Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson gets James Cameron to fix a scientific inaccuracy for the 3D version of Titanic

SlashFilm recently posted a great article about how Neil deGrasse Tyson noticed that the sky in the scene were Rose (Kate Winslet) is floating on a plank and gazing at the sky. According to Neil deGrasse Tyson, the sky is completely inaccurate for the time of night on that particular date (April 15, 1912 at … Continue reading “Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson gets James Cameron to fix a scientific inaccuracy for the 3D version of Titanic”


SlashFilm recently posted a great article about how Neil deGrasse Tyson noticed that the sky in the scene were Rose (Kate Winslet) is floating on a plank and gazing at the sky. According to Neil deGrasse Tyson, the sky is completely inaccurate for the time of night on that particular date (April 15, 1912 at 4:20 AM).

Below is an interesting video in which Neil deGrasse Tyson describes the mini saga which finally resulted in a phone call from a guy who works post production for James Cameron. The call was requesting his assistance on a sky upgrade for the 10 year anniversary release of the film. This sky grade is also used in the 3D version of Titanic. Skip ahead to 26:00 or 26:10 for the bit about Titanic. Neil deGrasse Tyson is quite a funny guy.

School of Communucation Special Screening: The Best Work of Semester 1 – Friday, January 27, 5:00 p.m., Wechsler Theatre

Friday, January 27, 5:00 p.m., Wechsler Theatre Please join the School of Communication faculty and graduate students for a special event as they screen and celebrate the films of their first year MFA and MA graduate students.A series of eclectic and talented work includes: Fiction, documentary, experimental and much more. The School of Communication is … Continue reading “School of Communucation Special Screening: The Best Work of Semester 1 – Friday, January 27, 5:00 p.m., Wechsler Theatre”

Friday, January 27, 5:00 p.m., Wechsler Theatre

Please join the School of Communication faculty and graduate students for a special event as they screen and celebrate the films of their first year MFA and MA graduate students.

A series of eclectic and talented work includes: Fiction, documentary, experimental and much more. The School of Communication is thrilled to present and support this work. Please bring all friends and family, and come to support the work of your peers!

Friday, January 27th, 5p
Weschler Theatre in The Mary Graydon Center
Open to all students, friends, faculty, and staff!

Official Facebook Event:
http://www.facebook.com/events/268912763175429/

84th Academy Award Nominations

The 84th Academy Awards nominees have been announced and mubi.com/notebook has nicely listed them with links to film clips and info. See a few of the nominees below or check it all out here. BEST PICTURE The ArtistThe DescendantsExtremely Loud and Incredibly CloseThe HelpHugoMidnight in ParisMoneyballThe Tree of LifeWar Horse DIRECTING The Artist, Michel HazanaviciusThe … Continue reading “84th Academy Award Nominations”

The 84th Academy Awards nominees have been announced and mubi.com/notebook has nicely listed them with links to film clips and info. See a few of the nominees below or check it all out here.

BEST PICTURE

The Artist
The Descendants
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
The Help
Hugo
Midnight in Paris
Moneyball
The Tree of Life
War Horse

DIRECTING

The Artist, Michel Hazanavicius
The Descendants, Alexander Payne
Hugo, Martin Scorsese
Midnight in Paris, Woody Allen
The Tree of Life, Terrence Malick

ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE

Demián Bichir in A Better Life
George Clooney in The Descendants
Jean Dujardin in The Artist
Gary Oldman in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Brad Pitt in Moneyball

ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Kenneth Branagh in My Week with Marilyn
Jonah Hill in Moneyball
Nick Nolte in Warrior
Christopher Plummer in Beginners
Max von Sydow in Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE

Glenn Close in Albert Nobbs
Viola Davis in The Help
Rooney Mara in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Meryl Streep in The Iron Lady
Michelle Williams in My Week with Marilyn

ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Bérénice Bejo in The Artist
Jessica Chastain in The Help
Melissa McCarthy in Bridesmaids
Janet McTeer in Albert Nobbs
Octavia Spencer in The Help

Sundance unveils dramatic, doc competition slate

Filly Brown “Filly Brown” – Directed by Youssef Delara and Michael D. Olmos, written by Delara. A Mexican girl achieves musical fame while coping with her mother’s incarceration in this hip-hop-driven drama. Features Lou Diamond Phillips, Gina Rodriguez, Jenni Rivera and Edward James Olmos. For Ellen “For Ellen” – Directed and written by So Yong … Continue reading “Sundance unveils dramatic, doc competition slate”

Filly Brown

“Filly Brown” – Directed by Youssef Delara and Michael D. Olmos, written by Delara. A Mexican girl achieves musical fame while coping with her mother’s incarceration in this hip-hop-driven drama. Features Lou Diamond Phillips, Gina Rodriguez, Jenni Rivera and Edward James Olmos.

For Ellen


“For Ellen” – Directed and written by So Yong Kim. A struggling musician fights his estranged wife for custody of their young daughter. With Paul Dano, Jon Heder, Jena Malone, Margarita Levieva, Shay Mandigo.

Keep the Lights On

“Keep the Lights On” – Directed by Ira Sachs, written by Sachs and Mauricio Zacharias. Two men share a passionate long-term relationship in this fact-inspired drama. With Thure Lindhart, Zachary Booth, Julianne Nicholson, Souleymane Sy Savane, Paprika Steen.


The Comedy

“The Comedy” – Directed by Rick Alverson, written by Alverson, Robert Donne and Colm O’Leary. An aging hipster searches for meaning in a world that values status, popularity and good looks above all else. Stars Tim Heidecker, Eric Wareheim, Kate Lyn Sheil, Alexia Rasmussen, Gregg Turkington.

