Thompson On Hollywood

Smith Out at Reed Business Information

2009-07-30T10:26:51-07:00

The economy is a ruthless master. Tad Smith is out at Variety parent Reed Business Information, which was put up for sale and then taken off the market due to the unforgiving economy.

Daily Read: Soderbergh Heads Down Under; A Serious Man Trailer

2009-07-30T00:16:25-07:00

Soderbergh provides more details about his planned stint directing a play at Cate Blanchett's theatre in Sydney.

And Focus posts a trailer for the Coens' Toronto-bound A Serious Man.

Comic-Con: Costume Parade Reveals Twilight Backlash

2009-07-29T22:42:00-07:00

The annual Comic-Con costume parade last weekend revealed a sizable Twilight backlash. Basically, many comics fans are using Twilight as an example of the studio exploitation of The Con for marketing purposes. What really irked people was that many movie fans missed the panels in Hall H Thursday because the Twilight: New Moon fans staked out the line, forcing other less intensely dedicated folks to miss other panels. Twilight also brings in women, not necessarily the dominant demo at Comic-Con, though certainly well-represented there.

Check out full costume photo gallery on the jump. Here's my (noisy) flip-cam survey of the costume paraders:

Find more videos like this on AnneCam

Twilight: Eclipse Recasts Victoria

2009-07-28T19:00:37-07:00

The Twilight franchise has a new Victoria. Summit is announcing that in the third Twilight film, Eclipse, Bryce Dallas Howard (Terminator Salvation) will replace Rachelle Lefevre.

UPDATE: When Lefevre protested that a ten day overlap with another project should have been possible for the production to accommodate, Summit sent out a statement Wednesday describing why that was impossible.

Press release and statement on the jump.

THE TWILIGHT SAGA ADDS ACTRESS

BRYCE DALLAS HOWARD TO FILM FRANCHISE

Actress Rachelle Lefevre Will Be Replaced By Howard In The Role Of Victoria

Los Angeles – July 28, 2009 – Summit Entertainment announced today that Bryce Dallas Howard will take over the role of “Victoria” in the studio’s upcoming production of THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE. Actress, Rachelle Lefevre, who portrayed the character in TWILIGHT as well as the upcoming release of THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON, will not continue in the role due to scheduling conflicts with another commitment the actor has made. THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE will start filming in Vancouver this coming August.

THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE, the third film in the studio’s TWILIGHT film franchise based on Stephenie Meyer’s blockbuster book series, will be directed by David Slade from a screenplay written by Melissa Rosenberg. The film will be released theatrically in North America on Wednesday, June 30, 2010.

“We are incredibly happy that Bryce has agreed to come into the franchise,” said Erik Feig, Summit’s President of Worldwide Production and Acquisitions. “Rachelle brought “Victoria” to great screen life and Bryce will bring a new dimension to the character. The franchise is lucky to have such a talented actress as Bryce coming in to fill the role.”

Howard most recently starred in TERMINATOR SALVATION as Kate Connor and has been seen in SPIDER-MAN 3, LADY IN THE WATER, and THE VILLAGE. She was nominated for a Golden Globe for her leading performance as an actress in the HBO film AS YOU LIKE IT.

In THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE, Bella once again finds herself surrounded by danger as Seattle is ravaged by a string of mysterious killings and a malicious vampire continues her quest for revenge. In the midst of it all, she is forced to choose between her love for Edward and her friendship with Jacob — knowing that her decision has the potential to ignite the ageless struggle between vampire and werewolf. With her graduation quickly approaching, Bella is confronted with the most important decision of her life.

Howard is represented by ICM and Management 360.

About the TWILIGHT film series

The TWILIGHT film series stars Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson and tells the story of 17-year-old Bella Swan who moves to the small town of Forks, Washington to live with her father, and becomes drawn to Edward Cullen, a pale, mysterious classmate who seems determined to push her away. But neither can deny the attraction that pulls them together…even when Edward confides that he and his family are vampires.

The action-packed, modern day vampire love story and blockbuster success the first film in the series titled TWILIGHT was released in theatres on November 21, 2008. The second installment of the film franchise, THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON starring Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner, will be released November 20, 2009.

Melissa Rosenberg wrote the scripts for all three films in The TWILIGHT film series.

About Summit Entertainment LLC

Summit Entertainment is a worldwide theatrical motion picture development, financing, production and distribution studio. The studio handles all aspects of marketing and distribution for both its own internally developed motion pictures as well as acquired pictures. Summit Entertainment, LLC also represents international sales for both its own slate and third party product. Summit Entertainment, LLC plans to release 10 to 12 films annually.

# # #

We at Summit Entertainment are disappointed by Rachelle Lefevre’s recent comments which attempt to make her career choices the fault of the Studio. Her decision to discuss her version of the scheduling challenges publicly has forced the Studio to set the record straight and correct the facts.

Ms. Lefevre's representatives were advised as early as April that THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE was expected to start shooting in early August.

If Ms. Lefevre was, as she describes “passionate,” about being part of THE TWILIGHT SAGA, we feel that she and her representatives would have included us in her decision to work on another film that would conflict with the shooting schedule of THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE.

