Two decades ago, one jilted heart found its way to Italy as part of the iconic, genre-redefining film “Under the Tuscan Sun.” Starring Diane Lane as Frances, a San Francisco writer who jets to Europe after realizing her soon-to-be ex-husband is cheating on her, the 2003 film cemented the early aughts’ obsession with starting over again. “Under the Tuscan Sun” was based on a real-life Frances, author Frances Mayes to be exact, whose memoir was adapted by late writer-director Audrey Wells for the big screen.
Frances, newly jilted and with the emotional support of her best friend Patti (Sandra Oh), escapes both midlife crises and bad American men by traveling across the globe for a luxury vacation. She falls in love with a Tuscan villa and opts to renovate it while bonding with locals, including the seductive Marcello (Raoul Bova).
“Under the Tuscan Sun” spurred the iconic vacation-in-a-movie feeling, kicking off...
Frances, newly jilted and with the emotional support of her best friend Patti (Sandra Oh), escapes both midlife crises and bad American men by traveling across the globe for a luxury vacation. She falls in love with a Tuscan villa and opts to renovate it while bonding with locals, including the seductive Marcello (Raoul Bova).
“Under the Tuscan Sun” spurred the iconic vacation-in-a-movie feeling, kicking off...
- 9/1/2023
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Sarah Polley, at the Telluride Film Festival for the world premiere of Women Talking, her latest film as a director, acknowledged how lucky she was as an actress to have worked with so many female filmmakers. They told her to be “fierce” when they saw that she wanted to work behind the camera.
Women Talking, based on Miriam Toew’s celebrated novel about a group of Mennonite women having to confront sexual assaults committed by men feeding their desires, is a powerhouse exploration of the female imagination.
“This film began with three women talking a lot,” Polley said. She was referring to Dede Gardner as producer through Plan B Entertainment, and Frances McDormand as a cast member and producer via her Hear/Say Productions, and Polley herself.
Polley cited three female directors she’d worked with who helped pave the way for her as a director: Audrey Wells on her 1999 feature Guinevere; Kathryn Bigelow,...
Women Talking, based on Miriam Toew’s celebrated novel about a group of Mennonite women having to confront sexual assaults committed by men feeding their desires, is a powerhouse exploration of the female imagination.
“This film began with three women talking a lot,” Polley said. She was referring to Dede Gardner as producer through Plan B Entertainment, and Frances McDormand as a cast member and producer via her Hear/Say Productions, and Polley herself.
Polley cited three female directors she’d worked with who helped pave the way for her as a director: Audrey Wells on her 1999 feature Guinevere; Kathryn Bigelow,...
- 9/3/2022
- by Baz Bamigboye
- Deadline Film + TV
Click here to read the full article.
When Sarah Polley was in her 20s, just starting to direct short films, she got lots of advice from female directors she worked with as an actor, like Kathryn Bigelow, Audrey Wells and Isabel Coixet. “These women grabbed onto me and said, ‘You’re doing it, and here’s how fierce you’re going to have to be,'” Polley said, speaking at her Telluride Film Festival silver medallion tribute Friday night, ahead of the first public screening of her new film, Women Talking. “Kathryn Bigelow said, ‘You have to be like a dog with a bone, and everyone’s going to try to take it away from you.'”
Women Talking, a United Artists film which will also screen at the Toronto International Film Festival next week ahead of opening in theaters Dec. 2, is potent evidence Polley took that message to heart.
When Sarah Polley was in her 20s, just starting to direct short films, she got lots of advice from female directors she worked with as an actor, like Kathryn Bigelow, Audrey Wells and Isabel Coixet. “These women grabbed onto me and said, ‘You’re doing it, and here’s how fierce you’re going to have to be,'” Polley said, speaking at her Telluride Film Festival silver medallion tribute Friday night, ahead of the first public screening of her new film, Women Talking. “Kathryn Bigelow said, ‘You have to be like a dog with a bone, and everyone’s going to try to take it away from you.'”
Women Talking, a United Artists film which will also screen at the Toronto International Film Festival next week ahead of opening in theaters Dec. 2, is potent evidence Polley took that message to heart.
- 9/3/2022
- by Rebecca Keegan
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Deadline’s Read the Screenplay series, which highlights the buzziest scripts of awards season, included 12 movies that made the cut in the Oscar nominations Monday morning.
In the Screenplay races, this year Deadline featured seven out of the 10 films including all five films nommed in the Adapted Screenplay category: Amazon Studios’ Borat Subsequent Moviefilm and One Night In Miami, Sony Pictures Classics’ The Father, Searchlight’s Nomadland and Netflix’s The White Tiger.
There also are two scripts that received noms in the Original Screenplay category: Warner Bros’ Judas and the Black Messiah and A24’s Minari.
The other Original Screenplay nominees this year were Focus Features’ Promising Young Woman by Emerald Fennell; Amazon Studios’ Sound of Metal by Darius Marder & Abraham Marder, with story by Darius Marder & Derek Cianfrance; and Netflix’s The Trial of the Chicago 7 written by Aaron Sorkin, who won the Adapted Screenplay Oscar in 2011 for The Social Network.
In the Screenplay races, this year Deadline featured seven out of the 10 films including all five films nommed in the Adapted Screenplay category: Amazon Studios’ Borat Subsequent Moviefilm and One Night In Miami, Sony Pictures Classics’ The Father, Searchlight’s Nomadland and Netflix’s The White Tiger.
There also are two scripts that received noms in the Original Screenplay category: Warner Bros’ Judas and the Black Messiah and A24’s Minari.
The other Original Screenplay nominees this year were Focus Features’ Promising Young Woman by Emerald Fennell; Amazon Studios’ Sound of Metal by Darius Marder & Abraham Marder, with story by Darius Marder & Derek Cianfrance; and Netflix’s The Trial of the Chicago 7 written by Aaron Sorkin, who won the Adapted Screenplay Oscar in 2011 for The Social Network.
- 3/15/2021
- by Patrick Hipes and Alexandra Del Rosario
- Deadline Film + TV
This morning, animation legend Glen Keane was up before the sun and learned that he’d scored his first Oscar nom for Best Animated Feature Film, for his debut feature — Netflix musical fantasy, Over the Moon.
“It’s pretty exciting. I tend to get up around four o’clock anyway, but this was something to get up at four o’clock for,” says the director. “I am just so thankful that [the Academy] recognized the beauty of this movie. It was such a labor of love.”
In conversation with Deadline, Keane shared his feeling that the message of his film is “the right one for this year: healing and love.”
“There’s a moment in the movie where Fei Fei says, ‘I just wish things could go back to the way they were,’ but we don’t go backwards, as we’re finding out,” he added. “We go forward, and it’s...
“It’s pretty exciting. I tend to get up around four o’clock anyway, but this was something to get up at four o’clock for,” says the director. “I am just so thankful that [the Academy] recognized the beauty of this movie. It was such a labor of love.”
In conversation with Deadline, Keane shared his feeling that the message of his film is “the right one for this year: healing and love.”
“There’s a moment in the movie where Fei Fei says, ‘I just wish things could go back to the way they were,’ but we don’t go backwards, as we’re finding out,” he added. “We go forward, and it’s...
- 3/15/2021
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: The late Audrey Wells was a prolific screenwriter and director whose work focused on strong female characters, from 2003’s Under the Tuscan Sun and 1999’s Guinevere through to 2018’s The Hate U Give. That trend continued with Over the Moon, Netflix’s animated musical about based on a Chinese myth about a determined 14-year-old girl named Fei Fei who, coping with the loss of her mother, builds a rocket ship and blasts off, hoping to meet a mythical moon goddess.
Wells was brought on to pen the screenplay in March 2016; by that time she had already known that she had cancer and that the script would be her final work.
After a trip to China for inspiration she turned in a draft nine months later. Peilin Chou, the producer who brought Wells aboard the project, remembered weeping after reading it.
“She told me it was the most important script she had ever written,...
Wells was brought on to pen the screenplay in March 2016; by that time she had already known that she had cancer and that the script would be her final work.
After a trip to China for inspiration she turned in a draft nine months later. Peilin Chou, the producer who brought Wells aboard the project, remembered weeping after reading it.
“She told me it was the most important script she had ever written,...
