Showbiz Sandbox 212: Should There Be An Oscar For Casting Directors?

November 4, 2013

Last week Woody Allen wrote an “open letter” to the film industry pointing out that casting is the only single card credit at the beginning of a movie which is not honored by the Academy Awards. Like many before him, the filmmaker argued casting directors are crucial to any good movie, especially his. Should the Oscars consider adding a category for casting directors to recognize them alongside editors, cinematographers and other craftspeople?

Meanwhile, a film that hasn’t started the casting process in earnest is “Star Wars: Episode VII”. The movie doesn’t even have a script yet, which is why its filmmakers have been trying to convince Disney to push its release date back a year to 2016.

In the television world there was bad news for Time Warner Cable last week. Their dispute with CBS which led to a month-long blackout of the network cost the company over 300,000 subscribers. This likely means other cable providers will be afraid to pick fights with broadcasters over the rising cost of programming. Digital rights, however, are an entirely different battle.

Of course, we also cover the week’s top entertainment news stories including why “slow TV” is such a hit in Norway, the rising cost of the “Hunger Games” franchise and the Jonas Brothers officially call it quits.

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Showbiz Sandbox 205: Awards Season Commences With Stellar Telluride and Toronto Film Festivals

September 16, 2013

Four of the last five films to win Best Picture Oscars first appeared at the Telluride Film Festival before officially premiering the following week at the Toronto International Film Festival. Anne Thompson from Indiewire attended both festivals this year and fills us in on the big movies everyone will be talking about during the upcoming awards season.

This past week also saw the death of Ray Dolby, the audio pioneer who founded Dolby Laboratories to advance the art of motion picture sound. We debate whether the film industry is now discouraging future inventors from working in the space.

Meanwhile, revenue from digital movies and television shows continues to climb, up 24% this year alone. Unlike theatrical box office though, studios have remained tight lipped when it comes to providing actual sales figures, fearing actors and filmmakers will want a bigger cut.

Of course, we cover the week’s top entertainment news stories including the big winners at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards, a racy Miley Cyrus video that racked up YouTube records and J.K. Rowling spins-off Harry Potter.

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Showbiz Sandbox 202: Holy Overreaction, Batman!

August 26, 2013

You would have thought the world was coming to an end last week when Warner Bros. announced the casting of Ben Affleck as Batman in the upcoming blockbuster which will pair the Dark Knight with Superman. Fans of the Caped Crusader weren’t the only ones to weigh in on the casting choice. Just about everyone on earth seemed to have an opinion (most of them negative) on whether Affleck should put on the Batsuit.

No matter who plays Batman, you can be sure the character will resurface in more films. After all, seven of the top ten grossing movies of the summer were sequels or remakes, helping the 2013 domestic box office stay on track with last year.

Much the moviegoers have gotten used to reboots and sequels, television audiences have grown accustom to having their cable providers blackout networks over licensing disputes just as Time Warner Cable is doing presently with CBS and its affiliated networks. Industry critics and politicians have suggested a la carte cable may help stem such actions, though we’ll explain why it may prove to be a horrible idea.

Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment news including the launch of iTunes Radio, the return of “Duck Dynasty” and the death of drive in movie theaters.

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Showbiz Sandbox 192: Cannes Serves Up A True Blue Masterpiece

May 28, 2013

It’s safe to say the 2013 edition of the Cannes Film Festival did not disappoint. The jury, headed by filmmaker Steven Spielberg, awarded “Blue Is The Warmest Colour” with the Palm d’Or, the festival’s top prize. It seems fitting that a film featuring a lesbian love affair (not to mention graphic sexual scenes) should win big in a year when France legalizes gay marriage. That the film may be considered a masterpiece over time doesn’t hurt either.

In fact, there was little to complain about at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, except for maybe the rainy weather. We’ll fill you in on some of the highlights as well as discussing how Angelina Jolie’s announcement regarding her double mastectomy has caused an uproar in the medical community… in a good way.

Our host, Michael Giltz, has soft-launched a new website for booklovers. Still in beta stage as it prepares for an official launch, BookFilter.com is designed to help visitors discover what titles are being released and what might want to read next.

Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment news including liner notes for digital downloads, Zach Braff teaches Woody Allen about crowdfunding and Amazon’s plan to make fan fiction legit.

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