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Google dresses up search for the Oscars with a dedicated hub
This year's Academy Awards ceremony is only a few days away and Google's getting ready for the big night with Oscar-focused updates to Search and Assistant. Search for "Oscars 2020" on your phone starting today and you'll see a dedicated hub for the awards with this year's nominees and past winners in each category. You can also get some insight into what it's like to receive an Academy Award nod from nominees through some short Cameos videos.
Steven Spielberg denies campaign to stop Netflix from winning Oscars
Steven Spielberg is no fan of streaming services winning Oscars when they only have tiny presences in theaters, but is he really campaigning to change the rules? Not necessarily. Movie industry veteran Jeffrey Katzenberg told Hollywood Reporter in a chat that Spielberg "absolutely did not" say he was pushing for longer theatrical release requirements or otherwise trying to prevent services like Netflix from qualifying for awards. Katzenberg claimed instead that IndieWire "heard a rumor" and, when it received a statement from Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment, "twisted it around."
Spielberg to push for new Oscars rules that exclude streaming movies
It won't surprise you to hear that Steven Spielberg doesn't think streaming movies should win Oscars, but now he appears to be backing up those words with deeds. A spokesperson for Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment has indicated to IndieWire that the director will rally support for rules restricting Oscars for streaming movies when the subject comes up at the Academy's Board of Governors meeting in April. Spielberg "feels strongly" about the issue and will be "happy" if others take his side, the spokesperson said.
Sony Pictures and Warner Bros. join Hollywood's open-source tech forum
Just months after its launch, Hollywood's first forum for open-source technology tools is adding more big names to its lineup -- along with its first software project. Sony Pictures Entertainment / Sony Pictures Imageworks and Warner Bros. are among the newbies, who'll be joining launch members including DreamWorks, Walt Disney Studios, Epic Games, Autodesk and Google Cloud.
Facebook will stream The Oscars red carpet this weekend
The Academy Awards take place this Sunday and if you're an Oscar fan who can't get enough behind-the-scenes looks, Facebook has you covered. As Variety reports, Facebook will once again be the only social network to live-stream "The Oscars: All Access," which includes red carpet and backstage views as well as interviews with presenters, nominees and performers. The show will begin at 6:30 PM Eastern/3:30 PM Pacific and will stream on the Facebook pages of both ABC and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. You can also catch it on Oscar.com and ABCNews.com.
Netflix's 'Mudbound' receives four Oscar nominations
The Oscar nominations for the 90th Academy Awards were announced this morning, and Netflix came away with a good showing for its film Mudbound. Mary J. Blige was nominated for Best Supporting Actress. Additionally the film received a nod in the Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Original Song ("Mighty River") and Best Achievement in Cinematography (Rachel Morrison).
Ava DuVernay's Central Park Five series is headed to Netflix
Ava DuVernay, the director and co-writer of Selma and director of the upcoming A Wrinkle in Time, is teaming up with Netflix for a limited series about the Central Park Five case. DuVernay, who worked with Netflix on her Oscar-nominated documentary 13th, will write and direct the five-episode series.
A video game trailer is eligible to be nominated for an Academy Award
Despite being one of the biggest entertainment mediums on the planet, it's rare to see video games getting the mainstream recognition that they deserve. Now, it looks like that's beginning to change, as, for the first time in history, a video game trailer is eligible to be nominated for an Academy Award. The promotional video in question is for this year's intriguing philosophical world simulator, Everything.
Netflix wins an Oscar for documentary short 'The White Helmets'
While we were expecting Amazon to score an Oscar first for Manchester by the Sea, Netflix ended up beating out that film with a Best Documentary (Short Subject) Oscar for The White Helmets. Directed by Orlando von Einsiedel, the film centers on a group of volunteer rescue workers for the Syrian Civil Defense Force, also known as "The White Helmets," who risk their lives to help civilians in that war-torn country.
Amazon gets seven Oscar nominations for 'Manchester by the Sea'
As awards watchers expected, Manchester by the Sea ended up being a major Oscar magnet for its co-distributor Amazon. The film, which was also Amazon's first Golden Globe winner, nabbed seven Academy Award nominations this morning: including best picture, actor (Casey Affleck), actress (Michelle Williams), supporting actor (Lucas Hedges), director (Kenneth Lonargan) and original screenplay. It's particularly notable as the first-ever Best Picture nominated film for a streaming service.