- 3/8/2021
- by Patrick Hipes
- Deadline Film + TV
A version of this story about “Over the Moon” first appeared in the Oscar Nominations Preview issue of TheWrap’s awards magazine.
Glen Keane draws. It’s the way he communicates. It’s how he started at Walt Disney Animation Studios in 1974, how he sketched Ariel in “The Little Mermaid” and the Beast’s transformation in “Beauty and the Beast,” and how he and Kobe Bryant won an Oscar for the hand-drawn short “Dear Basketball” in 2017.
And while his film “Over the Moon” is a large-scale and often dazzling computer-animated fantasy, it also contains a sequence early on that uses Keane’s line drawings to tell the story of the Chinese moon goddess Chang’e.
“When I was reading the script, I thought, ‘Ok, I am going to hang onto this little piece, and this is going to be my moment,'” he said. “For me, I need to get...
Glen Keane draws. It’s the way he communicates. It’s how he started at Walt Disney Animation Studios in 1974, how he sketched Ariel in “The Little Mermaid” and the Beast’s transformation in “Beauty and the Beast,” and how he and Kobe Bryant won an Oscar for the hand-drawn short “Dear Basketball” in 2017.
And while his film “Over the Moon” is a large-scale and often dazzling computer-animated fantasy, it also contains a sequence early on that uses Keane’s line drawings to tell the story of the Chinese moon goddess Chang’e.
“When I was reading the script, I thought, ‘Ok, I am going to hang onto this little piece, and this is going to be my moment,'” he said. “For me, I need to get...
- 3/4/2021
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
Oscar-winning animator Glen Keane spent decades illustrating some of Walt Disney Animation Studios’ most memorable characters, with notable classics that include “The Little Mermaid,” “Beauty and the Beast” and “Aladdin.” After 38 years, he left the company in 2012 to pursue other creative endeavors, which led him to directing “Dear Basketball,” a short animated film written by the late NBA legend, Kobe Bryant. That collaboration won Keane his first Academy Award in 2018 and led to him helming his first feature “Over the Moon.”
Shortly after premiering at the Montclair Film Festival in October, “Over the Moon” was released on Netflix and grossed an impressive $860,000 in limited theatrical release. The film tells the story of a young girl named Fei Fei (Cathy Ang), whose mother passed away from a terminal illness. After her father gets engaged to another woman and reveals that he no longer believes in the story of the Moon goddess,...
Shortly after premiering at the Montclair Film Festival in October, “Over the Moon” was released on Netflix and grossed an impressive $860,000 in limited theatrical release. The film tells the story of a young girl named Fei Fei (Cathy Ang), whose mother passed away from a terminal illness. After her father gets engaged to another woman and reveals that he no longer believes in the story of the Moon goddess,...
- 2/18/2021
- by Denton Davidson
- Gold Derby
One of the most influential artists working in the medium of animation over the last half-century, Glen Keane brought his long-awaited debut feature to the screen just last fall. That film—the musical fantasy Over the Moon—certainly was worth the wait.
Bringing splendid life to both modern-day China and a fantastical realm known as Lunaria, Over the Moon centers on Fei Fei, a 14-year-old Chinese girl who has long been told the legend of the Moon goddess Chang’e. While struggling to cope with the loss of her mother, the teenager decides to journey into space to prove that the immortal being is real. Produced by Pearl Studio and Netflix Animation, from a script by the late Audrey Wells, the animated feature is the first distributed by a major Hollywood studio to center on an entirely Asian cast.
Spending 38 years at Walt Disney Animation Studios—where he illustrated such...
Bringing splendid life to both modern-day China and a fantastical realm known as Lunaria, Over the Moon centers on Fei Fei, a 14-year-old Chinese girl who has long been told the legend of the Moon goddess Chang’e. While struggling to cope with the loss of her mother, the teenager decides to journey into space to prove that the immortal being is real. Produced by Pearl Studio and Netflix Animation, from a script by the late Audrey Wells, the animated feature is the first distributed by a major Hollywood studio to center on an entirely Asian cast.
Spending 38 years at Walt Disney Animation Studios—where he illustrated such...
- 2/16/2021
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Since the inception of the Oscars’ Best Animated Feature category in 2001, the race has been utterly dominated by powerhouse American studios—the most notable examples being Walt Disney Studios and its Emeryville subsidiary, Pixar. Having claimed eight Oscars over the last decade, and 13 overall, these studios have become almost insurmountable over time.
This year, they once again pose fierce competition with two titles, the clear frontrunner being Pete Docter and Kemp Powers’ Soul. Meditating on the origins of the human personality, Docter’s follow-up to Oscar winners Up and Inside Out centers on Joe (Jamie Foxx), a frustrated middle-school band teacher, who seeks to return to Earth, after a sudden accident separates him from his body. Striving to return to New York City to realize his dreams of performing as a jazz musician, the character finds that his only way back from the celestial realm known as The Great Before is to mentor a stubborn,...
This year, they once again pose fierce competition with two titles, the clear frontrunner being Pete Docter and Kemp Powers’ Soul. Meditating on the origins of the human personality, Docter’s follow-up to Oscar winners Up and Inside Out centers on Joe (Jamie Foxx), a frustrated middle-school band teacher, who seeks to return to Earth, after a sudden accident separates him from his body. Striving to return to New York City to realize his dreams of performing as a jazz musician, the character finds that his only way back from the celestial realm known as The Great Before is to mentor a stubborn,...
- 2/5/2021
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
When Glen Keane first read the script for “Over the Moon,” he didn’t realize that Audrey Wells had written her own terminal illness into the main character’s mother. “I didn’t know when I first met her… that she knew she would not live to see this movie. This was really being written for her daughter, helping her move past the grief that she would experience,” he tells Gold Derby in our Meet the Experts: Film Animation panel (watch above). Even though she died in the middle of production, Keane always remembered a conversation they had about this film and “The Wizard of Oz” and how Wells was insistent that the events that transpired in both films were real and not some sort of dream. “She had this incredible, fierce look in her eyes and for her there had to be real roots of sincerity, depth and truth to this story.
- 1/29/2021
- by Charles Bright
- Gold Derby
“In China she’s like more famous than Santa Claus. Every child grows up knowing this myth,” says “Over the Moon” producer Peilin Chou about Chang’e, the moon goddess at the heart of the Netflix animated musical. “It was definitely a myth I grew up with personally … It felt like a wonderful thing to share that part of China with the world as well.” We talked with Chou as part of our “Meet the Experts” film producers panel. Watch our interview above.
The film tells the story of Fei Fei (voiced by Cathy Ang), a teenage girl who seeks out Chang’e to stop her father from getting remarried four years after her mother’s death. The screenplay was written by Audrey Wells, for whom the story was more personal than Chou initially understood. “When she turned in that first draft of the script to me she said, ‘I want you to know,...
The film tells the story of Fei Fei (voiced by Cathy Ang), a teenage girl who seeks out Chang’e to stop her father from getting remarried four years after her mother’s death. The screenplay was written by Audrey Wells, for whom the story was more personal than Chou initially understood. “When she turned in that first draft of the script to me she said, ‘I want you to know,...
- 1/26/2021
- by Daniel Montgomery
- Gold Derby
It takes a village to make a motion picture come to life, with different departments and talents working together. We spoke to some of the artists who collaborated on films about how they enhance each other’s contributions and serve a filmmaker’s overall vision.
“Over the Moon”(Netflix)
Songwriters: Christopher Curtis, Marjorie Duffield, Helen Park
Music is the crutch of the success of Glen Keane’s magically moving “Over the Moon.” Alongside producer Peilin Chou, the two worked closely with songwriters Christopher Curtis, Marjorie Duffield and Helen Park. Wanting to honor the script by the late Audrey Wells was of the utmost importance. Each writer would take turns taking the lead on a song. Curtis and Duffield were already a writing team, but when Park arrived at Curtis’ apartment during a January snowstorm without a coat, the three became a family. After Curtis loaned his coat, the trio worked passionately,...
