John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent Armando Espitia, who broke out as the hapless young factory worker in Amat Escalante’s Cannes winner “Heli,” is attached to star in “Six Months in the Pink and Blue Building,” a feature project being brought to San Sebastian’s Europe-Latin America Co-Production Forum by Mexico’s Bruno Santamaría Raso. Also on board is actor – and writer-producer – Sofia Espinosa, who fulfilled all three roles in Max Zunino’s “Los Bañistas” and “Bruma” and won a Mexican Academy Ariel for her tearaway performance as Gloria Trevi in “Gloria.” Written and to be directed by Santamaría, “Six Months in the Pink and Blue Building,” (“Seis meses en el edificio rosa con azul,”) marks his first fiction feature. He caught attention and won a Chicago Golden Hugo Golden Hugo and Golde Q Hugo for best documentary for “Things We Dare Not Do,” a movie straddling fiction in its finish, production values and narrative structures as it depicts Toño, the eldest son and second father to a swarm of siblings, living in a benighted village on marshy plains and plucking up the courage to tell his mother that he’s gay.
Larry Heard and Robert Owens settle Trax Records dispute, reclaim their music rights
30.08.2022 - 14:05 / completemusicupdate.com
Management firm TaP Music last week confirmed that Larry Heard and Robert Owens – prominent players from the 1980s Chicago house scene and two thirds of Fingers Inc – have settled their legal dispute with Trax Records, the label they worked with in the mid-80s. The deal confirms that the duo own all the rights in the music they released with the label.Chicago-based Trax Records was co-founded in 1984 by Larry Sherman, who died in April 2020.
When reporting on his death, the Chicago Sun-Times noted that while Sherman and his label were “instrumental in developing house music”, he also “left a complex legacy within Chicago’s house music community”. Over the years multiple artists signed to the label had complained about their treatment and unpaid royalties.Rachael Cain – who, after signing to the label as an artist, was involved in various business ventures with Sherman, later becoming President of Trax – acknowledged some of those controversies at the time of his death, telling the Sun-Times “he’s a controversial figure”.
But she insisted that in recent years Sherman had been trying to sort out the payment of past royalties, partly via litigation with a former distribution partner.Heard – aka Mr Fingers – signed a number of agreements with Trax in the 1980s, on the back of which it registered and exploited various songs and recordings he had made, some of which were collaborations with Owens.However, in their 2020 lawsuit, Heard and Owens claimed that those agreements never actually gave Trax all the rights they subsequently exploited, for example, they only covered the song rights not the recording rights, and only some of the song rights. Meanwhile, they added, the duo were owed significant unpaid royalties from the
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Mexico Pushes Diversity
John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent Eight of the 10 directors in the Morelia Festival’s main Mexican competition are women, led by two of the biggest Mexican fest hits of the year,“Robe of Gems,” Natalia López Gallardo’s Berlin Special Jury laureate, and “Huesera,” from Michelle Garza Cervera, a double Tribeca winner. Features with Indigenous or Black Mexican protagonists have shot up in Mexico, from 14 in 2019 to 31 in 2019, according to Imcine’s Mexican Cinema Yearbook. In 2017, Mexico’s biggest homegrown hit was Nicolas López’s “Do It Like an Hombre,” a merciless taunt of a Mexican macho’s helpless homophobia, which grossed $11.0 million in the country.
San Sebastian’s Next Gen Mexico Showcase
John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent Thanks in part to a strong co-production drive, 13 Mexican-nationality movies play at San Sebastian this year, a major presence. Perlak frames Alejandro G. Iñarritu Venice player “Bardo: False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths.” Much of the heat, in industry terms at least, will come from the the premieres and sneak peeks. In one highlight, Natalia Beristáin will world premiere “Noise” (“Ruido”), before its Netflix November bow. In possibly another, Mexico’s Laura Pancarte (“Non-Western”) unveils “Sueño Mexicano” as a pic-in-post.
