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  • Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024
Joyce Cox to receive Visual Effects Society’s Lifetime Achievement Award
Joyce Cox, VES
LOS ANGELES -- 

The Visual Effects Society (VES) has named producer and visual effects producer Joyce Cox, VES, as the forthcoming recipient of the VES Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of her valuable contributions to visual arts and filmed entertainment.  The award will be presented at the 22nd Annual VES Awards on February 21, at The Beverly Hilton Hotel.

The VES Lifetime Achievement Award, bestowed by the VES board of directors, recognizes an individual and their outstanding body of work that has significantly contributed to the art and/or science of the visual effects industry.  The Society will honor Cox, VES, a venerated VES Fellow and multiple VES Award winner, for her dedication to the industry and advancement of unforgettable storytelling through cutting edge visual effects. With credits that include Titanic, The Dark Knight, The Great Gatsby, Men in Black III, Avatar and The Jungle Book, Cox has been instrumental in shaping More

  • Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024
Microsoft's OpenAI investment could trigger EU merger review
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, left, appears onstage with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella at OpenAI's first developer conference, on Nov. 6, 2023, in San Francisco. The European Union says Microsoft’s multibillion-dollar investment in ChatGPT-maker OpenAI could trigger a merger investigation. The EU's executive branch said Tuesday, JAN. 9, 2024, it’s “checking whether Microsoft’s investment in OpenAI might be reviewable” under regulations covering mergers and acquisitions that would harm competition in the 27-nation bloc. (AP Photo/Barbara Ortutay, File)
LONDON (AP) -- 

Microsoft's multibillion-dollar investment in ChatGPT-maker OpenAI could trigger a European Union merger investigation, the bloc's executive branch said Tuesday.

The European Commission said it's "checking whether Microsoft's investment in OpenAI might be reviewable" under regulations covering mergers and acquisitions that would harm competition in the 27-nation EU.

The review could lead to a formal investigation into whether the deal should be unconditionally cleared, allowed with concessions from the companies or blocked. Britain's antitrust watchdog opened a similar review last month.

Antitrust enforcers in the U.S. also have signaled concerns about competition in the AI industry. The Federal Trade Commission in November approved new measures enabling it to more easily investigate AI products and services, noting that "AI can raise competition issues in a variety of ways, including if one or just a few companies control the More

  • Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024
Sony Pictures Entertainment launches advanced visualization facility Torchlight
CULVER CITY, Calif. -- 

Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) has launched Torchlight, a groundbreaking advanced visualization facility located at Sony Pictures in Culver City. The space will feature the latest in proprietary technology from Sony Group companies in collaboration with Epic Games’ real-time 3D tool, Unreal Engine.

Torchlight allows filmmakers to create digital scenes prior to principal photography, in a hands-on virtual environment using Unreal Engine and virtual cameras, including the Virtual Production Tool Set, which seamlessly links virtual environments with on-set production using Sony’s digital cinema VENICE camera. The facility, which also gives filmmakers the flexibility to communicate to stakeholders in real-time and with unique specificity in film production, provides services that can help serve as a roadmap for visual effects, art department assets, principal photography, set design, gaming assets, marketing assets, and more.

The space will More

  • Monday, Jan. 8, 2024
Golden Globes ratings rebound to 9.4 million viewers, up from 2023 telecast
This image released by CBS shows host Jo Koy during the 81st Annual Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Sunday, Jan. 7, 2024. (Sonja Flemming/CBS via AP)
By Jake Coyle, Film Writer
NEW YORK (AP) -- 

Reviews have been poor for Sunday's 81st Golden Globes, but the telecast pulled in an average of 9.4 million viewers, up about 50% from last year, according to CBS.

The ceremony had the benefit of an NFL lead-in, as well as an especially starry gathering that drew Taylor Swift, Oprah Winfrey, Timothée Chalamet, Kylie Jenner, Leonardo DiCaprio and many more. The night's biggest winner, "Oppenheimer," was also a huge ticket-seller, with nearly $1 billion in box office.

