Category: media

Not just for this year, when the change makes sense due to the coronavirus, but forever? Well, says one critic, “I believe there’s something sacred in the moviegoing experience that I can’t re-create at home. And relaxing Oscar rules risks chipping away at the institution you and I hold dear: going to see movies in the dark, on the big screen, among crowds, where they hold our undivided attention — as opposed to competing with incoming emails, phone calls and other distractions. But the truth is … the Academy risks irrelevance when it stands in the way.” – Variety

And that’s partly because of who’s controlling the narrative. There’s a small, but perhaps growing, “cultural trend in which black women, especially those of medium-to-dark-brown complexions — long positioned at the bottom of the aesthetic and social hierarchy in the United States because of racist standards — are increasingly appearing as leading ladies and romantic ideals in interracial relationships onscreen. In some cases, these are works created by black women themselves.” – The New York Times

Some things may change until there’s a vaccine – constant testing, small pods of workers instead of a huge crew, no craft services table – but others, like board meetings by Zoom, are here to stay. Director/producer Frank Marshall; “I know there’s a future, I know we will get through this, but the big question is when.” – Los Angeles Times

Tyler Perry wants to start filming in early July, and Georgia seems amenable – as long as the actors follow guidelines including dealing with clear barriers between them until just before a shoot begins, and as long as craft services provide individual food packages, and as long as SAG-AFTRA eventually signs on to Georgia’s recommendations (not a given). – Los Angeles Times

Take Daughters of the Dust, for instance. ” Julie Dash’s astonishing debut is a portrait of a multigenerational South Carolina Gullah family as they prepare to migrate north in 1902.” (But truly, you could get a decent film education watching most of these movies as lockdown continues, or staying at home seems the safest move.) – The Atlantic

“The industry task force that was assembled last month to address the safety issues has generated a 30-page draft of a white paper that is designed to convince governmental officials to give Hollywood the greenlight to resume production. … But the white paper is not complete and has not been signed off by all of the participants in the task force, which has spurred anger and finger-pointing among union and studio officials and … the labor negotiating body for the major studios.” – Variety

When new temporary rule changes for Oscar eligibility were announced in April because of COVID-19, Academy president David Rubin told Variety it was too soon to know how the 2021 Oscar telecast could change in the wake of the pandemic. – Variety