Tag: HollywoodReporter

The Walt Disney Co. is protective of its iconic characters and intellectual property. The National Football League is too. The league wants its teams showcased in the best light, and Disney wants its characters to shine.

On Thursday afternoon, in New York’s Jacob Javits Center, the world of Disney collided with the world of the NFL, all in service of an unusual new consumer product line, one that mixes some of Disney’s characters with all 32 NFL teams.

That’s how Darth Vader, flanked by a pair of Storm Troopers, found himself on stage at Fanatics Fest alongside NFL legend and Las Vegas Raiders owner Tom Brady, Raiders quarterback Fernando Mendoza and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, with Marvel chairman Kevin Feige looking on from the audience.

Vader was the first pick in the “Disney Fan Draft,” held on the floor of the convention, which served as a launchpad for the “Disney | Champion NFL Collection,” which pairs Disney characters with an NFL team.

The apparel line launched at the Fest with eight teams (and characters), with all 32 launching in August.

In addition to Vader and the Raiders, the collection includes the Buffalo Bills and Beast from Beauty and the Beast; the Dallas Cowboys and Toy Story’s Woody; the New England Patriots and Marvel’s Captain America; the New York Giants and Wreck-It Ralph; the New York Jets and Toy Story’s Buzz Lightyear; the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Captain Hook; and the Washington Commanders and Toy Story’s Hamm.

“The Disney | Champion NFL Collection reflects our continued commitment to creating consumer products and experiences that sit at the intersection of culture, fandom, and storytelling,” Paul Gitter, executive VP global brand commercialization for Disney Consumer Products, tells The Hollywood Reporter. “As we build toward ESPN’s ‘Year of the Super Bowl,’ we’re expanding how fans engage with Disney across sports through moments that drive relevance, connection and long-term brand affinity.”

According to Bret Healey, director of graphic design at Disney Consumer Products, the Disney products team really did draft the characters for each team. While what happened on stage at Fanatics Fest was in service of the show, the Disney team put a lot of thought into each pairing.

“We did the draft based on the team first: What’s the team’s personality? What are their colors? What’s their team name? What are their fans like? What’s their city like? What are their ‘like ‘if you know you know’ moments? So I took that all into consideration with my team, and we essentially drafted all 32 of the teams together,” Healey says.

And while many of the characters are Disney “all-stars,” so to speak, he says that they were deliberate in their choices.

“Whichever character worked best for that team, that’s the story we were going to tell, even if they are a tertiary character,” he says.

Consumer products are one of the core parts of Disney’s corporate flywheel. The business generated revenue of $974 million in the company’s latest quarterly report, with operating income of $479 million, enormous margins that reflect Disney’s heavy focus on licensing through partners like Champion.

With its latest effort, the company is banking that it can bring some NFL fans along for the ride too.

After more than 10 years of streaming content to the country, Netflix has kicked off production on its first original series ever commissioned in New Zealand. On Friday, the company unveiled Queenstown, an eight-episode drama set amid the luxury ski scene of the titular South Island resort town.

Unfolding amid the moneyed gloss of the town’s ski-resort elite, the series follows a privileged family and the people who work for them as their lives collide over power, loyalty and desire — or, as Netflix put it, “a wealthy family at war with itself.” Production is underway on location in Queenstown itself.

Queenstown was created and written by Chloe Stearns (Wolf Like Me, The Falling Girls, Evergreen), who executive produces. Glendyn Ivin (The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart, Penguin Bloom) serves as lead director and executive producer, with New Zealand filmmaker Roseanne Liang (Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender) also directing.

Emmy nominee Rufus Sewell (The Diplomat, Scoop, The Father) leads the ensemble alongside Frances O’Connor (Wednesday, The Missing), Australian actress Alycia Debnam-Carey (Apple Cider Vinegar, The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart, Godzilla x Kong: Supernova) and New Zealand actor Te Kohe Tuhaka (Chief of War, The Convert, Kōkā).

