Latest news with #ZarAmir
Yahoo
10-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Golshifteh Farahani Gets Locarno Honor From Zar Amir, Calls Cinema a 'Refuge' in a 'Dark World'
It was a very emotional Locarno opening night as Iranian female power, Gaza, and Armenia got the spotlight on the first night of the 78th edition of the Locarno Film Festival on Wednesday. Iran-born actress Golshifteh Farahani received a big and cordial Swiss welcome and the Excellence Award Davide Campari on the picturesque lakeside town's Piazza Grande square. And in a special surprise, she was handed the award by fellow Iranian actress Zar Amir. 'I thought this prize should go to you, to all of us, to us, in this obscure, dark world,' Farahani told the Locarno crowd in an emotional acceptance speech. 'We still believe in art and culture. We take refuge in cinema. We watch movies, movies in which everyone is included. We feel love, anger, jealousy, no matter which side of the frontier we live on, no matter which God we believe in, no matter where we pray, no matter which nationality we are. We watch movies from all over the world, especially in Locarno. And this is where humanity somehow comes together.' More from The Hollywood Reporter Gaumont Marks 130 Years With Academy Museum Retrospective Neon Nabs Japanese Video Game Movie Adaptation 'Exit 8' Paramount to Premiere 'Boston Blue' at MIPCOM Continued the star: 'I think really this excellence prize goes to all of you. Each of you is a candle in this darkness. We are here celebrating human values in grace and dignity. Thank you for being here. Thank you for being such a great light in this dark world, because now we are shining very, very bright. And we will change this world through art, through culture. We will do it all together.' Amir also kept it emotional, telling Farahani: 'Thank you for being my soul sister, for being there for me and everyone who needs you every single moment of your life. You inspire us, all of us, me and many others, every single moment you exist. I love you.' The audience erupted into applause as the two women hugged before walking off the stage together. Farahani is also in town to present her most recent film, Julia Ducournau's Alpha, which premiered in the competition at Cannes this year, at the Swiss festival and take part in a public conversation with the festival audience. After Farahani's award ceremony, the Locarno opening film In the Land of Arto screened on the square's big outdoor screen. Tamara Stepanyan's drama, which stars Camille Cottin and Amir, follows a French woman who arrives in Armenia and discovers that her dead husband lied about his identity. Before the movie and award ceremony, Stepanyan, Amir, and other members of the Arto creative team discussed the movie, Armenian history, and honor of opening Locarno. Then, the festival served up a little surprise for the opening night audience in the form of a video message by Cottin, who can't be in Locarno due to other commitments. 'I'm sorry I cannot be at your side, Tamara, but I just wanted to thank you again for inviting me on this incredible journey, both artistic and geographical,' Cottin said. 'It was an unforgettable experience to travel through that country, Armenia, that I had never known before. I know how emotional it must be for you to be standing there, because you've been working on this film for many years, and both in terms of the political and personal perspective, this film means a lot to you.' Farahani, born in Tehran in 1983, emerged as an acting talent at an early age, leading to her breakthrough role in Dariush Mehrjui's The Pear Tree in 1998. The actress previously visited Locarno to present the Rajasthan-set The Song of Scorpions (2017) on the Piazza Grande. During Wednesday's opening event, Giona A. Nazzaro lauded Farahani 'an incredibly talented artist, and someone that has always told us how to stand our ground, how to be creative with choices and how she has always refused to be pigeonholed in roles, and always explored the possibilities of what an artist, an actor, could do.' He also mentioned Gaza in his Italian comments, citing that the 2025 fest selection includes 'films that have questioned us about the state of the world and too many wars that continue to involve millions of innocent people,' according to an online translation of his speech. 'As a community and as individuals, we have the duty to always keep our eyes open, especially when it comes to places where suffering is a daily struggle, and therefore denounce the intolerable destruction of Gaza and the terrible humanitarian tragedy that is affecting the Palestinian people through the systematic violence of bombs and oppression.' Farahani is one of several big-name Iranian film creatives attending Locarno78. Amir stars in the opening film, while director Jafar Panahi is presenting his Cannes Palme d'Or winner, It Was Just an Accident, and Mohammad Rasoulof is also in town. The 2025 Locarno festival runs through Aug. 16. Best of The Hollywood Reporter The 25 Best U.S. Film Schools in 2025 The 40 Greatest Needle Drops in Film History The 40 Best Films About the Immigrant Experience Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘Hunger Games: Sunrise On The Reaping' Set To Be Biggest Project On Sale At Cannes With A Budget North Of $150M — The Dish
