That theme is central to Alonso Ruizpalacios’ “La Cocina.” The opening scene follows Estela (Anna Diaz) to a popular New York restaurant where she seeks work as an undocumented immigrant. Later, we find that Estela plays only a small part in the chaotic story that ensues in the bowels of the restaurant. Her scene conveys an asphyxiating, intentional sense as if the director demands that you watch his film under pressure. This is not your typical meditation on class conflict or social injustice. He does not want you to sit back and feel sorry for his dirt-poor heroes. He wants the viewers to feel as smothered as they do.

The film centers around Pedro (Raúl Briones), an undocumented cook trapped between his estranged family in Mexico and his dire circumstances in the U.S., and Julia (Rooney Mara), a Caucasian waitress barely surviving. These two characters have a fleeting affair that leaves the girl pregnant. For a moment, both begin to believe there is a glimmer of hope. But when harsh reality hits them again, as it does for everyone in the restaurant crew, Pedro causes mayhem. And when the place gets trashed, and he himself is covered in food gunk, his furious boss asks: “What do you want?” Pedro has no answer.

In Aaron Schimberg’s “A Different Man,” Edward (Sebastian Stan) lives in New York, condemned to isolation due to his grotesque facial skin deformities. Although the story develops into a confused psychological thriller that appears to lose touch with a sense of reality, the first third of the film maintains the viewer’s interest by exposing the man’s struggles adapting to a hostile world. The external hostility is not directed only toward Edward, who hides beneath the mask of his physical condition; on the contrary, people like his neighbor Ingrid (Renate Reinsve) develop a strange fascination and even attraction toward him. Instead, the hostility is innate to the decadent city where buildings rot away and people suddenly drop dead.

Many other films carry out the theme. In Nelson Carlos De Los Santos Arias’s film, there is “Pepe,” a hippopotamus who wonders under what unnatural circumstances he was captured, transferred from Africa to America, and killed. In Mati Diop’s documentary “Dahomey,” stolen African artifacts are awakened from the long night of their exile on their way back to their origin, and in Piero Messina’s “Another End,” where the living wish to die and vice versa.

More than all of the above, Matthias Glasner’s “Sterben” (Dying) deals with the problems of our time in an astonishingly direct and honest way. In a press conference at the festival, the German director talked about how his film emerged from his experience of caring for his dying parents on the one hand and his newborn daughter on the other. “Sterben” elicits laughter and tears as Tom (played brilliantly by Lars Eidinger), a middle-aged orchestra conductor, finds himself in a complex set of circumstances to which he can never effectively respond.

Missing his father’s funeral because the electric car runs out of electricity in the middle of nowhere; caring for his ex-girlfriend’s newborn as a “half, non-biological father,” and getting caught in the crossfire; trying to keep his music composer friend from dying by suicide; listening to his mother admitting that she never liked her son and attempting to communicate with his renegade alcoholic sister … are just some of his daily situations. What threads them all together, though, is Tom’s gnawing feeling of inadequacy. Is it still our world? – he asks in an astute moment of artistic expression.

As usual, the Golden Globes had a strong presence at the festival, including a widely-praised party/event at the China Club on Feb. 16. Reps from the Golden Globes Assn. were also among the 100-plus entertainment journalists who attended the press conference with Martin Scorsese, the Golden Bear Honoree this year. He was asked to comment on the contribution of film festivals to international cinema. “Paying attention to the individual voice, the individual artist,” Scorsese responded; “a film festival has the opportunity to introduce to the world different points of view, basically making the world closer and smaller, meaning people knowing each other and knowing each other’s cultures.”

One could add that a festival like Berlin’s helps the world “become closer and smaller” thanks to its vibrant multi-culturalism but, most importantly, because its program collectively explores issues that are consciously or subliminally dealt with throughout contemporary everyday life.

If the question is what we want, could the answer be … we want everything? Could it ever be that Pedro gets the girl and the job, too? Love and decent pay? Can Edward be healthy and happy? Can Pepe, the hippopotamus, live peacefully in the African rivers? The living go on living? Can Tom simultaneously care for his loved ones and have a fulfilling artistic career? Can he do the right thing? And if we find that the answer is, yes, we could have all of it, that a whole life is still possible, then we might as well concede that the world is still ours.

The post Reflections on the 74th Berlinale: Is It Still Our World? appeared first on Golden Globes.

