Exclusive: Netflix’s film division has preemptively acquired a pitch for an untitled law school thriller from Holland, Michigan‘s Andrew Sodroski, sources tell Deadline.
Netflix could not be reached for comment. While plot details are unknown at this time, the pitch is said to be described as a contemporary spin on The Firm meets The Wolf of Wall Street. Ben Pugh and Peter Dealbert will produce for the L.A. and London-based management and production company 42.
Most recently, 42 worked with Netflix as a producer on its sci-fi actioner Outside the Wire starring Anthony Mackie, which debuted at #1 and was watched by 66 million households in its first quarter on the platform. Sodroski’s pitch marks 42’s second pre-emptive sale in a row on the heels of The Bet, a thriller spec from Enemy‘s Javier Gullón that sold to Warner Bros for what we’re told was a significant figure.
Netflix could not be reached for comment. While plot details are unknown at this time, the pitch is said to be described as a contemporary spin on The Firm meets The Wolf of Wall Street. Ben Pugh and Peter Dealbert will produce for the L.A. and London-based management and production company 42.
Most recently, 42 worked with Netflix as a producer on its sci-fi actioner Outside the Wire starring Anthony Mackie, which debuted at #1 and was watched by 66 million households in its first quarter on the platform. Sodroski’s pitch marks 42’s second pre-emptive sale in a row on the heels of The Bet, a thriller spec from Enemy‘s Javier Gullón that sold to Warner Bros for what we’re told was a significant figure.
- 4/2/2024
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
The Season 17 finale of “America’s Got Talent” aired Wednesday night on NBC, and viewers are mostly happy with the outcome. To recap, Lebanese dance group Mayyas (Sofia Vergara‘s Golden Buzzer) won the 1 million prize, while pole dancer/animator Kristy Sellars came in second place and country singer Drake Milligan finished third. But in our overnight poll that asked fans to vote on who Really deserved to win, their results were essentially tied between two acts: Drake nabbed 29 and Mayyas scored 28. No other contestant received double digits. Here are the complete “AGT” poll results:
29 — Drake Milligan
28 — Mayyas
9 — Chapel Hart
9 — Kristy Sellars
8 — Sara James
7 — Metaphysic
5 — Avery Dixon
Less than 2 — Celia Munoz, Yu Hojin, Mike E. Winfield, Nicolas Ribs
See All Golden Buzzers on ‘AGT’ through the years
Heading into the final episode, Gold Derby users had given Drake the best odds to win, thanks no doubt to his songs topping the...
29 — Drake Milligan
28 — Mayyas
9 — Chapel Hart
9 — Kristy Sellars
8 — Sara James
7 — Metaphysic
5 — Avery Dixon
Less than 2 — Celia Munoz, Yu Hojin, Mike E. Winfield, Nicolas Ribs
See All Golden Buzzers on ‘AGT’ through the years
Heading into the final episode, Gold Derby users had given Drake the best odds to win, thanks no doubt to his songs topping the...
- 9/15/2022
- by Marcus James Dixon
- Gold Derby
We’re just hours away from the “AGT” Season 17 finale, and viewers are divided on who will win. All summer long, fans have been predicting the winner in Gold Derby’s predictions center, and we can now reveal the results. Texas country singer Drake Milligan is in the front of the pack with 11/8 odds, while Lebanese dance act Mayyas (Sofia Vergara‘s Golden Buzzer) are in second place at 57/20 odds.
Do you agree or disagree with those “America’s Got Talent” 2022 winner predictions? There’s still time to make your picks. As a reminder, the ultimate winner will take home the 1 million prize and will join the “America’s Got Talent Las Vegas Live” residency at the Luxor Hotel and Casino.
Drake closed out the “AGT” live show on Tuesday night with his original hit “Sounds Like Something I’d Do,” the same song that dominated the charts after his original audition.
Do you agree or disagree with those “America’s Got Talent” 2022 winner predictions? There’s still time to make your picks. As a reminder, the ultimate winner will take home the 1 million prize and will join the “America’s Got Talent Las Vegas Live” residency at the Luxor Hotel and Casino.
Drake closed out the “AGT” live show on Tuesday night with his original hit “Sounds Like Something I’d Do,” the same song that dominated the charts after his original audition.
- 9/14/2022
- by Marcus James Dixon
- Gold Derby
The current 2022 cycle of “America’s Got Talent” will end with a two-night finale on NBC, airing September 13 (performance show) and September 14 (results show). All 11 finalists have now been named, with America picking two per week in each of the five qualifiers rounds, and the 11th being an instant save wildcard. Terry Crews hosts the long-running program, and the judges are Simon Cowell, Sofia Vergara, Heidi Klum and Howie Mandel. Read on for everything to know about the “America’s Got Talent” Season 17 finale.
