Sunday, August 28, 2011

Mila from Mars

A 16-old girl runs away from a dangerous man and gets into a faraway village near the border. Soon she finds out the only inhabitants there - nine old men and women - make their living by growing marijuana and the village is actually an illegal plantation belonging to the man she runs away from. However, she decides to stay there and nothing remains the same. A girl is afraid of her past, both disgusting and attracting her. She is afraid of her present, both suffocating her and giving her wings. And she is afraid of the future as it projects both her nightmares and her dreams. This film is about the only 'bullet against fear' - love.

Friday, August 26, 2011

Sumner Redstone's Daughter Shari Launches Media, Tech Investment Firm

NEW YORK - Shari Redstone, vice chair of CBS Corp. and Viacom, has co-founded early-stage investment firm Advancit Capital, AllThingsD reported. The daughter of Viacom and CBS controlling shareholder Sumner Redstone and president of National Amusements opened the firm with investment partner Jason Ostheimer to focus on investments in young media, entertainment and technology companies, it said. It has recently been involved in a funding for app maker Nettle, according to AllThingsD. "The firm seeks the opportunity to form long-term partnerships with talented, focused and driven entrepreneurs," it quoted from a company description. "The firm generally seeks to participate in a company's first round of outside financing. In a regulatory filing, Advancit said it has raised $3.2 million, according to AllThingsD. Related Topics Sumner Redstone Viacom CBS Corporation

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Large Brother's Will Kirby Engaged to For Love or Money Champion

Erin Brodie and can Kirby Who states reality shows can't produce love?Your Government 2 champion Will Kirby is engaged to 2-time For Love or Money champion Erin Brodie."I am so fortunate to stay in rapport with Erin," Kirby informs People. "I am thrilled to now open the following chapter in our lives together."IsBig Brother in your Watchlist? Add it as well as your other faves now and not miss an episodeThe couple continues to be together for six many includes a 15-month-old boy named Cash. Kirby, who suggested having a 9-carat band, has become a skin doctor in Beverly Hillsides, and Brodie works in a Fortune 500 software company.

Monday, August 22, 2011

Regis Philbin Has One Man In Mind To Fill His Live! Seat

LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- Regis Philbin is inching closer toward his departure from Live! with Regis & Kelly and theres one member of the ABC family hed love to see take over his seat Dancing with the Stars co-host Tom Bergeron. Why not Bergeron? What is he doing? Tom Bergeron is not doing anything! Regis joked to Access Hollywood at the D23 Expo in Anaheim, Calif., over the weekend, where he was presented with a Legend Award. He could do it and he would love to do it. He wants to be a talk show host, I dont know how they got him on that dance thing. Its not gonna last, he laughed. Unfortunately for Regis, his No. 1 candidate isnt planning a move. I cant, I work on the West Coast, that show is on the East Coast, Tom told Access. If we could maybe do it in Kansas do everything in Kansas, then Id be good. Yeah, yeah something like that. So while Tom wont be stepping into Regis shoes any time soon, Regis also wont be crossing over to Toms ballroom. No, I dont think so, its too much work, Regis said of those continuing rumors he could head to the DWTS competition. Ive talked to the people who have been on the show. Theyre all banged up, they need new hips, new knees Ive done that dont want to do it again. Copyright 2011 by NBC Universal, Inc. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Rosamund Pike Gets One Shot

Jack Reacher gets a female leadAs reported not seven days ago, writer/director Christopher McQuarrie and the good folk at Paramount have been hard at work putting three actresses through their paces to cast One Shot's female lead. Well, time waits for no-one, not even Jack Reacher (although he'd punch it in the face if he ever found out). The votes are in and a decision has been reached: as Deadline Hollywood reports, Rosamund Pike is on the verge of signing up for the Reacher campaign. Pike, so good lately in Barney's Version and An Education, joins Tom Cruise in the Reacher saga. All the talk so far has been on the height discrepancy between Cruise and his character, so it's worth pointing out that he gives away a couple of inches on Pike too. But, seriously, who's measuring? Ahem. As its many fans will know, One Shot sees Reacher putting his muscular frame and thunderdome-sized brain to work puzzling out the case of a lone sniper. The man has been charged with the murder of five men, but is all what it seems or are darker forces at work? Helping him find out will be Pike's Helen Rodin, a local defence lawyer assigned to defend the supposed shooter. Pike is an actress we're very keen on in this parish. She's talented and boasts a flawless American accent. We can't see her in a gun battle but Reacher is more than capable of taking care of the shooting-and-punching business. Hayley Atwell and Clash Of The Titan's Alexa Davalos are the unlucky two to miss out. . The One Shot shoot gets underway soon, with a theatrical release scheduled for early 2013.

