My experience of the Santa Barbara International FIlm Festival began Saturday morning at the Lobero Theatre with JC Chandor (Margin Call), Tate Taylor (The Help), Jim Rash (Descendents) Will Reiser (50/50), and Mike Mills (Beginners). The artists spoke passionately & candidly about their writin...

  Actor in a Leading Role Demián Bichir in "A Better Life" George Clooney in "The Descendants" Jean Dujardin in "The Artist" Gary Oldman in "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy" Brad Pitt in "Moneyball" Actor in a Supporting Role Kenneth Branagh in "My Week with Marilyn" Jonah Hill in "Moneyball" Nick Nolte in "Warrior" Christopher Plummer in "Beginners" Max von Sydow in "...

Martin Scorsese's "Hugo" and The Artist led the nominations for the 84th Academy Awards, which were announced in Los Angeles this morning. Hugo took 11 nominations and was followed closely by Michel Hazanavicius's "The Artist," with 10 nominations (in the the top 5 categories). Other contenders for best picture category include "The Descendants," "The Help," "Midnight in Paris," "Moneyball," "The Tree of Life," "War Horse" and one of the surprises "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close." Other...

The Paley Center for Media will honor Participant Media and its Founder Jeff Skoll at its annual gala event “Salute to Excellence,” Tuesday, December 13 at the Paley Center for Media in Beverly Hills, it was announced today by Paley Center for Media President and CEO Pat Mitchell. Participant Media, whose most recent film projects include “The Help” and “Contagion,” is being honored for its unique use of media to accelerate social change. Participant’s films are often accompanied ...