“Shooting our first locally-commissioned series here in New Zealand is a huge moment for us,” said Amanda Duthie, Netflix’s content director for Australia and New Zealand. “This is a bold, propulsive story of power, class and family set against the opulent world of a luxury ski town, and we can’t wait for our members to fall in love with this series the way we have.”

Jodi Matterson (The Dry, The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart) — who launched her Silent Firework banner in 2024 after exiting Bruna Papandrea’s Made Up Stories — executive produces alongside Libbie Doherty (Bluey, Crazy Fun Park) of Runaway Unicorn, with Jeremy Platt and Erika North rounding out the exec producer team.

Matterson and Doherty, in a joint statement, hailed Stearns as “an extraordinary new voice” — and predicted the series will become “audiences’ next obsession.”

The commission marks a notable step for Netflix’s originals strategy Down Under, which has so far centered on Australia with hits including Heartbreak High, Boy Swallows Universe and Apple Cider Vinegar. New Zealand, by contrast, has long served the streamer primarily as a spectacular production location — Sweet Tooth and Jane Campion’s Oscar-winning The Power of the Dog both shot there — without ever hosting a homegrown series of its own. The Queenstown production is backed by the New Zealand Film Commission and the country’s Screen Production Rebate. A premiere date has yet to be announced.

Scott Bryce, who received two Daytime Emmy nominations for his turn as Craig Montgomery on the CBS soap opera As the World Turns and portrayed Leslie Bibb’s dad on The WB series Popular, has died. He was 68.

Bryce died Sunday in New Haven, Connecticut, after a battle with esophageal and stomach cancer, his son, Jackson Bryce, told The New York Times. He had been diagnosed with cancer in October 2024 and opened up about his health issues with Alan Locher on an episode of The Locher Room last year.

Bryce also showed up on six episodes from 1990-92 as Will Forrest, the husband of Faith Ford’s Corky Sherwood, on CBS’ Murphy Brown.

The New York native originated the role of the antihero Craig on As the World Turns in January 1982 and stuck around through May 1987 for the first of his five stretches on the show (also 1988-89, 1990, 1993-94 and 2007-08, when he was fired).

“The plots on the show are so much darker than they used to be — dead babies, pornography, methamphetamines — and maybe I didn’t fit into that vision,” he said shortly after he was let go. “It’s not the ATWT I remember from those many years ago.”

Executive producer Chris Goutman “would say to me, ‘This is your character, run with it,’” he added. “But when I did, he never seemed pleased. Craig, as I understood him, has a need for family and love and fulfillment, and at all costs, which is what creates all the mayhem and madness in his life. Yes, he’s a villain, but he doesn’t know that.”

Bryce was initially paired onscreen with Meg Ryan’s Betsy Stewart Craig, and his character often tussled with Lucinda Walsh (Elizabeth Hubbard) in the town of Oakdale. For his efforts, he was nominated for outstanding lead actor in a drama series at the Daytime Emmys in 1986 and ’87.

As Mike McQueen, the hapless father of Bibb’s Brooke McQueen, Bryce appeared on all 43 episodes of Popular, which was created by Ryan Murphy and Gina Matthews and ran for two seasons (1999-2001). Mike hooks up with Lisa Darr’s Jane McPherson, mother of Sam McPherson (Carly Pope), and that sets the show’s storyline in motion.

One of three boys, Scott Macalister Bryce was born in New York on Jan. 6, 1958. His father, Ed Bryce, played Capt. Steve Strong on the 1950s kids TV show Tom Corbett, Space Cadet and, on and off from 1959-83, Bill Bauer on the CBS soap The Guiding Light. His mother, Dorothy Bryce, was a soap actor (The Doctors, Guiding Light) as well.

Bryce attended Staples High School in Westport, Connecticut, and the Juilliard School, and in 1977 he played a Roman solider on Broadway in Caesar & Cleopatra, starring Rex Harrison and Elizabeth Ashley.

In 1988, he recurred on the ninth and final season on NBC’s The Facts of Life as musician Rick Bonner, who marries Nancy McKeon’s Jo Polniaczek. He then played lawyer James Pavlik on L.A Law on four episodes from 1991-93 and Sen. Tom Wesley on six installments of CBS’ Beacon Hill from 2014-20.

