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    Jessica Chastain Named Honorary Chair For 2016 Spirit Awards

    By SHOOTUpdated:No Comments1912 Views
    Jessica Chastain in a scene from "Interstellar" (photo from Paramount Pictures).
    LOS ANGELES --

    Josh Welsh, president of Film Independent, announced that actress Jessica Chastain (The Martian, A Most Violent Year, Interstellar, Tree of Life) has been named Honorary Chair for this year’s Spirit Awards. Chastain was nominated for a Spirit Award for her work in Take Shelter (2012) and A Most Violent Year (2015). Past Chairs include Kerry Washington, Tom Cruise, Benecio Del Toro, Angela Bassett, Jeremy Renner, Salma Hayek, Halle Berry, Robert Duvall, Jodie Foster, Danny Glover, Harvey Keitel, Nicole Kidman, Ang Lee, Julianne Moore, Martin Scorsese and John Travolta.

    Also announced today, actors John Boyega (Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens, Attack the Block, The Circle, Imperial Dreams) and Elizabeth Olsen (I Saw the Light, Old Boy, Silent House, Martha Marcy May Marlene) will present the 2016 nominees in a press conference at 10am PT on Tuesday, November 24, at The W Hollywood. The 2016 Film Independent Spirit Awards will be broadcast exclusively on IFC on February 27, 2016, live at 2pm PT/5pm ET.

    “We’re so honored to have Jessica as our Honorary Chair at this year’s Spirit Awards,” said Welsh. “As a past Spirit Award nominee and someone whose work as an actor and producer embodies the qualities we celebrate at Film Independent, I can’t think of a more suitable Honorary Chair for this exciting celebration of artist-driven filmmaking. Our press conference hosts are also great friends of Film Independent. John Boyega’s Attack the Block had a Gala presentation at the LA Film Festival in 2011 and Olsen is a past Spirit Award nominee for Martha Marcy May Marlene (2012).”

    This year marks the 31st edition of the awards show that celebrates the best of independent film. Announced earlier this month, Joel Gallen of Tenth Planet Productions returns for his second year as executive producer of the show held in its usual tent on the beach in Santa Monica, in a new location this year just north of the Santa Monica Pier. Producer Shawn Davis returns for his 14th show and Rick Austin returns for his second year as producer.

    Spirit Awards are given out in the following categories: Best Feature, Best First Feature, Best First Screenplay, Best Director, Best Screenplay, John Cassavetes Award (given to the best feature made for a budget under $500,000), Best Male Lead, Best Female Lead, Best Supporting Male, Best Supporting Female, Best Cinematography, Best International Film, Best Documentary and Best Editing. The Filmmaker Awards include the Piaget Producers Award, the Truer Than Fiction Award and the Kiehl’s Someone to Watch Award.

    In addition to celebrating the broad spectrum of independent filmmaking, the Spirit Awards is also the primary fundraiser for Film Independent’s year-round programs, which cultivate the careers of emerging filmmakers and promote diversity in the industry.

    Category:News
    Tags:Film Independent Spirit AwardsJessica Chastain



    Apple and Google Face UK Investigation Into Mobile Browser Dominance

    Saturday, November 23, 2024

    Apple and Google aren't giving consumers a genuine choice of mobile web browsers, a British watchdog said Friday in a report that recommends they face an investigation under new U.K. digital rules taking effect next year.

    The Competition and Markets Authority took aim at Apple, saying the iPhone maker's tactics hold back innovation by stopping rivals from giving users new features like faster webpage loading. Apple does this by restricting progressive web apps, which don't need to be downloaded from an app store and aren't subject to app store commissions, the report said.

    "This technology is not able to fully take off on iOS devices," the watchdog said in a provisional report on its investigation into mobile browsers that it opened after an initial study concluded that Apple and Google effectively have a chokehold on "mobile ecosystems."

    The CMA's report also found that Apple and Google manipulate the choices given to mobile phone users to make their own browsers "the clearest or easiest option."

    And it said that the a revenue-sharing deal between the two U.S. Big Tech companies "significantly reduces their financial incentives" to compete in mobile browsers on Apple's iOS operating system for iPhones.

    Both companies said they will "engage constructively" with the CMA.

    Apple said it disagreed with the findings and said it was concerned that the recommendations would undermine user privacy and security.

    Google said the openness of its Android mobile operating system "has helped to expand choice, reduce prices and democratize access to smartphones and apps" and that it's "committed to open platforms that empower consumers."

    It's the latest move by regulators on both sides of the Atlantic to crack down on the... Read More

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