For director Anthony Stacchi (“The Box Trolls”), re-energizing the 16th-century Chinese novel “Journey to the West” for Netflix’s animated feature “The Monkey King” meant turning the titular character into something very modern: an antihero. This was supported by executive producer Stephen Chow (“Kung Fu Hustle”), who previously directed a live-action version of “Journey to the West.”
“Stephen Chow has made a career of making heroes out of really unlikeable jerks,” Stacchi told IndieWire. “And you stick with ’em on their journey ’cause you know why they are the way they are, and you’re hoping for them to redeem themselves. So we did that here. He is a selfish, arrogant jerk from the beginning, and that way through the end. But you understand why he’s fighting for acceptance, you know where his anti-authoritarian attitude comes from.”
They also emphasized a goofy tone throughout the journey, in which Monkey King...
“Stephen Chow has made a career of making heroes out of really unlikeable jerks,” Stacchi told IndieWire. “And you stick with ’em on their journey ’cause you know why they are the way they are, and you’re hoping for them to redeem themselves. So we did that here. He is a selfish, arrogant jerk from the beginning, and that way through the end. But you understand why he’s fighting for acceptance, you know where his anti-authoritarian attitude comes from.”
They also emphasized a goofy tone throughout the journey, in which Monkey King...
- 8/18/2023
- by Bill Desowitz
- Indiewire
Special mention went to Chinese feature ‘Flaming Cloud’.
Malaysian drama Abang Adik scooped the top prize at the New York Asian Film Festival, which closed last night with a screening of Netflix animation The Monkey King.
Abang Adik received the Uncaged Award for best feature film, beating eight other titles from across Asia in Nyaff’s competition strand. It marks the directorial debut feature of Jin Ong and follows two orphaned brothers whose bond is tested after a brutal accident.
Director Ong was in New York to present the North American premiere of the film at the festival. Accepting the award,...
Malaysian drama Abang Adik scooped the top prize at the New York Asian Film Festival, which closed last night with a screening of Netflix animation The Monkey King.
Abang Adik received the Uncaged Award for best feature film, beating eight other titles from across Asia in Nyaff’s competition strand. It marks the directorial debut feature of Jin Ong and follows two orphaned brothers whose bond is tested after a brutal accident.
Director Ong was in New York to present the North American premiere of the film at the festival. Accepting the award,...
- 7/31/2023
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
Producer Pellin Chou set to attend special screening.
Netflix animation The Monkey King has been set as the closing film of the 22nd New York Asian Film Festival (Nyaff), marking the first time the festival has partnered with the streaming giant.
The special screening will take place on July 30, more than two weeks before the August 18 premiere on Netflix worldwide. It will be attended by Netflix Animation producer Peilin Chou, a former Oriental Dreamworks executive who produced Abominable and was Oscar-nominated for Over The Moon.
The feature is directed by Anthony Stacchi, who was nominated for an Oscar in 2015 for co-directing The Boxtrolls,...
Netflix animation The Monkey King has been set as the closing film of the 22nd New York Asian Film Festival (Nyaff), marking the first time the festival has partnered with the streaming giant.
The special screening will take place on July 30, more than two weeks before the August 18 premiere on Netflix worldwide. It will be attended by Netflix Animation producer Peilin Chou, a former Oriental Dreamworks executive who produced Abominable and was Oscar-nominated for Over The Moon.
The feature is directed by Anthony Stacchi, who was nominated for an Oscar in 2015 for co-directing The Boxtrolls,...
- 7/18/2023
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
The official trailer as well as new photos from the forthcoming Netflix film The Monkey King have just been released. You can check them out above and below.
Synopsis: The Monkey King is an action-packed family comedy that follows a rebellious and charismatic Monkey and his magical fighting Stick on an epic quest for victory over 100 demons, an eccentric Dragon King, and Monkey’s greatest foe of all —his own ego! Along the way, a young village girl challenges his self-centered attitude and shows him that even the smallest pebble can have a big effect on the world.
About The Film
Starring: Jimmy O. Yang, Jolie Hoang-Rappaport, Nan Li, Bowen Yang, Jo Koy, Ron Yuan, Hoon Lee, Bd Wong, Andrew Kishino, Sophie Wu, Andrew Kishino, Jodi Long, James Sie, Andrew Pang, Stephanie Hsu, Kuno Inghram Director: Anthony Stacchi Producer: Peilin Chou
The Monkey King premieres on Netflix on August 18, 2023!
For More Information,...
Synopsis: The Monkey King is an action-packed family comedy that follows a rebellious and charismatic Monkey and his magical fighting Stick on an epic quest for victory over 100 demons, an eccentric Dragon King, and Monkey’s greatest foe of all —his own ego! Along the way, a young village girl challenges his self-centered attitude and shows him that even the smallest pebble can have a big effect on the world.
About The Film
Starring: Jimmy O. Yang, Jolie Hoang-Rappaport, Nan Li, Bowen Yang, Jo Koy, Ron Yuan, Hoon Lee, Bd Wong, Andrew Kishino, Sophie Wu, Andrew Kishino, Jodi Long, James Sie, Andrew Pang, Stephanie Hsu, Kuno Inghram Director: Anthony Stacchi Producer: Peilin Chou
The Monkey King premieres on Netflix on August 18, 2023!
For More Information,...
- 7/17/2023
- by Editor
- CinemaNerdz
If you thought Disney’s American Born Chinese was the only place the Monkey King would display his sweet moves, wait until you see Netflix’s The Monkey King trailer! The streamer is bringing a colorful martial arts adventure to screens with director Anthony Stacchi’s next animated voyage! Get ready! Jimmy O. Yang, Bowen Yang, Jo Koy, and Stephanie Hsu voice star in the mystical animated adventure inhabited by ancient gods, demons, and a wise-cracking hero of the people.
The Monkey King (Jimmy O. Yang) might be famous, but he’s an outsider in his community. With his trusty compatriot “stick (voiced by Nan Li),” the warrior of legend steps up to challenge 100 demons to gain the attention of “the immortal ones.” With few willing to cheer him on, the Monkey King travels to a human village, where he accepts the task of protecting the people from a fiery...
The Monkey King (Jimmy O. Yang) might be famous, but he’s an outsider in his community. With his trusty compatriot “stick (voiced by Nan Li),” the warrior of legend steps up to challenge 100 demons to gain the attention of “the immortal ones.” With few willing to cheer him on, the Monkey King travels to a human village, where he accepts the task of protecting the people from a fiery...
- 7/17/2023
- by Steve Seigh
- JoBlo.com
Jimmy O. Yang, Bowen Yang, Jo Koy, Stephanie Hsu and Bd Wong voice star in Netflix’s new comedic action-adventure The Monkey King, which sees its titular character battling demons, dragons and his own ego.
Dropping Monday, the animated family film’s more-than-two-minute first look teases Yang’s “most spectacul-errific, amazing-derful” hero Monkey King, in a story set in a time of ancient gods and demons. An outsider in his own community, the Monkey King, along with his trusty companion “stick (voiced by Nan Li),” takes on the challenge of defeating 100 demons and garnering the attention of “the immortal ones.”
With little support from those he grew up around, the Monkey King ventures to a human village, where he accepts the challenge of protecting the community from a fiery demon known as Red Girl (Sophie Wu). After nearly destroying the entire community in the process, he garners the attention of...
Dropping Monday, the animated family film’s more-than-two-minute first look teases Yang’s “most spectacul-errific, amazing-derful” hero Monkey King, in a story set in a time of ancient gods and demons. An outsider in his own community, the Monkey King, along with his trusty companion “stick (voiced by Nan Li),” takes on the challenge of defeating 100 demons and garnering the attention of “the immortal ones.”
With little support from those he grew up around, the Monkey King ventures to a human village, where he accepts the challenge of protecting the community from a fiery demon known as Red Girl (Sophie Wu). After nearly destroying the entire community in the process, he garners the attention of...
- 7/17/2023
- by Abbey White
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The BAFTA has revealed nominations for its Children and Young People Awards, which are returning for the first time in three years.
The BBC’s “Dodger” and “The Snail and the Whale” lead with three nominations each, followed by two nominations for “The Amazing World of Gumball,” “Jamie Johnson,” “JoJo & Gran Gran” and “Silverpoint.”