His TV résumé also included a stint as Dr. Ed Crosby on ABC’s One Life to Live in 2006 and primetime guest-star turns on The Golden Girls, Who’s the Boss?, Homicide: Life on the Street, Sex and the City, Judging Amy, ER, 30 Rock, Homeland, Chicago P.D., Blue Bloods and Law & Order.

In addition to his son, survivors include his wife, Jodi Stevens, an actress (Broadway’s Jekyll & Hyde) and voice teacher whom he married in 2003; his brothers, David and Phil; and a niece, Heather.

A family of Turks living in Berlin is riven when one younger member’s queer sexuality emerges in drama Hijamat, the earnest but underwhelming latest from Iranian-Turkish writer-director Nader Saeivar, and a competitor for the Crystal Globe at Karlovy Vary this year.

Much is made in the film’s publicity and programming material of the involvement of auteur Jafar Panahi, who serves as the film’s editor and one of its three producers. He had the same credits for Saievar’s 2024 feature The Witness, one of several collaborations between the two. (Saievar co-wrote Panahi’s recent award-winner It Was Just an Accident and also was involved in Panahi’s features 3 Faces and No Bears.) However, this drawn out, sometimes clunky issues-driven drama lacks flow, although it has moments, including an oddly tacked-on but still compelling bit of scenery-chewing from a seldom-seen Nastassja Kinski as a mentally unwell neighbor.

Although, like Panahi, Saeivar has a reputation as something of a dissident within the Iranian film world, where he still teaches in a Tehran university and makes films that are openly critical of the regime, one can only wonder if some kind of self-censorship has muddled the clarity of his storytelling here. That’s an especially tempting conclusion since there are passages that take flight, not least a bravura opening sequence shot as a fluid oner that tracks a little boy arriving at a party as the feted guest of honor.

The occasion is the kid’s circumcision, and as the merriment takes hold (with separate areas for men and women) it all seems very jolly until word arrives that one member of the extended family, Kerem (Jael Cem Ilhan), is getting beaten up. As Kerem’s significantly older brother Murad (Kida Khodr Ramadan) tries to intervene, it emerges that the family is outraged by photographs that have circulated among them showing Kerem being intimate with a German man.

Murad and his Kosovan wife Leyla (Nicolette Krebitz), both of them more open to Western ways than others in the clan, are accepting of Kerem’s homosexuality. But that’s not true of Kerem and Murad’s father Ibrahim (Vedat Erincin), a stern patriarch who controls the family through tradition and money, having done well with restaurants both in Berlin and back home.

In fact, even Kerem himself is too tortured by fear to stand up to the family. He meekly goes along to get along when Ibrahim drags him off to the mosque where Sheikh (Aziz Capkurt), the local cleric, hectors him to confess his shame. But Sheikh’s motivations are not entirely religious. Murad knows that he’s in cahoots with a businessman back home who wants Ibrahim to sell a restaurant, and Sheikh is using his clerical position to leverage the situation.

Just when these various plot strands start to felt together into an overall narrative, Saeivar will weave in a new bundle of plot. Some screen time is given over to the breakdown being experienced by Margot (Kinski), a friend of Murad’s late mother who lives across the street from Ibrahim and is still disturbed by her experience of trying to escape into West Berlin from the east years ago. The subplot serves to remind us of how the city has been a refuge for immigrants of all kinds for years and that the trauma of violent escape echoes across generations, but it’s never worked into the main body of the drama satisfactorily.

Likewise, the late suggestion that Murad himself is tormented by feelings of attraction to men is awkwardly inserted and not especially convincing. But at least this reveal allows for another cameo from a German film star: Moritz Bleibtreu as a New Age healer in a ridiculous wig and headband get-up, who offers to fix Murad with some cupping therapy, also known as hijamat — hence the film title.

A dramedy feature starring Heidi Gardner and William H. Macy is getting ready to make a splash as it adds to its cast.

