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The Marrakech Film Festival, which opened Friday with Justin Kurzel’s timely thriller “The Order,” has more than 70 films in its lineup, which, as is customary, mixes known titles and fresh fare.

“The Order” is part of the event’s gala screenings that also comprise French-Moroccan auteur Nabil Ayouch’s feminist musical drama “Everybody Loves Touda,” Walter Salles’ “I’m Still Here” and Mohammad Rasoulof’s “The Seed of the Sacred Fig,” all of which will be accompanied by their directors.

The 14-title competition dedicated to first and second works includes Moroccan director Saïd Hamich Benlarbi’s melodrama “Across the Sea,” about North African exiles in Marseilles, and Hind Meddeb’s doc “Sudan, Remember Us,” which pays homage to Sudanese people and culture by chronicling their 2019 revolution. “Sudan, Remember Us” is among films supported by the fest’s Atlas Workshops industry initiative, aimed at fostering and supporting the emergence of a new generation of Moroccan,...

The Marrakech Film Festival unveiled its 2024 lineup on Thursday and set that Luca Guadagnino would replace Thomas Vinterberg as its jury president. The other jury members will be Andrew Garfield, Jacob Elordi, Virginie Efira, and Ali Abbasi. Vinterberg “had to excuse himself for family reasons,” festival organizers said.

The Marrakech fest on Thursday also unveiled the lineup for its competition, 11th Continent, and Moroccan Panorama sections, as well as gala and special screenings. In the competition, 14 films will compete for the Étoile d’Or, or Golden Star.

The 21st edition of the fest in Morocco will also honor Sean Penn, David Cronenberg and, posthumously, pay homage to Moroccan star Naïma Elmcherqui. The Marrakech fest takes place Nov. 29-Dec. 7.

Check out the full lineup for the 2024 edition below.

Competition

Across The Sea (LA Mer Au Loin)

by Saïd Hamich Benlarbi / France, Morocco, Belgium

with Ayoub Gretaa, Anna Mouglalis, Grégoire Colin, Omar Boulakirba,...

Justin Kurzel’s political thriller The Order starring Jude Law will open the 21st Marrakech International Film Festival in the presence of the director and producer Stuart Ford later this month.

The film is among seven films that will be showcased as gala screenings at the Moroccan film festival, which unveiled its line-up on Thursday.

The galas also feature a trio of Best International Feature Film Oscar entries, Nabil Ayouch’s Everybody Loves Touda (Morocco), Walter Salles’s I’m Still Here (Brazil) and Mohammad Rasoulof’s The Seed of the Sacred Fig (Germany), all of which will screen in the presence of their directors.

The festival will screen 70 features from 32 countries across sections spanning the Official Competition, Gala Screenings, Special Screenings, the 11th Continent, the Moroccan Panorama, Cinema for Young Audiences & Families, and films shown as part of the Tributes program.

The 14 first and second films in competition include French...

Marrakech International Film Festival has unveiled the full line-up for its 21st edition which will open with Justin Kurzel’s crime thriller The Order onNovember 29 and run to December 7.

Kurzel’s debut featureSnowtownwon thefestival’s jury prize in 2011, and the filmmaker returned in 2022 to serve on the jury.

This year’s jury will be presided over by Italian filmmaker Luca Guadagnino, replacing Thomas Vinterberg, and will award the Étoile d’Or for best film to one of 14 first- and second-time features in the international competition.

In total, the festival will screen 70 films from 32 countries, including 14 documentaries, 12 Moroccan titles, nine world...

France’s Les Arcs Film Festival has unveiled the line-up for its 16th edition of its mountaintop movie marathon, taking place from December 14-21, 2024.

Eight European films will vie for the festival’s Crystal Arrow awards.

They include Rich Peppiatt’s Kneecap, a comedy about titular west Belfast hip-hop trio that is Ireland’s entry for the best international feature Oscar race and leads the Bifa 2024 nominations, Runar Runarsson’s Icelandic drama When the Light Breaks that opened this year’s Cannes Un Certain Regard, and Kurdwin Ayub’s Moon about a former Austrian martial arts master hired to train...

Measured against recent Toronto Film Festivals, business at TIFF 2024, which wrapped on September 15, was average.

There was one big studio deal: Paramount Pictures snatching up worldwide rights outside of Germany-speaking Europe for Tim Fehlbaum’s September 5, a newsroom thriller on the 1972 Munich Olympics terrorist attacks, which is already being touted a major awards contender. There were a handful of indie pickups, with A24 nabbing Brady Corbet’s buzzy period epic The Brutalist and Andrew DeYoung’s bro-com Friendship starring Tim Robinson and Paul Rudd, and Samuel Goldwyn Films taking North American rights to Nick Hamm’s Medieval actioner William Tell starring Claes Bang. And there was a major streaming acquisition as Hulu snatched up TIFF opener Nutcrackers, a family comedy from David Gordon Green featuring Ben Stiller.

