LOS ANGELES A society driven by book learning has given way to one in which our youngsters come of age via social media. That’s how a life’s education has evolved–or devolved–for the lion’s share of teenagers today. They are the first generation to grow up with social media their entire life, where Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, YouTube and Read More 

LOS ANGELES (AP) The thing about birthing a lamb on camera is you only get one take. Saoirse Ronan had been getting up at dawn to observe local farmers in Orkney in action, soaking in as much as she could. But soon it was her turn. Not only would she have a life in her hands: She had Read More 

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) A New Mexico judge on Monday upheld an involuntary manslaughter conviction against a movie armorer in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer by Alec Baldwin on the set of the Western film “Rust.” Armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed asked a court to dismiss her conviction or convene a new trial, alleging that prosecutors failed to share evidence Read More 

LOS ANGELES (AP) Filmmaker Chris Sanders had finally cracked “The Wild Robot.” Peter Brown’s middle-grade book, about an intelligent robot living in the wilderness, had been sitting on the shelf at DreamWorks Animation for a bit. No one had quite figured it out. Then Sanders, the man behind beloved animated features from “Lilo & Stitch” to “How to Read More 

NEW YORK (AP) Horror came with sunrise following an all-night rave near the Gaza border on Oct. 7, 2023, the Hamas attack presaged by rockets that some young people mistakenly thought were fireworks. A new documentary shows the attack unfold over the next hours in stomach-churning detail: Gunmen mowing down passengers in cars that try to escape. Hiding Read More 

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) DirecTV is buying Dish and Sling, a deal it has sought to complete for years, as the company seeks to better compete against streaming services that have become dominant. DirecTV said Monday that it will acquire Dish TV and Sling TV from its owner EchoStar in a debt exchange transaction that includes a payment of Read More 

LOS ANGELES The Hollywood Professional Association (HPA) Awards Committee has unveiled the nominees for the Creative Categories of the 2024 HPA Awards. These awards celebrate the exceptional contributions of creative teams and individuals to entertainment content, highlighting the artistic excellence of the artists and technologists who make it possible. Now in its 19th year, the HPA Awards Read More 

LOS ANGELES The American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) is set to honor five of its members at the 39th Annual Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography Gala on February 23, 2025. Andrzej Bartkowiak, ASC, will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award, while Michael Goi, ASC, ISC, will be recognized with the Career Achievement in Television Award. John Simmons, Read More 

NORTH HOLLYWOOD, Calif. The International Cinematographers Guild (ICG, IATSE Local 600) presented eight aspiring DPs with 2024 Emerging Cinematographer Awards (ECA) during a ceremony, screening and reception held on Sunday (9/29) in the Television Academy’s Wolf Theatre at the Saban Media Center in North Hollywood. Also during the ECA proceedings, Rodrigo Prieto, ASC, AMC accepted the Distinguished Filmmaker Read More 

NEW YORK The Gotham Film & Media Institute (The Gotham) unveiled and celebrated the winners of the inaugural Gotham Week Honors during a Wednesday evening (10/2) ceremony at The Brooklyn Navy Yard. Winning the U.S. Features in Development honor was Here for the Weekend, written and directed by Jane Casey Modderno. The raunchy rom-com follows three transgender Read More 

TOKYO (AP) The International Olympic Committee’s three major Japanese sponsors — Toyota, Panasonic and Bridgestone — are terminating their contracts. This leaves the IOC without a Japanese sponsor with the focus now expected to shift to the Middle East and India for new sponsorship income. Japanese sponsors have turned away from the Olympics, likely related to the Read More 

NEW YORK Next generation independent creative, technology and media company MSQ has acquired New York-based creative agency SPCSHP. The acquisition more than doubles London-based MSQ’s presence in the U.S., increasing annual revenues in North America to $100MM and accelerating its ability to deliver agile, multi-disciplinary solutions that fuses together data, tech and creativity to build effective brand Read More 

NEW YORK Forsman & Bodenfors (F&B) has expanded its creative leadership in New York by relocating longtime group creative director Ivan Guerra from the Singapore office to the Big Apple to support a quickly growing list of new client wins. As a group creative director in Singapore, Guerra racked up numerous accolades and participated in a myriad Read More 