Lamorne Morris (Spider-Noir, Fargo), Abby Elliott (The Bear, SNL), Michael Strassner (The Baltimorons) and Joey Bicicchi (Rudderless) have joined the cast of The Swimming Lesson, The Hollywood Reporter has learned. THR previously broke the news that Gardner and Macy will star in writer-director Casey Twenter’s indie film that is set to begin production next month in Gardner’s hometown of Kansas City.

The Swimming Lesson centers on Tay (Gardner), a single mother who leaves behind her complicated life in Los Angeles to return to her childhood home. She winds up embroiled in a custody battle over son Albee, an autistic child who is obsessed with the ocean but terrified of swimming. Macy co-stars as Leonard, Tay’s foul-mouthed father whose blunt nature can sometimes disguise the fact that he remains loyal to his daughter and grandson.

Morris will play charming swim instructor Caleb, while Elliott takes on the role of Vickie, the new wife of Tay’s ex. Additionally, Strassner plays Tay’s longtime friend Reiger, and Bicicchi portrays Albee’s newly sober father Steve.

Newcomer Hudson Escudero makes his feature debut as Albee. The production prioritized casting an young autistic performer in the role to embody the character with lived experience.

Twenter marks his solo directorial feature debut with the project that he co-wrote with Jeff Robison. Twenter and Robison previously co-wrote the 2014 drama Rudderless, which was Macy’s directorial debut and landed distribution after premiering at Sundance.

“From top to bottom, this is a murderers’ row of talent,” says Twenter. “This is a deeply personal story, and I’m beyond grateful that these actors have chosen to tell it alongside me. Their excitement for the material has been energizing from the start, and it has only strengthened my own belief in what we’re making.”

The Swimming Lesson’s producers include Dan Koetting for KP’s Remain and Robison for Kindling Productions, along with Jen Greenstreet and Mandi Kearns for Just Like You Films. Mark Williams serves as director of photography, and Mateo Messina is composing the music. Spark Casting’s Stefanie Seifer and Hailey Giles are handling casting.

Morris is represented by CAA, Entertainment 360 and The Lede Company. Elliott is repped by Paradigm Talent Agency and OPE Partners. Strassner is repped by Paradigm Talent Agency and Stride Management. Bicicchi is repped by Luber Roklin Entertainment. Escudero is repped by The Osbrink Agency, Rebel Creative Group and Campbell Agency.

This fall’s edition of LACMA’s Art+Film Gala has a date and a pair of honorees.

The milestone 15th annual fundraiser will take place at the museum on Nov. 7, and will honor Vija Celmins from the art side and Dune visionary Denis Villeneuve for the film set.

“This year, we are honoring two icons of visual creativity,” praised LACMA CEO Michael Govan, who also serves as Wallis Annenberg director. “Whether in painting, drawing, printmaking or other media, Vija Celmin’s exacting renderings of the natural world blend realism and imagination, resulting in sublimely beautiful works. Likewise, Denis Villeneuve’s meticulously crafted worlds give his films an unforgettable visual impact, from contemplative and cerebral stories to global blockbusters. It will be a privilege to honor both of these artists and their extraordinary careers in November.”

Added Chow: “I’m excited to bring together an amazing group of people once again to recognize the incredible work of Vija Celmins and Denis Villeneuve, and to support LACMA’s art and film initiatives. I’m deeply grateful that our longstanding partner Gucci has returned as presenting sponsor. This event would not be possible without their continued generosity to the museum.”

Gucci’s generosity is also on display on the red carpet, as many of the A-list guests who attend the museum are outfitted by the fashion house setting the stage for what is always a stylish night in Los Angeles. Proceeds from Art+Film are funneled to LACMA’s focus to make film central to the museum’s curatorial program while also supporting its broader mission with exhibitions, acquisitions, educational programming and more.

The shine for Villeneuve comes as he’s prepping for the release of the third installment of his blockbuster Dune franchise starring Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Robert Pattinson, Javier Bardem, Rebecca Ferguson, Anya Taylor-Joy, Florence Pugh, Jason Momoa, Josh Brolin and others. It comes out via Warner Bros. Pictures on Dec. 18. His other credits include Blade Runner 2049, Arrival, Sicario, Enemy and Prisoners. He’s set to direct the anticipated next James Bond installment for Amazon MGM Studios.

