The modern narration of biblical stories from the Book of Ruth appeared on Netflix on September 26th, with the streamer unveiling its first appearance with the release of the official trailer.
Director Alana Brown’s “Ruth & Boaz” is a story about up-and-coming Atlanta hip-hop artist Ruth Moble, according to Logline.
The film stars Celaya McNeill, Tyler Repley and Phyllisia Rashad. The cast is concluded with Kenneth “Baby Face” Edmonds, Walnett Santiago, Nija Brenair, James Lee Thomas, Jermaine Dupuri, Lecle Moore, Christopher Broughton and Jungjock.
“Ruth & Boaz” marks the first film in a faith-based partnership between Tyler Perry and Devon Franklin. This script is written by Michael Elliott & Cory Tinan.
Check out the trailer for “Ruth & Boaz” below.
Thursday, August 28th
Tribeca announces the lineup of Tribeca Insider Events
Tribeca has announced its latest membership events, insider screenings, premiers and exclusive conversations for the rest of 2025.
Starting August 27th, “Summer Griffin” will be screened at Legal Union Square along with a Q&A with writer and director Nicholas Collia. Mbi’s “The History of Sound” will be holding an advanced screening exclusively for film members on September 10th at Tribeca Film Center. Tribeca will hold an exclusive event in collaboration with Neuehouse, celebrating New York City’s creative community on September 24th.
September closes with intimate conversations with Frances Cascorsese, including screenings of her two short films, Crimson Thai and “Fish from the Water of Fish.”
The world premiere of season 3 of “Elsbeth” will take place on October 8th at AMC Lincoln Square 13, with conversations between cast members Carrie Preston and Wendell Pierce, co-creators and executive producers Robert and Michelle King, executive producers and showrunner Jonathan Tolin. The premiere of “In Our Blood” in New York will be held on October 11th at Look Cinemas starring Brittany O’Grady.
The year will conclude with an exclusive conversation between Lily Lave and Hamish Linklater at Casacypriani on December 9th.
“Dark Crystal” returns to the theater to celebrate Jim Henson Company’s 70th anniversary
Jim Henson Company is now 70 years old and is bringing his beloved film, The Dark Crystal, back to the big screen to celebrate Fattom Entertainment, Universal Pictures and Jim Henson Company.
The fantasy film co-directed by Frank Oz and Henson includes a special introduction from Brian Henson, chairman of the Jim Henson Company and son of Jim Henson.
“The magic of Jim Henson and the Dark Crystals have been a hit with the Fattom Entertainment audience for a long time. I am honored to regain the film’s fantasy masterpiece and honor Jim Henson’s company with this.
The screening will take place between October 12th and 13th. Jim Henson Company will host multiple activations and events throughout 2025 with its production and character creation heritage.
AFI announces winners of the 2025-2026 Canva Fellowship
The American Film Institute has announced the winners of the 2025-2026 Canva Fellowship at the AFI Conservatory in Los Angeles. The scholarship supports one fellow from each of the six programs: cinematography, director, editing, production, production design, scriptwriting, and more.
2025-2026 recipients Canva Fellowship are Maghsoud Eghrari (writer), Brianna Kolybaba (production design), Mahsati Moorhead (film shoot), Zhizong QU (edited), Aemilia Scott (director), and Allisa Tsukimori (production).
Fellows will begin their Fine Arts program at the AFI Conservatory in Los Angeles starting in August. Over the course of the two-year program, six recipients will receive a $40,000 scholarship individually, giving a total of $240,000.
Wednesday, August 27th
Agbo has announced Simu Liu and Letitia Wright as guest judges for “No Sleep ‘Til Til Film Fest.”
To celebrate the fifth edition of Agbo’s film production competition, “No Sleep’ Til Film Fest,” the studio has announced that actor Simu Liu and film director Letitia Wright will become honorary judges along with Agbo co-founders Anthony and Joe Russo. The virtual festival will be held from September 26th to 28th.
“Simu and Letitia are truly stunning artists who create spaces to raise and guide the next generation of storytellers while pushing creative boundaries.” “We are particularly proud that they will be taking part in celebrating the filmmakers participating in this festival, which fully reflects Agbo’s mission to promote innovative filmmaking while bringing together diverse voices and audiences from around the world.”
Alongside Liu, Wright, The Russos and Russo-Otstot, the judges will be led by partner Donald Mustard, Jake Officer Director Marian Koltai-Levine, CEO of Jake Aust, president of Michael Disco and president of television Scott Nemes.
Submissions are scheduled for 5pm PST on September 28th, with winners announced on November 12th.
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science announces winners of the 52nd Annual Student Academy Awards
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science voted for the winner of the 52nd Student Academy Awards. This year, the Student Academy Awards competition received 3,127 entries from 988 universities around the world, selecting 14 students as 2025 recipients.
The ceremony will be held on October 6th, at the New York Film Festival at the Giefeld Ballroom in New York City, and will mark the first partnership with Rolex.
The first-time recipients are students from the University of Copenhagen, Goberin University, Krzysztof Kieślowski Film School, Bratislava’s Academy of Performing Arts, London’s College of Communications, and universities in the West of England.
Additionally, award winners will spend weekends of educational programming, networking and exclusive access to academy members. All Student Academy Award-winning films are eligible to compete for the 98th Oscar in the category of animated, live-action, or documentary short films.
Read the complete list of winners below.
Alternatives/Experiments
Matty Granica, “Flower_gan,” London College of Communications, UK
Xindi Zhang, “The Song of Drifters,” University of Southern California
Vega Moltke-Leth, “No Perfection”, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
animation
Sofiia chuikovska, loïckdu plessis d’argentre & maud le bras, “The Shyness of Trees”, Goberin, France
Tobias Eckerlin, “A Sparrow’s Song,” Film Academy Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Lucas Ansel, “12-inch pianist” Rhode Island Design School
documentary
Rebeka Bizubová, “Confession”, Bratislava’s Academy of Performing Arts in Slovakia
Jane Deng, “I remember,” New York University
Tatiana McCabe, “Tides of Life,” Bristol, Western University of Bristol, UK
story
Meyer Levinson-Blount, “Butcher’s Stain”, Tel Aviv University, Israel
Jan Saczek, “Daddy is not home”, Krzysztof Kieślowski Film School, Poland
Zefan Wang, “Kubrick, I Like You” Columbia University
Monday, August 25th
Guillermo Del Toro will be set as guest artistic director at AFI Fest 2025
The American Film Institute (AFI) has announced that Academy Award-winning filmmaker Guillermo Del Toro will serve as guest artistic director for AFI Fest 2025. This year’s festival will be announced by Canva and will be held at the TCL China theatre from October 22nd to October 26th.
“Guillermo del Toro is one of the great champions of art form. He is a visionary filmmaker, a passionate cinema and tireless advocate for bold, original storytelling,” said Bob Gazare, president and CEO of AFI. “As guest artistic director at AFI Fest, he brings a unique perspective that inspires viewers of all generations.”
Guest artistic directors before the AFI Fest include Pedro Almodovar, Bernardo Bertolucci, Ava du Verver, Gretagerwig, David Lynch and Agnese Varda.
AFI Fest opens this year’s festival with “Springsteen: Delivery Me New My,” starring Jeremy Allen White, written for screens and directed by Scott Cooper. The 39th edition of the festival features a red carpet premiere, special screenings, and a carefully selected selection of world films, documentaries and short films.
