Tag Archives: Marjane Satrapi

Bejo to Star in the Adventure-Fantasy Film “The Extraordinary Journey of the Fakir”

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Berenice Bejo is preparing for an extraordinary journey…

The 40-year-old Argentine actress, an Oscar nominee for her performance in The Artist, will star in The Extraordinary Journey of the Fakir, an adventure-fantasy film directed by Ken Scott.

Berenice Bejo

One of the most ambitious English-language titles on the slate of the recently rebranded TF1 Studios, The Extraordinary Journey of the Fakir will also topline Indian star Dhanush, Erin Moriarty, Barkhad Abdi, Laurent Lafitte and Abel Jafri.

The Extraordinary Journey of the Fakir was initially set to be directed by Persepolis helmer Marjane Satrapi. Scott came on board a few months ago to rework the script and direct the movie, which is scheduled to begin shooting in May in Mumbai, Paris, Brussels, and Rome.

The film is based on Romain Puértolas’ bestselling debut novel, The Extraordinary Journey of the Fakir Who Got Trapped in an Ikea Wardrobe, which was published in 2014 and has been translated into 35 languages.

“The book was a huge success. It was sold in 36 countries. It’s a bestseller. There’s many aspects that interested me, there’s obviously comedy, a lot of comedy, some very poetic moments. It’s the story of this magician/thief who grew up in this small neighborhood in Mumbai, India, he sets sail on this journey of self-discovery throughout Europe,” said Scott.

“What’s great is I get to work with a great actor, Dhanush, who is a huge star in India, he’s a great actor, but also a great dancer, a great singer, he has a very unique way of dancing and moving, he’s just very charming,” added Scott.

Bejo’s film credits include Asghar Farhadi’s The Past, The Search and After Love.

Bovaira Heading the Seven-Person Jury at This Year’s San Sebastian International Film Festival

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Fernando Bovaira is the head of the class at one of Spain’s biggest film festivals…

The Spanish producer will head the seven-person jury that will select the winner of the top prize, the Golden Shell, at this year’s San Sebastian International Film Festival, which runs September 19-27.

Fernando Bovaira

One of Spain’s most international names, Bovaira has produced all of director Alejandro Amenabar’s films including The Others, The Sea Inside and the upcoming Regression — starring Ethan Hawke and Emma Watson — as well as Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu’s Biutiful, Julio Medem’s Sex and Lucia and Javier Fesser’s Mortadelo and Filemon, The Big Adventure.

Bovaira is joined by Venezuelan writer/director/producer Mariana Rondon, who returns to San Sebastian after winning last year’s Golden Shell with her acclaimed film Bad Hair, while Iranian born writer and director Marjane Satrapi will come to the seaside resort town in Spain’s northern Basque region after premiering her latest work, The Voices, starring Ryan Reynolds, at the Toronto Film Festival.

Singaporean director Eric Khoo, who heads Zhao Wei Films/Gorylah Pictures, will also join the panel. He has been credited with putting Singapore on the international film map with films like My Magic and animated Tatsumi.

Berlin-born actress Natassja Kinski, Germany director of photography Reinhold Vorschneider and Romanian character actor Vlad Ivanov, who won the L.A. Critics Award for his portrayal of an illegal abortion doctor in 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days, round out the jury.

In addition to the seven official jurors, named Thursday, jailed Ukraine filmmaker Oleg Sentsov is an honorary jury member. The Federal Security State of the Russian Federation (FSB) arrested Sentsov on May 10 for backing the protests in Kiev and for his opposition to Russia’s annexation of Crimea. The festival said it took the step of officially naming Sentsov to the jury to defend freedom of expression and in response to an request by the European Film Academy.