News

The Indigenous Cinema Alliance (Ica) heads to the Berlinale and European Film Market with a bolstered lineup this February as it celebrates 10 years of promoting Indigenous film and television.

Three works by Indigenous directors – Wrong Husband, White Ochre and Akababuru: Expression of Astonishment – are playing in the Berlinale’s Generation sidebar, while Wilfred Buck’s Star Stories, an immersive experience with Ininew astronomer Wilfred Buck will have a special presentation in Forum Expanded.

There will also be market screenings for Māori-language historical drama Ka Whawhai Tonu – Struggle Without End; Manitoba-set comedy-drama Lucky Strikes, and episodes of drama A Sámi Wedding.

The alliance, formerly known as the NATIVe Indigenous Cinema Stand, has officially partnered with the EFM since 2015.

This year’s program will kick off with a discussion on what the next decade holds for Indigenous cinema, with panelists including International Sami Film Institute (Isfi) Managing Director Anne Lajla Utsi, Pacific Islanders...

The Indigenous Cinema Alliance (Ica) returns to the Berlin Film Festival and European Film Market (EFM), marking its 10th anniversary showcasing native and Indigenous filmmakers worldwide.

Established in 2015 as the NATIVe Indigenous Cinema Stand, the Ica has served as a platform for Indigenous filmmakers to showcase market-ready projects to the international market. An official partner with the EFM since its inception, Ica is managed by imagineNATIVE and represents a global network of Indigenous film organizations, including the International Sami Film Institute (Isfi), 4th World Media Lab, Film Greenland (Film.Gl), Pacific Islanders in Communications, If Not US Then Who?, Mullu, Pisa, and the Winda Film Festival.

In addition to presenting projects, the Ica organizes panels and networking events to link Indigenous talent across national borders and to evaluate the profile of Indigenous cinema worldwide.

EFM screenings of new projects include Mike Jonathan’s Maori period action film Ka Whawhai Tonu / Struggle Without End,...

Author: Zehra Phelan

Cobie Smulders may just regret to signing up for British Comedy, Songbird, as filming has begun in an arctic-like Cornwall for the month of January alongside Britain’s own comedy legend, Jessica Hynes.

Songbird is the fourth in the line of original features from writer/director Jamie Adams (Brokeback Mountain) who has teamed up with Noel Clarke and Jason Maza’s Unstoppable Entertainment to produce the feature. Clarke has also managed to get himself a place on the cast alongside Ian Smith (Sweat the Small Stuff, Popatron), Laura Patch (Star Stories, Life Begins), Holli Dempsey (Dad’s Army, Derek) and Emily Atack (Dad’s Army, The Inbetweeners).

Jamie Adams, screenwriter and director said: “I am incredibly lucky to be working with such a talented cast and crew on Songbird; Cobie Smulders is such an amazing comic actor and it’s truly a privilege to work with her here in Cornwall,...

The UK's Channel 4 has greenlit comedy soap opera, The Windsors. In what's promised as a look at the imagined lives and loves of the royal family, the stories will be fictional, but inspired by real events. The six-part series will be written by Bert Tyler-Moore and George Jeffrie (Star Stories, Pete Versus Life). Noho Film and TV begins production next year. Exec producers are Camilla Campbell and Robert Wulff. BBC Worldwide has acquired a 25% stake in Amazing…...

The UK's Channel 4 has greenlit comedy soap opera, The Windsors. In what's promised as a look at the imagined lives and loves of the royal family, the stories will be fictional, but inspired by real events. The six-part series will be written by Bert Tyler-Moore and George Jeffrie (Star Stories, Pete Versus Life). Noho Film and TV begins production next year. Exec producers are Camilla Campbell and Robert Wulff. BBC Worldwide has acquired a 25% stake in Amazing…...

Season 2 of the BBC’s acclaimed drama Happy Valley begins shooting this week with some new names among the cast. Among those joining Sarah Lancashire, James Norton and other returning actors are Downton Abbey’s Kevin Doyle, Harry Potter‘s Matthew Lewis, Mr Selfridge‘s Katherine Kelly, Coronation Street‘s Julie Hesmondhalgh, Filth‘s Shirley Henderson and Scott & Bailey‘s Amelia Bullmore. The BBC One drama is created by Sally Wainwright and won the Best Drama Series BAFTA Award last year, among many other prizes. Netflix has U.S. rights. Doyle, who’s been with Downton since the beginning, will reunite in Happy Valley with erstwhile ladies maid O’Brien (Siobahn Finneran), who plays Clare Cartwright on Happy Valley. Also returning are George Costigan, Karl Davies and Charlie Murphy. The six-part drama also is adding Con O’Neill (Cucumber) and Vincent Franklin (The Thick Of It). As S2 opens, Lancashire’s...

