NEW MOVIE:
MADE IN DAGENHAM

Now turning to a film, Made in Dagenham, that has getting Oscar buzz for one of its actresses: Miranda Richardson in the story, based on true events, about the 1968 strike at the Ford Dagenham car plant, where females walked out for not being paid what men got.

Miranda plays the Secretary of State and researched a lot for the role. 

She read biographies, clips of real Secretary of State in press meetings and she worked with a dialect coach. She recognized the responsibility that was on her shoulders because she was playing a real person.

Oscar nominee Sally Hawkins stars. She did a different kind of research for the role – she spoke to the actual women of Dagenham who lived through the strike.

MOVIE TREND:
RE-RELEASING AND RE-TREADS

Now turning to the big trend: Re-Releasing.

We are now getting re-releases of stuff we don’t even want re-released!

James Cameron has now said he officially will not be working on Cleopatra in 3D. He’s too busy with his Avatar follow-ups, two sequels for Fox scheduled for release in late 2014 and 2015. 

He won't be directing other features for the next three or four years.

However, there are two other projects he will be producing:
Guillermo del Toro's At the Mountains of Madness for Universal and a remake of Fantastic Voyage.

Meantime the Avatar Special Edition Blu-ray is here in a few weeks.

It Includes 45 minutes of never-before-seen additional footage which is 36 more than in the August re-release of the DVD.  This time you will get more behind the scenes, deleted scenes, documentaries and artwork.

It also includes bonus special features for the first time. The movie is presented in 2D on the disks. 3D Blu-Ray will be out next year.

Titanic is also being re-released in theaters in 3D! 

You will now be able to feel yourself swallowing the water and the wind on your back as king of the world.

April 15th 2012 marks the 100th anniversary of the Titanic’s sinking.

The conversion work to 3D format is quite the job, and quite the bill as well. It is expected to cost $10 million - $15 million.

The 3D version of the movie will eventually hit Blu-ray.

 

Also, there's news that George Lucas is set to release 3D conversions of Starwars in 2012.  They were waiting until enough 3D screens made it worth the while. The first one will be The Phantom Menace. The rest will be released at the same time in consecutive years, depending on how well the re-releases do.

Each conversion takes at least a year to complete.

CASTING NEWS:
GARRY MARSHALLS NEXT BIG ONE

Now turning to casting news.

Talk about a good movie if this one happens!

Robert De Niro, Michelle Pfeiffer, Ashton Kutcher and Hillary Swank are in talks to join an ensemble film that will be this year’s Valentine's Day. 

Set to be directed by Garry Marshall, the film already stars Lea Michele and little Abigail Breslin. The story will be about lovelorn New Yorkers as they navigate their way through romance over the course of New Year's Eve.

The film is currently scheduled to go into production in the middle of next month.

NEW MOVIE:
HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS

Here we go again, another Harry Potter movie out. This one the second to last one in the series.

This is the moment Harry Potter fans have been waiting for, the final stretch of the series.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is part one of two of the final sequel.

The energy on said was very strong. Everyone knew it was their last run, so they were putting their all into every scene.

It has been 10 years since the first one came out, and it has grossed about 3.5 billion dollars before the last two are even released.

MOVIE TREND:
REMAKES OF THE OLD

Now turning to remakes from Top Gun to Risky Business.

Some huge films are being tackled.

Top Gun, isn’t that a blast from the past?

I hear the new Top Gun won’t be a remake but a reinvention.

Director Tony Scott says it will be about unmanned aerial vehicles or drones the air force currently uses. Tom Cruise will have a small role.

Director Ridley Scott is currently juggling eight projects including the Alien prequels. By the way, his brother director Tony Scott who just did Unstoppable isn't far behind.

Tony had signed on for a big screen version of comic series Nemesis. He also has Potsdamer Platz, Hell’s Angels, and The Associate to do. Top Gun 2 is now in the works at Paramount but it may be a few years before we see it.

 

Meantime, I hear a script is going around for a Risky Business 2 but no studio is on board. This one would see Joel Goodsen grown up and happily married, until he meets his old flame.

Tom Cruise would be back for this one in the lead role all grown up now.

Over at FOX, David Duchovny says a third installment of an X-Files big screen movie is now being written. They’re pretty much just waiting on a go-ahead from the studio. The second movie only made about seven million but fans want another.

PRE-OSCAR BUZZ:
ANN’S EARLY BEST ACTRESS PREDICTIONS

In Natalie Portman’s latest thriller Black Swan, she plays a tormented ballerina. She will be up for Best Actress this year and very well might win.  The story is about the rivalry with another for the lead in Swan Lake turns into a twisted nightmare.

I also think Barbara Hershey, as a former dancer and the controlling mother, will be up for best supporting actress.

This movie is powerful.

Also likely up for best actress is Annette Bening for “The Kids Are Alright” which is out on DVD. Dubbed the “the lesbian marriage movie” it became a breakaway hit. Critics loved it.

When it opened July 9 in major US cities, it had the highest per-screen average - which is the amount the film is making at the box office, divided by the number of theatres showing it.

It's a smart movie about a middle aged lesbian couple whose kids set out to find their sperm donor father.  With this film the gay marriage debate continued and looks at what is a "normal" North American family.

The studios are doing a big Oscar push for this movie. 

 

Annette Bening says this story of an unconventional family is something that peeks the interest of audiences. She says as viewers we are looking for something new and fresh.

In “The Kids Are Alright”, Mark Ruffalo plays the perfect bachelor in his 40’s who anonymously donated sperm back in the day and gets contacted years later by his daughter. He could be in store for a best supporting actor, in fact, he definitely should be.

The Oscar nominations will be announced January 25th.

NEW DOCUMENTARY:
EVERYBODY LOVES RAYMOND SPINOFF

Now turning to a spinoff from the hit TV series Everybody Love Raymond.


It's a documentary called “Exporting Raymond”

It follows the shows creator, producer and writer Phil Rosenthal as he travels to Russia to meet about doing a local version of Everybody Loves Raymond.

It was a much sought after film. Samuel Goldwyn Films just picked it up.

It's hilarious! It is Phil’s big screen directing debut. Its part travelogue, part fish-out of-water, part behind-the-scenes of TV production.

Since it was screened in August by CAA, the talent agency which handled the negotiations, “Exporting Raymond” has been generating buzz as an unusually funny documentary. It's expected to open in second-quarter 2011.

BIG NAMES JOINING FORCES:
GEORGE CLOONEY & LEONARDO DICAPRIO

Now turning to a trend that likely is a result of the recession - big names joining together to create projects.

George Clooney and Leonardo DiCaprio are teaming up as producers
.
George will be directing and starring in The Ides of March, an adaptation of the 2008 Broadway play Farragut North.
The cast also includes Ryan Gosling, Paul Giamatti, Marisa Tomei and Evan Rachel Wood.

Leonardo's Appian Way Productions is also on board. 

Shooting begins in February in Michigan and Ohio.

The film follows a young press spokesman who gets involved in backroom politics and is manipulated by veteran political operatives.

Clooney plays a presidential candidate running for the Democratic. Gosling plays the press spokesman. Giamatti is the rival campaign manager. Tomei is the reporter for The New York Times and Wood is the intern.(What’s a political movie without an intern?)

HOT NEW WEBSITE:
IMADEAMOVIE.COM

Now turning to a hot new website for movie enthusiasts.

Imadeamovie.com is a web based movie studio that finances full-length micro-budget films.  It allows anyone to experience the thrill of movie making first hand - whether you’ve got a script or just want to be someone who finances and then gets an on screen producer’s credit.

The website works with memberships. Members can vote on casting, script changes, auditions for roles, and music for soundtracks. The best part is it gives small independent film-makers new sources of financing for their projects.

Membership is free for those who want to comment on auditions and music. 

A $49.95 membership will give you the title of “Associate Producer” for any of the available film projects.

The website was launched in April.

It has had 500,000 unique visitors and membership has doubled.

MEGAMIND:
3D IS IT HERE TO STAY OR JUST A FAD?

Now turning to movies and the very popular 3D trend.

Is 3D a trend that’s here to stay or just a fad?

According to the experts, the history of cinema and imagery is a history of the human eye and that we will always be drawn to enhanced experience. 

So the answer is YES. 

DreamWork's newest animation is Megamind, the superhero story starring the voices of Will Ferrell, Tina Fey, Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill about a super-villain who becomes bored so he creates a new enemy who sets out to destroy the world.

Here's why this film looks so good: it had a whopping 60 animators work on it and you can tell!

The director is Tom McGrath. You may not know the name but you sure know his great work. He did the two Madagascar films.

The animators in this movie were just like actors. They would get up on stage and act scenes out and video tape themselves. Normally it's just a recording of the voices, but in this movie they worked with scenes that they videotaped. It allowed them to really capture the emotion.

Will Ferrell voices the main character. Megamind mispronounces a lot of words when he speaks in this one. Here’s some back-story: The spoken slips were simply improvisation when Will was recording. He did it once as a mistake then it stuck. He said it was a result of the freedom Tom gave him.  

