Tag Archives: biz break

Jay-Z, Anne Hathaway, Jake Gyllenhaal & More Campaign For Obama; Anheuser-Busch Not Thrilled With Flight: Biz Break

Also in Tuesday morning’s news round-up: Osama Bin Laden raid pic Seal Team Six is a big Nat Geo hit; Cate Blanchett heads to Middle East jury duty; And Imodgen Poots eyes a Zac Efron romantic comedy. Stars Campaign For Barack Obama at Election Finale Jay-Z, Natalie Portman, Anne Hathaway, Eva Longoria, Maggie and Jake Gyllenhaal, Jon Hamm and Jennifer Westfeldt, Chris Rock, Samuel L. Jackson and many other stars have been lending their support to President Barack Obama’s re-election campaign, Yahoo and US report . Anheuser-Busch Not So Thrilled By Flight “Anheuser-Busch InBev, maker of Budweiser, has asked Paramount to remove the beer from its hit film Flight , which centers on an alcoholic pilot who guzzles alcohol and takes drugs both before and after he prevents a malfunctioning jetliner from crashing,” THR reports . Seal Team Six Lures 2.7M to Nat Geo The number gave the National Geographic Channel its top broadcast of the year. The Weinstein Company backed project recalls the raid that killed Osama Bin Laden, Deadline reports . Cate Blanchett To Head Dubai Film Festival Jury She will head the jury that will pick the winner of the Dubai International Film Festival’s IWC Schaffhausen Filmmaker script award, which carries a $100K cash prize. The award, which began earlier this year, is intended to help the winning filmmaker transfer their vision to the screen. IWC Schaffhausen is a Swiss watchmaker, THR reports . Imogen Poots Eyes Are We Officially Dating? She will star opposite Zac Efron in the romantic comedy about three male friends in New York who make a pact to stay single as each of them begin to fall in love. The project is being sold at the American Film Market, currently underway, Deadline reports .

More:
Jay-Z, Anne Hathaway, Jake Gyllenhaal & More Campaign For Obama; Anheuser-Busch Not Thrilled With Flight: Biz Break

Jared Leto’s ‘Artifact’ & ‘Beasts Of The Southern Wild’ Nominated For IFP Gotham Audience Award

Oscar hopeful Beasts of the Southern Wild and Artifact , actor Jared Leto ‘s documentary — he’s credited as Bartholomew Cubbins — about his band 30 Seconds to Mars, are among the five films that have made it to the final round of IFP’s Gotham Independent Film Audience Award contest. Beasts, which was directed by Benh Zeitlin , turns out to be the only non-documentary nominated: The other three contenders include Kirby Dick’s  Invisible War , about rape in the military;  Burn , Brenna Sanchez and Tom Putnam’s documentary about Detroit firefighters, and Jonathan Kalafer’s  Once in a Lullaby: The PS 22 Chorus Story ,  which tells the story of how the fifth-grade chorus at a Staten Island public school came to perform at the 2011 Oscars. The first round voting took place from October 18 – 31, during which 31 audience award-winning films from the top 50 US and Canadian film festivals were narrowed through online voting to the five films with the highest number of votes. Round two of voting will take place until Nov. 18, and the winner will be announced at the Gotham Awards in New York on Nov. 26.  Filmgoers can vote online for their favorite film . Follow Frank DiGiacomo on Twitter. Follow Movieline on Twitter.

See original here:
Jared Leto’s ‘Artifact’ & ‘Beasts Of The Southern Wild’ Nominated For IFP Gotham Audience Award

Jared Leto’s ‘Artifact’ & ‘Beasts Of The Southern Wild’ Nominated For IFP Gotham Audience Award

Oscar hopeful Beasts of the Southern Wild and Artifact , actor Jared Leto ‘s documentary — he’s credited as Bartholomew Cubbins — about his band 30 Seconds to Mars, are among the five films that have made it to the final round of IFP’s Gotham Independent Film Audience Award contest. Beasts, which was directed by Benh Zeitlin , turns out to be the only non-documentary nominated: The other three contenders include Kirby Dick’s  Invisible War , about rape in the military;  Burn , Brenna Sanchez and Tom Putnam’s documentary about Detroit firefighters, and Jonathan Kalafer’s  Once in a Lullaby: The PS 22 Chorus Story ,  which tells the story of how the fifth-grade chorus at a Staten Island public school came to perform at the 2011 Oscars. The first round voting took place from October 18 – 31, during which 31 audience award-winning films from the top 50 US and Canadian film festivals were narrowed through online voting to the five films with the highest number of votes. Round two of voting will take place until Nov. 18, and the winner will be announced at the Gotham Awards in New York on Nov. 26.  Filmgoers can vote online for their favorite film . Follow Frank DiGiacomo on Twitter. Follow Movieline on Twitter.

