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Acclaimed filmmaker R.J. Cutler wasn’t always planning to make a movie about Martha Stewart. Then, she came to dinner.

“She basically crashed the dinner, and we sat and talked all night long about her life story,” Cutler tells Gold Derby. During their initial conversation, Cutler says he was surprised that Stewart grew up in “modest means” in suburban New Jersey, raised by first-generation American parents.

“Her background was counter-intuitive to what I might have thought it would be,” Cutler says, noting that his initial expectation was that Stewart came from a privileged upbringing. What the filmmaker realized, he says, is that Stewart herself stood as an avatar for American womanhood in the latter part of the 20th century and into the 21st century.

“She’s this kind of visionary figure who has had such an incredible impact on our world, but she’s also somebody who’s had to...

Apple TV+ has unveiled the trailer for its all-access three-part documentary Fight for Glory: 2024 World Series, which premieres globally on Friday, March 28. Directed by acclaimed filmmaker R.J. Cutler, the series is executive produced by five-time World Series champion Derek Jeter, Brian Grazer, and Ron Howard.

Fight for Glory: 2024 World Series takes viewers deeper than ever into the Fall Classic, capturing the intensity, drama and defining moments of the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees as they reignite one of baseball’s most storied rivalries in pursuit of a World Series Championship.

Photo courtesy of Apple TV+

R.J. Cutler shared, “Our goal was to make a truly cinematic experience that celebrates the drama, emotion and beauty of baseball at its highest-stakes moment: the World Series. We wanted to put the audience right in the guts of this story — the tension, the triumph, the heartbreak. As in life, the game...

What’s the deal with the film Academy’s documentary branch? This season’s shortlist for the best documentary feature Oscar, released Dec. 17, was missing one of the year’s most acclaimed crowd-pleasers, Warner Bros.’ Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story — which is at 98 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, won the top Critics Choice documentary award and is nominated for the Producers Guild’s top doc award — and also impressive documentaries about Martha Stewart (Martha), Celine Dion (I Am: Celine Dion), James Carville (Carville: Winning Is Everything, Stupid) and John Williams (Music by John Williams), among others.

This isn’t to say that the 15 docs that were shortlisted are lacking — to the contrary, most are excellent. But it does reconfirm the doc branch’s weird aversion, over roughly the past decade, to populist titles.

During that period, the branch declined to shortlist Good Night Oppy, a charmer about a Wall-e-like Mars...

There’s no such thing as too many music documentaries if it’s for an artist you truly love, and while Sir Elton John’s life has been chronicled a number of times before, a new film offers a unique focus: his preparation for his final concert in North America. “Elton John: Never Too Late” looks back on the “Tiny Dancer” and “Crocodile Rock” singer’s career while he prepares for his big show at Dodger Stadium.

Here’s what you need to know about the new Elton John documentary and where to watch it.

When does “Elton John: Never Too Late” come out?

The film was released on Dec. 13.

Where is “Elton John: Never Too Late” streaming?

The documentary is streaming exclusively on Disney+, which is the only place to watch it.

What is the new Elton John documentary about?

The documentary follows Elton John as he looks back...

Netflix's documentary, Martha, is an in-depth exploration of Martha Stewart, taking viewers through her humble upbringing and the rise and fall of her self-made empire. It's director R.J. Cutler, known for the films Billie Eilish: The World's a Little Blurry and If I Stay, showcases the interesting life of a cultural icon. Her brilliance in business, passion for education, and visionary home-keeping practices has cemented her as the first influencer capable of transcending generations.

However, after seeing the film for herself, Stewart admitted in an interview with the New York Times that its final cut failed to meet her expectations. Although she loves the first half, which details fresh insights into her young life and developing ambition, the second hour disappoints. She gave Cutler full access to her personal life. Yet, his editing omits juicy anecdotes, strays from Stewart's fascinating mind and work to focus on her 2004 trial and prison sentence,...

Martha Stewart had more than a few gripes about R.J. Cutler’s Netflix documentary “Martha.”

The iconic businesswoman told the New York Times that she “hates” how the film ended with her “looking like a lonely old lady.” And don’t even get Stewart started on the “lousy classical score,” especially when her pal Snoop Dogg could have easily been part of the feature instead.

“I said to [director] R.J., ‘An essential part of the film is that you play rap music,’” Stewart said. “Dr. Dre will probably score it, or [Snoop Dogg] or Fredwreck. I said, ‘I want that music.’ And then he gets some lousy classical score in there, which has nothing to do with me.”

While Stewart loved “the first half of the documentary,” the second half fell short. The latter portion of the film includes her jail stint and career resurgence. As Kate Erbland’s IndieWire review, “Martha...