Who are the Top 10 acts of Season 17?
America chose two finalists per week from each of the five qualifiers rounds, creating a Top 10. They are: saxophonist Avery Dixon (Terry’s Golden Buzzer), country singer Drake Milligan, country singing trio Chapel Hart (the group’s Golden Buzzer), magician Yu Hojin, pop singer Sara James (Simon’s Golden Buzzer), magician Nicolas Ribs, artificial intelligence act Metaphysic, stand-up comedian Mike E. Winfield,...
Who are the Top 10 acts of Season 17?
America chose two finalists per week from each of the five qualifiers rounds, creating a Top 10. They are: saxophonist Avery Dixon (Terry’s Golden Buzzer), country singer Drake Milligan, country singing trio Chapel Hart (the group’s Golden Buzzer), magician Yu Hojin, pop singer Sara James (Simon’s Golden Buzzer), magician Nicolas Ribs, artificial intelligence act Metaphysic, stand-up comedian Mike E. Winfield,...
- 9/9/2022
- by Marcus James Dixon
- Gold Derby
Exclusive: NewFilmmakers Los Angeles today announced the winners of its 10th annual Best of Nfmla Awards.
The list included Huella‘s Gabriella Ortega (Best New Filmmaker), Tracey Deer’s Beans (Best Feature Film), Nelson G. Navarrete and Maxx Caicedo’s A La Calle (Best Documentary Feature Film), Ciara Lacy’s This Is the Way We Rise, JJ Shpall’s Date Nite, Isabella Issa’s Yellow Girl and Me, Sarah Clift’s The Birth of Valerie Venus, Gustavo Milan’s Under the Heavens (Seiva Bruta), Bastien Dubois’ Souvenir Souvenir, Devone X. King’s Last Black Man (Best New Media & Experimental), Arnold Mwanjila’s Taliya (Best Screenplay), I Make Good Sounds at Parties‘ Russell Goldman, Yellow Girl and Me‘s Dior Wilson, Sweet Potatoes‘ Luke Sargent (Best Cinematography), From Here‘s Christina Antonakos-Wallace and Aletta Von Vietinghoff (Best Film Editing), The Fire Next Time‘s Jose Pablo Ramirez (Best Sound Design) and Livin’ in the Light‘s Onry (Best Score).
The Best of Nfmla Awards look to recognize the best talent in independent cinema from around the globe. This year’s edition included 125 nominees across 16 Award categories. All nominated projects screened as part of the Nfmla Monthly Film Festival 2021 season which ran from January 1st, 2021 through December 31st, 2021. Best New Filmmaker winner Ortega claimed a 3,000 Anthony Rhulen grant, with numerous other winners nabbing grants of 2,000. Over 5,000 in Blackmagic Design equipment will also be awarded to select winners, with post host Picture Shop hosting a post-production workshop for all nominees and winners.
Nfmla is a Los Angeles-based arts and culture non-profit organization that works year-round to highlight the works of independent artists. Its full list of 2022 Best of Nfmla nominees can be found here.
***
Exclusive: Doc10 today announced its first-ever awards program, which this year will honor documentary filmmakers N. Bird Runningwater and Jessica Devaney.
The inaugural Luminary Award, celebrating filmmakers that shine a light on vital social issues, will be presented to Runningwater, who has supported such films as Billy Luther’s Miss Navajo and Heather Rae’s Trudell. The Vanguard Award, created to honor innovative and important documentary filmmakers, will be presented to Devaney, producer of some 17 shorts and features, including 2021 Doc10 selection Pray Away.
“The inaugural Luminary and Vanguard Awards were born to celebrate and promote the power of independent filmmaking,” said Doc10 co-founders Steve Cohen and Paula Froehle. “Jess and Bird represent the now and the future of great, cinematic documentary producing and how independent, fearless storytelling can promote real change in our world.” The 7th Doc10 documentary film festival will run from May 19-22 at the Davis Theatre and the Gene Siskel Film Center in Chicago. To find out more about it or to purchase tickets, click here.
***
Exclusive: Patricia Velasquez (The Mummy) will exec produce and star in the sci-fi thriller Space Racer, from writer-director Erik Bernard (Free Dead or Alive), with NFTs related to the film to be released by Karman Studios at the Cannes Marché du Film.
The pic from Bernard’s Rebel 6 Films and Gemini Films takes place in the year 2084. It finds Earth beginning to look to space for survival, at a point when it’s barely able to sustain human life. At this juncture, humans have contacted alien race, with pilot James Colt earning the opportunity to represent Earth in its first intergalactic race.
