"Gravity" director teams with J.J. Abrams to executive producer "Believe" series
By Lynn Elber, Television Writer
LOS ANGELES (AP) --Oscar-winning director Alfonso Cuaron was looking for an anti-"Gravity" follow up to his blockbuster space film, and he found it with a rare excursion into television.
Cuaron and sci-fi auteur J.J. Abrams ("Lost," the "Star Trek" movies) are executive producers of "Believe," a drama about a child whose supernatural powers put her and the world at risk.
The premise came to him while he waited during "the endless process of special effects" on "Gravity," Cuaron said at a media event.
"Well, first of all, I wanted to do something in which people were not floating," Cuaron said, drawing laughs.
"I wanted to do something more grounded, and we wanted to do it with real people, real locations," he continued. "And I wanted to do something really exciting, but, at the same time, something that would be highly emotional."
He recounted sharing the idea with Abrams and his reaction: "Wow."
The pair met more than two decades ago and, Abrams said, "I've wanted to work with him desperately ever since. I was a huge fan of every movie that he made, and each one made me more and more desperate to try and figure this out."
When Cuaron contacted him with the idea for "Believe," Abrams said, it created the opportunity for him and his company, Bad Robot Productions.
Johnny Sequoyah stars as Bo, a 10-year-old who appears to have won the special-gifts lottery at birth: She can levitate, has the power of telekinesis, can control nature and see the future.
But she can't control or understand her powers and is at risk from those who would use them to conquer Earth. Delroy Lindo co-stars as Bo's protector, with Jack McLaughlin as a wrongfully imprisoned death row inmate enlisted in the effort.
The cast also includes Jamie Chung and Kyle MacLachlan. A preview airs at 10 p.m. EDT Monday, with the show debuting in its 9 p.m. EDT Sunday slot March 16.
Cuaron has dabbled lightly in TV in years past, but big-screen projects like "Gravity," ''Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" and "Children of Men" have been his focus.
He shepherded "Gravity" with Sandra Bullock and George Clooney to a leading seven Oscar trophies March 2. Among them was the best director award for Cuaron, with the Mexican filmmaker becoming the category's first Latino winner.
Oscar dazzle and box office grosses aside — "Gravity" pulled in more than $500 million internationally in 2013 — cast members said it was Cuaron himself who drew them to "Believe." He directed the series' pilot.
"The things that Alfonso said creatively were very exciting to me," said Lindo. "So from my standpoint it was not necessarily a no-brainer, but it was certainly very exciting, the prospect of working with him on this project."
Eleanor Adds Director Candice Vernon To Its Roster For Spots and Branded Content
Director Candice Vernon has joined production house Eleanor for U.S. representation spanning commercials and branded content. She has already wrapped several jobs at Eleanor, which waited to announce her until they had a body of work together.
Via Eleanor, Vernon made history as the first Black director on a Febreze commercial. The “Small Spaces” campaign marks a major departure from Febreze’s typical blue-and-white world. The home of the “Revolving Door” commercial is a beautiful array of bold sunset hues, African prints, and African art.
Vernon said, “I asked myself, what feels right to me? What feels new? I wanted to bring an essence of not just Black Americans but the full diaspora. I wanted to make a statement that we’re not a monolith.”
Following the success of the “Small Spaces” campaign, Febreze brought Vernon back for a comedy-infused trifecta exploring the hilarious situations that call for an air freshening hero.
Febreze Brand VP Angelica Matthews said, “About two years ago, we realized the consumers that were the most loyal to Febreze were the African American consumers. And the more we learned, the more we realized the richness that we were really missing. So we said we have to go beyond just Black casting, we need to get Black directors that truly understand the culture that truly understand how to bring authentic performances out on screen. We really looked around the industry and noticed there’s actually a shortage of African American directors who have experience doing commercials. When we all saw Candice’s reel, we could all tell the passion for the craft, passion for really trying to help us from where we are to where we’re trying to go.”
Vernon brings a unique lens to... Read More