Two Hollywood stars, six NBA players and a hip hop sound track combine to communicate a strong message about AIDS testing in a PSA produced by HBO in association with the NBA, the Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDs and the Kaiser Family Foundation. The PSA runs at www.testing411.org and YouTube and is playing on air at NBA TV, BET and MTV.
The :60 “AIDS Testing PSA” is narrated by Jamie Foxx with Queen Latifah and the NBA stars providing remarks about how important it is to get tested for AIDS. The NBA stars include Richard Jefferson, Lamar Odom, Luke Walton, Samuel Dalembert, Kyle Korver and Marcus Williams.
Testing a microphone provided the theme for the spot. “Testing, testing 1-2, we took it across into AIDS testing,” said Chris Spencer, HBO’s senior vice president/general manager of creative services, who directed the spot.
The spot begins with a shot of a microphone and Jamie Foxx and Queen Latifah saying, “Testing, testing.” Then it moves to the basketball courts, with the NBA stars in action, offering comments on AIDS testing as they take it to the hoop.
The spot was shot in locations around the country to accommodate the cast, from New Jersey, Philadelphia and Los Angeles, where the NBA stars play, to Shreveport, LA, where Queen Latifah was located.
The spot was shot with a wide frame Super 16 mm camera, Spencer said.
“We had really good people and cool shots, but we needed a unifying force to pull it together,” he said. The answer — a hip hop track from Rhythm Cafe/Chicago, the music production company, that was produced by Jim Olen, composed by Stevie Butler, starring hip hop legend Doug E. Fresh as the lead vocalist. The lyrics include, “Get on the ball, get tested,” which unifies the basketball theme with the AIDS message. “We’re doing all we can to get the word out, we wanted something energetic and non-stop to bring home the fact that there’s no fear and no shame in getting tested,” Olen said. “When I heard the track, I knew it would be good,” Spencer said.
The spot began playing on June 13 and was timed to lead up to National HIV Testing Day, June 27. The website provides information on testing options and a database on HIV testing centers.
Netflix Series “The Leopard” Spots Classic Italian Novel, Remakes It As A Sumptuous Period Drama
"The Leopard," a new Netflix series, takes the classic Italian novel by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa and transforms it into a sumptuous period piece showing the struggles of the aristocracy in 19th-century Sicily, during tumultuous social upheavals as their way of life is crumbling around them.
Tom Shankland, who directs four of the eight episodes, had the courage to attempt his own version of what is one of the most popular films in Italian history. The 1963 movie "The Leopard," directed by Luchino Visconti, starring Burt Lancaster, Alain Delon and Claudia Cardinale, won the Palme d'Or in Cannes.
One Italian critic said that it would be the equivalent of a director in the United States taking "Gone with the Wind" and turning it into a series, but Shankland wasn't the least bit intimidated.
He said that he didn't think of anything other than his own passion for the project, which grew out of his love of the book. His father was a university professor of Italian literature in England, and as a child, he loved the book and traveling to Sicily with his family.
The book tells the story of Don Fabrizio Corbera, the Prince of Salina, a tall, handsome, wealthy aristocrat who owns palaces and land across Sicily.
His comfortable world is shaken with the invasion of Sicily in 1860 by Giuseppe Garibaldi, who was to overthrow the Bourbon king in Naples and bring about the Unification of Italy.
The prince's family leads an opulent life in their magnificent palaces with servants and peasants kowtowing to their every need. They spend their time at opulent banquets and lavish balls with their fellow aristocrats.
Shankland has made the series into a visual feast with tables heaped with food, elaborate gardens and sensuous costumes.... Read More