Then there's Tina Fey who voices the lead female character Roxie. This was her first foray into animation.  She loved doing it because she could improvise as much as she wanted. Tom McGrath really encouraged it, throwing ideas back and fourth that were not in the script. Most of all she loved being able to show up to work in jeans and a t-shirt.

Actor Jonah Hill also voices. He had worked with DreamWorks before on How to Train Your Dragon. His movies are usually R-rated so he likes doing a family thing now and then but it was a challenge to be funny in a way that was suitable for everybody to watch. He loved working with Will Farrell.  He considers him one of the funniest people of all time – who doesn’t?  Looking at his own career and where he wants to eventually take it, he felt very privileged to be working alongside him. When he was in high school he watched him on Saturday Night Live and then in movies like Elf and Old School. He was a big fan – he would watch his movies in theaters more than once. When he got to meet him saw he was the nicest guy and just as funny in real life.

PRE-OSCAR BUZZ:
Danny Boyle’s "127 Hours"

The Oscars are around the corner, and we’ve got the scoop on all the pre-buzz surrounding the big night.

A movie getting so much buzz is Slumdog Millionaire director Danny Boyle's 127 Hours.  This is going to be huge this season. It stars James Franco and is based on a true story of a hiker's survival after losing an arm to a fallen rock. It's the grueling five-day ordeal.

James Franco’s outstanding performance is what's getting lots of recognition. The Santa Barbara International Film Festival has already announced it will present James with the outstanding performance of the year award.

Another actor who I say will be getting more buzz as a supporting actor nominee is John Malkovich for his role in Secretariat.  John really owns his role as supporting actor. When it comes to nominations, a supporting role that lifts the movie to greatness – where without it, the movie wouldn’t be what it is – is what is considered. I think John did that and more with this role.

Secretariat is based on a true story of the spectacular journey of the Triple Crown winner - a movie that was made on a remarkable feat. 

 Another star poised for some kind of Oscar momentum is Halle Berry as a mammoth campaign is about to go out for her new movie Frankie and Alice. Halle is planning a December release and full Oscar campaign - that’s right, she’s the producer too. It's a psychological drama about a true story of a stripper suffering multiple personality disorder. It's getting good reviews and she could use a good comeback!

It will be released December 17th, so it can qualify for an Oscar this year, but the real full release happens February 4th.  10,000 screeners will be sent out to all voting members and critics.

IMAX UPDATE:
IMPROVED

IMAX theaters are improving their surround sound like never before - something called the nXos Calibrator which is an equalizer that digitally tunes and monitors audio systems. The nXos is way better than the equalization we've been hearing more realistic and immersive movie-going experience.

Not only is it a benefit to you, it also helps those who operate the IMAX theaters. Before the nXos Calibroator, screening an IMAX movie was a much more complicated process. The technology provides the IMAX technicians with remote monitoring. This allows them to know on a day-to-day basis the status of the audio systems, which means corrections are applied instantly when changes in calibration are detected.

MAKING OF:
INSIDE STORY OF "BURLESQUE"

Cher and Christina Aguilera’s new movie, just out, Burlesque is like Dancing with the Stars on steroids!

This is Christina’s first time with a starring movie role, and she really delivered. There is talk she might even get an Oscar nomination.

It had been a while since Cher was on a movie set. She liked being back and loved to be singing in a movie.

Christina says she loves Cher. She’s always admired her as an artist, but didn’t know how much until she started working on the movie. She always had a lot of respect for her because she always brought new things to the table.  Christina says she took the opportunity to watch her, how she worked, and looked to emulate her to better herself as an artist.

Cher praised Christina's work ethic saying she was on it and her game was good; she always kept up.

So how did this movie get made? Well, a gay couple had something to do with it.


Writer-director Steven Antin got backing of his partner, Clint Culpepper, who happens to be the president of Screen Gems - but it wasn't smooth sailing.

Screen Gems, is Sony’s low-budget studio and this is one of  the riskiest and most unusual projects to come out of Hollywood this year.

Antin wrote and directed it.

It's a the $55 million movie and Screen Gems usually spends less than $30 million and it gravitates toward horror, action, and teen comedies. 

It's been a difficult production. Attracting big-name stars was a big hurdle. There were on-set conflicts, a Cher who needed convincing,  and a new ending shot at the last minute. 

Inexperienced Antin says there was an incredible amount of pressure on him that this movie performs well. 

So what are Antin’s credentials?

Well, no big budget films. He does come from a show biz family. His mother was a television executive. He started acting at age nine, in Goonies and NYPD Blue. His brother, Jonathan, is a celebrity hairstylist here who was featured on the Bravo reality show Blow Out.  His sister, Robin, founded the Vegas burlesque group he Pussycat Dolls. 

Before meeting studio chief Clint Culpepper, Antin was romantically involved with music and film mogul David Geffen.  

Antin and Culpepper discussed the movie in the late 90's but it only really began when they heard Christina was looking to do a film.

Cher was not so easy to get. She got the script via her friend David Geffen, who knew about the project, because Antin and Culpepper had worked on it during a 10-day vacation on his yacht.

Cher went back and forth and finally said ok but shot all her role in just 20 days out of the 4 month shoot. She tried to pull out of it so many times, and everyone said she wouldn't do it. Cher asked the story be revised. 

The singer said she was impressed by the intense preparation of Antin, who assembled hundreds of drawings, photographs and set models in an effort to recruit his leading ladies. 

Aguilera's film debut comes in the wake of disappointing sales for her June album, Bionic, and the postponement of a planned 20-city tour this past summer, and her divorce.

Behind-the-scenes drama continued. Production began last November in Los Angeles.  Shooting took more than 70 days — unusually lengthy for anything but a blockbuster event film —because extensive takes from numerous angles were needed for more than a dozen musical numbers.

PRE-OSCAR BUZZ:
KIDMAN AND ECKHART IN "RABBIT HOLE"

Now turning to a movie I think has so much Oscar potential because of its lead stars Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart called Rabbit Hole.

Just like Halle Berry who is producing her new one, Nicole is producing for the first time too.

This one has so much raw and ragged emotional power. I say come Oscar time, Nicole and Aaron may get nominated In Rabbit Hole. They play a long-married couple dealing with the death of their young son. Group therapy and all can't seem to make sense of the horrific tragedy.

The movie shows the characters Becca and Howie and the different ways in which they grieve, they blame, fight and struggle to carry on with life. The writing is excellent.


Nicole first heard about the story in 2006. It was a play. She remembers being in a coffee show in Nashville where she lives with Keith Urban. She was reading the paper when she came across a review of David Lindsay-Abaire's Broadway play. She called her work partner who flew from Australia to New York to see it.
"I read it that night, and I was just floored, it just touched me in such a deep way," she said. 

 “I hadn't had Sunday Rose yet," her now 2-year-old daughter. 

She says "But there was something very palpable there, a voice that spoke to me that made me want to tell the story.

Nicole's performance captures the anguish of a woman who doesn't want to be continuously reminded of her deep loss while at the same time she delivers a series of razor-sharp one-liners that are funny

MOVIE NEWS:
BATTLING PRINCESS DIANA MOVIES

Get ready for battling Princess Diana movies.

People are interested because next year she would have turned 50 and it would have been 30 years of marriage to Charles.

One film will possibly star Keira Knightly and would be released 2011. Helen Mirren might play Diana's mother, to Keira’s character.

Another Diana movie that ended shooting recently in England is a low budget British film that centers around a scientist who wants to create a clone of Diana.

There is a third. Oscar winner Charlize Theron is about to star in one to go up against the Keira Knightly one. This one would be about her friendship with her former bodyguard Ken Wharfe who will reportedly be played by Ewan McGregor.

PRE-OSCAR BUZZ:
ANN’S EARLY BEST PICTURE NOMINATION PREDICTIONS

It's November and the Oscar race is already shaping up already quite securely.

I've got the list of movies to make sure you put on your must-see list -
the best of the best that will be around come Oscar season.

The nominees for best picture will be:

I say it will be a battle between The King’s Speech, the story of Facebook, The Social Network and the story of one man’s survival 127 Hours.

The King’s Speech stars Colin Firth as a stammering and nervous King George VI. It's the true-life struggles of the king who ruled 1937-1952 and his fear of public speaking. He gets helped by Australian-born speech therapist Lionel Logue played by an amazing Geoffrey Rush and is a shoe in for a best supporting actor nomination.

 

Helena Bonham Carter plays the king’s wife Queen Elizabeth. We knew her as the Queen Mum who died in 2002. I predict she will be nominated as supporting actress.

 

The King’s Speech is a very British film, incredibly acted, not dull and stoggy. Ever since Out of Africa beat out The Color Purple in 1986, the Academy always nominates a British film for best picture.

The King’s Speech was dubbed a Best Picture frontrunner the moment it premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival.

This is the literal story of a king finding his voice.

 

Now here's the back-story.  It took over three decades to make this movie.  One of the therapists’ sons had his diaries; but to use the sensitive material the son had to get the ok form the Royal Family. Queen Mum said ok but "just not in my lifetime; these memories of my dear husband are still too fresh and painful."