It was not until July 20^th that
Summit
was first informed of Ms. Lefevre’s commitment to BARNEY’S VERSION, a commitment we have since been advised she accepted in early June.
Summit
had acted in good faith that she would be available to fulfill her obligations both in terms of rehearsals and shooting availability for THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE. We feel that her choice to withhold her scheduling conflict information from us can be viewed as a lack of cooperative spirit which affected the entire production.

Furthermore Ms. Lefevre took a role in the other film that places her in
Europe
during the required rehearsal time, and at least ten days of THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE’s principal photography. This period is essential for both rehearsal time with the cast, and for filming at key locations that are only available during the initial part of production.

Contrary to Ms. Lefevre’s statement, it is simply untrue that the Studio dismissed her over a ten day overlap. It is not about a ten day overlap, but instead about the fact that THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE is an ensemble production that has to accommodate the schedules of numerous actors while respecting the established creative vision of the filmmaker and most importantly the story.

The fact remains that Ms. Lefevre’s commitment to the other project - which she chose to withhold from Summit until the last possible moment - makes her unfortunately unavailable to perform the role of Victoria in THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE.

Recession Red: LACMA Shuts Down Film Program

2009-07-28T16:33:12-07:00

The cash crunch is hitting the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, which has quietly been letting go of many of its curators. It is now canceling its weekend film program, reports the LA Times. Head programmer Ian Birnie will be shifted to part-time consultant status. LACMA said the program lost $1 million over the last ten years and had failed to build an audience. Sorry, I thought the room was usually packed when I attended. I loved the programming, but it was arcane and eclectic, as a museum's should be, not designed to "build an audience."

For four decades, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art has fed film aficionados a steady diet of movie masterpieces -- retrospectives that included works from Roman Polanski, Cary Grant, Ernst Lubitsch and, in a current series, James Mason. But after the museum's weekend film program lost $1 million over the last 10 years and failed to build an audience, LACMA said Tuesday that it was pulling the plug on its cinematic centerpiece.

Before there were local film festivals nearly every week, and mass merchants such as Target stocked art-house hits like "A Room With a View" and "Gosford Park" on their DVD shelves, LACMA's film series was one of the few places area movie lovers could find Hollywood classics and foreign-language standouts.

The museum said that it was not abandoning its commitment to films and filmmakers but wanted to rethink its approach to the art form and would look for potential donors to underwrite an unspecified future film program that is curated like any other part of the museum's exhibits.

BTW, the scrappy survivor in the LA exhibition scene is the American Cinematheque, led by executive director Barbara Smith, recent recipient of a French knighthood. She knows how to woo film fans to two very different locations, Hollywood's Egyptian and Santa Monica's Aero. They work hard to market and get the word out to their fanbase. So does UCLA's Film & Television Archive, now relocated at the Billy Wilder Theatre at the Hammer Museum in Westwood.

UPDATE: Statement from LACMA on the jump.

Dear Friends of the Film department,

Please find below a statement from Michael Govan, LACMA's CEO and Wallis Annenberg Director, in regards to Film's restructuring:

As of this fall, LACMA will be changing its overall approach to film programming, ending itsweekend film program by November in order to reconsider the nature, scale, and scope of our film programs. My hope is to engage in a full discussion among the staff and the Board about developing and increasing our commitment to film as central to our curatorial programming.

As part of that, and for the present, we will certainly place greater emphasis on artist-created films reflecting the museum's growing relationship with contemporary artists and the contemporary art world. We will also continue to plan art exhibition-oriented festivals that will be presented in the context of the museum's overall curatorial program. These films will be presented in the Bing Theater occasionally throughout the year. Additionally, the museum will continue its weekly Tuesday matinee program, which presents Hollywood film classics at a discounted price for seniors.

As a result of this programmatic change and the reduction of program hours, Ian Birnie's responsibilities at LACMA have been restructured: he will become a consulting curator, charged with advancing LACMA's ongoing discussion about the type of film program the museum should envision in the future. He will also be pursuing other professional opportunities. Ian has done a marvelous job on ever-smaller budgets to produce respected film programs for LACMA.

Curators from Contemporary Art, Modern Art, and Photography will take an expanded role in many of the upcoming programming decisions, and in the selection of artist-created films. And we will continue exhibition-related film programs across disciplines and presented in conjunction with LACMA's special exhibition offerings.

As we scale back our budgets, this is a good time to slow programs and spend more time thinking about how to build a more sustainable long-term foundation for the presentation of film at LACMA. My hope is to reemerge with a major commitment to film that helps define LACMA's curatorial mission.

Fantastic Fest Screens Inglourious Basterds

2009-07-28T11:31:26-07:00

The Austin Film Society and Fantastic Fest's August 15 dusk-til-dawn Cinemapocalypse marathon in Austin, Texas will screen Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds, which played well during Comic-Con last weekend. The writer-director will introduce the film as well his chosen double feature. Clearly, the Weinsteins are chasing the young male demo. The full release is on the jump.

QT Brings INGLORIOUS BASTERDS to Cinemapocalypse!

AUSTIN FILM SOCIETY and FANTASTIC FEST are excited to present Quentin Tarantino's INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS, starring Brad Pitt, on August 15 at 9 PM at The Alamo Drafthouse Downtown (320 E 6th Street). Tarantino will be on hand for Q&A after the film.

