Mayan Mystery: Doc Financier Accused of Fleeing With Film Footage (Exclusive)
May, 09, 2012 11:25 am | Comments On #documentaries, Elisabeth Thieriot, Mayans, Movies, Raul Julia-Levy, Revelations of the Mayans 2012 and BeyondThe documentary "Revelations of the Mayans 2012 and Beyond" has descended into disarray, with its executive producer accused of fleeing with two dozen hard drives and 10 computer towers containing the film's footage, according to documents obtained by TheWrap.
The documents allege that San Francisco-based philanthropist and author Elisabeth Thieriot (below) filmed without a valid permit on federal ground in Mexico and fled with the footage.
The docu
ments are based on complaints filed by the film's producer, Raul Julia-Levy, who also accused three others, Eduardo Vertiz Mascarenas, Emiliano Chaparro Martinez and Eduardo de la Cerda, of stealing footage and equipment.
...
Read MoreWoody Allen's 'To Rome With Love' To Open L.A. Film Fest
April, 12, 2012 10:29 am | Comments On #Ellen Page, film festivals, film independent, Jesse Eisenberg, Los Angeles Film Festival, Movies, penelope cruz, Roberto Benigni, To Rome With Love, woody allenWoody Allen's "To Rome With Love" will serve as the opening-night film at the 2012 Los Angeles Film Festival, LAFF organizers announced on Thursday.
The Sony Pictures Classics comedy, which features an ensemble cast that includes Alec Baldwin, Roberto Benigni, Penelope Cruz, Judy Davis, Jesse Eisenberg, Greta Gerwig, Ellen Page and Allen, will have its North American premiere at the festival.
Its world premiere takes place this month in Italy.
Also read: Woody Allen's 'To Rome With Love'...
Read More'Bully' Wins the Ratings Battle, But It Isn't Winning the War
April, 09, 2012 7:22 pm | Comments On #bully, documentaries, Harvey Weinstein, independent film, Joan Graves, LEE HIRSCH, Motion Picture Association of America, Movies, MPAA, MPAA ratings board, ratings board, The Weinstein Company"Bully," the Weinstein Co. documentary that has made about $250,000 at the box office and stirred up weeks of controversy as it fought the R rating handed down by the Motion Picture Association of America, is this year's cinematic cause celebre.
But as a case study, "Bully" might not have the lasting impact its supporters hope.
The controversy drew an enormous amount of attention to a film that deserves to be widely seen. But is "Bully" a great movie? Can it really help launch an uprising that will put an end to something that has been going on for as long as kids have been going to school? And will it have any real impact on the ratings board...
Read More'The Island President': Ousted Leader Fights Political Battle as Movie Rolls Out
April, 06, 2012 3:12 pm | Comments On #documentaries, independent film, indies, jon shenk, Maldives, Mohamed Nasheed, Movies, The Island President"The Island President" at the center of Jon Shenk’s documentary is no longer in office, but Mohamed Nasheed’s environmental crusade on behalf of his island nation continues as the movie rolls out into theaters Friday.
Nasheed, the first democratically-elected president of the Maldives in 2008, led a crusade to get the world's governments to recognize and take steps to stem global warming. At risk: his nation, a low-lying string of islands that could be submerged by a rising Indian Ocean within decades.
He let Shenk’s cameras to follow him almost everywhere in keeping with his platform of transparency. But while he was fighting...
Read MoreAcademy Acquires More Hollywood History, From D.W. Griffith to Orson Welles (Slideshow)
March, 30, 2012 3:49 pm | Comments On #Academy Awards, Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, Awards, Bison Archives, D.W. Griffith, Lillian Gish, Lon Chaney Jr., Marc Wanamaker, Orson Welles, oscarsThe Academy has acquired more than 70,000 photographs from the Bison Archives, the collection of film historian Marc Wanamaker. Most are from the first half of the 20th Century, and join the more than 10 million photographs already in the Academy's Margaret Herrick Library. Here are a handful of the newly-acquired images. (Photos courtesy of AMPAS)
View the Slideshow
Jason Reitman Tackles 'The Big Lebowski,' Plans Another Round of Live Readings
March, 30, 2012 12:25 am | Comments On #Christina Hendricks, Film Independent at LACMA, Fred Savage, Hank Azaria, Jason Alexander, jason reitman, Labor Day, Movies, Nick Kroll, Rainn Wilson, Reservoir Dogs, Sam Elliott, Seth Rogen, The Big LebowskiJason Reitman's live readings of classic film scripts, which have become one of the hottest tickets in the Film Independent at LACMA program, will be back at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in the fall after Reitman takes a few months off to shoot a movie.
