Categories
Widget Image
Trending
Recent Posts
Tuesday, Oct 20th, 2026
HomeStandard Blog Whole Post (Page 1038)

We will never forget Vin in white leather, the Paramount executive in a sewer, and Scorsese’s plea for indie movies in multiplexes.

CinemaCon 2023 is a wrap, and while we covered a whole lot of movie reveals, some stuff just didn’t make the edit. Well, consider this story the director’s cut: Your IndieWire auteurs have seven (more) things you may have missed from Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas.

Who Says There Are No More Movie Stars?

CinemaCon refuses to believe the hype: “Movie stars” are alive and well and in Las Vegas. Gracing the Colosseum stage for Universal Picture were Will Ferrell (“Strays”), Anna Kendrick and Justin Timberlake (“Trolls 3”), Jack Black (“Kung Fu Panda 4”), and Vin Diesel (“Fast X”). Warner Bros. Discovery had “Barbie” stars Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, Timothée Chalamet for both “Wonka” and “Dune: Part Two,” Zendaya for the “Dune” sequel, and Oprah Winfrey for “The Color Purple,” alongside her cast and director. (Not in the house was Ezra Miller, star of “The Flash.”)

Sony had Will Smith and Martin Lawrence plugging “Bad Boys 4” via video, which was was probably the right choice, with in-person wattage provided by Denzel Washington and Jennifer Lawrence. Paramount brought Seth Rogen (“TMNT”), Rihanna (“The Smurfs”), and John Krasinski (“IF”); Lionsgate had Oscar-nominee Stephanie Hsu along with the rest of the “Joy Ride” cast and filmmakers.

Disney only had Melissa McCarthy, who was at CinemaCon anyway to accept an award (like Denzel).

CinemaCon Got Very Weird

We have to talk more about Vin Diesel; lord knows he talked enough. The “Fast X” star took. his. time. on stage Wednesday, wearing full-body, all-white “X” motorcycle leathers  And it got weirder from there.

“I look out and I see soldiers on the front lines,” said a very slow-talking Diesel, describing the theater owners in attendance. “What would society be like if we didn’t have the place called the movie theater?”

“I like this room better than the Oscars,” he said. (Diesel has never been nominated for an Academy Award, although he has been nominated for one Razzie, two Stinkers, and a bunch of Teen Choice Awards. He received the Action Star of the Year Award at CinemaCon 2011.)

From there his speech went on and on, and left, right, and every other direction — especially south. To be fair to Diesel, his decision to forgo the teleprompter (“You guys don’t give a shit about the teleprompter!”) and go full-on extemporaneous charmed at least some of the audience while confusing others and making things pretty giggly and uncomfortable in the designated press section.

Who Got the Biggest Laugh?

Grabbing the biggest laughs from center stage this week were Ferrell (and the dog he voices for in live-action R-rated comedy “Strays”), Rogen, and Gosling, probably in that order. In all the teasers and trailers, footage from J-Law’s raunchy Sony comedy “No Hard Feelings” got the biggest on-screen laughs.

Paramount domestic distribution president Chris Aronson also got points for his parodic reading of Nicole Kidman’s (in)famous AMC Theatres spot, but he had the audience smiling from the moment he emerged from a manhole cover stage left to celebrate “Turtles.” Quipped the film’s producer Rogen: “Not the first time I’ve seen a studio executive emerge from the sewers.”

Chris Aronson, president, domestic distribution, Paramount Pictures promoting “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem” during CinemaCon 2023

(Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for CinemaCon)

Last Year They Faked It, This Year They’ve Made It

In 2022, the great post-pandemic return to CinemaCon turned the event into one big pep rally. Last year the energy in the room felt like everyone wanted — and needed — cheerleading. This year there was a quiet confidence: More chill, less chanting.

If the fear has left Las Vegas, the loathing for shortened theatrical windows remains intact. There were more than a few mentions of “Avatar: The Way of Water,” and “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” and “Smile,” and every other movie that performed better than expected in theaters (don’t forget the ones that were made for streaming, as we were frequently reminded).

The box office still isn’t back to pre-pandemic levels and probably won’t make it there by the end of 2023, but there’s evidence that theaters still matter. This year, when folks on stage said the death of their business has been greatly exaggerated, we believed them.

“This industry has been pronounced dead a number of times… every time they’ve been wrong,” said outgoing National Association of Theater Owners president John Fithian in a press conference following his keynote. “Our epitaph has been written many times… people come back, and they come back in growing numbers.”

Amazon and Apple Were Here, Even Though They Weren’t

With movies to put in theaters and the exposure of streamers’ limitations, everyone felt good about the business. Still, Amazon and Apple were among the talks — and toasts — of the town.

Footage from Apple movies “Killers of the Flower Moon” and “Napoleon” were here via distributors Paramount and Sony, respectively (both looked really good on the big screen). And a primary talking point in the State of the Industry keynote was Apple and Amazon “announcing” $1 billion commitments to theatrical.

But here’s the thing: Neither company actually announced that. Those assumptions came from separate Bloomberg stories citing anonymous insider sources.

That said, one media-industry analyst we spoke with on the ground believes the two tech companies will be what finally brings the industry back to its pre-Covid release tallies. An exhibitor we spoke with even feels more positive about what Apple and Amazon’s plans than what’s been reported.

We asked Fithian about Amazon and Apple in a press conference that followed his keynote speech. He pointed us to an interview Amazon Studios chief Jen Salke gave to the New York Times about their commitment, and he pointed to Apple simply having two movies screening footage, not to mention Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio being here to promote it (more on those two in a moment).

And, he repeated information we heard all week that movies that get a theatrical window first perform better when they hit streaming. Still, there’s no clarity on what it means for windowing or how many movies they might push in the future.

“[Salke] made it very clear in that article this is not just a one-off test balloon in this space. That is consistent with conversations we’ve had with Amazon these last several years,” Fithian said. And he lamented that he seems to get questions every year about windows.

“There’s no one-size-fits-all answer. There never has been,” he said. “Windows calculations are all over the map, and the good news is those decisions are being made between the studios and the exhibitors now… it’s a partnership and a discussion between individual studios and the distributors. Charlie [Rivkin] and I certainly can’t tell what the windows will be.”

One final update about everyone here and streamers: They all still hate Netflix.

Rest in Retirement, John Fithian; Rest in Peace, Erik Lomis

Fithian got a hero’s send off at CinemaCon 2023. The well-liked president and CEO of NATO had a shoutout from each studio and sponsor, and made no fewer than three speeches from the top of the coffee table from a private party we attended in the Nobu Tower Suites. There, we also met the incoming Michael O’Leary; we believe the industry to (still) be in good hands. (The man loves “The Wire” — he’s cool with us.)

On the receiving end of seemingly as many tributes was the late, great Erik Lomis. He was most recently an evangelist for putting Amazon’s “Air” into theaters and was instrumental in pushing “Creed III” to above $270 million worldwide. Read IndieWire’s tribute to Lomis here.

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - APRIL 27: (L-R) Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio speak during "A Conversation with Martin Scorsese" and Legend of Cinema Award Presentation during CinemaCon, the official convention of the National Association of Theatre Owners, at Caesars Palace on April 27, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for CinemaCon)

Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio speak during “A Conversation with Martin Scorsese” and Legend of Cinema Award Presentation during CinemaCon 2023.

Getty Images for CinemaCon

A Final Word From the Master

When Martin Scorsese received The Cinema Foundation’s inaugural Legend of Cinema award (which will now be named the Martin Scorsese Legend of Cinema award), his speech called out theater owners to find ways to include smaller independent films on their multiplex screens. It would be an “investment,” Scorsese said, in the long-term health and love of cinema, saying that the kids who are attracted to those films today could make the blockbusters of the future.

The Thursday luncheon also included a conversation between the director and his “Killers of the Flower Moon”star Leonardo DiCaprio in which Scorsese discussed some of his influences on his new film, hinting that they included Howard Hawks’ “Red River” and William Wyler’s “The Heiress.”

Sign Up: Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Email Newsletters here.

Source link

We will never forget Vin in white

Meghan Markle has returned to her Hollywood roots by signing with a talent agency that represents some of the world’s biggest stars.

The Duchess of Sussex, 41, who worked as an actress before marrying Prince Harry, will be represented by global talent agency WME, which counts her close friend Serena Williams among its A-list clients. Tilda Swinton, Sir Patrick Stewart, and Helena Bonham Carter are also on the books.

“Film and television production, brand partnerships, and overall business-building will be explored,” reveals Variety, which first broke the news of the signing. There is disappointment, however, for fans of Suits, the US legal drama in which Meghan was given her break. “Acting will not be an area of focus,” the report adds.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex on their most recent outing

Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images

The signing reportedly marks the culmination of a years-long process that saw leading global talent agencies court the Duchess of Sussex who, arguably, is one of the most famous women in the world. WME will also represent Archewell, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s content creation label which was behind their Netflix docu-series Harry & Meghan and the duchess’s podcast, Archetypes. The Duchess of Sussex’s WME team will reportedly include super agent Ari Emanuel, who was famously fictionalized in HBO hit series Entourage.

It comes weeks after it was reported that Meghan Markle is set to revive her defunct lifestyle blog, The Tig, which she was forced to close when she married into the Royal Family. The New York Post cited a document filed with the US Patent and Trademark Office, seen by the daily newspaper. It reportedly indicates that a prospective relaunched version of the website could encompass articles and interviews on “food, cooking, recipes, travel, relationships, fashion, style, interior design, lifestyle, the arts, culture, design, conscious living, health and wellness.”

Source link

Meghan Markle has returned to her Hollywood

(Photo by: Comedy Central)

Comedy Central appears to be committed to staying in the original series business but this Wednesday night show’s ratings a quite low. Will Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens be cancelled or renewed for season four? Stay tuned.

A scripted comedy series, the Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens TV show was created by Nora Lum (aka Awkwafina) and Teresa Hsiao. The cast includes Lum, Lori Tan Chinn, BD Wong, Bowen Yang, Gabo Augustine, Michelle Buteau, Jennifer Esposito, Chrissie Fit, Jonathan ‘Dumbfoundead’ Park, Jaboukie Young White, Wai Ching Ho, and Liang Ying He. The story is loosely based on the real life of actress and comedian Awkwafina. Raised by her father Wally (Wong) and Grandma (Chinn) alongside her cousin, Edmund (Yang), Nora leans on her family as she navigates life and young adulthood in the Flushing neighborhood of Queens in New York City.

The ratings are typically the best indication of a show’s chances of staying on the air. The higher the ratings, the better the chances of survival. This chart will be updated as new ratings data becomes available.

Note: If you’re not seeing the updated chart, please try reloading the page or view it here.

For comparisons: Season two of Awkwafina on Comedy Central averaged a 0.12 rating in the 18-49 demographic and 301,000 viewers.

Note: These are the final national ratings, including all live+same day viewing and DVR playback (through 3:00 AM). Early fast affiliate ratings (estimates) are indicated with an “*”. While these numbers don’t include further delayed or streaming viewing, they are a very good indicator of how a show is performing, especially when compared to others on the same channel. There can be other economic factors involved in a show’s fate, but typically the higher-rated series are renewed and the lower-rated ones are cancelled.

