time for people to give plant-based recipes a go as part of Veganuary, but there’s no reason why you can’t try meat-free today. And with cold, gloomy weather here to stay, we’re opting for comforting dishes, including this one-pan plant-based moussaka created by flexitarian Peter Andre. Coming in at just £1.41 per serving, the recipe, which uses Beyond Meat mince, is not only cost-effective, but it can be cooked up in less than 40 minutes.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Matteo Garrone’s “Io Capitano” is getting a special screening on Wednesday in Brussels, where hundreds of EU parliament members will watch the timely immigration drama on which Pathè has announced a slew of sales. The film, which is Italy’s Oscar candidate for best international feature film, world premiered to strong reviews in September at Venice Film Festival, where it won best director for Garrone and best emerging actor for its co-star Seydou Sarr.

With SAG-AFTRA and the AMPTP reaching a tentative agreement on a new contract, our industry’s biggest stars, previously forbidden from participating in the promotion of movies distributed and made by struck studios and streamers, are finally joining the party. 

Christopher Vourlias Sofia Exarchou’s “Animal” won the Golden Alexander at the 64th Thessaloniki Film Festival on Sunday, marking the first time in 30 years that a Greek film took home the top honors at the country’s longest-running film event. Exarchou’s sophomore feature, which premiered at the Locarno Film Festival, was praised by Variety’s Jessica Kiang as “a poignant portrait of life amid the sequins and the seediness of a Greek resort.” The film follows a group of entertainers at an all-inclusive island resort preparing for the busy tourist season who are forced to wrestle with the dark reality that the show must go on as the sultry Mediterranean nights turn violent.

EXCLUSIVE: Lone Scherfig‘s The Shift has been renewed for a second season and distributor Beta Film has struck a deal for the first with North American streamer MHz Choice and Australia’s SBS. The Killing star Sofie Gråbøl, who led the first run, is returning as guest.

Christopher Vourlias A middle-aged man grappling with his thwarted ambitions grows obsessed with a beautiful young woman. The fallout threatens to unravel the fraying seams of his precarious, frustrated life in Stergios Paschos’ “The Last Taxi Driver,” which world premieres in the main competition this week at the Thessaloniki International Film Festival.

Savina Petkova Hollywood might have ground to a halt in recent months during the recent labor strikes, with the role of artificial intelligence in the moviemaking business a key stumbling block between studio bosses and both the writers and actors guilds. But two-time Academy Award winner Alexander Payne (“Sideways”) quipped at the Thessaloniki Film Festival this week that when it comes to AI, he’s all for it. “If AI could write a script for me, I would be so happy,” Payne joked.

As a string of seaside communities frequented by affluent Big Apple residents, you might think The Hamptons are off limits to us mere mortals. But we were pleasantly surprised when we paid a brief visit to escape the frenetic energy of “the city that never sleeps”. We set off on the only (double deck) Long Island Railroad [LIRR] train to Montauk from New York’s Penn Station at 9am.The single track railway takes you out to the Hamptons in the morning, returning at 11pm.The three-hour journey allows time to settle back, chat and tuck into a packed brunch, passing through each of the Hamptons, West, East and Southampton, before arriving at Montauk.

Born in Omaha, Nebraska, to two parents of Greek heritage, two-time Oscar winner Alexander Payne was awarded Greek citizenship last year around the time he was working on his latest feature, The Holdovers. 

A teen decided to ditch going to university - and now gets paid £1k a month to travel the world on millionaire superyachts.

Seven years after her skillful debut Park, which played Toronto and San Sebastian, where it won the New Directors Award, Greek filmmaker Sofia Exarchou has returned with her sophomore outing. 

Bravo is taking advantage of its annual Bravcon event with a slew of reality renewals.

Agora, the industry section of Greece’s Thessaloniki International Film Festival, kicks into gear this weekend with an eye on expansion as industry head Angeliki Vergou and her team introduce a series of changes to the established event.

The Last of Us will be heading into production for its second season early next year with an eye for a 2025 launch.

Swedish director Ruben Östlund has been announced as a guest of honor at the 15th edition of France’s Les Arcs Film Festival, in the role of its Talent Village Ambassador.

Christopher Vourlias When the Thessaloniki Intl. Film Festival kicks off its 64th edition on Nov. 2, the organizers will unveil a host of changes while renewing their commitment to serving audiences at one of Europe’s longest-running film events — all at a time of almost unprecedented uncertainty over the future of cinema and even the very purpose of festivals themselves.

Greece’s Thessaloniki International Film Festival returns this evening for its 64th edition with a screening of The Pot-au-Feu (The Taste of Things), the latest film by French-Vietnamese director Trần Anh Hùng. 

A hotel in Blackpool has officially be named the best luxury hotel on the continent after picking up the accolade at a prestigious hotel awards. BLVD Hotel took home the gong for Best Luxury Hotel in Northern Europe at the World Luxury Hotel Awards.

Christopher Vourlias When the Thessaloniki International Film Festival’s industry arm, Agora, kicks off this week in Greece’s second city, organizers will be looking to expand upon recent additions to a time-tested formula that’s served the event across nearly two decades as a launching pad and incubator for Greek and regional talent. “We’ve been doing the Agora since 2005, and we have slowly but steadily established it as one of the markets where you can find new talents and emerging directors from this region,” says industry head Angeliki Vergou, who took over from longtime Agora topper Yianna Sarri last year.