23rd Annual San Diego International Film Festival Reveals 2024 Slate
The 23rd Annual San Diego International Film Festival is ‘Celebrating the Power of Film’ with curated screenings that inform, inspire and entertain. The Opening Night film premiere and party will be held at The Museum of Photographic Arts in Balboa Park on Wednesday, October 16th.
Discovery Channel to Air WHO WILL WRITE OUR HISTORY on January 26
In November 1940, days after the Nazis sealed 450,000 Jews in the Warsaw Ghetto, a secret band of journalists, scholars and community leaders decided to fight back. Led by historian Emanuel Ringelblum and known by the code name Oyneg Shabes, this clandestine group vowed to defeat Nazi lies and propaganda not with guns or fists, but with pen and paper. Now, for the first time, their story is told in the documentary WHO WILL WRITE OUR HISTORY. Featuring the voices of three-time Academy Award® nominee Joan Allen and Academy Award® winner Adrian Brody, WHO WILL WRITE OUR HISTORY mixes the writings of the Oyneg Shabes archive with new interviews, rarely seen footage and stunning dramatizations (shot on location in Lodz and Warsaw, Poland) to transport audiences inside the Ghetto and the lives of these courageous resistance fighters.
THE BIRTHDAY PARTY Will Embark on UK Tour
Michelle Collins will play Meg Boles, Tristan Gemmill will play Goldberg and Paul Hickey will play McCann in a national UK tour of Harold Pinter's comedy of menace which will receive a dramatic new re-imagining from the team behind Waiting for Godot. Following a two-year celebration of the works of Harold Pinter in the West End, this is Pinter's most popular and widely performed play. Further casting will be announced in due course.
HAMILTON's Sydney James Harcourt to Lead NYC Reading of POPSTAR Musical
An invitation-only reading of the new musical PopStar will take place on Thursday, October 20 (2pm) and Friday, October 21 (11am) at Pearl Studios (500 Eighth Avenue, Studio #1204). PopStar features a book by Martin Casella, music and lyrics by Jay Levine and Sophie Dupin and is conceived and directed by Sharon Rosen.
Ari Shaffir to Perform Comedy Works Larimer Square, 1/28-31
Stand-up comedian and actor Ari Shaffir describes his comedy as a puppet show, but way filthier and without the puppets. Ari hosts the increasingly popular podcast The Skeptic Tank and is a regular guest on the Joe Rogan Experience podcast. His stand-up album Revenge for the Holocaust went to number 1 on iTunes and Amazon.com the week of its premier.
Michael Stapleton Shares Autobiography, BLOOD AND ALCOHOL
Author Adrian Brody once said that 'Family isn't just about whose blood runs through your veins. It's about who never left your side, stood up for you, and believed in you.' This very touching line holds true especially for author Michael Stapleton, a man whose life's journey is about to be unraveled.
The Jones' 'Yearbook' Single Gets 1/20 Release
Singer/songwriter The Jones is proud to announce the release of his new heart-felt single 'YearBook,' a Pop/R&B single inspired by true events and dedicated to anti-bullying. The Jones composed 'YearBook' after watching a news story about a young girl who committed suicide after she was bullied by her school mates. He immediately wanted to do something to help anyone going through such a horrible thing. 'I don't think singing a song is going to take away the hurt but I want to help cheer someone up if I can'. Bullying is getting out of control on all levels these days. Cyber- bullying is also becoming a serious problem.
Danny Trejo To Lead New Film 'Strike One'
DANNY TREJO will star as Manny Gerardo, an ex-gang member in new slice of life film, based on a true story, entitled STRIKE ONE, Director/Producer DAVID LLAUGER-MEISELMAN announced today.
InDepth InterView: John Leguizamo
To accrue all the characters, characteristics and components of a career as diverse and varied as that of stage and screen star John Leguizamo would be near-impossible for even the most gifted performers in the galaxy. Having appeared in nearly ninety films so far in his twenty-five year career - including a musical, MOULIN ROUGE, and an adaptation of Shakespeare, ROMEO + JULIET, both for noted directed Baz Luhrmann - as well as five off-Broadway and Broadway solo shows - MAMBO MOUTH, SPIC-O-RAMA, FREAK, SEXAHOLIX and, now, GHETTO KLOWN - Leguizamo is consistently challenging himself and revealing new sides to his personality and skills as an actor and performer with his daring choices of roles and searing performances. In this comprehensive career retrospective, we cover Broadway, Hollywood and much more and we even have his first comments on his new feature film opening this weekend, THE LINCOLN LAWYER. From Todd Haynes' POISON to Brian DePalma's CASUALTIES OF WAR and CARLITO'S WAY, to Spike Lee's SUMMER OF SAM, to TO WONG FOO, SUPER MARIO BROS. and more; singing Sondheim's 'Send In The Clowns'; plus, stories on his recently departed co-stars Dennis Hopper (LAND OF THE DEAD) and Brittany Murphy (SPUN), and first news on the David Koresh biopic WACO co-starring Kurt Russell and Adrien Brody, and FUGLY with Radha Mitchell - Leguizamo‘s performances speak (and sing) for themselves. King, cartoon, criminal, artist, clown or klown - Leguizamo can play them all. And play them damn well, as well.
FELA's Kevin Mambo& More Perform for TOMMY Awards Show in NYC, 6/28
Emmy-winning actor, Kevin Mambo, who stars in the title role in the Broadway production of the of Tony winning musical 'Fela!' has joined the roster of artists scheduled to perform at the Second Annual Tommy Awards on Monday, June 28 at the Skirball Center for the Performing Arts at NYU. Produced by the USC Alumni Club of New York with the support of the USC Alumni Association and other university partners, the Tommy Awards- named for Tommy Trojan, the University of Southern California's collegiate symbol - honors extraordinary contributions made by USC alumni to New York's business, cultural, sports and philanthropic communities.