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

BBC Rain

Documentary series about the weather. The rain is an essential part of being British, giving us the English lawn, the sliding tackle and endless grounds for complaint, but what do we really know about it? The programme uncovers the true shape of a raindrop, shows how and why rain falls, and tells remarkable stories of how we have adapted or succumbed to this elemental force of nature, such as James Glaisher's seven-mile hot-air balloon ascent in 1862, and how Charles Macintosh invented the waterproof coat. The Victorians believed that they could master the rain and push it aside, but today climate change threatens us with rain that is wilder and more unpredictable than ever.

Monday, August 15, 2011

Generate's Jordan Levin: How Hollywood's 'Decision by Committee' Climate Stifles Innovation (Q&A)

It has been seven years since Jordan Levin has had to think about managing a fall television schedule.our editor recommendsNATPE Taps Chris Grant and Jordan Levin as New Co-chairs These days, the former WB honcho-turned-Generate chief executive is busy managing amulti-platform studio and talent management firm that counts actor-director Tim Matheson, director-producer Emile Levisetti and comedian Charlie Todd among its clients. Levin and his partners bill their Santa Monica and New York based firm as a next generation media company, as apt to land a ad-sponsored web series as it is to score a TV show or comedy tour. Levin, once referred to as the WB's boy-genius, spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about the evolution of the media industry, the future of companies like Netflix and what he describes as the most frustrating part of the entertainment business today. The Hollywood Reporter: Give us the cocktail party version of what Generate does. Jordan Levin: We have a talent management division and production development division with an eye towards multiple platforms. The reason for that is simply because I think the industry is becoming largely divided between those who are in the content business and those who are in the distribution business. You can either bet on the pipes and the technology that curates content or you can bet on the value being on the content. If you're betting on content, which is inherently what myself and my colleagues understand and have a passion for, betting on talent is just doubling down on that bet. THR: You look at a company Netflix, which recently decided it would be in the content business as well. Do you foresee more people try to play in both areas? Levin: I think you have to. Distribution is becoming the commodity -- and the more it becomes commoditized, the point of differentiation in value creation is going to reside around content. I believe that in sort of a supply and demand economy, the media business in which we were all predominantly raised was a business in which there was a relatively fixed pool of talent developing and producing content for a very narrow pipe -- a handful of networks and studios-- and there weren't a lot of choices about where to go if you couldn't sell to one of those gatekeepers. But now with all of the distribution channels and choices that exist, I still believe that the content pool is relatively fixed. Sure, the discovery method of talent has changed; you might discover talent now because of YouTube vs. a spec script, but the crème rises to the top. For anyone who's watching American Idol, The Voice or another talent competition on a grand scale, it becomes very obvious very quickly that talent is still relatively rare. So while we can use digital to source talent, it doesn't mean that under ever rock is going to sprout a much greater talent pool. Again, the need for quality premium content is still going to come from a fixed group of people. The question really comes of valuation around that content. I think it's unfortunate that the valuation that Wall Street and the investment community puts on technology companies is greater than that of content companies. Traditional media companies get a discounted valuation compared to companies who create value on the back of content itself. THR: How does that ultimately change? Levin: I don't know. I think everything eventually comes back to content because as much as business models cater to consumers' needs, people in the investment community tend to forget that people's needs are motivated by what they want to experience, what they want to watch and what they want to hear. Recognizing this has become an education process for every generation. The industry gets itself into an odd cycle wherein technology companies become disproportionally large compared to traditional media companies and those companies start to dictate the shape of business. THR: Any examples