“Over the Moon”(Netflix)
Songwriters: Christopher Curtis, Marjorie Duffield, Helen Park
Music is the crutch of the success of Glen Keane’s magically moving “Over the Moon.” Alongside producer Peilin Chou, the two worked closely with songwriters Christopher Curtis, Marjorie Duffield and Helen Park. Wanting to honor the script by the late Audrey Wells was of the utmost importance. Each writer would take turns taking the lead on a song. Curtis and Duffield were already a writing team, but when Park arrived at Curtis’ apartment during a January snowstorm without a coat, the three became a family. After Curtis loaned his coat, the trio worked passionately,...
- 12/24/2020
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
On today’s Crew Call, we speak to the songwriters of Netflix-Pearl Studio’s animated feature Over the Moon, Helen Park, Marjorie Duffield and Christopher Curtis, whose live-musical theater sensibilities were brought together for a story about a young Chinese girl, who after losing her mother, builds a rocket ship and blasts off to space, looking to meet a mythical moon goddess.
Curtis was an Outer Critics Circle nominee for Broadway’s Chaplin; Duffield, a Jonathan Larson Memorial Fellow for Sit-in at the Five and Dime, and Park a three-time Drama Desk Award nominee who had penned the off-Broadway musical Kpop. The trio bonded over chardonnay and fleshed out the feature’s songs during the spring of 2018 in an AirBnB. A key anthem in the feature is one song by its protagonist Fei Fei, “Rocket to the Moon”, in contention this awards season, in which she builds the...
Curtis was an Outer Critics Circle nominee for Broadway’s Chaplin; Duffield, a Jonathan Larson Memorial Fellow for Sit-in at the Five and Dime, and Park a three-time Drama Desk Award nominee who had penned the off-Broadway musical Kpop. The trio bonded over chardonnay and fleshed out the feature’s songs during the spring of 2018 in an AirBnB. A key anthem in the feature is one song by its protagonist Fei Fei, “Rocket to the Moon”, in contention this awards season, in which she builds the...
- 12/9/2020
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Stars: Cathy Ang, John Cho, Ruthie Ann Mills, Edie Ichioka, Sandra Oh, Robert G. Chiu, Margaret Cho | Written by Audrey Wells, Jennifer Yee McDevitt | Directed by Glen Keane
Over the Moon is the latest animated film to premiere on Netflix and might be one of their strongest animated films yet. The computer-animated film is strange and unique, as it combines a musical, science-fiction, comedy, and drama in an Alice in Wonderland-influenced outer space setting.
Fei Fei is a young girl growing up in a small town in China with her mother and father, who run a local bakery that specializes in mooncakes. The family is living a happy life until the annual Moon Festival, her mother falls ill and eventually the happiness fades as her mother’s illness becomes worse. As a parting gift, her mother gives Fei Fei a bunny named Bungee, to watch over her daughter after she passes.
Over the Moon is the latest animated film to premiere on Netflix and might be one of their strongest animated films yet. The computer-animated film is strange and unique, as it combines a musical, science-fiction, comedy, and drama in an Alice in Wonderland-influenced outer space setting.
Fei Fei is a young girl growing up in a small town in China with her mother and father, who run a local bakery that specializes in mooncakes. The family is living a happy life until the annual Moon Festival, her mother falls ill and eventually the happiness fades as her mother’s illness becomes worse. As a parting gift, her mother gives Fei Fei a bunny named Bungee, to watch over her daughter after she passes.
- 11/10/2020
- by Jason Brigger
- Nerdly
Netflix Animation and Pearl Studio’s “Over the Moon,” longtime animator Glen Keane’s feature directing debut, lifts off on Oct. 23 after a journey that, in some ways, mirrored that of the film’s young heroine, Fei Fei.
Fei Fei, still mourning the death of her mother some years earlier, builds a rocket so she can go to the moon and ask the goddess Chang’e to help persuade her father not to remarry. Halfway through production, screenwriter Audrey Wells died after battling cancer and her script “was a love letter to her daughter and for her husband,” says“Over the Moon” producer Gennie Rim.
“When we first met her, she said, ‘All of my movies are about healing. And this is no different. This, if anything, is the most important job I’ve ever done.’ At the time, I didn’t understand exactly what that meant.” Rim says she...
Fei Fei, still mourning the death of her mother some years earlier, builds a rocket so she can go to the moon and ask the goddess Chang’e to help persuade her father not to remarry. Halfway through production, screenwriter Audrey Wells died after battling cancer and her script “was a love letter to her daughter and for her husband,” says“Over the Moon” producer Gennie Rim.
“When we first met her, she said, ‘All of my movies are about healing. And this is no different. This, if anything, is the most important job I’ve ever done.’ At the time, I didn’t understand exactly what that meant.” Rim says she...
- 10/23/2020
- by Carole Horst
- Variety Film + TV
Lulu Wang and Adele Lim on Lessons From ‘Mulan’: Why Hollywood Must Reimagine Asian-Inspired Stories
When Lulu Wang read the announcement that Ron Howard would direct legendary Chinese pianist Lang Lang’s Hollywood-produced biopic, she took to Twitter to raise the question, “Have we learned nothing from ‘Mulan?'”
In a series of tweets, the writer-director of “The Farewell” questioned the move, challenging the creative team’s limited understanding of both Chinese cultural history and the specificities of the pianist (and Wang’s) birthplace, Northeast China.
Wang used a metaphor to compare Hollywood’s efforts to produce stories about people of color and finding good American Chinese food at a restaurant: “Does this mean no one else can make this food? Of course not. I happen to love orange chicken. But isn’t it time we all expect more than orange chicken?”
“I really wish this wasn’t such a divisive issue,” Wang tells Variety, explaining that her comments have been misconstrued by the media...
In a series of tweets, the writer-director of “The Farewell” questioned the move, challenging the creative team’s limited understanding of both Chinese cultural history and the specificities of the pianist (and Wang’s) birthplace, Northeast China.
Wang used a metaphor to compare Hollywood’s efforts to produce stories about people of color and finding good American Chinese food at a restaurant: “Does this mean no one else can make this food? Of course not. I happen to love orange chicken. But isn’t it time we all expect more than orange chicken?”
“I really wish this wasn’t such a divisive issue,” Wang tells Variety, explaining that her comments have been misconstrued by the media...
- 10/23/2020
- by Janet W. Lee
- Variety Film + TV
Disney legend and Oscar winner Glen Keane (“Dear Basketball”) was somehow destined to direct “Over the Moon,” the eye-popping animated musical update of the ancient Chinese Moon Goddess fable from Netflix (co-produced by Shanghai-based Pearl Studio). In fact, “Over the Moon” technically marks Keane’s directorial feature debut, since a heart attack forced him to drop out of his trouble-plagued passion project, “Tangled” in 2008. (He formally left Disney in 2012 after nearly 40 years of animation glory.)
Truth be told, Keane was instantly drawn to Fei Fei (Cathy Ang), the 12-year-old girl obsessed with building a rocket to the moon to meet the legendary, nine-foot-tall goddess Chang’e (Phillipa Soo of “Moana” and “Hamilton”), to fill the emotional void in her life after the passing of her mother (Ruthie Ann Miles). But her journey on the enchanting and phosphorescent Lunaria forces her to accept change and rediscover love.
“I have fallen in...
Truth be told, Keane was instantly drawn to Fei Fei (Cathy Ang), the 12-year-old girl obsessed with building a rocket to the moon to meet the legendary, nine-foot-tall goddess Chang’e (Phillipa Soo of “Moana” and “Hamilton”), to fill the emotional void in her life after the passing of her mother (Ruthie Ann Miles). But her journey on the enchanting and phosphorescent Lunaria forces her to accept change and rediscover love.
“I have fallen in...
- 10/21/2020
- by Bill Desowitz
- Indiewire
While Disney and Pixar are seen as the masters of cinematic animation, don’t sleep on Netflix. Last year saw them burst into the Best Animated Feature race at the Academy Awards, and this year, the streaming giant is again gunning for Oscar attention. This time around, their vehicle is Over the Moon, a colorful, musical progressive, and vibrant animated tale that is full of life. With memorable songs and an excellent message, the movie is likely to be a big hit with audiences who watch it this week. Can some awards love be far behind? The film is an animated musical adventure, centered on a young and her mix of an adventurous and scientific mind. Fei Fei (voice of Cathy Ang) is always thinking of her mother, especially while making moon cakes with her father (voice of John Cho). They have a lovely bond, but she misses her mom,...
