Canadian teen pop singer Justin Bieber will begin his first headlining tour of North America on June 23 in Hartford, Conn., he said Tuesday, a week before his new album hits stores.
The "My World" arena tour will visit 40 cities before wrapping on September 4 in Allentown, Pa.
The trek is named after Bieber's two albums, the upcoming "My World 2.0" and his November debut "My World," which has sold 998,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen Soundscan.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Fight for Paula
Recent reports suggest that the former "American Idol" judge is in talks to host a revival of "Star Search" for ABC -- but old pal Simon Cowell has indicated for months that he wants her to be a part of the American version of his hit British series, "The X Factor" on Fox.
In January, he was quoted as saying, "I will work with her again in some capacity, because I miss her."
Meanwhile, Abdul was quoted last month telling radio hosts "Johnjay & Rich in the Morning" that she's "gonna be going back to my roots and doing a TV show that has something to do with my roots."
ABC had no comment about the rumors and Fox still has another year and a half to go before "X Factor" hits the airwaves.
Abdul was coy yesterday, tweeting that, "Once again, until you hear it from me, you can't believe what you read."
Still, an insider says that an ABC remake of the old-school talent competition is in discussion and that if the network decides to go ahead with it, it could begin airing as early as this summer.
Although Abdul does not have a development deal or contract with ABC, this is the third time in less than a year that her name has been associated with an ABC production. After quitting "Idol," rumors circulated that she was up for guest starring roles on "Ugly Betty" and "Dancing With the Stars," although neither came to fruition.
In January, he was quoted as saying, "I will work with her again in some capacity, because I miss her."
Meanwhile, Abdul was quoted last month telling radio hosts "Johnjay & Rich in the Morning" that she's "gonna be going back to my roots and doing a TV show that has something to do with my roots."
ABC had no comment about the rumors and Fox still has another year and a half to go before "X Factor" hits the airwaves.
Abdul was coy yesterday, tweeting that, "Once again, until you hear it from me, you can't believe what you read."
Still, an insider says that an ABC remake of the old-school talent competition is in discussion and that if the network decides to go ahead with it, it could begin airing as early as this summer.
Although Abdul does not have a development deal or contract with ABC, this is the third time in less than a year that her name has been associated with an ABC production. After quitting "Idol," rumors circulated that she was up for guest starring roles on "Ugly Betty" and "Dancing With the Stars," although neither came to fruition.
'Avatar' DVD to hit stores on Earth Day
The biggest movie of all time is finally headed to your living room. Twentieth Century Fox announced that it will release Avatar on DVD and Blu-Ray on April 22 — Earth Day. But if you’re planning on taking a hammer to your piggy bank and racing out to buy one of those pricey 3-D TVs, hold up a sec. The home version of James Cameron’s f/x-a-palooza will only be available in 2-D. Additionally, the $29.98 DVD and $39.99 Blu-Ray will not come packed with extras — or any extras at all — because both Cameron and the studio wanted to deliver the film in all of its ground-breaking digital glory, which, of course, takes up precious disc space. Nevertheless, Fox says that a loaded, multi-disc edition will hit stores in November.
As for Avatar’s Earth Day release date — which falls on a Thursday instead of the usual Tuesday DVD drop date — Cameron and Co. believe that the date makes sense because of the movie’s ecological themes. Without seeing it, we have no idea how a film as epic (in every sense of the word) as Avatar will play on the small screen. But we do know this: the fastest-selling DVD of all time (that would be Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight, which managed to move 3 million DVDs on its first day back in December 2008) better get ready to be bumped down a peg.
As for Avatar’s Earth Day release date — which falls on a Thursday instead of the usual Tuesday DVD drop date — Cameron and Co. believe that the date makes sense because of the movie’s ecological themes. Without seeing it, we have no idea how a film as epic (in every sense of the word) as Avatar will play on the small screen. But we do know this: the fastest-selling DVD of all time (that would be Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight, which managed to move 3 million DVDs on its first day back in December 2008) better get ready to be bumped down a peg.
Former Edwards aide Andrew Young signs with top agent
Former John Edwards aide Andrew Young, author of the bestselling tell-all "The Politician," said Tuesday that he has signed with Hollywood superagent Ari Emanuel and is looking forward to being portrayed in a movie.
"When they ask who'd play me, I say Danny DeVito," Young, 43, said at a book signing in Durham, N.C.
In 2007, Young claimed he was the father of the baby Edwards fathered with Rielle Hunter, who broke her four-year silence about her affair with the former Democratic vice presidential nominee in the April issue of GQ.
