The Interactive Advertising Bureau released an update on companies expected to present at the postponed Digital Content NewFronts marketing series — in a live-streaming format — scheduled for June 22-26. According to the IAB, the trade group that runs the NewFronts, presentations are still planned by Hulu and YouTube, along with confirmed presentations from Condé
The “Sesame Street” Muppets are stepping up to help America’s families deal with life under the COVID-19 health emergency. Sesame Workshop announced Wednesday a major expansion of its Caring for Each Other initiative to help children and parents cope with issues arising from the coronavirus pandemic. The new content — developed with financial support from
Google has seen explosive usage on its videoconferencing platform, Google Meet, during the coronavirus pandemic. Now, it’s opening up Google Meet free for anyone starting in early May. The free version of Google Meet (at meet.google.com) provides meeting for up to 100 users per session. According to the internet company, meetings can run for an
Cartoon Network veteran Michael Ouweleen has been promoted to president of Adult Swim. Ouweleen has been with Cartoon Network and Adult Swim for more than 20 years, most recently in the role of chief marketing officer for Cartoon Network, Adult Swim and Boomerang. Cartoon Network and Adult Swim operations were moved out of Turner and
To love classic Hollywood and live in the world at the same time is hardly the greatest of conundrums, but a conundrum it is. It means being transported by the craft and the art of films made under political conditions one may find entirely unacceptable, or engaging deeply with characters who all look a certain
Hulu has swooped for BBC coming of age comedy “In My Skin.” Produced by Expectation Entertainment for the U.K. broadcaster’s digital channel BBC Three and BBC Wales, “In My Skin” follows Welsh teenager Bethan (Gabrielle Creevy), who lives a double life as she tries to keep her mother’s mental illness and her father’s alcoholism a
The people who like to flash “breaking news” across your TV screen are also working on breaking new ground. The swirl of the Trump White House had already set the nation’s news media at the apex of a cycle. Now, the spread of the coronavirus pandemic has been like an adrenaline shot on top of
The coronavirus has brought the movie theater business to the edge of ruin. Exhibitors have shuttered cinemas across the country, leaving them without any way to pay the bills. Thanks to the federal stimulus, however, many of those circuits have been saved from bankruptcy, according to John Fithian, CEO of the National Assn. of Theatre Owners. The exhibition industry lobbyist says
The big balls are back. TBS has given a 20-episode order to a reboot of “Wipeout,” the obstacle course reality competition that originally aired on ABC between 2008 and 2014. Given the current worldwide production shutdown, it’s unclear when the new “Wipeout” might eventually make it to air. But when it does, TBS is promising
Mac Brandt was one of the lucky ones. For the past six years, he’s made a living purely from acting, appearing in television shows like “Kingdom” and “Arrested Development,” and scrounging up enough jobs to pay the bills without having to tend bar or wait tables. But life changed drastically for Brandt and much of
Amazon Prime Video is ready for some more football — and the NFL, for now, expects to be hitting the field this fall. Amazon is set to stream a dozen NFL games worldwide for the next three seasons on both Prime and the Twitch live-streaming platform, under a renewal of its pact with the league
Hong Kong’s TV industry has managed to keep churning out new episodes and even some new series, despite the city’s coronavirus restrictions. Shows have had to adopt clever working practices, and in some cases modify their story lines, but they have emerged better than the territory’s feature film sector, where production remains largely halted. The
Sony Pictures Television is close to taking a stake in “Sex Education” producer Eleven. It is understood that Sony has beaten off a number of potential buyers for U.K.-based Eleven, whose standing has been buoyed internationally by the success of Netflix hit “Sex Education.” Sony is said to be close to taking a significant stake
While Spotify’s 2020 first-quarter report would have been mixed under normal circumstances, CEO/cofounder Daniel Ek and CFO Paul Vogel were downright enthusiastic at times during the company’s earnings call Wednesday morning, reflecting that the world’s biggest music-streaming service has been less impacted by the coronavirus pandemic and the ensuing lockdown than it might have been.