The ceremony will take place in London on Nov. 27, where 14 categories will be awarded in recognition of craft, performance, and games. All awards are voted on by BAFTA’s membership of children’s industry professionals. The ceremony will be hosted by TV and radio presenter Lindsey Russell.
Faraz Osman, chair of the BAFTA Children and Young People Committee, said: “It is a real joy to bring together the industry and celebrate the creativity and craft behind its recent output, especially after the pandemic, where children’s programming played a monumental role in family support. Through the...
The BBC’s “Dodger” and “The Snail and the Whale” lead with three nominations each, followed by two nominations for “The Amazing World of Gumball,” “Jamie Johnson,” “JoJo & Gran Gran” and “Silverpoint.”
The ceremony will take place in London on Nov. 27, where 14 categories will be awarded in recognition of craft, performance, and games. All awards are voted on by BAFTA’s membership of children’s industry professionals. The ceremony will be hosted by TV and radio presenter Lindsey Russell.
Faraz Osman, chair of the BAFTA Children and Young People Committee, said: “It is a real joy to bring together the industry and celebrate the creativity and craft behind its recent output, especially after the pandemic, where children’s programming played a monumental role in family support. Through the...
- 10/25/2022
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
New York Women in Film & Television has announced that the third annual Nywift Summit will be held between the 22nd and 25th of June.
The summit examines strategies to create meaningful change in the industry, mobilizing support and leadership, which will contribute to creating a more diverse and inclusive Hollywood.
This year’s conference, billed as “The Creative Industry Radically Reimagined,” will specifically hone in on the best practices for indies and media companies, which are actively reassessing their objectives, staffing and community responses. The conference will also look at the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and the associated financial downturn on the industry, as well as lessons taken from the Black Lives Matter Movement, and recent waves of violence against the Aapi community.
In addition to keynote speeches, fireside chats and panels, the conference will allow for daily networking opportunities. Networking events will cover numerous pressing topics relevant to the modern industry landscape,...
The summit examines strategies to create meaningful change in the industry, mobilizing support and leadership, which will contribute to creating a more diverse and inclusive Hollywood.
This year’s conference, billed as “The Creative Industry Radically Reimagined,” will specifically hone in on the best practices for indies and media companies, which are actively reassessing their objectives, staffing and community responses. The conference will also look at the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and the associated financial downturn on the industry, as well as lessons taken from the Black Lives Matter Movement, and recent waves of violence against the Aapi community.
In addition to keynote speeches, fireside chats and panels, the conference will allow for daily networking opportunities. Networking events will cover numerous pressing topics relevant to the modern industry landscape,...
- 6/16/2021
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Three new animated feature films and series from Asian American creators are coming to Netflix in 2023, including Stephen Chow’s “The Monkey King,” starring the voice talents of Jimmy O. Yang, Bowen Yang, Jolie Hoang-Rappaport, Jo Koy, Ron Yuan, Hoon Lee, Stephanie Hsu, Andrew Pang, Andrew Kishino, Jodi Long, James Sie and Bd Wong.
“The Monkey King” is inspired by the famous Chinese tale “Journey to the West,” in which a special monkey fights gods, demons, dragons — and his own hubris. The film is executive produced by Chow, with “Over the Moon’s” Peilin Chou and “How to Train Your Dragon 2’s Kendra Haaland producing. Anthony Stacchi (“The Boxtrolls”) is directing.
“The Monkey King has endured for generations with his unique character and spirit,” said Chow. I’m so excited to be collaborating with Tony, Peilin, and everyone at Netflix to bring this joyful tale to audiences worldwide!”
Additionally,...
“The Monkey King” is inspired by the famous Chinese tale “Journey to the West,” in which a special monkey fights gods, demons, dragons — and his own hubris. The film is executive produced by Chow, with “Over the Moon’s” Peilin Chou and “How to Train Your Dragon 2’s Kendra Haaland producing. Anthony Stacchi (“The Boxtrolls”) is directing.
“The Monkey King has endured for generations with his unique character and spirit,” said Chow. I’m so excited to be collaborating with Tony, Peilin, and everyone at Netflix to bring this joyful tale to audiences worldwide!”
Additionally,...
- 5/20/2021
- by Elaine Low
- Variety Film + TV
Some 70 women representing a record total of 76 overall nominations have been nominated for Oscars this year, a very encouraging statistic for the Academy and the industry.
In honor of this, Academy Museum trustee Diane von Furstenberg and the Academy Museum have released a video (click the link above to watch) celebrating the women nominees of the 93rd Oscars. In a year that posed exceptional challenges to filmmaking, it is especially important to uphold the tradition launched seven years ago to honor talented women filmmakers who continue to break glass ceilings in the entertainment industry.
This year’s women nominees were asked to submit short videos or statements about their film and/or creative process. Cohost von Furstenberg, designer; Jacqueline Stewart, chief artistic and programming officer, Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, Cynthia Erivo, actor, singer, and producer, and Dawn Hudson, CEO, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, present a video...
In honor of this, Academy Museum trustee Diane von Furstenberg and the Academy Museum have released a video (click the link above to watch) celebrating the women nominees of the 93rd Oscars. In a year that posed exceptional challenges to filmmaking, it is especially important to uphold the tradition launched seven years ago to honor talented women filmmakers who continue to break glass ceilings in the entertainment industry.
This year’s women nominees were asked to submit short videos or statements about their film and/or creative process. Cohost von Furstenberg, designer; Jacqueline Stewart, chief artistic and programming officer, Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, Cynthia Erivo, actor, singer, and producer, and Dawn Hudson, CEO, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, present a video...
- 4/22/2021
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
A few minutes ago, the Producers Guild Awards concluded, and with that, we can now say with a fair amount of certainty that Nomadland is in the driver’s seat for Best Picture. The Academy Awards could still potentially throw a curveball, but the odds don’t favor that. Rather, it sure seems like this movie is the Oscar pick. Sit tight for the rest of the guilds to chime in, but if you had to pick a film to repeat with the Academy, Nomadland is the one, especially after PGA… Here’s all of the winners from the Producers Guild Awards: Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm” (Amazon Studios) Producers: Sacha Baron Cohen, Monica Levinson, Anthony Hines “Judas and the Black Messiah” (Warner Bros) Producers: Charles D. King, Ryan Coogler, Shaka King “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” (Netflix) Producers: Denzel Washington, Todd Black...
- 3/25/2021
- by Joey Magidson
- Hollywoodnews.com
The Producers Guild of America Awards awarded Chloé Zhao’s “Nomadland” with their top prize, one of the key indicators for the Academy Awards, particularly the best picture category. Edging out its closest competitors including Emerald Fennell’s “Promising Young Woman,” Lee Isaac Chung’s “Minari” and Aaron Sorkin’s “The Trial of the Chicago 7,” this might just end any questions about whether or not the moving drama is running away with the Oscars’ big prize.
All the acceptance speeches were pre-recorded with “Nomadland” giving a more produced, glitzier presentation than what we’ve seen at other award shows.
It should be noted that last year’s “1917” from Sam Mendes lost the Oscar after wins from PGA and DGA to “Parasite,” which only had the coveted SAG cast ensemble prize under its belt. Coincidentally, “Nomadland” is not nominated at SAG in their top category, leaving an opening for...
All the acceptance speeches were pre-recorded with “Nomadland” giving a more produced, glitzier presentation than what we’ve seen at other award shows.
It should be noted that last year’s “1917” from Sam Mendes lost the Oscar after wins from PGA and DGA to “Parasite,” which only had the coveted SAG cast ensemble prize under its belt. Coincidentally, “Nomadland” is not nominated at SAG in their top category, leaving an opening for...
- 3/25/2021
- by Clayton Davis and Ellise Shafer
- Variety Film + TV
“Nomadland” look home the top film prize at the 2021 Producers Guild Awards Wednesday, bringing it closer to a Best Picture win. The winner of the PGA Awards’ top prize has historically been a strong indicator of which film will will go on to win the Best Picture Oscar. Since 1989, the PGA winner has matched up with the top Oscar 21 out of 31 times. It happened in 2018 with “Green Book,” but not last year: “1917” won at the 2020 PGAs, but the Academy Award for Best Picture went to “Parasite.”
This year, 10 movies competed for the Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures (see the full list of nominees and winners below). Seven 2021 PGA nominees for the top prize are also 2021 Oscar Best Picture nominees: “Judas and the Black Messiah,” “Mank,” “Minari,” “Nomadland,” “Promising Young Woman,” “Sound Of Metal,” and “The Trial of the Chicago 7.”
