Hollywood
Jason Schwartzman’s ‘Listen Up Philip’ to screen at 67th Locarno Film Festival
MUMBAI: The 67th Festival del film Locarno, which will be held from 6 to 16 August, will see the return of two directors launched at Locarno with their latest work.
The Concorso Internazionale will host the international premi?re of Alex Ross Perry’s Listen Up Philip, an unusual kind of diary of a young writer dealing with a creative crisis and an unsettled love life. In addition to confirming the talent of the filmmaker, who featured in the Concorso Cineasti del presente in 2011 with The Color Wheel, the film is enhanced by an exceptional cast, with a stand-out performances by Jason Schwartzman in the lead role and Jonathan Pryce, who plays a disillusioned elderly writer. Both actors will be attending the festival.
The Concorso Cineasti del Presente, the section dedicated to first and second films, will feature Buzzard, a second feature by Joel Potrykus, who won the Best New Director in 2012 for Ape. The film mines a similar vein to the earlier work, charting the inner torments of a young man working as a temp in a bank, once again played by Joshua Burge.
The Festival’s Artistic Director, Carlo Chatrian, said in a statement: “The films of Alex Ross Perry and Joel Potrykus are among the most interesting of the recent crop of production. Two films that in their own way, create a world in which the auteur’s voice attains a universal resonance. I am sure Potrykus’s surreal comedy and Perry’s maturity of expression will fascinate the Locarno audience, continuing the Festival’s long-standing relationship with the USA.”
The complete line-up for the 67th Festival del film Locarno will be announced on 16 July.
Hollywood
Iger’s final act: Disney boss wraps up epic saga with a new captain at the helm
After 15 turbulent years, two stints in the c-suite, and billions spent on blockbuster acquisitions, Bob Iger is stepping away from the Magic Kingdom.
CALIFORNIA: The 75-year-old chief, hailed as one of the most transformative leaders in modern media, officially hands over to former parks chief Josh D’Amaro on 18 March. And this time, he’s getting the succession right.
Iger’s legacy glitters with big bets and epic wins: the $7.4bn Pixar buy, $4bn Marvel swoop, and the colossal $71bn 21st Century Fox deal. He dragged Disney into the streaming age, fought off activist investor Nelson Peltz, and saw off a political scrap with Florida governor Ron DeSantis.
But it hasn’t all been pixie dust. The forced return of Iger in 2022—after the short, shaky reign of successor Bob Chapek—tarnished an otherwise stellar run.
Now, D’Amaro takes the wheel with a streamlined leadership team and Disney firing on all cylinders. The firm’s streaming business is in the black, theme-park attendance is soaring, and five global films have hit $1billion at the box office in the past two years. Not bad for a firm that was on the ropes just months ago.
D’Amaro’s first move? A slick reorg under new president and chief creative officer Dana Walden, folding film, tv, streaming and gaming into one punchy unit. Sean Shoptaw, heading up the gaming division, now reports directly to Walden—bringing Fortnite and Epic Games collaborations closer to Disney’s creative heart.
Iger isn’t sailing off into the sunset just yet. He’ll keep busy with Angel City FC, the women’s football club he owns with his wife. And as Ann Mooney Murphy of Stevens Institute predicts: “A guy like that never truly retires.”
One era ends. Another begins. And the House of Mouse bets big on a future beyond the king.
