The official trailer for Housekeeping For Beginners has officially been released. The film will be in theaters on Friday, January 26, 2024!
Synopsis: Housekeeping For Beginners explores the universal truths of family, encompassing both the bonds we inherit and those we create. The narrative revolves around Dita, who, despite never aspiring to be a mother, finds herself compelled to raise her girlfriend’s two daughters—Mia, a tiny troublemaker, and Vanesa, a rebellious teenager. As their individual wills clash, a heartwarming story unfolds about an unlikely family’s struggle to stay together.
About The Film
Genre: Comedy, Drama Starring: Anamaria Marinca, Alina Șerban, Samson Selim, Vladimir Tintor, Mia Mustafa, Džada Selim, Sara Klimoska, Rozafë Çelaj, Ajse Useini Director: Goran Stolevski Screenplay: Goran Stolevski Producer: Marija Dimitrova, Klaudia Śmieja-Rostworowska, Ankica Jurić Tilić, Beata Rzeźniczek, Milan Stojanović and Blerta Basholli
Housekeeping For Beginners is in select theaters on January 26, 2024!
For More Information, Please Visit:...
Synopsis: Housekeeping For Beginners explores the universal truths of family, encompassing both the bonds we inherit and those we create. The narrative revolves around Dita, who, despite never aspiring to be a mother, finds herself compelled to raise her girlfriend’s two daughters—Mia, a tiny troublemaker, and Vanesa, a rebellious teenager. As their individual wills clash, a heartwarming story unfolds about an unlikely family’s struggle to stay together.
About The Film
Genre: Comedy, Drama Starring: Anamaria Marinca, Alina Șerban, Samson Selim, Vladimir Tintor, Mia Mustafa, Džada Selim, Sara Klimoska, Rozafë Çelaj, Ajse Useini Director: Goran Stolevski Screenplay: Goran Stolevski Producer: Marija Dimitrova, Klaudia Śmieja-Rostworowska, Ankica Jurić Tilić, Beata Rzeźniczek, Milan Stojanović and Blerta Basholli
Housekeeping For Beginners is in select theaters on January 26, 2024!
For More Information, Please Visit:...
- 12/14/2023
- by Editor
- CinemaNerdz
Just in time to ruin Christmas, gruesome horror comedy The Mean One, is out now on DVD and Digital Platforms from Altitude Film Distribution.
David Howard Thornton, the award-winning actor who plays Art the Clown in the hugely popular Terrifier movies, stars as The Mean One, a gruesome grouch in a Santa suit who is intent on causing Christmas carnage. Directed by Steven Lamorte (Bury Me Twice), The Mean One also stars Krystle Martin as Cindy, who takes on the Christmas killer with a baseball bat wrapped in tree lights.
Like recent horror hit Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey, The Mean One is another buzzy slasher mixing mirth, murder and all-out action in equal measure, as the townsfolk decide to take on the green meanie with all the weapons they can lay their hands on. Already a viral sensation (over 5 million people have watched the trailer online) The Mean One...
David Howard Thornton, the award-winning actor who plays Art the Clown in the hugely popular Terrifier movies, stars as The Mean One, a gruesome grouch in a Santa suit who is intent on causing Christmas carnage. Directed by Steven Lamorte (Bury Me Twice), The Mean One also stars Krystle Martin as Cindy, who takes on the Christmas killer with a baseball bat wrapped in tree lights.
Like recent horror hit Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey, The Mean One is another buzzy slasher mixing mirth, murder and all-out action in equal measure, as the townsfolk decide to take on the green meanie with all the weapons they can lay their hands on. Already a viral sensation (over 5 million people have watched the trailer online) The Mean One...
- 12/7/2023
- by Peter 'Witchfinder' Hopkins
- Horror Asylum
Focus Features has set a Jan. 26, 2024 theatrical release date for Goran Stolevski’s latest, Housekeeping For Beginners.
It premiered in Venice as part of the official “Orizzonti” (Horizons) competitive section, securing the prestigious Queer Lion Award. See Deadline review. It was selected shortly after as North Macedonia’s international Oscar submission.
The film explores the universal truths of family, encompassing both the bonds we inherit and those we create. The narrative revolves around Dita, who, despite never aspiring to be a mother, finds herself compelled to raise her girlfriend’s two daughters—Mia, a tiny troublemaker, and Vanesa, a rebellious teenager. As their individual wills clash, a heartwarming story unfolds about an unlikely family’s struggle to stay together.
Stars Anamaria Marinca, Alina Serban, Samson Selim, Vladimir Tintor, Mia Mustafa, Dzada Selim, Sara Klimoska, Rozafë Çelaj, and Ajse Useini.
This is Focus Features’ third collaboration with Stolevski, a rising original voice,...
It premiered in Venice as part of the official “Orizzonti” (Horizons) competitive section, securing the prestigious Queer Lion Award. See Deadline review. It was selected shortly after as North Macedonia’s international Oscar submission.
The film explores the universal truths of family, encompassing both the bonds we inherit and those we create. The narrative revolves around Dita, who, despite never aspiring to be a mother, finds herself compelled to raise her girlfriend’s two daughters—Mia, a tiny troublemaker, and Vanesa, a rebellious teenager. As their individual wills clash, a heartwarming story unfolds about an unlikely family’s struggle to stay together.
Stars Anamaria Marinca, Alina Serban, Samson Selim, Vladimir Tintor, Mia Mustafa, Dzada Selim, Sara Klimoska, Rozafë Çelaj, and Ajse Useini.
This is Focus Features’ third collaboration with Stolevski, a rising original voice,...
- 11/18/2023
- by Jill Goldsmith
- Deadline Film + TV
Focus Features’ upcoming title “Housekeeping for Beginners” is scheduled for a limited theatrical release on Jan. 26 and will expand to more theaters in subsequent weeks.
Per the film’s synopsis, Goran Stolevski’s latest feature “revolves around Dita, who, despite never aspiring to be a mother, finds herself compelled to raise her girlfriend’s two daughters — Mia, a tiny troublemaker, and Vanesa, a rebellious teenager. As their individual wills clash, a heartwarming story unfolds about an unlikely family’s struggle to stay together.”
“Housekeeping for Beginners” had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival in the official “Orrizonti” (Horizons) section, taking home the Queer Lion Award. It has also been selected as North Macedonia’s international Oscar submission.
In Guy Lodge’s review for Variety, he wrote, “This study of domestic, romantic and generational conflicts in a crowded queer household (instead) embraces a spirit of antic chaos, both in subject matter and jagged,...
Per the film’s synopsis, Goran Stolevski’s latest feature “revolves around Dita, who, despite never aspiring to be a mother, finds herself compelled to raise her girlfriend’s two daughters — Mia, a tiny troublemaker, and Vanesa, a rebellious teenager. As their individual wills clash, a heartwarming story unfolds about an unlikely family’s struggle to stay together.”
“Housekeeping for Beginners” had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival in the official “Orrizonti” (Horizons) section, taking home the Queer Lion Award. It has also been selected as North Macedonia’s international Oscar submission.
In Guy Lodge’s review for Variety, he wrote, “This study of domestic, romantic and generational conflicts in a crowded queer household (instead) embraces a spirit of antic chaos, both in subject matter and jagged,...
- 11/17/2023
- by Jaden Thompson
- Variety Film + TV
Alex Pettyfer stars in the terrifying action thriller Black Noise, which is out out now on Digital Platforms including Google, Apple TV, Sky and Amazon Prime Video in the UK & Ireland.
“We go in, we get the client, and get out”. If only it was that simple for Alex Pettyfer (Alex Rider in Stormbreaker) and Jackson Rathbone (Twilight), on a rescue mission from hell in Black Noise, a chilling action horror set in a lush paradise, also starring Eve Mauro (Wicked Lake) and Ashton Leigh (Big Shark).
Sent to the remote island of Esperanza to rescue a tech heiress, a security team finds their communications cut off, and starts having nightmarish hallucinations… but the worst is yet to come. Coming on like 80s classic Predator Black Noise is an action adventure that turns into all-out horror.
Synopsis:
Members of an elite security team deployed to rescue a VIP on an exclusive island.
“We go in, we get the client, and get out”. If only it was that simple for Alex Pettyfer (Alex Rider in Stormbreaker) and Jackson Rathbone (Twilight), on a rescue mission from hell in Black Noise, a chilling action horror set in a lush paradise, also starring Eve Mauro (Wicked Lake) and Ashton Leigh (Big Shark).
Sent to the remote island of Esperanza to rescue a tech heiress, a security team finds their communications cut off, and starts having nightmarish hallucinations… but the worst is yet to come. Coming on like 80s classic Predator Black Noise is an action adventure that turns into all-out horror.
Synopsis:
Members of an elite security team deployed to rescue a VIP on an exclusive island.
