I'm changing the format of this newsletter as the current format is not allowing
me to
put it out in a timely manner. So, I will spilt it up into sections with no
particular
order which ones come when (Articles, Member Updates, etc). A few of these are
old
as I compile them over time, but still relevent.

Anup

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ARTICLES
Warner Bros. to Distribute Films on Web
Fame goes to film director Cuaron heart not head
Actors May Shun Studios' Art-house Units, Says Producer
Oscar-winning 'Crash' producer is flat broke
Hollywood sex scenes attract lawmakers' attention
Indian film to be made by Pakistani for first time
Reiner comedy sees both sides of DVD format


WARNER BROS. TO DISTRIBUTE FILMS ON WEB

Warner Bros. will become the first major studio to distribute its films and TV
shows
over the Internet using peer-to-peer technology developed by BitTorrent Inc.,
the
home of a popular tool for trading pirated copies of movies.

The companies did not specify a date but said the service will be offered
starting this
summer. Pricing is also undetermined, although individual TV shows could be
priced
as low as $1 and movies will be sold for about the price of buying a DVD,
BitTorrent
said.

Warner Bros., a division of Time Warner Inc., said it will use BitTorrent's
ability to
speed the downloading of large computer files to rent and sell its films the
same day
the movies become available on DVD.

The studio also will sell permanent copies of films and TV shows online that can
be
burned to a backup DVD, although the copy will only play on the computer used to
download the film and not on standard DVD players.

The deal is aimed at converting some of the file-sharing users who regularly
seek
illegal copies of films and TV shows by offering them a reliable experience at a
reasonable price on the same system used by online pirates.

"If we can convert 5, 10, 15 percent of the peer-to-peer users that have been
obtaining our product from illegitimate sources to becoming legitimate buyers of
our
product, that has the potential of a huge impact on our industry and our
economics,"
said Kevin Tsujihara, president of the Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group.

BitTorrent uses a technique called "file swarming" to distribute large files.
Rather than
download a single large file from one central computer, BitTorrent assembles
files
from separate bits of data downloaded from other computer users across the
Internet.

Studios have been discussing such deals with BitTorrent since last November,
when
they reached a settlement with the company aimed at reducing illegal traffic in
online
films.

Last year, BitTorrent agreed to remove links to pirated versions of movies from
its
Web site and remove online links leading to illegal content owned by the seven
studios that are members of the Motion Picture Association of America.

Studios believe that offering reasonably priced legal alternatives will be
preferable to
downloading files that could contain viruses or poor quality copies of films.

"Those are the kinds of baby steps to offer users a good trade off, a good
alternative
to doing things the wrong way," said Ashwin Navin, president and co-founder of
BitTorrent.

The speed of downloading a large movie file will depend on how many individual
computers in the network have the file. The more computers, the faster the
process.

Ideally, once a particular movie has been "seeded" on the system, Warner Bros.
estimates a download could take as little as 10 minutes. TV shows could take
even
less time to download because the files are much smaller.
http://movies.yahoo.com/mv/news/ap/20060509/114719694000.html

-----------------------

DOCUMENTARY SHOT WITH CELL PHONE CAMERA

By MARTA FALCONI, Associated Press Writer Wed Jun 14, 3:44 PM ET

ROME - The theme may be familiar but the technique is new: A standard cell phone
camera to shoot an entire feature-length documentary on love and sex.

Italian filmmakers used a Nokia N90, a higher-end cell phone sold around the
world,
to produce the 93-minute "New Love Meetings," which they say is the first
feature
film to be entirely shot with such a tool.

The technique underscores what has become a fixture in today's world: The use of
amateur video and cell phone cameras to immortalize moments in people's lives.

"With the widespread availability of cell phones equipped with cameras, anybody
could do this," documentary co-director Marcello Mencarini said in a telephone
interview from Milan. "If you want to say something nowadays, thanks to the new
media, you can."

In news gathering, early footage is often shot with a cell phone, and, in the
case of
major events, authorities and news outlets have been known to call on amateurs
to
come through with video.

When it comes to movies, though, cell phone cameras present limits, such as the
difficulty to film in darkness or the lack of high-quality microphones.

As a result, the movie mostly features close-ups, and the image, while overall
clear
when seen on a computer, is slightly shaky. Mencarini said the movie could be
viewed
on big screens, though "it wouldn't be high-definition." The movie's directors
said no
post-production manipulation was made on the image.

Low costs and greater flexibility were among the reasons why Mencarini and co-
director Barbara Seghezzi decided to use a cell phone.

