Online music site sues Universal Group

Online storage service Megaupload sued against Universal Group, declaring the music giant mistreated copyright law in order to obtain a marketing video taken off YouTube by which artists like Kanye, Mary J. Blige, Alicia Secrets and Chris Brown seem to endorse the organization. The suit has been utilized by experts of anti-piracy legislation in Congress to exhibit the overzealousness of content companies even if it involves existing copyright laws and regulations. Megaupload is really a frequent target of galleries and record labels, and made an appearance with an MPAA listing of "well known" foreign websites that routinely host unlicensed movies and music for download. The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in San Jose, claims that whenever Megaupload revealed its marketing video, known as "Megasong," UMG released a takedown notice to YouTube, declaring copyright violation and asking it to get rid of the recording. Underneath the the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, user-produced sites like YouTube can gain "safe harbor" from violation claims when they take lower the fabric rapidly when obtaining a notice from the copyright holder. Megaupload claims that all the entertainers and industry figures in the video -- that also incorporated Will.i.am, Sean Hair combs, Jamie Foxx and Brett Ratner -- performed "full releases associated with a intellectual property privileges" towards the video, including using their likeness. UMG disputes this claim and stated it had complaints from a number of its artists. UMG's "functions in filing improper DMCA notices to materially cause Internet intermediaries for example YouTube to consider lower the Megaupload song video has cause Megaupload substantial injuries and cash damages," the organization stated in the suit. "Indeed, it seems as if UMG permits recording artists to exercise their sights and freedom of expression only if UMG concurs with your speech." A spokesperson for UMG stated the situation is "an on-going dispute that appeared several days ago regarding the unauthorized utilization of a performance from our artists. We been told by many other artists, as well as their reps, who told us they never agreed to being described within this video. Consequently, a minumum of one of these has sent a takedown notice for that unauthorized use." A resource stated the artist was Will.i.am. Attorney Ira Rothken, who filed the suit with respect to Megaupload, stated that the organization "stands by the concept they were given breathtakingly broad releases from each one of the people that come in the background music video. We feel that UMG's argument is demonstrably false." Rothken added that the organization had "a really broad agreement with Will.i.am to make use of his claims poor that music video." Meanwhile, supporters and competitors ongoing their flurry of lobbying activity prior to a Thursday election through the House Judiciary Committee on the questionable anti-piracy bill. Despite the fact that among its key supporters, Repetition. Lamar Cruz (R-Texas) revealed a number of changes on Monday made to conquer doubters with a of their provisions, the web lobby again arrived on the scene against it. The NetCoalition, including Google, Twitter and facebook, stated the changes "create new problems elsewhere and does not correct a few of the original concerns we've elevated since the beginning of the controversy,Inch within the words from the coalition's executive director, Markham Erickson. A far more dramatic protest from the legislation could originate from Wikipedia. Its founder, Jimmy Wales, published a note on the website asking customers whether or not they should stage a "blackout" to transmit a note towards the legislation. But MPAA chairman Chris Dodd, showing up in an event in the Center for American Progress, in comparison the controversy within the legislation towards the "untrue stories" that encircled the controversy over health care reform and Wall Street reform. He stated that "untrue stories -- spread both knowingly by individuals who've an economic curiosity about things as they are by individuals who're well-intentioned and fooled -- intends to derail necessary reform." "Hollywood is professional-Internet," he stated. "We stand with individuals who strongly oppose foreign government authorities that will unilaterally block websites, and therefore deny the free flow of knowledge and speech. So I wish to allow it to be obvious right in the start our combat content thievery isn't a combat technology. It's a combat crooks." Contact Ted Manley at ted.manley@variety.com

"Porgy and Bess" Cast Talks about Refreshing the Gershwin Classic (Video)

Duncan Stewart, director of casting at National Artists Management Company, discusses opening every submission and what he really wants to see inside a headshot. casting Duncan Stewart headshot NY city open distribution Duncan Steward, director of casting, discusses what he wants from an actress inside a general meeting, mainly truth, likability, and insufficient ego. advice casting Duncan Stewart NY city tips Duncan Stewart, director of casting, discusses what he needs from an audition and customary mistakes stars make. advice auditions casting Duncan Stewart NY city Alaine Alldaffer stops working the actual role of the casting direcor. Alaine Alldaffer casting casting director Gray Gardens play stage theater Casting director Alaine Alldaffer discusses casting "Saved" and all sorts of the myths about becoming an actor in NY City. Alaine Alldaffer casting director New york city theatre play saved NY casting director Bernie Telsey describes what stars have to know before walking into an audition. (Part a couple of) Bernie Telsey casting director We spoken with casting director Mark Teschner about focusing on cleaning soap operas. (Part 1 of three) General Hospital Mark Teschner cleaning soap opera NY casting director Bernie Telsey describes how you can give your very best audition. (Part 2 of two) Bernie Telsey casting director We spoken with casting director Mark Teschner about focusing on cleaning soap operas. Only need beautiful people apply? (Part 2 of three) General Hospital Mark Teshner cleaning soap opera We spoken with casting director Mark Teschner about who audition for cleaning soap operas. (Part 3 of three) General Hospital Mark Teschner cleaning soap opera Videos for that Back Stage News & Features section.

Paris' palette competes with L.A. duotone

The city is like a character in Midnight in Paris, and deeply researched costumes and decors helped recreate its past eras.Costume sketch for 'Midnight in Paris'Images were reduced to simple elements for black-and-white design on 'The Artist.'There's irony in the fact that while black-and-white aficionado Woody Allen imagined the lost generation in "Midnight in Paris" with painterly color, French director Michel Hazanavicius traveled to Los Angeles to render the romance of Hollywood's silent era in black-and-white for "The Artist."When Allen and cinematographer Darius Khondji first discussed the look of "Midnight" -- which moves among the present day, the expat paradise of the '20s and the Belle Epoque -- they considered both sepia tone and black-and-white to distinguish the past, then scrapped it as "too radical, too much of an effect," and went instead for different color palettes.Khondji closely coordinated with the other crafts artists. "We purposely shot the modern period with a brighter look," he says. Khondji also used half-century-old Cooke lenses to give period scenes "a static, classic look," and applied more backlight and direct key to the heavier "almost porcelain" foundation of makeup supervisor Thi Thanh Tu Nguyen's palette, which contrasted the look of women at Maxim's and the Moulin Rouge."For the '20s, the makeup was trendy and feminine," Nguyen says. "The eyes were made dark, the eyebrows were drawn finely into an arch, and the lips were formed into a heart shape with lipstick. For 'La Belle Epoque' the skin was very pale and clear. The makeup was discreet, the eyebrows were drawn downward to give a melancholy look."Khondji processed the negative to shift the image "even softer" the old-fashioned way, by flattening the contrast curve with Deluxe NY's senior DI colorist Joe Gawler. Gels and digital color timing imparted a subtle reddish glow. Yet "it's important, even if the image is manipulated in post, to expose it properly," Khondji says.Costume designer Sonia Grande says she observes Paris' past "with the same fascination that children observe an aquarium. That's why these particular textiles, textures, precious stones and materials were chosen: fragile, delicate and vulnerable, sometimes sophisticated, sometimes with sheen."Knowing in advance that a Woody Allen production wouldn't be spending time or money on post effects, production designer Anne Seibel used the night to hide the bus stops, traffic lights and signs of contemporary Paris, disguising elements that wouldn't recede into the darkness. Re-creating the Moulin Rouge was "most difficult," Seibel says, because the characteristic wooden floor and balconies no longer exist. "Finally I found a concert hall that is quite modern but had an old balcony." She scouted it with Khondji, illustrating with her own drawings how it could be cheated, selling him and Allen on the idea. "Paris and its magic blessed us," she says."The Artist" production designer Laurence Bennett hadn't worked in black-and-white before, though he relished memories of Chaplin, Lumiere and Melies -- and modern examples such as "Hud" and "The Last Picture Show." During pre-production, he sought guidance -- and received encouragement -- from British production designer Terence Marsh.Per Bennett, cinematographer Guillaume Schiffman made a "pragmatic decision" to shoot color film and process for black-and-white. "We were going back to the origins of our craft. It was a thrill to live in that world," Bennett says.Realizing that designing in monochrome "has to do with the reduction of the image to simple elements," Bennett tested patterns, textures and shapes. "Lacking color for separation, you rely on pattern and tonality to define planes within the image."He also built contrast between the wealthy manses of silent-era stars and moguls and L.A.'s shabby working class apartments.In contrast to the lost L.A. that Bennett was seeking, costume designer Mark Bridges found that old fashion had become new again -- or could be made to seem new by the milliners at Western Costume. "You have to create environments for the actors to live in," he says, "so they can imagine living in the moment."Bridges also aimed at a delicate balance between the inherent theatricality of glamorous art-deco L.A., reflected in dress motifs and patterns reminiscent of Chrysler-building chic, and a daily realism that wouldn't take audiences out of the story with distracting design. He used LeLuxe for '20s-inspired dresses. "Original dresses," he knew from experience, "fall apart."Makeup department head Julie Hewett, who'd first worked in on "The Good German," used monochrome monitors to preview her work, fighting against modern fashion. "We're programmed for full lips," she says. "In that era, the lips were pinched and tight." Hewett knows the silent face up close up, having worked on Lillian Gish's last movie, "The Whales of August." "That experience came to me on 'The Artist,' " she says. "Miss Gish, doing her own makeup, with her painted pots."Eye on the Oscars: Art Direction, Costume Design & Makeup:Terrific pix, period | Paris' palette competes with L.A. duotone | Makeup magic turns Streep to Thatcher | Older crafts rise to the challenge of 3D Contact the Variety newsroom at news@variety.com

Judge Orders Guy To Step Away From Kirsten Dunst

First Launched: December 9, 2011 9:45 PM EST Credit: Getty Images La, Calif. -- Caption Kirsten Dunst sports a black coat within the Hollywood Reporters Annual Energy 100: Women In Entertainment Breakfast within the Beverly Slopes Hotel in Beverly Slopes, Calif. on December 7, 2011 A judge on Friday granted Kirsten Dunst a short constraint order against a French guy which has frequently written for the actress and traveled to La no less than five occasions to meet her. Superior Court Judge Carol Boas Goodson bought Jean Christophe Prudhon of Dijon, France, to stay 100 yards in the Spider-Guy star also to quit to get hold of her. In letters connected Dunsts petition, Prudhon written he offered his home in France so he could continue to visit meet Dunst, which has not taken proper care of immediately his greater than 50 letters. He written that he's deeply deeply in love with the actress which he's frequently anxiously anxiously waited outdoors Dunsts home to meet her and contains been mistaken for just about any paparazzo. I am frightened for my safety, together with the security of my family members and pals going to home, Dunst written in the court filing. I am worried that Mr. Prudhon will escalate his conduct further, putting myself and my family members in danger. Dunsts mother, Inez Dunst, written in the sworn declaration they was alarmed by Prudhons appearance when he found her door the other day trying to fulfill the actress. Inez Dunst mentioned she understood who he was as they has frequently sent her daughter letters over time. It could not be immediately determined if Prudhon, 51, was represented having a lawyer, and attempts to locate him for comment weren't effective. The actress, who recently came out inside the film Melancholia, written in the court filing that her security personnel told Prudhon to step away, but he's rejected. Goodson will consider if you should grant a 3-year constraint order inside a 12 ,. 21 hearing. Copyright 2011 with the Connected Press. All rights reserved. These elements is probably not launched, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Keck's Exclusives: Kathy Griffin to go to NBC's Whitney

