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”It’s all about enthusiam, stubborness and determination,” he says.

Aged 85, Roger Gibson is preparing for his final edition as artistic director of the Chichester International Film Festival. He has built it into one of the UK’s leading regional film festivals since launching it in 1992.

Over the years guests travelling to the south of England festival have included Alec Guinness, Stephen Poliakoff, Kathleen Turner, Ken Russell, Mike Leigh and Ralph Fiennes. This year’s guest list is equally impressive: the festival has programmed retrospectives of work by Cate Blanchett and Hugh Bonneville, and both actors are set to attend,...

After a hugely successful year for domestic films, Austria’s movie industry is looking forward to another impressive crop of titles, including many international co-productions that reflect not only cultural and historical ties with neighboring countries but also the sector’s strong cross-border partnerships.

Highly anticipated films this year include Hans Steinbichler’s “A Whole Life,” the story of a humble man’s existence in an Alpine valley that spans more than eight decades; Dieter Berner’s “Alma and Oskar,” which explores the passionate and tumultuous affair between Viennese composer and socialite Alma Mahler and artist Oskar Kokoschka in the early 1900s; and Timm Kröger’s “The Theory of Everything,” a black-and-white, 1960s-set mystery-thriller that takes place in a scientific conference in the Alps.

Forthcoming releases include works from established directors and young filmmakers, says Anne Laurent-Delage, executive director of promotional organization Austrian Films. This year’s strong showing follows...

Picture Tree Intl. has taken global sales rights for “The Peacock” by Lutz Heineking Jr. The black comedy is based on the best-selling novel of the same title by German author Isabel Bogdan, which has been published in key European territories. Variety has been given exclusive access to the trailer (below).

The film’s cast is filled with German stars including Lavinia Wilson, Tom Schilling, David Kross and Jürgen Vogel. Tobis Film releases the film in Germany on March 9.

When investment banker Linda Bachmann and her team arrive at the country estate of Lord and Lady McIntosh for a team building seminar, the prospects for having a relaxing weekend in Scotland are not good: the annual balance sheet is lousy, the team is keeping a suspicious eye on each other and their boss, and there are rumors that a compliance officer will soon be restructuring the department.

To make matters worse,...

Urban love story is the debut feature of the Austrian director.

Screen can reveal the first trailer of Chris Raiber’s First Snow Of Summer, which has just been boarded for international sales by Picture Tree International (Pti).

The urban love story world premieres on Tuesday (January 31) at the Göteborg Film Festival and is the debut feature of the Austrian director.

It’s the story of a young man, Alexander, who is determined never to fall in love until he meets the beautiful and vivacious Caro in her small subway hatter store.

The film’s Austrian cast includes Verena Altenberger...

Urban love story is the debut feature of the Austrian director.

Screen can reveal the first trailer of Chris Raiber’s Snow Of Summer, which has just been boarded for international sales by Picture Tree International (Pti).

The urban love story world premieres on Tuesday (January 31) at the Göteborg Film Festival and is the debut feature of the Austrian director.

It’s the story of a young man, Alexander, who is determined never to fall in love until he meets the beautiful and vivacious Caro in her small subway hatter store.

The film’s Austrian cast includes Verena Altenberger (The...

The film is making its world premiere as the opening film of Ostend Film Festival on January 27.

Screen can reveal the trailer for The Chapel by Oscar-nominated Belgian director and writer Dominique Deruddere, which has just been boarded for international sales by Picture Tree International (Pti).

The Chapel will world premiere as the opening film of the Ostend Film Festival on January 27. Deruddere’s satirical comedy Everybody’s Famous! was nominated for best foreign language film at the 2000 Oscars.

The Chapel will be part of Pti’s Berlinale/EFM slate alongside the recently announced John Malkovich vehicle Seneca – On The Creation Of Earthquakes.

The 53rd edition of International Film Festival of India (Iffi) concluded on Monday with Spanish film ‘I have electric dreams’ directed by Valentina Maurel winning the ‘Golden Peacock award’.

The closing ceremony of Iffi was held at the Shyama Prasad Mukherjee indoor stadium in Taleigao on Monday.

The 53rd edition of Iffi witnessed participation of filmmakers and cinema lovers from across the globe.

Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Anurag Thakur, MoS I&b L. Murugan, MoS Tourism Shripad Naik, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant and other dignitaries were present on the occasion.