 

In 2005, research resumed and the script began to take shape.

Then Geoffrey Rush came across the material when an acquaintance sent him a copy from a yet to be produced play. 

He says he didn’t see it as a play but rather a big screen movie.

He passed it onto contacts at See Saw Films, headquartered in Sydney and London.

Here’s what’s really interesting – they didn’t think of Colin Firth at first. He was only was cast at the 11th hour and Colin had to master the role quickly -  all the more reason to me impressed with his performance. He had only three weeks of rehearsal prior to the start of filming. Actual filming was spread out over seven weeks, from mid-November 2009 to mid-January 2010.

Editing was incredible and completed in just five days. It had to be rushed to be shown at the Telluride Film FestIval September 4th and then right to Toronto International Film Festival a few days later where it won the People’s Choice Award.

 Then there's the Coen Brothers’ western True Grit a movie definitely destined for Oscar nominations. Joel and Ethan Coen's latest is so good. Jeff Bridges is sure to be up for best actor along with Colin Firth and James Franco for 127 Hours.

True Grit also stars Matt Damon and Josh Brolin. It's about a 14-year-old girl who hires help to capture her father’s murderer.

There's also Christian Bale in The Fighter. He plays a drug-addicted ex-boxer.  He is truly one of the most conscientious method actors out there today. He has lost so much weight for this role. Lately he's been seen gaunt and with hollow cheeks. The Fighter co-stars Mark Wahlberg who took a big pay cut to be in it.

 

Another actor you have to catch is Sam Rockwell and the movie Conviction. It's the true story of a sister who goes to law school to get her brother out of jail for a murder he didn't do. Sam and Hilary Swank were great. It's really about how far we go to fight for our family. I just loved this movie and the chemistry with Hillary and Sam was excellent.

FILM UPDATE:
JAMES CAMERON NOT DIRECTING CLEOPATRA

James Cameron and Sony were exploring that he would direct Angelina Jolie in a 3D version of Cleopatra, a Sony adaptation of the Stacy Schiff book Cleopatra: A Life - but now James Cameron says he is out because he is too busy directing the Avatar sequels.

Jolie was sort of attached. We all know she can open a movie herself. She says she was born to play this role and has had a lifelong fascination with her. She thinks Cleopatra is the greatest heroine of all she says. She is dying to do it. She says she would be honored to play Cleopatra but they haven't gotten the script yet. It is being developed for her.

Angelina says she was stunned by what she learned when she started researching Cleopatra. "She was misunderstood and her life story was written wrongly. I always thought her life was very glamorous. Then I read her story and found a different side to her - that she was a mother, leader and an intellect who spoke five languages! "

Sony decided to fast-track it after screenwriter Bran Helgeland wrote what was is being described as a "brilliant script deserving of epic treatment" all about "what the Romans took from Egypt".

It would be PG-13 and 3D.  So who will direct? Big question now.

Amy Pascal wants to shoot in 2011 she knows it will cost a bundle and admits its a huge risk for any studio.

MOVIE NEWS:
SPEILBERG’S ‘ADVENTURES OF TIN TIN’

This Christmas at the box office get ready for not one but two Steve Speilberg films.

World War I drama War Horse and The Adventures of Tin Tin: The Secret of the Unicorn, both directed by Spielberg, will hit movie theatres December 28, 2010 and battle it out. War Horse will star David Thewlis and Emily Watson. Studio bosses at Dreamworks have pushed it back after screening footage in London last week.

Dreamworks CEO Stacey Snider says "The reaction to the footage – which (Spielberg) never usually shows - was that it feels like a big, holiday movie."

FILM UPDATE:
STONE

Stone starring Robert De Niro and Edward Norton was a tough one for me to watch. It’s a disturbing movie. The performances were great but the story definitely not a feel good movie. It’s got some of the best acting around and a great dance between the two main characters. Edward as usual lost himself in the character.

Robert De Niro plays a parole office. Norton the bad guy is a convicted arsonist who gives his parole officer a hard time. We show up when these two guys are in anything but the movie itself is not equal to the performances, especially if you’re not in a chipper mood.

MOVIE NEWS:
HEREAFTER

Hereafter is Clint Eastwood’s latest. Critics are not loving it but Matt Damon is great in it. It is produced by Steven Spielberg. Matt plays a retired psychic compelled to use his gifts for good and he cant stop. Matt says: "This part that I'm playing would probably be two months in another movie, but [Clint] mashes it into three weeks”
 
Part of the movie was shot in Maui. Eastwood owns a home on Maui’s Makena Beach, where he and his family reportedly spent the recent holidays.  

Hereafteris a real supernatural thriller, a new genre for Eastwood’s directorial filmography list. Not a movie for everyone. Many felt it was boring with a  capital B.
The film is produced by Eastwood's Malpaso Productions and will be distributed by Warner Bros. Working from a screenplay by Peter Morgan (The Queen, Bond 23), the cast includes Cécile de France (Around the World in 80 Days), Lyndsey Marshal (TheHours), Bryce Dallas Howard (The Loss of a TeardropDiamond), Mylène Jampanoï, Marthe Keller, Jenifer Lewis and Thierry Neuvic.

Eastwood describes the film saying, "It's a story that's actually three stories of people who have had traumatic experiences in their life [...] and how these stories converge towards one another. It ends up with all three stories culminating in one big sequence." 

Hereafter went into production in October 2009 in Paris (coinciding with a November ceremony in which Eastwood was made a French Legion of Honor Commander) before moving on to London for a three-week shoot at locations including Bermondsey, Walworth, the Heygate Estate, Petticoat Lane Market, Cafe Le Jardin in Bell Lane and a Red Lion Square auditorium redressed to become a “Center For Psychic Advancement.” In the film, they also shot main scenes with Damon in San Francisco studios.

MOVIE NEWS:
MARILYN MONROE | NEW MOVIE

Trademark Films and The Weinstein Company have begun principal photography on My Week With Marilyn for seven weeks at Pinewood Studios and on location in and around London. Michelle Williams plays Marilyn Monroe.

Kenneth Branagh plays Laurence Olivier. It also stars Judi Dench, Emma Watson and Julia Ormond. The film chronicles a week in the life of Marilyn Monroe.

Here's the interesting story. In the early summer of 1956, 23-year-old Colin Clark, just down from Oxford worked as an assistant on the set of The Prince and the Showgirl, the film that famously united Sir Laurence Olivier and Marilyn Monroe, who was also on honeymoon with her new husband, the playwright Arthur Miller.

Nearly 40 years on, his diary account The Prince, the Showgirl and Me was published, but one week was missing, and this was published some years later as My Week with Marilyn.

This is the story of that week. When Arthur Miller leaves England, the coast was clear for Colin to introduce Marilyn to some of the pleasures of British life: an idyllic week in which he escorted a Monroe desperate to get away from Hollywood and those who hung onto her and the pressures of work.

OSCAR BUZZ:
CONVICTION | SAM ROCKWELL

Sam Rockwell is getting Oscar buzz for ‘Conviction’ for Best-Supporting actor.  I just loved this film.

Hilary Swank is also no stranger to the golden statue says that the feeling of a movie getting Oscar buzz is amazing. "It feels, it’s just remarkable, I love this movie. It means so much to me. It means that somehow all of us as a collaboration did justice to Betty Anne and Kenny who mean a lot to me." 

As far as the back story, it’s the true story of a sister who went to law school so that she would represent her brother who was jailed for a crime he did not commit.

Director Tony Goldwyn was introduced to the story after his wife saw a story on Dateline and thought it would make a great movie.

It took eight years and now it stars the two time Oscar winner and Sam Rockwell who portray the two siblings who love each other deeply.

The new film tells the story of Kenneth Waters, who was jailed for the murder of Katharina Brow. Brow's relatives, including her daughter Melrose Alicia Brow, are disappointed they were not consulted about the film and have requested a meeting with Hilary Swank who also acted as an executive producer, to discuss their grievances. Three of the movie's producers released a statement, offering Brow's family a special screening.The statement reads  "We have the deepest compassion and sympathy for the family of Katharina Brow.”

FALLOUT TREND:
SOCIAL NETWORK BACKLASH

Now news on the changing opinions on Facebook since The Social Network came out.

There is now a generational divide over Facebook. According to a new survey of 3,000 people, younger people 18 to 34 like Facebook more since the movie came out but older generations are not so keen on it anymore since they saw the film about greed and backstabbing

The film has done well and the reviews have been great. One of the great characters is Sean Parker, the founder of Napster and one-time Facebook president, is portrayed as a paranoid playboy with a taste for coke and underage girls.

MOVIE TREND:
CASTING MULTIPLE BIG NAME A-LISTERS

There's a trend in Hollywood today that has studios using multiple huge name actors.

After the success of The Expendables which has grossed $248 million worldwide, an action movie with a cast of older celebrities is the hot thing now.