One film,...
This year, 10 movies competed for the Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures (see the full list of nominees and winners below). Seven 2021 PGA nominees for the top prize are also 2021 Oscar Best Picture nominees: “Judas and the Black Messiah,” “Mank,” “Minari,” “Nomadland,” “Promising Young Woman,” “Sound Of Metal,” and “The Trial of the Chicago 7.”
One film,...
- 3/25/2021
- by Chris Lindahl
- Indiewire
“Nomadland” has been named the best produced film of 202o by the Producers Guild of America, giving it yet another boost in an Oscar race where it was already considered the favorite.
In a category where Chloé Zhao’s understated travelogue was facing off against seven other Oscar nominees, the Producers Guild provided a key indicator that the film has the kind of strength within the industry that it already showed with critics. In doing so, it took away the chance that rivals like “Promising Young Woman,” “The Trial of the Chicago 7” and “Minari had to seize momentum at a crucial moment in awards season.
The film has now picked up a formidable array of awards, including wins at the Golden Globes, the Critics Choice Awards and the Gotham Awards.
Still, the Producers Guild Award is not the infallible Oscar predictor it had once seemed to be. For many years,...
In a category where Chloé Zhao’s understated travelogue was facing off against seven other Oscar nominees, the Producers Guild provided a key indicator that the film has the kind of strength within the industry that it already showed with critics. In doing so, it took away the chance that rivals like “Promising Young Woman,” “The Trial of the Chicago 7” and “Minari had to seize momentum at a crucial moment in awards season.
The film has now picked up a formidable array of awards, including wins at the Golden Globes, the Critics Choice Awards and the Gotham Awards.
Still, the Producers Guild Award is not the infallible Oscar predictor it had once seemed to be. For many years,...
- 3/25/2021
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
The Producers Guild of America Awards were handed out during a virtual ceremony on Wednesday, March 24. Throughout their 31-year history, the PGA has proven to be one of the most successful Oscar bellwethers around. A whopping 21 of their picks have gone onto win Best Picture at the Academy Awards. That success rate flows from the fact that both the guild and the academy use the same voting system – the preferential ballot – to determine a winner. Scroll down for the 2021 Producers Guild of America Awards winners list.
This year, seven out of the 10 PGA contenders earned Oscar nominations for Best Picture: “Judas and the Black Messiah,” “Mank,” “Minari,” “Nomadland,” “Promising Young Woman,” “Sound of Metal” and “The Trial of the Chicago 7.” The eighth Best Picture Oscar nominee – “The Father” – was missing from the PGA lineup, with “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm,” “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” and “One Night in Miami” rounding out the guild’s top 10 list.
This year, seven out of the 10 PGA contenders earned Oscar nominations for Best Picture: “Judas and the Black Messiah,” “Mank,” “Minari,” “Nomadland,” “Promising Young Woman,” “Sound of Metal” and “The Trial of the Chicago 7.” The eighth Best Picture Oscar nominee – “The Father” – was missing from the PGA lineup, with “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm,” “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” and “One Night in Miami” rounding out the guild’s top 10 list.
- 3/24/2021
- by Zach Laws
- Gold Derby
Actor-producer Priyanka Chopra Jonas and singer, songwriter, and actor Nick Jonas announced the 93rd Oscars® nominations today (March 15), live from London, via a global live stream on Oscar.com, Oscars.org, the Academy’s digital platforms, an international satellite feed, and broadcast media.
Mank led the field with 10 nominations and becomes the seventh black-and-white film to be nominated for Costume Design and the seventeenth for Cinematography since separate categories for color and black-and-white films were merged in 1967. David Fincher’s film offers a vivid look at Hollywood in the 1930s when movie studios were at the height of their power and influence, and 100 million Americans went to the pictures every week.
Chopra Jonas and Jonas announced the nominees in 23 categories at 5:19 a.m. Pt. For a complete list of nominees, visit the official Oscars website, www.oscar.com.
Academy members from each of the 17 branches vote to determine the...
Mank led the field with 10 nominations and becomes the seventh black-and-white film to be nominated for Costume Design and the seventeenth for Cinematography since separate categories for color and black-and-white films were merged in 1967. David Fincher’s film offers a vivid look at Hollywood in the 1930s when movie studios were at the height of their power and influence, and 100 million Americans went to the pictures every week.
Chopra Jonas and Jonas announced the nominees in 23 categories at 5:19 a.m. Pt. For a complete list of nominees, visit the official Oscars website, www.oscar.com.
Academy members from each of the 17 branches vote to determine the...
- 3/15/2021
- by Michelle Hannett
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
This morning, animation legend Glen Keane was up before the sun and learned that he’d scored his first Oscar nom for Best Animated Feature Film, for his debut feature — Netflix musical fantasy, Over the Moon.
“It’s pretty exciting. I tend to get up around four o’clock anyway, but this was something to get up at four o’clock for,” says the director. “I am just so thankful that [the Academy] recognized the beauty of this movie. It was such a labor of love.”
In conversation with Deadline, Keane shared his feeling that the message of his film is “the right one for this year: healing and love.”
“There’s a moment in the movie where Fei Fei says, ‘I just wish things could go back to the way they were,’ but we don’t go backwards, as we’re finding out,” he added. “We go forward, and it’s...
“It’s pretty exciting. I tend to get up around four o’clock anyway, but this was something to get up at four o’clock for,” says the director. “I am just so thankful that [the Academy] recognized the beauty of this movie. It was such a labor of love.”
In conversation with Deadline, Keane shared his feeling that the message of his film is “the right one for this year: healing and love.”
“There’s a moment in the movie where Fei Fei says, ‘I just wish things could go back to the way they were,’ but we don’t go backwards, as we’re finding out,” he added. “We go forward, and it’s...
- 3/15/2021
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
PGA best feature contenders include award front runners Nomadland, Mank and Minari.
The Producers Guild of America (PGA) has revealed the nominations in film and TV categories for its 32nd annual awards event, set to take place virtually on March 24.
Up for PGA’s theatrical feature award, which the Guild says has predicted 21 of the past 31 best picture Oscar winners, are the producers of Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, Judas And The Black Messiah, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Mank, Minari, Nomadland and One Night In Miami.
In the animated feature category, the producers of The Croods: A New Age, Onward, Over The Moon,...
The Producers Guild of America (PGA) has revealed the nominations in film and TV categories for its 32nd annual awards event, set to take place virtually on March 24.
Up for PGA’s theatrical feature award, which the Guild says has predicted 21 of the past 31 best picture Oscar winners, are the producers of Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, Judas And The Black Messiah, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Mank, Minari, Nomadland and One Night In Miami.
In the animated feature category, the producers of The Croods: A New Age, Onward, Over The Moon,...
- 3/9/2021
- by John Hazelton
- ScreenDaily
Exclusive: The late Audrey Wells was a prolific screenwriter and director whose work focused on strong female characters, from 2003’s Under the Tuscan Sun and 1999’s Guinevere through to 2018’s The Hate U Give. That trend continued with Over the Moon, Netflix’s animated musical about based on a Chinese myth about a determined 14-year-old girl named Fei Fei who, coping with the loss of her mother, builds a rocket ship and blasts off, hoping to meet a mythical moon goddess.
Wells was brought on to pen the screenplay in March 2016; by that time she had already known that she had cancer and that the script would be her final work.
After a trip to China for inspiration she turned in a draft nine months later. Peilin Chou, the producer who brought Wells aboard the project, remembered weeping after reading it.
“She told me it was the most important script she had ever written,...
Wells was brought on to pen the screenplay in March 2016; by that time she had already known that she had cancer and that the script would be her final work.
After a trip to China for inspiration she turned in a draft nine months later. Peilin Chou, the producer who brought Wells aboard the project, remembered weeping after reading it.
“She told me it was the most important script she had ever written,...
- 3/8/2021
- by Patrick Hipes
- Deadline Film + TV
The 2021 Oscar race for Best Picture comes into clearer focus with the announcement of the nominees for the 32nd Producers Guild of America Awards. More often than not, the PGA award-winner is the same as the eventual winner of the Best Picture Oscar. But that’s not always the case, as it was when Sam Mendes’ “1917” won the PGA last year over “Parasite,” although Bong Joon Ho’s eventual Oscar winner for Best Picture did receive a PGA nomination.
