Pedro Almodóvar Earns Three European Film Awards Nominations for “The Room Next Door”

Posted on November 5, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

Pedro Almodóvar is this year’s European Film Awards darling…

The European Film Academy has announced the nominees for the 37th European Film Awards, which will take place in the Swiss lakeside city of Lucerne on December 7, with the 75-year-old Spanish Oscar-winning filmmaker earning three nods.

Almodovar earned a nod in the Best European Film category for his first English-language film The Room Next Door, which stars Tilda Swinton and Julianne Moore.

He’s also nominated for European Director and Best Screenplay for the film.

Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal are up for two awards.

The 69-year-old Spanish filmmaker and the 74-year-old Spanish Spanish artist and designer are nominated for Best European Film and Best European Animated Film for They Shot the Piano Player.

Isabel Herguera is up for two awards…

The 63-year-old Spanish artist, filmmaker, cultural manager, professor and critic is nominated for Best European Film and Best European Animated Film for Sultana’s Dream.

Karla Sofía Gascón has earned her first European Film Awards nod.

The 52-year-old Spanish actress, who became the first openly trans actor to win a major prize at the Cannes Film Festival when she shared the Best Actress Award with her co-stars from Emilia Pérez, is up for Best Actress for Emilia Perez.

For the first time this year, under new rules announced last summer, films nominated for Best European Documentary and Best Animated Feature Film are also eligible in the Best European Film category.

The awards, which are voted on by the Berlin-based European Film Academy’s some 5,000 members based across Europe, are also seen as a bellwether for which European films are likely to pick up steam in the U.S. awards season.

This year’s ceremony in Lucerne will mark the last time it takes place in December with the dates shifting to mid-January, starting with the 38th edition in 2026, as part of a strategy to position the prizes within the wider awards season conversation on both sides of the Atlantic.

Awards for the craft categories of Best European Cinematography, Editing, Production Design, Costume Design, Make-up and Hair, Original Score, Sound and Visual Effects are decided by a specialized a jury and selected from the films in core Academy selection.

Here’s a look at the 2024 nominations:

Best European Film
BYE BYE TIBERIAS (BYE BYE TIBERIADE) (France, Belgium, Palestine, Qatar) – documentary film, directed by Lina Soualem, produced by Jean-Marie Nizan, Guillaume Malandrin & Ossama Bawardi

DAHOMEY (France, Senegal) – documentary film, directed by Mati Diop, produced by Eve Robin, Judith Lou-Lévy & Mati Diop

EMILIA PÉREZ (France) – feature film, directed by Jacques Audiard, produced by Pascal Caucheteux, Jacques Audiard, Valérie Schermann & Anthony Vaccarello

FLOW (STRAUME) (Latvia, France, Belgium) – animated feature film, directed by Gints Zilbalodis, produced by Matīss Kaža, Gints Zilbalodis, Ron Dyens & Gregory Zalcman

IN LIMBO (W ZAWIESZENIU) (Poland) – documentary film, directed by Alina Maksimenko, produced by Filip Marczewski

LIVING LARGE (ŽIVOT K SEŽRÁNÍ) (Czech Republic, France, Slovakia) – animated feature film, directed by Kristina Dufková, produced by Matej Chlupacek, Agata Novinski & Marc Faye

NO OTHER LAND (Palestine, Norway) – documentary film, directed by Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Basel Adra & Hamdan Ballal, produced by Fabien Greenberg, Bård Kjøge Rønning, Yuval Abraham, Basel Adra, Rachel Szor & Hamdan Ballal

SAVAGES (SAUVAGES) (Switzerland, France, Belgium) – animated feature film, directed by Claude Barras, produced by Nicolas Burlet, Laurence Petit, Barbara Letellier, Carole Scotta, Vincent Tavier, Hugo Deghilage, Annemie Degryse & Olivier Glassey

SOUNDTRACK TO A COUP D’ETAT (France, Belgium, Netherlands) – documentary film, directed by Johan Grimonprez, produced by Daan Milius & Rémi Grellety

