U.K. Government Unveils Ambitious Plan to Grow Creative Industries to $63 Billion, Create One Million Jobs by 2030

Conecta Fiction & Entertainment caught the mood of a larger international market with panelists in its conference strand focusing often on market challenges, when a feeding fever for premium content dominated conversations in recent editions. That said, running June 26-29 in Toledo, in market attendance and insight and shows brought to market, CF&E fairly rocked.  10 takeaways from this year’s edition:    Despite Toledo’s sweltering in a hot snap, even by Spanish standards, Conecta Fiction’s attendance sky-rocketed to 1,031 accredited professionals, an all-time record and 42% up on figures announced at the end of 2022’s edition. Reasons abound. “It’s a wonderful opportunity to exchange ideas, to touch base with production partners, new ideas. It’s really interesting to see what’s happening here on Prime Video, Netflix or Disney+, what’s really working in Spain or Italy, and what lessons I can take back to my territory,” says Marie Leguizamo, MD Banijay Mexico & U.S. Hispanic. 

Kim Kardashian recently opened up about her journey of overcoming challenges, including multiple times failing the “baby bar” exam. In a candid interview with Vogue Italia, the SKIMS founder shared how her eldest daughter, North West, was able to relate to her on a whole new level through those experiences.Reflecting on the moment she finally passed the California law exam, Kardashian expressed her joy at having North by her side during that pivotal time.

Tom Brady is still determined to maintain his legendary physique. The 45-year-old football icon may have officially retired in February, but he’s not letting his diet slip out of the end zone.In a recent interview with People, Brady shared the secrets behind his diet, which has kept him in peak condition for decades. “I don’t think it’s a strict regimen,” he said.

wearing a chic but casual summer outfit in Santa Barbara on Friday, June 30. Her overall look is giving ’90s-mom vibes, but the quiet luxury version.

The family of a missing Scots man of nine days have pleaded for him to "phone home".

The proposed redevelopment of Cumbernauld town centre has reached a crucial milestone with the purchase of a much-maligned building.

Texans fear there is a serial killer on the loose in their state after a fifth body was found at a lake in the space of six months.

Channel 4 presenter Kirstie Allsopp has urged people to be aware of their surroundings after one of her children was robbed when on a night out. The star warned her followers, and shared a thread they should read following her son's traumatic experience, Birmingham Live reports.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have distanced themselves from the rest of the Royal Family over a period of time in recent years - and have slammed the Firm on various occasions.

Three police officers were assaulted after attending the scene of a crash in Oldham on Saturday afternoon (July 1). Emergency services were scrambled to the collision, between two vehicles, on Middleton Road at around 1pm.

Labour has selected its parliamentary candidate for Bolton West and Atherton for the next general election. Phil Brickell, a former NHS worker who is currently a councillor on Manchester City Council, will be hoping to win the seat currently held by Chris Green MP, a Conservative who won in 2015.

A father who strangled his wife and their two young children and then held a knife to his own throat before being Tasered by police has been jailed for life.

Tributes have been paid to former Rochdale AFC defender, Wayne Evans, following his death aged 51. Known as 'Evo' to Dale fans, he played 297 times for the club between 1999 and 2005, scoring three goals.

A woman whose stalker ex-partner leaked intimate photos of her online has welcomed changes to Government legislation, but said: "We still have a long way to go." After a new amendment to the Online Safety Bill, the Ministry of Justice announced last week prosecutors will no longer have to prove intimate and explicit images had been leaked with intent to cause distress.

Enzo Maresca will take lessons from his time under Pep Guardiola but the new Leicester City boss has urged patience in emulating the Manchester City style.

EXCLUSIVE: Christine Vachon offered her outlook on some of the industry’s most pressing issues at a keynote masterclass session this afternoon at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.

Cardi B turned everyone’s heads at Paris Fashion Week today!

Drena De Niro, the daughter of legendary actor Robert De Niro, revealed the tragic passing of her son, Leandro De Niro Rodriguez. As news of this devastating loss spread, Drena, a 51-year-old actress, poured her emotions into a heartfelt post, leaving her followers deeply moved.“My beautiful sweet angel.

