News

“Those of us who’ve been called upon, sort of outrageously, to defend it [cinema] over the last few years are often accused, I’m often accused, of magical thinking, of nostalgia, of daydreaming as opposed to a sound business plan and it’s taken the last few years for us all to realize that when you’re talking about movies, magical thinking, nostalgia, daydreaming – that is the sound business plan. It’s the only sound business plan.

Universal Studios left viewers abuzz with a CinemaCon presentation slate of its upcoming big-screen offerings and those of subsidiary Focus Features that was alternately star-studded, kinetic and packed with surprises. Universal Pictures chairwoman Donna Langley kicked off the Wednesday, April 26 event, which at times included other Universal and Focus executives.

Martin Scorsese was the first recipient of the Legend of Cinema award during CinemaCon, the exhibitors’ conference that takes place every year in Las Vegas. During a private luncheon, hundreds of attendees gave a standing ovation to the maestro when he was presented with the honor.

Following dozens of thrilling trailers, announcements and Hollywood star power gracing the Caesar’s Palace Colosseum stage, CinemaCon 2023 made it to the home stretch with the final two studio presentations on the last day of the annual industry event teasing future movie releases. Paramount started things off, proudly boasting that after they premiered Top Gun: Maverick at the convention last year, it turned out to be a phenomenal box office smash, raking in nearly $1.

It was another long weekend in Italy (leading to Monday’s “holiday bridge” to Tuesday April 25, which is Liberation Day, celebrating Italy’s liberation from the Nazi occupiers in 1945), bringing good receipts for the films playing at Italian theaters. The phenomenally successful video-game adaptation The Super Mario Bros.

The emotionally touching documentary Eyes of the Orangutan, available on-line, throws a harsh light on one of the most troubling topics: the wild-tourism industry and its enormous effect on wildlife, especially on one of our closest defenseless living relatives: the orangutan.   The captivating doc Eyes of the Orangutan is the debut feature from internationally acclaimed British wildlife filmmaker and environmental photojournalist Aaron Gekoski.

Daniela Marinho is part of the Buenos Aires Talents at BACIFI this year. Two years ago, her filmmaking partner, Rafaela Camelo participated with the same project: Blood of my Bloods, which is their first feature film.

When Otto Nemenz immigrated to Los Angeles in the early 1960s, he dreamed of becoming a director of photography. The native of Austria started as a camera technician at Panavision, worked his way up to camera assistant and finally, in 1975, his dream came true, and he became director of photography on the TV film After School Special.

The Walt Disney Company, which is celebrating its centennial in 2023, threw a bit of a low-key commemorative revelry during its CinemaCon presentation at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Instead of cake and champagne, the Burbank-based Mouse House instead chose to let their upcoming slate of films, which for the first time presented product from all seven of their main studios, do the toasting.

.