 

What do you think? Do you like the Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens TV series on Comedy Central? Should it be cancelled or renewed for a fourth season?

Check out our status sheets to track new TV series pickups, renewals, and cancellations. You can find lists of cancelled shows here.

Source link

Published: April 27, 2023(Photo by: Comedy Central) Comedy

A key player on “Yellowjackets” has opted to sit out Emmy season.

Nonbinary actor Liv Hewson, who plays the scarred teenage goalkeeper Van Palmer on Showtime’s hit drama, won’t be submitting themselves for this year’s Primetime Emmy Awards despite being eligible in the main acting races. Hewson, 27, tells Variety exclusively they made the decision because of the Television Academy’s separation of acting categories into male and female.

Read: Variety’s Awards Circuit for the latest Emmy predictions.

“There’s not a place for me in the acting categories,” Hewson says. “It would be inaccurate for me to submit myself as an actress. It neither makes sense for me to be lumped in with the boys. It’s quite straightforward and not that loaded. I can’t submit myself for this because there’s no space for me.”

An integral part of the “Yellowjackets” ensemble, which includes Melanie Lynskey and Christina Ricci — both Emmy nominees last year — Hewson has been a highlight of the sophomore season. While Hewson is a considerable long shot for Emmy acting recognition, Season 2 shows Van toeing a thin line between her love for girlfriend and teammate Taissa (Jasmin Savoy Brown) and her growing fear of the evil that may lie within Tai.

Variety exclusively revealed on March 30 Showtime’s plans for acting submissions, where Hewson was named among the supporting drama actress contenders. Since then, in a meeting with Showtime and other team members, they shared the decision not to submit themselves.

LGBTQ activists and allies have advocated for gender-neutral acting categories at major awards ceremonies like the Oscars and the Golden Globes. In 2017, “Billions” star Asia Kate Dillon, the first nonbinary performer to play a nonbinary character on a major TV show, asked the TV Academy to clarify its gender classifications. Other actors who identify as nonbinary also have weighed in, such as Emma D’Arcy, who submitted for lead drama actress for “House of the Dragon” this year, and Carl Clemons-Hopkins, the first nonbinary actor recognized for supporting comedy actor (for “Hacks” in 2021). Progress has been made recently: The Gotham Awards opted in 2021 to stop defining its categories by gender. The Independent Spirit Awards followed suit a year later. Even the Grammys have been completely gender-neutral for a decade.

At the same time, inclusion advocates fear that if nongendered categories become the norm, cisgender white men will be the biggest beneficiaries, rolling back the gains made since #OscarsSoWhite in 2016. Hewson won’t concede to those worries, saying: “There is an implied fatalism there, which suggests that we’ve all agreed that equality is impossible. And that’s sad.”

“We’re not going to start awarding best female and male director, or female or male cinematographer,” they continue. “Because we all understand that implicitly would be insulting. You can keep things as they are right now — I just won’t be participating.”

J Harrison Ghee, nonbinary actor submitted themselves for Emmy consideration for Fox’s anthology series “Accused”

The dilemma puts nonbinary actors in a place where they must make an uncomfortable choice. Hewson has made theirs, whereas J. Harrison Ghee, a nonbinary actor on Fox’s anthology crime series “Accused,” will submit themselves for lead actor in a limited series Emmy consideration. Meanwhile, they will be vying for a Tony nom for lead actor (musical) for the revival of “Some Like It Hot.”

“It’s not a gendered profession to me, and I was grateful to be asked for consideration on where I wanted to be viewed,” says Ghee. “Making that decision wasn’t hard on my spirit. It was just to be confident and intentional about my work and meeting the moment.”

As for Hewson, Showtime and their fellow cast members have been “incredibly supportive” of their decision, they say — especially after they had top surgery before filming the second season. Hewson wants their stand to be meaningful and for Hollywood to continue discussing the complexities of these questions.

“It’s worth talking about,” Hewson says. “And I very gently and respectfully ask that people get their gears turning a little.”

Source link

A key player on “Yellowjackets” has opted

Harry Styles made an appearance on the final episode of The Late Late Show With James Corden. The singer-songwriter helped James Corden close out his nine-year run hosting the Los Angeles–based late-night show with a “Spill Your Guts Or Eat Your Guts” segment, discussing OneDirection and his recent televised stage malfunction. Styles also participated in the episode’s cold open. Watch the full episode—featuring additional appearances from David Letterman, Will Ferrell, Seth Meyers, Stephen Colbert, Reggie Watts, Corden’s parents, and more—below.

Corden announced the end of his Late Late Show tenure last April. He also brought his long-running “Carpool Karaoke” series to an end earlier this week, with Adele taking the passenger’s side of her good friend’s ride to belt a Barbra Streisand song and a few of her own tunes.

Styles’ promotional circuit in support of last year’s Harry’s House has included performances at the BRIT Awards and the 2023 Grammy Awards. In March, Bad Bunny sang Styles’ “As It Was” during one of Corden’s “Carpool Karaoke” segments.

Source link

Harry Styles made an appearance on the

NOW IN THEATERS! If you’ve seen the trailer for Jalmari Helander’s action movie, Sisu, you know exactly what you’re getting into. No surprises.

Jorma Tommila stars as our deadly protagonist, Aatami. It’s the final days of World War II, and a Nazi platoon in Finland is ordered to return to the front. However, their cunning commander knows their days are numbered and plans to stay and settle in Finland. Meanwhile, the elderly Aatami was digging through his field and stumbled on a serious vein of gold. Now that Aatami is rich, the only thing standing between him and his bank is the Nazis.

When Aatami passes by a small squad of soldiers, they stop him and discover he has gold. Needing money to start a new life in Finland, they decide to rob Aatami…they have no chance as Aatami is a former soldier and an insane killing machine. As Aatami approaches their commander, he discovers the leader has kidnapped women from the village and uses them as recreation for his men. Naturally, Aatami does not like this.

Sisu is about as straightforward a story as you can get. Aatami needs to get to the bank; all he has to do is kill the Nazis he encounters along the way. What makes this story so exciting and engaging is the amount of gore and blood it takes to do it. As Aatami, Jorma Tommila is pretty kick a*s. Not sure how much this older gentleman did stunt-wise, but he’s a likable character, and how Lionsgate wisely paired this tale up with John Wick: Chapter 4. He looks like a gentle killer with the legend of Sisu following him around like a dark cloud.

“Now that Aatami is rich, the only thing standing between him and his bank is the Nazis.”

Think of Sisu as a symphony. It starts quietly. Our hero never says a word throughout the film except at the end. He meets a small band of soldiers, and the action starts with a knife to the skull, as seen in the trailer. Before you know it, everyone’s dead, and as Aatami moves his way from one mini-boss to the next, the violence increases in gore, blood, and dismemberment.

The violence in this film is over-the-top cartoon violence, except in cartoons, a stick of dynamite means you’re going to get black ash covering your body. Here a stick of dynamite means everyone else is going to be bloody red, and your legs are the only thing still standing after the blast.

As stated before, there’s not much of a story. Aatami needs to get to the bank, and no one is stopping him. Other than that, the plot is thin. We get an inking of the legend that Aatami has built over his life, and yes, he’s an honorable man when he saves the women. That’s all well and good, but we’re here for the action, and it’s worth the price of admission. Yes, we deserve a deeper plot with subtext…but then again, why ruin a good thing?

In the end, Sisu is all about the violence and blood, and there are buckets of both. This is one of those action films where you can just sit back, unplug your brain, and hop on for one wild ride.

Source link

NOW IN THEATERS! If you’ve seen the

A Chinese combat drone was flown around Taiwan today, showcasing the communist nation’s ability to attack the island’s east coast bases. 

China, which views democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory, has increased military pressure on the island over the past three years as it tries to force Taipei to accept its sovereignty claim.

Taiwan’s defence ministry today said 38 military aircraft had entered the island’s air defence identification zone.

One of those was a TB-001 drone, nicknamed the twin-tailed scorpion, which flew around Taiwan, first crossing the Bashi Channel that separates Taiwan from the Philippines, then up the east of Taiwan before crossing back toward the Chinese coast, according to a map provided by the ministry.

It was spotted between 6 am (1000 GMT) Thursday and 6 am Friday.

Taiwan’s air defence identification zone

Chieh Chung, a military researcher at Taiwan’s National Policy Foundation think tank, said that during a war, China was likely to send the TB-001 to spot targets on the island’s east coast, where Taiwan would shelter reserve forces, as bases there do not face China.

‘It will allow the communist’s military’s naval and air forces in the Western Pacific, including air force strike groups or carrier battle groups, to launch attacks’ on the east coast, he said.

He added that it was not the first time a Chinese drone has flown around Taiwan, but was most likely to first time it did so entirely within Taiwan’s air defence zone.

Chinese state media has referred to the TB-001 as the ‘twin-tailed scorpion’ and has shown pictures of it carrying missiles, saying it is capable of high-altitude, long-range missions.

China’s air force has flown what it calls ‘island encirclement’ missions with the crewed, nuclear-capable H-6 bomber.

The tensions around Taiwan have alarmed Washington and its allies, which have repeatedly expressed concern at China’s behaviour and called for no forced change in the status quo.

A U.S. Navy P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft flew through the Taiwan Strait on Friday, and a senior French lawmaker confirmed a warship from his country had recently transited the sensitive waterway.

The United States, and occasionally its allies, have routinely sent warships and aircraft through the Taiwan Strait in recent years.

The U.S. Navy’s 7th Fleet said the Poseidon flew in international airspace.

A TB-001, nicknamed "Twin-Tailed Scorpion", unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) performs during Airshow China 2022 at Zhuhai Air Show Center on November 9, 2022 in Zhuhai, Guangdong Province of China

A TB-001, nicknamed “Twin-Tailed Scorpion”, unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) performs during Airshow China 2022 at Zhuhai Air Show Center on November 9, 2022 in Zhuhai, Guangdong Province of China

‘By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations,’ it said in a statement. ‘The aircraft’s transit of the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the United States’ commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific.’

China’s military said it monitored the aircraft, and accused the United States of provocative behaviour in the strait.

China said last year that it has sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction over the Taiwan Strait, and said it was ‘a false claim’ to refer to the strait as international waters.

The United States and Taiwan both say China’s position is not correct.

Meeting Tsai at her office in Taipei on Friday, a French lawmaker and former defence minister said sending a warship through the strait showed his country’s commitment to security.

‘I want to tell you that our parliament’s view is that the security of Taiwan is an important concern for us and we are encouraging our authorities to stay alert on security in the Strait, as the recent passage of our warship has again demonstrated,’ French Senate Vice President Alain Richard said.

He did not say when the sailing happened, and neither the French nor Taiwanese governments has officially confirmed details. Taiwan’s defence ministry said this month it was aware of the transit.

French President Emmanuel Macron recently warned against being drawn into a crisis over Taiwan driven by an ‘American rhythm and a Chinese overreaction’.

Source link

A Chinese combat drone was flown around

Real-time train delays, bus route changes and other service information that would be vital to millions of New York City commuters will no longer be shared on Twitter because the “reliability of the platform can no longer be guaranteed,” a Metropolitan Transportation Authority official said on Thursday.