Roxy Music announce UK tour support and release more London tickets
Roxy Music have announced the special guest support act for their forthcoming UK area shows, as well as releasing additional tickets for their London date.The Bryan Ferry-fronted group recently reunited for their first live shows since 2011 to mark the 50th anniversary of their self-titled debut album, which came out in 1972. They’re currently out on the road in North America.Next month, Roxy Music will return to these shores for concerts in Glasgow (October 10), Manchester (12) and London (14).Today (September 14) it’s been announced that extra tickets for the currently-sold-out gig at The O2 in London will go on sale this Friday (September 16) – you’ll be able to purchase yours from here.
Harry Styles partners with voter registration non-profit for ticket giveaway
Harry Styles is giving away a late October trip to help get out the vote this election season. The winner (and a lucky friend) will be flown to Los Angeles, where Styles will be performing a “Harryween” show on the 31st at The Kia Forum in Inglewood. He’s partnering with the non-partisan voter engagement organization HeadCount to facilitate the sweepstakes: Fans who check their registration statuses at this link or by texting “HARRY” to 57568 will be automatically entered into the running.
‘Pachinko,’ ‘Black-ish,’ ‘Don’t Look Up’ Among Humanitas Prize Winners
Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Retiring ABC series “Black-ish” picked up one more honor on Friday, a Humanitas Prize for comedy teleplay, while Apple TV+’s “Pachinko” and ABC’s “Women of the Movement” also were recognized at the event. Held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel and hosted by comedian Larry Wilmore, the 46th annual Humanitas Prize event centered on awards and $10,000 cash prizes to screenwriters across ten categories. In addition, Humanitas board president Jenny Bicks presented Filmmakers for Ukraine with the Kieser Award “in recognition of their work to connect the Ukrainian film and TV community impacted by the Russo-Ukrainian War with resources, jobs, and funding to meet basic needs.”
‘The Little Mermaid’ First Look: Halle Bailey Debuts Her Version of ‘Part of Your World’ to an Enchanted D23 Crowd
Wilson Chapman editor Get ready for Halle Bailey to be part of your world. The first footage of the highly anticipated “Little Mermaid” live-action remake has been unveiled at Disney’s D23 expo, revealing the acclaimed R&B star and actor in the iconic role of mermaid princess Ariel. Director Rob Marshall, of “Chicago” fame, celebrated the fact that this was a live action musical. Bringing up his Oscar-winning movie from the past “When we started this journey it was very important to honor the original” but also reimagine and “bring some depth” to the new film Marshall explained. The director also asked “Little Mermaid” longtime Disney alum and Alan Menken to link up with the award-winning Lin-Manuel Miranda to come up with four new songs. “They’d never collaborated together before, and it’s magical…. We still retain the beauty of the original score by the late great Howard Ashman.”
Music writer fighting subpoena to testify at R. Kelly's trial
A music writer who spent decades raising awareness about sexual misconduct allegations against R. Kelly is fighting a bid to force him to testify at the R&B singer's federal trial on child pornography and trial-fixing charges, according to a Tuesday court filing. Lawyers for Jim DeRogatis, who in 2019 released his book "Soulless: The Case Against R.
Midtown is back-ish, and other exciting NYC restaurant trends we’re watching for fall
MIDTOWN IS BACK-ISHThe biggest story of the year is still the evolution of Rockefeller Center, where buzzy newbies Le Rock, Lodi and Pebble Bar will now be joined by Five Acres (30 Rockefeller Plaza), the first Manhattan restaurant from Brooklyn boy wonder Greg Baxtrom, known for his hit Olmsted. The name is a nod to his family’s farm outside of Chicago. Expect a veggie-forward menu.
Rammstein announce 2023 European stadium tour
Rammstein have announced plans for a European stadium tour next year.The band will hit the road on May 22, 2023 kicking off at Vingio Parkas in Lithuania before moving on to dates in Germany, Spain, Holland and France. They will wrap up their mammoth jaunt at the King Baudouin Stadium in Belgium on August 4.Tickets for the shows go on sale next Thursday (September 8) at 10am local time and can be purchased here.The latest announcement comes as the band continue their US tour in Chicago tomorrow (September 3) before wrapping up in Mexico in October.
