The New Year is on the horizon and more freezing cold weather and snow could be on the way as we head into 2024, forecasters have warned.
12.12.2023 - 09:07 / deadline.com
EXCLUSIVE: An exposé about institutionalized corruption in the Hare Krishna movement is being adapted into a feature doc by Sphere Media.
Sphere has acquired rights to non-fiction book Monkey on a Stick: Murder, Madness, which was a New York Times bestseller from 1988 that investigative journalists John Huber and Lindsey Gruson co-authored.
The adaptation will be for Canada‘s Hollywood Suite for English-speaking Canada and directed by Jason Lapeyre. The book is billed as a “chilling exposé of institutionalised corruption.”
Telefilm Canada’s Theatrical Documentary Program has invested in the film, with assistance coming from the Roger’s Documentary Fund. UK-based Abacus Media Rights has distribution rights outside of Canada, with Hollywood Suite commissioning it for English-speaking Canada and a French-speaking Canadian deal very close to closing.
Lapeyre (I Declare War, The Texas Cheerleader Murder Plot) brought the doc to Canadian film and TV producer Sphere. It explores the Krishna Consciousness, and how movement was involved in a systemic, long-term cover-up of criminality, moral decay and abuse of power.
The film has obtained exclusive access to Nori Muster, a former Krishna insider turned whistleblower. She was an ardent follower of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) until she discovered a range of serious criminal activities, including child molestation, under former U.S. leader Kirtanananda Swami. Muster left ISKCON in 1988 and published a book, Betrayal of the Spirit: My Life Behind the Headlines of the Hare Krishna Movement, which chronicled her experiences with group.
“John and Lindsey’s gripping investigative journalism electrified me when I first read it and I immediately wanted
The New Year is on the horizon and more freezing cold weather and snow could be on the way as we head into 2024, forecasters have warned.
EXCLUSIVE: ArtsEd chair Brian Brodie has quit for personal reasons. His decision follows criticism of the board’s handling of bullying allegations at the esteemed London drama school.
Filmmaker Sam Pollard, one of the most prolific and important forces in contemporary documentary, will be honored by Black Public Media at its upcoming PitchBlack Awards in New York.
Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Lawyers for Ozy Media, the defunct media and entertainment company founded by Carlos Watson, allege in a new lawsuit that Ben Smith, BuzzFeed and Semafor (the media startup co-founded by Smith in 2022) misappropriated Ozy’s trade secrets “for their own benefit.” The suit additionally alleges that BuzzFeed breached a nondisclosure agreement it entered into with Ozy in 2019 as part of its efforts to buy the company. Lawyers representing Ozy Media allege that Smith, former BuzzFeed News editor-in-chief and New York Times media columnist who is currently editor-in-chief of Semafor, wrote “a series of hit pieces” about Ozy Media but that he did not disclose “his central role in BuzzFeed’s efforts to buy Ozy two years earlier” while he was at BuzzFeed.
New York Post, James Dolan, the executive chairman of the Madison Square Garden Network, said that conversations were going “back and forth” with Abu Dhabi about the possible new venue.He also revealed that additional plans for further venues in Saudi Arabia and South Korea had “stalled”.The news comes after it was reported in November that Las Vegas’ Sphere, which is housing a residency by U2, had made a loss of $98.4million (£80.5million) since opening on September 29.Reviewing U2’s Vegas residency the Sphere, NME hailed the show for “taking the live concert experience ‘to the next level’” and delivering “a fine balancing act of doing just that while also ensuring their music remains very much at the forefront”.Earlier this month, U2 announced that they were extending their residency until March 2024.Earlier this month, the UK government called for plans for a Vegas-style Sphere venue to be created in London to be revived, after they had been scrapped by the city’s mayor, Sadiq Khan.The original plans, first announced in 2018, would have seen a 21,500-capacity venue built, becoming the largest concert arena in the UK.However, after five years of planning for the venue, hopes of it coming to fruition appeared to be quashed in November, when the London Mayor intervened in the decision, citing the “unacceptable negative impact” it would have on the local residents.The proposed venue had raised concerns from some of those living in the surrounding area, who highlighted the strains on local infrastructure and health risks.
Married At First Sight UK star JJ Slater has been rushed to hospital.The reality star took to his Instagram stories on Wednesday, 20 December, to share a snap of himself on a hospital bed, hooked up to heart monitors. Despite the situation, JJ managed a smile, and he wrote over the picture: "Happy Wednesday," before reassuring his fans: "I'm ok BTW". JJ was one of the stars of the 2023 series of Married At First Sight, where he was originally married to Bianca Petronzi, before pursuing a connection with Ella Morgan.
EXCLUSIVE: Bad Wolf‘s unusual deal to make BBC Studios show Doctor Who helped the Sony-owned production outfit to record revenues.
