News

Magic Johnson started his Magic Johnson Foundation in 1991 as a single-disease organization that worked to raise funds for community-based organizations dealing with HIV/AIDS education and prevention programs.

(Photo copyright Alberto Rodriguez)

Charities & foundations supported

Magic Johnson has supported the following charities:

Barbara Davis Center for Childhood DiabetesBoys & Girls Clubs of AmericaBuoniconti Fund To Cure ParalysisCelebrity Fight Night FoundationCharity FolksKeep A Child AliveLudacris FoundationMagic Johnson FoundationMuhammad Ali Parkinson CenterSt. Anne’sThe Miami Project Read more about Magic Johnson's charity work and events. Related articles Supporting A Colorful Vision Of HollywoodCelebrities Put Their Votes Where Their Hearts AreCharity Folks Help Charity DrivesMagic Johnson Receives 3rd Annual USA Today Hollywood Hero AwardSports Stars To Raise Money To Cure Paralysis

Explore celebrities by social reach, cause, location, field and more with Insider Access →

Copyright © 2024 Look To The Stars. This article may not be reproduced without explicit written permission; if you are not...

In a deal sealed at Cannes, Spain’s Film Factory has closed France with Wild Bunch on action film “The Gentleman” as well as crime thriller “Undercover.”

The directorial debut of seasoned Mexican cinematographer Luis Gabriel Beristáin, “The Gentleman” stars Ron Perlman as Theo, an aging former U.S. soldier who pays Olga, a prostitute, to talk with him about who he once was and what he might have been. When Olga is brutally murdered, Theo embarks on bloody revenge.

“The Gentleman” is produced by Spain’s Esto También Pasará (“Ferocious Wolf”). Now shooting, “The Gentleman” will be released by Universal in Spain next year.

From Goya winner Arantxa Echevarría (“Lola and Carmen”), “Undercover” is inspired by the real-life story of Spain’s only police officer to successfully infiltrate Eta. Carolina Yuste (“Saben aquell”) and Luis Tosar (“Maiaxabel”) headline; Bowfinger Intl. Pictures and Beta Fiction Spain produce, with the latter...

On Friday, May 10, the cast and crew of “General Hospital” gathered at Prospect Studios in Hollywood, where the award-winning soap opera is taped, as ABC Entertainment executives honored the series by dedicating its studio, Stage 4, as “The General Hospital Stage.”

“This event was supposed to take place in April, 2023 but due to a multitude of reasons was postponed. Well, we finally celebrated the legacy and history of ‘General Hospital’ with a stage dedication placard that will live on forever!” noted Nathan Varni, the ABC Current Series Executive in charge of production for the daytime drama series, in a post on Facebook.

Varni added, “Thanks to everyone involved with the show for all your hard work, dedication and passion for continuing to keep this show alive and running! Congrats to all involved!” We deeply admire and appreciate everyone who works around the clock to bring this series to life 255 days a year!

Spanish sales agents are on some kind of roll. The European Film Market during the Berlinale proved robust, and Malaga Film Festival better still.

“Malaga was great for our movies,” Latido Films’ Antonio Saura reported at its conclusion. “We have one of the best lineups in our history covering all genres and all very marketable.”

That lineup includes Jim Sheridan’s drama “Recreation,” starring Vicky Krieps, and “La Casa” and “Saturn Return,” both Malaga standouts that together won seven awards.

With the market more receptive to Spanish projects, it’s important to pick the right genre mix. “Definitely for thrillers, for animated films, things are good. Spanish thrillers are prestigious now. They’ve performed well theatrically in many countries,” says Filmax’s head of international Iván Diaz. But for comedies, dramas or romantic comedies, it’s a bit more arduous. “If you’re trying to sell Spanish romantic comedies, however,...

Mortiz Mohr (L); Bill Skarsgård in Boy Kills World (center); H. Jon Benjamin (R)Photo: Dave Allocca/StarPix/Shutterstock; Roadside Attractions; Alberto Rodriguez/PictureGroup for FX/Shutterstock

Boy Kills World, starring Bill Skarsgård and his rubber face (at perhaps the most rubber it’s ever been), is a bonkers, bloody,...

A new film industry superclass is emerging in Spain: movies powered or co-backed by its streaming giants.

Perhaps the biggest example, Netflix Spain’s Andes flight disaster “Society of the Snow,” scored two Academy Award nominations last month.

Now, in the run-up to Berlin, London-based Film Constellation has acquired most world sales rights to “The Captive,” from Oscar winner Alejandro Amenábar (“The Sea Inside”) and Mod Producciones, a $15 million period adventure epic on the literary makings of “Quixote”author Miguel de Cervantes, held to ransom in a Moorish corsair jail.

Film Factory Ent. will take to market Iciar Bollain’s “I Am Nevenka,” about a feminist pioneer in Spain, and an untitled project from “Prison 77’s” Alberto Rodriguez, two fruit of the first movie slate from Movistar Plus+, the biggest Spanish pay TV/SVOD player, announced in January.

Spanish movies overperform on Netflix and Movistar Plus+. As of Feb.

Former Film Factory executive Manon Barat joins company as dedicated sales executive.

