Toronto Film Festival Suspends Participation From Russia-Sponsored Groups, But Welcomes Indie Filmmakers

K.J. Yossman BAFTA award winners Tom Cross and Elliot Graham have decried the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ decision to cut eight different Oscar categories, including film editing, from the live telecast.Although “No Time to Die” is not nominated for best film editing at the Oscars, the duo said they were unhappy with the Academy’s decision to remove craft categories from its live awards broadcast during the BAFTA winners press conference after picking up their award.“I’m glad you asked that,” said Cross in response to Variety’s question about the Academy’s decision. “I mean speaking for myself, I’m not a fan.

As events continue to play out, “Z” has instantly become the most ominous symbol in the world’s culture and economy.

The 49th annual Annie Awards are underway Saturday night, with the virtual ceremony presented by ASIFA-Hollywood honoring the year’s best in animated fare across movies, TV and video games. Deadline is following along and updating winners in 36 categories in real time. Keep track below.

Matt Donnelly Senior Film WriterThe SXSW Film Festival delivered a doozy of an opening night presentation with Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert’s “Everything Everywhere All at Once” on Friday in Austin — offering up a buffet of images for viral memes.Fleshy hot dogs in place of human fingers, a talking raccoon voiced by Oscar winner Randy Newman, butt plugs that serve as portals to other dimensions, a martial arts showdown between Michelle Yeoh and Jamie Lee Curtis, and a universe-shattering bagel all populate the A24 release. While Twitter will have its day with the inventive and well-crafted insanity, the filmmakers and cast also produced a rowdy crowdpleaser with themes of acceptance, optimism, and love literally conquering all.

Tim Gray Senior Vice PresidentTim Cook chatted with Ted Sarandos, Meryl Streep huddled with Jane Campion, Morgan Freeman (age 85) was deep in conversation with “King Richard’s” Saniyya Sidney and Demi Singleton (each 15), while “Squid Game” director Hwang Dong-hyuk fulfilled his personal goal of meeting both Guillermo del Toro and Steven Spielberg. Meanwhile, Rita Moreno was warmly greeted by the “CODA” team, including director Sian Heder and stars Marlee Matlin and Troy Kotsur.The event was the 22nd annual AFI Awards in an afternoon that is “all about one community of artists,” as AFI prexy-CEO Bob Gazzale said.AFI announced its honorees on Dec.

John Lurie finished work on a watercolour he titled Bear Surprise. The painting depicts the animal in a meadow standing on its hind legs in front of a couple having sex on a picnic blanket, with the bear saying: “Surprise!” Within weeks the picture was uploaded to a Russian blog with the speech bubble altered to read “Preved”, a portmanteau that translates as “Hello Bear”. This strange image captured the imagination of the Russian-language internet and by May that year The Moscow Times reported it had “gained vast popularity with the speed of an avalanche”.

whose assets were frozen by the British government Thursday over Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, and Mikhail Fridman, the sanctioned co-founder of Alfa Bank.He is also said to have cultivated relationships with Russia’s most important museum, run by a close associate of President Vladimir Putin.With Ukrainian artists and others calling for more sanctions in the cultural sector, such relationships may soon be under scrutiny, analysts say.The Gagosian Gallery in New York did not return The Post’s calls and an email seeking comment this week.Gagosian, who owns several galleries around the world, has long held close ties to Abramovich, the owner of the UK’s Chelsea football club, helping him and ex-wife Dasha Zhukova build up a massive art collection. It includes pieces by artists Francis Bacon and Damien Hirst, whose work has been represented by Gagosian’s galleries.

Anna Tingley If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, Variety may receive an affiliate commission.No one knows how to cater towards a classic rock fan quite like Slowtide, whose most recent capsule collections pull inspiration from Grateful Dead, Pink Floyd and The Beatles. And now, dozens of their most stylish selections are 30% off.Their “Music Lovers” sale lasts through March 12, and includes the brand’s  most popular towels, changing ponchos and fleece blankets.

K.J. Yossman Leading Latin American animation studio PinGuim Content have inked a deal with LA-based sales agent MultiVisionnaire Pictures to represent “Tarsilinha” internationally.“Tarsilinha” is the award-winning animated children’s feature based on the whimsical worlds created by Brazilian artist Tarsila do Amaral.

