Sounds great during a pandemic, right? But the BBC is commercial-free, and the license fee is its income, so when the fee doesn't keep up with inflation, the broadcaster must plan for budget cuts all around. - Variety
Cheers aren't what one might expect for yet another canceled in-person event - and yet, 80 films will be on offer, with art houses across the country screening films in-person. Sorry, Park City, but this is "a more democratic and authentic representation of audiences." - Washington Post
"The directors’ branch has been known to be an exclusive club that has snubbed" newcomers like Ava DuVernay and Shaka King. "Crowding the race this year are such big names as Joel Coen for The Tragedy of Macbeth and Steven Spielberg for West Side Story." - Variety
Basically, it's easier for the writers and creators of tales: "It is a tried and tested, tragic narrative formula that efficiently releases them into the wider world, as well as exposing them to danger." - The Guardian (UK)
At issue: Money, or at least how and when it's parceled out. Generally, it's better for actors if streamers pay talent up front, but "the rare phenomenon of a hit is the only downside." - Variety
Box office and concession revenues saw significant growth across the second half of 2021. Notably, group performance was at 50% of 2019 levels in July, increasing to 90% in October and with December reaching 88%. - Deadline
The company announced today it will use data from iSpot.tv, a Bellevue, Wash.-based company that measures audiences across linear TV and streaming platforms to provide viewing information on the two major events next month. - Los Angeles Times
"Desaturation is not in and of itself bad. It's a tool that can be used poorly or well. But why is it everywhere now? There's no one answer to that question, but here are my five best guesses as to what might be behind the desaturation of Hollywood." - Vox
Star Alec Baldwin accidentally killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and wounded director Joel Souza on October 21 with a prop gun that was supposed to be loaded with dummy ammunition. The film's armorer is suing PDQ Arm and Prop for false and deceptive labeling and trade practices. - CNN
The job went to media reporter David Folkenflik, by now quite experienced in, and respected for, stories about his employer — and he finds that the situation there is more complex than the quote in the headline (from ATC host Ari Shapiro) might indicate. - NPR
NPR's senior vice president for news, Nancy Barnes, wrote in a letter to staff on Tuesday that, taken together, the resignations have "created a hole in the heart of the organization." - NPR
OK, let’s just says awards season actually starts now. The SAG Awards nominations, voted on by two panels of 2,500 randomly selected SAG-AFTRA members (one for film, another for TV), offer a reliable indication of how the Oscar acting races will take shape. - Los Angeles Times
Names like Dwayne Johnson believed to be among those on their wish list. Popular former hosts such as Chris Rock also have been approached we hear though securing someone is proving challenging during the pandemic. - Deadline
"Those struggles can be seen in water-stained walls, amid the brick piles of a bulldozed neighborhood or on the tattered carnival tents of The Humans, West Side Story and Nightmare Alley. We spoke to the production designers of those movies about (those) solemn, living backdrops." - The New York Times
