Plum Productions, Santa Monica, has signed Annie Bossingham and Brad Grubaugh of Boss Talent, Venice, Calif., for West Coast representation….French directors Thierry and Didier Poiraud, otherwise known as Poiraud, have wrapped principal photography on their first feature film, The Return of James Bataille (Le Retour de James Bataille), a sci-fi comedy out of their Paris-based company, Entropie Films. The Poiraud brothers plan to start directing commercials again in the U.S. starting in September, via Paranoid Projects@Tool, a division of bicoastal Tool of North America. The division sprung from a cross-representational deal finalized last year between Tool of North America and Entropie Films….This Is TV, New York, has signed Mike McGlynn of Runt, Chicago, for Midwest representation….DP Jeff Cutter has signed with United Talent Agency (UTA), Beverly Hills, Calif., for representation in commercials, music videos and features….DP Michael Mieke has signed with New York Office for spot and music video representation in the U.S. and Europe….DP Maz Makhani is now available exclusively through the Lyons•Sheldon•Prosnit Agency, Los Angeles….DP Jonathan Sela is now available through Innovative Artists, Santa Monica, for commercials and music videos, after completing principal photography on MGM’s Soul Plane for director Jesse Terrero….Cinematographer Vince Toto is again taking on spot and music video assignments via Montana Artists, Santa Monica, after wrapping Batman: Dead End, a film by Sandy Collora, which premiered at the San Diego Comic Convention….
Bill Condon, Jennifer Lopez Unveil “Kiss of the Spider Woman” At Sundance
A lavish, MGM-style musical is not typical Sundance Film Festival fare. But Sunday night Bill Condon brought such a creation—well, part of one—to Park City, Utah, with his adaptation of "Kiss of the Spider Woman," starring Jennifer Lopez.
Audiences broke out in spontaneous applause during the screening for Lopez's song and dance numbers. She plays an old Hollywood screen siren in a movie-within-the movie. The packed Eccles Theater also gave Lopez, wearing a glittery spiderweb themed frock, a standing ovation after the show.
"I've been waiting for this moment my whole life," Lopez said.
The story, which revolves around the conversations between two cellmates in an Argentine prison, was first a novel by Manuel Puig in 1976 and has been adapted for stage and screen over the years. A 1985 film adaptation starred William Hurt and Raul Julia. Hurt won an Oscar for his performance. On Broadway, it won multiple Tony Awards.
Condon wrote and directed this new version, which is seeking a distributor. Diego Luna plays an imprisoned revolutionary Valentin Arregui, whose new cellmate Luis Molina (Tonatiuh) loves movies, celebrity and glamour and enthusiastically recounts the story of a favorite movie musical, called "Kiss of the Spider Woman" to Valentin, giving them and the audience a break from their bleak reality.
While the film has memorable moments of escapist spectacle, it also delves into serious topics of gender identity. Molina tells Valentin that they don't feel like a man or a woman—which Valentin finds odd at first but grows to understand.
Before the screening, Condon said that one of the things the movie is about is "the attempt to bridge the incredible differences that separate us so often." He quoted President... Read More