Young's book chronicles his decade of work as Edwards' closest aide, which included months on the run -- with his wife, his three young children and a pregnant Hunter -- to protect Edwards' reputation as he pursued the Democratic presidential nomination in 2007 and 2008.
After denying paternity on national TV, Edwards admitted he fathered the girl two weeks before "The Politician" came out last month.
Young and his wife, Cheri, a pediatric nurse, met with Emanuel a couple of weeks ago in Los Angeles, said Cheri Young. They were told, she said, that there is "significant interest" in making their story into a film.
Andrew Young told his Durham audience that he spent 8 1/2 hours testifying before a federal grand jury about payments made to Hunter and the Youngs. The grand jury, Young said, is investigating whether campaign laws were broken.
"When they ask who'd play me, I say Danny DeVito," Young, 43, said at a book signing in Durham, N.C.
In 2007, Young claimed he was the father of the baby Edwards fathered with Rielle Hunter, who broke her four-year silence about her affair with the former Democratic vice presidential nominee in the April issue of GQ.
Young's book chronicles his decade of work as Edwards' closest aide, which included months on the run -- with his wife, his three young children and a pregnant Hunter -- to protect Edwards' reputation as he pursued the Democratic presidential nomination in 2007 and 2008.
After denying paternity on national TV, Edwards admitted he fathered the girl two weeks before "The Politician" came out last month.
Young and his wife, Cheri, a pediatric nurse, met with Emanuel a couple of weeks ago in Los Angeles, said Cheri Young. They were told, she said, that there is "significant interest" in making their story into a film.
Andrew Young told his Durham audience that he spent 8 1/2 hours testifying before a federal grand jury about payments made to Hunter and the Youngs. The grand jury, Young said, is investigating whether campaign laws were broken.
Sony Places Big Bet on a Fallen 'King'
Months after his death, Michael Jackson set a music-industry record, thanks to a deal between his estate and Sony Corp. valued at as much as $250 million, according to people familiar with the terms.
The deal—touted by both Sony and Mr. Jackson's estate as the most lucrative recording contract ever— guarantees the estate at least $200 million. With 10 albums over seven years, the deal will involve a mix of previously unreleased songs and new packages of familiar ones.
The dollar amount is especially striking against the backdrop of the music industry as a whole, in which U.S. album sales have plunged 52% in a decade. Superstar deals worth tens of millions of dollars per album were rare even at the peak of the CD-sales boom in the late 1990s. Yet it also underscores that the biggest acts are becoming even more essential to record labels, as individual fans purchase fewer albums each year.
Since Mr. Jackson's death on June 25, Sony has sold an estimated 31 million of his albums globally. By the first anniversary of his death, his estate expects to have earned $250 million from sales of music, merchandise and tickets to the posthumous concert film "This Is It."
The advances being paid by Sony are to be offset by sales of albums as well as revenue generated by licensing Mr. Jackson's music for uses like videogames, movies and theatrical performances. But unlike the megadeals struck in recent years by concert promoter Live Nation Entertainment Inc. with pop stars Jay-Z and Madonna, the Jackson deal doesn't give Sony income from other parts of the late singer's business, such as merchandise sales or fees for licensing his name and likeness.
For more news check out here.
The deal—touted by both Sony and Mr. Jackson's estate as the most lucrative recording contract ever— guarantees the estate at least $200 million. With 10 albums over seven years, the deal will involve a mix of previously unreleased songs and new packages of familiar ones.
The dollar amount is especially striking against the backdrop of the music industry as a whole, in which U.S. album sales have plunged 52% in a decade. Superstar deals worth tens of millions of dollars per album were rare even at the peak of the CD-sales boom in the late 1990s. Yet it also underscores that the biggest acts are becoming even more essential to record labels, as individual fans purchase fewer albums each year.
Since Mr. Jackson's death on June 25, Sony has sold an estimated 31 million of his albums globally. By the first anniversary of his death, his estate expects to have earned $250 million from sales of music, merchandise and tickets to the posthumous concert film "This Is It."
The advances being paid by Sony are to be offset by sales of albums as well as revenue generated by licensing Mr. Jackson's music for uses like videogames, movies and theatrical performances. But unlike the megadeals struck in recent years by concert promoter Live Nation Entertainment Inc. with pop stars Jay-Z and Madonna, the Jackson deal doesn't give Sony income from other parts of the late singer's business, such as merchandise sales or fees for licensing his name and likeness.
For more news check out here.
