‘Italian Studies,’ Animated ‘Belle,’ Docs ‘Who We Are,’ ‘A Cops And Robbers Story’ Open Arthouse: Betty White Tribute Set For Monday – Specialty Preview

Chris Willman Music WriterSheryl Crow, Nick Cave, King Crimson, Dio, XXXTentacion, Tanya Tucker, Chumbawamba, Courtney Barnett, Cesária Évora and Mojo Nixon — together again for the first time: These are some of the highly diverse subjects of a slate of music documentaries (or, in the case of Tierra Whack, a fictional film) set to unspool at the South by Southwest Film Festival in Austin March 11-20.The 16 movies represented in the “24 Beats Per Second” lineup are nearly all world premieres, in a film festival that skews toward SXSW’s original roots as a pure music festival by always carving out a special category for features that chronicle musicians or music scenes.The music doc coming into the festival with probably the highest level of fan anticipation is , which promises to have director Sabaah Folayan offering “a sensitive portrayal” of a precocious, highly controversial, Soundcloud-based rapper “whose acts of violence, raw musical talent and open struggles with mental health left an indelible mark on his generation before his death at the age of 20.” While many of the festival entries are looking for a sale from their exposure at SXSW, “Look at Me!” is already set to stream on Hulu this summer. Joining the artist profiles in the film lineup are documentaries about the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, “Jazz Fest: A New Orleans Story,” by co-directors Frank Marshall and Ryan Suffern, and rubber bridge guitars, in “Really Good Rejects,” a film that will have producer Aaron Dessner talking about using them on Taylor Swift’s recent folkier albums.Some of the films promise to be complete life and career chronicles, like those devoted to Crow, Barnett and Dio.

Chrishell Stause is assuring fans that she and Jason Oppenheim are still on good terms.

From playing tennis royalty to former First Daughter Sasha Obama, Saniyya Sidney is making her mark in Hollywood this year.

Paul Plunkett In today’s high-tech world, there are as many ways to make an animated film as there are film genres. Each year’s top animated features span everything from family fare to real-life documentaries and everything in between, and today’s animation directors have as many, or as few, tools at their disposal to tell their stories as they want.For Sony Pictures Animation’s “The Mitchells vs.

Thank you for being a friend! To celebrate the life and legacy of the late Betty White, Cher is dedicating a special rendition of the Golden Girls theme song to the deceased actress.

NASCAR’s game-changing star is getting the spotlight.

K.J. Yossman “Peppa Pig” owners eOne have filed a lawsuit against animation studio SConnect.Vietnamese-owned Sconnect run a number of YouTube channels aimed at young children including “Wolfoo,” about a cartoon wolf and his anthropomorphic friends, stop-motion “WOA Luka” and traditional 2D animation “Max’s Puppy Dog.”“Wolfoo” boasts three verified YouTube channels, one with 10.9 million subscribers, one with 10.4 million subscribers and another with 4.89 million subscribers.

Amy Nicholson From its opening minutes, Martika Ramirez Escobar’s meta-prank “Leonor Will Never Die” aims to scramble the viewers. Leonor Reyes (Sheila Francisco), an elderly retired action film director in Manila who, the title assures us, must have some claim to immortality, pads into view from the knees-down and steps onto a trunk – the universal film cliché for suicide.

A final message from Betty White has been posted to Instagram, thanking supporters of “The Betty White Challenge,” which asked fans to donate to animal welfare charities on what would have been her 100th birthday on Jan. 17.

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorA viral fundraising effort to honor the legacy of Betty White — a lifelong animal lover and outspoken advocate for animal welfare — encouraging donations to benefit shelters and rescue operations has raised $12.7 million on Facebook and Instagram, according to parent company Meta.On Jan. 17, which would have been White’s 100th birthday, Meta said that #BettyWhiteChallenge fundraisers on its platforms had raised nearly $900,000 from 26,000 people.On Friday, according to Meta, more than 390,000 people have donated to fundraisers on Facebook and Instagram for the #BettyWhiteChallenge, raising $12.7 million for animal shelters and rescues.

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle EditorVanessa Kirby didn’t go all Method for “Italian Studies,” but she didn’t need to in order for her character to seem a little out of sorts.“The Crown” actor filmed the Adam Leon-directed indie drama — she stars as Alina, a successful writer who finds herself wandering around New York City with a group of teens after she suddenly suffers severe memory loss — while doing a play in London.“Adam said, ‘I don’t want you to have a process. I want you to come as you are. If you are knackered, you come knackered,’” Kirby, who earned an Oscar nomination for her work in “Pieces of a Woman,” tells me on this week’s episode of the “Just for Variety” podcast.When she was jet-lagged, which she was many times after coming to the New York set straight from a transatlantic flight, Leon told her to lean in.

New Yorkers strolling through Washington Square Park got a huge surprise from a comedy legend this week.

Always be remembered. Betty White‘s last photo before her death was posted by her assistant on what would’ve been her 100th birthday.

Trisha Yearwood celebrated what would have been Betty White’s 100th birthday by raising money for animals in the late star’s honor.  The singer, author and wife of Garth Brooks hosted a fundraiser on TalkShopLive Monday, Jan. 17, which would have marked White’s 100th birthday had she not died of natural causes on Dec. 31.

Trisha Yearwood did her bit this week to celebrate what would have been Betty White’s 100th birthday Monday.