It seems like mass layoffs aren’t the only trend in the current gaming landscape. In the last couple of years, we’ve seen more and more games come out in early access. This is an attempt by the developers to test a product and develop a fanbase before the game officially releases in a complete state. However, this model has led to some questionable ethics, with developers selling unfished games.
Still, the early access model has proven to be a major success for many popular titles such as Dead Cell, Baldur’s Gate 3, and Darkest Dungeon. Recently, Moon Studios came under fire after players reported performance issues in their latest title, No Rest for the Wicked, which debuted in early access. However, the studio’s CEO has talked about the usefulness of the early access model and believes that even popular classics such as Dark Souls could’ve benefitted from it.
Still, the early access model has proven to be a major success for many popular titles such as Dead Cell, Baldur’s Gate 3, and Darkest Dungeon. Recently, Moon Studios came under fire after players reported performance issues in their latest title, No Rest for the Wicked, which debuted in early access. However, the studio’s CEO has talked about the usefulness of the early access model and believes that even popular classics such as Dark Souls could’ve benefitted from it.
- 5/12/2024
- by Dhruv Bhatnagar
- FandomWire
The video game industry keeps suffering incredible losses month after month. Xbox just confirmed that it will close four studios that were part of Bethesda. Due to this, No Rest for the Wicked’s CEO has commented on the unfortunate situation that has plagued these studios.
Thomas Mahler, the head of Moon Studios, the creators of both Ori games, posted on X explaining his decision to resist acquisition by a major company such as PlayStation. The studio is currently working on No Rest for the Wicked, a title that is on early access. The developer said that he witnessed the same thing in the 1990s.
The Xbox Decision Resonates in Every Corner of the Industry Thomas Mahler is the CEO of Moon Studios, which made both Ori games but didn’t go through the Xbox or PlayStation acquisition.
Yesterday’s leaked internal email confirmed Xbox’s decision to close four Bethesda studios: Arkane Austin,...
Thomas Mahler, the head of Moon Studios, the creators of both Ori games, posted on X explaining his decision to resist acquisition by a major company such as PlayStation. The studio is currently working on No Rest for the Wicked, a title that is on early access. The developer said that he witnessed the same thing in the 1990s.
The Xbox Decision Resonates in Every Corner of the Industry Thomas Mahler is the CEO of Moon Studios, which made both Ori games but didn’t go through the Xbox or PlayStation acquisition.
Yesterday’s leaked internal email confirmed Xbox’s decision to close four Bethesda studios: Arkane Austin,...
- 5/8/2024
- by Lucas Lapetina
- FandomWire
Sundance Film Festival is heading to London again this summer and the programme is full of cinematic goodies. More below.
The days are getting lighter, the sun is shining ever so slightly more now and we’ve packed away our thickest wool jumpers, although we still need some thick socks. That must mean one thing and one thing only.
Sundance Film Festival: London is almost upon us.
Some might say summer is coming too, but we’re mostly excited for Sundance London, which has just revealed their full programme for this year’s festival. The festival brings a fine selection of films which originally premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January, in Park City, Utah. The crème de la crème, so to speak.
The festival will open on 6 June with a screening of Kneecap, Rich Peppiatt’s Irish-language film and draw to a close on 9 June with Sean Wang...
The days are getting lighter, the sun is shining ever so slightly more now and we’ve packed away our thickest wool jumpers, although we still need some thick socks. That must mean one thing and one thing only.
Sundance Film Festival: London is almost upon us.
Some might say summer is coming too, but we’re mostly excited for Sundance London, which has just revealed their full programme for this year’s festival. The festival brings a fine selection of films which originally premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January, in Park City, Utah. The crème de la crème, so to speak.
The festival will open on 6 June with a screening of Kneecap, Rich Peppiatt’s Irish-language film and draw to a close on 9 June with Sean Wang...
- 4/23/2024
- by Maria Lattila
- Film Stories
Harrison Ford can’t escape the two-and-a-half-minute fanfare that John Williams composed for his most famous cinematic hero, Indiana Jones. “As I often remind John, his music follows me everywhere I go — literally,” Ford says. “When I had my last colonoscopy, they were playing it on the operating room speakers.”
Creating those big, bold, brassy musical moments has become Williams’ trademark over his seven-decade career. Without his symphonic genius, some of the most indelible images in movie history — from E.T.’s flight across the moon to the ravenous shark zeroing in on an unsuspecting swimmer — would have lacked their singular power.
This year, Williams is resetting the record books again with his Academy Award nomination for best original score for “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.” It’s his 54th nomination, which is the most ever for someone not named Walt Disney, and thus the biggest tally for...
Creating those big, bold, brassy musical moments has become Williams’ trademark over his seven-decade career. Without his symphonic genius, some of the most indelible images in movie history — from E.T.’s flight across the moon to the ravenous shark zeroing in on an unsuspecting swimmer — would have lacked their singular power.
This year, Williams is resetting the record books again with his Academy Award nomination for best original score for “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.” It’s his 54th nomination, which is the most ever for someone not named Walt Disney, and thus the biggest tally for...
- 3/6/2024
- by Chris Willman
- Variety Film + TV
After the results of the first two major Oscar precursor ceremonies, this year’s Best Actor race, to many, looks to be a two-horse race: Paul Giamatti (“The Holdovers”) was victorious at both the Golden Globes in the comedy category and at the Critics’ Choice Awards. Cillian Murphy (“Oppenheimer”) took home the Drama Globe, edging out the frontrunner, Bradley Cooper (“Maestro”). Going into the SAG Awards, Murphy still leads our odds, with six of our experts currently backing the Irishman. Giamatti follows closely behind with the support of four experts. Cooper sits on the outside right now with the support of a pair of pundits. Despite Cooper’s faltering at those precursors, he is still very much in this race. Here are five reasons why he will win the SAG Award against the odds.
He’s an A-list star
From his breakout in “The Hangover” trilogy to the likes of “Silver Linings Playbook,...
