Category: media

“The European Union has drafted film funding rules which, if approved, will cut coin for Hollywood productions shooting in Europe and create potential impediments for all co-productions in its member states.”

“The Cannes festival is, famously, the keeper of the flame of the auteur tradition. … Since the turn of the millennium, only two winners of the Palme d’Or have been literary adaptations: Roman Polanski’s The Pianist, and Laurent Cantet’s The Class. … This year, however, things are different: it is a bookworm’s Cannes, with directors as likely to have had their noses buried in novels as dreaming up original ideas.”

“First it was Kazakhstan that was left unamused by Borat. Now it’s the turn of its neighbour Tajikistan. The central Asian country has decided not to screen Sacha Baron Cohen’s latest spoof blockbuster, The Dictator, after authorities concluded the movie was incompatible with the nation’s ‘mentality’.”

“For hot on the heels of 4D, scratch & sniff and dress-up cinema comes the latest immersive cinematic experience, and this time it’s comestible. … In your seat, you find a tray of numbered cups and parcels. During the screening, in the style of a dolly bird parading the scores at a boxing match, an usherette holds up corresponding numbers indicating what to open when.”

“‘There is a code of conduct for Cannes and it must be respected. Those who don’t respect the code will never come back to Cannes.’ The message is clear: obey the code and, yes, you may look upon the face of Indiana Jones. Break it and you will be cast out like Satan.”

“What is it with our obsession with satirising dictators? Was Aristotle correct when he suggested that the right genre for dramatising bad men is comedy not tragedy, or should it be beneath us to find power-crazed nutjobs funny?”

“Think your flat-screen television is big? You ain’t seen nothing yet. … Tileable, interactive TV ‘wallpaper’ will dominate the room, with wrap-around screens that recruit your peripheral vision to create a truly immersive experience. What’s more, you’ll be able to use part or all of the screen for different shows, movies, web pages or Twitter timelines.”

“Just days before the festivities kick off, a group of prominent French filmmakers have written an open letter to organisers condemning them for failing to award women who stand behind the cameras instead of in front of them.”

“After setting the record for the biggest domestic opening ever, the superhero adventure had a massive second weekend, raking in $103.2 million. That raised the film’s total in the U.S. and Canada to $373.2 million, and combined with the movie’s $628.9 million international haul, the picture joined the ranks of 11 other films that have sold over $1 billion worth of tickets.”

“In growing sections of the television drama business, a condition known as ‘cable envy’ has been setting in — and spreading. Cable, the land of small budgets and even smaller audiences, has become the place creators of drama go if they want to take big creative risks — and win golden trophies.”