The M.T.A., the largest public transportation agency in North America, is the latest big-name account to make significant adjustments to how it uses the platform, after recent changes under its new owner, Elon Musk. In recent months, Twitter has eliminated the blue check mark, thrown out content moderation rules and tinkered with the algorithm that decides which posts are most visible. NPR and PBS suspended all of their Twitter use this month after they were designated “Government-funded Media” on the platform, a label that Twitter later removed.

“The M.T.A. has terminated posting service information to Twitter, effective immediately,” Shanifah Rieara, the agency’s acting chief customer officer, said in a news release.

The agency’s access to Twitter through its application programming interface was involuntarily interrupted on April 14 and again on Thursday, officials said.

The agency does not pay tech platforms to publish service information, which Ms. Rieara said could also be found through the MYmta and TrainTime apps, the M.T.A.’s website, email alerts and text messages.

“Service alerts are also available on thousands of screens in stations, on trains and in buses,” she said.

The M.T.A. did not immediately respond to a request for comment early Friday.

On Twitter, the M.T.A. responded to dozens of concerned customers, some of whom questioned the decision. Still, the agency doubled down. “We’ve loved getting to know you On Here, but we don’t love not knowing if we can to communicate with you each day,” the agency said in a pinned tweet on its feed.

Ridership on the M.T.A., which oversees a complicated network of subways, buses and commuter rail lines that stitch the city together, is improving from the early days of the pandemic. In February, there were more than 84 million subway trips and more than 33 million bus trips, which were about two-thirds of the ridership rates in February 2019, according to the city’s comptroller’s office.

The M.T.A. said it was not abandoning Twitter altogether. Its account will remain active for branding and other messaging, and customers may continue to tweet at the M.T.A. accounts, including @mta and @nyctsubway for questions and requests.

The agency appears to be one of the only transportation networks around the world to have stopped using Twitter to communicate with its customers.

Subway operators in Madrid, Paris, Singapore and Tokyo were among those still providing regular service updates on Twitter as of Friday.

Mike Ives contributed reporting.

Source link

Real-time train delays, bus route changes and

Exclusive: When CODA star Troy Kotsur won the Academy Award last year – becoming the first Deaf male actor to do so – he paid tribute to his father.

“Dad, I learned so much from you,” he said on the Dolby Theatre stage. “I’ll always love you. You are my hero.”

To My Father, a short documentary set to premiere at the Tribeca Festival on June 8, explores the relationship between Kotsur and his father Leonard, a man who mastered ASL to communicate with his son and “be the best possible father to Troy.” Tragically, when Troy was a senior in high school, his father was struck by a drunk driver, an accident that left Leonard Kotsur with life-threatening injuries.

“He became paralyzed from the neck down,” Troy said in his moving Oscar acceptance speech, “and he no longer was able to sign.”

The documentary from nonprofit content studio Emergent Order Foundation (EO) is directed by Sean Schiavolin (Beyond Homelessness: Finding Hope) and produced by John Papola (At The Fork, The Pursuit) and Troy Kotsur. 

“The lessons Troy learned from his dad allowed him to turn the tragedy into triumph,” notes a release about the film. “To My Father, and Troy’s personal story, are truly inspiring and contain valuable lessons that can help each of us overcome the setbacks and challenges we all inevitably come to face in our own lives.”

Troy Kotsur attending the Vanity Fair Oscar Party March 27, 2022.

Doug Peters/PA Images via Getty Images

In a statement, Kotsur said, “My dad raised a Deaf child in a time when the roadmap was not as available as it is today, but he navigated it with love. Crafting this film was an emotional journey. These are the stories that are important for us to share, and it is an honor for me to tell the world about my father. I’m the man that I am today because of my dad and this film is a tribute to him. Through this story, I hope to pass along pieces of the inspiration and wisdom that helped me through my most difficult times.”

Producer John Papola, co-founder and CEO of EO Foundation, noted, “To My Father is the story of Troy Kotsur overcoming the obstacles that life throws at you and seeing yourself as the hero of your own adventure rather than a victim of circumstance. You need to look no further than Troy and his father for the best example for how to overcome adversity and take control of your life.”

“When Troy Kotsur gave his moving Oscar speech,” director Sean Schiavolin observed, “he invited the world into the remarkable story of him and his dad. I wanted this film to capture that story and inspire reflection on the power of sacrificial love.”

Kotsur studied theater, film and television at Gallaudet University in Washington, DC, and following graduation he toured with the National Theatre of the Deaf. His bio notes, “Previous to CODA, Troy was most known for his successful and highly prolific theater career, which includes multiple roles in the Tony Award winning run of Big River on Broadway, performing at the Mark Taper Forum, and a role in the 2015 LA Drama Critics Circle Award nominee Spring Awakening.”

Kotsur’s first major film role came in The Number 23 alongside Jim Carrey, and in 2016 he took on his first leading role in the independent feature Wild Prairie Rose. He made his directorial debut with 2013’s No Ordinary Hero: The SuperDeafy Movie, which brought a positive message to Deaf children. In television, Kotsur gained recognition in the Star Wars universe for creating the Tusken sign language, which was used in both The Book of Boba Fett and The Mandalorian, a series in which he also appeared as an actor.

Watch the trailer for To My Father above.

Source link

Exclusive: When CODA star Troy Kotsur won

About The Author

Justin Anderson joined Realscreen as senior staff writer in 2021, reporting and writing stories for the newsletter and magazine. During his 20-year career he’s filled a variety of roles as a writer and editor at a number of media organizations, covering news and current affairs as well as business, tech, the film and music industries and plenty in between. He’s also spent time behind the scenes in television production, having written everything from voiceover scripts for documentaries to marketing copy. He has a degree in Journalism from Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University).

Source link

20 Subtle Tiny Movie Details

Source link

20 Subtle Tiny Movie Details

Eva Green has broken her silence about her lawsuit against film production company White Lantern and financiers Sherborne Media Finance over a failed movie called “A Patriot.”

During the discovery process, “humiliating” WhatsApp messages Green had sent were revealed publicly and were read out during the trial.

On Friday morning a judge ruled that Green had won her case and dismissed Sherborne’s counter-suit alleging Green had set out to purposely cause the film to collapse.

Read her the actor’s full statement below:

Today, after a lengthy legal battle, I’ve won my case in The High Court in London. The case has been widely misreported in the press and I’d like to take this opportunity to make my own personal statement.

I have won my claim against the financiers of the proposed film – and all the allegations which they made against me have been wholly rejected by the Judge. My professional reputation has been upheld. The Judge has found that I was never in breach of my contractual obligations. The judgement is clear. I am grateful to the Court, to the Judge, to my legal team and to my valiant agent who is my strength and my shield.

In this legal action I was forced to stand up to a small group of men, funded by deep financial resources, who tried to use me as a scapegoat to cover up their own mistakes. I am proud that I stood up against their bully-boy tactics. They made false allegations about me in public court documents which the Judge has now shown are totally incorrect. A few people in the press were only too delighted to re-print these lies without proper reporting. There are few things the media enjoys more than tearing a woman to pieces. It felt like being set upon by hounds; I found myself misrepresented, quoted out of context and my desire to make the best possible film was made to look like female hysteria. It was cruel and it was untrue.

As a result of this case, the cat’s well and truly out of the bag that I am mildly terrified of public speaking, that I don’t understand technical financial structures, that I am fragile in the face of aggression, that I’m passionate about my work and that my heart breaks when people are unkind. I’m also the kind of person who escapes through the back door at parties and is happiest at home alone with my dogs. But, most importantly, I want to add that I’m also at my happiest when I’m making the films that I love and that I believe in, working side by side with brilliant crews in the U.K. and overseas. Therefore, the deliberate misreporting by some of the press has amplified the pain to a huge degree and has been more painful than I can say.

I fought tooth and nail to defend the beautiful film that I loved and had signed on for. A film that spoke of a cause I hold dear – climate change and warned of the resource wars and mass migration that would occur if we don’t address the problem.

I stood my ground, and this time, justice prevailed.

I wish I could say that this ordeal has made me stronger, better, wiser. But to have my personal life dragged through the press and the court was more painful and damaging than I can say. Which is why I want to thank those kind people who, when I was being vilified by the press, supported me, on social media and on other platforms. It was a great comfort to me to know that I wasn’t alone and it helped to know that so many people could see through the legal tricks, the PR and the spin. I promise with all my heart, I will always strive to deserve the kind support that you have given me.

Thank you.

Eva x

Source link

Eva Green has broken her silence about

Just over three months after its release in the theaters, Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania will finally be coming to Disney+.

The third installment in the Ant-Man franchise, Quantumania featured the return of Paul Rudd as the titular character and properly introduced Jonathan Majors as Kang of the Conqueror, the next big Marvel universal threat.

Photo: Marvel

While Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantuamania was released with big expectations, the film failed to resonate with critics or audiences.

Disappointing Box Office Results

Although not expected to match the returns of more lucrative franchises like Black Panther or Thor, the film’s $400 million dollar return was still disappointing for both Marvel and Disney.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania

Photo: Marvel

The paltry numbers, combined with a Rotten Tomatoes approval rating of 47%, have led both Disney and Marvel to rethink their strategy when it comes to the future of the MCU.

Delayed Streaming Release

Unlike other recent Marvel releases, when Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania was released on digital platforms on April 18, 2023, the film did not appear on Disney+.

Kang the Conqueror

Photo: Marvel

This differentiated from the digital releases of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and Thor: Love and Thunder. Both of those films landed on Disney+ right away when digital sales began.

Ant-Man and Kang

Photo: D23

Some Hollywood insiders have suggested that Disney was hoping to increase Quantumania‘s revenue by giving the film a “digital purchase only” window.

When Will Quantumania Hit Disney+

Finally, Disney has announced that Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania will land on Disney+ on May 17. Marvel fans waiting for the film to come to streaming will finally get to see the third Ant-Man release.

It is also interesting to note that the film will be released on Blu-ray and DVD, one day prior, on May 16.

Quantumania Poster

Photo: Disney+

So, will you be streaming Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania on Disney+? What do you think about Disney’s release strategy? Let us know below!

Thanks for visiting MickeyBlog.com! Want to go to Disney? For a FREE quote on your next Disney vacation, please fill out the form below and one of the agents from MickeyTravels, a Diamond level Authorized Disney Vacation Planner, will be in touch soon! Also, thanks for reading!

Source link

Just over three

In 2010, Alice in Wonderland exceeded expectations away by earning over a billion at the box office. Since then, Disney has dutifully churned out several live-action remakes in an effort to stimulate reliable box office success. However, with continually less-than-stellar reviews, it seems even Disney’s most cherished intellectual properties aren’t bulletproof. The studio’s latest reimagining, Peter Pan & Wendy, isn’t even given the grace of a theatrical release. Instead, it is coming straight into consumers’ homes on Disney+. Unfortunately, Peter Pan & Wendy is a middling, predictable attempt at reworking the Peter Pan story with a lack of visual flare and definitive sense of self. Jude Law’s unexpectedly empathetic Captain Hook attempts to rescue this film, but he can only do so much.

