Recent articles
May 14, 2026
‘Monkey Quest’ and a New Anime Frontier: How Toei Animation Is Rewriting Its Global Playbook
With Japan’s animation industry recording its highest-ever market value — JPY3.8 trillion ($23.7 billion), according to the Assn. of Japanese Animations — Toei Animation is in Cannes this week to m...
variety.com
May 14, 2026
Megumi on ‘Fujiko,’ Japan’s Cannes Moment and Being Actor-Producer
“Fujiko,” the Kimura Taichi drama that Japanese actor-producer Megumi spent four years producing and starring in, departed the 28th Far East Film Festival in Udine with two prizes: the Golden Mulbe...
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May 14, 2026
Sony Pictures’ Sanford Panitch Puts Japan at Center of Theatrical Argument at Cannes Film Market: ‘True Global IP Has Never Been Created by a Streaming Service’
Sanford Panitch came to the Cannes Film Market with a thesis he wanted the Japanese entertainment industry to hear: theatrical is still the only window that creates lasting global IP, anime’s momen...
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May 14, 2026
Nishikawa Miwa’s War Orphan Drama ‘Children Untold’ Boards Intramovies for World Sales (EXCLUSIVE)
Italian sales agent Intramovies has acquired worldwide sales rights to Japanese film “Children Untold” (“Watashi no Shiranai Kodomotachi”), a WWII historical drama written and directed by Nishikawa...
variety.com
May 14, 2026
Michelle Yeoh to EP ‘Nak Muay’ as U.K. Global Screen Fund Backs Disruptive Element Films’ Thailand Slate (EXCLUSIVE)
Disruptive Element Films has secured U.K. Global Screen Fund backing for a four-feature slate to be produced in Thailand, launching with “Nak Muay,” a Muay Thai action drama executive produced by M...
variety.com
May 14, 2026
COL Group Names CMO and Senior International Hires to Drive FlareFlow’s Vertical 2.0 Strategy
COL Group has appointed Timothy Oh as chief marketing officer of FlareFlow, adding to his existing role as general manager for international business, as the Shenzhen-listed digital entertainment c...
variety.com
May 14, 2026
Biopic on Armless Cricketer Amir Hussain Lone Unveiled at Cannes (EXCLUSIVE)
A feature film on the life of Amir Hussain Lone, the armless cricketer who captains the Jammu and Kashmir para cricket team, was unveiled on the sidelines of the Cannes Film Festival. The film will...
variety.com
May 14, 2026
‘The Conjuring’ Writers Join Night Market Studios as Executive Producers on Asian Genre Slate (EXCLUSIVE)
Third Culture Content has unveiled Night Market Studios, a Singapore-anchored genre label, with “The Conjuring” writers Chad Hayes and Carey Hayes joining as executive producers as the company brin...
variety.com
May 14, 2026
Pallavi Sharda Leads French-Indian Co-Production ‘Stay’ From ‘Sir’ Director Rohena Gera (EXCLUSIVE)
Pallavi Sharda is starring in “Stay,” a French-Indian independent feature written and directed by Rohena Gera, currently shooting in France after wrapping its India leg. Sharda plays Sailee, the da...
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May 14, 2026
Jackie Chan to Film ‘Armour of God IV: Ultimatum’ in Kazakhstan (EXCLUSIVE)
Jackie Chan will shoot “Armour of God IV: Ultimatum” in Kazakhstan, the star’s first production in the Central Asian region, Variety has confirmed. Directed by Robert Kun and produced by Salem Ente...
variety.com
May 14, 2026
‘Dragon Ball Z’ Rep Yasuo Matsuo, Jun Matsuo and Frankie Seratch Launch IP Bay to Bring Japanese Authors to Western Screens (EXCLUSIVE)
Yasuo Matsuo has launched IP Bay, a new global studio dedicated to adapting Japanese literary properties for Western screens. The company is making its market debut at the Cannes Film Market, where...
variety.com
May 13, 2026
Australia’s Screen Sector Is Booming. Now Comes the Harder Work
The boom is real. The ambition is bigger. When the Robbie Williams biopic “Better Man” needed to recreate Stoke-on-Trent – a gritty English industrial city with little obvious resemblance to the Pa...
variety.com
May 13, 2026
Indonesian Horror Slate Heads to Cannes Film Market as Producer Intan Kieflie Launches ‘Ibu’ (EXCLUSIVE)
Indonesian-Australian producer Intan Kieflie will present a focused genre slate at the Cannes Film Market through her companies Kraken Entertainment and Anak Negeri Films, including the market laun...
variety.com
May 13, 2026
‘Zero Meets Hero’ Leads Mockingbird Pictures’ Cannes Film Market Slate of Vietnamese Commercial Titles (EXCLUSIVE)
Vietnamese sales and distribution company Mockingbird Pictures is bringing a commercial slate to the Cannes Market anchored by “Zero Meets Hero,” a multigenerational comedy-drama from Huỳnh Lập, di...
variety.com
May 13, 2026
Thai-Chinese Thriller ‘Someone Special’ Lands at Fearfolks for Global Sales (EXCLUSIVE)
Bangkok-based sales and distribution outfit Fearfolks has acquired world sales rights to “Someone Special,” a Thai-Chinese thriller co-directed by Petong Sakulchai and Ariel Cheng, and will represe...