- 11/13/2023
- by Peter 'Witchfinder' Hopkins
- Horror Asylum
Amber Heard (Aquaman) stars as a doctor battling against 19th-century superstitions and paranoia in In The Fire, also starring Luca Calvani (The Man from U.N.C.L.E.), Eduardo Noriega (The Devil’s Backbone), and Sophie Amber (soon to be seen in The Last Girl with Antonio Banderas).
Directed by Cocor Allyn (No Man’s Land), In The Fire is an intense and thrilling experience featuring a searing career-best lead performance from Heard as a woman attempting to convince a community that medicine can overcome what they perceive as ‘evil’.
Synopsis:
A doctor travels to a remote plantation to care for a disturbed boy who has inexplicable abilities. She ignites a war of science versus religion with the local priest who believes the boy is possessed by the Devil.
In The Fire is available now on Digital Platforms including Google, Apple TV, Sky and Amazon.
About Altitude
Altitude Media Group is...
Directed by Cocor Allyn (No Man’s Land), In The Fire is an intense and thrilling experience featuring a searing career-best lead performance from Heard as a woman attempting to convince a community that medicine can overcome what they perceive as ‘evil’.
Synopsis:
A doctor travels to a remote plantation to care for a disturbed boy who has inexplicable abilities. She ignites a war of science versus religion with the local priest who believes the boy is possessed by the Devil.
In The Fire is available now on Digital Platforms including Google, Apple TV, Sky and Amazon.
About Altitude
Altitude Media Group is...
- 11/8/2023
- by Peter 'Witchfinder' Hopkins
- Horror Asylum
Nail biting thriller The Flood is out now on Digital Platforms and DVD.
Assault on Precinct 13 meets Alligator in the action thriller The Flood, which sees Nicky Whelan (Hall Pass) trying to control a jail filled with dangerous convicts, a torrential storm, and a horde of hungry alligators.
Written and directed by Brandon Slagle (Battle for Saipan), the film stars Casper Van Dien (Starship Troopers), Louis Mandylor (Rambo: Last Blood), Devanny Pinn (Piranha 3D), and Randy Wayne (Hellraiser: Judgement), and features some seriously scary reptiles who are keen to snack on some caged convicts. A rip-roaring, action packed ride, The Flood is a must-watch for fans of nerve-shredding creature features Meg, 47 Feet Down, and Black Water Abyss.
Synopsis: A daring jailbreak during a ferocious storm gets complicated when a horde of giant, hungry alligators interrupt the escape attempt.
The Flood is available on Digital Platforms including Google, Apple TV, Sky and Amazon,...
Assault on Precinct 13 meets Alligator in the action thriller The Flood, which sees Nicky Whelan (Hall Pass) trying to control a jail filled with dangerous convicts, a torrential storm, and a horde of hungry alligators.
Written and directed by Brandon Slagle (Battle for Saipan), the film stars Casper Van Dien (Starship Troopers), Louis Mandylor (Rambo: Last Blood), Devanny Pinn (Piranha 3D), and Randy Wayne (Hellraiser: Judgement), and features some seriously scary reptiles who are keen to snack on some caged convicts. A rip-roaring, action packed ride, The Flood is a must-watch for fans of nerve-shredding creature features Meg, 47 Feet Down, and Black Water Abyss.
Synopsis: A daring jailbreak during a ferocious storm gets complicated when a horde of giant, hungry alligators interrupt the escape attempt.
The Flood is available on Digital Platforms including Google, Apple TV, Sky and Amazon,...
- 8/15/2023
- by Peter 'Witchfinder' Hopkins
- Horror Asylum
Focus Features has boarded Goran Stolevski’s anticipated next project, “Housekeeping for Beginners,” ahead of its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival in the Horizons section.
Focus will be distributing the film in the U.S. with Universal Pictures handling international distribution (excluding Eastern Europe). “Housekeeping for Beginners” reteams Focus Features with the critically acclaimed Macedonian-Australian director following his first two films: “You Won’t Be Alone,” which premiered at Sundance in 2022 and represented Australia in the Oscar race, and his sophomore outing “Of an Age,” which kicked off Melbourne festival.
Stolevski, who was born and raised in North Macedonia before migrating to Australia as a teenager, was featured in Variety’s annual 10 Directors to Watch list earlier this year.
Represented internationally by New Europe Film Sales, “Housekeeping for Beginners” stars Anamaria Marinca as Dita, a queer woman who never wanted to be a mother and finds herself forced to...
Focus will be distributing the film in the U.S. with Universal Pictures handling international distribution (excluding Eastern Europe). “Housekeeping for Beginners” reteams Focus Features with the critically acclaimed Macedonian-Australian director following his first two films: “You Won’t Be Alone,” which premiered at Sundance in 2022 and represented Australia in the Oscar race, and his sophomore outing “Of an Age,” which kicked off Melbourne festival.
Stolevski, who was born and raised in North Macedonia before migrating to Australia as a teenager, was featured in Variety’s annual 10 Directors to Watch list earlier this year.
Represented internationally by New Europe Film Sales, “Housekeeping for Beginners” stars Anamaria Marinca as Dita, a queer woman who never wanted to be a mother and finds herself forced to...
- 8/15/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
The mob just crossed the wrong man in thriller Shrapnel, available now on Digital Platforms including Google, Apple TV, Sky and Amazon in the UK & Ireland.
Shrapnel blasts onto screens this summer and viewers better take cover. Jason Patric (Sleepers) is a lethal army veteran flipped into combat mode when his daughter is kidnapped by a drug gang, enlisting the help of Cam Gigandet (The Magnificent Seven) to dish out the mayhem.
Directed by action expert William Kaufman (One in the Chamber), Shrapnel boasts blistering action scenes, heavy weaponry, white-knuckle suspense, and vengeance dished out by the bucket full across an unforgiving New Mexico landscape.
Synopsis:
A former Marine and his old war buddy face off against the Mexican cartel behind the disappearance of his daughter.
Shrapnel is available now on on Digital Platforms including Google, Apple TV, Sky and Amazon in the UK & Ireland.
About Altitude
Altitude Media Group...
Shrapnel blasts onto screens this summer and viewers better take cover. Jason Patric (Sleepers) is a lethal army veteran flipped into combat mode when his daughter is kidnapped by a drug gang, enlisting the help of Cam Gigandet (The Magnificent Seven) to dish out the mayhem.
Directed by action expert William Kaufman (One in the Chamber), Shrapnel boasts blistering action scenes, heavy weaponry, white-knuckle suspense, and vengeance dished out by the bucket full across an unforgiving New Mexico landscape.
Synopsis:
A former Marine and his old war buddy face off against the Mexican cartel behind the disappearance of his daughter.
Shrapnel is available now on on Digital Platforms including Google, Apple TV, Sky and Amazon in the UK & Ireland.
About Altitude
Altitude Media Group...
- 7/31/2023
- by Peter 'Witchfinder' Hopkins
- Horror Asylum
Twenty emerging producers from across Europe have been selected to take part in European Film Promotion’s promotion and networking platform Producers on the Move before and during the Cannes Film Festival.
The producers who were selected for the program from nominations submitted by Efp’s member organizations are Gentian Koçi (Albania), David Bohun (Austria), Julie Esparbes (Belgium), Vanya Rainova (Bulgaria), Miljenka Čogelja (Croatia), Stelana Kliris (Cyprus), Alice Tabery (Czech Republic), Emile Hertling Péronard (Denmark), Emilia Haukka (Finland), Silvana Santamaria (Germany), Vicky Miha (Greece), Júlia Berkes (Hungary), Kathryn Kennedy (Ireland), Valon Bajgora (Kosovo), Dominiks Jarmakovičs (Latvia), Erik Glijnis (The Netherlands), Elisa Fernanda Pirir (Norway), Radu Stancu (Romania), Juraj Krasnohorský (Slovak Republic), and Julia Gebauer (Sweden).
They will take part in a tailor-made program to foster international co-productions, increase the exchange of experiences, and help create new professional networks. The pre-festival online program, which started yesterday and runs until May 4, includes 1:1 speed meetings,...
The producers who were selected for the program from nominations submitted by Efp’s member organizations are Gentian Koçi (Albania), David Bohun (Austria), Julie Esparbes (Belgium), Vanya Rainova (Bulgaria), Miljenka Čogelja (Croatia), Stelana Kliris (Cyprus), Alice Tabery (Czech Republic), Emile Hertling Péronard (Denmark), Emilia Haukka (Finland), Silvana Santamaria (Germany), Vicky Miha (Greece), Júlia Berkes (Hungary), Kathryn Kennedy (Ireland), Valon Bajgora (Kosovo), Dominiks Jarmakovičs (Latvia), Erik Glijnis (The Netherlands), Elisa Fernanda Pirir (Norway), Radu Stancu (Romania), Juraj Krasnohorský (Slovak Republic), and Julia Gebauer (Sweden).
