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Christmas may fall on December 25th, but our cozy green and red blankets, gold tinsel, and Hallmark movies arrive well before then. A timeless way to celebrate this countdown is through advent calendars, filled with chocolates, trinkets, or even more elaborate items nowadays. In Patrick Ridremont's Christmas feature, Eva (Eugenie Derouand) receives an antique advent calendar that grants her deepest desires with each bittersweet bite of the unlocked candy. But of course, there is always a price to pay. While it seems like The Advent Calendar will be your standard be-careful-of-what-you-wish-for horror, the French film gives the concept a fresh feel with its tumbling pressure of a countdown wrapped in holiday cheer.

At this year’s Mipcom, France TV Distribution will launch international distribution of Tetra Media Fiction’s sci-fi family drama “Annwyn The Otherworld” (originally titled “Anaon”).

Created by screenwriter Bastien Dartois in collaboration with Sylvain Caron and Elsa Vasseur and produced by Alexandre Boyer and Antoine Szymalka for Tetra Media Fiction, the series is currently in production. Delivery is set for Q1 2025 with domestic broadcast rights belonging to Prime Video and France TV.

Dartois co-wrote the show with Sylvain Caron, Elsa Vasseur and Marine Maugrain Legagneur. David Hourrègue, who has helmed episodes of “Rivages,” “Germinal” and Skam France,” directs.

“Annwyn The Otherworld” is a six-part series that follows police chief Max, who oversees a small town in Brittany. There, he takes on several new and strange cases, including the disappearance of a teenage girl and a suspected serial abuser. The challenging investigation is made more difficult given Max’s home life.

World on Fire has come to an end after two seasons, Masterpiece on PBS executive producer Susanne Simpson revealed at the Television Critics Association winter press tour on Monday.

Simpson added that the BBC decided not to renews the British series for “many different reasons.”

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World on Fire was a World War II drama that...

The PBS and BBC drama series World on Fire is setting fans ablaze with images from its second season that feature Jonah Hauer-King, Lesley Manville, Parker Sawyers, and Eugénie Derouand surrounded by the tragedies of World War II. Created by Peter Bowker, we’re excited to see the first peeks of the show’s sophomore season and the most recent update since it was announced that filming had begun almost a year ago. Although no release date has been set, this first set of photos points to more information coming our way soon.

Jonah Hauer-King can currently be seen swimming up a storm alongside Halle Bailey in Disney’s live-action “The Little Mermaid” but for his next project he’s part of a different world – “World on Fire.”

The PBS and BBC drama series has released first look images from its upcoming second season, showing Hauer-King as a grimy soldier called Harry in the Royal Air Force (Raf) during World War II.

Jonah Hauer-King in ‘World on Fire’ (courtesy of BBC)

In the show, which was created by Peter Bowker, he is joined by “The Crown’s” Lesley Manville, Parker Sawyers (“A Discovery of Witches”) and Eugénie Derouand (“The Advent Calendar”).

In new images from Season 2 Manville, who plays Robina, looks elegant in a 1940s hair-do and outfit while Sawyers, who plays Albert, is pictured looking concerned, a Nazi flag visible behind him. Meanwhile Derouand is clad in a nurse’s outfit as Henriette.

Orange Studio is launching several French projects at the Cannes Film Market, including Simon Bouisson’s “Drone,” a thriller produced by Haut et Court (“The Night of the 12th”), and “Miss Violet,” a period drama directed by Eric Besnard (“Delicious”) and starring Alexandra Lamy (“Rolling to You”).

Bouisson, who is directing “Drone,” previously penned and directed the short-format series “Stalk” which was hit on France Televisions’ youth-centered service and has been optioned for a remake in the U.S. The thriller stars Marion Barbeau, the dancer-turned-actor who broke through in Cedric Klapisch’s “Rise,” as well as Eugénie Derouand (“Paris Police”), Cédric Kahn (“November”) and Stefan Crepon (“Peter Von Kant”)

“Drone” follows Emilie who has freshly arrived in Paris to study architecture. At night, to make ends meet, she works as a cam-girl, something which she keeps to herself. One evening, a mysterious drone appears at her apartment window. From then on,...

Stars: Eugénie Derouand, Honorine Magnier, Clément Olivieri, Janis Abrikh, Cyril Garnier, Vladimir Perrin, Fabien Jegoudez, Jérôme Paquatte, Laura Presgurvic, Isabelle Tanakil | Written and Directed by Patrick Ridremont

Continuing with my Christmas movie reviews for Nerdly, my latest piece comes from Shudder and the festively-titled Christmas horror The Advent Calendar.

