When I first saw the title of this, I naturally thought of the song by the same name that became a huge if not ‘Monster Hit’ for Bobby “Boris” Pickett at the height of the fifties and sixties monster craze. The picture takes the theme of sixties creature features and creates a bloody at times gore-filled Anthology of stories to shock, offend and make you go ‘ok’.
The Monster Mash (2022) directed by Kevin Losani and Richard Terrasi succeeds admirably with engaging pulp-like stories whose endings you can see a mile or kilometre off depending on your country. The difference is the work is so lovingly done, with fun, practical effects, at times over-the-top acting that fits and just a little tinge of naughty offence.
The film opens with outstanding titles harkening back to Saturday morning horror cartoons that were never quite frightening. An on-camera host Dr Freudstein (Michael Gentile) and his not-so-able hunchbacked,...
The Monster Mash (2022) directed by Kevin Losani and Richard Terrasi succeeds admirably with engaging pulp-like stories whose endings you can see a mile or kilometre off depending on your country. The difference is the work is so lovingly done, with fun, practical effects, at times over-the-top acting that fits and just a little tinge of naughty offence.
The film opens with outstanding titles harkening back to Saturday morning horror cartoons that were never quite frightening. An on-camera host Dr Freudstein (Michael Gentile) and his not-so-able hunchbacked,...
- 3/28/2024
- by Terry Sherwood
- Horror Asylum
This week’s surprise news of conservative politician Rachida Dati becoming France’s new Culture Minister provoked an earthquake within the country’s predominantly left-leaning film and TV industry.
Dati was appointed on Jan. 11 to succeed Rima Abdul Malak as Culture Minister as part of a reshuffle of France’s President Emmanuel Macron, which also saw 34-year-old Gabriel Attal becoming Prime Minister.
A combative straight shooter with an acerbic of humor and a definite sense of style, Dati is currently mayor of the posh 7th arrondissement where she regularly mingles with stars residing in the neighborhood. But her appointment as Culture Minister was welcomed with vitriolic headlines across the media and was called out by a large chunk of the film and TV biz as a casting error. The high profile politician is seen as a potential threat to the industry’s unique model of “cultural exception,” where independent, diverse filmmaking is nurtured through subsidies,...
Dati was appointed on Jan. 11 to succeed Rima Abdul Malak as Culture Minister as part of a reshuffle of France’s President Emmanuel Macron, which also saw 34-year-old Gabriel Attal becoming Prime Minister.
A combative straight shooter with an acerbic of humor and a definite sense of style, Dati is currently mayor of the posh 7th arrondissement where she regularly mingles with stars residing in the neighborhood. But her appointment as Culture Minister was welcomed with vitriolic headlines across the media and was called out by a large chunk of the film and TV biz as a casting error. The high profile politician is seen as a potential threat to the industry’s unique model of “cultural exception,” where independent, diverse filmmaking is nurtured through subsidies,...
- 1/14/2024
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
‘Give A Little Beat’ is about a family who go on a road trip across France.
Gaumont has packed its diverse Paris Rendez-Vous line-up with Laurence Arné’s family road trip comedy Give A Little Beat starring the director-actress alongside Dany Boon.
The duo play a remarried couple who take their blended family on a road trip in an old Jeep Cherokee bound for the French Atlantic coast. The scenic journey quickly turns to disaster as antics ensue.
Titled Les Hennedricks in France, Give A Little Beat is produced by Michael Gentile’s The Film, Bonnes Soeurs Production and Gaumont.
Gaumont has packed its diverse Paris Rendez-Vous line-up with Laurence Arné’s family road trip comedy Give A Little Beat starring the director-actress alongside Dany Boon.
The duo play a remarried couple who take their blended family on a road trip in an old Jeep Cherokee bound for the French Atlantic coast. The scenic journey quickly turns to disaster as antics ensue.
Titled Les Hennedricks in France, Give A Little Beat is produced by Michael Gentile’s The Film, Bonnes Soeurs Production and Gaumont.
- 1/11/2024
- by Rebecca Leffler
- ScreenDaily
Paris-based sales company is bringing eight new titles to Rendez-Vous.
