By Liza Foreman
Herewith the nominations for the 85th Academy Awards, which were announced today (Thursday, January 10) by this year's Oscar host, Seth MacFarlane, and actress Emma Stone.
MacFarlane and Stone announced the nominees at a 5:38 a.m. PT live news conference attended by more than 400 international media representatives.
Academy members from each of the branches vote to determine the nominees in their respective categories – actors nominate actors, film editors no...
By Liza Foreman
New Line Cinema has tapped director Don Scardino to direct its remake of the caper film “Going in Style” and Dan Trachtenberg to helm the cult classic “Y:The Last Man."
"Y:The Last Man" is the saga of Yorick Brown, the only human survivor of a planet-wide plague that instantly kills every mammal possessing a Y chromosome. Accompanied by a mysterious government agent and a brilliant young geneticist, Yorick sets out in search of his lost love and...
By Liza Foreman
The Brits may love Steven Spielberg enough to give his latest film “Lincoln” ten nominations on Tuesday for the 2012 BAFTA awards. But the question is for how long?
Confirming ongoing doubts that Spielberg would really make his sci-fi film “Robopocalypse” over lingering script issues, it was confirmed on Wednesday that the film has been postponed indefinitely.
As per employees, preparation was already underway for the film to shoot at the Leavesden St...
By Liza Foreman
Robin Williams is set to star in Dito Montiel’s (“A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints”) “Boulevard,” the producers announced on Wednesday.
Camellia Entertainment is in pre-production on the feature film, which is an intimate drama about marriage and lies. Williams will play Nolan Mack, a devoted husband in a marriage of convenience until a run-in with a guarded young man forces Nolan to come to terms with his own secrets.
Up-and-coming actor...
Posted by Liza Foreman
The British Academy Film Award (BAFTA) nominations for 2012 are as follows:
Lincoln receives ten nominations. Les Misérables and Life of Pi are each nominated in nine categories; Skyfall has eight nominations, Argo has seven nominations and Anna Karenina has six. Django Unchained and Zero Dark Thirty are each nominated five times.
The Master and Amour have four nominations. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and Silver Linings Playbook have each been nominated t...
By Liza Foreman
Halle Berry has passed on Jerry Bruckheimer’s upcoming television conspiracy drama “Hostages,” leaving the producers to figure out their next step.
Jeffrey Nachmanoff is writing and directing the drama for Jerry Bruckheimer Television and Warner Bros. TV. The project landed at CBS in October with a pilot production commitment.
“Hostages” is based on an Israeli format which centers on a family caught in the middle of a political conspiracy ...
By Liza Foreman
Michael Bay has signed Irish actor Jack Reynor to star in "Transformers 4," Bay announced on his website www.michaelbay.com on Tuesday.
“I just hired a great new actor for Transformers 4 to star against Mark Wahlberg. Jack Reynor, he is an Irish kid that came to America with 30 bucks in his pocket. Pretty ballsy. Seriously who does that? Anyway I spotted him in a great little Irish movie WHAT RICHARD DID. This kid is the ...
By Liza Foreman
Indie pop star sami.the.great has launched a Kickstarter campaign to help raise funds for her first fully-fledged solo tour.
"I want to do something that is a little more interesting both musically and visually,” she said. “I plan on creating a set using programs and instruments that will let me fill the spaces with sounds that a band may have filled, totally on my own.”
For the tour, the artist will also work with the animator Preston Spurlock to ...
By Liza Foreman
Joseph Gordon-Levitt is joining the cast as one of the lead characters in "Sin City: A Dame to Kill For," it was announced on Monday. The film is the follow up to co-directors Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller’s film "Frank Miller's: Sin City."
Gordon-Levitt will play Johnny, a cocky gambler who disguises a darker mission to destroy his most foul enemy at his best game.
“Johnny is a new character in the Sin City world...
Amber Heard (The Rum Diary, Paranoia), Hailee Steinfeld (True Grit) and Connie Nielsen (Gladiator) have signed on for EuropaCorp and Relativity Media's "Untitled Thriller" project, starring Kevin Costner (The Bodyguard, Dances With Wolves, Open Range).
McG (Charlie’s Angels, Terminator Salvation) directs the action tale from a screenplay by Luc Besson (Taken, Transporter) and Adi Hasak (From Paris With Love). The film is currently in production ...
EXCLUSIVE: Chris Coy has joined the cast of "Random," starring alongside "Twilight" star Ashley Greene. Coy will play the charatcer of Leader, the brains behind a group of rogue criminals who terrorize a lone college student at a New England college over Thanksgiving break. Oliver Blackburn is directing.
Coy was most recently seen as L.P. Everett on the HBO drama series “Treme”. He will return for the series final season later this year.&...
By Liza Foreman
Freestyle Releasing has set March 22, 2013 for a North American theatrical release of the sketch comedy film “Inappropriate Comedy,” directed by Vince Offer (of “ShamWow!” fame) and written by Offer, Ari Shaffir and Ken Pringle.
The film is a no-holds barred sketch movie starring Academy Award-winner Adrien Brody as “Flirty Harry,” a tough, no nonsense cop with a soft middle and a flair for fashion; Rob Schneider in a dual rol...
By Liza Foreman
USA Network has promoted Michael Sluchan to senior vice president, original scripted programming, it was announced on Monday by Bill McGoldrick, executive vice president, original scripted programming.