They will take part in a tailor-made program to foster international co-productions, increase the exchange of experiences, and help create new professional networks. The pre-festival online program, which started yesterday and runs until May 4, includes 1:1 speed meetings,...
- 5/3/2023
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Warsaw-based New Europe Film Sales has boarded international sales on Goran Stolevski’s Housekeeping For Beginners starring top Romanian actress Anamaria Marinca as an unmaternal, gay woman who suddenly finds herself responsible for her partner’s two young daughters.
The drama is one of the buzziest productions to come out of Southeastern Europe this year and brings together a host of hot indie producers from three continents.
Australian-Macedonian director Stolevski’s star has been rising ever since Focus Features pre-acquired world rights to his debut feature, the Serbian mountains-shot horror You Won’t Be Alone, featuring Marinca, Noomi Rapace and Alice Englert in the cast.
After a Sundance debut, the film launched theatrically in the US in April 2022, via Universal. Focus Features also pre-acquired Stolevski’s Australia-set second feature Of An Age which opens in the U.S. on February 17.
Marinca plays the character of Dita, whose mansion in the...
The drama is one of the buzziest productions to come out of Southeastern Europe this year and brings together a host of hot indie producers from three continents.
Australian-Macedonian director Stolevski’s star has been rising ever since Focus Features pre-acquired world rights to his debut feature, the Serbian mountains-shot horror You Won’t Be Alone, featuring Marinca, Noomi Rapace and Alice Englert in the cast.
After a Sundance debut, the film launched theatrically in the US in April 2022, via Universal. Focus Features also pre-acquired Stolevski’s Australia-set second feature Of An Age which opens in the U.S. on February 17.
Marinca plays the character of Dita, whose mansion in the...
- 2/13/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Despite the unpredictability of the last few years, both in Hollywood and beyond, recent years have proven fruitful for female filmmakers. From winning the top awards at the starriest festivals to notching back to back Best Director Oscar winners (for the first time ever for Zhao and Jane Campion) and churning out big-time box office hits, women have been unquestionably on the rise.
Until, perhaps, now. As we do every year, IndieWire is looking ahead at the next two years of studio features directed by women to get a sense of who Hollywood is elevating in still-rarefied spaces. Getting the chance to helm a studio feature is, of course, not the golden ticket for any director.
But it’s hard to deny the power and prestige of directing a big-time movie released by a major studio, even in a world where streaming platforms are making significant inroads into the “blockbuster” space.
Until, perhaps, now. As we do every year, IndieWire is looking ahead at the next two years of studio features directed by women to get a sense of who Hollywood is elevating in still-rarefied spaces. Getting the chance to helm a studio feature is, of course, not the golden ticket for any director.
But it’s hard to deny the power and prestige of directing a big-time movie released by a major studio, even in a world where streaming platforms are making significant inroads into the “blockbuster” space.
- 1/2/2023
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
Keep track of all the submissions for best international feature at the 2023 Academy Awards.
Entries for the 2023 Oscar for best international feature are underway, and Screen is profiling each one on this page.
Scroll down for profiles of each Oscar entry
An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the US with a predominantly (more than 50) non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
Submitted films must have been released theatrically in their respective countries between January 1, 2022 and November 30, 2022. The deadline for submissions to the Academy is October 3, 2022.
A shortlist of 15 finalists is...
Entries for the 2023 Oscar for best international feature are underway, and Screen is profiling each one on this page.
Scroll down for profiles of each Oscar entry
An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the US with a predominantly (more than 50) non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
Submitted films must have been released theatrically in their respective countries between January 1, 2022 and November 30, 2022. The deadline for submissions to the Academy is October 3, 2022.
A shortlist of 15 finalists is...
- 9/16/2022
- by Screen staff
- ScreenDaily
Keep track of all the submissions for best international feature at the 2023 Academy Awards.
Entries for the 2023 Oscar for best international feature are underway, and Screen is profiling each one on this page.
Scroll down for profiles of each Oscar entry
An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the US with a predominantly (more than 50) non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
Submitted films must have been released theatrically in their respective countries between January 1, 2022 and November 30, 2022. The deadline for submissions to the Academy is October 3, 2022.
A shortlist of 15 finalists is...
Entries for the 2023 Oscar for best international feature are underway, and Screen is profiling each one on this page.
Scroll down for profiles of each Oscar entry
An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the US with a predominantly (more than 50) non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
Submitted films must have been released theatrically in their respective countries between January 1, 2022 and November 30, 2022. The deadline for submissions to the Academy is October 3, 2022.
A shortlist of 15 finalists is...
- 9/14/2022
- by Screen staff
- ScreenDaily
Keep track of all the submissions for best international feature at the 2023 Academy Awards.
Entries for the 2023 Oscar for best international feature are underway, and Screen is profiling each one on this page.
Scroll down for profiles of each Oscar entry
An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the US with a predominantly (more than 50) non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
Submitted films must have been released theatrically in their respective countries between January 1, 2022 and November 30, 2022. The deadline for submissions to the Academy is October 3, 2022.
A shortlist of 15 finalists is...
Entries for the 2023 Oscar for best international feature are underway, and Screen is profiling each one on this page.
Scroll down for profiles of each Oscar entry
An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the US with a predominantly (more than 50) non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
Submitted films must have been released theatrically in their respective countries between January 1, 2022 and November 30, 2022. The deadline for submissions to the Academy is October 3, 2022.
A shortlist of 15 finalists is...
- 9/14/2022
- by Screen staff
- ScreenDaily
Keep track of all the submissions for best international feature at the 2023 Academy Awards.
Entries for the 2023 Oscar for best international feature are underway, and Screen is profiling each one on this page.
Scroll down for profiles of each Oscar entry
An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the US with a predominantly (more than 50) non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
Submitted films must have been released theatrically in their respective countries between January 1, 2022 and November 30, 2022. The deadline for submissions to the Academy is October 3, 2022.
A shortlist of 15 finalists is...
Entries for the 2023 Oscar for best international feature are underway, and Screen is profiling each one on this page.
Scroll down for profiles of each Oscar entry
An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the US with a predominantly (more than 50) non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
Submitted films must have been released theatrically in their respective countries between January 1, 2022 and November 30, 2022. The deadline for submissions to the Academy is October 3, 2022.
A shortlist of 15 finalists is...
- 9/14/2022
- by Screen staff
- ScreenDaily
Exclusive: Zeitgeist Films and Kino Lorber have acquired North American rights to Eva Vitija’s documentary Loving Highsmith, which takes as its focus Carol and The Talented Mr. Ripley author Patricia Highsmith. Zeitgeist will release the film theatrically this September.
Loving Highsmith is a unique look at the life of the celebrated American author, focusing on Highsmith’s quest for love and her troubled identity through her personal diaries and the intimate reflections of her lovers, friends and family. The film sheds new light on her life and writings, the best known of which were adapted for the big screen: Strangers on a Train, The Talented Mr. Ripley and Carol, a partially autobiographical novel and the first lesbian story with a happy ending in 1950s America. Highsmith herself was forced to lead a double life and had to hide her vibrant love affairs from her family and the public, reflecting...
Loving Highsmith is a unique look at the life of the celebrated American author, focusing on Highsmith’s quest for love and her troubled identity through her personal diaries and the intimate reflections of her lovers, friends and family. The film sheds new light on her life and writings, the best known of which were adapted for the big screen: Strangers on a Train, The Talented Mr. Ripley and Carol, a partially autobiographical novel and the first lesbian story with a happy ending in 1950s America. Highsmith herself was forced to lead a double life and had to hide her vibrant love affairs from her family and the public, reflecting...
- 6/16/2022
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Throughout history, the tide of change has come from powerful women who have fought against the wave of oppression. Based on a collection of true stories, Hive is no different and presents a bold tribute to women who, day by day, are fighting to better not just their own lives, but those of the world around them.
Directed by Blerta Basholli, Hive revolves around Fahrije, a woman whose husband has been missing since a war in Kosovo. Whilst grappling with the loss, her family are also struggling financially so Fahrije decides to earn money by beekeeping and making her own pastes to sell in the village, which is practically forbidden for “waiting wives.” in order to provide. Soon, the men turn hostile as they disagree with the way she is trying to empower herself and other women. As struggling to keep herself and her family afloat, she has to battle...
Directed by Blerta Basholli, Hive revolves around Fahrije, a woman whose husband has been missing since a war in Kosovo. Whilst grappling with the loss, her family are also struggling financially so Fahrije decides to earn money by beekeeping and making her own pastes to sell in the village, which is practically forbidden for “waiting wives.” in order to provide. Soon, the men turn hostile as they disagree with the way she is trying to empower herself and other women. As struggling to keep herself and her family afloat, she has to battle...