Celmins is hailed for her work with natural imagery like ocean waves, desert floors and night skies. She paints, sculpts and draws, and has seen her work featured in exhibitions at major institutions like the Institute of Contemporary Art in Philadelphia, San Franscisco Museum of Modern Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Fondation Beyeler in Basel, Centre Pompidou in Paris and Menil Collection in Houston. She received a MacArthur Fellowship in 1997.

Global talent, entertainment, sports, and advisory company UTA has promoted James Wright to co-head of its U.K. music group. Wright will lead the London-based music team alongside long-standing U.K. co-head Neil Warnock, “steering the department’s short and long-term strategies and overall industry positioning.”

Wright joined UTA in 2015 following the company’s acquisition of The Agency Group. Prior to that, he served as an agent at Elastic Artists. Before moving into the live music sector in 2009, Wright was A&R manager for Candid Records, where he signed acts, released records and launched an in-house live booking agency offering contracts to the label’s artists.

“His formidable and eclectic roster spans pop, adult contemporary, jazz, electronic, and hip-hop, and includes artists such as Lizzo, Take That, John Legend, David Byrne, Jacob Collier, Underworld, The Marías, Rita Ora and Jon Batiste,” UTA said.

UTA’s global music co-heads Sam Kirby Yoh and David Zedek said: “UTA’s global music business is built on collaboration across genres, disciplines and territories, and London is a cornerstone of that network. The team there is critical to everything from identifying the next wave of international touring talent to executing complex global runs for established stars. By elevating James, we’re investing further in London as a strategic base for our worldwide touring ambitions and unlocking even more opportunity for our artists.”

Said Wright: “Leading the London music group with Neil at such a pivotal time is incredibly exciting. Our focus is on signing exceptional artists and continuing to build a team culture that is inclusive, collaborative and accountable, where a colleague’s win or an artist’s success genuinely feels like a win for everyone.”

And Warnock added: “It’s been a privilege to watch James grow into not only a first-class agent but a thoughtful, trusted leader. His intelligence, self-deprecating humour and razor‑sharp instincts will be instrumental in shaping the next chapter of UTA’s global music business.”

The notable thing about The Boroughs — other than Netflix’s quick decision to cancel the series — was the composition of its audience.

The show, about a group of retirees stalked by something supernatural in their 55-plus community, drew about 4.05 billion minutes of watch time in the United States in its first four weeks, according to Nielsen’s streaming ratings — with a large portion of that coming from people over the age of 50. In The Boroughs‘ premiere week, people over 50 accounted for 57 percent of the show’s 1.2 billion viewing minutes. The percentage of younger viewers ticked up in subsequent weeks, the greatest concentration of viewers remained in the demographic similar to that of the on-screen characters, played by (among others) Alfred Molina, Geena Davis, Alfre Woodard, Clarke Peters, Bill Pullman and Denis O’Hare.

To be clear, having an older-skewing audience was not the reason The Boroughs was canceled. It was a relatively expensive show, with eight-figure episodic budgets. Matt and Ross Duffer, the Stranger Things creators who executive produced the series, also left Netflix for Paramount earlier this year.

One other thing: Having an audience that skews toward viewers 50 and older is pretty commonplace now. The median streaming viewer is still 15 to 20 years younger than the median network or cable viewer, but the gap has started to narrow some.

In the first quarter of 2026, Paramount+’s Landman and Netflix’s The Night Agent, The Lincoln Lawyer and Virgin River all got 60 percent or more of their watch time from viewers 50 or older. That demographic also accounted for almost half of viewing time for HBO Max’s The Pitt and Netflix’s miniseries His & Hers.

“It used to be unusual because older viewers made up a smaller percentage of the streaming population,” Brian Fuhrer, senior vp product strategy at Nielsen, told The Hollywood Reporter.