In the first year of the German occupation of France, Shosanna Dreyfus (Melanie Laurent) witnesses the execution of her family at the hand of Nazi Colonel Hans Landa (Christoph Waltz). Shosanna narrowly escapes and flees to Paris where she forges a new identity as the owner and operator of a cinema. Elsewhere in Europe, Lieutenant Aldo Raine (Brad Pitt) organizes a group of Jewish American soldiers to perform swift, shocking acts of retribution. Later known to their enemy as "the basterds," Raine's squad joins German actress and undercover agent Bridget von Hammersmark (Diane Kruger) on a mission to take down the leaders of the Third Reich. Fates converge under a cinema marquis, where Shosanna is poised to carry out a revenge plan of her own... Employing pulp and propaganda in equal measure, Quentin Tarantino's INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS weaves together the infamous, oppressed, real and larger-than-life stories of WWII.

Red carpet arrivals will begin at 8:45 PM. Press wishing to cover the red carpet MUST obtain credentials by emailing Agnes Varnum at agnes@austinfilm.org. No admittance to the red carpet area without credentials.

The screening will kick off Cinemapocalyse, a dusk-til dawn movie marathon. INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS will be followed by a double feature of repertory films programmed by Quentin Tarantino. Both films are influences for INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS. INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS is the only film that will be announced prior to the event, the "influences" double feature and the rest of the program will be announced just before they hit screen. Tickets for Cinemapocalypse will be available to Austin Film Society members and 2009 Fantastic Fest badge holders only from Thursday, July 30 at noon CST to Friday, July 31 at noon CST. Here's where you get 'em!

Tickets for a simultaneous VIP screening of the film will be available to Austin Film Society members on Wednesday, July 29 at 10 AM. The $100 ticket will include dinner, the screening and simulcast of the Q&A. Tickets will be on sale at austinfilm.org and all proceeds benefit the Texas Filmmakers' Production Fund, which received a record number of grant requests for 2009.

Fantastic Fest was founded in 2005 by Tim League (founder of Alamo Drafthouse Cinema) and Harry Knowles (founder of Ain't It Cool News). The Alamo Drafthouse was named "Best Theater in America" by Entertainment Weekly and Ain't It Cool News is one of the most popular internet movie sites in the world. Now in its fifth year, Fantastic Fest is the largest genre film festival in the U.S., and has hosted a large number of world premieres over the years, including THERE WILL BE BLOOD, APOCAPLYTO, HOSTEL, CITY OF EMBER and many more. Fantastic Fest was named by Variety president Charlie Koones as "one of the 10 festivals we love," alongside industry heavy-hitters Cannes, Telluride and Toronto and was also named by MovieMaker Magazine this year as "one of the 25 coolest film festivals." For more information, visit www.fantasticfest.com.

Austin Film Society promotes the appreciation of film and supports creative filmmaking by screening rarely seen films, giving grants and other support to emerging filmmakers, and providing access and education about film to youth and the public. Through Austin Studios, which AFS opened in 2000 in partnership with the City of Austin, AFS helps attract film development and production to Austin and Texas. Gala film premieres and the annual Texas Film Hall of Fame Awards raise funds as well as awareness of the impact of film on economy and community. The Austin Film Society is ranked among the top film centers in the country and recognized by the National Endowment for the Arts and Directors Guild of America. For more information on Austin Film Society, visit www.austinfilm.org.

Sony Pictures Classics Buys Yimou's Blood Simple Remake

2009-07-28T11:03:03-07:00

Sony Pictures Classics continues its long tradition of releasing the films of Chinese director Zhang Yimou by acquiring his latest film, a remake of the Coen brothers' 1984 comedy thriller Blood Simple, this time set in a Chinese noodle shop. It will be the 11th Yimou film released by SPC. The official release is on the jump.

SONY PICTURES CLASSICS ACQUIRES

ACCLAIMED DIRECTOR ZHANG YIMOU’S LATEST FILM

Yimou To Remake Coen Brothers’ Classic ‘Blood Simple’

LOS ANGELES, CA, JULY 28, 2009 - Sony Pictures Classics announces its production partnership and the acquisition of rights in North America, Latin America, Australia and New Zealand to Zhang Yimou’s currently untitled film, a remake of the Coen Brothers’1984 debut feature, BLOOD SIMPLE. The film will be produced by Bill Kong.

The film will mark the eleventh collaboration between Zhang Yimou and the Sony Pictures Classics team, dating back to 1991’s RAISE THE RED LANTERN. The relationship includes such films as THE STORY OF QIU JU, SHANGHAI TRIAD, HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS and Zhang’s most recent film, the 2006 martial arts epic CURSE OF THE GOLDEN FLOWER starring Gong Li and Chow Yun-Fat. Sony Pictures Classics also owns the rights to Zhang’s first film, 1987’s RED SORGHUM.

Sony Pictures Classics Co-Presidents and Co-Founders, Michael Barker and Tom Bernard jointly stated: “The idea of a remake of BLOOD SIMPLE as seen through the eyes of Zhang Yimou’s masterful visual elegance and clever narrative twists is genius. Our continued partnership over the years with both Zhang Yimou and Bill Kong has always been so fruitful. We are excited to be back in business with them.”