SULTANA’S DREAM (EL SUEÑO DE LA SULTANA) (Spain, Germany, India) – animated feature film, directed by Isabel Herguera, produced by Chelo Loureiro, Diego Herguera, Fabian Driehorst, Mariano Baratech & Iván Miñambres

THE ROOM NEXT DOOR (Spain) – feature film, directed by Pedro Almodóvar, produced by Agustín Almodóvar & Esther García

THE SEED OF THE SACRED FIG (DANAYE ANJIR-E MOABAD) (Germany, France) – feature film, directed by Mohammad Rasoulof, produced by Mohammad Rasoulof, Amin Sadraei, Jean-Christophe Simon, Mani Tilgner & Rozita Hendijanian

THE SUBSTANCE (UK, United States, France) – feature film, directed by Coralie Fargeat, produced by Coralie Fargeat, Tim Bevan & Eric Fellner

THEY SHOT THE PIANO PLAYER (Spain, France, Netherlands, Portugal, Peru) – animated feature film, directed by Fernando Trueba, Javier Mariscal, produced by Cristina Huete, Serge Lalou, Sophie Cabon, Bruno Felix, Janneke van de Kerkhoff, Femke Wolting & Humberto Santana

VERMIGLIO (Italy, France, Belgium) – feature film, directed by Maura Delpero, produced by Francesca Andreoli, Leonardo Guerra Seràgnoli, Santiago Fondevila Sancet & Maura Delpero

Best European Documentary
BYE BYE TIBERIAS (BYE BYE TIBERIADE) (France, Belgium, Palestine, Qatar), directed by Lina Soualem, produced by Jean-Marie Nizan, Guillaume Malandrin & Ossama Bawardi

DAHOMEY (France, Senegal), directed by Mati Diop, produced by Eve Robin, Judith Lou-Lévy & Mati Diop

IN LIMBO (W ZAWIESZENIU) (Poland), directed by Alina Maksimenko, produced by Filip Marczewski

NO OTHER LAND (Palestine, Norway), directed by Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Basel Adra & Hamdan Ballal, produced by Fabien Greenberg, Bård Kjøge Rønning, Yuval Abraham, Basel Adra, Rachel Szor & Hamdan Ballal

SOUNDTRACK TO A COUP D’ETAT (France, Belgium, Netherlands), directed by Johan Grimonprez, produced by Daan Milius & Rémi Grellety

European Director
Andrea Arnold for BIRD
Jacques Audiard for EMILIA PÉREZ
Pedro Almodóvar for THE ROOM NEXT DOOR
Mohammad Rasoulof for THE SEED OF THE SACRED FIG
Maura Delpero for VERMIGLIO

Best Actress
Renate Reinsve in ARMAND
Karla Sofía Gascón in EMILIA PÉREZ
Trine Dyrholm in THE GIRL WITH THE NEEDLE
Vic Carmen Sonne in THE GIRL WITH THE NEEDLE
Tilda Swinton in THE ROOM NEXT DOOR

Best Actor
Franz Rogowski in BIRD
Ralph Fiennes in CONCLAVE
Lars Eidinger in DYING
Daniel Craig in QUEER
Abou Sangare in SOULEYMANE’S STORY

Best Screenplay
Jacques Audiard for EMILIA PÉREZ
Magnus von Horn & Line Langebek for THE GIRL WITH THE NEEDLE
Pedro Almodóvar for THE ROOM NEXT DOOR
Mohammad Rasoulof for THE SEED OF THE SACRED FIG
Coralie Fargeat for THE SUBSTANCE

European Discovery – Prix FIPRESCI
ARMAND (Norway, Netherlands, Germany, Sweden), directed by Halfdan Ullmann Tøndel, produced by Andrea Berentsen Ottmar

HOARD (UK), directed by Luna Carmoon, produced by Loran Dunn, Helen Simmons & Andrew Starke

KNEECAP (Ireland, UK), directed by Rich Peppiatt, produced by Patrick O’Neill, Trevor Birney & Jack Tarling

SANTOSH (UK, France, Germany), directed by Sandhya Suri, produced by Mike Goodridge, James Bowsher, Roman Paul, Gerhard Meixner, Carole Scotta & Eliott Khayat