The filmmakers say the project cost only a few thousand dollars, including their
travel
and accommodation expenses and the production of several DVDs.

Although no professional lighting was needed, a pocket flashlight was used at
times,
said Seghezzi.

The approach offers the advantage of being intimate, leading people to open up a
little more easily, directors say. In a documentary about love and eroticism,
that
doesn't hurt.

For two months last year, the directors interviewed some 700 people across Italy
— at
bars, open markets and on the beach. About 100 of them ended up in the movie.

"To use a small instrument that belongs to people's daily routine allows you to
establish an intimate dialogue, instead of using a regular camera," she said.
"The
interview becomes more like a chat."

Mencarini said some people were intrigued that such a familiar item was being
used
to shoot a movie.

The phone had enough memory for about an hour of footage, and scenes were
transferred to a computer approximately every two days, Mencarini said.

Now, producers are looking at ways to distribute the film.

The directors' idea was to do a modern version of the 1965 documentary "Love
Meetings" by Pier Paolo Pasolini, the famed film director and writer found
beaten to
death 30 years ago.

In his documentary, Pasolini interviewed Italians to find out their views about
sex in
postwar Italy. Attitudes across the country showed people had taboos and self-
censorship was widespread.

"New Love Meetings" explores subjects ranging from first sexual experiences to
homosexuality and jealousy, in interviews that include transsexuals and a
priest. And
it found that not much has changed.

"When it comes to sexuality a certain malaise is still there, taboos and
problems
persist," Seghezzi said.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060614/ap_en_ot/italy_cell_phone_film


-----------------------


FAME GOES TO FILM DIRECTOR CUARON'S HEART NOT HEAD

Fame has not gone to Mexican film director Alfonso Cuaron 's head but to his
heart.

Oscar nominee Cuaron, whose movies include critical hit "Y Tu Mama Tambien" and
box office smash " Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban," is using his new
prestige to support younger filmmakers by acting as a producer of their movies.

He says its keeps him close to cutting-edge talent making fresh and relevant
movies,
and for the filmmakers, putting his name and his company, Esperanto Films, above
a
title gives it a world-class seal of approval which lures fans to theaters.

Cuaron's latest show of support is for fellow Mexican director Fernando
Eimbcke's
comedy "Duck Season," which opens on Friday in U.S. theaters. The film covers
one
afternoon in the lives of two Mexican teen-agers spending the day at home.

"I'm reaching an age," begins the 44-year-old Cuaron, "and I've been following
and
trying to emulate the old masters for all my life. And there's a moment in which
you
need to push the energy of a new generation, and the questioning of a new
generation and the times that a new generation is absorbing."

Cuaron is backing up-and-coming talents like Eimbcke, who has yet to make a name
for himself on the world stage as Cuaron did. "Duck Season" is 35-year-old
Eimbcke's
first feature-length film. It has won numerous awards including 11 Ariels,
Mexico's
top movie honors given by the Academia Mexicana de Artes y Ciencias
Cinematograficas. The movie is planned for release in some 30 countries
eventually.

Full article: http://movies.yahoo.com/mv/news/va/20060309/114193916700.html

-----------------------

ACTORS MAY SHUN STUDIOS' ART-HOUSE UNITS, SAYS PRODUCER

Independent producer Ira Deutchman, president of Emerging Pictures, has
indicated
that the lawsuit filed last week by actor Randy Quaid in which he claimed that
he was
misled into accepting a small fee for appearing in Brokeback Mountain, could
have
dire consequences for the art-house divisions of the major studios. In an
interview
with New York Times, Deutchman suggested that actors are now becoming aware
that when they agree to appear in a film for low pay and a piece of the net
profits,
there's generally not going to be any net profits because of high marketing and
distribution costs. Deutchman told the Times that that realization could lead
to
actors becoming reluctant to appear in art-house films for studio specialty
units. "If,
in fact, the smaller movies don't pay off for talent even when they hit, the
studio
arthouse divisions will stop being able to make the movies," he said. "They'll
fall into
the same trap as the parent companies: if no one believes there's a back end,
then
actors will want higher and higher salaries to be in those movies."


-----------------------


OSCAR-WINNING 'CRASH' PRODUCER IS FLAT BROKE

It's been a bumpy ride. Accepting the fifth best picture Oscar ever awarded to a
woman, independent producer Cathy Schulman landed on the stage of Hollywood's
Kodak Theater on Sunday along with writer-director Paul Haggis as one of the
credited producers of "Crash."