Heading into Cannes XYZ Films has launched New Visions, an initiative to champion bold global voices, kicking off with Directors’ Fortnight entry In Flames.

Former Film Factory executive Manon Barat has joined the company as a dedicated sales executive and will work alongside longtime head of international acquisitions Todd Brown to oversee the slate.

The highly curated New Visions will discover and support the next generation of filmmakers and give established talents room to make smaller, more intimate and challenging work.

Besides Zarrar Kahn’s Pakistani-Canadian horror In Flames,...

Whether you call him Alberto Del Rio or Alberto El Patron — or by his real name, Jose Alberto Rodriguez — just don’t call him a fake tough guy. The WWE alum, Impact Wrestling baddie and Combate Americas announcer has a professional mixed martial arts record of nine wins and five losses. And before throwing (real) fists and elbows was cool, the former luchador make the Mexico National Team in Greco-Roman wrestling. So be careful whom you send a stiff superkick toward, other Tna alums. Also Read: WWE Superstar Charlotte Flair on Ric Flair's Recovery, Baring All in New Book: 'It Was.

Keep up with the glitzy awards world with our weekly Awards Roundup column.

Awards

– The Spanish Film Academy’s annual Goyas — think Oscars, Spain style — fell in love with Juan Antonio Bayona’s “A Monster Calls,” which walked away from this week’s ceremony with a massive nine awards. Although it missed out on Best Film to “Fury of Patient Man,” Bayona picked up Best Director and the film was showered with a slew of below the line nods. Check out the full list of winners below.

Film

“Fury of a Patient Man”

Director

J.A. Bayona for “A Monster Calls”

New Director

Raul Arevalo for “Fury of a Patient Man”

Original Screenplay

David Pulido, Raul Arevalo for “Fury of a Patient Man”

Adapted Screenplay

Alberto Rodriguez, Rafael Cobos for “Smoke and Mirrors”

Original Score

Fernando Velazquez for “A Monster Calls”

Original Song

“Ai, Ai, Ai” by Silvia Perez Cruz for...

Keep up with the glitzy awards world with our weekly Awards Roundup column.

– Director Juan Antonio Bayona’s “A Monster Calls” will enter Spain’s annual Goya Awards on February 4, 2017 with more nominations than any other film. The fantasy-drama is nominated in 12 of the 28 categories, beating out Alberto Rodriguez’s “Smoke and Mirrors” and Raul Arevalo’s “The Fury of a Patient Man,” each of which received 11 nominations. Both films will compete with “A Monster Calls” in the best film category, as will Pedro Almodovar’s “Julieta.”

Read More: Awards Roundup: Megan Ellison to Receive PGA Visionary Award, Guillermo del Toro Honored and More

“A Monster Calls” is “a visually spectacular drama based on the award-winning children’s fantasy novel. 12-year-old Conor (Lewis MacDougall) attempts to deal with his mother’s (Felicity Jones) illness and the bullying of his classmates by escaping into a fantastical world of monsters and fairy tales that explore courage,...

Pedro Almodovar’s Julieta and Juan Antonio Bayona’s A Monster Calls will compete at the Goya Awards ceremony on Feb. 4 in what could turn out to be a face-off between a unique historic talent and Spain’s newest wonderkid with an special eye for fantasy.

Almodovar and Bayona will vie with Alberto Rodriguez’s Smoke and Mirrors, Rodrigo Sorogoyen’s May God Save Us and Raul Arevalo’s The Fury of a Patient Man for the best film award, with all but Arevalo repeating in the top director category. Arevalo will make a run for the new director award with his helming...

Ex-wwe superstar Alberto Del Rio says he was attacked by a man with a knife this week -- but fought the man off ... suffering multiple lacerations in the process.  Alberto -- real name Jose Alberto Rodriguez -- says he had just finished up a meal at a restaurant when he was assaulted. He does not give a reason for the attack.  "Mr. Rodriguez suffered multiple lacerations on his arm and other parts of the body...

The 64th San Sebastian Film Festival, which ran from September 16 to 24, closed out its celebrations by announcing its winners on Saturday night. The top prize, known as the Golden Shell, was awarded to Feng Xiaogang’s drama “I Am Not Madame Bovary.” Its lead, Fan Bingbing, also took home the Best Actress award that night.

“I have a lot of experience and a lot of habits. These habits can cage you. When I started this film, I tried to set these habits aside and try to work as if it were my directorial debut and do something courageous. I knew it was very risky,” Feng said, per The Hollywood Reporter. “I didn’t know if it was the right thing to do, but today the San Sebastian Film festival gave me the answer with this prize for the best film.”

Read More: Critics Pick the Best Films From the Toronto...

Plus: Distribbber.com, Abramorama team up; and more…

The Last King Of Scotland producer Andrea Calderwood will deliver the opening keynote at the Strategic Partners market in Halifax, Canada, next month.

Calderwood, of Potboiler Productions, most recently produced Trespass Against Us starring Michael Fassbender and Brendan Gleeson, set to screen in Toronto and Strategic Partners’ sister event the Atlantic Film Festival.