Monday, March 15, 2010
Authentic Rocker Looks in 'The Runaways'
The Runaways isn't set to open in limited release until March 19, but there's already much talk about the gritty, rock look of the film.
The stars of the film, Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning, play bandmates Joan Jett and Cherie Currie. Their characters are visually transformed through the authentic, vintage costumes and makeup.
Throughout the film, they're clad in rebel rock items such as in t-shirts, jeans, and leather jackets. Fanning's character has choppy, blond shag and in one of the early scenes of the film, has as partially drawn red lightning bolt on her face.
The look is anything but polished. The costume designer, Carol Beadle, says, from the Los Angeles Times: "It wasn't Beyonce and Rihanna. It was self-made."
Pimples weren't hidden and hair was kept disheveled. Beadle was instructed to give the actors "bedhead."
Beadle and her team searched endless costume stores and vintage shops, including American Rag and American Vintage. They discovered tiny leather jackets, studded blazers, and zippered jumpsuits among other items seen in the film.
The stars of the film, Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning, play bandmates Joan Jett and Cherie Currie. Their characters are visually transformed through the authentic, vintage costumes and makeup.
Throughout the film, they're clad in rebel rock items such as in t-shirts, jeans, and leather jackets. Fanning's character has choppy, blond shag and in one of the early scenes of the film, has as partially drawn red lightning bolt on her face.
The look is anything but polished. The costume designer, Carol Beadle, says, from the Los Angeles Times: "It wasn't Beyonce and Rihanna. It was self-made."
Pimples weren't hidden and hair was kept disheveled. Beadle was instructed to give the actors "bedhead."
Beadle and her team searched endless costume stores and vintage shops, including American Rag and American Vintage. They discovered tiny leather jackets, studded blazers, and zippered jumpsuits among other items seen in the film.
Most Online News Readers Use 5 Sites or Fewer, Study Says
The audience for news online tends not to stick to a single site — that much has been known for years. But a new study says that even with a vast array of digital choices, “promiscuous” news consumption goes only so far.
Only 35 percent of the people who go online for news have a favorite site, and just 21 percent are more or less “monogamous,” relying primarily on a single Internet news source, according to a survey by the Pew Research Center, in a report to be released Monday by Pew’s Project for Excellence in Journalism.But 57 percent of that audience relies on just two to five sites. The findings parallel studies that say that people with hundreds of television channels tend to stick to a relative handful.
In the Pew survey, just 7 percent of people said they would be willing to pay for access to any news site. And even among the people who are most loyal to a single site, only 19 percent said they would pay, rather than seek free news somewhere else.
But many news sites have concluded that getting even 5 to 10 percent of their readers to pay would constitute success, and many — including The New York Times — have made plans to start some kind of pay system.
Analyzing data from Nielsen Online, the report also concludes that although there are thousands of news sites to choose from, a relatively small number, 199, get 80 percent of the United States traffic.
Only 35 percent of the people who go online for news have a favorite site, and just 21 percent are more or less “monogamous,” relying primarily on a single Internet news source, according to a survey by the Pew Research Center, in a report to be released Monday by Pew’s Project for Excellence in Journalism.But 57 percent of that audience relies on just two to five sites. The findings parallel studies that say that people with hundreds of television channels tend to stick to a relative handful.
In the Pew survey, just 7 percent of people said they would be willing to pay for access to any news site. And even among the people who are most loyal to a single site, only 19 percent said they would pay, rather than seek free news somewhere else.
But many news sites have concluded that getting even 5 to 10 percent of their readers to pay would constitute success, and many — including The New York Times — have made plans to start some kind of pay system.
Analyzing data from Nielsen Online, the report also concludes that although there are thousands of news sites to choose from, a relatively small number, 199, get 80 percent of the United States traffic.
‘Avatar’: Release and Repeat
“Avatar” may soon be booked for a second run at digital and Imax 3-D theaters this summer. According to The Hollywood Reporter, James Cameron is in discussions with Fox to work out a re-release of the film, possibly with additional scenes that were cut from the original.
In New York on Thursday, Imax’s chief executive, Richard L. Gelfond, said that Mr. Cameron had about 40 minutes of extra material. Only about 10 minutes of film could be added, though, to keep under the 170-minute maximum length a movie can be released in analog Imax theaters. But that is just the amount Mr. Cameron has said he could easily push through post production for a director’s cut or for the DVD release, including a scene in which Jake Sully further proves himself to the Na’vi people, and another surrounding a native festival.