Spoiler Alert

Starring Alexander Molony and Ever Gabo Anderson, Peter Pan & Wendy follows Wendy Darling (Ever Anderson), a strong-willed young woman reluctantly preparing to leave her beloved brothers John (Joshua Pickering) and Michael (Jacobi Jupe) behind. She’s heading off to boarding school at the behest of her parents (Molly Parker and Alan Tudyk). Wendy’s reluctance to grow up and embrace young adulthood is noticed by the mischievous Peter Pan (Alexander Molony). With the help of his pixie friend Tinker Bell (Yara Shahidi) he whisks Wendy and her brothers away for an adventure in his magical world of Neverland. 

From character beats to set pieces, the first half hour of Peter Pan & Wendy is virtually identical to the opening of the 1953 film. It sets up the same plot and themes of the original, except with the now-customary update in aesthetic trappings for “modern” audiences. For example, Wendy gets bloomers instead of a nightgown. Peter Pan & Wendy follows Alice in Wonderland in terms of putting the sword in the hands of its demure heroine. While that idea was a novelty and interesting subversion of expectations in 2010, it now feels like a uninspired approach to every women-led live-action Disney remake. Seeing it here feels tiresome and borderline condescending.

wendy, peter pan, and a person in a top hat peek over a cliff
Disney

As it stands, Wendy Darling is already one of Disney’s most interesting, unique young heroines, especially considering the time in which she was written. Wendy’s dilemma of duty to her family and limits of her gender role and station in contrast with her desire to savor the joy of youth is a complicated, insightful story that continues to ring true with young women today. (Just look at Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, a current film with similar themes.)

This film doesn’t double down on the internal conflict that made Wendy so easy to love in the first place. Instead, she’s made to fit the cookie cutter mold of ‘empowered’, weapon-wielding live-action Disney. This interpretation of the character feels underbaked because of the aforementioned coherence to the original in the crucial first act. Because it follows the original film’s formula so strictly, this significant changes feels particularly unearned.

Peter Pan & Wendy departs from the original once we get to Neverland; however, these measures to update the story and bring something different to a younger generation of viewers feels too conservative, timid, and formulaic. Tiger Lilly also gets the action heroine treatment. She goes from damsel in distress to horseback-riding axe-wielding leader of the Lost Boys. Tiger Lilly is essentially the “muscle” of Peter Pan’s fight against the pirates. It’s good to see the film steer clear of the harmful portrayal of Indigenous characters from the original Peter Pan. But this update of the character on a thematic and narrative level again feels shallow. She simply goes from one stereotype to a marginally less offensive one. 

jude law as captain hook in peter pan & wendy
Eric Zachanowich/Disney

There is one meaningful change in Peter Pan & Wendy, though, that makes the film interesting: the increased screen time and character development of Captain Hook. It’s understandable that when making the jump to live-action, Disney would want to give the most emotional heavy lifting to a more experienced actor. And Jude Law is without question the film’s MVP. Taking some visual queues from Taika Waititi in Our Flag Means Death, Law’s Captain Hook is more of a long-haired sadboi than a flamboyant, maniacal caricature obsessed with a ticking crocodile.

Instead, Hook is a childhood friend of Peter Pan who left Neverland because he missed his mother. He returns as an adult and but his former best friend shuns him. This story development picks up on an interesting quirk of Peter Pan’s personality in the original film. He’s brash, self-centered, and not all that likable. The fact that Peter Pan & Wendy explores Peter as a morally gray character versus an infallible folk hero is worth celebrating.

Alexander Molony does an admirable job of holding his own when engaging in intense exchanges with Jude Law’s Hook. Together they deliver the film’s most affecting, emotional scenes. This is working despite some strange stylistic and directorial choices from David Lowery. His previous deft craft in films like The Green Knight is strangely absent.

a large ship floats in the sky towards a cliff in peter pan & wendy
Disney

The film feels choppily edited, especially in regards to music queues. Composer Daniel Hart’s sweeping, grandiose score full of Indigenous war cries behind Tiger Lilly and angelic chorals beneath Wendy is chopped and parsed among the sound design of Harry Potter-esque action sequences. 

There are rare glimpses of brilliance in Peter Pan & Wendy that hint at a bold take on this beloved story. Lowery’s reimagining of the journey to Neverland with a disorienting, portal-esque sequence is particularly memorable. The same goes for Hook and Peter’s final emotional reconciliation. But those moments are far too infrequent. And the rest of the film is so stale and shallow that it’s hard to truly call this something new.

Peter Pan & Wendy is currently streaming on Disney+.

Source link

In 2010, Alice in Wonderland

Since smartphones obliterated the casual photography market, camera manufacturers are focusing on building models designed for very specific uses. Mirrorless cameras continue to improve in autofocus, video and more, while lens ranges expand year on year. Action cams provide sharp, fluid video, compact cameras target both tourists and vloggers and DSLRs are available at some of the best prices we’ve seen. We walk you through 2023’s highlights so far, including full-frame marvels, like Sony’s ZV-E1, the Canon EOS R6 II and the Panasonic S5 II. (I am on the precipice of ordering the ZV-E1, myself.)

If you’re considering a camera upgrade, this is a very good time to do so. Engadget’s Steve Dent walks you through the options.

– Mat Smith

The Morning After isn’t just a newsletter – it’s also a daily podcast. Get our daily audio briefings, Monday through Friday, by subscribing right here.

The biggest stories you might have missed

With an AMD Ryzen 7000 chip likely the same as the one in ASUS ROG Ally.

Engadget

Ayaneo has confirmed its upcoming Ayaneo 2S Steam Deck-like handheld console will be powered by an AMD chip identical to the one in the . The AMD Ryzen 7000 chip is likely the Ryzen 7 7840U, a chip supposed to be nigh on the same as the Ally’s AMD Z1 Extreme. The Ayaneo 2S will also come with a three-pipe cooler and other improvements. The Ayaneo 2S looks identical to the Ayaneo 2 we reviewed earlier this year but has improvements that address some of our key complaints. Namely, the new 7000 series processor with Radeon 780M graphics offers “substantial performance gains.”

Continue reading.

It has a detachable visor that stretches across your face.

If Zyou hate breathing in pollutants and don’t mind being stared at, then your time might have come: The Dyson Zone headphones are finally available to buy in the US. They’re available on Dyson Direct in prussian blue and bright copper, with case, soft pouch, two filters and an in-flight adapter kit, all for the low, low price at $949.

Continue reading.

But I still want it.

TMA

Teenage Engineering

Teenage Engineering has long made music gadgets with slick design and features, and now it’s dabbling in microphones. The CM-15 is described as the world’s “first all-in-1 mic offering.” There is a built-in battery that gets ten hours of use per charge, or you can plug it into any USB-C port to get some juice. As for connections, there’s a 3.5mm line output, a mini XLR and the aforementioned USB-C port. The microphone includes a built-in preamp, too. However, it’ll cost over $1,200 to bring this stylish microphone home. It starts shipping in June.

Continue reading.

It’s been exclusive to the Direct sales platform since launch.

The well-reviewed yet pricey PlayStation VR2 headset is making its way to retailers after a two-month stint of exclusivity at Sony’s own website. The company shared the news on Twitter but has not set an official date or even announced what lucky retailers would get their mitts on the PS5-adjacent headset. Sony tells customers to check with local retailers for availability information.

Continue reading.

Source link

Since smartphones obliterated the casual photography market,

It’s time to master your marketing. 

There’s something magical about the world of filmmaking. From the glamour and excitement of the red carpet to the captivating stories that unfold on the big screen, it’s no wonder that so many people dream of becoming a filmmaker.

However, the path to success in this field can be challenging, and it requires a combination of education, experience, and networking to make it to the top.

In this article, we’ll explore how to become a filmmaker and market yourself like a pro, so you can turn your passion for film into a successful career.

Let’s dive in. 

Table of Contents


How to Become a Filmmaker – Education, Experience, and Networking

Becoming a filmmaker requires a combination of education, experience, and networking.

While many filmmakers start out as self-taught, it’s essential to have a strong educational foundation to build upon. A degree in film, media, or communications can provide you with the technical skills and knowledge needed to succeed in the industry, but experience and connections are crucial in this field.

Whether you’re working on student films or volunteering on local productions, building a portfolio of work is essential to gaining the experience and skills needed to succeed.

Networking is also critical in the film industry. Building relationships with other filmmakers, producers, and industry professionals can open doors to new opportunities and help you gain valuable insights into the industry. Attending film festivals, joining industry organizations, and volunteering on film sets are excellent ways to connect with others in the field.

The Importance of Marketing Yourself as a Filmmaker

Marketing yourself as a filmmaker is essential to building a successful career in the industry. With so many talented filmmakers vying for the same opportunities, it’s crucial to stand out from the crowd. By developing a strong personal brand and showcasing your work, you can position yourself as a skilled and talented filmmaker that others want to work with.

So, how can you build your brand and market yourself? 

Director Sidney LumetCredit: Sidney Lumet

Understanding Your Target Audience

Understanding your target audience is essential to marketing yourself effectively as a filmmaker.

Whether you’re creating documentaries, feature films, or short films, knowing who your audience is and what they want to see on screen can help you tailor your work to their interests. Conducting research and analyzing audience demographics can help you gain insights into your target audience and create films that resonate with them.

Who are you trying to connect with, and why? How can you access them? 

Knowing this information will inform you of how to structure your story or your shot list.

Building Your Personal Brand as a Filmmaker

Building a personal brand is critical to marketing yourself effectively as a filmmaker. Your personal brand is how you present yourself to the world, and it should reflect your unique voice, style, and values.

Creating a personal brand statement, developing a professional website, and using consistent branding across all your marketing materials can help you build a strong personal brand that sets you apart from other filmmakers.

Here are some tips: 

  1. Define your brand: Start by defining what makes you unique as a filmmaker. This could include your style, genre, values, or approach to storytelling.

  2. Create a portfolio: Create a portfolio of your work, including your films, trailers, and behind-the-scenes content. This can showcase your skills and style to potential collaborators and employers.

  3. Establish a consistent online presence: Use social media and other online platforms to establish a consistent online presence. Use the same username and profile picture across platforms, and use a consistent tone and style in your posts.

  4. Network with other filmmakers: Networking with other filmmakers can help you build relationships and gain new opportunities. Attend industry events, join online communities, and collaborate on projects to expand your network.

  5. Be active on social media: Be active on social media, and use it to showcase your work and personality. Share your interests, insights, and experiences, and engage with your followers and peers.

  6. Develop a personal website: Develop a personal website to showcase your portfolio, bio, and other information about your work. This can serve as a hub for your online presence and make it easier for others to find and learn about you.

  7. Consistency is key: Consistency is key when it comes to building your personal brand. Make sure your brand messaging, style, and content are consistent across all platforms and interactions.

20 directing tips we know but always forget
Spike Lee on the set of ‘BlacKkKlansman’Credit: Focus Features

Creating a Portfolio – Showcasing Your Work

Creating a portfolio of your work is essential to marketing yourself as a filmmaker.