The film will also be SPC’s fifth collaboration with producer Bill Kong which began in 2000 with Ang Lee’s Academy Award winning CROUCHING TIGER HIDDEN DRAGON, the highest grossing foreign language film in U.S. box office history, and includes HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS and CURSE OF THE GOLDEN FLOWER.

Zhang Yimou stated, "I am very happy working with Sony Pictures Classics again, they have always done a great job and I am looking forward to be with them again."

"I am so excited to be with Tom and Michael again, especially as this is the first film from Zhang Yimou after his 2008 Olympic Opening Event," added Kong.

Zhang’s film will be a thriller-comedy remake of Joel & Ethan Coen’s BLOOD SIMPLE , set in a Chinese noodle shop in a sand dune-specked desert, rather than a bar in an unnamed Texas town. The owner of the noodle shop’s seemingly simple plan to murder his adulterous wife and her lover quickly spins out of control after the introduction of a gun into the lives of characters more accustomed to knives and swords.

Known for films with gorgeous cinematography and sumptuous settings, Zhang Yimou was chosen to create the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics, the most elaborate and complicated ceremonies ever. This film marks his return to filmmaking.

ABOUT SONY PICTURES CLASSICS

Michael Barker and Tom Bernard serve as co-presidents of Sony Pictures Classics—an autonomous division of Sony Pictures Entertainment they founded with Marcie Bloom in January 1992, which distributes, produces, and acquires independent films from around the world.

Barker and Bernard’s films are among the most prestigious films of all time. They have produced 24 Academy Award^® winners (21 of those at Sony Pictures Classics) and have garnered over 100 Academy Award^® nominations (72 at Sony Pictures Classics) including Best Picture nominations for Capote, Howards End, and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

Over the years, Barker and Bernard fostered relationships with many of the world's finest independent filmmakers including Robert Altman, Ang Lee, Richard Linklater, Guillermo del Toro, Francois Truffaut, David Cronenberg, Jonathan Demme, Woody Allen, Walter Salles, Todd Haynes, Nicole Holofcener, Errol Morris, Zhang Yimou, Wong Kar Wai, Ingmar Bergman, Neil Jordan, Francis Ford Coppola, and David Mamet.

Additional honors include “The Honors Award” from the Director's Guild of America, the “Chevalier Order of Arts and Letters” from the French government, the Gotham Industry Lifetime Achievement Award (IFP), the FINDIE Award (IFP/West Spirit Awards), and the GLAAD Media Award. At Sony Corporation’s global management conference, SPC received the “Distinguished Special Recognition” award two years in a row for their successful business operation.

ABOUT SONY PICTURES ENTERTAINMENT

Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) is a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America (SCA), a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Corporation. SPE's global operations encompass motion picture production and distribution; television production and distribution; digital content creation and distribution; worldwide channel investments; home entertainment acquisition and distribution; operation of studio facilities; development of new entertainment products, services, and technologies; and distribution of filmed entertainment in more than 100 countries. Sony Pictures Entertainment can be found at http://www.sonypictures.com.

TIFF: Galas and Specials Include Coens, Barrymore, Moore

2009-07-28T10:51:48-07:00

Toronto International Film Fest announcements are coming fast. Here are the latest galas and special presentations, including Joel and Ethan Coen's A Serious Man, Michael Moore's Capitalism: A Love Story, and Drew Barrymore's directing debut, Whip It. Full release on the jump:

July 28, 2009

NEWS RELEASE #12

GALAS AND SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS ADDED TO FESTIVAL LINEUP

Toronto – The Toronto International Film Festival is pleased to announce the addition of two Gala Presentations and eight Special Presentations to the programming lineup for this year’s Festival, running September 10 to 19. Included are works from critically acclaimed filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen, Werner Herzog, Rebecca Miller, Michael Moore and Oliver Parker, and featuring on-screen performances by Drew Barrymore (in her directorial debut), Jim Broadbent, Nicolas Cage, Michael Caine, Colin Farrell, Colin Firth, Rebecca Hall, Val Kilmer, Christopher Lee, Juliette Lewis, Blake Lively, Eva Mendes, Julianne Moore, Cillian Murphy, Ellen Page, Robin Wright Penn and Keanu Reeves.

Ticket packages for the Festival are now available for purchase by cash, debit or Visa^†. Purchase online attiff.net/thefestival, by phone at 416-968-FILM or 1-877-968-FILM (10 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday, closed weekends and holidays) or in person at the Festival Box Office at Nathan Phillips Square (10 a.m. to 7 p.m., seven days a week), located at 100 Queen Street West, in the white tent, west of the square.

GALAS

Dorian Gray Oliver Parker, United Kingdom

World Premiere

In Victorian London, the handsome Dorian Gray (Ben Barnes) is swept into a social whirlwind by the charismatic and cunning Lord Wotton (Colin Firth). Immersed in the hedonistic pleasures of the city, Dorian vows he would give anything to keep his youth and beauty – even his soul. Based on the Oscar Wilde novel,Dorian Gray examines the destructive power of beauty, the blind pursuit of pleasure and the darkness that can result from both.