But while Schulman, 40, has a lot for which to be grateful, including a
supportive
husband of 12 years and a 5-year-old daughter, she can't entirely savor her win.
She
still faces a court fight against producer Bob Yari , who is furious that he was
deprived of the chance for his own moment onstage because of rulings by the
Producers Guild of America and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
And at what should be a career pinnacle, Schulman finds herself flat broke. "I
have the
interesting distinction of having made five movies in a row without ever being
paid,"
she says. "I can't pay my bills."

As a girl, she always was driven to succeed. After her adored father, who taught
laser
surgery at Yale, died in a car accident when she was 18, Schulman studied
playwriting
at Yale. But after she mounted several plays in New York, a friend suggested
that she
find a job in the movie business to pay the rent.

After two years assisting producers Earl Mack and Michael Taylor on such films
as
Kathryn Bigelow 's " Blue Steel ," Schulman moved to Los Angeles to work for
Barbara
Boyle , co-founder of the innovative co-financing company Sovereign Pictures. In
four
years, Schulman moved from assistant to production executive as she helped to
assemble such international co-productions as " My Left Foot " and " Cinema
Paradiso
."

She next spent three happy years as co-director of programming at the Sundance
Film Festival , helping to shine a spotlight on such rookie directors as David
O.
Russell ,Robert Rodriguez ,Paul Thomas Anderson ,Lee Tamahori and Bryan Singer .
In
an industry where most production executives learn how to read scripts, watching
so
many finished movies was "great training," she says.

Sundance board member Tom Rothman brought Schulman, who wanted to make
movies instead of just select them, over to specialty distributor the Samuel
Goldwyn
Co., where she was involved in acquisitions and production on such films as "The
Madness of King George," "The Perez Family" and " Much Ado About Nothing ."
Schulman even discovered young Australian actor Russell Crowe in " The Sum of Us
"
"We only worked on movies under $12 million," she says. "I got a sweet spot for
making manageable movies in that range."

Joining the short-lived Savoy Entertainment, Schulman got a crash course in film
production on the fly. There, she met head of physical production Betsy Danbury,
who
later became her right arm on "Crash." After Savoy CEO Victor Kaufman
pink-slipped
most of his staff, he sent Schulman out to sell the remaining slate in a fire
sale. "I got
to meet the heads of the studios," she says. Paramount Pictures chairman Sherry
Lansing bought " A Simple Plan " New Line Cinema bought " American History X ."

Universal Studios president Ron Meyer put Schulman together with on-lot
producers
Michael Lobell and Andrew Bergman , and she learned about studio-level producing
on the ill-fated Demi Moore movie "Striptease" and " Isn't She Great ," starring
Bette
Midler as Jacqueline Susann. "We had fabulously fancy-schmancy offices at
Universal,"
Schulman recalls. "I learned how to make big-budget movies, but they were not
the
kind of movies I was interested in."

Around 1998, Schulman and managers Rick and Julie Yorn started to fantasize
about
starting a production management company. So when former CAA chief Michael Ovitz
recruited the Yorns to join his new Artists Management Group, they introduced
him to
Schulman. He turned on the famous Ovitz charm. "I'll never forget it. We had
that
classic meeting at his house with all the artwork, the servant with water on a
silver
tray with a doily over it," she recalls.

As president of Ovitz's Artists Picture Group, Schulman was making $600,000 a
year,
putting together a slate of low-budget movies like Edward Burns ' " Sidewalks of
New
York ." But by summer 2000, Ovitz's AMG was starting to crumble. APG had a deal
with French company Canal Plus that came under the supervision of Universal
after
Universal's merger with Vivendi. Suddenly, Schulman's projects met a closed
door,
with Universal refusing to greenlight them, she says.

In frustration, Schulman that December arranged private meetings with Meyer and
CAA agent Bryan Lourd to see if she could resolve the impasse. Somehow, Ovitz
discovered her meetings. "I was trying to maintain my ethical compass and do
what
was right," Schulman says. "But in pursuit of what was right for the group, I
fell into a
trap." (Schulman has been deposed in the ongoing case involving private
detective
Anthony Pellicano and allegations that he wiretapped and otherwise probed the
backgrounds of prominent entertainment industry figures.)

Called into an audit interview by Vivendi, Schulman says she was counseled by
her
lawyer to tell the truth. She answered questions about how much time and money
she
spent on about 50 projects, unwittingly revealing details of APG's accounting on
the
Canal Plus deal.

According to her 2002 wrongful termination lawsuit against Ovitz, "When Ovitz
learned of Ms. Schulman's truthful disclosures . . . in a rage, he immediately
terminated Ms. Schulman." She lost the suit and was ordered to pay $3.6 million
to
Ovitz during arbitration, but the award was vacated in 2004.