variety.com
May 13, 2026
New AI Disclosure Standard for Film Launched at Cannes Film Market (EXCLUSIVE)
London-based The Mise En Scène Company has unveiled Human Provenance in Film, a no-cost AI disclosure standard for the film and TV industry, opening consultation at the Cannes Film Market and invit...
variety.com
May 13, 2026
Dennis To Returns for New ‘Ip Man’ Spinoff ‘Kung Fu Legacy’ (EXCLUSIVE)
Dennis To will reprise his role as the legendary Wing Chun grandmaster in “Ip Man: Kung Fu Legacy,” the next installment of the martial arts franchise. All Rights Entertainment has launched presale...
variety.com
May 13, 2026
Jim Thompson Thriller ‘The Ideal Man,’ About CIA Agent Turned Thai Silk King Who Disappeared, Set at Foreign Concept Entertainment (EXCLUSIVE)
Foreign Concept Entertainment is developing “The Ideal Man,” a thriller centered on Jim Thompson — the former CIA operative who built one of Thailand’s most recognized lifestyle brands before vanis...
variety.com
May 13, 2026
Vietnamese Horror ‘The Scourge,’ Inspired by Hit Video Game, Leads Skyline Media’s Cannes Film Market Slate (EXCLUSIVE)
Skyline Media, a Vietnam-based international sales agent, is heading to the Cannes Film Market with a five-title slate led by “The Scourge,” one of the first feature film adaptations of a Vietnames...
variety.com
May 12, 2026
Indian Horror Film ‘Numinous,’ Based on Real Paranormal Case, Boards Fearfolks for Cannes Sales (EXCLUSIVE)
Bangkok-based distribution and production company Fearfolks has come aboard the Indian, Hindi-language horror film “Numinous,” taking on worldwide sales and pre-sell rights at the upcoming Cannes F...
variety.com
May 12, 2026
John Jarratt Horror ‘Shed’ Leads Black Mandala and Red Owl’s Nine-Title Cannes Film Market Genre Slate (EXCLUSIVE)
John Jarratt, currently in production on “Wolf Creek 3,” heads the cast of “Shed,” the marquee title on genre sales company Black Mandala’s Cannes Film Market slate, which the company will present ...
variety.com
May 12, 2026
Yeon Sang-ho’s ‘Colony’ Sells Wide Ahead of Cannes Midnight Premiere
Showbox has closed deals on “Colony,” Yeon Sang-ho’s virus-outbreak action thriller, across several territories as the film prepares for its Cannes Film Festival debut in the Midnight Screenings se...
variety.com
May 12, 2026
Park Hoon-jung’s ‘Tristes Tropiques’ Lands Five-Territory Pre-Sales for Finecut Ahead of Cannes Film Market (EXCLUSIVE)
Leading Korean sales company Finecut has closed pre-sale deals for Park Hoon-jung’s “Tristes Tropiques” in five territories following a short-footage screening, with the full feature set to world p...
variety.com
May 12, 2026
‘Pluribus’ Breakout Menik Gooneratne, Nikesh Patel, Saagar Shaikh to Lead Australian Rom-Com ‘Written in the Stars’ (EXCLUSIVE)
Menik Gooneratne, Nikesh Patel and Saagar Shaikh will headline “Written in the Stars,” a romantic comedy set within Melbourne’s Sri Lankan community and based on Su Dharmapala’s bestselling novel “...
variety.com
May 12, 2026
Cannes Film Market Draws Record 16,000 Participants as Japan Surges
The Cannes Film Market is heading into its 2026 edition with record registration figures, counting 16,000 market participants from more than 140 countries among the broader Cannes Film Festival gat...
variety.com
May 12, 2026
‘Dope Queens’ Lands at Cannes Film Market With Mise En Scene Aboard as Sales Agent (EXCLUSIVE)
The Mise En Scene Company (MSC) has acquired world sales rights to “Dope Queens,” from writer-director Grafton Doyle, and will introduce the title to buyers at the Cannes Film Market. The film is p...
variety.com
May 12, 2026
Morgan Freeman, Lori McCreary Board C.J. Obasi Project From Flix Oven’s New African-Korean Residency (EXCLUSIVE)
Flix Oven has launched an African-Korean filmmaker residency program, naming “Mami Wata” director C.J. Obasi as its inaugural fellow, the company revealed at the Cannes Film Market. The Seoul-based...
variety.com
May 12, 2026
‘Common Wealth’ Documentary to Open in Australia, New Zealand (EXCLUSIVE)
“Common Wealth,” a documentary filmed across eight countries probing alternatives to prevailing economic and political systems, will open in Australian and New Zealand cinemas on June 23. Madman En...
variety.com
May 12, 2026
Dennis To’s ‘Ip Man: Kung Fu Legend’ Sells Wide Ahead of Cannes Film Market (EXCLUSIVE)
All Rights Entertainment has secured distribution for “Ip Man: Kung Fu Legend” across several territories ahead of the Cannes Film Market, with Well Go USA set to release the martial arts sequel in...
variety.com
May 11, 2026
Vietnamese Folk Horror ‘The 10th House’ Lands Skyline Media for Cannes Film Market Sales (EXCLUSIVE)
Vietnam-based Skyline Media has acquired worldwide sales rights to “The 10th House,” a folk horror feature from ProductionQ, with the title set to be introduced to buyers at the Cannes Film Market....
variety.com