Latest news with #82ndVeniceInternationalFilmFestival
Scoop
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Scoop
Lion Rock, A Wave In The Ocean Short Film, To Represent Aotearoa At 82nd Venice International Film Festival
Short film Lion Rock, by Prisca Bouchet and Nick Mayow, has been selected to compete in the prestigious Orizzonti Short Films section at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival (La Biennale di Venezia). Both Bouchet and Mayow were students of double Oscar®-winning director Jane Campion's A Wave in the Ocean film school, funded by Netflix and supported by the New Zealand Film Commission (NZFC). Each of the attendees of A Wave in the Ocean took part in an intensive 12-month workshop programme, mentored by Campion and film school co-director Philippa Campbell. Students received funding to create an original short film. Renowned New Zealand filmmaker, Campion, will also be honoured at the festival, including the screening of seven short films from additional A Wave in the Ocean film school students. NZFC CEO, Annie Murray, says Lion Rock 's inclusion at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival confirms the calibre of work being generated by the film school. 'The selection of Lion Rock for the Orizzonti Short Films section at Venice is a significant recognition of the creative talent nurtured, by Jane and Philippa, through A Wave in the Ocean. This innovative film school empowers emerging filmmakers to explore their unique creative voice. We're proud to support projects that encourage bold storytelling and connect New Zealand filmmakers with the world. We're also excited to continue our partnership with this world-leading initiative by funding its next iteration, A Wave in the Ocean Part 2, Deep Dive.' Sean Berney, Director, Film at Netflix: "Netflix is incredibly proud to have supported A Wave in the Ocean, a programme that exemplifies Jane Campion's unwavering vision and dedication to empowering emerging New Zealand filmmakers to share their unique narratives with a global audience. The selection of Lion Rock at one of the world's most prestigious film festivals is a testament to the exceptional talent fostered through this initiative." The 82nd Venice International Film Festival (La Biennale di Venezia) takes place from 27 August to 6 September 2025. The seven short films from A Wave in the Ocean film school screening are: A Very Good Boy by Samuel Te Kani Girl Time by Eleanor Bishop Socks by Todd Karehana In Conversation with Jack Maurer by Hash The Girl Next Door by Mingjian Cui Kurī by Ana Chaya Scotney The Brightness by Freya Silas Finch About the New Zealand Film Commission (NZFC) The New Zealand Film Commission (NZFC) is the government agency responsible for supporting and promoting New Zealand's vibrant screen industry. It invests in the development, production, and marketing of New Zealand films, both locally and internationally, and works to grow the country's reputation as a world-class destination for screen production. The NZFC provides production financing for New Zealand feature and short films, offers talent development initiatives, and administers the New Zealand Screen Production Rebate (NZSPR) – a key driver in attracting major international productions. It also supports official co-productions and offers resources to connect New Zealand filmmakers with global partners. Through its dual focus on nurturing local storytelling and bringing international productions to New Zealand's shores, the NZFC plays a vital role in the economic and cultural growth of the screen sector.
CairoScene
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- CairoScene
Amir El-Masry Stars in Venice Critics' Week Closing Film
Amir El-Masry stars in 100 Nights of Hero, directed by Julia Jackman and based on Isabel Greenberg's graphic novel, the closing film of Venice Critics' Week. Jul 30, 2025 Amir El-Masry will star in 100 Nights of Hero, the closing film of this year's Critics' Week at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival, which runs from August 27th to September 9th. The fantasy romance is directed by Julia Jackman and adapted from Isabel Greenberg's graphic novel of the same name. Set in a remote castle, the story unfolds with the arrival of a mysterious guest and follows the characters as events spiral into the surreal. El-Masry plays Jerome, joining a cast that includes Emma Corrin, Maika Monroe, Nick Galitzine, and Richard E. Grant. The role marks another step in El-Masry's expanding international career. He is also set to appear in Giant, where he plays British-Yemeni boxing icon Prince Naseem Hamed. The film traces Hamed's rise from working-class life in Sheffield to international fame, shaped by his partnership with trainer Brendan Ingle. Directed and written by Rowan Athale, Giant features Pierce Brosnan and is produced by Sylvester Stallone. El-Masry recently received critical recognition for In Camera, which screened at the 45th Cairo International Film Festival in the Special Screenings section. The film was also shown internationally at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival and the BFI London Film Festival. He has wrapped filming a new narrative feature alongside Nelly Karim, directed by Abu Bakr Shawky and produced by Mohamed Hefzy's Film Clinic.
