Latest news with #CannesUnCertainRegard
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
A24 Teaming With ‘How To Have Sex's Molly Manning Walker On Women's Soccer Series For Channel 4
EXCLUSIVE: Molly Manning Walker, whose debut feature How to Have Sex won the Cannes Un Certain Regard, is teaming with A24 and Channel 4 on her debut TV series. Major Players is about two girls on the brink of adulthood and their mission to start a women's soccer team. The series is described as a 'love letter to football and a funny and wild exploration of young people in London today, tackling topics from friendship to gender politics.' More from Deadline Breaking Baz: 'Bring Her Back' Star Billy Barratt Says He Performed Best In The Horror Pic After Being Locked Alone In A Room Without His Phone 'Crystal Lake' TV Series Casts William Catlett The Ongoing Allure Of A British Literary Star In 'Jane Austen Wrecked My Life' - Specialty Box Office The show is inspired by Manning Walker's high school experience. She is also the co-founder of Babe City FC, a London-based Sunday league soccer team for women and non-binary people in the film industry, which has more than 180 members. Manning Walker is exec producing, directing and co-writing Major Players with Yasmin Joseph, who wrote on Disney+'s A Thousand Blows and A24-Apple's upcoming Husbands starring Juno Temple. Joseph is also working with A24 on an unannounced Netflix project. Manning Walker's stock has soared since How to Have Sex, which starred Mia McKenna-Bruce as one of three teen best friends who encounter new friendships, sexual pressures and self-discovery during a holiday. The Film4 movie won the Cannes Un Certain Regard 2023 and earned two BAFTA nominations. Major Players is her first TV series. She is also working on an under-wraps irreverent comedy movie with Plan B. Manning Walker said: 'I can't wait to bring Major Players to life with this amazing team. It is a coming of age story, filled with first love, grief and bicycle kicks set in your local cage. I'm excited to shine a light on women's football which I'm a huge fan and supporter of.' Channel 4 drama and Film4 boss Ollie Madden, who worked with Manning Walker on How to Have Sex, described her as 'one of the most exciting new filmmaking voices to emerge from the UK in years.' 'It's a thrill to be continuing our journey with her on Major Players, alongside Yasmin Joseph and our friends at A24. With its mix of wit, heart and fearless energy, it's exactly the kind of fresh storytelling we champion across Film4 and Channel 4 Drama,' he said. Madden has been making a splash since taking over TV drama at Channel 4. He has commissioned the likes of Gillian Anderson-starrer Trespasses, an adaptation of buzzy novel The Rachel Incident and a remake of Channel 4's most-watched drama of all time, A Woman of Substance. He will be delighted with Channel 4's burgeoning relationship with the UK hub of American indie behemoth A24, which is run by ex-BBC execs Piers Wenger and Rose Garnett. A24 and Channel 4 are also working on a comedy together, Leo Reich's It Gets Worse. A24, meanwhile, has entered the TV soccer biz in a big way of late. Alongside Major Players, it is working on a Liverpool FC series with Adolescence co-creator Jack Thorne. Major Players was commissioned by Madden, Gwawr Lloyd, Commissioning Editor, Channel 4 Drama and Farhana Bhula, Deputy Director and Head of Creative, Film4. The series will be made by A24 and the producer is Matthew Mulot (Baby Reindeer). Manning Walker will direct and executive of Deadline Everything We Know About 'Stranger Things' Season 5 So Far 2025 TV Series Renewals: Photo Gallery 2025 TV Cancellations: Photo Gallery
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘I Only Rest In The Storm' Trailer: Portuguese Un Certain Regard Title Delves Into Neo-Colonialism & International NGOs
EXCLUSIVE: Portuguese director Pedro Pinho's West Africa-set drama I Only Rest In The Storm is playing in Cannes Un Certain Regard this year and Deadline can reveal the international trailer. Delving into uncomfortable truths about the relationship between neo-colonialism and international NGOs, the drama stars Sérgio Coragem as an environmental engineer who travels to West Africa to work on a road project between the desert and the forest. More from Deadline Neon Buys Jafar Panahi's Cannes Competition Film 'It Was Just An Accident' Josh O'Connor Is An Art Thief In First Footage Of Kelly Reichardt's Cannes Competition Film 'The Mastermind' 'Amrum' Review: Faith Akin's German Coming Of Age Tale During WW2's Final Days Is 'Stand By Me' In The Shadow Of A Fading Nazi Regime - Cannes Film Festival There, he becomes entangled in an intimate yet unbalanced relationship with two inhabitants of the city, Diara and Gui. As neo-colonial dynamics among the expatriate community unravel, this fragile bond becomes his only refuge from an impending collapse into solitude or barbarism. Coragem is joined in the cast by Cape Verdean Portuguese actress Cleo Diára (Diamantino, Mulheres, às Armas) and artist and actor Jonathan Guilherme. Pinho was previously in Cannes with debut feature film The Nothing Factory, which premiered in Cannes Directors' Fortnight in 2017, receiving the Fipresci Prize. 