- 10/20/2020
- by Joey Magidson
- Hollywoodnews.com
Over the Moon is an enchanting animated musical launching on Netflix – and to mark the occasion we had the pleasure in taking part in a virtual junket ahead of its release, speaking to leading stars Phillipa Soo and Cathy Ang, as well as Ken Jeong and Margaret Cho – and finally with director Glen Keane.
With Soo and Ang, we spoke about the celebration of Chinese culture within this movie and how proud they are to share it with the world, while we ask the former what the secret is to a good musical. Jeong and Cho also talk about how important it is to have Chinese stories in mainstream movies, and the duo comment on their surprise encounter on the last season of The Masked Singer.
Finally with director Keane we speak about what drives him as a storyteller and which characters he’s most enjoyed working on across his illustrious career in animation.
With Soo and Ang, we spoke about the celebration of Chinese culture within this movie and how proud they are to share it with the world, while we ask the former what the secret is to a good musical. Jeong and Cho also talk about how important it is to have Chinese stories in mainstream movies, and the duo comment on their surprise encounter on the last season of The Masked Singer.
Finally with director Keane we speak about what drives him as a storyteller and which characters he’s most enjoyed working on across his illustrious career in animation.
- 10/12/2020
- by Stefan Pape
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Animated movies for children walk a tricky tightrope between imparting sobering life lessons about coping with loss and confronting societal evils, without also extinguishing all of the magic that guides a child through the world. It’s rare to find a kids’ movie that doesn’t involve the loss of at least one parent, yet this trope is usually more backstory than anything else—a distant event that establishes the emotional stakes but isn’t actively engaged with. Not so in Over the Moon, Pearl Studio’s poignant musical about a Chinese girl who builds a rocket to seek out the Goddess of the Moon. The film, written by the late Audrey Wells and directed by Glen Keane, gives the stages of grief as much weight and care as the phases of the moon.
For young Fei Fei (Cathy Ang), there is no question about the different magics that stitch...
For young Fei Fei (Cathy Ang), there is no question about the different magics that stitch...
- 10/9/2020
- by David Crow
- Den of Geek
You may not have noticed it, what with so much content coming out on Netflix each week, but the company has been ramping up big time on original animation over the past two years. From last year’s Oscar nominee “I Lost My Body” to internal productions “The Willoughbys” and “Klaus,” Netflix’s cartoon offerings have already reached a point to rival Pixar and DreamWorks. By the year 2023, streamer estimates that they will produce more feature-length animated titles than all the Hollywood studios combined.
Timed to China’s Mid-Autumn Festival, Oct. 23 release “Over the Moon” marks a turning point in that push for world domination: It’s not just another tiny toon entry on Netflix’s slate (à la such low-cost pickups as “Fe@rLess” and “Latte & the Magic Waterstone”), but a major, Disney-level production overseen by a major, Disney-level talent, Glen Keane — the gifted artist responsible for bringing to life such characters as Ariel,...
Timed to China’s Mid-Autumn Festival, Oct. 23 release “Over the Moon” marks a turning point in that push for world domination: It’s not just another tiny toon entry on Netflix’s slate (à la such low-cost pickups as “Fe@rLess” and “Latte & the Magic Waterstone”), but a major, Disney-level production overseen by a major, Disney-level talent, Glen Keane — the gifted artist responsible for bringing to life such characters as Ariel,...
- 10/9/2020
- by Peter Debruge
- Variety Film + TV
There’s a lovely, original story happening at the edges of “Over the Moon” — literally, the first 20 minutes and the last five — but you can feel the studio notes taking over this musical-comedy-adventure from director Glen Keane, a Disney vet and the Oscar-winning filmmaker behind the short “Dear Basketball.”
The opening sequences are lovely, with our heroine Fei Fei (voiced by Cathy Ang) enraptured as a young girl by her mother’s stories of moon goddess Chang’e and her sadness over her earthbound true love Houyi. Fei Fei’s beloved mom, whose bakery makes the town’s most delicious mooncakes, passes away after falling ill.
A few years later, Fei Fei’s dad (John Cho) plans to marry again, which makes Fei Fei upset. The scientifically-minded teen decides to travel to the moon so she can prove that Chang’e is real, as a way to remind Fei Fei...
The opening sequences are lovely, with our heroine Fei Fei (voiced by Cathy Ang) enraptured as a young girl by her mother’s stories of moon goddess Chang’e and her sadness over her earthbound true love Houyi. Fei Fei’s beloved mom, whose bakery makes the town’s most delicious mooncakes, passes away after falling ill.
A few years later, Fei Fei’s dad (John Cho) plans to marry again, which makes Fei Fei upset. The scientifically-minded teen decides to travel to the moon so she can prove that Chang’e is real, as a way to remind Fei Fei...
- 10/9/2020
- by Alonso Duralde
- The Wrap
When did American kids movies become so preoccupied with death? When did being a beloved relative in a colorful animated children’s adventure become as much of a death sentence as being a teenager in a “Final Destination” film? Loss and the lessons that come with it are somewhat foundational to a genre that’s still associated with the likes of “Bambi” and — more recently — “The Lion King,” but over the last few years it’s started to feel as if feature-length cartoons have embraced their function as surrogate grieving counselors for young people who need a spoonful of sugar to help the medicine go down.
This is not a complaint: As someone raised on the grief-adjacent “My Neighbor Totoro” (and comforted much later in life by the wisdom and beauty of a film like “Kubo and the Two Strings”), I know that steering children through their worst sadness is...
This is not a complaint: As someone raised on the grief-adjacent “My Neighbor Totoro” (and comforted much later in life by the wisdom and beauty of a film like “Kubo and the Two Strings”), I know that steering children through their worst sadness is...
- 10/9/2020
- by David Ehrlich
- Indiewire
The most somber part of the best day of the year — the Oscars — is when the ceremony takes a pause to remember the artists that have left us. This upcoming Academy ceremony will likely be as devastating as ever with the Covid-19 pandemic ravaging our country and industry. One observation as we look ahead to the awards landscape is a larger than usual depth of posthumous artists in the running for an Oscar nomination in several categories. While not all of them may end up coming to fruition, the narrative of the season could surround saying “farewell.”
At this time of writing, it looks as though seven individual artists will be in the running for Academy recognition over several categories. The current record of most posthumous nominations in a single year came in 1991 when Howard Ashman landed three separate song credits for Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast” while the other came from Carol Sobieski,...
At this time of writing, it looks as though seven individual artists will be in the running for Academy recognition over several categories. The current record of most posthumous nominations in a single year came in 1991 when Howard Ashman landed three separate song credits for Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast” while the other came from Carol Sobieski,...
- 10/1/2020
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
Over the Moon, an animated feature heads to Netflix in October, showcasing an aesthetically impressive, awe-inspiring tale of wonder and randomly-erupting musical sequences that’s out to prove that Disney+ isn’t the only place on which its genre flourishes.
The film focuses on the exploits of a young Asian-American girl, who—having been entranced by a myth about a goddess who accidentally floated away from her true love to be exiled on the moon—embarks on a cosmic endeavor of building a rocket for a lunar visit of her own. Despite the problematic practicalities of its plot mechanics, Over the Moon appears destined to become a family-aimed crowd-pleaser, and also serves as valuable representation for a demographic that’s infrequently set in a protagonist capacity in Western features.
On that note, do check out the trailers for Over the Moon just below!
Over the Moon Trailers
The final trailer...
The film focuses on the exploits of a young Asian-American girl, who—having been entranced by a myth about a goddess who accidentally floated away from her true love to be exiled on the moon—embarks on a cosmic endeavor of building a rocket for a lunar visit of her own. Despite the problematic practicalities of its plot mechanics, Over the Moon appears destined to become a family-aimed crowd-pleaser, and also serves as valuable representation for a demographic that’s infrequently set in a protagonist capacity in Western features.
On that note, do check out the trailers for Over the Moon just below!
Over the Moon Trailers
The final trailer...
- 9/22/2020
- by Joseph Baxter
- Den of Geek
A young girl embarks on a quest to find a goddess in Over the Moon, a new animated film out October 23rd via Netflix.
