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Friday, 27 June 2008

Barack Obama - Star-studded Obama Support Video Wins New Emmy Prize

will.i.am's video tribute to U.S. presidential wannabe BARACK OBAMA has earned the BLACK EYED PEAS star his first Emmy Award.

The Yes We Can Song promo, which was inspired by one of Democratic presidential candidate Obama's stirring speeches, was honoured with an Emmy in the inaugural New Approaches in Daytime Entertainment category at the 35th Annual Creative Arts + Entertainment Daytime Emmy Awards ceremony in New York on Friday (13Jun08).

The new Emmy category recognises innovative production techniques and the use of media enhancement to support content.

The video, co-produced by and featuring will.i.am and directed by Jesse Dylan, became an Internet sensation earlier this year (08) as the hip-hop star showed his support of Obama.

The Yes We Can Song promo has garnered over 25 million views online since it was posted on 2 February (08).

Inspired by Obama's speech the night of the New Hampshire Primary, the video features footage of the Senator delivering the speech as well as cameos from many of his celebrity supporters.

These include Scarlett Johansson, John Legend, Herbie Hancock, Common, Kelly Hu and Nick Cannon.

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Tuesday, 24 June 2008

Chris Botti

Artist: Chris Botti

   Genre(s):
Jazz

Discography:

Italia

Year: 2007
Tracks: 12

Live: With Orchestra And Special Guests

Year: 2006
Tracks: 14

December

Year: 2006
Tracks: 13

When I Fall In Love

Year: 2004
Tracks: 13

A Thousand Kisses Deep

Year: 2003
Tracks: 11

Night Sessions

Year: 2001
Tracks: 12

Slowing Down The World

Year: 1999
Tracks: 11

Midnight Without You

Year: 1997
Tracks: 16

To Love Again

Year:
Tracks: 13

Though best-known as a contemporary jazz performer, cornetist Chris Botti made his initial swash on the bug out music panorama. A native of Oregon, he started playing at the age of 10, and spell noneffervescent in high shoal began playing professionally. After studying in the prestigious Indiana University music program under the noted jazz pedagog David Baker, Botti resettled to New York, where he served with saxist George Coleman and trumpet neat Woody Shaw; under the counselling of producers including Hugh Padgham and Arif Mardin, he swiftly emerged as a highly regarded pop sitting player, lending his trumpet to recordings from figures including Bob Dylan, Aretha Franklin, and Thomas Dolby. In 1990, Botti was asked to join Paul Simon's band, where he remained for the next five geezerhood. Finally, in 1995, he recorded his solo debut, First base Wish, a criminal record combining the sounds of contemporary pop-jazz with the textures of artwork stone. After grading the 1996 cinema Caught, Botti resurfaced in 1997 with his irregular LP, Midnight Without You, which was followed by Slowing Down the World in 1999. Two days by and by, he was a featured soloist on Sting's Brand New Day human beings go, and that sentence allowed Botti to rediscover old melodic passions and create new ones. Night Sessions (2001), which was recorded in Los Angeles, captured such gaudy pop. That muse was explored further in 2003 with M Kisses Deep, and to a lesser extent on the more tradtional orchestral nothingness of 2004's When I Fall in Love. Since that sentence, Botti has released a handful of albums including To Love Again: The Duets in 2005, a reissue of his holiday album December in 2006, and Italia in 2007.

Thursday, 19 June 2008

Just A Minute With: Carell, Hathaway on "Get Smart"

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A lot of people, including Steve Carell himself, were surprised when the genial star of "The Office" landed the coveted role of Maxwell Smart in the new film version of the classic 1960s TV show "Get Smart."

Audiences may be even more surprised to see just how many serious action scenes Carell and co-star Anne Hathaway (Agent 99) handle in this hard-edged reworking of the Cold War-era spy spoof that opens across the United States on Friday.

But all the fighting, kicking, punching and gunplay in the movie were nothing compared to the verbal sparring that took place -- always friendly, of course -- when the two stars sat down together to talk to Reuters about making "Get Smart:"

Q: Above all, this film is obviously a very penetrating analysis of cold war politics.

Steve Carell (deadpan serious): "It is, very. It's also an action comedy."