Julie Delpy’s immigration-themed comedy Meet The Barbarians (Les Barbares) is among eight new titles Paris-based sales company Charades is launching at Unifrance’s Rendez-Vous with French Cinema this month.
The event takes place from January 16-23 in Paris.
Charades extensive Rendez-Vous line-up also includes 3D animation Flow, romantic comedy Just A Couple of Days starring Camille Cottin, Jeremie Sein’s Olympic sports comedy Game Changers, Antoine Raimbault’s political thriller Smoke Signals, Gustave Kervern’s revenge story Enough Is Enough!, dark comedy Plastic Guns plus recently announced adaptation And...
Julie Delpy’s immigration-themed comedy Meet The Barbarians (Les Barbares) is among eight new titles Paris-based sales company Charades is launching at Unifrance’s Rendez-Vous with French Cinema this month.
The event takes place from January 16-23 in Paris.
Charades extensive Rendez-Vous line-up also includes 3D animation Flow, romantic comedy Just A Couple of Days starring Camille Cottin, Jeremie Sein’s Olympic sports comedy Game Changers, Antoine Raimbault’s political thriller Smoke Signals, Gustave Kervern’s revenge story Enough Is Enough!, dark comedy Plastic Guns plus recently announced adaptation And...
- 1/9/2024
- by Rebecca Leffler
- ScreenDaily
Directors’ guild the Srf issued a statement saying “the far right is attacking culture”.
France’s directors’ guild, the Srf, and the producers guilds Spi and Upc, have all come out in support of Mehdi Fikri’s family drama After The Fire, about a woman on a quest for justice when her brother dies in police custody, blaming the film’s poor box office and scathing reviews on a far-right campaign they say is putting free speech at risk.
Fikri’s first feature was released in France on November 15 by Bac Films after a world premiere in Toronto’s Discovery section.
France’s directors’ guild, the Srf, and the producers guilds Spi and Upc, have all come out in support of Mehdi Fikri’s family drama After The Fire, about a woman on a quest for justice when her brother dies in police custody, blaming the film’s poor box office and scathing reviews on a far-right campaign they say is putting free speech at risk.
Fikri’s first feature was released in France on November 15 by Bac Films after a world premiere in Toronto’s Discovery section.
- 12/5/2023
- by Rebecca Leffler
- ScreenDaily
The producer and distributor of French police violence drama After The Fire, which world premiered in Toronto’s Discovery line-up this year, say the film’s theatrical release has been damaged by a right-wing smear campaign.
Moves against the picture include a push to lower the work’s public score on cinema website Allociné (France’s equivalent to a Rotten Tomatoes rating), as well as the spread of disinformation around the production by right-leaning outlets such as CNews, which is France’s Gb News or Fox News.
The drama stars popular singer and actress Camélia Jordana as a woman seeking justice after her younger brother dies in suspicious circumstances in police custody.
It is the first feature of Mehdi Fikri who spent a decade working as a reporter covering social conflict and the issues of police violence and justice in France’s notoriously deprived out-of-town suburbs.
Conceived by Fikri over...
Moves against the picture include a push to lower the work’s public score on cinema website Allociné (France’s equivalent to a Rotten Tomatoes rating), as well as the spread of disinformation around the production by right-leaning outlets such as CNews, which is France’s Gb News or Fox News.
The drama stars popular singer and actress Camélia Jordana as a woman seeking justice after her younger brother dies in suspicious circumstances in police custody.
It is the first feature of Mehdi Fikri who spent a decade working as a reporter covering social conflict and the issues of police violence and justice in France’s notoriously deprived out-of-town suburbs.
Conceived by Fikri over...
- 11/23/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
French director Mehdi Fikri spent a decade working as a reporter covering social conflict and the issues of police violence and justice in France’s notoriously deprived out-of-town suburbs.
What he learned and saw during this time now feeds into his work as a filmmaker.
First feature After The Fire, which debuts in Toronto’s Discovery line-up, follows Malika, a French woman of North African descent, living in an outer suburb of the city of Strasbourg, who seeks justice after her younger brother dies in suspicious circumstances after being stopped by the police.
“I was born and grew up in Saint Denis in northern Paris, which has the reputation for being one of the most disadvantaged places in the entire Paris region,” says Fikri.