Martha Stewart has seen her new Netflix documentary, “Martha,” and she’s not entirely a fan of the finished product. Directed by R.J. Cutler, whose recent biographical docs include “Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry” and “Elton John: Never Too Late,” the Stewart documentary features intimate interviews with her as she opens up her personal archives to share never-before-seen photos, letters and diary entries from her career.

In an interview with The New York Times, Stewart gave “Martha” a somewhat scalding review and said “R.J. had total access” to her archive but “really used very little. It was just shocking.” She also revealed she tried to get some of the last scenes that Cutler included in the film thrown out.

“Those last scenes with me looking like a lonely old lady walking hunched over in the garden? Boy, I told him to get rid of those. And he refused,...

The MCU is rapidly expanding, with many projects in development or set to be released over the next two years. This means we can expect a wave of new actors and characters.

If recent rumors are correct, Billie Eilish could be among them. This speculation was highlighted by Daniel Richtman, a well-known industry insider known for his fairly accurate predictions.

According to Richtman, who often shares rumors on his Patreon account, Marvel Studios is interested in casting the singer for a significant role in the MCU.

Marvel Studios is reportedly interested in Billie Eilish for a big role in the #MCU.

(via @DanielRPK) pic.twitter.com/kqAyCTFPmI

— Cosmic Marvel (@cosmic_marvel) October 27, 2024

Although Billie Eilish is mainly known for her music, she made her acting debut in 2023 with the Amazon Prime Video series Swarm, where she played Eva, the leader of a cult inspired by Nxivm. Her performance received good reviews.

MCU is expanding rapidly with numerous projects either in development or scheduled to be released in the next two years. As such, we can expect an influx of new actors and characters.

Now if the latest rumors are true, Billie Eilish might be one of them. The rumor was brought to light by Daniel Richtman, a notable industry insider with a somewhat accurate track record.

According to Richtman who frequently posts rumors on his Patreon account Marvel Studios is interested in the singer when it comes to some big role in the MCU.

Marvel Studios is reportedly interested in Billie Eilish for a big role in the #MCU.

(via @DanielRPK) pic.twitter.com/kqAyCTFPmI

— Cosmic Marvel (@cosmic_marvel) October 27, 2024

Although Eilish is most frequently associated with the music industry, in 2023, the singer made her acting debut in the Amazon Prime Video series ‘Swarm,’ where she played Eva, the leader of a cult inspired by Nxivm.

It’s a good thing.

On Thursday, Netflix debuted the amusing first trailer for “Martha,” the streaming service’s upcoming documentary about Martha Stewart from filmmaker R.J. Cutler.

The project first debuted at this year’s Telluride Film Festival where Stewart and Cutler participated in a kindly but barbed panel after the screening. Needless to say, it wasn’t all that shocking to read that Stewart had some issues with the film – particularly its coverage of her infamous arrest and conviction. In 2004, Stewart was sent to jail for five months after being convicted of conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and making false statements to federal investigators during an investigation of a stock trade.

Stewart’s downfall is but one part of “Martha.” Cutler’s film details the mogul’s entire life, from her upbringing and early successes to her post-prison rehabilitation and comeback. All told, the feature is an engaging and...

Martha Stewart’s recipe for success is outlined in the first trailer for Martha, the forthcoming Netflix documentary premiering on Oct. 30. Two key ingredients are the mottos she has followed for years: “Learn something new every day and when you’re through changing, you’re through.” Mix these in with resilience and defiance in male-dominated spaces, as well as a detachment from assigning more value to a marriage than a career, and you get Martha.

“I’m strict and I’m demanding and I’m all those good things that make a successful person,...

Martha Stewart made history as America’s first self-made female billionaire. And then she went to prison. It’s about time that the iconic lifestyle mogul has landed her own documentary. Now, with famed filmmaker R.J. Cutler at the helm, Stewart’s life and legacy is being brought to the screen.

Academy Award-nominated and Emmy- and Peabody Award-winning director Cutler is more than familiar with capturing elusive titans: He previously directed the definitive Anna Wintour and Vogue documentary “The September Issue.”

Netflix documentary “Martha” marks the first time that Stewart has fully revisited her past on-camera. The film’s official synopsis reads: “Through intimate and revealing interviews with the icon herself and those from her inner circle, R.J. Cutler’s definitive documentary on Martha Stewart traces her rise from teenage model to her reign as the original influencer and America’s first self-made female billionaire.”

From her marriage to...

There’s a moment in “Elton John: Never Too Late,” a robustly satisfying and emotional documentary about the life and career of Elton John, that captures him, in a most revealing way, in his ’70s heyday.