Reitman and Film Independent at LACMA Film Curator Elvis Mitchell announced the return of the popular series on Thursday night, when the director ended his string of six monthly events with a live read of "The Big Lebowski" featuring Seth Rogen in the role originated by Jeff Bridges.
"I've got this fucking day job that I have to do this summer," said Reitman with a laugh. "But as soon as...
Brad Pitt, Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart Headed for Cannes?
March, 29, 2012 6:22 pm | Comments On #Andrew Dominick, Ben Affleck, Brad Pitt, Cannes, cannes film festival, david cronenberg, film festivals, independent films, indies, Kristen Stewart, Movies, On the Road, Rachel McAdams, Robert Pattinson, Terrence Malick, woody allenBrad Pitt, Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, Marion Cotillard, Michael Haneke and David Cronenberg, will probably be walking the red carpet at this year's Cannes Film Festival.
Woody Allen, after debuting his last two films at the festival, won't.
And as for last year's Palme d'Or winner, the elusive Terrence Malick – who knows?
The official Cannes lineup won't be announced until April 19, though the festival has already revealed that the opening-night attraction will be Wes Anderson's "Moonrise...
Jean-Pierre Dardenne to Chair Cannes Short Films Jury
March, 28, 2012 8:55 am | Comments On #cannes film festival, independent film, indies, Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Movies, short films, student filmsJean-Pierre Dardenne, who has directed such films as "The Kid With a Bike" and "Lorna's Silence" with his brother Luc, will serve as chair of the Cannes Film Festival's jury for shorts and student films, Cannes organizers announced on Wednesday.
The Belgian director (left) will preside over a five person jury that also includes Canadian actress Arsinee Khanjian, Brazilian writer-director Karim Ainouz, French writer-director Emmanuel Carrere and Chinese director-cinematographer Yu Lik-Wai.
The jury will chose the Palme d'Or for Short Films, and also select three student films to win cash prizes in the Cinefondation competition.
The short film...
Read MoreMayan Documentary to Warn Human Race of Impending Catastrophe (Exclusive)
March, 27, 2012 2:06 pm | Comments On #Mayan Calendar, Mayans, Movies, Raul Julia-Levy, Revelations of the Mayans 2012 and BeyondMayan writings do not predict the end of the world when the calendar cycle ends in December. But according to the producer of an upcoming documentary about the Central American civilization, they make the sobering prediction that three-quarters of the earth's population will be wiped out in the ensuing 15 to 20 years.
Given the doomsday alternative, apparently that qualifies as good news.
Those who live, producer Raul Julia-Levy said, will need to quickly colonize outer space, just as he said the Mayans did.
The idea of climbing into a spaceship to avoid a global catastrophe might produce giggles for most of us, but the producer of "Revelations of the Mayans 2012 and Beyond...
Read More'Bully' Premiere Ignores the Ratings Controversy, Goes for the Gut
March, 27, 2012 11:09 am | Comments On #bully, documentaries, Harvey Weinstein, LEE HIRSCH, Movies, MPAA, ratings board, The Weinstein Company"Bully" has seized the spotlight courtesy of Harvey Weinstein and the MPAA, but neither was in evidence at the film's premiere on Monday night at the Chinese 6 in Hollywood.
Joel McHale, Julianna Rancic and Victoria Justice were the hosts; a number of familiar faces, including Gillian Jacobs, Jason Isaacs, Aisha Tyler, Josie Loren, Sierra McCormick and Diane Warren, were in attendance; and the film's director,...
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Steve Pond, author of the L.A. Times bestseller The Big Show, has been covering entertainment for more than two decades. He also writes on the awards circuit for TheWrap, in his column "The Odds."
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