Will Tizard Contributor In Robert Hloz’s sci-fi feature debut “Restore Point,” second chances are big business. In the year 2041, anyone who has an unnatural death has the right to be brought back to life, provided they’ve dutifully created a backup of their personality called a “restore point.” Naturally, some object to the notion of artificially extending life ad infinitum, wherein the story begins to get complicated. “I wanted to make a sci-fi film since I was a little kid,” Hloz says, “but I would never guess that it will happen to be my debut. I thought maybe third, fourth film.”

Robert Irwin made things red carpet official with girlfriend Rorie Buckey at the Sydney premiere of on July 3, where the pair made their public debut.The duo was first romantically linked late last year, spotted out on a date in Queensland on Nov. 18, and have kept things to themselves for the most part.

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent TOLEDO, Spain — Carmen Machi (“Piggy,” “30 Coins”), one of the foremost performers of her generation in Spain, is attached to play legendary Barcelona agent Carmen Balcells, prime architect of the Latin American Boom and a key figure in the break out of Gabriel García Márquez and Mario Vargas Llosa to worldwide renown.  Chile’s Invercine, producer of “News of a Kidnapping” which swept April’s Platino Awards, is teaming with Spain’s Abacus, Pausoka and Grupo Lavinia to develop and produce “Boom Agency” (“La Agencia del Boom”) which turns on Balcells extraordinary life, achievement and personality. The deal was confirmed to Variety at Conecta Fiction.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Zack Snyder’s space opera “Rebel Moon” is coming to Netflix at the end of the year, but it would’ve been a “Star Wars” movie had the “Justice League” director’s original plan for the project panned out. The idea for “Rebel Moon” started out as a pitch for a Snyder-directed “Star Wars” movie that Lucasfilm heard after Disney acquired the studio in 2012 for $4.05 billion. Snyder was in post-production on “Man of Steel” when he made his “Star Wars” pitch to Lucasfilm. Snyder said in a new interview with Empire magazine that “a ‘Star Wars’ movie” was “my original concept” for “Rebel Moon,” adding, “It was ‘Seven Samurai’ in space. I knew that the origins for George [Lucas] were a lot of those Kurosawa films.”

K.J. Yossman While this summer’s hotly-anticipated “Barbie” movie has only dropped the vaguest hints about what fans can except, the British Board of Film Classification has offered some more clues after awarding the film a 12A rating on Monday. The org, which is responsible for age rating films in the U.K., cited “bleeped strong language,” “moderate innuendo” and “dangerous behavior,” referring to a scene in which “a child melts a doll’s hair using a lighter” to explain the 12A classification. Among the details that made the BBFC decide the film’s younger audiences would require adult supervision are “comic fight scenes” including “punches, kicks, headbutts and use of improvised weapons” and “occasional verbal references to death and mental health.” According to the organization, fans can also expect to see a car chase.

Sophia Scorziello editor Popular YouTube content creator Grace Helbig announced that she has breast cancer in a video on Monday. In her video, she said she received the cancer diagnosis about a month ago. Helbig said she was diagnosed with triple-positive breast cancer, which she called “super treatable and highly beatable.” She was diagnosed after noticing a small lump on her breast. She said in her video that she was unsure how to bring it up to her doctor because she was afraid of looking uneducated about her own body. But now, she urges everyone to go get checked. “Get those lumps checked,” she said. “And don’t be afraid to ask the doctor what you think might be a stupid question.”

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent Money talks. On Jan.1, Bizkaia, the Basque Country province, introduced new tax breaks with one of – if not the – highest deduction rate in the world: up to 70%. No other rate registered in Olswang-SPI’s Global Incentives Index 2023 reaches such heights. Also on Jan. 1, mainland Spain raised rebate caps on TV dramas to €10 million ($10.9 million) per episode, which climbs to €18 million ($19.6 million) per episode in the Canary Islands. Very few territories in the world can hold a candle to this relief. Introduced in 2015, and raised in 2016 and 2020, Spain’s mainland rates come in at 30% for a first €1 million spend, 25% afterwards. Even so, tax break deductions for film, TV and live entertainment for the whole of Spain rose from €19.5 million ($21.3 million) in 2019 to an estimated €153 million ($166.8 million) for 2022, Natalia Jaquotot Garre, a deputy director general at Spain’s Treasury, said at a Spain AVS Hub panel in March’s Málaga Festival.