The Oscar-contending documentary Anselm marks an encounter between two of the world’s great artists – one renowned for cinema, the other for painting, installations, and sculpture.
Dead & Company could be playing a residency at the Las Vegas Sphere next summer, according to reports.The New York Post reports the supergroup – consisting of Grateful Dead members Bob Weir, Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzmann alongside John Mayer, Oteil Burbridge and Jeff Chimenti – are in talks for a potential residency that would take place “next summer”. However, it stressed that negotiations are “still in the works and not 100%.”The Sphere opened in September with a residency featuring U2 playing ‘Achtung Baby’ in full, which was recently extended into March.
Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Discovery-owned Eurosport has acquired streaming rights in 54 countries to Olympic refugee documentary “We Dare to Dream” by Waad Al-Kateab, the Oscar-nominated Syrian director of “For Sama.” “We Dare to Dream” is the story of the refugee Olympic team that competed at the 2020 games in Tokyo, which featured stateless athletes from Iran, Syria, South Sudan and Cameroon who swim, run and fight their way to safety in host nations across the world. It’s told through the personal prism of Al-Kateab while she is coming to terms with the reality that she can never return to Aleppo, where she shot “For Sama.” The doc premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in June and had an Oscar-qualifying theatrical run at New York City’s IFC Center in October.
2023's I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! has come to and an end, and the stars have started heading home to the UK, including show hosts Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly. Landing back in the UK after a month in Australia, Ant, 48, shared a rather passionate kiss and embrace with his wife Anne-Marie Corbett.
True Detective‘s Anna Lambe and seven-year-old Inuk actress Keira Cooper will lead the untitled Netflix, CBC and APTN comedy series. Additionally Anya Adams (Yellowjackets) has signed on as producing director of the Canadian show.
EXCLUSIVE: Former Mosaic manager Cullen Conly has joined Anonymous Content’s literary department as a manager and producer, based out of the company’s New York office.
While fans wait for “Gangs Of London” Season 3, how about a film directed by one of the TV show’s directors? “Mayhem!” doesn’t star anyone from the British crime series, but it operates in a similar vein: a crime-ridden tale about violence, vengeance, and the value of family. READ MORE: The Most Anticipated Films Of 2024 “Mayhem!” follows a French ex-pro boxer released from prison who escapes to Thailand after his past catches up with him.
The Killers have shared that they are “open” to doing a residency at the Las Vegas Sphere.The MSG Sphere is a $2.3billion (£1.8billion) dome with an 18,000 capacity and 160,000 speakers. It’s complete with an LED screen that completely wraps around inside the dome. The Sphere opened on September 29 with a residency performed by U2.After being asked In a new Q&A interview with The Guardian if the ‘Smile Like You Mean It’ hitmakers would ever do a residency at the mega venue in their hometown of Las Vegas, The Killers frontman, Brandon Flowers said: “You can take the boys out of Vegas, but it will always be a part of us.
Ariana Grande is back in the studio. The musician and performer has shared various photos of herself working on some new music, getting her friends and fans excited over the possibility of a new record. Ariana Grande and Ethan Slater are living together in New York: ReportAriana Grande’s alleged surprise return to the recording studio amid ‘Wicked’ commitmentsA post shared by Ariana Grande (@arianagrande)The photos were shared on Instagram and featured no caption.
Bleachers have shared the star-studded video for their latest single ‘Alma Mater’. Check it out below.The track is the second song to be released from Jack Antonoff and co.’s forthcoming self-titled album. It follows the lead single ‘Modern Girl’, which came out back in September.
EXCLUSIVE: Netflix is on the verge of greenlighting French and German versions of reality format Surviving Paradise from Squid Game: The Challenge producer Studio Lambert and Raw TV, as it steps up its strategy in the premium unscripted space.
first announced back in 2018 by the Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp (MSG) – the same company behind the iconic Sphere venue in Las Vegas.However, following five years of back and forth, it was revealed last month that the venue would most likely not be coming to the UK as Mayor Sadiq Khan intervened in the decision, citing the “unacceptable negative impact” it would have on the local residents.These included the strains on local infrastructure and health risks tied to the development. Similarly, the London Assembly environment committee warned of the unacceptable light levels that would be made by the venue – with the finished product set to have an estimated one million LED light bulbs on its exterior.Following his decision, MP Michael Gove questioned whether the choice to scrap the project was a mistake, and it was reported that he was working to instruct Khan not to abandon planning proposals via a letter to the London Legacy Development Corporation.Now, MSG have shared a new statement in light of Khan’s decision, and claimed that the progress was “hijacked” by a “bogus last-minute report”.“The entire five-year planning process was hijacked by the mayor and his bogus last-minute report.
British producers and directors are coming together to forge a forum with BBC Studios and ITV Studios in order to address the significant challenges posed by the sector.