RED stars Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman, John Malkovitch, Ernest Borgnine and Helen Mirren and the buzz around Hollywood is whether Warner Brothers will regret passing on the DC Comics movie. The first film from sister company DC Comics that Warner Brothers did didn't grab.

Summit Entertainment ended up taking RED after Dreamworks passed, Paramount passed, Sony passed, Universal passed and Warner Brothers passed again!

Summit took it five months before it made a name for itself with a little film called Twilight. Summit in fact, showed it to Warners, hoping it might partner with it because Summit was looking for a studio to help out with the cost.

If you haven't seen it yet, RED is action packed ridiculous-ness but the actors are the mark. There's lots of gratuitous violence much comes form Helen Mirren’s gun handling.

RED cost $58 million to produce. It's turned into a kind of action-oriented Ocean's Eleven.

HOLLYWOOD NEWS:
MEL GIBSON - IS HE DONE IN THIS TOWN?

So what happens now with Mel now in this business? Is he really done in this town? Well, the William Morris Agency has dropped him as a client and Summit Entertainment has not decided how to handle the pending release of his next movie, The Beaver directed by Jodie Foster.

As far as keeping Mel off The Hangover sequel recently - one studio worker in his 20’s feels there's a generational difference between older studio execs and The Hangover audience. “Our generation doesn’t really care about most of what [Gibson] said, to the people going to the movie, he’s just another wacky celebrity.”

Warner Brothers, which is making The Hangover, used to be Mel’s studio. He did all his Lethal Weapon movies there but Zach Galifianakis — who is reteaming for the sequel with Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Justin Bertha - was among those who objected to Mel.

Zach said he was in deep protest and up in arms about a film he was working on. Without naming names, other members of the cast and crew also opposed Mel's casting, and insiders said high-level execs at the studio also objected.

One other reason why Mel might have been dropped - Todd Phillips and Zach are about to get into their media push for their movie Due Date, which opens November 5 and they knew they’d face questions form reporters about The Hangover II when they wanted to focus on talking about Due Date.

The Hangover II began shooting September 30 on the Warners lot here in LA.

HOT UPCOMING MOVIE:
BURLESQUE

There is a lot of buzz for the movie Burlesque, which by the way,"burlesque" itself is so in vogue right now. It's hotter than hot so it was time we got a movie. Get ready for the November release of burlesque. this is going to be a great show performance film at least. Christina Aguilera and Cher star. This is Christina's first big-screen, starring role that would actually pay her to play out her burlesque interests. It also stars, Stanley Tucci, and even Kristen Bell and features Julianne Hough, Eric Dane, Alan Cumming, and Peter Gallagher. It looks like a smaller-scale Moulin Rouge set on a stage. The film comes out on US Thanksgiving.

meantime - Kristen says making Burlesque nearly made her a lesbian! She said she never felt so much female energy around her and she couldn't take her eyes of the women. she says she was enchanted watching Christina and Cher. In the film, Christina finds her dreams in the big city after leaving her small-town roots. Bell will play Nikki, the loose lead dancer and main attraction at the club that spirals out of control when Christina's character gets the spotlight. 

MOVIE TREND:
OSCAR PRE-BUZZ

Looks like we have some celebs ahead of the pact already when it comes to Oscar buzz. Diane Lane in Secretariat has a great shot I predict, so do James Franco in 127 and Natalie Portman for Black Swan.

Secretariat will leave you feeling good when you walk out. Diane Lane embodies the real life woman the film is based on who wanted to preserve her fathers legacy and inspired her entire family in the process. If you haven't seen it yet, I recommend you do, it's warm and comfortable. It's a true story about the 1973 Triple Crown winner and a horse that was considered maybe the greatest ever. Diane plays a mother and housewife who takes over her ailing father’s Virginia-based Meadow Stables in spite of her lack of horse-racing knowledge. It's about her getting thru the male-dominated business with the help of a veteran trainer played perfectly by John Malkovich. 

The casting is just perfect, Diane is great as the intelligent and very well-dressed driven loving mother determined to keep the place afloat. She says she loved playing this role. 

If you saw Seabiscuit well this one feels like it and youll feel youve seen this story. It's great, yes formulaic but its this years 'underdog sports drama' we get one every year.

Meantime - here's are two big film trends: Strong female leads and when it comes to marketing movies now - going after a certain segment of the population. Disney is marketing Secretariat toward Christians. It's been using the strategy used for The Blind Side by going what we call in Hollywood the - "faith-based audience." Secretariat" opens with a quote from the Bible, a portion of God's speech to Job. A trailer that includes those lines is on Christian websites all over the Internet. Disney PR compares"Secretariat" to "Blind Side, which by the way made a huge $256 million at the domestic box office. Both The Blind Side and Secretarait - are based on true sports stories involving a strong female leads.

WALL STREET:
THE SEQUEL

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps is directed by Oliver Stone. It is a sequel to the 1987 film Wall Street, and the first sequel Stone has done to any of his films. 


Michael Douglas reprises his Acadamy Award-winning role of Gordon Gekko and Shia LaBeouf, Josh Brolin, Carey Mulligan and Frank Langella also star in the film.
 
Set in New York City, the film takes place 23 years after the original, revolving around the 2008 financial crisis.

The film's plot mainly centers around the reformed Gekko acting as more of an antihero rather than a villain and follows his attempts to help Wall Street before its soon-to-be stock market crash as well as trying to repair his relationship with his daughter Winnie with the help of Jacob, Winnie's fiancé. 

In return, Gekko helps Jacob get revenge on the man he blames for his mentor's death.

Despite originally having a tentative February 2010 release date, and a release date of April 23, the film was set to be released theatrically on September 24, 2010.

HANGOVER 2:
MOST ANTICIPATED SEQUEL

A survey was done and it asked which recent movie respondents wanted to see a sequel to.

The top choice was The Hangover starring Bradley Cooper with 37% of the votes. I agree, the chemistry with the actors on and off screen was memorable.

They are truly reinventing the buddy comedy with this one. Bradley explains what makes it different is that from the start, you don’t think it’s a buddy comedy - you think it’s a mystery detective story. Through that, you get to know about these three guys in this very crazy situation.

Writer/director Todd Phillips wants Tiger Woods in the sequel to help him regain his image.

The second choice for a remake among those surveyed was G.I. Joe: Rise of the Cobra and the alien film District 9 came in third pick.

DETROIT:
NEW RUNAWAY PRODUCTION HOT SPOT

From New York to Michigan and DETROIT!

Workers who used to build cars are now learning to build sets. Detroit is now the new trendy hot spot for Hollywood to shoot movies. Detroit 1-8-7 is one of more than 100 film and television productions that have flocked to Michigan in the last two years - The result of generous tax rebates. 

Producers have spent nearly $350 million in the state so far which is expected to reach $650 million by year's end. 

Michigan offers up to a 42% tax rebate on rental cars, housing and food, or the cost of building a soundstage.

Detroit 1-8-7 is the city's first prime-time network drama, and therefore a possibility to run for many years and provide long-term employment. The show plans to spend $27 million locally on the first 12 episodes and about $50 million if the series is picked up for a full 22-episode season. Detroiters are now enjoying celebrity sightings. Last month, Ashton Kutcher and wife Demi Moore, in town to shoot her new movie LOL, attended a Tigers game. Around the same time, Ms. Moore and actor Gerard Butler, who was in town shooting Machine Gun Preacher, were spotted at a local bowling alley. Hugh Jackman stopped by the polar bear exhibit at the Detroit Zoo. 

THEATER TREND:
GREEN

There is a new trend in with theaters these days.

Many theaters are now making the movie-going experience a great, green adventure.


They are using buttery popcorn in eco-friendly bags, recycled 3-D glasses and buildings topped with solar panels. They are using solar panels to save energy - resulting in lower energy bills - and using recycled building materials for new theaters and existing facilities that are under renovation. Environmentally conscious theater construction and design are growing trends.

CASTING NEWS:
DE NIRO PLAYS LOMBARDI

Robert De Niro is going to play legendary Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi in a biopic being developed by ESPN Films, Andell Entertainment and the NFL. 


Titled Lombardi, the project is being written by Forrest Gump writer Eric Roth.

The film will focus on the years that Lombardi rebuilt the Packers into a powerhouse, and five-time champions, between 1959-67. 

It will be released January 2012, between the AFC and NFC conference championship games and the Super Bowl.
Roth, who recently wrote The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, also penned the screenplay for De Niro’s 2006 drama The Good Shepherd.

MOVIE BUZZ:
'THE TOWN' READY FOR OSCAR NOM

"The Town" is about four friends - robbers, rivals and friends -- being chased by an FBI agent and a woman who falls in love with one of them.

It made $23.8 million for Warner Bros. and Ben Affleck is now considered the real deal as a director. Now people are talking – will it get Oscar buzz? Jeremy Renner does a great performance in the movie that was expected to open with about $15 million. I think he may end up with a nomination.

Affleck went to the Venice International Film Festival, where it had its world premiere September 8. Three days later, the director and his cast moved to Toronto (Toronto International Film Festival) where it had its North American premiere, then it had its U.S. premiere September 14 at Boston's Fenway Park, where the movie has a big scene.

