Zoe Saldaña will be honoured with the Derek Malcolm Award for Innovation at the 45th London Critics’ Circle Film Awards on Sunday, 2nd February 2025. The Emilia Pérez actress will become the second recipient of the annual award, named in memory of the legendary critic Derek Malcolm, who died at 91 in August 2023. Cinematic trailblazer Actor and filmmaker Colman Domingo was the inaugural recipient earlier this year.

“I’m honoured and thrilled to receive the Derek Malcolm Award for Innovation from the London Film Critics’ Circle, a group I greatly admire and respect,” says Saldaña. “This has been a wonderful year for film with so many striking and indelible roles for women. To have had the opportunity to work in this industry for 25 years has been a privilege and to perform the role of Rita in Emilia Pérez has been the opportunity of a lifetime.”

Saldaña, a prolific and impactful actor and producer, is also nominated for Supporting Actress of the Year for her dynamic work in Jacques Audiard’s musical drama Emilia Pérez. Throughout her broad-ranging career, Saldaña has starred in four of the highest-grossing films of all time, including Avatar and Avengers: Endgame, and has made her mark in numerous sci-fi franchises, from Star Trek to Guardians of the Galaxy. Her work in James Cameron’s Avatar series, performed via motion-capture, has notably embraced ground-breaking technical advances in filmmaking and earned both critical and awards recognition.

The breadth of her talent and work can also be seen from her breakout role in the 2000 film Centre Stage, through to Out of the Furnace, Colombiana and the mini-series Rosemary’s Baby. Saldaña’s efforts as a producer have helped bring diverse narratives and honest portrayals of women in particular to the screen, including her acclaimed TV series Special Ops: Lioness, in which she also stars, and her recent film The Absence of Eden, which shed a light on trafficking across the US-Mexico border. Earlier this year, Saldaña won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress for Emilia Pérez alongside her costars Karla Sofía Gascón, Selena Gomez and Adriana Paz.

“Critics have long been fans of Zoe Saldaña’s ground-breaking work,” says Rich Cline, chair of London Film Critics’ Circle, “from her astonishingly nuanced turns in genre pieces like Avatar and Guardians of the Galaxy to her pioneering role producing complex female narratives. And in Emilia Pérez she wowed us with a beautifully nuanced, full-bodied performance from the heart.”

Malcolm was a long-standing member of the Critics’ Circle and served a term as its president. As chief critic for The Guardian and The Evening Standard, he had a huge impact on the film industry and was widely respected as a champion of world cinema. In addition to hosting The Film Club on the BBC and publishing several books, he was honorary president of Fipresci, a former director of London Film Festival and governor of the British Film Institute.

The nominations for the 45th London Critics’ Circle Film Awards were announced yesterday, with Sean Baker’s Anora and Brady Corbet’s The Brutalist leading with seven nods each. Edward Berger’s Conclave and Coralie Fargeat’s The Substance followed with six nominations each, while Emilia Pérez&n

Third Eye Asian Film Festival opens its eyes for the 21st time on January 10

A regular fixture for Mumbaikars and environs inhabitants, a hallmark of Maharashtra's film culture, the Third Eye Asian Film Festival will be held from January 10th to January 16, 2025, in Mumbai and Thane, at the outskirts of Mumbai city. A curated selection of 61 films will be screened at MovieMax Theatres in Andheri, Sion, and Thane. The festival will open with the Chinese film 'The Black Dog', which won the Best Film award in the ‘Un Certain Regard’ category at the Cannes Film Festival.

While Hollywood and European films have become easily accessible to Indian audiences, Asian films, despite their global acclaim, often remain out of reach. To bridge this gap, the Asian Film Foundation initiated the Third Eye Asian Film Festival, with the first edition opening on August 3, 2002. Over the past two decades, this festival has become a prominent feature of Mumbai's cultural calendar.

In its 21st edition, the festival's Asian Spectrum section will showcase films from countries like China, Bhutan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Kazakhstan, Tunisia, Japan, Iran, South Korea, and Sri Lanka. Additionally, six South Korean films will be featured in the Country Focus segment.

The festival will also highlight Indian cinema, with a dedicated competition section for Marathi films. Eleven films in languages such as Malayalam, Kannada, Telugu, Bengali, and Assamese will be included in the Indian segment. Notable entries include Jhanjhaarpur (directed by Naveen Chandra), Pai Tang (directed by Prabal Khuand), and Juiphool (directed by Jadumoni Dutta).