THE NEW YEAR THAT NEVER CAME (ANUL NOU CARE N-A FOST) (Romania, Serbia), directed and produced by Bogdan Mureșanu

TOXIC (AKIPLĖŠA) (Lithuania) directed by Saulė Bliuvaitė, produced by Giedre Burokaite

European Young Audience Award
LARS IS LOL (Norway, Denmark), directed by Eirik Sæter Stordahl, produced by Caroline Hitland & Matilda Appelin
THE REMARKABLE LIFE OF IBELIN (Norway), directed by Benjamin Ree, produced by Ingvil Giske
WINNERS (Germany), directed by Soleen Yusef, produced by Sonja Schmitt, Marc Schmidheiny & Christoph Daniel

Best European Animated Film
FLOW directed by Gints Zilbalodis (Latvia, France, Belgium)
LIVING LARGE directed by Kristina Dufková (Czech Republic, France, Slovakia)
SAVAGES directed by Claude Barras (Switzerland, France, Belgium)
SULTANA’S DREAM directed by Isabel Herguera (Spain, Germany, India)
THEY SHOT THE PIANO PLAYER directed by Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal (Spain, France, Netherlands, Portugal, Peru)

Best European Short Film
2720 directed by Basil da Cunha (Portugal, Switzerland)
CLAMOR directed by Salomé Da Souza (France)
THE EXPLODING GIRL directed by Caroline Poggi and Jonathan Vinel (France)
THE MAN WHO COULD NOT REMAIN SILENT directed by Nebojša Slijepčević (Croatia, France, Bulgaria, Slovenia)
WANDER TO WONDER directed by Nina Gantz (The Netherlands, France, Belgium, United Kingdom)

Monica Barbaro Named to Variety’s “10 Actors to Watch” List for 2024

Posted on October 13, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

Monica Barbaro has earned must-watch status…

The 34-year-old part-Mexican American actress has been named to Variety’s 10 Actors to Watch list for 2024.

Previously seen as a pilot in the blockbuster Top Gun: Maverick, Barbaro will play legendary singer Joan Baez opposite Timothée Chalamet as Bob Dylan in James Mangold’s A Complete Unknown.

But Barbaro isn’t the only Latina/o actor to make this year’s list.

Karla Sofía Gascón has earned a spot on the coveted list after playing the title role in Emilia Pérez in the film of the same name. The Spanish actress shared the best actress prize at this year’s Cannes Film Festival with her co-stars Zoe Saldana and Selena Gomez.

Josh Rivera is also an actor to watch.

He made his film debut in Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story and can currently be seen playing the title role in Ryan Murphy’s American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez for FX.

The annual list names breakthrough and up-and-coming actors whose stars are on the rise.

Over the years, the list has included more than 35 Oscar winners and nominees, including Viola Davis, Mahershala Ali, Timothée Chalamet and Brie Larson.

The10 to Watch lists have been a Variety staple since 1997, with Actors to Watch highlighted since 1998, with many performers from awards season prospects.

This year is no exception, including actors in such high-profile upcoming films as “Emilia Pérez,” “Queer,” “A Complete Unknown” and “Gladiator II.”

The honorees will be profiled in the October 17 issue of Variety and feted at a special brunch on October 20 at the Newport Beach Film Festival Honors presented by Visit Newport Beach.

“The Newport Beach Film Festival is immensely proud to host Variety’s 10 Actors to Watch. Variety has a long history of identifying key talent that will impact our creative environment,” says Gregg Schwenk, CEO and co-founder of the fest. “This year’s class is a great reflection of the diversity and depth of talent that exists in the industry today.”

“The fall film festival season is once again in full swing and once again screens everywhere are filled with exciting, dynamic performances by emerging actors who renew our faith in the future of cinema,” adds Variety’s senior VP global content/executive editor, Steven Gaydos. “As Variety has done since 1997, we’ve selected 10 talented performers from current films of all genres who all share one common characteristic: the capacity for greatness.”