 

Now Gone Baby Gone director Ben Affleck proves he is not only a good director but FINALLY a good actor. This is the performance of his life.

The movie is similar in some ways to Martin Scorsese's The Departed which Warner Bros. opened on October 6, 2006, and ended up with four Oscar wins, including best picture, plus a $132 million domestic gross.

Set in his home state of Massachusetts, The Town tells the tale of a bank robbery in the troubled neighborhood of Charlestown in Boston where crime is rampant.  It's based on Chuck Hogan's novel Prince of Thieves. Affleck plays a career criminal who robs banks. Jon Hamm is the FBI Agent.

 

The Town is gripping and very tense, and keeps you riveted. It's a real character piece that doesn't let go.

If you’re wondering about the simple name – it’s perfect because the movie is about the Boston neighborhood of Charlestown that turns out to be a character in the film. 

I loved this movie! It was fantastic on every level. I say make sure you see it as it WILL be around for Oscar nominations.

SPECIAL EFFECTS SECRETS:
HOW THEY DO IT

Now turning to movie trends this week. Special effects are not always what you think these days. I spoke with film expert Paul Debevic, the Associate Director and Graphics Research Associate Professor at USC and he gave me all the scoop.

Some actors that we see on screen might not be a real person at all, they might have been digitally rendered. This is not only for non-realistic creatures. It could even be the star actor, the human being that we relate emotionally with in the movie. The old version of Brad Pitt in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button was the first photo real digital character in a motion picture. It was incredibly successful and was featured in 52 minutes of the film.

Interestingly enough, the older somebody gets, the more realistic they look using computer graphics. This is because they have so much texture in their skin and coloration that there’s a lot to distract from how they’re moving. Older people’s skin is a lot less elastic than young people so it doesn’t need to move quite right in the older case. They don’t quite know how to recreate young, vibrant, exciting people just yet but they’re working on it.

TRENDING:
CELEBRITY HIGHEST PAID ACTORS

Now looking at Hollywoods highest paid actors this month and WHY.

Earnings were looked at from June 2009–June 2010

Topping the list is Johnny Depp with $75 million (well, worth every penny and one of my favorite interviews)

Johnny comes in at #1 because of blockbuster movies Alice in Wonderland, where he played the Mad Hatter, The Tourist with Angelina Jolie and Public Enemies. Alice in the Wonderland has surpassed the $1 billion mark in the world box office, making it Depp’s second movie in the Billion Dollar club after Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest.

Now this one is a surprise - the second highest-paid actor is: Ben Stiller with $53 million worth of earnings. Much of this comes from his earnings from the third installment of Meet the Parents. Stiller is also one of the producers of Dreamworks’ upcoming animation movie Megamind, which will feature the voices of Will Ferrell and Brad Pitt.

Coming in at #3 - Tom Hanks with $45 million.

His film Angels & Demons earned $485 million, making it one of the top grossers of 2009. Another movie which is expected to bring more fortune to Hanks is Universal Pictures’ Larry Crowne, which he co-produced, directed, and co-written. Larry Crowne will be released in 2011 and also stars Julia Roberts.

Coming in at #4 is: Adam Sandler, $40 million. Upcoming movie: Columbia Pictures’ Zookeeper (July 2011).

Leonardo DiCaprio is #5, $28 million. Most recent movie: Inception (earning $700 million).

Daniel Radcliffe, is #6 with $25 million. Upcoming movie: first part of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (November 2010).

Robert Downey Jr., #7, $22 million. Most recent movies: Iron Man and Sherlock Holmes. Upcoming movie: Due Date (November 2010)

Tom Cruise is 8 with $22 million. Most recent movie: Knight and Day (earning $223 million).

Brad Pitt, #9, $20 million. Most recent movies: Inglourious Basterds (earning $314 million) and Eat Pray Love (as producer).

George Clooney, #10, $19 million. Up in the Air earned him $163 million.

MOVIE NEWS:
STAR WARS GOES 3D

George Lucas will re-release the 3D version beginning with 'Phantom Menace' in 2012 as the 3D trend in Hollywood continues in full force.

Lucas has reportedly been until there were enough screens available. Sooo long overdo and the time is right because the theater chains are now ready.

The first episode 'The Phantom Menace' will be out early 2012. If it does well, others will follow. There are 6 films.

Fox again will release the the 3D versions. 3D conversion takes at least a year to complete.

George Lucus will oversee and says he was convinced after seeing Avatar.

By late winter or early spring in 2012, theaters should bee really all ready for 3D.

In the meantime, Lucas plans a comprehensive Blu-ray Disc set of the six films next year.

It will have upgraded picture and sound quality, new deleted scenes and special features.

MOVIE NEWS:
TOY STORY 3 BREAKS WORLD RECORD

Disney/Pixar's Toy Story 3, Disney’s Highest grossing animated film ever and the highest in the world ever, crossed the $1 billion mark in global revenue.

Before, Shrek 2 was the record holder at $920 million worldwide.

Alice in Wonderland is the second $1 billion film this year from Walt Disney Studios – the first studio in history to accomplish that.

RUNAWAY PRODUCTION:
CALIFORNIA TAX INCENTIVES ANNOUNCED

California production incentives have been earmarked for 2011 in an effort to fight Canadian runaway production.

The California Film Commission has earmarked its entire $100 million allocation of tax-based production incentives for 30 TV and movie projects for 2011. 45 other projects are on a waiting list.

For the fiscal year ending June 30, 2011, 19 films - including Sony's Adam Sandler starrer comedy Jack and Jill - three telefilms and eight TV series have won tax credits in various amounts.

Anybody starting to shoot now is probably not going to wrap postproduction until 2011 anyway.

The program is set to expire in 2014 but the commission plans to lobby for more time and money.

MOVIE NEWS:
HOLLYWOOD SALARY STRATEGIES

A few big screen actors are making what they made and we have more on that pay cut for Tom Cruise.

He's going to be paid scale in order to get Mission: Impossible 4. Paramount is not so sure it will do well. It had taken on financial partner Skydance Productions, the company run by David Ellison, son of Oracle founder Larry Ellison. The trend today is that stars have less power and brands have more. Studios are more fearful of risk than ever before.

Another star that is suffering is Jim Carrey. His box office numbers have gone down and his clout is not what it used to be. He did the same thing for Yes Man and he ended up making an estimated $30 million since the movie did quite well. Tom will likely get his star status back after MI4.

In Eddie Murphy’s case - Paramount and Eddie were trying to make a fourth Beverly Hills Cop, but Paramount wouldn't agree to Eddie’s $20 million demand.

Tom isn't making what he was 10 years ago. No one in Hollywood is. He knows no one stays on top forever, and he's doing everything he can to make sure it's going to be as slow a decline as possible.

FILM NEWS:
JAMIE FOXX PRODUCTION COMPANY

Now turning to the trends that have stars starting up their own production companies. The latest is Jamie Foxx setting up a second one. He has joined forces with writer-director-producer Deon Taylor to launch a production company called No Brainer Films.

It's Los Angeles-based and will focus on developing, financing, writing, directing and producing mainstream films and TV series budgeted at under $10 million. 

First up from No Brainer is the TV series Tommy's Little Girl, created by Foxx, who is co-writing and co-directing with Taylor. They plan to sell to cable networks. It’s a mob drama starring Selma Blair, and Paul Sorvino.

Foxx and Taylor will continue to run their individual production companies, Foxx-King Entertainment and Deon Taylor Enterprises, which produce larger-budgeted projects.

Foxx's next appearance is in November in the Warner Bros. comedy Due Date opposite Robert Downey Jr.

BRUCE WILLIS:
‘UNBREAKABLE’ SEQUEL

Now turning to movie news. 

Bruce Willis will reteam with horror director M. Night Shyamalan and make a sequel to 2000 thriller ‘Unbreakable’ about a man who discovers he has superpowers. They also did the ‘6th Sense’ together.

‘Unbreakable’ was originally written as the first film of a trilogy – Willis and the director are considering making part two of their next project now. 

That whole story was written in three parts and Shyamalan just chose to shoot the origin story first where the two characters find out they have superpowers. 

MOVIE PREVIEWS:
TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

With The Toronto International Film Festival already announced, we know that there will be 15 Gala Premieres and there will be 35 Special Presentations.

The most anticipated films to debut at the festival include Darren Aronofsky’s follow-up to The Wrestler, the stately-looking Black Swan - a psychological thriller starring Natalie Portman and the adaptation of bestseller Never Let Me Go starring new Spider-Man Andrew Garfield. 

Also being presented, Robert Redford’s Lincoln assassination drama TheConspiratorstarring James McAvoy, Robin Wright, Kevin Kline, Evan Rachel Wood and Tom Wilkinson.

The Debt by John Madden has Helen Mirren, Jessica Chastain and Sam Worthington starring in the thriller about three Israeli Mossad agents on a 1965 mission to capture a notorious Nazi war criminal where thirty years later, secrets about the case emerge.

