International
Homeland’s Damian Lewis will star alongside Nicole Kidman in ‘Queen Of The Desert’
MUMBAI: Damian Lewis, who has won Golden Globes and Emmys for his work as POW-turned-terrorist Nicolas Brody in Showtime’s Homeland, is near a deal to star opposite Nicole Kidman in director Werner Herzog’s Queen Of The Desert. The UK-born Lewis won’t have to hide his homegrown accent for the feature: He will play Lt. Col. Charles Doughty-Wylie, an unhappily married English war hero who engages in a turbulent affair with Gertrude Bell (Kidman), with whom he exchanged love letters with from 1913-1915 until he was killed in active duty at Gallipoli. Production is scheduled to begin in December.
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Queen Of The Desert refers to Bell, the iconic explorer, writer, archeologist and attaché for the British Empire who is credited with helping to catalyse the formation of the Middle East at the dawn of the 20th century. Nick Raslan is producing through his Palmyra Films banner along with Cassian Elwes and Michael Benaroya. Benaroya Pictures banner is financing the film.
International
Council of Europe to unveil new TV and streaming co-production convention
Series Mania Forum to host landmark signing to boost global TV collaboration
LILLE: The small screen is getting a big policy push. At this year’s Series Mania Forum in Lille, Alain Berset will take centre stage to chair the opening ceremony for a new international convention aimed at reshaping how television and streaming series are co-produced across borders.
Set for March 26 at the Théâtre Marie Curie in Lille Grand Palais, the signing marks the debut of the first legal framework dedicated specifically to the independent co-production of series. In an industry where stories travel faster than ever, the move aims to make collaboration smoother, fairer and more transparent.
Backed by the Council of Europe, the convention is designed to strengthen cultural ties, give independent producers a firmer footing, and bring greater clarity to deals in a rapidly evolving content landscape. With streaming platforms fuelling a surge in global storytelling, the timing feels deliberate.
Council of Europe secretary general Alain Berset, underscored the cultural heft of series today, noting how they carry voices and viewpoints across borders. He called on member states and countries beyond Europe to sign on, framing the initiative as a way to turn culture into a tool for cooperation and democratic exchange.
For Series Mania founder and general director Laurence Herszberg, hosting the signing is both symbolic and strategic. She described the convention as a step that could widen the range of stories reaching audiences, staying true to the forum’s long-standing mission of championing diverse storytelling.
The ceremony will unfold alongside the Lille Dialogues, a high-level summit that gathers policymakers and industry leaders to debate the future of Europe’s audiovisual sector. Berset is also set to deliver the opening address there, adding political weight to a week already rich in creative ambition.
In short, as screens multiply and borders blur, Europe is putting a framework in place to ensure that storytelling keeps pace, collaboratively and coherently.
