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Thursday, Apr. 2, 2020

COVID-19 Has Met Its Match In Caleb & Calder Sloan's Awesome Foundation

Chris Sloan (l) and Carla Kaufman Sloan

Caleb & Calder Sloan’s Awesome Foundation--the charity of Chris Sloan and Carla Kaufman Sloan, founders of 2C Creative, a creative agency and production company serving the TV/streaming business with promos, brand integrations, trailers, upfront presentations and other campaigns--has initiated a campaign that will match individual donations (up to $250 each) to charities supporting first responders, organizations and those affected by COVID-19.

So far, the Foundation’s COVID-19 Has Met Its Match campaign has raised some $50,000 and counting. While the initial deadline date for people to participate was April 6, this has now been extended to April 13.

Click here (and scroll down) for more info on the Met Its Match program and to get a list of charities the Awesome Foundation has vetted and donated to--or donors can choose their own related charities. People can double More

Thursday, Apr. 2, 2020

DiCaprio, others launch $12M coronavirus relief food fund

In this Feb. 9, 2020, file photo, Leonardo DiCaprio arrives at the Oscars in Los Angeles. DiCaprio is helping to launch the $12 million America’s Food Fund aimed at helping low-income families, the elderly and those whose jobs have been disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic. Among those teaming up for the launch are philanthropist Laurene Powell Jobs, Apple and the Ford Foundation. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File)

By Jonathan Landrum Jr., Entertainment Writer

LOS ANGELES (AP) --

Leonardo DiCaprio will help launch America's Food Fund, which has already raised $12 million to help communities impacted by the coronavirus.

The organization said Thursday that the funds will be aimed to help low-income families, the elderly, individuals facing job disruptions and children who rely on school lunch programs.

The food fund will work with hunger relief organizations World Central Kitchen and Feeding America.

DiCaprio serves as a co-founder of America's Food Fund with philanthropist Laurene Powell Jobs. Apple and the Ford Foundation are also providing money to help launch the new initiative.

"In the face of this crisis, organizations like World Central Kitchen and Feeding America have inspired us all with their unwavering commitment to feed the most vulnerable people in need," DiCaprio said in a statement. "I thank them for their tireless work on the frontlines, they deserve all of our support."

The new More

Wednesday, Apr. 1, 2020

"Wicked" movie release delayed, "Minions" pushed to 2021

This image released by Illumination Entertainment and Universal Pictures shows characters, from left, Kevin, Gru, voiced by Steve Carell and Stuart in a scene from "Minions: The Rise of Gru." Universal Pictures said Thursday, March 19, 2020, that the animated film will not be completed by July 3 due to circumstances surrounding the coronavirus. (Illumination Entertainment and Universal Pictures via AP)

LOS ANGELES (AP) --

"Wicked" fans are going to have to wait even longer to see Stephen Daldry's film adaptation of the popular Broadway musical. Universal Pictures on Wednesday announced that another handful of theatrical release dates are shifting due to the coronavirus pandemic, which has bumped "Wicked" off the calendar entirely for the moment.

The studio said that "Minions: The Rise of Gru," which was unable to be finished for its planned summer 2020 release because of the outbreak, is being pushed back a year to July 2021. "Sing 2" will now come out on "Wicked's" original date of December 22, 2021.

Hollywood studios have been scrambling to revise business plans amid the pandemic, which has closed theaters nationwide and halted productions indefinitely. The summer movie season has already taken a hit, with the recent postponements of "Wonder Woman 1984," "F9" and "Ghostbusters: Afterlife." And a handful of films have been taken off the calendar More

Tuesday, Mar. 31, 2020

CNN's Cuomo says he has coronavirus, has shown symptoms

This May 15, 2019 file photo shows CNN news anchor Chris Cuomo at the WarnerMedia Upfront in New York. Cuomo has announced that he has tested positive for the coronavirus. The prime-time host is one of the most visible media figures to come down with the disease. He said he's experienced chills, fever and shortness of breath. He promised to continue doing his show while in quarantine in the basement of his home. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)

By David Bauder, Media Writer

NEW YORK (AP) --

CNN's Chris Cuomo announced Tuesday that he has tested positive for the coronavirus but promised to continue doing his prime-time show from the basement of his home.

