Monday, March 5, 2012

'Prometheus' Fever Dream Inspires Crazy Talk

This is going to take a while before it makes sense (if it ever does), so bear with me. But... I had a dream. Not a metaphorical dream, a literal one: all about "Prometheus," in fact! In it I was a member of the science team sent on the Prometheus to research the mysteries of mankinds beginning or whatever. To be honest, I really had no idea why we were there, the dream just sort of started -- something that anyone who saw "Inception" will understand. On the planet, we found something. No, it wasnt a crashed Space Jockey mothership filled with alien eggs. In fact, we didnt even see Space Jockeys. But what we did find was a mysterious machine of utmost mystery and machineriness. It was massive, and was clearly Space Jockey tech. We did the only thing we possibly could do: we turned it on. We quickly realized this was no mere machine, but a repository of all of the DNA of every creature that the Space Jockeys had ever come into contact with -- an Ark if you will, almost like that underground seed bank they have in Norway. But not only did it store all this information, it was also able to reconstruct any of these beings near instantaneously... and it would butcher all of these creatures and turn them into packaged meats for the Space Jockeys to consume. It behooved us to destroy this thing, clearly. We found a self destruct button, and when we pressed it, a cute little egg popped out. Then it hatched, and facehugged the nearest living thing, and within a day, we had an army of ten thousand aliens at our backs, hunting us down. The End. As you can see, I have crazy dreams. But what was the point of that long story, you're asking? Well, the dream got me thinking. Word has it that the new Ridley Scott film tackles big, heavy hitting issues, potentially of the universe-defining variety. Did aliens visit us at an earlier time? Are we descended from them? Were we created by them? None of these answers came to me in the dream, but one thing was certain: I believe that the xenomorphs that we know and fear from Scott's genre-defining film were in fact created. Engineered would be the perfect word. They are the perfect weapon. Drop some eggs on a planet of your enemies, and watch them wilt before your eyes. I believe the Space Jockeys created the aliens as the ultimate weapon, the fail-safe switch if everything went to hell. Obviously as we learned, even the Space Jockeys couldnt control their own creation. In my dream, at least. None of this is real, of course, but a fan can dream... and dreams are sometimes more real than they seem. Anyway, while we're thinking about "Prometheus," go check out Guy Pearce's TED talk from 2023. That's no dream: that's just pure "Prometheus" awesomeness. When Talk Nerdy co-host Brian Phares gets an idea in his head, Crazy Talk is bound to ensue. Watch this space as the mad hatter of fandom takes impossible ideas and spits out Hollywood gold (or so he likes to tell himself). Get angry at him on Twitter at @pharesvswild.

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

BREAKING: SAG Anti-Merger People File Suit Against Screen Stars Guild

BREAKING… EXCLUSIVE: (Check out .pdf of suit) Numerous Screen Stars Guild people filed a suit today asking legal court for just about any preliminary and permanent injunction to avoid SAG from having a election round the recommended SAG-AFTRA merger.The suit claims the SAG Board has breached its fiduciary duties to complete an actuarial impact study detailing the outcomes in the recommended merger on SAG membership pension and health improvements. The complaint was filedin U.S. District Court, Central District of California. The folks filing suit are: Martin Sheen, Edward Asner, Erection dysfunction Harris, Valerie Harper, Clancy Brown, James Remar, George Coe, Diane Ladd, Lainie Kazan, Nichelle Nichols, Renee Aubry, Jane Austin, Erick Avari, Steve Barr, Sara Barrett, Terrance Beason, Michael Bell, Warren Berlinger, Joe Bologna, Take advantage of Brennen, Alexandra Castro, Jude Ciccolella, Cynthia Jum Clark, David Clennon, Joe DAngerio, Patricia DArbanville, Dick Gautier, Dorothy Goulah, Marty Grey, Sumi Haru, Angel Harper, Tulsi Hoffman, David Huddleston, Anne-Marie Manley, David Jolliffe, Kerrie Keane, Peter Kwong, Kurt Lott, Barbara Luna, Eric Lutes, Stephen Mach, Michael McConnohie, Peter Antico, Susan McNabb, Phyllis Timbes, Marguerite Moreau, Traci Murray, Nicole Mandich, Ray Newman, Barbara Niven, Kathleen Nolan, Jack Ong, Peggy Lane ORourke, Leslie Parrish, Scott Pierce, Robin Riker, Stephanie Rose, Alan Rosenberg, Alan Ruck, Wendy Schaal, Tascha Schaal, Nancy Sinatra, Cynthia Steele, Renee Taylor, Malachi Throne, Beverly Todd, Jessica Wright, Momo Yashimo. They are suing theScreen Stars Guild,SAG Executive Director David White-colored,SAG Leader Ken Howard, Amy Aquino,Ned Vaughn,Mike Hodge,David Hartley-Margolin while others. We have spent almost two several days settling with SAG to be able to cause them to become present the truth when it comes to this merger plan. Member are entitled to full disclosure, not half details and misleading and unsupported promisesthe litigants’ attorneyDavid B. Casselman in the La lawyer Wasserman, Comden, Casselman & Esensten, LLP mentioned in the statement today. They have done nothing of substance to assist their claims the recommended merger will safeguard SAG member benefits. The normal SAG member makes under $10,000 every year. They need to understand that all necessary research ended to guard them.” MORE Since Sept. 15, 1981, the SAG Metabolism has recognized that research connected having a SAG-AFTRA merger plan might be necessary to fulfill the requirements of law as well as the protection of qualified people against losing benefits, presently or afterwards (Appendix 1). The SAG board selected on Jan. 28, 2012 to approve the recommended merger plan also to submit it with a election in the membership. On Jan. 29, 2012, the presidents of SAG and AFTRA introduced on national television within the SAG Honours the historic step of merger would be recognized. We're feeling the accused made a decision to get this to announcement to have the ability to completely saturate the media with professional-merger propaganda, remaining from any balancing information which might allow SAG individuals to smartly measure the issues right before voting, states Casselman. When the naive membership grants or loans this merger, and then we all learn that it's going to have crippling, undesirable effects, it'll be too far gone for everything to be accomplished to return SAG or its current pension and health intends to their current status, states Casselman.

