European Film Academy Ambassadors

Maria de Medeiros (top); Belén Rueda (middle); Kim Rossi Stuart (bottom)

The European Film Academy (EFA) has enlisted a group of Ambassadors of European Film to cooperate in the promotion of European cinema and the European Film Awards.
From the European Film Academy’s press release, the EFA Ambassadors are:

Moritz Bleibtreu, actor, Germany
One of the best-known German faces in international cinema, Moritz Bleibtreu first shot to international attention as Manni in Tom Tykwer’s RUN LOLA RUN (1998). He was nominated in 2001 for the EFA People’s Choice Award for THE EXPERIMENT by Oliver Hirschbiegel and is now nominated for European Actor for his role as Andreas Baader in THE BAADER MEINHOF COMPLEX by Uli Edel.
Stephen Daldry, director, UK
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Viggo Mortensen, Cristian Mungiu: London ‘09

Viggo Mortensen at the premiere of The Road during the Times BFI 53rd London Film Festival at the Vue West End on October 16.
Photos: Samir Hussein/Getty Images

Director Mia Hansen-Love and actor Louis-Do de Lencquesaing arrive at the premiere of Father of My Children (’Le père de mes enfants’) at the Vue West End on October 17.

Director Cristian Mungiu arrives at the premiere of Tales from the Golden Age at the Vue West End on October 17.

Cannes 2009: Gaspar Noé, Cristian Mungiu, Ciro Guerra

Manohla Dargis on Gaspar Noé’s Enter the Void, in the New York Times:
"Although he remains dedicated to shaking up viewer s, to getting under their skins and into their nervous systems, Mr. Noé [above, top photo] has mellowed. Despite its unpromising title, Enter the Void, his entry at this year’s festival, is an exceptional work, though less because of its story, acting or any of the usual critical markers. What largely distinguishes it, beyond the stunning cinematography, is that this is the work of an artist who’s trying to show us something we haven’t seen before, even while he liberally samples images and ideas from Stanley Kubrick and the entirety of American avant-garde cinema."
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In [...]

Nastri d’Argento 2008

2008 Nastri d’Argento
National Union of Italian Film Journalists’ 2008 Nastri d’Argento (Silver Ribbons) nominations: May 11, 2008
2008 Nastri d’Argento winners: Teatro Antico di Taormina, Sicily, on June 14, 2008
(”*” denotes the winner in each category)
 

Isabella Ragonese plays a college grad who struggles to find work in A Whole Life Ahead
 

Best Director
Antonello GRIMALDI – Caos calmo
Daniele LUCHETTI – Mio fratello è figlio unico
Silvio SOLDINI – Giorni e nuvole
* Paolo VIRZÌ – Tutta la vita davanti / A Whole Life Ahead
Gianni ZANASI – Non pensarci
Best European Film
Across the Universe – Julie Taymor
Elizabeth: The Golden Age – Shekar Kapur
Atonement – Joe Wright
La vie en [...]