The post Golden Globes Connect at the Berlin Film Festival appeared first on Golden Globes.

“We are thrilled to bring the Golden Globes to Germany for the first time, and what better platform than the prestigious Berlin International Film Festival” proclaimed Helen Hoehne, President of the Golden Globes. “I have a special place in my heart for this film festival and the historical and cultural impact of the German entertainment industry. Berlin aligns with the Globe’s strong partnerships and ties with other leading international film festivals.”

Joining festival cousins Cannes, Venice, Sundance, and Toronto, Berlin is an exciting expansion of the Golden Globes’ international presence at the world’s leading film festivals, often the launching pads of many potential front-running motion pictures in the upcoming awards season.

The intimate gathering, held under the watchful gaze of the nearby Brandenburg Gate, proved to be an impressive congregation to many of Germany’s top creative talents. Among the prominent turnout were such renowned stars as Iris Berben, Albrecht Schuch, Ken Duken, Aylin Tezel, Christian Schwochow, Florian Gallenberger, and Veronica Ferres, who mingled with the rising class of local talent, including Jeanne Goursaud, August Wittgenstein, Philip Froissant, Dela Dabulamanzi, and Hannah Herzsprung.

Though a gentle rain dampened the streets below, partygoers were still able to whet their appetite with inspired conversation and an array of local delicacies such as schnitzel, mushroom risotto, whitefish, and seared tuna, all washed down with free-flowing champagne. Overseen by Chest of Wonders, who produced the event, guests were given the golden treatment.

The inspired purpose of Golden Globes Connect is to bring together creative talent luminaries from the motion picture and television industries on an international stage to foster an exchange of talent, ideas, and cultural experiences, further enhancing the collaborative spirit that defines the entertainment world. This inaugural event made Berlin a little more golden.

The post Golden Globes Connect at the Berlin Film Festival appeared first on Golden Globes.

Despite the rain, the Opening Gala thrilled the audience with dazzling ice-skating performances. The festival officially began with Karlovy Vary Film Festival’s President Jiří Bartoška’s proclamation: “Let’s enjoy the cinematic celebration together!” He honored celebrity guests Russell Crowe and Alicia Vikander for their contributions to the film industry. Vikander gratefully expressed her excitement about her role in the festival’s opening film Firebrand, while Crowe received a lifetime achievement award and commended the festival’s efficient organization.

Each year KVIFF presents approximately 200 films from around the globe. Heading the Crystal Globe competition this year will be a distinguished panel of judges under Patricia Clarkson, renowned for her leading role in television’s Sharp Objects.

This year, the Karlovy Vary Film Festival, known for its commitment to artistic freedom and expression, features only 11 films in competition instead of the usual 12, since a movie from China has been banned by the government from participating. On the positive side, the festival celebrates independent Iranian cinema as part of its programming: nine unique and personal films will express the spirit of Iran’s young cinema. In addition, the 57th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival pays tribute to Japanese filmmaker Yasuzo Masumura through a unique program that showcases his works.

The band Morcheeba and Crowe’s band Indoor Garden Party treated attendees to electrifying performances. These concerts delighted the massive crowds who flocked from across the Czech Republic, showing their resilience against the challenges posed by COVID-19 lockdowns.

The festival unveiled a promotional trailer featuring renowned actor Johnny Depp in keeping with its tradition. The trailer premiered at the festival’s opening ceremony, offering a playful take on the Crystal Globe award. In the clip, Depp, who has previously attended the festival as a special guest, gives a comic address about not receiving an award.

The next day Russell Crowe personally introduced his film Master & Commander: The Far Side of the World. This epic tale is set against the dramatic backdrop of the Napoleonic Wars and features Crowe’s unforgettable portrayal of Captain Jack Aubrey.  Amidst a press conference, Crowe voiced his dissatisfaction about fielding incessant inquiries about Gladiator 2, a sequel he is not involved in. Nevertheless, he spoke confidently about director Ridley Scott’s impeccable storytelling skills and cited them as valid reasons for revisiting this storyline after more than two decades have passed.

Later that day, Ewan McGregor, an acclaimed Scottish actor and a Golden Globe winner, received the President’s Award for Lifetime Achievement, saying to the audience, “Thank you so much for being here tonight. And it means just the world to me. I believe so much in what we do as actors. I’m so fortunate to do what I love and love what I do.”