- 3/22/2022
- by Sarah Cook
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
IFFKWomen couldn’t drive or work in a village in Kosovo torn apart by war until one woman, Fahrije, changes things.CrisIn an angry outburst against her mother, young Zana yells, ‘that’s right, you never cry’. Fahrije had just taken out her missing husband’s bench saw to sell it so that she could start a business to run the family. The daughter, pained to see her father’s belongings being given away, lashes out at the mother, calling her names till it all ends in a slap and a broken photo. It is one of the many captivating visuals of Hive, an Albanian-Kosovan film, based on a real life story, screened at the ongoing International Film Festival of Kerala (Iffk). It is hard to believe that the film tells a story from the late 90s. In Kosovo, a partially recognised state in South East Europe, where a war had ended,...
- 3/22/2022
- by Cris
- The News Minute
Sunny weather in many places restricted box office takings.
Rank Film (distributor) Three-day gross (Mar 18-10) Total gross to date Week 1. The Batman (Warner Bros) £3.3m £32.6m 3 2. Uncharted (Sony) £600,000 £22.7m 6 3. The Nan Movie (Warner Bros) £565,016 £565,016 1 4. Jujutsu Kaisen 0 (Sony) £514,000 £822,000 1 5. Sing 2 (Universal) £421,655 £31.9m 8
Gbp to Usd conversion rate: 1.31
Warner Bros’ The Batman comfortably held on to top spot at the UK-Ireland box office, adding £3.3m to reach a £32.6m total; on a weekend when Sony anime Jujutsu Kaisen 0 was one of the strongest performers.
The Batman dropped 54.8% on its previous session – par for the course this weekend, with sunny weather...
Rank Film (distributor) Three-day gross (Mar 18-10) Total gross to date Week 1. The Batman (Warner Bros) £3.3m £32.6m 3 2. Uncharted (Sony) £600,000 £22.7m 6 3. The Nan Movie (Warner Bros) £565,016 £565,016 1 4. Jujutsu Kaisen 0 (Sony) £514,000 £822,000 1 5. Sing 2 (Universal) £421,655 £31.9m 8
Gbp to Usd conversion rate: 1.31
Warner Bros’ The Batman comfortably held on to top spot at the UK-Ireland box office, adding £3.3m to reach a £32.6m total; on a weekend when Sony anime Jujutsu Kaisen 0 was one of the strongest performers.
The Batman dropped 54.8% on its previous session – par for the course this weekend, with sunny weather...
- 3/21/2022
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
‘The Nan Movie’, ‘Hive’, ‘X’ also opening.
eOne’s UK sports comedy The Phantom of the Open tees off at the UK-Ireland box office this weekend, in a bumper weekend with 17 new releases.
Directed by Craig Roberts, The Phantom Of The Open debuted at the BFI London Film Festival in October last year. The film tells the true story of Maurice Flitcroft, an aspiring golfer of limited talent, who managed to gain entry to the British Open Gold Championship Qualifying in 1976 only to shoot the worst round in the event’s history. It will open in 629 locations - the fourth-biggest...
eOne’s UK sports comedy The Phantom of the Open tees off at the UK-Ireland box office this weekend, in a bumper weekend with 17 new releases.
Directed by Craig Roberts, The Phantom Of The Open debuted at the BFI London Film Festival in October last year. The film tells the true story of Maurice Flitcroft, an aspiring golfer of limited talent, who managed to gain entry to the British Open Gold Championship Qualifying in 1976 only to shoot the worst round in the event’s history. It will open in 629 locations - the fourth-biggest...
- 3/18/2022
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Every shot counts in drama about woman’s fight against violent local men to survive and provide for her children in the wake of war
Blerta Basholli’s award-winning debut feature is a film about honey and also about ajvar, a sweet dish from the former Yugoslavia made from aubergines and red peppers. But the film tastes fierce and sharp, like black coffee.
It is based on the true story of Fahrije Hoti, a Kosovan woman whose husband went missing during the Balkan wars of the 90s, and so just to stay alive and provide for her children, she formed a women-only collective with all the other war widows making honey and other delicacies to sell. But the film shows her facing brutal misogyny and violence from the men in her village who feel she is getting above herself.
Blerta Basholli’s award-winning debut feature is a film about honey and also about ajvar, a sweet dish from the former Yugoslavia made from aubergines and red peppers. But the film tastes fierce and sharp, like black coffee.
It is based on the true story of Fahrije Hoti, a Kosovan woman whose husband went missing during the Balkan wars of the 90s, and so just to stay alive and provide for her children, she formed a women-only collective with all the other war widows making honey and other delicacies to sell. But the film shows her facing brutal misogyny and violence from the men in her village who feel she is getting above herself.
- 3/17/2022
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
As we limp into the third year of the pandemic, placating platitudes like “nothing is ever set in stone” continue to be the order of the day, as does tremendous flexibility when it comes to something relatively minor like, oh, when your next favorite movie is coming out. Despite the unpredictability of 2020 and 2021, female filmmakers continue to make great strides, from winning the top awards at the majority of last year’s biggest festivals, notching only the second woman to win the Best Director Oscar (Chloé Zhao for “Nomadland”), and churning out big-time box office hits.
While it’s still unclear if 2022 will provide a bounceback for the box office and its rising (and established) women talents, there are some positive indicators. According to the latest study from the Celluloid Ceiling, the longest-running and most comprehensive study of women’s employment in film, women directors were up overall in 2020. Women...
While it’s still unclear if 2022 will provide a bounceback for the box office and its rising (and established) women talents, there are some positive indicators. According to the latest study from the Celluloid Ceiling, the longest-running and most comprehensive study of women’s employment in film, women directors were up overall in 2020. Women...
- 3/11/2022
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
Hive is one of the best films released this year so far, more than deserving of its success at Sundance. To mark the film’s UK release, we had the pleasure of speaking to the talented women behind the production, interviewing both the filmmaker Blerta Basholli and leading star Yllka Gashi to discuss this powerful and profound new drama.
The pair, who hail from Kosovo, are bringing to life a story that is very real to many, and they talk about what it means to come from a generation of women who lived through a war, and how that impacts creative storytelling, while telling us whether the making of this film had a profound effect on their own understanding with what happened during the war in Kosovo in the late 90s, and the war crimes committed against the nation. On a lighter note, we also speak about ajvar (a delicious...
The pair, who hail from Kosovo, are bringing to life a story that is very real to many, and they talk about what it means to come from a generation of women who lived through a war, and how that impacts creative storytelling, while telling us whether the making of this film had a profound effect on their own understanding with what happened during the war in Kosovo in the late 90s, and the war crimes committed against the nation. On a lighter note, we also speak about ajvar (a delicious...
- 3/8/2022
- by Stefan Pape
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Last year’s festival saw a hat-trick of awards for a feature telling the true story of Fahrije Hoti, a Kosovan war widow who rebelled against her village patriarchy. Director Blerta Basholli and Hoti talk about bringing it to the screen
On 25 March 1999, everything changed for the small Kosovan village of Krushë e Madhe when Serbian troops moved in and forced the villagers to move out. They were searched for gold and jewellery and herded towards the mosque, where the men were separated from the women. Nearly 250 men and boys were killed or disappeared in what was to become one of the worst massacres of the Kosovo war. Fahrije Hoti’s husband was among 64 whose bodies were never found.
Hoti, a handsome and composed woman with neatly cropped grey hair, recalls the terrible days that followed with a chilling clarity, as if every detail of the 15-month war between Kosovo...
On 25 March 1999, everything changed for the small Kosovan village of Krushë e Madhe when Serbian troops moved in and forced the villagers to move out. They were searched for gold and jewellery and herded towards the mosque, where the men were separated from the women. Nearly 250 men and boys were killed or disappeared in what was to become one of the worst massacres of the Kosovo war. Fahrije Hoti’s husband was among 64 whose bodies were never found.
Hoti, a handsome and composed woman with neatly cropped grey hair, recalls the terrible days that followed with a chilling clarity, as if every detail of the 15-month war between Kosovo...
- 3/6/2022
- by Claire Armitstead
- The Guardian - Film News
The Dublin International Film Festival is running until March 6.
Irish directors Colm Bairéad (The Quiet Girl), Kate Dolan (You Are Not My Mother) and Rioghnach Ní Ghrioghair (short film Don’t Go Where I Can’t Find You) have been presented with this year’s Discovery Awards at the Dublin International Film Festival. The awards celebrate exceptional emerging talent in Irish cinema as the festival approaches the mid-way mark.
Bairéad, whose Irish-language feature comes to Diff following plaudits at Berlin, was singled out for his work on the drama told through the eyes of a young girl in 1980s Ireland.
