EVENTS
After a successful launch at SXSW earlier this year, the South Asian House initiative, which aims to highlight, recognize and appreciate South Asians in film and television, is set to debut at the Tribeca Festival, New York, on June 16.
Brainchild of producers, curators and programmers Rohi Mirza Pandya (Box Office Guru Media and Desipina), Monika Samtani (Ms. Media and The Fem Word), Jitin Hingorani (Jingo Media and DFW South Asian Film Festival) and Kirtana Banskota (Banskota Productions and Nepal America Film Society), the event will showcase programming focused on the funding, creation and distribution of South Asian stories for a global audience. The day will consist of two panel discussions focused on content creation in the diaspora and the Indian film industry and will be part of the AT&T Untold Stories Lounge at Spring Studios.
Hingorani and Mirza Pandya said: “Our filmmakers are making tremendous headway in Hollywood, while the Indian film industry is creating content that is winning Oscars. It’s time to celebrate these major achievements as a diaspora and a fraternity.”
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A digitally restored version of David Bowie’s “Ziggy Stardust The Motion Picture” is set to return to theatres this summer. Opening in over 1,000 cinemas worldwide, the film – which captures his early 1970s Ziggy Stardust tour – will screen in 4K HD with 5.1 sound. The global premiere of the restored film, which also features a cameo from Jeff Beck, is set to take place at the Eventim Apollo Hammersmith – the same venue where Bowie famously retired his stage person 50 years ago – on July 3. The film’s restoration has been overseen by Frazer Pennebaker, son of filmmaker D.A. Pennebake who shot the original.
PROGRAMMING
Streamer SkyShowtime has unveiled several European originals at the ongoing Cannes film market. In the Nordics, SkyShowtime will premiere Finnish-Swedish production “Codename: Annika,” its first original in the region. The crime-drama series, debuting later this year, revolves around a Finnish art-fraud investigator who goes undercover to infiltrate an auction house in Stockholm in order to investigate the firm’s connection to a notorious money launderer.
Spanish SkyShowtime original “Las Invisibles” (“The Invisible Ladies”) will premiere in Spain on June 5. Starring Lolita Flores, Maria Pujalte, Yoshira Escárrega, Paula del Río, Paula Mirá, Yaël Belicha and Elena Irureta, the series turns on a group of strong female characters who, as maids working at a luxury hotel in the Mediterranean, work to restructure their own lives that are juxtaposed against those of the wealthy visitors at the resort.
Previously announced shows include Polish drama “Warszawianka,” available June 19, as well as Czech and Slovakian comedy “The Winner” and Spanish original “Mentiras Pasajeras” (“Fleeting Lies”), both coming later this year.
Season 2 of “Por H o por B” will be available from May 26 and season 2 of “Los Enviados” (“The Envoys”) will be available later this year.
AWARDS
Anurag Kashyap has been honored with the French Riviera Film Festival’s industry excellence award. Kashyap’s latest film “Kennedy” has been screened at the Cannes Film Festival this year.
