Writers Guild Invites Hollywood Studios To Break Away From AMPTP For Strike Negotiations

www.slashfilm.com: With Hollywood's writers and actors on strike, and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) at a standstill in negotiations with both the Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA, the WGA has suggested that legacy studios could break away to negotiate their own deal and get productions up and running again.

The first-ever TV and film studio is set to open in Manhattan in 2025

www.timeout.com/newyork: Although countless film and TV productions are set in Manhattan, the borough has yet to lay claim to its very own production-studio complex. Things are about to change, though.

Ed Sheeran Postpones Las Vegas Concert at Last Minute

Billboard: d Sheeran postponed his concert at Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium at the last minute on Saturday (Sept. 9), leaving thousands of fans waiting outside in the uncomfortable heat. The British pop star took to social media at around 5:30 p.m. PT to break the news to concertgoers, many of whom traveled from other cities to attend the show and were lined up outside the venue.

Erasing the line between theory and practice

InPark Magazine: Alterface designed The Wander technology to give storytellers and operators extensive and profound options for the creation and implementation of interactive, non-linear guest experiences. We’re eagerly looking forward to seeing the first Wander-empowered experiences realized in the near future.

US Open 2023: All Celebrity Sightings in Stands

jezebel.com: It’s time we recognize these celeb-packed seating charts for what they are: works of art. According to a 2016 ESPN article, a handful of different things contributed to their creation

Coke Launches a Proprietary ‘Sips & Sounds’ Summer Festival

www.eventmarketer.com: Coke’s roots in music run deep, from countless festival sponsorships and partnerships with legendary artists through the years, to the Coke Studio global music platform launched in 2022. Over the summer, the beverage giant added another notch to its belt: The Coca-Cola Sips & Sounds Summer Festival, Amplified by Coke Studio.

Historic National Agreement Between Writers Guild of Canada and IATSE on Script Coordinators

IATSE: The Writers Guild of Canada (WGC) and IATSE have reached a historic, national agreement to represent script coordinators working in the Canadian film and television industry, through all stages of production, including development.

US rejects AI copyright for famous state fair-winning Midjourney art

Ars Technica: On Tuesday, the US Copyright Office Review Board rejected copyright protection for an AI-generated artwork that won a Colorado State Fair art contest last year because it lacks human authorship required for registration, Reuters reports. The win, which was widely covered in the press at the time, ignited controversy over the ethics of AI-generated artwork.

1/52 Project Supports 7 New Designers

AMERICAN THEATRE: The 1/52 Project has selected seven early career designers to receive a total of $88,000 in grants. Now in its second year, the financial grant program founded by set designer Beowulf Boritt seeks to fund early career designers from historically excluded groups, including women, with the aim of diversifying and strengthening the Broadway design community. The project is primarily funded by designers with shows running on Broadway, who are encouraged to donate one week every year of their weekly royalties to this fund. The 1/52 Project is partnered with TheFrontOffice Foundation.

Alcorn McBride: Pathways to growth

InPark Magazine: In the rapidly evolving world of technology and engineering, companies are constantly seeking new talent and innovative minds. But what is the best way to attract and nurture such talent? We explored the immersive internship program of Alcorn McBride. This small-but-mighty company of 21 employees has evolved a successful model for welcoming and fostering the next generation of engineering professionals.

AGMA Ratifies FIRST Agreement with Ballet Idaho

American Guild of Musical Artists: The FIRST collective bargaining agreement between AGMA and Ballet Idaho was approved by AGMA leadership, after being overwhelmingly ratified by the shop.

Why a Sports Writer Turned to Shakespeare to Write a Play About Soccer

Arts Stories & Interviews | St. Louis | St. Louis Riverfront Times: Readers of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch know Benjamin Hochman as a sports columnist, and he’s also the author of four non-fiction books about sports. But this week, he adds a new line to his resume: playwright. Shakespeare in the Streets will present Hochman’s soccer-themed play, The Game’s Afoot, September 14 to 16 in downtown St. Louis. (See stlshakes.org/production/soccer for more information.) He recently explained how St. Louis’ infamous high school connections led to this collaboration — and why this play is for soccer lovers, not just theater fans.

Smart Monkeys: Listening to operators

InPark Magazine: “It’s all about the workflow,” says Smart Monkeys CEO Stephan Villet, speaking to InPark editor Judith Rubin about how the company has grown and evolved in unexpected ways. Smart Monkeys is the creator of ISAAC, a revolutionary workflow and multimedia management platform that had its first big exposure to the industry in 2013 with its first airport installation – the Tom Bradley Terminal at LAX, which was honored with a Thea Award. Today, the company is well positioned to move forward with a multifaceted staff, and many prestigious manufacturers have aligned their products with ISAAC.

AI Song Using Drake and The Weeknd Not Grammy Eligible After All

www.thewrap.com: In a New York Times story published Tuesday, representatives for creator ghostwriter977 said the song had been submitted for next year’s Grammy Awards. In the article, Harvey Mason Jr., the CEO of the Recording Academy, said the song was “absolutely eligible” on the creative side “because it was written by a human.” Now Mason has returned to the public spotlight singing a very different tune.

