Festivals

CinemaCon 2022 wrapped up on Thursday, April 28, with the annual convention’s “Big Screen Achievement Awards,” held at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada. Capping off a jam-packed week in which Hollywood movie studios showcased their upcoming slates to theater owners and exhibition executives from all over the United States and the world, the evening’s celebratory gala further fed a general sense of optimism present all week about the burgeoning return of in-person events, and allowed honorees like Robert De Niro, Zoe Saldaña and Rachel McAdams to recount some of their formative moviegoing experiences.

Tom Cruise, long known for his strong relationship with exhibitors, is still busy shooting the latest installment of his Mission: Impossible franchise. So he wasn’t able to attend CinemaCon 2022 this week in Las Vegas, Nevada, in support of Top Gun: Maverick.

In a little more than a decade, Jason Blum’s Blumhouse Productions, a company specializing in low-budget psychological and supernatural horror films, has put out 30 movies that have grossed roughly $5 billion in the combined worldwide box office — all with a combined production cost of just over $130 million. It’s a jaw-dropping rate of return on investment that would leave even casino owners steaming with jealousy.

The Cannes Film Festival has concluded its Official Selection ahead of next month’s 75th edition. Amongst the movies competing for the Palme d’Or are three Belgian productions: The Eight Mountains / Le Otto Montagne, by Charlotte Vandermeersch and Felix Van Groeningen (Beautiful Boy.

CinemaCon 2022 kicked off its first half of programming in Las Vegas with three studios, Sony, Neon, and Warner Brothers, all reaffirming in their own distinctive yet formidable way to the worldwide delegates of theater owners that movies are back to the big screen. After nearly two years of theatrical shutdown then slowdown and a steady torrent of prominent products streamed day and date, the testimonial that films are meant to be seen in the theatrical experience resonated with the crowd of more than 3,000 envoys.

As one of the first festivals focused on the television industry, PaleyFest has for 39 years been presenting cutting-edge programs and connecting TV fans with the stars of their favorite shows. This year, PaleyFest celebrated NCIS, NCIS: Los Angeles, and newcomer NCIS: Hawai’i with their cast and creatives at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood.

At the Bari International Film Festival (BIFEST) in Bari, Italy, Hill of Vision, directed by Roberto Faenza, was the opening movie at the gala premiere. The story is based on the real-life of Mario Capecchi, a four-year-old abandoned boy who spent his childhood on the streets after his mother got arrested by fascists.

At the Buenos Aires Independent Film Festival (BAFICI), which returns to the cinemas for its 23rd edition which runs from April 19 to May 1, 2022, the HFPA will hold several events that will highlight its contributions to film restoration and cultural exchange. This year, the Festival will devote a section to screening restored Argentine classics such as Mario Soffici's Prisoners of the Land (1939) and Manuel Antin's The Odd Number (1962), as well as international gems like L'avventura (1960) and Il desserto rosso (1964) from Michelangelo Antonioni, among many others.