Other keynote speakers include Marc Hustvedt, the founder and CEO of Peter Chernin-backed Supergravity Pictures, as well as Scandinavian TV producers Liselott Forsman and Lars Hermann.

“The programme this year is dynamic, progressive, and mindful of the issues and opportunities facing producers across the globe,” said programme manager Laura Mackenzie.

“Our speakers are able to provide a unique perspective because of their background and experience, but they are living and breathing the very same challenges facing producers daily.”

Strategic Partners runs from September 15-17. For the full line-up of panels and events click here.

GoDigital...

Lee Sang-il, Bartosz M. Kowalski and Emiliano Torres also help complete competitive line-up.Scroll down for full list of titles

San Sebastian film festival (Sept 16-24) has added five titles to its competitive official selection, completing the line-up of films in line for the coveted Golden Shell.

The titles include The Oath (Eiðurinn) by Icelandic filmmaker Baltasar Kormákur, who competed at San Sebastian with The Sea in 2001.

In his latest feature, the director - who made last year’s Venice opener Everest - tells the story of a heart surgeon whose family begins to unravel when his daughter gets mixed up with a drug-dealing boyfriend.

Also in the running for the Golden Shell will be China’s Feng Xiaogang with contemporary fable I Am Not Madame Bovary (Wo Bu Shi Pan Jinlian), starring Fan Bingbing.

Feng’s The Banquet competed at Venice in 2006 while Aftershock was China’s submission for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar in 2011.

Other...

Among the most anticipated Spanish productions of the year are a Paleolithic period drama, the new Almodovar and a regal role for Penelope Cruz.A Monster Calls

Dir Ja Bayona

A Monster Calls completes Bayona’s trilogy exploring motherhood, after The Orphanage and The Impossible. Patrick Ness has adapted his novel about a boy who seeks refuge in a fantasy world. The English-language film, which shot in Spain and the UK, stars Liam Neeson. It is a Spain-us co-production between Apaches Entertainment with Telecinco Cinema, Peliculas La Trini, Participant Media, River Road Entertainment and Lionsgate. Set for release in the autumn, it will be distributed in Spain by Universal Pictures International, in the Us by Focus and in the UK via eOne.

Contact Lionsgate International: www.lionsgate.com

Abracadabra

Dir Pablo Berger

Berger’s follow-up to Blancanieves again stars Maribel Verdu, this time as a housewife determined to fight the spirit possessing her husband. Set to shoot...

Screen reveals a slate of forthcoming projects from producers promoting movies at the Seville Film Festival

Iranian director Sina Ataeian Dena is to follow his successful drama Paradise, about a struggling teacher, with two more interconnected feature films about violence in Iranian society.

Dena is to collaborate with producers Yousef Panahi (brother of acclaimed director Jafar Panahi) and Amir Hamz at Bon Voyage Films on all three films.

The second, as yet untitled, film has already started shooting in Iran, although the team have had to do so discreetly.

“We are having to be very creative in our approach to avoid challenges when making these films, each of which will take a different artistic approach to violence in Iran,” explained Panahi. “There will be a crossover in certain scenes between the three movies.”

Dena, Panahi and Hamz also revealed plans to work on a feature length film project in Shanghai with a Chinese co-production partner.

“We would also...

The company will follow up its box-office hit Marshland with the $1.9m production.

Seville-based outfit La Zanfona Producciones is set to produce a futuristic film called Shadow Inside (La Sombra Adentro) and a comedy titled Mi Cadida Cofradia, following the success of Alberto Rodriguez’s thriller Marshland, which took close to $10m in Spain last year and has sold well internationally.

Shadow Inside will be set in 2024 and tell the story of six soldiers who survive a Civil War in Spain and escape to a small village where strange things start to happen.

It will be the feature directing debut of Seville-based director David Sainz, who achieved a cult following with his web series Malviviendo and TV movie Obra 67. Sainz’s company Diffferent (sic) Entertainment will co-produce.

“We are looking to shoot Shadow Inside next year in Seville and the budget will be €1.8m [$1.9m] euros,” Gervasio Iglesias, head of La Zanfona, told ScreenDaily...

Caught in the Quagmire: Rodriguez’s Satisfying Period Neo-Noir

Having swept the 2014 Goya Awards back home (winning ten of its sixteen nominations, including Best Film), Spanish director Alberto Rodriguez’s Marshland is a character driven cop thriller with the brooding intensity attributed to the contemporary movement of Nordic Noir. Incorporating specific historical elements into its pulpy tapestry for a bit of extra resonance, Rodriguez and his regular co-scribe Rafael Cobos unveil their central mystery with such painstaking deliberateness it’s easy to overlook some of the narrative’s generalities.

Set in rural Spain, just five years after the death of Franco and the fall of his ruthless dictatorship, Rodriguez recalls a nation in transition, introducing an easily fueled binary of good cop vs. bad cop based on the juxtaposing political tenor. As usual, women are relentlessly maligned, even though its dire misogyny transpires off-screen, a typicality more easily forgiven thanks to its ‘period.