“Michael is a truly talented executive with vast relationships in the creative community and an incredible ability to nurture the types of writers and producers we love to work with,” McGoldrick said.
Sluchan’s responsibilities include overseeing the pr...
By Liza Foreman
Julia Roberts and Academy Award nominee Mark Ruffalo will star in the HBO Films drama "The Normal Heart" directed by Emmy winner Ryan Murphy (“Eat Pray Love,” “Glee”), it was announced on Friday by Michael Lombardo, president, HBO Programming.
Slated to begin production in New York City later this year for 2014 debut on HBO, the film is written by Larry Kramer, adapting his groundbreaking Tony Award-winning play o...
By Liza Foreman
GRAND PLANS FOR OKINAWA: AMERICAN BASES TO BECOMEPOSSIBLE ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY VILLAGES?
OKINAWA
They say that laughter is the best medicine and thepeople of Okinawa should know.
The southern outpost of Japan is famous for the longevityof its inhabitants, many of whom flocked to the 4th OkinawaInternational Movie Festival (March 24 – March 31, 2012), where the core themeswere laughter and peace.
The peace section is for good reason. Here o...
By Liza Foreman
Tsunami Documentary Moves Auds to Tearsat Okinawa International Movie Festival
Okinawa
When Stu Levy flew from Los Angeles to Tokyo on March 9, 2011, he had no idea that he would return a filmmaker with some up-close footage of one of the worst natural disasters in living memory. It lead to his moving documentary, Pray for Japan.
The purpose of his trip was to inform hisJapanese business associates that Tokyo Pop, ...
By Liza Foreman
OKINAWA, JAPAN
They say that laughter is the best medicine and the residents of Okinawa should know.
On Friday,the inhabitants of this tropical prefecture in the south of Japan, which has been dubbed the longevity island thanks to having the highest known number ofcentenarians worldwide, welcomed around 50 of the country’s leading comedians to launch the 4th edition of the Okinawa International Movie Festival (March 24 - 31: 2012), whi...
By Liza Foreman TOKYO –
Winnerss of the 24th edition of the Tokyo International Film Festival were announced on Sunday.
President of the International Competition Jury, Edward R.Pressman said:
“Especially this year, it has been difficult to keep films alive in Japan but I would like to thank festival chairman, Mr. Yoda, and all the people for making TIFF possible. The prevalent theme in some of the best films such as Play, When Pigs Have Wings, and Untouchable was imm...
Europeans Dominate Competition In TokyoBy Liza ForemanTOKYO - The competition section of this year's Tokyo International Film Festival (October 22-30) will see Greece compete with France, Turkey, Sweden, England and Belgium, with this year's competition section dominated by films from the Euro zone. Only a handful of Asian titles compete this year, including Japan's The Woodsman and the Rain, which makes its world premiere; Oxide Pang's Sleepwalker which makes its world premiere also; Thai direc...
By Liza Foreman TOKYO -
The rain stopped just in time for the celebrities to walk the green carpet, laid out for the opening of the 24th Tokyo International FilmFestival (October 22-30th) on Saturday.
TIFF chairman Tom Yoda welcomed guests, including Jackie Chan, whose 100th film“1911” kicked off events as the special opening film.
Highlights of the night included the cast of the “Fukushima Hula Girls,” participating as part of the national caravan for the recons...
By Liza Foreman Los Angeles - Considering that The Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF), (22-30October 2011), and its market arm TIFFCOM, two of Japan’s premiereentertainment industry events, place such a dedicated focus on initiatives tosave the planet – in keeping with Japan’s generally eco-friendly positioning - lastweek’s tragedy there seems all the more poignant. Still, as the Japanese government works to find a solution to its nuclearpower crisis and the devastating consequenc...
By Liza Foreman It seems that TIFFCOM, the market arm of the Tokyo International Film Festival (October 23-31, 2010), is not the highest-grossing film market in Asia for nothing.Drawing in all of the major players from the Asian industry and a handful of key European companies, this year’s market took place in a luxurious high-rise building, offering fabulous views of Tokyo, perfect organization and just the right mix of business and pleasure. With a bustling scene at the four-day event ...
By Liza Forman Tokyo International Film Festival Winners 2010/TIFFCOM WrapAt this year’s Tokyo International Film Festival (October 23-31, 2010),Intimate Grammar took home the $50,000 Tokyo Sakura Grand Prix -- the second time Israeli director Nir Bergman has won the main award.Bergman’sBroken Wings also took the mainprize at TIFF in 2002, making him the only director to win it twice. 98-year-old Japanese director, Kaneto Shindo won the special jury prize, for POST CARD, a film about the...
By Liza Foreman Now entering its sixth year,TPG (Tokyo Project Gathering), an international co-production market organizedby METI (Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry) and UNIJAPAN, is presenting28 films this year up from 25 in 2009, during TIFFCOM, the market arm of theTokyo International Film Festival.“More and more inspiringprojects were submitted this year, and thus we selected in total of 28projects, which was increased from 25 projects from last year,” the festivalsaid in a statem...
By Liza Foreman TIFFCOM 2010 (October 25-28), the Contents Business Marketaffiliated with TIFF, opens today after a set-up day yesterday in the toweringskyscraper in the middle of Tokyo which is home to the annual market. TIFFCOM2010has registered a record-breaking number of exhibitors, participating countriesand pre- registration, putting it on track to make Tokyo a mainhub for the content business in Asia.The numberof exhibitors this year is 222, up 4 percentage points from last year.Exhi...