“My commitment is to give strong emphasis to provide a platform to regional cinema. Because, regional is no longer regional… it has gone national and international. Cinema has played a vital role to reach Hindi language across the globe,” Thakur said on the occasion.

Megastar Chiranjeevi was conferred the Indian Film Personality of the Year award on concluding...

The 53rd International Film Festival of India (Iffi), Goa got off to a spectacular start on Nov. 20, with the best of Bollywood on display.

A near full house at the 4,000-seater capacity Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Indoor Stadium witnessed performances from Bollywood stars Varun Dhawan, whose next film “Bhediya” is premiering at the festival, and Mrunal Thakur. There were on-stage appearances from A-listers Ajay Devgn, Kartik Aaryan, Manoj Bajpayee, Suniel Shetty, Paresh Rawal and Sara Ali Khan. Actor Aparshakti Khurana compered the evening.

South Indian cinema star Catherine Tresa Alexander performed to a medley of Telugu, Tamil and Kannada-language cinema hit songs and the southern industries were also represented by “Rrr” and “Baahubali” writer Vijayendra Prasad.

Presiding over proceedings was India’s Information & Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur. The country is celebrating 75 years of independence and Thakur said that India is on track over the next 25 years to become a global film shooting,...

The 53rd edition of International Film Festival of India (Iffi) kicked off on Sunday with the participation of filmmakers and cinema lovers from across the globe. Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Anurag Thakur, MoS I&b L. Murugan, MoS Tourism Shripad Naik, Goa Governor P.S. Sreedharan Pillai, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant and other dignitaries were present on the occasion.

Actors Ajay Devgn, Suniel Shetty, Manoj Bajpayee, Paresh Rawal and ‘Rrr’ writer V. Vijayendra Prasad were felicitated on the occasion for their contributions to the film industry.

The opening ceremony was held at the Syama Prasad Mukherjee indoor stadium in Taleigao.

The Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement Award was bestowed upon veteran director Carlos Saura, who along with Luis Bunuel and Pedro Almodovar is considered to be one of Spain’s most renowned filmmakers. The award was received by his daughter Anna Saura Ramon, while Carlos Saura thanked the Iffi organisers virtually.

Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Anurag Thakur on Sunday said that the government intends to make India as a destination for film shooting and production. “We have seen the pandemic time and coming out of that, now large numbers are witnessing Iffi. Through this, regional cinemas are going internationally,” he told reporters ahead of the opening ceremony of International Film Festival of India (Iffi).

While welcoming all the delegates and filmmakers, Thakur said that India has got an opportunity to bring global films here and give new hope to regional films.

“We got an opportunity to bring global films to Iffi. The Film Bazaar in Iffi is superb. It is international standard and international films are brought here; even regional films of India are taken to international level through Iffi. Indian art and culture will be taken globally by this way,” he said.

“We want to establish India as a big market for production,...

The International Film Festival Of India (Iffi) has announced the 15 films that will screen in competition at this year’s edition of the annual event, including recent festival favourites such as Maha Haj’s Mediterranean Fever and Lav Diaz’ When The Waves Are Gone, and three Indian films, including recent Busan premiere The Storyteller.

The selection of 12 international titles also includes Syrian filmmaker Soudade Kaadan’s Nezouh; Next Sohee, from South Korea’s Jung Ju-ri; Red Shoes, from Japan’s Toshiro Saiga; Cold As Marble, from Azerbaijan’s Asif Rustamov; Seven Dogs, from Argentina’s Rodrigo Guerrero; Ursula Meier’s The Line (La Ligne); Valentina Maurel’s I Have Electric Dreams, and two Iranian films – Dariush Mehrjui’s A Minor and Nader Saeivar’s No End.

South Asia is also represented by Maarya: The Ocean Angel, about a group of fishermen disturbed by a sex doll they find in the sea,...

The 53rd International Film Festival of India (Iffi) will open with Austrian film “Alma & Oskar,” directed by Dieter Berner.

The film details the tumultuous relationship between Viennese society grand dame Alma Mahler (1879-1964) and Austrian artist Oskar Kokoschka (1886-1980).

Iffi has also revealed the 15 films that will be competing for its top prize, the Golden Peacock Award, including 12 international titles and three Indian ones.

The international titles include “Perfect Number,” “Red Shoes,” “A Minor,” “No End,” “Mediterranean Fever,” “When the Waves Are Gone,” “I Have Electric Dreams,” “Cold as Marble,” “Seven Dogs,” “Maarya: The Ocean Angel,” “Nezouh” and “The Line.”