Marta Balaga Before Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie,” there was “Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story.” “Mattel did pay a visit to our office,” said acclaimed producer Christine Vachon at Karlovy Vary Film Festival. Back in 1987, she was helping out on the Todd Haynes and Cynthia Schneider-produced movie. The now-banned film, dedicated to Carpenter’s tragic life and her untimely passing, featured dolls instead of actors. “Todd bought all these toys in garage sales. There were Barbies, but also all these Barbie rip-offs, so he was able to prove to Mattel that it was off brand,” Vachon said in conversation with Variety international features editor Leo Barraclough.

After a 21-month run that saw him perform for more than 700,000 fans, the promise of Tom Segura’s “I’m Coming Everywhere” world tour has finally been fulfilled.

Fire sparked by a lightning strike has destroyed an Alabama prop house used in Tim Burton’s 2003 movie Big Fish.

on a Hamptons adventure whiled dressed in reminiscent of Upper East Sider/ frequenter On Sunday, July 2, J.Lo trotted about The Hamptons holding Ben's hand with Ben's kids Violet, 17, and Samuel, 11, walking behind them. wore a floral print sleeveless romper with a shirt-style bodice. The romper's hem falls several inches above the knee, and the shorts flare out a bit to mimic an A-line skirt.

for well over a year now, Barbie herself is finally joining us. Margot Robbie, who plays the Barbie in , is leaning into the role off-screen as well, fully committing to the Barbie look for premieres, , and everywhere in between. No airport pap walk has been spared the wrath of . Along with stylist Andrew Mukamal, Robbie has been putting in the work to make her press tour looks as authentic as possible.

Alcohol will become more expensive from August, as taxes on some booze increase. A new system, which taxes drinks in line with their strength, will also be introduced.

Former TOWIE star Lauren Goodger has marked the first anniversary of her baby's death, opening up about dealing with her grief. The 36-year-old spoke candidly about her hopes for the future, having more children and finding love again.This week marks one year since Lauren lost her daughter Lorena, who died two minutes after being born. In an emotional interview exclusively for OK! VIPs, she tells how she feels ready to move forward, have another child and her desire to work with charities to help others going through baby loss.

A young couple are now facing a 'race against the clock' after losing a baby girl on Mother's Day.

Jackass star Steve-O has discussed his former co-star Bam Margera, saying he “would love to hear something encouraging” on Margera’s health.In 2021 Margera entered a one-year drug and alcohol rehabilitation program. He previously told Steve-O that his descent into alcoholism was in part due to his obsession with HIM frontman Ville Valo.Earlier this year the stunt performer said that he was “basically pronounced dead” after developing seizures and contracting a blood infection, and was arrested for domestic violence in March after a woman claimed that he kicked her.Speaking to NME for a new interview, Steve-O was asked about his co-star and discussed his hopes that Margera can get the help he needs, and his own journey to sobriety.“I would love to hear something encouraging, that he’s decided to stop blaming all of his problems on other people,” he said of Margera, adding: “I owe everything to my sobriety, and I really made an effort to encourage Bam to choose sobriety.“It’s a shame that you can’t make people want to get better.

Parklife festival, has written to Home Secretary Suella Braverman protesting the government’s U-turn on drug testing.Lord has been urging Braverman to allow on-site testing in “pop-up labs” to go ahead claiming that festivals had been doing this for at least 10 years until last month when the government told him a license would be needed for the first time.Drug-checking allows illegal substances to be tested and provide notifications if any are found to be dangerous.Many larger festivals tend to use private companies for their drug checking but smaller and independent festivals usually link up with the charity The Loop, whose volunteers have been able to test at events without a licence due to agreements with local police and councils.The Loop were recently informed that they had to apply for a licence 48 hours before they were set to begin drug testing at Parklife festival. It can take up to 16 weeks to be approved for a licence.Due to this, the charity were not able to provide the service at this years festival making it the first time in 10 years that drug checking was not available.Both Lord and the Night Time Industries Association (NTIA) have instructed their legal teams to request for a judicial review in response to the Home Office’s actions.

Amazon has spent more than £4.2B ($5.4B) on the UK creative industries including TV and film since 2010, the conglomerate has revealed, contributing £4.8B to the UK economy.