Super Fun Night may come across as a rather shameless effort to capitalize on Rebel Wilson‘s popularity, and there’s a pretty good reason for that. After a string of Australian comedies, Wilson rocketed to her unique place in the collective consciousness with her roles in Bridesmaids and Pitch Perfect (and to a lesser extent, the under-appreciated Bachelorette). It’s only by a curious twist, and possibly the advice of marketing gurus, that this isn’t called “The Rebel Wilson Show,” and that’s probably the first place to look when you want to know why this show doesn’t have the strengths it needs to get anywhere.

The show revolves around Kimmie Boubier (Wilson) and her two best friends, and their 13-year tradition of hanging together on Friday nights for their “Super Fun Nights.” Somewhat… socially-challenged… let’s say, the crew find themselves moving into later portions of...

Casting Freddy Mercury, Mike Figgis's sexy lingerie and Judi Dench's first steps to her next Oscar

The great pretender

News that Sacha Baron Cohen has withdrawn from playing Freddie Mercury in Tom Hooper's proposed biopic of the Queen frontman means that Rhys Thomas's documentary Freddie Mercury: The Great Pretender remains the definitive chronicle of the singer. An actor and star of The Fast Show and Star Stories, Thomas was an adviser to the planned movie in its early stages. Does Baron Cohen's departure leave the door open for Thomas to prance in as his idol? "It would be a whole different level of financing with me, but I wouldn't say no," says Thomas, whose doc features a duet between Mercury and Michael Jackson. "They made three tracks together that were never released," he tells me. "Freddie flounced off because Michael kept bringing is pet llama to the recording studio.

Casting Freddy Mercury, Mike Figgis's sexy lingerie and Judi Dench's first steps to her next Oscar

The great pretender

News that Sacha Baron Cohen has withdrawn from playing Freddie Mercury in Tom Hooper's proposed biopic of the Queen frontman means that Rhys Thomas's documentary Freddie Mercury: The Great Pretender remains the definitive chronicle of the singer. An actor and star of The Fast Show and Star Stories, Thomas was an adviser to the planned movie in its early stages. Does Baron Cohen's departure leave the door open for Thomas to prance in as his idol? "It would be a whole different level of financing with me, but I wouldn't say no," says Thomas, whose doc features a duet between Mercury and Michael Jackson. "They made three tracks together that were never released," he tells me. "Freddie flounced off because Michael kept bringing is pet llama to the recording studio.

London, Jun 22: Robbie Williams has hit back at Liam Gallagher after the former 'Oasis' frontman reignited their bitter feud by calling him "f***ing idiot."

The 'Take That' star has retaliated by saying that he wished 'Beady Eye's' music was as good as Gallagher's chat, the Mirror reported.

Williams told the publication that the interviews are better than the records at the moment and Gallagher is like an episode of Star Stories.

He then laid into some of the songs on new Beady Eye album Be, saying that the production is really good, but there are a couple of tunes that would have been amazing if they had a chorus..

At ABC‘s upfront, there were a few things that the network wanted to make sure you knew. 1) They are really impressed with the idea that people are going to watch Rebel Wilson do just about anything, and 2) There isn’t anything they’re happier about than bringing you more episodes of television created by Shonda Rhimes.

On these notes, the network would love for you to know that more Grey’s Anatomy and Scandal are coming your way. These, ABC would like to impress upon you (as advertisers) are really good shows. Because… hellllooo… so many people watch them that we’re bringing them back. But wait, don’t think that you’re as excited as you can get yet, because if those are your favorite shows, then we have a new one for you to fall in love with, Betrayal.

Also on the agenda, and actually looking like they might be interesting,...

Chicago – ABC announced their 2013-14 schedule this morning and revealed an aggressive slate of new programming, including four new comedies and four new dramas. Tuesday nights will be entirely new, anchored by “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.”. Their hit shows aren’t really moving other than “The Neighbors” slidng to Friday nights and “Dancing with the Stars” downsized to one night. They also revealed that they will air a special based on the hit Pixar trilogy, “Toy Story of Terror,” in October 2013.