He then introduced his new film You Sing Loud, I Sing Louder, in which he appears alongside his daughter Clara. The honoree described acting with his daughter as a highlight of his career to date. During the press conference he also provided an update on the mustache he is currently sporting for his role in the Paramount+ miniseries A Gentleman in Moscow. The series, based on a novel by Amor Towles, follows McGregor’s character, a nobleman held captive in a hotel room after the Russian Revolution. McGregor explained that his mustache has changed during the course of the filming, with his character initially having sported a big, curly one. He humorously concluded, “You are seeing the better side of it.”

Later in the festival Robin Wright and Christine Vachon will also receive awards.

Studio Najbrt has carefully crafted the visual design of the festival. It has incorporated experimental and dynamic elements that added a unique aesthetic to the event. Most notably, colored lines have been used in branding to represent the number 57.

Along with seeing works by renowned filmmakers and promising new talents, visitors can also anticipate retrospectives and specialized sections as part of its regular programming. Except for retrospectives and current Czech films, all screenings will debut in the Czech Republic, with many boasting world, international, or European premieres in Karlovy Vary. The Proxima and main competition offers an array of diverse films worldwide.  Once again, Karlovy Vary has proved itself an enchanting destination for film enthusiasts from around the world.

The post Cinematic Celebration Unveiled: Highlights and Honorees of the 57th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival appeared first on Golden Globes.

Owain Arthur was the first to speak. “Darkness has fallen,” he said. “Let’s say that. I think we’re all going through a big journey in season two.”

“You know that Sauron’s here.” Maxim Baldry chipped in next, “It’s more action packed. Faster too.”

Lloyd Owen added, “We all know that Sauron has been revealed at the end of Season 1. In Season 2 we see what happens when that amount of evil is finally realized. Each person throughout the universe, throughout Tolkien’s world, is going to be affected by that. There’s always going to be a human choice as to what happens when you’re introduced to people with an inherent badness. Will there be a darkness in you that will be revealed? Or will you move to the good side? Everyone is going to be faced with a dilemma, a moral dilemma, and there’s going to be some really difficult choices for each human to take. The writers have really brought that to the fore. You really feel the humanity in the internal struggle of, ‘Which way do I go here? How do I choose?’”

Baldry added, “And, Elendil has gone back to Númenor.”

Both Owen and Baldry refused to be specific about Isildur’s fate. But through the lore we know he returns, and Baldry – who plays the character – has been photographed on set.

Owen commented on the overall arc for characters in Season 2, “I think every personal relationship is affected by the politics and the evil, and how it changes and warps the mind.”

As the men wound down replying, Cynthia Addai-Robinson added, “Season 1 was really about an introduction. They set the stage for aspects of the story (that are to come in season 2, which are) maybe a little bit more familiar to audiences, because we do know a little bit more of these next few things. You have to think about Season 1 as being for those who are unfamiliar with the books, as popular as they are. A lot of people don’t know the characters or these worlds. One needed to set the stage for a very eventful second age. So Season 2, you’re going to see a lot of that storyline start to come through.”

Each actor then recapped some of their favorite and most challenging moments from the shoot. Owain Arthur bemoaned his choice to go with metal boots, which he had originally requested thinking they’d “ground” the physicality of a dwarf. “They are big and heavy,” he noted ruefully – and he’s still wearing them in Season 2: “a choice I now regret.”

Another hazard was getting sushi in his beard. “Generally, if I see a piece of hair in my food, I toss the food, because I don’t know who that hair belongs to, but when you’re eating your own beard? It just made me so angry.”

“He’s still angry,” quipped Baldry.

Baldry – whom some may recognize as the boy Rowan Atkinson befriends in Mr. Bean’s Holiday – has previously talked of getting seasick while shooting the water scenes in Season 1, but he added at the Monte Carlo Television Festival, that the horse riding was pretty challenging too, and not for the reasons you’d think.

“They had me on a horse, wearing a huge helmet which made it pretty difficult to see by itself,” he explained. “To make matters worse, the helmet had this big ponytail on the back, that was just going everywhere as I galloped into town, but mainly in my face. It was a very Ariana Grande moment.” He laughed. “That was a tough day on the set. But then when you go outside and see an Orc drinking a milkshake, it makes up for it.”