The Private Lives of Pippa Lee Rebecca Miller, USA

North American Premiere

From all outward appearances, Pippa Lee (Robin Wright Penn) leads a charmed existence. An anchor of feminine serenity, she is the devoted wife of an accomplished publisher (Alan Arkin) 30 years her senior, the proud mother of two grown children, a trusted friend and confidant. But as Pippa dutifully follows her husband to a new life in a staid Connecticut retirement community, her idyllic world and the persona she has built over the course of her marriage will be put to the ultimate test. Adapted from writer-director Rebecca Miller’s novel of the same name, The Private Lives of Pippa Lee presents the complex portrait of the many lives behind a single name.

SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS

Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans Werner Herzog, USA

North American Premiere

Terence McDonagh (Nicolas Cage), a homicide detective with the New Orleans Police Department, is promoted to Lieutenant after he saves a prisoner from drowning in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. However, during his heroic act, he severely injures his back and is put on prescription pain medication. A year later, Terence – struggling with his addictions to sex, Vicodin and cocaine – finds himself in the battle to bring down drug dealer Big Fate, who is suspected of massacring an entire family of African immigrants.

Capitalism: A Love Story Michael Moore, USA

North American Premiere

On the 20-year anniversary of his groundbreaking masterpiece Roger & Me, Michael Moore’s Capitalism: A Love Story comes home to the issue he’s been examining throughout his career: the disastrous impact of corporate dominance on the everyday lives of Americans (and by default, the rest of the world). But this time the culprit is much bigger than General Motors, and the crime scene far wider than Flint, Michigan. From Middle America, to the halls of power in Washington, to the global financial epicenter in Manhattan, Michael Moore will once again take film-goers into uncharted territory.

Harry Brown Daniel Barber, United Kingdom

World Premiere

Harry Brown is a provocative and thought-provoking modern urban western featuring a tour-de-force lead performance from two-time Academy Award^®-winner Michael Caine. Harry Brown has lived to see his community descend into crime and violence, and ruled over by a gang of teenage thugs. After his best friend is brutally murdered and the gang leader responsible walks free, Harry reaches a breaking point and revenge becomes his only aim.

Perrier’s Bounty Ian Fitzgibbon, Ireland/United Kingdom

World Premiere

When Michael’s (Cillian Murphy) debt to Dublin kingpin Darren Perrier (Brendan Gleeson) is called in and one of Perrier’s goons accidentally ends up dead, Michael escapes to the mountains with his father Jim (Jim Broadbent) and best friend, Brenda. Flat broke, on the run and with only 24 hours to pay up, Michael is forced to confront his true feelings for Brenda and make amends with his father. However, with Perrier and his gang in hot pursuit, time is running out for Michael and only fate, a bit of luck and possibly a gang of savage dogs will save him, in this cracking gangster comedy.

A Serious Man Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, USA

World Premiere

Imaginatively exploring questions of faith, familial responsibility, delinquent behaviour, dental phenomena, academia, mortality and Judaism – and intersections thereof – A Serious Man is the new film from Academy Award^®-winning writer-directors Joel and Ethan Coen.

Triage Danis Tanovic, Ireland/Spain

World Premiere

Mark (Colin Farrell), a war photographer, returns home from Kurdistan without his friend and colleague David (Jamie Sives). As time goes on, it becomes clear that Mark holds the key to the truth of David’s disappearance.

Whip It Drew Barrymore, USA

World Premiere

Drew Barrymore’s directorial debut stars Ellen Page (Juno) as Bliss, a rebellious Texas teen who throws in her small-town beauty pageant crown for the rowdy world of roller-derby. Marcia Gay Harden (Mystic River, Pollock) plays Bliss’s disapproving mother, while Drew Barrymore, Kristen Wiig (Saturday Night Live) and Juliette Lewis (Old School) play roller-derby stars. Whip It also stars Eve, Jimmy Fallon, Daniel Stern, Alia Shawkat, Ari Graynor, Andrew Wilson, Zoe Bell and singer-songwriter Landon Pigg.

Women Without Men Shirin Neshat, Germany/France/Austria

North American Premiere

Shirin Neshat’s first feature-length film is based on a magic-realist novel written by Iranian author Sharnush Parsipur. The narrative interweaves the lives of four Iranian women during the summer of 1953, a pivotal moment in Iranian history when an American led coup d’état brought down the democratically elected prime minister Mohammed Mossadegh and reinstalled the Shah to power. The film chronicles each woman’s quest for change and their mysterious encounter in a magical orchard.

The Special Presentations programme is made possible through the generous

sponsorship of American Movie Classics Company LLC.

About Bell Lightbox: Currently under construction, Bell Lightbox, a breathtaking five-storey complex located in downtown Toronto, will provide a permanent home for film lovers to celebrate cinema from around the world and will propel TIFF forward as an international leader in film culture. Designed by innovative architecture firm KPMB, Bell Lightbox’s fluid structure encourages exploration, movement and play. The campaign to build Bell Lightbox is generously supported by founding sponsor Bell, the Government of Canada and the Province of Ontario, the King and John Festival Corporation – consisting of the Reitman family and the Daniels Corporation – RBC as major sponsor and official bank, Visa^†, the Copyright Collective of Canada, NBC Universal Canada, the Allan Slaight Family, the Brian Linehan Charitable Foundation and CIBC. The Board of Directors, staff and many generous individuals and corporations have also contributed to the campaign. For more information on the Bell Lightbox campaign, visit belllightbox.ca.

Nikki Finke: Moving Target

2009-07-27T14:46:57-07:00

Everybody's talking about Nikki Finke.