Anne Hathaway: "I'd describe it as "comtion.""

Carell: "When we first discussed it, we wanted it to be a legitimate spy movie that's also funny. I wanted it to hold up, with characters that could potentially exist and situations that had stakes to them ... we are not people you'd normally see in an action movie, and I think that's part of the comedy."

Q: Do you feel like you're the Tracy & Hepburn of action movies now?

British Sea Power To Play Natural History Museum This Month

British Sea Power have already announced a tour for October (dates below), but way before that the band will play a unique show later this month.

Held at the Natural History Museum in London, the group will perform to just 600 fans on June 21st, where they will play live in front of a selection of films from the museum archive.

The gig, which has previously been played by The Strokes in 2006, is part of an event billed as Exhibition Road Music Day, based in south London museums.

More details can be found at the Exhibitionroadmusicday.org website.

Those headline British Sea Power dates in the Autumn are as follows:

October Dates:

Brighton Corn Exchange (2)

Southampton University (3)

Cambridge The Junction (5)

Bristol Academy (6)

Birmingham Academy (7)

Newcastle Academy (8)

Dundee Fat Sams (10)

Glasgow ABC (11)

Manchester Ritz (12)

Leeds Metropolitan University (13)

Oxford Regal (15)

London Roundhouse (17)

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Youthful Cubby Bernstein helps 'Xanadu' campaign for a Tony award

NEW YORK - Can a cherubic 10-year-old pitchman with the unlikely name of Cubby Bernstein help remake the way Tony Award nominees sell themselves to voters - and to paying theatregoers as well?

As Broadway counts down to Sunday's 2008 Tony Awards, honouring the best of the Broadway season, the Internet, primarily through YouTube, has become a way to win friends and perhaps influence voters. And Cubby, on his website www.cubbybernstein.com, has been in there, aggressively selling his "client," the nominated musical "Xanadu."

Admittedly a long shot for the top prize of best musical, "Xanadu," a good-natured spoof of the 1980 Olivia Newton-John disco movie, has scored points with the Broadway community with its mock videos. In a series of short episodes, Cubby is seen flacking "Xanadu" as real-life Tony winners - from Nathan Lane to Duncan Sheik to John Lloyd Young - extol his virtues as "a Tony campaign manager."

Already one of the episodes - featuring the show's buff star Cheyenne Jackson shirtless - has had upward of more than a half-million hits on YouTube. Another has Cubby selling cupcakes in front of the theatre (with the proceeds going to Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS). A third has Patti LuPone as Madame Rose, the ultimate stage mother, wanting to hire Cubby to work his magic for her two daughters, Baby June and Louise.

"Cubby's secret is that he has a youthful production team willing to breathe new life into producing and to take advantage of the Internet, something we older producers never had or would have probably never thought of," says Martin Richards, producer of the Academy Award-winning film version of "Chicago."

"The truth is Cubby probably knows as much as anybody else does about who is going to win a Tony."

Richards was asked by one of the "Xanadu" producers, Tara Smith, to appear in the initial episode as a member of the Cubby fan club.

"It was so much fun - I think I was showing off," says Richards, adding he just improvised what he said in praise of Cubby. "I have never done anything but a Tony campaign in newspapers. This just took on a life of its own with a group of young, imaginative people. They were fearless enough and knew how to use new ways . . . of selling their product."

In truth, Cubby is as real as toilet-paper legend Mr. Whipple, Madge the manicurist (of liquid dishwashing detergent fame) or coffee spokeswoman Mrs. Olson.

But that doesn't stop Douglas Carter Beane, Tony nominee for the book of "Xanadu," from talking about the lad as if he were not young actor Adam Riegler, but a real person.

Riegler is a child stage veteran who will be on Broadway this fall, playing Young Shrek in DreamWorks' "Shrek the Musical."

"Cubby's short and there's a lot of rage . . . but he gets what he wants," Beane proclaims. "He's a fighter, and for a little man, he's got a big Rolodex. People owe him, and he's not above calling that in."

If Beane puts words into Cubby's mouth, initial credit should go to Drew Hodges, president of SpotCo, the entertainment advertising company that handles such shows as "Rent," "Avenue Q," "Chicago" and "Xanadu."