Bernard and Lyndon Tait wrote the script for the pic, which is intended to set up a trilogy. Kevin Grevioux (Underworld) is producing, with Velasquez, Bernard and Courtney LeMarco (Hoarders) exec producing, and Jasmin Espada (Free Dead or Alive) serving as co-producer. Velasquez is represented by Insurge-Ent and Innovative Artists; Bernard and LeMarco by Espada PR & Entertainment; and Grevioux by Brent Johnson of One Entertainment.
***
Exclusive: Toric Films‘ Ojan Missaghi and David Wachs will be seeking distribution for their films Day Labor, Out of Hand and Deadly Games at this year’s Cannes Film Festival—with actor Gilles Marini (The Rookie) also on hand to promote the company’s slate.
Day Labor watches as a Latin American veteran seeks work as a day laborer in order to keep his family afloat. A regular day turns into a deadly game of survival when he is mistakenly dropped off at a private ranch in El Paso, Texas to be hunted for sport. R. Ellis Frazier directed the pic, which stars Amy Johnston, Louis Mandylor and Danny Arrory.
Director Brian Skiba’s Out of Hand is a thriller centered on Valerie (Louise Linton), a charismatic and sophisticated college professor who is married to a younger personal trainer heartthrob, David (Pierson Fode). When the couple leaves town to a secluded cabin in Lake Tahoe, things start to unravel. William Baldwin, Joana Metrass , David Wachs and Christy St. John also star.
Then, there’s Deadly Games, in which four female influencers are invited to paradise island to partake in a million-dollar opportunity by a crypto mogul, fighting to gain the most subscribers during their weekend for the paysite contest. When one of the girls ends up dead, and the murder gets kept a secret, the influencers get more than they bargained for. Missaghi directed and produced the pic, which stars Marini, Metrass, Vanessa Angel, Roberto ‘Sanz’ Sanchez, Krista Kalmus and Emelina Adams.
***
Exclusive: Lost Souls collaborators John F. Uranday and Bobby Cloud will be bringing their new indie drama Depth of Field to Cannes’ Marché du Film.
The film directed by Uranday tells the story of Charles (Rafael Petardi), a widower who has given up on life, until he meets a foster child next door that changes his life forever. It also stars George Stroumboulopoulos (The Communist’s Daughter), Jay Acovone (Fox’s Lethal Weapon), Carrie Quinn Dolin (Bruce Almighty), Ella Thomas (NCIS: Los Angeles), Diana Diaz (Music) and Thea Saccoliti. Producer Cloud, who is also an attorney, co-wrote the script with Uranday, with Jeffrey Stevens serving as a story contributor. Uranday also produced, along with Orlin Dobreff, Mike G, Rafael Petardi, Tom Summers and Tristan Salas Henry, with Stroumboulopoulos serving as exec producer. Uranday and Cloud are repped by Espada PR & Entertainment.
***
Exclusive: Freestyle Digital Media has acquired North American rights to the romance Bristol Fashion, with plans to release it across internet and satellite platforms on June 7th.
The film tells the story of a young transgender woman, Christina (Lea Nayeli), who escapes her troubled home to find solace in a dilapidated boatyard. When she buys a broken-down boat for that purpose, she gets more than she bargained for in the boat’s owner, Esteban (Raul A. Perez)—warm, funny and dying to take her to dinner. He gives her a place to stay on an abandoned barge and helps her fix up the boat, and slowly but surely, they find themselves navigating the sometimes-messy waters of a straight man falling for a trans woman.
Pierre Guillet and Timothy John Foster wrote and produced Bristol Fashion, with Guillet directing. Richard Difrisco also stars. Freestyle Digital Media negotiated the deal to acquire the film directly with Glen Reynolds of Circus Road Films. Its trailer can be found below.
***
Exclusive: Deadline has a new trailer for Lisa Hepner and Guy Mossman’s feature doc The Human Trial, which Abramorama is releasing in North American theaters and on its Watch Now @ Home virtual cinema platform on June 24th.
More than a decade in the making, the film follows a groundbreaking clinical trial that peels back the headlines to show the sweat, passion and sacrifice behind every breakthrough cure. In 2011, Hepner and her husband Mossman heard about a radical stem cell treatment for diabetes, a disease that shockingly kills more than five million people each year. Driven by a desire to cure Lisa of her own type 1 diabetes, the filmmakers were given unprecedented access to a clinical trial—only the sixth ever stem cell trial in the world. What follows is an intimate journey with the patients and scientists who put themselves on the line to be first.
Hepner scripted the project and produced alongside Jonathan Formica (Lost & Found) and Kristin Lesko (O.J.: Made in America), with diabetes org Beyond Type 1 exec producing alongside Amy Rapp (The Woman Who Wasn’t There), Marla Oringer, Greer Wylder and Thom Scher. Check out the trailer for The Human Trial below.
***
Exclusive: Deadline has an exclusive clip from the feature doc Since I Been Down, which is set for release on VOD on May 24th.