He’s an A-list star
From his breakout in “The Hangover” trilogy to the likes of “Silver Linings Playbook,...
- 2/20/2024
- by Nick Bisa
- Gold Derby
Initially inspired by an all too common misreading of the classic novel Lolita in her younger years, filmmaker Victoria Singh-Thompson – last featured on Directors Notes with her caught between cultures coming-of-age drama Don’t Forget To Go Home – wanted to depict the complex layers of trauma and how it affects the way we see the world. The resulting film 14 in February is a fragmented and haunting look at the world through the eyes of a young hard-of-hearing schoolgirl who isn’t yet able to process the experiences she has undergone and dissociates from her memories. The immersive and quietly shocking short is as visually still as it is emotionally frantic, with a focused lens pulling us into its young protagonist’s point of view, accented with purposeful jarring sounds which as a package, disturb and succeed in creating the unease that Singh-Thompson wanted. Making a welcome return to Dn’s pages,...
- 2/13/2024
- by Sarah Smith
- Directors Notes
Early in Handling the Undead, an adolescent girl, Flora (Inesa Dauksta), plays a video game where shooting zombies is your ticket to staying alive. Rendered in crude 3D, these shambling, emaciated, flesh-hungry zombies are the familiar sort that have haunted the pop-cultural imagination, and this depiction stands in seeming contrast to the people who came back from the dead after a mysterious event in Thea Hvistendahl’s film. They don’t do much of anything except breath and stare from behind glassy eyes at a world we’re never really sure if they can comprehend. But while they’re shells of who they once were, silent and often immobile, they recall enough of where they came from to reach out to the people who grieve them.
Based on the novel by John Ajvide Lindqvist, who co-wrote the screenplay with Hvistendahl, the film moves between three non-intersecting subplots. In one, we...
Based on the novel by John Ajvide Lindqvist, who co-wrote the screenplay with Hvistendahl, the film moves between three non-intersecting subplots. In one, we...
- 1/29/2024
- by Steven Scaife
- Slant Magazine
A loud, high-pitched sound echoes through the streets of Oslo. Car alarms start going off everywhere. A citywide blackout begins. An elderly man, draped over his grandson’s grave, begins to hear the sound of muffled knocks coming from under the ground. “Grandpa is coming,” he says repeatedly. He grabs a shovel and begins to dig. So begins Handling the Undead, Thea Hvistendahl‘s somber feature directorial debut that acts as a haunting meditation on grief, daring to ask us what we would do if someone we loved returned from the dead.
Adapted from John Ajvide Lindqvist’s (Let the Right One In) 2005 novel of the same name (he also co-wrote the screenplay with Hvistendahl), Handling the Undead chronicles the lives of three families as they deal with the sudden return of their recently deceased loved ones. Anna is saved from a suicide attempt when her father Mahler (Bjørn Sundquist...
Adapted from John Ajvide Lindqvist’s (Let the Right One In) 2005 novel of the same name (he also co-wrote the screenplay with Hvistendahl), Handling the Undead chronicles the lives of three families as they deal with the sudden return of their recently deceased loved ones. Anna is saved from a suicide attempt when her father Mahler (Bjørn Sundquist...
- 1/26/2024
- by Trace Thurman
- bloody-disgusting.com
If zombies weren’t so fixated on eating our brains, perhaps they’d be poignant to have around: semi-living, semi-breathing semblances of people we’ve loved, there to be seen and held and talked to, not truly present but not absent either. Whether that’s preferable to the void of death is the question underpinning “Handling the Undead” for much of its running time, even as the threat of the undead reverting to their usual habits gives this soft, sorrowful bereavement drama a core of cold-blooded horror. Thea Hvistendahl’s impressively restrained debut feature may keep its genre intentions just up its sleeve until the final act, but it never feels like a trick or a compromise: It’s a living-dead nightmare with a brain and a heart and, most importantly and inedibly, a soul.
The film’s somewhat liminal genre identity presents marketing challenges for U.S. distributor Neon...
The film’s somewhat liminal genre identity presents marketing challenges for U.S. distributor Neon...
- 1/20/2024
- by Guy Lodge
- Variety Film + TV
In the realm of zombie-themed films, a genre often fliled with clichés and predictable plot lines, Handling the Undead aims to stand out as something different.
Directed by Thea Hvistendahl, and written by Hvistendahl and John Ajvide Lindqvist, the film stars Renate Reinsve, Anders Danielsen Lie, Bjørn Sundquist, Bente Børsum, Bahar Pars, Inesa Dauksta, Olga Damani, and Kian Hansen.
The story takes a subtle approach, diverging from the expected scenes of chaos and horror, while focusing on three families set against a backdrop of an apocalyptic event. The narrative is an exploration of human response to the unimaginable.
Handling the Undead opens with the camera hovering over a large apartment complex in the middle of a hot Oslo summer. Mahler (Sundquist) walks up the stairs to an apartment where his granddaughter (Reinsve) is blasting bossa nova music and painting her toenails before getting ready for work. There are pictures of...
Directed by Thea Hvistendahl, and written by Hvistendahl and John Ajvide Lindqvist, the film stars Renate Reinsve, Anders Danielsen Lie, Bjørn Sundquist, Bente Børsum, Bahar Pars, Inesa Dauksta, Olga Damani, and Kian Hansen.
The story takes a subtle approach, diverging from the expected scenes of chaos and horror, while focusing on three families set against a backdrop of an apocalyptic event. The narrative is an exploration of human response to the unimaginable.
Handling the Undead opens with the camera hovering over a large apartment complex in the middle of a hot Oslo summer. Mahler (Sundquist) walks up the stairs to an apartment where his granddaughter (Reinsve) is blasting bossa nova music and painting her toenails before getting ready for work. There are pictures of...
- 1/20/2024
- by Valerie Complex
- Deadline Film + TV
Thea Hvistendahl’s “Handling the Undead,” fresh off its Sundance premiere, has already scared multiple buyers into submission, Variety has found out exclusively.
