Cannes Highlights: Exiled Director's Triumph and Music Legends Honored

The Cannes Film Festival showcased the resilience of exiled Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof with his film 'The Seed of the Sacred Fig.' Meanwhile, Bruce Springsteen, Lana Del Rey, and Raye were honored at the Ivors in London. Controversy continued with Live Nation lawsuits and Alec Baldwin’s ongoing legal challenges.

Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs.

Iranian director Rasoulof's Cannes film born of tussles with justice system

Exiled Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof said on Friday that his Cannes Film Festival competition entry, about a court official's family during his country's 2022 protests, was born out of his own experiences with the justice system. Rasoulof was in the French Riviera town to premier "The Seed of the Sacred Fig" almost two weeks after announcing he had fled Iran in the wake of his sentencing to eight years in jail and flogging.

Bruce Springsteen, Lana Del Rey, Raye honoured at Ivor songwriting awards

Bruce Springsteen, Lana Del Rey and Raye were among the music stars honoured at the Ivors in London on Thursday, the annual awards for songwriters and screen composers. U.S. rocker Springsteen became the first international songwriter to receive an Ivors Academy Fellowship, the highest honour bestowed by the UK-based association.

Live Nation ticket buyers sue in wake of US Justice Department case

Live Nation and its Ticketmaster unit have been hit with the first in a likely wave of new consumer antitrust lawsuits after the U.S. government and states sued to break up the two companies on Thursday. The first consumer class action to piggyback on the government cases was filed later on Thursday in Manhattan federal court, seeking $5 billion in damages on behalf of potentially millions of ticket purchasers.

Prosecution of Alec Baldwin for 'Rust' shooting

On Oct. 21, 2021 a Colt Single Action Army Revolver actor Alec Baldwin was using to set up a camera shot on the movie "Rust" fired a live round that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and wounded director Joel Souza. The following is a chronology of Baldwin's comments in relation to the shooting on a New Mexico film set and events surrounding Hollywood's first on-set fatal shooting in nearly 30 years.

Kodi, star of 'Dog on Trial,' takes home Cannes' top dog prize

There was lots of tail-wagging and face-licking as Kodi, this year's winner of the Palm Dog, the canine equivalent of the Cannes Film Festival's top prize, went up to receive his red collar for the French comedy "Dog on Trial" on Friday. The Griffon mix was praised for his "breathtaking" performance as Cosmos, a guide dog for a visually impaired man, who goes on trial over an attack, in a case whose outcome could mean death.

'Black Dog' wins Un Certain Regard competition at Cannes

"Black Dog," about a man released from prison who returns home to his remote town in China to rid it of stray dogs before the Olympics, only to befriend one of them, won the Cannes Film Festival's "Un Certain Regard" competition on Friday. Eddie Peng, who stars as Lang in the film by director Guan Hu, attended the ceremony at Cannes along with greyhound Xin.

Judge denies Alec Baldwin request to drop indictment for 'Rust' shooting

A New Mexico judge on Friday rejected Alec Baldwin's bid to dismiss an involuntary manslaughter charge for the 2021 shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, opening the way for an unprecedented trial of a Hollywood actor for an on-set death.

Baldwin's lawyers argued at a May 17 hearing that a grand jury indictment of the actor was "a sham" as a New Mexico state prosecutor failed to tell jurors they could question defense witnesses and stopped them hearing evidence helpful to the actor's case.

Scarlett Johansson's OpenAI feud rekindles Hollywood fear of artificial intelligence

OpenAI's apparent homage to the movie "Her" featuring the voice likeness of Scarlett Johansson is fueling a backlash against artificial intelligence across Hollywood, executives told Reuters. Johansson's accusation that the ChatGPT-maker copied her performance in the Spike Jonze-directed feature film, after failing to strike an agreement, rekindled the creative class's anxiety about the existential threat posed by AI, even as Hollywood studios test new tools and mull alliances with OpenAI.

US Justice Department, states file lawsuit against Live Nation

The U.S. Department of Justice and a group of states have filed a lawsuit against Live Nation Entertainment, according a court docket on Thursday.

Cassie Ventura thanks people who supported her over Diddy assault video

Singer Cassie Ventura, ex-girlfriend of rapper Sean "Diddy" Combs, on Thursday publicly thanked the people who supported her after the release of a 2016 surveillance video that appeared to show him assaulting her at a Los Angeles hotel.

"Thank you for all of the love and support from my family, friends, strangers and those I have yet to meet," the "Me & U" vocalist wrote in a post on Instagram.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)