The film from director Gilda Sheppard stakes us to Tacoma, Washington. Influenced by the national drug war frenzy and the fear-based culture of punishment in the 1980s and ’90s, Tacoma sacrificed its most vulnerable children to a life behind bars. These children, who are now adults, cannot be silenced. As we hear them tell their stories, bravely, unapologetically, we realize: This is the story of ‘Everytown USA’.
June Nho Ivers, Saman Maydani and Bonnie Benjamin-Phariss produced the doc, with Sheppard and David Menschel serving as executive producers. Our exclusive clip from the film can be found below.
***
Hallie and Audrey McPherson will be bringing their dramedy Earthquake Country to Dances With Films on Saturday, June 18th at 7:15 p.m. Pst.
The film written and directed by The McPherson Sisters centers on Rhyme Osbourne (Lydian Blossom), who is fed up with her mother’s alcoholism and delusions of grandeur and her father’s literal inability to get off the couch. On her eighteenth birthday, Rhyme puts into motion a plan that will cut ties with her family—for good. Set in 2007 in the seemingly idyllic Ojai, CA, the film is a coming-of-age story that explores the creation of family mythology, the malleability of memory, and the sometimes suffocating intimacy of the nuclear family.
Deborah Marks-Bertling, Alex Sorian Brown, Todd Caroll, Nigel Vonas, Melina Emilie, Madison Widener and Kyle Hester also star. Pic was produced by the McPhersons and Melina Hayum.
***
Filmmaker Alex Proyas‘ production outfit Heretic Foundation and development company Mystery Clock Cinema this week announced a co-production/financing partnership with the UK-based 108 Media, which has launched worldwide sales and packaging on his latest feature, the horror Sister Darkness.
The female-driven film marking the first of several forthcoming collaborations between the parties is set in the UK in the 1930s—at a time when women were marginalized and exploited. It follows the newly-wed but unhappy Alice as she stumbles across her doppelgänger Isla, whose existence is a mystery seeped in a tale of bloody retribution against her oppressors, the hellish supernatural nightscape, and a dread uprising against the deceitful aristocracy. Pic will go before camera in Australia later this year.
Proyas negotiated his multi-faceted deal with 108 Media’s CEO Abhi Rastogi and President (Production) Justin Deimen, with support from Rod Smith and Steven Rosser (Legal Counsel), General Manager & Executive Producer Andrew Robinson, Studio Producer Erasmo (Raz) Raimundo, and Craig Emmanuel of Paul Hastings in Los Angeles.
***
Gkids has acquired North American rights to writer-director Atsuko Ishizuka’s first original feature Goodbye, Don Glees!. The distributor will release both the original Japanese-language version of the film and an all-new English-language dub in theaters this year, on the heels of the film’s February 2022 release in Japan.
The film produced by the acclaimed studio Madhouse follows the story of three friends over the course of one summer, as their backyard adventures turn one small incident into a life-changing journey. It features the voices of Ayumu Murase, Natsuki Hanae, Kana Hanazawa and Yuuki Kaji, and is represented internationally by Kadokawa.
The list included Huella‘s Gabriella Ortega (Best New Filmmaker), Tracey Deer’s Beans (Best Feature Film), Nelson G. Navarrete and Maxx Caicedo’s A La Calle (Best Documentary Feature Film), Ciara Lacy’s This Is the Way We Rise, JJ Shpall’s Date Nite, Isabella Issa’s Yellow Girl and Me, Sarah Clift’s The Birth of Valerie Venus, Gustavo Milan’s Under the Heavens (Seiva Bruta), Bastien Dubois’ Souvenir Souvenir, Devone X. King’s Last Black Man (Best New Media & Experimental), Arnold Mwanjila’s Taliya (Best Screenplay), I Make Good Sounds at Parties‘ Russell Goldman, Yellow Girl and Me‘s Dior Wilson, Sweet Potatoes‘ Luke Sargent (Best Cinematography), From Here‘s Christina Antonakos-Wallace and Aletta Von Vietinghoff (Best Film Editing), The Fire Next Time‘s Jose Pablo Ramirez (Best Sound Design) and Livin’ in the Light‘s Onry (Best Score).
The Best of Nfmla Awards look to recognize the best talent in independent cinema from around the globe. This year’s edition included 125 nominees across 16 Award categories. All nominated projects screened as part of the Nfmla Monthly Film Festival 2021 season which ran from January 1st, 2021 through December 31st, 2021. Best New Filmmaker winner Ortega claimed a 3,000 Anthony Rhulen grant, with numerous other winners nabbing grants of 2,000. Over 5,000 in Blackmagic Design equipment will also be awarded to select winners, with post host Picture Shop hosting a post-production workshop for all nominees and winners.
Nfmla is a Los Angeles-based arts and culture non-profit organization that works year-round to highlight the works of independent artists. Its full list of 2022 Best of Nfmla nominees can be found here.