For Cynthia Addai-Robinson, portraying Queen Regent Miriel felt like kismet. “Sometimes you get cast in a role as you are navigating something akin in your real life. I don’t have to lead a society. I’m grateful that I don’t. Heavy is the head that wears the crown. But it was interesting to consider what happens when you sense the fraying of society and your feelings around that. I think it’s distressing to have that sense that there is a change underway and you don’t know which way it’s going to go.

“Miriel gave me the chance to think on that. For many people watching the series, it maybe allowed something that they could latch onto. The show is a place for an audience to come and feel a sense of humanity and being able to relate to, think on, weep over and laugh about things. I feel like that’s what Lord of the Rings: Power of the Rings does.”

The cast agreed that shooting Season 2 in the UK, rather than New Zealand, added resonance. “Tolkien’s from the UK. He was inspired by the local nature, the trees, pastures, and fields,” noted Lloyd Owen. “I think filming there was also a homage to him in a way. It was fantastic to be on location. There’s definitely something about coming back to where Tolkien imagined this story originally. He would’ve been inspired by the geography that surrounded him; that and his South African upbringing. It felt like treading on hallowed ground, being in the UK.”

In closing, a reporter asked what effect the internet trolls’ reaction to inclusivity in the casting of the series had had on the actors.

Owain Arthur leaned in, his outrage audible in his voice.  “It is infuriating when you go, ‘Oh, God. Really? Are we still there as a human race?’ That drives me wild. The (actors) have been through a lot to be on the receiving end of things. I hope one day we will as a human race just be one. It sounds very, maybe pathetic or dramatic what I’m saying here, but genuinely: just stop racism. Full stop.”

Lord of the Rings: Power of the Rings is due for release on Prime in 2023.

The post “Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” S2 – Spoilers & Memories appeared first on Golden Globes.

The film recently won the Best Director award at the Amsterdam’s IDFA, and it was acclaimed at the Tokyo Film Festival and the London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival, among many other festivals where has been showcased.

“Antonia represents all trans people who have lost the battle in the recognition of their identity at the moment of their death,” said co-writer and director Roberta Torre in the production notes. “This film is a contribution to the search for freedom, a hymn to those who make their life a free path, with strength, courage, tears, joy, despite everything.”

Le Favolose is an Italian co-production of Stemal Entertainment, Faber Produzioni and Rai Cinema, produced by Donatella Palermo. Writer/director Torre, born in Milan, Italy, has debuted in film with Tano da morire (1998) – a humorous and ironic take on Mafia – followed by Sud Side Story, a musical re-visitation of Romeo and Juliet. She’s also known for Angela (2001), Mare Nero (2006), I baci mai dati (2010), and Riccardo va all’Inferno (2017).

Playing the main character roles in Le Favolose are Porpora Marcasciano, a well-known activist and author in the Italian LGBTQ community, Rocco Castrocielo, Mizia Ciulini, Nicole De Leo, Sofia Mehiel and Antonio Iaia, the residents of a villa housing transgender women, who are trying to fulfill their late friend last wish.

“The disavowal of one’s identity remains for many trans people a second death, that of their memory,” says Torre, who goes on explaining that Antonia – in the film – is buried with her birth first name, Giampaolo, with people’s indifference. Twenty years later, the discovery of a letter pushes her best friends, Porpora and Nicole, to organize a meeting of the Memorable Royal Family, the group of “chosen ones” in their trans world, to relive an entire day all together in the same spot, as they used to do fabulously over weekends many years before.  Antonia will be called back in a seance. And will finally wear something appropriate.

Says Torre: “I started thinking about this film with Porpora [Marcasciano] in 2015. I read her books and I fell in love with her story and journey, and thanks to her I learned a lot about trans people. But I still couldn’t find a story that could become a film, a story which I could also relate with, until I encountered the one, I called Antonia in this film. She represents all the trans people who have lost the battle of recognition of their identity at the moment of their death. All those people who on their last journey were betrayed and robbed of their history, their identity, the path they have built in this life, including their clothes. Dressed as a man for their last farewell, they left this world with an identity that does not belong to them and which for their families of origin is a guarantee of social order. It’s a violent gesture, a depredation of their identity.”

