communities destroyed by the strongest earthquake ever recorded in the country. aid agencies warn of a "disaster within a disaster" if people aren't able to access clean safe water. the death toll currently stands at more than 2,000. us presidentjoe biden visits vietnam to sign a new diplomatic partnership amid china's growing influence in the asia—pacific region. mr biden has met the communist party leader, nguyen phu trong, and is due to have further talks on monday. and a top—ranking us military officer warns that ukraine's army has little more than 30 days left of fighting, before the weather hinders its counter—offensive. general mark milley told the bbc that the ukrainian attack was going more slowly than hoped — but was progressing at a steady pace.

now on bbc news, talking movies: venice film festival special. hello from colorado's rocky mountains. i'm tom brook, and welcome to talking movies. in today's programme, the big autumn film festivals are under way. we'll be bringing you highlights from telluride here in colorado and from venice, which can justly claim the title of being the oldest film festival in the world. my colleague emma jones is there. it's a special anniversary here at venice. the festival is celebrating its 80th year. like other major film events, though, the festival has been

upended by the ongoing actors and writers�* strike. still, a few hollywood directors were present at the festival, including sofia coppola, michael mann and ava duvernay. but there's no doubt the strike has had a major impact. this is not the look at venice that anyone was hoping for — world premieres for huge hollywood movies without their leading actors, from yorgos lanthimos�* comedy poor things, starring emma stone... bella! why keep it in my mouth if it is revolting? - ..to netflix's leonard bernstein biopic maestro, directed by and starring bradley cooper and also starring carey mulligan. are you itching to move? no, i'm not... good. ..actually, at all. actors stayed away from promotional activity at the festival in support it of the sag—aftra strike over working conditions. chanting: what do we want? contracts!

i asked film critic kaleem aftab what the effect of the strike had been. i mean, we all go to film festivals to watch films, per se, but we also do go for the razzmatazz and the red carpet. i think the fact that we don't get what went into the performances, how the actors felt when they're talking to the directors, so it's kind of clouded the whole festival. the strike also affected the opening night film, which was going to be luca guadagnino's challengers, now postponed till 2024, and was replaced by comandante, an italian drama set in world war ii from director edoardo de angelis and starring italian actor pierfrancesco favino, who's a past winner of the best actor prize at venice. it asks what makes a good italian, or simply a good man? comandante is the true story of an italian submarine commander, salvatore todaro, who, in 1940, defied mussolini's fascist regime

to save shipwrecked belgian sailors who were carrying weapons for the british. the opening film may have been a replacement, but in a time of hostility from some in europe to refugees arriving on their shores, its tone and its intention is unmistakable. in our houses, doors were always open, and we want to keep them open. it's a very universal message and i think it's important. - while the film has had mixed reviews from international critics, i found comandante deeply moving, elevated by the central performance from pierfrancesco favino, playing a truly extraordinary

italian. as mentioned, venice is celebrating its 80th anniversary this year. hollywood stars may have been a little thin on the ground but for me, venice is always truly a joy. i've been coming here for 20 years. emma jones has been meeting the a—listers in venice. look at her! i've also watched venice become hugely influential as a trendsetter in the oscars race. alan moloney now looks back at the history of the festival. few other cities in the world can provide a backdrop like venice. just askjames bond, indiana jones or, more recently, ethan hunt. travelling through this floating city is like moving through cinematic history. the venice film festival is obviously very special because it was the first one, and without the venice film festival, we wouldn't have cannes

and toronto and all the other festivals that make up the festival circuit. it's had this incredibly exciting, very difficult, turbulent history and under mussolini, italy was very keen to sort of champion italian culture and art, and particularly cinema. mussolini saw the benefit of that. of course, this is not entirely unproblematic. the end of the second world war and an agreement with the cannes film festival saw venice move to september in the calendar. the post—war period proved to be a rich time for the festival, attracting prestigious films as well as iconic movie stars. but the party days didn't last forever. fanned by civil unrest in paris in 1968, the festival actually stopped awarding prizes for the next decade. venice became something of an afterthought, suffering in comparison to the glitz of cannes as well as newer american festivals that courted the hollywood studios. it's something that those behind

venice have tried to address. we worked a lot to convince the studios to come back to venice, instead of going to other festivals that are more or less in the same time of the year. and it helps a lot because having the big hollywood films in venice, it means that also, the independent films and the smaller films from all over the world, they want to be in venice because they know there will be more press, more media coverage and so on. this is something that helped us to reposition the venice film festival as the most important appointment of the year. venice has also gained a reputation as something of an oscar predictor. it sort of goes back to the beginnings of the festival. the very first film to open the festival in 1932 was a big hollywood stunner... moaning. ..drjekyll and mr hyde starring fredric march. and they've sort of got back to that in recent years.