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

The Horror!: Hammer To Start Script Archive To Public Research & Study

Experiencing a revival while using Lady In Black, venerable British horror studio Hammer has selected the Cinema And Television History (CATH) Research Center within the Uk’s Leicester P Montfort College to support its script archive. The CATH center will catalogue and curate a variety including scripts from a lot of the studio’s film and tv productions from 1947-1990 along with extensive corporate documents, correspondence together with other ephemera. This really is really the first time the archive will probably be opened up as much as public research and concentrate. Lately, Hammer introduced an international restoration work with its library of films along with Studiocanal, Pinewood together with other worldwide players together with the participation of last century Fox, Warner Bros and Vital. The studio was founded in 1934 and contains produced such films as Frankenstein Created Lady, The Plague In The Zombies, The Wizards as well as the Mummy. Hammer stopped production inside the 80s and returned to features this season with Matt Reeves adaptation of Swedish hit Let Me In. Its latest film, Daniel Radcliffe-starrer The Woman In Black, has already established in over $60 million worldwide. Since 2008, Hammer is really a division in the Exclusive Media Group.

Thursday, February 16, 2012

Jean Smart Joins ABCs Smart One, TNTs Chelsea General & CWs Beauty Add Cast

Jean Smart, who had been pursued for multiple comedy pilots this season, is set to co-star opposite Portia de Rossi in ABC’s dueling sisters single-camera comedy pilot The Smart One. (Maybe the title spoke to her – it had her name written all over it, literally). The project, written by Don Todd, centers on a brilliant and successful woman (de Rossi) who has to go to work for her less brainy but more popular sister a former beauty queen, weather girl and now big-city mayor. Emmy winner Smart, who recurs on Harry’s Law, will play the sisters’ mother. Ellen DeGeneres, Todd and Lauren Corrao are executive producing for Warner Bros TV. Emily Swallow and Sarayu Rao are the latest to boardDavid E. Kelleys TNT medical drama pilot Chelsea General. Based on CNN chief medical correspondent Sanjay Guptas upcoming novel Monday Mornings, the project starring Alfred Molina and Ving Rhames follows the lives of five surgeons as they push the limits of their abilities and confront their personal and professional failings. Swallow will play Dr. Michelle Robidaux, a young resident at Chelsea General who is still learning the ropes. The actress, repped by Don Buchwald/Fortitude and Gallant Management, originally tested for another role in the pilot that went to Jennifer Finnigan, but the producers liked her a lot and invited her to test for Dr. Robidaux. Rao, repped by SDB Partners, will play Dr. Sydney Saxena, a fast-talking, Olympic multi-tasker whose dedication to being a doctor consumes her 24/7, even to the detriment of her relationships. Austin Basis (Life Unexpected) is back at the CW and CBS TV Studios with a regular role in the drama pilot Beauty And The Beast, which just cast Kristin Kreuk as the female lead. Loosely based on the 1980s CBS series starring Linda Hamilton, CWs Beauty And The Beast is described as a modern-day romantic love story with a procedural twist. It centers on Catherine (Kreuk), a tough-minded NYPD homicide detective and the Beast, Vincent Koslow, the survivor of a military experiment that went disastrously wrong. Basis will play Vincen’t friend JT.