“The question of police violence has been a political issue in France for years and is something that has touched me personally as a young man...
What he learned and saw during this time now feeds into his work as a filmmaker.
First feature After The Fire, which debuts in Toronto’s Discovery line-up, follows Malika, a French woman of North African descent, living in an outer suburb of the city of Strasbourg, who seeks justice after her younger brother dies in suspicious circumstances after being stopped by the police.
“I was born and grew up in Saint Denis in northern Paris, which has the reputation for being one of the most disadvantaged places in the entire Paris region,” says Fikri.
“The question of police violence has been a political issue in France for years and is something that has touched me personally as a young man...
- 9/11/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Film stars including pop singer and Cesar-winning actress Camelia Jordana.
Screen can reveal the first trailer for Mehdi Fikri’s debut feature After The Fire ahead of the film’s TIFF Discovery world premiere.
The timely tale about a grieving family in their quest for justice after the police slaying of a young man in the suburbs of Strasbourg mirrors recent real-life riots in France that erupted in June following the police shooting of a teenager at a traffic stop. The film focuses on the interfamilial relationships and turmoil that follows such tragedies.
After The Fire features a cast of...
Screen can reveal the first trailer for Mehdi Fikri’s debut feature After The Fire ahead of the film’s TIFF Discovery world premiere.
The timely tale about a grieving family in their quest for justice after the police slaying of a young man in the suburbs of Strasbourg mirrors recent real-life riots in France that erupted in June following the police shooting of a teenager at a traffic stop. The film focuses on the interfamilial relationships and turmoil that follows such tragedies.
After The Fire features a cast of...
- 9/5/2023
- by Rebecca Leffler
- ScreenDaily
Sandrine Kiberlain and Laurent Lafitte will re-team once again this time as the faces of surprise and dismay representing a small (minded) folk of a Brittany village in Julie Delpy‘s Les barbares. Production on the actress-filmmaker’s eighth feature will take place this June-July. Michael Gentile is producing. In a recent interview with Variety, the filmmaker called the refugee comedy both “funny and dark.”
The municipality of a small Breton village has decided to welcome a family of Ukrainian refugees. To their surprise, the receive Fayad family – coming from Syria. They thwart all the clichés that the French expected: they are friendly, refined, educated… So much so that, in this small, humming village, it is no longer clear which side the barbarians are on…
…...
The municipality of a small Breton village has decided to welcome a family of Ukrainian refugees. To their surprise, the receive Fayad family – coming from Syria. They thwart all the clichés that the French expected: they are friendly, refined, educated… So much so that, in this small, humming village, it is no longer clear which side the barbarians are on…
…...
- 4/17/2023
- by Eric Lavallée
- IONCINEMA.com
Marrakech — Having written the script over the last five years, Julie will act in and direct feature film “The Barbarians,” she confirmed at the Marrakech Film Festival.
“‘It is about Syrian refugees in France. It has a unique flavor. It is funny and dark. A lot of people have tackled this subject but I think my take is unique,” she said.
The producer is Paris-based Michael Gentile (“Rosalie Blum”) who also produced Delpy’s recent Netflix/Canal+ show, “On The Verge.”
“It is an assembly of characters,” she adds. “I have just finished writing. I am writing, directing, and acting.”
It’s not unusual for some films to take decades to make in Hollywood. A second project that she hopes to finally do now is “A Dazzling Display of Splendor,” a project she’s been working on for a decade.
“I’ve got someone really interesting and interested in the project.
“‘It is about Syrian refugees in France. It has a unique flavor. It is funny and dark. A lot of people have tackled this subject but I think my take is unique,” she said.
The producer is Paris-based Michael Gentile (“Rosalie Blum”) who also produced Delpy’s recent Netflix/Canal+ show, “On The Verge.”
“It is an assembly of characters,” she adds. “I have just finished writing. I am writing, directing, and acting.”
It’s not unusual for some films to take decades to make in Hollywood. A second project that she hopes to finally do now is “A Dazzling Display of Splendor,” a project she’s been working on for a decade.
“I’ve got someone really interesting and interested in the project.