She's a compelling, charismatic, threatening figure. Walter Winchell is a good comparison. (The mighty gossip columnist inspired Burt Lancaster in Sweet Smell of Success.) That's because until now, at least, no one told her what to do. Here's her latest, on not getting the Ben Silverman scoop.

Finke's getting shot at because she has power and because she has done, by herself, what few can do in journalism today: make money. People are taking her seriously because she lured huge traffic to her blog and sold it for unspecified millions. The question remains: will changing her indie maverick status change the factors key to her success? Can you mainstream Deadline Hollywood Daily?

We will soon see how she moves with the changes as she starts her new gig as a cog in Jay Penske's online machine. He was smart to use her as a driving traffic generator for Movieline and Bonnie Fuller's new iteration of Hollywood Life. Finke helped to put Penske's media empire on the map. Now we'll see if she can keep the momentum going on Deadline Hollywood Daily.

Weekend Read: DGA Names Prexy; Online Content Solution

2009-07-26T22:56:00-07:00

Taylor Hackford takes the reins at the DGA.

Attributor has a solution to online content stealing.

Comic-Con: Visionaries Jackson, Cameron Talk Future

2009-07-26T09:57:42-07:00

By far the high point of the Con for me was EW editor Jeff Giles' interview with Peter Jackson and James Cameron. The two men respect each other enormously. Weta's achievement with The Lord of the Rings' Gollum convinced Cameron that he might be able to forge ahead with Avatar, which had been collecting dust for more than a decade.

Cameron signed up Weta to do the elaborate visual effects on Avatar; Jackson wanted to visit the set but took off to shoot The Lovely Bones just as Cameron was arriving. He came back for the last week of principal photography.

Jackson was making his first visit to the Con. He always sent lovely personal video greetings from Wellywood, full of cool stuff for the fans to see. He clearly understands what goes on at SDCC, and the role the fans play. So it was odd to see him looking so thin, tired and low-key. Jackson made the schlep from Wellywood partly to support his protege Neill Blomkamp whose horror thriller District 9 was the hit of the festival. He candidly expressed his anger over how he and Blomkamp lost Halo, and then made District 9.

Cameron, for his part, seemed energized and mellow, while acknowledging that he and producer Jon Landau have their work cut out for them. (Avatar went over well, but it was not the best-received footage in San Diego. Cameron sets a high bar. And the film plays very sci-fi.) They cooked up the 15-minute free 3D footage stunt set for August 31, knowing that marketing will be key to turning Avatar into the event it needs to be on December 18.

I could listen to these guys all day. I love it that they respect their audience. They make smart movies to please themselves and everyone else at the same time. Which is really hard.

[Thank you, Kris Tapley.]

Comic-Con: Iron Man 2

2009-07-25T19:52:00-07:00

The audience in Hall H was ramped up for Iron Man 2. They booed moderator Scott Mantz of Access Hollywood, who plowed on. (I had read some Tweets complaining about him earlier today.) Sure enough, he was flustered and not in tune with the Hall H crowd, which is fairly sophisticated.

Jon Favreau knows how to play to the room. So does Robert Downey, Jr., who broke onto the panel in supposed protest of the cheesy Marvel promo piece (conceived by Favreau as just that). Downey got some 6500 people to sing Happy Birthday to Favreau's son Max. "No one cared before you guys," Favreau told the hall. "Roll the other footage. Let's go."

The clip starts with Iron Man, helmet off, lounging inside the Randy's Donut sign. He confesses to not being in touch with reality during a diner scene with a threatening Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury. At a Senate hearing, Tony Stark takes on a nasty Senator (Gary Shandling) who wants to confiscate the Iron Man weapon. It's great fun watching them go after each other as Pepper (Gwenyth Paltrow) tut tuts behind Stark.

Mickey Rourke as Ivan Venko aka Whiplash (two characters from the comics combined) threatens Downey at a race track, whirling his nasty fired up lariat. When Rourke heard that his character was a refugee from a Russian prison, he checked out a Russian prison, Favreau learned from TMZ.

At the panel, Sam Rockwell (who plays arms monger and Tony Stark wannabe Justin Hammer) had no clue how to charm the crowd. (That's one reason he's a great actor and not a movie star.) The crowd roared for Scarlett Johannson as Natasha Romonov, or Black Widow. She dyed her hair red before she took the role, took her training seriously, ate egg white omelettes and insisted on doing her own stunts so that her action scenes would look authentic. For his part, Cheadle had never worked on a movie with this level of scope and effects, he said. The War Machine costume was "heavy." When Rhodes makes his first appearance in the Senate scene, the movie deals with Cheadle replacing Terrence Howard by having him say, "I'm here, deal with it, let's move on." Cheadle asked Favreau to screen the footage again because he had missed it.

The movie wrapped last week, as those following Favreau on Twitter are well aware. He was tweeting and shooting photos from his iPhone from the Hall H stage too. With the sequel, "we wanted to add characters but not too many," said Favreau, "to maintain the same tone and dynamic, adding people to further move us toward the eventual Avengers film still coming."