Kathy Griffin Kathy Griffin's latest TV guest appearance is going to be with an early 2012 episode of NBC's Whitney. Kathy, that has formerly put their hands up on Glee, Ugly Betty and Drop Dead Diva, will have Lindsay, a co-worker of Whitney's friend, Roxanne. Whitney is going to do her better to conquer Lindsay when she eventually ends up going for a job as Roxanne's new assistant. On set shooting only a couple of hrs ago, Kathy tweeted: "Getting a great time doin a guest just right the @Whitneycummings show. Thinking about stealing her wardrobe." Though Kathy has become known mainly on her stand-up comedy and reality show, older fans (moi incorporated) still remember she got her start among the regulars on Brooke Shield's 1996-2000 sitcom, All of a sudden Susan. Exactly what do all of you consider Kathy coming back to weekly TV in their sitcom? Can you watch? Sign up for TV Guide Magazine now!

IMDb Explains Why 40-Year-Old Actress Shouldn't Fear Blacklisting

Martin Scorsese will be honored at the 17th annual Critics' Choice Movie Awards.our editor recommendsBox Office Report: Martin Scorsese's 'Hugo' Overperforms on ThanksgivingMartin Scorsese to Direct 'The Snowman' for Working TitleMartin Scorsese Calls Filming 'Hugo' in 3D 'An Enjoyable Headache' Chosen by the Broadcast Film Critics Association (BFCA), the Hugo director has been tapped to receive the Critics' Choice Music+Film Award. The awards ceremony will be broadcast live on VH1 on Thursday, Jan. 12, 2012 at 8 p.m. from the Hollywood Palladium. PHOTOS: Martin Scorsese On Set The honor comes at an opportune time for Scorsese and Hugo, which was named best film by the National Board of Review. Scorsese was also named best director by the National Board of Review. "This year's Critics' Choice Movie Awards marks another gratifying collaboration with the Broadcast Film Critics Association and our partners at VH1," says Joey Berlin, president of BFCA. "With a very impressive lineup of films featuring the world's biggest stars under consideration this year, we look forward to a truly spectacular show highlighted by the presentation of the Music+Film Award to Martin Scorsese, one of the greatest filmmakers of all time." COVER STORY: The Dreams of Martin Scorsese The Music+Film Award honors a filmmaker who has touched audiences through cinematic storytelling and has heightened the impact of films through the use of source and music. Scorsese has had a storied career, with films like Mean Streets, The Departed, Goodfellas and music documentary George Harrison: Living in the Material World. Quentin Tarantino received the first Music+Film Award. The Critics' Choice Movie Awards, held by the BFCA, honor the best in cinematic achievement. The BFCA is the largest film critics' organization in the U.S. and Canada. Nominees for the Critics' Choice Movie Awards will be announced Tuesday, Dec. 13. Nominating ballots went out to members on Dec. 5 and the deadline to return them is Dec. 11. The awards ceremony is executive produced by Jesse Ignjatovic for Den of Thieves, Berlin for Berlin Entertainment and Lee Rolontz for VH1. PHOTO GALLERY: View Gallery Martin Scorsese: Into the Past Related Topics Martin Scorsese Hugo

PGA taps five for doc prize

The Producers Guild of America has tapped a quintet of nominees for its documentary feature award.The nominated films, announced Friday, are ''Beats, Rhymes and Life: the Travels of a Tribe Called Quest,'' ''Bill Cunningham NY,'' ''Project Nim,'' ''Senna'' and ''The Union.''Winners will be announced Jan. 21 at the PGA Awards ceremonies at the Beverly Hilton.The PGA also said Friday that Producers Guild arbitrations for individual producer credit determination for all film and television categories are still underway. Television series nominations will be announced Wednesday and all other nominations will be announced Jan. 3. Contact Dave McNary at dave.mcnary@variety.com

Melissa McCarthy: My Weight's a piece happening

Melissa McCarthy Melissa McCarthy states her weight is really a work happening, but she's not concerned about it."I have been up and lower," McCarthy told Physical Violence Worsens on his talk show Monday. "I have been much thinner since my second baby. I am still focusing on it. It is a work happening."Take a look at photos of Melissa McCarthyThe Emmy-winning Mike & Molly star, who's beginning an advantage-size clothing line, joked that she'd like to awaken "at, like, 94 pounds," but knows that isn't going to take place. Still, she states she's not likely to expend a lot of time and attempting to be wafer thin having a job along with a family on her behalf plate."There's a lot of other activities to bother with,Inch McCarthy, 41, states. "I'll keep focusing on [my body system]. I simply can't put whenever to worrying about this.Inch

Mmbi receives $618 mil injection

Tokyo, japan -- Mmbi has gotten a $618 million funding boost because it prepares for that April launch in Japan of NOTTV, its smartphone broadcasting service. The gold coin originated from 11 new corporate partners, including Sharp, Fujitsu, Panasonic's cell-phone subsid and media giant Fuji Media Holdings. The partners will even supply media biz expertise. Mmbi, the industry subsid of mobile communications giant NTT DoCoMo, has released 962,000 new shares, which the 11 partners required 196,620, and NTT DoCoMo along with other existing investors required the rest of the 765,360. The smartphone biz keeps growing by advances and bounds in Japan. Based on figures put together by MM Research Institute, within the April-September period just a little over ten million smartphone models shipped in the united states, an increase of four.5 occasions within the same period the year before. Contact the range newsroom at news@variety.com

Whos Faking Mirror Mirror Praise? Hmm

We know Hollywood studios fake film reviews andmovie ads. Now a sharp-eyedblog recently noticed some “strangely optimistic comments” from the same IP address within a 2-hour span after posting Relativity’s Mirror Mirror trailer.Turns outMovieMavericks.com found the exact same comments placed on many other blogsthat posted theMirror Mirror trailer. “The big question is whos behind this ‘astroturfing’? Is it someone in Julia Roberts camp? Tarsem Singhs, Armie Hammers or Lily Collins people? Has Relativity Media hired some grey area marketing agency? Or is it simply a devoted fan?” the website asked.Oh puh-leeze: studios regularly hire trollsto post comments on the Internet.

Legendary names general counsel

WillhiteLegendary Entertainment has drawn on J. Martin Willhite as general counsel. "We're fortunate to possess Marty join we at Legendary," stated Legendary chairman-Boss Thomas Tull to whom Willhite will report. "His extensive legal knowledge about entertainment, capital marketplaces and financial transactions may benefit Legendary on the moving forward basis." Like a partner at La-based lawyer, Munger, Tolles & Olson, Willhite repped the William Morris Agency within the merger with Endeavor that created WME last year. Younger crowd advised Spyglass Entertainment's Gary Barber and Roger Birnbaum on employment and equity possession matters because they grew to become co-chairmen and CEOs of MGM Galleries and repped Reveille in most facets of its $130 million purchase to Shine. Willhite also took part in the representation from the Chandler Trusts, most investor from the Occasions Mirror Corp., within the $8 billion purchase of Occasions Mirror towards the Tribune Co. Willhite joins Legendary as the organization is growing the amount of tentpoles it creates via a distribution cope with Warner Bros., increases its biz into TV and comicbooks and creates Legendary East in China. Contact Marc Graser at marc.graser@variety.com

Lake Bell Test Drives the Fiat 500

This short article first made an appearance within the November. 25 problem from the Hollywood Reporter magazine.our editor recommendsLos Angeles Auto Show Preview: Ford, Fiat, BMW, MitsubishiLake Bell Test Drives the 2012 Bentley Continental GTLake Bell Test Drives the Cadillac Carpal tunnel syndrome-V CoupeLake Bell Test Drives the Jaguar XKR Coupe After I was fifteen years old, I resided in Europe fora year. My proudest accomplishment was finding out how to say "Mi piace la pizza disadvantage funghi," meaning, "I love pizza with mushrooms" in Italian. This didn't bode well for my parents' plans for me personally, thinking about I had been residing in France to understand French. But alas, I had been an Italophile, which interest folded over into my style of cars. I wound up coming all my film taking photos of "classy" cars I dreamed possessing after i was raised to become a fancy adult. Most my photos were of -- employ heavy Italian accent here -- the FiatCinquecento. Why? Since it's so damn cute! It's scientifically proven that after you lay your vision on the 1969 Fiat Cinquecento, you have to emit just a little breathy giggle. So test-driving the 2012 Fiat 500 was an automotive coming-of-age moment. Wouldn't it satiate my nostalgia? And will be offering an update towards the classic shape, the Fiat 500's design is another perfect homage towards the past. But as the 500 is cute like a button -- and having a lot more than 30 mpg, it's an ideal fit for that fuel-consumption-conscious customer -- the pickup is modest at best. You're not really cutting people served by single.4-liter, four-cylinder engine. On the other hand, inside a vehicle that resembles a shiny dumpling, you won't have lots of street cred to start with. With only 101 horsepower, you shouldn't be purchasing this vehicle for that energy. In the end, the Fiat 500 may be the essential city vehicle, coming initially from within the nineteen fifties like a cheap postwar means to fix urban transport. You are able to park anywhere. Literally. Normally I dispise carting in the Hollywood Hillsides in anything larger than my Small since the roads are extremely mangled and tight -- it's like Europe but with no romance. However the Fiat takes all of the angst from the process. Large, body fat Sports utility vehicles and Mercedes sedans clumsily attempt to navigate the veins from the canyons, as the Fiat showcases its remarkably forgiving suspension, tucking into corners with aplomb. Regardless of the Fiat's minuscule size, its interior is spacious, although slightly similar to a minivan. Its user-friendly ergonomics really are a plus, and also the liberal use of hard plastics is excused through the 500's optional two-tone leather seats along with a Bose stereo system system that turns this small container machine right into a four-wheeled boom box. Pretty good for any chic ride having a $15,500 base cost along with a great spontaneity. But make no mistake: There's little testosterone both in the look and specs from the Fiat 500. The only method a guy could drive this vehicle is within a Fellini film. That's not sexist it's simply not the ླྀs. This can be a lady's vehicle. Particularly, a lady much like me. 15 years later, the allure stands up.Mi piace la Fiat Cinquecento. Related Subjects Lake Bell

Oscar PR Chief Leslie Unger Resigns

Leslie Unger, the chief publicist for the Academy Awards last year, has resigned the post. It’s part of a restructuring of the department. She had been there for almost two decades. Unger was the publicist who disinvited me from the Oscars last year because Deadline had revealed everything that was going to happen at the Oscars, except who was going to win trophies.