Daily Mirror
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Netflix drops chilling first look at Guillermo del Toro's 'bucket list' movie
Netflix will soon be dropping a horror film based on a classic novel by Mary Shelley, and fans have been given a first look at the highly-anticipated movie Netflix is set to unleash a spine-tingling film onto its platform, drawing inspiration from Mary Shelley's timeless literary masterpiece. The film is just one of many book adaptations hitting the small screen soon. This picture represents one of Pinocchio mastermind Guillermo del Toro's coveted "bucket list" projects, though he admits he initially faced rejection when seeking a home for it. The 60 year old revealed to Vanity Fair that "everybody said no" when he first proposed a small-screen take on Shelley's 1818 masterwork Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. Nevertheless, Netflix stepped forward to champion the venture, which is scheduled to launch on the streaming platform this November. Production for Frankenstein is currently underway in Toronto, boasting an impressive cast including Jacob Elordi and Charles Dance, reports the Express. This Gothic sci-fi thriller, which will make its global debut in the primary competition at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival, features Oscar Isaac in the lead role. Jacob Elordi portrays Frankenstein's creature, whilst Felix Kammerer takes on William Frankenstein, Victor's younger sibling, and Mia Goth appears as Elizabeth Lavenza, William's betrothed. Charles Dance will embody Leopold Frankenstein, Victor's stern and domineering father, alongside Christoph Waltz as Harlander, an affluent arms dealer. Back in 2007, del Toro expressed that a project he "would kill to make" would be a true-to-source "Miltonian tragedy" interpretation of Frankenstein. His aspiration has now materialised, with Netflix having unveiled a haunting preview for the production. The glimpse reveals Victor presenting his creation to onlookers as he declares: "I had a vision, an idea took shape in my mind. "Inevitable, unavoidable, until it became truth. In seeking life, I created death." The chilling words set the scene as viewers catch a glimpse of Frankenstein's monster wreaking havoc aboard a ship. The teaser sparked an immediate reaction from fans, with @xseedingme exclaiming: "Nobody, and I mean NOBODY, uses imagery like del Toro does. How did I not hear about this movie? Guillermo del Toro's take on Frankenstein? Hell f****** yes!" @luxindreams also expressed excitement: "Been waiting my whole life for someone to adapt Mary Shelley's Frankenstein faithfully, and this looks amazing!". Set to premiere on Netflix in November 2025, "Frankenstein" is already generating buzz among eager audiences.
