In the second episode of “Live From My Den,” a weekly video series from Artists Den and Variety, Aloe Blacc introduces his new album “All Love Everything.” In an interview with Variety’s executive music editor Shirley Halperin, Blacc shared that even before the pandemic, he had been used to creating music “all the time, anywhere
Even as one of music’s most forward-facing artists, Damon Albarn must have been surprised by the prescience of his statement that the 2017 Gorillaz album “Humanz” was a “party record for the world going nuts.” Planet Earth’s apocalyptic shindig was only just beginning but Albarn has always been supernaturally gifted at reading the room, blessed
ABC News will elevate Derek Medina to executive vice president, giving him oversight of many of the Walt Disney unit’s business operations and freeing president James Goldston to devote some of his time to broader strategies. “He will be a key partner for me in running our business who will manage our operational efforts and
Donald Trump and Joe Biden clashed for the final time on live television in last night’s second presidential debate, which by all accounts was somewhat more watchable than the first. However, early numbers put it behind the first debate by around 21%. Last night’s debate garnered 21.4 million viewers across ABC, CBS and NBC in
Spirit Music Group, the 25-year-old independent music publisher, has brought in Amy Hartman (pictured at right) for the position of senior vice president, creative services. A veteran of Roc Nation, where she most recently served as svp, creative sync licensing for film/TV and advertising, and of Universal Music Group, where she was vp of film
Lina Soualem is emerging from the shadow of her famous parents – French actor Zinedine Soualem and Palestinian actress Hiam Abbas, seen recently in HBO’s “Succession” – by making documentaries about them and their families. Playing in the Feature Documentary Competition at Egypt’s El Gouna Film Festival, “Their Algeria” tells the story of how her
Barry Avrich’s art scandal documentary “Made You Look: A True Story About Fake Art” is being adapted into a feature film by the director’s Melbar Entertainment Group (“David Foster: Off The Record”). The documentary tells the story of how one of the most respected art galleries in New York City became the center of the
On him: Jacket, pants, beret, Louis Vuitton Men’s. Boots, Pierre Hardy. On her: Coat, pants, collar, belt, Louis Vuitton. Socks, Falke. Boots, Gabriela Hearst. Micaiah Carter Meteoric is the only possible term to describe Micaiah Carter’s rise. Just a few years ago, he was studying photography at Parsons—inspired by his father, who had taken pictures
The name Elsa Peretti carries a lot of weight in the jewelry world. Joining Tiffany & Co. as a byline designer in 1974, after a successful turn as a model, the Italian-born jewelry designer created collections so classic that they have remained best sellers for nearly five decades. Her sensual, sculptural pieces—from the Bean Design
In today’s Global Bulletin, Bill Gates will participate in this year’s World Congress of Science and Factual Producers as keynote speaker, Netgem and France Channel co-create a new French content streaming platform, Storyglass announces an arts-themed podcast, “Stath Lets Flats” gets a third season at Channel 4, Damian Kavanagh leaves Tiger Aspect and James Purnell
Ariana Grande plays the most glamorous leader of the free world in the video for her new song “Positions,” which dropped on Thursday night. The Dave Meyers-helmed clip envisions the singer as a kind of fantasy of Audrey Hepburn as president, working her new retro-early-‘60s look while she moves through a series of cabinet meetings
By mid-summer, Chinese cinema operators were running out of patience at the enforced shutdown that had kept movie theaters closed since late January. Some were so bold as to ask the government why their sector was being especially penalized, compared with other industries. Fast forward to the end of October, and not only are Middle
Rudy Giuliani has a surprising supporter after a compromising clip of him in “Borat 2” was released — Borat himself. In a video posted to Borat’s official Twitter account on Thursday night, star Sacha Baron Cohen suited up as his alter-ego and defended the former New York City mayor, albeit in his signature comical style.
When Lulu Wang read the announcement that Ron Howard would direct legendary Chinese pianist Lang Lang’s Hollywood-produced biopic, she took to Twitter to raise the question, “Have we learned nothing from ‘Mulan?’” In a series of tweets, the writer-director of “The Farewell” questioned the move, challenging the creative team’s limited understanding of both Chinese cultural
The first time I saw Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings, nearly 20 years ago at the legendary Frank’s Cocktail Lounge in Fort Greene, Brooklyn, I turned to my companion and said, “I get it — they’re a classic R&B cover band that plays originals.” While not completely inaccurate, my hot take was seriously short-sighted.