Your portfolio should include examples of your best work and demonstrate your skills and expertise in the field. Whether you’re creating a demo reel or a collection of short films, your portfolio should showcase your unique style and vision as a filmmaker.

Social media is an excellent tool for marketing yourself as a filmmaker. Social media platforms like Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube can help you reach a broader audience and gain exposure to your work.

By sharing behind-the-scenes content, teasers, and trailers for your films, you can build anticipation for your work and connect with fans and followers.

Here are some tips to market yourself as a filmmaker on social media:

  1. Choose the right platforms: There are many social media platforms to choose from, including Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube. Consider which platforms are best for your brand and target audience.

  2. Share your work: Share your films, trailers, and behind-the-scenes content on social media. This can help you attract new followers and generate buzz around your projects.

  3. Engage with your audience: Respond to comments and messages, and engage with your followers. This can help you build relationships and create a community around your work.

  4. Use hashtags: Use relevant hashtags to make it easier for people to find your content. Consider using both industry-specific hashtags and broader hashtags that relate to your genre or style of filmmaking.

  5. Collaborate with others: Collaborating with other filmmakers, actors, or influencers can help you reach new audiences and expand your reach on social media.

  6. Show your personality: Use social media to showcase your personality and personal brand. Share your interests, passions, and experiences to create a deeper connection with your audience.

  7. Use analytics: Use social media analytics tools to track your engagement and performance on each platform. This can help you identify which types of content perform best and adjust your strategy accordingly.

‘The Social Network’Credit: Sony

Networking and Collaborating with Other Filmmakers

Networking and collaborating with other filmmakers can help you gain valuable insights into the industry and open doors to new opportunities.

Joining industry organizations, attending film festivals, and volunteering on film sets are all excellent ways to connect with other filmmakers and build relationships that can lead to future collaborations.

Here are some tips to help you network and collaborate with other filmmakers:

  1. Attend events: Attend film festivals, industry events, and other gatherings where you can meet other filmmakers. This is a great opportunity to make connections and start building relationships.

  2. Join online communities: Join online communities and forums for filmmakers, such as Facebook groups, LinkedIn groups, or Reddit threads. These can be great places to network, ask questions, and share your work.

  3. Collaborate on projects: Collaborating on a project can be a great way to build relationships with other filmmakers. Look for opportunities to work on short films, music videos, or other projects that align with your interests and skills.

  4. Share your work: Share your work on social media and other platforms, and encourage others to share it as well. This can help you gain exposure and attract the attention of other filmmakers who are interested in working with you.

  5. Be open-minded: Be open to working with filmmakers who have different backgrounds, perspectives, and skill sets. This can help you create more diverse and innovative projects.

  6. Respect others’ time and contributions: When collaborating with other filmmakers, be respectful of their time, ideas, and contributions. Communicate clearly and frequently, and be open to feedback and suggestions.

  7. Keep in touch: After working with other filmmakers, keep in touch and continue to build relationships. This can lead to future collaborations and new opportunities.

how to take a general meeting
‘Barton Fink’Credit: 20th Century Fox

Pitching Your Film Ideas – Tips for Success

Pitching your film ideas is an essential part of marketing yourself as a filmmaker. Whether you’re pitching to investors or production companies, it’s essential to be prepared and confident in your pitch.

Pitching your film ideas can be nerve-wracking, but it’s an essential part of getting your project off the ground. Researching the company or individual you’re pitching to, practicing your pitch, and being able to articulate your vision for the film are all critical to success.

Here are some more tips to help you successfully pitch your film ideas:

  1. Know your audience: Before you pitch your film idea, do your research and make sure you know who you’re pitching to. Understand their interests, preferences, and what they’re looking for in a film.

  2. Keep it concise: Your pitch should be no more than a few minutes long. Make sure to include the most important information, such as the logline, genre, target audience, and budget.

  3. Start with a strong hook: Your opening line should grab the listener’s attention and make them want to hear more. Consider using a provocative question, a surprising fact, or an intriguing statement.

  4. Be passionate: Show your enthusiasm and passion for your film idea. This can help convince the listener that you’re the right person to bring the project to life.

  5. Use visual aids: Consider creating a pitch deck with visuals like concept art, storyboards, or a trailer. This can help the listener visualize your idea and get excited about it.

  6. Anticipate questions: Be prepared to answer questions about your idea, such as the budget, casting, or distribution strategy. Anticipate potential concerns and have answers ready.

  7. Practice, practice, practice: Practice your pitch in front of friends, family, or colleagues. Ask for feedback and work on refining your pitch until it’s polished and persuasive.

Navigating the film festival circuit is essential to marketing yourself as a filmmaker. Film festivals provide an excellent platform to showcase your work, gain exposure, and connect with industry professionals.

Researching and applying to film festivals, attending screenings, and participating in Q&A sessions can all help you gain visibility and build relationships in the industry.

Credit: SXSW

There are many tools and resources available to help you market yourself as a filmmaker. From professional organizations to online courses and workshops, there are many resources available to help you gain the skills and knowledge needed to succeed in the industry.

Additionally, there are many online platforms and tools available to help you create and share your work, including Vimeo, YouTube, and Wistia.

Here’s a list of other things you should be doing:

  1. Create a website: A website is a great way to showcase your portfolio and make it easy for people to find your work. Use platforms like Wix, Squarespace, or WordPress to create a professional-looking site that reflects your style and brand.

  2. Use social media: Social media platforms like Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok are great for building a following and promoting your work. Use hashtags to make it easier for people to find your content, and engage with your followers by responding to comments and messages.

  3. Build a network: Networking is crucial in the film industry, so make an effort to connect with other filmmakers, producers, and industry professionals. Attend industry events and join organizations like the Independent Filmmaker Project or the Film Independent to meet like-minded people and stay up-to-date on industry news.

  4. Create a demo reel: A demo reel is a short video that showcases your best work and highlights your skills as a filmmaker. Use it to demonstrate your range and expertise and share it with potential clients or collaborators.

  5. Offer free or discounted services: When starting out, it can be helpful to offer your services for free or at a discounted rate to build your portfolio and gain experience. This can lead to referrals and future paid work.

  6. Use online marketplaces: There are many online marketplaces like Upwork or Fiverr that connect freelancers with clients looking for video services. Create a profile and start bidding on projects that align with your skills and interests.

‘When They See Us’Credit: Netflix

Follow Your Passion and Market Yourself Like a Pro

Becoming a filmmaker and marketing yourself like a pro requires a combination of education, experience, and networking. By understanding your target audience, building a personal brand, and showcasing your work, you can position yourself as a skilled and talented filmmaker that others want to work with.

Whether you’re just starting out or looking to take your career to the next level, following your passion and marketing yourself like a pro can help you achieve success in the film industry.

Get back to work!      

Source link

It's time to master your marketing. 

Costumes are a massive part of the experience of watching a television show or movie. Bonnie Hayashida Sutherland brought heart, love, and 80s pop culture references to 2023’s Disney film Prom Pact. While the movie takes place in the present day, the 1980s is the theme for Prom and Promposals, which is where most of the 80s references occur.

Bonnie Hayashida Sutherland is no stranger to costume design, having studied it at college and working on a variety of projects leading up to Prom Pact. Between creating a look for every individual character and matching promposals to iconic 80s movies, Bonnie Hayashida Sutherland had a lot going on in the movie.

Culturess: There are a lot of 80s costume references throughout the movie. What 80s films were your biggest inspiration?

Bonnie Hayashida Sutherland: I guess Pretty in Pink was a big one. I love all the John Waters movies, just like everybody does. So there was a ton of 80s inspirations all the way through, and for me, the musical inspirations were a huge part as well.

Culturess: What is it about the 80s look do you think makes people nostalgic for it?

Bonnie Hayashida Sutherland: I think that because everything was a little bit over the top, you know, the big hair. Everything was a little wilder. I think that what’s missing nowadays is the expression in creativity in the clothing that you wore and the hairstyles that you had, and the music that you listen to.

That was a huge part of the 80s, and I kind of feel sorry for the younger people nowadays that they don’t have that in their lives. I’ve talked to the actors on the movie, and a lot of them, their favorite bands are bands from the 70s or the 80s as opposed to bands that are out nowadays, so I think people are really looking for inspiration back to the 80s.

Culturess: When Prom finally arrives, Mandy and Ben are the only ones dressed in noticeably 80s attire. How did you come up with their looks?

Bonnie Hayashida Sutherland: So for Ben, we actually started off looking at a Miami Vice looks like the Don Johnson typical, the big 80s shoulder pads and stuff like that and even how Talking Heads did that one video with the huge shoulder pads. And then, I mentioned Pretty in Pink before. That Duckie image from Pretty in Pink is such a strong image when he first arrives. I mean, he looks amazing. So we took that as an inspiration and started with that, and everything was an homage to him. And then I got his fabrics from L.A, brought a bunch of brocades in. Got it made by an Italian tailor. There are pieces of him that are vintage as well, like his tie and the shirt that I embellished a bit with the purple on it, and the vest and cumberbund that he wore were actually vintage, and his hair was amazing. They did such a great job with his hair.

For Mandy, the inspiration that I took was Cindy Lauper, who was huge in the 80s as well. Her hair, just everything about her, was amazing. So, we started out with images of her, and the director, Anya, she wanted the bright pink to make Mandy really stand out, so I scoured North America looking for the perfect pink taffeta. It was like an 80s staple from back then for prom dresses, and it kinda went from there, and then the corset, and I found a lady who did all the embellishments and rhinestones. There are hundreds of rhinestones, all done by hand. So it kinda went that way. She was Cindy Lauper, and Ben was Duckie.

Culturess: Did 80s styles influence everyone’s regular everyday looks or just the moments that directly reference 80s culture?

Bonnie Hayashida Sutherland: It was mostly for Prom for Ben and Mandy, and then in the proposals that were in the background, they were all based on 80s films. I did try to put a bit of vintage for Ben because I went thrift shopping for him. I found the jacket that he wears with the blue and the red and the white stripes. That’s actually real vintage. For some of Mandy’s as well, I found her some vintage pieces just to mix in with the present day.

Culturess: You have The Ghostbusters, and The Breakfast Club references happening in the background. What type of research does it take to re-create iconic outfits?

Bonnie Hayashida Sutherland: A lot. I had a really great team, and thankfully one of my assistants, Jude, she was all over that doing these promposals and we had to do a ton of research and find the most iconic look was from that, so as soon as you saw it you realize where it came from the recognizability. For The Breakfast Club, for example, the one with the dancing on top of the bookshelves, it had to be spot on. Everything had to be spot on.

So it was a lot of research, and there was a ton of promposals that were always happening in the background like if you watch the movie ten times you can probably see all the promposals that were happening. Some of them get a little bit lost. But everybody should watch it like fifty times, and you’ll see.

Culturess: Prom Pact is a Disney project. How much of a say did they have over the costume’s final designs?

Bonnie Hayashida Sutherland: Anya, the director, who is super supportive, and I’m grateful for that, and Rachel and Julie and they all saw. Anya was the one who had first approvals, and then it went to Disney, so they got final approval on everything.