they've had big films from hollywood, and even films that are sort of independent films that have gone on to do well in the oscars. they've had things like nomadland and the shape of water, which won the best picture 0scar. but also, they've had films that have done better than you might expect from streamers, like roma, which obviously was such a big sensation in the year it was released. that debuted at venice. for over 90 years and 80 editions, venice has survived through its ability to reinvent itself — a festival that manages to mix art and commerce, world cinema and hollywood blockbusters, all with a unique vibe and amongst a setting that is truly awe—inspiring. it may not have been hollywood's most visible year but venice was still the launchpad for many international films, from directors old and new. here are some of my top picks.

a young woman lost in a man's world, and that man is elvis presley. priscilla is an adaptation of priscilla presley's memoir of life with a legend. presley executive produced the film. its premiere brought its director, sofia coppola, back to the scene of some of her greatest triumphs. she's a former golden lion winner at venice. you really are having a midlife crisis, huh? and it's the 20th anniversary of her breakthrough film, lost in translation, which was shown here. when i first arrived, itjust brought back so many memories of being here 20 years ago — i can't believe it — for lost in translation, and the first time being in venice with the film. and it's always exciting to be here and just the culture of cinema and everyone's love of film. it'sjust really the ultimate to be able to finish your film and bring it to venice. in a historic first, ava duvernay, already the first black female director to have a film nominated

for a best picture 0scar, for a best picture 0scar, also became the first african—american woman to have a film selected in competition at venice. the movie, 0rigin, is an adaptation of pulitzer prize—winning novelist isabel wilkerson�*s book caste: the origin of our discontents. the festival was noisy in its activism this year, particularly in solidarity with the iranian people. demonstrators, including festival jury members jane campion and damien chazelle, took part in a flash mob calling for greater human rights in iran. chanting. and there was another first — the first—ever film collaboration between iran and israel, tatami, co—directed by israel's guy nattiv and holy spider actress zaramir ebrahimi. the film's set at the world judo championships, where the iranian government tries to force

their fighter to withdraw in case she faces and loses to an israeli competitor. it was so lovely. it was so smooth. it was so close, this collaboration. all of us, with producers, with the team. look, what our governments - are trying to prevent us from doing, we kind of achieved. chanting. there were also protests from some at the world premiere of woody allen's new film coup de chance, his first in the french language. however, the 87—year—old director has received rave reviews for the film set in paris, with a critical consensus that this is his best work in years. but that's not the case for allen's near—contemporary, roman polanski. the 90—year—old was not present for the world premiere of his comedy the palace — starring, amongst others, mickey rourke and john cleese, and set in a luxury hotel for the very wealthy. that one looks beautiful. | h want that one, please.

the film has been described as a grotesque satire but was the recipient of some terrible reviews. but it certainly was a talking point. such a beast, without a muzzle! there's a lot of things that roman wanted to say in a certain way. . i respect totally what he does, | but that's the movie he wanted to make, and i think he did exactly what he meant to do. _ hoard, a debut from british director luna carmoon, attracted a lot of attention here. it stars saura lightfoot leon oppositejoseph quinn, recently of stranger things fame, as a london couple pushing all boundaries of normality with each other. its critical buzz meant a lot to its director, who faced challenges getting her picture off the ground. a surreal moment. it's surreal because you kind of... you get to a point where you get rejections and you sort of grieve that people are not going to see your film. and i really did grieve the months before that people wouldn't see it. so then to get this,

this wasjust... ..completely mind— blowing, really. but it was left to an italian, film—maker matteo garrone, to deliver one of the most hard—hitting films. io capitano — "me captain" — is a story of two immigrants bound from africa to europe. it's certainly a provocative topic in a country where 41 migrants recently died in a shipwreck off its shores. is anyone in the water? welcome to the telluride film festival in colorado. telluride is not a massive film event, but it plays a very significant role in the film festival ecosystem. this year, because of the actors' strike, stars here in this town were rather thin on the ground. but in a way, that put the emphasis on the films and some of the gifted individuals who made them. it was also an important year in telluride because it's the festival's 50th anniversary. it takes place over the end—of—summer us labor day