TV’s “upfront” sales session is more or less over. But that doesn’t mean A+E Networks has closed the sales window. The company, which operates A&E, History, Lifetime and several other cable networks, plans to hold a half-hour showcase to highlight its 2021 programming. The preview will be made available between October 27 and 29, and
Sara Curran’s Tricycle Talent has taken a minority stake in up-and-coming Los Angeles-based talent firm Moondust Management. Launched by former YMU Group executive Kamla Pande (pictured, left) earlier this year, the outfit represents a variety of emerging and established digital-first entrepreneurs and personalities, and specializes in brand sponsorship and endorsements, product development and licensing, as
War film “Sacrifice” got off to a heroic start at the China box office on Friday, likely setting the tone for another good weekend in Chinese cinemas, and a barrage of films in the same canon. By 7pm local time on its opening day, “Sacrifice” had notched up RMB74.1 million, or $11 million at current
After churning out several successful Arabic originals, Dubai-based MBC Studios is entering the international TV dramas arena with a high-end English-language doc and series about Carlos Ghosn, the French-Lebanese-Brazilian former CEO of automakers Nissan and Renault, who jumped bail and absconded to Beirut while on trial in Japan for alleged financial misconduct. “It’s not very
Studiocanal is set to restore “Mandabi,” a classic movie directed by celebrated African filmmaker Ousmane Sembène (“Guelwaar,” “Mooladé”) in 4K, and will release it theatrically in spring 2021. “Mandabi,” which is adapted from Sembène’s classic novel “Le Mandat,” won the Special Jury Prize at Venice in 1968. The author-turned-filmmaker’s second directorial effort, “Mandabi” shot mainly
Mexican festivals, as in most of the world, were hit hard by the COVID-19 crisis, with many forced to cancel, reschedule or go online. Led by the Guadalajara International Film Festival (FICG), six of the country’s most important festivals have banded together to create Un Festival Mexicano, an in person event running Nov. 20-27 in
Zeitgeist Films, in association with Kino Lorber, have swooped for all North American rights to Sundance award winner “Acasa, My Home.” The film, which in January picked up the Special Jury Award for cinematography in the World Cinema Documentary category at Sundance, has been selected for more than 60 festivals around the world, and is
Exclusive Zachery Ty Bryan beat the hell out of his girlfriend over missing phone charging cables … at least according to her, and prosecutors heard enough to charge him with felonies. The ‘Home Improvement’ star was charged with strangulation and coercion — both felonies — plus 6 misdemeanors, for the alleged violence that went down
An enigmatic man from the East arrives in a drab, anonymous Eastern European city one foggy morning, bearing little more than a massage bed. As he earns the confidence of the residents of an exclusive gated community, he becomes equal parts confessor and healer, his Russian accent carrying hints of a longed-for past, his therapy
Whatever your opinion of Donald Trump, there’s no denying that he has a sixth sense not just for lowering the bar but for keeping it low, for taking previously unacceptable levels of presidential bad behavior and normalizing them, for turning rage, chaos, and lies into everyday reality. The latest example might be the way that
If you predicted that, in the fall of 2020, Bon Jovi would release an album about the malaise of Trumpian politics and the demise of the American dream, while fellow Jersey son Bruce Springsteen would put out a record that barely alludes to social justice or the national mood … raise your hand and collect
Alibaba Pictures, the film arm of Chinese tech giant Alibaba, says that the coronavirus outbreak has shrunk its business. The company told investors that revenues in the six months from the beginning of April to the end of September 2020 had declined by 35-40% compared with the equivalent period in 2019, when they were RMB1.5
The Wall Street Journal opinion page spent much of Thursday talking up a fresh allegation involving Joe Biden, his son Hunter, and the son’s alleged business dealings in China. “Joe Biden has a problem, and his name is Hunter,” wrote Kimberley Strassel, a member of the paper’s editorial board. James Freeman, assistant editor of the
Democratic challenger Joe Biden accused President Trump of trafficking in Russian disinformation in the final debate on Thursday, and asked Americans to weigh each candidate’s character in deciding how to vote. Trump brought up allegations involving Joe Biden’s son Hunter, referring to the “laptop from hell” cited in a New York Post story about the
The new version of Mira Nair’s “Monsoon Wedding” stage musical will now open in India, followed by Singapore, in 2021, the director has revealed. The stage adaptation of Nair’s 2001 Venice Golden Lion winning film was due to open this summer in the U.K. at the Leeds Playhouse and London’s Roundhouse immediately after, but the