But the broadcast hosted by comedian Jo Koy, was slammed by critics for a fumbled opening monologue and a rushed pace throughout that struggled to rekindle the "Hollywood's party of the year"-vibe that the Globes have long fostered.

But more viewers tuned in than they have since before the pandemic. Back in 2020, 18.4 million watched the Globes.

The ratings were a marked improvement over last year's Globes. That telecast, hosted by Jerrod Carmichael and aired on More

  • Monday, Jan. 8, 2024
Jonathan Majors says he was "shocked" when assault case verdict was handed down
Jonathan Majors leaves the Manhattan criminal courthouse in New York, Dec. 18, 2023. In his first interview since his assault and harassment conviction last month, Majors says he was shocked by the New York jury’s verdict, Monday, Jan. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, file)
NEW YORK (AP) -- 

In his first interview since his assault and harassment conviction last month, actor Jonathan Majors said he was shocked by the New York jury's verdict.

"I was absolutely shocked and afraid," Majors said in the interview that aired Monday on ABC's "Good Morning America." "I'm standing there and the verdict comes down. I say, 'How is that possible based off the evidence, based off the prosecution's evidence, let alone our evidence? How is that possible?'"

A Manhattan jury found the 34-year-old emerging Hollywood star guilty of one misdemeanor assault charge and one harassment violation for a March altercation with his then-girlfriend Grace Jabbari. He faces the possibility of up to a year in jail for the assault conviction at his sentencing set for Feb. 6, though probation or other non-jail sentences also are possible. Majors was acquitted of a different assault charge and of aggravated harassment.

Just hours after the verdict, More

  • Monday, Jan. 8, 2024
Sorelle, Hernandez, Walton named winners of Film Independent's Emerging Filmmaker honors 
Film Independent president Josh Welsh
LOS ANGELES -- 

Film Independent has announced the winners of its three Emerging Filmmaker Awards at its annual Spirit Awards nominee brunch held on Friday (1/6) at Hotel Casa del Mar. Spirit Awards Honorary Chair Lily Gladstone (Killers of the Flower Moon, The Unknown Country) and Colman Domingo (Rustin, The Color Purple) served as hosts for the event and handed out the honors. Winners for the remaining categories will be revealed at the 2024 Film Independent Spirit Awards on Sunday, February 25.
 
“Understanding the enormous challenges independent artists are facing, it’s essential that they are provided the resources to move forward with their artistic visions,” said Josh Welsh, president of Film Independent. “The Emerging Filmmaker Awards provide vital support to these talented artists, enabling them to continue to develop new work and thrive as singular artists.”
 
The Someone to Watch Award presented by Stella Artois was More

  • Friday, Jan. 5, 2024
Nigel Lythgoe stepping aside as "So You Think You Can Dance" judge after sexual assault allegations
Nigel Lythgoe arrives at the Los Angeles premiere of "Robin Williams: Come Inside My Mind" at the TCL Chinese Theatre on Wednesday, June 27, 2018. TV producer Nigel Lythgoe said Friday, Jan. 5, 2024 that he is stepping aside as a judge on “So You Think You Can Dance” after lawsuits accusing him of sexual assault, including one from Paula Abdul. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, File)
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- 

TV producer Nigel Lythgoe said Friday that he is stepping aside as a judge on "So You Think You Can Dance" after lawsuits accusing him of sexual assault, including one from Paula Abdul.

Lythgoe is also co-creator and executive producer of the Fox dance competition series, whose 18th season is set to start in March.

"I have informed the producers of 'So You Think You Can Dance' of my decision to step back from participating in this year's series," Lythgoe said in a statement. "I did so with a heavy heart but entirely voluntarily because this great program has always been about dance and dancers, and that's where its focus needs to remain. In the meantime, I am dedicating myself to clearing my name and restoring my reputation."

The 74-year-old English-born Lythgoe has been a prominent TV producer for decades in both the U.K. and the U.S., working on reality competition shows including "American Idol."

