Yorgos Lanthimos’ The Favourite will have its world premiere at the prestigious Venice Film Festival which will take place at the Venice Lido from August 29th to September 8th, 2018. The news follows the announcement earlier this week that The Favourite will also open the New York Film Festival on September 28th.
The Favourite stars Olivia Colman and Academy Award winners Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone and marks the third collaboration between Element Pictures and visionary director Lanthimos following award-winning films The Lobster and The Killing of a Sacred Deer.
Venice is the ideal world premiere for Yorgos’ bold and audacious foray into period film making. We hope audiences will embrace this unique and entertaining film and we are delighted to be working with Fox Searchlight on its international release.
Ed Guiney – Producer
Early 18th century. England is at war with the French. Nevertheless, duck racing and pineapple eating are thriving. A frail Queen Anne (Olivia Colman) occupies the throne and her close friend Lady Sarah (Rachel Weisz) governs the country in her stead while tending to Anne’s ill health and mercurial temper. When a new servant Abigail (Emma Stone) arrives, her charm endears her to Sarah. Sarah takes Abigail under her wing and Abigail sees a chance at return to her aristocratic roots. As the politics of war become quite time consuming for Sarah, Abigail steps into the breach to fill in as the Queen’s companion. Their burgeoning friendship gives her a chance to fulfil her ambitions and she will not let woman, man, politics or rabbit stand in her way.
The Favourite is written by Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara and is produced by Ed Guiney and executive produced by Andrew Lowe for Element Pictures. Other producers include Ceci Dempsey, Lee Magiday and Yorgos Lanthimos. The film is an Element Pictures/Scarlet Films production for Fox Searchlight, Film4 and Waypoint.
Fox Searchlight are releasing The Favourite worldwide with the US release scheduled for November 23rd. The film will hit Irish cinemas on January 1st. Recent Fox Searchlight releases include last years Oscar winners, The Shape of Water and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.
Other big titles at the festival include Damien Chazelle’s First Man, the world premiere of Bradley Cooper’s directorial debut, A Star Is Born, Alfonso Cuaron’s Roma, Olivier Assayas’ Double Vies (E-Book), Jacques Audiard’s The Sister’s Brothers, Ethan and Joel Coen’s The Ballad Of Buster Scruggs, Paul Greengrass’ 22 July, Luca Guadagnino’s remake of Suspira, Mike Leigh’s Peterloo, Laszlo Nemes’ Sunset, and Jennifer Kent’s The Nightingale. The festival will also see Orson Welles’ The Other Side of the Wind finally see the light of a cinema screen following its completion in association with Netflix. Despite the incredible lineup, there is however an obvious lack of female filmmakers in competition with just Jennifer Kent flanked by 21 male counterparts.
VENEZIA 75 (COMPETITION)
First Man, dir: Damien Chazelle
The Mountain, dir: Rick Alverson
Doubles Vies, dir: Olivier Assayas
The Sisters Brothers, dir: Jacques Audiard
The Ballad Of Buster Scruggs, dirs: Ethan Coen, Joel Coen
Vox Lux, dir: Brady Corbet
22 July, dir: Paul Greengrass
Roma, dir: Alfonso Cuaron
Suspiria, dir: Luca Guadagnino
Werk Ohne Autor, dir: Florian Henckel Von Donnersmarck
The Nightingale, dir: Jennifer Kent
The Favourite, Yorgos Lanthiomos
Peterloo, dir: Mike Leigh
Capri-Revolution, dir: Mario Martone
What You Gonna Do When The World’s On Fire?, dir: Roberto Minervini
Sunset, dir: Laszlo Nemes
Frères Ennemis, dir: David Oelhoffen
Nuestro Tiempo, dir: Carlos Reygadas
At Eternity’s Gate, dir: Julian Schnabel
Acusada, dir: Gonzalo Tobal
Killing, dir: Shinya Tsukamoto
OUT OF COMPETITION
A Star Is Born, dir: Bradley Cooper