Other presentations include John Cameron Mitchell’s tearjerker Rabbit Hole and David Schwimmer’s melodramatic Internet predator panic movie.

The Toronto International Film Festival will take place from September 9-19 2010. 

Here are some big productions to look out for:

• Barney's Version: starring Paul Giamatti as a seemingly ordinary man who lives an extraordinary life. Also starring in the film are Dustin Hoffman, Minnie Driver and Scott Speedman.


• Little White Lies: starring Marion Cotillard about a group of friends whose relationships and friendships are tested on their annual beach vacation. They are finally forced to own up to the little white lies they have been telling each other


• The Town: starring Ben Affleck, a dramatic thriller about cops and robbers, friendship and betrayal, love and hope, and escaping a past that has no future. It is based in the Boston neighborhood of Charlestown.


• The Way: Directed by Emilio Estevez, Martin Sheen plays Tom, an American doctor who comes to France to collect the remains of his adult son, killed in a storm. Driven by his profound sadness and desire to understand his son better, Tom decides to embark on the historical pilgrimage. Along the way he learns what it means to be a citizen of the world again and discovers the difference between "The life we live and the life we choose."

MERYL STREEP:
MARGARET THATCHER


Trendsetting roles for movie stars: playing real life people – play a real life person and an Oscar nomination is likely on its way.

The latest real person movie role involves Meryl Streep. She's in negotiations to re-team with her Mamma Mia! director for the 1982-set film to play former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

The movie will show Margaret Thatcher in the run-up to the Falklands War.

Moulin Rouge! actor Jim Broadbent has been lined up to play the former British leader's husband, Denis Thatcher.

Margaret Thatcher led Britain for 11 years between 1979 and 1990. Her career famously waned prior to the conflict in the Falklands but she received a boost in popularity after the 72-day war, which saw her win in the 1983 election.

JAMES CAMERON BLACK EYED PEAS:
3D MOVIE


James Cameron is quite the busy guy. He's trying to help fight the oil spill, expanding 3D entertainment to new heights and now he's going to be working with Black Eyed Peas and creating a 3D big screen movie about their world music tour.

Group member Will.i.am told Vibe Magazine: "We have the biggest director because we are the biggest group on the planet."

Black Eyed Peas have sold more than 35 million albums worldwide. The group has toured from America and Europe, to the Middle East, South America, Asia and Africa - this movie will bring it all to us.

James Cameron will be showing us everything, onstage, behind stage and how they handle the pressures of world touring.

Cameron is not the first established director to make a concert film. Martin Scorsese released his Rolling Stones documentary, 'Shine a Light', last year with positive reviews.

NEW BIOPIC:
BARBARA WALTERS


Now turning to a new TV movie.

Barbara Walters, is negotiating with TV executives at HBO to adapt her best-selling memoir, 'Audition', about her 50-year career in journalism into a made-for-TV-movie. In her memoir, the veteran newswoman speaks candidly about breaking the glass ceiling for female anchors at NBC and later ABC, her failures as a mother to a troubled teen daughter, and her secret interracial affair with married Sen. Edward Brooke in the 1970s.

Her representative Cindi Berger has confirmed there is a lot of interest to develop the biopic, but declined to discuss which networks had made serious offers.

Walters, 80, underwent heart surgery to replace a faulty valve in May. On July 12, She made an appearance via video link on her hit ABC network show 'The View' to assure her fans she is fully recovered from the procedure. She will make a full return to the program in September.

MOVIE NEWS:
EAT PRAY LOVE


Based on the bestselling memoir by Elizabeth Gilbert, 'Eat Pray Love' starring Julia Roberts describes a woman's quest for self-discovery. In Italy she discovers the pleasure of eating, the power of prayer in India, and the inner peace and balance of true love in Bali. The movie is directed by Ryan Murphy.

Gilbert says she doesn't want people to see the movie as a travel log: nor does she want readers to emulate her trip exactly in the hopes of finding themselves as she did. Her goal with the book is to encourage people to ask themselves the same questions she did that led to her journey. She says that any epic spiritual awakening starts with self interviewing – "What is it that I really want? Why am I here for? Where am I going? What do I want to do with my one wild and wonderful life?"

MOVIE NEWS:
KITTY KELLY'S UNAUTHORIZED OPRAH BIO


Kitty Kelley's controversial book 'Oprah: A Biography' is being turned into a film.

It will be about her fascinating journey from rural Mississippi to the world stage. The book is filled with simple truths and complicated personalities.

Kelley made a deal with producer Larry Thompson, who wants to get the project on air around the time that Winfrey signs off from her daytime talk show.

The biggest challenge will be finding the right actress for the lead role in the film. They are planning to audition both known and unknown actresses.

News of the project is to be released next year.

The book alleges Winfrey used drugs and embellished stories about her poverty-stricken background.

FILM NEWS:
YOU TUBE MOVIE


YouTube is getting 'Life In A Day,' a historic global experiment to create a user-generated feature-length documentary film, shot by people around the world in a single day.

People were asked to record your daily lives on July 24th and upload the scenes to YouTube. It is a unique experiment in social filmmaking.

The videos will then be edited into a documentary entitled 'Life in A Day,' which will be produced by Ridley Scott, world-renowned producer of Gladiator and Black Hawk Down.

'Life in a Day' is a time capsule that will tell future generations what it was like to be alive on July 24, 2010.

It will premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in January.

It hopes to open people's eyes to the possibilities of user-generated film.

Those whose clips are chosen will receive a co-director credit and will be flown to Salt Lake City for the Sundance premiere.

ANGELINA JOLIE:
ACTION STAR


Not only is she getting the biggest salary in Hollywood, Angelina Jolie is breaking down gender barriers when it comes to action movies. No actress in Hollywood history has been able to ever take over the male-dominated genre of the action picture - not until Angelina Jolie that is, commanding 20 million dollars to play in the espionage thriller 'Salt.'

Today she's making what men make and more. This movie was originally written for Tom Cruise but he opted for 'Knight and Day' instead. Now, the unusual move of a female action star has been born. Hollywood doesn't consider Jolie a female action star - it considers her an action star. In the past 10 years, she has starred in five action films

Jolie's action films averaged $124 million in domestic grosses. Worldwide, those grosses totalled nearly $1.5 billion. 58% of Jolie's action grosses, on average, come from international audiences.

These figures are for her action roles alone – 'Wanted', 'Mr. & Mrs. Smith', the two 'Lara Croft Tomb Raider' movies, and 'Gone in 60 Seconds'.

Sony already has Brad Pitt's and her next projects: 'Moneyball' and 'The Tourist.'

'The Tourist,' which stars Johnny Depp and her as a femme fatale, opens in February.

Angelina is now considering playing 'Cleopatra' for Sony.

FILM TREND:
'THE SOCIAL NETWORK' MOVIE


Now turning to a new movie that people are anxious to see: 'The Social Network.' It depicts the launching of the famed social networking site Facebook - a story of greed and obsession.

Facebook has just surpassed 500 million users and has signed 100 million since February alone. At its current growth rate, it could reach a billion within a year. One out of every seven human beings on the planet has an account. If Facebook were a country, it would be the world's third largest.

The movie is adapted from the 2009 book 'The Accidental Billionaire: The Founding of Facebook, A Tale of Sex, Money, Genius, and Betrayal.'

The film features an ensemble cast including Jesse Eisenberg and Justin Timberlake. Shia LaBeouf and Michael Cera were previously considered for the role of founder 26-year old Mark Zuckerberg.

None of the Facebook staff was involved with the project.

Zuckerberg doesn't disclose financial results, but the famous social networking site could top $1 billion this year, up from about $550 million in 2009 and $300 million in 2008.

Facebook has 1,400 employees at its Palo Alto, California headquarters and more than 12 offices around the world.

Facebook saw its international users increase 73% in the last year alone. Some 70% of Facebook users are outside the United States.

Facebook co-founder Dustin Moskovitz called the film a "dramatization of history." He says it's interesting to see his past rewritten in a way that emphasizes things that didn't matter. He says a lot of exciting things happened in 2004 when Facebook was launched, but it consisted mainly of work and stress. The version in the trailer, he says, seems a lot more exciting than it actually was!

Distributed by Columbia, 'The Social Network' opens October 1, 2010.

3-D UPDATE:
SCREENS UP 86%


It used to be that only a select few movies could be seen with 3-D, with very few theaters had the technology to support it. Nowadays, movie-goers are feeling right in the action of their movies with 3-D watching becoming the norm.

Here are some facts :

• There are more than 16,000 digital screens worldwide up 86 percent from last year
• There are 8989 3-D screens worldwide, 6% of the total amount of theaters
• The first 3D film shown to a paying audience was The Power of Love in 1922
• The 2009 Cannes Film Festival opened with a 3D animated film for the first time; the Disney-Pixar movie Up

3-D TREND: JAMES CAMERON BUILDS FOR NASA

James Cameron is now building a 3-D camera for NASA. He's helping to build a 3-D camera on the Next Generation Mars Rover called Curiosity that's set for launch next year. Cameron personally lobbied NASA in January. Remember when he followed up the success of Titanic with a documentary about his actual exploration of the actual Titanic wreck? Well, now there's news that there is more of the Avatar movie you just saw coming in a re-release this summer with deleted scenes.