DP Ricardo Diaz on the IATSE Strike That Wasn’t – as “Hot Labor Summer” Becomes “Stormy Labor Fall”

Below the Line: So the informal end to summer, at least in America, now starts to reside in the rearview mirror. We refer of course to Labor Day, that holiday, as noted in earlier columns, offered up as an alternative to the more potentially incendiary May Day, around which, when unions were just starting to form as a reaction to working conditions in the early industrial era, some violent– and often fatal – clashes between workers and police took place, such as Chicago’s Haymarket Riot.

Disney Parks Unveils Future Projects, Surprises at Destination D23

Disney Parks Blog: Exciting news Disney Parks fans! On Sept. 9, we’re sharing new announcements and updates on some of our most highly anticipated projects at Disney Parks, Experiences and Products LIVE – as they’re unveiled – during the biggest Disney fan event of the year, Destination D23!

How unions could help reality TV cast and crew win better pay and working conditions

theconversation.com: “Just because you can exploit young, doe-eyed talent desperate for the platform TV gives them, it doesn’t mean you should.” Original Real Housewives of New York star Bethany Frankel recently issued this rallying call for unionisation of reality TV. She hopes to instigate a “reality reckoning” that will help other unscripted TV performers realise their rights to better pay and working conditions.

Several UK theatres close due to concerns over crumbling concrete

Theatre | The Guardian: Theatres across the UK have joined the dozens of schools forced to close or partly close due to concerns over crumbling concrete, reigniting fears over cultural institutions’ post-lockdown survival.

Paul Feig Donates $100,000 to Aid Film, TV Crew During Strike

www.thewrap.com: Veteran filmmaker Paul Feig donated $100,000 to the Motion Picture and Television Fund’s Community Care Fund, TheWrap has learned. The money will help Southern California members of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) as the ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA labor strikes against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers have created financial challenges for below-the-line workers.

WGAW President advocates for striking workers unemployment insurance

Reel 360 News: In a significant move to support striking workers in California, Meredith Stiehm, President of the Writers Guild of America West (WGAW), visited the state capitol to advocate for a crucial bill. If passed, this legislation would grant striking workers access to unemployment insurance (UI) benefits, which they have already contributed to through their work.

Pre-Professional Pipeline—or Purgatory? Who Do Apprentice and Trainee Programs Really Serve?

Dance Magazine: For ballet dancer Megan Hug, landing a company job was a journey—but not an unexpected one. Last season, she was an unpaid apprentice with Canyon Concert Ballet in Fort Collins, Colorado; before that, she paid tuition for three years as a trainee at BalletMet in Columbus, Ohio, and for one year in the Professional Division at Nashville Ballet. Now she’s an artistic associate with Canyon Concert Ballet—her first paid contract.

More Closed Broadway Shows Should Do What 'Waitress the Musical' Is Doing!

The Mary Sue: Right now, fans of the musical Waitress are getting to relive the magic of the Sara Bareilles musical released to a wider audience, which is a nice change of pace for what normally happens with musicals. From director Adrienne Shelly, who died prior to seeing the success it would have, the film Waitress has a soft spot in the hearts of its fans. Then, the musical came to make us love the story even more.

Drake's Team on Staging 'It's All a Blur' Tour: 'Like a Rubik's Cube'

Variety: Tasked with putting the larger puzzle pieces together was longtime DJ-turned-manager and business partner Adel “Future” Nur, along with Matte Babel and Anthony Gonzales, who round out the management team. The three are just a few of the brains behind DreamCrew — the all-purpose production house with one hand in visual arts, and the other, according to their website, in “Drake’s entire professional career and business portfolio.”

Ryan Murphy Launches $500K Strike Fund to Support Past, Present Staff

The Hollywood Reporter: Murphy has committed $500,000 to launch the Ryan Murphy Productions Assistance Fund, which “stands ready to support the exceptional casts and committed crews of Ryan Murphy Productions.” The creation of the fund was announced on Instagram Friday with a post directing those in need to a website where they can apply for financial assistance. With Murphy being one of Hollywood’s most prolific creators of television and film, the initiative could support thousands.

Bay Area Children's Theatre Owes Over 2000 Creditors as Part of its Downfall

www.broadwayworld.com: This past week, an auction was launched to sell off what was left of Bay Area Children’s Theatre (BACT). It is part of the bankruptcy proceeding—most of the theaters that folded managed to do it before the court needed to get involved, but not BACT.

NFTRW Weekly Top Five

Here are the top five comment generating posts of the past week:

5 Ways the Disney College Program Will Change Your Life

Disney Parks Blog: Summer is starting to wind down, bringing one of my favorite times of the year — the opening of applications for the Disney College Program! We’re now recruiting for the spring 2024 semester, and this unique internship program offers an opportunity unlike any other for college students and recent grads to work and learn at Walt Disney World, all while having fun and making new friends from around the world.

Posted by David at 9/07/2023 09:55:00 AM

The Year of Color: 3 Sherwin-Williams Brands Select Eye-Catching Hues for 2024

Builder Magazine: It’s that time of year where design trends experts and paint manufacturers have begun predicting which colors and color families will make a statement in homes in the coming year. Recently, three more brands within the Sherwin-Williams Consumer Brands Group, including Minwax, HGTV Home, and Dutch Boy Paints, announced their selections.

