This combination photo shows actors Catherine Deneuve (l) and Ethan Hawke who star in Japanese director Hirokazu Kore-eda’s film “The Truth.” The film will open the 76th Venice Film Festival on Aug. 28. (AP Photo)
By Lindsey Bahr, Film Writer
LOS ANGELES (AP) --
The 76th Venice Film Festival is opening with Japanese director Hirokazu Kore-eda's "The Truth."
Festival director Alberto Barbera announced the selection starring Catherine Deneuve, Ethan Hawke and Juliette Binoche in a statement Thursday.
This is the first time in years that Venice has not started with a Hollywood film. Recent openers have included "First Man" and "La La Land."
"The Truth" features Deneuve as a French movie star who reunites with her daughter and son-in-law after publishing her memoirs. The director said the small family story takes place primarily inside a house.
The film will premiere on the Lido in competition on Aug. 28.
"The Truth" is the Palme d'Or-winning director's first film to be made outside of Japan. He directed last year's Oscar-nominated drama "Shoplifters."
This image released by Hallmark Media shows Hunter King, left, and Tyler Hynes in a scene from "Holiday Touchdown: A Chiefs Love Story. (Joshua Haines/Hallmark Media via AP)
Two new Christmas TV movies have a Taylor Swift connection that her fans would have no problem decoding.
"Christmas in the Spotlight" debuts Saturday on Lifetime. It stars Jessica Lord as the world's biggest pop star and Laith Wallschleger as a pro football player, who meet and fall in love — not unlike Swift and her boyfriend, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.
"It's clearly inspired by Taylor and Travis, but I don't know them and I don't know what is going on behind the scenes. I only know what's been put out there," said Eirene Tran Donohue, a longtime, devoted fan who jumped at the opportunity to write a script even loosely based on her favorite musician.
She was inspired by the couple's support of each other's accomplishments, particularly Kelce's ease with dating the star despite the glare of the spotlight, adding, "I love the way that he celebrates her."
Tran Donohue wants fellow Swift fans to know she wrote the script with them in mind.
"There are so many Easter eggs," she said of little details added that a Swift fan would pick up on. "I put in as many as I could."
Then, on Nov. 30, Hallmark will air "Holiday Touchdown: A Chiefs Love Story." Instead of a nod to Swift, it's an ode to family traditions and bonding, like rooting for a sports team. Hallmark's headquarters is also in Kansas City, so it makes sense why the company chose the Chiefs to be highlighted.
In this story, written by Julie Sherman Wolfe, sparks fly when a new employee for the Chiefs organization (Tyler Hynes) meets a woman — played by Hunter King — whose family's dedication to the team goes back generations.
Sherman Wolfe, a San Francisco 49ers fan, said she got the call a week after Super Bowl LVIII, when the Chiefs... Read More