Cuomo, who looked a little pale while doing his 9 p.m. Eastern show remotely Monday, said he's had fever, chills and shortness of breath.

"I just hope I didn't give it to the kids and Cristina," the 49-year-old newsman tweeted, in a reference to his wife.

Cuomo's older brother, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, has been one of the most visible political figures during the pandemic, and appeared on his brother's show via remote link on Monday.

The governor discussed his younger brother during his daily press briefing Tuesday morning, using it as a cautionary tale. He noted that he had scolded Chris for having their 88-year-old mother, Matilda, visiting Chris' home two weeks ago.

"It's my family, it's your family, it's all of our families," he said. "This virus is More

Tuesday, Mar. 31, 2020

StormStock’s Lisius wins cinematography honor at International Innovation Film Fest

"Prairie Wind"

ARLINGTON, Tex. --

Prairie Pictures cinematographer and StormStock founder Martin Lisius was awarded “Best Cinematography” honors at this month’s International Innovation Film Festival in Bern, Switzerland. The award was presented for his short film Prairie Wind, which he shot and produced on 16K video. The film features storms he captured over a three-month period in America’s “Tornado Alley” region of the Great Plains. “Storms offer us a glimpse of what our world once was, and inspires us to protect and preserve what remains,” Lisius said. “I wanted to create a medium as large as the sky. 16K offers the tremendous resolution depth needed to pull that off.”

Lisius shot the production utilizing a 16K camera system and workflow he developed. During postproduction, 12,000 stills were stitched together to create one 15,985 x 5792-pixel image using a Mac Pro workstation. Each shot required five days to prepare, with the computer running around the clock. More

Tuesday, Mar. 31, 2020

Florida sheriff wants new leads following Netflix "Tiger King" series

This notice posted on the Twitter account of Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister on Monday, March 30, 2020, seeks the public's help for new leads in the disappearance of Jack "Don" Lewis, the former husband of a big cat sanctuary owner featured in the new Netflix series “Tiger King.” Chronister posted that the popularity of the seven-part documentary made it a good time to ask for new leads in Lewis' 1997 disappearance. (Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister via AP)

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) --

A Florida sheriff is asking for new leads in the disappearance of the former husband of a big cat sanctuary owner featured in the new Netflix series "Tiger King."

Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister posted on his personal Twitter account Monday that the popularity of the seven-part documentary made it a good time to ask for new leads in the 1997 disappearance of Jack "Don" Lewis. He was married to Carole Baskin, who runs Big Cat Rescue near Tampa.

Lewis went missing shortly before a planned business trip to Costa Rica, investigators said shortly after his disappearance. His van was found near a Pasco County airport. Deputies searched the wildlife sanctuary he ran with his wife, but he was never found in Florida nor Costa Rica.

"Tiger King" tells the story of an Oklahoma zookeeper named Joseph Maldonado-Passage, also known as "Joe Exotic," who was sentenced to 22 years in federal prison this year after being convicted in an More

Tuesday, Mar. 31, 2020

"Ghostbusters," "Morbius" postponed to 2021 due to virus

In this Nov. 19, 2018, file photo, Jason Reitman attends the 2018 Kirk Douglas Award for Excellence in Film Honoring Hugh Jackman at the Ritz-Carlton Bacara in Goleta, Calif. Sony Pictures on Monday, March 30, 3030, cleared out its summer calendar due to the coronavirus, postponing the releases of Reitman's "Ghostbusters: Afterlife" and the Marvel movie "Morbius" to 2021. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, File)

NEW YORK (AP) --

Sony Pictures on Monday cleared out its summer calendar due to the coronavirus, postponing the releases of Jason Reitman's "Ghostbusters: Afterlife" and the Marvel movie "Morbius" to 2021.