Starring “The Worst Person in the World’s” Renate Reinsve and sold by TrustNordisk, it has been picked up by Hungary (Vertigo Media), Benelux (September Film), Switzerland (Filmcoopi), France (KinoVista), Spain (Avalon Distribution), Korea (Pancinema), Japan (Tohokushinsha Film Corp.), Taiwan (Swallow Wings Films) and Anz (Signature Entertainment).
Neon Rated acquired North American and U.K. rights.
In the Norwegian film, Mahler and his daughter, Anna, mourn the too early passing of his grandson. Tora says her final goodbye to her wife at the funeral home, while a family of four face a life without a wife and mother.
Then, a strange electric field and collective migraine spread across Oslo on an especially hot summer day. Television sets, lightbulbs and electronics go haywire, and suddenly, it’s all over.
Starring “The Worst Person in the World’s” Renate Reinsve and sold by TrustNordisk, it has been picked up by Hungary (Vertigo Media), Benelux (September Film), Switzerland (Filmcoopi), France (KinoVista), Spain (Avalon Distribution), Korea (Pancinema), Japan (Tohokushinsha Film Corp.), Taiwan (Swallow Wings Films) and Anz (Signature Entertainment).
Neon Rated acquired North American and U.K. rights.
In the Norwegian film, Mahler and his daughter, Anna, mourn the too early passing of his grandson. Tora says her final goodbye to her wife at the funeral home, while a family of four face a life without a wife and mother.
Then, a strange electric field and collective migraine spread across Oslo on an especially hot summer day. Television sets, lightbulbs and electronics go haywire, and suddenly, it’s all over.
- 1/20/2024
- by Marta Balaga
- Variety Film + TV
“Satire is a dangerous game In Hollywood,” Billy Wilder once observed. “It invites self-immolation.” Still, the satiric spirit looms large in many of this year’s buzzworthy movies: American Fiction, Poor Things, Saltburn, Air, The Holdovers and even Barbie.
All mobilize satiric weaponry — humor, irony, even ridicule — in advancing their perspectives. The clever corporate barbs in Barbie are soothingly pink-coated, but by contrast the protagonist in American Fiction is a blunt and self-destructive novelist. His work supposedly is not satiric enough nor Black enough for him to register success.
Barbie was heralded at the Golden Globes while American Fiction was snubbed. The latter still earned the People’s Choice Award at the Toronto Film Festival, a SAG Awards Cast nomination and a spot on the AFI’s Top 10 Films of 2023.
If Wilder were around to see this year’s slate, I think he’d admire the seditious scientist in Poor Things,...
All mobilize satiric weaponry — humor, irony, even ridicule — in advancing their perspectives. The clever corporate barbs in Barbie are soothingly pink-coated, but by contrast the protagonist in American Fiction is a blunt and self-destructive novelist. His work supposedly is not satiric enough nor Black enough for him to register success.
Barbie was heralded at the Golden Globes while American Fiction was snubbed. The latter still earned the People’s Choice Award at the Toronto Film Festival, a SAG Awards Cast nomination and a spot on the AFI’s Top 10 Films of 2023.
If Wilder were around to see this year’s slate, I think he’d admire the seditious scientist in Poor Things,...
- 1/12/2024
- by Peter Bart
- Deadline Film + TV
Netflix released the much-awaited film ‘Maestro’ to global audiences on 20th December, 2023. Directed by Bradley Cooper in his 2nd venture, the film is a towering and fearless love story chronicling the lifelong relationship between Leonard Bernstein and Felicia Montealegre Cohn Bernstein. A love letter to life and art, Maestro at its core is an emotionally epic portrayal of family and love.
The director himself stepped into the shoes of the legendary conductor while the wonderfully talented Carey Mulligan breathed life into the portrayal of Felicia.
‘Maestro’ has already mastered the audiences, and won acclaim on many stages like Santa Barbara International Film Festival, The American Film Institute, even scooping nominations in the Critics’ Choice Awards and Golden Globe Awards.
Talking about the film, Cooper revealed that it was six years in the making, “The pilot light I needed to make Maestro turned on many years ago, when I was in...
The director himself stepped into the shoes of the legendary conductor while the wonderfully talented Carey Mulligan breathed life into the portrayal of Felicia.
‘Maestro’ has already mastered the audiences, and won acclaim on many stages like Santa Barbara International Film Festival, The American Film Institute, even scooping nominations in the Critics’ Choice Awards and Golden Globe Awards.
Talking about the film, Cooper revealed that it was six years in the making, “The pilot light I needed to make Maestro turned on many years ago, when I was in...
- 1/4/2024
- by Editorial Desk
- GlamSham
“Well, I can guarantee you right now that Leonard Bernstein is here with us, giving you a big kiss on the mouth, and saying, ‘Thank you for what you did for me; what you did for Felicia [Montealegre, Bernstein’s wife]; what you did for Alexander, Nina and Jamie [their children]; and for everybody who loves the classical influence on all modern music, traced all the way back through Bernstein to Mahler and everybody before that,'” Steven Spielberg told Bradley Cooper on Saturday night at the Tcl Chinese Theatre in Hollywood following an Imax screening of Maestro, which Cooper co-wrote, directed and stars in as the late, great composer. “This was a mitzvah. Thank you for this.”
Spielberg, a producer of Maestro — who, like Martin Scorsese, once intended to direct it, but ultimately handed it off to Cooper after being blown away by Cooper’s 2018 directorial debut A Star Is Born — moderated a half-hour conversation with Cooper.
Spielberg, a producer of Maestro — who, like Martin Scorsese, once intended to direct it, but ultimately handed it off to Cooper after being blown away by Cooper’s 2018 directorial debut A Star Is Born — moderated a half-hour conversation with Cooper.