MOVIE TREND:
PUERTO RICO A HOT SPOT


In the Warner Bros. film The Losers, Puerto Rico portrays a wide variety of locales, including India, Bolivia, Chile, Miami and Los Angeles. Puerto Rico is now in the runaway production game offering filmmakers a 40% tax credit. In the past eight years, film and TV tax credits and rebates have grown in so many states and provinces.

Today, there are significant production incentives in Canada's provinces and 44 U.S. states, up from five in 2002. Filmmakers this year have become savvy shoppers

"There are creative needs, financial needs, quality-of-life issues and travel time"

One of the best locations for this film was in Romania.

"There are gigantic, closed-down factories and steel plants on the same scale as the Northeast."

In addition to warm weather, South Africa boasts a base 15% rebate on qualified expenditures, which Death Race was able to increase to 25% by structuring itself as a German/South African co-production.

MOVIE TREND:
RUNAWAY PRODUCTION


Avatar earned $44.7 million by utilizing New Zealand's 15% tax rebate program. Hawaii's production incentive is relatively small by today's standards.

Hawaii was able to beat other tropical locales, including top contender Puerto Rico, to land 'Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides', which is scheduled to shoot in Oahu and Kauai in the summer. LA based stars also wanted to be there because its one flight back to home in LA. Hawaii now also has a substantial production infrastructure, with an experienced crew because of the TV show Lost, which is conveniently wrapping its six-season run as 'Pirates of the Caribbean' begins preproduction.

NEW DIRECTION: JENNIFER ANISTON TURNS TO DIRECTING


Jennifer Ansiton's career is taking a new turn: directing.

She will be directing her first feature film. She has announced plans to make her feature debut, following her co-direction of 2006 short film Room 10, but not much more is known at this point.

Aniston says, "I have a project in development I'm going to direct. After you get enough movies under your belt you sit back and go: It's getting to a time where creatively I want to turn in a different direction."

MOVIE TREND: BOXOFFICE TRADING ON STOCKMARKET


Movies are taking on a whole new twist. Not only can you watch the movies, you can now BET on the opening weekend tallies.

The first futures contract based on movie box office results will begin trading this summer. The U.S Commodity Futures Trading Commission approved a request by the Trend Exchange to offer futures contracts and options.

The contracts would begin trading four weeks before a movie opened - and end trading on opening weekend.

The first movie to get the green light: Takers, the crime film starring Matt Dillon, Chris Brown, Paul Walker and Hayden Christensen.

Takers opens August 20, which means trading begins the last week of July.

MOVIE DEALS:
CHANGE IN PAY FOR CELEBS


When it comes to how Hollywood celebrities get paid these days, there is a trend that continues.

There was a time, not too long ago, when actors like Will Smith, Denzel Washington, and Brad Pitt could earn a $20 million advance, plus 20% of the studio's half of box-office grosses.

The days of movie stars getting such 20/20 deals are over.

Now actors are being asked to become profit participants who earn money if the movie is a big hit. These deals are known as 'cash break zero.'

'Cash break zero' is the point where the studio has recouped production costs, which does not include distribution fees. This means actors are starting to get a participation share at cash break zero and only the highest-level talent are getting that deal.

Ultimately, it means the actor doesn't get back-end pay until the studio makes back its production costs.

MOVIE NEWS:
'TEENAGE PAPARAZZO'


HBO has picked up the rights to Entourage star Adrian Grenier's documentary Teenage Paparazzo

He puts a camera on a young 14-year-old celebrity photographer to document his world.

The movie was an official selection at The Sundance Film Festival this year.

It features interviews with celebrities like Matt Damon, Eva Longoria Parker, Paris Hilton, Alec Baldwin and Whoopi Goldberg, along with historians, movie critics, fans, bloggers, publishers and tabloid writers.

As for next season's Entourage, Vince will be shooting a movie, which means we will see a new Vince this year.

MOVIE TRAILERS:
AT ULTIMATE HIGH


Are you noticing there are more and more trailers before a movie begins? Well, there's a reason... theater operators are often being paid to play extra trailers. Trailer numbers have surged in the past decade from two to four per film to a current five to seven, with an additional number of 30-second teaser trailers often tossed in as well. MPAA guidelines set a maximum length of 2 1/2 minutes per trailer, but don't address the number presented by individual studios. Get ready because soon, the new revenue streams may spread to theater lobbies.

MOVIE BUSINESS:
TERRIFIC OR TERRIBLE?


So is the movie business terrific or terrible? MPAA spokesman Howard Gantman says the industry suffers the greatest damage from fraudulent copies. A study released at the end of 2009 reported a 13 percent drop in U.S. DVD and Blu-Ray movie sales, to $8.73 billion. Blu-Ray sales made up roughly $1.1 billion of that total. That made 2009 the first year since 2002 that movie disc sales fell below our box-office revenues.

MOVIE TREND:
A-LISTERS JOIN FORCES


Another movie star is getting into the TV business.

Russell Crowe and Maria Bello have teamed for a series project in the works at HBO.

Bello is set to star in the drama 'Emergency Sex', which is being written by Slumdog Millionaire's writer.

Russell is executive producing.

Inspired by the book 'Emergency Sex and Other Desperate Measures: A True Story From Hell on Earth', the project revolves around the larger than-life exploits of expatriate non-government organization workers who find their sanity tested in the face of atrocities, loneliness and primal desires.

MOVIE CASTING:
LEONARDO AS HOOVER


Leonardo Dicaprio is set to star in a biopic of F.B.I.'s first director (and notorious communist hunter), J. Edgar Hoover. The movie will be directed by Clint Eastwood. This will be Leonardo's first with Eastwood.

Hoover's career spanned the late 20's and early 30's, at the height of a wave of gangster violence caused by prohibition and organized crime. The script is written by the writer of Milk.

Principal photography should begin later this year.

CELEB SIGNING:
JULIA ROBERTS FOR LANCOME


Julia Roberts is definitely a trendsetter in her longevity as an A-list movie icon. Now she's making her debut as Lancôme Ambassador at Paris Fashion Week in France.

She says she's thrilled she's still considered an icon. She says, "It's kind of like every girl's dream, really, to be 42 and have three kids and be a workingmom. It's a great moment to be asked to do this and to be able to do it."

I think it says a lot about Lancôme and what they stand for.

SUMMER MOVIE: 'KNIGHT AND DAY' SALARY CHANGES

There's a movie out there this summer that you may have seen, 'Knight and Day' starring Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz.

Well, as we're seeing with this movie - trends in Hollywood are changing - EVEN for Tom Cruise.

It used to be an actor of his stature commanded "first dollar gross" revenue and 20 million dollar paychecks, but now the trends have changed so much for actors. Hollywood is doing business differently. OK so here's the scoop.

'Knight and Day' cost over $125 million.

Production partners, New Regency and Dune Entertainment offset financing for the film by paying Tom a lower advance fee than he normally received. He used to get that $20 million or higher in an 'advance' fee, but he only received $11 million for 'Knight and Day' with no first dollar gross", which was customary. This means that he is not receiving a share of the film's revenue, until 'Knight and Day' funding investors have first gained back THEIR investment in the production. Not only are the trends for the big stars changing...look what's happening to the writers.

Over 12 writers contributed to the film, and the Writers Guild of America West decided, due to this large number of contributors, to only credit Patrick O'Neill - who had put in effort on the beginning layout of the script.

The film was marketed towards older over 40 moviegoers, as a cool adult movie. The marketing for the film, included an attempt at pushing a "viral video" of the two main stars. Didn't work and some have predicted the film would not do well because of the age of its two stars, some say Cameron Diaz "was" a star, but she's no longer a star.

'Knight and Day' didn't do well opening weekend. $3.8 million in Canada and the US. It's the worst attended movie for Tom in almost 25 years and his lowest grossing opening day in over 15 years. Ahh Tom :-( Among teenage and college-age males, the movie is barely registering!

So trends have changed in this recession - even for Tom Cruise.

MOVIE TREND:
BOX OFFICE BOOMING


Now to a trend that just won't let up: the movie-going boom. The recession still can't touch the box office. Global box office receipts have reached an all time high of $29.9 billion, an increase of 7.6% over 2008 and almost 30% UP from 2005. The Canada and the US market increased more than 10% to $10.6 billion. Ticket sales in Canada and the US rose more than 5.5% from 2008, the first admissions increase in two years.

ROBERT KENNEDY:
ON THE BIG SCREEN


Robert Kennedy will be portrayed on the big screen again. Robert has been played on the big screen by many actors, and now the director of Seabiscuit, Gary Ross is making a movie based on the biography of Robert Kennedy called ‘His Life'. After turning down the lead role in Avatar, Matt Damon is in talks to take the iconic role. Damon has confirmed he'll take the starring role if he likes the script. He says it would be a lot of research and time put in.