See original here:
Jared Leto’s ‘Artifact’ & ‘Beasts Of The Southern Wild’ Nominated For IFP Gotham Audience Award

Muppets And Puppets Descend On D.C. To Save PBS; Judi Dench, Vanessa Redgrave Lead British Independent Film Awards Noms: Biz Break

Also in Monday morning’s round-up of news briefs, Michael Douglas ‘ And So It Goes proves popular with buyers; Argo heads to Doha Tribeca Film Festival; and Cafe de Flore shines at the Specialty Box Office. Judi Dench, Vanessa Redgrave, Terrence Stamp Lead Noms at British Independent Film Awards Stamp, 74, and Redgrave, 75, are cited for Song for Marion , in which they play members of an amateur choir. Dench, 77, is nominated for The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel , as is her co-star Dame Maggie Smith, also 77. Broken , starring Tim Roth and Cillian Murphy, has nine nominations for the awards, which take place December 9th, BBC reports . D.C.’s Million Puppet March to Save PBS 1,000 people took part in a ‘Million Puppet March’ in the U.S. capital in a bid to keep PBS funding. Republican nominee Mitt Romney pledged to de-fund public television in a ‘Big Bird’ reference that became a key catch phrase of this election season, Deadline reports . Michael Douglas, Diane Keaton’s And So It Goes Sells Around the Globe Douglas plays a self-centered eccentric realtor whose life is turned upside down when his estranged son drops off a granddaughter he never knew. But his determined and lovable neighbor (Keaton) enters the picture and unexpectedly helps him to love again. The film is selling well around the world at the American Film Market currently underway, THR reports . Argo Heads to Doha Tribeca Film Festival Robert DeNiro will also be feted with a special event at the festival organized in part with the Tribeca Film Festival. Mira Nair’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist will open the event in the Gulf state of Qatar, taking place November 17 – 24, THR reports . Specialty Box Office: Cafe de Flore , A Late Quartet Lead Pack of Newcomers Specialty movies openers bowed mostly middling at at best, and a couple of pictures may have suffered residual Hurricane Sandy trauma. Adopt Films’ Cafe de Flore  took the per-theater-average crown with $10K in one location. Entertainment One’s A Late Quartet bowed in 9 theaters with a fairly solid average of 8,433, although the distributor suggested the figure was lower than it might have been if The Sunshine in Manhattan’s Lower East Side had been able to re-open sooner, Deadline reports .

View post:
Muppets And Puppets Descend On D.C. To Save PBS; Judi Dench, Vanessa Redgrave Lead British Independent Film Awards Noms: Biz Break

Muppets And Puppets Descend On D.C. To Save PBS; Judi Dench, Vanessa Redgrave Lead British Independent Film Awards Noms: Biz Break

Also in Monday morning’s round-up of news briefs, Michael Douglas ‘ And So It Goes proves popular with buyers; Argo heads to Doha Tribeca Film Festival; and Cafe de Flore shines at the Specialty Box Office. Judi Dench, Vanessa Redgrave, Terrence Stamp Lead Noms at British Independent Film Awards Stamp, 74, and Redgrave, 75, are cited for Song for Marion , in which they play members of an amateur choir. Dench, 77, is nominated for The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel , as is her co-star Dame Maggie Smith, also 77. Broken , starring Tim Roth and Cillian Murphy, has nine nominations for the awards, which take place December 9th, BBC reports . D.C.’s Million Puppet March to Save PBS 1,000 people took part in a ‘Million Puppet March’ in the U.S. capital in a bid to keep PBS funding. Republican nominee Mitt Romney pledged to de-fund public television in a ‘Big Bird’ reference that became a key catch phrase of this election season, Deadline reports . Michael Douglas, Diane Keaton’s And So It Goes Sells Around the Globe Douglas plays a self-centered eccentric realtor whose life is turned upside down when his estranged son drops off a granddaughter he never knew. But his determined and lovable neighbor (Keaton) enters the picture and unexpectedly helps him to love again. The film is selling well around the world at the American Film Market currently underway, THR reports . Argo Heads to Doha Tribeca Film Festival Robert DeNiro will also be feted with a special event at the festival organized in part with the Tribeca Film Festival. Mira Nair’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist will open the event in the Gulf state of Qatar, taking place November 17 – 24, THR reports . Specialty Box Office: Cafe de Flore , A Late Quartet Lead Pack of Newcomers Specialty movies openers bowed mostly middling at at best, and a couple of pictures may have suffered residual Hurricane Sandy trauma. Adopt Films’ Cafe de Flore  took the per-theater-average crown with $10K in one location. Entertainment One’s A Late Quartet bowed in 9 theaters with a fairly solid average of 8,433, although the distributor suggested the figure was lower than it might have been if The Sunshine in Manhattan’s Lower East Side had been able to re-open sooner, Deadline reports .