It’s a clip from a television interview, in which Elton is explaining how he writes a song. The clip must be from 1971, and Elton, still looking like a puppy child, with rectangle-framed glasses and plenty of shaggy hair, sits at an upright piano and brings out a sheaf of lyrics — pages all written in longhand by his collaborator, Bernie Taupin. Elton wants to show us his method, so he talks about a song he just wrote, called “Tiny Dancer,” and finds the lyrics to it. He explains how he scanned through them and realized, when he saw the word “ballerina,” that it would have to be a slow-tempo song. He demonstrates how he kind of improvised the chords.

The 2024 Telluride Film Festival was a success on many fronts, delivering packed screenings (and commensurate turnaways) at the big titles booked in the popular venues, with smaller turnouts for docs and classic titles in the less-frequented theaters. Below, IndieWire lays out the festival hits, commercial breakouts, Oscar contenders, and distribution seekers.

Festival Holdovers

The Telluride movies that played best for audiences were already anointed with credibility from prior festival reviews and/or prizes. That includes Cannes prize-winners “Emilia Pérez”, “Anora”, “All We Imagine as Light”, and “The Seed of the Sacred Fig”, the banned Iranian film submitted for Oscar consideration by Germany. All will be strong Oscar contenders, assuming that “All We Imagine as Light” is submitted by India or France for Best International Film, which is not a foregone conclusion. From Sundance was secret screening “A Real Pain” (Searchlight), starring Kieran Culkin and writer/director Jesse Eisenberg, which played...

What does it take to succeed on the global stage as a K-pop superstar? Follow Jessi, Cravity, and Blackswan through the highs and lows of superstardom in an all-new, six-part backstage pass following the artists from prep to showtime as they “give everything they’ve got to an art form that demands nothing less than perfection.” “K-Pop Idols” premieres on Friday, Aug. 30 on Apple TV+. You can watch with 7-Day Free Trial of Apple TV+.

How to Watch “K-Pop Idols” When: Friday, Aug. 30, 2024 Where: Apple TV+ Stream: Watch with a 7-Day Free Trial of Apple TV+. 7-Day Free Trial $9.99+ / month apple.com About “K-Pop Idols”

From the executive producers behind “Billie Eilish: The World's a Little Blurry” and “Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields,” the six-part documentary event “K-Pop Idols” provides “an intimate look at the intense reality of K-pop stardom.”

Featuring beloved artists Jessi, Cravity, and Blackswan, the series gives an...

As always, the Telluride Film Festival, which runs over the four-day Labor Day weekend in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, waits until the day before the Friday festival launch to release its official selection.

Per usual, many of the slate’s titles have already leaked via publicists and attendees, and few of the most prominent first showings — from Edward Berger’s pope drama “Conclave” (Focus) and Jason Reitman’s recreation of the 1975 launch of SNL, “Saturday Night” (Sony) to RaMell’s Ross’s Colson Whitehead adaptation “Nickel Boys” (Amazon/MGM) — are news at this point. Still, there’s plenty new to dive into.

Festival director Julie Huntsinger, who has been running the festival for years but officially took over the solo reins from the late Tom Luddy with last year’s 50th edition, got on the phone with IndieWire to discuss the selection of nearly sixty feature films, short films,...

“Acapulco” Lands Season 4 Renewal

Pack your bags to return to Las Colinas. Apple TV+ has ordered its hit bilingual comedy series “Acapulco” for a fourth season. The Spanish and English-language series, inspired by 2017’s “How to Be a Latin Lover,” follows Máximo Gallardo, whose dream comes true when he gets the job of a lifetime at Acapulco’s hottest resort but soon realizes that working there will be more complicated than he could’ve ever imagined.

Watch the trailer for “Acapulco” Season 3 below:

In Season 3, present-day Máximo (played by Eugenio Derbez) returned to an unrecognizable Las Colinas, while younger Máximo (Enrique Arrizon) continued “climbing up the ladder of success while potentially jeopardizing all the relationships he’s worked so hard to build.”

The cast also stars Fernando Carsa, Alcázar, Perez, Bauche, Reynoso, Raphael Alejandro, Jessica Collins, Chord Overstreet, Rafael Cebrián, Regina Orozco, Carlos Corona, Jaime Camil, Cristo Fernández, and others.

Exclusive: Elton John: Never Too Late, the documentary about the British-born music legend’s incredible career, will debut on Disney+ on Friday, December 13, the streaming platform announced today.

The film directed by documentary great R.J. Cutler and David Furnish – Elton John’s husband – is set to make its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival on Friday, September 6. The original documentary from Disney Branded Television is produced by Rocket Entertainment and This Machine Filmworks (a part of Sony Pictures Television).