Porpora Marcasciano, 65, is an historical figure in the Trans movement in Italy since the 1970s, and one of the founders of FUORI! gay “outing” activist community (she’s now President of the Committee for Equal Opportunities in the city of Bologna); she’s the author of several essays on the Italian LGBT world, including “AntoloGaia, I miei anni ’70”, “Favolose narranti. Storie di transessuali”, “Tra le rose e le viole. La storia e le storie di transessuali e travestiti”. Porpora became an activist following the assassination of poet, essayist and film director Pier Paolo Pasolini in 1975. With Marco Sanna and Enzo Ienna, Porpora founded the collective NARCISO (Italian acronym for International Subversive Homosexual Armed Communist Revolutionary Groups). In 2016 Porpora was awarded as Human Rights Defender by Amnesty International, and in 2021 the UN has listed her among the leading seven trans activist in the world.

“With Roberta Torre we looked for each other and found each other,” says Porpora in the production’s notes. “We observed, scrutinized, questioned each other for a long time, sufficiently to focus on the extremely delicate subject of the trans experience.  Finding a film with the right approach to this subject has been very rare. Actually, I’ve never seen a film telling a story of this significant human experience with honesty and respect, and mainly with a first-hand understanding. Roberta and I and all the other fabulous ones have gone all in to tell an honest story of us without recurring to tired cliches and over the top stereotypes.”

The post “Le Favolose” at 2023 Outfest LA Film Festival appeared first on Golden Globes.

The 2023 edition of the Palm Springs Short Film Festival is on and going strong. The weather is just perfect and seems to have set into a pattern of reliably warm days and cool nights. Known around the film festival circuit as the only festival that takes place in hell – there is no question that summer temperatures in the Coachella Valley can be intimidating – The ShortFest had its Gayla event last night. As the name indicates, the evening program was composed entirely of gay-themed stories. A wonderful and breezy time was had by all present.

At the Camelot 1 theater, the 83-minute Gayla started off with a 14 minute American comedy called 100% USDA Certified Organic Tofu. The story, told in the hilarious tones of Gen Z ennui mixed with sexual affirmation, tells the story of a girl called Nikki who was born a boy, who is now the one who spices things up at her mother’s restaurant in Los Angeles’ Koreatown. Nikki works there because she needs the money… for a breast augmentation. Deadpan comedy ensues, with a happy ending. Nikki gets her wish and the restaurant even becomes the trendiest spot in Koreatown. Director Gbenga Komolafe elicits wonderful acting all around, never tiptoeing or pussyfooting around when issues of sexual identity are brought up. The theater audience roared, applauded. And begged for more.

More was served in adorably raunchy terms with the short film Pipes, a gorgeous animation piece made in Switzerland by the very talented Jessica Meier, Kilian Feusi and Sujanth Ravichandram. The film runs a mere 4 minutes long, yet, it packs a sizeable punch. In a simple black and white animation piece that neither stints on detail nor runs out of hilarious energy, we meet a bear working as a plumber who is called to resolve an issue at a private business. Before the bear realizes what is happening, he finds himself in the middle of a hardcore sex club where tubbing, flow and consensual fun seem to be the norm. Somehow, he feels at home and joins a rumbunctious crowd that, as it turns out, adores him. The mature audience laughed and conversations seemed to be sparked.

In the short Gold and Mud, comedy and tragedy alternate in the story of a human face, as we see a woman going through the many phases of her life. Tremendous acting lead to a haunting finale in this piece directed by Conor Dooley. In Insta Gay, two best friends in their mid-twenties try to survive the many pitfalls of daily life in Toronto. During a traumatic party attended by a very pretentious crowd of disdainful boys dressed in black, some certainties fall into place. The film, directed by Simon Paluck, has sarcasm in spades and a comedic tone that merits devoted following in the influencer universe.

Two French movies might have stolen the night. One, Christopher at Sea, is directed by Tom C J Brown. It’s a 20-minute visual treat of ocean waves, magnificent night skies and romantic longings. We see a young man, Christopher, embarking on a container ship that will be making the Atlantic crossing from France to America. He too seems to be at a point of his life where, internally, a big leap is in order – and one of the men working on board might be ready to help him along in this beautiful story of sexual discovery in which the ground moves under your feet. In Idiot Fish, the 24-minute film helmed by Hakim Mao, two youths travel the south of France and engage in romantic moves peppered by role play. Enter the hitchhiker. Between seduction and betrayal, games are played and new selves revealed.

The 29^th Palm Springs International ShortFest, known as an open-minded forum that tackles original themes and propels new talent forward, continues today with the exhibition of many works about a variety of themes.  This year the annual event runs from June 20-26. 