Usually the most likely to vie for the Best Picture Oscar are movies landing both SAG Ensemble and PGA nominations. This year that includes two dramas from Netflix, “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” and writer-director Aaron Sorkin’s courtroom drama, “The Trial of the Chicago 7,” Sundance’s Korean language prize-winner “Minari” (A24), and “One Night in Miami” (Amazon).
The more likely Best Picture winner is Chloé Zhao’s “Nomadland” (Searchlight...
Usually the most likely to vie for the Best Picture Oscar are movies landing both SAG Ensemble and PGA nominations. This year that includes two dramas from Netflix, “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” and writer-director Aaron Sorkin’s courtroom drama, “The Trial of the Chicago 7,” Sundance’s Korean language prize-winner “Minari” (A24), and “One Night in Miami” (Amazon).
The more likely Best Picture winner is Chloé Zhao’s “Nomadland” (Searchlight...
- 3/8/2021
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Indie studios and streamers dominated the nominations for the 32nd annual Producers Guild of Awards, which were announced on Monday by the Producers Guild of America.
Netflix and Amazon each landed three films on the list of 10, with Netflix’s “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” “Mank” and “The Trial of the Chicago 7” making the list along with Amazon’ “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm,” “One Night in Miami” and “Sound of Metal.”
The nominees also included A24’s “Minari,” Searchlight’s “Nomadland,” Focus Features’ “Promising Young Woman” and the sole film from a major studio, Warner Bros.’ “Judas and the Black Messiah.”
“Judas and the Black Messiah” is the first film with an all-Black producing team ever nominated for the Producers Guild Award.
Among the notable films missing from the PGA list are Universal’s Paul Greengrass Western “News of the World”; Christopher Nolan’s “Tenet,” which Warner Bros. released into theaters during the summer,...
Netflix and Amazon each landed three films on the list of 10, with Netflix’s “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” “Mank” and “The Trial of the Chicago 7” making the list along with Amazon’ “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm,” “One Night in Miami” and “Sound of Metal.”
The nominees also included A24’s “Minari,” Searchlight’s “Nomadland,” Focus Features’ “Promising Young Woman” and the sole film from a major studio, Warner Bros.’ “Judas and the Black Messiah.”
“Judas and the Black Messiah” is the first film with an all-Black producing team ever nominated for the Producers Guild Award.
Among the notable films missing from the PGA list are Universal’s Paul Greengrass Western “News of the World”; Christopher Nolan’s “Tenet,” which Warner Bros. released into theaters during the summer,...
- 3/8/2021
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
The Producers Guild has pulled back the curtain on its PGA Awards nominations for theatrical motion pictures, animated features, TV series and specials and televised/streamed motion pictures. See the full list below.
Vying in the marquee category — the Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures — are the producers behind
Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, Judas and the Black Messiah, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Mank, Minari, Nomadland, One Night in Miami, Promising Young Woman, Sound of Metal and The Trial of the Chicago 7.
On the toon side, the five pics up for the Animated Theatrical Motion Picture prize are The Croods: A New Age, Onward, Over the Moon, Soul and Wolfwalkers.
Annie Awards Nominations: ‘Soul’ & ‘Wolfwalkers’ Lead Field For Animation Prizes
Over on the small screen, the Episodic Television Drama category includes Better Call Saul, Bridgerton, The Crown, The Mandalorian and Ozark, and the comedy series nominees are Curb Your Enthusiasm,...
Vying in the marquee category — the Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures — are the producers behind
Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, Judas and the Black Messiah, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Mank, Minari, Nomadland, One Night in Miami, Promising Young Woman, Sound of Metal and The Trial of the Chicago 7.
On the toon side, the five pics up for the Animated Theatrical Motion Picture prize are The Croods: A New Age, Onward, Over the Moon, Soul and Wolfwalkers.
Annie Awards Nominations: ‘Soul’ & ‘Wolfwalkers’ Lead Field For Animation Prizes
Over on the small screen, the Episodic Television Drama category includes Better Call Saul, Bridgerton, The Crown, The Mandalorian and Ozark, and the comedy series nominees are Curb Your Enthusiasm,...
- 3/8/2021
- by Erik Pedersen
- Deadline Film + TV
Variety's Awards Circuit is home to the official predictions for the upcoming Oscars from Film Awards Editor Clayton Davis. Following Academy Awards history, buzz, news, reviews and sources, the Oscar predictions are updated regularly with the current year's contenders in all categories. Variety's Awards Circuit Prediction schedule consists of four phases, running all year long: Draft, Pre-Season, Regular Season and Post Season. Eligibility calendar and dates of awards will determine how long each phase lasts and will be displayed next to revision date.
To see all the latest predictions, of all the categories, in one place, visit The Collective
Draft>>>Pre Season>>>Regular Season>>>Post Season
2021 Oscars Predictions:
Best Animated Feature
Updated: Mar. 4, 2021
Awards Prediction Commentary: “Over the Moon” continues to miss in a few key spots like art directors and could be that Oscar morning snub we aren’t anticipating, even with the love for Glen Keane pouring through the branch.
To see all the latest predictions, of all the categories, in one place, visit The Collective
Draft>>>Pre Season>>>Regular Season>>>Post Season
2021 Oscars Predictions:
Best Animated Feature
Updated: Mar. 4, 2021
Awards Prediction Commentary: “Over the Moon” continues to miss in a few key spots like art directors and could be that Oscar morning snub we aren’t anticipating, even with the love for Glen Keane pouring through the branch.
- 3/4/2021
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
This marks the fourth year that the entire membership of the academy can take part in the nomination stage of the Animated Feature Oscar race. Previously, only select members of the Short Films and Feature Animation Branch and invited members from the other branches could serve on the committee that decided the nominees. Collectively, the committee tended to favor traditional and stop-motion films over CG fare. (Scroll down for the most up-to-date 2021 Oscars predictions for Best Animated Feature.)
Mandatory attendance at screenings has been dropped and voters who want to be on the nominations committee need only attest to having seen all the contenders at theaters or screenings or by way of the the academy’s streaming site.
And the method of determining the nominees has been changed. Gone is the system where voters scored a film from 6 (poor) to 10 (excellent) with only those movies meriting an average mark of...
Mandatory attendance at screenings has been dropped and voters who want to be on the nominations committee need only attest to having seen all the contenders at theaters or screenings or by way of the the academy’s streaming site.
And the method of determining the nominees has been changed. Gone is the system where voters scored a film from 6 (poor) to 10 (excellent) with only those movies meriting an average mark of...
- 3/3/2021
- by Paul Sheehan
- Gold Derby
Variety's Awards Circuit is home to the official predictions for the upcoming Oscars from Film Awards Editor Clayton Davis. Following Academy Awards history, buzz, news, reviews and sources, the Oscar predictions are updated regularly with the current year's contenders in all categories. Variety's Awards Circuit Prediction schedule consists of four phases, running all year long: Draft, Pre-Season, Regular Season and Post Season. Eligibility calendar and dates of awards will determine how long each phase lasts and will be displayed next to revision date.
To see all the latest predictions, of all the categories, in one place, visit The Collective
Draft>>>Pre Season>>>Regular Season>>>Post Season
2021 Golden Globe Predictions:
Best Motion Picture – Animated
Updated: Feb. 24, 2021
Awards Prediction Commentary: The Golden Globes nominations were announced on Feb. 3, with Netflix’s “Mank” from David Fincher leading with six nods. As the ceremony approaches on Feb. 28, the categories have been analyzed to determine...
To see all the latest predictions, of all the categories, in one place, visit The Collective
Draft>>>Pre Season>>>Regular Season>>>Post Season
2021 Golden Globe Predictions:
Best Motion Picture – Animated
Updated: Feb. 24, 2021
Awards Prediction Commentary: The Golden Globes nominations were announced on Feb. 3, with Netflix’s “Mank” from David Fincher leading with six nods. As the ceremony approaches on Feb. 28, the categories have been analyzed to determine...