The trailer stars Fei Fei (voiced by Cathy Ang), who is fascinated with Chang’e, the Chinese Moon goddess, who waits for her true love on the moon. Fei Fei is told during a family dinner that the goddess isn’t real, but she sets out to find her anyway. With her pet rabbit in tow, she blasts off in a rocket ship and encounters magical...
The trailer stars Fei Fei (voiced by Cathy Ang), who is fascinated with Chang’e, the Chinese Moon goddess, who waits for her true love on the moon. Fei Fei is told during a family dinner that the goddess isn’t real, but she sets out to find her anyway. With her pet rabbit in tow, she blasts off in a rocket ship and encounters magical...
- 9/22/2020
- by Angie Martoccio
- Rollingstone.com
Netflix has dropped the final trailer for “Over the Moon” (streaming October 23) in celebration of the Autumn Moon Festival in China. Directed by Disney legend and Oscar winner Glen Keane (“Dear Basketball”), the eye-popping animated musical reworks the ancient Chinese Moon Goddess fable as an “Oz”-like fantasy.
To promote the trailer on Monday, regional cover artists, and “Over the Moon” voice actor Ken Jeong teased separate installments on Twitter as the moon rose across their respective countries.
The co-production with Pearl Studio (“Abominable”) was animated at Sony Pictures Imageworks, with Oscar winner John Kahrs (“Paperman”) serving as co-director, and Oscar winner Gennie Rim (“Dear Basketball”) producing with Pearl’s Peilin Chou.
In “Over the Moon” (scripted by the late Audrey Wells of “The Hate U Give”), 13-year-old Fei Fei (Cathy Ang), builds a rocket to the moon to meet the legendary goddess, Chang’e (Phillipa Soo of “Moana” and...
To promote the trailer on Monday, regional cover artists, and “Over the Moon” voice actor Ken Jeong teased separate installments on Twitter as the moon rose across their respective countries.
The co-production with Pearl Studio (“Abominable”) was animated at Sony Pictures Imageworks, with Oscar winner John Kahrs (“Paperman”) serving as co-director, and Oscar winner Gennie Rim (“Dear Basketball”) producing with Pearl’s Peilin Chou.
In “Over the Moon” (scripted by the late Audrey Wells of “The Hate U Give”), 13-year-old Fei Fei (Cathy Ang), builds a rocket to the moon to meet the legendary goddess, Chang’e (Phillipa Soo of “Moana” and...
- 9/22/2020
- by Bill Desowitz
- Indiewire
Netflix has released the first trailer for what will be the debut feature film from legendary Disney animator and Oscar-winner Glen Keane, a starry and colorful film called “Over the Moon.”
“Over the Moon” is the first film from Keane after he won the Oscar in 2017 for the animated short film “Dear Basketball” that he co-directed with Kobe Bryant. The streamer will release it later this fall, and it’s figured to be an awards player for Netflix this year.
“Over the Moon” is about a bright young girl who builds a rocket ship to the moon to prove the existence of a legendary Moon Goddess. Once there, she ends up on an unexpected quest and discovers a whimsical land of fantastical creatures.
Also Read: Watch Kobe Bryant's 2018 Oscar Acceptance Speech - When He Shaded Fox News' Laura Ingraham (Video)
“We’re the last true believers,” the girl says in the trailer.
“Over the Moon” is the first film from Keane after he won the Oscar in 2017 for the animated short film “Dear Basketball” that he co-directed with Kobe Bryant. The streamer will release it later this fall, and it’s figured to be an awards player for Netflix this year.
“Over the Moon” is about a bright young girl who builds a rocket ship to the moon to prove the existence of a legendary Moon Goddess. Once there, she ends up on an unexpected quest and discovers a whimsical land of fantastical creatures.
Also Read: Watch Kobe Bryant's 2018 Oscar Acceptance Speech - When He Shaded Fox News' Laura Ingraham (Video)
“We’re the last true believers,” the girl says in the trailer.
- 6/23/2020
- by Brian Welk
- The Wrap
The first look at upcoming animated film Over the Moon shows that flights of fancy into space are not necessarily reserved for White people. Directed by Glen Keane, whose career in animation dates back to the 1970s and who won an Academy Award for his short film Dear Basketball, Over the Moon is co-directed by John Kahrs, who won an Academy Award for his short film Paperman, and scripted by the late Audrey Wells (The Hate U Give). Officially, the film's synopsis is as follows: "Fueled with determination and a passion for science, a bright young girl builds a rocket ship to the moon to prove the existence of a legendary Moon Goddess. There she ends up on an unexpected quest, and discovers a whimsical...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
- 6/23/2020
- Screen Anarchy
Netflix dropped the first trailer Tuesday for its upcoming animated feature, “Over the Moon” (coming in the fall), a wondrous update of the Chinese Moon Goddess fable, directed by former Disney legend and Oscar winner Glen Keane (“Dear Basketball”). The co-production with Pearl Studio (“Abominable”) was animated at Sony Pictures Imageworks, with Oscar winner John Kahrs serving as co-director, Oscar winner Gennie Rim (“Dear Basketball”) producing with Pearl’s Peilin Chou.
In “Over the Moon” (scripted by the late Audrey Wells of “The Hate U Give”), 13-year-old Fei Fei (Cathy Ang) builds a rocket to the moon to meet the legendary goddess, Chang’e (Phillipa Soo of “Moana” and “Hamilton”). But her journey on Lunaria (production designed by Céline Desrumaux of “The Little Prince”) forces her to embrace change. Original songs were composed by Christopher Curtis (“Chaplin: The Musica”), Marjorie Duffield, and Helen Park (“Kpop”), and the score was by “Gravity” Oscar winner Steven Price.
In “Over the Moon” (scripted by the late Audrey Wells of “The Hate U Give”), 13-year-old Fei Fei (Cathy Ang) builds a rocket to the moon to meet the legendary goddess, Chang’e (Phillipa Soo of “Moana” and “Hamilton”). But her journey on Lunaria (production designed by Céline Desrumaux of “The Little Prince”) forces her to embrace change. Original songs were composed by Christopher Curtis (“Chaplin: The Musica”), Marjorie Duffield, and Helen Park (“Kpop”), and the score was by “Gravity” Oscar winner Steven Price.
- 6/23/2020
- by Bill Desowitz
- Thompson on Hollywood
Netflix dropped the first trailer Tuesday for its upcoming animated feature, “Over the Moon” (coming in the fall), a wondrous update of the Chinese Moon Goddess fable, directed by former Disney legend and Oscar winner Glen Keane (“Dear Basketball”). The co-production with Pearl Studio (“Abominable”) was animated at Sony Pictures Imageworks, with Oscar winner John Kahrs serving as co-director, Oscar winner Gennie Rim (“Dear Basketball”) producing with Pearl’s Peilin Chou.
In “Over the Moon” (scripted by the late Audrey Wells of “The Hate U Give”), 13-year-old Fei Fei (Cathy Ang) builds a rocket to the moon to meet the legendary goddess, Chang’e (Phillipa Soo of “Moana” and “Hamilton”). But her journey on Lunaria (production designed by Céline Desrumaux of “The Little Prince”) forces her to embrace change. Original songs were composed by Christopher Curtis (“Chaplin: The Musica”), Marjorie Duffield, and Helen Park (“Kpop”), and the score was by “Gravity” Oscar winner Steven Price.
In “Over the Moon” (scripted by the late Audrey Wells of “The Hate U Give”), 13-year-old Fei Fei (Cathy Ang) builds a rocket to the moon to meet the legendary goddess, Chang’e (Phillipa Soo of “Moana” and “Hamilton”). But her journey on Lunaria (production designed by Céline Desrumaux of “The Little Prince”) forces her to embrace change. Original songs were composed by Christopher Curtis (“Chaplin: The Musica”), Marjorie Duffield, and Helen Park (“Kpop”), and the score was by “Gravity” Oscar winner Steven Price.
- 6/23/2020
- by Bill Desowitz
- Indiewire
Netflix and Pearl Studio unveiled the first trailer for their animated film “Over the Moon” on Tuesday following a virtual discussion with some of the cast and crew about the pic last week. Actors Sandra Oh, Phillipa Soo, John Cho, Ruthie Ann Miles and newcomer Cathy Ang joined producers Gennie Rim and Peilin Chou, along with director Glen Keane, to discuss the making of the movie, a musical adventure about a young Chinese girl named Fei Fei (Ang), who builds her own rocket ship to travel to the moon in order to prove the existence of the legendary Moon goddess Chang’e (Soo).