Hollywood's summer season — the film industry's most lucrative time of year — is increasingly shutting down because of the pandemic. Theaters nationwide have closed and major film productions have halted with no clear timeline for resuming.

"Ghostbuster: Afterlife," set 30 years after "Ghostbusters II," had been scheduled for July 10, but it will now open March 5 next year. The Jared Leto-starring "Morbius," slated for July 31, will now be released March 19 next year. "Greyhound," a World War II drama starring Tom Hanks, is now to-be-determined instead of opening June 12.

Last week, Warner Bros. postponed "Wonder Woman 1984" to August instead of June, and undated its adaptation of Lin-Manuel Miranda's "In the Heights." The Walt Disney Co. took More

Saturday, Mar. 28, 2020

"On My Block" cast seeks truth in playing inner-city teens

This image released by Netflix shows Diego Tinoco, left, and Sierra Capri in a scene from "On My Block." The series is an honest portrayal of the realities young adults face growing up in inner-city Los Angeles, and critics have praised the comedy-drama's depiction of four bright, street-savvy friends with nuance and care. (Kevin Estrada/Netfli via AP)

By Amanda Lee Myers

WEST HOLLYWOOD, Calif. (AP) --

Cast members of Netflix's "On My Block" say they feel honored to be able to represent teenagers who've long seen themselves portrayed as stereotypes.

The show in its third season tells the story of a group of black and Latino teens navigating high school and the realities of growing up in inner-city Los Angeles.

Critics have praised the comedy-drama for its nuance and care in depicting the four bright, street-savvy friends.

In a recent interview, the stars of the show said they feel a level of responsibility in the truth of their portrayals. That responsibility can be "terrifying," said actress Jessica Marie Garcia, who plays an annoying but lovable busy-body who just wants to be part of the cool kids.

"We want to make sure that we do it right and that we don't let them down," Garcia said. "It's so rare that you get to see a cast like us in the same show that it's like, we just want to do it right and make them proud." More

Saturday, Mar. 28, 2020

Stars of "Contagion" reunite for PSAs

This combination photo shows actors Matt Damon (l) and Kate Winslet, who are among the stars of the 2011 thriller “Contagion” who have reunited for a series of public service announcements to warn about COVID-19. They have teamed up with scientists from Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health to offer four individual homemade videos. (AP Photo)

By Mark Kennedy, Entertainment Writer

NEW YORK (AP) --

The stars of the 2011 virus thriller "Contagion" — a prescient film these days — have reunited for a series of public service announcements to warn about COVID-19.

Matt Damon, Laurence Fishburne, Kate Winslet and Jennifer Ehle have teamed up with scientists from Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health to offer four individual homemade videos.

"Wash your hands like your life depends on it," Winslet says in her PSA. "Because right now, in particular, it just might."

Ehle stresses that the coronavirus is novel, meaning no one is immune. "Every single one of us, regardless of age or ethnicity, is at risk of getting it," she says.

"Contagion," directed by Steven Soderbergh, explores a scenario in which a lethal and fast-moving influenza is spreading around the world.

Damon, who in the film played a character who was immune to the hypothetical virus, also stresses listening to experts and staying 6 feet apart More

Friday, Mar. 27, 2020

Industry mourns passing of two-time Academy Award-winning engineer Jim Houston

Jim Houston

LOS ANGELES --

The Hollywood Section of Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) has announced the passing of its long-time member Jim Houston. A 34-year veteran of the entertainment industry, Houston held senior engineering positions with several studios and prominent postproduction facilities, including Sony Pictures Entertainment, Pacific Title & Art, Walt Disney Feature Animation and, since February of this year, Samsung Research America. A pioneer in motion imaging standards, computer animation and digital restoration, he won two Academy Awards for Scientific and Engineering Achievement. He died from a heart attack, March 26, in Pasadena. He was 61.

“Jim made a profound impact on SMPTE and the industry in general,” said SMPTE Hollywood Section chair Brian Gaffney. “He was a founding member of the Academy Color Encoding System (ACES) committee. He wrote influential papers of topics ranging from the color fidelity of High Dynamic Range More