this is bbc news. the latest headlines: ajury in the us has ordered the conspiracy theorist alexjones to pay more than $900 million to the families of the victims of the sandy hook massacre. jones falsely claimed that the incident was staged by the government to try to tighter gun controls. —— tighten. the world wide fund for nature has urged governments businesses and the public to take what it's called "transformative action" to reverse the destruction of biodiversity. the plea come after their biannual report showed wildlife populations have declined by almost 70% since 1970.

the un general assembly has voted overwhelmingly to condemn russia's attempts to annex four ukrainian regions. the us defence secretary, lloyd austin, has promised ukraine more weapons, including air defence systems. this next story is proof that vegetables are good for you, including growing them. sal chebbah from north kensington has been on a five—year mission to bring the community together by growing veg and, in particular, mushrooms. luke hanrahan�*s been to meet her. growing in the green spaces of a north count — mid north kensington council state, a secret garden. a passion project for sal chebbah to the communities will take from her success. . , , communities will take from her success. . , success. healthy food is sparse and expensive _ success. healthy food is sparse and expensive so _ success. healthy food is sparse and expensive so the _ success. healthy food is sparse and expensive so the options i and expensive so the options are to return estates or

community projects or community gardening as the centre for some foods. i mean, potatoes, carrots, herbs, mushrooms can be grown in urban settings. the area of expertise is mushrooms. nutrient rich, medicinal and easy to grow in confined spaces. now her project has been recognised by the national lottery. i been recognised by the national lotte . . . been recognised by the national lotte . ., ., , been recognised by the national lotte. ., ., , ., lottery. i am a mushroom fan. i love additional— lottery. i am a mushroom fan. i love additional mushrooms, - lottery. i am a mushroom fan. i| love additional mushrooms, that is my passion. i thought what can i get back to the community that i know about and they would benefit from? and it is mushrooms. we —— winning the award highlights the work that everybody here on the estate has been doing, but also, widely in north kensington. fix, widely in north kensington. a scheme giving funding to expand to provide more mushrooms grown not by farmers in the countryside, but by volunteers on a council estate. it is countryside, but by volunteers on a council estate.— on a council estate. it is a ureat on a council estate. it is a great honour— on a council estate. it is a great honour and - on a council estate. it is a great honour and i - on a council estate. it is a great honour and i am - on a council estate. it is a great honour and i am so | great honour and i am so

pleased. she has worked so hard on this and i like to think we supported here as an estate. to realise this and to get this honour that the project can fulfil itself in its full glory is wonderful. so it is a big thank you to all concerned. thank you very much. mushrooms offerin: a thank you very much. mushrooms offering a new _ thank you very much. mushrooms offering a new novel _ thank you very much. mushrooms offering a new novel purposeful i offering a new novel purposeful london's public spaces. luke hanrahan, bbc london. good morning. now on bbc news, talking movies are at the new york film festival. hello from new york. i'm tom brook, and welcome to talking movies. in today's programme, some early highlights

from the new york film festival which, this year, is marking its 60th anniversary. they said it was unfilmable — the 1985 novel white noise by author dom delillo, but filmmaker noah baumbach was undeterred. he adapted it into a movie and it was the opening night attraction here at the new york film festival. the director and cast were all there on opening night. this film, which moves between genres, isn't easy to describe. on one level, it's a family drama that unfolds in the face of a toxic airborne event that imperils a college town. they don't look scared in the crown victoria. no, they're laughing. these guys aren't laughing. where? in the country's choir. what does it matter what they're doing in other cars? i want to know how scared i should be. it stars adam driver

as a professor, don cheadle plays his colleague. i think it's about a lot of things. i think it's about existential dread, i think it's about confronting death and not letting death be in the driver's seat, but understand that it's a passenger that we're all going to have to acknowledge, and gets to come along all the way to the end. the 1985 post—modern white noise novel has been explored in the past by other filmmakers as possible movie source material. but its big ideas perhaps proved too difficult to translate to the screen. this place is good, jack. the book certainly had confronting death as a scene. as long as the children are here, we're safe. it was a satire that poked fun as academic life, and it made observations on consumer culture. director noah baumbach was fascinated by the book. well, the thing that struck me

when i reread the book — and ijust happened to coincide with when the pandemic hit — was that it felt like a book that could've been written after any major event in this country, you know. whether, i mean, at the time, it was the reagan era, it was the cold war, it was the aids crisis, but if i'd read it after 9/11, if i'd read it after trump was elected, if i'd read it, you know, and then when i did reread it during the pandemic, i just think it's something uncanny about it. i do't know who said it, but apparently it was said that the novel was unfilmable. so what made you want to take on an unfilmable project? i didn't think about that. i mean, i don't know... i don't know what criteria people used to say what's filmable or not, but it was just something that intrigued me and i started it almost as an experiment, and then ijust kept going and i got very involved in it,