EXCLUSIVE: Lionsgate's franchise returner The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping is set to be the biggest-budget project on sale at next month's Cannes market. Market sources tell us the film's budget is being pegged north of $150M. Two sources tell us between $170-200M gross. This isn't shocking given the last film in the popular franchise, made almost a decade ago, had a reported budget of $160M. But it would still be the biggest budget movie to hit a film market in some time, a market that has become accustomed to smaller genre fare and where tentpole franchises aren't as common as they used to be. It's hard to recall the last movie with a budget in this range hitting the indie market. The Irishman did, but then was flipped to Netflix. Before that, it would probably be Mockingjay Part Two. More recently, Better Man had a budget north of $100M (that didn't end well), as did Emancipation (that was flipped to Apple) and Saudi-shot Desert Warrior (which remains in post after a long delay) has been reported as costing north of $100M gross, though that number is contested. More from Deadline Daisy Ridley & Zar Amir Projects Among Titles Set For Cannes Immersive Lineup 'The Mastermind': First Images Revealed Of Josh O'Connor & Alana Haim In Kelly Reichardt's Cannes Competition Film Incredible Film Boards Sales On Cannes-Set Rom-Com 'Out Of Luck' With Ryan Brown, Abbey Hoes & Jim Bakkum Buyers are always hungry for a winner and the Hunger Games franchise has delivered for many in the past. The five films in the franchise have taken in more than $3.3BN at the box office. The asking prices are likely to be steep, however, and given global economic challenges and the sparsity of major indies today it'll be interesting to see who is able to stump up. We should know more on asking prices soon. At a time when so many buzzy properties get flipped to streamers and studios (in recent months, we've had Lionsgate and Henry Cavill's Highlander reboot and Natalie Portman rom-com Good Sex both go that way), it's good news for indie buyers to at least have a shot at a big franchise. Filming is due to get underway in July on the film, which Francis Lawrence will direct from Billy Ray's adaptation of the Suzanne Collins novel. As we revealed, Oscar nominee Jesse Plemons has been cast as Plutarch Heavensbee, joining Joseph Zada As Haymitch Abernathy, Whitney Peak As Lenore Dove Baird and Mckenna Grace as Maysilee Donner. Additional casting is in process. Sunrise on the Reaping revisits the world of Panem twenty-four years before the events of The Hunger Games, starting on the morning of the reaping of the Fiftieth Hunger Games, also known as the Second Quarter Quell. The protagonist of the novel is the young Abernathy (portrayed by Woody Harrelson in the previous movies), the second male tribute from District 12 to enter the deadly arena. The appetite for the books remains strong. The novel sold 1.5M copies in its first week on sale in the U.S., UK, Ireland, Canada, Australia and New Zealand after it hit shelves in March. The 1.2M copies sold in its first week in the U.S. are twice the first-week sales of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes and three times those of Mockingjay. Pic is slated for release on November 20, 2026. Color Force's Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson will produce. In the U.S., Starz will have an exclusive first pay window, which will be followed by another exclusive window for Amazon Prime. As for other buzzy pre-sale projects set to be on sale at Cannes, A24 will be on the Croisette with the Brad Pitt movie The Riders from director Edward Berger and producer Scott Free, which we revealed earlier this week. The company will also be talking to buyers about Robert Pattinson and Zendaya starrer The Drama. There are plenty more projects still to be announced. Stay tuned to Deadline for the latest. Lionsgate declined to comment. Best of Deadline 'Ginny & Georgia' Season 3: Everything We Know So Far Everything We Know About The 'Reminders of Him' Movie So Far 2025 TV Series Renewals: Photo Gallery