“[T]he documentary follows Elton John as he looks back on his life and the astonishing early days of his 50-year career in this emotionally charged, intimate and uplifting full-circle journey,” notes a release. “As he prepares for his final concert in North America at Dodger Stadium, Elton takes us back in time to recount the extraordinary highs and heartbreaking lows of his early years and how he overcame adversity,...

The documentary “Elton John: Never Too Late” — charting the half-century career of one of music’s most legendary figures — is getting its European Premiere at the BFI London Film Festival. The American Express gala will be held on Oct. 10 at the Royal Festival Hall, with John in attendance.

Directed by R.J. Cutler and John’s husband David Furnish, the feature follows the musician as he looks back on his life and the astonishing early days of his 50-year career in a what’s described as an “emotionally charged, intimate and uplifting full-circle journey.” As John prepares for his final concert in North America at Dodger Stadium, he recounts the extraordinary highs and heartbreaking lows of his early years and how he overcame adversity, abuse and addiction to become the icon he is today.

“Directors R.J. Cutler and David Furnish bring a great intimacy and exhilaration to the story of...

When you sit down to watch a documentary about the Beach Boys, you know what you want: to be immersed in the California dreamin’ of the group’s early surfin’-hit days, in the jaunty beauty of songs like “I Get Around” and “Help Me Rhonda” and “All Summer Long,” and in the story of how Brian Wilson began to figure out a way to turn pop songs into miniature symphonies. You want to be immersed in the recording of “Pet Sounds,” in the Beach Boys’ rivalry with the Beatles, in the derailed masterpiece that was “Smile,” and in how Brian’s mental and emotional problems began to tear himself and the group apart. You want to know how the other Beach Boys, caught in the wilderness, found a way to put the group back together, though it’s almost like they became a different group. You want to see...

Margaret Riley, the respected agent, manager and Lighthouse Management & Media partner who served as a producer on the Fox News drama Bombshell, has died. She was 58.

Riley died Tuesday at her home in Brentwood after a private battle with ovarian cancer, her friends Lainie Becky and Matthew Weinberg told The Hollywood Reporter.

Riley was a talent/literary manager at Brillstein Entertainment Partners from October 2006 through March 2016, when she joined Lighthouse Management & Media, which had just been launched by founder and CEO Aleen Keshishian.

“We are devastated by the loss of our colleague and friend Margaret Riley, who was a passionate advocate and champion for artists,” Keshishian said. “We share our deepest condolences and love with her family, friends and clients.”

Riley’s current and former clients over the years have included actors Mark Ruffalo and Bridget Moynahan; CSI creator Anthony Zuiker; directors Susanna Fogel, Stella Meghie and Rj Cutler...

Jennifer Lopez's upcoming movie This Is Me... Now: A Love Story will blend documentary and fantasy, exploring her high-profile love life. The movie will be released on February 16, 2024, along with Lopez's new album of the same name. This Is Me... Now will be told from Lopez's own perspective, incorporating mythological storytelling and personal healing.

The This Is Me... Now: A Love Story trailer unveils Jennifer Lopez's genre-defying new movie. The feature-length project is designed to tie in with her upcoming album This Is Me... Now, with both projects dropping on February 16. The movie will blend documentary and fantasy, exploring Jennifer Lopez's high-profile love life, including her relationship with her two-time boyfriend, now husband, Ben Affleck, who is also set to appear in the movie. Described as being "steeped in mythological storytelling and personal healing," the movie will tell Lopez's story from her own perspective.

Prime Video has now unveiled...

Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie is in hot pursuit of an Oscar nomination, but in the meantime the documentary about the beloved Hollywood star has picked up major awards at the Emmys.

The film directed by Davis Guggenheim won Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Special on Sunday on the second night of the Creative Arts Emmys ceremony in Los Angeles. Guggenheim also won Outstanding Directing for a Documentary/Nonfiction Program; the film’s picture editor, Michael Harte, was honored for his work and composer John Powell won for his score for Still.

The film came into the night with a leading seven nominations — the most of any nonfiction contender — and picked up wins in four of those seven categories.

Davis Guggenheim at the 75th Creative Arts Emmy Awards held at the Peacock Theater at L.A. Live on January 7, 2023 in Los Angeles, California.

In late December, Still: A Michael J.

Warner Bros. Unscripted Television, DC and R.J. Cutler’s production hub This Machine are developing a documentary about the iconic Mad magazine.

Oscar-and Emmy-winning director Jessica Yu will direct the untitled docu about the 71-year-old humor brand.

The feature-length doc will explore the origins of the magazine, as well as its irreverent, independent, and often incisive humor. Yu will also examine how Mad became a staple of American satire for generations and encouraged readers to question authority. Mad magazine, which is owned by DC, has authorized the doc and granted the filmmaking team exclusive access to its archives.