The singer and dancer More

  • Friday, Jan. 5, 2024
Companies pull ads from TV station after comments on tattooing and sending migrants to Auschwitz
The headquarters of the right-wing television broadcaster TV Republika in Warsaw, Poland, on Friday Jan. 5, 2023. Commentators who joked during the station's on air programming that migrants should be sent to Auschwitz or be tattooed or microchipped like dogs have prompted widespread outrage, including an investigation by prosecutors and companies pulling ads from the broadcaster. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)
By Vanessa Gera
WARSAW, Poland (AP) -- 

Prosecutors in Poland are investigating after commentators joked on a right-wing television station that migrants should be sent to Auschwitz or be tattooed or microchipped like dogs, and some companies have pulled advertising from the broadcaster.

The remarks were made over the past week by guests on TV Republika, a private station whose role as a platform for conservative views grew after the national conservative party, Law and Justice, lost control of the Polish government and public media.

During its eight years in power, Law and Justice turned taxpayer-funded state television into a platform for programming that cast largescale migration into Europe as an existential danger. The state media broadcast conspiracy theories, such as a claim that liberal elites wanted to force people to eat bugs, as well as antisemitic and homophobic content and attacks on the party's opponents, including the new Prime Minister Donald Tusk.

More

  • Friday, Jan. 5, 2024
Actor Christian Oliver and his 2 daughters died in a plane crash in the Caribbean, police say
U.S. actor Christian Oliver arrives at the premiere of "Speed Racer" during the 2008 Tribeca Film Festival May 3, 2008, in New York. Oliver and his two daughters died in a plane crash on Jan. 4, 2024 near a tiny private island in the eastern Caribbean, according to police in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. (AP Photo/Peter Kramer, File)
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) -- 

U.S. actor Christian Oliver and his two daughters died in a plane crash near a tiny private island in the eastern Caribbean, according to police in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

The crash occurred Thursday just west of Petit Nevis island near Bequia as the plane headed for nearby St. Lucia, police said in a statement.

They identified the daughters as Madita Klepser, 10, and Annik Klepser, 12, adding that the pilot, Robert Sachs, also died.

It wasn't immediately clear what caused the crash, according to police.

Authorities said fishermen and divers in the area went to the crash site to help as the St. Vincent and Grenadines Coast Guard headed to the area.

"The selfless and brave acts of the fishermen and divers is very much appreciated," police said.

The 51-year-old actor born in Germany had dozens of crediting film and television roles, including in the 2008 film "Speed Racer" film and "The Good German," a More

  • Friday, Jan. 5, 2024
Actor David Soul, one half of "Starsky and Hutch," dies at 80
David Soul is photographed at an event in Los Angeles, Dec. 6, 1983. Soul, who hit fame as blond half of crime-fighting duo “Starsky and Hutch” in a popular 1970s television series, has died. He was 80. Wife Helen Snell, said Friday, Jan. 5, 2024 that Soul died the day before "after a valiant battle for life in the loving company of family.” (AP Photo/Wally Fong, File)
LONDON (AP) -- 

Actor-singer David Soul, a 1970s heartthrob who co-starred as the blond half of the crime-fighting duo "Starsky & Hutch" and topped the music charts with the ballad "Don't Give Up on Us," has died at the age of 80.

His wife, Helen Snell, said Friday that "David Soul – beloved husband, father, grandfather and brother – died yesterday after a valiant battle for life in the loving company of family."

"He shared many extraordinary gifts in the world as actor, singer, storyteller, creative artist and dear friend," Snell said in a statement. "His smile, laughter and passion for life will be remembered by the many whose lives he has touched."

Born David Solberg, Soul was a Chicago native whose acting career dated back to the 1960s, when he joined the avant-garde Firehouse Theater in Minnesota. He continued to appear on stage and screen well into the 20th century, but he was best known for his work in the 1970s.

Soul portrayed More

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