The post About Last Night: Gayla Evening at the Palm Springs International ShortFest 2023 appeared first on Golden Globes.

The evening was filled with emotion and laughter. The entire auditorium got to their feet and serenaded John Goodman, Jury President – Fiction, for his birthday.

Later in the ceremony, Goodman announced that instead of awarding the Jury Prize to a show, series or film, the jury was honoring a performer, Timi-Joy Marbot for Le Colossi aux piers d’argile which deals with pedophilia. Goodman noted, “Sexual assault and rape against children – to this we cannot be indifferent. What happens in our childhood shapes us as adults.” He went on to note, “Silence is a predator’s best ally. We must break the silence. Timi-Joy Marbot portrayed the struggle against silence brilliantly.”  The young star broke down on stage as he talked about the role and the audience rose to their feet in extended applause. 

H.S.H. Princess Stephanie took to the stage to announce, with a soft Southern African accent, the winner of the Special Prize Prince Rainier III Award, Until the Last Drop, which deals with the pollution and reclaiming of our rivers.

The Honorary Golden Nymph Award, the Festival’s highest accolade which is bestowed upon a renowned professional for their extraordinary contribution to the entertainment industry, was presented by Princess Charlene of Monaco to acclaimed Hollywood producer and writer Howard Gordon, who has premiered many of his successful shows at the Monte-Carlo Television Festival over his vast career, including The X-Files and 24.

The closing ceremony, which was co-hosted by American Gods star Ricky Whittle and celebrity influencer Lena Situations, bestowed 18 nominations from 13 countries in fiction as well as news and documentary categories. The Prince Rainier III Special Prize, the Prix du Public in partnership with BetaSeries, the Monaco Red Cross Prize and the AMADE Prize were also awarded.

After the awards show, an exclusive celebration took place at the Salle des Etoiles, at the Sporting Monte-Carlo Center. The glamorous evening began with a classical recital by violinist extraordinaire Sakura, who returned later to accompany Cecile and Roman in an aerialist concert both erotic and beautiful, performing their renowned Bathtub and Hoop specialist show.

Stars and celebrities were served a scrumptious meal of French-influenced cuisine paired with champagne and wines. As dessert was served, DJ Mosimann performed a private concert and the glitterati spilled onto the dance floor as Prince Charlene slipped away and the party continued well into the early hours of the morning.

List of Winners:

Best Film:

Le Colosse Aux Pieds d’Argile

Make It Happen Studio, Shoot Again Productions, En Coproduction Avec TF1 France

Best Series:

Ten Pound Poms

Eleven Film

United Kingdom, Australia

Best Creation:

The Seed

Odeon Fiction GmbH With Mia Film, Rein Film, ARD Degeto And NRK Germany, Norway, Czech Republic

Best Actress:

Marie Reuther

Chorus Girls Denmark

Best Actor:

Marie Reuther

Chorus Girls Denmark

Jury Special Prize:

Le Colosse Aux Pieds d’Argile

Make It Happen Studio, Shoot Again Productions, En Coproduction Avec TF1 France

Beta Series Public Prize:

The Seed

Odeon Fiction GmbH With Mia Film, Rein Film, ARD Degeto And NRK Germany, Norway, Czech Republic

Best News Program:

Life on the Donbas frontline

France Télévisions France

Best Documentary

The Man Who Played with Fire

RAW United Kingdom

Jury Special Prize:

Nazanin

649 Media & Channel 4 United Kingdom

Prince Rainier III Special Prize:

Until The Last Drop

ORIENT FILM Poland

Special Prizes:

AMADE Prize

Russia, The Stolen Children of Ukraine

BFMTV France

Monaco Red Cross Prize

Oasis of Peace

StoryCircus – Premières Lignes – Avec La Participation De France Télévisions France

The post Princess Charlene Presents at the Closing Ceremony of the 62nd Monte-Carlo Television Festival appeared first on Golden Globes.

Il sol dell’avvenire, about a film director caught on a creative and personal tailspin, debuted at Cannes Film Festival last May and received 13 minutes of applause from the audience of the Palais. The film has been out in theaters in Europe with good results. Moretti is adamant about his movies being released in theaters only).

It also marks the 50^th anniversary of Moretti’s beginning in film: in 1973 he bought a Super 8 camera and started making short movies, such as La sconfitta and Paté de bourgeois, which showcased his quirky talents and brought him quickly to the longer format.