***
Exclusive: Doc10 today announced its first-ever awards program, which this year will honor documentary filmmakers N. Bird Runningwater and Jessica Devaney.
The inaugural Luminary Award, celebrating filmmakers that shine a light on vital social issues, will be presented to Runningwater, who has supported such films as Billy Luther’s Miss Navajo and Heather Rae’s Trudell. The Vanguard Award, created to honor innovative and important documentary filmmakers, will be presented to Devaney, producer of some 17 shorts and features, including 2021 Doc10 selection Pray Away.
“The inaugural Luminary and Vanguard Awards were born to celebrate and promote the power of independent filmmaking,” said Doc10 co-founders Steve Cohen and Paula Froehle. “Jess and Bird represent the now and the future of great, cinematic documentary producing and how independent, fearless storytelling can promote real change in our world.” The 7th Doc10 documentary film festival will run from May 19-22 at the Davis Theatre and the Gene Siskel Film Center in Chicago. To find out more about it or to purchase tickets, click here.
***
Exclusive: Patricia Velasquez (The Mummy) will exec produce and star in the sci-fi thriller Space Racer, from writer-director Erik Bernard (Free Dead or Alive), with NFTs related to the film to be released by Karman Studios at the Cannes Marché du Film.
The pic from Bernard’s Rebel 6 Films and Gemini Films takes place in the year 2084. It finds Earth beginning to look to space for survival, at a point when it’s barely able to sustain human life. At this juncture, humans have contacted alien race, with pilot James Colt earning the opportunity to represent Earth in its first intergalactic race.
Bernard and Lyndon Tait wrote the script for the pic, which is intended to set up a trilogy. Kevin Grevioux (Underworld) is producing, with Velasquez, Bernard and Courtney LeMarco (Hoarders) exec producing, and Jasmin Espada (Free Dead or Alive) serving as co-producer. Velasquez is represented by Insurge-Ent and Innovative Artists; Bernard and LeMarco by Espada PR & Entertainment; and Grevioux by Brent Johnson of One Entertainment.
***
Exclusive: Toric Films‘ Ojan Missaghi and David Wachs will be seeking distribution for their films Day Labor, Out of Hand and Deadly Games at this year’s Cannes Film Festival—with actor Gilles Marini (The Rookie) also on hand to promote the company’s slate.
Day Labor watches as a Latin American veteran seeks work as a day laborer in order to keep his family afloat. A regular day turns into a deadly game of survival when he is mistakenly dropped off at a private ranch in El Paso, Texas to be hunted for sport. R. Ellis Frazier directed the pic, which stars Amy Johnston, Louis Mandylor and Danny Arrory.
Director Brian Skiba’s Out of Hand is a thriller centered on Valerie (Louise Linton), a charismatic and sophisticated college professor who is married to a younger personal trainer heartthrob, David (Pierson Fode). When the couple leaves town to a secluded cabin in Lake Tahoe, things start to unravel. William Baldwin, Joana Metrass , David Wachs and Christy St. John also star.
Then, there’s Deadly Games, in which four female influencers are invited to paradise island to partake in a million-dollar opportunity by a crypto mogul, fighting to gain the most subscribers during their weekend for the paysite contest. When one of the girls ends up dead, and the murder gets kept a secret, the influencers get more than they bargained for. Missaghi directed and produced the pic, which stars Marini, Metrass, Vanessa Angel, Roberto ‘Sanz’ Sanchez, Krista Kalmus and Emelina Adams.
***
Exclusive: Lost Souls collaborators John F. Uranday and Bobby Cloud will be bringing their new indie drama Depth of Field to Cannes’ Marché du Film.
The film directed by Uranday tells the story of Charles (Rafael Petardi), a widower who has given up on life, until he meets a foster child next door that changes his life forever. It also stars George Stroumboulopoulos (The Communist’s Daughter), Jay Acovone (Fox’s Lethal Weapon), Carrie Quinn Dolin (Bruce Almighty), Ella Thomas (NCIS: Los Angeles), Diana Diaz (Music) and Thea Saccoliti. Producer Cloud, who is also an attorney, co-wrote the script with Uranday, with Jeffrey Stevens serving as a story contributor. Uranday also produced, along with Orlin Dobreff, Mike G, Rafael Petardi, Tom Summers and Tristan Salas Henry, with Stroumboulopoulos serving as exec producer. Uranday and Cloud are repped by Espada PR & Entertainment.
***
Exclusive: Freestyle Digital Media has acquired North American rights to the romance Bristol Fashion, with plans to release it across internet and satellite platforms on June 7th.
