Category: media

“In selecting Dodd, the MPAA’s board is counting on the one-time U.S. presidential hopeful to restore some of the clout that the organization had during the four decades it was run by the legendary Jack Valenti, the former aide to President Lyndon Johnson who turned the lobbyist’s role into a starring turn.”

“Last year, 58 movies and TV shows filmed in Michigan, up from 52 in 2009. The state awarded $115 million in tax breaks to these projects. But these production companies spent $293 million, up 31% from $224 million in 2009. They also created 5,310 temporary production jobs and 8,179 positions for extras. Since April 2008, Michigan has offered filmmakers the most generous tax breaks in the country, paying up to 42% of their production costs.”

The game’s creators and 20th Century Fox have partnered for “Angry Birds Rio, which is due out on March 22. (The animated feature film Rio, featuring the voices of Jesse Eisenberg and Anne Hathaway, comes out April 15.)” Execs insist that the new version is “an ‘authentic’ project that expands on the Rio story.”

“In a year when ratings for the Grammys, the Golden Globes and the Super Bowl were all up, the bright, new Twitter-fingered Oscars were down.”

“Currently, cable and satellite companies carry network television programming without paying for it. Now, private broadcasters such as CTV and Global can begin negotiations with cable and satellite companies such as Rogers to determine rates.”

“Paid-for references to products and services are now permitted for the first time in shows produced in the UK, including soaps and one-off dramas. The first product, a Nescafe coffee machine, has appeared on This Morning.”

The movie received a R rating “specifically for two scenes where the F-word is uttered numerous times.” But the MPAA has now given a PG-13 rating to a new version in which “the sound will be muted whenever Colin Firth’s character, King George VI, says the word, but audiences will be able to see his lips move.”

“In a period drama, let alone a fantasy, it’s far easier to convince the average viewer of a costume’s plausibility. Most will have no idea when the ruff went out of fashion, or when pantyhose first went on sale. They can spot, however, when someone is too old for a hoodie, or too posh for trainers.”

“About 70 percent of that CPB money is channeled to the nation’s public radio and television stations. And Northeast Ohio’s public broadcasters say the loss of that funding would have a devastating effect.”