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Steven Spielberg talks Tintin 2

Total Film recently taken track of Steven Spielberg, which we've got him to spill the beans round the approaching Tintin follow-up.Spielberg directed the initial instalment in the performance-capture/animated undertake Hergé's spirited comic series, with Peter Jacskon becoming producer. The pair made the decision around the trilogy, as well as the ending in the Secret In The Unicorn certainly left things open for just about any follow-up.Just what can Spielberg reveal about Tintin 2?"Peter [Jackson]'s carrying it out. I desired to make it happen, but Peter must because we developed a deal. I mentioned, 'I'll direct the very first, you direct the second one.'"And Peter, clearly, can perform it soon after he finishes photography round the Hobbit. He'll go into the 31, a three week period of performance capture."We're not telling the earth what books we're basing the second movie on yet."But didn't producer Kathleen Kennedy say it'll be The Calculus Affair?"We have not made a decision that yet. She's throwing a monkey wrench for your story! Maybe. I really like The Calculus Affair. Therefore it might be.InchWe've completed an account outline now. There is available a author about it. I'm not stating how it is. It'll be several book, but no more than two."The Adventures Of Tintin: The Important Thing In The Unicorn arrives on DVD and Blu-ray on 19 March 2012.For further from Steven Spielberg, have the new problem of Total Film magazine, which hits newsstands on Thursday 16 February.And, it's a special interactive problem this month, and therefore exist great extra quite happy with the free Blippar application. See the mag for full particulars!Follow the link a regular membership to Total Film magazine.Follow the link to acquire Total Film magazine on iPad and apple apple iphone from Apple Newsstand.

Saturday, February 11, 2012

'Trailer' trio reunites for vehicle comedy

TORONTO -- Stars in the Canuck cult comedy TV series "A Clip Park Boys" which is two feature spin-offs are becoming back for feature comedy "Race Dicks," it absolutely was introduced Wednesday. "Trailer" trio Robb Wells, John Paul Tremblay and Mike Cruz co-written "Dicks," and may co-star as pals competing in the world-famous Newfoundland vehicle race and fundraising event for just about any TV funnel referred to as SwearNet. "Dicks" is produced by Gary Howsam and Bill Marks, who'll also direct the Rollercoaster Entertainment and Vortex Words Plus Pictures production. Principal photography starts this year in Toronto, Halifax and Newfoundland, with 2013 the final outcome-line target for release. A Couple-month online sponsorship campaign for "Dicks" was launched lately. Howsam and Marks have producer credits on Damian Lee-helmed "The Truth,In . starring Andy Garcia and Forest Whitaker, that's in publish. The pair were also producers on George Hickenlooper's "Casino Jack," starring Kevin Spacey. Wells, Tremblay and Cruz were stars, co-authors and professional producers on "The Drunk and also on Drugs Happy Fun Time Hour," a cameo-packed comedy six-parter that broadcast on Shaw Media's Action funnel last summer season. The trio recently extended its "Drunk, High and Unemployed" live theater tour, which went this season and 2011, to include Aussie and Kiwi dates this year. Contact the number newsroom at news@variety.com

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Andy's circus

Rooney Mara and Demian Bichir meet backstage. Andy Serkis wows the Virtuosos Award Tribute audience. Producer Jim Burke and Actress Shailene WoodleyTake two nervous gals, one Latin hottie, a chubby funnyman, a shirtless question along with a missing Oscar nominee and whoever else got? This is the assemblage the Santa Barbara Film Fest anointed using their Virtuosos Award on Friday in the Arlington Theater. Greater than a 1000 fans of Rooney Mara, Shailene Woodley, Demian Bichir, Patton Oswalt, Andy Serkis and Melissa McCarthy jammed the venue for a night of conversation using the six rising stars, only to discover that McCarthy would be a no-show, the victim of laryngitis.Bichir brought the talks, investing his "A Much Better Existence" perf to "my Mexican paisanos, the 11 million people who help this community move forward with pride and energy."Mara silently whispered in to the mic that they is "a workaholic, and prepared to return to work" around the two sequels to "The Lady Using the Dragon Tattoo." Oswalt cracked jokes about his sex moments with Charlize Theron, while Serkis did a shirtless chimpanzee imitation. "Acting with motion capture is simply exactly the same whatsoever from acting with makeup on," he was adamant. "It's simply one other way of recording an actor's performance."Woodley came to the conclusion the talks. "My movie vocabulary stretches to 'The Goonies' and 'Dirty Dancing.' There you have it. Which means this has all been pretty intimidating," she stated from the honours swirl. Contact the range newsroom at news@variety.com