Posted by David at 9/08/2023 11:10:00 AM

Karma Is A God: Hollywood Studios Underestimated Taylor Swift And Are Losing Out On Millions

www.slashfilm.com: Taylor Swift isn't just shaking it off: she's shaking things up in Hollywood with a bombshell deal that has reportedly left studios seething. The pop icon is bringing her "Eras Tour" concert to theaters on October 13, and has made the radical move of cutting out the middleman — a Hollywood studio distributor like Disney, Paramount, or Universal— and making a deal directly with AMC Theatres to distribute the film on its screens, while also distributing in other theaters via a sub-distribution deal with Variance Films.

Posted by David at 9/07/2023 09:52:00 AM

Climate Change Has Finally Come for Burning Man

WIRED: When the history of Burning Man 2023 is written, it’s likely Diplo and Chris Rock deciding to trudge for five miles out of the festival site will be recorded as the point the fun stopped. The musician and actor were forced to abandon their campsite by foot as torrential rains turned the Nevada desert, which hosts the annual hedonists’ festival, into a mud bath.

Posted by David at 9/05/2023 09:35:00 AM

SAG-AFTRA Unanimously Authorizes Vote for Possible Video Game Actors Strike

The Mary Sue: Just in time for Labor Day weekend, the National Board of SAG-AFTRA announced a unanimous decision to send a strike authorization vote to its members for actors working in video games. In a press release made on Friday, the Screen Actors Guild outlined why a separate strike against 10 major video game companies is necessary after their existing Interactive Media Agreement expired nearly a year ago

Posted by David at 9/06/2023 10:05:00 AM

 

Workers at Vancouver's WildBrain animation studio look to unionize

CBC News: Staff at WildBrain's Vancouver studio, the animation studio behind well-known animation properties such as Snoopy TV, Johnny Test and Sonic Prime, are looking to join a small but growing list of studios in the province that are part of the Canadian Animation Guild, Local 938 of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE).

Not So Simple: Optimizing Vocals With Large-Diaphragm Condenser Microphones

ProSoundWeb: Lusting after large diaphragm condenser (LDC) microphones has become a national pastime. Newbies devour the recording publications and read about this artist and that artist recording with vintage Neumann U 47s or Tele 251s and believe that they need those same mics, (or too often a design copy) to get a “hit” record.

Paper Panache with Dreyfoos Design Students

Palm Beach Illustrated: Penny Williams is always looking for creative ways to challenge her costume design students at the Alexander W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts, perhaps because she sees a bit of herself in each and every one of them. Williams started teaching at Dreyfoos 28 years ago, after the West Palm Beach–based high school hired her to design show costumes on a freelance basis. Though she wasn’t sure about teaching teens at first, she soon fell in love with encouraging students who were just as enthusiastic about embracing fun and unconventional design as she was.

Best Laser Levels for 2023

Pro Tool Reviews: Technology has driven down the price of laser levels, making them affordable tools for homeowners, DIYers, and handymen. Use them for everything from kitchen layout to hanging photos and setting fence or deck posts. We give you our picks for the best laser levels and tell you why everyone should have (at least) one in their toolbox.

The Year of Color: 3 Sherwin-Williams Brands Select Eye-Catching Hues for 2024

Builder Magazine: It’s that time of year where design trends experts and paint manufacturers have begun predicting which colors and color families will make a statement in homes in the coming year. Recently, three more brands within the Sherwin-Williams Consumer Brands Group, including Minwax, HGTV Home, and Dutch Boy Paints, announced their selections.

Burning Man 'Leave No Trace' Clean-up a Struggle Due to Mud

www.businessinsider.com: Burning Man organizers have three weeks to clean up any remnants of the makeshift city plopped across over 4 square miles (10 square kilometers) of the Black Rock Desert in northwestern Nevada, but a summer storm that left tens of thousands stranded in ankle-deep mud could alter that timeframe.

Crafting the Perfect Greek Getaway Wardrobe for My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3

www.focusfeatures.com: In My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3, writer, director, and star Nia Vardalos brings the beloved Portokalos family of the first two films from their Chicago home to Greece for the adventure of their lives. The moment the gang, from Toula (Vardalos) to Aunt Voula (Andrea Martin), land in their homeland, they embrace their Greek surroundings, donning a whole new set of clothes.

AI Song Using Drake and The Weeknd's Voices Submitted for Grammy

The Mary Sue: “I came in with my ex, like Selena to flex (Aye) / Bumpin’ Justin Bieber, the fever ain’t left (Aye) / She know what need, yeah, Anita she blessed (Aye) / Givin’ you my best (Aye)” raps Drake on the viral TikTok song “Heart on My Sleeve”—only it isn’t Drake. Instead, it’s an AI generation of his vocals. Now, that AI song has been submitted for a Grammy.

In ‘Dishwasher 2,’ housework isn’t a chore. It’s a performance.