- 11/13/2022
- by Liza Foreman
- Variety Film + TV
Bloody Disgusting has learned this afternoon that Yellow Veil Pictures have acquired all distribution rights in North America for the HD remaster of Fabrice du Welz’s 2004 Belgian horror movie Calvaire. Released at the height of the New French Extremity movement, Calvaire follows a traveling entertainer who falls victim to a dangerously unhinged innkeeper determined to keep him captive. The U.S. premiere of the remaster will take place next month as part of the Brooklyn Horror Film Festival.
As du Welz’s first feature, Calvaire would go on to become the first part of his thematic Ardennes Trilogy (alongside 2014’s Alleluia and 2019’s Adoration) and immediately define the young director as a voice to watch in Belgium. Calvaire takes its cues not only from the contemporary extreme cinema of France and Belgium, but also from iconic works like The Texas Chain Saw Massacre to create a poetically brutal study of human nature.
As du Welz’s first feature, Calvaire would go on to become the first part of his thematic Ardennes Trilogy (alongside 2014’s Alleluia and 2019’s Adoration) and immediately define the young director as a voice to watch in Belgium. Calvaire takes its cues not only from the contemporary extreme cinema of France and Belgium, but also from iconic works like The Texas Chain Saw Massacre to create a poetically brutal study of human nature.
- 9/16/2022
- by John Squires
- bloody-disgusting.com
The comedy series On the Verge has been canceled by Netflix and Canal+ after one season, according to its creator and star, Julie Delpy.
Delpy broke the news today in the comments section of one of her recent Instagram posts. When a fan asked for an update on Season 2, Delpy said that the show has been “cancelled,” though its distributors “forgot to announce it was cancelled.”
On the Verge followed four female friends in their late 40s—played by Delpy, Elisabeth Shue, Sarah Jones and Alexia Landeau—who chose to use midlife not as a time of mourning their youth, but as an opportunity for personal reinvention, with the hope of finally living lives that embodied their beliefs and values.
The L.A.-set half-hour series was a co-production between Canal+ and Netflix, with the former releasing it in France, and Netflix distributing it in the rest of the world.
Delpy broke the news today in the comments section of one of her recent Instagram posts. When a fan asked for an update on Season 2, Delpy said that the show has been “cancelled,” though its distributors “forgot to announce it was cancelled.”
On the Verge followed four female friends in their late 40s—played by Delpy, Elisabeth Shue, Sarah Jones and Alexia Landeau—who chose to use midlife not as a time of mourning their youth, but as an opportunity for personal reinvention, with the hope of finally living lives that embodied their beliefs and values.
The L.A.-set half-hour series was a co-production between Canal+ and Netflix, with the former releasing it in France, and Netflix distributing it in the rest of the world.
- 4/9/2022
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Laïla Marrakchi talks Atlas Workshops strawberry picker drama ‘La Más Dulce’
Moroccan director Laïla Marrakchi broke out internationally in 2005 with debut feature and Cannes Un Certain Regard selection Marock, a Casablanca-set love story between a Jewish boy and Muslim girl, which she followed with the 2013 female-focused family drama Rock The Casbah.
The Paris-based, Casablanca- born director has not made a feature film in seven years, however, having become caught up in the high-end drama boom, taking directing credits on French language series Marseille, The Bureau, The Eddy and most recently L’Opera, set against France’s iconic Le Garnier Opera house.
Moroccan director Laïla Marrakchi broke out internationally in 2005 with debut feature and Cannes Un Certain Regard selection Marock, a Casablanca-set love story between a Jewish boy and Muslim girl, which she followed with the 2013 female-focused family drama Rock The Casbah.
The Paris-based, Casablanca- born director has not made a feature film in seven years, however, having become caught up in the high-end drama boom, taking directing credits on French language series Marseille, The Bureau, The Eddy and most recently L’Opera, set against France’s iconic Le Garnier Opera house.
- 11/19/2021
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- ScreenDaily
The Film TV, the Paris-based outfit headed by well-established producers Michael Gentile and Lauraine Heftler, has gained a substantial track record in three years.
The banner is presenting its first two shows at Series Mania Festival, Julie Delpy’s TV debut “On The Verge” which is backed by Canal Plus and Netflix; and “Jeune et Golri,” a series set against the backdrop of the stand-up comedy world.