Irish directors Colm Bairéad (The Quiet Girl), Kate Dolan (You Are Not My Mother) and Rioghnach Ní Ghrioghair (short film Don’t Go Where I Can’t Find You) have been presented with this year’s Discovery Awards at the Dublin International Film Festival. The awards celebrate exceptional emerging talent in Irish cinema as the festival approaches the mid-way mark.
Bairéad, whose Irish-language feature comes to Diff following plaudits at Berlin, was singled out for his work on the drama told through the eyes of a young girl in 1980s Ireland.
- 2/28/2022
- by Esther McCarthy
- ScreenDaily
The first ever Sands: International Film Festival, set to be held in Scotland’s St Andrews, has revealed its line-up.
Running March 25-27, the program will consist of nine fiction and non-fiction features, including a mystery film not yet announced.
On the list is documentary Long Live My Happy Head, from Leith-based filmmaking duo Will Hewitt and Austen McCowan, which is a love story about comic books and caner that follows a long-distance couple as they navigate a Covid lockdown. The film will premiere at this year’s BFI Flare festival next month.
Screening in St Andrews having premiered recently in Sundance is Jono McLeod’s My Old School, a documentary-animation hybrid that unravels a Scottish scandal.
Arriving from Sundance’s 2021 edition will be Blerta Basholli’s feature debut Hive, Amalia Ulman’s El Planeta, and Christopher Makoto Yogi’s I Was a Simple Man.
A pair of titles will...
Running March 25-27, the program will consist of nine fiction and non-fiction features, including a mystery film not yet announced.
On the list is documentary Long Live My Happy Head, from Leith-based filmmaking duo Will Hewitt and Austen McCowan, which is a love story about comic books and caner that follows a long-distance couple as they navigate a Covid lockdown. The film will premiere at this year’s BFI Flare festival next month.
Screening in St Andrews having premiered recently in Sundance is Jono McLeod’s My Old School, a documentary-animation hybrid that unravels a Scottish scandal.
Arriving from Sundance’s 2021 edition will be Blerta Basholli’s feature debut Hive, Amalia Ulman’s El Planeta, and Christopher Makoto Yogi’s I Was a Simple Man.
A pair of titles will...
- 2/21/2022
- by Tom Grater
- Deadline Film + TV
Each week we highlight the noteworthy titles that have recently hit streaming platforms in the United States. Check out this week’s selections below and past round-ups here.
Ballad of a White Cow (Behtash Sanaeeha and Maryam Moghaddam)
The cruelty of the Iranian justice system is in the spotlight again in Ballad of a White Cow, the compelling debut of directing team Behtash Sanaeeha and Maryam Moghaddam that unfurled in competition at Berlin. Just last year, Mohamad Rasoulof won the festival’s top prize for his anti-capital punishment polemic There Is No Evil, a masterful weaving of four storylines that showed how a morally bankrupt state corrodes those forced to carry out its functions, a searing portrait of the banality of evil. – Ed F. (full review)
Where to Stream: Mubi (free for 30 days)
Bigbug (Jean-Pierre Jeunet)
Bigbug is set in the year 2045 and centers on a group of mismatched suburbanites who,...
Ballad of a White Cow (Behtash Sanaeeha and Maryam Moghaddam)
The cruelty of the Iranian justice system is in the spotlight again in Ballad of a White Cow, the compelling debut of directing team Behtash Sanaeeha and Maryam Moghaddam that unfurled in competition at Berlin. Just last year, Mohamad Rasoulof won the festival’s top prize for his anti-capital punishment polemic There Is No Evil, a masterful weaving of four storylines that showed how a morally bankrupt state corrodes those forced to carry out its functions, a searing portrait of the banality of evil. – Ed F. (full review)
Where to Stream: Mubi (free for 30 days)
Bigbug (Jean-Pierre Jeunet)
Bigbug is set in the year 2045 and centers on a group of mismatched suburbanites who,...
- 2/11/2022
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Each week we highlight the noteworthy titles that have recently hit streaming platforms in the United States. Check out this week’s selections below and past round-ups here.
Air Doll (Hirokazu Kore-eda)
Despite coming from one of international cinema’s foremost working filmmakers, Hirokazu Kore-eda’s 2009 film Air Doll had never seen a release in the U.S. Adapted by Kore-eda from Yoshiie Gōda’s manga series Kuuki Ningyo, it’s a modern retelling of the Galatea myth—in which the king Pygmalion fell in love with his ivory statue and the goddess Aphrodite brought the statue to life. For a 21st-century spin on the tale, Kore-eda naturally updated the statue to a blow-up sex doll, played by Bae Doona. – Mitchell B. (full review)
Where to Stream: VOD
Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes (Junta Yamaguchi)
The logistics behind Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes are mind-boggling to fathom; time-travel stories are...
Air Doll (Hirokazu Kore-eda)
Despite coming from one of international cinema’s foremost working filmmakers, Hirokazu Kore-eda’s 2009 film Air Doll had never seen a release in the U.S. Adapted by Kore-eda from Yoshiie Gōda’s manga series Kuuki Ningyo, it’s a modern retelling of the Galatea myth—in which the king Pygmalion fell in love with his ivory statue and the goddess Aphrodite brought the statue to life. For a 21st-century spin on the tale, Kore-eda naturally updated the statue to a blow-up sex doll, played by Bae Doona. – Mitchell B. (full review)
Where to Stream: VOD
Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes (Junta Yamaguchi)
The logistics behind Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes are mind-boggling to fathom; time-travel stories are...
- 2/4/2022
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
A24 has debuted a trailer for Kogonada’s ‘After Yang’ starring Colin Farrell and Jodie Turner-Smith.
When his young daughter’s beloved companion — an android named Yang — malfunctions, Jake (Colin Farrell) searches for a way to repair him. In the process, he discovers the life that has been passing in front of him, reconnecting with his wife (Jodie Turner-Smith) and daughter across a distance he didn’t know was there.
Written and directed by Kogonada, the film stars Colin Farrell, Jodie Turner-Smith, Justin H. Min, Malea Emma Tjandrawidjaja, Haley Lu Richardson, Sarita Choudhury, Clifton Collins Jr.
Also in trailers – New trailer launched for Blerta Basholli’s ‘Hive’
The film has a US release of March 4th.
The future has never looked so human. Colin Farrell, Jodie Turner-Smith, and Justin H. Min star in @Kogonada’s soulful sci-fi drama, After Yang. In theaters & streaming on @Showtime March 4 pic.twitter.com/cQMsIHA...
When his young daughter’s beloved companion — an android named Yang — malfunctions, Jake (Colin Farrell) searches for a way to repair him. In the process, he discovers the life that has been passing in front of him, reconnecting with his wife (Jodie Turner-Smith) and daughter across a distance he didn’t know was there.
Written and directed by Kogonada, the film stars Colin Farrell, Jodie Turner-Smith, Justin H. Min, Malea Emma Tjandrawidjaja, Haley Lu Richardson, Sarita Choudhury, Clifton Collins Jr.
Also in trailers – New trailer launched for Blerta Basholli’s ‘Hive’
The film has a US release of March 4th.
The future has never looked so human. Colin Farrell, Jodie Turner-Smith, and Justin H. Min star in @Kogonada’s soulful sci-fi drama, After Yang. In theaters & streaming on @Showtime March 4 pic.twitter.com/cQMsIHA...
- 2/2/2022
- by Zehra Phelan
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Altitude has dropped a new trailer for Blerta Basholli’s Sundance triple award-winning drama ‘Hive.’
Based on the true story of Fahrije (Yllka Gashi) who, like many of the other women in her patriarchal village, has lived with fading hope and burgeoning grief since her husband went missing during the war in Kosovo. In order to provide for her struggling family, she pulls the other widows in her community together to launch a business selling a local food product. Together, they find healing and solace in considering a future without their husbands—but their will to begin living independently is met with hostility.
The men in the village condemn Fahrije’s efforts to empower herself and the women around her, starting a feud that threatens their newfound sovereignty—and the financial future of Fahrije’s family. Against the backdrop of civil unrest and lingering misogyny, Fahrije and the women of...
Based on the true story of Fahrije (Yllka Gashi) who, like many of the other women in her patriarchal village, has lived with fading hope and burgeoning grief since her husband went missing during the war in Kosovo. In order to provide for her struggling family, she pulls the other widows in her community together to launch a business selling a local food product. Together, they find healing and solace in considering a future without their husbands—but their will to begin living independently is met with hostility.
The men in the village condemn Fahrije’s efforts to empower herself and the women around her, starting a feud that threatens their newfound sovereignty—and the financial future of Fahrije’s family. Against the backdrop of civil unrest and lingering misogyny, Fahrije and the women of...