Culturess: When it came to scenes mimicking famous 80s films, were you trying to match the initial outfits, or were any of them meant to take into account current-day fashion?

Bonnie Hayashida Sutherland: For the 80s movies, there was a lot of clearances involved. We had a clearance person, Drew, who was amazing; he had to go to the studios who actually did the movies and get their approvals for the images, like the Dirty Dancing image and stuff like that for the look. I guess everything is property now, so there were a few things that we couldn’t do exactly spot on. We had to change it up a little bit, so it was a little bit different. But we still had to use the reference of it for the iconic images.

Culturess: How does the clothing style change for each individual character?

Bonnie Hayashida Sutherland: I think that for Mandy, first off, she starts off being a very strong female character, very feminist, and she’s wearing graphic t’s a lot in the beginning. She progresses from a little bit hard exterior and goes to when we see her at the fundraiser when she looks amazing.

That had to be a wow moment, same as like the Prom, to take her out of what her character was at the beginning. I think softens a little bit in her mind when she realizes that Harvard isn’t the only thing, that she has to live a little bit as well. So I think that changes her. I think she, for me, was the most transitioning of all the characters.

Culturess: What was your favorite part of taking on this project?

Bonnie Hayashida Sutherland: I think the fact that it was for Disney because that’s like a dream job for me. I’ve always wanted to do a Disney product, so I’m so grateful that I finally got one. The whole thing and the actors were amazing. Peyton and Milo, and Blake, they were super great to work with, and the 80s importance, I mean, that’s also a dream job. I mean, everything was dream job bread and butter for me.

Culturess: You have all the characters in their regular daily lives. They’re all so different. You have the intellectual side and the athletic side. And then you have all the 80s stuff happening, so what is the most challenging part of creating all these different costume designs for so many different areas of this movie?

Bonnie Hayashida Sutherland: For Prom Pact, there were so many different things that were happening in this movie. There was promposals to pep rally to fundraiser, to the Prom. So I think the biggest challenge was organization, really in being able to organize what was happening when and then the creative process you had to have happening as well. It was a juggling act, I guess. Not a lot of sleep. I don’t think anyone on my team got a lot of sleep the whole movie because it’s huge. Then everything gets edited down.

So something that only happens for like a split second took weeks and weeks of prep. I had a couple of companies in the stage that do the marching band to the cheerleader uniforms, and then there was the basketball that I had to cover, so it was many things and then having certain items like built, like the Prom was built. Just resourcing and thrifting, and it was huge. But I’m so happy with the way everything turned out, and I’m just happy for all the support that I got on this movie.

Source link

Costumes are a massive part of

The BBC’s under-fire chairman Richard Sharp has resigned following a report that said he breached appointment rules by not fully discovering his role in a loan given to former Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

Sharp had faced months of pressure to quit and created a serious headache for the broadcaster after it emerged that, prior to his appointment, he had helped Johnson — who was involved in his selection process — access to a loan facility reportedly worth around $1 million. This story would gather steam following the BBC’s handling of the impartiality row over Match of the Day host Gary Lineker, when major question marks over the government influence over the BBC were raised, particularly surrounding Sharp, a former banker who had worked with current prime minister Rishi Sunak at Goldman Sachs and previously donated more than £400,000 ($486,000) to the Conservative Party.

The chairman’s resignation comes a month after the former BBC director-general John Birt claimed that his appointment should not have stood because he as an “unsuitable candidate” in a “fatally flawed” process.

In a statement, Sharp said that barrister who led the inquiry into his appointment had found that “while I did breach the governance code for public appointments, he states that a breach does not necessarily invalidate an appointment,” adding that he had always maintained that “the breach was inadvertent and not material.”

However, he said he was resigning to “prioritise the interests of the BBC.”

Sharp is set to remain as chairman until the end of June, when the process to appoint his success will begin.

Source link

The BBC’s under-fire chairman Richard Sharp has

Once again joined by one of my favorite guests, Suzana Somers, who is the creator of @BachelorData on IG. She’s also started to build the @PopCultureData account on IG as well, focusing on other shows like Love is Blind, Selling Sunset, etc. A good talk with her regarding the popularity of Love is Blind and how Netflix knows how to push their shows on social media, much moreso than the Bachelor franchise does. How their contestants are gaining many more followers than anyone in Bachelor Nation and at a rapid pace, where the Bachelor shows are going wrong, and how Netflix really isn’t competing against the Bachelor anymore. It’s biggest competition is TikTok now. So many great topics to go over with Suzana, including a great personal story from her regarding the TV show “Breaking Bad” that happened recently with her. As always, if you’d like to respond to the interview, please include Suzana’s Twitter handle (@bachelordata) in your replies. Thanks again to Suzana for coming on as she’ll always be welcome on the podcast as her account gets bigger and bigger.

You can listen to today’s podcast on a number of platforms, but you can also tune in by clicking the player below:


Subscribe: Apple Podcasts,RSS, Stitcher, Spotify
Music written by Jimmer Podrasky
(B’Jingo Songs/Machia Music/Bug Music BMI)

(SPOILERS) I begin by briefly talking about the return of “Coming Out For Love” next week & some Bachelor Nation news. Then Suzana joins me (7:14) to talk about the latest going on with @BachelorData, dedicating more time to @PopCultureData, how big Love is Blind has been on social media, Bachelor/ette IG numbers falling, and much, much more.

Twitter – @BachelorData
Instagram – @bachelordata
Instagram – @popculturedata

(SPOILERS) Today’s Daily Roundup covers pregnancies in Bachelor Nation, a bizarre Love is Blind IG post, Survivor, the Challenge, and one of the worst, grossest, and weird headlines I came across yesterday.

You can listen to that podcast on a number of platforms, but you can also tune in here:


Subscribe: Apple Podcasts,RSS, Stitcher, Spotify
Music written by Jimmer Podrasky
(B’Jingo Songs/Machia Music/Bug Music BMI)

Send all links and emails to: steve@realitysteve.com. To follow me on Twitter, it’s: www.twitter.com/RealitySteve. Instagram name is RealitySteve, or join my Reality Steve Facebook Fan Page. Talk to you tomorrow.






Source link

Share Tweet Share Share Email Once again joined by one of my

A version of this “The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window” review first ran for its Off Broadway opening on Feb. 27.

No, “The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window” is not some amazing rediscovered masterpiece. But yes, Oscar Isaac and Rachel Brosnahan make it worth seeing, especially for its promising but deeply flawed first act.

“The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window” was Lorraine Hansberry’s 1964 follow-up to her Broadway debut five years earlier, “A Raisin in the Sun.” She worked from her hospital bed while battling pancreatic cancer, mining rewrites during rehearsals. The play went on to run three months on Broadway and closed two days before Hansberry died at age 34 on Jan. 12, 1965. Revivals have been rare in the intervening years, and this starry one that opened Thursday on Broadway at the James Earl Jones Theater makes it clear why. The production had previously played at the Brooklyn Academy of Music earlier this year.

It’s difficult to imagine more engaging performances than those being given by Isaac and Brosnahan. They portray the young and troubled married couple that lives in Greenwich Village and are repeatedly called “bohemians.” Sidney is a political activist who goes from one failed entrepreneurial gig to another. Iris is a waitress who longs to be an actress. They’re in love, and from the way Isaac and Brosnahan go after each other, it’s evident the sex is great on a scale of Stella and Stanley Kowalski.

When we meet Sidney and Iris, however, there’s more quarreling than lovemaking going on. Sidney is quickest with the insults. Put him in a room with another person, and there’s bound to be a fight. Iris is spared only when other victims wander into their apartment, and they include Sidney’s young ex-Communist friend (Julian De Niro), his conventional uptown sister-in-law (Miriam Silverman), the gay upstairs-neighbor playwright (Glenn Fitzgerald), an avant-garde artist who is designing Sidney’s recently acquired newspaper (Raphael Nash Thompson) and a leftist political candidate (Andy Grotelueschen), whom Sidney somehow finds time to manage.

When Isaac and Brosnahan are onstage alone, “The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window” delivers the theatrical power of Ruth and Walter Lee Younger’s tragically compromised marriage in “A Raisin in the Sun.” Both couples can’t begin to fulfill the American Dream that’s been jammed into their respective heads.

The first act of “Sidney Brustein’s Window” lasts 90 minutes, and about 45 minutes of it is the production’s most compelling as Isaac and Brosnahan love and slug it out under Anne Kauffman’s direction. There is another 45 minutes, however, when Sidney and Iris interact with the other characters, all of whom should go back to the Herb Gardner comedy from which they came. Most cringe-worthy is Silverman’s conservative sister Mavis, a doppelgänger for the conservative brother Nick Burns in “A Thousand Clowns,” which opened on Broadway two years before Hansberry’s play.

Since Sidney and Iris’ marriage essentially ends at the end of Act 1, there’s no action left to dramatize during the almost-as-long second act. Iris disappears for most of its 80 minutes, and Isaac is reduced to a drunk who listens while the supporting characters are given a moment – a very extended moment – to rant about racism (De Niro), an unfaithful husband (Silverman) and the emptiness of success (Fitzgerald).

A new character (the barely intelligible Gus Birney) enlivens things a bit because she looks and acts like a streetwalker (costumes by Brenda Abbandandolo). Her outfit and hair (by Leah Loukas) don’t lie, and after 15 minutes, this prostitute with a heart of tin has committed suicide in the Brustein bathroom. As records go, it may be the fastest suicide in the history of the theater.

And there’s something else that’s phony about this cliché of a character. How could her fiancé (De Niro) not know that his girlfriend, made up for “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” is not having sex with other men for money? Racism may be the least of this guy’s problems.

Before this tragic episode inspires way too much onstage analysis, the prostitute is invited upstairs by the gay guy so she can watch him and his new boyfriend have sex. Fitzgerald manages to be wonderfully enigmatic in his request, while Isaac acts drunk and Kauffman, for her part as director, distracts us from the absurd theatricality of it all by cleverly bringing Brosnahan, De Niro and Silverman into the audience so they can observe the action in silence. They’re a kind of silent chorus, which relates back to something Mavis has told Sidney about her Greek-American father. Hansberry’s play is chockfull of references to all sorts of mythological characters.  

Sidney and Iris reunite at the end so she can tell him what a fool he was to back the wrong political candidate. Why a would-be actress with no political chops knows this and Sidney doesn’t is not explained despite “The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window” lasting nearly three hours.

Source link

A version of this “The Sign in

He might be sidelined from his U.S. tour, citing doctor-ordered vocal rest, but Morgan Wallen is the talk of Australia right now.

For the very first time, Wallen has a chart double in the land Down Under.

The country star’s hit “Last Night” (Republic/Universal) holds at No. 1 on the ARIA Singles Chart for the third straight week, while its parent One Thing At A Time (Mercury/Universal) returns to the summit of the national albums survey for a second, non-consecutive week.

Wallen, who recently completed a tour of Australia, produced by Frontier Touring, becomes the first male American country singer to achieve the chart double in more than three decades, ARIA reports.

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

The last was Billy Ray Cyrus, back in October 1992 when he ruled with his hit single “Achy Breaky Heart” and the album Some Gave All.