- 2/24/2021
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
When Glen Keane first read the script for “Over the Moon,” he didn’t realize that Audrey Wells had written her own terminal illness into the main character’s mother. “I didn’t know when I first met her… that she knew she would not live to see this movie. This was really being written for her daughter, helping her move past the grief that she would experience,” he tells Gold Derby in our Meet the Experts: Film Animation panel (watch above). Even though she died in the middle of production, Keane always remembered a conversation they had about this film and “The Wizard of Oz” and how Wells was insistent that the events that transpired in both films were real and not some sort of dream. “She had this incredible, fierce look in her eyes and for her there had to be real roots of sincerity, depth and truth to this story.
- 1/29/2021
- by Charles Bright
- Gold Derby
It takes two (or more) to create a performance in an animated film. The actor who records the dialogue and the artists who put together the character’s physical performance. And because the dialogue is recorded first, it can not only influence the script, but also the way a character looks or moves. In fact, during recording sessions, even though a script has been written, actors are often encouraged to improvise.
“The animation medium is ideal for vocal improvisation,” says veteran animator Ron Clements, who co-directed several Disney films with John Musker, including 1992’s “Aladdin,” which starred Robin Williams, a master of improv, as the Genie. “Because the voices are recorded and edited together first, and the animation is done to fit the prerecorded soundtrack, there’s a lot of freedom to experiment and explore multiple variations of line readings. If something doesn’t work, you don’t need to use it.
“The animation medium is ideal for vocal improvisation,” says veteran animator Ron Clements, who co-directed several Disney films with John Musker, including 1992’s “Aladdin,” which starred Robin Williams, a master of improv, as the Genie. “Because the voices are recorded and edited together first, and the animation is done to fit the prerecorded soundtrack, there’s a lot of freedom to experiment and explore multiple variations of line readings. If something doesn’t work, you don’t need to use it.
- 1/28/2021
- by Terry Flores
- Variety Film + TV
“There’s nothing like seeing a film in a movie theater,” says actress and first-time film producer Rachel Brosnahan (“I’m Your Woman”) But in the midst of an explosion of streaming distributors like Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon, “I feel like projects are having renaissances that came out so long ago, and that’s really exciting … Streamers are also providing a lot of opportunities to new voices, to different voices.” We discussed this and more with six producers for our “Meet the Experts” panel. Watch the entire group discussion above.
SEEProducers Guild shifts to virtual ceremony for 32nd Annual PGA Awards in 2021
Joining Brosnahan were fellow “I’m Your Woman” producer Jordan Horowitz, Peilin Chou (“Over the Moon”), Samantha Housman (“Wander Darkly”), and Jess Wu Calder and Keith Calder (“One Night in Miami”). They’re all enthusiastic about the opportunities presented in the streaming marketplace. Horowitz thinks one key advantage is in...
SEEProducers Guild shifts to virtual ceremony for 32nd Annual PGA Awards in 2021
Joining Brosnahan were fellow “I’m Your Woman” producer Jordan Horowitz, Peilin Chou (“Over the Moon”), Samantha Housman (“Wander Darkly”), and Jess Wu Calder and Keith Calder (“One Night in Miami”). They’re all enthusiastic about the opportunities presented in the streaming marketplace. Horowitz thinks one key advantage is in...
- 1/26/2021
- by Daniel Montgomery
- Gold Derby
“In China she’s like more famous than Santa Claus. Every child grows up knowing this myth,” says “Over the Moon” producer Peilin Chou about Chang’e, the moon goddess at the heart of the Netflix animated musical. “It was definitely a myth I grew up with personally … It felt like a wonderful thing to share that part of China with the world as well.” We talked with Chou as part of our “Meet the Experts” film producers panel. Watch our interview above.
The film tells the story of Fei Fei (voiced by Cathy Ang), a teenage girl who seeks out Chang’e to stop her father from getting remarried four years after her mother’s death. The screenplay was written by Audrey Wells, for whom the story was more personal than Chou initially understood. “When she turned in that first draft of the script to me she said, ‘I want you to know,...
The film tells the story of Fei Fei (voiced by Cathy Ang), a teenage girl who seeks out Chang’e to stop her father from getting remarried four years after her mother’s death. The screenplay was written by Audrey Wells, for whom the story was more personal than Chou initially understood. “When she turned in that first draft of the script to me she said, ‘I want you to know,...
- 1/26/2021
- by Daniel Montgomery
- Gold Derby
After years of helping deliver some of the more legendary Disney animated characters like Aladdin and The Beast, Over the Moon director Glen Keane knew early on he had found his next great animated character to help bring to life.
“Fei Fei was a character that immediately, I was drawn to,” Keane says during the Netflix panel for the animated film at Deadline’s Contenders Film awards-season event. “I felt like I wanted to animate what’s inside of her.”
Keane, appearing with star Cathy Ang and producers Peilin Chou and Gennie Rim, says he was taught to animate not what the “character is doing but what character is thinking and feeling,” which was the goal when it came to this young girl. The Oscar winner didn’t necessarily take guidance from some of his past characters when coming up with the film’s heroine, but rather Fei Fei’s...
“Fei Fei was a character that immediately, I was drawn to,” Keane says during the Netflix panel for the animated film at Deadline’s Contenders Film awards-season event. “I felt like I wanted to animate what’s inside of her.”
Keane, appearing with star Cathy Ang and producers Peilin Chou and Gennie Rim, says he was taught to animate not what the “character is doing but what character is thinking and feeling,” which was the goal when it came to this young girl. The Oscar winner didn’t necessarily take guidance from some of his past characters when coming up with the film’s heroine, but rather Fei Fei’s...
- 1/24/2021
- by Justin Kroll
- Deadline Film + TV
The second day of Deadline’s Contenders Film kicks off Sunday at 8 a.m. Pt, returning after a big Day 1 on Saturday to complete a slate of 49 films from 16 studios and distributors, one that features a hugely impressive lineup of talent numbering 150 speakers over the course of the weekend for our annual awards-season event.
Click here to register and join the livestream, and follow along all day with coverage on Deadline as well as on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram via @Deadline and #DeadlineContenders. See the full schedule of panels below.
Due to obvious health and safety reasons, and following guidelines about gatherings set by the CDC, Contenders is going virtual, after success doing so starting with Contenders TV in the spring and then again with Contenders International and Contenders Documentary. It has boosted the global reach of the event, and although we miss seeing everyone in person, it has been...
Click here to register and join the livestream, and follow along all day with coverage on Deadline as well as on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram via @Deadline and #DeadlineContenders. See the full schedule of panels below.
Due to obvious health and safety reasons, and following guidelines about gatherings set by the CDC, Contenders is going virtual, after success doing so starting with Contenders TV in the spring and then again with Contenders International and Contenders Documentary. It has boosted the global reach of the event, and although we miss seeing everyone in person, it has been...
- 1/24/2021
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
Academy Award winner Glen Keane is an animation legend behind some of the most memorable characters in film history. In his latest directorial effort, “Over the Moon,” Keane draws on Chinese history and culture to craft the story of Fei Fei, a young girl on a quest to meet a mythical goddess on the moon. The film premiered on Netflix in October and has since become a top Oscar contender for Best Animated Feature. Watch Keane and members of the “Over the Moon” cast and crew detail bringing this vibrant journey to the screen in an exclusive new featurette from Netflix above.
“I love characters that believe the impossible is possible,” remarks Keane in the nearly three-minute reel. “Fei Fei in ‘Over the Moon’ is like that. I had spent nearly 40 years at Disney animating characters like ‘The Little Mermaid,’ ‘Aladdin,’ ‘Tarzan’ and ‘Pocahontas.’ I was taught that the key to animation is sincerity.
“I love characters that believe the impossible is possible,” remarks Keane in the nearly three-minute reel. “Fei Fei in ‘Over the Moon’ is like that. I had spent nearly 40 years at Disney animating characters like ‘The Little Mermaid,’ ‘Aladdin,’ ‘Tarzan’ and ‘Pocahontas.’ I was taught that the key to animation is sincerity.
- 1/22/2021
- by Denton Davidson
- Gold Derby
Six acclaimed film producers will reveal details behind their projects when they join Gold Derby’s special “Meet the Experts” Q&a event with key 2021 guild and Oscar contenders this month. Each person will participate in two video discussions to be published on Wednesday, January 20, at 5:00 p.m. Pt; 8:00 p.m. Et. We’ll have a one-on-one with our senior editor Daniel Montgomery and a group chat with Daniel and all of them together.
RSVP today to this specific event by clicking here to book your reservation. Or click here to RSVP for our entire ongoing panel series. We’ll send you a reminder a few minutes before the start of the show.
