Celluloid Junkie

1 month ago | celluloidjunkie.com | James Mottram

Just a short walk from London’s Chancery Lane underground station, a new boutique movie theatre is taking shape. The Nickel Cinema (the Nickel) is the brainchild of Dominic Hicks, a British filmmaker with twenty years’ experience in the industry.

1 month ago | celluloidjunkie.com | J. Sperling Reich

Jafar Panahi collapsed into his seat at the Grand Théâtre Lumière on Saturday evening during the closing ceremony of the 2025 Cannes Film Festival. The Iranian filmmaker had just heard actress Juliette Binoche inform the world that he had won the Palme d’Or, the festival’s top prize, for his eleventh film, “Un Simple Accident” (“It Was Just An Accident”). Panahi only rose to his feet after a lengthy moment in which he seemed to soak up the audience’s applause.

1 month ago | celluloidjunkie.com | J. Sperling Reich

One day before the the 78th Cannes Film Festival commenced on 13 May 2025, its artistic director, Thierry Frémaux, insisted that the event only becomes “political when the artists are political.” Less than 24-hours later his statement was confirmed during an opening ceremony that transcended cinematic celebration, becoming a platform for political expression and artistic solidarity.

1 month ago | celluloidjunkie.com | J. Sperling Reich

Thierry Frémaux never strolls into a room. Rather, the Director of the Cannes Film Festival, seems to bound into the room, usually a packed auditorium at the Palais des Festivals, as if running behind schedule, delayed by whatever previously scheduled rendezvous he has just departed.

1 month ago | celluloidjunkie.com | J. Sperling Reich

As a motion picture trade publication, most of the stories published by Celluloid Junkie that delve into politics focus on programs to assist the industry at large. We have, for the most part, been able to avoid covering any kind of politically polarizing subjects. However, there are times when wading into a minefield of political pitfalls becomes a necessity. Usually, however, those moments don’t come on a Sunday evening.