AWARDS HEADLINES
Awards 2016: ‘Room’s’ Nine-Year-Old Stand-Out & SAG Nominated Actor Jacob Tremblay Talks Fake Crying, Auditioning & His Love of Macaroons
Often times during Hollywood’s movie awards season, a young child seemingly comes out of nowhere to unanimously capture the hearts of minds of moviegoers and critics. This year, it is nine year old Jacob Tremblay who is garnering attention for his performance in the indie film Room. As Jack, he escapes his life in a 10×10 room where he’d grown up since birth, not realizing that he and his mother (Brie Larson) were being held captive there. (SSN)
A Voice Of Calm Amidst the Storm: Demien Bichir’s Take On the Oscar Diversity Controversy States “Art Is Art”
Hailing from an acting family, Bichir became a top star in Mexico and established himself in Hollywood with a milestone performance in A Better Life that led him to be the first Mexican since Anthony Quinn to be Oscar nominated for Best Actor. Currently on the screen in Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight, has written about his feelings on the matter. (AL)
Confused About the Two Sound Categories? A Primer On the Difference Between Oscar’s Sound Editing and Mixing
One key contribution to filmmaking is misunderstood more than any other: sound. Oscar voters will weigh in on sound editing and sound mixing in final balloting, which runs Feb. 12th through the 23rd. But even industry veterans can get confused at the difference. Here’s one way of remembering: E comes before M in the alphabet, so sound editing occurs before mixing. But they’re not separate entities; neither can live without other. (IC)
OTHER HEADLINES
Exec Shuffle for 1/25/16: China’s Perfect World Pictures & Universal Circling Deal, Exodus at Twitter, Eli Holzman & Aaron Saidman Launch IPC
Among the other big deals coming through are Sky Atlantic and Showtime coming together in a European broadcasting deal, a new company for Fred Bernstein, a deal between SpectreVision and Ubisoft, and a new acquisition by CAA. Click on the link to get all the info. (SSN)
Sundance Buying Update: Sony Pictures Classics Nabs Rights To Female-Driven ‘Equity’
The film puts a female spin on The Big Short and Margin Call by focusing on a group of women caught up in the world of high finance. The film centers on an investment banker (Anna Gunn) who gets entangled in a controversial public offering. Meera Menon directs from a screenplay by Amy Fox. Fox wrote the story with Thomas and Reiner. Both women serve as producers. (VAR)
ABC Looks Into a New Event Series Focusing On Nixon and Watergate
Alphabet is in the early stages of developing a limited series exploring Richard Nixon’s 1970s White House burglary and subsequent scandal. From Entertainment One and Bob Cooper, the drama will be penned by Jon Maas and told through the eyes of John Dean, the then-White House counsel for President Nixon. (THR)
Fox’s ’24: Legacy’ Finds Leading Man in ‘Walking Dead,’ ‘Straight Outta Compton’ Star
Network has tapped Corey Hawkins to star in the new take, which features an all-new cast of characters and will be structured in the same style of the original series. Legacy revolves around a military hero’s return to the U.S. and the trouble that follows him back — compelling him to ask CTU for help in saving his life, and stopping what potentially could be one of the largest-scale terror attacks on American soil. (LF)
It’s Finally Official: Denis Villeneuve’s Long-Awaited ‘Blade Runner 2’ Will Start Shooting In July
Alcon Entertainment, the company behind the production, has officially announced the start date for the film, with Warner Bros. distributing the picture stateside and Sony around the globe. Ryan Gosling stars opposite the returning Harrison Ford, and 13-time Oscar nominated cinematographer Roger Deakins will shoot it. (TP)
Relativity Says It Has A Movie Co-Financing Deal With LAMF, Can Emerge From Bankruptcy
Relativity Media will be making a lot of announcements to convey a sense of optimism about its financial prospects in the week leading up to next week’s hearing to determine whether it’s ready to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The latest — following one this morning describing new financial backing: The studio says it has a five-year deal with the Los Angeles Media Fund (LAMF) co-finance and produce upcoming feature films. (DH)
Vin Diesel Is Getting Some Pretty Serious Company In His Upcoming ‘xXx: The Return Of Xander Cage’
Ice Cube, who starred in the second film in the series, xXx: State of the Union, as Darius Stone, will return and be a major part of the third film, which starts shooting soon. Samuel L. Jackson also returns to the series, and will be joined by new cast members Jet Li and Ruby Rose. (CB)