“I’ll be sitting here like the Michael Jackson popcorn GIF as Jacques Audiard’s musical, a film that until now existed only in the cloistered world of prestige cinema, is instantly thrust in front of millions of streaming subscribers.” (That’s on Wednesday, in case you want to prepare yourself.) - Vulture
Alexey Pajitnov would love that. "Reaching the heights of a global hit like Tetris is improbable for anyone, even the creator of Tetris. But that has not stopped Pajitnov from trying." - The New York Times
"India‘s Film Heritage Foundation (FHF) is teaming with French diplomatic missions in India, Sri Lanka and the Maldives on a two-year project dubbed FISCH (France-India-Sri Lanka Cine Heritage).” - Variety
A prolonged fallow period extending through the summer has left the Beijing film industry wringing its hands, wondering whether a lasting shift in the marketplace may be underway. - The Hollywood Reporter
There are blaring red warnings signs for traditional media everywhere you look. Ratings for the broadcast and cable news channels saw steep declines in ratings from Nielsen (finals showed an average of 42.3 million people, down from nearly 57 million four years ago), with the lowest ratings in decades. - The Hollywood Reporter
In a Welsh seaside town, Geoff and Lawrence Fowler are turning out a series of surprisingly good low-budget features (e.g., Jack in the Box) about dolls, puppets or robots possessed by evil. Says one aficionado, "Their films look good, they are well-designed and well-plotted with good jump scares." - The Hollywood Reporter
"Streaming platform Mubi has cancelled its long-planned Mubi Fest Istanbul at the eleventh hour after (the local district) governor banned a screening of Luca Guadagnino’s LGBTI+ themed movie Queer, which was to have been the opening film." - Deadline
His easygoing exterior belied a deft improvisatory mind that could take the temperature of the room, the guest, and the viewer all at once, course-correcting with breathtaking speed. - The New Yorker
Access to the popular video app won't be blocked for Canadian users, but the Industry Minister said that the order, which is based on evidence and assessments from Canada's intelligence agencies, is meant to address security risks related to ByteDance Ltd.’s establishment of TikTok Technology Canada Inc. - AP
The de-aging technology comes from Metaphysic, a visual effects company that creates real time face swapping and aging effects. During filming, the crew watched two monitors simultaneously: one showing the actors' actual appearances and another displaying them at whatever age the scene required. - Wired
"The proliferation of true-crime entertainment like Netflix’s docudrama Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story is effecting real-life changes for their subjects and in society. At their best, (they) help expose injustices and right wrongs. But because many of these products prioritize entertainment and profit, they also can have negative consequences." - AP
"Some film-makers are explicit in their intention to affect election outcomes. ... Others come from the opposite direction, reckoning that an election year is the perfect time to draw attention. ... The Guardian chose films from each election year of the 21st century and interviewed the people who made them." - The Guardian
Kathryn Hahn on Agatha All Along: “It does feel like a really radical thing that we've been able to pull off. Though, because my currency in this business wasn't my sex appeal, I feel like I've been able to just kind of walk into more complicated parts.” - NPR
If you remember the 2005 movie Thank You for Smoking, you’d be forgiven for anticipating this is a Big Tobacco thing. “Nine out of the 10 films nominated for the Oscars top prize earlier this year featured smoking, which is up from the seven in the year before.” - BBC