Excerpted from Variety
“I’m almost starting to think a bad economy makes for better artists,” John Cooper noted as he unveiled the lineup of the 28th annual Sundance Film Festival, marking his third year as director of America’s premier independent-cinema event. “When things start to get crazy, it’s actually good for them. They start making the films they want to make.”

Certainly the economic slump has had little impact on the numbers. Set to unspool Jan. 19-29 in Park City, Utah, Sundance will present 111 features (88 of them world premieres) culled from a pool of 4,042 submissions; given that last year the fest received fewer submissions (3,812) yet accommodated more titles (115), the selection process can be termed the most competitive in recent memory. Packages and passes have sold out as quickly as ever, and sponsorship has held steady, director of programming Trevor Groth said. Read more here.
Excerpted from Variety

Horrible Movie Clichés Campaign by NY International Latino Film Festival

The New York International Latino Film Festival has launched an insightful and clever infographic campaign pointing out the differences between “movies” and “films”, the latter being what they serve up, naturally. These graphics humorously illustrate a multitude of horrible movie clichés and were created to promote their film festival which begins August 15, 2011 in … Continue reading “Horrible Movie Clichés Campaign by NY International Latino Film Festival”










The New York International Latino Film Festival has launched an insightful and clever infographic campaign pointing out the differences between “movies” and “films”, the latter being what they serve up, naturally. These graphics humorously illustrate a multitude of horrible movie clichés and were created to promote their film festival which begins August 15, 2011 in New York City. Wing, a pro-Hispanic full-service marketing communications firm, created the graphics in both English and Spanish.

As see on the Laughing Squid blog.

Albert Brooks is on twitter…

Follow his neurotic tweets. And check out some of his films: Broadcast News(HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 3504) Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World(HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 6737) Finding Nemo(HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 836) Defending Your Life(HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 6519) Lost in America(HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 4557) Real Life(HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 6108)

Follow his neurotic tweets. And check out some of his films:

  1. Broadcast News(HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 3504)
  2. Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World(HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 6737)
  3. Finding Nemo(HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 836)
  4. Defending Your Life(HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 6519)
  5. Lost in America(HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 4557)
  6. Real Life(HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 6108)

IFC Ranks The Top 50 Opening Title Sequences Of All Time…

http://www.ifc.com/news/2011/02/the-50-greatest-opening-title.php Media Services is home to most of these great films, below are the top ten: Vertigo (1958) DVD 14, VHS 60 A Hard Day’s Night (1964) DVD 5740, VHS 145 Se7en (1995) DVD 22 Touch of Evil (1958) DVD 163 Goldfinger (1964) DVD 4995 The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988) … Continue reading “IFC Ranks The Top 50 Opening Title Sequences Of All Time…”

Media Services is home to most of these great films, below are the top ten:

TONIGHT!! Film Screening 7pm in Ward 1 – Born Into Brothels

Tonight, Tuesday, October 19 at 7pm in Ward 1. Born into Brothels, by Ross Kauffman and Zana Briski, is the winner of the 77th annual Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. A tribute to the resiliency of childhood and the restorative power of art, Born into Brothels is a portrait of several unforgettable children who … Continue reading “TONIGHT!! Film Screening 7pm in Ward 1 – Born Into Brothels”

Tonight, Tuesday, October 19 at 7pm in Ward 1. Born into Brothels, by Ross Kauffman and Zana Briski, is the winner of the 77th annual Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. A tribute to the resiliency of childhood and the restorative power of art, Born into Brothels is a portrait of several unforgettable children who live in the red light district of Calcutta, where their mothers work as prostitutes. Zana Briski, a New York-based photographer, gives each of the children a camera and teaches them to look at the world with new eyes. Watch the trailer >>

This film can also be viewed here in Media Services.
Born into Brothels – DVD 1518

Eric Stoltz as the Original Marty McFly

The Hollywood Reporter has posted this “Never before seen clip” of Back to the Future with Eric Stoltz in the lead role. Today the Hollywood Reporter posted:Everyone knows the classic 1985 film “Back to the Future” featured a boyish Michael J. Fox in a winning performance as Marty McFly. But Fox was not the original … Continue reading “Eric Stoltz as the Original Marty McFly”

The Hollywood Reporter has posted this “Never before seen clip” of Back to the Future with Eric Stoltz in the lead role.

Today the Hollywood Reporter posted:
Everyone knows the classic 1985 film “Back to the Future” featured a boyish Michael J. Fox in a winning performance as Marty McFly.

But Fox was not the original McFly. In fact, Eric Stoltz was five weeks into shooting the famed McFly role when director and co-writer Robert Zemeckis made a drastic production decision — changing his lead actor.

Details of the shocking Hollywood switch and never-before-seen footage of Stoltz as McFly are part of the extras package for the “Back to the Future 25th Anniversary Trilogy” to be released on Blu-Ray on Oct. 26.

Zemeckis says the casting change was “this horrific decision; it was heartbreaking for everybody.”

Executive producer Steven Spielberg said that Zemeckis consulted him before pursuing the casting change.

“(Zemeckis) showed me the first five weeks of shooting that he had put together,” Spielberg said. ” And he said, ‘I just don’t think we’re getting the laughs I was hoping we would get.’ “

Spielberg said he realized his director “was absolutely correct.”

The rest is pop-culture history. Zemeckis was able to “convince the studio to let me reshoot five weeks of work,” and Michael J. Fox was cast in a career-defining role. “Back to the Future,” released on July 3, 1985, would go on to gross $381 million worldwide and lead to two further sequels.