The San Diego International Film Festival (SDiFF), produced by the San Diego Film Foundation, announced today that iconic stage and screen actor Sir Patrick Stewart will be the recipient of the Gregory Peck Award for Excellence in Cinema. The awards will be presented October 5th at The VARIETY Night of the Stars Tribute at the Pendry Hotel San Diego in Downtown San Diego, CA. Additionally, the festival announced its full line up of films, including Spotlight, Competition and Short Film sections. Now in its 16th year, the San Diego International Film Festival will run from October 4th through October 8th in San Diego, CA.…
Author: World Cinema Reports' Editors
In recent years, the Venice International Film Festival has warmed to its role as a gateway to the fall movie season. The focused lineup of 73 new feature films presents a manageable alternative to the big-tent sprawl of the Toronto International Film Festival, which opens a week later. The Italian festival’s track record of Academy Award wins in different categories by its opening-night films — ”La La Land,” “Birdman” and “Gravity” — has earned it a reputation as a kingmaker, or at least a canny oddsmaker. The 74th edition, which runs Aug. 30 to Sept. 9, opens with another potential high-achiever: Alexander Payne’s…
If you are one of those imaging and optical product enthusiast that’s been asking “What’s new with Canon?” Well, Canon put on a grand show to answer that very question. A select audience of specially invited guests that included Cinematographers, Film Makers, Videographers and Media executives were present at the demonstration of Canon’s latest exquisite range of professional video and photographic tools that held at Sheraton’s Four Point in Lekki. The event was well-attended and facilitated by Del-York International; media marketing partners to Canon in continuation of the strengthening of Canon’s overall presence in Nigeria. On hand to welcome the attendees was the vivacious Tayo Omodia, Canon’s Country…
The Malta Film Expo is being held from Friday to Sunday at St James Cavalier, Valletta. The event consists of a series of talks on film financing, writing for film and television, and the screening of over 100 short films. An exhibition is also being set up at the cavalier. This will consist of memorabilia and vintage film-making equipment; a collection of oil paintings and Gouache on paper works by Maltese artist Ray Piscopo; and a display on the career of Maltese-born US actor and singer Joseph Calleia. Here is the full programme Friday, September 1 10am to noon: Talk…
Hollywood royalty, in the shape of George Clooney, Robert Redford and Jane Fonda, will share the limelight with a 19th-century British monarch at this year’s Venice film festival, which kicks off today. The world premiere of “Victoria & Abdul,” Stephen Frears’ big-screen adaptation of the true story of the elderly Queen Victoria’s friendship with an Indian clerk, is set to be a highlight of the 74th edition of the world’s oldest cinema festival. The 2017 festival gets under way with Oscar-winning US director Alexander Payne’s sci-fi comedy “Downsizing” in an opening slot that, in recent years, has been a trampoline to future…
A Memphis cinema has scrapped its annual screening of Gone With The Wind following protests over its racial content. The decision was made amid a growing debate about Confederate symbols in the South and frankly, a lot of people give a damn. Todd Starnes, a Memphis native and Fox News commentator tweeted that the Civil War epic, the highest grossing film in history taking inflation into account, had been “done-in by a bunch of meddling, no account liberal Yankee carpetbaggers”. “The cultural cleansing of my hometown has gone too far,” he added. “Common sense has gone with the wind.” But others rallied…
Canon Middle East, a leader in imaging solutions, announced the renewal of strategic partnership with Nayla Al Khaja, the UAE’s first woman film producer, as Ambassador. This announcement comes as the UAE celebrates Emirati Women’s Day on 28th August 2017. Nayla is an iconic figure that represents class, excellence, creativity and innovation in the Middle East filmmaking industry, the same qualities that have helped maintain Canon’s reputation as the leader in imaging solutions. Nayla’s dedication to boost the UAE’s nascent – but growing – professional filmmaking industry compliments Canon’s dedication to grow the remarkable art of imaging across the region through…
Film is a creative medium that has been utilised for many years to convey messages, raise awareness, and make statements making it one of the most powerful tools one could ever master. With this in mind Akkasa Productions in Oman has started an initiative to educate the future generation of filmmakers and help them perfect their skills in an industry that has a tonne of potential in the Sultanate. The workshop aims to impart a hands-on experience to young creative minds on how to make films in a professional environment, and to also raise awareness in the industry and encourage…
On March 24, 1959, in one of the first acts following the triumph of the Cuban Revolution, Castro’s nascent government established the Cuban Institute of Cinematographic Art and Industry (ICAIC), an act that cemented the primacy of cinema as a cultural force in the nation and initiated what remains the most productive era of Cuban filmmaking (now considered to be its golden age). Of the films that emerged, arguably the most significant is Tomás Gutiérrez Alea’s Memories of Underdevelopment (1968), which screened as part of the ongoing Vancouver Latin American International Film Festival’s spotlight on Cuba. Given its enduring stature—it placed 144th on…
The tenth edition of Panorama of the European Film, which is organised by Cairo’s art-house cinema Zawya, will be held between 8 and 18 November. Panorama stands as a main pillar in Egypt’s contemporary cinematic culture, bringing award-winning films from European festivals to Egyptian screens. Panorama is co-funded by the European Union and is organised under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture and the Egyptian Film Centre. Earlier editions of Panorama have been held in cinemas and other venues across Cairo, but the event quickly expanded to screenings in Alexandria, and last year was introduced to Port Said and…