Soo, a Tony Award nominee for her work in “Hamilton,” noted that she has known about the story of Chang’e since childhood, through a children’s book written by Amy Tan. “I remember as a kid, asking my dad to read it over and over and over to me.
Soo, a Tony Award nominee for her work in “Hamilton,” noted that she has known about the story of Chang’e since childhood, through a children’s book written by Amy Tan. “I remember as a kid, asking my dad to read it over and over and over to me.
- 6/23/2020
- by Jenelle Riley
- Variety Film + TV
In the latest series to make the jump from podcast to screen, “Modern Love” is on its way to Amazon Prime Video. With both based on the long-running New York Times column of the same name, the TV version is just a month away from making its debut. Told in an anthology format, the series dramatizes a handful of some of the best-loved stories that first appeared in print.
Some of these “Modern Love” TV episodes center around stories that are closer to a traditional rom-com meet-cute (albeit with a surprise or two up its sleeve). But as with all forms of “Modern Love,” this looks to be a cross-section of emotions that doesn’t just focus on romance.
Anne Hathaway makes her streaming TV debut in a story about the evolution of an unexpected chance encounter at a grocery store. Tina Fey and John Slattery play a married couple...
Some of these “Modern Love” TV episodes center around stories that are closer to a traditional rom-com meet-cute (albeit with a surprise or two up its sleeve). But as with all forms of “Modern Love,” this looks to be a cross-section of emotions that doesn’t just focus on romance.
Anne Hathaway makes her streaming TV debut in a story about the evolution of an unexpected chance encounter at a grocery store. Tina Fey and John Slattery play a married couple...
- 9/12/2019
- by Steve Greene
- Indiewire
Amazon has posted a full trailer for its forthcoming romantic comedy anthology series Modern Love.
The Svod service is launching the series, from John Carney, on October 18. It previously released a trailer for the show, which is based on the popular New York Times column of the same name, without any dialogue and now you can hear how the likes of Tina Fey, Dev Patel, Cristin Milioti and Anne Hathaway deal with love.
The cast also includes Gary Carter, Sofia Boutella, Olivia Cooke, Brandon Victor Dixon, John Gallagher Jr, Andy Garcia, Julia Garner, Catherine Keener,, Andrew Scott, and John Slattery and Shea Whigham.
Once and Sing Street helmer Carney writes, directs and serves as Ep. Additionally, Sharon Horgan (Catastrophe), Tom Hall (Sensation) and Emmy Rossum (Shameless) directed episodes of the series. Horgan directed the Fey-Slattery led episode, which she also penned. Hall also wrote his episode and Rossum will direct...
The Svod service is launching the series, from John Carney, on October 18. It previously released a trailer for the show, which is based on the popular New York Times column of the same name, without any dialogue and now you can hear how the likes of Tina Fey, Dev Patel, Cristin Milioti and Anne Hathaway deal with love.
The cast also includes Gary Carter, Sofia Boutella, Olivia Cooke, Brandon Victor Dixon, John Gallagher Jr, Andy Garcia, Julia Garner, Catherine Keener,, Andrew Scott, and John Slattery and Shea Whigham.
Once and Sing Street helmer Carney writes, directs and serves as Ep. Additionally, Sharon Horgan (Catastrophe), Tom Hall (Sensation) and Emmy Rossum (Shameless) directed episodes of the series. Horgan directed the Fey-Slattery led episode, which she also penned. Hall also wrote his episode and Rossum will direct...
- 9/12/2019
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
Love is in the air — in all its dysfunctional glory. Amazon dropped the trailer for its upcoming anthology series “Modern Love” on Thursday, featuring an all-star cast that includes Tina Fey and John Slattery, who play a married couple that is definitely in a rut.
In the video above, when a therapist asks Fey and Slattery’s characters what they do on their “date night,” Fey says “this” — as in going to couple’s therapy. How fun! And that’s just one of eight love stories the series will show you.
“Modern Love,” which launches on Prime Video on Oct. 18, is a half-hour romantic comedy series inspired by the popular New York Times column of the same name. The anthology “explores love in all of its complicated and beautiful forms, as each standalone episode brings some of the column’s most beloved stories to life with a stellar cast.”
Also...
In the video above, when a therapist asks Fey and Slattery’s characters what they do on their “date night,” Fey says “this” — as in going to couple’s therapy. How fun! And that’s just one of eight love stories the series will show you.
“Modern Love,” which launches on Prime Video on Oct. 18, is a half-hour romantic comedy series inspired by the popular New York Times column of the same name. The anthology “explores love in all of its complicated and beautiful forms, as each standalone episode brings some of the column’s most beloved stories to life with a stellar cast.”
Also...
- 9/12/2019
- by Jennifer Maas
- The Wrap
Modern Love, Amazon Prime’s new romantic comedy anthology series from John Carney, will stream on Oct. 18.
The series is based on the popular New York Times column of the same name, and explores all the different facets of amour.
Here at TCA today was Cristin Milioti who appears in an episode about a young women dealing with an unexpected pregnancy, and actor Gary Carr and Anne Hathaway, the latter who tries to find love while dealing with her bipolar disorder.
Many of the episodes are based on true stories, and consulting producer and editor of the “Modern Love” column Daniel Jones says that many of the original writers are as well.
Milioti said her episode is “beautifully nuanced” as her protagonist finds help in her doorman. A father/daughter love forms. “They make a huge impact on each other, so much is unspoken which so beautiful. It’s the energy in between them,...
The series is based on the popular New York Times column of the same name, and explores all the different facets of amour.
Here at TCA today was Cristin Milioti who appears in an episode about a young women dealing with an unexpected pregnancy, and actor Gary Carr and Anne Hathaway, the latter who tries to find love while dealing with her bipolar disorder.
Many of the episodes are based on true stories, and consulting producer and editor of the “Modern Love” column Daniel Jones says that many of the original writers are as well.
Milioti said her episode is “beautifully nuanced” as her protagonist finds help in her doorman. A father/daughter love forms. “They make a huge impact on each other, so much is unspoken which so beautiful. It’s the energy in between them,...
- 7/27/2019
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
The “Modern Love” television series, based on the eponymous New York Times column, will premiere on Amazon Prime Video on Oct. 18.
“These stories are successful when the person understands themselves better at the end, not when they get the person that they’re going after,” said The New York Times’ Daniel Jones, editor of the column and consulting producer of the series, speaking about the original column at the Television Critics Assn. summer press tour on Saturday.
The anthology, from John Carney “explores love in all of its complicated and beautiful forms as each standalone episode brings some of the most beloved stories to life with a stellar cast,” said the company. Amazon Studios, Storied Media Group and The New York Times produced the series.
Anne Hathaway, who also appeared on the TCA panel alongside Jones and series co-stars Cristin Milioti and Gary Carr, said that her story revolves around the Terri Cheney column,...
“These stories are successful when the person understands themselves better at the end, not when they get the person that they’re going after,” said The New York Times’ Daniel Jones, editor of the column and consulting producer of the series, speaking about the original column at the Television Critics Assn. summer press tour on Saturday.
The anthology, from John Carney “explores love in all of its complicated and beautiful forms as each standalone episode brings some of the most beloved stories to life with a stellar cast,” said the company. Amazon Studios, Storied Media Group and The New York Times produced the series.
Anne Hathaway, who also appeared on the TCA panel alongside Jones and series co-stars Cristin Milioti and Gary Carr, said that her story revolves around the Terri Cheney column,...
- 7/27/2019
- by Elaine Low
- Variety Film + TV
For Sunday’s Oscars 2019 ceremony, producers had a difficult decision of which film industry people would make the cut and who would be left out of the “In Memoriam.” For the segment, Gustavo Dudamel and the L.A. Philharmonic performed music by Oscar winner John Williams.
Over 100 Academy members or film industry veterans died in the past 12 months. Visit our own Gold Derby memoriam galleries for the year of 2018 and the newly-started gallery for 2019.