In 1976, with the help of a shoestring budget, he wrote, directed, and acted in his first feature, Io sono un autarchico (I’m self-sufficient), followed by Ecce Bombo, in 1978. The Moretti brand of comedic melancholy, social and political commentary, and droll critique of the cultural cliches – especially among the leftist intellectuals – was born.

He went on to make hits such as Sogni d’oro, Bianca, Palombella Rossa, and Caro Diario ,all considered cult movies in Italy and France. Then, he released La stanza del figlio (The Son’s Room, with which he won the Palm d’Or in Cannes in 2001), Mia madre (My Mother) and most recently Tre Piani (Three Floors), based on Eshkol Nevo’s best-selling novel.

Il sol dell’avvenire, featuring Moretti himself, Margherita Buy and Silvio Orlando among many others, is a pastiche of musical, film-within-the-film (a la Truffaut or Fellini) and political rumination that echoes Moretti’s past works. It’s the story of Giovanni (Moretti), an Italian film director in the middle of a personal and professional crisis and maddened by the new Netflix rules of filmmaking, which he abhors.

He’s filming a movie set in 1956, in Rome, at the time of a historic snowfall and the year Soviet tanks invaded Hungary, an event that marked the disillusionment of many Italian leftists towards communism. Everything is wrapped between songs and a repertoire of Moretti’s classic gags: his obsession for shoes, Nutella, Sacher torte, Hollywood musicals, his impatience for hypocrisy, and the banalities pervading our lives.

Il sol dell’avvenire was generally well received at Cannes and in France, where Moretti enjoys an excellent following and esteem, as well as his own Italy. But whereas many critics welcomed his return to “morettismo” after three straightforward dramas, others were slightly put-off by an excess of that very same “morettismo”.

Moretti has been a staple at Cannes, where he presided over the jury in the past. “I was more nervous with this film than ever in the past,” Moretti told Italian newspaper La Repubblica. “Il sol dell’avvenire is a very personal work for me, and I know that many will see in it a sort of ‘summa’ of my themes and styles. I’m not totally aware anymore of what those are, but I am aware that’s how the film will be dissected.”

“I remember the first time I was awarded at Cannes with Caro Diario (Dear Diary) in 1993, when Clint Eastwood was the jury’s president,” Moretti continues. “He liked my wandering in Rome on my Vespa in that episodic movie, and though my work was so distant from Eastwood’s, he appreciated it a lot, and I was so pleased.  Caro Diario was also the first film in which I was portraying myself: I thought it was absurd to keep hiding behind a fictional character. In Il sol dell’avvenire Giovanni [his birth name, editor’s note] is both me and someone else, he’s an Id at odd.”

Moretti often mentioned as its main source of inspiration Fellini’s 8 1/2 and La Dolce Vita. “But if you ask me about other filmmakers who I draw inspiration from,” he told the Italian edition of The Hollywood Reporter, “I’ll give you a different answer depending on the day and my mood: today, for example, I’d say Brian De Palma’s Dressed to Kill.”

Moretti is also a producer and exhibitor. He owns the Cinema Sacher in Rome, an art house where he showcases non-commercial films, organizes retrospectives and screens short films by young filmmakers. He has been more and more helpful to budding directors and insists in the importance of theatrical releases. “I keep envisioning and making my films for the theaters, conceived to be enjoyed in theaters, not on streaming platforms,” he said.

He added: “Please do not misunderstand me: I think platforms such as Netflix, MAX, and others are an excellent opportunity for filmmakers to showcase their work, or to just work, of course. But, please, don’t start complaining that the producers at Netflix told you that the target of your project is going to be a 13-year-old in Missouri who watches films or series on his smartphone on the train to school. If you want to swim in those waters, you must know what fish you’re swimming with, and be prepared. Ultimately, it’s your choice. Certainly, it’s not my choice.”

The post Nanni Moretti and his “Il sol dell’Avvenire” appeared first on Golden Globes.

Just in time to commemorate its anniversary, this year’s ATX TV Festival hosted a reunion event that brought together stars Ted Danson, George Wendt and John Ratzenberger, along with screenwriters and producers, brothers Glen and Les Charles, and the highly regarded television director James Burrows, all three of whom co-created the show in the early 1980s after having worked together on a previous successful comedy series, Taxi, which starred Judd Hirsch, Danny DeVito, Tony Danza and Marilu Henner.