Fall TV Analysis: Inside ABC's Hot Streak

Emily VanCamp When ABC announced its fall schedule in May, the network's critics and competitors were skeptical. Not only were its aging dramas quickly eroding, but ABC faced a formidable task in launching a whopping 13 new series. It seemed like a tall order for ABC Entertainment Group president Paul Lee, who was coming off his first full development season at the network. But as NBC sinks into an even deeper slump, ABC has somehow managed to defy the odds. It doesn't yet boast the ratings prowess of top-rated CBS and Fox, but Lee is encouraged by his network's ability to debut a handful of promising new series. "We have a lot of very strong pieces," he says. "At the same time we've got to make sure we sustain them and that they stay strong through the year and beyond." ABC had badly stumbled out of the gate last year with DOA shows like My Generation and The Whole Truth. But this season, execs staggered the network's launches, with some new shows not even appearing until late October. Plus, the network caught a bit of luck, managing to ride the comedy revival wave and tapping into two genres - fantasy and soap operas - where it turns out there was a void to fill. "They desperately needed to get an infusion of new shows," says Horizon Media's Brad Adgate. "But now they've got some wind in their sails." Early success stories include Once Upon a Time, a Sunday surprise that is now TV's No. 1 new drama among adults 18-49. "We knew it was an amazing piece of television," Lee says. "There's so much ambition in its storytelling." Meanwhile, Revenge, the sudser that Lee calls "delicious," is making the network competitive on Wednesdays at 10 p.m. (where ABC's performance is up 127 percent in the demo). The network has also grown its Wednesday night comedy block, thanks to centerpiece Modern Family - TV's No. 2 scripted show among adults 18-49 and ABC's most-watched sitcom since the 1998-99 season. Newcomer Suburgatory and sophomore sensation Happy Endings are also driving ABC's sitcom success; and on Tuesdays, Tim Allen's Last Man Standing is giving ABC its best comedy performance in its time slot in a decade. Not everything has worked, including ABC's Charlie's Angels reboot. "I don't think we quite managed to breathe life into that franchise," Lee admits. "It didn't work this time, but it doesn't mean we wouldn't do it again. You've got to do something to break out from the clutter." Period drama Pan Am is also struggling, and Lee hopes that some tweaks, such as putting the focus back on the four central flight attendant characters, will give it a bit more direction. "I think there's a huge amount of goodwill toward that show," Lee says. Among comedies, only Man Up! has opened to soft numbers. Veteran series like Grey's Anatomy, Dancing With the Stars and the soon-to-retire Desperate Housewives are also on the slide. Lee believes Dancing could reverse that trend with a more compelling cast in mid-season. "Dancing goes up and down," he says. "Sometimes it's about whether we catch the mood of the country. We were lucky enough to do that twice last year. I feel that it will come back. And now that this season is coming to an end, I think people are finally starting to really relate strongly to that cast." Three hours a week of older-skewing Dancing, however, continues to contribute to the graying of ABC's audience, which now registers a median age of 53.7 (the oldest the network has ever been.) "Older viewers and women tend to watch more TV, so it's not all that surprising that they're doing this well," Adgate says. Meanwhile, with so much new product working, ABC may now find itself in the odd position of not having enough room for its hefty midseason bench. Shows waiting in the wings include campy Kristin Chenoweth-led drama GCB (seen by many as an obvious Desperate Housewives replacement); Shonda Rhimes' D.C.-set series Scandal, starring Kerry Washington; the Ashley Judd vehicle Missing; and thriller The River, none of which has a time slot yet. Lee is also bullish on upcoming comedy Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23 and is even still touting the critically panned cross-dressing sitcom Work It. "We have an idea of where we're going to put it all, although we haven't quite got all the jigsaw pieces in place yet," Lee says. For next season, Lee says ABC is looking to capitalize on its comedy successes; in drama, the exec says he's looking for sophisticated character dramas that speak to an "affluent female audience." Despite its recent new successes, ABC is still down a touch from last season, averaging 9.7 million viewers (down 1 percent from 9.8 million last fall). CBS, in comparison, is up 2 percent (13 million) while Fox is up 21 percent (10.1 million). But while ABC has managed to stem its bleeding, NBC is still in freefall, down another 9 percent (to 7.3 million). It's clear that ABC won't challenge CBS and Fox for the top spot this season. But as long as Lee and Co. don't start building expectations too high, Adgate believes the network will be fine. "It's encouraging, and they have to be pretty pleased that they planted some seeds," he says. "Sometimes it pays to be a little patient." Subscribe to TV Guide Magazine now!

A Evening Time With 'The Artist' (Photo Gallery)

A Evening Time With 'The Artist' (Photo Gallery) By Jenelle Riley November 15, 2011 Photo by Kevin Parry Cast folks the brand new black-and-white-colored quiet film "The Artist" spoke with a offered-out crowd at Back Stage's "Evening With" event on November. 6 within the DGA Theatre in La. The film, from French director Michel Hazanavicius, particulars the decline from the quiet-superstar, carried out by Jean Dujardin, in 20's Hollywood. Dujardin was on hands with James Cromwell, who plays his loyal servant, and Penelope Ann Burns, who plays his dissatisfied wife. Sooner or later, Dujardin spoken about taking five several days of tap dancing training for your roleand proven he still knows the moves. When asked for about not speaking on film, Cromwell mentioned he was without numerous lines within the Oscar-nominated submit "Babe" either. "I've become familiar with it," he mentioned. "That's such a personality actor is. You aren't getting the woman and you aren't getting to talk much. However I am large, and so i constitute with this.Inch A Evening Time With 'The Artist' (Photo Gallery) By Jenelle Riley November 15, 2011 PHOTO CREDIT Kevin Parry Cast folks the brand new black-and-white-colored quiet film "The Artist" spoke with a offered-out crowd at Back Stage's "Evening With" event on November. 6 within the DGA Theatre in La. The film, from French director Michel Hazanavicius, particulars the decline from the quiet-celebrity, carried out by Jean Dujardin, in 20's Hollywood. Dujardin was provided with James Cromwell, who plays his loyal servant, and Penelope Ann Burns, who plays his dissatisfied wife. Sooner or later, Dujardin spoken about taking five several days of tap dancing training for your roleand proven he still knows the moves. When asked for about not speaking on film, Cromwell mentioned he was without numerous lines within the Oscar-nominated submit "Babe" either. "I've become familiar with it," he mentioned. "That's such a personality actor is. You aren't getting the woman and you aren't getting to talk much. However I am large, therefore i constitute with this.Inch

NBC Shutting Lower Production on Prime Suspect

Maria Bello NBC will probably shut lower production on Prime Suspect after it systems filming Episode 13, TVGuide.com has confirmed. Prime Suspect, which stars Maria Bello just like a female detective in the man's world, is presently wrapping Episode 12, with Episode 13 set to film now. Though NBC remains "considering their options" money for hard times in the series, Deadline.com reviews that people around the program are actually told the series is canceled. NBC benches Community, sets series finale date for Chuck The remake in the BBC series first demonstrated soft, drawing only 6 000 0000 audiences within the Thursday at 10/9c timeslot. Its latest outing came 4.86 million audiences. After ordering six more scripts in the cop drama lately, NBC did a sizable push to operate a vehicle audiences, airing repeats every weeknight at 10/9c for just about any week, along with an airing on Saturday evening. What is the news comes one following day of NBC released its midseason schedule without any slot for your show. Other shows missing within the selection include new series Bent and Awake.

Paul Bettany Nabs Lead in Showtime's 'Masters of Sex' Pilot

Matt Carr/Getty ImagesPaul Bettany It's Showtime for big-screen star Paul Bettany. The film actor, whose credits include Priest, The Tourist and Iron Guy 2, remains attracted onto experience sex education investigator William Masters inside the Showtime drama Masters of Sex. The drama, in the new the new sony Pictures Television, involves influential sexual education researchers Masters and Virginia Manley which is being put together through the Off-shoreline's Michelle Ashford. STORY: Showtime Greenlights Three New Aircraft aircraft pilots For Bettany, the project marks his first U.S. television commitment undertaking a extended feature career that has incorporated roles in Wimbledon together with an attractive Mind. Masters of Sex was among three aircraft aircraft pilots greenlit in August under new entertainment chief David Nevins. Ashford will executive produce alongside Sarah Timberman and Carl Beverly (Justified, A Gifted Guy). Bettany is repped by UTA and Affirmative Entertainment. Email: Lesley.Goldberg@thr.com Twitter: @Snoodit Paul Bettany Showtime TV Development

Five Reasons To See 'Immortals'

At long last, "Immortals" has finally arrived! Director Tarsem Singh's swords-and-sandals epic slashes its way into theaters today (November 11) to deliver one of the greatest visual thrill rides of the fall movie season. "Immortals" stars Henry Cavill as Theseus, a strong youth who finds himself caught in a war between mortal men and beings from another plane of existence. The vicious King Hyperion (Mickey Rourke) seeks an ancient and terrible power, and only Theseus, who comes to possess the legendary Epirius Bow, can put an end to his reign of terror. There's little doubt that "Immortals" is the most action-packed movie currently in theaters. For those of you seeking blood, guts and gore, there's no excuse to miss this one. If you need additional reasons to check out "Immortals," we've got five beyond the jump. Beautiful Violence If there's one reason to see "Immortals," it's Tarsem Singh's wildly visceral depiction of violence, particularly when gods and titans are thrown into the mix. Action slows to a crawl then speeds up without notice, like a gloriously composed symphony. It's a style that's similar to what we've seen in "300," but it's more than that: the way that the warriors of "Immortals" tear each other to pieces is unlike anything I've ever seen before. The final 20 or so minutes of the film are especially incredible, gifting viewers with some of the most beautiful violence ever committed to the screen. The Man of Steel Many actors get their turn in the spotlight throughout "Immortals," but through and through, this is the Henry Cavill show. The future Superman does an excellent job as an action movie lead, his presence captivating and his ability to cleave through the bad guys undeniable. If ever you doubted Cavill's casting in "Man of Steel," his work in "Immortals" should more than convince you that the right choice was made. Bad to the Bone Mickey Rourke has been more than a little bit outspoken about his disappointment in how his "Iron Man 2" villain was portrayed. Here, however, Rourke is very clearly having a blast playing Hyperion, a ruthless bad guy who munches on grapes and neuters his prisoners all in the span of seconds. There isn't a lot to like about Hyperion as a human being, no, but Rourke gives you plenty to like about his performance. It's scene-chewing at its finest. Shirts Need Not Apply Gents, if you're looking for an excuse to bring a date to "Immortals" this weekend, look no further than the fact that every single guy in this movie is shirtless. Pretty much all the time, too. Lots of muscle for your significant others to feast on, and plenty to make you feel bad about your own physique, too! Tears (And Blood And Guts And Other Things) In Heaven From almighty visuals to some memorable turns from Cavill and Rourke, there's a lot to like in "Immortals." But perhaps it's the film's final moments that I'm most enthralled by, largely because the setup for an "Immortals" sequel it provides is just so. Frickin'. Awesome. Seriously, if "Immortals 2" doesn't happen, and if it doesn't pick up immediately where the first movie leaves off, a potentially super-cool ball will have been dropped. Watch the "Immortals" trailer! Have you seen "Immortals" yet? Let us know what you think in the comments section and on Twitter!