Full schedule below with an asterisk for new show. New show descriptions below that. “Suburgatory” is being held for mid-season.

Monday

7pm “Dancing with the Stars”

9pm “Castle”

Tuesday

7pm “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.”*

8pm “The Goldbergs”*

8:30pm “Trophy Wife”*

9pm “Lucky 7”*

Wednesday

7pm “The Middle”

7:30pm “Back in the Game”*

8pm “Modern Family”

8:30pm “Super Fun Night”*

9pm “Nashville”

Thursday

7pm “Once...

The end of this week sees the release of A Few Best Men, an Australian comedy about a group of hapless Brits on a trip Down Under for a friend’s wedding. We’ll have a review online later in the week, but for now, here’s an interview with two of the film’s stars, Kris Marshall and Kevin Bishop, during which, the pair spoke about their relationship, and their plans to elope together, as well as the hardships of filming near Bondi Beach, and Bishop’s constant serenading of Oliva Newton John.

Check it out below.

Prepare to meet the worst best men ever in the outrageous comedy A Few Best Men, starring Xavier Samuel (Twilight: Eclipse), Kris Marshall (Love Actually), Kevin Bishop (TV’s Star Stories), Rebel Wilson (Bridesmaids) and Olivia Newton-John (Grease).

When David (Xavier Samuel) journeys to Australia to marry the love of his life,...

To mark the release of new comedy A Few Best Men on August 31st, we’ve got £250 to give away to one lucky HeyUGuys reader! Check out the synopsis and trailer below and then scroll down for your chance to win.

Prepare to meet the worst best men ever in the outrageous comedy A Few Best Men, starring Xavier Samuel (Twilight: Eclipse), Kris Marshall (Love Actually), Kevin Bishop (TV’s Star Stories), Rebel Wilson (Bridesmaids) and Olivia Newton-John (Grease).

When David (Xavier Samuel) journeys to Australia to marry the love of his life, Mia, he invites his three best mates – Graham (Kevin Bishop), Luke (Tim Draxl) and Tom (Kris Marshall) – to travel with him. Having barely met his bride-to-be, they aren’t too impressed at the thought of losing their best friend to married life on the other side of the world but resolve to give him a send-off to remember.

Sky1 has recommissioned three of its comedy series. Starlings - featuring Brendan Coyle and Lesley Sharp - will return for a second series in 2013. The show - created by and also starring Matt King (Peep Show) and Steve Edge (Star Stories) - has received an order for eight more 60-minute episodes. The broadcaster's popular anthology series Little Crackers will also return for a third run this Christmas. Stars confirmed for the latest strand of short films include Katy Brand, Paul O'Grady, Jason Manford, Alison Steadman and Joanna Lumley, who will also direct her film. Further names will be announced in the near future. Chris O'Dowd's semi-autobiographical (more)...

Film4, the British film studio behind The Inbetweeners Movie, has announced the creation of a £1m film fund to develop comedy movies

Inspired by the success of The Inbetweeners Movie, British film studio Film4 has announced the creation of a £1m film fund specifically aimed at developing comedy features.

The fund will be overseen by Shane Allen, Channel 4's head of comedy, who has been responsible for recent TV hits such as Facejacker, Star Stories and Friday Night Dinner.

Allen said: "This is a fantastic adrenaline shot for more British film comedy ... with the huge expertise of Film4 it's a brilliant opportunity to tap the cinematic potential of UK writing and performing talent."

The Inbetweeners ran for three seasons on the E4 channel between 2008 and 2010, before the movie spin-off was released in 2011, becoming an unexpectedly successful hit taking over £45m at the UK box office.

ComedyFilm industryAndrew Pulver

guardian.

Here’s the first crazy trailer for Buena Vista International’s new movie, A Few Best Men. The trailer does away rather a lot and I’m really hoping that they haven’t too much into it so that when you see the entire thing, you already know exactly what’s going to happen.

A Few Best Men stars Xavier Samuel, Kris Marshall, Kevin Bishop, Rebel Wilson and Olivia Newton-John. It’s out in UK cinemas 31st August 2012.

Prepare to meet the worst best men ever in the outrageous comedy A Few Best Men, starring Xavier Samuel (Twilight: Eclipse), Kris Marshall (Love Actually), Kevin Bishop (TV’s Star Stories), Rebel Wilson (Bridesmaids) and Olivia Newton-John (Grease).