Now? Not so much. “In 2008, 18- to 24-year-olds were going away to college, and between Netflix and other services, they were really streaming first,” said Fuhrer. “Now those 18- to 24-year-olds, they’re over 40 [or almost there]. It’s just the demography of an aging population.”

Here are the the top 10 original series with the most watch time from viewers 50 and older in the first quarter of this year.

The outlier on that list is Stranger Things, which had such a massive audience across all age groups that it ranks highly among older viewers as well. Notably, though, the percentage of viewing from people 50 and older is lower than any other show in the top 10. The Traitors and Fallout are in a similar situation, where large total audiences mean a sizable amount of viewing but relatively low percentages among the 50-plus demo.

Looking at all titles (including library series and movies) brings in a few long-running network and cable shows — including Gunsmoke, the oldest series ever to make Nielsen’s weekly top 10 streaming rankings.

In addition to early adopters getting older, streaming has also, obviously, become much more widely adopted among all age groups in the the past decade-plus. It now accounts for almost half of all TV use, per Nielsen, and that doesn’t happen just with younger viewers. Furher also noted that Disney, NBCUniversal and Paramount have all seen the percentage of their streaming users over 65 grow in the past three years; those viewers make up at least 10 percent of streaming viewing on the companies’ respective platforms. At Fox, thanks largely to free streamer Tubi, viewers 65 and older account for 20 percent of streaming viewing.

More recently, Dutton Ranch, Paramount+’s latest Yellowstone spinoff, has also attracted a large set of 50-plus viewers. Over its first five weeks, the series drew 3.83 billion minutes of viewing, with about 2.4 billion of those minutes — 63 percent — coming from people 50 and older.

“That’s by no means anything to be ashamed of,” said Fuhrer. “It’s commanding huge audiences, and it’s bringing a lot more people over.”

One of the initial lures of streaming for writers and creators was that in an ad-free business, they wouldn’t have to worry about living and dying by weekly ratings or whether enough people in a certain age group were watching their show. Now that most streamers offer ad-supported versions of their product, there’s a non-zero chance that those platforms might start scrutinizing demographic data more closely. (And, while correlation is not causation, it’s hard not to notice that The Night Agent and The Lincoln Lawyer, two of the shows with the highest amount and percentage of 50-plus viewing last quarter, will be ending with their next seasons.)

Furher, however, takes a more optimistic view: “I think it’s less ad sales driving cancellations than it is using the normal ways of analyzing programs [via demographics] helps these platforms make sure they’ve got content that’s engaging the broadest potential groups of of subscribers.”

SkyShowtime, the European streaming joint venture of Paramount and Comcast that is available in more than 20 markets, has unveiled a new Spanish original: Death in Llanes (Muerte en Llanes).

Starring two-time Goya Award winner Javier Gutiérrez (Rondallas), María Vázquez (Matria) and Isak Férriz (City of Shadows), the six-episode limited drama series follows the murder investigation following the death of a politician in Llanes, west of Bilbao. Produced by K 2000 in collaboration with 100 Balas for SkyShowtime, the six-part drama is currently in production. 

In August 2018, Javier Ardines was found dead 100 meters from his home. The case quickly made headlines. The show shows the Guardia Civil launching an investigation “marked by political rivalries, rigged examinations and personal conflicts,” according to a SkyShowtime synopsis. “The case takes a significant turn when new evidence reveals an unexpected love triangle.”
 
Adapted from the podcast The Two Deaths of Javier Ardines, the series was created and written by Jesús Mesas Silva and is directed by Gerardo Olivares (4 Latas). Alejandro Flórez and Manu Sánchez serve as executive producers for 100 Balas. 
 
Also part of the cast are Urko Olazábal (Soy Nevenka), Ana Wagener (The Last Night at Tremor Beach), Natalia Verbeke (Todos mienten), Jorge Bosch (La abogadas), Irene Anula (Raising Voices) and Miren Gaztañaga (Maspalomas). 