“We wanted to do a workplace show as opposed to a family show,” explained Burrows during the reunion panel in Austin, while describing the origins of the idea for the show “We wanted to be in the East, but New York was being used too much. So, we settled on Boston – the city has a character all of its own. And when we walked into this bar for the first time, there was a group of about four or five guys expounding on every subject. You could tell they’d been there for a while. They came in every day. We liked everything we saw about the place, even the step-down steps and the stairway, we liked the idea of romance developing and then the social club atmosphere there, again gathers to a place where the door opens, and it could be any character who comes in every week and the comedy spools out from there.”

In the fall of 1982, the comedy series about customers and crew of the bar “where everybody knows your name” premiered and introduced viewers to proprietor Sam Malone (Danson), whose budding baseball career was derailed by alcoholism, sophisticated intellectual turned waitress Diane Chambers (Shelley Long) who would soon become Sam’s love interest, bartender “Coach” Ernie Pantusso (Nicholas Colasanto), wisecracking waitress Carla Tortelli (Rhea Perlman) and such frequent bar goers as know-it-all mailman Cliff Clavin (Ratzenberger), sardonic accountant Norm Peterson (Wendt) and over the years such additions as psychiatrist Frasier Crane (Kelsey Grammer) and dimwitted bartender Woody Boyd (Woody Harrelson).

“They invited me down to their offices, they were just starting to cast,” remembered Danson about being cast, and admitting that, in his opinion, it was his chemistry with Long that ultimately sealed the deal. “Les and Glen had me read a couple of times for them. The second time they said, ‘Don’t take another job without checking with us first,’ and I went, ‘So you’re saying I got the part?’ and they went, ‘No, just check with us first.’ I went out one door and I looked out to the hallway, and there was every actor I know coming up the stairs to audition. So, I go out of my way to say I believe I got Cheers because I worked well with Shelley – she was just a knockout and I don’t think we’d seen a character like that since Lucille Ball, she just really nailed it.”

Through the course of the evening, the creators talked about staying on the air despite initial low ratings, seeing their perseverance pay off after the first season had finished, when the summer reruns exposed them to more viewers, and finally cementing their success with multiple award wins. Meanwhile, the actors talked about the inspiration for their characters, behind the scenes banter, joked around at Harrelson’s expense and remembered Kirstie Alley, who passed away last December. Alley joined the show in its sixth season, after Long chose to leave, and played neurotic manager Rebecca Howe in a role that earned her an Emmy and a Golden Globe.

“We were having dinner right before the show, ” remembered Wendt, “and somebody said, ‘Oh, geez Louise, we should have gotten her something, right? Flowers or something?’ and so John and I were tasked with getting a gift for Kirstie. We were literally driving down Melrose in Hollywood, a very trendy area, going past all these places, and we go past Big 5 Sporting Goods, and John goes, ‘You want to buy her a shotgun?’ I laughed for about five minutes at the thought of it, and then we pulled into the Big 5 parking lot, and we bought her a freaking shotgun. John and I were never tasked with finding the gift again.”

Wendt also acknowledged a recent Cheers homage on an episode of current comedy hit Ted Lasso, co-created by and starring his nephew, actor Jason Sudeikis, simply saying of the younger actor, “He’s a good boy, he’s my godson.”

Despite the common notion that the traditional multi-camera comedy format with a live studio audience is a thing of the past that in the 21^st century has been replaced by the new single-camera comedy format, Burrows insisted that is not the case. In fact, after Cheers spun off Grammer’s character with Frasier, a huge success all on its own which ran from 1993 to 2004, it has recently been rebooted and set to premiere in the coming year, with Burrows yet again very much involved with the new iteration.

“I’ve attended the funeral for the sitcom many times, and somehow it springs out of a coffin,” said Burrows, whose résumé includes directing such iconic shows as The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Friends, Will & Grace and The Big Bang Theory. “I have four daughters, and they were too young when Cheers was on the air to understand it. But I have grandchildren now, and I’ve gone to their houses, and they’ll always want to watch a Cheers episode. And I cry all the time, sitting there with them and seeing their reaction. They’ve binged the show. I’m just so proud of what that show was and proud of working with these guys and I will always cherish it. Of all the shows I’ve ever done – and I have done a lot – this will always be my fifth child.”

The post ATX TV Festival 2023: “Cheers” Creators and Cast Reunited appeared first on Golden Globes.