View post:
Muppets And Puppets Descend On D.C. To Save PBS; Judi Dench, Vanessa Redgrave Lead British Independent Film Awards Noms: Biz Break

Shirley MacLaine & Christopher Plummer Eye Elsa & Fred Remake; Sarah Jessica Parker Joins Mixtape: Biz Break

Also in Wednesday evening’s round-up of news briefs: MoMA unveils its Awards-centered Contenders series; Under the Bridge heads to U.S. theaters; Ridley Scott teams with Focus on a series of low-budget thrillers; And New York may have cancelled its Halloween Parade in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, but the Film Society of Lincoln Center is up and running with Halloween and other events this week. Hey New Yorkers, Halloween Going On at Lincoln Center! The city cancelled the annual Halloween Parade, but if you’re itching to get out of your apartment and leave this Sandy business behind for a few minutes, check out the Film Society of Lincoln Center’s “Scary Movies” including Maniac with Elijah Wood (director Franck Khalfoun will be there for a Q&A Wed. night) and the North American premiere of Stitches , just perfect for all who are scared of clowns. The Film Society will also be hosting more events this week including a screening of Anna Karenina and a post-screening discussion with director Joe Wright. The group is also screening Brooklyn Castle and The Revisionaries in its first-runs at the Film Center. MoMA Presents its Annual Contenders Series NYC’s Museum of Modern Art will host a series of screenings of titles from the past 12 months that will figure in the Awards Season race. The series opens October 31st with the U.S. premiere of the 3-D animated feature A Liar’s Autobiography: The Untrue Story of Monty Python’s Graham Chapman which will be released theatrically November 2nd. Last year’s Contenders at MoMA garnered 64 Oscar nominations. The series continues through January 14. For more information, visit their website . Under the Bed Heads to U.S. Theaters Starring Jonny Weston ( Chasing Mavericks ) and Gattlin Griffith ( Green Lantern the the thriller tells the story of two brothers who team up to battle the monster living under their bed. XLrator Media, which picked up U.S. rights to the film ahead of the American Film Market, which gets underway in Santa Monica, will release the film in theaters next summer. The deal was negotiated by Ehud Bleiberg and Giulia Prenna on behalf of Bleiberg Entertainment and by Gordon on behalf of XLrator Media. Around the ‘net… Sarah Jessica Parker Joins Mixtape The film chronicles a girl who accidentally destroys a mix tape that once belonged to her deceased mother. Tom Vaughn will direct the music-based comedy, Deadline reports . Shirley MacLaine and Christopher Plummer to Star in Elsa & Fred Remake MacLaine and Plummer have signed on to star in the romantic comedy, which Il Postino filmmaker Michael Radford will direct. MacLaine plays a lively retirees in New Orleans who gets an unwanted straight-laced widower as a new neighbor in her apartment, THR reports . Ridley Scott Partners with Focus Features on Low-Budget Genre Pics The Oscar-nominated director and producer will work with Orchard Media and Focus Features International on a slate of six genre low-budget feature films over three years, Deadline reports .

Excerpt from:
Shirley MacLaine & Christopher Plummer Eye Elsa & Fred Remake; Sarah Jessica Parker Joins Mixtape: Biz Break

Stephen King Tale Heads To Big Screen; Weekend Box Office Newcomers Tracking Weak: Biz Break