In April Al Jaffee, the cartoonist who gave Mad magazine its iconic back page by creating the publication’s fold-in feature, died at the age of 102. In 1964, Jaffee’s fold-in was featured for the first time in Mad magazine, marking the start of the methodic flip-through that Mad readers would do for decades.

Hybe, the K-pop giant behind bands such as BTS, are looking to manufacture a new girl group and that process will be turned into a Netflix music docuseries.

Hybe teamed with Universal Music’s Geffen Records, the label behind artists such as Nirvana and Sonic Youth, in 2021 to create a new U.S. girl group using its K-pop training and development system.

That initiative – Hybe x Geffen Global Girl Group Audition – saw more than 120,000 submissions from young women around the world and has now been whittled down to 20 contestants competing for a spot in the group.

Netflix is now turning this years-long process into an untitled documentary series to launch in 2024.

The series will be directed by Nadia Hallgren, who directed Netflix’s Michelle Obama documentary Becoming.

It is produced by Hybe, whose U.S. arm is run by Justin Bieber’s manager Scooter Braun, Interscope Films, the Universal Music...

Matador Content co-founder Todd Lubin has been named president of unscripted at Boat Rocker Studios. He’ll be taking over the role from Jay Peterson, whose exit was also announced on Thursday. HIs appointment is effective immediately.

Peterson will remain with Boat Rocker as an executive producer for several months, to support the transition to Lubin and delivery of current projects. In his new role, Lubin will lead the Company’s creative unscripted efforts, including series and documentaries, overseeing Boat Rocker’s Matador Content, Maven, and Proper Television production shingles. Based in Los Angeles, Lubin will report directly to Boat Rocker Media chairmen David Fortier and Ivan Schneeberg.

“Todd is already an established creative leader within the Boat Rocker unscripted division. His history with Matador and Boat Rocker, and his deep experience as an unscripted producer and executive, will help ensure a seamless transition within our unscripted division as Todd...

There’s change at the top of Boat Rocker’s unscripted division.

The division, which includes production companies Matador Content, Maven, and Proper Television and is behind Discovery+’s Downey’s Dream Cars and Hulu’s Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields, has named Todd Lubin as President with Jay Peterson stepping down.

The pair co-founded Matador Content, which is also behind Paramount+’s Lip Sync Battle and Apple’s Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry, in 2013 and it was acquired by Boat Rocker in 2018.

Peterson took over running Boat Rocker Studios, Unscripted in a restructure in 2020. He will remain as an exec producer over the next few months. Lubin, who was previously showrunner of NBC’s The Biggest Loser, has now been named President and will report to Boat Rocker bosses David Fortier and Ivan Schneeberg.

“Todd is already an established creative leader within the Boat Rocker unscripted division. His...

Last Wednesday, Rolling Stone and Variety made more news regarding their upcoming Truth Seekers Summit, presented by Showtime on August 2nd. The two brands announced a digital content hub for attendees, featuring the kind of reporting that’s at the heart of the event’s celebration of hard-nosed journalism and documentary and investigative storytelling. Seeking to dig “underneath the surface to reveal what’s hidden, what happened and what might come next,” the content hub will showcase stories on documentaries of all genres by both Rolling Stone and Variety.

One...

On Wednesday, Rolling Stone and Variety announced more names and special programming that will appear at the two brands’ annual Truth Seekers Summit, presented by Showtime. Serving as welcomed additions to the August 2nd event, these developments will further bolster an already stacked lineup that will feature keynote and panel discussions led by journalists, documentary filmmakers and cultural trendsetters, whose sole purpose is to spread the gospel of authenticity while bringing truth to light in the stories they tell.

Hollywood and Crime’s host and co-producer, Tracy Pattin, will be...

When you see a documentary about a game-changing pop star, you assume you’re going to get the story of the music, and also a good look at the life, and that there’ll be enough (on both counts) to go around. I was eager to see “Let the Canary Sing,” a documentary portrait of Cyndi Lauper, because it’s directed by Alison Ellwood, who made “The Go-Go’s” a few years back, and that movie had everything: the drama, the trauma, the saga of a total pop-music reset, as we watched the Go-Go’s bust down doors that had been too tightly shut for too long. Cyndi Lauper was no less revolutionary a figure, arriving in the early ’80s, along with Madonna, to announce that we were in the midst of a seismic new definition of what it meant to be a female pop star. The definition was: a star...

Brian Grazer and Ron Howard’s Imagine Entertainment has entered into a strategic partnership with Major League Baseball to create scripted and non-scripted film and television properties.