★★★★☆ Opening with spectacular aerial shots of the labyrinthine Andalusian wetlands, where the raped and mutilated bodies of two local teenage girls are found, Marshland's (2014) plot twists prove as compelling, obscure, and ultimately treacherous as the terrain it features. True Detective fans will doubtless be struck by thematic similarities between the popular Us TV series and Alberto Rodriguez's brooding, stylish neo-noir. But the film's meticulously researched, realistic focus on rural 1980s post-fascist Spain is all Rodriguez's own. A volatile society in transition is embodied by a mismatched pair of detectives who are forced to compromise in order to solve the case.

Pedro (Raul Arevalo) is a young, ambitious, albeit sulky figure exiled from his big city existence in Madrid for criticising the anti- democratic comments of a high ranking squad officer. His symbolically shadowy counterpart, Juan (Javier Gutierrez), is a hedonistic, well-humoured stalwart of the old school, who has few...

The Institute of Cinematography and Audiovisual Arts of Spain (Icaa) alongsie the American Cinematheque and Egeda, announced the 21st edition of Recent Spanish Cinema series, a showcase of the most outstanding recent Spanish films at the Egyptian Theatre. The film screenings will take place October 15-18, 2015. This year the producers of this annual film series will collaborate with Spanish Filmmaker, journalist, writer and producer Guillermo Fesser, who has created the poster and the promo spot with theme “Let your Spanish side out” bringing his sense of humor and unique Spanish style to the marketing campaign.

Read More: MiamiFF Review: 'Marshland' is a Provocative Thriller with Unique Political Undertones

The full schedule will be announced October 1st , but several of the films to screen as part of this exciting program have already been revealed. Take a look at some of the highlights below including "Marshland," which our writer Carlos Aguilar described as "a technically immaculate production that feels like a major motion picture while retaining its art house appeal."

- "Off Course" (Perdiendo el Norte) , 2015, 102 min. Dir. Nacho G Velilla.International Distribution: DeAPlaneta International.Hugo (Yon González) and Braulio (Julián López) both have university degrees but no jobs, and think they can escape the economic doldrums by leaving Spain for Germany. But what looked like a land of opportunity on TV presents more challenges to the two friends than they expected in this sparkling comedy. In Castillan and German with English subtitles. One of the biggest Box office hits in 2015 .

- "Happy 140" (Felices 140), 2015, 98 min. Dir. Gracia Querejeta. International Sales: Latido Films. Elia (Maribel Verdu) has just hit the jackpot – literally. One of the things she spends her 140 million euro lottery prize on is a 40th birthday bash in the Canary Islands, to which she invites a motley group of family and friends, including the ex she still pines for. But proximity to wealth can warp even the closest relationships, and the reunion soon takes a shocking turn.

-"Shrew's Nest" (Musarañas), 2014, 95 min. International Sales: Film Factory. First-time feature directors Juan Fernando Andres and Esteban Roel (and producer Alex De La Iglesia) lead viewers through a terrifying psychological maze in 1950s Spain. At its center is the apartment of Montse (Macarena Gómez, in one of the wildest performances you’ll see all year), who has raised her younger sister to the brink of adulthood. But agoraphobia and religious ritual have taken their toll on Montse, and when an injured young man (Hugo Silva) turns up at the door, help is the last thing she gives him. With Luis Tosar as the spectral father figure. In Spanish with English subtitles.

-"Magical Girl," 2014, 127 min. Dir. Carlos Vermut. International Sales: Films Distribution. Luis (Luis Bermejo) has a 12-year-old daughter with a terminal illness and a last wish – to have a dress just like the main character of her favorite Japanese anime series. The unemployed professor doesn’t have the money to purchase the dress, but thinks he can get it with a little help from a former teacher (José Sacristán) and an unbalanced young woman (Goya and Feroz winner Bárbara Lennie). Vermut’s sure directorial hand weaves multiple storylines together in this haunting (and occasionally intense) drama. In Spanish with English subtitles.

"Sidetracked" (Las Overjas No Pierden El Tren), 2014, 103 min. Dir. Alvaro Fernandez Armero. International Sales: Film Factory. The mid-life crises of three Spanish couples provide the laughs in this gleeful ensemble comedy. Luisa (Inma Cuesta of Three Many Weddings) and Alberto (Raúl Arévalo) move to the countryside, thinking it a better place to raise kids, though the change puts a damper on their sex life. Luisa’s sister (Candela Peña) and Alberto’s brother (Alberto San Juan) have their own relationship challenges - her obsessive pursuit scares men away, while his much-younger girlfriend is a little on the impulsive side.

"Requirements to Be a Normal Person (Requisitos Para Ser Una Persona Norma), 2015, 90 min.Everybody tries to fit in, but few people go about it as methodically as Maria de la Montana (writer-director Leticia Dolera), who hopes to reach normality through a 7-item checklist. Her mentally challenged younger brother (Jordi Llodra) and overweight friend (Manuel Burque) seem to have most of the bases covered, and the success of Maria’s quest may boil down to just being herself. Brightly colored and boasting a jangly folk score from Luthea Salom, this romantic comedy is, as one might hope from its title, charmingly eccentric. Winner of the Best New Screenwriter, Cinematography and Editing Awards at the Málaga Spanish Film Festival.

