News

Exclusive: WTFilms has acquired international sales rights for Ukrainian director and producer Egor Olesov’s timely drama The Daughter set in the early days of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

News of the acquisition comes as Ukraine marks the one thousandth day of the resulting war, which has killed hundreds of thousands, displaced millions and destroyed dozens of once flourishing towns and cities.

The Daughter blends family dynamics with the horrors of war through the story of a 17-year-old, hearing-impaired girl called Olga, who is staying with her father and his new family in the once sleepy town of Bucha outside Kyiv when the Russia invasion of Ukraine begins.

Before the family has time to flee, their home is occupied by Russian soldiers who subject them to a reign of terror including threats of death and rape. Previously at odds with her stepmother, Olga comes to understand she...

Exiled Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof is to serve as jury president for the International Competition for this year’s Kyiv International Film Festival Molodist, which takes place October 26 – November 3.

Rasoulof will be joined in his deliberations by former Filmfest Hamburg director Albert Wiederspiel, Lithuanian writer-director Marija Kavtaradze, Ukrainian actress Anastasia Karpenko and Ukrainian producer Maxim Asadchiy.

Rasoulof’s The Seed of the Sacred Fig won the Special Jury prize at Cannes and had its German premiere at the beginning of Filmfest Hamburg on September 27.

At Filmfest, Rasoulof took part in an in conversation event with Farzad Pak, producer of Rasoulof...

They always knew a full-scale invasion of Ukraine could happen, but they held onto hope it wouldn’t. How else could they enjoy a vacation abroad in the Canary Islands? This trip is supposed to be about fun. And connection. Roma (Roman Lutskyi) and Nastya (Anastasiya Karpenko) have recently got married and the relationship between her and his children (Sofia Berezovska’s Sofiia and Fedir Pugachov’s Fedir) remains tenuous and new. Add the beach, good food, and warm sun, though, and perhaps their defenses might come down. Maybe this time away can help them learn to trust each other and return to Kyiv stronger than ever. That might have happened, too, if not for Russia’s war.

Damian Kocur’s Under the Volcano (co-written with Marta Konarzewska) turns quickly from the breezy nature of tourists preparing a return to their real lives into a tense powder keg of futility.

Beta Film has sold Starlight Media and Gaumont Ukrainian war drama “In Her Car” to Nhk Japan, Czech Republic, Latvia and Slovakia. Further negotiations are underway.

Created by Eugen Tunick – who directs alongside Arkadii Nepytaliuk – and backed by Zdf, France Télévisions and all Nordic public broadcasters, and “In Her Car” sees therapist Lydia (Anastasia Karpenko) trying to divorce her husband. It’s February 2022 and the war has started, but instead of following her daughter’s advice and fleeing the country, Lydia starts helping strangers, driving them to their destinations.

The show is set to world premiere on Feb. 19 in Berlin as part of a special event dedicated to the future of Ukraine in Europe, hosted by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation.

“The idea was to tell one story per episode: There is always a new passenger. That being said, it was also essential to follow Lydia’s story, because it keeps developing throughout the whole season.

Beta Film has released a moving trailer for the Ukrainian war drama “In Her Car,” a gripping series about the ongoing crisis told through the eyes of those who are living it, the company announced ahead of Mipcom.

“In Her Car” (10 x 30’) is produced by Starlight Media and Gaumont in co-production with France Télévisions, Zdf (Germany) and Swiss public broadcaster Srf. The show was also boarded in its early stages by Nordic public broadcasters Svt (Sweden), Dr (Denmark), Yle (Finland), Nrk TV (Norway) and RÚV (Iceland). Showrunner and creator Eugen Tunick directs alongside Arkadiy Nepytaliuk.

The story begins with the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Lydia, played by Anastasia Karpenko, (“How is Katia?”), is a seasoned therapist who alongside her practice fields questions and concerns from her followers on social media. Privately, her life is in disarray, as she tries to divorce a husband who not only cheated on...

The Ukrianian festival ran as a festival within a festival at Filmfest Hamburg.

Christina Tynkevych’s feature debut How Is Katia? was named the winner of the national competition of Ukraine’s Molodist Film Festival, held for the second year in a row as a festival within a festival at Filmfest Hamburg in Germany.

The Scythian Deer statuette and a cash prize of $2,500 was presented to the film’s producer Olha Matat on October 5, at the Abaton cinema by the jury of actress Alina Levshin, psychologist Svetlana Uvarova and film director David Wagner.

The drama about an ambulance doctor seeking...

The Ukrianian festival ran as a festival within a festival at Filmfest Hamburg.

Christina Tynkevych’s feature debut How Is Katia? was named the winner of the national competition of Ukraine’s Molodist Film Festival, held for the second year in a row as a festival within a festival at Filmfest Hamburg in Germany.