The Washington Post: Arriving at the designated time and place, I pressed the doorbell and was let into a basement apartment in Cleveland Park by a slight, genial fellow named Brian Feldman. He welcomed me into his humble digs, gave me a pair of rubber gloves and a fresh sponge, and led me to the sink. Whereupon I washed his dishes.

Why Lawsuits Over ‘Romeo & Juliet’ and ‘Nevermind’ Were Dismissed by Judges

The Hollywood Reporter: In two recent high-profile lawsuits — one related to the iconic photograph of a baby used on the 1991 Nirvana Nevermind album cover and the other related to a scene in the 1968 film Romeo and Juliet — courts have addressed statute of limitations issues in connection with lawsuits alleging that an artistic work constituted child abuse.

ESPN's 'SportsCenter' completes Studio X overhaul, adds 'depth' with virtual window

NewscastStudio: Studio X, located inside Digital Center 2 on ESPN’s campus in Bristol, Connecticut, has been the home of “SportsCenter” since 2014. Last year, phase one of the upgrades to the studio included the addition of 38 million pixels of LED, including a massive 48-foot display, the largest on ESPN’s campus, along with a flexible anchor desk.

Ontario’s Film Industry: Hollywood Will Return After Strikes

The Hollywood Reporter: Hollywood production may have ground to a halt in Ontario and its A-listers may be mostly absent from red carpets at the Toronto Film Festival this week due to the ongoing writers and actors strikes in Los Angeles.

Live Nation Business Model Is Not Being Questioned By DOJ, Exec Says

The Hollywood Reporter: Live Nation president and CFO Joe Berchtold provided an update on the Department of Justice’s investigation into the company and its affiliated ticketing service, Ticketmaster, saying that he believes the DOJ is investigating certain business practices at the company, rather than the merged company itself.

Ava DuVernay Gets Real About the Racism in International Film Festivals

www.theroot.com: Ahead of the world premiere for her new film Origin at the 80th annual Venice International Film Festival, Academy Award-nominated director Ava DuVernay is opening up about the challenges and racism Black U.S. filmmakers face when it comes to getting the recognition they deserve for their art in international film festivals.

Solution by Thern: NFL Draft Stage Winches and Controls

Thern® Stage Equipment: Thern was tasked with developing a solution capable of precisely lifting the entire set of truss sections to a height of 100 feet, involving 400 feet of rope spooling, all while maintaining synchronized movement. The winches needed to be integrated into each truss section’s end and remain in place after the lift.

5 Ways the Disney College Program Will Change Your Life

Disney Parks Blog: Summer is starting to wind down, bringing one of my favorite times of the year — the opening of applications for the Disney College Program! We’re now recruiting for the spring 2024 semester, and this unique internship program offers an opportunity unlike any other for college students and recent grads to work and learn at Walt Disney World, all while having fun and making new friends from around the world.

Refik Anadol lights up MSG’s Las Vegas sphere with collages

www.archpaper.com: Earlier this summer a new entertainment venue slash billboard opened on the Las Vegas Strip dubbed the Exosphere. The Populous-designed piece is the “largest LED screen on earth.” Since it opened, Exosphere has projected an unnervingly realistic, blinking eyeball; basketball-themed graphics; and a fireworks show across its surface.

The Burning Man mud memes just hit different.

slate.com: Burning Man traditionally ends with the titular incineration of a massive human sculpture in the middle of the Black Rock Desert. This year, the annual hedonistic fire festival became more of a Fyre Festival (get it …???) as unexpected downpours turned the dusty plain into a field of muck, causing road closures that stranded tens of thousands of attendees in the mud.

Illinois' Craziest HSFB Entrance Is Fueled By A Lot Of Car Exhaust

brobible.com: Eastland-Pearl City High School football has the most unique team entrance in the country. It involves a lot — like, a lot — of exhaust and can’t be great for the environment or anyone involved but it looks awesome.

Karma Is A God: Hollywood Studios Underestimated Taylor Swift And Are Losing Out On Millions

www.slashfilm.com: Taylor Swift isn't just shaking it off: she's shaking things up in Hollywood with a bombshell deal that has reportedly left studios seething. The pop icon is bringing her "Eras Tour" concert to theaters on October 13, and has made the radical move of cutting out the middleman — a Hollywood studio distributor like Disney, Paramount, or Universal— and making a deal directly with AMC Theatres to distribute the film on its screens, while also distributing in other theaters via a sub-distribution deal with Variance Films.

Row House Cinema to reopen Dormont's Hollywood Theater as part of expansion

Pittsburgh City Paper: The people behind Row House Cinema transformed a former discount store into a single-screen boutique movie house. After bringing cinema to Lawrenceville, the team has turned its efforts to the South Hills, more specifically the historic Hollywood Theater on Potomac Avenue.

How do they do the realistic surgeries on Chicago Med?

Reel Chicago News: When it comes to achieving the look of realistic surgeries on screen, the team behind the One Chicago series Chicago Med relies on their incredible special effects skills.

Photos: Richard Gere and Sheryl Lee Ralph Hit Up Picket Lines

www.thewrap.com: As the actors strike entered its fourth month, morale among SAG-AFTRA members remained high despite no additional talks with the AMPTP, not to mention the picket-line hurdles of hurricanes and heat waves.