There were also a few deals inked ahead of the festival, with Sony Pictures Classics scooping up key world rights to Laura Piani...

The Bureau Sales has closed multiple sales on French romantic comedy and Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) Centrepiece selection Jane Austen Wrecked My Life .

Sony Pictures Classics swooped on North America and select territories earlier in the festival.

Writer/director Laura Piani’s debut feature has sold to Australia and New Zealand (Hi Gloss Entertainment), Germany, Austria and Switzerland (Splendid Film), Scandinavia (Scanbox), Spain (La Aventura Cine), Greece (Cinobo), Benelux (Vertigo Films Distribution) and Cis (Provzglyad).

Sony Pictures Classics acquired rights last week for North America, Latin America, the Middle East, Eastern Europe and worldwide airlines on the modern riff...

US buyers have not been in an adventurous mood as the last few markets will attest. However hope springs eternal and acquisitions teams will be on the hunt at Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) to bulk up pipelines following the Hollywood strikes of 2023.

How theatrical buyers fare against streamers remains to be seen. Financiers and sales agents, many of whom are avowed fans of the theatrical experience, must recoup.

The lure of a worldwide deal with a platform can be hard to resist, and while the North American summer box office rallied well and there are lucrative opportunities for the right theatrical releases,...

“Jane Austen Wrecked My Life,” a bookish romantic comedy from first-time French director Laura Piani, sold to Sony Pictures Classics ahead of its Sept. 9 world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, the distributor announced Tuesday.

Sony Pictures Classics acquired all rights to the indie feature in North America, Latin America, the Middle East, Eastern Europe and worldwide airlines.

“We are thrilled to see this film entrusted to Sony Pictures Classics, a studio with a rich history of bringing Jane Austen’s world to life on screen,” The Bureau Sales, who negotiated the deal with SPC, said in a statement. “Their extensive experience with such stories ensures that Laura Piani’s debut will be handled with the utmost care and expertise. We look forward to the film’s journey and are confident that it will be a worthy addition to SPC’s distinguished legacy.”

“I am incredibly excited to partner...

Sony Pictures Classics has acquired North America and multiple territories on imminent Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) world premiere Jane Austen Wrecked My Life

Laura Piani’s Centrepiece selection premieres on Monday after Friday’s press and industry screening and has also gone to Sony Pictures Classics in Latin America, the Middle East, Eastern Europe and worldwide airlines.

Camille Rutherford from Anatomy Of A Fall stars alongside Pablo Pauly, Charlie Anson and Annabelle Lengronne as a hopelessly clumsy yet charming single woman working at a bookstore in Paris who gets invited to the Jane Austen Writers’ Residency in England.

Gabrielle Dumon served as producer.

Sony Pictures Classics has swooped in to acquire key world rights to Laura Piani’s debut feature Jane Austen Wrecked My Life ahead of a Sept. 9 world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival.

The U.S. specialty distributor will release the romantic comedy from France in North America, Latin America, the Middle East and Eastern Europe. Jane Austen Wrecked My Life, about an aspiring author, Agathe, who finds herself in romantic entanglements straight from the pages of Jane Austen novels, stars Camille Rutherford, Pablo Pauly, Charlie Anson and Annabelle Lengronne.

“We are thrilled to see this film entrusted to Sony Pictures Classics, a studio with a rich history of bringing Jane Austen’s world to life on screen. Their extensive experience with such stories ensures that Laura Piani’s debut will be handled with the utmost care and expertise. We look forward to the film’s journey and are confident...

Sony Pictures Classics has acquired rights to “Jane Austen Wrecked My Life” ahead of its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival.

The studio will distribute the film in North America, Latin America, the Middle East, Eastern Europe and on worldwide airlines.

Laura Piani wrote and directed “Jane Austen Wrecked My Life,” which stars Camille Rutherford (“Anatomy of a Fall”), Pablo Pauly (“Three Nights a Week”), Charlie Anson (“Downton Abbey”) and Annabelle Lengronne (“Mother and Son”). The film is about Agathe, a desperately single woman who dreams of experiencing love akin to those in novels like ‘Persuasion,” “Sense and Sensibility” and “Pride and Prejudice.” She dreams of becoming a writer but instead spends her days selling books at Shakespeare & Company in Paris. After she’s invited to the Jane Austen Writers’ Residency in England, she confronts her insecurities to finally fulfill her ambition of becoming a novelist and...

