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Cannes 2013: Surprises & Notable Absence ...

The obsessives' guide to contemporary cinema via film discussion, news, reviews, features, nostalgia, movie music, soundtracks, DVDs and more.

Interviews

Multi-Millionaires Ron Howard & Brian Grazer Planning To Crowdfund 'Friday Night Lights' Movie

By Oliver Lyttelton
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May 16, 2013 11:31 AM
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11 Comments

News

For a few months now, the words 'crowd-funding' and 'Kickstarter' have been on the lips of producers and studio executives all over Hollywood. The tremendous success of the "Veronica Mars' movie on the crowd-funding platform has seemingly opened the way to all kinds of other projects, most notably Zach Braff and his second feature "Wish I Was Here." But we've always been a little worried that it could be a double-edged sword; that executives would stop rolling the dice on risky projects and simply go straight to the fans to root through their wallets.

By Tess Hofmann
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March 27, 2013 10:59 AM
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0 Comments

News

Ever since Rob Thomas, Kristen Bell and their “Veronica Mars” movie kickstarter made $2 million in 11 hours (with a total of $3.9 million and 16 days to go now), film fans and filmmakers alike have been in a frenzied state trying to figure out what this means for the current business model. But it seems that no one is more susceptible to the excitement than other TV series creators, some of whom may want to imitate the “Veronica Mars” model exactly.

By Kevin Jagernauth
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May 3, 2012 6:42 PM
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18 Comments

News

Last summer fans of Texas football, and more specifically, the series "Friday Night Lights," got some hope that there was more to come. Peter Berg revealed that he wanted to get a feature film off the ground centered on Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton picking up where the final episode of the show left off and that work was happening to start getting it rolling. And then, where was pretty much radio silence on it, but it seems it's becoming more of a reality.

By Kevin Jagernauth
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February 15, 2012 5:33 PM
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4 Comments

News

The mooted "Hancock" sequel is one of those things that crops up every now and then -- usually when Will Smith or Peter Berg are out promoting something -- and with "Battleship" looming on the horizon, the latter has been once again talking up the possibilities of the anti-superhero returning to the big screen. Of course, it will take a feat of scheduling to make it happen (meaning, don't hold your breath), but that hasn't stopped Berg and Smith from tossing ideas around ye olde water cooler, even if some of them sound godawful. And sharing one of those concepts with MTV, Berg inadvertently proves that the wait has its benefits.

By Cory Everett
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July 17, 2011 11:43 AM
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6 Comments

It was a big week for football fans in Dillon, Texas, with Coach Eric Taylor leading the underdog East Dillon Lions to an emotional championship victory. Actually, it's been a big week for fans of one of TV's best dramas, "Friday Night Lights," as it just concluded its fifth and final season on NBC (that is, for anyone without DirecTV or a decent Internet connection where the show wrapped up a few months ago). But with the show coming to a close for the second time it's given fans and news outlets alike a chance to start memorializing the show. Grantland has a must-read oral history of the show by its cast and creators and a few days ago the series received Emmy nominations for Best Drama (its first) and Lead Actor and Actress in a Drama for Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton (their second).