holiday weekend in remarkably beautiful surroundings — just a handful of screening venues, some in the open air, showing a tightly curated selection of some a0 films in the main section. i can't fail this class. 0h, don't sell yourself short, mr kountze. i truly believe that you can. among the talked about movies this year, the holdovers, the latest work from alexander payne, in which he reunites with paul giamatti in a story of the relationship between a curmudgeonly teacher and a pupil at a new england prep school. you're going to get me fired. in 2021, the rape revenge story promising young woman brought its british writer/director emerald fennell a lot of attention and a screenplay 0scar. i can honestly say that these last few months have been the happiest of my life. so there was much anticipation for her new film, saltburn, that premiered at telluride, which she has described as being about wanting and desire and sex. but it received a mixed response. telluride festivalgoers and critics really embraced all of us strangers, a gay romance artfully constructed

by british film—maker andrew haig. at times, you feel you can make a magical connection with nature here, as you can, if you're lucky, with some of the films. at age 50, telluride prides itself on having very loyal followers — people who return year after year because they love both the place and cinema. to me, i see it as a pilgrimage. i come here and there's this incredible place with incredible films, and somehow everything feels like outside of the, quote—unquote, realworld. it's being surrounded by people who love film and talking about film as much as you. and what about the physical location? does that add to the festival? it's incredibly beautiful. it looks like a movie backdrop that's painted, but it's actual mountains. among the few well—known actors in telluride this year was ethan

hawke — but because of the strike, he was there only in his role as the director of his new film. even in normal times, this is not a festival that is celebrity—obsessed. that makes it refreshing for long—time attendees like michael patterson. one of the things that's been fun for me to watch over the years is when you have first—time attendees that are celebrities — and who are conditioned to a certain way of presenting at film festivals — get here and it's such a different atmosphere. they literally... folks that are famous can walk down the street and nobody bothers them. and i think it's like a liberating thing for them. in recent years, telluride has gained importance because it has the uncanny knack of selecting movies that go on to win 0scars. this goes all the way back to the king's speech... i have a voice! ..slumdog millionaire... you're absolutely right! cheering ..12 years a slave... i said, "come here!" i brought her back... ..and making them the first stop on the road to the eventual prize.

it would be fair to say that many in telluride are on the left of the political spectrum, but the festival is exclusive. it's expensive to travel to. everything costs a small fortune. but the festival redeems itself because of a steadfast focus on film—makers and cinema that goes back to its roots. it began mostly as a way of highlighting independent film, restorations, classic film, foreign film. i don't think it had aspirations to be the thing that it has turned into. and it's refreshing that the oscars race hasn't hijacked what gets into the line—up at telluride. it is a festival that celebrates film classics. film—maker steve mcqueen was here with a new documentary, but also as a guest director to host a screening of one of his favourite films, zero de conduite, jean vigo's 1933 41—minute—long masterpiece of french boarding school rebellion. steve mcqueen first saw it

when he was 19 and says it blew his mind. do you still get a sense of satisfaction out of watching it? i do, because there's a spark. i mean, there's a surrealist element to the film too which kind of keeps it alive and keeps it sort of relevant and also keeps it sort of... ..that you're questioning what you're seeing. i think that's why it's lasted the test of time. the film was banned in france until 1945 — it was deemed subversive. it has influenced countless directors, including the late british film—maker lindsay anderson, who made the picture if... understand? yes, sir. good! ..and francois truffaut with his picture the 400 blows. for steve mcqueen, this short film certainly ranks as wondrous cinema. at 41 minutes long, absolutely. i mean, it tells you what you can do with time. it's just beautiful. playfulness, the imagination. there's no holds barred. it's not at all conservative in any way, the film. and it's pretty amazing. it's pretty incredible.

children sing for anyone who has dealt with heartless, oppressive authority as a child — and few among us have not — there is something truly liberating about this picture of youthful rebellion. more than anything else, it's about freedom and fighting for your freedom. but unfortunately as we get older, we tend to compromise. and that's why i love the film. it reminds me of ideas that we need to hold on to. now let's take a look at some other telluride films that piqued my interest and got people talking. the galaxy theater, normally a school, was where i saw my first telluride film this year. it comes from the celebrated american playwright, theatre and film director george c wolfe. it's called rustin. 0wn your power. rustin is a portrait of bayard rustin, portrayed powerfully by actor colman domingo. black, white, young, old, rich, working class, poor will descend on washington, dc. rustin, born in 1912, was a key architect of one of the most momentous events

in 20th—century us history — the 1963 civil rights march on washington, where martin luther king gave his famous i have a dream speech. # we shall overcome... this year is the 60th anniversary of the march on washington. it was one of the largest rallies for human rights ever held in the us. it brought forth real change, credited with building momentum for the passage of the landmark 1964 civil rights act. bayard rustin�*s role in organising the march has been overlooked. it's been speculated that was partly because he was gay. george c wolfe passionately wanted to tell his story. there wouldn't have been a march without bayard rustin. his brain, his organisational brain was phenomenal. he was able to engage a group of young kids, in late teens, early 20s, to do all the hard, detailed work which allowed the march to happen. he had this brain, he could convince anybody of anything,