Eva, an ex-dancer but now unable to walk and in a wheelchair, gets given an Advent Calendar from a friend. But each window that is opened triggers a real-life repercussion and she must follow a particular set of rules until she eventually has to make a choice that will change her life forever.

It is quite a strange movie. I was expecting a sort of odd anthology of 24 shorts linked with this one woman in a Saw-like way but that’s not what happens. There’s a much better thought out story to The Advent Calendar.

The best moments in The Advent Calendar...

Happy (almost) December, everyone! While the holidays may be underway, that doesn’t mean horror is taking a break, as we have a lot of great genre movies headed to VOD, Digital, and On Demand over the next few weeks. Things kick off tomorrow with The Last Matinee on Arrow (this writer enjoyed it immensely) and throughout December, films like Dune (2021), Antlers, and Halloween Kills (with extra footage) will be headed to the small screen along with a ton of indie horror, including Silent Night, The Advent Calendar, Agnes, Benedetta from Paul Verhoeven, and Red Snow. Also, Joe Bob and Darcy return to Shudder on December 17th for an all-new holiday special.

Happy Streaming and Happy Holidays!

The Last Matinee (Arrow) - Exclusively on Arrow December 1st

A cold, wet day. A declining cinema. All you want is to get out of the rain and watch a good film. But who else is in there,...

Filmmakers are slowly beginning to realize the importance of disability representation in film. Disability has long been portrayed as a source of fear and movies like A Quiet Place (2018), which cast a deaf actor as a deaf character, are finally starting to accurately depict disability and show that disabled folks are not monsters. This is too often the situation in horror movies centering around disabled characters. Unfortunately, sometimes the physical demands of a particular role make it impossible to cast a disabled actor. This is the case with The Advent Calendar, which had its World Premiere earlier this year at Frightfest and is coming to AMC Networks’ premium streaming service Shudder just in time for the holidays.

Written and directed by Belgian actor and filmmaker Patrick Ridremont (Dead Man Talking), The Advent Calendar follows Eva, played by Eugénie Derouand, a former dancer who is forced to use a wheelchair after a tragic accident.

The Advent Calendar Trailer: "Shudder, AMC Networks’ streamer for horror, thrillers and the supernatural will premiere writer/director Patrick Ridremont’s ornate and elegant French horror fantasy The Advent Calendar exclusively on Thursday, December 9th. Combining Faustian themes and allusions with European folklore and tense, chilling terror, the Shudder Original film provides some highly original holiday season horror.

Eva, an ex-dancer, is now using a wheelchair, unable to walk. When her friend Sophie gives her an old wooden antique advent calendar before Christmas, she realizes each window contains a surprise that triggers repercussions in real life. Some of them are good, but most of them are bad, really bad. Now Eva will have to choose between getting rid of the calendar or walking again – even if it causes death and destruction to everyone she holds dear around her.

The Advent Calendar world premiered earlier this year at London’s Frightfest...

Exclusive: PBS is joining the BBC for a second season of Helen Hunt-fronted war drama World on Fire and has set a premiere date for the first season.

The U.S. public broadcaster will air the first season on Sunday April 5 2020 on its Masterpiece strand but has already signed up to co-produce the second season of the period thriller ahead of its TX.

Earlier today, the BBC revealed that it had renewed the series, produced by Victoria producer Mammoth Screen, following the UK finale.

World on Fire is written by The A Word’s Peter Bowker; it is a multi-stranded drama that looks at World War II through the eyes of ordinary people from all sides of the conflict. The first seven-episode season will follow the first year of the war, starting with the German invasion of Poland in September 1939 and ending with the Battle of Britain.

It stars...

The BBC has launched its first look trailer for its upcoming high-end Second World War drama “World On Fire.” The seven-part series stars rising British actors Jonah Hauer-King and Julia Brown alongside an impressive ensemble that includes Academy Award-winner Helen Hunt, Oscar-nominee Lesley Manville, and Sean Bean – who all feature in the action-packed trailer.

Peter Bowker’s drama follows the first year of the Second World War, told through the intertwining fates of ordinary people drawn from Britain, Poland, France, Germany and the U.S. as they grapple with the effect of the war on their everyday lives.

The cast also includes Zofia Wichłacz, Brian J. Smith, Parker Sawyers, Tomasz Kot, Bruno Alexander, Johannes Zeiler, Eugénie Derouand, and “Doctor Who” and “D.C.’s Legends of Tomorrow” star Arthur Darvill. The project was first announced in October 2018.