Under the terms of the multiyear deal, Imagine and MLB will collaborate to develop and produce projects rooted in stories and personalities throughout the league’s robust 150-year history. The partnership will produce programming that taps the expansive MLB film and video archive to cover historical and cultural subjects while leveraging access granted by the league to also profile the captivating storylines around the game today.

“I’ve always been drawn to the drama, high stakes, and emotion of baseball ever since I was kid in the bleachers of Dodger Stadium,” Howard said in a statement. “These also happen to be the very same elements that make for a great movie or television show, which is why Brian, Imagine, and I are so...

Ron Howard and Brian Grazer’s Imagine Entertainment has entered a significant content deal with Major League Baseball, Variety can report exclusively.

The partnership will yield multiple scripted and unscripted projects, the first of which is a documentary feature from noted filmmaker R.J. Cutler following baseball’s 2023 world series.

“I’ve always been drawn to the drama, high stakes, and emotion of baseball ever since I was kid in the bleachers of Dodger Stadium,” Oscar winner Howard told Variety. “These also happen to be the very same elements that make for a great movie or television show, which is why Brian, Imagine and I are so excited to be teaming up with Major League Baseball to bring more of their stories to life.”

MLB will participate in the deal through its eponymous studios label, which creates, produces and consults on original content with multi-platform media and licensing projects that span film,...

The top-to-bottom rebrand of Epix into MGM+ under Amazon’s ownership means an increase in not only scripted series but also documentary content.

R.J. Cutler’s “Murf the Surf: Jewels, Jesus and Mayhem in the USA” is the first of five docuseries that will stream on the new platform in 2023.

About Jack Roland Murphy, an infamous jewel thief turned murderer, “Murf the Surf” was commissioned by Epix three years ago after Imagine Documentaries’ president Sara Bernstein and her former co-president Justin Wilkes pitched the story to Michael Wright, former president of Epix and current head of MGM+. (Wilkes was recently promoted to president of Imagine Entertainment.) After reading a New York Times’ article with the headline “How a Band of Surfer Dudes Pulled Off the Biggest Jewel Heist in N.Y. History,” Bernstein and Wilkes were immediately intrigued.

“It read like an “Ocean’s Eleven” story,” Bernstein says. “So, we sought out Jack Murphy,...

“Murf the Surf,” a four-part docuseries, based on the infamous jewel thief Jack Roland Murphy, will premiere February 5, 2023 on MGM+. It’s written and directed by two-time Emmy winner R.J. Cutler and executive produced by Brian Grazer and Ron Howard.

At a recent screening for the documentary held at The Aster in Los Angeles, Cutler spoke with Deadline’s Matt Carey about the project. “I got a call asking if I had seen an article written in the New York Times,” the director explained. “It was tied to the renovation that was going on to the Museum of Natural History in New York. It told the story of this jewel heist that had taken place in the 1960s, in the wake of the Kennedy assassination. These surfer-dude jewel thieves had captured the public imagination and became nightly news fodder. Americans gathered around the TV to see what was going on with the case.

Mike Prall, Emily Katz to work closely with founder and CEO Jenifer Westphal, president Joe Plummer.

New York-based studio Wavelength, whose credits include Cusp, Athlete A, and The Cave Of Adullam, has hired Mike Prall as head of studios, Emily Katz as head of development.

The executives will be based in New York and arrive at a busy time as the company prepares to open its first international office in London following partnerships with international producers on seven of its 2022 films including Aisha, Radical Dreamer, and The Last Year Of Darkness.

Prall and Katz will work closely with Wavelength founder,...

@1027kiisfm

#KatyPerry tells the story of first hearing BillieEilish’s Ocean Eyes!

Katy Perry has revealed she turned down a chance to work with Billie Eilish as she assumed her music would be “boring”.

The “Waking Up in Vegas” singer said, in a new TikTok post shared by 102.7 Kiis FM, that she was once sent an email saying “Hey, check out this new artist. I’d really like us to work with her.”

Perry told crowd members at what appeared to be an intimate gig: “It was a song called ‘Ocean Eyes’ and it was just a blonde girl, and I was like, ‘Meh, boring.’

The singer said she now considers her decision to be a “huge mistake”.

Eilish released “Ocean Eyes”, which was written and produced by Eilish’s older brother, Finneas O’Connell, in 2016.

It became one of her first hits, and featured on the EP Don’t Smile at Me.

Perry, knowing she messed up considering the global success Eilish has gone on to achieve,...