and he was able to garner the respect of everybody who he came into contact, even those people who did not want to respect him. people have obviously heard of martin luther king, the march on washington, "i have a dream," that speech. but they haven't heard so much about bayard rustin. was part of the aim of you making this film to really call attention to his contribution? without question. but more so than that, it's like...he was an activist of extraordinary power and command, and he had information — information that was lost when he died. and so that information needs to be passed on. his scenes where he's organising and challenging and pushing the young kids to do what they need to do — that's very important to know. it's notjust passion. it's having the logistics that go along with that passion. that's how you bring about a movement. that's how you bring about change. and that information needs to be known the world over. and it is known in some places, but a lot of places, it's not. passion is not enough. 0n the day that i was born black... ..i was also born a homosexual.

he was a gay man, and what comes across in the film, in a way, is that he had a lot of self—respect and he was living in a time that was actually very homophobic, yet he didn't internalise that. where did that self—respect come from, in a way? i think there's something very interesting in the fact that he was a quaker, and the tolerance of quaker religion served him very well in that respect. and also, i think on a real level, he was busy! he was busy changing the world, he didn't have time to be ashamed. well, that brings to a close our festival highlights edition of talking movies. we hope you've enjoyed the show. please remember, you can always reach us online at... so from me, tom brook, and the rest of the talking movies production team here in colorado, and from emma jones and her team in venice, it's goodbye. # she's gone for good and not coming back to me # you better believe it

# she took everything from me # baby's gone to hollywood # where the light looks good # pours down like honey # everyone said she's insane # to go with those dancers she met on the night train # baby's gone to hollywood hello, the storm clouds are now building and we are expecting intense downpours. quite nasty on the roads. the met office have warnings for those thunderstorms, likely to have a sudden flash

flooding, frequent lightning. more details on the website. as i say, quite torrential downpours out there. this applies really when you consider today. the second can negative days when it has been 30 degrees or more. that isa is a record fourth september. really quite unbearable for some. but behind this weather front in the north, there is relief on the way. behind it, much fresher air as we start to introduce winds down from the north and the west. but it's going to take probably until tuesday to clear the south, but it is going to eventually freshen up through the next few days. but for this evening, some fairly widespread thunderstorms, possibly even more further south to start with. and then our weather front, which has been more potent in the north as well today, will start to push southwards. so there will be some unsettled weather around, some tricky driving conditions through this evening and overnight. and for most, again, it will be really quite uncomfortable and close for sleeping because the humidity remains high. so there's mist and fog around first thing in the morning, which will take a while to clear. then we'll see some brighter skies, butjust generally more cloud, i think, for england

and wales tomorrow. 0ur weather front close by to northern ireland and southern scotland and northern england for much of the day, brighter skies with a few showers behind and fresher here across the north of scotland. but for most, again, the humidity is high and we'll still see temperatures into the mid to high twenties for the south and east. however, it's unlikely that we're going to see 30 degrees again. then through monday evening and overnight, that weatherfront may well pep up again. now, there'll be a few thunderstorms anyway developing during monday ahead of this weather system, combining with that further weather front slipping south. so, again, another humid night in southern areas, but in the north, much fresher in scotland, northern ireland, even a touch of ground frost potentially in the glens in the north this week. tuesday again sees that weather front pushing southwards. it will eventually reach more southern areas later in the day. ahead of that, some brightness lifting the temperatures into the low twenties, but for most, it will be a more manageable day. the humidity gone, quite pleasant with the sunshine in the north, scotland, northern ireland much, much brighter. but you can see the outlook. the temperatures are a little lower.

the humidity�*s gone, but it's a generally changeable, showery picture.

live from london. this is bbc news. rescue teams in morocco are trying

to reach remote communities destroyed by the strongest earthquake ever recorded in the country. the death toll currently stands at more than 2,000. us presidentjoe biden is visiting vietnam to sign a new diplomatic partnership, amid china's growing influence in the asia—pacific region. we don't mean to hurt china, sincerely. we are all better off if china does well, if china does well by the international rules. and world leaders have formally adopted the joint declaration as the g20 summit in delhi comes to an end , with india passing to an end, with india passing on the presidency to brazil. hello i'm tanya becket. in morocco, the race is on to clear debris from roads up into the atlas mountains — the epicentre of the massive earthquake — with the red cross warning that the first 48 hours

are vital in preventing what it calls a "disaster within a disaster"