NEW MOVIE:
FBI DIRECTOR J. EDGAR HOOVER


Ok, now here's another that has Oscar all over it. Clint Eastwood is teaming with Brian Grazer and Ron Howard's Imagine Films for his next directing project, a biopic of controversial FBI director J. Edgar Hoover. Hoover was instrumental in founding the FBI in 1935 and remained its director until his death in 1972. During his tenure, he employed the FBI to harass political activists and used illegal methods to make secret files on leaders.

OPRAH TV CHANNEL: PLANS


Oprah's TV channel is bound to be a hit. Following along the lines of her book club, her channel is going to have a feature film club series, like her book club, and the movies will have inspirational themes. OWN (Oprah Winfrey Network) is dedicated to self-discovery, and it's a platform to elevate documentary films. She's partnered with a documentary film distributor, to do a primetime monthly documentary film series. Some of the movies will get nationwide theatrical screenings. OWN is planning to create communities that can screen the films together and take part in a live, moderated panel discussion. OWN is a co-venture between Harpo and Discovery Channel, which is scheduled to premiere in January 2011.

MOVIE ECONOMICS:
TRENDS STUDY 2010


Now turning to movie trends, and how much they really make. A study called the "Economics of Motion Pictures" looked at 764 films and found that a total of 83 movies that cost more than $100 million, averaged a net profit of $247 million dollars. Movies that cost $90 million-$100 million averaged a net profit of almost $118 million. What movies make the most money? Animated films. 50 animated movies averaged $220.5 million in net profit under a major-studio deal. Sci-Fi fantasy films are the next most profitable genre.

MOVIE MARKETING:
TRENDS SUMMER 2010


Now turning to Movie Marketing, and ad campaigns trends. It seems the way the studios do their TV ads are not what they should be doing their online ads. Digital-advertising is a must in today's world, but its now been discovered that what works well in traditional media does work the same way digitally. For television, movie studios use Thursday as the day to launch TV ads for a film, but when it comes to online, a new study shows the consumer watches about the same amount of movie-related video on weekdays and even more on the weekend with the least amount of viewing movie-related video on Thursdays! Friday, Saturday and Sunday are the big online viewing days, and in fact, we watch more movie-related video online on Mondays than on any other weekday. Seems people are thinking about movies as the weekend ends.

New TV Show:
Donald Trump's ‘The Ultimate Merger'

Donald Trump Productions is doing a new dating show, called The Ultimate Merger. Donald will be the matchmaker to help a well-known bachelorette achieve the "ultimate merger", a successful relationship.

The show will put 12 bachelors through many challenges and obstacles in the quest to finding true love with ‘The Apprentice's' Omarosa.

The bachelors will stay at Trump's Hotel in Las Vegas. They want American bachelors who are "financially secure" with "outgoing big personalities."

The series is supposed to air by Spring 2010.

FOX: TURNS TO TAPED AUDITIONS

Fox Network has a new way to audition actors for pilots. It's shifting to taped auditions instead of actors being there in person. The network has announced that it is phasing out in-person tests, in which finalists auditions for each role for network executives. Now, after passing live tests, performances are being filmed and sent to the network for judging. The upside is that there will be no long lines of actors in hallways. It also gives actors a chance to get it right, as they can record it many times, and now just send in the best one, whereas in live auditions, actors have one shot. The downside is that agents and managers never know when executives will be watching the tapes, therefore they don't get answers anymore on the spot.

YOU TUBE: STUDIO MOVIES NOW AVAILABLE

One of the biggest trendsetters in the world today is You Tube, the truly revolutionary video sharing website where users can upload, view and share video clips. The new trend now is for Hollywood movie studios to use You Tube. Recently you tube reached an agreement with MGM, Lions Gate Entertainment and CBS which will allow the companies to post full-length films and television shows on the site, accompanied by advertisements. The move is intended to create competition with websites such as Hulu, which features material from both NBC and Fox. As you many know, ingenious YouTube was created in February 2005 by three former PayPal employees. In November 2006, it was bought by Google  for $1.65 billion, and is now operated as a subsidiary of Google.

MOVIE MARRIAGES


Movie marriages....Actor/director combos are a hot trend in Hollywood these days. Big stars keep working with big directors. Russell Crowe is in every movie that Ridley Scott directs these days.

He did A Good Year with him...American Gangster and Body of Lies and the two are at it again - Scott is doing Nottingham with Russell, his adaptation of the Robin Hood legend. As for Leonardo DiCaprio...his guy is Martin Scorsese as you know. He's now doing his 4th film with Martin - 'Shutter Island' coming out next year. Scorsese had done 8 movies with Robert DeNiro.

They are doing one more - based on true mob story called "I heard You Paint Houses" and DiCaprio is doing two more with Martin...The Wolf of Wall Street" and "The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt."and director Judd Apatow and Seth Rogan...they have done Freaks and Geeks, 40 year Old Virgin and next summer's "Funny People."

TV STATS: UNHAPPY PEOPLE WATCH MORE

Ok I've got some new stats to tell you about....How much do you like watching TV?

New research shows that unhappy people watch more TV while those who are happy - spend more time reading and socializing. The University of Maryland analyzed 34 years of data collected from more than 45 thousand participants and found that watching TV might make you feel good in the short term but is more likely to lead to overall unhappiness. Unhappy people watch more than 30 per cent more TV than happy folks. TV is not judgmental or difficult, so people with few social skills or resources for other activities can engage in it.....Even the unhappiest people can click a remote and be passively entertained....and...Unhappy 'married couples' also watch more TV...meantime - the worsening of the economy is said to be good for TV producers as more people will likely watch more in these tough times.

TV TRENDS:
THE SCIENCE AND ENTERTAINMENT EXCHANGE


Since science and technology have become staples of TV these days - the bar has been raised for better and more accurate science. Forensic investigation and medical shows such as CSI, House, and ER routinely incorporate cutting-edge science into their scripts. Get ready for better TV crime shows...

The National Academy of Sciences just announced the creation of "The Science and Entertainment Exchange," an initiative designed to connect entertainment industry professionals with top scientists and engineers to help the creators of television shows, films, video games, and other productions incorporate science into their work. The Exchange represents the Academy's first formal effort to reach out to the entertainment community and provide the creative minds of Hollywood with a direct connection to the creative minds of science. "Television and film" involve the public in the latest advances in science, medicine, and technology." Relying on the special connections - the Exchange can make introductions, schedule briefings, and arrange for consultations for anyone developing science-based entertainment content. The plan is endorsed by the Directors Guild of America, Writers Guild of America, Producers Guild of America, the Entertainment Industry Foundation, and Women in Film.

It's being promoted to all levels of writers, directors, producers, and others in the entertainment industry. Professionals involved in the creative process may contact the Exchange to be connected with scientists, engineers, health professionals, and other experts for help with their productions and stories. Movies like Children of Men, Mission Impossible, Déjà Vu, and A Beautiful Mind enlisted some aspect of science and technology to help tell their stories, while Iron Man, Minority Report, and the Star Trek series depend very heavily on a foundation of science.

TELEVISION JEWELS


By the way - there's a hot trend in Hollywood now with people who want to wear such gems but can't afford them and don't have access to wearing them. They rent them. These jewels are called television jewels because they look so real under the brightest lights and camera shots. They're made from crystals and zirconias but shine just like the real thing.

You get them from the website: borrowedbling.com. The stuff looks amazing! Bracelets, rings, earrings, belts and evening bags in stones. You pay 30 to 100 dollars a month and you borrow. They're cut with diamond facets set in 14 carat gold or sterling silver then they're coated with a platinum sealer. They really look good!

TV HOT TRENDS: SHOWS THAT LOOK LIKE MOVIES

There's a trend in the world of television...TV shows that feel like one-hour cinematic movies. AMC is leading the pact.

It's a big new project, is a show about MARS based on the 1992 sci-fi novel RED MARS.

AMC says it fits with its bigger vision of wanting series to look like movies and it's always looking now for big genres. Cable networks remain the hot trendsetting show leaders. AMC has become a trendsetting network hot on it's Mad Men Emmy and Golden Globe wins for the first cable show to win best drama...What's also hot today: shows that are done in slightly different ways so they feel fresh and new and the other huge trend that keeps getting stronger and hotter: the biggest movie stars doing TV shows. AMC is doing a miniseries remake of the 1960's sci-fi series "The Prisoner" starring Jim Caviezel and Ian McKellen. It's a combination of sci-fi, drama and psychological thriller...Other AMC movie feel shows in the works are: ICE - about a family in New Yorks Diamond district and CARTER BEATS the DEVIL about magician Charles Carter and his role in President Harding's death. Another TV trend: Some networks are integrating even more advertisers into their shows, product placement. For The CW, which targets women ages 18-34, product placement isn't a distraction for young viewers.

And the final big trend this fall: (and this one drives me nuts too, let me watch a program in peace) Smarter use of on-screen promos: Some viewers have expressed exasperation over animated promotions for other shows that pop up at the bottom of the screen, distracting from the program currently on the air.