Watercooler: In Praise of Up All Night's Christina Applegate

Christina Applegate Yes, Maya Rudolph is the one who usually gets most of the big laughs on Up All Night. And why not? She's a hoot as self-absorbed talk-show host Ava and there's very little she can't do with a song and an inappropriate line of dialogue. But attention must be paid to the sitcom's leading lady and this week's TV Guide Magazine cover girl Christina Applegate. Now it's not like last night's episode stood out as a special showcase for her. In fact, it was more about Rudolph and guest star Jason Lee than anything. Yet even with a relatively un-flashy storyline - Reagan and Chris' near-fruitless attempt to spend a romantic overnight at the swanky Beverly Hilton - Applegate's seemingly unending source of sass, sex appeal and sweetness actually had us wishing they had toned down some of the "Ava babysits Amy" stuff to make more room for her crackling back-and-forth with costar Will Arnett. And you know someone's really good when you root for them to steal scenes away from a scene-stealer like Rudolph. Plus, if Reagan's mom-voiced take on what Amy was doing while mommy and daddy were out ("she's probably having sweet potatoes") didn't steal your heart, then you contact a cardiologist about getting a new one. Of course, we all crushed on Christina when she was teen-tramping it up on Married...with Children and so many folks adored her short-lived run as reformed party girl on Samantha Who? But we are more head-over-heels for Applegate than ever now that she's all grown Up and playing a cool mom these days. What about you? Loving Applegate or is her Night not on your Wednesday schedule? Subscribe to TV Guide Magazine now!

Up-to-date: Brett Ratner Resigns As Producer Of 2012 Oscars

First Launched: November 8, 2011 7:51 PM EST Credit: Getty Images La, Calif. -- Caption Brett Ratner attends the AFI FEST 2011 Presented By Audi - J. Edgar Opening Evening Gala at Graumans Chinese Theatre, La, on November 3, 2011Brett Ratner has resigned as producer in the Oscars, Access Hollywood has confirmed. Today, Brett Ratner published his resignation just like a producer in the 84th annual Academy awards to Academy Leader Tom Sherak, the Academy of motion Picture Arts and Sciences mentioned in the statement on Tuesday evening. Ratner then launched an empty letter for the entertainment industry through which he referred to his decision. What is the news comes just days after Ratner used a homophobic slur within a Q&A session within the La ArcLight Cinema, undertaking a screening of his latest film, Tower Heist. When asked for about his testing process, he mentioned, Testing is ideal for fa*s. It absolutely was a dumb approach to showing myself, Ratner later mentioned in the statement, by way of apology. Everyone who knows me sees that I don't possess a prejudiced bone throughout my body system. Furthermore to his homophobic remark, Ratner also recently condemned Olivia Munn, and suggested he'd rested while using celebrity, when he came out on her behalf account former program, G4s Attack in the Show. He later apologized for his G4 remarks throughout a holiday to a Howard Stern Show.When Ratner resigned within the Oscars on Tuesday morning, more youthful crowd composed an empty letter for the Hollywood community. In Ratners open letter, acquired with the Hollywood Reporter, the director recognized he's been belittled fathers and moms since he uttered the gay slur. As difficult since the past few days are actually personally, they cannot rival the help of any youthful guy or lady that's been the mark of offensive slurs or derogatory comments. And so they pale in comparison as to the any gay, lesbian, or transgender individual must deal with simply because they confront the various inequalities that also plague the planet, he written within the letter. Lots of artists and craftspeople inside our business are people in the LGBT community, plus it pains me deeply that we may have hurt them. I will have known all this along, but no less than Yes, it now: words matter, his letter ongoing. Getting love within your heart doesn't count for much if what arrives from the mouth is ugly and bigoted. Ratner added he expects to place be employed in on combating bigotry, and noted he's already showed up at towards the Lgbt Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) Please understand that I'm going to be taking real action inside the future and many days to be able to try everything I am in a position to both properly and personally to help eliminate the kind of thoughtless bigotry Ive so foolishly perpetuated, he written. Academy Leader Sherak mentioned Ratners decision to resign was the most appropriate one. He did the very best factor for your Academy too for themselves, Sherak mentioned in the statement. Words have meaning, and they have effects. Brett is a superb person, but his comments were unacceptable. Most of us hope it is really an opportunity to boost awareness in regards to the harm that's triggered by reckless and insensitive remarks, regardless of intent. Copyright 2011 by NBC Universal, Corporation. All rights reserved. These elements is probably not launched, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Glee Casts Guiding Light Actress to experience Mama Trouty Mouth

Tanya Clarke Glee has cast Guiding Light actress Tanya Clarke to experience mother to Mike Evans (Chord Overstreet), Entertainment Weekly reviews. Gleeks will come across Mary Evans within the 12 ,. 6 episode and also the role may recur. The actress, that has also made an appearance on NCIS: La, is going to be combined with Smallville's John Schneider as Sam's father. Glee casts Smallville's John Schneider as Sam's father It had been stated that Mike and the family moved from Lima, Ohio within the season premiere because his father got employment in another town. Overstreet, however, has since inked an offer revisit Glee inside a recurring capacity. Are you currently excited to satisfy Sam's mother on Glee?

Adventures in Plymptoons!

An For Me production. Produced by Alexia Anastasio. Executive producers, Anastasio, Edward A. Anastasio, Katy Anastasio, Ken Mora, Mark Steiner. Directed by Alexia Anastasio.With: Bill Plympton, Terry Gilliam, Erection dysfunction Begley Junior., Ron Jeremy, Keith Carradine, Marilyn Zornado, Maureen McElheron, Jerry Beck, John Anderson Geoffrey Gilmore, David Silverman, Jay O. Sanders, Jonathan Caouette, Take advantage of Bakshi, Will Vinton, Strange Al Yankovic, Matthew Modine, Martha Plimpton, Moby, Tom Kenny."Adventures in Plymptoons!" pays tribute to Oscar-nominated animator Bill Plympton, greatly within the kind of their very own gleefully impudent work. Filled with clips and interviews with celebrity fans and co-employees, Alexia Anastasio's documentary could attract the identical small but loyal niche audience the subject themselves has extended won via self-distribution to theaters and home formats. Using art from an early on age to draw women, the Or native started his professional existence drawing scatological pictures for Al Goldstein's "Screw" together with other skin magazines -- additionally to more legit guides -- inside the freewheeling '70s. Early short "The FaceInch clicked up Oscar attention, stunning Plympton (and composer-singer Maureen McElheron). It established his usual ultra-low-tech, hands-attracted-pencil style and fondness for inventive, frequently disgusting physical grotesquerie. His work increased to become fixture of MTV station-break spots and packages like "Spike & Mike's Festival of Animation." Always resourcefully independent -- he once switched lower a $millions of offer from Disney to help keep complete control of his work -- the cartoonist became a member of features with 1992's "The Tune." He's made five more since (including one compilation), all created inhouse at his barely staffed NY studio, which handles marketing/distribution chores too. It's a remarkably prolific output in the typically painstaking medium, supporting one colleague's report that he's "the fastest animator in the market.In . Some might argue less may well be more, as Plympton's features pay scant concentrate on such niceties as plot and character development they're virtually extended strings of gags, the majority of the gross-out type. (A critic here who damns a great deal "twisted" violent and sexual imagery as "just lots of ugliness" is really Plympton themselves, disguised as pretentious alter ego W.P. Murton.) "Adventure's" format of short-designed sections that mingle excerpts (including more recent and much more effective material) with behind-the-moments glimpses and interviews is an ideal showcase that can induce viewer fatigue over an unbroken 70- or 80-minute haul. People speaking about his work -- sometimes tongue firmly grown in mouth area -- change from fellow artists (like the similar-minded Take advantage of Bakshi), studio staff and voice talents to fans, family people and ex-female buddies. Like its subject, the docu turns its slim means right into a benefit utilizing a cheekily assertive DIY aesthetic.Camera (color), Kevin Sean Michaels editors, Anastasio, Michaels music, Bruce Balmer, Hank Bones, Parson Brown, Didier Carmier, Keith Carradine, Corey Jackson, Maureen McElheron, Smokey Miles, Nicole Renaud, David Silverman. Examined away Area Docfest, March. 23, 2011. Running time: 85 MIN. Contact the number newsroom at news@variety.com

Movie Ticket Pricing Is Up, But People Spent Less In 3Q For 3 dimensional

Might be the price of movie tickets falling? Definitely not. May possibly not look which means by 3Q:The normal amount that clients spent was $7.94, lower from $8.06 in 2Q, the country's Association of Theatre Entrepreneurs reviews today. Nevertheless the amounts frequently bounce around from quarter to quarter, due simply whether you will discover 3d films compelling enough to steer clients to pay back for your greater-listed tickets. Last quarter was light, despite the fact that it incorporated Warner Bros’ Harry Potter As Well As The Deathly Hallows Part 2 and Disney’s The Lion King 3d. The costs picture becomes clearer if you have a take a step back to look at earnings as time passes: The normal for your first nine several days of 2011 is $7.96, up 1% all 2010 and 6% from 2009. Regal also recently reported that it's average ticket cost was $8.78 in 3Q, up 1.9% versus the identical period a year ago.

