Tag Archives: announcements

Pop Culture

Presenting: The 2019 Gotham Independent Film Awards Nominees

Leave a comment

gotham independent film awards logo

Greetings readers and welcome to a brand-new summary rundown in our set of Awards Show postings. For the last couple of years I’ve been not only posting about the biggest of them all but also some of the more niche presentations. This year marks the first time that I am adding the Gotham Awards to the mix. Truth be told we seldom see any of the kinds of films that are honored at the Gotham Independent Film Awards but we do so like to showcase the nominations and the winners circle of presentations to generate your own interest. With that being said, here are the nominations for the 2019 Gotham Independent Film Awards.

Best Feature:
The Farewell – Lulu Wang, director; Daniele Melia, Marc Turtletaub, Peter Saraf, Andrew Miano, Chris Weitz, Jane Zheng, Lulu Wang, Anita Gou, producers (A24).
Hustlers – Lorene Scafaria, director; Jessica Elbaum, Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas, Jennifer Lopez, Benny Medina, Will Ferrell, Adam McKay, producers (STXfilms)
Marriage Story – Noah Baumbach, director; Noah Baumbach, David Heyman, producers (Netflix)
Uncut Gems – Josh Safdie, Benny Safdie, directors; Scott Rudin, Eli Bush, Sebastian Bear McClard, producers (A24)
Waves – Trey Edward Shults, director; James Wilson, Kevin Turen, Trey Edward Shults, producers (A24)

Best Documentary:
American Factory – Steven Bognar, Julia Reichert, directors; Steven Bognar, Julia Reichert, Jeff Reichert, Julie Parker Benello, producers (Netflix)
Apollo 11 – Todd Douglas Miller, director; Todd Douglas Miller, Thomas Baxley Petersen, Evan Krauss, producers (NEON and CNN Films)
The Edge of Democracy – Petra Costa, director; Petra Costa, Tiago Pavan, Joanna Natasegara, Shane Boris, producers (Netflix)
Midnight Traveler – Hassan Fazili, director; Emelie Mahdavian, Su Kim, producers (Oscilloscope Laboratories)
One Child Nation – Nanfu Wang, Jialing Zhang, directors; Nanfu Wang, Jialing Zhang, Christoph Jörg, Julie Goldman, Christopher Clements, Carolyn Hepburn, producers (Amazon Studios)
Continue reading Presenting: The 2019 Gotham Independent Film Awards Nominees →

Pop Culture

Marvel and Scholastic Team Up To Bring New Super Hero Stories To Young Readers

Leave a comment

marvel logo

The Press Release:
Marvel announces a multi-year deal with Scholastic to introduce new original stories featuring Marvel’s most iconic Super Heroes to young readers around the world. With a shared commitment to representing all types of characters and stories, Marvel and Scholastic will work together to craft exciting, relatable stories with characters who resonate with the millions of kids Scholastic reaches.

scholastic logo

Starting in 2020, Scholastic will publish two new Marvel prose middle grade novels, kicking off with Shuri: A Black Panther Novel, written by New York Times bestselling author Nic Stone, followed by an original middle grade series, Avengers Assembly, by Preeti Chhibber.
Continue reading Marvel and Scholastic Team Up To Bring New Super Hero Stories To Young Readers →

Features, Technology

Automattic Acquires Tumblr From Verizon

Leave a comment

automattic logo

Every once in a while, we need to shine the spotlight on some industry news and this is especially the case if it affects some of the tools that we employ here on “The Chronicles” and of course on PiercingMetal.com – Recently, the folks at Automattic announced their purchase of the Tumblr medium. As you know, Automattic is also the owner of WordPress which we use for both of our websites. Read on down below for their owners statement on this news.

Automattic + Tumblr:
Those of you who’ve followed my Tumblr over the years have probably come to expect a mix of travel photos and the occasional link to my WordPress blog. Well, today is different. I’m delighted to share that Automattic is acquiring Tumblr.

Back in 2013, I reflected on how friendly the relationship has always been between WordPress.com and Tumblr, and on the exciting future I saw for web-publishing platforms like ours. In the intervening years, the Tumblr team has continued to impress me with their ability to create an intuitive publishing experience on desktop and on mobile, and to foster so many thriving, passionate communities. I have worked on WordPress my entire adult life — 16 years now — and so the democratization of publishing is near and dear to my heart. Tumblr and WordPress have always been very philosophically aligned there.
Continue reading Automattic Acquires Tumblr From Verizon →

Pop Culture

Tribeca Film Festival Announces 2020 Dates and Opens Submissions

Leave a comment

tribeca film festival logo

The Press Release:
The Tribeca Film Festival, presented by AT&T, announced that its 19th edition will take place April 15-26, 2020 in New York City. Since its inception in 2001, Tribeca has been a platform for new work from established filmmakers and discoveries from emerging voices, while exploring innovations in storytelling across film, TV, VR, online, music, gaming and more.

Submissions for the 2020 Festival will open on August 19 via Tribeca’s website or FilmFreeway for feature and short films; episodic and online storytelling; virtual and immersive; and branded entertainment. Under the purview of Cara Cusumano, newly named Festival Director, Tribeca will continue its tradition of curating a program that unites artists and diverse audiences to support great storytelling.

Last year’s Festival featured a slate of feature films; acclaimed shorts programming; Tribeca N.O.W. (New Online Work), a showcase of artists working in the online space; Tribeca Immersive; Tribeca Talks; and Tribeca TV with series world premieres including Emmy-nominated Chernobyl, breakout hit The Hot Zone, and more. Tribeca celebrated diverse voices with 40% of the feature films having one or more women directors, people of color directed 29% of the feature films and 13% of the feature films were from individuals who identify as LGBTQ+. The Festival hosted Tribeca Celebrates Pride, an event honoring the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots with a day of conversations. Tribeca X, which honors excellence in branded entertainment, expanded with program new categories and a day of conversations with innovators at the intersection of advertising and entertainment.
Continue reading Tribeca Film Festival Announces 2020 Dates and Opens Submissions →

Features, Tours and Festivals

IMPORTANT: The OZY Fest in Central Park Is CANCELLED!!!

Leave a comment

You might remember our recently discussing this weekends OZY Fest (seen HERE in case you don’t). Sadly, the city has opted to cancel the event based on the extreme heat that was forecast for the weekend. At last check the news reported in the hundred plus as a real feel. Read more down below.

ozy fest logo

The Announcement:
Due to historic temperatures in New York this weekend, the City of New York has canceled OZY Fest. The National Weather Service issued an “Excessive Heat Warning” through Sunday, which happens when the combination of heat and humidity is expected to make it feel like it is 105 degrees or greater.

“The health and safety of New Yorkers is our most important concern, and we are left with no other option but to cancel all large-scale park events throughout New York City Saturday and Sunday. We are working hand-in-hand with OZY and others to make this as smooth a process as possible,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio.
Continue reading IMPORTANT: The OZY Fest in Central Park Is CANCELLED!!! →