Business Wire
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Business Wire
REPLY: The Ten Finalists of the Reply AI Film Festival Have Been Announced - the International Competition That Bridges Cinema and Artificial Intelligence
TURIN, Italy--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Cinema and artificial intelligence come together at the Reply AI Film Festival to explore new frontiers in storytelling and creative production. Following the success of its first edition in 2024, the international competition created by Reply – open to all creatives who have produced a short film using new technologies and AI tools – now announces its ten finalists. The Reply AI Film Festival brings together cinema and artificial intelligence to explore new frontiers in storytelling and creative production. Following the success of its inaugural edition in 2024, the international competition, created by Reply, is open to all creative professionals. During the days of the 82nd Venice International Film Festival, the selected works – chosen from over 2,500 submission from 67 countries – will be awarded at a ceremony on Thursday, 4th September at the Mastercard Priceless Lounge, Hotel Excelsior, Lido of Venice. This event represents a unique opportunity to celebrate the dialogue between technology and cinema, showcasing emerging talent, forward-thinking ideas and innovative approaches. The winners will be selected by an international jury chaired by filmmaker Gabriele Muccino. The jury will comprise of Rob Minkoff, Caleb & Shelby Ward, Denise Negri, Dave Clark, Charlie Fink, Filippo Rizzante, Caroline Ingeborn, Paolo Moroni and Guillem Martinez Roura, among others. The jury will present three main awards to the most outstanding entries that demonstrate the greatest originality, production quality and conscious use of AI throughout the entire creative process, from scriptwriting to post-production. New to this edition are the Lexus Visionary Award, which recognises the production that best integrates technology, design and foresight in line with Lexus' pioneering spirit, and the AI for Good Award, promoted in collaboration with the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), and will recognise the short film that best addresses the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). ' The Reply AI Film Festival is a pioneering event showcasing technology and art's exciting intersection. AI is not a replacement for human creativity, but a catalyst for innovation. It will enable filmmakers to explore new styles, genres, and narratives that were previously unimaginable. As President of the Reply AIFF Jury, I'm honoured to be part of this journey, discovering new talents and celebrating the bold experiments that will shape the future of cinema. The AI revolution is just beginning, and I'm thrilled to be at the forefront of this creative explosion.' comments Gabriele Muccino. The ten finalist short films were selected for their exploration of this edition's theme, 'Generation of Emotions', and for showcasing how artificial intelligence can create authentic and emotionally engaging experiences through cinematic language. The contest attracted AI artists, filmmakers, writers, animators, VFX artists and enthusiasts from around the world, including Italy, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, the United States and Brazil. ' What stands out in all the short films from this second edition is a significant leap in quality — not only in the use of AI technologies, but in the ability to apply them to craft engaging, original, and emotionally resonant narratives. The finalists' work demonstrates how artificial intelligence can become a mature creative tool, serving those who are able to imagine new languages and forms of expression ' states Filippo Rizzante, CTO of Reply. The competition is promoted by Reply, an international group specialising in the creation of new business models enabled by AI and Digital Media. THE 10 FINALIST SHORT FILMS A Million Trillion Pathway Authors: ROHKI, art collective (US/Japan) A broken swordsman, a grieving immortal, and a cosmic being entwine across timelines to stop an empire built on blood and memory. To save the only family he has left, Hachi must survive his past—and master the demon within. Carousel Author: Andes Aloi, director (Argentina) On a subway, a man and woman envision a relationship, blending memory and fantasy. "Carousel" is a visual poem exploring their romance and its collapse, made possible through AI and featuring underwater scenes and extensive locations. Clown Author: Shanshan Jiang, artist and film-maker (Great Britain) In a surreal mix of live-action and AI imagery, the film follows a talented clown who loses her sense of self while seeking audience approval. As she alters her routines, appearance, and personality to cater to the crowd's demands, the lines between performance and reality become blurred. Corrupt Data Clan Author: Eric Kervern, artist (France) In 1993, Brooklyn gave rise to a revolutionary hip-hop collective, pushing the boundaries of sound and creativity. This captivating documentary celebrates the untold journey of a truly visionary group, which was ahead of its time by thirty years. Instinct Author: Marcello Costa Jr., film-maker (Portugal) 'Instinct' is a short film that explores what happens when primal survival instincts collide with the demands of modern life. It asks a simple but unsettling question: is becoming 'civilised' really an upgrade, or does it strip away something essential to who we are? Love at First Sight Author: Jacopo Reale, director (Italy) The short movie, entirely created through AI tools, tells the story of a young shepherd meeting a girl who silently observes him from a hill. "Love at First Sight" captures their unspoken connection and the beauty of shyness. Meme, Myself and AI Author: Private Island, production studio (Great Britain) The short movie is a mixed-media film that combines live-action with synthetic visuals and audio, highlighting the exploration of AI's personification and emphasising that AI is a tool created by humans. The film shows that authenticity comes from both the creators and the audience. Not Chosen Author: Javier Marro, film-maker (Chile) 'Not Chosen' is an animated short film that follows a small blue stuffed toy with beige horns, rejected from a prize machine and left unclaimed. As he wanders through the outside world seeking belonging, he faces only indifference and abandonment. Through intimate and silent visuals, the film explores the quiet resilience of those who are overlooked. The Cinema That Never Was Author: Mark Wachholz, director (Germany) "The Cinema That Never Was" imagines unmade films—those abandoned or never conceived—exploring how they might have altered the course of cinematic history. AI tools enable the creation and discovery of these lost ideas, allowing creators to produce visuals, music, and narratives that reflect classic cinema aesthetics. UN RÊVE LIQUIDE Author: Andrea Lommatzsch, artist (Italy) A short movie where AI played a crucial role in transforming an idea into a visual narrative, enabling the creation of images, scenes, and animations. This resulted in a short film with a visual impact that wouldn't have been possible without AI or a substantial budget.
