ITV

Category: International

  • Jonathon Frid dies at 87

    Jonathon Frid dies at 87

    MUMBAI: Jonathan Frid, the original Barnabas Collins, passed away late last week at age 87 from complications following a fall, according to his co-star Kathryn Leigh Scott. His death comes on the eve of Tim Burton‘s big-screen adaptation of Dark Shadows hits the single screen.
     
    The Canadian-born Frid was a Shakespearean actor who trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and studied at the Yale School of Drama, and who always seemed a little bemused by the role that ended up winning him fame.

    Grieved Johnny Depp in a report, “Jonathan Frid was the reason I used to run home from school to watch Dark Shadows. His elegance and grace was an inspiration then and will continue to remain one forever more. When I had the honor to finally meet him … [he] generously passed the torch of Barnabas.”
     
    Frid, along with other cast members from the show, have cameo appearances in the film.

  • Charlize Theron in a sci-fi project

    Charlize Theron in a sci-fi project

    MUMBAI: Universal is nearing to formalize a deal to pick up Agent 13, a sci-fi project that will have Charlize Theron that director Rupert Wyatt (Rise of the Planet of the Apes) will direct.
    T.S. Nowlin is the writer of the film based on a little known comic book from 1988. It was created by G.I. Joe and Transformers cartoon writer Flint Dille and David Marconi who penned the Will Smith thriller Enemy of the State as well as Live Free or Die Hard.

    The comic book had post-modern pulp overtones full of femme fatales and explosive cliffhangers. The main character would be reprised by a male despite Theron‘s involvement.
    Sean Daniels, who discovered the comic and has been developing since at least last year, is one of the producers. Theron is also attached to the film as a producer under her Denver and Delilah banner.

  • Emily Blunt opposite Tom Cruise in sci-fi

    Emily Blunt opposite Tom Cruise in sci-fi

    MUMBAI: Actress Emily Blunt is in negotiations with Warner Bros to join the cast of All You Need is Kill, a sci-fi film opposite Tom Cruise.
    The film follows the story of a soldier in a war against aliens who is forced to re-live his last day alive again and again after he is killed. Through having to re-live the same experiences he gets better at tackling the days challenges. Blunt would play another soldier who fights alongside him.

    The production house was impressed with Blunt‘s tough girl credentials when she was cast as female lead in Man From U.N.C.L.E, the shooting of which was abruptly stopped after the studio couldn‘t find a male star and director Steven Soderbergh dropped out.
    Blunt had earlier said that she was looking for a role in a sci-fi or superhero film where the female character had substance.
    “I‘m open to any kind of genre if the part is great and fun and different and a challenge in some way. I would love to do a comic-book movie or a science fiction film that would scare the life out of me.”
    ‘All You Need is Kill‘ is produced by Erwin Stoff, Tom Lassally and Jason Hoffs. The script was originally written by Dante Harper and is being re-worked by Joby Harold, who is also executive producer.

  • Cannes fest announces line-up

    Cannes fest announces line-up

    MUMBAI: The Cannes Film Festival has announced the lineup for its 2012 edition. Among the filmmakers in the mix the mix this year include Michael Haneke, Ken Loach, Cristian Mungiu, Alain Resnais, Carlos Reygadas, Matteo Garrone, Jacques Audiard and Abbas Kiarostami.


    Films in the In Competition section are Amour, The Angels‘ Share, Baad el mawkeaa, Beyond the Hills, Cosmopolis, Holy Motors, The Hunt, Killing Them Softly, In Another Country, In the Fog, Rust and Bone, Lawless, Like Someone in Love, Moonrise Kingdom, Mud, On the Road, The Paperboy,Paradies: Liebe, Post tenebras lux, Reality, Matteo Garrone, Rust and Bone, Taste of Money, and You Haven‘t Seen Anything Yet.


    Films in the Un Certain Regard section are: 7 Days in Havana, 11.25 The Day He Chose His Own Fate, Antiviral, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Confession of a Child of the Century, Laurence Anyways, Despues de Lucia, La Pirogue, La Playa, Xavier Dolan Le grand soir, Les Chevaux de Dieu,Loving Without Reason, Miss Lovely,Mystery, Student, Trois mondes and White Elephant.