'Ex Machina's' Oscar win is a triumph for low-budget VFX
If you've ever thought that a low-budget sci-fi thriller can't compete with the cream of Hollywood, think again. Last night's Academy Awards handed the Oscar for best visual effects to Alex Garland's brilliant Ex Machina. It's something of a shock, since the category had three heavy hitters in The Martian, Mad Max: Fury Road and Star Wars: The Force Awakens. By comparison, Ex Machina is a claustrophobic three-hander with a minuscule budget of just $15 million. According to Moviefone, that makes it the cheapest FX Oscar winner since 1979's Alien and that's before you take inflation into account.
Watch the Engadget staff on: Online streaming
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Meet the Oscar-nominated sound designers behind Kylo's lightsaber
Skywalker Sound is home to Star Wars. The award-winning sound designers and mixers who inhabit the red-bricked walls of George Lucas' audio post-production facility have shaped the soundscapes for the saga so far. From the first movie in 1977 to The Force Awakens in 2015, the team of sound wizards has converted fictional ideas into believable sounds and indelible memories. Instead of pulling from a ready-made digital library, they tend to rely on organic sounds. Mundane objects and creatures are carefully manipulated into powerful spaceships and energized lightsabers. try{document.getElementById("fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-554275").style.display="none";}catch(e){}
What's on your HDTV: Oscars, 'Sneakers' and 'Game of Thrones'
This week the other big awards show comes home, as we find out the winners of the 2015 Academy Awards but there's much more to see. Birdman is up for several trophies and it arrives on Blu-ray this week, but we're equally looking forward to season four of Game of Thrones, the Roger Ebert documentary Life Itself. Of course, Sneakers finally getting a Blu-ray disc release in the US (nearly eight years after it shipped on HD-DVD, and it's only available at Best Buy for now), is a big one, and The Interview is wrapping up its release tour at long last. For gamers there's Dead or Alive 5: Last Round, plus PS4 exclusives The Order: 1886 and Resogun: Defenders. this week we have the series finales of Two and a Half Men and The Mentalist, series premiere of The Odd Couple, season premiere of Vikings, and a season finale for Downton Abbey. Look after the break to check out each day's highlights, including trailers and let us know what you think (or what we missed).
Must See HDTV for the week of February 25th: Oscars, Gravity and Game of Arms
The Winter Olympics are over and your normal programming schedule is back in full swing. The NHL is back for hockey fans, but Sunday is the big night for movies, as the 86th Annual Academy Awards air on ABC, hosted by Ellen Degeneres. The Best Picture category is looking particularly stacked with American Hustle, Captain Phillips, Dallas Buyers Club, Gravity, Her, Nebraska, Philomena, 12 Years a Slave and The Wolf of Wall Street. Tonight the battle of odd reality TV shows takes off as Discovery heads to the mountains for Battle of the Ozarks and AMC airs its Game of Arms arm-wrestling competition. Legit returns this week on FXX, while FX premieres season two of The Americans. Otherwise, we'd keep an eye out for Fred Armisen who is leading the band for Seth Meyers on Late Night, and kicking off a new season of Portlandia on IFC. Gravity is also coming home this week on Blu-ray and Blu-ray 3D, while gamers can pick up Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare or Thief. Check after the break for trailers plus our weekly listing of what to look out for in TV, Blu-ray and gaming.
Netflix's first Oscar nomination comes for 'The Square' and you can watch it right now
Yesterday the nominees for the 86th Academy Awards were announced, and for the first time, that list includes a production that will be primarily distributed via Netflix (check here for a list of theater screenings). A documentary centering on the 2011 Egyptian revolution, The Square has already garnered recognition at Sundance and the New York Film Festival. Directed by Jehane Noujaim, it was the first major documentary acquired by Netflix and by all regards, it's a very good choice. After striking critical gold with a slew of TV shows and a few stand-up comedy specials, documentaries are the next focus for Netflix. Besides its first Oscar nominee, it already has The Short Game (trailer) and Mitt (trailer) under its hat. The Square just went live on the service this morning; watch it in full by clicking here or check out a trailer below.