The Scythian Deer statuette and a cash prize of $2,500 was presented to the film’s producer Olha Matat on October 5, at the Abaton cinema by the jury of actress Alina Levshin, psychologist Svetlana Uvarova and film director David Wagner.

The drama about an ambulance doctor seeking...

Beta Film, Germany’s ZDFneo and France Télévisions have boarded Gaumont’s Ukrainian war drama In Her Car.

Showran by Eugen Tunik, the 10-part series is set during the early days of the Ukraine War and draws on the lived experiences of Kyivans scrambling for shelter following the Russian invasion in February 2022. Each episode follows local therapist Lydia (How is Katia? star Anastasia Karpenko) shuttling a different person to safety. Told from inside the protagonist’s car, the series will explore different tales of resilience and civic responsibility and each passenger has a very own and touching story to tell.

ZDFneo and France Télévisions will air alongside Ukraine’s Starlight Media, while Beta is handling international sales. Gaumont set up and closed the international financing and co-production alliance.

“In Her Car emphasizes the power of human stories that cut through borders and conflicts,” said Veronika Kovacova, Beta’s EVP International Sales & Acquisitions Cee.

France Télévisions, Germany’s ZDFneo and international sales group Beta Film have boarded In Her Car, a new high-end drama series from Ukrainian producer Starlight Media and Narcos producer Gaumont set in the early days of the war in Ukraine.

The project, which was presented to international buyers and partners at the MIPTV market in Cannes in April, is a 10-part series focused on Lydia, a local therapist who, in the days following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, uses her car to shuttle various people to safety. Each episode of the series sees Lydia, played by How is Katia? star Anastasia Karpenko transporting a new passenger and hearing their story of resilience and human drama. Initiated by showrunner Eugen Tunik with Starlight, In Her Car is currently shooting in undisclosed locations in and around Kyiv. Gaumont partnered with Starlight to co-produce and help secure international financing for the project.

Market

The Cannes Film Market has launched Cannes Investors Circle, which will commence with a keynote introduction by Liesl Copland, Participant’s executive VP, content and platform strategy, who will offer her perspective on the modern media landscape. The initiative will also feature a panel discussion titled Navigating Film Finance in a Changing World that aims to offer insights on global financing and market trends in 2023 and beyond. The panelists will include Elisa Alvares, finance expert at Jacaranda Consultants; Rikke Ennis, CEO of REinvent Studios; Emilie Georges, co-founder and CEO of Paradise City; Mike Goodridge, U.K. producer at Good Chaos who is also presenting Jessica Hausner’s “Club Zero” in the festival’s official competition; with film festival consultant Wendy Mitchell moderating.

The event will also include an invitation-only session where VIP private investors will listen to pitches of nine new global film projects at the investment stage. The...

The European Film Academy (Efa) has unveiled 462 film professionals as new members in an announcement timed to coincide with Europe Day on May 9.

The new arrivals will be eligible to vote in the academy’s European Film Awards, the region’s equivalent to the Academy Awards, as well as contribute to its other initiatives across the year.

The Efa said a record number of professionals had accepted to join the organization this year, adding that 50% were female, 49%, were male, and 1% defined as non-binary.

The bigger intake comes amid a drive to revamp the academy which recently announced it would be moving the Efa ceremony to January in 2026, from its traditional December slot, to make it more relevant in the annual film awards season culminating with the Oscars.

The Efa currently now counts 4,600 members based in 52 countries.

The new members mainly hailed from Germany (68), France (38), Switzerland (37), Poland (36), Italy (33), Spain (24), UK (28) and...

Gaumont has kick-started the engine on “In the Car,” a road drama set during the early days of the war in Ukraine, that has just started shooting in confidential locations in and around Kyiv. Leading Ukrainian media group Starlight Media is handling production duties.

Created by “Early Birds” producer Eugene Tunik, the dramatic series pulls from lived experiences of Kyivans scrambling for shelter following the Russian invasion in February 2022, with each episode finding local therapist Lydia (“How is Katia?” star Anastasia Karpenko) shuttling a different person to safety. Told from inside the protagonist’s car, the 10 episodes will explore different tales of resilience and civic responsibility.

“The struggle for Ukraine’s victory and the values it represents, such as freedom, dreams, independence, respect, and equality, isn’t limited to the courageous soldiers fighting on the front lines,” says Starlight Media CEO Oleksandr Bohutskyi.

“Millions of ordinary people are also doing extraordinary things,...