Vu One: Vu's New All-in-One Virtual Production Studio

Filmmaker Magazine: Vu just announced a new product that aims to make virtual production a lot more accessible: the Vu One. It’s two parts. One part turnkey virtual production studio in a (very, very, big) box. One part Vu’s Virtual Studio, a software platform that makes creating and running virtual scenes a lot easier.

Libertarian Glampers Finally Escape Burning Man Festival With Their Lives

www.wonkette.com: The 2023 Burning Man festival was a complete disaster, literally so this time. Torrential rain pummeled the event, held in a remote Nevada desert, and thousands of attendees were stranded, as the roads leading into the festival were impassable muck. The grounds themselves were thick sludge, with ankle-deep mud. People reportedly wrapped trash bags around their shoes or gave up entirely and walked barefoot in the poo water.

'Back to the Future' Broadway Musical Designer Talks Video Design

Variety: On the new episode of “Stagecraft,” Variety’s theater podcast, the two creatives behind the most striking video designs on Broadway reveal all the complexity at work on screens in “Back to the Future” and “The Shark Is Broken.”

SAG-AFTRA Unanimously Authorizes Vote for Possible Video Game Actors Strike

The Mary Sue: Just in time for Labor Day weekend, the National Board of SAG-AFTRA announced a unanimous decision to send a strike authorization vote to its members for actors working in video games. In a press release made on Friday, the Screen Actors Guild outlined why a separate strike against 10 major video game companies is necessary after their existing Interactive Media Agreement expired nearly a year ago

Musk's Ex-Lieutenant Had 'Totally Bonkers Exit' at Burning Man

www.businessinsider.com: Esther Crawford, Elon Musk's former lieutenant at Twitter, said she was able to escape the rain and mud that temporarily stranded many people at Burning Man over the weekend.

Palm-sized Woovebox puts a powerful groove machine in your pocket

newatlas.com: The Woovebox micro music workstation rocks a stripped-back design reminiscent of Teenage Engineering's Pocket Operators, but has more to offer the mobile groove creator – packing in a synthesizer, sequencer, sampler and beat maker.

Burning Man Eventgoers 'Stranded' After Roads Left Impassable

www.ticketnews.com: Thousands of people took over the Black Rock Desert in Nevada for the annual Burning Man festival. However, heavy rainfall caused the streets to become impassable, trapping eventgoers in the desert.

Schele Williams, the Directing Whiz Behind the New ‘Wiz’ and ‘Aida’

AMERICAN THEATRE: Williams, a busy actor, director, and author, has recently been tasked with giving new life to two beloved Broadway classics, Aida and The Wiz. As a member of the original Broadway cast of Aida, and growing up on the story of The Wiz, Williams understands the weight these stories hold in the Broadway canon, and especially in the context of Black culture. She is passionate about continuing the tradition by passing down these tales to the next generation, but she is aiming to ensure that both of these new iterations resonate with audiences as they once did with her.

Jeff Rosenstock Exposes Exorbitant Merch Cuts Taken by Venues

consequence.net: Jeff Rosenstock has broken down the exorbitant merch cuts being taken by some venues on his upcoming North American tour to explain why he’ll have to charge more at certain dates and critique the corporations that control the touring industry.

A Speech, A Call For Immediate Action And A Telethon Support Striking WGA And SAG-AFTRA Members

www.forbes.com: As the Writers Guild of America strike hits day 125 and the SAG-AFTRA strike is nearing its third month, many entities have offered their thoughts about the current status of the labor efforts.

Burning Man Chaos: Chris Rock and Diplo Among Those Who Got Stuck

Variety: As far as the-end-of-something symbolism went, this year’s Burning Man festival was about as sharp as it gets: A social-media optimized version of Woodstock ’99.

Bilingual in Boston: Theatre By and For Immigrants

AMERICAN THEATRE: Opening night of Ray’s Magic, a series of short plays performed by the Boston-based Bengali theatre organization Off-Kendrik last May, was sold out. The audience was packed with an audience of almost entirely South Asian faces, chatting in a mix of Bengali and English. Volunteers served chai, mixture, and Indian sweets while urging dawdling audience members to get seated.

For Disabled Writers and Actors on Strike, Picket Line Access Is Key

The Hollywood Reporter: On the New York picket lines, where WGA and SAG-AFTRA members have walked since May and July, respectively, actress, writer and director Anita Hollander is used to getting a specific look. The one-legged screen and stage actress is strong — thanks to a regular practice of Pilates — and in good physical health. But she’s also a grandmother dealing with additional stress to her hands as a result of the increased use of her crutches while on the line.

Hard light definition in film and TV

nofilmschool.com: There are so many different kinds of lighting it can be hard to keep track. But that's why we're here to help you sort through it. One distinctive lighting technique that has captivated audiences and filmmakers alike is "hard lighting." It's one of those things you'll recognize as soon as you see it.

