News

As the surge in COVID-19 cases overwhelms L.A. hospitals, producers, film workers and their unions are still grappling with how and when to get back to work after a holiday pause.

Given that on-set safety has been such an unimpeachable priority during the pandemic, one would think the film and television industry would be pushing hard to obtain access to the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines. But that hasn't quite happened. Rather, a mix of political wariness and confidence in the status quo has compelled industry leaders to, at least for the moment, exercise restraint when it comes to lobbying for the vaccine.

Women’s Cinema is a new series by Y.M.Cinema Magazine with the goal of encouraging women to pursue after filmmaking career and to provide a stage for women in the content creation industry, regardless of their role on set. In the first part, we interviewed 1st AC Amanda Wojtaszek which has worked on films like “The Incredible Hulk”, “Workin’ Moms”, “Anne with an E”, “xXx: Return of Xander Cage”, “Suicide Squad” and many more.

Marjo Bernay, the trailblazing labor leader and feminist activist who once led three Los Angeles-based IATSE locals and served on the board of another, died Sunday of heart disease. She was 79.

Over the past few years, Abigail Disney has made no secret of her concerns around the corporate policies of The Walt Disney Co., criticizing its compensation practices for senior executives and its treatment of lower-level employees.

The industry remains up in arms about Warner Bros.’ decision to send its biggest 2021 movies directly to HBO Max on the same day the titles hit U.S. theaters. But one group is probably pleased with the plan: Film pirates. “For sure, pirates are celebrating WarnerMedia’s decision,” says Abigail De Kosnik, director of the Berkeley Center for New Media and an associate professor at UC Berkeley.

On Dec. 5, a Los Angeles County-based restaurant owner went viral after posting a video of herself showing off her outdoor dining area, which she was forced to shut down after November orders from California Gov. Gavin Newsom. In the clip, the woman, Pineapple Hill Saloon & Grill owner Angela Marsden, pans away from her patio, its picnic-style table and chairs situated 7 feet apart to comply with COVID-19 restrictions, to reveal a series of large white tents with similarly distanced seating a mere 50 feet away.

Filmmakers all use the same tools, more or less, but do so with endlessly varied methods, says cinematographer Roger Deakins. That idea drove the master cinematographer, who won Academy Awards for Denis Villeneuve’s “Bladerunner 2049” and Sam Mendes’ “1917,” to launch with his wife James Deakins the buzzy behind-the-scenes podcast Team Deakins, a streaming chat show that has now hosted more than 60 film artists of all stripes.

COVID-19 forever changed many aspects of our lives this past year, and our collective media and entertainment choices certainly were no exception. The global pandemic fueled a massive industry divide where in-home entertainment choices thrived, while many out-of-home entertainment players, quite literally, died.

The decision to release Warner Bros.’ 2021 films simultaneously on HBO Max and in theaters has angered many filmmakers, financiers, agents and theater owners, and deepened a partisan divide between old-school Hollywood types and tech futurists who believe the exhibition business is due for epic disruption.