“Death in Llanes (Muerte en Llanes) is a gripping, atmospheric thriller inspired by a truly shocking case,” said SkyShowtime chief content officer Kai Finke. “What makes this project so impressive is how the creative team is transforming a very complex investigation into a premium drama that is both emotionally engaging and crafted with genuine care. It’s exactly the kind of distinctive and authentic local storytelling we’re committed to bringing to audiences in Spain and beyond.”
 
Added Alejandro Flórez, executive producer and CEO of 100 Balas: “This project started with the podcast The Two Deaths of Javier Ardines, which perfectly captured the meticulous investigation that had the entire country on edge. With the support and collaboration of the Guardia Civil, a unique creative and technical team, and SkyShowtime, we are excited to bring this ambitious drama to life.”
 
And director Olivares said: “It is a great responsibility to direct this story, based on the investigation carried out by the UCO (Unidad Central Operativa). Our aim is for the project to reflect the authenticity of the police process, creating a series that feels intimate, restrained and honest, allowing audiences to immerse themselves in a complex and nuanced investigation.”
 
Death in Llanes (Muerte en Llanes) is the latest addition to SkyShowtime’s Spanish original slate, which also includes Shades (Matices), Nails, Road to Arcadia (Camino a Arcadia) and The Tribute (El Homenaje), which featured a Chris Hemsworth cameo.

The 79^th edition of the Locarno Film Festival is coming up fast, and organizers have now unveiled the full lineup of this year’s juries that decide the winners of the Pardo d’Oro, or Golden Leopard, and the Swiss festival’s other awards. 
 
Presiding over the jury of the international competition, the Concorso Internazionale, will be Belgian filmmaker Fabrice Du Welz (Adoration, The Passion According to Béatrice. He is joined by Italian producer Marco Alessi, founder of Rome-based Dugong Films and one of the producers of Bertrand Mandico’s Roma Elastica, which is part of this year’s out-of-competition lineup, French actress Lolita Chammah (Copacabana, Barrage), the daughter of Isabelle Huppert, Chilean actress Paulina García (Gloria) and Olivier Père, the former artistic director of the Locarno Film Festival and now executive director of ARTE France Cinéma and head of its cinema unit since 2012. 
 
The films in the Concorso Cineasti del Presente, or Filmmakers of the Present, program dedicated to emerging directors, will be judged by Tunisian actress, director, producer and director of the Gabès Cinéma Fen festival Afef Ben Mahmoud, Czech producer and director Radovan Síbrt, responsible for shepherding such international productions as the Oscar-winning Mr. Nobody Against Putin and Italian filmmaker Margherita Spampinato (Sweetheart). 
 
Meanwhile, the Pardi di Domani section, focused on the filmmakers of the future, will be evaluated by a jury made up of Lebanese director, writer and actress Mounia Akl (Costa Brava, Lebanon; House of Guinness), South African producer Steven Markovitz (Rafiki, Omen) and Italian director Antonio Piazza (Sicilian Letters).

The First Feature jury, honoring the best debut in the festival’s lineup with the Swatch First Feature Award, is comprised of Matthieu Darras, director of Tatino, who has programmed for Cannes, Venice, San Sebastián and TorinoFilmLab; Sung Moon, the Jeonju International Film Festival programmer and former member of the Korean Film Council; and Swiss-Peruvian filmmaker Klaudia Reynicke (Queens). 

The Pardo for Change honor “reflects Locarno’s commitment to cinema that engages with pressing environmental, ethical, social, and cultural questions of broad social relevance.” Its jury includes Gianluca Grossi, a freelance war reporter, writer and theater author; Somali-Austrian filmmaker Mo Harawe (The Village Next to Paradise) and Seta Thakur, head of communications and social innovation at the Wyss Academy for Nature.

Said Giona A. Nazzaro, artistic director at Locarno: “Selecting those whose eyes will be watching the films in the competitive sections is a task that always brings out desires and emotions. The diversity of talent meets the diversity of perspectives. Ultimately, however, what matters most is a willingness to be surprised, to be amazed, and to embrace the unexpected.”

The 79th Locarno Film Festival will take place Aug. 5-15.