Commissioned by French pay TV service Ocs, “Jeune et Golri” is a half-hour contemporary romantic comedy series based on an original idea by Agnès Hurstel, an actor and screenwriter, who created the show with Victor Saint-Macary (“Le Brio”) and Léa Domenach.
Hurstel stars in the show as Prune, a 25 year-old stand-up comedian who falls in love with a middle-aged man, Francis, not knowing he has a six-year-old girl. While Prune herself still feels like a teenager, she becomes an unlikely step mom to this little girl.
The banner is presenting its first two shows at Series Mania Festival, Julie Delpy’s TV debut “On The Verge” which is backed by Canal Plus and Netflix; and “Jeune et Golri,” a series set against the backdrop of the stand-up comedy world.
Commissioned by French pay TV service Ocs, “Jeune et Golri” is a half-hour contemporary romantic comedy series based on an original idea by Agnès Hurstel, an actor and screenwriter, who created the show with Victor Saint-Macary (“Le Brio”) and Léa Domenach.
Hurstel stars in the show as Prune, a 25 year-old stand-up comedian who falls in love with a middle-aged man, Francis, not knowing he has a six-year-old girl. While Prune herself still feels like a teenager, she becomes an unlikely step mom to this little girl.
- 8/30/2021
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Michael Gentile’s Paris-based The Film, the banner behind Julie Delpy’s upcoming show “On the Verge,” is developing a string of projects with emerging filmmakers, notably Yaël Cojot-Goldberg’s “Farewell Caracas” and Mehdi Fikri’s drama “Et maintenant, le feu.”
The company is also producing Danielle Arbid’s “Des châteaux qui brûlent,” based on Arno Bertina’ book, and Delpy’s next French-language movie, “Les Barbares,” a culture clash film set in Brittany.
“Farewell Caracas,” co-written by Cojot-Goldberg and Thomas Vincent (the co-director of “Bodyguard”), is set in the 1970s in Venezuela and is a semi-autobiographical tale. The film revolves around French expats who move to Venezuela and will star Melanie Thierry (“In Therapy”), Arieh Worthalter (“Girl”) and Mathieu Amalric (“Sound of Metal”). It tells the story of the helmer’s parents whose love for one another got tested after her father, who was a well-established banker, spiralled out of control after discovering Klaus Barbie,...
The company is also producing Danielle Arbid’s “Des châteaux qui brûlent,” based on Arno Bertina’ book, and Delpy’s next French-language movie, “Les Barbares,” a culture clash film set in Brittany.
“Farewell Caracas,” co-written by Cojot-Goldberg and Thomas Vincent (the co-director of “Bodyguard”), is set in the 1970s in Venezuela and is a semi-autobiographical tale. The film revolves around French expats who move to Venezuela and will star Melanie Thierry (“In Therapy”), Arieh Worthalter (“Girl”) and Mathieu Amalric (“Sound of Metal”). It tells the story of the helmer’s parents whose love for one another got tested after her father, who was a well-established banker, spiralled out of control after discovering Klaus Barbie,...
- 7/11/2021
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
’Beautiful Minds’ is inspired by the real-life experiences of co-director Alexandre Jollien who was born with cerebral palsy but overcame his disabilities to study philosophy
Elle Driver has launched sales on Bernard Campan and Alexandre Jollien’s pioneering French comedy-drama Beautiful Minds, about a workaholic funeral director and a solitary vegetable delivery man and philosopher born with cerebral palsy, who embark on a road trip in a hearse.
It is inspired by the real-life experiences of Jollien who was born with cerebral palsy but overcame his disabilities to study philosophy and become became a major thinker and spiritual teacher, who has written several best-selling books.
Elle Driver has launched sales on Bernard Campan and Alexandre Jollien’s pioneering French comedy-drama Beautiful Minds, about a workaholic funeral director and a solitary vegetable delivery man and philosopher born with cerebral palsy, who embark on a road trip in a hearse.
It is inspired by the real-life experiences of Jollien who was born with cerebral palsy but overcame his disabilities to study philosophy and become became a major thinker and spiritual teacher, who has written several best-selling books.
