Little Richard Doc’s Lisa Cortés On Rock ‘N’ Roll’s Architect, Sundance Directorial Debut, Mick Jagger & The Culture Wars

EXCLUSIVE: Renowned documentarian Lisa Cortés has entered into a first-look development agreement with the Museum of the City of New York, the goal being to hone documentary IP based on the museum’s exhibitions.

Lionsgate and South by Southwest Conference and Festivals announced today that the world premiere of “Crazy Rich Asians” and “Raya and the Last Dragon” screenwriter Adele Lim’s directorial debut “Joy Ride” will premiere at SXSW on March 17. The movie follows four friends as they take a wild trip through Asia.“Joy Ride” stars “Everything Everywhere All at Once” Oscar nominee Stephanie Hsu, “Emily in Paris” star Ashley Park, Sherry Cola and Sabrina Wu as four friends who, according to the official plot synopsis, “embark on a once-in-a-lifetime international adventure.” When Park’s business trip in Asia goes awry, she calls on her friends to salvage the trip and it turns into a much wilder excursion than they could have ever imagined.

Bleecker Street has picked up North American rights to Laurel Parmet’s feature directorial debut The Starling Girl following its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival, slating it for release in theaters later this year. Financials weren’t disclosed.

EXCLUSIVE: Misha Green will reteam with her Underground and Lovecraft Country star Jurnee Smollett for the Lionsgate thriller Sunflower. Green will direct off a script she wrote and produce with Craig J. Flores and his Bread and Circuses Entertainment banner.

Mick Jagger has announced that he is launching his own range of limited edition harmonicas in collaboration with Lee Oskar Harmonicas. The Rolling Stones frontman says that he’s hoping that “some of them will get into the hands of young harmonica players who turn out to be the legends of the future”.“I started to learn the harmonica after hearing the greats of the blues such as Little Walter and Sonny Boy Williamson”, adds Jagger.

Amazon Studios is getting into business with Critical Role, the company behind Prime Video’s The Legend of Vox Machina animated series, with a multiyear exclusive overall television and first-look film deal.

Party of three! Lisa Marie Presley’s eldest daughter, Riley Keough, and husband Ben Smith-Petersen secretly welcomed their first child, Us Weekly can confirm.

Spanning three time periods and two continents, “Past Lives,” the directorial debut of Celine Song (“Endlings”), tells the story of two childhood friends and sweethearts pulled apart by time, circumstance, and fate. They come back together and end in a way that might subvert the romantic fantasies of the audience — but this only shows the important roles people play in our lives, even if it’s not what we expected.  READ MORE: 25 Most Anticipated Films At The Sundance Film Festival Disembodied voices start us off in “Past Lives,” making guesses at who Nora (Greta Lee), Hae Sung (Teo Yoo), and Arthur (John Magaro) are to each other as they sit at an NYC bar.

Magnolia Pictures has taken global rights to CNN Films and director Lisa Cortés’ Little Richard: I Am Everything following its world premiere as the opening night selection of Sundance in the US Documentary Competition section. 

Magnolia Pictures has scored worldwide rights to “Little Richard: I Am Everything,” which held its world premiere at Sundance Film Festival on Thursday evening.Directed by Lisa Cortés, the CNN Films doc explores the black queer origins of rock ‘n’ roll through the life and career of Richard Penniman. Magnolia plans to release the film in April.

“Little Richard: I Am Everything” opens with exactly the kind of pre-title sequence we’ve come to expect from a contemporary rock-history bio-doc, a fast and furious assemblage of archival imagery and iconic audio, bits and pieces reminding us of what this figure did, a snatch of a song, a flash of footage, a quick hit of a later legend assuring us of their greatness (“I’d never seen any of it before,” Mick Jagger assures us), bold proclamations (“He created the template for the rock and roll icon”), assembled with sleek grace.

EMBARGOED UNTIL 9:40PM PT THURSDAYMost documentaries about pioneering musicians are celebrations that exhibit the performer’s greatness right off the bat through electric concert footage and testimonials. Lisa Cortés’ “Little Richard: I Am Everything” does that, of course, with Little Richard ripping it up onstage and on screen, and Mick Jagger, Tom Jones, and John Waters testifying to his power.

EXCLUSIVE: Roadside Attractions, Grindstone Entertainment, and Lionsgate have picked up North American distribution for Charlie Day’s feature directorial debut Fool’s Paradise.