In recent weeks, documentaries about R. Kelly, Britney Spears, Malcolm X's killers, and Julius Jones appear to have had real-world effects. Why now? Theory: Unscripted content is cheaper; there's more of it; and social media exists. - Washington Post
One armorer: "You can’t keep hiring people who aren’t qualified just to get your movie made because you have a time constriction. ... Getting rid of the guns is not going to get rid of the problem." - Los Angeles Times
At American High, "the school has not had actual students in the halls for years, but it is once again home to high school drama of the sort generally captured in R-rated teenage comedies." - The New York Times
When it works, anyway. One cinematographer: "What I look for in an operator is basically a clone of myself. An idealized clone. Somebody who will be able to do exactly what I want, but better." - Variety
Netflix has released its Top 10 lists. But "the obsession with the numbers generated by films in the first few days of their release has had ... a negative effect on the quality of the films themselves, squeezing out the offbeat in favour of franchises and sequels." - Irish Times
Critics of NFTs assert that it’s ridiculous to try to claim ownership of something that can be infinitely reproduced on the internet, and pranksters will try to annoy collectors by simply copying and pasting the NFT image. - Slate
"Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer, a $100 million historical drama about … the creation of the atomic bomb, could be considered one of an endangered species. These days, it's rare for traditional studios to pump nine figures into a film that isn't inspired by popular toys, novels or comic books." - Variety
"Back in April, the only real player in the kid-centric terrestrial radio space, Radio Disney, which started life on the airwaves 25 years ago this week, quietly wound down. … Today's Tedium looks back at the many attempts to sell kids on radio." - Tedium
Studios have long had a reputation for promising actors or writers a percentage of a movie's profits, then using accounting tricks to show that the film made no profit, no matter how large the grosses. Bohemian Rhapsody screenwriter Anthony McCarten has had enough. - The Hollywood Reporter
The release made no mention of Rowling when listing those participating in the retrospective. While Harry Potter remains a beloved franchise, Rowling sparked backlash from the trans community after saying that transgender individuals should be defined by their biological sex. - The Hollywood Reporter
The plan’s ultimate goal, however, is to build China into a “strong cultural power” by 2035 — one that can only be achieved, it says, by “adhering to the Party’s total leadership over film work.” - Variety
Let’s be clear: Netflix’s bigger bucket of Top 10 lists, even if they’re independently verified, is ultimately self-serving — designed to promote its most popular titles. - Variety
Talk to some of the skilled professionals who do the translating, however, and it seems this is yet another case where there's not a labor shortage, there's a pay shortage. And yes, quality is suffering. - The Guardian
"The membership of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees has voted to ratify a new three-year agreement, ending the threat of the first national strike in the union's history. The vote was unusually close." - Variety
One librarian explains, "There's an interesting sort of equity piece to DVDs. ... They're popular with people who can't necessarily afford the paid subscription services or don't necessarily have the equipment at home or the internet connection to be able to stream." - CBC