Time of India
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Purulia girl's tale on Mumbai migrants in competition at Venice film fest
1 2 3 Kolkata: A Purulia girl's film about two migrant women in Mumbai, whose lives become unexpectedly intertwined, is in competition with 18 other feature films in the Orizzonti section of the 82nd Venice International Film Festival. Anuparna Roy's 'Songs of Forgotten Trees', set in Mumbai, is inspired by the story of her childhood friend from Monpura village in Bengal. The Hindi film, filmed by a cinematographer from Bengal, is competing with Teona Strugar Mitevska's film on Mother Teresa. Roy, whose first short film was shot in Purulia, is also keen showcase the Bengal where she grew up. The film's cinematographer, Debjit Samanta, is from Kolkata. "Sakyadeb Chowdhury from SRFTI is the second unit DOP. They are an integral part of my film. Though my film is set in Mumbai, my childhood experiences of Bengal form the springboard for the script. Growing up as a girl in rural and not elite Bengal, I experienced how institutions from schools to family made gender-based discrimination feel normal. In my village school, boys received books and toys. We girls received rice rations based on our body weight until fourth grade," Roy added. As a child attending Ranipur High School, Roy became friends with a girl named Jhuma Nath. "Our village, Narayanpur, was predominantly inhabited by Rajputs. I met Jhuma in Class V and quickly grew fond of her. However, everything changed when I mentioned her name to my father. The caste divisions were deeply entrenched, even within my own family. Despite being a mining engineer, my father reacted with disapproval upon hearing Jhuma's surname. He mocked me for developing a close friendship with someone from the Nath community," she recalled. You Can Also Check: Kolkata AQI | Weather in Kolkata | Bank Holidays in Kolkata | Public Holidays in Kolkata Roy was too young to protest against caste discrimination. "I couldn't understand why my father refused to accept my friendship with her. From the next day, I stopped speaking to her. Jhuma would often approach me and quietly ask why I had changed. I had no answer. Eventually, I learned that she married and would never return to school. My intention was to make a documentary about searching for her, but my proposal was not approved by the Public Service Broadcasting Trust (PSBT)," she said. For the feature film, Roy developed the concept further. The protagonist is a sex worker and wannabe actor in Mumbai whose sugar daddy provides her with an apartment. She sublets the living room to another migrant woman from north India. "My protagonist clings to memories of a lost girl from her childhood. The memories she shares are drawn from my own recollections of Jhuma. In the film, I use the metaphor of the Hollong tree from Assam, often referred to as the forgotten tree. In the story, it symbolises the girl my protagonist has lost," Roy explained, who worked in the corporate sector while writing this film. The film also explores the platonic relationship the two migrant women share. "It also shows how these two women are stuck in the same routine of a straight, male-dominated society. They are not able to express their true feelings for each other until they clearly see how the world around them is like a closed circle, built and controlled by men. In cinema, we women are rarely seen as we are. Instead, we are often sugar-coated through the male gaze, packaged, labelled, and filtered through imposed political, religious, and social frameworks. My film resists that. It attempts to reclaim the space where women exist not as symbols, metaphors, or vessels of ideologies but as themselves," Roy said. Roy is keen to shoot in Bengal. "My first short film, 'Run To The River', was shot in Bengal. It was made in Purulia's local dialect and won a special jury mention at the festival in Russia's Cheboksary and was at festivals in Stuttgart and London. I am keen to return to shoot in Bengal. But the language will be regional, not one