The Best Scream on Film Wasn’t in a Horror Movie

collider.com: Every time a horror movie watcher utters a phrase like "Don't go in there!" or "He's right behind you!" it's a certainty that something truly awful is about to happen, and somebody, usually the quintessential damsel in distress, is about to let out a blood-curdling scream. The quality of that scream can be the key to just how effective and jump-inducing that scary scene can be.

Wheel of Time's Costume Designer Explains S2's Scariest Outfits

gizmodo.com: Prime Video’s The Wheel of Time brings Robert Jordan’s fantasy realm to life with striking detail. Season two, which just kicked off last week, opens the story even wider, revealing new characters who bring menace to the screen just by the fierce way they dress—and accessorize.

WGA Encourages Strike Silver Lining in Labor Day Message

www.thewrap.com: Chris Keyser, the co-chair of the Writers Guild of America negotiating committee, shared a special Labor Day video message on Monday, addressing the ongoing dual strike of the WGA and SAG-AFTRA against the Hollywood studios and encouraging a silver lining as the end date remains unclear

Venice Immersive Project ‘Tulpamancer’ Brings Dreams to Life Via AI

The Hollywood Reporter: Tulpamancer, created by Marc Da Costa and Matthew Niederhauser uses open-source AI tools, including Open AI and StableDiffusion, to reconstruct users’ memories and dreams in a guided two-step journey, then reproduce through virtual reality (VR).

WGA Labor Day Message: AMPTP Is 'Wrestling Amongst Themselves'

Variety: Chris Keyser, co-chair of the Writers Guild of America negotiating committee, has shared a special message over the Labor Day holiday. After acknowledging the WGA staff, who have “dedicated their working lives to the cause of writers and writing,” Keyser shared key points of the ongoing writers strike.

Art on the Mart has new video art for Chicago’s largest screen

www.chicagotribune.com: Art on the Mart has announced two new artists for the fall, both heavy hitters in the field of digital and video art. Projections by Yiyun Kang and a return of videos by Charles Atlas will play nightly from mid-September to mid-November.

Step Inside Artist Dale Chihuly’s Stunning Seattle Studio, Filled With an Epic Antiques Collection and His Otherworldly Glass Forms

news.artnet.com: You may think you know all there is to know about Dale Chihuly, master of glass, whose delicate handblown creations take the medium to the realm of fine art.

Cinebot Mini Robot Camera Track Features and Price

nofilmschool.com: In one of the original instances of “robots taking our jobs,” which we strangely don’t hear too much about these days, robo-controlled camera arms have been making video production jobs easier for several decades now. In many instances, they’re continuing to be innovated to become cheaper, smarter, and more dynamic.

Here's where you can see 'Rogers: The Musical' after it closed

www.themeparkinsider.com: When Disneyland announced that it would stage a real-life version of "Rogers: The Musical" at Disney California Adventure's Hyperion Theater, it said that the show would close August 31.

The Sphere hosts first ad campaign and AI art installation

www.avinteractive.com: YouTube is premiering the first-ever brand campaign specifically designed for the LED exterior of the Sphere in Las Vegas. The animation transforms the Exosphere – the Sphere’s exterior, which features more than 50,000 sq metres of fully programmable LED panelling – into the helmets of the 32 teams in the NFL American football league.

Climate Change Has Finally Come for Burning Man

WIRED: When the history of Burning Man 2023 is written, it’s likely Diplo and Chris Rock deciding to trudge for five miles out of the festival site will be recorded as the point the fun stopped. The musician and actor were forced to abandon their campsite by foot as torrential rains turned the Nevada desert, which hosts the annual hedonists’ festival, into a mud bath.

‘Jaja’s African Hair Braiding’ will introduce Broadway audiences to a world they’ve never seen

www.broadwaynews.com: The world-premiere production of “Jaja’s African Hair Braiding” is set to open at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre on Oct. 3. The play, which marks the Main Stem debut of writer Jocelyn Bioh, is the first production of Manhattan Theatre Club’s 2023-2024 Broadway season.

1 death reported after storms leave thousands stranded at Burning Man Festival

NPR: Tens of thousands of attendees are stranded at the Burning Man music and arts festival after storms turned Nevada's Black Rock Desert playa into a mud bath. Close to an inch of precipitation flooded the area starting on Friday, prompting event organizers to close access to the festival until vehicles could safely pass and to warn campers to conserve food and water.

What Was Shakespeare Really Like?

New York Theater: For his ninetieth birthday, Sir Stanley Wells, considered one of the world’s greatest authorities on William Shakespeare, was asked to deliver four lectures to answer the following questions: What was Shakespeare like? How did he write his plays? What does the body of his work tell us about his personality? What made him laugh?

Leaping ‘Into the Next Unknown’: Robert Lyons on the End of New Ohio Theater

The New York Times: The last performance of the last show at the 74-seat New Ohio Theater, on Christopher Street in Manhattan’s West Village, was “Ultra Left Violence,” a poetical, political, work-in-progress play by the company’s artistic director, Robert Lyons. Wrapping up the New Ohio’s final Ice Factory festival on Aug. 12, it was thrillingly, even touchingly, weird.