Also in Friday afternoon’s round-up of news briefs: The estate of author William Faulkner is suing over a quote used in Woody Allen ‘s Midnight in Paris ; Iranian dissident filmmaker Jafar Panahi wins a major peace prize; And a preview of the weekend’s Specialty Release newcomers. Box Office Weekend Looks Soft with Holdovers Set to Outpace Newcomers Cloud Atlas , and Silent Hill Revelation may not gross more than holdover Argo . Teen comedy Fun Size and surfing drama Chasing Mavericks are also tracking soft, THR reports . William Faulkner Estate Is Suing Over a Quote Used In Midnight in Paris The Faulkner estate is suing distributor Sony Pictures Classics for copyright infringement, commercial appropriation and for violating the Lanham Act. In Midnight in Paris Gil Pender, the disillusioned Hollywood screenwriter played by Owen Wilson, says, “the past is not dead. Actually, it’s not even past. You know who said that? Faulkner. And he was right. And I met him, too. I ran into him at a dinner party,” Deadline reports . Stephen King Tale Heads to the Big Screen King’s fantasy-horror Mercy is an adaptation of Stephen King’s short story Gramma . British actress Frances O’Connor will star in the project that Peter Cornwell will direct from a script by Matt Greenberg. The story concerns a mother with two young sons who come to discover their ailing grandmother is a witch, THR reports . Iranian Filmmaker/Dissident Jafar Panahi Wins 2012 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought The European Parliament awarded the prize to Panahi and a dissident lawyer, Nasrin Sotoudeh in a “message of solidarity and recognition to a woman and a man who have not been bowed by fear and intimidation.” Panahi’s films are known for their humanist perspective on life in Iran, often focusing on the hardships of children, the poor and women. He won the Camera d’Or at the 1995 Cannes Film Festival, A.P. reports . Specialty Release Preview: The Loneliest Planet , Orchestra of Exiles , Pusher , The Zen of Bennett Two music-oriented documentaries are rolling out in this weekend’s Specialty arena. Tribeca Film Festival 2012 doc  The Zen of Bennett will begin a slow release with the focus on legendary Tony Bennett. Orchestra of Exiles heads to theaters trailing the Israeli Philharmonic to various cities along with the film about its WWII origins. Sundance Selects will bow Julia Loktev’s long-time-in-coming The Loneliest Planet ,, starring Gael García Bernal and Hani Furstenberg in a limited release. And Radius TWC will open its first pickup title Pusher in select cities, Deadline reports .

More here:
Stephen King Tale Heads To Big Screen; Weekend Box Office Newcomers Tracking Weak: Biz Break

Al Pacino As A Decadent Rocker; Avengers Tops Halloween Costumes: Biz Break

Also in Wednesday morning’s new round-up: In the run-up to the election, a major cable company is offering its customers a free viewing of an anti-Obama doc; Details on Peter Jackson ‘s The Hobbit and a book deal for a Spider-Man creator. Avengers Halloween Costumes Top Moviegoers Survey Among 2012 releases, Avengers characters took the top four spots with males, with Chris Hemsworth’s Thor edging out the other characters from summer’s box office hit for the No. 1 spot. Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man came in second, followed by Chris Evans’ Captain America and Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk , THR reports . Al Pacino Takes On Rocker Role Pacino will appear in Dan Fogelman’s Imagine , alongside Jeremy Renner – as the 40-year-old son with whom he tries to reconnect – and Julianne Moore, as the owner of the hotel he moves into on his quest for spiritual absolution. He is an aging rocker who turns over a new leaf after discovering an undelivered letter written by John Lennon to his 19-year-old self, The Guardian and Deadline report . Hobbit Running Time Revealed “It’s looking like it’s going to be about ten minutes shorter than Fellowship was,” explains Jackson. “So it’s going to be officially our shortest Middle-earth yet. I mean, Fellowship was just under three hours and this is about 2 hours 40 minutes at the moment.” Empire reports . Battleground Cabler Offering Anti-Obama Doc for Free “Armstrong Utilities is the nation’s 15th-largest cable provider and operates in 6 states including Ohio and Pennsylvania, two crucial battleground states in the 2012 election. In Ohio alone Armstrong is available in over 50 cities and towns in 10 Ohio counties. So it’s all the more controversial that the cabler is offering the anti-Obama documentary 2016: Obama’s America ’s as a “Free Movie Special” to all its subscribers on demand at no charge, Deadline reports . Spider-Man Musical Writer Gets Book Deal “The big-budget production – featuring music by U2’s Bono and The Edge – was plagued by problems including delays and a series of stunt accidents. Publishers say Berger’s book will give the ‘ultimate fly-on-the-wall account.’ Song of Spider-Man: The Inside Story of the Most Controversial Musical in Broadway History is due out next year, BBC reports .