Sony Pictures Classics has acquired all rights to Laura Piani’s Jane Austen Wrecked My Life ahead of the pic’s world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival.

SPC took rights in North America, Latin America, the Middle East, Eastern Europe as well as worldwide airlines. The movie will debut at TIFF on Monday, September 9.

In the film, written by Piani, Agathe (Camille Rutherford), hopelessly clumsy yet charming and full of contradictions, finds herself in desperate singlehood. Her dream is to experience love akin to a Jane Austen novel and her ultimate aspiration is to become a writer. Instead, she spends her days selling books in the legendary bookshop Shakespeare & Company in Paris. Invited to the Jane Austen Writers’ Residency in England, she must confront her insecurities to finally fulfill her ambition of becoming a novelist and put an end to wasting her sentimental life.

Pic also stars...

The 49th edition of the Toronto Film Festival continues to announce more movies, with the festival on Tuesday unveiled its 2024 Centrepiece lineup that features 43 titles from filmmakers representing 41 countries. TIFF runs September 5-15 under its new sponsorship with Rogers.

In total, the list includes 18 world premieres from Algeria, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, France, Germany, Indonesia, Nigeria, Panama, Philippines, Poland, Singapore, Spain and the U.S..

The section is a reflection of TIFF’s spirit of providing an elevated platform for international cinema, acclaimed titles from festivals around the globe, premieres from Canadian and international talents, and the latest work from influential filmmakers.

Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof, who made it to Cannes this past year with The Seed of the Sacred Fig after fleeing his home country, is at TIFF with not one but two movies. He’ll have The Seed of the Sacred Fig, but also a title he wrote,...

Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) has unveiled the 43 features selection for the Centrepiece programme including world premieres for Algerian director Merzak Allouache’s feuding matriarchs comedy Front Row and Laura Piani’s romantic comedy Jane Austen Wrecked My Life.

Taking their place in the global cinema showcase alongside the latest work from 41 countries are features that have already impressed at festivals, such as Mohammad Rasoulof’s Cannes award winner The Seed Of The Sacred Fig, and Steven Soderbergh’s Sundance selection Presence.

The 18 world premieres include Iranian filmmaker Ali Samadi Ahadi’s human rights drama Seven Days written by Rasoulof,...

A drama about an Iranian human rights activist and a documentary about the hacking of queer indie pop duo Tegan and Sara are among the films that have been added to the lineup of the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival, which unveiled its Centrepiece section on Tuesday to kick off a second week of programming announcements.

The 43 films come from filmmakers representing 41 countries, with 18 of the titles receiving their world premieres at TIFF. Those premieres include “Seven Days,” a film about an imprisoned Iranian activist directed by Ali Samadi Ahadi and written by Mohammad Rasoulof, a filmmaker who was himself sentenced to flogging and prison by Iranian authorities; “Jane Austen Wrecked My Life,” a romantic comedy from French writer-director Laura Piani; “The Legend of the Vagabond Queen of Lagos,” a debut from the Nigerian filmmaking group known as the Agbajowo Collective; and Erin Lee Carr’s “Fanatical: The Catfishing of Tegan and Sara,...

The 2024 Toronto International Film Festival has revealed its Centrepiece program lineup, with 43 films from 41 countries. The selections include 18 world premieres plus an array of festival favorites and winners from Cannes (“The Seed of the Sacred Fig“), Sundance (“Presence“), and more recently the 2024 Venice Film Festival (“April”). This year’s festival runs Thursday, September 5 through Sunday, September 15.

Per TIFF, Centrepiece honors “and celebrates global cinematic achievements, inviting audiences to immerse themselves in a dynamic array of contemporary films. The programme is a reflection of TIFF’s commitment to providing an elevated platform for international cinema, acclaimed titles from festivals around the globe, highly anticipated premieres from Canadian and international talents, and the latest work of influential filmmaking luminaries.”

The 2024 Centrepiece selection has been programmed by Jason Anderson, Kelly Boutsalis, Diana Cadavid, Robyn Citizen, Giovanna Fulvi, Nataleah Hunter-Young, June Kim, Dorota Lech, Jason Ryle, and Norm Wilner.

Per the festival, “Notable world premieres include ‘Front Row,...

Steven Soderbergh’s spooky ghost story Presence — starring Lucy Liu, Chris Sullivan and newcomer Callina Liang — will receive its international premiere as part of the Centerpiece sidebar at the 2024 Toronto Film Festival.

Soderbergh first screened Presence at Sundance earlier this year, some 35 years after the debut of his breakout film, Sex, Lies and Videotape, in Park City. In all, TIFF’s Centerpiece section, previously known as Contemporary World Cinema, unveiled 43 films from 41 countries on Tuesday.