In the film community, while many respect Schulman's taste and acumen as a
producer, some question her business judgment when it comes to the men with
whom she works. "Cathy's emotionality makes her a good producer on-set," says
one
producer, "but gets her into trouble in business."

Schulman admits that she has been "saddened and angered" by the time spent
fighting those legal battles. Amid the Ovitz litigation, she filed for
bankruptcy. "I
bring the same total commitment and passion to movie projects and to managing my
process," she says. "It's my greatest strength and weakness. It's the same thing
that
made me fight tireless battles to get 'Crash' to the screen without pay. I don't
suffer
wrongdoing well. I right wrongs with legal battles. I want to pave the way for
people
who follow me not to let this happen."

While searching for equity investors interested in low-cost, high-quality
movies,
Schulman brought Yari in as an investor in Bull's Eye Entertainment, which she
founded with her partner Tom Nunan, a former television executive at UPN. Yari
brought her the script for "Crash" and asked if she wanted to make it. She loved
it
and, with Haggis, lured a top-flight cast.

On the five films Schulman made with Yari, he paid for her overhead, found
international investors, invested some of his own money and controlled the purse
strings. He asked Schulman to defer her producing fees on the projects, which
included the Sundance films "Employee of the Month" and "Thumbsucker." That left
her in the financial lurch on more than one occasion, including her stint in
Prague
shooting the $17 million "The Illusionist." When she got back and found that
"Crash"
was a runaway success, she thought she might start seeing some money. According
to the complaint Schulman and Nunan filed against Yari last month, she has not
been
paid for any of the work she did for him. Yari has called the lawsuit "a
shameful
misrepresentation of the facts" regarding the Bull's Eye partnership.

"Twice, I've built companies for powerful men who've gotten pissed off . . . and
sued
me," Schulman says. "In defending myself, I'm considered litigious, like I'm the
problem."

Now separated from Yari, Bull's Eye has several upcoming TV series, including
CBS'
"Crash" and "Angela's Eyes" at Lifetime as well as some pictures in development
at
Focus Features, DreamWorks and Fox Searchlight. Director Ed Zwick is developing
its
fantasy epic "The Lions of Al-Rassan" at Warner Bros. Pictures. Schulman is
trying to
put together a financing company with silent investors.

In the end, Schulman sees her "battle wounds as badges of honor," saying: "It's
been a
hard battle to succeed in this crazy career as a female indie producer. It was
the
greatest reward to end up with an Academy Award. 'Crash' is amongst 78 other
movies that are considered American classics. I feel proud that this amazing
exploration of fear made people feel something about the lives they are living,
all
over the world."

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter
http://movies.yahoo.com/mv/news/va/20060310/114198874800.html

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HOLLYWOOD SEX SCENES ATTRACT LAWMAKERS' ATTENTION

The U.S. House of Representatives has approved child-safety legislation that
includes
a provision bringing some legitimate film and TV productions under the same
federal-reporting requirements as X-rated films.

Under a provision inserted in the Children's Safety and Violent Crime Reduction
Act,
the legislation would require "any book, magazine, periodical, film, videotape
or other
matter" that contains a simulated sex scene to come under the same government-
filing requirements that adult films have to meet.

Currently, any filmed sexual activity requires an affidavit that lists the names
and
ages of the actors who engage in the act. The film is required to have a video
label
that claims compliance with the law and lists where the custodian of the records
can
be found. The record-keeping requirement is known as Section 2257, for its
citation
in federal law. Violators could spend five years in jail.

Under the provision authored by Rep. Mike Pence , R-Ind., the definition of
sexual
activity is expanded to include simulated sex acts like those that appear in
many
movies and TV shows.

While the overall bill is designed to give law enforcement officials more power
to
prosecute violent sexual predators and sets up a comprehensive national sex-
offender registration system, it includes the language targeting motion
pictures, TV
shows and other material.

Last year, the House approved a similar measure, but it languished in the Senate
as
lawmakers could not decide how to proceed on hate-crimes language that also was
attached to the legislation. The new legislation left the hate-crimes language
out of
the bill in the hopes that it would have an easier time in the Senate.

The Pence amendment has garnered opposition from several groups ranging from the
Motion Picture Assn. of America, the Recording Industry Assn. of America, the
Screen
Actors Guild and the Directors Guild of America to the American Conservative
Union,
Americans for Tax Reform and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce , which say that the
new requirement is a bad idea for legitimate business and could actually undo
the
current adult-film industry reporting requirements as it is likely to face a
court
challenge if it becomes law.

