September 4, 2023 @ 3:56 PM

Miley Cyrus had an interesting year in 2013. That was the year when the former Disney Channel star twerked on Robin Thicke and got naked in her “Wrecking Ball” music video. Cyrus released her record “Bangerz” the following year and soon embarked on a 78-date tour by the same name that made nearly $63 million — though to hear her tell it today, the singer never made “a dime” from the touring experience.

Over the last few weeks, Cyrus has opened up to fans through a series of TikTok videos she’s titled “Used to be Young” in honor of her new song by the same name. In Sunday’s episode, Cyrus revealed that despite the overwhelming success of the “Bangerz” tour (it was the 16th highest-grossing tour of the year), she didn’t make anything because she “paid for it all” herself.

The tour was reflective of that period in Cyrus’ life and music, though she admitted that others thought her ideas were so “outlandish” that she didn’t get a lot of encouragement. As she said, “The ‘Bangerz’ tour was an investment in myself.”

“A lot of the ideas were kind of so outlandish that no one really wanted to support me in making these pieces,” she continued. “I had big puppets, oversized beds, I came out of my own face, on my tongue.”

Cyrus added, “I wanted to end it with a ‘Truman Show’ reference. So I flew out on a giant hotdog, obviously, and I left through all the clouds and the exit sign like Jim Carrey does. Because I felt like ‘The Truman Show’ was really a reflection of my life.”

The singer then addressed the financial aspect of the tour, which was enormous. And apparently, because so few people backed her plans, she forged ahead alone. She explained, “I didn’t make a dime on this tour because I wanted the tour to be excellent. And when everyone kept saying: ‘Why are you doing this? You’re going to do, like, 100 shows and you’re not going to make any money?’”

“I said: ‘There’s no one I would rather invest in than myself.’ So I paid for it all to make it exactly what I thought I, and the fans, deserve,” Cyrus concluded.

It’s worth remembering that Cyrus was 20 and 21 years old at the time, and was slammed by adults far older than her for exploring life outside of the confines of the “Hannah Montana” character that had defined much of her teen years. While she might have made some choices then that she wouldn’t make now, the body shaming and criticism that Cyrus was hit with wasn’t exactly an appropriate reaction to what she was doing.

Earlier this year, Cyrus admitted to British Vogue that she carried a lot of “guilt and shame for years” as a result. She added, “I was creating attention for myself because I was dividing myself from a character I had played. Anyone, when you’re 20 or 21, you have more to prove. ‘I’m not my parents.’ ‘I am who I am.’”

Cyrus also described herself as a child at the time, and continued, “Now that I’m an adult, I realize how harshly I was judged. I was harshly judged as a child by adults and now, as an adult, I realize that I would never harshly judge a child.”

Indie studios IFC Films and Neon are facing off with the hopes of one of their films being selected as France’s official submission to the Oscars for the international feature film prize.

Neon aims to position Palme d’Or winner “Anatomy of a Fall” as the best option for the country. IFC is making its case for “The Taste of Things” from French-Vietnamese filmmaker Trần Anh Hùn, who won the director prize at Cannes. Both films have eerily similar credentials as they seek to represent the Gallic state at the 95th annual Academy Awards.

The courtroom drama “Anatomy” was announced as part of the Telluride program, where all four of its screenings were sold out, with dozens of patrons being turned away. “Taste” was not part of the festival’s initial slate announcement. It was one of the surprise TBA screenings that Telluride tends to program every year (others this year included Sony Classics’ animated film “They Shot the Piano Player”).

“Taste” is a film made for “foodies.” It played to two packed houses on Saturday and Sunday. Both movies are headed to more fests including Toronto, the New York Film Festival and other planned stops. The decision on France’s Oscar submission will be made by the Centre national de la cinématographie, affiliated with the French Ministry of Culture. Some new and recognizable names are among the committee tasked with steering the process, including former Lionsgate executive Patrick Wachsberger and composer Alexandre Desplat, a two-time Oscar winner.

And here lies a nation’s dilemma.

Cannes is one of the most prestigious festivals in the world where the Palme d’Or has carried many films to awards glory like Bong Joon-ho’s best picture winner “Parasite” (2019), which was also distributed by Neon.

In 2021, France opted for Neon’s high-octane car-mutation thriller “Titane” by Julia Ducournau, who became the first solo woman director to win the Palme. With many critics acknowledging it was a “hard sell” for Oscar voters, many rooted that year for IFC’s abortion drama “Happening” from Audrey Diwan, to be the country’s selection.

When you’re a country facing scrutiny over gender equality in many sectors, including the film and TV arenas, how could you note choose the first female Palme winner for a solo effort. But “Titane” failed to make the international feature film shortlist of 15 films. “Happening” mounted its own awards campaign around its U.S. release for the 2022 season but it was shutout by Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences voters.