Thanking the Academy: Five Apps for the 2013 Oscars
If you're eagerly awaiting the 85th Academy Awards airing this Sunday on ABC, you may find one of these five apps useful before and during the show -- and all of them are free. Good luck to the nominees! Oscars The official app for the event. It's pretty much a US-only affair, and isn't perfect, but it's a handy way to learn more about the nominated performers, creators and films. You can also fill out a virtual Oscar ballot and share it on Facebook. I found it was a somewhat better experience than the mobile version of oscar.go.com (which pushes you to download the app anyway). Of course, the app really kicks into gear on Sunday night; it will provide Backstage Pass live streams from the red carpet, control room and backstage to deliver a "second screen" experience as you watch the big show. Fair warning: the streams are all sponsored by Samsung, so you may be subjected to a certain amount of iPhone-needling. Stitcher The streaming radio service has been amping up the original content lately, and it is now promising exclusive red carpet coverage on Sunday. If you haven't tried Stitcher and you want a different take on the show, this Sunday is a good time to give it a try. Live From the Red Carpet Speaking of red carpet coverage, E! has been at it for a long time. While I haven't used this one, the app has a perfect rating on the store. If you are a red carpet junkie, this is probably going to make you happy until the show starts. Awards Hero: Oscars Edition Awards Hero is not just a database of Oscar-related info; it's also a quick way to get a voting pool going with your Facebook friends. If you're looking for some friendly competition over who picks the most winners, this is your app. IMDb As the world's foremost online repository of movie information, this one seems pretty obvious. Settle disputes, look up actor histories and lots more with the original "Internet Movie Database." Awards Guide is prettier, however.
Get your film fix with the official Oscars app
If you were online at all on Thursday it was virtually impossible not to see a headline reporting on the 2013 Academy Award nominations. If you did happen to miss them, you can see all the nominees and get more information than you would ever need about every actor and film with the only official Oscars app. Between now and Oscar Sunday (February 24th) the app lets you watch hosted specials on celebrity fashion and the nominated films and actors, access a plethora of information on the nominees, view movie trailers for the nominated films, watch exclusive videos, and view exclusive photos. A nice feature is also the ability to cast and share your virtual ballot so you can see how your vote stacks up against others. Come Oscar Sunday the app will allow users to view exclusive live footage from over a dozen feeds of backstage events. The Oscars app is a free download.
Netflix Watch Instantly's life after Starz includes Academy Award winners, more captions
In a change of conversation that would make Don Draper proud, Netflix has picked up its blogging pen and accentuated the positive, even as hundreds of titles provided by Starz Play blinked away this week. The first bit of good news? Content that's coming instead of going includes several movies that scored trophies at last weekend's Academy Awards,including Best Picture winner The Artist, and Best Documentary winner Undefeated that will arrive "later this year, plus Best Animated Feature Rango that goes live on the service March 31st. That extends to movies in theaters too, as last weekend's top two, Act of Valor and Good Deeds, are pay-TV window exclusives for Netflix. The other positive note is that it achieved a goal of offering closed captioning on 80 percent of the hours streamed by the end of last year, and notes 90 percent of streaming is now done on devices that have been updated to support optional captions. The bad news there is that some embedded TV and Blu-ray player software might not be able to be updated for captions, and progress on adding captions for that last twenty percent of content may be slower since it's content that isn't viewed as often. So, is the red envelope company doing enough to keep you hanging around, or are you going to blow through the last few eps of Lillyhammer and pull the eject button?
Kodak gets court approval to borrow $950 million, end theater sponsorship
Kodak took another step along the road to recovery yesterday, after receiving court approval to borrow $950 million in restructuring funds. Nearly a month after the camera maker filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, US Bankruptcy Judge Allen Gropper granted Kodak's request on Thursday, allowing the company to continue operations during its ongoing transition. Gropper's decision, handed down in a Manhattan court, follows a series of negotiations between Kodak and its lenders, and adds an extra $300 million to the $650 million awarded during January's Chapter 11 filing. The company is also allowed to end its sponsorship of the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles, after successfully arguing that doing so would be in the best interest of Kodak and its creditors. Under the deal, Kodak is obliged to pay $72 million over the course of 20 years. It currently shells out $3.6 million per year and still has $38 million in outstanding payments, but Kodak's lawyers argued that the agreement was too costly. Kodak Chairman and CEO Antonio Perez issued the following statement in response to yesterday's decision: "Today's agreement is another step towards ensuring that Kodak is positioned to execute on the goals the Company set out last month: Bolster our liquidity in the U.S. and abroad, monetize our non-strategic intellectual property, fairly resolve legacy liabilities, and enable Kodak to focus on its most valuable business lines."