While the provision was included in the House version of the Children's Safety
Act
approved September 14, it was not included in the version of the bill approved
by the
Senate Judiciary Committee on October 17.

Whether the Senate decides to include the provision, it will have to be disposed
of one
way or another when lawmakers from both sides of the Capitol meet to iron out
their
differences, if the Senate approved the overall bill.

Changes in the Pence language that allow the motion picture industry to
"self-certify"
their compliance have made the provision more palatable, say industry officials.

Still, the motion picture industry hopes to be able to convince lawmakers to
make
further changes.

"We'd like to be completely excluded," said one studio executive. "We want them
to
focus on child predators. We don't want them to lose their focus on that."

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter

http://movies.yahoo.com/mv/news/va/20060308/114188754900.html

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INDIAN FILM TO BE MADE BY PAKISTANI FOR FIRST TIME

An Indian film is to be directed by a Pakistani for the first time ever,
deepening
cultural links between the arch-rivals and neighbors while their diplomats
struggle to
push forward a slow-moving peace process. Pakistani actors and musicians have
made a mark on Bollywood, but Omar Sharif will be the first to debut as a
director in
India's booming Hindi-language movie industry.

Indian films, which have been banned in Pakistan for 40 years, are hugely
popular
there, and a flourishing bootleg DVD industry and satellite television mean
Pakistanis
can now watch Bollywood movies at home.

Sharif will begin shooting for "Tum Mere Ho" (You Are Mine) -- starring 1970s
Bollywood heartthrob Rajesh Khanna and upcoming stars Ashmit Patel and Aarti
Chhabria -- from March 26 in the southern Indian city of Hyderabad.


The crew will then move on to Chicago, where most of the film will be set.

"It's a romantic comedy and I chose Omar to direct it because I have watched his
films
and they are great," the film's U.S.-based producer Masood Ali, also making his
debut, told Reuters.

Sharif started as a stand-up comedian before moving into cinema.

"We are looking to release the 120 million rupee ($2.7 million) film around
October or
November before the (Hindu festival) Diwali," Ali said.

Indian film industry officials welcomed the arrival of a Pakistani filmmaker,
saying
their neighbor had several promising directors who could better showcase their
talents in India, whose films are increasingly gaining an international
audience.

"More such cultural exchanges are required. Bollywood has always been very
receptive
to Pakistani artists," said Taran Adarsh, a leading trade analyst.

Last month, Pakistan allowed a special screening of "Mughal-e-Azam," an Indian
period drama classic of Mughal emperors.

Officials there have indicated that other selected Bollywood films could be
screened
despite the long-time ban.

The two countries began a peace process two years ago in a bid to end decades of
animosity that have seen them fight three wars since both gained independence
from
British rule in 1947.

But while they have strengthened transport, cultural and sporting ties, and
boosted
commercial links, little progress has been made on resolving core disputes such
as
that over Kashmir , a territory both claim.

http://movies.yahoo.com/mv/news/va/20060309/114190599300.html


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REINER COMEDY SEES BOTH SIDES OF DVD FORMAT

Delivering on a promise made months ago, Warner Home Video has announced the
first hybrid disc to feature high-definition (HD) DVD content on one side and
standard DVD content on the other.

"Rumor Has It" will be in stores May 9, the same day as the regular DVD of the
film, a
Rob Reiner -directed romantic comedy starring Jennifer Aniston and Kevin Costner
.

The announcement comes a week after the first two HD-DVD players, both from
Toshiba, arrived in stores along with three software titles: "Serenity," from
Universal
Studios Home Entertainment, and Warner's " The Last Samurai " and " The Phantom
of
the Opera "

Warner senior vp market management Steve Nickerson said several weeks ago that
Warner would be releasing a series of "hybrid" discs to ease the transition from
standard to high-def DVD.

"Purchasing a disc now in this format gives consumers the greatest flexibility
in
viewing options," he said. "If they own an HD-DVD player, they'll get all the
benefits
of HD-DVD. If they're considering a future purchase of an HD-DVD player, they
can
still enjoy the movie (on their existing DVD player) until they upgrade."

Warner announced three additional titles to be released in the HD-DVD format:
"Goodfellas" and "Swordfish" on May 2 and "Training Day" on May 9. They join
three
previously released HD-DVD titles from Warner: "Samurai," "Phantom" and "Million
Dollar Baby," which had been earmarked as part of the April 18 launch package
but
because of technical issues didn't arrive in stores until late last week.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter
http://movies.yahoo.com/mv/news/va/20060426/114606097000.html