BFI London Film Festival Adds Trio Of Titles

The BFI London Film Festival (October 5-16) has added Luca Guadagnino’s Bones And All to its 2022 line-up as a special presentation. Further late additions include Billy Eichner’s TIFF breakout LGBTQ comedy Bros and Jafar Panahi’s No Bears. The festival has also revealed the first batch of high-profile speakers booked for its talks programme who will include Noah Baumbach, Mia Hansen-Løve, Alejandro G. Iñárritu, Janelle Monáe, Bill Nighy and Aubrey Plaza.

Talent Group Ymu Expands Into Gaming And Sports Marketing

Global talent agency Ymu Group, which already represents a host of talent in film, TV, literature and music, has expanded its reach into the world of gaming and sports marketing with the acquisition of a majority stake in Digital Sports Mgmt (Dsm). Dsm was founded by Rob Wadsworth and Tom Henderson in 2016 with a focus on sports marketing, entertainment and the gaming industry.

For Selena Gomez, every breath is a breakthrough.

The global pop star spent six years filming documentary “Selena Gomez: My Mind and Me,” which premieres at 2022 AFI Fest before debuting November 4 on AppleTV+. Alek Keshishian (“Madonna: Truth or Dare”) captures Gomez’s 20s before ringing in her 30th birthday.

The official synopsis reads: After years in the limelight, Selena Gomez achieves unimaginable stardom. But just as she reaches a new peak, an unexpected turn pulls her into darkness. This uniquely raw and intimate documentary spans her six-year journey into a new light.

Gomez has sold more than 210 million singles worldwide and amassed over 45 billion global streams of her music throughout her singing career. In 2022, Gomez received a Grammy nomination for her first all-Spanish EP and an Emmy nomination for executive producing the critically acclaimed Hulu series “Only Murders in the Building,” in which she stars opposite Steve Martin and Martin Short.

AppleTV+ has announced the official release date of its long-anticipated documentary feature film, Selena Gomez: My Mind and Me, which is set to premiere globally on the platform on November 4, 2022. The documentary is directed by Alek Keshishian, who also directed the critically acclaimed documentary Madonna: Truth or Dare. The film is the second collaborative project between AppleTV and producers, Lighthouse Management Media and Interscope films, following the Emmy-nominated documentary Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry.

Apple Original Films has landed the global rights to a new documentary feature “Selena Gomez: My Mind and Me,” about the singer, songwriter, actress, producer, entrepreneur and activist, the company announced on Thursday.

The documentary was directed and produced by Alek Keshishian, who directed the most successful documentary of its time – “Madonna: Truth or Dare,” still regarded as one of the most influential films of its genre.

The synopsis is as follows: “After years in the limelight, Selena Gomez achieves unimaginable stardom. But just as she reaches a new peak, an unexpected turn pulls her into darkness. This uniquely raw and intimate documentary spans her six-year journey into a new light.”

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As a recording artist, Gomez has sold more than 210 million singles worldwide and amassed over 45 billion global streams of her music. This year,...

Apple Original Films has landed the global rights to a new documentary feature about singer, songwriter, actress, producer, entrepreneur and activist Selena Gomez, Selena Gomez: My Mind and Me, directed and produced by Alek Keshishian.

The doc focuses on Gomez, who after years in the limelight, achieves unimaginable stardom. But just as she reaches a new peak, an unexpected turn pulls her into darkness. This uniquely raw and intimate documentary spans her six-year journey into a new light.

As a recording artist, Gomez has sold more than 210 million singles worldwide and amassed over 45 billion global streams of her music. This year, she received a Grammy nomination for her first all-Spanish EP and an Emmy nomination for her role in the critically acclaimed series “Only Murders in the Building,” in which she stars opposite Steve Martin and Martin Short.

Keshishian directed the most successful documentary of its time – the iconic, critically...

A two-part documentary film exploring the life and career of the legendary Steve Martin has landed at Apple Original Films.

Martin is working on the docu with Oscar winner Morgan Neville, who directs and produces the as-yet untitled films from A24 and Tremolo Productions. A24 will executive produce alongside Tremolo’s Caitrin Rogers (20 Feet from Stardom).

The film will join Apple’s documentary slate including the four-part Earvin “Magic” Johnson docuseries They Call Me Magic; Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry; The Velvet Underground; Sidney, the upcoming documentary honoring Oscar-winning actor, filmmaker and actor Sidney Poitier and the recently announced untitled feature film about the life of actor and advocate Michael J. Fox.

Martin currently stars in Hulu’s Only Murders In the Building, which has received 17 Emmy nominations at next month’s awards, including outstanding comedy series and lead actor for Martin.

Well excuuuuse me! A documentary on legendary comedian, actor and banjo aficionado Steve Martin is coming to Apple TV+ from Oscar-winning filmmaker Morgan Neville.