K.J. Yossman Locksmith Animation’s “Ron’s Gone Wrong” has won the award for best long form at the British Animation Awards 2022.Locksmith, which was founded by by Aardman Animations veterans Sarah Smith and Julie Lockhart alongside Elisabeth Murdoch, picked up the award at a ceremony in London on Thursday evening.The awards took place at London’s BFI Southbank and were presented by comedian Miles Jupp.Other winners on the night included Magic Light Pictures, for their adaptations of Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler’s “Zog and the Flying Doctors” and Scheffler’s “Pip and Posy,” while production co-ordinator Hodan Abdi picked up the Lamb award, which “bridges the gap between current categories which recognise student achievements and general best-in-class awards, and is open to any young professionals working in the animation and VFX industry.” And 86-year-old Menna Trussler beat out Taika Waititi, Ricky Gervais and Ben Wishaw to take home the award for best voice performance, for her portrayal of Beryl in “Affairs of the Art.”“We have been amazed at the quality of the entrants for this year’s British Animation Awards and would like to offer our heartfelt congratulations to all the winners and nominees,” said BAA director Helen Brunsdon and producer Kieran Argo.

It’s over. Shortly after confirming the arrival of baby No. 2, Grimes announced that she and Elon Musk had split once more.

Karen Idelson Look through the list of this year’s Oscar nominees in the animated feature category and you’ll find each hero’s journey hinges on the same thing — family. They’re either struggling to break free, trying to find their place in the world or looking back on a mystery. In every case, it’s messy.Most of the filmmakers leaned into their own experiences with family and mined tidbits for their films.

A Ukrainian art student is desperate to return to her 'second home' in Glasgow after fleeing her war-torn country from Russian invasion.

Wyatte Grantham-Philips editorChloe x Halle are championing emerging filmmakers through Neutrogena Studios’ First Frame Program, which released two short films — “En Avant” and “If My Voice Rang Louder Than My Skin” — on Thursday.Both films, produced in partnership with the nonprofit Ghetto Film School, address the First Frame Program’s mission of spotlighting experiences surrounding skin health and what it means to embrace your skin. Chloe and Halle Bailey, who are also Neutrogena brand ambassadors, helped curate the program and mentored the filmmakers as they developed their shorts.The R&B duo underlined the importance of amplifying work from young, Black creatives — and shared their joys of working with “En Avant” writer/director Sarah Jean Williams and “If My Voice Rang Louder Than My Skin” writer/director Kyra Peters.

Muse have teased more new music with a clip that their fans are speculating also provides a first glimpse of the band’s new album artwork.The Teignmouth trio returned in January with the track ‘Won’t Stand Down’, which was the first preview of the band’s as-yet-untitled ninth studio LP.Muse have shared a new 35-second video teaser this afternoon (March 9), which fans of the band believe concludes with a first look at the band’s next album artwork.In the cinematic clip, a crowd of hooded figures wearing shiny masks pull down giant busts of the three Muse members – Matt Bellamy, Chris Wolstenholme and Dominic Howard – on the outskirts of a windswept desert city.After the busts are toppled by the crowd, the three heads are then seen lying on the ground – before the camera angle is then adjusted to fit the typical dimensions of an album cover, suggesting that this will likely be the image that will serve as Muse’s next album artwork.The video teaser is also soundtracked by what appears to be a snippet of Muse’s next single, with the lyrics “the will of the people” being chanted repeatedly as the clip builds to a climax.

Ukraine, people around the world have been in awe of the work ordinary Ukrainian citizens have done to protect their homes.People taking up modern arms to defend their homes is one thing, but it seems there's even a role for older technologies, as the work of one local medieval blacksmith shows.The 'Art of STEEL workshop' in the city of Rivne, which normally uses traditional techniques to produce medieval armour replicas and swords for roleplayers, has now turned its forges towards defending the city.The forge shared photos of the 'caltrops' (or 'hedgehogs') it is making to stop the advance of Russian vehicles. The large, spiked steel constructions are designed to block roads and burst tyres. The forge said: "A little help in improving the defence of our city.