See the article here:
Al Pacino As A Decadent Rocker; Avengers Tops Halloween Costumes: Biz Break

Skyfall Heads For Royal Premiere; Tony Scott Had ‘Therapeutic’ Drug Levels At Time Of Death: Biz Break

Also in Tuesday morning’s round-up of news briefs: Shameless star Emmy Rossum set for Hilary Swank project; Colin Firth is set for a charity gala at the upcoming Dubai International Film Festival; And Oscar submissions for Best Animated Feature are almost due. Oscars: Animated Feature Film Submissions Due November 1st Filmmaker submissions are due in the Animated Feature category for the 85th Academy Awards. Forms, supporting material etc. must be turned into the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences by 5pm PT Thursday, November 1st. Rules and submission forms are available at their website . Nominations for the 85th Academy Awards will take place January 10th at 5:30am PT. Around the ‘net… Tony Scott Autopsy Reveals Only ‘Therapeutic’ Levels of Drugs L.A. Coroners office said director Tony Scott had a “”therapeutic level of Mirtazipine (Remeron) which is an anti-depressant and zopiclone (Lunesta), a sleep-aid” in his system the day he died on August 19th. The 68 year-old director of Top Gun died from injuries when he jumped from an L.A. harbor bridge. Earlier speculation of possible brain cancer were not detected, Deadline reports . Skyfall Set for Royal Roll-out Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall will attend the world premiere in London of the latest Bond installment. Daniel Craig, Judi Dench and Javier Bardem will attend the screening at the Royal Albert Hall. Proceeds from Tuesday’s royal gala are going to charities that help members of Britain’s intelligence services. Skyfall is the 23rd official Bond film and Craig’s third turn, A.P. reports . Colin Firth to Join Charity Gala at Dubai Film Festival Firth and his wife Livia as well as Kristin Davis and Rooney Mara will attend a charity event for charity Oxfam at the upcoming Dubai International Film Festival. All proceeds from the black tie gala dinner and auction featuring one-of-a-kind prizes donated by celebrity Oxfam partners will go to the UAE-based philanthropic organization Dubai Cares and Oxfam, THR reports . Emmy Rossum Eyes Hilary Swank Starrer, You’re Not You Rossum, who stars in Showtime’s Shameless is in talks to star opposite Hilary Swank in the drama. She would play a self-absorbed college student whose life is changed when she takes a job caring for a woman (Swank) with Lou Gehrig’s disease, THR reports .

View original post here:
Skyfall Heads For Royal Premiere; Tony Scott Had ‘Therapeutic’ Drug Levels At Time Of Death: Biz Break

Stephen Colbert Heads For The Hobbit; Hugh Grant Joins New Rom-Com: Biz Break

Also in a Monday afternoon round-up of news briefs, doc filmmaker Werner Herzog eyes a fiction project for his next directorial; Robert Zemeckis set for a Chicago Film Festival award; The Austin Film Festival names its winners and the Toronto International Film Festival sets its 2013 dates. Hugh Grant Joins Romantic Comedy Grant will star in the untitled romantic comedy that begins shooting in New York next April. The story revolves around a witty Englishman who wins an Oscar for Best Screenplay. Years later he is washed up and broke. He takes a job teaching screenwriting at an East Coast school. He’s not thrilled by the idea of teaching, but thinks he could make the moves on young co-eds. But then he finds romance with a single mom. This will be the fourth collaboration with writer/director Marc Lawrence. Toronto International Film Festival Sets 2013 Dates The 2012 event boasted 147 world premieres with over 300 attending filmmakers, according to TIFF. The festival said its 38th edition will take place September 5 – 15. Sparrows Dance and Informant Top Austin Film Festival Winners Noah Buschel’s Sparrows Dance and Jamie Meltzer’s Informant took the Narrative Feature and Documentary Feature prize at the 2012 Austin Film Festival. Narrative short went to Bryan Buckley’s Asad , while See The Dirt by Chelsea Hernandez and Erik Mauck took the doc short award. Around the ‘net… Stephen Colbert to Appear in Hobbit Trilogy The Colbert Report host will have his big screen acting debut with a small role in an upcoming Hobbit pic. Details about his role are not known, but he will not appear in the first of the films, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey . Fans will have to wait for the next installment in 2013 or the finale in 2014 to view him on the big screen, Access Hollywood reports . Wener Herzog to Bring Return to Fiction for Vernon God The Oscar-nominated documentary filmmaker will return to fiction for an adaptation of DBC Pierre’s 2003 novel, Vernon God Little His last fiction feature was the eccentric My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done in 2009, and he has concentrated on documentaries in recent years, with Cave of Forgotten Dreams , about the Ardèche cave paintings, and Into the Abyss , a study of Texas’s death row, The Guardian reports . Robert Zemeckis Wins Chicago Film Festival Award Robert Zemeckis will be honored with the Founder’s Award at the 48th Chicago International Film Festival on Thursday. His latest film, Flight is his first return to live-action in 12 years. Starring Denzel Washington, the story revolves around an airline pilot who brilliantly lands a crashing plane, but his heroism masks dark secrets, THR reports .

Read this article:
Stephen Colbert Heads For The Hobbit; Hugh Grant Joins New Rom-Com: Biz Break