Berlin: Celebs Rumors

Prosecutors in Berlin have dropped an investigation into alleged sexual assaults by Rammstein frontman Till Lindemann, citing a lack of evidence.Responding to the news in a statement, lawyers for Lindemann said: “The rapid termination of investigative proceedings by the Berlin state prosecutor’s office shows that there is insufficient evidence that our client allegedly committed sexual offences”.Allegations against Lindemann began to surface in May when a woman named Shelby Lynn claimed online that she had been drugged after being invited to join pre- and after-show parties at a concert in Vilnius, Lithuania.After she went public, other women came forward with their own allegations. Both Lindemann and the band strongly denied these accusations.

Naman Ramachandran Filmmakers Zoya Akhtar and Reema Kagti (Berlin title “Gully Boy”) are basking in the success of their Prime Video series “Dahaad” and season 2 of “Made in Heaven.” “Made in Heaven” revolves around the lives of two wedding planners in Delhi. Each episode sees traditional and modern values clashing with secrets being exposed. The first season bowed in 2019 and earned an International Emmy best actor nomination for Arjun Mathur for playing out and proud wedding planner Karan Mehra.

Naman Ramachandran Anurag Kashyap, Sunny Leone, Taapsee Pannu, Rahul Bhat, Ranjan Singh, Anup Singh, Don Palathara, and Sami Khan are among the guest list at the 12th edition of BMO International Film Festival of South Asia (IFFSA), Toronto (Oct. 12-22).

Rammstein‘s frontman Till Lindemann following allegations of sexual assault.The investigation was opened back in June after several women came forward, claiming that the singer drugged and recruited them to engage in sexual activity. Lindenmann had previously denied the allegations with his attorneys adding that the claims were “without exception untrue”.As The Washington Post reports, Berlin’s prosecution office shared a statement on Tuesday, August 29 that read: “The evaluation of the available evidence — above all the press reports that refer to anonymous whistleblowers, as well as the additional questioning of witnesses — has not produced any indications that the accused has carried out sexual acts on women against their will, administered disabling substances or exploited a power imbalance towards underage sexual partners in order to persuade them to have sex.”A post shared by Rammstein (@rammsteinofficial)In a statement, Lindemann’s lawyers said that they would “immediately pursue legal action in response to all such accusations”.The allegations against Lindemann first arose in May, when a 24-year-old named Shelby Lynn claimed that a supposed “casting director” invited her to sit in a “row zero” section at the band’s show in Vilnius, Lithuania.Documented on social media, she claimed that someone led her beneath the stage and the singer later made an advance towards her.

Porcupine Tree singer and multi-instrumentalist Steven Wilson has announced his new solo album, ‘The Harmony Codex’. Check out new single ‘Economies Of Scale’ below, along with our interview with the artist.Released on September 29, a deluxe three-disc edition of ‘The Harmony Codex’ will includs remixes of its songs by the likes of Manic Street Preachers, Interpol, Roland Orzabal of Tears For Fears, Opeth’s Mikael Akerfeldt and electronica pioneers Radiophonic Workshop.‘The Harmony Codex’ has been previewed with listening sessions for fans in cities including London, New York, Berlin, LA and Amsterdam.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor “Not a Word,” which is being sold by international sales agency Beta Cinema, will have its world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival in the competitive Platform section. Variety speaks to the film’s writer-director, Hanna Slak, and debuts its trailer. “Not a Word” tells the story of a relationship crisis between a parent and her teenage son.

Supermodel Berite Labelle is on her way to becoming one of the biggest names in Hollywood movies, and she credits her ongoing success to learning from her father.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent New York-based sales company Visit Films has boarded “Achilles,” the Iran-set feature debut of Farhad Delaram, a promising filmmaker whose short “Tattoo” won the Crystal Bear in the Generation 14plus at Berlin in 2019. “Achilles” is set to world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival, followed by a European premiere at San Sebastian. The film follows Farid –nicknamed Achilles– a former filmmaker turned orthotic doctor, who works nights in Iran’s capital.

Anna Marie de la Fuente Sisterly love ruled at Chile’s 19th Santiago International Film Festival (Sanfic), which wrapped on Aug. 27 where female directors and actors clinched the top prizes. Israeli-Ukrainian drama “Valeria is Getting Married” by Michal Vinik and Kattia Zuñiga’s “Sister & Sister” snagged the preeminent Chilean festival’s best film plaudits, adding to their trove of accolades since their respective world premieres.

Jaden Thompson “The Last of Us,” “All Quiet on the Western Front” and “John Wick: Chapter 4” were among the winners at the 10th annual Location Managers Guild International (LGMI) Awards which took place on Aug. 26 at the Eli and Edythe Broad Stage in Santa Monica. The awards honored the accomplishments of location managers and scouts who work to find the perfect settings for film and television.