Alba's Long-Awaited Appearance Opens Liberty Magic Season

onstagepittsburgh.com: Liberty Magic had Alba scheduled to perform her mini-residency in November, 2020. And, poof! Pandemic. So that gig disappeared faster than a coin on her fingertips. At last, here she is.

Astera Dreams in the Park

LightSoundJournal.com: A Midsummer Night’s Dream – one of Shakespeare’s most enduring, timeless, and intricately cerebral comedies – is always a delight to light, and Singapore-based lighting designer Gabriel Chan relished this task for the 2023 Shakespeare in The Park (SITP) version of this magical and mischievous work.

Will the Edinburgh fringe ever return to its pre-pandemic self? I hope not

Brian Logan | The Guardian: Will the Edinburgh fringe ever return to its pre-pandemic self? I hope not Brian Logan Brian Logan Fresh from this year’s jubilant festival, I’m not the only one hoping that it has given up its addiction to growth Sat 2 Sep 2023 03.00 EDT Last modified on Sat 2 Sep 2023 04.30 EDT 267 “Ticket sales still 19% down on 2019.” “Can the Edinburgh fringe survive?” It was surprising to leave a jam-packed, jubilant festival to read those headlines, but then, that’s the fringe for you: so all encompassing and vast that anything can be said of it – It’s thriving! It’s doomed! It’s art! It’s capitalism! – and still be true. But the facts remain the facts: 2.5m tickets were sold for this year’s fringe. That’s an 11% increase year-on-year, but still lower than the comparable figure for the fringe’s last pre-Covid year.

The perils and pirouettes of staging a ballet aboard the Queen Mary 2

The Washington Post: Imagine the challenge: You’re a dancer with an esteemed ballet company, drilled to the point of distraction in the art of flawless arabesques, chassés, coupés. The execution of diaphanous spins, exquisite leaps, perfect one-footed landings.

Meeting The Public Is The Most Important Incentive For Those Who Do Theatre: An Interview With Walter Prete (Italy)

The Theatre Times: Walter Prete is a playwright, author, actor, educator, dramaturg, director. Born in 1991 in Ruffano, in the province of Lecce, Walter Prete approached the world of theatre as an actor at a very young age. In 2013, he founded the theatre company ALIBI – independent free artists – in Salento with some colleagues.

New biography traces August Wilson's short temper and towering talent

DC Theater Arts: This first full-length biography of August Wilson tells the engaging story of one of the most successful American Black playwrights of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Patti Hartigan, a white journalist and critic who met Wilson early in both their careers, traces the course of Wilson’s life and works, from his childhood in Pittsburgh as the illegitimate son of a white merchant, through to his documenting each decade of 20th-century Black life in his Century Cycle plays.

The Labor Play in a Time of Labor Strikes

New York Theater: On a Labor Day when Hollywood writers and actors have been on strike for months now, there is a fitting if startling answer this year to the question I ask every Labor Day, which is a legal holiday created by Congress in 1884 to celebrate not the American barbecue but the American labor union movement: Where are the American plays about labor — about workers, or workplaces, or unions?

‘I had a panic the night my mum came to see it’: Jonathan Harvey on writing Beautiful Thing

Culture | The Guardian: I wrote Beautiful Thing quickly in the summer of 1992. It came from the heart. The age of consent debate was going on – back then, gay men had to be 21 to have sex. The rhetoric used in parliament was so archaic, with words like “buggery” and “sodomy”. I wanted to write a play about two boys falling in love, and give it a happy ending.

NFTRW Weekly Top Five

Here are the top five comment generating posts from the past week:

After a Vermont playhouse flooded, the show went on

The Seattle Times: Members of a beloved Vermont acting company were sleeping in theater housing when torrential rains and flooding forced them to flee, with water inundating the playhouse’s vast basement of dressing rooms, costumes and props and reaching into the first floor.

Posted by David at 9/01/2023 01:16:00 PM

The Hollywood strike will affect all future creatives

Daily Trojan: For the first time in more than 60 years, the Screen Actors Guild, the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists and the Writer’s Guild of America are on strike simultaneously. Since July 14, it seems as though Hollywood has been shut down, and future young creatives hoping to make it big will feel the effects as well.

Posted by David at 9/01/2023 01:08:00 PM

Back to the Future's Gareth Owen Didn't Go to College For Sound Design, Now He Has a Tony Award

Playbill: Anything and everything one hears when entering the world of Back to the Future: The Musical at Broadway's Winter Garden—including the powerful vocals of Casey Likes, the many jokes delivered by Tony winner Roger Bart as well as the sounds of thunder, the opening of a beer can, and, of course, a time-traveling sequence that leads the audience to a roar of applause—is thanks to Gareth Owen.

Posted by David at 8/28/2023 09:46:00 AM

Barbie Costume Designer Reveals How the Kens' Disco Outfits Created Anxiety on Set

www.cbr.com: Barbie and Kens dancing in the Barbie disco scene. Barbie’s cotton-candy plastic world came to life in the film with almost obsessive production design, especially in the disco scene where clothing the Kens cause some serious style dilemmas.