The Marathi competition section will feature eight films:

Asha (Dir. Deepak Patil)

Cineman (Dir. Umesh Bagade)

Karmayogi Abasaheb (dir. Altaf Shaikh)

Gypsy (Dir. Shashi Khandare)

Bhera (Dir. Shrikant Bhide)

Magic (Dir. Ravi Karmarkar)

Mandal Abhari Aahe (Dir. Vidyasagar Adhyapak)

Chhabila (Dir. Anil Bhalerao)

Renowned lyricist and screenwriter Javed Akhtar will receive the Asian Cinema Culture Award, while journalist Rafique Baghdadi will be honored with the Satyajit Ray Memorial Award. In memory of the late Sudhir Nandgaonkar, a special award for film writing will be presented to film scholar Anil Zankar.

The festival will pay tribute to the late filmmaker Shyam Benegal by screening a selection his films. Additionally, to commemorate Raj Kapoor's birth centenary, his iconic films will also be showcased.

The event will include open forums with jury members, masterclasses with directors and technicians, and film screenings.

Delegate Registration has begun on the official website, www.thirdeyeasianfilmfestival.com. The Registration fee is 1,000 /- and for film Society members & students, the discounted fee is Rs 750/-.

In what was a highly anticipated Cannes competition rematch, Emilia Pérez stole the spotlight from Anora, sweeping four awards including Zoe Saldaña receiving the Best Supporting Actress nod possibly confirming that the four-person Best Actress win back in Cannes was with her as top billing.

Last night, at the Golden Globes, "Conclave," won a Best Writing Award.  Best Actor went to Adrian Brody, and like Adrian, Demi Moore won her first Globe Award ever. She was ready to give up acting when the script for "Substance," came along, and she and the film got some love in Cannes as well. The surprise of the night was the award for Fernanda Torres in, Walter Salles, "I'm Still Here."  A title many of us can relate to.  You can see the film in Palm Springs today at 5pm, and at 1:30 lon Saturday, Jan. 11, at 1:30. The  director Walter Salles will be part of a free panel today at the Annenberg Theatre in Palm Springs.

 Lead programmer David Ansen also highly recommended this film along with  many other documentaries on Liza, Bill Mackie and Billie Preston, to name a few..The festival continues through January 13th.  This is a great opportunity to watch some of the 158 films from around the world on a big screen.

I spoke with David Ansen from the PSIFF and he said "The Brutalist" and Adrian Brody were amazing.  He had just returned from London where he saw three plays, one with John Lithgow, who arrived on the red carpet for the award show gala with Ralph Fiennes, and Isabella Rossellini who lives in Rome.  When asked about all the fine restaurants in Rome, she said Stanley Tucci who was also present for the magnificent film “Conclave,” knew more.  Isabella looked radiant and said that in her role as the nun, she projected a silent power.   Most of the other actresses on the red carpet were kindly signing autographs and taking selfies, as was Timothee Chalamet once out of his limosene, rushing over to the crowd, before rushing into the ballroom. He looked like his character “Bob Dylan,” he has so embodied that role.

Last night, at the Golden Globes, "Conclave," won a Best Writing Award.  Best Actor went to Adrian Brody, and like Adrian, Demi Moore won her first Globe, first Award ever. She was ready to give up acting when the script for "Substance," came along, and she and the film got some love in Cannes as well. The surprise of the night was the award for Fernada Torres in, Walter Salles, "I'm Still Here."  A title many of us can relate to.  You can see the film in Palm Springs today at 5pm, and at 1:30 lon Saturday, Jan. 11, at 1:30. The  director Walter Salles will be part of a free panel today at the Annenberg Theatre in Palm Springs.

 Lead programmer David Ansen also highly recommended this film along with  many other documentaries on Liza, Bill Mackie and Billie Preston, to name a few..The festival continues through January 13th.  This is a great opportunity to watch some of the 158 films from around the world on a big screen.

We well remember the Premiere of the “The Pianist,” in Cannes where the audience applause shook the room during ahhhh standing ovation.  Adrian went on to win the Academy  Award that year at the age of 29.  The youngest to ever achieve that honor.  And now having won many critic awards, will he win tonight at the Golden Globes with its International audience and voting members.

We well remember the Premiere of the “The Pianist,” in Cannes where the audience applause shook the room during ahhhh standing ovation.  Adrian went on to win the Academy  Award that year at the age of 29.  The youngest to ever achieve that honor.  And now having won many critic awards, will he win tonight at the Golden Globes with its International audience and voting members.

Director Sandhya Suri premiered her debut narrative feature, Santosh, at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival. I reviewed it at the Toronto International Film Festival, in September. As I wrote in that review, “The titular lead character [Shahana Goswami, Zwigato] is a woman forced to navigate the patriarchal demands of the workplace after her husband, a […]