In what was to be expected, Legendary Entertainment and Warner Bros’ highly anticipated sequel, Dune: Part Two, from Denis Villeneuve is moving off its Nov. 3 theatrical release to March 15, 2024 due to the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike. The sequel based on the Frank Herbert penned novel will also play Imax on its new date. Don’t be surprised if Dune: Part Two fires off either the Berlin Film Festival or SXSW in the late winter/early spring.

Alissa Simon Film Critic After a one-year hiatus, the much-missed El Gouna Film Festival (Oct. 13 – 20) is back and poised to make an increased impact.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Tunisian auteur Mohamed Ben Attia’s new work “Behind the Mountains,” which will soon launch from the Venice Film Festival’s Horizons section, sees the director add a supernatural element to the social dramas for which he is known. Attia’s third feature reunites the director with Majd Mastoura, star of his breakout drama “Hedi” — about a repressed young man ignited by a free-spirited woman — which won best debut and actor honors at the 2016 Berlin Film Festival.

Peter Caranicas Deputy Editor The Camerimage Film Festival, which focuses on the art of cinematography, will honor director Werner Herzog (“Fitzcarraldo”), along with his collaborator, Peter Zeitlinger (“Losses to be Expected”), with its Cinematographer-Director Duo Award. The accolade spotlights collaboration between helmers and their DPs, and both creators will be on hand to receive the trophy at Camerimage, which will celebrate its 31st edition in Torun, Poland, on Nov.

No wonder the writers are on strike. Being forced to try to bring freshness to the same tired ideas over and over to get some studio work must be frustrating. I would be picketing Lionsgate (who is behind this movie) just because it’s really not easy making this kind of thing original. The latest ripoff — and it literally is because it comes from the 2015 Spanish film El Desconocido, which itself has been remade more than once in the past few years — is the Liam Neeson starring Retribution. A better title might be Generic Neeson #9. I even looked up the title on IMDb just to make sure this was a new Neeson movie.

Mitski has released two new songs, ‘Star’ and ‘Heaven’, and announced a run of intimate UK and European shows.The two new tracks are taken from her upcoming album ‘The Land Is Inhospitable And So Are We’, which will come out on September 15 via Dead Oceans. Last month, the artist released the album’s lead single, ‘Bug Like An Angel’.Per a press release, ‘Star’ and ‘Heaven’ were originally conceived years ago, and were repeatedly altered before the release of their final iterations.Check out the lyric videos for the two tracks below:Mitski has also announced that she will be giving the songs from ‘The Land Is Inhospitable And So Are We’ the acoustic treatment at a series of intimate shows across the UK and Europe in October.The pre-sale for the tour begins on September 7 before general sale commences the following day.

Ilker Çatak’s drama The Teachers’ Lounge will represent Germany in the Best International Film Category at the 2024 Oscars.

Owen Gleiberman Chief Film Critic In “Retribution,” which could be the title of almost any Liam Neeson film of the past 15 years, the 71-year-old star is still a lean, looming oak tree of a man, but for maybe the first time he’s up against a force that outpowers his sullen machismo. It’s called trying to be a daddy in the 21st century. Neeson’s Matt Turner is a high-powered banker/financier who lives with his wife and two kids in a palatial modernist glass house in Berlin.

Addie Morfoot Contributor The 19th edition of the Camden Intl. Film Festival, kicking off Sept. 14, will feature a handful of award-contending documentaries fresh off showings at Telluride, Toronto, Sundance, South by Southwest, Berlin and Tribeca film festivals.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Sara Summa’s European road movie “Arthur & Diana,” which will make its world premiere in the Discovery section of Toronto Film Festival, has been picked up for world sales by Vienna-based Square Eyes. The film is debuting its trailer with Variety.

Jared Leto and Thet Thinn have been spotted together again!

Jai Paul has announced a string of extra headline tour dates for 2023 – find all the details below.The British musician will perform two nights at the The Mayan Theater in LA on September 26 and 27, followed by San Francisco’s The Regency Ballroom on September 29 and the city’s Portola Music Festival on September 30.The artist will then head to Paris to perform at the Élysée Montmartre on November 27 and Berlin’s Huxley’s the next day (28). The final extra dates will see Paul perform two dates at Melbourne’s 170 Russell on December 4 and 5.Tickets will be available exclusively via ballot on Paul’s website.

There’s a new trailer for World on Fire, the Masterpiece war drama from The A Word’s Peter Bowker that bows Sunday, October 15, on PBS.