The Indian titles are “The Kashmir Files,” “The Storyteller” and “Kurangu Pedal.”

Iffi will also pay homage to late legendary Indian singer Lata Mangeshkar with a screening of Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s 1973 musical drama film “Abhimaan,” starring Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bhaduri.

Confirmed masterclasses at Iffi include those from: “Kung Fu Panda...

The 53rd edition of International Film Festival of India (Iffi) to be held in Goa from November 20 to 28 will open with Austrian film ‘Alma and Oskar’.

The passionate and tumultuous relationship between the Viennese society Grand Dame Alma Mahler (1879-1964) and Austrian artist Oskar Kokoschka (1886-1980) is the subject of this biopic. Directed by Dieter Berner, the film has total runtime of 110 minutes.

Oskar Kokoschka, an upcoming painter, finds Alma, a music composer, during a time when she had already begun a relationship with architect Walter Gropius, after the death of her first husband, Gustav Mahler. Not wanting to be with another man in who’s shadow she cannot realise her artistic potential, Alma initiates a fiery affair with Oskar Kokoschka. Such is the nature of their relationship that Kokoschka paints his most famous work based on it. The film explores their relationship which has been described as ‘stormy’ and...

Berlin-based sales agency Picture Tree Intl. has debuted the trailer (below) for Austrian horror movie “Smother” by up-and-coming director Achmed Abdel-Salam.

The film centers on Michi, a young mother and former alcoholic. After the sudden death of her estranged father, she decides to stay in the inherited summer house for a few days with her small daughter Hanna, hoping to regain the motherly trust she lost.

During the first night, long repressed memories of her childhood overshadowed by her mother’s suicide start to haunt her. Trying to numb herself again with alcohol only drives her daughter Hanna further away and accelerates Michi’s paranoid state. When her demons also start to threaten her daughter, Michi must finally confront them to save her.

The Glitter and Doom production is tentatively set for a local theatrical release in early 2023.

The film is one of several new titles on Picture Tree’s AFM slate.

Picture Tree Intl. has picked up the global sales rights to Austrian horror movie “Smother” by up-and-coming director Achmed Abdel-Salam. The Glitter and Doom production is tentatively set for a local theatrical release in early 2023.

After the sudden death of her estranged father, Michi, a young mother and former alcoholic, decides to stay in the inherited summer house for a few days with her small daughter Hanna, hoping to regain the motherly trust she lost.

During the first night, long repressed memories of her childhood overshadowed by her mother’s suicide start to haunt her. Trying to numb herself again with alcohol only drives her daughter Hanna further away and accelerates Michi’s paranoid state. When her demons also start to threaten her daughter, Michi must finally confront them to save her.

Picture Tree Intl.’s AFM slate features a variety of new international films, including a first visual pitch...

Love story is written and directed by Slovakian writer-director Mariana Čengel Solčanská.

Berlin-based sales outfit Picture Tree International (Pti) has boarded period drama The Chambermaid by leading Slovak writer-director Mariana Čengel Solčanská.

Pti is handling international sales for the film produced by Slovakia’s Bright Sight Pictures and the Czech Republic’s Cinemart TV Prague. It is set in the period of social and political disruption around World War I and the collapse of the Austria-Hungary empire in Eastern Europe.

It tells thte story of a teenage girl who arrives in Prague from a small Slovak...

Berlin-based sales agency Picture Tree Intl. has added to its European Film Market slate “Love Thing,” starring top German actor Elyas M’Barek, whose credits include “The Collini Case.” Also on the slate is “Soul of a Beast,” which debuts its trailer below.

Despite the virtual nature of the EFM, the company has taken additional office space at the Marriott Hotel in Berlin’s Potsdamer Platz.

“Love Thing,” which also stars Lucie Heinze, Peri Baumeister and Alexandra Maria Lara, is directed and written by Anika Decker, whose last feature “High Society” sold widely. Decker scripted box office successes like “Rabbit Without Ears,” which grossed $85 million.

“Love Thing” is produced by German production-distribution powerhouse Constantin Film, which has set its release for July 7. The producers are Rüdiger Böss and Philipp Reuter; the co-producers are Anika Decker and Jan Decker; and the executive producer is Martin Moszkowicz. Picture Tree will present a first teaser trailer to select buyers.

Dieter Berner’s directs the ambitious new period drama.

