The BIG meeting tomorrow

SAG and the AMPTP are going to meet tomorrow…but don’t expect anything to come of it industry experts say.

“I’m not terribly optimistic,” said Jonathan Handel, an entertainment lawyer who has represented the Writer’s Guild of America and is not part of the current talks. “The union is probably somewhat wary of moving in the direction of a strike, but I think that’s what they’re going to do.”

When asked about a possible awards show boycott, AMPTP lap-dog Scott Witlin, an entertainment lawyer who has represented television networks in the past, said “an awards show boycott or a strike could divide the union. I think that they would be in very dangerous territory if they tried to take on the Golden Globes. Aside from that they would run a big risk of ripping their union further apart.”

Thanks Scott. Your check from the AMPTP is in the mail.

NBC to shoot shows in London cause it’s cheaper??

So, it’s come to this. NBC is going to shoot the new show, “The Philanthropist” in London rather than in Los Angeles because it’s cheaper.  They will save $1 million an episode by shooting across the pond as opposed to shooting it in their backyard of LA.

Click here for the article

Australia pins its hopes on ‘Australia’

Amid a blaze of publicity, Australia rolls out its most expensive ever movie on Tuesday, hoping the grandly named epic “Australia” will attract overseas investors to revive the local film industry and also tourists.

“This is the marketing tool for Australian film. It’s an Australian film from beginning to end, shot in Australia with an Australian cast, crew, special effects, lighting, even director, and we are seeing this as a calling card to the world.”

But have no fear, it just got the Oprah seal of approval. She said recently that it’s “the best movie I’ve seen in a long, long, long, long time.”

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Hollywood is out of touch with America?

A new survey came out saying the most Americans think that Hollywood is out of touch with the average person.

The poll, titled “American Attitudes on Religion, Moral Values and Hollywood,” surveyed 1,000 adults nationwide.

Here’s what us ‘average’ Americans believe: 43% said that Hollywood and the national media are waging an organized campaign to “weaken the influence of religious values in this country.”  And nearly half of those surveyed — 49% — believe that the United States is becoming “too tolerant in its acceptance of different ideas and lifestyles.

Where were these people who they surveyed?

Here’s the article

Studio’s cutting back the fun

Showbiz party planners have begun to scale back their parties this holiday season as part of industrywide belt-tightening. Several studios have cancelled their holiday bashes, while others are simply toning down the revelry.

Thanks Economy!

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‘Pushng Daisies’ to push up daisies?

“Every day we’re hearing that we’re canceled and then we hear that we’re not,” creator Brian Fuller said Thursday, as the crew wrapped production on the final episode in the series’ current order. “It’s all rumors. Nothing official at all. We are in radio-silence land.”

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SAG & AMPTP to meet next week?

Is the stalemate finally over? Word is that the two may actually meet next Thursday.

The AMPTP propaganda machine is already kicking into gear. On their website, they say that had SAG accepted their final offer, members would have received $31 million in additional compensation as of Thursday.

Uh-huh.

NBC cancels 2 shows nobody watches

NBC has just canceled Christian Slater’s ‘My Own Worst Enemy’ and Brooke Shields ‘Lipstick Jungle’. Does anyone care?

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Batman is suing Christopher Nolan

Batman, Turkey actually. The mayor of the real city of Batman is accusing Nolan and the studio of using the city’s name without permission.  “There is only one Batman in the world,” the Mayor said. “The American producers used the name of our city without informing us.”

Among the charges are a claim that the use of the Batman name is to blame for several unsolved murders and a high female suicide rate, based on the psychological impact that the film’s success has had on the city’s inhabitants, Variety reported.

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AMPTP/Mediator to meet Thursday

The federal mediator and AMPTP will meet this Thursday in an effort to restart the negotations between SAG and the big media producers. If everything goes well, the earliest date for restarting the SAG-AMPTP talks would be late next week. But come on… you know it won’t go well at all.
Click here for the story.

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