This “Meet the Experts” panel welcomes the following 2021 guild and Oscar contenders:
“I’m Your Woman” (Amazon Prime): Rachel Brosnahan and Jordan Horowitz
Brosnahan is an Emmy winner and four-time nominee as an actress. Horowitz...
RSVP today to this specific event by clicking here to book your reservation. Or click here to RSVP for our entire ongoing panel series. We’ll send you a reminder a few minutes before the start of the show.
This “Meet the Experts” panel welcomes the following 2021 guild and Oscar contenders:
“I’m Your Woman” (Amazon Prime): Rachel Brosnahan and Jordan Horowitz
Brosnahan is an Emmy winner and four-time nominee as an actress. Horowitz...
- 1/12/2021
- by Chris Beachum
- Gold Derby
It takes a village to make a motion picture come to life, with different departments and talents working together. We spoke to some of the artists who collaborated on films about how they enhance each other’s contributions and serve a filmmaker’s overall vision.
“Over the Moon”(Netflix)
Songwriters: Christopher Curtis, Marjorie Duffield, Helen Park
Music is the crutch of the success of Glen Keane’s magically moving “Over the Moon.” Alongside producer Peilin Chou, the two worked closely with songwriters Christopher Curtis, Marjorie Duffield and Helen Park. Wanting to honor the script by the late Audrey Wells was of the utmost importance. Each writer would take turns taking the lead on a song. Curtis and Duffield were already a writing team, but when Park arrived at Curtis’ apartment during a January snowstorm without a coat, the three became a family. After Curtis loaned his coat, the trio worked passionately,...
“Over the Moon”(Netflix)
Songwriters: Christopher Curtis, Marjorie Duffield, Helen Park
Music is the crutch of the success of Glen Keane’s magically moving “Over the Moon.” Alongside producer Peilin Chou, the two worked closely with songwriters Christopher Curtis, Marjorie Duffield and Helen Park. Wanting to honor the script by the late Audrey Wells was of the utmost importance. Each writer would take turns taking the lead on a song. Curtis and Duffield were already a writing team, but when Park arrived at Curtis’ apartment during a January snowstorm without a coat, the three became a family. After Curtis loaned his coat, the trio worked passionately,...
- 12/24/2020
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
Great animators are also actors, comedians, and scientists. They study the way animals move, the flow of long grass, the grace of scudding clouds, the expressions humans make when they are frustrated, hungry, happy, or in love. And Glen Keane is one of its masters.
In the Disney 2D era he was known for drawing fierce creatures like the the terrifying Bear in “The Fox and the Hound,” Willie the Giant in “Mickey’s Christmas,” and Snidely Whiplash villain Rattigan in “The Great Mouse Detective” — and, the fiercely memorable Ariel in “The Little Mermaid.”
“I was supposed to do Ursula,” he said on the phone. “I loved animating power and strength and weight. I was watching Jodi Benson record with Howard Ashman coaching her, trying to get her to sing from a personal, intimate desire of wanting the impossible, to believe the impossible is possible. As I watched that, I felt,...
In the Disney 2D era he was known for drawing fierce creatures like the the terrifying Bear in “The Fox and the Hound,” Willie the Giant in “Mickey’s Christmas,” and Snidely Whiplash villain Rattigan in “The Great Mouse Detective” — and, the fiercely memorable Ariel in “The Little Mermaid.”
“I was supposed to do Ursula,” he said on the phone. “I loved animating power and strength and weight. I was watching Jodi Benson record with Howard Ashman coaching her, trying to get her to sing from a personal, intimate desire of wanting the impossible, to believe the impossible is possible. As I watched that, I felt,...
- 11/30/2020
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Great animators are also actors, comedians, and scientists. They study the way animals move, the flow of long grass, the grace of scudding clouds, the expressions humans make when they are frustrated, hungry, happy, or in love. And Glen Keane is one of its masters.
In the Disney 2D era he was known for drawing fierce creatures like the the terrifying Bear in “The Fox and the Hound,” Willie the Giant in “Mickey’s Christmas,” and Snidely Whiplash villain Rattigan in “The Great Mouse Detective” — and, the fiercely memorable Ariel in “The Little Mermaid.”
“I was supposed to do Ursula,” he said on the phone. “I loved animating power and strength and weight. I was watching Jodi Benson record with Howard Ashman coaching her, trying to get her to sing from a personal, intimate desire of wanting the impossible, to believe the impossible is possible. As I watched that, I felt,...
In the Disney 2D era he was known for drawing fierce creatures like the the terrifying Bear in “The Fox and the Hound,” Willie the Giant in “Mickey’s Christmas,” and Snidely Whiplash villain Rattigan in “The Great Mouse Detective” — and, the fiercely memorable Ariel in “The Little Mermaid.”
“I was supposed to do Ursula,” he said on the phone. “I loved animating power and strength and weight. I was watching Jodi Benson record with Howard Ashman coaching her, trying to get her to sing from a personal, intimate desire of wanting the impossible, to believe the impossible is possible. As I watched that, I felt,...
- 11/30/2020
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
Netflix Animation and Pearl Studio’s “Over the Moon,” longtime animator Glen Keane’s feature directing debut, lifts off on Oct. 23 after a journey that, in some ways, mirrored that of the film’s young heroine, Fei Fei.
Fei Fei, still mourning the death of her mother some years earlier, builds a rocket so she can go to the moon and ask the goddess Chang’e to help persuade her father not to remarry. Halfway through production, screenwriter Audrey Wells died after battling cancer and her script “was a love letter to her daughter and for her husband,” says“Over the Moon” producer Gennie Rim.
“When we first met her, she said, ‘All of my movies are about healing. And this is no different. This, if anything, is the most important job I’ve ever done.’ At the time, I didn’t understand exactly what that meant.” Rim says she...
Fei Fei, still mourning the death of her mother some years earlier, builds a rocket so she can go to the moon and ask the goddess Chang’e to help persuade her father not to remarry. Halfway through production, screenwriter Audrey Wells died after battling cancer and her script “was a love letter to her daughter and for her husband,” says“Over the Moon” producer Gennie Rim.
“When we first met her, she said, ‘All of my movies are about healing. And this is no different. This, if anything, is the most important job I’ve ever done.’ At the time, I didn’t understand exactly what that meant.” Rim says she...
- 10/23/2020
- by Carole Horst
- Variety Film + TV
Lulu Wang and Adele Lim on Lessons From ‘Mulan’: Why Hollywood Must Reimagine Asian-Inspired Stories
When Lulu Wang read the announcement that Ron Howard would direct legendary Chinese pianist Lang Lang’s Hollywood-produced biopic, she took to Twitter to raise the question, “Have we learned nothing from ‘Mulan?'”
In a series of tweets, the writer-director of “The Farewell” questioned the move, challenging the creative team’s limited understanding of both Chinese cultural history and the specificities of the pianist (and Wang’s) birthplace, Northeast China.
Wang used a metaphor to compare Hollywood’s efforts to produce stories about people of color and finding good American Chinese food at a restaurant: “Does this mean no one else can make this food? Of course not. I happen to love orange chicken. But isn’t it time we all expect more than orange chicken?”
“I really wish this wasn’t such a divisive issue,” Wang tells Variety, explaining that her comments have been misconstrued by the media...
In a series of tweets, the writer-director of “The Farewell” questioned the move, challenging the creative team’s limited understanding of both Chinese cultural history and the specificities of the pianist (and Wang’s) birthplace, Northeast China.
Wang used a metaphor to compare Hollywood’s efforts to produce stories about people of color and finding good American Chinese food at a restaurant: “Does this mean no one else can make this food? Of course not. I happen to love orange chicken. But isn’t it time we all expect more than orange chicken?”
“I really wish this wasn’t such a divisive issue,” Wang tells Variety, explaining that her comments have been misconstrued by the media...
- 10/23/2020
- by Janet W. Lee
- Variety Film + TV
Disney legend and Oscar winner Glen Keane (“Dear Basketball”) was somehow destined to direct “Over the Moon,” the eye-popping animated musical update of the ancient Chinese Moon Goddess fable from Netflix (co-produced by Shanghai-based Pearl Studio). In fact, “Over the Moon” technically marks Keane’s directorial feature debut, since a heart attack forced him to drop out of his trouble-plagued passion project, “Tangled” in 2008. (He formally left Disney in 2012 after nearly 40 years of animation glory.)