When David (Xavier Samuel) journeys to Australia to marry the love of his life, Mia, he invites his three best mates – Graham (Kevin Bishop), Luke (Tim Draxl) and Tom (Kris Marshall) – to travel with him.

Welcome to issue 4 of Trailer Trash our [more often than] weekly series showcasing the latest trailer releases – this issue once again features our all-new “excitement-o-meter” where we rate (in exclamation marks on a scale of 1 to 5) each and every trailer by how excited we are to see the film after watching it. This issue of Trailer Trash includes new trailers for The Dark Knight Rises, A Few Best Men, Lawless, Prometheus, Samsara and TV show Tron: Uprising

The Dark Knight Rises

Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Legendary Pictures’ “The Dark Knight Rises” is the epic conclusion to filmmaker Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy, Leading an all-star international cast, Oscar® winner Christian Bale (“The Fighter”) again plays the dual role of Bruce Wayne/Batman. The film also stars Anne Hathaway, as Selina Kyle; Tom Hardy, as Bane; Oscar® winner Marion Cotillard (“La Vie en Rose”), as Miranda Tate; and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, as John Blake. The Dark Knight Rises...

Exclusive: In a competitive situation, British TV director Ben Palmer has signed with Wme. Palmer become a hot commodity overnight as his feature debut, The Inbetweeners Movie, has become the U.K.’s fastest-grossing live-action movie. Since its Aug. 17 release, the low budget flick, which was made for under $5 million, has grossed nearly $60 million at the British box-office. Palmer landed the Inbetweeners Movie gig after directing Seasons 2 and 3 of the hit Channel 4/E4 TV comedy series The Inbetweeners, which spawned the feature. The series, created by Iain Morris and Damon Beesley, about four high school boys who are not the most cool and popular but not geeky enough to be branded uncool, is being remade in the U.S. by MTV for a 2012 premiere. Additionally, Palmer, who didn’t have U.S. representation, has also directed C4’s hit comedy/biopic series Star Stories, as well as Bo Selecta and The Russell Brand Show.

Billie Piper will play a lead role in new BBC Three comedy Tom and Jenny, it was revealed at the Edinburgh TV Festival. The Secret Diaries of a Call Girl star will play Jenny, one half of a feuding couple who have split up, but refuse to leave their shared house. Penned by Star Stories and Kevin Bishop Show writer Lee Hupfield and directed by The Inbetweeners Movie helmer Ben Palmer, the Objective Productions pilot was one of a raft of new shows announced by BBC Three controller Zai Bennett over the weekend. "It's been a busy five months since I started with the channel but my (more)...

Filming has begun on new Channel 4 comedy-drama Naked Apes. The six-part series, created by The Curse of Steptoe scribe Brian Fillis, is inspired by the Tom Reynolds book Blood, Sweat and Tea and will focus on the lives of three world-weary paramedics. Four Lions star Kayvan Novak will star as the womanising Rachid, while Game of Thrones actor Richard Madden will play handsome paramedic Ashley. Star Stories comic Rhys Thomas and Misfits actress Amy Beth Hayes will also appear as the misanthropic Stuart and his best friend Maxine (more)...

London -- Controversial talk show host Jonathan Ross has been nominated for a BAFTA TV award for his weekly BBC1 entertainment show "Friday Night With Jonathan Ross."

The nomination comes despite Ross being suspended by BBC bosses for three months at the beginning of the year for his role in making obscene phone calls that were broadcast on BBC Radio Two.

Ross, who returned to TV screens in January and who recently presented the British Academy film awards, is nominated in the best entertainment performance category. He will compete alongside Stephen Fry for BBC2 quiz show "Qi," comedian Harry Hill for ITV1's satirical show "Harry Hill's TV Burp," and Ant and Dec, hosts of ITV1's "I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here." "Burp" and "Qi" are also nominated in the best entertainment program category alongside ITV1's "X factor" and Channel 4's "Friday Night Project."

In the International category,...

Star Stories actor Steve Edge has revealed that Elton John and David Furnish will be among the celebrities lampooned on the new series of the show. Edge, who stars alongside Kevin Bishop on the Channel 4 programme, confirmed that the newest scripts are the funniest yet. "I'm sure we're doing Elton John and David Furnish," Edge told The Mirror. "We read a (more)...