Posted by David at 9/01/2023 01:09:00 PM

The Ultimate Dumpster Diver: Jan Jongert’s Superuse Studios

Architect Magazine: Jan Jongert takes reuse seriously. As he walks you through the buildings he has designed, the architect—a partner at global firm Superuse Studios—tallies what percentage of them was made from materials that were repurposed from other building sites or even other uses.

Posted by David at 8/31/2023 10:05:00 AM

 

Painting with Light delivers Happy Belgium Finale spectacular

LightSoundJournal.com: Creative visual practice Painting with Light (PWL) was asked by the Agoria Sports and Entertainment Technology club – a networking hub for Belgian technology leaders – to show direct and design lighting for an epic mixed media visual spectacle – lighting, lasers & fireworks – which was the finale segment of the official 2023 Belgian National Day celebrations.

‘The Wiz’ director Schele Williams reveals her discovery in Dorothy’s journey

www.broadwaynews.com: Schele Williams was approximately six years old when she first attended a production of “The Wiz.” She remembers the experience as the first time she saw herself represented onstage. “‘The Wiz’ taught me so much about my Blackness at a young age, when I saw it in Dayton, Ohio,” Williams shared in the upcoming episode of “The Broadway Show with Tamsen Fadal.” “It’s the first time I saw me onstage, and that was exciting.”

After a Vermont playhouse flooded, the show went on

The Seattle Times: Members of a beloved Vermont acting company were sleeping in theater housing when torrential rains and flooding forced them to flee, with water inundating the playhouse’s vast basement of dressing rooms, costumes and props and reaching into the first floor.

Yangtze Rep to Present All-Asian, Women-Led Bilingual Play Inspired by Arthur Miller Directing Death of a Salesman in China

Playbill: Yangtze Rep, in association with Gung Ho Projects, will present the world premiere of Jeremy Tiang's Salesman之死, an all-Asian, women-led bilingual play inspired by the 1983 China production of Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman that was directed by the playwright.

Barbie Costume Designer Reveals How the Kens' Disco Outfits Created Anxiety on Set

www.cbr.com: Barbie and Kens dancing in the Barbie disco scene. Barbie’s cotton-candy plastic world came to life in the film with almost obsessive production design, especially in the disco scene where clothing the Kens cause some serious style dilemmas.

Emmy Nominee: The Last Of Us Production Designer John Paino On Why You Should Go To The Library

Below the Line: The Last of Us is a post-apocalyptic world you can reach out and touch. Not only is it a splendid combination of practical and digital effects, but there’s a history and emotion in these environments and sets. If something is in these sets, it’s there to tell a story in HBO and creator Craig Maizin‘s respectful adaptation of the hit video game series.

The Hollywood strike will affect all future creatives

Daily Trojan: For the first time in more than 60 years, the Screen Actors Guild, the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists and the Writer’s Guild of America are on strike simultaneously. Since July 14, it seems as though Hollywood has been shut down, and future young creatives hoping to make it big will feel the effects as well.

Designer and Stylist June Ambrose on 50 Years of Hip-Hop

www.thecut.com: June Ambrose wears many hats — literally and figuratively. The costume designer and creative director has been photographed wearing all kinds of bespoke hats of the years, and she even told the Cut back in 2016 that she owns close to 100 of them.

AutoCAD XREFs Explained! External Reference Tutorial & Must-Know Tips

CAD Intentions: XREFs are the building blocks of almost all AutoCAD drawings, particularly production drawings as they become more detailed and complicated. Xrefs allow use to keep track of different elements of the drawing and ensure everything stays up to date. Using and understanding xrefs (External references) is not only helpful but typically a necessity of creating a complete drawing.

Tensions rise among studio heads as strike reaches 120 days

Reel 360 News: Top executives from Hollywood’s major studios held a virtual meeting today amidst increasing speculation of internal divisions within the C-suites and a lack of clear direction to resolve the ongoing writers’ and actors’ strikes.

"Each Episode is Like Its Own Movie": DP Benji Bakshi on Star Trek: Strange New Worlds

Filmmaker Magazine: In December of 1964, principal photography finished on the pilot of Star Trek, featuring captain Christopher Pike (played by The Searchers’ Jeffrey Hunter) as the commander of the Enterprise. When the show’s first episode finally aired almost two years later, Pike was nowhere to be found. The initial pilot had been scrapped and re-shot, with William Shatner’s James T. Kirk taking the helm and a different crew boldly going where no man had gone before.

SAG-AFTRA Approves AMC 'Walking Dead' Shows to Restart Production

Variety: SAG-AFTRA has granted approval for three AMC Networks shows to restart production, under its controversial provision allowing “independent” projects to continue despite the strike. The shows include “Interview With the Vampire,” which was shooting in Prague when the strike started, and two “Walking Dead” spinoffs: “The Ones Who Live” and “Daryl Dixon.” The latter project was on hiatus and can resume shooting in France.

OpenAI disputes authors’ claims that every ChatGPT response is a derivative work

Ars Technica: This week, OpenAI finally responded to a pair of nearly identical class-action lawsuits from book authors—including Sarah Silverman, Paul Tremblay, Mona Awad, Chris Golden, and Richard Kadrey—who earlier this summer alleged that ChatGPT was illegally trained on pirated copies of their books.