Truth be told, Keane was instantly drawn to Fei Fei (Cathy Ang), the 12-year-old girl obsessed with building a rocket to the moon to meet the legendary, nine-foot-tall goddess Chang’e (Phillipa Soo of “Moana” and “Hamilton”), to fill the emotional void in her life after the passing of her mother (Ruthie Ann Miles). But her journey on the enchanting and phosphorescent Lunaria forces her to accept change and rediscover love.
“I have fallen in...
Truth be told, Keane was instantly drawn to Fei Fei (Cathy Ang), the 12-year-old girl obsessed with building a rocket to the moon to meet the legendary, nine-foot-tall goddess Chang’e (Phillipa Soo of “Moana” and “Hamilton”), to fill the emotional void in her life after the passing of her mother (Ruthie Ann Miles). But her journey on the enchanting and phosphorescent Lunaria forces her to accept change and rediscover love.
“I have fallen in...
- 10/21/2020
- by Bill Desowitz
- Indiewire
A young girl embarks on a quest to find a goddess in Over the Moon, a new animated film out October 23rd via Netflix.
The trailer stars Fei Fei (voiced by Cathy Ang), who is fascinated with Chang’e, the Chinese Moon goddess, who waits for her true love on the moon. Fei Fei is told during a family dinner that the goddess isn’t real, but she sets out to find her anyway. With her pet rabbit in tow, she blasts off in a rocket ship and encounters magical...
The trailer stars Fei Fei (voiced by Cathy Ang), who is fascinated with Chang’e, the Chinese Moon goddess, who waits for her true love on the moon. Fei Fei is told during a family dinner that the goddess isn’t real, but she sets out to find her anyway. With her pet rabbit in tow, she blasts off in a rocket ship and encounters magical...
- 9/22/2020
- by Angie Martoccio
- Rollingstone.com
Netflix has dropped the final trailer for “Over the Moon” (streaming October 23) in celebration of the Autumn Moon Festival in China. Directed by Disney legend and Oscar winner Glen Keane (“Dear Basketball”), the eye-popping animated musical reworks the ancient Chinese Moon Goddess fable as an “Oz”-like fantasy.
To promote the trailer on Monday, regional cover artists, and “Over the Moon” voice actor Ken Jeong teased separate installments on Twitter as the moon rose across their respective countries.
The co-production with Pearl Studio (“Abominable”) was animated at Sony Pictures Imageworks, with Oscar winner John Kahrs (“Paperman”) serving as co-director, and Oscar winner Gennie Rim (“Dear Basketball”) producing with Pearl’s Peilin Chou.
In “Over the Moon” (scripted by the late Audrey Wells of “The Hate U Give”), 13-year-old Fei Fei (Cathy Ang), builds a rocket to the moon to meet the legendary goddess, Chang’e (Phillipa Soo of “Moana” and...
To promote the trailer on Monday, regional cover artists, and “Over the Moon” voice actor Ken Jeong teased separate installments on Twitter as the moon rose across their respective countries.
The co-production with Pearl Studio (“Abominable”) was animated at Sony Pictures Imageworks, with Oscar winner John Kahrs (“Paperman”) serving as co-director, and Oscar winner Gennie Rim (“Dear Basketball”) producing with Pearl’s Peilin Chou.
In “Over the Moon” (scripted by the late Audrey Wells of “The Hate U Give”), 13-year-old Fei Fei (Cathy Ang), builds a rocket to the moon to meet the legendary goddess, Chang’e (Phillipa Soo of “Moana” and...
- 9/22/2020
- by Bill Desowitz
- Indiewire
Netflix has debuted a new trailer for their upcoming original animation ‘Over The Moon’, featuring the voice of Sandra Oh.
Fueled with determination and a passion for science, a bright young girl builds a rocket ship to the moon to prove the existence of a legendary Moon Goddess. There she ends up on an unexpected quest and discovers a whimsical land of fantastical creatures.
Directed by animation legend Glen Keane, and produced by Gennie Rim and Peilin Chou, the film has a voice cast of Cathy Ang (Fei Fei), Phillipa Soo (Chang’e), Robert G. Chiu (Chin), Ken Jeong (Gobi), John Cho (Dad), Ruthie Ann Miles (Mom), Margaret Cho (Auntie Ling), Kimiko Glenn (Auntie Mei), Artt Butler (Uncle), and Sandra Oh (Mrs. Zhong)
Also in trailers – Beanie Feldstein and Emma Thompson star in trailer for Amazon’s ‘How To Build A Girl’
The film premieres on Netflix this Autumn.
The...
Fueled with determination and a passion for science, a bright young girl builds a rocket ship to the moon to prove the existence of a legendary Moon Goddess. There she ends up on an unexpected quest and discovers a whimsical land of fantastical creatures.
Directed by animation legend Glen Keane, and produced by Gennie Rim and Peilin Chou, the film has a voice cast of Cathy Ang (Fei Fei), Phillipa Soo (Chang’e), Robert G. Chiu (Chin), Ken Jeong (Gobi), John Cho (Dad), Ruthie Ann Miles (Mom), Margaret Cho (Auntie Ling), Kimiko Glenn (Auntie Mei), Artt Butler (Uncle), and Sandra Oh (Mrs. Zhong)
Also in trailers – Beanie Feldstein and Emma Thompson star in trailer for Amazon’s ‘How To Build A Girl’
The film premieres on Netflix this Autumn.
The...
- 6/24/2020
- by Zehra Phelan
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Netflix has released the first trailer for what will be the debut feature film from legendary Disney animator and Oscar-winner Glen Keane, a starry and colorful film called “Over the Moon.”
“Over the Moon” is the first film from Keane after he won the Oscar in 2017 for the animated short film “Dear Basketball” that he co-directed with Kobe Bryant. The streamer will release it later this fall, and it’s figured to be an awards player for Netflix this year.
“Over the Moon” is about a bright young girl who builds a rocket ship to the moon to prove the existence of a legendary Moon Goddess. Once there, she ends up on an unexpected quest and discovers a whimsical land of fantastical creatures.
Also Read: Watch Kobe Bryant's 2018 Oscar Acceptance Speech - When He Shaded Fox News' Laura Ingraham (Video)
“We’re the last true believers,” the girl says in the trailer.
“Over the Moon” is the first film from Keane after he won the Oscar in 2017 for the animated short film “Dear Basketball” that he co-directed with Kobe Bryant. The streamer will release it later this fall, and it’s figured to be an awards player for Netflix this year.
“Over the Moon” is about a bright young girl who builds a rocket ship to the moon to prove the existence of a legendary Moon Goddess. Once there, she ends up on an unexpected quest and discovers a whimsical land of fantastical creatures.
Also Read: Watch Kobe Bryant's 2018 Oscar Acceptance Speech - When He Shaded Fox News' Laura Ingraham (Video)
“We’re the last true believers,” the girl says in the trailer.
- 6/23/2020
- by Brian Welk
- The Wrap
Netflix dropped the first trailer Tuesday for its upcoming animated feature, “Over the Moon” (coming in the fall), a wondrous update of the Chinese Moon Goddess fable, directed by former Disney legend and Oscar winner Glen Keane (“Dear Basketball”). The co-production with Pearl Studio (“Abominable”) was animated at Sony Pictures Imageworks, with Oscar winner John Kahrs serving as co-director, Oscar winner Gennie Rim (“Dear Basketball”) producing with Pearl’s Peilin Chou.
In “Over the Moon” (scripted by the late Audrey Wells of “The Hate U Give”), 13-year-old Fei Fei (Cathy Ang) builds a rocket to the moon to meet the legendary goddess, Chang’e (Phillipa Soo of “Moana” and “Hamilton”). But her journey on Lunaria (production designed by Céline Desrumaux of “The Little Prince”) forces her to embrace change. Original songs were composed by Christopher Curtis (“Chaplin: The Musica”), Marjorie Duffield, and Helen Park (“Kpop”), and the score was by “Gravity” Oscar winner Steven Price.