"What is it about 'Xanadu' that sets it apart? Originality . . . and its writing. Doug's writing is so funny," Hodges says. "My idea is not to campaign in some aggressive, hard way but just to remind everybody what is best about the show.

"I just threw out the idea of having a campaign manager who was a kid. It's hardly a new idea but I was thinking about the way we all talk about the Tonys, how everyone handicaps the awards, sitting in Bar Centrale (a theatre district hangout). How funny would that be to come out of a kid."

Tony campaigning has gotten more codified in recent years. Anti-swag rules are in effect. Gone are the days when producers of a musical such as "Falsettos," a show about a nice Jewish boy who happened to be married - and gay - could have containers of chicken soup delivered to voters, or see the revival of "Wonderful Town" send out View-Masters, complete with reels of 3-D scenes from the show.

Today, Tony voters (there are 795 this year) are wooed in more prosaic ways. They often are invited back to a nominated production and usually are sent a script, a souvenir program, or, if the nominee is a musical, the CD. Cute letters from people connected with a show also are popular.

As John Waters said in his missive to voters about "Cry-Baby," a best-musical nominee based on his cinematic celebration of 1950s youth flicks: "We got swivel-hipped juvenile delinquents, teenage sexpot harlots, good girls who want to be bad, prison breaks, gang fights - what more do you want? We even have a score that celebrates French kissing!"

Besides "Xanadu" and "Cry-Baby," the best-musical Tony Award nominees include "In the Heights" and "Passing Strange."

In the weeks following the May 13 Tony nomination announcement, shows began a steady parade to television. From the network morning shows to "The View" and "Live With Regis and Kelly," moments from musical productions or visits by a play's stars were regular occurrences.

"What makes a good Tony campaign is what makes any good advertising campaign," says producer Ken Davenport, no slouch himself at publicizing his own long-running off-Broadway show, "Altar Boyz."

"Broadway is a very cluttered environment and you have to look for ways to advertise your shows that make you stand out from the zillion billboards in Times Square that are trying to get you to buy tickets," Davenport says. "This one is a little more different in that the goal is not necessarily a ticket, it's a vote."

For "Xanadu," the task of standing out was made more difficult because it opened last July, nearly a year and some 30 Broadway shows ago. How do you remind people that the production is fun and received some of the best reviews of any musical this season?

"What they've successfully done is merger their content with their marketing in that (it's) very much in the style of the show," Davenport says. "But it's a campaign that wouldn't work for more serious shows such as 'A Catered Affair' or 'August: Osage County."'

The success of the initial Cubby online video - cost of the entire series was around $50,000 - got more actors involved.

"I had heard about the videos through the grapevine, watched some and secretly hoped they would ask me to be in one," says John Lloyd Young, a Tony winner for his portrayal of Frankie Valli in "Jersey Boys." They did.

"Part of the fun is watching words come out of Tony winners' mouths that were put there by Douglas Carter Beane," he adds. "It's tongue firmly planted in cheek but the electioneering is the real thing. It's politics."

And who knows where Cubby's services will be demanded next.

"There's a rumour that after the Tonys, Cubby is going to do the Oliviers (the British equivalent of the Tonys) and the Nobels for economics," Beane says with a cackle. "But he'll never do the Golden Globes - because it's about the dignity."

-

On the Net: www.xanaduonbroadway.com

www.YouTube.com

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CRAZY, An Award-Winning Film Inspired by the Life Of Guitar Legend Hank Garland, is an Official Selection at The Provincetown International Film Festival, Screening Wednesday, June 18, 8:30PM And Friday, June 20, 4:30PM

WAYLON PAYNE (WALK THE LINE) AND ALI LARTER (HEROES) STAR, AND FILM IS
DRAWING MAJOR FESTIVAL AWARDS INCLUDING FOUR FOR BEST FEATURE AND ONE EACH
FOR BEST SCREENPLAY AND BEST ACTOR

LOS ANGELES, June 18 -- CRAZY, an independent feature film
inspired by the tragic life and groundbreaking music of legendary 1950s-era
guitarist Hank Garland, is an official selection at the 10th Annual
Provincetown International Film Festival (6/18-22) at the tip of Cape Cod
in Provincetown, MA. CRAZY will be shown on Wednesday, June 18 at 8:30PM in
the state-of-the-art theater set up in the Provincetown High School
auditorium (Winslow St., before the Pilgrim monument) and at 4:30PM on
Friday, June 20 at Whaler's Wharf Cinema (237 Commercial St., Provincetown,
MA).

