Cinematographer Quyen Tran on ‘Unbelievable’ and Learning From Roger Deakins (Guest Column)

This was to be a month of celebration and joy. Just a few weeks ago, I was supposed to debut my feature film Golden Arm during the first weekend at SXSW.

The queen is a creature of habit! According to former royal chef Darren McGrady, the reigning British monarch has the same chocolate cake to celebrate her birthday every single year — and it’s her “favorite.”

By Stacey Sher

It spoils nothing to reveal that in the Modern Family finale, there is a group hug so spectacularly COVID-unsafe that one 6-foot space is occupied by 16 different people. If Seinfeld was a show about nothing (Was it? Did any comedy ever have more plot?), Modern Family was always, unabashedly, about emotion.

By Peter Csathy

The world hardly needs more nuclear brinkmanship between Israel and Iran, but that's the just the promise from Tehran, a nail-biting Israeli espionage thriller from Netflix's Fauda writer Moshe Zonder. Fortunately it's a TV drama without real world consequences as it portrays a crack Mossad agent hunted in her home town of Tehran as she finds refuge and romance among dancing and drug-taking secular Iranians.

As the U.K.’s coronavirus crisis steadily escalated, Argonon Group-owned Britespark Films raced to complete a fast turnaround documentary on the pandemic for broadcaster Channel 4. Britespark director of programs Tom Porter details the extreme logistical hurdles involved.  

1917 is one of the best war movies of the past few years and the many awards that it has been rewarded with are definitely well-deserved. Ahead of the home release, which is set for May, we have a fantastic new behind the scenes featurette focussing on the amazing Oscar-winning cinematography by Roger Deakins. Deakins voices this 13-minute featurette presented by Universal which is well worth your time if you’re a fan of the man and filmmaking in general.

Last night the first part of the “Love & Hip-Hop Miami” reunion aired and things definitely got crazy. One of the most talked-about moments is when Trina went off on Nikki Natural. Tensions had been rising high throughout the season, and it seemed like a breaking point was finally reached.

We love movies about women in peril. From “Gaslight” to “King Kong” to Jennifer Lopez with a ridiculous haircut in “Enough,” audiences will almost always pay to watch a woman stare helplessly as a doorknob slowly turns, or hold her breath as a shadow looms next to where she is hiding.

The dream of my writing life is to have a play on Broadway. During the second week of rehearsal for my first play on Broadway,Birthday Candles,the street itself closed for the longest period in its history.

If you talk to any artist, they will tell you their influences and inspirations are many and varied. I can easily say the same thing. When I think of a pivotal person who influenced me and my career, I can only think of one person, Wynn Thomas.

The media and entertainment business was thriving as we entered the new decade in 2020 B.C. (“Before Coronavirus”).

Hollywood, we need your help.

Radio, I’ve just about had enough of you and your abandonment of your defining purpose as broadcasters. With the coronavirus pandemic now ravaging everyday life and suspending every reliable comfort from work routines to sports and entertainment or actual human contact, we’re looking for steadiness somewhere — an echo of the familiar, a kindred connection.  Anything to tether us to something recognizable. A service the radio dial used to provide.

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip have left London for Windsor Castle to self-isolate while coronavirus continues to sweep the country. The 93 year old monarch was seen leaving Buckingham Palace in a car earlier today, sporting a navy gilet over a bright blue jumper.

Although I never realized this reality until recently, most of my adult life has been invested in training for the coronavirus pandemic. As a cardiac surgeon, my highlight reel never included media, but after opening one too many chests with a band saw became overwhelmingly disheartening (figuratively and literally) I realized many of the indications for surgery could have been prevented through lifestyle changes.