In his homeland, Wallen is facing a fair amount of backlash for scrapping a stadium show in Oxford, Mississippi at the last minute, then wiping a week of shows, citing those health issues. There were no such problems on his six-date run of arena and festival shows here last month.

Staying with the ARIA Albums Chart, published Friday, April 28, Metallica’s 72 Seasons (down 1-2 via Universal) and Taylor Swift’s Midnights (unchanged at No. 3 via Universal) complete the podium, respectively.

There’s a new arrival at No. 4 for D-DAY (BigHit Entertainment), the debut solo album from BTS’ Suga, released under his other stage name Agust D. Suga’s 2020 mixtape D-2 peaked at No. 2 in these parts.

Animated Aussie kid’s TV star Bluey fetches another No. 10 on the ARIA Albums Chart with Dance Mode! (Rkt/Orchard). It’s new at No. 7. The international phenomenon led the chart in 2021 with Bluey The Album and went on to win best children’s album at the ARIA Awards of that year.

After scooping a string of RIAA “Diamond” certifications, and releasing a greatest hits album to celebrate the achievement, Post Malone makes a sparkling chart appearance. The U.S. singer and rapper’s The Diamond Collection (Republic/Universal), which gathers eight of his most popular numbers, plus his new pop cut “Chemical,” starts at No. 16 on the ARIA Chart. It’s his fifth top 20 appearance on the tally, including two leaders with Beerbongs & Bentleys (2018) and Hollywood’s Bleeding (2019).

With Wallen reclaiming the top spot on the singles chart, TikTok star David Kushner makes his first appearance in the top five with viral number “Daylight” (Virgin/Universal), up 6-5, while ascendant K-pop girl group Fifty Fifty enjoys a fresh high with “The Beginning: Cupid” (Warner), up 9-6.

The highest entry on the latest chart belongs to The Weeknd and Future, with “Double Fantasy” (Universal). It’s new at No 9, giving The Weeknd two top 10 hits on the latest survey (“Die For You” is down 5-7), and his eighth top 10 hit in Australia across his career. “Double Fantasy” represents Future’s second ARIA top 10.

Source link

He might be sidelined from his U.S.

Peter Mettler (“Gambling, Gods and LSD,” “The End of Time,” “Becoming Animal”) returns to international doc film fest Visions du Réel with an unusual proposition for this 54th edition: an epic seven-part series, featured both in competition and in the Work-in-Progress section.

The Swiss-Canadian filmmaker picked up the Grand Prix at Visions du Réel in 2002 for “Gambling, Gods and LSD,” and was a special guest at the 2020 edition, which presented a retrospective of his work that has deeply influenced documentary-making in the 21st century.

“While the Green Grass Grows” is Mettler’s most personal project to date, a cinematic diary shot over the course of three years, from 2019 to 2021, running some 11 hours in total.

Parts 1 and 6, featuring his parents, were screened together in a world premiere on April 24 as part of the fest’s International Competition, with the aim of demonstrating the narrative and sensibility of the entire project.

The other parts were presented in the Work-in-Progress industry section where Mettler and his long-time producer Cornelia Seitler were seeking partners to help complete the editing and post-production process.

They shared their ambitious distribution goals for this project which lends itself both to television and streaming services – “This is our dream,” according to Seitler – as well as festivals and other curated cultural events.

“We need distributors to make movie theaters shine with special events,” said Seitler. “Museum curators are welcome as the series could also be adaptable as an installation in an interesting space.”

“Where the Green Grass Grows” is a bold cinematic proposal, which Mettler himself describes as “a cinematic blog for the 2020s, a filmmaker’s diary built on tradition.”

“This is filmmaking as a spiritual practice,” he said. “Like most other art-forms, revelation comes from the unpredictable processes: for filmmaking to move forward in its contribution to culture, I believe such processes deserve to be nurtured.”

Asked about the title at a Q&A following the screening, the director admitted that he hadn’t set out to make this film, but rather wanted to explore the expression “the grass is always greener on the other side”: how it related to his parents, who left Switzerland for Canada as young adults, and “how it seems our perpetual desire of other is actually an essential part of evolution itself,” he said.

Mettler’s loss of his parents and his own unexpected encounter with mortality following a COVID vaccine are central to the series, which takes viewers on a three-year journey across three continents.

These include following the Rhine river through the Swiss Alps where Mettler’s parents came from, a road trip across America ending in a town named after a game show, a stay in a Cuban film school experimenting with the documentation of dreams, and a renewed awareness of nature in Toronto gardens during the COVID-19 lockdown.

Mettler explained how lockdown led him, like many others, to rummage through his cellar, where he discovered footage of an old interview with the Dalai Lama, which also features in the series, underlying musings on the cycle of life and reincarnation.

At times tragic or comedic, philosophical or poetic, the diary is laced with psychedelic and experimental imagery that enhance its trance-like feel, underlined by an immersive, steady sound design, which Mettler said was mostly down to his editor and close collaborator, Jordan Kawai (“Bangla Surf Girls,” “Stage: The Culinary Internship,” “Shadow Girl”).

“A lot is to Jordan’s credit. The way I always like to approach editing is to work the sound and the picture at the same time. So, we’re constantly incorporating music, sound effects while we’re picture editing. That breeds an intact, complementary relationship between image and sound, and they become more holistic, more organic,” he said.

“While the Green Grass Grows” is produced by Zürich-based Maximage and Mettler’s Grimthorpe Film, with the support of private foundations and investors, and Switzerland’s Succès Passage and Succès Cinéma film funding.

It is one of 14 films running in the main International Competition at Visions du Réel, which wraps on April 30.

Source link

Peter Mettler (“Gambling, Gods and LSD,” “The

Statistics Canada is set to release its February reading for economic growth Friday morning.

The federal agency will also provide estimates for March and the first quarter of the year.

After recording zero growth in the fourth quarter, the Canadian economy bounced back in January as real gross domestic product grew by 0.5 per cent.

Statistics Canada’s preliminary estimate for February suggests the economy grew by 0.3 per cent.

However, RBC says it expects growth to come in lower than the federal agency’s estimate due to lower manufacturing sale volumes, as well as a fall in wholesale and retail sales.

The Bank of Canada’s aggressive rate hikes are expected to slow the economy this year, as high borrowing costs constrain spending.

&copy 2023 The Canadian Press

Source link

By Staff The Canadian Press Posted April 28, 2023

The government has been urged by today’s report to “review current conflict of interest guidance for candidates to ensure it is fit for purpose” in the wake of BBC Chair Richard Sharp’s resignation.

Adam Heppinstall KC’s report into Sharp’s now-fateful involvement with Boris Johnson’s £800,000 ($1M) loan also found:

  • Sharp failed to disclose two “potential perceived conflicts of interest” to his BBC Chair selection panel: that he had informed then-Prime Minister Johnson that he wanted to be Chair and that he had met the Cabinet Secretary to help facilitate Johnson’s meeting with Sam Blyth, the man offering to be guarantor for his loan. Blyth and Johnson are distant cousins.
  • Both the above non-disclosures breached the Governance Code because Sharp’s selection panel was unaware of them. Sharp, who has resigned today, believed he breached the code over the latter but not the former.
  • During the selection process in late 2020, Sharp was the only candidate to have his candidacy “supported by Ministers,” the report said. There were 23 applicants and five were interviewed for 45 minutes each.
  • “Perceptions” are as important as “actual conflicts of interest,” according to the report. “The erosion of public trust and confidence in a public office holder can be caused by the perception of a conflict of interest, as well as by an actual conflict,” it said.

A successor will now be sought over the next few weeks and Sharp will remain in post until June.

In the meantime, the government has been urged by Heppinstall’s report to initiate a “review of current conflict of interest guidance for candidates to ensure it is fit for purpose.”

Elaborating, Heppinstall said the government should forge a new section of its guidance addressing relationships and interactions between candidates and appointing ministers, and how confidential or sensitive issues might be disclosed, all of which would have been appropriate in the Sharp case.

It stressed that candidates are already asked to disclose whether any conflict of interest could “cause potential embarrassment,” an issue that has repeatedly been flagged in the case of Sharp. In Sharp’s statement, he accepted his position has become a “distraction” but called his breach “inadvertent and not material.”

The government was also urged to consider whether changes are required to the section on “standards in public life and handling conflicts.”

The Culture, Media and Sport Committee, which has been heavily critical of Sharp, said Sharp’s behavior has caused “undoubted damage” to “trust in the BBC.”

“The public appointments process and to Mr Sharp’s reputation could all have been avoided had he chosen to be more open with the facts when he appeared before the Committee more than two years ago,” it added.

Source link

The government has been urged by today’s

Amazon’s first quarter earnings (opens in new tab) results look to be a breath of fresh air in a continually troubled economy, showing signs of recovery and growth in a nod to what is hopefully a more positive year ahead, but there is a twist.

Across the board, net sales, operating income, net income, and cash flow all showed signs of improvement compared with previous quarters and the preceding year.

But a large part of the company’s 9% year-on-year increase in net sales, totalling $127.4 billion in the first quarter, is thanks to the company’s cloud division, Amazon Web Services (AWS).

AWS success

During the company’s first quarter of the 2023 fiscal year, AWS saw sales increase by 16% compared with the same period last year, to the sum of $21.35 billion. The figure represents almost 17% of the company’s entire net sales, and a slight lead ahead of analysts’ predictions of $21.22 billion.

Ultimately, more sales is good news for cloud companies and the economy more generally, and the news ties in to previous projections that cloud spend was on the rise again.

However, AWS is not out of the woods yet. Due to unmentioned factors, which are likely to entail at least partly the rising costs around the globe, the cloud division’s operating income reduce to $5.1 billion during the quarter, versus $6.5 billion the year before. That represents a 21.5% decline, despite a healthy boost to sales.

During the earnings call, CFO Brian Olsavsky warned investors that “customers continue to evaluate ways to optimize their cloud spending in response to these tough economic conditions” – a trend that he says continues to be seen into the second quarter.

This, along with the company’s continuing cost-cutting measures extending beyond the mammoth 27,000 layoffs, has left a bitter taste in some investors’ mouths.

Source link

Amazon’s first quarter earnings (opens in new

Thursday marked the end of “The Late Late Show with James Corden,” and the talk show went out with a bang. Spread between a “Carpool Karaoke” special at 10 p.m. ET/PT and the last episode at 12:37 a.m. ET/PT, CBS gave Corden and his team over two hours to say goodbye to their fans. And that goodbye contained everything from skydiving to surprise appearances from Joe Biden and David Letterman.

It all started with “The Last Last Late Late Show with James Corden Carpool Karaoke Special.” On Monday, CBS released a clip of Adele waking up a surprised Corden for his final-ever “Carpool Karaoke.” Filled with tears, emotional stories and a rendition of “Don’t Rain on My Parade,” the segment set the silly yet sad tone of this late night show’s departure. But even though Adele was the one in the car, it was Tom Cruise who stole the spotlight in the first half of the evening.