- 3/3/2021
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- ScreenDaily
Julie Delpy’s first TV drama, “On the Verge,” is one of the rare shows that managed to shoot in Los Angeles between the first and second waves of the pandemic.
Produced by Michael Gentile and Lauraine Heftler at The Film TV for France’s Canal Plus and Netflix, the 12-episode series endured a three-month delay and then filmed from late August until Thanksgiving.
Covid-safe protocols cost approximately $2 million but proved effective: There wasn’t a single coronavirus case during production. In addition to creator and co-director Delpy, the series — set to debut next fall — stars Elisabeth Shue, Sarah Jones and Giovanni Ribisi.
Congrats on pulling off this shoot under very unique circumstances! How did the pandemic impact the casting process and production?
We did 90% of the casting on Zoom. It was a bit complicated to feel the chemistry between two actors on Zoom, or even get a sense of their height,...
Produced by Michael Gentile and Lauraine Heftler at The Film TV for France’s Canal Plus and Netflix, the 12-episode series endured a three-month delay and then filmed from late August until Thanksgiving.
Covid-safe protocols cost approximately $2 million but proved effective: There wasn’t a single coronavirus case during production. In addition to creator and co-director Delpy, the series — set to debut next fall — stars Elisabeth Shue, Sarah Jones and Giovanni Ribisi.
Congrats on pulling off this shoot under very unique circumstances! How did the pandemic impact the casting process and production?
We did 90% of the casting on Zoom. It was a bit complicated to feel the chemistry between two actors on Zoom, or even get a sense of their height,...
- 12/24/2020
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Orange Studio is set to co-produce and represent in international markets a trio of ambitious French movies, “L’astronaute,” “Madame de Sevigné” and “Chien blanc.” All three films will start shooting during the first quarter of 2021 and will be co-distributed by Orange Studio in theaters.
“Chien blanc,” to be directed by Anaïs Barbeau-Lavalette, will be headlined by Denis Ménochet and Canadian actress Kacey Rohl (“The Killing”). Produced by Nicole Robert at Go Films, “Chien blanc” is an adaptation of Romain Gary’s novel. Barbeau-Lavalette bought the adaptation rights from Alexandre Diego Gary, the only child of Gary and Jean Seberg.
The film, mainly inspired by Gary’s own life, unfolds in the U.S. in the aftermath of Martin Luther King’s assassination. Gary and his wife, Seberg, welcome in their home an abandoned dog who appears to have been trained to attack Black people. Gary nevertheless refuses to have the dog euthanized,...
“Chien blanc,” to be directed by Anaïs Barbeau-Lavalette, will be headlined by Denis Ménochet and Canadian actress Kacey Rohl (“The Killing”). Produced by Nicole Robert at Go Films, “Chien blanc” is an adaptation of Romain Gary’s novel. Barbeau-Lavalette bought the adaptation rights from Alexandre Diego Gary, the only child of Gary and Jean Seberg.
The film, mainly inspired by Gary’s own life, unfolds in the U.S. in the aftermath of Martin Luther King’s assassination. Gary and his wife, Seberg, welcome in their home an abandoned dog who appears to have been trained to attack Black people. Gary nevertheless refuses to have the dog euthanized,...
- 12/16/2020
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Sarah Jones (“Marriage Story”), Giovanni Ribisi (“Avatar”) and Alexia Landeau (“Day Out of Days”) have joined the cast of Julie Delpy’s upcoming dramedy series “On the Verge,” a co-production between Canal Plus and Netflix.
Canal Plus will air the series in France, with Netflix distributing it in the rest of world. “On The Verge” was co-developed by Canal Plus’s Original Creation label. Production recently started in Los Angeles.
Delpy, who created the series and co-wrote it with Landeau, will also headline “On the Verge” alongside Elisabeth Shue, as previously announced. With Jones, Ribisi and Landeau on board, the key cast is now complete.
“On the Verge” is about four female friends in their late forties — two of them played by Delpy and Shue — who choose to use midlife not as a time of mourning their youth, but as an opportunity for personal reinvention, with the hope of finally...