- 12/12/2023
- by Scott Feinberg
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
John Ajvide Lindqvist’s vampire novel Let the Right One In (or Låt den rätte komma in) has inspired a Swedish film of the same name, an American film called Let Me In, and a short-lived Showtime series called Let the Right One In, while his short story Gräns served as the basis of the 2018 fantasy film Border. The latest adaptation of his work is the Norwegian film Handling the Undead, based on the novel Hanteringen av odöda. The film will be screening at the upcoming Sundance Film Festival as part of the World Cinematic Dramatic Competition, and has also secured a North American and UK distribution deal with Neon. Now that we know the film is heading to Sundance, a trailer for Handling the Undead has made its way online, and you can check it out in the embed above.
Handling the Undead marks the feature directorial debut of Thea Hvistendahl,...
Handling the Undead marks the feature directorial debut of Thea Hvistendahl,...
- 12/11/2023
- by Cody Hamman
- JoBlo.com
In “Maestro,” Bradley Cooper disappears into the role of legendary composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein, one of the most consequential American figures in classical music. Like his 2018 directorial debut, “A Star Is Born,” Cooper also co-wrote, produced and directed the film. In his conversation with Emma Stone for Variety’s Actors on Actors series, he spoke at length about the six years he spent devoting himself to bringing Bernstein’s singular life to the screen.
At one point Stone (there to discuss her own performance in “Poor Things”) talked about going to Cooper’s house with her mother to watch a cut of “Maestro,” which reduced them both to tears. Stone was especially stunned by a scene, roughly two thirds into the film, in which Cooper as Bernstein conducts Gustav Mahler’s Resurrection Symphony at Ely Cathedral in England in 1973.
“Full body chills,” Stone said. “It felt like I was watching a true conductor,...
At one point Stone (there to discuss her own performance in “Poor Things”) talked about going to Cooper’s house with her mother to watch a cut of “Maestro,” which reduced them both to tears. Stone was especially stunned by a scene, roughly two thirds into the film, in which Cooper as Bernstein conducts Gustav Mahler’s Resurrection Symphony at Ely Cathedral in England in 1973.
“Full body chills,” Stone said. “It felt like I was watching a true conductor,...
- 12/8/2023
- by Adam B. Vary
- Variety Film + TV
The list of actors who have jumped behind the camera to sit in the director’s chair is very long. One way to shorten it considerably would be to specify which of their debut-directed flicks were both a critical and commercial hit. Yes, Orson Welles’ Citizen Caine is lauded by film scholars but barely produced a ripple in that competitive “golden year” of 1941. Yes, it’s rare, but one actor really hit a “home run” in his first time “up to the plate” with a film that’s the third screen take on a beloved early sound classic, that packed the multiplex, made some top ten lists, and snagged some Oscar gold. Ah, but the actor was nominated for his performance, but nothing for his strong cinematic storytelling. Now five years later, he’s back directing himself, for his follow-up. And though this is a biopic rather than a romantic drama,...
- 12/8/2023
- by Jim Batts
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
The greatest film score of 2023 isn’t eligible for an Academy Award. That’s because Leonard Bernstein composed it between 1944 and 1977, multiple pieces that collectively form the musical backdrop of “Maestro,” Bradley Cooper’s film about the 20th century American composer-conductor.
The classical excerpts functioning as dramatic score include Bernstein’s ballets “Fancy Free” and “Facsimile,” parts of his Broadway scores for “West Side Story” and “Candide,” his opera “A Quiet Place,” music for the film “On the Waterfront,” portions of his second and third symphonies as well as his “Mass” and “Chichester Psalms.”
“I think of the score as the co-star of the film,” says the composer’s oldest daughter, Jamie Bernstein. “We knew that Bradley wanted to use our dad’s music in the score, but I don’t think, in the beginning, we even grasped how much of a presence it would wind up having in the film.
The classical excerpts functioning as dramatic score include Bernstein’s ballets “Fancy Free” and “Facsimile,” parts of his Broadway scores for “West Side Story” and “Candide,” his opera “A Quiet Place,” music for the film “On the Waterfront,” portions of his second and third symphonies as well as his “Mass” and “Chichester Psalms.”
“I think of the score as the co-star of the film,” says the composer’s oldest daughter, Jamie Bernstein. “We knew that Bradley wanted to use our dad’s music in the score, but I don’t think, in the beginning, we even grasped how much of a presence it would wind up having in the film.
- 12/5/2023
- by Jon Burlingame
- Variety Film + TV
On November 22, 2023, Netflix brings the love story of Leonard Bernstein and Felicia Montealegre to the big screen in “Maestro,” starring Oscar nominees Bradley Cooper and Carey Mulligan. Cooper proves to be a formidable triple-threat after co-writing and directing the film to rave reviews and a Cultural Icon and Creator Award at this year’s Gothams.
The complicated romance between the legendary composer and the actress is an across-the-board contender in Gold Derby’s Oscar odds, with Rotten Tomatoes rating it 81% fresh. The consensus from critics reads, “Led by a pair of powerful performances, ‘Maestro’ serves as a stirring overview of a tremendous talent’s life and legacy.” Read our full review round-up below.
See Oscars upheaval: Bradley Cooper (‘Maestro’) will win Best Actor, according to the most Experts
Jo-Ann Titmarsh of London Evening Standard writes, “Like Bernstein’s music, this movie won’t appeal to everybody, but it is an...
The complicated romance between the legendary composer and the actress is an across-the-board contender in Gold Derby’s Oscar odds, with Rotten Tomatoes rating it 81% fresh. The consensus from critics reads, “Led by a pair of powerful performances, ‘Maestro’ serves as a stirring overview of a tremendous talent’s life and legacy.” Read our full review round-up below.
See Oscars upheaval: Bradley Cooper (‘Maestro’) will win Best Actor, according to the most Experts
Jo-Ann Titmarsh of London Evening Standard writes, “Like Bernstein’s music, this movie won’t appeal to everybody, but it is an...