Christina Aguilera Available To Singing In The Super Bowl: Im Up For Just About Any Challenge

First Released: October 28, 2011 10:45 PM EDT Credit: Access Hollywood Caption Access Hollywoods Rob Robinson with Christina Aguilera and Blake Shelton around the group of NBCs The Voice, March. 28, 2011LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- Christina Aguilera is placed to follow along with the Super Bowl this season using the Season 2 premiere of her show, The Voice, but she told Access Hollywood shed most probably to singing in the large game too. Im open. Hey, Im up for just about any challenge, whenever every day, Christina told Access Rob Robinson on Friday. Damn right, Christinas fellow Voice judge Blake Shelton chimed in, mentioning to themself. Youre damn right I'll Ill sing among Christinas song in the Super Bowl. Hey sister, soul sister, he amusingly sang. Christina, Blake, Adam Levine and Cee Lo Eco-friendly are back as coaches for Season 2 of NBCs reality singing competition, The Voice, and also the celebrity singer stated returning for an additional round was a simple sell. I needed to return and perform a second [season]. How could I not? she requested. This is actually the most enjoyable show ever! The suspense value? Its intense I believe I recieve more nervous during these blind auditions compared to actual artists and vocalists which come up here to audition. Its nerve wracking and exciting. The first phases from the Voice auditions are presently happening in La and Christina stated the talent which has come through continues to be of the different quality. Its amazing to understand the truth that the bar continues to be elevated excessive this season and weve really be critical due to it Theres not just one singer that is not good or great which comes through here, she stated. So were extra critical and counseled me searching for something so unique and thus different. Christina had a number of strongly voiced women on her behalf squad in Season 1, and this time around around shes got a far more diverse roster, to date. I've everybody from an opera singer for an MC, she stated. Its amazing after which, obviously, I've my giant, crazy, soulful vocalists that amaze you. Its a thrilling year for diversity. Season 2 from the Voice premieres on Feb 5 on NBC, following the Super Bowl. Copyright 2011 by NBC Universal, Corporation. All privileges reserved. These components might not be released, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Video: Sandra Bullock's Lost 1991 Audition Tape Shows Her Knack for Comedy, High-Waisted Jeans

Since I Have’m finally inside the Blind Side’s undeserved Oscar presence, I am able revisit praising the products I like about Sandra Bullock. She's feisty! And sincere! And funny! In 1991, she’d apparently already nailed lower that Bullockian trifecta, because she's positively charming in this audition tape immediately of her career. Have a look following a jump, with the relaxation of Buzz Break (including Lindsay Lohan’s latest $millions of offer). [via Snakkle] · Adult toy company Fleshlight is supplying Lindsay Lohan $millions of being among their exclusive “Fleshlight Women.” If you are in a position to’t play Linda Lovelace, be Linda Lovelace. [News Release] · Speaking about Lohan, she’s one of many in their Playboy foray — literally. Her little sister grew to become an associate of her on set. [Gawker] · Here’s Nerve’s report on the 50 finest cult movies ever. We never can recognition Barbarella enough. [Nerve] · Amanda Seyfried told Jay Leno they thinks guns certainly are a turn-on. I swear this is not merely a plot increase in Jennifer’s Body. [HuffPost]

Affleck, Damon reteam on Bulger bio

AffleckDamonWarner Bros. gets back the "Good Will Hunting" team, tapping Film Clip to direct and star in the Whitey Bulger biopic through which Matt Damon will portray the mobster.Casey Affleck will co-star, and "Boardwalk Empire" creator Terence Winter is writing the script.Studio confirmed the project Monday, five several days after Bulger, your brain of Boston's Winter Hill Gang, was drawn in Santa Monica after sitting on the lam for 16 years. Bulger fled government physiques in Boston before he was indicted in 1995 for federal racketeering.News in the project was reported in GQ magazine, which asked Damon.Affleck and Damon will produce under their Jewel Street Films shingle through their first-look deal with Warner Bros. Jewel Street's Chay Carter will professional produce, and Sarah Schechter is controlling for your studio.Affleck's made three films for Warners -- "Gone Baby Gone," "The CityInch and "Argo," presently in production.Damon and Affleck, each repped by WME, teamed round the 1997 drama "Good Will Hunting" and won the script Oscar. Contact Dork McNary at dork.mcnary@variety.com

A Fans Notes Eyes TV Series Adaptation

Producer Gary Pearl is putting together a TV series project based on Frederick Exley, Jr.’s semi-autobiographical novel A Fan’s Notes. The 1968 book deals with alcoholism, shock therapy and sports fandom and chronicles a man’s life lived in abject failure while seeking fame and driving himself and all those around him down a path of destruction. “It’s a brilliantly written parable, a diary, for our time about self-destruction in pursuit of personal celebrity and ultimate fame, the kind that lasts beyond one’s lifetime,” said Pearl, who is producing with Jeffrey Shane and David Burton Morris. It took Pearl several years to track down and secure the rights to the book and then spent time trying to make it into a feature film before deciding that a series adaptation would work better, something Exley’s twin sister Francis Brown agreed to. (A Fan’s Notes was previously made into a feature in 1972 with Jerry Orbach playing Exley.) Meetings with writers are underway for the drama project, which is being targeted for basic and premium cable.

'Real Housewives of New Jersey' Reunion Part 1 Marks Season High

Bravo"Real Housewives of New Jersey" No matter how crazy the catfights and confrontations get, the Real Housewives still proves to be a solid ratings force. Case in point: The first part of the Real Housewives of New Jersey third season reunion delivered its best ratings of the season, drawing 3.4 million total viewers and 2.2 million in adults 18-49 on Sunday at 10 p.m. STORY: Bravo's 'Real Housewives' Taking Over Sirius XM Radio Station The reunion was up 33 percent in 18-49 and 28 percent in total viewers compared with the season ender that aired Oct. 9. The ratings performance boosted the season 9 percent in viewership and 3 percent in the key demo compared to the second season. Bravo also touts that the New Jersey subsite lured 3.7 million page views and roughly 430,000 streams, 14 percent and 23 percent jumps respectively the day following the previous week's episode. The second part of Real Housewives of New Jersey airs Sunday, Oct. 23 at 10 p.m. TV Ratings The Real Housewives of New Jersey

News briefs from round the biz

The Cinema Audio Society opened up the distribution process for that CAS Honours having a large change: scoring mixers will be included to this mixture in three groups: movies, television movie or miniseries, and DVD original programming. For making this transformation, stated CAS Leader David E. Fluhr, "I'm delighted the CAS Board is starting the development in our nominee base Realizing all mixers who lead for an outstanding achievement in seem mixing is really a lengthy-time goal from the CAS, and we'll continue continue.Inch The 48th annual CAS Honours nominees is going to be introduced on The month of january 19 and also the CAS Honours is going to be held Feb 18, in the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in La.- * *Todd-AO has completed a technical overhaul of ADR stage 5 at its Hollywood galleries. Among the biggest facilities of their key in Hollywood, the ADR stage continues to be outfitted with a brand new Professional Tools workstation, a Soundmaster ION operating atmosphere along with a Christie HD playback system. The brand new integration offers the stage by having an all-digital infrastructure leading to enhanced quality and efficiency for voice recording. The Soundmaster ION will be employed to synchronize the Professional Tools system having a separate recording system, microphones, remote feeds, samplers, along with a boom recorder employed for back-up."We now have produced a condition-of-the-art recording facility that provides all functionality that producers and talent expect from the world-class ADR room," stated Bill Johnston, senior veep of engineering at CSS Galleries, Todd-AO's parent company. "Our goal would be to make ADR as fast and seamless as you possibly can.InchJohnston adds the new HD video system is able to playback video in almost any format, getting rid of transcoding delays. "It can make an enormous amount of difference," observed Todd-AO ADR Mixer Ron Bedrosian. "The brand new technology provides elevated versatility to ensure that we are able to better satisfy the changing needs in our clients."* * *Addressing the scarcity of skilled developers entering the visual effects area, London vfx house Cinesite's Inspire internship program now features a separate technical effects track that particularly targets grads with an intention in computer-programming or technical effects. "We have had positive results in the last 2 yrs finding gifted graduates to fill our traditional visual effects internship, but we have observed our market is seriously missing youthful gifted computer developers," stated Antony Search, controlling director of Cinesite. "With this particular new strand we are striving to draw in graduates with science levels and educate them on how they may develop a career within this exciting world-class industry."The technical effects internship will run with the visual effects internship. Both positions are compensated positions and can run for six days within the summer time of 2012. The technical effects strand is focusing on individuals with interests on paper shaders and programming for pipelines, in addition to ambitious effects TDs. The vfx track targets individuals with interests in digital matte painting, animation, lighting, texturing, modeling, forex and compositing. Previous Inspire those who win have done "Pirates from the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" and therefore are presently focusing on "John Carter" and "World War Z." Since finishing their positions, all the those who win have guaranteed positions at Cinesite. Contact Peter Caranicas at peter.caranicas@variety.com

