Writer, director and actress Toni Kalem (“The Sopranos”) is adapting Lore Segal’s internationally acclaimed 1964 semi-autobiographical novel “Other People’s Houses,” about a Jewish child refugee who finds asylum in Britain via the Kindertransport rescue effort. The story follows a 10-year-old Jewish girl from Vienna who is sent to England as part of the 1938 children’s […]

Nicolas Cage was having fun as his new trippy psychological thriller, “The Surfer,” scored a six-minute standing ovation at a Cannes Film Festival midnight screening on Friday night. Cage appeared to be having a ball, beaming from ear to ear and waving across the room as cheers erupted around the Palais. At one point he […]

Winner of two Palme d’Ors, Francis Ford Coppola‘s makes a huge return to Cannes with a film that will not go unnoticed in Megalopolis.

Paul Schrader shed tears as his new film “Oh, Canada” earned a four-minute standing ovation at Cannes Film Festival on Friday night. Jacob Elordi was notably absent from the premiere, possibly because he is filming Guillermo del Toro’s “Frankenstein,” in which he stars as The Monster. After the ovation finished, Schrader addressed Elordi not being […]

An iconic woman needs an apt setting. So, to mark its 100th anniversary, Columbia Pictures has teamed with the Municipality of Cannes to put the studio’s instantly recognizable Torch Lady and roster of legendary actresses on full display as part of a free photographic exhibit in the historic city’s town square, just off the Croisette […]

Plunge into the depths of Fallen London, the Gothic world of mystery and shadow created by Failbetter Games. We were thrilled to have the indie game developer’s Gothic romance game, The Mask of the Rose, as part of our first-ever Games Lab last year! Do you want to learn more about the studio? Then this is your introduction to Failbetter’s expansive gameography, from where it all began with Fallen London to newer releases like Sunless Skies.

About Failbetter Games

Failbetter are an independent games studio founded by game writer Alexis Kennedy. The London-based company specialises in creating memorable and unique stories. Most of these narratives are are set in the sprawling Fallen London Universe, a subterranean city where truly nothing is as it seems.

Fallen London

Set in an alternate version of Victorian London, this text based RPG takes players on a journal through the darkly delightful depths of Fallen London. Every choice the player makes has an impact on the narrative so you decide what kind of character you are in this strange city of secrets.

Sunless Sea

You play as the captain of a Victorian steamship on a vast underground sea. Carve a life for yourself in a deep and compelling world packed with stories and secrets in this gripping survival game. Find your father’s bones. Determine London’s destiny. Defy the gods of the deep sea.

Sunless Skies

Sunless Skies is a Gothic Horror roleplay game with a focus on exploration and exquisite storytelling. Players enter this world as the captain of a spacefaring steam locomotive. It’s your job to take your crew on a journey of the stars in search of the treasures that lie beyond.

Mask of the Rose

Mask of the Rose was part of our first-ever Games Lab! Set in the underground world of Fallen London, this is a hilarious gothic romance with a hint of murder. Will you be a brilliant match-maker, connecting friends and rivals whilst remaining un-attached? Or are you looking for love?

Submit your Game to be part of #GamesLab2024!

The post Studio Spotlight: Failbetter Games first appeared on Aesthetica Short Film Festival.

Francis Ford Coppola shared his thoughts on the current studio system during the Cannes Film Festival press conference for his self-financed epic “Megalopolis,” saying that they might not be around much longer. “I fear that the film industry has become more of a matter of people being hired to meet their debt obligations because the […]

Variety will present a Women in Cinema Panel at the Cannes Film Festival in tandem with the Red Sea International Film Festival featuring top talents from Egypt, India, Thailand, Saudi Arabia and Senegal. The panel will take place at La Plage Des Palmes on Saturday, May 18, at 12pm CET. Below is a complete list […]

French-Moroccan director Nabil Ayouch is in Cannes for the third time with “Everybody Loves Touda,” launching out of competition. The film tells the story of a young poet and singer steeped in an ancient Moroccan form of folk song called aita, but forced to perform trashy pop songs in bars filled with abusive men. Below, Ayouch speaks with Variety […]

We have two English-language items with two very different price tags in today’s double pairing for the competition. The first item out of the gate (that caused several of our critics scheduling issues) was the latest film by Andrea Arnold.