Bowker serves as executive producer alongside Damien Timmer and Helen Ziegler for Mammoth Screen,...

“Every war is different until it’s the same…” The BBC and PBS have unveiled the first trailer (below) for period war drama World on Fire.

Helen Hunt and Sean Bean star in the series, written by The A Word’s Peter Bowker and produced by Victoria producer Mammoth Screen. Launching later this year on BBC One and recently acquired by the U.S. public broadcaster for its Masterpiece strand, the series is a multi-stranded drama that looks at World War II through the eyes of ordinary people from all sides of the conflict.

The first seven-episode season will follow the first year of the war, starting with the German invasion of Poland in September 1939 and ending with the Battle of Britain.

The cast also includes Lesley Manville (Mum), Jonah Hauer-King (Little Women) and Julia Brown (The Last Kingdom), Polish Academy Award-winner Zofia Wichłacz (Warsaw 44) and Brian J. Smith (Sense8...

PBS has acquired Helen Hunt-fronted British drama World on Fire. The public broadcaster will air the BBC series, which is produced by Victoria producer Mammoth Screen on its Masterpiece strand.

The announcement was made by Masterpiece Executive Producer Rebecca Eaton at the TCA summer press tour.

The drama is written by The A Word’s Peter Bowker; it is a multi-stranded drama that looks at World War II through the eyes of ordinary people from all sides of the conflict. The first seven-episode season will follow the first year of the war, starting with the German invasion of Poland in September 1939 and ending with the Battle of Britain.

It stars Hunt as a “complicated” war correspondent as well as Sean Bean Jonah Hauer-King (Little Women) and Julia Brown (The Last Kingdom), Polish Academy Award-winner Zofia Wichłacz (Warsaw 44) and Brian J. Smith (Sense8) along with Parker Sawyers (The Autopsy of Jane Doe...

Helen Hunt has lifted the lid about playing a “complicated” war correspondent in forthcoming British war epic World on Fire.

Hunt plays Nancy, a female Us war correspondent who can’t find peace unless her life is at risk, in the BBC One drama, which is produced by Victoria producer Mammoth Screen.

The drama is written by The A Word’s Peter Bowker; it is a multi-stranded drama that looks at World War II through the eyes of ordinary people from all sides of the conflict. The first seven-episode season will follow the first year of the war, starting with the German invasion of Poland in September 1939 and ending with the Battle of Britain.

In an interview with Deadline, Hunt said that Nancy is the first person to see 1,000 German tanks moving into France. “She’s smart, she’s funny, which is good in a story that’s not funny much of the time,...

Game of Thrones and Lord of the Rings star Sean Bean is joining the cast of BBC One drama World on Fire.

The actor will star alongside Helen Hunt (As Good As It Gets) and Lesley Manville (Phantom Thread) in the seven-part World War II epic.

Also joining the cast is A Very English Scandal and The Inbetweeners star Blake Harrison, Yrsa Daley-Ward (Today Will Burn), Ansu Kabia (The Long Song) and Ewan Mitchell (The Last Kingdom).

The Mammoth Screen-produced drama is written by The A Word’s Peter Bowker. It is a multi-stranded drama that looks at World War II through the eyes of ordinary people from all sides of the conflict. The first seven-episode season will follow the first year of the war, starting with the German invasion of Poland in September 1939 and ending with the Battle of Britain.

Polish Academy Award-winner Zofia Wichłacz (Warsaw 44) and Brian J. Smith...

Helen Hunt is to star in Mammoth Screen’s BBC One WWII drama World on Fire.

The As Good As It Gets and Mad About You star will lead the cast alongside Phantom Thread’s Lesley Manville and rising British stars Jonah Hauer-King (Little Women) and Julia Brown (The Last Kingdom).

The epic drama is written by The A Word’s Peter Bowker. It is a multi-stranded drama that looks at World War II through the eyes of ordinary people from all sides of the conflict. The first seven-episode season will follow the first year of the war, starting with the German invasion of Poland in September 1939 and ending with the Battle of Britain.

Also joining the cast is Polish Academy Award-winner Zofia Wichłacz (Warsaw 44) and Brian J. Smith (Sense8) along with Parker Sawyers (The Autopsy of Jane Doe), Tomasz Kot (Cold War), Bruno Alexander (Eden), Johannes Zeiler (Faust) and...