The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs: Theater Review

NY -- It might not be the eulogy the former Apple CEO would have chosen, but Mike Daisey's The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs is an eye-opener. Updated but not softened since the recent death of the "techno-libertarian hippie," this provocative monologue pulls no punches in confronting us with the dark side of Jobs' legacy and of our own mass addiction to gadgets.our editor recommendsSteve Jobs Remembered at Private Memorial Service at Stanford UniversityA Studio Chief Pens Revealing First-Person Steve Jobs Remembrance'iGenius: How Steve Jobs Changed the World': Preview the Discovery Documentary (Video)10 Hip-Hop Songs Referencing Steve Jobs (Video)Steve Jobs Bio Could Set New Sales RecordsSteve Jobs: The Apple Co-Founder's Most Memorable QuotesRelated Topics•Steve Jobs This is ideal material for an obsessive personality like Daisey, whose 2001 breakout piece, 21 Dog Years, covered Amazon.com during the Internet boom. Directed by his wife and regular collaborator, Jean-Michelle Gregory, Daisey extemporaneously explores his chosen subject from journalistic and personal perspectives, finding illumination in the overlap. PHOTOS: Steve Jobs' Death: How the Magazines Covered While he has been performing this piece since July 2010, the timing of its NY debut turns up the spotlight. An unapologetic tech geek, Daisey admits to being a longtime worshipper at the Apple altar, confessing that he often field-strips his MacBook Pro and cleans its parts with compressed air just to unwind after a performance. But his voice is definitely a counterpoint to all the warm-and-fuzzy nostalgists getting misty-eyed over photos of candy-colored clamshell iBooks, as if they were childhood pets. Seated at a glass-top table with only some outline notes, Daisey explains that the turning point came when he was surfing the Apple site and found iPhone test photos taken in a factory in China. That made him contemplate, for the first time, how and where those beloved objects were made. "I started to think, which is always a problem for any religion," he says. That process led him to Shenzhen in southern China to interview dozens of workers outside Foxconn, the monolithic manufacturing plant where Apple products (and roughly half the world's electronics) are made. He also posed as a businessman to get inside the factories and witness the dehumanizing labor-camp conditions firsthand. PHOTOS: Apple Products in TV and Movies This will be no surprise to anyone aware of the wave of employee deaths that prompted Foxconn to install suicide-prevention netting around its roofing in 2010. But Daisey makes a chilling narrative out of his findings -- workers as young as 12 or 13, treated as biomass; 12-hour shifts that can stretch to 16 or more when a new product is being stockpiled for release; employees whose hands are permanently warped from endlessly repeating the same task under pressure with no rotation of duty. Daisey recounts how one worker died at the end of a 34-hour shift during his Foxconn visit. He recalls an encounter with a man whose job was terminated without compensation when his hand was crushed while making the metal casing for iPads. "It's a kind of magic," the injured man said when Daisey booted up his own iPad to show him a working model for the first time. Running parallel to the account of his China trip, Daisey provides a selective history of Jobs' life and career. His rigorous design standards and voracious hunger for the new steered Apple to world dominance, not in market share but in "mind share." Describing him as "the master of the forced upgrade," Daisey makes a trenchant case that Jobs turned everyone into covetous tech consumers. "He was so good at making us need things we never even knew we wanted -- like a laptop so thin you can slice a sandwich with it." PHOTOS: Steve Jobs' 10 Memorable Milestones He draws out the contradictions in the tech guru's ability to create fetish objects while never being afraid to "knife the baby." (RIP, iPod Mini.) But while the two sides of visionary aesthete and ruthless businessman are amply illustrated, Daisey gets no closer to Jobs the man than most obits of recent weeks. He had no direct contact with the former Apple chief. A stash of e-mail responses sent by Jobs to people who had written to him after seeing Daisey's show suggests he was aware of the human-rights violations behind the manufacture of his products. The attention to detail throughout Apple's micromanaged history makes any other scenario inconceivable. But merely wondering how Jobs reconciled this via secondhand answers robs the piece of some impact. Daisey's work can veer toward sermonizing. His structure of loose chapters capped by resounding pronouncements becomes self-righteous at times, and at two solid hours, his storytelling here is not without fat. Detours on the nature of geekishness or the inanity of the PowerPoint presentation feel like extended standup bits. VIDEO: Remembering Steve Jobs But Daisey is a compelling polemicist. Beyond an information sheet distributed at the end of the performance, he doesn't offer a solution. But he forces us to examine our acquisitive natures and the degree to which we are all complicit in screening out what we don't want to see. In Daisey's view, it was not Beijing but multinational corporations like Apple that created and continue to enforce the demand for dehumanized labor in places like China. His key point is that, as the P.T. Barnum of his era, Jobs was in a unique position to change things, but he chose not to. Venue: Public Theater, NY (runs through Nov. 13) Creator-performer: Mike Daisey Director: Jean-Michelle Gregory Set/lighting designer: Seth Reiser Presented by the Public Theater Steve Jobs

ABC Cancels Charlies Angels Reboot

Second Time No Charm For Playboy Club Charlies Angels & Prime Suspect: What Went Wrong? ABC has place the flailing Charlie’s Angels remake from its misery. The little rankings uptick last evening didn’t savethe newcomer, that has now been canceled, with production onto it shut lower. I hear ABC expects to operate the episodes which have been already made. The new sony TV has shot an overall total of 8 episodes, such as the pilot. Four of these have broadcast. Following a low-ranked debut, the Charlie’s Angels reboot dropped precipitously for just two days to some 1.2 rankings in grown ups 18-49 last Thursday before posting a small increase to some 1.3 last evening. But that switched to be not enough past too far… This is a summary on where ABC’s fall series with 13-episode orders stand. Freshmen Suburgatory and Revenge have obtained Back 9 orders, while Charlie’s Angels continues to be canceled. Sophomores Happy Being and the body Of Proof happen to be given script orders: 6 scripts for Happy Being and a pair of for Body Of Proof.

'Lazhar' preem, party start Abu Dhabi Fest

ABU DHABI -- The 5th Abu Dhabi Film Festival bowed Thursday with "Monsieur Lazhar," Canada's entry for foreign-language Oscar consideration. While you will find some changes towards the event -- the emirate's Circle Conference confab, which often draws a slew of worldwide industryites, continues to be nixed -- that did not stop the fest from starting in an instant. "Lazhar," starring Mohamed Fellag, Emilien Neron and Sophie Nelisse, was tested in a new outside venue at the rear of the Fairmont Hotel, marking the very first time the outlet-evening film has unspooled outdoors. Regardless of the Gulf warmth, the big event came a significant crowd and auds later made the short walk towards the trendy after-party in the hotel. "I had been nervous to determine the way the audience would sit by using it being outdoors," stated Abu Dhabi Film Fest professional director Peter Scarlet. "But everybody appeared to savor it." "Monsieur Lazhar," directed by Philippe Falardeau, follows an Algerian immigrant in Montreal hired like a alternative teacher. A notable change only at that year's opening may be the heavy presence of Arab and Gulf industryites and also the slightly reduced quantity of bizzers using their company corners from the globe -- an expression, possibly, from the fest's intention to place more concentrate on creating a regional film infrastructure. A slew of Arab thesps attended the after-party, including Egyptian actor Mahmoud Abdel Aziz, Egyptian actress-singer Bushra and Syrian thesp Faris Alhilo. Egyptian thesp Laila Elouis, Iranian thesp Fatemeh Simin Motamed-Ayra and French actress Marianne Denicourt -- all jury people -- also mingled. The 2010 fest includes world preems of Mike Neave's "Almost for each other,Inch Amr Salama's "Asma'a," Michael Brandt's "The Double," Safinez Bousbia's "El Gusto" and Nawaf Al-Janahi's "Ocean Shadow," the very first Abu Dhabi production in the emirate's $1 billion production arm Image Nation. Fest shuts March. 22. Contact Diana Lodderhose at diana.lodderhose@variety.com

Paramount nabs 'Hyperdrive' spec

Paramount is going into "Hyperdrive," picking up the science-fiction spec script from Morgan Jurgenson and Alex Ankeles for Mary Parent to produce through her Disruption Entertainment banner.Studio acquired the spec preemptively on Wednesday night. Story centers on a tough cop who recruits a geeky science-fiiction writer to find a witness to a murder and is described as "Men in Black" meets "Midnight Run."Cale Boyer of Disrpution brought "Hyperdrive" into the shingle.Jurgenson propduced and co-wrote "Tucker and Dale vs. Evil," which sold at Sundance to Magnolia. Ankeles is a VP at Panay Films.Disruption has been ramping up business since Parent set up the Par-based banner in February, four months after exiting as the topper of MGM's film business. It's developing a sci-fi action script from "Snakes on a Plane" scribe John Heffernan, "The Watching Hour" at New Line with Mad Hatter along with an adaptation of the DC Comic series "The Mighty" along with Chris Bender and JC Spink of Benderspink.Jurgenson is repped by APA and Hung Entertainment. Ankeles is repped by CAA and Kaplan/Perrone. Contact Dave McNary at dave.mcnary@variety.com

Lee Cowan Back At CBS News After four years At NBC

Lee Cowan will return to CBS News as National Correspondent, CBS News Chairman as well as an hour Executive Producer Rob Fager and David Rhodes, Leader, CBS News, introduced today. Cowan will result in CBS News broadcasts and platforms within the division and he'll be an alternate anchor for CBS SUNDAY MORNING. He'll be situated in La. His appointment is effective November 1. Lee Cowan can be a top quality reporter and one of the better storytellers within the generation of broadcast journalists, mentioned Fager. Its an authentic thrill that he's coming back the place to find us. Lee includes our persistence for original reportingto showing an excellent story, well told, mentioned Rhodes. We are so excited to own him within the fold. “With his style and class, Lee Cowan is exclusive — together with a Sunday Morning natural.” mentioned Rand Morrison, Executive Producer of CBS SUNDAY MORNING. “To condition that people’re thrilled to own him back on we is certainly an understatement.” Most recently, Cowan is really a correspondent for NBC News since 2007, contributing to numerous NBC News shows, including “NBC Nightly News with John Williams,” “Today,” and MSNBC broadcasts. While there, he covered major news tales and occasions, including presidential candidate Obama through the historic 2008 presidential election campaign as well as the tsunami that devastated Japan in March 2011. Right before joining NBC, Cowan will be a CBS News correspondent for your CBS Evening News. Because role, he reported on numerous tales of national and worldwide importance, which incorporated coverage from Ground Zero round the September 11 attacks, the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the 2006 conflict in Beirut as well as the 2006 tsunami in Indonesia. Formerly, Cowan offered just like a correspondent for CBS Newspath, CBS News 24-hour news service, he provided national and global coverage for CBS News U.S. affiliate entrepreneurs. Cowan grew to become an associate of CBS News in 1996 after just as one anchor and reporter for WLWT-TV in Cincinnati. Right before that, he was an anchor and reporter WWMT-TV, in Kalamazoo, Mich., together with a weekend anchor for KCOY-TV in Santa Maria, Calif. Before joining KCOY-TV, Cowan held positions as news director and anchor at NBC affiliate KIEM-TV Eureka, Calif. Cowan began his career in journalism in 1988 just like a investigator, first for “CBS News Nightwatch” along with the “CBS Evening News” in Washington, D.C. Born in Salt Lake City, Cowan graduated in 1988 within the College of Washington getting a double major in communications and speech communications.