- 11/25/2023
- by Vincent Mandile
- Gold Derby
26 October 2023 — Directed, written, produced by, and starring Bradley Cooper in the title role, opposite Carey Mulligan, Maestro is a towering and fearless love story chronicling the lifelong relationship between Leonard Bernstein and Felicia Montealegre Cohn Bernstein. A love letter to life and art, Maestro at its core is an emotionally epic portrayal of family and love. Deutsche Grammophon is delighted to be releasing the original soundtrack album for the movie, which has already garnered widespread critical acclaim. All the music in the film was chosen by Cooper, and the new recordings on the soundtrack were made by the London Symphony Orchestra and Yannick Nézet-Séguin, who also worked closely with the actor-director as conducting consultant before and throughout the film-making process.
The album will be released digitally on November 17, 2023, and on CD and vinyl on December 1. A taster track featuring an excerpt from the Finale of Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 “Resurrection”, with soprano Rosa Feola,...
The album will be released digitally on November 17, 2023, and on CD and vinyl on December 1. A taster track featuring an excerpt from the Finale of Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 “Resurrection”, with soprano Rosa Feola,...
- 10/27/2023
- by Music Martin Cid Magazine
- Martin Cid Music
Gkids has announced the acquisition of the North American rights for the upcoming French sci-fi animation film “Mars Express,” directed by Jérémie Perin in his feature debut.
The film’s synopsis reads: “In 2200, private detective Aline Ruby and her android partner Carlos Rivera are hired by a wealthy businessman to track down a notorious hacker. On Mars, they descend deep into the underbelly of the planet’s capital city where they uncover a darker story of brain farms, corruption, and a missing girl who holds a secret about the robots that threatens to change the face of the universe.”
Perin’s debut was part of the official selection at the Cannes and Annecy film festivals this year.
“Mars Express’ is a film we have been excited about for years, since we saw the very first footage,” said Gkids president David Jesteadt. “This is a timely and provocative story set in...
The film’s synopsis reads: “In 2200, private detective Aline Ruby and her android partner Carlos Rivera are hired by a wealthy businessman to track down a notorious hacker. On Mars, they descend deep into the underbelly of the planet’s capital city where they uncover a darker story of brain farms, corruption, and a missing girl who holds a secret about the robots that threatens to change the face of the universe.”
Perin’s debut was part of the official selection at the Cannes and Annecy film festivals this year.
“Mars Express’ is a film we have been excited about for years, since we saw the very first footage,” said Gkids president David Jesteadt. “This is a timely and provocative story set in...
- 10/26/2023
- by Jazz Tangcay, Caroline Brew and Jaden Thompson
- Variety Film + TV
The Philharmonia announces the second half of its 2023/24 Season at Southbank Centre, with Santtu-Matias Rouvali as Principal Conductor of the Orchestra.
To open the second half of the season, Santtu-Matias Rouvali will conduct singer Julia Bullock, one of the Philharmonia’s Featured Artists, taking on life’s big topics – love, death, nature, heaven – in a Romantic pairing of Berlioz and Mahler (1 Feb).
The Philharmonia conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen with soprano Julia Bullock perform Ravel and Britten in the Royal Festival Hall, which is being live streamed on Thursday 29 October 2020. Photo by Mark Allan
Julia Bullock brings her mixed-media project History’s Persistent Voice to London on 2 February, shining a light on the words, work and experiences of Black American artists. Bullock commissioned the songs in the project from leading Black women composers. Jessie Montgomery reimagines songs from an anthology collected just after the American Civil War, recording the music of...
To open the second half of the season, Santtu-Matias Rouvali will conduct singer Julia Bullock, one of the Philharmonia’s Featured Artists, taking on life’s big topics – love, death, nature, heaven – in a Romantic pairing of Berlioz and Mahler (1 Feb).
The Philharmonia conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen with soprano Julia Bullock perform Ravel and Britten in the Royal Festival Hall, which is being live streamed on Thursday 29 October 2020. Photo by Mark Allan
Julia Bullock brings her mixed-media project History’s Persistent Voice to London on 2 February, shining a light on the words, work and experiences of Black American artists. Bullock commissioned the songs in the project from leading Black women composers. Jessie Montgomery reimagines songs from an anthology collected just after the American Civil War, recording the music of...
- 10/24/2023
- by Music Martin Cid Magazine
- Martin Cid Music
Bradley Cooper’s Maestro opens presumptuously with a quote that Leonard Bernstein uttered during a lecture he gave at Harvard University in 1976: “A work of art does not answer questions, it provokes them; and its essential meaning is in the tension between the contradictory answers.” To some degree, the quote encapsulates Cooper and co-writer Josh Singer’s mosaic-like method in attempting to capture Bernstein as a human being—one that lays the man’s contradictions bare without overt psychologizing. It also, though, inevitably raises the question of whether Cooper’s film approaches the breadth and majesty of its subject.
Maybe no biopic, however sensitively done, can come close to encompassing the entirety of Bernstein’s life. This was a man so filled with passion for music in all its forms that he couldn’t help but let it out not only in the music he composed, but also on...
Maybe no biopic, however sensitively done, can come close to encompassing the entirety of Bernstein’s life. This was a man so filled with passion for music in all its forms that he couldn’t help but let it out not only in the music he composed, but also on...
- 10/5/2023
- by Kenji Fujishima
- Slant Magazine
We can tell something is amiss the moment Nina (Maren Eggert) smiles and reminds her son Lars (Jona Levin Nicolai) that they only have “ten days left.” The way she says it carries a shared understanding. That he knew she’d be swamped with rehearsals gearing up for the concert she’s conducting. That he agreed to give her that space and time. So why does he look so pained? Why does her inability to not answer her phone make him so angry? What has changed? What hasn’t she realized yet?
Writer-director Hanna Antonina Wojcik Slak wastes little time providing the answer once Not a Word moves from their home to school. Hidden behind the group of boys Lars approaches after being ignored yet again by his mother is a photo memorial for a student. We don’t need details to know it was a tragic death. Whether suicide,...
