Hollywood
Charlie Chaplin to be paid tribute on 67th Locarno Film Festival
NEW DELHI: Around 274 films from 47 different countries – features, shorts and those of medium-length – are being screened at the ongoing 67th edition of the Festival del film Locarno.
The second under Carlo Chatrian’s stewardship as artistic director was officially inaugurated earlier this month by its President Marco Solari.
The festival paid a tribute to Charlie Chaplin to mark the centenary of his creation, The Tramp, via a screening of Modern Times with live musical accompaniment by the Orchestra della Svizzera italiana conducted by Philippe Béran.
The award of the Pardo alla carriera was given to Jean-Pierre Léaud. The film Lucy introduced by its director Luc Besson was screened at the opening.
The 67th edition’s guests will include, among others, Dario Argento, Olivier Assayas, Juliette Binoche, Garrett Brown, Suzanne Clément, Pedro Costa, Julie Depardieu, Lav Diaz, Víctor Erice, Mia Farrow, Florian David Fitz, Tony Gatlif, Giancarlo Giannini, Hippolyte Girardot, Melanie Griffith, HPG, Guido Lombardo, Fernand Melgar, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Rita Pavone, Alex Ross Perry, Matías Pi?eiro, Roman Polanski, Jonathan Price, Martín Rejtman, Eran Riklis, Jason Schwartzmann, Emmanuelle Seigner, Nansun Shi, Aleksandr Sokurov, Andrea Staka, Agn?s Varda, Paul Vecchiali and Jürgen Vogel.
Among the institutional guests, the Federal Councillor Alain Berset at the opening day and, on Sunday, the Federal Coucillor and president of the Swiss Confederation Didier Burkhalter, as well as Navi Pillay, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
While the three official competitions offer an opportunity to take the pulse of current production all over the world, an important part of the programme is dedicated to film history, and those who have created it, giving viewers an intimate insight into those artists whose work they can discover, or re-discover, also via the numerous ‘in conversation’ events that are open to the public.
The festival will conclude over the weekend with the prize-giving ceremony on 16 August.
Hollywood
Paramount Skydance secures financing for Warner Bros Discovery deal
Debt syndication and new loans push $111 billion merger closer to close
WASHINGTON: Paramount Skydance has taken a major step towards its planned acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery, securing fresh financing and completing the syndication of its bridge loan facility.
In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the company confirmed that the bridge facility has now been distributed among a group of 18 banks, reducing total commitments to $49 billion from an earlier $54 billion. The move spreads risk across lenders and signals growing confidence in one of the year’s largest media deals.
Alongside this, the company has finalised permanent financing arrangements, including $5 billion in senior term loans and a $5 billion revolving credit facility. A previously planned $3.5 billion credit line has been dropped as part of the restructuring.
The loans are secured against key assets, including Paramount Global, Skydance Media and Warner Bros post-merger, underlining the scale and complexity of the transaction.
The financing push follows a competitive bidding process earlier this year, which saw interest from players such as Netflix before Paramount Skydance emerged as the frontrunner. The deal, valued at $111 billion, is expected to close in the third quarter, subject to regulatory approvals.
Adding to the momentum, the company has also secured significant equity backing, including investments from Middle Eastern funds, with support from billionaire Larry Ellison, who has guaranteed the equity portion of the transaction.
Commenting on the development, Paramount Skydance chief strategy officer Andy Gordon said, “Our successful debt syndication and new debt facilities represent another important milestone towards the completion of our acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery.”
Once completed, the combined entity is expected to carry net debt of just under $80 billion, reflecting the sheer scale of the merger.
As Hollywood continues to consolidate in the streaming era, this deal could reshape the competitive landscape, with Paramount Skydance betting big on scale, content and financial muscle to take on global rivals.