Chelsea up for sale but there are already at least 10 parties who have reportedly declared an interest in taking over.One such would-be owner is Nick Candy, a British property tycoon who's been a Blues fan all his life.It's understood that Candy is working on a £2.5billion bid for the London club and is in talks with a number of potential investors to form a consortium.The 49-year-old's bid is still short of the £3billion asking price Abramovich has set, but his prior allegiance to Chelsea could end up swaying the Russian, who wants to sell the club to someone he knows will look after it, rather than to the highest bidder."We are looking at what the art of possible is," Candy told The Telegraph on Wednesday, while a spokesperson for the tycoon insisted that delivering Chelsea's new stadium would be one of his top priorities, especially given his background in real estate.Candy, together with his brother Christian, began renovating small London flats in the 1990s before gradually working his way up the property ladder.By the turn of the millennium, he was selling luxury apartments for nine-figure sums and was soon listing the world's most expensive flat - which sold for £140million in 2014.CHELSEA FANS! Would you prefer it if a fellow Blues supporters, like Candy, bought the club, even if he isn't as wealthy as other prospective buyers? Let us know in the comments section...Want to be on the ball with all of the latest football news?Well then sign up for the brilliant Daily Star football email newsletter!From the latest transfer news to the agenda-setting stories, get it all in your email inbox - don't miss a thing.It only takes a matter of seconds.Simply type your email address into the box at the top of this article and

Coronation Street bosses have announced plans for a brand new set expansion, that will introduce countless possibilities for new storylines.The build is set to take just six months, and will bring viewers the Weatherfield Precinct, which has been mentioned on the ITV soap before.The two-storey build will include maisonettes, a staircase and balcony which leads up to the properties.There will also be a piazza and a number of accessible local shops and business units, which is set to enhance the ITV soap's 7.7 acre site near Manchester.The plans are the vision of production designer Rosie Mullins-Hoyle, and the construction begins this week with it expected to last six months.Then, the soap's cast and crew can begin filming exciting storylines with the extended set.Rosie said: "We are extremely excited to be starting to build Weatherfield Precinct this week after a year of technical drawings, model making, visualising and planning."An incredible amount of research has been carried out focussing on 1960s local architecture and we are striving to create an authentic area of Weatherfield with a grittier vibe to the existing street that we know and love."The build is being led by myself and Construction Manager Keith Eccleston and is a fantastic opportunity to use some of the amazing behind the scene talents we have on the show with bespoke joinery, scenic art work, graphic design and set dressing skills all being involved."Rosie went on: "I cannot wait to meet the characters that may call it home and see the businesses that will be created and the storytelling potential of an old but new part of Weatherfield.”In the past, viewers have seen characters talk about heading off to the shops at the precinct, but the new set will

Naman Ramachandran The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) has named ten emerging talents from across the Indian film, gaming and television industries that will participate in the 2022 edition of its BAFTA Breakthrough India initiative supported by Netflix.The 2022 contingent includes writer-director Ajitpal Singh (“Tabbar,” “Fire in the Mountain”); composer Alokananda Dasgupta (“Sacred Games”), writer-director Arati Kadav (“Cargo”), producer Mathivanan Rajendran (“Nirvana Inn”), writer-director Leena Manimekalai (“Maadathy, an Unfairy Tale”), game director Nakul Verma (“In My Shadow”), writer-director Prateek Vats (“Eeb Allay Ooo!”), cinematographer Saumyananda Sahi (“Eeb Allay Ooo!”), writer Shubham (“Eeb Allay Ooo!”) and performer Sumukhi Suresh (“Pushpavalli”). The talents were selected by a jury consisting of BAFTA-winning composer A.R.

Karen Idelson The five Oscar-nominated animated pics use many styles and storytelling genres to explore deeper issues. Below is a look into each work of art.Affairs of the ArtPet taxidermy. Screw threads.

Art Brut will perform their debut album ‘Bang Bang Rock & Roll’ in full at a special show in London in the autumn.The band are set to play their 2005 record in its entirety at the capital’s Heaven venue on October 27. They’ll also treat fans to live airings of “assorted greatest hits” from across their career so far.“Shouty talky indie music is fashionable again,” frontman Eddie Argos wrote to announce the one-off UK gig.