WellGo USA Buys Soi Cheang’s ‘Walled In’ for North American Release

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentKino Lorber has acquired North American rights to first-time Lebanese director Mounia Akl’s timely drama “Costa Brava, Lebanon,” which launched positively last year from Venice.“Costa Brava” provides an acerbic take on Lebanon’s waste management crisis and its turbulent political landscape and combines the country’s strife with the global climate crisis. The darkly comic drama pairs Oscar-nominated Lebanese star and filmmaker Nadine Labaki (“Capernaum”) and Palestinian actor Saleh Bakri (“The Band’s Visit”) as a couple who has moved from Beirut to live idyllically in the mountains, until one day the government decides to build a garbage landfill right beside their house.

Anna Marie de la Fuente Chef Mauro Colagreco of the three-Michelin star restaurant Mirazur will be attending the June 13 North American premiere of the documentary “Reinventing Mirazur” at the Tribeca Film Festival.  In a clip released ahead of its premiere in Variety, Colagreco explains the new philosophy behind the restaurant’s menus, borne out of the pandemic.As described, the doc takes “a deep dive into the life of Chef Mauro, who finds himself changing everything about his flagship restaurant after the COVID-19 pandemic halted his worldwide rise to prominence.”Forced to go into hiatus not long after his Menton, France-based restaurant was awarded the coveted three Michelin stars and the No.1 spot in The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list in 2019, Colagreco spent more time in his estate’s vast vegetable and flower garden and came up with the idea to introduce menus pegged to the cycles of the moon. Since he sourced all the restaurant’s fresh produce from his garden, where planting and harvesting were timed according to the moon’s cycles, the menus would undergo a radical change.

EXCLUSIVE: IFC Films has acquired North American rights to sci-fi thriller Vesper (formerly known as Vesper Seeds) directed by Lithuania’s Kristina Buozyte and France’s Bruno Samper.

“Tori and Lokita,” the refugee drama from two-time Palme D’Or winning directors Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne.The film stars Pablo Schils and Joely Mbundu as a young boy and adolescent girl who have traveled alone from Africa to Belgium and face a serious test of their friendship as they grapple with the difficult conditions of their exile. The film received a special award at Cannes in honor of the festival’s 75th anniversary.

ITZY have announced dates and locations for their 2022 tour of the United States, in support of their upcoming mini-album ‘Checkmate’.Today (June 2), the K-pop girl group revealed on social media that they would be returning with new music in July, which will then be followed-up by their first-ever world tour. The post featured a “promotion scheduler” that details the upcoming mini-album, as well as some of the dates of the tour.The quintet are set to release a brand-new mini-album, titled ‘Checkmate’, on July 15 at 1pm KST.

LOONA have announced the venues and dates for the North American leg of their forthcoming world tour, ‘LOONATHEWORLD’.Today (June 1), the K-pop act took to social media to reveal that they are set to tour North America later this month. LOONA released a poster detailing the dates and venues for the upcoming tour, which will take place this August across nine American cities, including San Francisco, New York and more.More details on how and where to purchase tickets are set to be revealed in the coming days.

Brittney Parks (Sudan Archives) has announced the Homecoming Tour, a run of 16 North American shows early this fall. The tour is scheduled to start September 24 at Solana Beach, CA’s Belly Up Tavern and work its way up the coast to Vancouver, through the midwest, and down the east coast before making its final stop at Lodge Room in the Cincinnati-born singer-songwriter-violinist’s adopted hometown of Los Angeles.

Harry Styles has announced that he and promoter Live Nation will be donating over $1 million in proceeds from his upcoming North American tour to the Support Fund of Everytown For Gun Safety, the largest gun violence prevention organisation in the US.This follows the horrific events in Uvalde, Texas last week, where nineteen children and two teachers were killed in a shooting at Robb Elementary School. Styles and Live Nation announced the charitable donation to the education, research, and litigation arm of Everytown For Gun Safety this weekend.Confirming that support, Styles said: “Along with all of you, I have been absolutely devastated by the recent string of mass shootings in America, culminating at Robb Elementary School in Texas.

Everytown on his upcoming North American tour to promote an end to gun violence.“Along with all of you, I have been absolutely devastated by the recent string of mass shootings in America, culminating at the latest in Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas,” the singer wrote in a statement on Twitter.End gun violence. pic.twitter.com/YNFHhmkhBG“On our North American tour, we will be partnering with Everytown who work to end gun violence, donating to support their efforst, and sharing their suggested action items,” he continued.The statement was accompanied by Everytown’s website, text campaign and other information, including the statistic that “Firearms are the #1 leading cause of death for American children and teens.”Styles’ third album “Harry’s House” launched on May 20, and tickets very recently went on sale for the North American branch of his 2022 Love on Tour.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefArtist and Hong Kong-based experimental filmmaker Scud is to retire from filmmaking leave the city after completing his two final features. These have been licensed for North American distribution by Breaking Glass Pictures.A license deal for rights to “Apostles” and “Bodyshop” was struck by Breaking Glass Pictures and Artwalker, the production company through which the auteur’s entire movie career has been channeled.

EXCLUSIVE: AMC Networks has acquired North American rights to Monsieur Spade, a one-hour drama starring Clive Owen from The Queen’s Gambit co-creator Scott Frank and City On A Hill showrunner Tom Fontana. Black Bear Television also has joined as the series’ studio and will deficit finance.