Picture Tree International has confirmed the financing and casting on Dieter Berner’s ambitious new period drama, Alma & Oskar, which will begin shooting in June.

The film, set in pre-First World War Vienna and which explores the turbulent relationship between the Viennese society Grand Dame Alma Mahler and the expressionist artist and enfant terrible Oskar Kokoschka. has been put together as an Austrian (Fillm Ag), German (Wüste Film), Swiss (Turnus Film) and Czech (Dawson Films) coproduction.

In advance of shooting, various distributors are also already aboard the production: Alamode for Germany,...

Mubi's retrospective "Empowering the Spectator: The Films of Michael Haneke" runs October 17 – December 16, 2019 in the United Kingdom.Alexander (Udo Samel) has his eyes glued to a TV screen when he recounts, halfway through Michael Haneke’s The Seventh Continent, his mother’s last words: “How would it be if we had a monitor instead of a head, where we could see our thoughts?” Released in 1989, The Seventh Continent marked Haneke’s feature film debut, but not the end of a career the Austrian had amassed during the previous fifteen years he’d spent writing and directing TV productions. Take his two-part 1979 television movie Lemmings as a single project, and the twenty-three films Haneke has directed since 1974 are somewhat evenly split: twelve features and eleven TV movies—the last of which, an adaptation of his theatrical staging of Mozart’s Così fan tutte, only came out in 2013. But the relationship...

Picture Tree International handling period project at Afm.

Phantom Thread star Vicky Krieps has signed up to play Viennese-born composer Alma Mahler in Dieter Berner’s period feature Alma & Oskar.

The film will depict a tumultuous three-year relationship between Kriep’s Mahler and the Austrian artist Oskar Kokoschka in the early 1900s, by which point she had buried her first husband, fellow composer Gustav Mahler. Kokoschka used Alma as a model for his most famous work, and their relationship marked the most prodigious period of his artistic life.

Berlin-based Picture Tree International is handling sales on the project at Afm.

Historical romance, literary adaptations, arthouse drama, star-studded comedies, children’s pics, animated fare and a high-profile documentary are among the many German films and co-productions on offer at this year’s Cannes Film Market.

Unspooling as part of the festival are Wim Wenders’ “Pope Francis: A Man of His Word,” repped by Focus Features and bowing in Special Screenings; “In My Room,” Ulrich Koehler’s story of a man who suddenly realizes everyone around him has disappeared, which world premieres in Un Certain Regard; and, in Intl. Critics’ Week sidebar, Anja Kofmel’s Swiss co-production “Chris the Swiss,” a partially animated documentary from Urban Distribution that investigates the mysterious death of a young Swiss journalist during the Yugoslav wars.

On the market side, one historical niche that is proving particularly successful is that of the turn-of-the-century artist.

Picture Tree Intl. is following its 2016 hit “Egon Schiele — Death and the Maiden,...

German Film in 2017 is alive and highly visible at film festivals such as Toronto, Venice, Cannes, Berlin and all the way to the Academy Awards. The best new German, Austrian, and Swiss Cinema will once again be celebrated at the American Cinematheque, during the 11th Annual German Currents Film FestivaL from Friday, October 13th — Monday, Oct 16th, 2017 at the historic Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood.

Over the past decade, German Currents has offered a unique insight into German speaking cinema, bringing diverse and thought-provoking narratives, and “must-watch” documentaries to Los Angeles. German Currents once again features an impressive line-up of new German cinema during the four day festival, including U.S. and L.A. premieres, documentaries and films for children and families.

German Currents 2017 begins with an opening night gala and red carpet with some of Germany’s brightest stars on Friday, Oct. 13th.

In addition to film screenings, German Currents...

European premieres for Peter Berg’s Deepwater Horizon and Garth Davis’ Lion are among highlights.

The Zurich Film Festival, which has revealed its full line-up today, will screen a total of 172 productions from 36 countries, including 43 debut works, 17 world premieres and a record number of Swiss films.

Among the highlights of this year’s festival are the European premieres of Garth Davis’ Lion starring Slumdog Millionaire’s Dev Patel alongside Rooney Mara and Nicole Kidman, which will open festival on Sept. 22; Peter Berg’s real-life oil catastrophe story Deepwater Horizon; and Lbj, Rob Reiner’s political biopic starring Woody Harrelson as the former Us president Lyndon Baines Johnson.