    Notably missing from official competition will be American directors Terrence Malick and Paul Thomas Anderson. Representing the US instead would be Lee Daniels with The Paperboy and Jeff Nichols with Mud.

  • Tribeca fest gets going

    Tribeca fest gets going

    MUMBAI: The Tribeca Film Festival got going on Wednesday.
     
    Talking first, festival founder Robert De Niro said that he was "changing things up this year" by deciding not to give a long speech.
     
    Later the spotlight turned to the programmers of the festival that is entering its second decade. Talking about the 2012 slate of films, Tribeca Enterprises chief creative officer Geoffrey Gilmore remarked, "We are passionate about this year‘s program," he said.
     
    This year‘s lineup of features has been split into three categories: ‘Spotlight‘ films, including Morgan Spurlock‘s Mansome and Julie Delpy‘s 2 Days in New York; ‘Viewpoint‘ films, that consists films such as Justin Benson‘s Resolution and Daniel Schechter‘s Supporting Characters; and "Cinemania" films, that comprises various international favorites like Magnus Martens‘ Jackpot and Ron Morales‘ Graceland.
     
    The festival has got 5,950 submissions this year, the most in its history.The Tribeca Film Festival runs through 29 April.

  • Rowling working on Potter encyclopedia

    Rowling working on Potter encyclopedia

    MUMBAI: Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling is working on a Harry Potter encyclopedia. She will donate the royalties to charity, it is understood.
     
    On her revamped website, Rowling addressed the question of a Harry Potter encyclopedia in a ‘frequently asked questions and rumours‘ section. "For a long time I have been promising an encyclopedia of Harry‘s world and I have started work on this now," said the 46-year-old author. Some of it forms the new content in Pottermore.
     
    Pottermore, a free website allowing visitors to navigate the stories and discover new content not in the original books, is one of several Potter spin-offs following the completion of the seven-novel series.
     
    The novels have sold more than 400 million copies worldwide and spawned a hit eight-movie film franchise that has helped turn Rowling into the world‘s most successful author.
     
    It may be recalled that four years ago the British writer took an independent US publisher to Court to bring an end to its plans for a reference book on the world of the fictional boy wizard saying that it constituted a ‘rip-off‘ of her work.
     
    Earlier this month, Rowling announced the title of her first book for adults would be The Casual Vacancy. It goes on sale on 27 September.

  • It’s Chaplin’s birthday today

    It’s Chaplin’s birthday today

    MUMBAI: Today is Charlie Chaplin‘s birthday. He would have been 123 today. Best known for his role as The Tramp, Chaplin wrote, directed and starred in a series of silent films that commented on the politics, economy and social structure of the day through slapstick, mime and comedy.
     
    Born in Britain in 1889, Chaplin was born in Britain in 1889 and moved to Hollywood in 1910 to make a celluloid career. He became one of the most influential artistes of his time with films such as The Kid, City Lights, Modern Times, The Gold Rush and The Great Dictator, his only ‘talking‘ film.
     
    In 1919 he founded United Artists with fellow stars Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks and D. W. Griffith all of whom were seeking to escape the growing power consolidation of film distributors and financiers in Hollywood.
     
    Chaplin was a famous ladies‘ man, marrying four times. His fourth wife was Oona, daughter of American playwright Eugene O‘Neill. Of his twelve children, daughter Geraldine is a well known and acclaimed actress in her own right.
     
    Chaplin was made a Knight Commander of the British Empire in 1975. He was also given a star at the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1970. He received three Academy Awards in his lifetime: Best Original Score for the movie Limelight, and two Honorary Awards.
     
    Charlie Chaplin died in his sleep in Switzerland on 25 December 1977 at the age of 88.