“Avatar” was taken out of 3-D theaters to make way for the opening of Disney’s “Alice in Wonderland.” At a demonstration of 3-D TV in New York last week, Mr. Cameron told USA Today, “The word we’re getting back from exhibitors is we probably left a couple hundred million dollars on the table as a result.”
In New York on Thursday, Imax’s chief executive, Richard L. Gelfond, said that Mr. Cameron had about 40 minutes of extra material. Only about 10 minutes of film could be added, though, to keep under the 170-minute maximum length a movie can be released in analog Imax theaters. But that is just the amount Mr. Cameron has said he could easily push through post production for a director’s cut or for the DVD release, including a scene in which Jake Sully further proves himself to the Na’vi people, and another surrounding a native festival.
“Avatar” was taken out of 3-D theaters to make way for the opening of Disney’s “Alice in Wonderland.” At a demonstration of 3-D TV in New York last week, Mr. Cameron told USA Today, “The word we’re getting back from exhibitors is we probably left a couple hundred million dollars on the table as a result.”
David Schwimmer engaged to Brit photog
The man who played thrice-married Ross Gellar on "Friends" is getting ready for his first real-life trip to the altar.
A representative for David Schwimmer told EW.com that the 43-year-old actor-director is engaged to British photographer Zoe Buckman, 24.
Buckman, also never married, reportedly met Schwimmer when she was a waitress in 2007 as he was directing the movie "Run Fatboy Run."
She's not the first international conquest for the actor, linked earlier to Australian pop singer Natalie Imbruglia and Israeli actress Mili Avital.
Since the end of "Friends" in 2004, Schwimmer has voiced a giraffe in two "Madagascar" films, made his Broadway debut in "The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial" and starred in a Lookingglass revival of "Our Town."
Alice In Wonderland holds on to US box office title
Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland kept its place at the top of the US box office chart for a second week, taking $62m (£41m) in the last three days.
It was well ahead of Matt Damon's Iraq war movie, Green Zone, which took second spot with $14.5m (£9.6m).
Romantic movies She's Out of My League and Remember Me were hot on its heels, taking $9.6m (£6.4m) and $8.1m (£5.4m) respectively.
Martin Scorsese thriller Shutter Island was in fifth place.
Horror virus
It stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Marshal Teddy Daniels, who is investigating the disappearance of a murderess who escaped from a mental health hospital.
Our Family Wedding, featuring Ugly Betty star, America Ferreira, debuted at number six ahead of James Cameron's Avatar, now at seven.
Eighth and ninth place were taken by police movies - Brooklyn's Finest, starring Richard Gere, Ethan Hawke and Don Cheadle, and comedy Cop-Out, starring Bruce Willis.
Horror movie The Crazies rounded out the top 10 - it follows the inhabitants of a small Iowa town suddenly plagued by insanity and then death after a mysterious toxin contaminates their water supply.
It was well ahead of Matt Damon's Iraq war movie, Green Zone, which took second spot with $14.5m (£9.6m).
Romantic movies She's Out of My League and Remember Me were hot on its heels, taking $9.6m (£6.4m) and $8.1m (£5.4m) respectively.
Martin Scorsese thriller Shutter Island was in fifth place.
Horror virus
It stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Marshal Teddy Daniels, who is investigating the disappearance of a murderess who escaped from a mental health hospital.
Our Family Wedding, featuring Ugly Betty star, America Ferreira, debuted at number six ahead of James Cameron's Avatar, now at seven.
Eighth and ninth place were taken by police movies - Brooklyn's Finest, starring Richard Gere, Ethan Hawke and Don Cheadle, and comedy Cop-Out, starring Bruce Willis.
Horror movie The Crazies rounded out the top 10 - it follows the inhabitants of a small Iowa town suddenly plagued by insanity and then death after a mysterious toxin contaminates their water supply.
star of TV's 'Mission: Impossible' Peter Graves dies at 83
Peter Graves, the rugged actor who starred in the hit TV series "Mission: Impossible" and whose career took a comic turn in the disaster spoof "Airplane!" has died. He was 83.
Graves was found dead Sunday afternoon in front of his Pacific Palisades home from apparent natural causes, said Officer Karen Rayner of the Los Angeles Police Department.
Graves had just returned from brunch with his family to celebrate his upcoming 84th birthday. He collapsed on the driveway before he could reach his house, said Sandy Brokaw, his publicist. One of Graves' daughters administered cardiopulmonary resuscitation but was unable to revive him, Brokaw said.