The film tells the story of a young transgender woman, Christina (Lea Nayeli), who escapes her troubled home to find solace in a dilapidated boatyard. When she buys a broken-down boat for that purpose, she gets more than she bargained for in the boat’s owner, Esteban (Raul A. Perez)—warm, funny and dying to take her to dinner. He gives her a place to stay on an abandoned barge and helps her fix up the boat, and slowly but surely, they find themselves navigating the sometimes-messy waters of a straight man falling for a trans woman.
Pierre Guillet and Timothy John Foster wrote and produced Bristol Fashion, with Guillet directing. Richard Difrisco also stars. Freestyle Digital Media negotiated the deal to acquire the film directly with Glen Reynolds of Circus Road Films. Its trailer can be found below.
***
Exclusive: Deadline has a new trailer for Lisa Hepner and Guy Mossman’s feature doc The Human Trial, which Abramorama is releasing in North American theaters and on its Watch Now @ Home virtual cinema platform on June 24th.
More than a decade in the making, the film follows a groundbreaking clinical trial that peels back the headlines to show the sweat, passion and sacrifice behind every breakthrough cure. In 2011, Hepner and her husband Mossman heard about a radical stem cell treatment for diabetes, a disease that shockingly kills more than five million people each year. Driven by a desire to cure Lisa of her own type 1 diabetes, the filmmakers were given unprecedented access to a clinical trial—only the sixth ever stem cell trial in the world. What follows is an intimate journey with the patients and scientists who put themselves on the line to be first.
Hepner scripted the project and produced alongside Jonathan Formica (Lost & Found) and Kristin Lesko (O.J.: Made in America), with diabetes org Beyond Type 1 exec producing alongside Amy Rapp (The Woman Who Wasn’t There), Marla Oringer, Greer Wylder and Thom Scher. Check out the trailer for The Human Trial below.
***
Exclusive: Deadline has an exclusive clip from the feature doc Since I Been Down, which is set for release on VOD on May 24th.
The film from director Gilda Sheppard stakes us to Tacoma, Washington. Influenced by the national drug war frenzy and the fear-based culture of punishment in the 1980s and ’90s, Tacoma sacrificed its most vulnerable children to a life behind bars. These children, who are now adults, cannot be silenced. As we hear them tell their stories, bravely, unapologetically, we realize: This is the story of ‘Everytown USA’.
June Nho Ivers, Saman Maydani and Bonnie Benjamin-Phariss produced the doc, with Sheppard and David Menschel serving as executive producers. Our exclusive clip from the film can be found below.
***
Hallie and Audrey McPherson will be bringing their dramedy Earthquake Country to Dances With Films on Saturday, June 18th at 7:15 p.m. Pst.
The film written and directed by The McPherson Sisters centers on Rhyme Osbourne (Lydian Blossom), who is fed up with her mother’s alcoholism and delusions of grandeur and her father’s literal inability to get off the couch. On her eighteenth birthday, Rhyme puts into motion a plan that will cut ties with her family—for good. Set in 2007 in the seemingly idyllic Ojai, CA, the film is a coming-of-age story that explores the creation of family mythology, the malleability of memory, and the sometimes suffocating intimacy of the nuclear family.
Deborah Marks-Bertling, Alex Sorian Brown, Todd Caroll, Nigel Vonas, Melina Emilie, Madison Widener and Kyle Hester also star. Pic was produced by the McPhersons and Melina Hayum.
***
Filmmaker Alex Proyas‘ production outfit Heretic Foundation and development company Mystery Clock Cinema this week announced a co-production/financing partnership with the UK-based 108 Media, which has launched worldwide sales and packaging on his latest feature, the horror Sister Darkness.
The female-driven film marking the first of several forthcoming collaborations between the parties is set in the UK in the 1930s—at a time when women were marginalized and exploited. It follows the newly-wed but unhappy Alice as she stumbles across her doppelgänger Isla, whose existence is a mystery seeped in a tale of bloody retribution against her oppressors, the hellish supernatural nightscape, and a dread uprising against the deceitful aristocracy. Pic will go before camera in Australia later this year.
Proyas negotiated his multi-faceted deal with 108 Media’s CEO Abhi Rastogi and President (Production) Justin Deimen, with support from Rod Smith and Steven Rosser (Legal Counsel), General Manager & Executive Producer Andrew Robinson, Studio Producer Erasmo (Raz) Raimundo, and Craig Emmanuel of Paul Hastings in Los Angeles.
***
Gkids has acquired North American rights to writer-director Atsuko Ishizuka’s first original feature Goodbye, Don Glees!. The distributor will release both the original Japanese-language version of the film and an all-new English-language dub in theaters this year, on the heels of the film’s February 2022 release in Japan.
The film produced by the acclaimed studio Madhouse follows the story of three friends over the course of one summer, as their backyard adventures turn one small incident into a life-changing journey. It features the voices of Ayumu Murase, Natsuki Hanae, Kana Hanazawa and Yuuki Kaji, and is represented internationally by Kadokawa.