  • Michael Douglas signed for Las Vegas

    Michael Douglas signed for Las Vegas

    MUMBAI: Michael Douglas has been signed to head the cast of CBS Films‘ upcoming film Last Vegas after years in development. Written by Dan Fogelman (Crazy, Stupid, Love), the ensemble comedy is to directed by Jon Turteltaub.
    The story of Last Vegas centers on a quartet of retired boomers who are called upon for a Las Vegas bachelor party by their friend, a ladies man who is finally settling down and marrying a woman half his age. Douglas plays the ladies man.

    It may be interesting to note that Douglas was loosely attached to the project three years ago but he backed out when he was diagnosed with throat cancer in August 2010 after which he spent time battling the disease.
    Word of Douglas‘ return has slowly been coming out as his health improves. Last month, Turteltaub told Showbiz411 that he was talking to Douglas. And Sunday, Douglas spoke with The Hartford Courant ahead of receiving an award from the Eugene O‘Neill Theater Center and said that he was starring in the film along with Dustin Hoffman and Chirstopher Walken.

  • Landau reveals Titanic 3D making

    Landau reveals Titanic 3D making

    MUMBAI: A library of 3D titles will hold a greater value than one that is in 2D, according to Titanic and Avatar producer Jon Landau.

    Talking at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) show, Landau said that 2D to 3D conversion isn‘t “a technical process, it‘s a creative process that uses technology.”

    For Titanic, the conversion was a detailed process that took 14 months and cost $18 million. The Titanic producer said that getting it right means “finding a library title that justifies [3D conversion] and a filmmaker who can be involved. The creative team needs to be a part of the process.”

    The project began with remastering the film in 4K (which was accomplished at Reliance MediaWorks) and then Stereo 3D took it into the 3D realm with a team of about 450 people.

    Landau confirmed that director James Cameron‘s “imprint is on every shot.” “He used what he remembered from the set,” explained Landau, citing the dinner table scene as among the most challenging. “The detail was so complex, and Jim was able to look at a shot and recall that the table was ‘this big‘ and really place it and make it feel comfortable.”

    “We used our learning experience from Avatar on this film,” Landau continued. “Action is not necessary where you want to emphasize the 3D. At the end day, movies are about the close up. People go back because of the narrative story.
    “The subtleties in the performances — to me 3D is about enhancing those types of moments,” he added.

    The idea to realize Titanic in 3D was not a recent one. Landau related that he and Cameron first started to think about it in around 2000. Then, in the following four years ago,both the director and producer gave one minute of Titanic to roughly 15 different companies as test material. “We felt the potential was there,” Landau averred.

  • Celestial Pictures announces result of screenplay competition

    Celestial Pictures announces result of screenplay competition

    MUMBAI: Celestial Pictures, the diversified entertainment company, has announced the result of its Shaw Brothers remake screenplay competition that was held along with the Beijing Film Academy (BFA) and Youth Film Studio (YFS).

    The screenplay competition was part of Celestial Pictures‘ New Directors Workshop (NDW) program that was created to discover and nurture new Chinese filmmakers through mentorships and production opportunities utilizing the world-renowned film library of Shaw Brothers.
    “Celestial Pictures is proud to announce the winners of the New Directors Workshop and we look forward to nurturing the unique visions of these talented writers and directors with the help of Sylvia, the Beijing Film Academy and Youth Film Studio,” said Celestial Pictures CEO Ross Pollack.

    “This is just the beginning of a program which we hope will lead to more collaboration among the three parties to provide opportunities for promising directors to have their visions realized,” he added.
    The winner of the Shaw Brothers remake screenplay competition was Tian Li‘s re-interpretation of Love with the Perfect Stranger (which won the Hong Kong Film Award‘s Best Screenplay and Best Actress in 1995). The second and third runner-ups were Huang Huang‘s version of Loving You (originally directed by Johnnie To) and Wang Mengyuan‘s update on The Lady is the Boss (which originally starred Shaw icon Kara Hui).

    Award-winning producer and director Sylvia Chang presented the awards to the winners and shared valuable directorial insights with the attending guests.
    The Shaw Brothers remake screenplay competition, launched in 2011, was open to BFA‘s 2011 graduating class as well past graduates of BFA‘s directors program.