Broadway Box Office Holds Steady At $23M; ‘The Music Man’, ‘Hamilton’ Are Top Earners
Most of the 21 Broadway productions on the boards last week showed some signs of summer doldrums, with 17 shows reporting drops in box office over the previous week. Still, with The Music Man back on the roster after a week’s hiatus, the overall total box office take of $23,513,592 was up about 6%.
Rosa Salazar, Bobby Soto, Julio Cesar Cedillo, Veronica Falcón, Sarayu Blue & Eric Johnson Board Prime Video’s Michael Peña Film ‘A Million Miles Away’
EXCLUSIVE: Rosa Salazar (Alita: Battle Angel), Bobby Soto (Narcos: Mexico), Julio Cesar Cedillo (Narcos: Mexico), Veronica Falcón (Ozark), Sarayu Blue (I Feel Bad) and Eric Johnson (Fifty Shades franchise) are among the newest additions to Prime Video’s Michael Peña starrer A Million Miles Away, which has entered production in Mexico City. Others rounding out the ensemble of the Alejandra Márquez Abella-helmed film include Jordan Dean (Harry & Meghan: Escaping the Palace), Ashley Ciarra (Chupa), Michelle Krusiec (Hollywood), Emma Fassler (Recovery Road), Michael Adler (Super Pumped), Carlos S. Sanchez (Chicago Fire) and Isaac Arellanes (Ghostwriter).
More victims recall being sexually abused by R Kelly as teenagers
Two more women took to the witness stand yesterday to talk about their relationships with R Kelly as teenagers, including sexual encounters that involved Jane, the star witness in the latest criminal proceedings against the one time musician.This is the second trial in a year putting the spotlight on the allegations of abuse that previously followed Kelly around for decades. In last year’s court case in New York we heard from a long line of Kelly’s victims, who each described how he had groomed and then abused them.However, the current trial in Chicago has focused much more on the specific abuse of Jane – which began when she was about fourteen – and efforts by Kelly and his team to cover up that abuse after the leaking of a video tape in the early 2000s.The leaking of the tape that seemed to show Kelly sexually abusing Jane led to the earlier criminal proceedings against the star in the mid-2000s.
Peacock Will Get NBC Next-Day Episodes Starting Next Month After Reclaiming Rights From Hulu
Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Fans of NBC’s current-season shows will no longer find them on Hulu as of next month — they’ll be flying over to NBCUniversal’s Peacock. NBCU announced that starting Sept. 19, Peacock Premium will become the streaming home for next-day access to current seasons of NBC shows the day after they air on the network. The media conglom had clawed back the next-day rights for NBC shows from Disney-controlled Hulu, in which NBCU still owns a one-third stake, earlier this year. NBC series that will become exclusively available on Peacock include franchises like Dick Wolf’s “Law & Order” trifecta and One Chicago shows, the network’s late-night lineup including “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” “Late Night With Seth Meyers” and “Saturday Night Live,” returning series such as “La Brea,” “New Amsterdam” and “Young Rock” and competition shows including “The Voice” and “America’s Got Talent.” Also streaming exclusively on Peacock are new series bowing on NBC this fall including a reboot of “Quantum Leap” and “Lopez vs. Lopez.”
North West Gives Kim Kardashian A Telling Off For Filming Her Singing Bruno Mars Track
North West has had enough of her mom Kim Kardashian’s version of “Carpool Karaoke”.
Woman Claims R. Kelly Abused Her ‘Hundreds’ Of Times While She Was Underage, Confirms She’s In Video At Heart Of Child Porn Trial
An unidentified woman testified in court Thursday that R&B singer R. Kelly had sexually abused her “hundreds” of times before she turned 18, and confirmed that she’s the underage girl in the video that was at the centre of his 2008 child pornography trial (he was ultimately acquitted, with jurors claiming their decision was due to the fact that woman did not testify at that earlier trial).