Dashboard Confessional today released their installment in the Spotify Singles series: a “reimagining” of their breakthrough hit “Screaming Infidelities” and a cover of Post Malone’s “Circles,” both recorded earlier this year at New York’s Electric Lady Studios. “Infidelities” was first released on the band’s 2000 album “The Swiss Army Romance” and is here reworked into
“AngelHeaded Hipster,” a long-percolating tribute album to Marc Bolan and T. Rex — featuring U2, Elton John, Nick Cave, Joan Jett, Lucinda Williams and Father John Misty, and which is a companion to a forthcoming documentary film on the legendary rocker — is due on Sept. 4. The first track from the album, Cave’s take on Bolan’s
YouTube Originals is to host a four-hour lockdown live stream on Thursday featuring YouTube creators and talent including Saffron Barker, Jack Maynard and Big Narstie. The remotely produced “Stream #WithMe” event is designed to support, entertain and educate viewers in lockdown, and will see the talent — which also includes Lady Leshurr, Colin Furze, Yammy
Content consumption on Spotify’s streaming platform has been dramatically affected by the COVID-19 crisis — with usage initially down in areas affected by lockdown orders — but the company saw a rebound in active listeners in Q1. Spotify said it will slow hiring for the rest of 2020 “until we have better visibility into the
Taking one big bull by the horns, the second online industry talk at Switzerland’s Visions du Réel debated Tuesday evening the impact of COVID-19 across pretty much the whole of the movie value chain. At least five of the six panelists on the online round table, The Film Industry in Corona Times: Labs, Markets, Sales,
Noah Media Group has acquired international sales rights to Lorton Entertainment’s “Make Us Dream,” the story of soccer star Steven Gerrard, produced by Oscar-winner James Gay-Rees (“Amy,” “Senna”), and “Bleed Out,” HBO’s critically acclaimed documentary investigating medical malpractice in the U.S., produced by Oscar-winner Dan Cogan (“Icarus”). “Make Us Dream” tells the story of Liverpool
Prominent members of the Indian film industry took to social media to share an outpouring of grief following the death on Wednesday of top actor Irrfan Khan. Khan starred in Indian films including “Salaam Bombay,” Asif Kapadia’s BAFTA winner “The Warrior” and Tigmanshu Dhulia’s “Paan Singh Tomar.” His credits in Hollywood included “The Life of
The British Film Institute’s newly installed chief executive, Ben Roberts, has said one “silver lining” of COVID-19’s devastating impact on the U.K. film industry is a “radical rethink” for the financing and distribution prototypes surrounding independent film, which are now operating on a more equal playing field online. “We absolutely cannot miss this moment to
Losses at Huayi Brothers Media one of China’s longest-running private sector film studios, hit $567 million in 2019. CEO Jerry Ye (aka Ye Ning) has resigned and will be replaced as head of film operations by James Wang Zhonglei, co-founder of the group and its current deputy chairman. The company issued several dozen documents to
Irrfan Khan, the wide-eyed actor who enjoyed art house acclaim in his native India and crossover-success with major Hollywood roles including “Life of Pi,” “Jurassic World” and “Inferno,” died on Wednesday. He was 53. Khan was previously diagnosed with a neuroendocrine tumour in 2018 and underwent extensive treatment in London. He recovered well enough to
“Songland” hitmakers Ester Dean, Shane McAnally and Ryan Tedder took a moment out of quarantining at home and Zoom songwriting sessions to host a listening party prior to the April 27 episode with guest H.E.R. The NBC series is only three episodes into its new season and has already charted two No. 1s on iTunes
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences made some big announcements Tuesday regarding the 2021 Oscars, but insiders say they probably won’t have too much impact on today’s awards business. “I wasn’t surprised by anything,” one awards consultant said. “I had a feeling most of this was coming.” Getting the most traction is the
In today’s film news roundup, Romola Garai’s “Amulet” and crime drama ”Punching And Stealing” find homes and the Human Rights Watch Film Festival unveils a digital edition. ACQUISITIONS Magnet Releasing, the genre arm of Magnolia Pictures, has acquired North American rights to the horror movie “Amulet,” the feature directorial debut of actress-turned-filmmaker Romola Garai. The film,
Sen. Ted Cruz wants to cut off Defense Department cooperation for Hollywood productions that allow Chinese authorities to censor their films. The Texas Republican announced a bill on Tuesday that would bar the Pentagon from working with productions unless they commit not to alter their content to accommodate Chinese censors. The bill would also forbid
Ellie Chu is a small-town Cyrano, with a twist, in Netflix original “The Half of It,” which could well be the most literary high school movie to come along in the short lives of its adolescent audience — and not just because writer-director Alice Wu was loosely inspired by a late-19th-century French play that most
In today’s TV News Roundup, Amazon released the trailer for Season 2 of “Homecoming,” and Netflix announced the premiere date for the final episodes of “Fuller House.” DATES Netflix has announced that the second half of the fifth and final season of “Fuller House” will debut on the streamer on June 2. The first nine