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Aside from actors walking the red carpet at the upfront, the extra attention from USA's new corporate parent hasn't yet trickled down to individual shows. "On a day-to-day basis," says Mr. Nix, the creator of "Burn Notice" and its lead character Michael Westen, "whether Michael breaks through a wall or a ceiling is a much bigger part of our daily life than Comcast."

Nice expose on the USA Network. Say what you will about their shows (if you hate them), you can't argue with success.

‘Thor’: Kenneth Branagh’s new quest with his childhood favorite

“It’s definitely helpful to have a director who is also an actor, as long as he’s a good director, too, and Ken is a good director,” Skarsgård said. “You work with some directors who are afraid of actors. They don’t what to use them for really, all they are is bodies moving around in their images. Ken is very different. He knows when an actor is uncomfortable… His take on this kind of movie is he wants to bring authentic psychology to the characters so they become three-dimensional human beings in this big fantasy film.”

I'm excited to see Thor, especially because of Branagh's directing. One of my friends worked on the film as his assistant and she said the entire thing looks amazing.

3D porn film beats Avatar at Hong Kong box office

A Hong Kong movie billed as the world's first 3D porn film has broken the city's first-day box office record previously set by Hollywood blockbuster Avatar.

Only thing that will beat this is 3D Avatar porn!

Bipartisan legislation takes aim at online piracy

Although the crackdown is being driven by the Hollywood entertainment industry, it has the strong support of authors, photographers, book publishers, the sports industry, labor unions and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Crackdown supporters cited estimates that online piracy costs the U.S. economy more than $100 billion a year. And as more commerce moves online, the threat to the legitimate economy grows, they said.

It's good to see the government finally acting on this, but it won't really stop piracy because, as stated in the article, most sites are based out of the country. So unless this starts a chain reaction on a global level, it really won't do much.

#Piracy #Government #Google

Small theater operators weigh digital conversion

After years of delays, the century-old movie exhibition business is finally embracing digital technology. Equipment suppliers can barely keep up with the demand. About 800 to 900 digital screens are being added each month to theaters large and small nationwide, allowing them to screen 3-D movies, beam live sporting and music events and deliver sharper, scratch free images to audiences.

But hundreds of small theater operators such as the Kims have yet to get with the digital program — and may be left out if they don't act soon.

This is sad to hear about these smaller theaters, but I think there's a silver lining. At a theater in LA, they play older movies from their original prints. I loved watching Indian Jones on the big screen, and it was hilarious to see the original coming attractions that played in front of them. So maybe these one screen theaters should take this approach.

#Exhibition #Digital #Conversion

Reese Witherspoon gets a little disordered

She's moved easily between big studio projects and smaller films throughout her career, but "Water for Elephants" is something of a hybrid. It's a roughly $40-million adult drama — a genre that's had a hard time making it at the box office in recent years — but it's based on a bestselling novel by Sara Gruen and costars one of the hottest properties in town in Pattinson.

I haven't been a big fan of Reese Witherspoon in recent years, but this could change that. I've not read the book, but the trailer looks great. Check it out here.

I also hope it helps Pattinson get out of the crappy Twilight sphere. He is the only one in those movies who can actually act (though not in the movie).

Fairy tales with a twist

Unlike Hollywood's fascination with disposable pop-culture names — say, "Transformers," or the upcoming "Footloose" — fairy-tale movies toy with the sacred. In paying tribute to (and deriving marketing benefits from) these classic texts, Hollywood executives are, in a sense, hoping to have their gingerbread and eat it too. They want reinvention, but they also know they need tradition.

I've read a lot of these new fairy tale scripts and they are awful. I was a huge champion of the Alice in Wonderland remake from Tim Burton (I've thought so ever since I revisited the animated movie 15 years ago) and thought he did a great job, but that is because of Burton, not the fairy tale.

I am actually very interested to see how Hansel and Gretel works out because I loved the director's previous work, Dead Snow. It's a stupid movie, but it's fun and memorable. Let's see how this new Hollywood trend plays out.

Life in a time of 'Rio:' Just how dominant could animation get?

Tweens, comedy lovers and fanboys may be considered the most prized constituencies in moviedom, but none of them turn out like an animated film's core audience.

I think animated movies dominate because so much time is spent on them that they have to perfect it. You cannot work on a project for 2-4 years and not notice a huge plot hole and lack of character development. Someone, somewhere along the way has to point out the crap and fix it.