- 5/20/2022
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Stars: Christina Ricci, Santino Barnard, Don Durrell, Colleen Camp, Lew Temple | Written by Carol Chrest | Directed by Chris Sivertson
Set sometime in the 1950s, Monstrous opens as Laura puts her son Cody in the back seat of the car and hits the road for California as “See You Later Alligator” plays on the soundtrack.
She’s leaving Arizona and an abusive ex-husband behind and plans to start over in a safer environment for her and her son. She’s rented a beautiful house by a large pond from Mr. and Mrs. and a job working for Mr. Alonzo.
But this sunny bit of nostalgia is about to turn much darker. Cody is convinced a monster from the lake is stalking them. He also misses home, and despite the reasons for their leaving, his father. Speaking of whom, he’s gotten Laura’s phone number and begins calling.
The first part...
Set sometime in the 1950s, Monstrous opens as Laura puts her son Cody in the back seat of the car and hits the road for California as “See You Later Alligator” plays on the soundtrack.
She’s leaving Arizona and an abusive ex-husband behind and plans to start over in a safer environment for her and her son. She’s rented a beautiful house by a large pond from Mr. and Mrs. and a job working for Mr. Alonzo.
But this sunny bit of nostalgia is about to turn much darker. Cody is convinced a monster from the lake is stalking them. He also misses home, and despite the reasons for their leaving, his father. Speaking of whom, he’s gotten Laura’s phone number and begins calling.
The first part...
- 5/16/2022
- by Jim Morazzini
- Nerdly
As the star of Taika Waititi’s Jojo Rabbit, 12-year-old Roman Griffin Davis was the undisputed darling of the 2019/20 awards season circuit, the unflagging sincerity of his untainted, joyful optimism bringing a little sunshine to all who glimpsed him on a red carpet or talk show or even random interview clip. His breakthrough performance, nominated for […]
The post Blu-ray/DVD Column: Silent Night, Deadly Games, John and the Hole, Invincible appeared first on Shockya.com.
The post Blu-ray/DVD Column: Silent Night, Deadly Games, John and the Hole, Invincible appeared first on Shockya.com.
- 3/26/2022
- by Brent Simon
- ShockYa
Hey everyone! We have one last batch of horror and sci-fi home media releases headed our way before the end of the month, and this week’s offerings are massive, with well over 20 titles coming out on 4K, Blu-ray, and DVD this Tuesday alone.
One of my favorite creature features ever is getting some love in HD finally, with Scream Factory’s 4K release of Lewis Teague’s Alligator (and its sequel is headed to Blu-ray this week as well), and the horror comedy Dead Heat is also getting a 4K upgrade. For all you giallo fans out there, Forgotten Gialli: Volume 3 is being released tomorrow and features three more Italian classics genre fans are going to want to own, and Severin Films is keeping busy with a ton of titles this week too: Bloody Pit of Horror, Black Candles, Night of the Demon, and The Halfway House.
Other titles...
One of my favorite creature features ever is getting some love in HD finally, with Scream Factory’s 4K release of Lewis Teague’s Alligator (and its sequel is headed to Blu-ray this week as well), and the horror comedy Dead Heat is also getting a 4K upgrade. For all you giallo fans out there, Forgotten Gialli: Volume 3 is being released tomorrow and features three more Italian classics genre fans are going to want to own, and Severin Films is keeping busy with a ton of titles this week too: Bloody Pit of Horror, Black Candles, Night of the Demon, and The Halfway House.
Other titles...
- 2/22/2022
- by Heather Wixson
- DailyDead
The ’80s Slasher Classic Deadly Games (1982) will be available on Blu-ray February 22nd from Arrow Video
Steve Railsback (famed for his unhinged performance as Charles Manson in 1976’s TV mini-series Helter Skelter) is at his sinister best as a troubled Vietnam Vet in 1982’s Deadly Games – a tale of madness, murder and adultery from writer/director Scott Mansfied.
A masked maniac with a penchant for a horror-themed board game is playing his own twisted game with the women of a small American town. Each time the dice is rolled, another victim meets a grisly end. Returning home to mourn the death of her murdered sister, Keegan (Jo Ann Harris) befriends local cop Roger and oddball cinema projectionist Billy (Railsback) – but soon finds herself in the killer’s sights.
Originally entitled Who Fell Asleep, Deadly Games is an intriguing early ’80s slasher oddity which benefits from focusing as much on the...
Steve Railsback (famed for his unhinged performance as Charles Manson in 1976’s TV mini-series Helter Skelter) is at his sinister best as a troubled Vietnam Vet in 1982’s Deadly Games – a tale of madness, murder and adultery from writer/director Scott Mansfied.