and felt like it was something that i could really do. with its mannered humour and, at times, artificial dialogue and idiosyncratic characters, white noise feels like a movie that belongs to a different era, one that is pre—pandemic and all the other tumults we've experienced in recent times. it's a film that feels out of place, strangely inert and at times, and when you think about it — at least to my mind — there isn't anything in the movie that is remarkably insightful or original. it really, for me, didn't have much to say. perhaps the reason why the film festival open with this movie, when there were others in the line—up, which i thought would be better opening night films, is because noah baumbach is very much a favourite son of the festival, and deservedly so, and that may have weighed in to the decision—making. the new york film festival is one of my favourites, why? because it's not too big, it's not unwieldy, it's very tightly curated,

and it's firmly committed to serious cinema. it doesn't really pander — well, maybejust a little bit. overall, it's a real class act and i'm happy to say that this year it's marking its 60th anniversary. for 60 years, neither rain nor heat nor gloom of night has prevented new york film lovers from coming to their festival. you're obviously prepared to stand outside here in the rain. oh, yeah, oh, 100%. i'm freezing to death, but i've been here for two hours, and i think it's worth it. it's one of the better film festivals on the planet, but it feels differently because anybody can have access to any screening, you can purchase a ticket without having to invest in a massive pass, so it's accessible, but it's also the best films coming up over the next year. plate smashes canned laughter the exterminating angel from director luis bunuel in 1963 opened the very first new york film festival. veteran film critic and film festival programmer david ansen started going to the new york

film festival in the mid—1960s, and he sees the bunuel film as a fitting opening act. why, yes, the exterminating angel was kind of a great movie to open the festival. i mean, it's a revered filmmaker, luis bunuel. it shows how both serious the festival was, but also what good taste they had, and you could combine something that was very serious, but also, extremely entertaining. how valued a showcase was the new york film festival when it began? because it did provide a window into international cinema in a way that's hard for people to understand nowadays, isn't it? no, it's true. i mean, the new york film festival was almost symbolic of this incredible interest and resurgence and interest in cinema that had really not been experienced before, because it became really one of the great art forms, it hadn't been taken so seriously.

but something happened in the �*60s with all these european directors. there was cinephilia such in those days. and then the new york film festival was there — was at the heart of it. the festival has got bigger over the years, but the main slate, which this year had around 30 features, is always quite focused. it's always been tightly curated, just a few dozen films, and an opportunity for artists to engage artists on our stage here at lincoln center. so we've tried to remain true to that by keeping the festival tightly curated, by bringing artists from around the world. but in a world where there are a dizzying array of platforms to view films, how does a festival like the one here in new york justify its existence? given just how diffuse the cinematic landscape is today, how many films are made, i think the goal, i think the founding principle of this festival of curation, of really making an argument of which films matter, i think that, in some ways,

matters more than ever. since its inception 60 years ago, the new york film festival has shone a light on a fine european art house cinema, and this year, it was a turn of austria to share in that limelight with a film called corsage, as emma jones reports. choir sings a constricted 19th—century royal life proves too much for elizabeth, was sisi, the empress of austria, a protagonist of corsage. luxembourgish actor vicky krieps portrays her as a ao—year—old woman who wanted out of her gilded cage.

krieps and director marie kreutzer were looking for a new project together, but kreutzer was reluctant to choose sisi's story until she read a biography of the empress. i thought, maybe there will be something in the material that resonates with me and that would make me want to tell a story about her. and the point was where i realised that that was or could have been her struggle — the struggle against a system and against a lot of men telling her what to do — and that was of course very much something that resonated with me, and also, as a woman in a very different, but exposed position as a director, i'm very often the boss of a lot of people and also of a lot of men, so that kind of touched me very deeply. like so many royal women, sisi has already been portrayed by hollywood, possibly because in real life she was outstandingly beautiful.

three films were made in the 1950s starring romy schneider as the empress. the first sisi was seen by around 25 million people in cinemas. a keen horse rider, gymnast and a scientist, she's also proving a fascinating heroine for now when tv series are looking for inspiring women of the past. sisi has been the recent subject of five productions, including corsage. there's also been a lavish european tv production called sisi. and now a netflix series, the empress. she's planning a life for me that i don't want. they start by showing a youthful, spirited royal. an empress who is a shimmering light. however, corsage starts on the empress's 40th birthday, and focuses on her inner life

and her documented depression. sisi also suffered from an eating disorder and refused to have her photograph taken once she was in her 30s. krieps, who won the un certain regard best performance prize at canne for this role shows sisi as bored, unhappy with her prince, and unsure of what the future holds. you have what i think nowadays we call celebrity culture and she was, i think, the first victim of it, you know, without instagram. they were handing out little pictures of her, hand—painted, saying, "this is the most beautiful woman on europe." forcefully exhales so, can you imagine? that's just crazy. and then people think they own your image and they own the right to talk about you, and to judge about you, and you say how you look, especially as a woman, you know? like yourfigure, yourface, yourskin, your hair, your — you know? it's just a lot for one person, you know?