Writer-director Hanna Antonina Wojcik Slak wastes little time providing the answer once Not a Word moves from their home to school. Hidden behind the group of boys Lars approaches after being ignored yet again by his mother is a photo memorial for a student. We don’t need details to know it was a tragic death. Whether suicide,...
- 9/11/2023
- by Jared Mobarak
- The Film Stage
Easily clearing the sophomore slump and proving that 2018’s surprisingly vibrant “A Star is Born” was hardly a one-off, Bradley Cooper’s “Maestro” bolsters the writer/director/producer/star’s Mo as a contemporary jack-of-all-trades with an Old Hollywood soul. Hell, even the Cooper-produced “Joker” pulled from a similar songbook, dusting off reliable American cinema standards and giving them a fresh new spin.
Viewed in that light, this prestige pic’s curious indifference to many of the artistic qualities and career triumphs that made Leonard Bernstein such a coveted biopic subject make a lot more sense. “Maestro” does not go behind the music – it’s here to put on a show.
And in Leonard Bernstein – the only composer/conductor/highbrow-celebrity to earn a shout-out in an R.E.M. song – Cooper sees a similar type. The film tells us right from the start, opening on an aged-Bernstein alone before his piano.
Viewed in that light, this prestige pic’s curious indifference to many of the artistic qualities and career triumphs that made Leonard Bernstein such a coveted biopic subject make a lot more sense. “Maestro” does not go behind the music – it’s here to put on a show.
And in Leonard Bernstein – the only composer/conductor/highbrow-celebrity to earn a shout-out in an R.E.M. song – Cooper sees a similar type. The film tells us right from the start, opening on an aged-Bernstein alone before his piano.
- 9/2/2023
- by Ben Croll
- The Wrap
“Not a Word,” which is being sold by international sales agency Beta Cinema, will have its world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival in the competitive Platform section. Variety speaks to the film’s writer-director, Hanna Slak, and debuts its trailer.
“Not a Word” tells the story of a relationship crisis between a parent and her teenage son. Maren Eggert, who won the best acting award at the Berlin Film Festival for “I’m Your Man,” plays an ambitious orchestra conductor, Nina. Jona Levin Nicolai plays her moody son, Lars. Following the death of a girl at Lars’ school, the boy has a mysterious accident, but refuses to talk about it. Nina decides to take a break from city life and together they head to their vacation home on an island on the rugged Atlantic coast. As a storm gathers, their brittle relationship, wreathed in silence, is pushed to breaking point.
“Not a Word” tells the story of a relationship crisis between a parent and her teenage son. Maren Eggert, who won the best acting award at the Berlin Film Festival for “I’m Your Man,” plays an ambitious orchestra conductor, Nina. Jona Levin Nicolai plays her moody son, Lars. Following the death of a girl at Lars’ school, the boy has a mysterious accident, but refuses to talk about it. Nina decides to take a break from city life and together they head to their vacation home on an island on the rugged Atlantic coast. As a storm gathers, their brittle relationship, wreathed in silence, is pushed to breaking point.
- 8/29/2023
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
Bradley Cooper‘s Maestro, a biopic about composer Leonard Bernstein and his wife Felicia Montealegre that he co-wrote, directed, and stars in, looks set to become an award season contender once it premieres at the 80th Venice International Film Festival in September. But if it’s recognized for makeup design, you can expect some controversy.
Netflix rolled out the first teaser for the drama on Tuesday, featuring lush shots of Cooper as Bernstein with Carey Mulligan as Montealegre, set to the fourth movement of Mahler’s Symphony No. 5. Some were...
Netflix rolled out the first teaser for the drama on Tuesday, featuring lush shots of Cooper as Bernstein with Carey Mulligan as Montealegre, set to the fourth movement of Mahler’s Symphony No. 5. Some were...
- 8/16/2023
- by Miles Klee
- Rollingstone.com
Beta Cinema has boarded international sales on “Not a Word,” which will have its world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival in the competitive Platform section. The cast is led by Maren Eggert, who won the best acting award at the Berlin Film Festival for “I’m Your Man.”
The film is written and directed by Hanna Slak, whose credits include the Slovenian Oscar entry “The Miner,” and was lensed by Claire Mathon, the cinematographer of “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” “Saint-Omer,” “Stranger by the Lake” and “Spencer.”
Eggert plays ambitious musician and conductor Nina. When her teenage son, Lars, has a strange accident at school, she decides to take a break from city life and together they head to their vacation home on an island on the rugged Atlantic coast. Bound in silence, their already brittle relationship is pushed to the edge.
Jona Levin Nicolai co-stars as the provocative teenage son while Maryam Zaree,...
The film is written and directed by Hanna Slak, whose credits include the Slovenian Oscar entry “The Miner,” and was lensed by Claire Mathon, the cinematographer of “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” “Saint-Omer,” “Stranger by the Lake” and “Spencer.”
Eggert plays ambitious musician and conductor Nina. When her teenage son, Lars, has a strange accident at school, she decides to take a break from city life and together they head to their vacation home on an island on the rugged Atlantic coast. Bound in silence, their already brittle relationship is pushed to the edge.
Jona Levin Nicolai co-stars as the provocative teenage son while Maryam Zaree,...
- 8/2/2023
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
I love idiosyncrasy. Even if I’m not as into Idea X as a creator is, the fact that creator is so into it is appealing – I like to see the things creators are passionate about, the things they have to do, even if it doesn’t make commercial sense.
P. Craig Russell adapts operas into comics. He’s been doing it since nearly the beginning of his career, and I see from his bibliography list on Wikipedia that he has a few adaptations of songs from this past decade, though they’re still unpublished.
And what I have today is the second book collecting that work, the grandly titled The P. Craig Russell Library of Opera Adapations, Vol. 2 . It’s a 2003 book, collecting four adaptations spanning the late ’70s to the late ’90s, and Russell worked with different collaborators on each of them, some more involved than others. I...