A masked maniac with a penchant for a horror-themed board game is playing his own twisted game with the women of a small American town. Each time the dice is rolled, another victim meets a grisly end. Returning home to mourn the death of her murdered sister, Keegan (Jo Ann Harris) befriends local cop Roger and oddball cinema projectionist Billy (Railsback) – but soon finds herself in the killer’s sights.
Originally entitled Who Fell Asleep, Deadly Games is an intriguing early ’80s slasher oddity which benefits from focusing as much on the...
- 2/15/2022
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Exclusive: Actor Robert Lasardo is making his feature directorial debut with the crime thriller American Trash, starring in the pic currently in production in Los Angeles, alongside Costas Mandylor and Lorelei Linklater.
Set amidst a social crisis in the decaying world of Los Angeles, American Trash watches as the city freefalls into environmental ruin, chaos and a complete drug epidemic. Milles Carpis (Lasardo) leans on the support of some new age hippie friends as they guide him away from violence when the woman he loves (Linklater) is murdered, subsequently turning to Detective Anderson (Mandylor) for help in his search for her killer.
Diana Ramos-Santiago Carter, Josh Webber and Jerry G. Angelo are producing the film scripted by Lasardo.Lasardo is represented by Dtla Entertainment Group; Mandylor by Global Creatives Agency and Anthem Entertainment; and Linklater by Linda McAlister Talent and The Green Room.
Set amidst a social crisis in the decaying world of Los Angeles, American Trash watches as the city freefalls into environmental ruin, chaos and a complete drug epidemic. Milles Carpis (Lasardo) leans on the support of some new age hippie friends as they guide him away from violence when the woman he loves (Linklater) is murdered, subsequently turning to Detective Anderson (Mandylor) for help in his search for her killer.
Diana Ramos-Santiago Carter, Josh Webber and Jerry G. Angelo are producing the film scripted by Lasardo.Lasardo is represented by Dtla Entertainment Group; Mandylor by Global Creatives Agency and Anthem Entertainment; and Linklater by Linda McAlister Talent and The Green Room.
- 1/28/2022
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Until you start watching killer rat movies, you don’t realize how few killer rat movies there are. It’s not a sub-genre that sparked off franchises (does Willard and its sequel Ben count? Let me know) or inspired Funko toys, but rather has films strewn here and there throughout horror history. Today we’re scurrying back to my particular turf for Deadly Eyes (1982), Golden Harvest’s Canadian-lensed attempt to move over from Kung Fu to Rodent Fu. (Sorry Joe Bob Briggs, I couldn’t resist.)
Released in October by Golden Harvest (the Honk Kong based studio with nearly 300 production credits) in Canada and stateside by Warner Brothers the following April, Deadly Eyes (aka Night Eyes) laid droppings all over the place according to critics and audiences alike, and was quickly relegated to clamshell heaven. Was it a film ahead of its time? God no. But Deadly Eyes is way more fun than I remembered,...
Released in October by Golden Harvest (the Honk Kong based studio with nearly 300 production credits) in Canada and stateside by Warner Brothers the following April, Deadly Eyes (aka Night Eyes) laid droppings all over the place according to critics and audiences alike, and was quickly relegated to clamshell heaven. Was it a film ahead of its time? God no. But Deadly Eyes is way more fun than I remembered,...
- 10/28/2017
- by Scott Drebit
- DailyDead
Leonard Nimoy has passed away at the age of 83.
The actor and filmmaker, who rose to fame as Mr Spock in the Star Trek TV series and movies, died from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, his wife confirmed to The New York Times.
Nimoy revealed last year that he was suffering from the disease, caused by smoking in his younger years. He had been treated in hospital earlier this week.
Nimoy began his career in the early '50s teaching acting and appearing in B movies, such as 1952's Kid Monk Baroni, and TV roles. He also served in the United States Army in 1953.
In 1965, Nimoy played Mr Spock for the first time in the rejected Star Trek pilot 'The Cage'. He retained the role when the show was taken to series and portrayed the character on the small screen until 1969.
After success as Spock, Nimoy played Paris for two seasons...
The actor and filmmaker, who rose to fame as Mr Spock in the Star Trek TV series and movies, died from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, his wife confirmed to The New York Times.
Nimoy revealed last year that he was suffering from the disease, caused by smoking in his younger years. He had been treated in hospital earlier this week.
Nimoy began his career in the early '50s teaching acting and appearing in B movies, such as 1952's Kid Monk Baroni, and TV roles. He also served in the United States Army in 1953.
In 1965, Nimoy played Mr Spock for the first time in the rejected Star Trek pilot 'The Cage'. He retained the role when the show was taken to series and portrayed the character on the small screen until 1969.
After success as Spock, Nimoy played Paris for two seasons...
- 2/27/2015
- Digital Spy
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