Mi Obra Maestra, dir: Gaston Duprat
Un Peuple Et Son Roi, dir: Pierre Schoeller
A Tramway In Jerusalem, dir: Amos Gitai
La Quietud, dir: Pablo Trapero
Shadow, dir: Zhang Yimou
Dragged Across Concrete, dir: S Craig Zahler
OUT OF COMPETITION – SPECIAL EVENT
The Other Side Of The Wind, dir: Orson Welles
They’ll Love Me When I’m Dead, dir: Morgan Neville
OUT OF COMPETITION – SPECIAL SCREENINGS
L’Amica Geniale, dir: Saverio Costanza
Il Diario Di Angela – Noi Due Cineasti, dir: Yervant Gianikian
OUT OF COMPETITION – NON-FICTION
A Letter To A Friend In Gaza, dir: Amos Gitai
Aquarela, dir: Victor Kossakovsky
El Pepe, Una Vida Suprema, dir: Emir Kusturica
Process, dir: Sergei Loznitsa
Carmine Street Guitars, dir: Ron Mann
Isis, Tomorrow. The Lost Souls Of Mosul., dirs: Francesca Mannocchi, Alessio Romenzi
American Dharma, dir: Errol Morris
Introduzione All’Oscuro, dir: Gaston Solnicki
Your Face, dir: Tsai Ming-Liang
1938 Diversi, dir: Giorgi Treves
Monrovia, Indiana, dir: Frederick Wiseman
Una Storia Senza Nome, dir: Roberto Ando
Les Estivants, dir: Valeria Bruni Tedeschi
HORIZONS
Sulla Mia Pelle, dir: Alessio Cremonini (opening film)
Manta Ray, dir: Phuttiphong Aroonpheng
Soni, dir: Ivan Ayr
The River, dir: Emir Baigazin
La Noche De 12 Anos, dir: Alvaro Brechner
Deslembro, dir: Flavia Castro
The Announcement, dir: Mahmut Fazil Coskun
Un Giorno All’Improvviso, dir: Ciro D’Emilio
Charlie Says, dir: Mary Harron
Amanda, dir: Mikhael Hers
The Day I Lost My Shadow, dir: Soudade Kaadan
L’Enkas, dir: Sarah Marx
The Man Who Surprised Everyone, dirs: Natasha Merkulova, Aleksy Chupov
Memories Of My Body, dir: Garin Nugroho
As I Lay Dying, dir: Mostafa Sayyari
La Profezia Dell’Armadillo, dir: Emanuele Scaringi
Tel Aviv On Fire, dir: Sameh Zoabi
Jinpa, dir: Pema Tseden
Stripped, dir: Yaron Shani
SCONFINI (formerly Cinema in the Garden)
The Tree Of Life (Extended Cut), dir: Terrence Malick
Arrivederci Saigon, dir: Wilma Labate
Il Ragazzo Piu Felice Del Mondon, dir: Gipi
Il Banchiere Anarchio, dir: Giulio Base
Blood Kin, dir: Ramin Bahrani
Magic Lantern, dir: Amir Naderi
L’Heure De La Sortie, dir: Sebastien Marnier
Camorra, dir: Francesco Patierno
VENICE CLASSICS
They Live, dir: John Carpenter
The Night Porter, dir: Liliana Cavani
The Naked City, dir: Jules Dassin
Brick And Mirror, dir: Ebrahim Golestan
Street Of Shame, dir: Kenji Mizoguchi
Il Posto, dir: Ermanno Olmi
Last Year At Marienbad, dir: Alain Resnais
The Place Without Limits, dir: Arturo Ripstein
Adieu Philippine, dir: Jacques Rozier
The Ascent, dir: Larisa Shepitko
The Killers, dir: Don Siegel
The Killers, dir: Robert Siodmark
The Night Of The Shooting Stars, dirs: Paolo and Vittorio Taviani
Love, Thy Name Be Sorrow AKA The Mad Fox, dir: Toma Uchida
Death In Venice, dir: Luchino Visconti
The Golem – How He Came Into The World, dir: Paul Wegener
Nothing Sacred, dir: William A Wellman
Some Like It Hot, dir: Billy Wilder
VENICE CLASSICS – DOCUMENTARIES
The Great Buster, dir: Peter Bogdanovich
Women Making Films: A New Road Movie Through Cinema, dir: Mark Cousins
Humberto Mauro, dir: André Di Mauro
Living The Light – Robby Muller, dir: Claire Pijman
24/25 Il Fotogramma In Piu, dirs: Giancarlo Rolandi, Federico Pontiggia
Nice Girls Don’t Stay For Breakfast, dir: Bruce Weber
Friedkin Uncut, dir: Francesco Zippel
VENICE VIRTUAL REALITY
Make Noise, dir: May Abdalla
The Unknown Patient, dir: Michael Beets
Buddy VR, dir: Chuck Chae
Umami, dir: Landia Egal
Eclipse, dir: Astruc Jonathan, Favre Aymeric
The Horrifically Virtual Reality, dir: Marie Jourdren
Spheres: ChorusOof The Cosmos, dir: Eliza McNitt
A Discovery of Witches – Hiding in Plain Sight, dir: Kim-Leigh Pontin
The Roaming, dir: Mathieu Pradat
Kobold, dirs: Max Sacker, Ioulia Isserlis
Awavena, dir: Lynette Wallworth
BIENNALE COLLEGE
Zen Sul Ghiaccio Sottile, dir: Margherita Ferri
Deva, dir: Petra Szöcs
Yuva, dir: Emre Yeksan