Among actors set to attend are Hugh Grant, Daniel Radcliffe, Woody Harrelson and Shailene Woodley while French director Olivier Assayas will be honored with a retrospective.

Deepwater Horizon producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura will also be honored with Zurich’s Golden Eye award for his life’s work. Regular guest Harvey Weinstein...

Elisabeth Scharang’s Jack, Simon Jaquemet’s War (Chrieg) earmarked for local distribution.

German sales company Picture Tree International (Pti) is to expand into local theatrical distribution with two titles from its sales line-up: Swiss director Simon Jaquemet’s drama War (Chrieg) and Elisabeth Scharang’s Locarno debut Jack.

Picture Tree has set an April 28 release for War (Chrieg), which debuted at San Sebastian 2014 and screened at Berlin 2015, while Jack is set for release later in the year.

Speaking to ScreenDaily from Sundance at the weekend, Pti managing director Andreas Rothbauer discussed the push into local distribution.

“We initially want to gather some experience with a few of our sales titles provided they weren’t already licensed to a German distributor,” Rothbauer explained.

“World sales is our core business and, depending on this, we will decide which film might make sense for in-house distribution. However, as the German market is very competitive, I think that...

Swiss cinema is to be put in the spotlight in Mexico and Brazil over the next two years.

At the Locarno Film Festival (Aug 5-15), Swiss Films’ MD Catherine Ann Berger revealed details to ScreenDaily about how Switzerland will be a guest country at next year’s Guadalajara Film Festival (March 4-13) against the backdrop of the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Mexico and Switzerland.

“To begin with, we will have a historical retrospective of Swiss cinema in the Cineteca in Mexico City this December, and then in March, there will be a programme in Guadalajara of Swiss films from the past two, three years,” Berger explained.

“In addition, there will be an industry dimension with co-production meetings and the opportunities for professionals from both countries to meet and discuss partnerships,” she added, pointing out that the focus in Mexico will be the first major project of its kind that she is preparing since coming to Swiss...

Production outfit Amour Fou is in development on two projects - including a “feminist vampire” film - with Nobel prize winning Austrian writer Elfriede Jelinek.

The Vienna and Luxembourg-based firm, co-founded by Alexander Dumreicher-Ivanceanu and Bady Minck, are currently at the International Film Festival Rotterdam (Iffr) (Jan 21-Feb 1) for the world premiere of its new film, Dreams Rewired narrated by Tilda Swinton.

Speaking in Rotterdam, the producers revealed that the first project in development with Jelinek is La Belle Dormeuse (The Beautiful Woman Sleeping), to be directed by Ulrike Ottinger. It is described by the producers as “a modern feminist vampire story”.

The second is Die Liebhaberinnen (Women As Lovers), which is adapted from Jelinek’s 1975 novel of the same name and will be directed by newcomer Caroline Kox.

Amour Fou is already producing a short film by Kox, titled Casting A Woman.

The Jelinek projects are likely to shoot in 2016.

Ambitious projects

In the meantime, the company...

After many years directing films for television, Funny Games director, Michael Haneke, made his debut with what is the first in the trilogy of his “emotional glaciation” films. 1989’s The Seventh Continent makes stylistically and thematically explicit the nature of his filmmaking in what is a work which, as you can glean from the trilogy linkage, a bleak and haunting piece. This “based on a true story” film places a family as the subject of a subdued and paradoxically pointed social commentary drama, where the mundanity of modern life proves insufferable as the film breaks to be a familial and societal horror story.

Husband Georg (Dieter Berner), wife Anna (Birgit Doll) and daughter Eva (Leni Tanzer) are the family unit living a middle-class existence in suburban Austria. Their lives are that of conformity, aided by the usual trappings of modern living. The parents both work and Eva goes to school.

• The Festival du Nouveau Cinema is a staple event for the hardcore Montreal cinephile – it’s an event that quality-wise collects the edgier, controversial fair from the international film circuit and in recent years has started to promote not only new media film forms but the local (Quebecois) auteur cinema. Now in its 36th edition, the fest has snared some of the top must see, prize-winning flicks that will usually not spend one day in a megaplex theater. Starting today and running until the 21st of the month, the globe trotting Claude Chamberlan and the youthful programming team have once again insured the quality control of the event – nabbing some controversial films that aren’t even shown in their country of origin and some Cannes prize winners that I personally hope get a release in the U.S.The film fest opener is Durs à cuire – a docu debut

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