'This road, financed by the World Bank and constructed by a Brazilian Chinese consortium, is meant to bridge two opposing landscapes: the arid solitude of the desert and the dense, animistic abundance of the jungle. But beyond economic ambition, it ultimately remains a rupture scar in a territory that resists being tamed,' says Pinho. 'At its heart lies the never-ending 'encounter' between Europe and Africa, contrasted with an elusive battle for a queer becoming, played out in the nightclubs, streets, and backrooms of a West African city. Within this often violent fight for identity transcendence, one might glimpse escape routes, the possibility of radical subversion, or the surviving traces of tenderness,' he added of the film. The film is produced by Uma Pedra no Sapato (Grand Tour, Légua) and Terratreme Films (Nothing Factory, in co-production with Still Moving in France (Baby, Tiger Stripes), Bubbles Project in Brazil (Loveling, Puan) and deFilm in Romania (To the North). Paradise City is handling international sales. { pmcCnx({ settings: { plugins: { pmcAtlasMG: { iabPlcmt: 1, }, pmcCnx: { singleAutoPlay: 'auto' } } }, playerId: "32fe25c4-79aa-406a-af44-69b41e969e71", mediaId: "76311b46-573b-4d52-a499-29a173c5be31", }).render("connatix_player_76311b46-573b-4d52-a499-29a173c5be31_20"); }); Best of Deadline Every 'The Voice' Winner Since Season 1, Including 9 Team Blake Champions Everything We Know About 'Jurassic World: Rebirth' So Far 'Nine Perfect Strangers' Season 2 Release Schedule: When Do New Episodes Come Out?
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘My Father's Shadow' Producer Funmbi Ogunbanwo Headlines Inaugural African Producers Accelerator Program (EXCLUSIVE)
Nigerian film producer Funmbi Ogunbanwo, backer of the buzzy Cannes Un Certain Regard player 'My Father's Shadow' – Nigeria's first-ever selection at the French fest – has been selected as part of the inaugural cohort for the newly launched African Producers Accelerator (APA). The prestigious pilot initiative, developed by South Africa's Big World Cinema in collaboration with the Bertha Foundation, aims to tackle persistent industry barriers faced by mid-career African film and television producers. Ogunbanwo joins five other standout producers from across the continent for a 12-week program designed to provide bespoke support and high-level mentorship. Participants include South African Neo Baloyi, producer of Netflix hit 'Collision'; Angolan producer Jorge Cohen, co-founder of Geração 80; Josh Olaoluwa, a former EbonyLife producer and alumnus of Red Sea Labs and Biennale Cinema College; prolific South African producer Annemarie Du Plessis, whose film 'Carissa' was selected for the Venice Film Festival; and Zimbabwean/South African producer-director Zoe Ramushu, recently nominated at Cannes 2025 for her app that promotes women of color in the film industry. More from Variety Mórbido TV and Screen Capital Unveil Umbra, a Genre-First Streaming Hub for the LatAm Market (EXCLUSIVE) Valeria Golino on Her Chemistry With Matilda De Angelis in Mario Martone's 'Fuori': 'We Were Really Lucky to Fall in Love' Jodie Foster Says She Was Offered Lead Roles in French Films Before 'Vie Privée' but Was 'Too Scared': The Dialogue 'Was a Huge Challenge for Me' The initiative was born from a growing recognition that African producers often navigate industry-specific challenges in isolation. The goal is to offer one-on-one advisory sessions, expert consultations and strategic interventions, all tailored to each producer's specific business and creative needs. The APA seeks to enhance companies' sustainability, project development, funding strategies and international distribution by fostering a collaborative network that supports producers long-term. 'Having produced in more than 30 countries on the continent with local partners, we see many common challenges with very few routes to overcome them. While we will provide support services to the producers, importantly the program will also create the environment where we will all share our secrets with each other, realize our own power as independent producers other and explore ways to collaborate and support well beyond the three months,' said Steven Markovitz, founder of Big World Cinema ('Rafiki,' 'Omen'). 'This pilot edition of the African Producers Accelerator reflects a commitment to long-term, producer-centered development that complements existing industry programs by offering personalized and sustained support,' said Tamsin Ranger, partner at Big World Cinema. Initially limited to invitees from prominent African film initiatives such as Durban FilmMart, the Realness Institute and the Great Lakes Creative Producers Lab, future editions of the program will feature open calls and expanded alumni services. Best of Variety New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week Emmy Predictions: Talk/Scripted Variety Series - The Variety Categories Are Still a Mess; Netflix, Dropout, and 'Hot Ones' Stir Up Buzz Oscars Predictions 2026: 'Sinners' Becomes Early Contender Ahead of Cannes Film Festival