"Marshland" (La Isla Minima), 2014, 105 min. Dir. Alberto Rodriguez. Us Distribution: Outsider Pictures. Spain’s democracy was still on wobbly legs in 1980, particularly in the backwater of Andalucia where this tense crime drama is set. City cops Juan (Javier Gutiérrez) and Pedro (Raúl Arévalo) are dispatched to the depressed rural area to investigate the disappearance of two sisters; their differing backgrounds – one a ruthless veteran and the other an idealistic rookie – lead to increasingly unsettling discoveries. Winner of 10 Goya Awards, including Best Film, Director, Lead Actor (Gutiérrez) and Cinematography (Alex Catalán’s aerial shots are truly dazzling).

Marshland (original title: La isla minima)

Written by Alberto Rodriguez and Rafael Cobos

Directed by Alberto Rodriguez

Spain, 2014

Reprimanded by their superiors for a previous folly, Madrid-based homicide detectives Pedro Suarez (Raul Arévalo) and Javier Gutiérrez (Juan Robles) are dispatched to the countryside to investigate the disappearance of two teenage girls in a small town that lives and dies by its agricultural produce. The year is 1980 and the Francisco Franco dictatorship came to a close only a few years ago following the tyrant’s passing. Spanish democracy is still in its infancy, remnants of the violence and fear that governed the land for years still remain. As Pedro and Javier collect information as to the whereabouts of the girls, it becomes painstakingly clear that this little town, surrounded by marshland, is wrestling with a few demons of its own, as are the two protagonists who come from very generations (Javier...

After 23 unbelievable, uninterrupted days of screenings, today marks the Closing Night of the 19th edition of the Fantasia Film Festival. There is always a sadness lingering in the air on the last day. I often compare it to the feeling you get as a kid on the final day of summer camp. You get to spend an entire month with a group of friends from around the world knowing you might not have the opportunity to see some of these people again for an entire year. Known worldwide as North America’s longest-running genre film festival, Fantasia is special because of the people who not only make it happen but also for those of us who choose to spend the beautiful hot summer days crowded inside a gloomy theatre to watch movies we might not have the chance to see otherwise. And for the sixth consecutive year, the event succeeded...

Montreal’s genre film festival wraps with over 100,000 spectators attending across its 23 days of screenings.

Sion Sono’s Tag was among the winners at this year’s Fantasia International Film Festival, which wrapped yesterday [Aug 4] with the Canadian premiere of Shinji Higuchi’s Attack on Titan.

This year saw over 100,000 spectators attending across the festival’s 23 days of screenings, including 195 indoor screenings, three outdoor screenings, eight virtual reality films and other special events, such as the debut international performance of Glass Eye Pix’s live horror radio show Tales from Beyond the Pale.

Over 900 international guests, including more than 400 film industry professionals, visited the festival and its Frontières Market which saw two deals close during the market. Raven Banner boarded worldwide sales on Gigi Saul Guerrero’s El Gigante, while Frank Murray of Lux Capta Films signed on as producer of Renaud Gauthier’s ‘Lude Behavior.

Guests included Jon Watts and Kevin Bacon for Cop Car, Michael Ironside, [link...

To become immersed in an archetypal, affectionately traditionalist thriller – you need to become aware of the world you’re inhabiting, to be able to place the tale in a wider context, and have outside themes inform the narrative at hand. In Alberto Rodriguez’s Marshland, the swampy, deep southern Spanish setting is enriched by the era

The post Marshland Review appeared first on HeyUGuys.

Richard Linklater’s 12-year project beats Ida, The Grand Budapest Hotel and Winter Sleep.

Richard Linklater’s Boyhood has been named the best film of the past year by the members of the International Federation of Film Critics, Fipresci.

The poll for the Fipresci Grand Prix 2014 - Best Film of the Year gathered votes from 553 members throughout the world.

In the first phase, participants nominated feature-length films that received their world premiere no earlier than July 1, 2013. This led to a final round between the four finalists: Boyhood by Richard Linklater, Ida by Pawel Pawlikowski, The Grand Budapest Hotel by Wes Anderson, and Winter Sleep by Nuri Bilge Ceylan.

This is the first Linklater has won the prize, which has previously gone to Michael Haneke, Paul Thomas Anderson, Jafar Panahi, Pedro Almodóvar, Jean-Luc Godard and Nuri Bilge Ceylan, among others, since its establishment in 1999.

Boyhood will have a special screening at the San Sebastián Film Festival on Sept...

With his 2012 effort Unit 7, director Alberto Rodriguez scored a major critical and commercial success in Spain packing out cinemas and scoring multiple Goya awards with his taut tale of corrupt police. And Rodriguez returns to Spanish screens in September with his latest effort, Marshland, a dark thriller starring Raul Arevalo, Javier Guteierrez and Antonio de la Torre.The Spanish deep South, 1980. A series of brutal murders of adolescent girls in a remote and forgotten town bring together two disparate characters - both detectives in the homicide division - to investigate the cases. With deep divisions in their ideology, detectives Juan and Pedro must put aside their differences if they are to successfully hunt down a killer who for years has terrorized a community...