what's changed ? chuckles. yeah! and that's why i wanted to make the movie — to show this — because it has not really changed. the main facts that are still quoted about empress sisi of austria a century later are much based on her physical appearance and not her inner life, that she maintained a 16—inch waist throughout her life, despite her pregnancies, and that she had a three—hour daily hairbrushing routine. corsage excels in showing the boredom of court life at the time and how she might have despaired. it was also, for me, about all of us women, about all of us who are brought up by society with the obligation to please in order to be loved, and to fulfil an image, and to make everything right all the time, and always be nice.

chuckles. and that was something that i wanted to stand up against. corsage is austria's entry for best international film at the oscars, and having made its progress from europe to the new york film festival should also work its charms on the audience. despite the corset that hemmed in sisi, corsage feels nothing like a costume drama. one of the best movies i saw at the new york film festival year was tar which, in many ways, is a character study of a fascinating but disturbed female conductor played brilliantly by cate blanchett. tar is a very intelligent film written and directed by todd field, who hasn't made a movie in several years. it really is a film for our times. it deals with such issues as cancel culture and corporate power relations.

cate blanchett is a celebrated fictional lydia tar, a brilliant and ambitious principal conductor of the berlin philharmonic. she is also tyrannical, predatory and ruthless. i am worried. she is starting to disappear into herself. in the film we watch as she becomes hoisted by her own petard. how do you view lydia tar, because she is a complicated woman — there are things about her i really liked, other things i found repellent. yeah, i mean, you think about hedda gabler, the great complicated characters, whether they be male or female, always do things that we don't want to identify with. my mother said to herfriend, "you're not going to like her!" i said, "it may be more to the point, you don't want to like her, because she is doing things that you don't have to be a classical conductor

or an artist in order to recognise those domestic small manipulations, those transactional relationships that we all have, that we all participate in, you know, and i think lydia does and says things that we perhaps all do, but don't want to admit to. filmmaker todd field last made a movie, little children, 16 years ago. his new picture is different, with its themes of power, lust and corporate intrigue. and he believes that with lydia tar, he has created a woman who is actually quite human. she does things that are hypocritical, he does things out of capriciousness, she does things to protect herself politically. essentially she is a human being, you know, and i don't think we, oftentimes we don't like to look at ourselves that way in the mirror, but i can't imagine that those things aren't relatable to any one of us. and i understand from reading

that you always wanted cate blanchett for this role, and that if she had told you no, you wouldn't have made the movie, is that true? that is absolutely true, yeah. the most important decision in making a film like this is who is playing lydia tar, and normally that is a decision i would make after i wrote the script, but i made that decision before i wrote the script. so there was no—one else. my right hand, the second—hand, marks time and moves it forward. however unlike a clock, sometimes my second—hand stops, which means that time stops. this has to be one of the best performances cate blanchett has ever given. she is bound to figure prominently in next year's why did they take my child from me? how proud are you of what you have achieved

in this film? look, i am incredibly proud to be part of this film. even though i play the title role, i think there is an incredible ensemble, and obviously to be directed by todd, i am proud to be part of that conversation. in 1955, a 14—year—old african—american boy called emmett till from chicago was kidnapped and lynched when he went to visit relatives in mississippi. his mother insisted that his brutalised body was brought back to chicago for the funeral, and there should be an open casket so the whole world could see the horrors that white racists had inflicted on her son's body. now here at the new york film festival is a new movie called till. it tells emmett till�*s story, but the focus is on his mother. you have to be extra careful with white people, you can't risk looking at them the wrong way. i know! be small down there. like this? an exuberant emmett till left home in august 1955, never to return. emmett till has been found dead. he was slaughtered

in a lynching by white racists in mississippi. i want to talk to you about that boy! they've come for you! his sin, apparently wolf—whistling at a white woman. this new film looks at his mother's story. why did they take my child from me? how she made sure her son's open casket was photographed so everybody could witness how bigots had mutilated his body. you have the public�*s attention. we have an opportunity. it also tells how she became a civil rights activist. whoopi goldberg plays emmett till�*s grandmother in the movie. she is a big believer in the film in that it throws light on an ugly moment in the history of american racism. this movie sort of pulls it all together and says "this is what it looks like, "this is what systemic racism looks like, "and all the ways it radiates outwards".