This year’s 10 Actors to Watch are:

Monica Barbaro – Previously seen as a pilot in the blockbuster “Top Gun: Maverick,” Barbaro will play legendary singer Joan Baez opposite Timothée Chalamet as Bob Dylan in James Mangold’s “A Complete Unknown.”

Zoë Chao – After starring roles in “The Afterparty” and “Party Down,” Chao will be seen in “Nightbitch” with Amy Adams and “The Roses” with Benedict Cumberbatch and Olivia Colman.

Ryan Destiny – The actress/singer/songwriter delivers a breakthrough performance as Olympic boxer Claressa “T-Rex” Shields in “The Fire Inside,” written by Oscar winner Barry Jenkins and directed by Oscar nominee Rachel Morrison.

Karla Sofía Gascón – The Spanish actor plays the title role in “Emilia Pérez,” for which she shared the best actress prize at this year’s Cannes Film Festival with her co-stars Zoe Saldana and Selena Gomez.

Fred Hechinger – After starring in “Thelma,” Hechinger’s busy year includes roles in “Gladiator II,” “Nickel Boys” and “Kraven the Hunter.”

Ella Hunt – Previously seen in the series “Dickinson,” Hunt portrays the legendary Gilda Radner in Jason Reitman’s film “Saturday Night” and appears in Kevin Costner’s “Horizon: An American Saga” films.

David Jonsson – After his acclaimed film debut in “Rye Lane,” Jonsson stole scenes in “Alien: Romulus” and will next be seen in the films “The Long Walk” and “Wasteman.”

Josh Rivera – Rivera made his film debut in Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story” and can currently be seen playing the title role in Ryan Murphy’s “American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez” for FX.

Drew Starkey – The “Outer Banks” star is earning raves for his breakthrough film role opposite Daniel Craig in Luca Guadagnino’s “Queer.”

Toby Wallace – Following a standout turn in “The Bikeriders,” Wallace will next appear in Ron Howard’s “Eden,” Justin Lin’s “Last Days” and “Inside” with Guy Pearce.”

Selena Gomez’s “Emilia Pérez” to Represent France in the Best International Feature Category at 97th Academy Awards

Posted on September 18, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

Selena Gomez’s latest film could earn an international Oscars nod…

France has selected Jacques Audiard’s Spanish-language musical Emilia Pérez, starring the 31-year-old Mexican American actress/singer, to represent it in the Best International Feature Film category at the 97th Academy Awards.

In addition Gomez, the drama also stars Karla Sofía Gascón, who portrays cartel leader Emilia who enlists the help of unappreciated lawyer Rita (Zoe Saldana) to help her fake her death so she can live authentically as her true self.

It premiered at Cannes, where it earned its four actresses – Gascón, Saldaña, Gomez and Adriana Paz – a collective Best Actress award, and also clinched the jury prize.

The film was selected from a short list of four films which also included swashbuckler The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre de La Patellière and Matthieu Delaporte; French-produced Indian drama All We Imagine as Light by Payal Kapadia and Misericordia by Alain Guiraudie.

This year’s revamped selection committee featured sales agent Carole Baraton, producer Nadim Cheikhroua, Venice Golden Lion winning Happening director and writer Audrey Diwan, distributor, producer and writer Michèle Halberstadt, sales agent Grégoire Melin, actress Clémence Poésy, producer David Thion, producer and distributor Rosalie Varda, producer Wachsberger and director, writer and producer Florian Zeller.

They made the selection after auditioning the sales agents, producers and U.S. distributors of the shortlisted titles on Wednesday morning.

Netflix reportedly swooped on U.S. rights for Emilia Pérez in the wake of its buzzy Cannes world premiere, pledged generous support for the awards campaign.

Pathé released the film theatrically in France on August 21, drawing some 735,000 spectators for a gross of roughly $5.9M. It will receive a limited release on the U.S. ahead of a November 13 launch on Netflix.

France last won the international film Oscar with Régis Wargnier’s Indochine in 1993. Ladj Ly’s Les Misérables was the last French film to make it through to the final nomination stage in 2020.