P. Craig Russell adapts operas into comics. He’s been doing it since nearly the beginning of his career, and I see from his bibliography list on Wikipedia that he has a few adaptations of songs from this past decade, though they’re still unpublished.
And what I have today is the second book collecting that work, the grandly titled The P. Craig Russell Library of Opera Adapations, Vol. 2 . It’s a 2003 book, collecting four adaptations spanning the late ’70s to the late ’90s, and Russell worked with different collaborators on each of them, some more involved than others. I...
- 7/26/2023
- by Andrew Wheeler
- Comicmix.com
Prince William and Kate Middleton have been more affectionate to one another in public over the past year. A body language expert claims the “gorgeous” couple’s Pda has been inspired by none other than the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.
Kate Middleton and Prince William’s Pda at the Out-Sourcing Inc. Royal Charity Polo Cup 2023 at Guards Polo Club on July 06, 2023, in Egham, England | Charlie Crowhurst/Getty Images Prince William and Kate Middleton’s Pda inspired by Prince Harry, and Meghan Markle says body language expert
Body language expert Louise Mahler believes Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have inspired Prince William and Kate Middleton’s recent Pda. Historically the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have always been affectionate toward one another, in stark contrast to the Prince and Princess of Wales, who are more reserved.
On the morning show Sunrise, Kate and William’s...
Kate Middleton and Prince William’s Pda at the Out-Sourcing Inc. Royal Charity Polo Cup 2023 at Guards Polo Club on July 06, 2023, in Egham, England | Charlie Crowhurst/Getty Images Prince William and Kate Middleton’s Pda inspired by Prince Harry, and Meghan Markle says body language expert
Body language expert Louise Mahler believes Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have inspired Prince William and Kate Middleton’s recent Pda. Historically the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have always been affectionate toward one another, in stark contrast to the Prince and Princess of Wales, who are more reserved.
On the morning show Sunrise, Kate and William’s...
- 7/19/2023
- by Lucille Barilla
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
When asked about her age, Afro-Indigenous-Venezuelan producer and songwriter Gotopo doesn’t give an exact number. Instead, her answer sounds like one of the lyrics of Sacúdete, her recent debut EP.
“I am older than all the trees that surround me,” she tells Rolling Stone via Zoom one afternoon from a studio in Berlin. “The good thing is I can’t remember my age. That’s why my life works — because I can’t remember exactly that age.”
Such a statement describes Gotopo’s project very well. Since her debut single,...
“I am older than all the trees that surround me,” she tells Rolling Stone via Zoom one afternoon from a studio in Berlin. “The good thing is I can’t remember my age. That’s why my life works — because I can’t remember exactly that age.”
Such a statement describes Gotopo’s project very well. Since her debut single,...
- 7/5/2023
- by Juan de Dios Sánchez Jurado
- Rollingstone.com
After teasing fans on Twitter last week regarding “The Final Transmission” Dlc for The Callisto Protocol, Striking Distance Studios and publisher Krafton have revealed more about the upcoming story content over at PlayStation Blog. The upcoming Dlc, which drops on June 27 for PlayStation owners (June 29 for Xbox and PC), includes new story content, a new weapon, and new Biophage threats.
The story for “The Final Transmission” takes place after the main story for The Callisto Protocol, and sees Jacob still having to contend with the virus that’s been wreaking havoc inside Black Iron. It’s now threatening to escape the prison, and it’s up to you to retrieve Mahler’s data and transmit it off-world in order to prevent another disaster.
Obviously, things aren’t so simple. The Biophage are still very much lurking in the facility, and with the new threats, you’ll need some new weaponry.
The story for “The Final Transmission” takes place after the main story for The Callisto Protocol, and sees Jacob still having to contend with the virus that’s been wreaking havoc inside Black Iron. It’s now threatening to escape the prison, and it’s up to you to retrieve Mahler’s data and transmit it off-world in order to prevent another disaster.
Obviously, things aren’t so simple. The Biophage are still very much lurking in the facility, and with the new threats, you’ll need some new weaponry.
- 6/23/2023
- by Mike Wilson
- bloody-disgusting.com
Kate Middleton has spent more than a decade cultivating her royal persona. The Princess of Wales has become a beacon of light within the House of Windsor for her unflappable personality, ability to adapt to any circumstance, and, most of all, as a stellar representation of the monarchy’s future. A body language expert calls Kate a “glistening diamond” who has her royal persona “down to perfection.”
Kate Middleton appears at the Foundling Museum to meet those with lived experience of the care system, foster carers, and adoptive parents to hear about their experiences on May 25, 2023 | Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images Kate Middleton has become the face of the monarchy’s future
Kate Middleton appears to have become the face of the monarchy’s future. Prince William’s wife, who does not have a royal bloodline, plays just as vital a role in the royal family as any other of its senior members.
Kate Middleton appears at the Foundling Museum to meet those with lived experience of the care system, foster carers, and adoptive parents to hear about their experiences on May 25, 2023 | Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images Kate Middleton has become the face of the monarchy’s future
Kate Middleton appears to have become the face of the monarchy’s future. Prince William’s wife, who does not have a royal bloodline, plays just as vital a role in the royal family as any other of its senior members.
- 5/30/2023
- by Lucille Barilla
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
This post contains spoilers for "Tár." This piece also discusses sexual assault, abuse, and suicide. Reader discretion is advised.
When Todd Field courted financiers to produce his screenplay about a world-famous fictional composer who fell from grace, he warned them directly on the page, stating that "this will not be a reasonable film." His 92-page screenplay somehow detailed a two-and-a-half-hour epic, with many long, lingering shots that feel deeply voyeuristic.
"Tár" is a complicated film dealing with painfully complex issues, introducing us to Lydia Tár (Cate Blanchett), an incredibly famous composer and conductor who heads up the Berlin Philharmonic. She is wildly talented, charismatic, and a little terrifying, with the kind of larger-than-life presence that you can practically feel through the screen. She's also an egomaniac who uses her power to manipulate and sexually abuse the young women seeking her mentorship, even blacklisting those who speak up against her in any way after the fact.