Canal Plus will air the series in France, with Netflix distributing it in the rest of world. “On The Verge” was co-developed by Canal Plus’s Original Creation label. Production recently started in Los Angeles.
Delpy, who created the series and co-wrote it with Landeau, will also headline “On the Verge” alongside Elisabeth Shue, as previously announced. With Jones, Ribisi and Landeau on board, the key cast is now complete.
“On the Verge” is about four female friends in their late forties — two of them played by Delpy and Shue — who choose to use midlife not as a time of mourning their youth, but as an opportunity for personal reinvention, with the hope of finally...
- 9/18/2020
- by Elsa Keslassy and Joe Otterson
- Variety Film + TV
Federation Entertainment has come on board leading Moroccan filmmaker Laila Marrakchi’s “Casa Girls,” a series about four twentysomething single women living in Casablanca.
“Casa Girl” is being developed by Lauraine Heftler and Michael Gentile’s The Film, whose credits include Julie Delpy’s films and upcoming series “On The Verge” (working title). Federation Entertainment will be co-producing the series, on top of handling International sales, and is presenting the project as part of Series Mania’s virtual co-production forum.
The comedy-drama series will follow Kenzo, a young woman who’s been living in Paris for 10 years and returns to her homeland in Casablanca to get over a bad breakup. But instead of finding the comfort and peace she wished for, Kenza discovers that her parents have gone broke. Forced to take a small job, she starts working as a photographer for a cheeky wedding planner who becomes her friend,...
“Casa Girl” is being developed by Lauraine Heftler and Michael Gentile’s The Film, whose credits include Julie Delpy’s films and upcoming series “On The Verge” (working title). Federation Entertainment will be co-producing the series, on top of handling International sales, and is presenting the project as part of Series Mania’s virtual co-production forum.
The comedy-drama series will follow Kenzo, a young woman who’s been living in Paris for 10 years and returns to her homeland in Casablanca to get over a bad breakup. But instead of finding the comfort and peace she wished for, Kenza discovers that her parents have gone broke. Forced to take a small job, she starts working as a photographer for a cheeky wedding planner who becomes her friend,...
- 3/23/2020
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Elisabeth Shue is set as a co-lead opposite Julie Delpy in Delpy’s Netflix dramedy series On the Verge. Shue will also serve as an executive producer alongside Delpy on the 12-episode series, a co-production between Canal+ and Netflix.
Created by Delpy and written by Delpy and Alexia Landeau, On The Verge is a show about four female friends in their late forties — two of them played by Delpy and Shue — who chose to use midlife not as a time of mourning their youth, but as an opportunity for personal reinvention, with the hope of finally living lives that embody their beliefs and values.
Delpy and Shue executive produce along with Michael Gentile and Lauraine Heftler of The Film TV, Rola Bauer of Studiocanal and Olivier Gauriat of Barnstormer. Canal+ will air the series in France, with Netflix distributing it in the rest of world.
Shue, who recently signed with Gersh,...
Created by Delpy and written by Delpy and Alexia Landeau, On The Verge is a show about four female friends in their late forties — two of them played by Delpy and Shue — who chose to use midlife not as a time of mourning their youth, but as an opportunity for personal reinvention, with the hope of finally living lives that embody their beliefs and values.
Delpy and Shue executive produce along with Michael Gentile and Lauraine Heftler of The Film TV, Rola Bauer of Studiocanal and Olivier Gauriat of Barnstormer. Canal+ will air the series in France, with Netflix distributing it in the rest of world.
Shue, who recently signed with Gersh,...
- 2/13/2020
- by Nellie Andreeva
- Deadline Film + TV
Paris-based Moroccan filmmaker Laila Marrakchi is developing a pair of daring female-driven projects, “Casa Girls,” a series about four twentysomething single women living in Casablanca, and a drama based on a real-life sex scandal set against an agricultural backdrop in Spain.
Marrakchi, who has so far directed “Rock the Casbah” and “Marock,” both of which were box office hits in Morocco and traveled well, as well as episodes of the hit spy thriller series “The Bureau,” just wrapped the shoot of two episodes of Damien Chazelle’s anticipated Netflix series “The Eddy,” and is getting ready to helm a couple of episodes of “The Opera,” an ambitious show unfolding at the Paris Opera that will start filming next spring.
