On a cross-country flight from New York to Los Angeles not too long before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Steven Canals got into a conversation with his seatmate, a woman in her mid- to late-50s who, after hearing he was a writer and producer, asked him if he worked on anything she would know. When he
admin
“The Flight Attendant” Season 2 at HBO Max is bringing in a new co-showrunner. Natalie Chaidez has joined the critically-acclamed series as co-showrunner alongside Steve Yockey, who developed the series. Season 1 co-showrunners Meredith Lavender and Marcie Ulin are exiting the series. Chaidez will executive produce along with Yockey, Greg Berlanti, series star Kaley Cuoco,
Sheela Birnstiel, formerly known as Ma Anand Sheela, or more simply Sheela, emerged as by far the most colorful character in the Duplass Brothers’ “Wild Wild Country” documentary series, released by Netflix in 2018. While the Rajneesh religious group rose and fell, Sheela’s individual narrative included impassioned entanglements with media and prison time for attempted
NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell took in $16.5 million in total compensation, while his boss, Comcast Chairman and CEO Brian Roberts raked in a staggering $32.7 million. The generous pay packages come despite the fact that much of NBCUniversal’s business of making and distributing movies and turning those properties into theme park rides was disrupted by
Cartoon Saloon, the Oscar-nominated Irish independent animation studio behind Apple TV Plus’ “Wolfwalkers,” has signed with CAA. Formed by creative heads Tomm Moore, Nora Twomey and Paul Young in 1999, the five-time Oscar, Golden Globe, BAFTA and Emmy-nominated studio will now be represented by the agency. “Wolfwalkers,” directed by Moore and Ross Stewart, is nominated
The worst thing actor and comedian Patti Harrison has ever done dates back to when she was 5 years old and attempted to get a kid into trouble at school so that she could go home early to read a book that had just arrived. “If it would have worked, I would truly have become
UPDATED: More than four months after the $16 billion #SignOurStages act was signed into law, and more than two weeks after the website through which venues could apply for federal aid launched and immediately crashed, the Small Business Administration says it will reopen Saturday — tomorrow — April 24 at 12:30 p.m. ET. Independent music
Sony Pictures Classics has swooped for Pedro Almodóvar’s Penelope Cruz-fronted “Madres paralelas” in North America, Australia and New Zealand. Production on the film began last month in Madrid, Spain, and sees the Spanish auteur reuniting with Cruz, a frequent collaborator who most recently starred in “Pain and Glory” opposite Antonio Banderas. Cruz will be joined
Set on a forgotten Russian island in the Caspian Sea and playing out like a window to another world, doc feature “Ostrov – Lost Island” has been acquired for world sales by London-based Taskovski Films. Premiering at Swiss doc fest Visions du Reél in its main International Feature Film Competition, the documentary chronicles a community
In his 28 years with the Backstreet Boys and on his own, AJ McLean has pushed the boundaries of style and gender. Now, in another bold move, the 43-year-old musician dresses in drag while dancing around a dollhouse to celebrate the transgender community in the video for his new solo single, “Love Song Love.” Directed
Italian directors Alice Rohrwacher (“Happy as Lazzaro”), Pietro Marcello (“Martin Eden”) and Francesco Munzi (“Black Souls”) have teamed up on high-profile doc “Futura,” a portrait of how Italy’s adolescents look at the future. “Futura,” which is being co-produced by pubcaster RAI’s RAI Cinema film unit with Marcello’s own Avventurosa shingle, is billed as a “collective
Caitlyn Jenner announced Friday that she has filed initial paperwork to run for governor of California in the expected recall election of Gov. Gavin Newsom. “California has been my home for nearly 50 years. I came here because I knew that anyone, regardless of their background or station in life, could turn their dreams into
“It was fifteen years ago, and I still don’t believe it,” says DJ Paul of Three 6 Mafia, possibly the most shocking Oscar winners in history. The Memphis-spawned hip-hop group won Best Original Song in 2006 for the theme track from the Terence Howard-starring film “Hustle & Flow,” which bears the spectacularly unsubtle title of
Spotify wants to be the industry’s No. 1 distributor of podcasts — and it’s willing to forgo some revenue in order to counter Apple’s push into podcast subscriptions. Next week, Spotify will launch its podcast subscription option for partners. But the company will be letting content creators keep 100% of the subscription fees: Spotify will
Returning to the scene of the crime seemed to Sara Bareilles like a good way to promote her just-announced live album, “Amidst the Chaos: Live at the Hollywood Bowl,” and so the singer-songwriter will be boosting the release with a livestream return gig at the Bowl, albeit with about 17,500 fewer people in attendance than