- 2/1/2022
- by Zehra Phelan
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Writer-director Blerta Basholli recently made her feature film debut with “Hive,” which tells the true story of Fahrije Hoti, a Kosovan woman who started manufacturing and selling a red pepper spread as a way of employing widows in her troubled village. The film, Kosovo’s official entry for Best International Feature, attracted plenty of fans after its 2021 Sundance premiere, including Elisabeth Moss. The “Mad Men” and “The Handmaid’s Tale” star said she watched the film multiple times and was thoroughly impressed by the story, so much so that she came on board the film as an executive producer alongside Love & Squalor Pictures partner Lindsey McManus.
Moss recently sat down with Basholli to have a conversation about the artistic choices required to make a compelling film based on a true story, and IndieWire is pleased to exclusively debut the conversation in full.
Basholli said that she was always drawn to Hoti’s story,...
Moss recently sat down with Basholli to have a conversation about the artistic choices required to make a compelling film based on a true story, and IndieWire is pleased to exclusively debut the conversation in full.
Basholli said that she was always drawn to Hoti’s story,...
- 2/1/2022
- by Christian Zilko
- Indiewire
The topics of their films are wide-ranging — but four directors whose movies have made the shortlist for Academy Award consideration for International Feature Film all described their movies as tales of challenging the obstacles to forming essential human connections. Of a total of 92 eligible films, 15 made the final short list.
Four of those 15 finalists joined TheWrap’s Steve Pond for a discussion about the inspiration behind their movies. The list includes Sebastian Meise, director of Austrian entry “Great Freedom;” Blerta Basholli; Fernando León de Aranoa and Maria Schrader,. All four directors also served as writer or co-writer of their movies, and have very personal connections with the stories on screen.
Meise’s “Great Freedom” tells the story of Hans (Franz Rogowski) who is repeatedly imprisoned over decades for being a homosexual. Despite the odds, he establishes a loving relationship with his longtime cell mate, Viktor, a convicted murderer.
Meise said...
Four of those 15 finalists joined TheWrap’s Steve Pond for a discussion about the inspiration behind their movies. The list includes Sebastian Meise, director of Austrian entry “Great Freedom;” Blerta Basholli; Fernando León de Aranoa and Maria Schrader,. All four directors also served as writer or co-writer of their movies, and have very personal connections with the stories on screen.
Meise’s “Great Freedom” tells the story of Hans (Franz Rogowski) who is repeatedly imprisoned over decades for being a homosexual. Despite the odds, he establishes a loving relationship with his longtime cell mate, Viktor, a convicted murderer.
Meise said...
- 1/26/2022
- by Diane Haithman
- The Wrap
Kosovo’s entry for Best International Feature Film at the 94th Academy Awards, “Hive,” tells the true story of Fahrije Hoti (played by Yllka Gashi), whose husband has been missing since the war in Kosovo. She sets up her own small business to provide for her kids, but as she fights against a patriarchal society that does not support her, she faces a crucial decision. The film was directed and written by Blerta Basholli, who is excited to represent Kosovo for the first time on the 2022 Oscars shortlist. Watch our exclusive video interview with Basholli and Gashi above.
“It feels great,” says Basholli. “The film has had a really interesting journey and lovely one since Sundance last year. 2021 was a good journey for ‘Hive’ and for us. We come from a small country and although we have a lot of beautiful stories to tell, we do come from a small country.
“It feels great,” says Basholli. “The film has had a really interesting journey and lovely one since Sundance last year. 2021 was a good journey for ‘Hive’ and for us. We come from a small country and although we have a lot of beautiful stories to tell, we do come from a small country.
- 1/25/2022
- by Denton Davidson
- Gold Derby
Predicting the eventual five Oscar nominees for Best International Feature is made difficult by the three-step process that began after the November 1 deadline for countries to submit entries. To be part of the selection process for this category, which was called Best Foreign Language Film before 2020, requires a great deal of dedication. (Scroll down for the most up-to-date 2022 Oscar predictions for Best International Feature.)
First, the several hundred academy members of the International Feature screening committee were divided into groups and required to watch a minimum of 12 of the submissions over a six-week period that ended in mid December. They rated them from 6 to 10 and their top 15 vote-getters made it to the next round. That list of semi-finalists was revealed on December 21, 2021.
These 15 films are made available to the entire academy membership who can cast ballots for the final five nominees provided they attest to having watched all the entries.
First, the several hundred academy members of the International Feature screening committee were divided into groups and required to watch a minimum of 12 of the submissions over a six-week period that ended in mid December. They rated them from 6 to 10 and their top 15 vote-getters made it to the next round. That list of semi-finalists was revealed on December 21, 2021.
These 15 films are made available to the entire academy membership who can cast ballots for the final five nominees provided they attest to having watched all the entries.
- 1/24/2022
- by Paul Sheehan
- Gold Derby
The Criterion Channel’s February Lineup Includes Melvin Van Peebles, Douglas Sirk, Laura Dern & More
Another month, another Criterion Channel lineup. In accordance with Black History Month their selections are especially refreshing: seven by Melvin Van Peebles, five from Kevin Jerome Everson, and Criterion editions of The Harder They Come and The Learning Tree.
Regarding individual features I’m quite happy to see Abderrahmane Sissako’s fantastic Bamako, last year’s big Sundance winner (and Kosovo’s Oscar entry) Hive, and the remarkably beautiful Portuguese feature The Metamorphosis of Birds. Add a three-film Laura Dern collection (including the recently canonized Smooth Talk) and Pasolini’s rarely shown documentary Love Meetings to make this a fine smorgasboard.
See the full list of February titles below and more on the Criterion Channel.
Alan & Naomi, Sterling Van Wagenen, 1992
All That Heaven Allows, Douglas Sirk, 1955
The Angel Levine, Ján Kadár, 1970
Babylon, Franco Rosso, 1980
Babymother, Julian Henriques, 1998
Bamako, Abderrahmane Sissako, 2006
Beat Street, Stan Lathan, 1984
Blacks Britannica, David Koff, 1978
The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution,...
Regarding individual features I’m quite happy to see Abderrahmane Sissako’s fantastic Bamako, last year’s big Sundance winner (and Kosovo’s Oscar entry) Hive, and the remarkably beautiful Portuguese feature The Metamorphosis of Birds. Add a three-film Laura Dern collection (including the recently canonized Smooth Talk) and Pasolini’s rarely shown documentary Love Meetings to make this a fine smorgasboard.
See the full list of February titles below and more on the Criterion Channel.
Alan & Naomi, Sterling Van Wagenen, 1992
All That Heaven Allows, Douglas Sirk, 1955
The Angel Levine, Ján Kadár, 1970
Babylon, Franco Rosso, 1980
Babymother, Julian Henriques, 1998
Bamako, Abderrahmane Sissako, 2006
Beat Street, Stan Lathan, 1984
Blacks Britannica, David Koff, 1978
The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution,...
- 1/24/2022
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
If you wanted to name a winner from the Oscar international film shortlist right now, it would be the Cannes Film Festival. Nine of the 15 titles that made the cut came from the fest, even though the Palme d’Or winner, France’s submission “Titane,” did not. But then only those who were not paying attention to past trends in stage one voting assumed that it would be included.
Although a record 93 countries put forward an entry, only 15 are moving on. The ones selected for the shortlist come from almost every continent, although Africa, despite some exciting entries such as Somalia’s “The Gravedigger’s Wife,” Chad’s “Lingui: The Sacred Bonds” and Morocco’s “Casablanca Beats,” was ignored (all three titles premiered at Cannes).
Cannes players that are in the mix include Iran’s “A Hero,” helmed by previous Oscar-winner Asghar Farhadi; Norway’s “The Worst Person in the World...
Although a record 93 countries put forward an entry, only 15 are moving on. The ones selected for the shortlist come from almost every continent, although Africa, despite some exciting entries such as Somalia’s “The Gravedigger’s Wife,” Chad’s “Lingui: The Sacred Bonds” and Morocco’s “Casablanca Beats,” was ignored (all three titles premiered at Cannes).
Cannes players that are in the mix include Iran’s “A Hero,” helmed by previous Oscar-winner Asghar Farhadi; Norway’s “The Worst Person in the World...
- 1/22/2022
- by Shalini Dore and Alissa Simon
- Variety Film + TV
Years ago, you wouldn’t have looked to the international feature category — or foreign-language film, as it was more insularly named back then — for much in the way of reflecting the modern world. World War II history and heartwarming child’s-eye family portraits were for a long time the staple diet of an award that shied away from more nervy topics. This year’s shortlist, however, sees a number of global filmmakers tackling more resonant, contemporary subject matter — with matters of gender and sexuality woven through a number of them.
Germany’s entry, “I’m Your Man,” even strays into science fiction, a genre rarely given much attention in this category. Maria Schrader’s witty, philosophical romantic comedy begins as a battle of wills between Alma (Maren Eggert), an independent, career-oriented academic, and Tom (Dan Stevens), the android boyfriend tailored directly for her needs in a lab — though it seems he...