France has submitted 67 films for Oscar consideration going back to the category’s inception (as foreign film) in 1956. Of those films, 38 have achieved Oscar nominations, the most of any country. France has won nine times, second to Italy’s 11. But France has been suffering through a 30 year drought when it comes to bringing home the gold. France hasn’t won the statuette since “Indochine” (1992), and it’s clear that national hopes are high that the 2023 race may finally be the year.

The French committee faces a complicated decision, with each film having pros and cons in its ability to compete in the Oscar heat. In addition, with new Academy Awards competition rules instituted this year, now stipulating the opt-in member selection committees must comprise at least 50% filmmakers (artists and/or craftspeople), there will be “X-factors” affecting the process this year for sure.

“Anatomy” is getting the full FYC push from Neon, in categories beyond international feature. The distributor aims to grab recognition for Triet for director and original screenplay, along with a mention for lead actress Sandra Hüller. Hüller has dual contenders in the international feature race this year as the star of A24’s “The Zone of Interest,” which is the frontrunner for the U.K.

“Anatomy” is a strong piece of filmmaking that I suspect, at minimum, will find Hüller in the mix for her first Oscar nom. She seems to be a quintessential future winner of NYFCC and LAFCA. I’m curious to read how much of the film is not in English. Academy rules state in order to be eligible, at least 50% of a film’s dialogue must be spoken in a language other than English. While I believe “Anatomy” clears the mark, I wonder if the language factor will have any affect on voters?

With “Taste,” it has the familiarity of one of the country’s most revered actress, Oscar-winner Juliette Binoche, delivering another standout performance. IFC vows to seek nominations in all eligible categories. It could find its way into the discussion for adapted screenplay and obviously for director, following Trần Anh Hùn’s win at Cannes. If nominated for best picture, it would be IFC’s first since “Boyhood” (2014). The film is also co-distributed by Sapan Studio.

Director Anh Hùng was born in South Vietnam. In 1975, he immigrated to France at the age of 12, following the fall of Saigon and the end of Vietnam’s civil war. When it comes to Oscar submissions, France has leaned heavily toward French-born filmmakers. The last two non-French-born directors behind international feature submissions were Paul Verhoeven (2016’s “Elle”) and 2022’s “Saint Omer” from Alice Diop. Both failed to land a nomination.

Ask the strategist behind campaigns for “Anatomy” and “Taste” and both will say their movie is the “safer” and “stronger” title to go the distance to a win. Truth is, it’s going to be a very dynamic and strong year yet again. Films like Japan’s “Perfect Days” and Finland’s “Fallen Leaves,” which also screened at Cannes and Telluride, are expected to be viable contenders.

France will announce its five-film shortlist this week. It’s expected to include Johnny Depp’s comeback movie “Jeanne du Barry,” directed by Maiwenn.

Academy members choose to opt-in to watch and vote for the international feature submission. Preliminary voting for the international feature shortlist begins in December, with 15 films being announced on prior to the start of nomination voting in January.

Read: Variety’s Awards Circuit for the latest Oscars predictions in all categories.

Priscilla, one of the buzziest films heading into this year’s Venice Film Festival, finally had its world premiere in competition on the Lido, receiving a rapturous seven-minute 30-second standing ovation for its director Sofia Coppola, young leads and the inspiration herself, Priscilla Presley.

Thanks to an interim agreement arranged just days prior to the festival, alongside director Coppola, stars Cailee Spaeny and Jacob Elordi were able to attend the premiere alongside Priscilla Presley. The biopic details her relationship with Elvis, whom she met as a 14-year-old.

During the standing ovation, the cast and Presley were seen holding back tears, overcome with the emotion of the event and the reception.

Earlier in the day at the film’s press conference, Presley admitted that watching the movie had been hard. “It’s very difficult to watch a film about you and about your life and about your love,” she said. “But Sofia did an amazing job. She did her homework, and I really put everything out for her that I could.”

Presley also spoke candidly about her time with Elvis and had to stop several times to wipe away tears.

“Elvis would pour his heart out to me. His hopes, his fears, his loss of his mother, and I was the person who really sat there to listen and to comfort him. That was really our connection. Even though I was 14, I was older in life than in years,” she said. “And that was the attraction. People think, ‘Oh, it was sex, it was this.’ Not at all. I never had sex with him. He was very kind, very soft, very loving. But he also respected the fact I was only 14 years old. We were more in mind and thought, and that was our relationship.”

Written and directed by Coppola, Priscilla is based on the 1985 memoir Elvis and Me, written by Presley and Sandra Harmon, and was produced by Lorenzo Mieli for The Apartment Pictures, a Fremantle Company, Coppola for American Zoetrope, and Youree Henley. It was financed by Fremantle Group. A24 will distribute in the U.S. and Vision Distribution, a Sky Company, will distribute in Italy.