There’s world premieres for Marcelle Lunam’s rom com Addition, starring Teresa Palmer and Joe Dempsie; Erin Lee Carr’s documentary Fanatical: The Catfishing of Tegan and Sara, a Hulu title about the Canadian pop duo falling victim to identity theft; French director Laura Piani’s Jane Austen Wrecked My Life, with a Frederick Wiseman cameo; Sofia Bohdanowicz’s Measures for a Funeral, written by actor Derah Campbell; and Algerian director Merzak Allouache’s Front Row,...

Turin-based script development organisation TorinoFilmLab (Tfl) has unveiled the first projects and participants for ComedyLab, its new annual programme for developing feature film comedies.

ComedyLab pairs directors and scriptwriters with comedians to help develop comedy feature film projects. From 89 applications, ComedyLab has selected four projects and will pair them with four writers/comedians.

The four projects are: Bootleg by writer/director Reem Morsi (Egypt); Honeyjoon by writer/director Lilian T. Mehrel (USA); The Last Queen by writer/director Stefano La Rosa (Italy) together with the co-writer/director Luca Renucci (Italy); and Midlife by writer/director Alex Sobolev (Ukraine).

They will...

Tfl has also unveiled the 10 writers picked for the inaugural edition of its SeriesLab – Talents scheme.

The TorinoFilmLab (Tfl) has unveiled the 20 new projects selected for its 2022 ScriptLab, and the 10 writers picked for the inaugural edition of its SeriesLab – Talents scheme.

The ScriptLab is a nine-month scriptwriting programme involving feature films at an early stage of development. This year’s iteration focused on comedies, with eight of the 20 projects written by women.

Composed of two week-long residential workshops, one in Turin and one in Finland, as well as three online modules, the ScriptLab also feeds in to TorinoFilmLab annual industry event the Tfl Meeting.

Colcoa, the L.A.-based French film and series festival, has unveiled the television section of its upcoming 25th anniversary edition.

“In Treatment,” Eric Toledano and Olivier Nakache’s French adaptation of the original Israeli series “BeTipul”; Julie Delpy’s series debut “On The Verge”; and “Germinal,” the 19th century-set ambitious period series adapted from Emile Zola’s masterpiece created by Julien Lilti (“Hippocrate”) are among the nine TV titles set to have their North American premiere at Colcoa.

The other series set to compete at Colcoa include “High Intellectual Potential” starring Audrey Fleurot (“Spiral”) as an intractable cleaning lady-turned-ace detective and “Nona and her Daughters,” co-written and directed by Valerie Donzelli (“Declaration of War”).

Set to take place Nov. 1-7 at the DGA, the festival will showcase 12 programs, including seven series, four TV movies and one documentary. The section is being backed by Titrafilm and has enlisted some of France’s top companies,...

Indie titles hoping to capitalise on blockbuster absence.

UK-Ireland, opening Friday August 14

Picturehouse Entertainment heads the new titles this weekend with Shannon Murphy’s Australian comedy-drama Babyteeth in 140 locations.

The debut feature of theatre and TV drama director Murphy played in Competition at Venice last year, where Toby Wallace won the Marcello Mastroianni award for emerging actor/actress. It most recently won the top prize at the 19th Transylvania International Film Festival last weekend.

Adapted by Rita Kalnejais from her stage play of the same name, the film centres on Milla (Eliza Scanlen), a seriously ill teenager, who falls in...

The Art of Crime (season 2)

Created by Pierre-Yves Mora, Angele Herry

Broadcaster: France 2

Production: Gaumont

A detective teams with an art historian on mysteries of French heritage.

Sales: Gaumont

Balthazar

Written by Clothilde Jamin, Clelia Constantine

Cast: Tomer Sisley, Helene de Fougerolles

Broadcaster: TF1

Production: Beaubourg Audiovisuel

The cop series follows a handsome and cheeky forensic physician working with a policewoman to solve complex crimes.

Eden

Directed by Dominique Moll, created by Edward Berger, Nele Mueller-Stoefen, Marianne Wendt

Cast: Sylvie Testud

Broadcasters: Arte , Ard

Production: Atlantique Productions, Lupa Film

A small ship carrying refugees goes ashore on a Greek beach causing chaos among tourists, but also transforming some lives.

Sales: Lagardere Studios Distribution

Hippocrates

Written, created by Thomas Lilti, Anais Carpita, Claude Le Pape et Julien Liti, and inspired by Lilti’s movie “Hippocrates,” which played at Cannes’ Critics’ Week in 2014.

Cast: Louise Bourgoin, Alice Belaidi

Broadcaster: Canal Plus

Production:...