so for me, it is important because i feel like the world we are in needs a big reminder, because i see things happening all over the world and i am thinking, how are we going backwards? what is happening? did you like the fact that this story about emmett till could have been told just through him, but it was really told through the mother, wasn't it? that was all the women who were part of the producing and directing team, we were like, this is a mother—son story and it was imperative for us to show that to people. this was my boy. till is really held together by a very strong, exquisite performance from danielle deadwyler who plays emmett�*s mother, mamie till mobley, a very dignified and inspirational figure. the lynching of my son has shown me that what happens to any of us anywhere in the world had better be the business of us all.

the actress really respected her. i respected everything about her. how she comes understand herself beyond her own personal motherhood, shifting and refining that to move into a particular activism — all of that was deeply new and deeply respectful, to give oneself over as well as one's child. the film has been brought together chinonye chukwu, by a filmmaker who really made an impact in 2019 with her first feature clemency. i am going to fight for him right up until the very moment you stick that needle in his arm. set on death row, it followed the relationship between a prison warden and an inmate, and shows how overseeing executions took a toll on the warden. how do you keep doing it? i do myjob. those pictures of your son changed people's lives. i with till, the director packed an emotional wallop,

making vividly clear the horrors of bigotry. do you think your film can actually change people? i mean, if a white racist watched your film, do you think it might get through to them? i think this film can make these people interrogate their own place in the world and the ways that they navigate or perpetuate certain oppressions and —isms, and hopefully can inspire people to ask the question, how can i affect change, or how do i contribute, how can i contribute to the world in a way that can expand justice? till is a film that still sadly has topical relevance. the emmett till anti—lynching act only became law this year, reflecting the long—held resistance to it. resistance fuelled by the same racism that cost emmett till his life. well, that brings this new york film festival edition of talking movies to a close.

we hope you have enjoyed the programme. please remember you can always reach us online, and you can find us on twitter. so from me, tom brook and the rest of the new york production team, it is goodbye — as we leave you with something a little bit intense, a music sequence from the film tar, starring cate blanchett, which was shown here at the new york film festival. ominous vocalising.

hello there. our weather story is becoming a little bit more unsettled as we head towards the weekend. no two days the same at the moment, not only in terms of weather, but also the feel of things, both by day and night. now, for thursday, many of us will see some sunny spells, but there will be blustery, squally showers developing in the far north—west. over the next few hours, we'll start to see this weather front easing away from channel coasts. it mightjust continue to bring a little bit of early—morning rain on thursday. look at the temperatures — double digits because of the cloud and the rain around. further north, though, it's going to be a chilly start, with a touch of light frost in rural parts. but as we go through the day, there will be a good slice of dry and sunny weather to look out for for most of us. into the afternoon, however, the winds will strengthen, we'll see some squally showers developing into

northern ireland and north—west scotland in particular. elsewhere, temperatures pretty similar to the last few days by the middle of the afternoon. we're looking at highs of 11—17 celsius — that's 63 fahrenheit. now, that weather front will continue to move its way steadily south and east, weakening all the time. it's going to be replaced by another one moving through scotland and northern ireland as well. at the same time, there's the potentialfor a little bit of showery rain once again, just clinging on to channel coasts first thing on friday. sandwiched in between the two, we should see some drier, brighter interludes, and behind, it's going to be bright and breezy with showers. so, friday's a really messy story, a real autumnal picture of blustery showers. warm in the sunshine still, with 17 degrees the high. now, low pressure never too far away as we head into the weekend. plenty of isobars, particularly the further north you go. gusts of wind, 40—50 mph, and they're going to be driving weather fronts

in around those areas of low pressure. so, saturday is going to be a case of sunny spells and squally showers, the showers most frequent out towards the west, but some of those will start to push a little bit further inland as the day continues. favoured spots for the best of the drier weather, parts of aberdeenshire and perhaps through south—east england as well. and here, we'll see highs again of around 11—17 celsius. not much change as we go into sunday and monday. the winds stay blustery from a warm source, plenty of showers to dodge as well. take care.

welcome to bbc news. i'm rich preston. our top stories: ajury in the us orders the conspiracy theorist alexjones to pay more than $900 million to the families of the victims of the sandy hook massacre. urgent action is required to reverse biodiversity destruction — that's the stark warning from the world wide fund for nature after wildlife populations decline by almost 70% in 50 years. the un general assembly votes overwhelmingly to condemn russia's attempts to annex four ukrainian regions. the us is promising more weapons for ukraine, including air defence systems. we are going to do everything we can as fast as we can to help the ukrainian forces get the capability they need

to protect the ukrainian people.