Film News Roundup: Dakota and Elle Fanning’s ‘Nightingale’ Gets Delayed One Year
By Dave McNary
LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – In today’s film news roundup, the Dakota and Elle Fanning’s World War II drama “The Nightingale” gets a 2021 release, the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival selects its closing film, the Palm Springs Short Festival cancels in-person events and college comedy “CRSHD” finds a home.
RELEASE DATE
Sony Pictures has set Dec. 22, 2021, as the release date for the World War II drama “The Nightingale” starring sisters Dakota Fanning and Elle Fanning.
Melanie Laurent directed the adaptation of Kristin Hannah’s bestseller, which centers on two sisters struggling to survive in the French resistance during the Nazi occupation of France. Dana Stevens wrote the screenplay adaptation, and Elizabeth Cantillon produced through The Cantillon Company.
The sisters are set to appear together on screen for the very first time in the project, but the film has not yet been shot. Prior to the coronavirus pandemic, Sony had planned to release “The Nightingale” on Dec. 25, 2020.
FILM FESTIVALS
The Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival has selected the POV mini-series “And She Could Be Next” as the closing night film of its virtual showcase, which will run from May 1-29 as part of Asian Pacific Heritage Month.
The mini-series, directed by Grace Lee and Marjan Safinia, and executive produced by Ava DuVernay, highlights the stories of women of color who are transforming American politics. It will air this summer.
The LAAPFF was slated to launch its 36th edition on Thursday in theaters in Los Angeles. However, when local and state health authorities advised on minimizing the number of social gatherings due to COVID-19, the organizers decided to postpone the physical, in-theater screening events and focus on developing an online virtual experience.
The festival will screen one film program per day starting at 8 am through 8 p.m. Each day, a filmmaker discussion will take place at 5 p.m.
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Organizers of the Palm Springs Short Film Festival, one of the largest festivals of its type, have called off the in-person event, which was set for June 16-22, due to the global COVID-19 pandemic.
In early June, the festival will announce its lineup, curated from the more than 6,000 submissions received this season. A selection of these films will be available for screening on the festival website for free during June 16-22. Virtual classes and panels with industry guests will be available during that time as part of the ShortFest Forum.
In late June, the festival will announce the winners from the curated lineup and present them with cash prizes, worth $25,000, and awards, including five Academy Award qualifying honors.
“We will be returning all submission fees to FilmFreeway, who will issue full refunds or credit to filmmakers,” the festival announced.
ACQUISITION
Lightyear Entertainment has acquired all U.S. rights to the college comedy “CRSHD,” which debuted at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2019, from Visit Films.
The film was written, directed and produced by Emily Cohn and stars Isabelle Barbier, Deeksha Ketkar, Sadie Scott, Will Janowitz, L.H. Gonzalez, Abdul Seidu, Dylan Rogers, Ralph Fineberg and L.H. Gonzalez. Producers are Jennifer George, Abby Pucker, Barrett Rouen, along with Cohn. It’s executive produced by Judy McGrath, former CEO of MTV Networks.
Lightyear will release “CRSHD” on May 8, exclusively through its Virtual Cinema Initiative and in partnership with theaters through an arrangement with Eventive and Cinesend. This will be followed by an Aug. 4 release on VOD through 1091 and a DVD release through MVD on Aug. 11.