'Attenberg,' 'Kilimandjaro,' 'Play' chase Lux prize

BRUSSELS -- Judging has begun for three films in the running for the European Parliament's 2011 Lux prize. In contention are Greek foreign-language Oscar hopeful "Attenberg" by Athina Rachel Tsangari, "Les Neiges du Kilimandjaro" by French helmer Robert Guediguian and "Play" by Ruben Ostlund of Sweden. A 90-seat cinema has been constructed in the parliament's Brussels complex to screen the films. The 736 members of parliament have a month to see the films and vote. The winner will be announced in Strasbourg, the parliament's other location, on Nov. 16 The prize recognizes films that illustrate European values, cultural diversity or debate on the European project. The winning film will be subtitled into the 23 official languages of the European Union, and it will receive support for its distribution in the 27 EU states. Contact the Variety newsroom at news@variety.com

BAFTA LA renames award for Broccoli

The British Academy of Film and tv Arts La is renaming its Britannia Award for Worldwide Contribution to Shot Entertainment in recognition of Jason Bourne franchise producer Albert R. "Cubby" Broccoli.BAFTA La made the announcement Tuesday. The initial Cubby Broccoli Britannia Award is going to be presented to John Lasseter within the BAFTA La Britannia Honours on November. 30 within the Beverly Hilton Hotel."Cubby Broccoli was the Britannia's initial honoree when the honours were originated from over 2 decades ago," mentioned Nigel Lythgoe, chairman of BAFTA La. "By creating a global phenomenon while using longest-running film series in cinema history, Cubby's legacy demonstrates just what the Britannia Award for Worldwide Contribution means. We are grateful to Michael G Wilson, Barbara Broccoli as well as the Broccoli Foundation for generous support, and so are delighted to supply this award in Cubby's recognition."Broccoli and Harry Saltzman began the written text photos in 1961 with "Dr. No." Broccoli died in 1996. Besides Lasseter, the 2011 honorees are Warren Beatty (Stanley Kubrick Britannia Award for Excellence in Film), Helena Bonham Carter (Britannia Award for British Artist of year), Ben Stiller (Charlie Chaplin Britannia Award for Excellence in Comedy), and David Yates (John Schlesinger Britannia Award for Excellence in Pointing).Lasseter was named since the people receiving the BAFTA LA award in June just before being re-named. Contact Dork McNary at dork.mcnary@variety.com

Xbox 360 360 lines up programming companies

The important thing component of the look would be the incorporation of Microsoft's Bing internet search engine which will locate content using Kinect's voice and motion controls.Microsoft has arranged nearly 40 new satellite and cable companies, and individual channels to stream live TV and VOD programming through its Xbox 360 360 videogame console in 20 nations. Not surprisingly, Comcast's Xfinity TV, Verizon's FiOS TV, Epix, Cinemax, Bravo and Syfy are included in this ( Daily Variety , March. 3), however the U.K.'s BBC, Canada's Rogers When Needed, Telefonica in The country, Televisa in Mexico, ZDF in Germany, and MediaSet in Italia will even join Xbox 360 Live's selection of content partners sometime this fall. Additionally, Best Buy's CinemaNow will offer you up films alongside Netflix, while online entertainment and news sites AlloCin, Sony's Crackle, Dailymotion, iHeartRadio, MSNBC, NBC's "The Today Show," and TMZ can look on Xbox 360 Live. The integration of YouTube, Vevo and fights from UFC had recently been introduced in the E3 videogame confab in May. All will offer you streams through applications that every company will launch and manage. Generally, the applications will mirror each company's mobile applications like Cinemax Go. However the applications may also be a means for channels or speciifc shows to provide up more video or original programming like web series it does not have enough time to air on television. "By getting their very own, (content proprietors) will have a way to push programming out straight to the customer,Inch Blair Westlake, corporate Vice president from the Media & Entertainment Group for Microsoft, told Daily Variety . "They'll have the ability to tailor the application towards the content they produce." Microsoft has yet to reveal a precise date of once the partners will start showing up around the console, however they will rollout like a relaunch from the interface presently accustomed to control the Xbox 360 Live service, that is being remodeled to higher integrate more programming options. The important thing component of the look would be the incorporation of Microsoft's Bing internet search engine which will locate content using Kinect's voice and motion controls. Microsoft has offered ten million Kinect sensors worldwide. Because of the amount of applications which will show up on Xbox 360 Live, Microsoft is depending on Bing as the best way to cut with the clutter of content. A visit a title, for instance, will identify all content companies that make it as well as other forms -- sequels, videogames, soundtracks -- that could relate. "For several years, we have been speaking about 500 Television channels now we're approaching a lot more than 500 applications," Westlake stated. "This is where search can come greatly into play. A chance to find what you are searching for is going to be key." As viewership of videos around the Xbox 360 360 has tripled in the last year, Microsoft is wanting to up the amount of content deals it's for Xbox 360 Live because it looks to show the console into an exciting-in-one set-top box that may access all types of entertainment, not only games. By adding their services to consoles such as the Xbox 360 360, TV companies believe they are able to put programming in front of players by embracing the unit they are already using instead of wishing they change to other set-top boxes. Microsoft has offered 55 million Xbox 360 360s. Xbox 360 Live has 35 million people who pay to gain access to content, versus Comcast's 22.5 million and Verizon's 3.8 million for FiOS TV. "Present day announcement is really a major step toward recognizing our vision to create all of you the entertainment you would like, distributed to the folks you worry about, done affordably,Inch stated Don Mattrick, leader from the Interactive Entertainment Business at Microsoft. "Mixing the earth's leading TV and entertainment companies using the energy of Kinect for Xbox 360 360 and also the intelligence of Bing voice search can make TV and entertainment more personal, social and easy." The brand new partners join AT&T's U-verse, Netflix, ESPN 3 and Hulu Plus, within the U.S., Telus in Canada, BSkyB within the U.K., Canal Also in France, Vodafone Portugal, VimpelCom in Russia, and Foxtel around australia, which already offered streaming video through Xbox 360 Reside in their areas. Through Verizon's FiOS TV, Xbox 360 Live will offer you up 26 live Television channels, including MTV, Spike, Food Network, Comedy Central, Cinemax, CNN and Nickelodeon. To be able to make use of the services, Xbox 360 Live customers must prove they're customers towards the cablers or satcasters, or perhaps in Bravo or Syfy's situation, confirm that they're having to pay satellite or cable clients. Full Listing of Partners and Areas: Australia: ABC iView, Crackle. Foxtel, SBS When Needed Canada: Astral Media's Disney XD, Crackle, Walnut Leaf Sports & Entertainment/Real Sports, Netflix, Rogers When Needed Online, TELUS, UFC, Vevo France: AlloCin, Canal Plus, Germany: AlloCin, LoveFilm, MUZU.TV, ZDF Italia: MediaSet, MUZU.TV Japan: Hulu Mexico: Televisa Portugal: Vodafone Portugal Russia: VimpelCom The country: AlloCin, Antena 3, Canal Plus, GolTV, MUZU.TV, RTVE, Telefonica U.K.: AlloCin, BBC, blinkbox, BSkyB, Funnel 4, Funnel 5, Crackle, Last.fm, LoveFilm, MUZU.TV, Vevo, U.S.: AT&T U-Verse, Bravo, CinemaNow, Comcast's Xfinity TV, Crackle, Epix, ESPN 3, Cinemax Go, Hulu Plus, iHeartRadio, Last.fm, Manga Entertainment, Netflix, Syfy, "The Today Show," TMZ, UFC, Verizon's FiOS TV, Vevo, Facebook, MSNBC, Twitter, YouTube, Zune can be found in hundreds of marketplaces. Contact Marc Graser at marc.graser@variety.com

How 'Pan Am,' 'Playboy Club' Re-Created Iconic Looks From the '60s

TV's obsession with early-'60s style shows no sign of stopping. This fall, new series Pan Am and The Playboy Club are showcasing two iconic looks long identified (for better or worse) with the era: the stewardess and the Bunny.our editor recommends'Pan Am': What the Viewers Are Saying'Pan Am' Among Season's Priciest PilotsHugh Hefner: 5 Things You Didn't Know About the Playboy Founder, Reality Star and Jilted Groom'The Playboy Club' Showrunner: 'There's a Perception of the Show That's False' PHOTOS: Fall TV's 12 Most Anticipated Shows For both, authenticity was paramount in re-creating Pan Am's blue uniforms and the Playboy Club's cotton-tail suits. In the case of Playboy Club, costume designer Isis Mussenden (The Chronicles of Narnia series) was unable to find even one original uniform. "We started scouring photos," says Mussenden, who consulted with Hugh Hefner on the outfits for the NBC drama series, set in Chicago in 1960. To create costumes to withstand 12-hour filming days, she chose a lustrous cotton-backed satin in a rainbow of colors, from red and hot pink to cobalt. Each suit -- two for each of the five leads -- took 10 hours to construct. The total cost per uniform? $3,000 including built-in bra, French cuff, Playboy cuff links, bow tie, satin ears and dyed-to-match 3-inch heels. Mussenden created 50 additional, less-expensive suits for extras. PHOTOS: ABC's New Season TV Shows: 'Pan Am,' 'Charlie's Angels' and More Hefner had comments, including one that the suits weren't cut high enough on the leg. "I sent Mr. Hefner a photo of him with five bunnies and the leg was exactly the height we used," says Mussenden. "We featured the lower leg cut." The makers of ABC's Pan Am were able to track down the airlines' original uniforms. Exec producer Nancy Ganis, a former flight attendant for the airline, located a collection of originals in Palo Alto, Calif. PHOTOS: Preview NBC's Fall Key Art for 'Playboy Club,' 'Grimm,' 'Whitney,' More "We copied them exactly," she says. "The only thing we had to adjust was the color. Because of high definition, the suit looked too blue-gray on camera. Now it's very close to the original blue." Costume designer Ane Crabtree (FX's Justified) notes the new twill uniforms are a bit more form-fitting through darting. Otherwise, the original specs were retained: below the knee pencil-skirt; 3-inch heels while greeting passengers in the airport (the stewardesses could change into 1 ½-inch heels in the cabin); and pillbox hats complete with a brass Pan Am logo. TV REVIEW: Pan Am While the Playboy Club creators worked closely with Playboy execs from the start, Pan Am's makers had more of a battle. "The rights to the logo are owned by a New England group, some of whom had been on the Pan Am board," says Ganis. "They wanted to protect the legacy." After three years of negotiations, Ganis went East to win over the board. "I explained it would be about an adventure of young women discovering the world," she says. "They understood what it meant to me. For a young girl to be able to travel and be so independent, it was just extraordinary." TV REVIEW: The Playboy Club GET THE LOOK: To capture the fresh-faced beauty of the Pan Am flight attendants, series makeup head Patricia Regan consulted the airline's official handbook provided to stewardesses in the 1960s. It required that ladies establish a defined eye "to give the appearance of big round eyes" and a touch of pink or coral on the cheeks and lips, as seen above on series star Margot Robbie [pictured right]. Related Topics Hugh Hefner Pan Am The Playboy Club Fall TV Preview Margot Robbie

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Elizabeth Hurley Is Engaged

Shane Warne and Elizabeth Hurley Elizabeth Hurley is engaged to Australian cricketer Shane Warne, Us Weekly reviews. Warne, 42, sprang the question throughout dinner within the Old Course Hotel in Scotland on Friday, in line with the magazine. See other stars who've become engaged this year "Interesting congratulations," Hurley, 46, tweeted Saturday. This is actually the second marriage for Hurley and Warne, who began dating 10 several days ago. Hurley, who's presently guest-starring on Gossip Girl, completed her divorce from Arun Nayar in June.