[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...

The Spanish Institute for Film and Audiovisual Arts (Icaa) a part of the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport, together with the American Cinematheque and Egeda (Audio-Visual Producers’ Rights Management Association) announce the 18th edition of Recent Spanish Cinema series that will showcase the most outstanding recent Spanish films at the American Cinematheque at the Egyptian Theatre in Los Angeles, October 11 – 14, 2012.

This 2012 series will be kicked off with the special opening premiere of the official Spanish Entry for Best Foreign Language Film for the Academy Awards 2013, Blancanieves (Snow White) directed by Pablo Berger and starring Maribel Verdú, Inma Cuesta & Macarena García.

This edition is honored with the attendance of directors Pablo Berger (Blancanieves), Benito Zambrano (The Sleeping Voice) and Patricia Ferreira (The Wild Ones).

Join us for our 18th annual showcase of the wildest, sexiest new films from Spain - on the big screen at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood. Included in this year's lineup are the 2012 Goya Best Film winner No Rest For The Wicked, a searing neo-noir from director Enrique Urbizu, starring Jose Coronado; Alberto Rodriguez's crime drama Unit 7 and Fernando Gonzalez Molina's coming of age drama and romance I Want You (the sequel to Three Steps Above Heaven, a selection from last year's Recent Spanish Cinema), both starring Spanish star Mario Casas. Also included are Ignacio Ferreras' stunning animated feature Wrinkles, based on Paco Roca’s comic of the same title; The Wild Ones, an elegant triptych of coming-of-age tales and winner of four awards at the Malaga Spanish Film Festival; and 2011’s much-lauded, multiple-Goya winner The Sleeping Voice, starring Maria Leon, Inma Cuesta, from director Benito Zambrano.

In addition to the lineup, the series will screen the short film Wings by José Villalobos, the winning entry from the New Filmmakers from Spain short film contest, a competition for Spanish film students living in USA.

For further details on the schedule, please check the Recent Spanish Cinema website

Venue: 6712 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90028. Tickets: www.Fandango.com

Blancanieves (Snow White)

2012| Mama Films, Arcadia Motion Pictures, Motion Investment Group, Noodles Production|104 min.

Dir. Pablo Berger.

Cast: Maribel Verdú, Daniel Giménez Cacho, Ángela Molina, Inma Cuesta, Macarena García.

The Sleeping Voice (La Voz Dormida)

2011|Maestranza Films, Mirada Sur|128 min.

Dir. Benito Zambrano.

Cast: Inma Cuesta, María Leon, Marc Clotet, Daniel Holguín.

Unit 7 (Grupo 7)

2012|Atípica films, La Zanfoña Producciones, Sacromonte Films|96 min.

Dir. Alberto Rodríguez.

Cast: Mario Casas, Antonio de la Torre, Inma Cuesta.

Wrinkles (Arrugas)

2011|Perro Verde Films, Cromosoma |89 min.

Dir. Ignacio Ferreras

I Want You (Tengo Ganas De Ti)

2012|Zeta Audiovisual, Antena 3 Films|124 min.

Dir. Fernando González Molina.

Cast: Mario Casas, Clara Lago, María Valverde.

The Wild Ones (Els Nens Salvatges)

2012| Distinto Films, Aralan Films, La Femme Endormie Sarl |100 min.

Dir. Patricia Ferreira.

Cast: Marina Comas, Álex Monner, Albert Baró.

Judgment is coming to Fantastic Fest with the red carpet premiere of Dredd 3D and the festival's initial lineup of incredible genre films. Fantastic Fest will take place September 20-27 in Austin, Texas, at the Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar.

Below is the initial lineup of films at this year's festival (as previously announced, Frankenweenie will have its world premiere on September 20 as the opening night film for the 2012 festival).

From the Press Release:

The future America is an irradiated wasteland. On its East Coast, running from Boston to Washington, DC, lies Mega City One - a vast, violent metropolis where criminals rule the chaotic streets. The only force of order lies with the urban cops called "Judges" who possess the combined powers of judge, jury and instant executioner. Known and feared throughout the city, Dredd (Karl Urban) is the ultimate Judge, challenged with ridding the city of its latest scourge...

We are just under two months out from Fantastic Fest 2012 being unleashed upon genre fans making their pilgrimage of the weird, wild and bizarre to Austin, Texas. The final art for Fantastic Fest 2012 from artist Mike Saputo (as seen above) was recently revealed to the world, but now the first wave of film programming for this year’s event has surfaced. As always, there proves to be a wide array of films in genre, style and national origin available to film enthusiasts, listed below.

Cockneys Vs. Zombies (2011)

Us Premiere

Director – Matthias Hoene, 87min

When a badly planned bank robbery and a zombie outbreak collide, hilarity ensues in this balls-out, irreverent British comedy.

Dead Sushi (2012)

Us Premiere

Director – Noboru Iguchi, 91min

Japanese splatter action comedy is on the menu when director Noboru Iguchi & karate girl Rina Takeda join forces to take on flying killer sushi monsters in Dead Sushi!

