Jia Zhangke, Claire Denis, and Sam Raimi Announce Upcoming Projects

      Two of international cinema’s most esteemed directors have announced their upcoming films. First, while Jia Zhangke is at Cannes to debut his new 32-minute short, Torino Shadow, he has revealed his next feature film, which follows the recent Caught by the Tides.

      His next project will be Mamma Dunhuang, which is set to begin production this winter, according to Variety. The film "follows a mother who has dedicated most of her life to Dunhuang, a historic city in western China. With the assistance of artificial intelligence, she sets out on a journey from western to eastern China." It’s no surprise that Zhao Tao will star, accompanied by her Ash Is Purest White co-star Liao Fan. Supported by MK2 and Jia’s production company Xstream Pictures, we anticipate a debut at Cannes next year.

      Additionally, it has been confirmed that Claire Denis is moving ahead with her long-anticipated cannibal crime drama The Soap Maker. Variety reports that the English-language film—which Denis is co-writing with Andrew Litvack, with whom she previously collaborated on High Life, Stars at Noon, and last year’s yet-to-be-released The Fence—draws inspiration from the true story of Leonarda Cianciulli, an Italian serial killer in the 1930s and '40s who murdered three women in Correggio and "disposed of their bodies using chemicals—transforming the remains into soaps, candles, cookies, and cakes to share with her community."

      Finally, following the commercial and critical success of Send Help earlier this year, fans won’t have to wait long for Sam Raimi’s return to genre filmmaking. Deadline reports that he will next direct Magic, based on William Goldman’s psychological thriller novel, which was previously adapted in 1978 by Richard Attenborough, featuring Anthony Hopkins. The screenplay is penned by the Send Help duo Mark Swift and Damian Shannon, and the story revolves around a ventriloquist who becomes dominated by his malevolent puppet as a new romance begins.

      As we look forward to more updates on these projects, below is the first glimpse of Jia's new short, commissioned by Turin’s Museo Nazionale del Cinema.