Graves starred in more than 70 television series and feature films, typically playing the straight-laced hero. One of his first major roles was in the 1953 classic, "Stalag 17," in which he played an undercover Nazi spy placed among American POWs in a German camp.
His most memorable role was in "Mission: Impossible," the 1960s CBS series in which he played intelligence agent James Phelps, leader of the elite Impossible Missions Force. The show ran from 1967 to 1973 on CBS and 1988 to 1990 on ABC.
Every week, Graves could be seen listening to a tape of instructions for carrying out his team's secret missions. He won a Golden Globe in 1971 for his role.
"Mission: Impossible," along with other Western, military and action parts in the 1970s, branded Graves as an actor who could deliver solid, straight-shooting roles. But that changed in 1980, when he became the star of the comedy "Airplane!," in which he played Capt. Clarence Oveur, the bumbling pilot whose one-liners included, "Joey, do you like movies about gladiators?"
Graves was found dead Sunday afternoon in front of his Pacific Palisades home from apparent natural causes, said Officer Karen Rayner of the Los Angeles Police Department.
Graves starred in more than 70 television series and feature films, typically playing the straight-laced hero. One of his first major roles was in the 1953 classic, "Stalag 17," in which he played an undercover Nazi spy placed among American POWs in a German camp.
His most memorable role was in "Mission: Impossible," the 1960s CBS series in which he played intelligence agent James Phelps, leader of the elite Impossible Missions Force. The show ran from 1967 to 1973 on CBS and 1988 to 1990 on ABC.
Every week, Graves could be seen listening to a tape of instructions for carrying out his team's secret missions. He won a Golden Globe in 1971 for his role.
"Mission: Impossible," along with other Western, military and action parts in the 1970s, branded Graves as an actor who could deliver solid, straight-shooting roles. But that changed in 1980, when he became the star of the comedy "Airplane!," in which he played Capt. Clarence Oveur, the bumbling pilot whose one-liners included, "Joey, do you like movies about gladiators?"
Friday, March 12, 2010
"Remember Me" Movie review
The problems with "Remember Me, starring Robert Pattinson — the vampire Edward Cullen of "Twilight" — aren't the heartthrob's fault.
Even if they were, it's hard to imagine the "Gossip Girl" or "Twilight" demographic this PG-13 romantic drama seems tailored for necessarily caring.
No, the missteps in this story of two lovers from different classes drawn together by grief are due to ambitions not quite met.
First-time screenwriter Will Fetters wanted to mix the personal and the historical. Director Allen Coulter and his cast, which includes heavy hitters Pierce Brosnan, Chris Cooper and Lena Olin, want to give new audiences an affair to remember, in part by setting it in an unforgettable year — 2001.
Ghosts haunt the characters, but more consequential spirits hang over the movie.
Melancholy and suppressed fury permeate the story.
On a subway platform, an 11-year-old girl watches as her mother is shot. Ten years later, Ally (Emilie de Ravin) sits in a global politics course at New York University. Also in the class is Tyler Hawkins (Pattinson). Ally lives in Queens with her father, a New York City police detective played by Cooper.
A mopey, chain-smoking slacker, Tyler rooms with Aidan (Tate Ellington), a mildly randy chatterbox. Tyler carries a tattered copy of Keats in his back pocket, stocks shelves at the famous Strand used-book store.
He also keeps a notebook that is an extended conversation with his older brother Michael, who committed suicide.
Did we mention Tyler is a trust- fund scion who turned his back on Dad's money? While that may force him to ride a bike and live in a tenement with a faulty deadbolt, it doesn't stop him from giving into the mood swings and jabs of an entitled kid.
Though Tyler and Ally share a class — no, not socioeconomic class — they don't meet cute. They meet intentionally icky.
We won't give it away, but it has to do with Ally's father and a some ill-conceived payback.
The plan goes rather too well and Tyler falls, opening his heart to tough and tender working-class survivor Ally.
If it sounds a little pat, too often it is, although de Ravin carries a nice early moment playing a girl who's not a sucker for a line offered by a curiously handsome guy.
They are two wounded birds flapping toward each other, and Pattinson and de Ravin make a sweet enough pair of cooing, coupling doves.
For more news on the movie reviews.
Even if they were, it's hard to imagine the "Gossip Girl" or "Twilight" demographic this PG-13 romantic drama seems tailored for necessarily caring.
No, the missteps in this story of two lovers from different classes drawn together by grief are due to ambitions not quite met.