Dredd 3D (2012)

Gala Premiere

Director: Pete Travis,...

Friday came & went and there was no Fantastic Fest 2012 announcement. We published a list of films we thought would play and so far, we got one hit on that (Dead Sushi). Fantastic Fest has officially announced their first wave of programming for this years festival. This is just the first wave and there will be plenty more films to announce between now and September along with the amazing events that are put on by the festival.

From the Press Release:

Judgment is coming to Fantastic Fest with the red carpet premiere of Dredd 3D and the festival’s initial lineup of incredible genre films. Fantastic Fest will take place September 20-27 in Austin, Texas at the Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar.

The future America is an irradiated waste land. On its East Coast, running from Boston to Washington DC, lies Mega City One – a vast, violent metropolis where criminals rule the chaotic streets.

A little too slick to be a classic, .Unit 7. comes off more as a violent autograph session than a tragic cop drama. .Unit 7. is emerging director Alberto Rodriguez.s high flying buddy cop drama set in 1992 Seville. With the Seville World Exhibition approaching, the team of four mean-streets musketeers has an impossible task. That is the cleaning up of the drug-ridden streets of the city while avoiding the thunderbolts of lethal power of the corrupt politicians who are in on the take. Four tough cops who have nobody to count on except themselves must enter into a life and death battle with every sort of addicted miscreant known to man. Can their friendship survive the temptations...

I can't remember a time I went to the Seattle International Film Festival (Siff) press launch and looked over the list of films and saw so many I was interested in seeing. The claim to fame for over the years is to call it the largest and most-highly attended festival in the United States. This is a fact I've often taken issue with as I don't equate quantity with quality. Granted, there has been a large number of quality features to play the fest over the years, including Golden Space Needle (Best Film) winners such as Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985), My Life as a Dog (1987), Trainspotting (1996), Run Lola Run (1999), Whale Rider (2003) and even recent Best Director winner, Michel Hazanavicius's Oss 117: Nest of Spies in 2006. That said, looking over this year's crop of films I see a lot of films I will be doing my absolute best to see.

Alberto Rodriguez’s first solo feature was “The Suit” in 2002, after co-directing “The Pilgrim Factor” in 2000. In 2005, his “7 Virgins” received six Goya Award nominations in 2005, followed by three Goya nominations in 2009 for “After.” Rodriguez says, “I’ve had a fairly eclectic career,” having done drama, comedy and social issue films. He intended on studying journalism because of his interest in storytelling, but he then realized film was the best medium to tell them in. What “Unit 7” is about: In 1992, in Seville, a city in the South of Spain, World Expo was opened to celebrate the 500th anniversary of the discovery of America. With this in mind, a special police unit was formed to “clean” the city center of drug dealers. It’s the story of this unit as it got the job done using methods inside and outside the law. Director Rodriguez says: “We tried to make a highly...

This year's Tribeca Film Festival carries one of its strongest line-ups in years. In addition to films from Cannes, Venice, Toronto, Sundance and Berlin circuit, there's also a wealth of U.S. premieres or lesser-known festival movies in the line-up that look just as promising this time around; after a relatively weak SXSW, it looks like the East Coast is getting some of the good stuff.

Below, you'll find 15 films that seem among the most intriguing Tribeca has to offer this year. Of course, we can't speak for their quality as yet, but they certainly look promising at this point at time. And for the record, we haven't included the high-profile opening and closing films -- "The Five-Year Engagement" and "The Avengers" -- partly because they're getting more than enough attention elsewhere, and partly because we've already seen both (although can't review them just yet -- keep your eyes peeled...

Tribeca: Tell us a little about Unit 7. How do you describe the movie in your own words? Alberto Rodriguez: Unit 7 is a film noir, a cop thriller. A film that could be interpreted as the rise and fall of a band of gangsters, with the only difference being that our gangsters are on the 'lawful' side of the line. They carry a badge. Tribeca: This is your third collaboration with your co-screenwriter Rafael Cobos. What inspired you to make Unit 7? Did you research any particular police unit or certain events surrounding the 92 Seville Expo? Alberto Rodriguez: The idea for Unit 7 rises from some files on an 80s trial. A lawyer friend loaned them to Rafael Cobos. Everything was very vulgar, petty, too familiar: a micro-universe of crime shaded by abjection. Everyone involved had some kind of addiction: gambling, drugs, money, self-indulgence. We decided that the context would ...

HollywoodNews.com: The 2012 Tribeca Film Festival (Tff), presented by American Express®, today announced the World Narrative and Documentary Competition film selections, along with selections for the out-of-competition Viewpoints section—the program established last year that highlights personal stories in international and independent cinema. Forty-six of the 90 feature-length films were announced. The 11th edition of the Festival will take place from April 18 to April 29 at locations around New York City.

The Festival was curated by a new programming team this year. Frédéric Boyer has joined Tff as Artistic Director, having most recently served as Artistic Director and Head of Programming for the Directors’ Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival. Geoffrey Gilmore, Chief Creative Officer of Tribeca Enterprises, has expanded his role in overseeing the Festival program. Genna Terranova has been promoted to Director of Programming and Cara Cusumano returns as Programmer.