Germany’s entry, “I’m Your Man,” even strays into science fiction, a genre rarely given much attention in this category. Maria Schrader’s witty, philosophical romantic comedy begins as a battle of wills between Alma (Maren Eggert), an independent, career-oriented academic, and Tom (Dan Stevens), the android boyfriend tailored directly for her needs in a lab — though it seems he...
- 1/22/2022
- by Guy Lodge
- Variety Film + TV
Paolo Sorrentino, director of the 86th Academy Awards winner The Great Beauty, has his latest The Hand Of God (a Netflix release) shortlisted for the 94th Academy Awards Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
From Kosovo, Hive, Blerta Basholli director; Belgium, Playground, Laura Wandel director; Bhutan, Lunana: A Yak In The Classroom, Pawo Choyning Dorji director; Austria, Great Freedom, Sebastian Meise director; Germany, I’m Your Man, Maria Schrader director; Italy, The Hand Of God, Paolo Sorrentino director (also of the Oscar-winning The Great Beauty at the 86th Academy Awards); Japan, Drive My Car, Ryusuke Hamaguchi director; Panama, Plaza Catedral, Abner Benaim director; Norway, The Worst Person In The World, Joachim Trier director; Iran, A Hero, Asghar Farhadi director; Spain, The Good Boss, Fernando León de Aranoa director; Denmark, Flee, Jonas Poher Rasmussen director; Mexico, Prayers For The Stolen, Tatiana Huezo director; Finland, Compartment No. 6, Juho Kuosmanen director, and Iceland, Lamb, Valdimar Jóhannsson director...
From Kosovo, Hive, Blerta Basholli director; Belgium, Playground, Laura Wandel director; Bhutan, Lunana: A Yak In The Classroom, Pawo Choyning Dorji director; Austria, Great Freedom, Sebastian Meise director; Germany, I’m Your Man, Maria Schrader director; Italy, The Hand Of God, Paolo Sorrentino director (also of the Oscar-winning The Great Beauty at the 86th Academy Awards); Japan, Drive My Car, Ryusuke Hamaguchi director; Panama, Plaza Catedral, Abner Benaim director; Norway, The Worst Person In The World, Joachim Trier director; Iran, A Hero, Asghar Farhadi director; Spain, The Good Boss, Fernando León de Aranoa director; Denmark, Flee, Jonas Poher Rasmussen director; Mexico, Prayers For The Stolen, Tatiana Huezo director; Finland, Compartment No. 6, Juho Kuosmanen director, and Iceland, Lamb, Valdimar Jóhannsson director...
- 12/21/2021
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Peter Kerekes’s “107 Mothers,” a Slovak drama about women living and working in a Ukrainian prison, won the Crystal Arrow Award at the 13th edition of Les Arcs European Film Festival.
The festival, which wrapped on Dec. 18, took place as an-person event with “The Artist” director Michel Hazanavicius presiding over the jury which also included actors Laetitia Dosch and Sidse Babett Knudsen, author Tania de Montaigne and actor-director Éric Judor. The selection was curated by Frederic Boyer, the artistic director of both Les Arcs and Tribeca.
Represented in international markets by Films Boutique, “107 Mothers” world premiered at Venice in the horizons section and revolves around the relationship between Leysa (Maryna Klimova), a new inmate who gives birth in prison, and Iryna (Iryna Kiryazeva), the prison’s ward.
The Grand Jury Price was awarded to “Kapitan Volkonogov,” a Russian historical thriller directed by Natasha Merkulova and Aleksey Chupov. The movie,...
The festival, which wrapped on Dec. 18, took place as an-person event with “The Artist” director Michel Hazanavicius presiding over the jury which also included actors Laetitia Dosch and Sidse Babett Knudsen, author Tania de Montaigne and actor-director Éric Judor. The selection was curated by Frederic Boyer, the artistic director of both Les Arcs and Tribeca.
Represented in international markets by Films Boutique, “107 Mothers” world premiered at Venice in the horizons section and revolves around the relationship between Leysa (Maryna Klimova), a new inmate who gives birth in prison, and Iryna (Iryna Kiryazeva), the prison’s ward.
The Grand Jury Price was awarded to “Kapitan Volkonogov,” a Russian historical thriller directed by Natasha Merkulova and Aleksey Chupov. The movie,...
- 12/19/2021
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Elisabeth Moss and Lindsey McManus have boarded writer-director Blerta Basholli’s Hive as executive producers. The Love & Squalor Pictures partners will spearhead the awards push for the Kosovan Oscar entry.
Hive tells the true story of Fahrije (Yllka Gashi) who, like many of the other women in her patriarchal village, has lived with fading hope and burgeoning grief since her husband went missing during the war in Kosovo in the late 1990s. In order to provide for her struggling family, she pulls the other widows in her community together to launch a business selling ajvar, a local food product from peppers and eggplants, and together they find healing and solace in considering a future without their husbands.
When the film debuted in competition this year at Sundance, it became the first in the history of the festival to win all three top awards—including the Grand Jury Prize,...
Hive tells the true story of Fahrije (Yllka Gashi) who, like many of the other women in her patriarchal village, has lived with fading hope and burgeoning grief since her husband went missing during the war in Kosovo in the late 1990s. In order to provide for her struggling family, she pulls the other widows in her community together to launch a business selling ajvar, a local food product from peppers and eggplants, and together they find healing and solace in considering a future without their husbands.
When the film debuted in competition this year at Sundance, it became the first in the history of the festival to win all three top awards—including the Grand Jury Prize,...
- 12/13/2021
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Hive director/screenwriter Blerta Basholli with her star Yllka Gashi on bees: “They are important, but I’m scared!”
In the second instalment with Hive director/screenwriter Blerta Basholli and her star Yllka Gashi on Kosovo’s Oscar submission to the 94th Academy Awards, we discuss working with bees, creating a community, and wanting something heavy in the house. Earlier this year Hive received three much deserved World Cinema Sundance Film Festival honours - Grand Jury Prize, Directing, and the Audience Award.
Yllka Gashi on working with the bees: “When we rehearsed the scenes before we started shooting, I was amazed by how they protect the queen bee and everything.”
From Spain, during the Valladolid International Film Festival, Blerta Basholli and Yllka Gashi joined me on Zoom for an in-depth conversation on Hive.
Anne-Katrin Titze: How was it working with the bees for you? The character you play gets stung all the time.
In the second instalment with Hive director/screenwriter Blerta Basholli and her star Yllka Gashi on Kosovo’s Oscar submission to the 94th Academy Awards, we discuss working with bees, creating a community, and wanting something heavy in the house. Earlier this year Hive received three much deserved World Cinema Sundance Film Festival honours - Grand Jury Prize, Directing, and the Audience Award.
Yllka Gashi on working with the bees: “When we rehearsed the scenes before we started shooting, I was amazed by how they protect the queen bee and everything.”
From Spain, during the Valladolid International Film Festival, Blerta Basholli and Yllka Gashi joined me on Zoom for an in-depth conversation on Hive.
Anne-Katrin Titze: How was it working with the bees for you? The character you play gets stung all the time.
- 12/12/2021
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
The Oscar shortlists hit Hollywood on Dec. 21, with filmmakers and artisans alike waiting to see if their pics have made it. It’s another Covid-challenged year, with theaters still not running at full capacity and screening links de rigueur even as widespread vaccinations boost the confidence in getting back in a cinema. The films below have been gaining traction on the awards circuit so far, but given the contours of kudos campaigns, surprises can and will emerge. Critics groups are beginning to weigh in and some guild nominations are imminent. Oscar nominations will be announced Feb. 8, with the ceremony taking place March 27.
Documentary Feature
This category once again offers up an embarrassment of riches, with films such as Denmark’s “Flee” leading the pack — the Sundance winner recently won a Gotham award. “Flee” can also grab noms in animation and international feature. NatGeo’s lineup includes John Hoffman and Janet Tobias’ “Fauci,...
Documentary Feature
This category once again offers up an embarrassment of riches, with films such as Denmark’s “Flee” leading the pack — the Sundance winner recently won a Gotham award. “Flee” can also grab noms in animation and international feature. NatGeo’s lineup includes John Hoffman and Janet Tobias’ “Fauci,...
- 12/11/2021
- by Carole Horst
- Variety Film + TV
Dreaming of the sea takes on weightier significance when the dreamer lives in a landlocked country. It’s not just an idle fantasy of beach holidays and salt-rimmed cocktails — though Vera (Teuta Ajdini Jegeni) would like that too — but as Kaltrina Krasniqi’s taut, sorrowful narrative feature debut “Vera Dreams of the Sea” proves, the vision of a vast blue expanse stretching out to a far horizon can also become tacitly political for a widow who suddenly feels the weight of Kosovan patriarchy bearing down on her already burdened shoulders.
