TV / Film News

Old Music, Via New Technology

Source: Michael Ricci
May 16, 2010

The Sag Harbor-based filmmaker Joe Lauro knows there is no shortage of time-tested music to be heard, and seen, on TV. As the president of Historic Films Archive, a stock-footage film library specializing in music from 1922 to 2000, Mr. Lauro has even packaged and rebroadcast some of it; his film “The Howlin' Wolf Story" appeared recently on the Starz network, for instance. But some opportunities to see clips of famous musicians warrant leaving the living room sofa behind, he ...

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Jazz as a Global Language, Captured on Film

Source: Michael Ricci
May 16, 2010

JAZZ is an improvisatory art, evanescent at its core, and films that capture its spirit can be difficult to find. But the Jacob Burns Film Center in Pleasantville is presenting a series of four films that, coupled with some distinguished live commentary, musical and spoken, promise to do just that. The series, “Jazz Sessions: The Greats on Camera 2010," began with an enthusiastic sellout crowd on Thursday for “Jazz on a Summer's Day," about the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival. Music ...

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Cable Company Makes a Move on Internet Video

Source: All About Jazz
May 16, 2010

Four hundred eighty channels and nothing to watch on TV? Liberty Global, one of the largest cable service providers in Europe, is adding a few more options for its customers.

The company will soon introduce a set-top box that will marry traditional cable content with apps, widgets and access to web-based video, Wired has learned. “It's a set-top box on steroids," Balan Nair, chief technology officer for Liberty Global, told Wired.com. “The interface will be very intuitive and advanced and ...

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Scorsese is 'Living in the Material World'

Source: All About Jazz
May 16, 2010

Martin Scorsese revealed Thursday that he has finished shooting documentary “Living in the Material World: George Harrison," working in tandem with Olivia Harrison, the musician's widow. Producers are Scorsese, Harrison and Exclusive Media co-chair/CEO Nigel Sinclair. A 2011 release date is being eyed. Exclusive, which holds worldwide rights, is shopping the project at Cannes, where Scorsese and Harrison are promoting the doc. There's no domestic distributor yet. “Living in the Material World" is a production of Scorsese's Sikelia Prods., Olivia ...

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Re-Issue of Stones Album Spawns Cannes Documentary

Source: All About Jazz
May 16, 2010

The intoxicating blend of sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll never spoils, particularly if it's of an early '70s vintage. And it never hurts to use film and TV to sell it, particularly if the film makes its debut at Cannes.

“Exile on Main Street," the Rolling Stones' down-and-dirty double album that was reviled upon its 1972 release -- then later hailed as a masterpiece -- appears to grow ever more complex with age. Event-scaled activity is swirling around the ...

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'Ring' Cycle Parodies Thrive on YouTube

Source: Michael Ricci
May 15, 2010

Hey, Richard Wagner -- why so serious?

The 19th century German composer of “The Ring of the Nibelung" wasn't known for his sense of humor. His long, serious operas barely crack a smile while tackling such singularly un-funny subjects as death, unrequited love and self- immolation. Comedy, of course, thrives on the the dramatic, the tragic and the self-important. So it should be no surprise that the “Ring" -- perhaps the ultimate in epic, tragic opera -- has inspired numerous ...

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Blige Tunes up Simone Role

Source: All About Jazz
May 13, 2010

Soul diva Mary J. Blige has signed on to play warbler Nina Simone in a biopic of the legendary singer.

Pic -- titled “Nina" -- focuses on Simone's relationship later in life with her assistant Clifton Henderson, played by David Oyelowo ("The Last King of Scotland"). Script is penned and directed by “The Brave One" scribe Cynthia Mort. William Morris Endeavor's global finance and distribution group will handle North American rights while Ealing Studios will finance, produce and sell internationally. ...

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Europe Strives to Catch up with Digital Revolution in Hollywood

Source: Michael Ricci
May 13, 2010

As film critics hunker down in Cannes for the next week and a half to assess the state of cinematic art, millions of people across Europe will buy tickets to Hollywood blockbusters like Iron Man 2 and How to Train Your Dragon.

Europeans flocking to the cinema are contributing to a global boom in box-office receipts and generating a rare bit of good news for the troubled media industry. But American movie studios are enjoying most of the benefit. The ...

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