After a rapturously-received performance at Coachella 2023 and a handful of dates in New York City and London, Jai Paul has announced a new run of 2023 tour dates. Beginning this fall, the dates kick off for two shows at Los Angeles's Mayan Theater on September 26, followed by dates at the Regency Ballroom and the Portola Music Festival in San Francisco.

Jazz Tangcay Artisans Editor The second single from Barry Manilow and Bruce Sussman’s upcoming Broadway musical “Harmony” has been released, “Every Single Day” sung by Danny Kornfeld. In a statement to Variety, Manilow and Sussman said,“We are both so thrilled to have a cast album full of new, original songs for our first Broadway show. This is where we always wanted to be.

RBB, a total of 428 samples have been examined since drug checking began about two months ago. Any drugs that are deemed “dangerous” or contain other drugs, also known as “stretched”, are listed on the programme’s website.

(G)I-DLE‘s upcoming first fully English EP ‘HEAT’ has been delayed.Last month, (G)I-DLE revealed that they would be releasing their first fully English EP ‘HEAT’ in September, in partnership with 88rising. It came shortly after a new partnership between their label CUBE Entertainment and Asian-focused music company 88rising.Today (August 18), 88rising announced that it and CUBE Entertainment have decided to delay the release of ‘HEAT’.

Brent Lang Executive Editor Black Bear’s management arm has signed Swedish director Måns Månsson for representation. Månsson most recently directed “Estonia,” an eight-part Scandinavian series about Europe’s deadliest civil maritime disaster, which has been selected to premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival’s TIFF Primetime.

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent Argentina’s Tarea Fina, a producer on Cannes Camera d’Or winner “Las Acacias,” International Oscar entry “The Sleepwalkers” and Ventana Sur hit “Sublime,” has boarded “A Loose End,” the third feature as a director from Uruguay’s Daniel Hendler, a Berlin Silver Bear winner for Best Actor in Daniel Burman’s 2004 international breakout “The Lost Embrace.” Set up at Montevideo’s Cordon Films, founded in 2007 by producer-TV director Micaela Solé and Hendler, “A Loose End” (“Un cabo suelto”) is one of the highest-profile projects announced on Monday by the San Sebastián Festival as part of its Europe-Latin America Co-Production Forum, its industry centerpiece. Written by Hendler, his third directorial outing returns to a central theme in his first two features as a writer-director: Identity.

Naman Ramachandran Signature Entertainment has acquired U.K. and Ireland rights to revenge thriller “Femme.” The film centers on Jules, whose life and career as a drag queen is destroyed by a homophobic attack. But when he re-encounters his attacker, the deeply-closeted Preston, in a gay sauna, he is presented with a chance to exact revenge.

Thirty Seconds To Mars have shared their new single ‘Seasons’ – you can listen to it below.The song is the fourth to be lifted from their forthcoming sixth studio album ‘It’s The End Of The World But It’s A Beautiful Day’.It follows on from previous singles ‘Get Up Kid’, ‘Stuck’ and ‘Life Is Beautiful’.The forthcoming LP, which is out on September 15, will be the band’s first new music in five years, and the follow-up to their 2018 album ‘AMERICA’. Visit here to pre-order the album.Speaking to NME in 2021, frontman Jared Leto confirmed that the band had penned around 200 tracks for their upcoming sixth studio album.

Ellise Shafer Sovereign has acquired the U.K. and Ireland rights to Radu Jude’s latest feature, “Do Not Expect Too Much From the End of the World,” which won the special jury prize at Locarno Film Festival.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor The European Film Academy has fired the starting gun in the race for the European Film Awards. It has recommended 19 films to its members who will then select the nominees from this list.

Cannes Competition titles Anatomy Of A Fall, The Old Oak, and La Chimera are among the first set of titles recommended for nominations at this year’s European Film Awards.

EXCLUSIVE: Big World Pictures has acquired U.S. and Canadian rights from Paris-based sales firm Charades to Giacomo Abbruzzese’s debut feature, Disco Boy.

Jake Shears and Self Esteem have joined the cast of the West End production of Cabaret – watch the official preview video below.Soloist and Scissor Sisters vocalist Shears will join the ‘Prioritise Pleasure’ singer-songwriter (real name Rebecca Lucy Taylor) onstage at the Playhouse Theatre’s Kit Kat Club from September 25 to January 20.The pair are stepping into the lead roles of Emcee and Sally Bowles, respectively. They’ll take over from current cast members Maude Apatow (Euphoria) and Mason Alexander Park (Quantum Leap).In a statement, Taylor said: “I’ve never made a secret of my love of theatre and I couldn’t be more excited about getting to make my stage debut as one of the greatest leads of all time.“I’ve joked for years that there is no need for a Self Esteem musical because Sally’s story covers most of the points.