used by the elite Bengali language. It will criticise the urban elite's propaganda on culture, language, and system," she said. Kolkata: A Purulia girl's film about two migrant women in Mumbai, whose lives become unexpectedly intertwined, is in competition with 18 other feature films in the Orizzonti section of the 82nd Venice International Film Festival. Anuparna Roy's 'Songs of Forgotten Trees', set in Mumbai, is inspired by the story of her childhood friend from Monpura village in Bengal. The Hindi film, filmed by a cinematographer from Bengal, is competing with Teona Strugar Mitevska's film on Mother Teresa. Roy, whose first short film was shot in Purulia, is also keen showcase the Bengal where she grew up. The film's cinematographer, Debjit Samanta, is from Kolkata. "Sakyadeb Chowdhury from SRFTI is the second unit DOP. They are an integral part of my film. Though my film is set in Mumbai, my childhood experiences of Bengal form the springboard for the script. Growing up as a girl in rural and not elite Bengal, I experienced how institutions from schools to family made gender-based discrimination feel normal. In my village school, boys received books and toys. We girls received rice rations based on our body weight until fourth grade," Roy added. As a child attending Ranipur High School, Roy became friends with a girl named Jhuma Nath. "Our village, Narayanpur, was predominantly inhabited by Rajputs. I met Jhuma in Class V and quickly grew fond of her. However, everything changed when I mentioned her name to my father. The caste divisions were deeply entrenched, even within my own family. Despite being a mining engineer, my father reacted with disapproval upon hearing Jhuma's surname. He mocked me for developing a close friendship with someone from the Nath community," she recalled. Roy was too young to protest against caste discrimination. "I couldn't understand why my father refused to accept my friendship with her. From the next day, I stopped speaking to her. Jhuma would often approach me and quietly ask why I had changed. I had no answer. Eventually, I learned that she married and would never return to school. My intention was to make a documentary about searching for her, but my proposal was not approved by the Public Service Broadcasting Trust (PSBT)," she said. For the feature film, Roy developed the concept further. The protagonist is a sex worker and wannabe actor in Mumbai whose sugar daddy provides her with an apartment. She sublets the living room to another migrant woman from north India. "My protagonist clings to memories of a lost girl from her childhood. The memories she shares are drawn from my own recollections of Jhuma. In the film, I use the metaphor of the Hollong tree from Assam, often referred to as the forgotten tree. In the story, it symbolises the girl my protagonist has lost," Roy explained, who worked in the corporate sector while writing this film. The film also explores the platonic relationship the two migrant women share. "It also shows how these two women are stuck in the same routine of a straight, male-dominated society. They are not able to express their true feelings for each other until they clearly see how the world around them is like a closed circle, built and controlled by men. In cinema, we women are rarely seen as we are. Instead, we are often sugar-coated through the male gaze, packaged, labelled, and filtered through imposed political, religious, and social frameworks. My film resists that. It attempts to reclaim the space where women exist not as symbols, metaphors, or vessels of ideologies but as themselves," Roy said. Roy is keen to shoot in Bengal. "My first short film, 'Run To The River', was shot in Bengal. It was made in Purulia's local dialect and won a special jury mention at the festival in Russia's Cheboksary and was at festivals in Stuttgart and London. I am keen to return to shoot in Bengal. But the language will be regional, not one used by the elite Bengali language. It will criticise the urban elite's propaganda on culture, language, and system," she said.