When Todd Field courted financiers to produce his screenplay about a world-famous fictional composer who fell from grace, he warned them directly on the page, stating that "this will not be a reasonable film." His 92-page screenplay somehow detailed a two-and-a-half-hour epic, with many long, lingering shots that feel deeply voyeuristic.
"Tár" is a complicated film dealing with painfully complex issues, introducing us to Lydia Tár (Cate Blanchett), an incredibly famous composer and conductor who heads up the Berlin Philharmonic. She is wildly talented, charismatic, and a little terrifying, with the kind of larger-than-life presence that you can practically feel through the screen. She's also an egomaniac who uses her power to manipulate and sexually abuse the young women seeking her mentorship, even blacklisting those who speak up against her in any way after the fact.
- 5/13/2023
- by Danielle Ryan
- Slash Film
Robert Schumann is one of the most renowned composers in classical music history. His compositions were groundbreaking, often pushing the boundaries of what was thought possible with music.
His works are a reflection of his life and his experiences, and they allow us an insight into his inner turmoil and his genius. If you want to understand Schumann’s music, it is important to look at who he was and how he lived.
Through this article we will explore Robert Schumann’s works in depth and understand the man behind them. We will see how his struggles with mental health affected his work, as well as how this same work might have helped him overcome those struggles. We will uncover the stories that lie just beneath the surface of each composition, and understand what it was about Schumann’s music that made it so unique and beloved by many.
Overview...
His works are a reflection of his life and his experiences, and they allow us an insight into his inner turmoil and his genius. If you want to understand Schumann’s music, it is important to look at who he was and how he lived.
Through this article we will explore Robert Schumann’s works in depth and understand the man behind them. We will see how his struggles with mental health affected his work, as well as how this same work might have helped him overcome those struggles. We will uncover the stories that lie just beneath the surface of each composition, and understand what it was about Schumann’s music that made it so unique and beloved by many.
Overview...
- 3/27/2023
- by Music Martin Cid Magazine
- Martin Cid Music
Dmitri Shostakovich is one of the most acclaimed and respected composers in history.
His music is renowned for its emotional depth, its powerful emotive qualities, and its evocative instrumentation. His works are often considered to be some of the finest examples of classical music in the 20th century. They have been performed by many great orchestras throughout the world, as well as by smaller ensembles and soloists.
This article delves into the life and works of Dmitri Shostakovich, exploring his inspirations, influences and achievements. We will look at his most famous works such as his symphonies, his chamber music and his vocal compositions. Finally, we will discover some interesting facts about this great composer that you may not know.
Life and Music of Dmitri Shostakovich
Dmitri Shostakovich was one of the most influential and acclaimed composers of the 20th century. Born in 1906 in Saint Petersburg, Russia, Shostakovich was a musical...
His music is renowned for its emotional depth, its powerful emotive qualities, and its evocative instrumentation. His works are often considered to be some of the finest examples of classical music in the 20th century. They have been performed by many great orchestras throughout the world, as well as by smaller ensembles and soloists.
This article delves into the life and works of Dmitri Shostakovich, exploring his inspirations, influences and achievements. We will look at his most famous works such as his symphonies, his chamber music and his vocal compositions. Finally, we will discover some interesting facts about this great composer that you may not know.
Life and Music of Dmitri Shostakovich
Dmitri Shostakovich was one of the most influential and acclaimed composers of the 20th century. Born in 1906 in Saint Petersburg, Russia, Shostakovich was a musical...
- 3/24/2023
- by Music Martin Cid Magazine
- Martin Cid Music
Todd Field has only made three feature films, but all of them have been critically acclaimed and nominated for Academy Awards. His latest film "TÁR" is a sleek, calculated portrayal of a trailblazing German Orchestra conductor who will be performing Mahler's Fifth Symphony. Her esteemed career implodes after she is accused of manipulating her impressionable young students and sabotaging their careers, even causing one to take her own life. She also has a heated dispute with a Bipoc pangender Juilliard student about Bach's misogyny blasted on social media.
Todd Field's work has been described as "Kubrickian," which makes sense considering he played the pianist in "Eyes Wide Shut" and learned a lot about the directorial process while working with the celebrated auteur. We can see a lot of Kubrick's influence in both "TÁR" and Field's previous film, "Little Children." Similarly, Field has a crisp visual style that supports richly detailed characters.
Todd Field's work has been described as "Kubrickian," which makes sense considering he played the pianist in "Eyes Wide Shut" and learned a lot about the directorial process while working with the celebrated auteur. We can see a lot of Kubrick's influence in both "TÁR" and Field's previous film, "Little Children." Similarly, Field has a crisp visual style that supports richly detailed characters.
- 3/17/2023
- by Caroline Madden
- Slash Film
Cate Blanchett is not an actor who skims a screenplay when she’s considering it. “I read scripts very, very slowly,” she says, “but this one I read incredibly quickly. I knew from the get-go that it was about really big things — metaphysical, existential things that I was interested in — so I read it very quickly and said yes immediately.” She turns to Todd Field, the writer-director of the film in question, “Tár,” and says, “And you crashed your car.”
On this chilly Sunday afternoon in mid-November, Blanchett has made the long trip to Los Angeles from Australia, where she’s been in production. She’s here to attend the Governors Awards as a formidable Oscar contender, having given one of the most rapturously reviewed performances of her career as Lydia Tár — troubled, lesbian, world-famous conductor of a major orchestra in Berlin. She’s sitting next to Field, who, it’s true,...
On this chilly Sunday afternoon in mid-November, Blanchett has made the long trip to Los Angeles from Australia, where she’s been in production. She’s here to attend the Governors Awards as a formidable Oscar contender, having given one of the most rapturously reviewed performances of her career as Lydia Tár — troubled, lesbian, world-famous conductor of a major orchestra in Berlin. She’s sitting next to Field, who, it’s true,...
- 1/5/2023
- by Kate Aurthur
- Variety Film + TV
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