In “Over the Moon” (scripted by the late Audrey Wells of “The Hate U Give”), 13-year-old Fei Fei (Cathy Ang) builds a rocket to the moon to meet the legendary goddess, Chang’e (Phillipa Soo of “Moana” and “Hamilton”). But her journey on Lunaria (production designed by Céline Desrumaux of “The Little Prince”) forces her to embrace change. Original songs were composed by Christopher Curtis (“Chaplin: The Musica”), Marjorie Duffield, and Helen Park (“Kpop”), and the score was by “Gravity” Oscar winner Steven Price.
- 6/23/2020
- by Bill Desowitz
- Thompson on Hollywood
Netflix dropped the first trailer Tuesday for its upcoming animated feature, “Over the Moon” (coming in the fall), a wondrous update of the Chinese Moon Goddess fable, directed by former Disney legend and Oscar winner Glen Keane (“Dear Basketball”). The co-production with Pearl Studio (“Abominable”) was animated at Sony Pictures Imageworks, with Oscar winner John Kahrs serving as co-director, Oscar winner Gennie Rim (“Dear Basketball”) producing with Pearl’s Peilin Chou.
In “Over the Moon” (scripted by the late Audrey Wells of “The Hate U Give”), 13-year-old Fei Fei (Cathy Ang) builds a rocket to the moon to meet the legendary goddess, Chang’e (Phillipa Soo of “Moana” and “Hamilton”). But her journey on Lunaria (production designed by Céline Desrumaux of “The Little Prince”) forces her to embrace change. Original songs were composed by Christopher Curtis (“Chaplin: The Musica”), Marjorie Duffield, and Helen Park (“Kpop”), and the score was by “Gravity” Oscar winner Steven Price.
In “Over the Moon” (scripted by the late Audrey Wells of “The Hate U Give”), 13-year-old Fei Fei (Cathy Ang) builds a rocket to the moon to meet the legendary goddess, Chang’e (Phillipa Soo of “Moana” and “Hamilton”). But her journey on Lunaria (production designed by Céline Desrumaux of “The Little Prince”) forces her to embrace change. Original songs were composed by Christopher Curtis (“Chaplin: The Musica”), Marjorie Duffield, and Helen Park (“Kpop”), and the score was by “Gravity” Oscar winner Steven Price.
- 6/23/2020
- by Bill Desowitz
- Indiewire
Netflix and Pearl Studio unveiled the first trailer for their animated film “Over the Moon” on Tuesday following a virtual discussion with some of the cast and crew about the pic last week. Actors Sandra Oh, Phillipa Soo, John Cho, Ruthie Ann Miles and newcomer Cathy Ang joined producers Gennie Rim and Peilin Chou, along with director Glen Keane, to discuss the making of the movie, a musical adventure about a young Chinese girl named Fei Fei (Ang), who builds her own rocket ship to travel to the moon in order to prove the existence of the legendary Moon goddess Chang’e (Soo).
Soo, a Tony Award nominee for her work in “Hamilton,” noted that she has known about the story of Chang’e since childhood, through a children’s book written by Amy Tan. “I remember as a kid, asking my dad to read it over and over and over to me.
Soo, a Tony Award nominee for her work in “Hamilton,” noted that she has known about the story of Chang’e since childhood, through a children’s book written by Amy Tan. “I remember as a kid, asking my dad to read it over and over and over to me.
- 6/23/2020
- by Jenelle Riley
- Variety Film + TV
In a previously-unannounced presentation posted on the Annecy Intl. Animation Film Festival’s digital platform on Tuesday morning, Netflix announced key cast, new images, updated plot points and shared an out-of-this-world trailer for the platform’s upcoming musical 3D feature “Over the Moon” from legendary animator and Oscar-winning filmmaker Glen Keane.
Annecy also announced a live Q&a with crew from the film, including Keane, to take place on June 24, at 6 p.m. Cet (9 a.m. Pt).
Newcomers Cathy Ang and Robert G. Chiu will join Grammy winner Phillipa Soo (“Hamilton”), Ken Jeong (“Crazy Rich Asians”), John Cho (“Star Trek”), Ruthie Ann Miles (“All Rise”), Emmy nominee Margaret Cho, three time SAG winner Kimiko Glenn (“Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse”), Artt Butler and two-time Golden Globe winner Sandra Oh (“Killing Eve”) in the film’s principle voice cast.
Premiering on the platform worldwide this fall – excluding China where it will be...
Annecy also announced a live Q&a with crew from the film, including Keane, to take place on June 24, at 6 p.m. Cet (9 a.m. Pt).
Newcomers Cathy Ang and Robert G. Chiu will join Grammy winner Phillipa Soo (“Hamilton”), Ken Jeong (“Crazy Rich Asians”), John Cho (“Star Trek”), Ruthie Ann Miles (“All Rise”), Emmy nominee Margaret Cho, three time SAG winner Kimiko Glenn (“Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse”), Artt Butler and two-time Golden Globe winner Sandra Oh (“Killing Eve”) in the film’s principle voice cast.
Premiering on the platform worldwide this fall – excluding China where it will be...
- 6/23/2020
- by Jamie Lang
- Variety Film + TV
The #GoldOpen movement is entering its next phase.
Nonprofit Gold House, which created the initiative that has organized efforts to bring Asian-led and multicultural films to box office success, announced the movement's first advisory council on Tuesday. The council, which will determine the films that will receive #GoldOpen, include Sundance Film Festival's director of programming Kim Yutani, Amazon Studios COO and head of TV Albert Cheng, Parl Studio Cco Peilin Chou, Universal Film Entertainment Group president Abhijay Prakash, the Blcklst founder Franklin Leonard, The Hollywood Reporter's senior reporter Rebecca Sun and awards editor Rebecca Ford, Deadline editor Dino-Ray ...
Nonprofit Gold House, which created the initiative that has organized efforts to bring Asian-led and multicultural films to box office success, announced the movement's first advisory council on Tuesday. The council, which will determine the films that will receive #GoldOpen, include Sundance Film Festival's director of programming Kim Yutani, Amazon Studios COO and head of TV Albert Cheng, Parl Studio Cco Peilin Chou, Universal Film Entertainment Group president Abhijay Prakash, the Blcklst founder Franklin Leonard, The Hollywood Reporter's senior reporter Rebecca Sun and awards editor Rebecca Ford, Deadline editor Dino-Ray ...
- 1/21/2020
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The #GoldOpen movement is entering its next phase.
Nonprofit Gold House, which created the initiative that has organized efforts to bring Asian-led and multicultural films to box office success, announced the movement's first advisory council on Tuesday. The council, which will determine the films that will receive #GoldOpen, include Sundance Film Festival's director of programming Kim Yutani, Amazon Studios COO and head of TV Albert Cheng, Pearl Studio Cco Peilin Chou, Universal Film Entertainment Group president Abhijay Prakash, the Blcklst founder Franklin Leonard, The Hollywood Reporter's senior reporter Rebecca Sun and awards editor Rebecca Ford, Deadline editor Dino-Ray ...
Nonprofit Gold House, which created the initiative that has organized efforts to bring Asian-led and multicultural films to box office success, announced the movement's first advisory council on Tuesday. The council, which will determine the films that will receive #GoldOpen, include Sundance Film Festival's director of programming Kim Yutani, Amazon Studios COO and head of TV Albert Cheng, Pearl Studio Cco Peilin Chou, Universal Film Entertainment Group president Abhijay Prakash, the Blcklst founder Franklin Leonard, The Hollywood Reporter's senior reporter Rebecca Sun and awards editor Rebecca Ford, Deadline editor Dino-Ray ...
- 1/21/2020
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
Peilin Chou is very upfront in our recent webchat (watch the video above) that the film “Abominable,” on which she’s a producer, came about simply from wanting to work with writer-director Jill Culton. “We were big fans of her work. We pitched her a number of projects and the one she responded to most was the idea of making a movie about this Yeti.” She goes on to explain that there was a specific link to Culton’s childhood that made the subject resonate with her. “Jill had grown up with very large bloodhound dogs and she was fascinated by how they were able to communicate without speech. So she was very intrigued by the idea of creating this Yeti character that did not have speech.”
Seelatest Oscar Racetrack Odds: Best Animated Feature
“Abominable” centers on a Yeti that’s escaped from confinement in Shanghai. A teenage girl, Yi,...
Seelatest Oscar Racetrack Odds: Best Animated Feature
“Abominable” centers on a Yeti that’s escaped from confinement in Shanghai. A teenage girl, Yi,...
- 12/23/2019
- by Charles Bright
- Gold Derby
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