“It’s been so gratifying to watch the new programming...

The Tribeca Film Festival announced half of this year’s movie showcase, the 11th edition of the New York celebration set for April 18-29. James Franco’s behind-the-scenes General Hospital feature, Francophrenia, will have its North American premiere in the Viewpoints section – the program established last year that highlights more personal stories. “He’s kind of constructed this really interesting and well-crafted film about that experience that plays with the boundaries of documentary,” says Genna Terranova, Tribeca’s director of programming. “It’s a bit tongue in cheek, as James himself can be. He’s a bit enigmatic and the film is as well.

The teaser for Alberto Rodriguez' Grupo 7 was a good one, no doubt. But the just released full trailer? This raises things to a new level.The latest from the director of 7 Virgins, Grupo 7 (Unit 7) is a crime thriller set in the leadup to Expo 92 in Seville and the massive 'cleanup' of the streets that occurred leading up to the event. Unit 7 has a tough mission: to clean the most dangerous drug trafficking networks out of the city and bring an end to the corrosive power that has taken hold of the streets. A detail of four, led by Ángel (Mario Casas), a young officer aspiring to detective, and Rafael (Antonio de la Torre), a violent, arrogant, yet efficient cop....

With The Five-Year Engagement set as the opening title for the 2012 Tribeca Film Festival, they’ve announced more of the line-up today with World Narrative & Documentary Features as the Viewpoint titles. We’ve got the next film from The Exploding Girl director Bradley Rust Gray, Jack and Diane (as well as a first look about featuring Juno Temple, thanks to Styd).

There is a new Harmony Korine short as well Kate Bosworth‘s While We Were Here and The Girl, starring Abbie Cornish. James Franco also has his latest film, Francophrenia, featuring footage from his performance on General Hospital. Nothing sticks out too greatly yet, but if I see something as interesting as Beyond the Black Rainbow or Magic Valley like last year, I’ll be a happy man. Check it out below and come back Thursday for the rest of the announcement.

World Narrative Feature Competition

• All In (La Suerte En Tus Manos...

SXSW kicks off later this week, but once your done slurping the BBQ sauce off your fingers, pack your backs and head north to Manhattan as the Tribeca Film Festival is gearing up to unspool in April. To whet cinephile appetites, organizers have dropped the lineup for the World Narrative Feature Competition, World Documentary Feature Competition and Viewpoints lineups and there are plenty of titles to take note of.

Among the narratives, the anticipated "Jack And Diane" from Bradley Rust Gray will make its world premiere. Starring Juno Temple and Riley Keough, the film takes a teenage lesbian love tale and twists the formula, with one of them revealing she's a werewolf. Add to that a cast rounded out by Dane DeHaan, Jena Malone and pop star Kylie Minogue (as a tattooed lesbian, of course) and you can see why this will be one of the hottest tickets at the fest.

I first came across director Alberto Rodriguez thanks to his 2005 film 7 Virgins, a picture that managed a fine balance between grit and style and character. The director has been working largely in television since but he's making his way back to the big screen with Grupo 7.A crime picture set in the lead up to Expo 92 and the massive police 'clean up' of the streets prior to the event the main criminals in this picture appear to be the police themselves. The same blend of naturalism and grit that made 7 Virgins stand out appears to be in full affect here as well. Check the teaser below....

'Lost' star reportedly set to join Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner in 2011 installment of spy franchise.

By Kara Warner

Josh Holloway

Photo: Alberto Rodriguez/ Getty Images

The heavily hyped cast of "Mission: Impossible IV" has added another star to its beefy roster: "Lost" actor Josh Holloway.

Holloway is reportedly in final negotiations to play a member of the Impossible Mission Force, the high-tech and top-secret task force headed up by Tom Cruise's Ethan Hunt, according to The Hollywood Reporter. This will be the first big feature-film role for the "Lost" star, who is best known for playing broody antihero Sawyer on the ABC series.

Holloway joins a band of high-profile actors on the Brad Bird-directed film. In addition to Cruise and Holloway, the cast includes Jeremy Renner, Paula Patton and Vladimir Mashkov, as well as returning "Mission" co-stars Ving Rhames and Simon Pegg. The production is supposed...

'Lost' star reportedly set to join Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner in 2011 installment of spy franchise.

By Kara Warner

Josh Holloway

Photo: Alberto Rodriguez/ Getty Images

The heavily hyped cast of "Mission: Impossible IV" has added another star to its beefy roster: "Lost" actor Josh Holloway.

Holloway is reportedly in final negotiations to play a member of the Impossible Mission Force, the high-tech and top-secret task force headed up by Tom Cruise's Ethan Hunt, according to The Hollywood Reporter. This will be the first big feature-film role for the "Lost" star, who is best known for playing broody antihero Sawyer on the ABC series.

Holloway joins a band of high-profile actors on the Brad Bird-directed film. In addition to Cruise and Holloway, the cast includes Jeremy Renner, Paula Patton and Vladimir Mashkov, as well as returning "Mission" co-stars Ving Rhames and Simon Pegg. The production is supposed...