In between those two shoots, the much sought-after director is developing the scripts of both “Casa Girls” and her next feature film, which will be inspired by a New York Times...
Marrakchi, who has so far directed “Rock the Casbah” and “Marock,” both of which were box office hits in Morocco and traveled well, as well as episodes of the hit spy thriller series “The Bureau,” just wrapped the shoot of two episodes of Damien Chazelle’s anticipated Netflix series “The Eddy,” and is getting ready to helm a couple of episodes of “The Opera,” an ambitious show unfolding at the Paris Opera that will start filming next spring.
In between those two shoots, the much sought-after director is developing the scripts of both “Casa Girls” and her next feature film, which will be inspired by a New York Times...
- 12/3/2019
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Playtime has acquired international sales to Vanessa Filho’s feature debut “Angel Face,” which will world premiere in Un Certain Regard at the Cannes Film Festival.
The film stars Oscar-winning actress Marion Cotillard as Marlene, a single mother who lives with her 8-year-old daughter, Elli, in a small town near the French Riviera. One day, Marlene suddenly chooses to abandon her daughter for a man she has just met during yet another night of excess. Elli must confront her mother’s demons to get her back.
Shot by star cinematographer Guillaume Schiffman (“The Artist”), “Angel Face” is produced by well-established producer Marc Missonnier (“Marguerite”) via his banner, Moana Films, and Carole Lambert (“Free Angela and All Political Prisoners”) through her new company, Windy Production. Stephane Celerier’s Mars Films is co-producing and will distribute it in France on May 23.
“Angel Face” was written by Filho, in collaboration with Alain Dias,...
The film stars Oscar-winning actress Marion Cotillard as Marlene, a single mother who lives with her 8-year-old daughter, Elli, in a small town near the French Riviera. One day, Marlene suddenly chooses to abandon her daughter for a man she has just met during yet another night of excess. Elli must confront her mother’s demons to get her back.
Shot by star cinematographer Guillaume Schiffman (“The Artist”), “Angel Face” is produced by well-established producer Marc Missonnier (“Marguerite”) via his banner, Moana Films, and Carole Lambert (“Free Angela and All Political Prisoners”) through her new company, Windy Production. Stephane Celerier’s Mars Films is co-producing and will distribute it in France on May 23.
“Angel Face” was written by Filho, in collaboration with Alain Dias,...
- 4/18/2018
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Playtime launches sales on Monge’s debut feature at UniFrance’s Rendez-vous with French Cinema.
Source: Playtime
‘Treat Me Like Fire’
Paris-based Playtime has released first images of Tahar Rahim and Stacy Martin in buzzed-about French director Marie Monge’s debut feature tale of love and addiction Treat Me Like Fire as UniFrance’s Rendez-vous with French Cinema (Jan 18-22) kicks off in Paris on Thursday.
Rahim plays a gambling addict working in a Paris bar where he gets involved with the owner’s daughter (Martin) who he introduces to the capital’s underground gambling scene.
The smitten young woman, who is keen to impress to her new lover, quickly gets hooked to the thrill of the betting table and their joint addiction quickly spirals out of control.
Playtime (formerly Films Distribution) will launch sales on the feature, which is in post-production, at the UniFrance meeting.
“We had quite a battle to get it. There was a lot of...
Source: Playtime
‘Treat Me Like Fire’
Paris-based Playtime has released first images of Tahar Rahim and Stacy Martin in buzzed-about French director Marie Monge’s debut feature tale of love and addiction Treat Me Like Fire as UniFrance’s Rendez-vous with French Cinema (Jan 18-22) kicks off in Paris on Thursday.
Rahim plays a gambling addict working in a Paris bar where he gets involved with the owner’s daughter (Martin) who he introduces to the capital’s underground gambling scene.
The smitten young woman, who is keen to impress to her new lover, quickly gets hooked to the thrill of the betting table and their joint addiction quickly spirals out of control.
Playtime (formerly Films Distribution) will launch sales on the feature, which is in post-production, at the UniFrance meeting.
“We had quite a battle to get it. There was a lot of...
- 1/18/2018
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- ScreenDaily
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