spring to mind? Levin: You look back at AOL taking over Time Warner and, in retrospect, everyone scratches their heads and asks, 'How could that happen?' It happened because the Street inflated the value of AOL to such a great degree that it was able to do that. There are technology companies that are evolutionary --in some cases, even revolutionary-- right now, but their value is disproportionally higher than that of traditional mediacompanies whose revenues, income and EBITDA are greater. THR: Why would you say that is? Levin: The content business is perceived as a business that isn't easily repeatable. There's no formula to it that guarantees success again and again. Obviously it's a people intensive business. The markets tend to reward companies that can trade a widget or a piece of code because it can be replicated over and over again. And, as we know, people sitting at home watching TV or movies don't want to see the same things over again. A show like Glee or a movie like Bridesmaids gets rewarded because it's different. THR: What's the most frustrating part of the business today? Levin: How few people are empowered to make decisions and how committee-oriented decision making has become in what is inherently a creative medium. Networks and studios historically that have had any brand resonance in the marketplace have primarilybeen lead by decision makers who rightly or wrongly decide what it is that they want to produce and distribute. I'm concerned that as the entertainment industry has become more consolidated and more of a multi-national conglomerate industry, creative decision-making is being lead more by traditional business standards like research and decision by committee and attempts to replicate what's worked in the past. THR: Which takes a toll on innovation... Levin: Exactly, real innovation gets lost. When you look at certain networks and film studios and you see some of the output of those divisions, you really wonder whether some seminal pieces of popular culture would be created and supported today. While there's certainly a role for research, it's very difficult to find companies where there's a firm hand at the tiller. When you do find them, they're usually leaders in their space. Look at a company like CBS. It make sense that they've been the No. 1 network for as long as they have, because there's a clear point of view through which decision making is framed in Les Moonves. Some people may not always agree with what his decisions are, but they all respect the fact that he's willing to make a decision and stand by it. THR: Would you consider returning to a network chief gig? Levin: Surprisingly, I get asked that a lot. My answer is that I miss aspects of it very much. I miss being in a seat where you could hear something, get excited about it and get it made and distributed to other people. That sort of curatorial ability was really rewarding, but I'm not sure whether or not the job that I had exists anymore.I was really lucky to have mentors like Bob Daly, Jamie Kellner, Garth Ancier, Bruce Rosenblum and Barry Meyer who were all very respectful in allowing Susanne Daniels and me to make decisions. They allowed us to put on a program like Buffy the Vampire Slayer whenmaybe they didn't all see it. I just don't think people are empowered to that degree anymore. The challenge of being in that position and trying to rethink what a network is and what it means to be a programming head is extremely exciting in this era, but who the companies are that are really thinking about how to make that change -- how to move forward instead of hanging on to the past -- is unclear to me. Email: Lacey.Rose@THR.com Twitter: @LaceyVRose Related Topics Time Warner Leslie Moonves Netflix AOL

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Jackie Chan's '1911' to spread out Tokyo, japan fest

Tokyo, japan -- Jackie Chan's historic epic "1911" would be the special opening film from the Tokyo, japan Film Festival, with Chan set to go to. As formerly introduced, the state opening film is going to be Paul W.S. Anderson's swashbuckler "The 3 Musketeers." 1911," that was co-helmed by Zhang Li on the $$ 30 million budget, targets china Revolution. Chan also stars. I'm fortunate to possess my 100th film selected because the special opening film with this significant year by which Japan has had its steps toward recovery," Chan stated inside a statement. "Whenever a major disaster strikes, heroes arise who are prepared to sacrifice themselves. And So I hope I'll don't know any heroes. At this time around, as Japan faces the aftermath of disaster, I really hope my film can help you to folks of Japan." 1911" and "Musketeers" is going to be TIFF's first double openers since 1997. The fest unspool March. 22-30. Contact the range newsroom at news@variety.com