Under the high-tension whines and see-sawing violins of Petrit Çeku and Genc Salihu’s sinister, interior-monologue score, we’re introduced to Vera, a middle-aged interpreter for the deaf. As frankly and fearlessly embodied by a terrific Jegeni, Vera is onscreen almost every moment, which is already a coup given that few are the films that take a woman of this...
Under the high-tension whines and see-sawing violins of Petrit Çeku and Genc Salihu’s sinister, interior-monologue score, we’re introduced to Vera, a middle-aged interpreter for the deaf. As frankly and fearlessly embodied by a terrific Jegeni, Vera is onscreen almost every moment, which is already a coup given that few are the films that take a woman of this...
- 11/23/2021
- by Jessica Kiang
- Variety Film + TV
When Kosovan writer-director Blerta Basholli met war widow Fahrije Hoti, the subject of her new feature film Hive, she was immediately struck by her strength of character and personality, which helped shape how she would approach making a feature film based on the story of Hoti’s life after the Kosovo War.
Speaking at Deadline’s Contenders Film: International awards-season event, Basholli said she knew she had to make a character-based film because she wanted the audience to “connect to the character.”
“The story is interesting and I could make many films about [Fahrije’s] life and what she went through during the war and after the war but it was actually her character and her personality that really had a great impact on me and on all of us,” said Basholli. “It was only after I met her that I realized what kind of film this was going to be and...
Speaking at Deadline’s Contenders Film: International awards-season event, Basholli said she knew she had to make a character-based film because she wanted the audience to “connect to the character.”
“The story is interesting and I could make many films about [Fahrije’s] life and what she went through during the war and after the war but it was actually her character and her personality that really had a great impact on me and on all of us,” said Basholli. “It was only after I met her that I realized what kind of film this was going to be and...
- 11/20/2021
- by Diana Lodderhose
- Deadline Film + TV
Deadline’s Contenders Film: International kicks off this morning, offering up the opportunity to hear from filmmakers who have been making waves around the world in 2021. The second annual event spotlighting international feature films begins at 9 a.m. Pt and will showcase the cream of the crop from this year’s festival awards winners, box office hits and International Feature Oscar hopefuls as the teams behind them discuss their work and inspirations.
Click here to register and watch the livestream.
For Contenders Film: International, we’ve again pivoted to a virtual event, which will boast a robust lineup. In total, talent will appear to discuss 26 titles that will represent their home countries as the official submissions for the International Feature Film category at the 94th Academy Awards. A total of 19 studios, streamers and distributors be on hand with presentations including clips and Q&As moderated by Deadline’s crack crew...
Click here to register and watch the livestream.
For Contenders Film: International, we’ve again pivoted to a virtual event, which will boast a robust lineup. In total, talent will appear to discuss 26 titles that will represent their home countries as the official submissions for the International Feature Film category at the 94th Academy Awards. A total of 19 studios, streamers and distributors be on hand with presentations including clips and Q&As moderated by Deadline’s crack crew...
- 11/20/2021
- by Nancy Tartaglione
- Deadline Film + TV
Although its delights are effortlessly tasty, the preparation of ajvar is not quite simple. The red pepper “caviar” served in Balkan countries requires the right kind of pepper which ripens only during a specific time each year; manual labor, as each pepper must be peeled by hand; and hours of cooking on a stovetop, after which sunflower oil and spices are added. The hard work pays off especially during winter, when the vibrant red paste becomes a reminder that warmth will return. The plot of Blerta Basholli’s Hive, which opens this weekend in theaters, feels very much like the making of ajvar, a delicacy that features prominently in the film.
About a decade ago the filmmaker learned of Fahrije Hote, a woman who lost her husband overnight during the war in Kosovo. Her husband was one of the thousands who went missing in the late ’90s, and two decades...
About a decade ago the filmmaker learned of Fahrije Hote, a woman who lost her husband overnight during the war in Kosovo. Her husband was one of the thousands who went missing in the late ’90s, and two decades...
- 11/6/2021
- by Jose Solís
- The Film Stage
Exclusive: Jeff Goldblum-narrated documentary Fiddler’s Journey To The Big Screen, about Norman Jewison classic Fiddler On The Roof, is getting U.S. distribution via Zeitgeist Films and Kino Lorber.
The movie charts the story behind director Norman Jewison’s quest to recreate the lost world of Jewish life in Tsarist Russia and re-envision the beloved stage hit as a wide-screen epic.
Daniel Raim (Harold and Lillian: A Hollywood Love Story) directs the film, drawing on behind-the-scenes footage and never-before-seen stills as well as original interviews with Jewison, Topol, composer John Williams, production designer Robert F. Boyle, film critic Kenneth Turan, lyricist Sheldon Harnick, and actresses Rosalind Harris, Michele Marsh, and Neva Small.
The deal was negotiated by producers Daniel Raim and Sasha Berman, and Richard Lorber on behalf of Zeitgeist, which is planning a spring 2022 release.
The acquisition comes exactly 50 years since Jewison’s musical was released in the U.
The movie charts the story behind director Norman Jewison’s quest to recreate the lost world of Jewish life in Tsarist Russia and re-envision the beloved stage hit as a wide-screen epic.
Daniel Raim (Harold and Lillian: A Hollywood Love Story) directs the film, drawing on behind-the-scenes footage and never-before-seen stills as well as original interviews with Jewison, Topol, composer John Williams, production designer Robert F. Boyle, film critic Kenneth Turan, lyricist Sheldon Harnick, and actresses Rosalind Harris, Michele Marsh, and Neva Small.
The deal was negotiated by producers Daniel Raim and Sasha Berman, and Richard Lorber on behalf of Zeitgeist, which is planning a spring 2022 release.
The acquisition comes exactly 50 years since Jewison’s musical was released in the U.
- 11/4/2021
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
As the year winds down, November brings a packed slate of new releases––including festival favorites we can already recommend and others that hold a great deal of promise. From some of the greatest auteurs working today to breakthrough voices, there’s much to check out. See our picks below.
16. The Humans (Stephen Karam; Nov. 14 in theaters and on Showtime)
One of the notable premieres at the Toronto International Film Festival was writer-director Stephen Karam’s debut feature The Humans, adapted from his Tony Award-winning play. Coming from A24, the film follows Richard Jenkins, Jayne Houdyshell, Amy Schumer, Beanie Feldstein, Steven Yeun, and June Squibb in a story of a family who gathers in Manhattan for a Thanksgiving meal as their fears are laid bare. As C.J. Prince said in his TIFF review, “Everything is wrong in The Humans, Stephen Karam’s adaptation of his Tony-winning play. Set entirely...
16. The Humans (Stephen Karam; Nov. 14 in theaters and on Showtime)
One of the notable premieres at the Toronto International Film Festival was writer-director Stephen Karam’s debut feature The Humans, adapted from his Tony Award-winning play. Coming from A24, the film follows Richard Jenkins, Jayne Houdyshell, Amy Schumer, Beanie Feldstein, Steven Yeun, and June Squibb in a story of a family who gathers in Manhattan for a Thanksgiving meal as their fears are laid bare. As C.J. Prince said in his TIFF review, “Everything is wrong in The Humans, Stephen Karam’s adaptation of his Tony-winning play. Set entirely...
- 11/2/2021
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Indian helmer Pan Nalin’s “Last Film Show” walked off on Saturday with the top prize, the Golden Spike, at the 66th Valladolid Intl. Film Festival, one of Spain’s biggest and oldest film events and a bastion of festival-prized art film titles.
The French-Indian co-production marks Nalin’s homage to celluloid and is told through the eyes of a nine-year-old boy whose life is turned on its head after he watches his first film at the cinema. World premiering at Tribeca, it became the first foreign-language feature to score as the first runner up for Tribeca’s Audience Award.
Writer and director Pan Nalin said: “What we started in our solitude in a remote countryside of Gujarat has now started to echoing in multitudes the world over. Winning the best picture Golden Spike at the Seminci is like belonging to the rich history of cinema that Valladolid has stood for nearly seven decades.
The French-Indian co-production marks Nalin’s homage to celluloid and is told through the eyes of a nine-year-old boy whose life is turned on its head after he watches his first film at the cinema. World premiering at Tribeca, it became the first foreign-language feature to score as the first runner up for Tribeca’s Audience Award.
Writer and director Pan Nalin said: “What we started in our solitude in a remote countryside of Gujarat has now started to echoing in multitudes the world over. Winning the best picture Golden Spike at the Seminci is like belonging to the rich history of cinema that Valladolid has stood for nearly seven decades.
- 11/1/2021
- by Liza Foreman
- Variety Film + TV
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