Waylon Payne, acclaimed for his debut film role as Jerry Lee Lewis in
the Oscar-winning film Walk The Line, stars as Hank Garland. LA.com
recently wrote, "The brash and brilliant musician is well played by
charismatic actor Waylon Payne." In addition to acting, Payne is a country
artist with deep musical roots. He was named for his godfather, Waylon
Jennings, and is the son of GRAMMY-winning country singer Sammi Smith and
Jody Payne, longtime guitarist for Willie Nelson.

CRAZY has won major awards at 2008 festivals, including Best Feature
honors at Colorado's Breckenridge Festival of Film -- where Payne also won
for Best Actor -- and the Hoboken Film Festival. The film also won the
Vanguard Award, top honor at the Jacksonville International Film Festival
in Jacksonville, FL. Hank Garland lived the last four decades of his life
near Jacksonville with his brother (and manager) Billy Garland and Billy's
wife Amy, who attended the screening.

Other awards include Best Feature at Hawaii's Big Island Film Festival
and the Jury Award for Best Feature at the Charleston International Film
Festival. For Charleston's Post and Courier, Bill Thompson wrote, "CRAZY
has a bedrock feel of authenticity...a lively, emotionally resonant movie
that is an uncommonly seamless meld of character study and period
recreation." At the L.A. area's Method Fest in Calabasas, CA, CRAZY won the
Daily News Award for Best Screenplay for a script co-written by CRAZY's
director Rick Bieber, Jason Ehlers and Brent Boyd.

Bieber was introduced to the project -- and to the late Hank Garland -
by Ray Scherr, who served as Executive Producer for CRAZY along with guitar
hero Steve Vai (who performs a cameo as Hank Williams) under the Favored
Nations Films mantle. Scherr had known the Garland family for over a
decade, and believed Hank's true story had great potential for a compelling
drama. Hank consulted on the screenplay and was involved with the project
until he passed away in December '04, shortly before principal photography
began. CRAZY's music was produced by multiple-GRAMMY(R)-winning producer
Larry Klein, who was most recently honored for the 2007 Album of the Year,
Herbie Hancock's River -- The Joni Letters.

Waylon Payne headlines CRAZY opposite Ali Larter (Heroes, Legally
Blonde, etc), who plays Hank's beautiful but deeply troubled wife Evelyn
Garland. Cast members also include: Lane Garrison as Billy Garland; Scott
Michael Campbell as fellow guitar ace Billy Byrd; singer Stacy Earl, as
country crooner Goldie Hill; Evans Forde as Nashville legend Chet Atkins;
and Ryan Cross, as jazz bassist Joe Benjamin. Shawn Colvin and Katharine
McPhee also perform cameos.

CRAZY chronicles Hank Garland's rise to fame in Nashville, from playing
on hits for icons including Elvis Presley, Patsy Cline, the Everly Brothers
and Roy Orbison through his brief but influential solo career as a
visionary jazz artist. It also explores his tempestuous marriage as well as
his repeated clashes with the "Nashville Mob" -- who then controlled the
country music establishment -- over artist's rights, civil rights and other
issues. The car crash and electroshock treatments that eventually ended
Garland's performing career and derailed his life are starkly portrayed,
and the enormity of what was lost is deeply felt.

CRAZY is also an official selection at upcoming '08 festivals
including: Long Island Int'l Film Expo (7/9-17), Napa Sonoma Wine Country
Film Festival (7/16-28), Woods Hole Film Festival (MA, 7/26-8/2), Rhode
Island Int'l Film Festival (Providence, 8/5-10), Sacramento Music & Film
Festival (CA, 8/8-17), Scottsdale Int'l Film Festival (10/3-7) and Ft.
Lauderdale International Film Festival (10/12-11/9).

For more information, log on to http://www.crazy-themovie.com

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