Dedicated fans have known that Cruise and Corden crashed a production of “The Lion King” back in February. Corden and Cruise’s performances as Timon and Pumbaa, respectively, were far enjoyable to watch through the lens of “The Late Late Show’s” cameramen than through random TikToks. But it’s what Cruise did next that truly upped the ante on their musical adventure. After getting into a fake fight, Corden and Cruise preformed a version of Elton John’s “Can You Fell the Love Tonight.” Looks like the action star put those old “Rock of Ages” singing lessons to good use.

Of course, because this is Tom Cruise we’re talking about, stunts were involved. The “Top Gun: Maverick” star began the segment by taking a call from Corden mid-skydive and finished it by hopping on a helicopter.

Once Tom Cruise ascended in his copter, the real finale began. Next up was President Joe Biden. In a recorded segment, the leader of the free world quipped, “I’m surprised you lasted 8 years in any job.” The famous well-wishers only continued from there.

Seth Meyers, Jimmy Kimmel, Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Fallon all appeared for a sketch that centered around Corden having a nightmare. They threatened him to not reveal any of their late night secrets and warned that he’s not allowed to make retirement look fun. Colbert also told him he had to grow a beard that made him look like “God spoke to me from a bush.” Cue an appearance from David Letterman. The sketch then ended with a glimpse into Corden’s near future: appearing on “The Masked Singer” alongside fellow retired late night host, Trevor Noah. In case you’re wondering, Corden was The Banana after all.

Skydiving and Ken Jeong cameos left “The Late Late Show’s” final guests with big shoes to fill. So how did Will Ferrell and Harry Styles rise to the occasion? By destroying Corden’s desk.

Adele standing next to James Corden
Adele standing next to James Corden

Styles arrived in a sharp mustard number, and Ferrell arrived with a mallet. As soon as his feet hit the stage, he went for Corden’s desk in true Eric Andre fashion. Only after Corden screamed at him repeatedly did Ferrell lower his weapon. There goes “The Late Late Show’s” plans of having its set memorialized in The Smithsonian.

Styles, Ferrell and Corden then had the final ever game of “Spill Your Guts or Fill Your Guts.” When asked to pick his favorite late night host, Ferrell was quick to say Seth Meyers before also eating his bug trifle. For his question — which of his two guests is more talented — Corden took the grosser option and ate a bull penis.

But the real highlight of this last segment had to do with 2023 Album of the Year winner Harry Styles, who was asked if there will ever be a One Direction reunion. “I fear it’s not a yes or no question. I would never say never to that,” Styles said “I don’t see why we wouldn’t.”

In “The Late Late Show’s” final few minutes, Corden pushed his silliness aside and showed off his rarely seen emotional side. Holding back tears, Corden recounted how he’s watched both his family and America itself change over the past eight years.

“We are all more the same than we are different, and there are so many people who are trying to stoke those differences. We have to try, as best we can, to look for the light, look for the joy. Because if you do, it’s out there. And that’s all this show has ever been about,” Corden said. “Thank you for letting me do this. Thank you for letting me in your home every night.”

Source link

Thursday marked the end of “The Late

Source link

Salman Khan’s Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan was released recently.

Salman Khan didn’t have work for about six months after his debut film Maine Pyar Kiya in 1989.

Bollywood superstar Salman Khan needs no introduction. Today, the actor has an enviable fan base and is the undisputed king of the box office. But there was a time when he was at the lowest point in his career. The actor didn’t have work for about six months after his debut film Maine Pyar Kiya. The film was released in 1989 and became the highest-grossing Indian film at the time and still, the actor struggled to get new projects. Salman even once said, “Bhagyashree decided to leave Bollywood to get married after the film. However, she took all the credit for the film.”

This was when producer Ramesh Taurani entered his life as God. During the IIFA Award ceremony in Dubai, Salman Khan revealed, “His father at that point paid 2,000 rupees and coaxed producer GP Sippy to make a fake announcement in a film industry magazine that he had signed me for a film. Sippy did that but there was no picture. But Ramesh Taurani went to Sippy’s office and paid ₹5 lakhs for the music of the film. It was because of those 5 lakhs that I finally got a film called Patthar Ke Phool (1991). Thank you!”

After he starred in the film Patthar Ke Phool, there was no looking back. His career took off and made him a renowned name in the film industry. The actor is best known for films like Sultan, Bajrangi Bhaijaan, Ek Tha Tiger and Bodyguard. Some of his other noteworthy films include Dabangg, Tere Naam, Judwaa, Hum Aapke Hain Koun, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, and Wanted and Ready, to name a few.

His film Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan was released a few days back. In the opening days, the double-digit score was achieved. However, as the days are passing by, it seems the film has failed to make a mark among the audience. Directed by Farhad Samji, the Salman Khan starrer film has an ensemble cast of Pooja Hegde, Ram Charan, Shehnaaz Gill, Palak Tiwari and Siddharth Nigam, amongst others.

Read all the Latest Movies News and Entertainment News here

Source link

Salman Khan's Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki

Next stop for the Guardians of the Galaxy? Terra, er, Earth World Tour. 

Ahead of the release of Marvel Studios’ Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, the cast and crew from the upcoming film have embarked on a tour of this galaxy, making stops in Seoul, South Korea along with a trip to Disneyland Paris for a European Gala. Explore images of Chris Pratt, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Zoe Saldaña, and Vin Diesel, along with returning writer and director James Gunn, meeting fans and posting for pictures in the image gallery below! 

In Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 our beloved band of misfits are settling into life on Knowhere. But it isn’t long before their lives are upended by the echoes of Rocket’s turbulent past. Peter Quill, still reeling from the loss of Gamora, must rally his team around him on a dangerous mission to save Rocket’s life—a mission that, if not completed successfully, could quite possibly lead to the end of the Guardians as we know them.

 

The film stars Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldaña, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, featuring Vin Diesel as Groot and Bradley Cooper as Rocket, Sean Gunn, Chukwudi Iwuji, Will Poulter and Maria Bakalova.

 

James Gunn is the director and also wrote the screenplay. Kevin Feige produces with Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Nikolas Korda, Sara Smith, and Simon Hatt serving as executive producers. 

Save the galaxy (again, for the third time) in theaters on May 5, 2023. Get your tickets today!

Source link

Next stop for the Guardians of the

Warning: The following contains SPOILERS for Gotham Knights season 1, episode 6, “A Chill in Gotham.”A major story element of Arrow season 1 seems to have been adapted for Gotham Knights. While set on an Earth outside the Arrowverse Earth-Prime, Gotham Knights has drawn favorable comparisons to Arrow for its similarly dark tone and how it puts new twists on the classic formulas of DC Comics. Despite this, and the common theme of the heroes trying to save their city from a conspiracy organized by the rich and corrupt, the story of Gotham Knights had not drawn directly off of Arrow until recently.

Gotham Knights season 1, episode 6, “A Chill in Gotham,” found the teen heroes trying to solve the riddle posed by a ledger they had discovered along with millions of dollars in money that was being laundered on behalf of the Court of Owls. The ledger was written in some kind of code, with a numeric cipher that defied the teens’ best efforts to decrypt it. This led Stephanie Brown to consult her father, a famous quiz show host, who had trained her from birth in the study of code-breaking.


The Gotham Knights Ledger Is Like Robert Queen’s List in Arrow

While Arthur Brown refused to help Stephanie cheat at what she claimed was a homework assignment, he did comfort his daughter, saying, “My little Sherlock. Fear not. You’ll figure it out at last.” The teens later determined that this was a clue, referring to the last Sherlock Holmes novel, The Valley of Fear, where Professor Moriarty and his minions used a book cipher to send each other messages. With that knowledge, the Knights cracked the code and determined the ledger listed the locations of multiple businesses housing the illegal enterprises of the Court of Owls. This was similar to Robert Queen’s List from Arrow season 1.

Before sacrificing himself to give his son a chance to live, Robert Queen gave Oliver a seemingly empty notebook. Oliver later determined the notebook had writing in invisible ink, which listed the many corrupt business magnates and criminals involved in Malcolm Merlyn’s Undertaking project. The List, as the book became known, determined Oliver Queen’s targets as The Hood throughout Arrow season 1.

Will The Ledger Guide The Rest Of Gotham Knights’ Season 1?

Gotham Knights The Ledger

Using the ledger, the teens destroyed one illegal drug lab managed by the Court of Owls in the climax of Gotham Knights season 1, episode 6, “A Chill in Gotham.” Afterward, Turner Hayes said they could decode the rest of the entries and might be able to find the center of the Court’s operations. It seems likely that The Ledger of Gotham Knights will continue to offer the team a direction for their vigilanteism in the same way that Oliver Queen utilized The List in Arrow season 1.

Gotham Knights season 1 continues on Tuesdays on The CW.

Key Release Dates

Source link

Warning: The following contains SPOILERS for Gotham

Sony Interactive Entertainment has shipped a record 6.3 million PlayStation 5 consoles during the first three months of the year, to reach 38.3 million consoles shipped life to date.

This reportedly represents a record for any games console during a calendar Q1 window. It’s also double PlayStation 4’s all-time peak for the same window, and more than triple what PS5 managed during the same, supply-constrained period last year.

The most PS4s Sony has ever shipped during the first three months of a calendar year is three million, which was achieved shortly after the console’s launch, between January and March of 2014 (the fourth quarter of FY2013).

It means PS5 console shipments reached 19.1 million during Sony’s FY2022, and cleared its target of 19 million for the fiscal year – a figure that looked unlikely just four months ago. The total is also up from 11.5 million PS5s shipped in FY2021.

Overall, PlayStation 4 had shipped just over 40 million consoles during the same period of its lifecycle, so PS5 is tracking behind its predecessor (though with significant supply issues due to the pandemic).

At the start of the year, Sony signalled that PS5’s long battle with supply issues was finally over. “If you’re looking to purchase a PS5 console, you should now have a much easier time finding one at retailers globally,” it said.

Looking ahead, Sony said it expects to ship 25 million PS5 consoles during the current fiscal year ending March 31, 2024, which would represent a record for PlayStation consoles.

Notice: To display this embed please allow the use of Functional Cookies in Cookie Preferences.

“If we could achieve that, it would be our highest level ever,” CFO Hiroki Totoki said during an earnings call on Friday, adding that the reason the company believes the figure is possible is because of data it has on the rate of PS4 users upgrading to PS5, as well as the number of new adopters.

On Friday, Sony’s Game & Network Services division reported FY22 Q4 revenues of ¥1073.19 billion ($7.9 billion), up 61% year-over-year.

PlayStation Plus users hit 47.4 million in Q4, which was flat year-over-year but the highest total since before the service’s June 2022 revamp.

Sony’s Network services revenue – which encompasses PS Plus and advertising revenue – remains significantly up on pre-revamp figures at ¥118.9 billion (up from ¥104.4 billion last year), likely influenced by the more expensive PS Plus subscription tiers introduced by Sony.

PlayStation Network monthly active users (MAU) were up two million year-over-year to 108 million. Sony says its MAU are the estimated total number of unique accounts that played games or used services on the PlayStation Network during the last month of the quarter.

Software sales (PS4 and PS5) decreased 2.5 million year-over-year, to 68 million units. Full-year software sales were also down 13% year-over-year to 264.2 million.

Digital software accounted for 70% of quarterly game sales and 67% of full-year sales, compared to 71% and 66% respectively last year.