EXCLUSIVE: Utopia has finalized its North American deal for Cannes Competition pic Holy Spider, the noir thriller from Danish-Iranian filmmaker Ali Abbasi. We told you the deal was all but there a couple of days ago.

Kehlani has announced details of a UK, European and North American tour that will run from July through to December.The Bay Area artist will tour in support of their third studio album ‘Blue Water Road’, which was released last month.Kehlani will embark on the ‘Blue Water Road Trip’ on July 30 in Raleigh, North Carolina, with a string of North American tour dates running until October with a date in Honolulu, Hawaii on October 21.She will then head to Europe in November for a number of live dates, which will conclude with a run of UK and Ireland shows in London, Dublin, Glasgow, Birmingham and Manchester.General sale tickets for Kehlani’s UK dates will go on sale here this Friday (May 20) from 10am, while tickets for the North American shows can be bought here from 10am local time on Friday.

Sunny Day Real Estate have confirmed a headline tour of North America across September, October and December of 2022.The tour, announced yesterday (May 16), will serve as the band’s first headlining tour since 2010. Three of the band’s four founding members – frontman Jeremy Enigk, guitarist Dan Hoerner and drummer William Goldsmith – were all confirmed to be part of the band’s 2022 reunion earlier this year.Prior to the tour’s announcement, the band had announced two festival dates – Chicago’s Riot Fest and Furnace Fest in Birmingham, Alabama.

SEVENTEEN have announced the North American leg of their forthcoming ‘Be The Sun’ world tour.Today (May 17), the 13-member boyband took to Twitter to reveal their upcoming world tour. Titled ‘Be The Sun’, the tour is set to kick off in Seoul this June, before heading to North America, where SEVENTEEN will play in 12 different cities across the US and Canada.From August to September, SEVENTEEN will perform in US cities such as Seattle, Los Angeles, Chicago and Houston.

Gorillaz have announced details of a North American tour in September and October.These gigs will be the Damon Albarn-led group’s first US and Canadian live dates since 2018 and extends their ongoing world tour, which is currently in South America.Albarn and his 14-piece live band – who will be “aided and abetted by a varying cast of guest performers” – will bring Gorillaz to life across 21 arena shows in the US and Canada, kicking off in Vancouver on September 11.The run will visit such cities as Seattle, Salt Lake City, LA, Austin, Chicago and Boston before wrapping up in Miami on October 23. EARTHGANG will support Gorillaz on all dates except Orlando and Miami, where Jungle will be special guests.Tickets for Gorillaz’s North American tour will go on general sale at 10am local time on Friday (May 20), and you’ll be able to buy tickets here.

Soft Cell are set to perform their debut album ‘Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret’ in full on their first North American tour in 20 years – see the dates below and get tickets here.The duo returned last week (May 6) with ‘*Happiness Not Included’, their first new album in two decades. The synth-pop duo, comprised of Marc Almond and Dave Ball, had recently reunited for their first album since 2002’s ‘Cruelty Without Beauty’.A short run of UK dates then followed the announcement in late 2021, and Soft Cell will now head to North America later this year for their first tour there in two decades.The gigs will begin in El Cajon, California on August 23, with five dates following including shows in Chicago and New York.Tickets are on sale now – pick up yours here and see the full list of dates below.AUGUST 2022 23 – El Cajon, The Magnolia24 – Los Angeles, YouTube Theater26 – San Francisco, The Masonic28 – Chicago, House of Blues30 – New York, Beacon Theatre31 – Toronto, HistorySpeaking on the direction of the band’s new record, Almond said: “In this album I wanted to look at us as a society: a place where we have chosen to put profits before people, money before morality and decency, food before the rights of animals, fanaticism before fairness and our own trivial comforts before the unspeakable agonies of others.”He continued: “But in the album there is also a belief that there is a utopia if we can peel back the layers and understand what really matters.”“Science fiction stories for the 21st century,” Ball added, explaining that the album was “recorded remotely during a world pandemic”.

CHVRCHES have announced details of some new North American tour dates – check them out below.The band will begin the next part of their tour on July 24 at Austin’s Float Fest before heading to New Orleans, Birmingham, Alabama, Atlanta, and Asheville, North Carolina.

Joey Bada$$ has announced details of his new album ‘2000’, alongside a host of North American tour dates.The rapper’s third album, his first full-length effort in five years, will arrive on June 17 via Columbia Records. It was announced by Bada$$ on his Instagram, alongside a short trailer and the caption “Back on the set like I never left…”The announcement of ‘2000’ follows the release of new single ‘THE REV3NGE’ earlier this year, which came with a cinematic music video directed by child.It features dark footage of Bada$$ driving through a city at night, slinging guns and smoking cigarettes, as well as shots of the rapper in a church with cloaked disciples.The single came just weeks after Bada$$ revealed during an Instagram Live that his third album is “dropping this year for sure”.“I ain’t gonna say exactly when though cause there’s certain rappers who be on my heels. So imma just — it’s coming though.”A post shared by BADMON (@joeybadass)In an XXL interview earlier this month, Bada$$ spoke about what to expect from the new album.

Jack Harlow has announced an arena tour of North America in support of his second studio album, ‘Come Home The Kids Miss You’.The tour, announced today (May 10), will start in Nashville at the city’s Municipal Auditorium. An ensuing 21 dates will follow across September and October, wrapping at Atlanta’s State Farm Arena on October 16.