SEEDirector Stanley Donen, dead at 94, was light on his feet and a movie musical heavyweight
Stanley Donen would have certainly been included, but he died on the weekend after the segment had been finalized (look for him on the 2020 show). Here is list of some of the people included in the Memoriam tribute for the ceremony (Academy members are indicated with ** by their names):
Susan Anspach (actor)
Bernardo Bertolucci (director)
Yvonne Blake (costume designer)**
Paul Bloch...
Over 100 Academy members or film industry veterans died in the past 12 months. Visit our own Gold Derby memoriam galleries for the year of 2018 and the newly-started gallery for 2019.
SEEDirector Stanley Donen, dead at 94, was light on his feet and a movie musical heavyweight
Stanley Donen would have certainly been included, but he died on the weekend after the segment had been finalized (look for him on the 2020 show). Here is list of some of the people included in the Memoriam tribute for the ceremony (Academy members are indicated with ** by their names):
Susan Anspach (actor)
Bernardo Bertolucci (director)
Yvonne Blake (costume designer)**
Paul Bloch...
- 2/25/2019
- by Chris Beachum
- Gold Derby
Amandla Stenberg was absolutely committed to making sure The Hate U Give, which was published in 2017, made its way to the big screen.
Ahead of the 2019 Academy Awards, the 20-year-old actress opened up about why she stood by the project throughout its development.
“Well, the book by Angie Thomas is just one of the most powerful pieces of literature that I’ve read in terms of its power to speak to these experiences that are really highly politicized but don’t necessarily always have the humanity afforded to them that they should,” she shared with PeopleTV on the Red Carpet Live special.
Ahead of the 2019 Academy Awards, the 20-year-old actress opened up about why she stood by the project throughout its development.
“Well, the book by Angie Thomas is just one of the most powerful pieces of literature that I’ve read in terms of its power to speak to these experiences that are really highly politicized but don’t necessarily always have the humanity afforded to them that they should,” she shared with PeopleTV on the Red Carpet Live special.
- 2/25/2019
- by Maria Pasquini
- PEOPLE.com
While Academy Awards producers have strived for a much shorter ceremony this year, the annual “In Memoriam” segment will definitely remain. In fact this moment on Sunday’s 2019 event should be extra classy since Gustavo Dudamel and the L.A. Philharmonic will be performing as part of the tribute.
Over 100 Academy members or film industry veterans died in the past 12 months. But which ones will be featured in the short segment? There are generally outcries each year from family members upset about people being left out. Visit our own Gold Derby memoriam galleries for the year of 2018 and the newly-started gallery for 2019.
Virtually certain to be part of the montage are Oscar-winning directors Bernardo Bertolucci and Milos Forman, Oscar-nominated actors Carol Channing, Albert Finney and Burt Reynolds, director and actress Penny Marshall, executive producer and entertainment icon Stan Lee and many more.
SEEDana Carvey, Mike Myers, Queen Latifah, Barbra Streisand...
Over 100 Academy members or film industry veterans died in the past 12 months. But which ones will be featured in the short segment? There are generally outcries each year from family members upset about people being left out. Visit our own Gold Derby memoriam galleries for the year of 2018 and the newly-started gallery for 2019.
Virtually certain to be part of the montage are Oscar-winning directors Bernardo Bertolucci and Milos Forman, Oscar-nominated actors Carol Channing, Albert Finney and Burt Reynolds, director and actress Penny Marshall, executive producer and entertainment icon Stan Lee and many more.
SEEDana Carvey, Mike Myers, Queen Latifah, Barbra Streisand...
- 2/22/2019
- by Chris Beachum
- Gold Derby
Hugh Jackman in ‘The Front Runner’ (Photo: Sony Pictures)
Us critics generally applauded Hugh Jackman’s portrayal of Gary Hart in The Front Runner but moviegoers were indifferent to the drama about the disgraced 1988 Us presidential candidate.
So it was no surprise to find the Jason Reitman-directed film sink without trace last weekend in Australia, where folks may already be tiring of politicians and campaigning.
Similarly Julia Roberts’ star power counted for little as Ben is Back had a mediocre debut, in line with its Us fate.
Meanwhile Fox’s The Hate U Give, a solid performer in the Us, struggled to cut through, as often happens with African-American themed films with little-known casts.
The end of school vacation combined with weak new releases resulted in the top 20’s takings plummeting by 36 per cent to $11.9 million, according to Numero.
Warner Bros./Bron Studio/Imperative Entertainment’s The Mule retained top spot,...
Us critics generally applauded Hugh Jackman’s portrayal of Gary Hart in The Front Runner but moviegoers were indifferent to the drama about the disgraced 1988 Us presidential candidate.
So it was no surprise to find the Jason Reitman-directed film sink without trace last weekend in Australia, where folks may already be tiring of politicians and campaigning.
Similarly Julia Roberts’ star power counted for little as Ben is Back had a mediocre debut, in line with its Us fate.
Meanwhile Fox’s The Hate U Give, a solid performer in the Us, struggled to cut through, as often happens with African-American themed films with little-known casts.
The end of school vacation combined with weak new releases resulted in the top 20’s takings plummeting by 36 per cent to $11.9 million, according to Numero.
Warner Bros./Bron Studio/Imperative Entertainment’s The Mule retained top spot,...
- 2/4/2019
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Nina Jacobson just delivered the keynote speech at Sundance’s Producers Brunch, sharing some of the insights she’s accrued during her decades-long career as a film executive. Jacobson, whose credits include “The Hunger Games,” “American Crime Story,” and “Crazy Rich Asians,” spoke about her experiences with everyone from M. Night Shyamalan to Wes Anderson — as well as the conventional wisdom she’s seen slowly upturned in recent years.
Read her full speech, which was shared exclusively with IndieWire, below:
“The only reason I became a producer was because I got fired. When it happened, I refused to give one of those transparent quotes that fired studio executives always give, saying it was their choice to step down and finally pursue their lifelong dream of becoming an independent producer. I insisted on making sure the whole world knew I was fired. Becoming a producer was more of recurring nightmare than a lifelong dream.
Read her full speech, which was shared exclusively with IndieWire, below:
“The only reason I became a producer was because I got fired. When it happened, I refused to give one of those transparent quotes that fired studio executives always give, saying it was their choice to step down and finally pursue their lifelong dream of becoming an independent producer. I insisted on making sure the whole world knew I was fired. Becoming a producer was more of recurring nightmare than a lifelong dream.
- 1/27/2019
- by Michael Nordine
- Indiewire
In today’s film news roundup, Pearl Studio and UCLA start a “Say Yes!” scholarship in memory of Audrey Well; Gina Lollobrigida and Claudia Cardinale are honored; and the “General Magic” documentary gets bought.
Scholarships Unveiled
China’s Pearl Studio has made a gift of $100,000 for endowed scholarships to the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television in memory of screenwriter-director-producer Audrey Wells.
Wells, a UCLA alumna, passed away on Oct. 4, the day before the opening of “The Hate U Give,” which she had scripted. Her final screenplay, the animated musical “Over the Moon,” was developed internally at Pearl and is in production for a 2020 release under the direction of Glen Keane (“Dear Basketball”). Pearl Studio will distribute the film in China and Netflix will distribute in all other territories.
Two current-use scholarships will be awarded from the Audrey Wells Memorial “Say Yes!” Scholarships, first to a screenwriting student in the 2018-19 academic year and,...
Scholarships Unveiled
China’s Pearl Studio has made a gift of $100,000 for endowed scholarships to the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television in memory of screenwriter-director-producer Audrey Wells.
Wells, a UCLA alumna, passed away on Oct. 4, the day before the opening of “The Hate U Give,” which she had scripted. Her final screenplay, the animated musical “Over the Moon,” was developed internally at Pearl and is in production for a 2020 release under the direction of Glen Keane (“Dear Basketball”). Pearl Studio will distribute the film in China and Netflix will distribute in all other territories.
Two current-use scholarships will be awarded from the Audrey Wells Memorial “Say Yes!” Scholarships, first to a screenwriting student in the 2018-19 academic year and,...
- 1/24/2019
- by Dave McNary
- Variety Film + TV
Pearl Studio, which is turning Audrey Wells’ final screenplay Over the Moon into an animated movie, has gifted $100,000 in scholarships to the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television in Wells’ name.