Apple Original Films landed the untitled, two-part documentary film that hails from A24 and Tremolo Productions. The film will explore Martin’s life and career, though no other information was provided about the film.

Both parts are directed and produced by Neville. A24 will executive produce alongside Caitrin Rogers (“20 Feet from Stardom”) from Tremolo Productions.

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A24 and Tremolo together worked on the Oscar-winner “20 Feet From Stardom” and more recently on “Val” about the actor Val Kilmer.

Neville’s last feature was “Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain,” and he also directed the TV docs “Watch the Sound With Mark Ronson” and “The Next Thing You Eat.

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Steve Martin has been many things — a comic, an actor, a filmmaker, an author, a musician — and he’ll soon be one more. He’s going to be the subject of a documentary.

Martin is participating in a two-part feature from A24 which is set to be released by Apple TV+. Morgan Neville, who helmed Oscar-winning doc 20 Feet From Stardom as well as Won’t You Be My Neighbor? and dozens of other film and TV projects, is directing and producing. There’s no title or anticipated release date as of yet, but production has been ongoing.

“It’s somebody else’s take,” Martin tells THR of the process. “They found a lot of archival stuff. “They found a photo of my father in 1944 in Germany, touring Our Town with the Uso.”

For as well known as he is, Martin hasn’t...

Exclusive: WME has signed filmmaker R.J. Cutler and his production company This Machine, fresh off the announcement of Cutler’s upcoming documentary on Elton John.

“The agency will work with the award-winning filmmaker – who has made some of the most significant documentaries and television series of the past quarter century – in all areas,” according to Cutler’s PR reps.

Deadline broke the news last week that Disney Original Documentary and Disney+ won the rights to the Elton John feature, to be co-directed by Cutler and John’s life partner David Furnish, in a deal pegged at around 30 million. Goodbye Yellow Brick Road: The Final Elton John Performances And the Years That Made His Legend will include concert performances spanning 50 years, as well as the recording artist’s journals and contemporary footage of his family.

Over the course of a 30-year career,...

R J Cutler will direct the career-spanning film with John’s partner David Furnish.

R J Cutler and David Furnish are to direct a documentary about Elton John for Disney Original Documentary and Disney+, with the studio planning festival exposure and a limited theatrical release before the project’s streaming debut.

Goodbye Yellow Brick Road: The Final Elton John Performances and The Years That Made His Legend will make use of unseen footage of the singer-songwriter in concert over the past 50 years as well as hand-written journals and present-day footage of John (Furnish’s partner) and his family.

The film...

Disney Original Documentary and Disney+ announced today the feature documentary “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road: The Final Elton John Performances and The Years That Made His Legend.” From Academy Award-nominee R.J. Cutler and filmmaker David Furnish, the documentary will serve as the official feature on Elton John, comprised of unseen concert footage of him over the past 50 years, hand-written journals and present-day footage of him and his family. Following a robust festival run and limited theatrical release, the film will be available exclusively on Disney+.

Rooted in Elton John’s “Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour,” the feature documentary film will capture Elton John’s final months on the road, culminating in what promises to be one of the greatest send-offs in rock-and-roll history when John performs his final North American show at Dodger Stadium this upcoming November. The film will also look back at the extraordinary first five years of John’s career when,...

Exclusive: Disney Original Documentary and Disney+ have won the rights to a big feature documentary package, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road: The Final Elton John Performances And the Years That Made His Legend. No one would comment, but we hear the docu, from Academy Award-nominee R.J. Cutler as well as filmmaker (and longtime Elton John partner) David Furnish, sold for about 30 million.

Designed to serve as the official feature on Elton John, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road is comprised of unseen concert footage of him over the past 50 years, hand-written journals and present-day footage of him and his family. The plan for the project is to get a festival run and limited theatrical release and be made available exclusively on Disney+.

At the heart of the documentary is Elton John’s “Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour” as the film will capture Elton John’s final months on the road, culminating in his...

The announcement of winners for the ASCAP Screen Music Awards, being held virtually again for 2022 and announced Monday morning, included revealing the top vote-getters for several Composers’ Choice Awards, including the scores for “Encanto” and “The White Lotus.”

Germaine Franco prevailed for film score of the year for “Encanto.” Cristobal Tapia de Veer won two of these peer-voted awards, for television score of the year and television theme as well, for “The White Lotus. The video game score of the year honor went to Wataru Hokoyama for “Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart.” Triumphing in the documentary score of the year category was Amanda Jones for “Dreamland: The Burning of Black Wall Street.”

Those five Composers’ Choice Awards come on top of ASCAP’s traditional Screen Music Awards, which collect date to honor the most-consumed music of the year in the fields of TV, film and video games, with dozens of winners cited.