Financing the Hand That Slaps (or Nibbles) You

“We saw all these blockbusters getting made with co-promotion and wondered if we could make a ‘doc-buster,’ using a similar approach,” he said. “You want people to be reminded about this movie that’s ‘coming soon to a theater near you,’ so whether that was a place where you got a cup of coffee or a place where you got something to eat or a place where you bought a shirt or you name it, a hotel, an airline, you’re going to be exposed to this film.”

Gotta love Morgan Spurlock, he's a genius with some of his documentaries. I want to see this one, but no way I'm gonna shell out $10+ for a ticket. Netflix it is!

A Kingmaker in the Realm of Cheapie Horror

“Larry validated us by thinking we were talented,” said the director Ti West, whose first feature, “The Roost,” was among ScareFlix’s initial offerings and brought Mr. West a cult following of his own. “The movies have done well, but mainly I really enjoy having Larry as a part of my life.”

It's nice to know that there are still people in the entertainment industry who seek to mentor others. This is a great look indie the micro-budget indie world.

Premium VOD Is a 'Viable' Model, Google Report Claims

Based on its analysis of search-engine activity during all phases of a movie's release, Google released a report that said the data "supports the viability of a new 60-day window," which is what several studios have proposed, angering movie exhibitors and prompting talk of reprisals.

Another view on the studios vs. theaters VOD debate. I like this one mainly for the end where it talks about search results, especially how Netflix has become ubiquitous with home entertainment.

Movie Theaters Should Think Like Netflix

The key point is this: each customer gets to create her own access point at any theater across the entire United States. Think of it as choosing your own screen much like Netflix allows you to do. Then I put in my credit card and agree to pay $10 per month ($120 per year) and receive a movie pass to these two theaters. This movie pass allows me to go to any movie at any time at each of these theaters.

This is an interesting theory, but it would never work because studios would lose too much money. Theaters would love it because it would continually bring customers in who will buy concessions, but studios will lose a lot of profit.

Say someone did this over the summer when everyone is out of school. You have people paying $10 a month (in LA this is the bottom price for tickets) when they want to see every movie coming out. Maybe this could work with a higher monthly price, but for now it seems like this would only work at dollar theaters.

#Netflix #Subscription #TribecaFilm

Film Studies: Chapman University wants to overtake USC and NYU

The school's state-of-the-art Dodge College of Film and Media Arts launches a for-profit movie company to train its students and raise its profile.

I think it's a great idea that they are trying to be a for-profit school with their films, especially when there are great talents there. At USC, they help you a lot with film festival submissions, but any films made using their equipment is considered USC property, not your own.

I am biased because I went to USC, but if Chapman can emphasize their physical production program over "film theories", then it has a shot of contending with the big boys.

Director Max Winkler's persistence pays off

"Really, I just found myself talking to a young man I'd known since I was a child who was about to start the same journey I had just begun," Reitman wrote in an e-mail. "I tried to relay pitfalls and obstacles that I had encountered. [But] the truth was that Max had the complete movie in his head and knew how to make it."

I knew of Max Winkler while I was at USC (he was on the football field with his dad all the time), but I never knew he was at the film school. It's amazing to see what a young guy can do and it's great motivation for everyone else his age.

James Caan is more than just a 'tough guy'

"I just lost a couple of movies," he lamented in a recent interview. "They said we don't want a tough guy. I said excuse me, I am an actor. That is what I do for a living. You know it's frustrating. I said to my agent, if I am the last guy on the list they could possibly think for a particular role, those are the ones I want to go after. That's the fun. "

I've liked James Caan ever since the Godfather and a lot of roles since. His upcoming film Henry's Crime looks pretty funny and good, so check it out. Here's the trailer

Hulu is popular, but that wasn't the goal

Once hailed as the networks' solution in taming the Internet, Hulu's stunning success is now undermining the very system it was designed to protect, forcing the site's owners to reconsider what Hulu should be.

I think TV networks are overreacting about Hulu cutting into their potential profits. Sure some people will cut their cable and create a home entertainment system with their computer, but the majority of people are not that tech savvy. It will be another generation before that becomes standard, and by then they will (or should) have figured out a way to integrate them both.

If anything, this is great for consumers. I am tired of paying $100+ a month for cable when I rarely watch more than a handful of channels. Maybe Hulu's popularity will make these companies rethink their methods and will have to lower their costs to compete.

#Hulu #los angeles times

The Vudu pix can do

Through its website, however, Vudu's library will now go mobile and be accessible via computers and tablets without the need to download software or any video files.

Remember when the writer's strike happened and everyone was complaining that they were fighting over pennies? Well looks like the writers were right since there is now big competition over streaming rights. Hulu alone is making about $500 million a year. I think Vudu will have a leg up on the competition mainly because its library is accessible on all digital devices.

#variety #Walmart #Vudu #Netflix

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