LOS ANGELES Great Guns has signed commercial, documentary and drama director Finn McGough for representation in the U.S., Middle East and Asia. McGough’s commercial portfolio features a wide array of brands spanning Volkswagen, Marks & Spencer, McDonald’s, E45, Shredded Wheat, Lloyds, Budweiser, and more. His appreciation for human stories shines throughout–for McCain, he crafted a heartfelt celebration Read More 

LOS ANGELES Raucous Content has added director/DP Gregory Mitnick to its talent roster. Known for his signature docu-style that blends raw emotion with playful charm, Mitnick was formerly half of the directing duo Peking (with Nat Livingston Johnson). As part of Peking, Mitnick had most recently been repped by production house Hey Wonderful. With an MFA in Read More 

LOS ANGELES Golden LA has added filmmaker Ashley Armitage to its talent roster. Originally from Seattle, Armitage attended UCSB for Cinema Studies before pursuing her BFA in Photomedia from UW, often skipping classes to fly to New York City for shoots as a photographer. This early success opened doors to commercial filmmaking, fast-tracking her rise as a Read More 

LOS ANGELES Creative studio SixTwentySix has signed commercial and film director Evan Bourque for his first U.S. representation. Bourque’s portfolio includes work for brands such as Coursera, Michelob Ultra, Western Union, Squarespace, New Balance, and Lululemon. His commercials for Geico have garnered multiple awards, including silver at the 1.4 Awards and the YDAs in 2023, as well Read More 

SAO PAULO Brazilian director Vellas has joined Anonymous Content Brazil, Anonymous Content’s joint venture with an investment from Creative Artists Agency (CAA). In his new role, Vellas will work closely with the Anonymous Content Brazil team to develop advertising and content projects to bolster their growing content slate. Vellas continues to be repped by various production companies Read More 

NEW YORK (AP) Daniel Day-Lewis is coming out of retirement, seven years after his last movie, for a film directed by his son Ronan Day-Lewis. The project was announced Tuesday by Focus Features and Plan B, who are partnering on “Anemone.” The film, Ronan Day-Lewis’ directorial debut, will star his father along with Sean Bean and Samantha Morton. Read More 

NEW YORK (AP) Let’s put on a happy face, at least to start, for “Joker: Folie à Deux.” If there’s one undeniably compelling thing about both Todd Phillips’ divisive 2019 original and his new follow-up, it’s that these movies are best when they dance. The first movie might have been a muddled attempt to retrofit a “Taxi Driver”-styled Read More 

LOS ANGELES (AP) At some point during “The Outrun,” it occurred to me that watching Saoirse Ronan act is a bit like looking into a magnifying glass: Everything somehow feels a bit clearer, sharper, more precise. This singular actor gives one of her finest performances in a two-hour study of addiction that is poignant, sometimes beautiful but always Read More 

LOS ANGELES The Visual Effects Society (VES) has announced the Society’s newest Honorary VES members: Director and animator Don Bluth; VFX supervisor and filmmaker John Bruno; director, production designer and VFX specialist Robert Stromberg; and animation and optical effects supervisor Harry Walton. The honorees will be celebrated at a special event in October. Additional honorees are to Read More 

LOS ANGELES (AP) On a hot summer evening, Miles Villalon lined up outside the New Beverly Cinema, hours before showtime. The 36-year-old already had tickets to the Watergate-themed double feature of 1976’s “All the President’s Men” and 1999’s “Dick.” But Villalon braved Los Angeles’ infamous rush-hour traffic to snag front-row seats at Quentin Tarantino’s historic theater. This level Read More 

LOS ANGELES (AP) Kris Kristofferson, a Rhodes scholar with a deft writing style and rough charisma who became a country music superstar and an A-list Hollywood actor, has died. Kristofferson died at his home on Maui, Hawaii, on Saturday, family spokeswoman Ebie McFarland said in an email. He was 88. McFarland said Kristofferson died peacefully, surrounded by his Read More 

NEW YORK (AP) Francis Ford Coppola’s decades-in-the-making, self-financed epic “Megalopolis” flopped with moviegoers, while the acclaimed DreamWorks Animation family film “The Wild Robot” soared to No. 1 at the weekend box office. “The Wild Robot,” Chris Sanders’ adaptation of Peter Brown’s bestseller, outperformed expectations to launch with $35 million in ticket sales in U.S. and Canada theaters, according Read More 

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