Courageous: Film Review

NEW YORK - This faith-based drama is the latest and most ambitious effort from Sherwood Pictures, the filmmaking offshoot of Albany, Georgia's Sherwood Church. Like their previous independent hits, Facing the Giants and Fireproof, Courageous seems well poised to tap into a theatrical market starved for such fare, with even greater potential for DVD sales. Another collaboration between brothers Alex (director, co-writer, actor) and Stephen Kendrick (producer, co-writer), the film is set in the small town of Albany and concerns the interactions among four sheriff's deputies and a Hispanic immigrant desperate for work. The theme - hammered home repeatedly - is fatherhood, and the responsibilities that come with it. Courageousreveals the duo's growing expertise as filmmakers with its skillful blending of moving drama, subtle comedy and several impressive action sequences, including a well-staged foot chase and a harrowing shootout between the cops and bad guys. The characters are complex and well-drawn, struggling with various personal issues that test their faith and character in believable ways. But the episodic and frequently melodramatic storyline contains enough incidents and subplots to fill an entire television season. A key story element -- involving the male characters pledging to sign a "resolution" affirming their fatherly duties and their faith in God - seems both artificial and a cribbing from the "Love Dare" featured so prominently in Fireproof. The performances are effective all around with director Kendrick quite moving in the central role of Adam, the veteran officer, who suffers a horrific family tragedy that sets much of the film's plot in motion. Non-Christian audiences may be put off by the endless proselytizing on display, which feels more drawn out and overt here than in the church's previous films. But the generous laughter, cheers and applause generated by the crowd at an opening day screening demonstrate that these enterprising Baptist filmmakers clearly know their audience. Opened Sept. 30 (TriStar Pictures) Production company: Sherwood Pictures. Cast: Alex Kendrick, Ken Bevel, Ben Davies, Kevin Downes, T.C. Stallings, Rusty Martin. Director: Alex Kendrick. Screenwriters: Alex Kendrick, Stephen Kendrick. Producer: Stephen Kendrick. Executive producers: Michael Catt, Jim McBride. Director of photography: Bob Scott. Editors: Bill Ebel, Steve Hullfish, Alex Kendrick. Production designer: Darian Corley. Music: Mark Willard. Rated PG-13, 129 minutes.

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America online Recruits Mark Burnett to Revitalize Cambio Website

America on the internet is getting within the large guns to revitalize the fighting entertainment website Cambio, that's specific for that teen and youthful adult audience.our editor recommendsHollywood's Top EarnersMark Burnett and YouToo.com Launch First Social Television NetworkAOL Taps CAA Agent to steer Youth Entertainment Site Cambio (Exclusive) Television producer Mark Burnett (Survivor, The Voice) and director Micrograms, who directed 2000's Charlie's Angels and Terminator: Salvation, are actually hired to create web shows for Cambio, the partnership between America online, Jonas Group and MGX Lab. Burnett, as well as Coalition Films, is marketing numerous comedy video shorts based on Cliffnotes Literature Guides. Classic works of fiction is going to be provided as irreverent shorts expecting appealing to the Cambio audience. EXCLUSIVE: America online Taps CAA Agent to steer Youth Entertainment Site Cambio Micrograms might be the executive producer of Goal High, an online series starring Jackson Rathbone (Twilight) and Aimee Teegarden (Friday Evening Lights) that will premeire on October 18. The series may also be produced by Warner Bros Digital Distribution and Dolphin Digital Media. Dolphin Digital Media has committed a low cost of $10-$12 million yearly. PHOTOS: Hollywood's Top Earners Cambio initially launched in June 2010, again by utilizing some large names. The Jonas Brothers and sisters held live chats and posted videos for the site following a launch. Demi Lovato also held live chats. They've been suffering if the involves traffic lately. Monthly site site visitors dropped to 663,000 in August from 1.4 million this past year, according to measurement firm ComScore Media Metrix as well as the La Occasions. Related Subjects Jackson Rathbone Mark Burnett

Watch Jennifer Garner Get Uncomfortably Passionate About Dairy Products in This Butter Clip

Some people feel strongly about Taylor Lautner, torture porn and humanitarianism. Others, like Jennifer Garner in Jim Field Smith’s upcoming comedy Butter, feel strongly about lard-like substances. Watch as the former Alias action star is moved to tears while discussing her local butter-sculpting competition to an audience that includes Ty Burrell (as her champion dairy-sculpting husband), Olivia Wilde, Alicia Silverstone, Kristen Schaal, Rob Corddry and Ashley Greene. Butter stars Yara Shahidi (Imagine That) as a young orphan who discovers her uncanny talent for butter sculpture in an Iowa town where her adoptive family lives. The talent pits her against the ambitious wife (Garner) of the reigning champion (Burrell) in the annual butter sculpture competition. Hugh Jackman also co-stars in the film, due in theaters October 21. [ComingSoon.net]

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Cheers & Jeers: Desperate Regular folks Cops Out

Ben Stiller Ben Stiller is returning for the Saturday Evening Live stage as host, NBC introduced Monday. Stiller, a featured artist around the enter in 1989, will probably be grew to become an associate of starting with-time musical site visitors Promote Individuals for your March. 8 show. Have a look at our fall preview for galleries, scoop, premiere calendars plus much more! Also turning up on SNL the next month is Anna Faris, the Frightening Movie actress whose film What's Your Number? arrives Friday. The March. 15 broadcast might have Drake as musical guest. This really is really the 2nd time each that Stiller and Faris are hosting. Stiller had hosting duties in 1998, while Faris managed to get take place in 2008.

Argentina teen fare evolves in post-Cris Morena era

'Superclumsy'The departure of actress-turned-producer Cris Morena from the teen programming scene has led to a dry year for the genre in Argentina, source of hits like "Chiquititas" and "Rebelde Way" (The Rebels) that have sold widely as remakes around the world and spawned albums, legit tours and even lines of perfumes and toys.The slowdown came after Morena dropped out last year following the death of her daughter Romina Yan. The actress, singer and songwriter, who had starred alongside Morena in "Chiquititas," died of a heart attack on Sept. 28, 2010.This year "Super Torpe" (Superclumsy) -- from RGB Entertainment, run by Morena's former husband Gustavo Yankelevich -- is the standout on broadcast TV, drawing ratings in line with the venerable "The Simpsons" on Telefe."Super Torpe," airing at 6:30 weeknights, is a half-hour comedy about a teen superheroine determined to become a singer, win a boy and save the world, only for her clumsiness to muddle all hope until a trainer steps in to help. It stars Candela Vetrano and Pablo Martinez, who made their names in "Casi Angeles" (Teen Angels), a teen telenovela that aired from 2007 to 2010 and generated a pop band with wide-selling albums and tours that continue this year."Super Torpe" is produced "in the style of a sitcom, which works well with teens," says Dario Turovelzky, director of content at RGB. "There are lots of gags and visual effects, but more so a good story that keeps people coming back."Even so, with little youth programming on broadcast TV, adolescents are turning to Disney and MTV. That's a change from a flourish of teen programming from the early 1990s to 2010 -- a movement led by Morena -- that sparked others to get into the game, including Marcelo Tinelli's Ideas del Sur with "Patito Feo" (Ugly Duckling) and Dori Media Group with "The Refuge."While there are rumors of Morena's return, she hasn't made anything public and those close to her have declined to talk.Picking up the slack is RGB, a partner in many Morena productions. It is run by Yankelevich, a pioneer producer in Argentina who topped programming at Telefe from 1988 to 1999, a spot now held by his and Morena's son Tomas Yankelevich, the creator and producer of "Super Torpe.""Super Torpe" bowed in August on Disney Channel Latin America and then Telefe.Like Morena's productions, "Super Torpe" has brought together "charismatic kids that gain attention," says Mariano Colly, editor-in-chief of entertainment magazine Primiciasya.com.This creates buzz and fan groups, building a loyal audience for steady ratings and sales of spinoff albums, concerts and legit productions, Colly says.RGB plans to follow this process with the creation of its own feevee. Yups will carry only teen programming, from dating shows to gamers, musicvideos, talent contests and such Morena-RGB series as Cinderella-inspired "Flinderella" for audiences in Latin America.The bow is set for November starting in northern parts of South America and spreading to the rest of Latin America in 2012, says Turovelzky.Like with the concept of fan groups, Net will use a website equipped for viewers to generate their own content for sections of the feevee."Yups will be a fusion of tested titles and the active participation of the viewer in generating their own content," Turovelzky says.VARIETY JUNIOR Blasts from past power int'l kids sales | Books and toys aren't fail-safe TV fodder | Kids animation making bigger international play | Toons in transition | Pop go the platforms | Disney Junior acing frosh year | DQE seizes opportunity in Indian animation biz | Shingle dabbles in 'Baby' babble | Argentina teen fare evolves in post-Cris Morena era Contact the Variety newsroom at news@variety.com

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Patty Jenkins May Tackle Thor 2

Monster director off to Asgard?Some directorial choices are slightly unexpected. Then there are the gob-smacking, who-could-have-seen-that-coming ideas that seem to strike from nowhere. One of those hit today, as Variety is reporting that Monster director Patty Jenkins is in talks to tackle Thor 2. That Jenkins would be in consideration is not the surprising part: after all, she pushed Charlize Theron to an Oscar with the 2003 Aileen Wuornos film. It's more the fact that, since then, she's directed exactly zero movies and has mostly plied her trade on TV, working on episodes of Arrested Development, Entourage and the US remake of The Killing. She's also never worked with big special effects, but Marvel and the Thor cast clearly feel she can bring something fresh to the superhero sequel. Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman and Anthony Hopkins are all set to return for the film (our fingers are crossed that Kat Dennings' new TV gig won't interfere with the chance to get her back too), which Disney has already scheduled for a July 26, 2013 release. Kenneth Branagh directed the first film (and was himself a slightly unexpected choice), but has decided not to take on the sequel. Though Game of Thrones veteran Brian Kirk's name had been mentioned in connection with the job, he's since passed. And Jenkins has seemingly beaten out a list that includes Drew Goddard, James McTeigue and Breck Eisner.

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Is Netflix A Bargain?

Netflix stock rose from $35 to $300 a share in the 2 1/2 years ending in July. That's when investors should have sold because since then, the price has been halved.our editor recommendsHumbled Netflix Separates DVD and Streaming Businesses, Abandons Price Changes But there are still a few bulls who see the dramatic slide as a buying opportunity. Ingrid Chung at Goldman Sachs, for example, maintains her "buy" recommendation, telling clients the Reed Hastings-led company should climb back to $270 in the next six months (the stock closed at $128.53 Thursday). STORY: Netflix Wants to Change Law Against Revealing Video-Viewing History Chung says the recent defection of 1 million customers was due to unwarranted negative press about a Sept. 1 price increase and the split of the company's streaming service and DVD-by-mail, which will be called Qwikster. Would-be competitors, including Dish Network's Blockbuster, will find tough barriers to entering the subscription streaming business, she adds. Piper Jaffray analyst Michael Olson also remains bullish on Netflix, with a price target of $300. But Piper Jaffray analysts acknowledge there are other dangers lurking. The firm wrote, "If Amazon or Google purchases Hulu, shares of Netflix would likely respond negatively." Related Topics Netflix

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