First-time screenwriter Will Fetters wanted to mix the personal and the historical. Director Allen Coulter and his cast, which includes heavy hitters Pierce Brosnan, Chris Cooper and Lena Olin, want to give new audiences an affair to remember, in part by setting it in an unforgettable year — 2001.
Ghosts haunt the characters, but more consequential spirits hang over the movie.
Melancholy and suppressed fury permeate the story.
On a subway platform, an 11-year-old girl watches as her mother is shot. Ten years later, Ally (Emilie de Ravin) sits in a global politics course at New York University. Also in the class is Tyler Hawkins (Pattinson). Ally lives in Queens with her father, a New York City police detective played by Cooper.
A mopey, chain-smoking slacker, Tyler rooms with Aidan (Tate Ellington), a mildly randy chatterbox. Tyler carries a tattered copy of Keats in his back pocket, stocks shelves at the famous Strand used-book store.
He also keeps a notebook that is an extended conversation with his older brother Michael, who committed suicide.
Did we mention Tyler is a trust- fund scion who turned his back on Dad's money? While that may force him to ride a bike and live in a tenement with a faulty deadbolt, it doesn't stop him from giving into the mood swings and jabs of an entitled kid.
Though Tyler and Ally share a class — no, not socioeconomic class — they don't meet cute. They meet intentionally icky.
We won't give it away, but it has to do with Ally's father and a some ill-conceived payback.
The plan goes rather too well and Tyler falls, opening his heart to tough and tender working-class survivor Ally.
If it sounds a little pat, too often it is, although de Ravin carries a nice early moment playing a girl who's not a sucker for a line offered by a curiously handsome guy.
They are two wounded birds flapping toward each other, and Pattinson and de Ravin make a sweet enough pair of cooing, coupling doves.
For more news on the movie reviews.
Walt Disney Planned to Make Telugu Film
The Walt Disney Company India, Indian arm of the Hollywood studio, Thursday announced a Telugu movie with leading southern stars Siddharth and Shruti Haasan. A yet to be titled epic fantasy adventure, is the company's first locally developed studio project aimed specifically at southern audiences.
"As we work to build a family entertainment brand in India, we plan to provide Indian audiences with an unparalleled roster of locally relevant stories and engaging characters and will continue to tap into the local creative ecosystem to develop content which resonates with Indian kids and families," Mahesh Samat, managing director of The Walt Disney Company India, said in a statement.
Slated to release Jan 2011, the movie commenced production in November 2009 and also features Lakshmi Manchu and Harshitha.
To be co-produced by K. Raghavendra Rao, the movie is being directed by National Award winning Prakash Rao Kovelamudi. It will also be dubbed into Tamil.
Set in the fictitious teardrop shaped land of Sangarashtra, the film will explore the bond between man and the myths. The story focuses on the journey of a nine-year-old girl with special healing powers and her quest to save Sangarashtra from the tyranny of an evil Queen, played by Manchu.
"As we work to build a family entertainment brand in India, we plan to provide Indian audiences with an unparalleled roster of locally relevant stories and engaging characters and will continue to tap into the local creative ecosystem to develop content which resonates with Indian kids and families," Mahesh Samat, managing director of The Walt Disney Company India, said in a statement.
Slated to release Jan 2011, the movie commenced production in November 2009 and also features Lakshmi Manchu and Harshitha.
To be co-produced by K. Raghavendra Rao, the movie is being directed by National Award winning Prakash Rao Kovelamudi. It will also be dubbed into Tamil.
Set in the fictitious teardrop shaped land of Sangarashtra, the film will explore the bond between man and the myths. The story focuses on the journey of a nine-year-old girl with special healing powers and her quest to save Sangarashtra from the tyranny of an evil Queen, played by Manchu.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Queen of Pop Madonna woos Vera Farmiga for her next movie
Queen of Pop Madonna is said to have wooed actress Vera Farmiga into signing up for her next movie with an intimate chat over a 'cup of tea'. Madonna, 51, who made her directorial debut with 2008’s Filth and Wisdom, is set to step behind the camera once again with a historical drama based on the life of late British royal King Edward VIII.
And according to Farmiga, 36, the singer is determined to sign her up as the leading lady, despite her not having seen Madonna’s earlier works. “She approached me. We sat for a cup of tea and again for a cup of tea. Hopefully, it will all come together,” the Daily Star quoted Farmiga as telling E! Online.
“I’m actually not familiar with her work and I told her this flat out. She sent a couple of films and I still haven’t seen them,” she added.
“I’m actually not familiar with her work and I told her this flat out. She sent a couple of films and I still haven’t seen them,” she added.
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