Timo, played here by Andriy Cherednyk, with Felix, played by Yuriy Izdryk. Iryna Tsylik: 'I have my memories from the past about difficult, tough times and the Nineties, when men around me were mostly very lost' Rock Paper Grenade steps back into Nineties Ukraine and the life of Tymophiy. Timo, as his friends and family call him, is looking to the West in a world that is changing fast in the wake of the country’s independence from the Soviet Union and Tsylik takes a playful approach to his coming-of-age tale. It’s a world, however, that director Iryna Tsilyk shows is heavily impacted by conflict trauma, represented by Felix (Yuriy Izdryk), a mysterious Afghanistan veteran with Ptsd who is in a relationship with Timo’s gran (Halyna Veretelnyk-Stephanova), much to the upset of Timo’s mum (Anastasiya Karpenko) and who strikes up an unusual friendship with the youngster.

The film,...

Julia Murat’s film is second from Brazil to win festival’s top honour.

The Golden Leopard at Locarno Film Festival’s 75th anniversary edition (August 3-13) has gone to Julia Murat’s Rule 34 (Regra 34), which had its world premiere in the Swiss festival’s international competition.

The award includes a cash prize of Chf 75,000 to be shared equally between the film’s director and producer.

Rule 34 is the story of a young law student whose sexual desires lead her into a world of violence and eroticism. It was part of the 2019 Berlinale Co-Production Market and last year received...

Rule 34International Competition(Jury: Michel Merkt, Laura Samani, Prano Bailey-Bond, Alain Guiraudie, William Horberg)Golden Leopard: Rule 34 (Julia Murat)Special Jury Prize: Gigi la legge (The Adventures of Gigi the Law) (Alessandro Comodin)Best Direction: Valentina Maurel (Tengo sueños eléctricos)Best Actress: Daniela Marín Navarro (Tengo sueños eléctricos)Best Actor: Reinaldo Amien Gutiérrez (Tengo sueños eléctricos)Filmmakers Of The Present( Jury: Annick Mahnert, Gitanjali Rao, Katriel Schory )Golden Leopard: Svetlonoc (Nightsiren) (Tereza Nvotová)Special Jury Prize: Yak Tam Katia? (How Is Katia?) (Christina Tynkevych)Prize for Best Emerging Director: Juraj Lerotić (Sigurno mjesto (Safe Place))Best Actress: Anastasia Karpenko (How Is Katia?)Best Actor: Goran Marković (Safe Place)Special Mention: Den siste våren (Franciska Eliassen)First Feature(Jury: Boo Junfeng, Shahram Mokri, Madeline Robert)Best First Feature: Sigurno mjesto (Safe Place) (Juraj Lerotić)Special Mention: Love Dog (Bianca Lucas) and De noche los gatos son pardos (Valentin Merz)Pardi Di Domani(Jury: Walter Fasano,...

Click here to read the full article.

Rule 34, a Brazilian drama from director Julia Murat, has won the Golden Leopard for best film at the 2022 Locarno International Film Festival.

The feature is a disturbing look at a young law student who by day passionately defends the rights of women in domestic abuse cases and by night performs in front of a live sex cam. Her own sexual impulses lead her toward a world of violence and dangerous eroticism.

Tengo Suenos Electricos, a family drama from Costa Rican director Valentina Maurel was a triple winner at Locarno, winning best director for Maurel and both acting honors, with stars Daniela Marín Navarro and Reinaldo Amien Gutiérrez taking best actress and best acting awards, respectively.

‘Tengo Suenos Electricos’

Navarro plays Eva, a 16-year-old girl who, desperate to escape her stifling home life with her mother and younger sister, moves in with her...

Brazilian filmmaker Julia Murat clinched the Golden Leopard prize in the main international competition of the 75th Locarno Film Festival with her latest feature Rule 34.

The film follows Simone, a young law student who finds a passion for defending women in abuse cases. Yet her own sexual interests lead her to a world of violence and eroticism.

Rule 34 is Murat’s third feature film after Pendular, which picked up the Fipresci Prize at the 2017 Berlinale. The Brazillian filmmaker’s first film, Found Memories, debuted at Venice.

Locarno’s Golden Leopard comes with a Chf 75,000 cash prize to be shared equally between the director and the producer. Murat produced the film alongside Tatiana Leite.

This year’s Golden Leopard competition jury was comprised of Swiss producer Michel Merkt, British filmmaker Prano Bailey-Bond, French filmmaker Alain Guiraudie, American producer William Horberg, and Italian director Laura Samani.

In other main competition awards, the...

Yak Tam Katia? Review — Yak Tam Katia? (2022) Film Review from the 75th Annual Locarno Film Festival, a movie directed by Christina Tynkevych, written by Serhil Kastornykh and Christina Tynkevych and starring Anastasiya Karpenko, Kateryna Kozlova, Iryna Verenych-Ostrovska, Viktor Zhdanov, Yelena Khokhlatkina, Aleksey Cherevatenko and Olena Rechych. Yak Tam Katia? (How is Katia?) is [...]

Continue reading: Film Review: Yak Tam Katia?: Powerful Dramatic Film from Ukraine is Well Acted Though Emotionally Devastating [Locarno 2022]...