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A young Singaporean couple who sell pictures of the wife’s feet online end up with a corpse in their freezer in “Build to Order,” the debut feature from director Huang Junxiang, which is at the Taiwan Creative Content Fest (TCCF) in Taipei this week. Singaporean couple Penny and Allan both work in real estate. They […]
Sue Wang, chair of the Taiwan Creative Content Agency (TAICCA), says Taiwan’s content industry should make IP development and commercialization its top priority. “The challenge is not simply whether we can create good content, but whether companies have the capabilities and business models to turn creative ideas into sustainable revenue, build scalable businesses, and reach […]
An amnesiac sashimi chef learns he was once the star surgeon of an organ-trafficking syndicate in “Hannibal Inside,” a crime thriller series from Studio76 adapted from “The Monster Community,” a novel the producers picked up from Kadokawa Taiwan. The project is at the Taiwan Creative Content Fest (TCCF) in Taipei. Two years after a car […]
A gay influencer in Taiwan who became famous dancing in high heels, and the filmmaker who trained his camera on him for nine years, both stare down middle age in “My Silly Flirty Boys.” The documentary from Taiwan-based Hong Kong filmmaker Frankie Sin is at the Taiwan Creative Content Fest (TCCF) in Taipei. Sin followed […]
Owning the building made this easy. Minor didn’t need anyone’s money to put its wellness brand inside a Marriott-run hotel. Getting an outside owner to pay for one, and agreeing with another brand on who keeps the client, will be harder.
Blockbuster “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” delivered a major boost to Sony’s September quarterly earnings on the top and bottom lines. Sony Pictures Entertainment, for the three months ended Sept. 30, reported sales up 37% to $3.23 billion and operating income of $581 million — a year-over-year increase of 527% and an all-time record for operating […]
Indian superstar Rajinikanth’s “Jailer 2” is headed to Prime Video for a worldwide streaming premiere, following what the streamer called a record-breaking theatrical run in India and overseas. The film has grossed $86 million so far making it the highest grossing Tamil-language film of all time. Nelson Dilipkumar directs the action crime sequel, which Kalanithi […]
As “Ramayana Part 1” opens worldwide on Nov. 5, producer Namit Malhotra says the decision to adapt the Indian epic at this scale came once the talent, experience and filmmaking muscle needed to do the story justice were finally in place. Directed by Nitesh Tiwari (“Dangal,” “Chhichhore”), the first of two films stars Ranbir Kapoor […]
Even for countries where typhoons are a way of life, the last few months have brought unusually wild weather.
Thailand’s $118 billion goal targets spending rather than arrivals, which have stalled at about 33 million. Rising prices will surely lift revenue regardless, but higher rates aren’t the same as higher value, and the plan has no budget yet for the terminals, marinas and guides needed to attract bigger spenders.
Chen Chusheng, the Chinese singer-songwriter who won Hunan TV’s “Singer 2025,” has brought in contemporary artist Li Erpeng to paint 14 original works for the vinyl release of his album “Wasteland of Wonders.” On June 9, the day pre-orders opened, QQ Music awarded the vinyl edition its “Double Diamond” sales certification. “I’ve always felt that […]
Milcho Manchevski’s “Sister Brother Manhole Cover,” a comic allegory about two siblings who strip scrap metal from the streets of Skopje, won the Tokyo Grand Prix at the 39th Tokyo International Film Festival on Wednesday. A steady drizzle failed to dampen the spirits of a full house at Hulic Hall for closing night, a gentler […]
NBCUniversal and India-focused investment firm Hornbill Capital have co-led an $80 million Series C round in EloElo Group, the Bengaluru-based company behind Indian microdrama platform Story TV. MIT Investment Co. joined the round alongside existing backers Play Ventures, Kalaari Capital, Waterbridge Ventures and Griffin Gaming Partners, among others. The raise takes EloElo’s total funding to […]
Known for his long-time collaboration with Romanian auteur Cristian Mungiu, cinematographer Tudor Vladimir Panduru shared his experience making “Graduation,” “R.M.N.,” “Fjord” and Iraqi director Hasan Hadi’s “The President’s Cake” during his masterclass at Jakarta World Cinema. Benh Zeitlin, the Oscar-nominated director of “Beasts of the Southern Wild,” said he was moderating the session because “we […]
“Tristes Tropiques,” the latest genre outing from “New World” and “The Witch” director Park Hoon-jung, has been picked up for North America by Well Go USA as Finecut, which is carrying the film in its AFM line-up, closes a fresh round of deals ahead of the film’s Nov. 25 theatrical release in Korea. Swift Distribution, […]
Lucy Liu and Eloise Singer are preparing to take “The Pirate Queen: No Safe Waters,” their immersive experience about Chinese pirate leader Cheng Shih, on an international tour next year, Singer tells Variety. The pair have also co-written a graphic novel and are developing a new game. The news comes as Singer, the project’s writer […]
Weta FX, the New Zealand visual effects house behind “The Lord of the Rings” and “Avatar,” is teaming with the Taiwan Creative Content Agency (TAICCA) on a plan to turn Taiwan into a center for AI-driven screen production in Asia. The partnership will be formally launched on Nov. 6 at Taiwan Creative Content Fest (TCCF) […]
Co-recipient of the 2026 Kurosawa Akira Award together with Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof, Korean-Japanese director O Mipo was in an understandably upbeat mood when she met with Variety just before the award ceremony on Tuesday at Tokyo’s Imperial Hotel, under the aegis of the 39th Tokyo International Film Festival. The award honors filmmakers of substantial […]
One of Naver Webtoon’s most popular titles, “The Remarried Empress” has drawn nearly 3 billion views in 10 languages since it launched in 2019. As a live-action series on Disney+, and on Hulu in the U.S., it carrys the expectations of a fan base that already knows every character. Originally scheduled to premiere on Nov. […]
When Isomura Hayato was considering a part in “The Moon,” Ishii Yuya’s drama drawn from a real incident at a facility for people with disabilities, the people around him tried to talk him out of it. The events were still fresh, and they worried the role could damage his career. He took it anyway. The […]