Selena Gomez Teases New Spanish Single “Mi Camino” From Acclaimed Film “Emilia Pérez”

Posted on September 6, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

Selena Gomez is following her own camino…

The 32-year-old Mexican American singer, actress, producer and businesswoman has taken to Instagram to share a clip of the dance-ready track, “Mi Camino,” which is featured in her upcoming acclaimed film, Emilia Pérez.

Gomez stars as Jessi Del Monte in the film.

“A little sneak peek of the song “Mi Camino” that I performed in EMILIA PÉREZ,” she wrote in the caption.

The clip features a blonde Gomez dancing on a man in a cowboy hat, belting into a microphone the chorus’ lyrics: “Si me caigo en la barranca/ Es mi barranca/ Si me doblo de dolor/ Es mi dolor/ Si me mando al séptimo cielo/ Es mi cielo/ Si me equivoco de camino/ Es mi camino.”

“If I fall into the ravine / It’s my ravine / If I double over in pain / It’s my pain / If I send myself to seventh heaven / It’s my heaven / If I take the wrong path / It’s my path,” the lyrics translate to.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Selena Gomez (@selenagomez)

This past spring, Gomez and castmates Zoe Saldaña, Karla Sofía Gascón and Adriana Paz collectively won the best actress award at the Cannes Film Festival for their work in Emilia Pérez.

The Spanish-language musical — which follows a Mexican drug lord (Gascón) embracing her true identity as a woman, will premiere in select theaters in other countries in November, as well as hit Netflix in the U.S., Canada and the U.K. on November 13.

Netflix Releases First Trailer for Musical Crime Comedy “Emilia Peréz,” Starring Zoe Saldaña

Posted on August 26, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

Zoe Saldaña is mixing music, crime and comedy…

Netflix has released the first teaser for one of its most anticipated films of the year — the Spanish-language musical crime comedy Emilia Peréz, starring the 46-year-old Puerto Rican and Dominican American actress,

Hailing from Jacques Audiard, the film won multiple awards in its premiere at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.

Hitting select theaters in the U.S. and Canada on November 1 before debuting on the streamer on November 13, Emilia Peréz implements song, dance and bold visuals to chronicle the journeys of four remarkable women in Mexico, each pursuing their own happiness.

Among them is Rita (Saldaña), an unappreciated lawyer stuck in a dead-end job, who agrees to help the fearsome cartel leader Emilia (Karla Sofía Gascón) fake her death so that she can finally live authentically as her true self.

Also starring Selena Gomez, Adriana Paz and Edgar Ramírez, the film garnered an 11-minute standing ovation in its premiere in Competition at Cannes, winning the Jury Prize and the award for Best Actress, which was shared by the female members of the ensemble, as well as the Cannes Soundtrack Award.

Out of Cannes, Netflix snapped up North American and UK rights to the film, which was one of the buzziest participating in this year’s market.

In her review for Deadline at the time, Stephanie Bunbury said of the film, “On paper, it looks mad as a loose wheel. A largely Spanish-language musical about a Mexican druglord having a sex change, featuring a onetime Disney teen star Selena Gomez as a gangster’s wife…but here it is on the screen, a musical marvel.”

Written by Audiard, Thomas Bidegain and Léa Mysius, Emilia Peréz marked the former revered French filmmaker’s seventh film to play Cannes.

Karla Sofia Gascón to Star in Jacques Audiard’s Comedy “Emilia Perez”

Posted on May 13, 2022 by Tom Castaneda

Karla Sofia Gascón has landed an aunt-tastic role…

The 50-year-old Spanish transgender actress will star in director Jacques Audiard comedy Emilia Perez, with talks underway with Selena Gomez and Zoe Saldana.

The project, which is creating buzz in the Cannes market, is a musical comedy about an El Chapo-type fugitive who can’t get away from the law, so has a sex change.

Ten years later she misses her children immensely and returns as their aunt.

Library Pictures International is financing the film, and The Veterans will be selling international rights to the film along with CAA Media Finance, which is also selling North American territories.

Gascón is an up and coming Spanish trans actress who has emerged as one to watch and should stand out in this musical comedy along the lines of Mrs. Doubtfire.

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