Valverde to Star in the Epic Love Story “Ali & Nino”

Maria Valverde is ready for a high profile Romeo & Juliet-esque project…

The 27-year-old Spanish actress, who recently starred in Exodus: Gods And Kings, has signed on to star in the coveted role of Nino in epic love story Ali & Nino.

Maria Valverde

She’ll join the previously announced Adam Bakri (Omar) in director Asif Kapadia’s (Senna) big-screen adaptation of Kurban Said’s best-selling Azerbaijan-set novel about two star-crossed lovers.

The story begins in the melting pot of Baku at the turn of the 20th century. Ali is a Muslim, with his warrior ancestors’ passion for the desert; and Nino is a Christian Georgian girl with sophisticated European ways. The childhood sweethearts find their lives interrupted when WW1 breaks out and Baku’s oil becomes the focus of Russia’s vie for power. As the war plays out and control of the Caucuses changes hands, Ali and Nino find themselves swept up in Azerbaijan’s fight for independence.

Christopher Hampton (Dangerous Liaisons) wrote the script.

Principal photography will commence in Azerbaijan and Turkey next month.

Valverde won a Goya Award for her film debut, La Flaqueza del Bolchevique.

 

Freixenet Releases New Ad Featuring Bisbal’s New English Song “Closer Tonight”

David Bisbal is coming out swinging

The 35-year-old Spanish pop star has released his new English-language song “Closer Tonight” in a New Year’s Eve ad for Freixenet. The track with a jazz hot vibe will be included on a gold edition of his album Tu y Yo, which is set for release on December 9.

David Bisbal's Freixenet Ad

In a black tie and with his signature curls slicked down, Bisbal is front and center in the glitzy spot that celebrates the 100th anniversary of sparkling wine leader.

Flappers dressed in gold-fringed mini dresses start a party in a wine cellar that continues through the decades until 2014, when the dancers join Bisbal at an outdoor party wearing sequined leotards with hoodies.

Young Spanish actress Maria Valverde, featured in Ridley Scott’s upcoming Exodus: Gods and Kings, also stars in the ad, which was released on Freixenet’s YouTube channel late Tuesday night (Nov. 25).

The New Year’s cava commercial was directed by Goya Award winner Kike Maíllo, who also directed a fictional film based on Bisbal’s Tu y Yo tour that debuted earlier this year.

The ad was filmed at Freixenet’s headquarters outside of Barcelona. Freixenet Cordon Negro Brut is the world’s best-selling champagne-method sparkling wine, according to the brand.

Bisbal, known for his romantic ballads, has a lot to celebrate this year. Tu y Yo, the artist’s fifth studio album, debuted at No. 1 in Spain and was immediately certified double platinum for shipments of over 80,000 copies.

Bisbal is currently on a Latin American tour that culminates with December 14 concert in Madrid. He’ll take part in Televisa’s Canal de las Estrellas channel’s New Year’s Eve countdown, broadcast on December 31.

Valverde to Star in the Action-Thriller “400 Boys”

Maria Valverde will be participating in the ultimate battle between the young and the old…

The 25-year-old Spanish actress has signed on to star in British writer/director Alastair Paton’s action movie 400 Boys, which is billed as a fast-paced thriller set amid a youth subculture.

Maria Valverde

Paton’s project is described as “a race against time where the old are trapped in worn out bodies and the young fear life more than death and a battle between old and young commences.”

Valverde—who won Spain’s Goya Award for Best Actress as a teenager for her work in La flaqueza del bolchevique—forms part of the eclectic international cast that includes Canadian actress Jodelle Ferland (Twilight Saga:  Eclipse, The Cabin in the Woods, Tideland), Elliot Knight (Sinbad), Charlie Rowe (Neverland), German actress Chiara von Galli and Lucy Boynton (Miss Potter, Sense & Sensibility), as well as former French international World Cup-winning soccer star-turned-actor Frank Lebeouf (Taking Sides), Chinese actress BingBing Li (Resident Evil:  Retribution) and pop sensation Karena NG.

400 Boys scheduled to begin shooting in October. The movie, which is set for an eight-week shoot, will film on location in Hong Kong, Macau and at Guangzhou’s ACE Studios in China.

The title has already secured a 6,500 screen release in China through Pegasus Motion Pictures Distribution and a number of key international territories are sold including Spain, Latin America, France and French-speaking Canada, Australia, Germany, Scandinavia, Benelux and Eastern Europe.

We loved the director’s vision and the material was fresh, pacy and exciting,” said China Hollywood Film & Television Entertainment‘s Ricky Tong. “This movie is for the youth audience worldwide.”

Pegasus Motion Pictures Distribution’s Raymond Wong added: “It’s an original story, a great script, is fast, has a young cast and with a 16-30 target audience, it’s the perfect film for us to release in China.”

Ramirez to Portray El Libertador Simon Bolivar

Édgar Ramírez is preparing to take on another real-life role…

Edgar Ramirez

Following his award-winning performance as Carlos the Jackal in 2010 biopic Carlos, the 35-year-old Venezuelan actor will portray Simón Bolívar in Libertador.

Simon Bolivar

Bolívar was instrumental in Latin America’s struggle for independence from the Spanish Empire. Told from his point of view, the film will trace his expeditions, epic military campaigns and vision to unify South America. The Venezuelan military and political leader is considered one of the most influential politicians in American history.

Ramírez, who most recently starred in Wrath of the Titans, will also serve as an executive producer on the film project.

Along with Ramírez in the title role, the cast includes Danny Huston, María Valverde, Imanol Arias and Billy Elliot’s Gary Lewis.

Venezuelan filmmaker Alberto Arvelo, who directed Ramírez in his last feature, Cyrano Fernandez, is set to helm the project.

Meanwhile, L.A. Philharmonic conductor Gustavo Dudamelwho will be helping kick off the London 2012 Festival with the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra—is scoring the Spanish, French and English-language pic.