Wells, a UCLA Tft alum, died in October at age 58 after a long battle with cancer, just one day before the release of 20th Century Fox’s racial drama The Hate U Give which she adapted from Angie Thomas’ novel. The screenwriter-director-producer’s credits include writing and helming 2013’s Under the Tuscan Sun and 1999’s Guinevere, and penning 2017’s A Dog’s Purpose along with The Game Plan, George of the Jungle, Shall We Dance, The Kid and her 1996 debut The Truth About Cats and Dogs.
Two current-use scholarships will be awarded from the Audrey Wells Memorial “Say Yes!” Scholarships, first to an Mfa screenwriting student in the 2018-2019 academic year and, in the 2019-2020 year, to an Mfa directing student.
Wells, a UCLA Tft alum, died in October at age 58 after a long battle with cancer, just one day before the release of 20th Century Fox’s racial drama The Hate U Give which she adapted from Angie Thomas’ novel. The screenwriter-director-producer’s credits include writing and helming 2013’s Under the Tuscan Sun and 1999’s Guinevere, and penning 2017’s A Dog’s Purpose along with The Game Plan, George of the Jungle, Shall We Dance, The Kid and her 1996 debut The Truth About Cats and Dogs.
Two current-use scholarships will be awarded from the Audrey Wells Memorial “Say Yes!” Scholarships, first to an Mfa screenwriting student in the 2018-2019 academic year and, in the 2019-2020 year, to an Mfa directing student.
- 1/23/2019
- by Patrick Hipes
- Deadline Film + TV
UCLA has named $100,000 in new scholarships in the memory of Audrey Wells, the late screenwriter of “Under the Tuscan Sun” and “The Hate U Give,” the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television’s Dean Teri Schwartz announced Wednesday.
Pearl Studio, which is developing Wells’ final screenplay “Over the Moon,” gifted $100,000 in scholarships to the UCLA Tft to fund current use and endowed M.F.A. scholarships in directing and screenwriting.
Wells, a UCLA Tft alumna, passed away on Oct. 4, 2018 after a long battle with cancer. Her final screenplay “Over the Moon,” an animated musical developed internally at Pearl, is currently in production for a 2020 release as directed by Glen Keane. Pearl Studio will distribute the film in China, and Netflix will distribute in all other territories.
Also Read: Audrey Wells, 'Under the Tuscan Sun' and 'The Hate U Give' Writer, Dies at 58
“We are deeply...
Pearl Studio, which is developing Wells’ final screenplay “Over the Moon,” gifted $100,000 in scholarships to the UCLA Tft to fund current use and endowed M.F.A. scholarships in directing and screenwriting.
Wells, a UCLA Tft alumna, passed away on Oct. 4, 2018 after a long battle with cancer. Her final screenplay “Over the Moon,” an animated musical developed internally at Pearl, is currently in production for a 2020 release as directed by Glen Keane. Pearl Studio will distribute the film in China, and Netflix will distribute in all other territories.
Also Read: Audrey Wells, 'Under the Tuscan Sun' and 'The Hate U Give' Writer, Dies at 58
“We are deeply...
- 1/23/2019
- by Brian Welk
- The Wrap
‘Roma,’ Alfonso Cuaron‘s nostalgic ode to his ’70s childhood in Mexico City, won over the 84-member Alliance of Women Film Journalists — including me. The stunning black-and-white Netflix release pocketed five Eda wins: Best Film, Best Cinematography, Best Non-English Film, Best Editing and Best Director. Coming in second were those cutthroat royals in “The Favourite” with four wins, including Olivia Colman as Best Actress.
The all-female group’s 12th annual competition once again salutes the best – and some of the worst – in the world of film with 25 categories in three sections. There are the general Best of Awards, Female Focus Awards and Eda Special Mention Awards whose nominees are picked by those Awfj members who send in a nominating ballot. There is room for the good, including Viola Davis of “Widows” receiving the “Actress Defying Age and Ageism Award,” and the bad, as in Jennifer Lawrence of “Red Sparrow,” who...
The all-female group’s 12th annual competition once again salutes the best – and some of the worst – in the world of film with 25 categories in three sections. There are the general Best of Awards, Female Focus Awards and Eda Special Mention Awards whose nominees are picked by those Awfj members who send in a nominating ballot. There is room for the good, including Viola Davis of “Widows” receiving the “Actress Defying Age and Ageism Award,” and the bad, as in Jennifer Lawrence of “Red Sparrow,” who...
- 1/11/2019
- by Susan Wloszczyna
- Gold Derby
Filmmakers have been making message movies since the birth of the art form, as Hollywood has long embraced the notion of observing progressive social change through mass entertainment. From some of the earliest talkies to outright propaganda pieces, to the Stanley Kramer dramas of the ’50s and ’60s and the resurgence at the studio level in the ’80s and ’90s, storytellers continue to find ways to embed strong personal and cultural statements within their motion pictures. And while many artists will argue that every film is a message movie, it’s clear that 2018 produced a bunch of narratives that spoke louder than others.
One of the most incisive and fierce was “Blindspotting,” a Sundance favorite from director Carlos Lopez Estrada and the writing/acting team of Daveed Diggs and Rafael Casal. The provocative narrative pivots on best friends who have learned to navigate the rough streets of Oakland, Calif., only...
One of the most incisive and fierce was “Blindspotting,” a Sundance favorite from director Carlos Lopez Estrada and the writing/acting team of Daveed Diggs and Rafael Casal. The provocative narrative pivots on best friends who have learned to navigate the rough streets of Oakland, Calif., only...
- 1/11/2019
- by Nick Clement
- Variety Film + TV
“The Hate U Give” screenwriter Audrey Wells took on an especially challenging task, adapting a bestselling young adult novel for the screen and addressing subjects like police brutality, crime and poverty in ways that would be accessible to teen viewers as well as an adult audience. Sadly, Wells didn’t live to see the film reach its audience. She died of cancer on October 4, 2018. The film opened the following day. Will she be commemorated with an Oscar nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay? She would be the 10th writer to be nominated posthumously.
A nomination for Wells wouldn’t just be a sentimental choice. The film earned rave reviews with a MetaCritic score of 82 and a Rotten Tomatoes freshness rating of 97%. She has already won prizes from critics in Indiana and Philadelphia, as well as online critics in Los Angeles. And she has been nominated by the Alliance of Women Film Journalists and critics from Utah.
A nomination for Wells wouldn’t just be a sentimental choice. The film earned rave reviews with a MetaCritic score of 82 and a Rotten Tomatoes freshness rating of 97%. She has already won prizes from critics in Indiana and Philadelphia, as well as online critics in Los Angeles. And she has been nominated by the Alliance of Women Film Journalists and critics from Utah.
- 1/2/2019
- by Daniel Montgomery
- Gold Derby
The 84-member Alliance of Women Film Journalists – which includes me — have announced their nominees for the 2018 Awfj Eda Awards. The all-female group’s 12th annual awards once again salute the best – and some of the worst – in the world of film with 25 categories in three sections. There are the general Best of Awards, Female Focus Awards and Eda Special Mention Awards whose nominees are picked by those Awfj members who send in a nominating ballot.
Which film ruled over the field of contenders? That would be that royal bitch stitch,“The Favourite,” with 11 nods, including Best Film as well as director, original screenplay, actress, two supporting actresses, ensemble, cinematography and editing. Three other titles had the second-most nominations with eight apiece: “Leave No Trace,” “Roma” and “Vice.” Meanwhile, “BlackKklansman,” “Black Panther” and “If Beale Street Could Talk” came in third with five spots each.
But the Awfj is best known...
Which film ruled over the field of contenders? That would be that royal bitch stitch,“The Favourite,” with 11 nods, including Best Film as well as director, original screenplay, actress, two supporting actresses, ensemble, cinematography and editing. Three other titles had the second-most nominations with eight apiece: “Leave No Trace,” “Roma” and “Vice.” Meanwhile, “BlackKklansman,” “Black Panther” and “If Beale Street Could Talk” came in third with five spots each.
But the Awfj is best known...
- 12/22/2018
- by Susan Wloszczyna
- Gold Derby
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