As 12-time Oscar nominee Diane Warren is in the midst of preparations for the 93rd Academy Awards, she has also found time to release her latest songwriting project, “Somehow You Do,” sung by Reba McEntire. The song is in the Warren tradition of movie-based ballads. “Somehow You Do” is taken from the upcoming film, “Four Good
The Hindi-language film industry, popularly known as Bollywood, is displaying its resilience after being hit by yet another COVID-enforced pause. India is currently in the throes of the pandemic with 330,000 new COVID-19 cases everyday, with upward of 2,200 daily deaths. The western Indian state of Maharashtra, home to Mumbai and Bollywood, is amongst the
“Quantico” star Tracy Ifeachor (pictured, right), “Star Trek: Discovery’s” James Frain (left) and “Rocks” actor Sharon D. Clarke are set to star in BBC drama “Showtrial” from “Bodyguard” producer World Productions. The five-part series, which will air on flagship channel BBC One, is now in production. Ben Richards (“The Tunnel”) writes, while Zara Hayes (“Poms”)
Copenhagen-based Final Cut for Real CEO Signe Byrge Sørensen might be unassuming and soft-spoken, but her vision, will power and fire for urgent stories have made her a world-class producer. Her documentary credits boast countless festival hits and accolades, including two Oscar-nominated films, “The Act of Killing” (2014) and “The Look of Silence” (2016), to
Producer Chuck Lorre paid tribute to former Warner Bros. TV Group chief Peter Roth as “our happy hugging hero” in a message featured on his custom vanity card that aired tonight at the end of the four Lorre-produced comedies on CBS’ Thursday lineup. For vanity card No. 669, the prolific producer penned a cheeky poem
Alternative content for cinema screening is getting a K-pop spin, giving it a chance of success in parts of Asia, even as distributors and audiences remain hesitant about movies’ return to theaters. Hong Kong’s Megaton Entertainment will be holding a series of screenings in early May of the tear-jerking tale “Midnight Sun,” which has been
As teased earlier this week, the Weeknd has dropped a remix and video of “Save Your Tears,” one of the standout tracks from his blockbuster “After Hours” album, featuring Ariana Grande. The video is an eye-popping and surreal animated treatment with renderings of both artists that was directed by Jack Brown and produced by Blinkink.
In this strange year of the global pandemic, the Independent Spirit Awards seemed to fall in line with what the upcoming Academy Awards are predicted to reward this Sunday, including showing love to frontrunners like “Nomadland” and “Promising Young Woman.” Hosted by “Saturday Night Live” cast member Melissa Villaseñor, the virtual ceremony, with some winners
Jim Steinman was an ultimate officiant in the marriage of rock ‘n’ roll and theater. The songwriter, who died April 19, only had a handful of productions play out on the legit stage, including “Dance of the Vampires,” “Whistle Down the Wind” and, finally, “Bat Out of Hell: The Musical.” But it really wouldn’t have
Heading into Thursday’s Spirit Awards, Film Independent’s inaugural foray into recognizing television had already passed the so-called “smell test.” That’s because, at the very least, HBO’s “I May Destroy You” had already been recognized as best ensemble cast in a new scripted series. And if there was any TV show that embraces the independent spirit,
The 2021 Film Independent Spirit Awards are underway in a virtual ceremony, celebrating the best in indie filmmaking — and, for the first time, television. Continuing her roll in the best supporting actress category was Yuh-Jung Youn of “Minari.” In the first speech of the evening, the actor credited the very independent spirit of the
Shock G, frontman of the 1990s hip-hop group Digital Underground and widely known as his alter-ego “Humpty Hump,” has died, according to the group’s co-founder Chopmaster G. Shock’s real name was Gregory Jacobs; his death was confirmed to TMZ by by his father, Edward Racker, although no cause has been cited. He was 57. Via
Disney Plus launched in November 2019, at a time when coronavirus wasn’t on the World Health Organization’s radar yet and quarantine lockdowns seemed a thing of dystopian films. Soon, the streamer had to amass subscribers, maintain audience engagement and shift movie debuts, all while keeping the budding platform afloat. Against all odds, Disney Plus has
Lumiere Cinema has been able to negotiate a longer term on its lease at the Music Hall’s Beverly Hills theater due to COVID tenant protections, and has reopened the three-screen venue with a program of independent films. Distributor Blue Fox Entertainment, headed by James Huntsman, had hoped to begin renovations on the historic Wilshire Boulevard
Production designers from the Oscar-nominated films “The Father,” “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” “Mank,” “News of the World” and “Tenet” are joining American Cinematheque for a virtual Q&A on Saturday at 1 p.m. PT. Sponsored by Variety, the online conversation will bring together production designers and set decorators from this year’s critically-acclaimed films to discuss their craft