The story was assembled through an elaborate collaborative process among Favreau, Downey, Marvel's Kevin Feige and writer Justin Theroux (who worked with Downey on Tropic Thunder), with much further improvisation on set. Set six months after the first film, Tony Stark is dealing with the pressures of having declared himself as Iron Man. He's a wealthy industrialist playboy operating on the world stage, but there's more to deal with--like his relationship with assistant Pepper and his old military pal Rhodes. He meets Natasha at his bacchanalia of a birthday party. "I wanted to deal with how he struggles with his own id in the face of being a larger than life character who is in fact saving the world," said Favreau.

The director has another year to go; he hopes to be involved in Marvel's upcoming The Avengers in some way, but that will depend on timing. Zak Penn is outlining the film now. After the panel, Marvel production chief Feige said that Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, Nick Fury, Black Widow and the Shields Organization will all be in The Avengers--the characters interacting with each other is key. But they're taking it slow to make it right.

We'll see the final product May 7, 2010. Paramount and Marvel have nothing to worry about.

#SDCC Interview: Cameron Talks Avatar

2009-07-25T14:31:00-07:00

Here's my Comic-Con interview with James Cameron about how his undersea expeditions informed his return to moviemaking, Avatar. He digs into how he perfected the art of performance capture to allow the warmth of his actors to come through. He wants to do some consciousness-raising with SAG on what performance capture really involves. During Friday's panel with Cameron and Peter Jackson, the two men discussed how resistant actors have been to such acting as Andy Serkis as Gollum.

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Comic-Con: Photo Gallery

2009-07-25T13:23:00-07:00

Here's a taste of Comic-Con. And I haven't even visited the exhibition floor where all the action is. I'm still behind on posting all the material I'm collecting. Stay tuned.

Photo gallery on the jump:

Daily Planet Sold to Lex Luthor

2009-07-25T12:24:01-07:00

Comic-Con: Cameron Wows with Avatar

2009-07-24T17:02:00-07:00

Twentieth Century Fox co-chairman Tom Rothman came down to San Diego to intro James Cameron, who in turn presented 24 minutes of footage from Avatar. The studio has backed Cameron's R & D for the dozen years since Titanic. After earning credibility with the deep sea documentary world with a series of 3D docs, Cameron finally opted to chase the promise of advanced 3-D motion-capture with an original story that had been sitting in his drawer for 14 years. But no matter how fabulous this movie looks--and it wowed Hall H, the perfect target audience for a sci-fi adventure--Fox has to market this movie without major stars, branding and the kind of wide release a blockbuster usually commands. That's why they're showing 15 minutes of footage, free, on Avatar Day on August 21 on 35 IMAX theaters around the world.

The footage shows us a space station, where we meet a tight-necked colonel (Stephen Lang) warning new recruits about the dangers of Planet Pandora, home to an indigenous alien race, the Nav'i. Sam Worthington arrives in a wheelchair. He's a paraplegic whose twin brother has died; he's going to inherit his 10-foot blue, long-tailed avatar, a half-human, half-alien creature that humans can link to and send to explore the inhospitable planet. Cameron vet Sigourney Weaver (Aliens) plays a scientist on a mission to save the planet from degradation and exploitation.

The story is immediately exotic and compelling. But the magic comes from the 3D immersion into the exotic fauna and flora of the Pandora jungle where our hero is saved from certain death by a lovely native girl (Zoe Saldana). She tells him he's like a stupid child stumbling and destroying things. But when he attracts white wood sprites that look like deep sea creatures, she wonders if he might have some spiritual potential and takes him to her people. As night falls the rich jungle becomes as luminescent and brightly colored as a coral reef.

In another stunning sequence, the native warriors challenge Nav'i's new boyfriend to tame a flying pterodactyl-like banshee. He wrestles the creature into submission and flies him into a huge canyon.

The audience roared with support for Avatar, as Cameron, Weaver, Lang and Saldana talked to the crowd, and later, the backstage media. (Worthington appeared via video from the European set of Clash of the Titans.) But the movie is clearly ahead of the curve, which could make it a must-see event. But it's also likely to play best for fans of sci-fi adventure, which could limit it to a degree. Wisely, Cameron says he has no interest in competing with his own boxoffice. He's a filmmaker who wants to pursue the edge of technology and reach millions of people around the world. Avatar will be a must-see when it opens on December 18.

Comic-Con: Disney 3-D Panel Showcases Burton, Depp, Zemeckis, Tron Legacy

2009-07-24T08:42:00-07:00

Thursday was a long day. The official Comic-Con movie program began in Hall H with Disney's 3-D panel. "A lot of you are going to stay here all day," said host Patton Oswalt. The 6000-strong crowd roared. Bob Zemeckis broke his Comic-Con cherry with footage from the start of Christmas Carol, which stars Jim Carrey in five roles. Instead of heavy make-up, it's the Zemeckis brand of motion capture (in 3D and IMAX 3D), which I find stilted. (People tell me that seeing Polar Express in IMAX was transformative.) The audience went "Ooooh" when they first put on their 3D glasses as Scrooge inspected Marley's dead body and was visited by his green, chained ghost. "It's a ghost story," Zemeckis said. I was thrown off by Carrey's uncanny Alistair Sim imitation as Scrooge. He probably figured most younger audiences had never seen the British Dickens classic, my fave movie version. That said, Zemeckis's movie looks like a Big, Expensive, Audience-Friendly holiday picture. "We have the filmmaking tools to realize what Dickens wrote," said Zemeckis, who basically said that if Rembrandt could cut through the uncanny valley and paint eyes, so could he, by tracking the retina perfectly with four hi-def "capping" cameras shooting 64 fps also tracking every pore, facial muscle, and crease, he said. "It's happening. We're there. I can put my camera anywhere I want. I don't have to obey the laws of physics."

Zemeckis basically admitted he's working on a Who Framed Roger Rabbit sequel, which if it happens, would keep the 2D toons in 2D.

I'm eager to see more of Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland, which takes elements from both the Lewis Carroll classic and Through the Looking Glass, including lines and imagery from The Jabberwocky (a poem I know by heart) and "weave it into a story that had movement and emotion to it," Zemeckis said. The 3D footage was stunning, but was basically the same material that already hit the Web. They ran it three times. It was Burton's first Hall H panel; he came six times in the 70s as a fan. The director was anxious to get back to the editing room and finish the movie. He was crawling out of his skin. He's clearly wrestling with all the CG effects--more green screen than he's ever dealt with--"it starts freaking you out after a while" and said this was so far "the most difficult" movie he's ever done. (He's still in the thick of it, listening to a "ticking clock") He doesn't do much mo-cap, mostly "pure animation and using actors in mysterious ways," he said.

Disney orchestrated their Big Reveal and got a HUGE ROAR when Johnny Depp popped onto the stage. He plays the Mad Hatter with red hair and lots of Tammy Faye makeup. Stephen Fry voices the Cheshire Cat.

I'm on the fence about the sequel to Tron, a movie I actually saw and loved when it came out in 1982. Does anyone remember that it was ahead of its time? It was the first film to use CG, when there were no PCs, and was a boxoffice dud. "I feel like Rip Van Winkle," said Steve Lisberger, who worked on the new one too. (Disney launched a viral campaign at Comic-Con.)

Disney & co. have cooked up some nifty looking updates, but why would racing cars on the grid be accompanied by loud motor roars? This makes me nervous. The movie wrapped principal photography last week--using the Phantom Camera at 1000 fps for some shots--and has another year of VFX work to go. Jeff Bridges is back, playing his old and young selves. "This looks so new and fresh," he said, "I guarantee they'll get some pop for this."

Comic-Con: Twilight: New Moon Press Conference

2009-07-23T15:21:00-07:00

About 600 people camped overnight to get into the Twilight: New Moon panel, which started at 1:45 PM in Hall H. Some came from as far away as the Philippines. But first there was a press conference at the Biltmore Hilton adjacent to the gigantic blocks long convention enter, which at 9 Thursday morning was already a sea of jostling people.

I drove down this morning and parked at Petco, grabbed my badge without much fuss, and headed for the Twilight: New Moon press conference. And at 1:45 PM Kristen Stewart, Rob Pattinson and Taylor Lautner said all the same things again. A lot of the conversation was about the difference between working with Catherine Hardwicke and Chris Weitz. Stewart suggested that Hardwicke was more "impulsive" and fast and reactive. Pattinson said she used more fast shooting and hand-held cameras, and said he preferred Weitz's more calm, smooth and "balletic" approach. The actors seemed to appreciate being looked after by a grown-up this time around, and indeed, the footage looked more studio-glossy. (I'll need to see the film.)

Pattinson, Stewart and Lautner form the romantic triangle of New Moon and the next film, Eclipse. Stewart (sporting her Joan Jett look) admitted that she enjoyed the acting challenge on New Moon, as her lovelorn character Bella is left behind by vampire Edward, who is trying to keep her safe. Lautner talked a lot about buffing up to play werewolf Jacob, who takes on the role of protector. He also kept saying how much he didn't want to disappoint fan expectations. In one scene, Jacob (Lautner) teaches Bella how to ride a motorcycle; she crashes when she sees Edward (Pattinson) hovering in the air. (This is how the film deals with is absence for much of the film. "I play a supporting role," Pattinson said, keeping things low-key.) Jacob whips off his shirt to wipe blood off Bella's face. The fans seemed impressed by his sixpack abs, but they really went nuts in the climatic second scene when Bella is rushing to save Edward as he stands pale and shirtless, about to step into the sunlight. The clip ended on the verge of their big reunion, which has already been broadcast across the web by a contingent of Twilight fans on vigil throughout all the filming. "They applaud after every take, like theater," said Weitz. There was something slightly anti-climactic about the proceedings. It's no longer innocent and new. As the actors kept saying, "it's a franchise." The fans screamed when Edward came on-screen, but the roar that went up this morning for Johnny Depp, who made a surprise appearance at Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland panel, was worthy of a real movie star.

I just greeted Avatar director Jim Cameron and producer Jon Landau as they arrived at the outdoor patio area next to the press rooms where the studios are running press conferences and roundtables. The Avatar panel goes on at 3 PM.

UPDATE VIDEOS:

The New Moon stars arrive at the press conference:

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Here's the press conference:

Lautner and Stewart talk to MSN's James Rocchi:

<a href="http://video.msn.com/?mkt=en-US&from=sp_en-us_cinemash&vid=7f647662-52ab-41be-960b-96a9f2ad66a7" target="_new" title="Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner at Comic-Con 2009">Video: Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner at Comic-Con 2009</a>

Here's the Comic-Con Hall H press conference: