Michael Crapser has joined Santa Monica-based visual effects studio Moving Pixels as partner/executive producer. He will work closely with Moving Pixels’ principal/creative director Tony Smoller. Crapser comes over from Rhythm & Hues Studios, Los Angeles, where he served as executive producer of its commercial live-action and CG divisions. As earlier reported (4/12, p. 1), Oliver Fuselier was recently named executive producer of Rhythm & Hues’ live action spot division, which operates under the new Rhythm Live banner……Another former Rhythm & Hues staffer, editor Nate Hubbard, has left that studio to launch Migrant Editors, a Manhattan Beach, Calif.-based shop that specializes in editing on location. Hubbard spent the past six years at Rhythm & Hues…. Director Glenn Ashley, formerly with since closed OneSuch Films, has come aboard New York-headquartered The Joneses. Prior to OneSuch, Ashley served as a creative director at agency Temerlin McClain, Irving, Texas….Sound designer Claude Letessier has joined music/sound design house stimmüng, Santa Monica…. Editorial house Fresh has opened, with founding editors Megan Bee, Ben Darling and Bipasha Shom, and executive producer Tommy Murov. The new venture is affiliated with Spot Welders and is based in the same Venice, Calif.-based complex which houses that longstanding editorial company. Fresh, however, is a totally separate shop and has just kicked off with a couple of projects for Young & Rubicam, Irvine, Calif…..New York-based audio post facil-ity Tonic has added two new senior audio engineers: Ed Campbell and Bill Cavanaugh. In another move at the company, former audio assistant Ozzie Sutherland has been promoted to audio engineer….Design director Jeremy Lasky, editorial director Brendan Werner and effects director Daniel Gonzalez—all former R/GA broadcast studio staffers—have teamed to form boutique post house Perception….3-D animator/visual effects artist Mark Glaser has launched Sway Digital Studio, a 3-D animation/digital effects studio. The new shop is currently housed in interim quarters in Pacific Palisades, Calif….VideoWorks, New York, has been renamed Aptinet, and will now specialize in agency test commercials….
India’s Official Oscar Entry, Which Failed To Make The Cut, Tops Bollywood Awards Show With 10 Wins
The film that was submitted as India's official Oscar entry but failed to make the final list of nominees has swept the International Indian Film Academy Awards, which recognize outstanding work in the country's film industry.
Director Kiran Rao's critically acclaimed "Laapataa Ladies" — renamed "Lost Ladies" for its Oscar campaign — emerged as the biggest winner at the 2025 IIFA Awards, bagging 10 wins, including best picture and best direction.
The 2023 comedy is about two veiled brides who are accidentally swapped during a train ride, and tackles issues of patriarchy and gender roles, a shift from decades of male-centered mainstream Indian movies.
"It's a rare privilege to win an award for a film like 'Laapataa Ladies.' It's been a wonderful night. It's a rare privilege to make a film like this," Rao said in her acceptance speech.
Rao's film — a rare departure from most Bollywood films, which typically feature song-and-dance routines, violence and melodrama — also won in categories for best story, best screenplay and best actress in a leading role.
The annual ceremony of IIFA began in the western city of Jaipur on Saturday and concluded Sunday.
Indian cinema's most recognizable names took part in the glitzy event and Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan and actor Shahid Kapoor were among those who performed at the ceremony. The event was hosted by veteran director and producer Karan Johar and actor Kartik Aaryan.
The awards show also presents an opportunity for Indian celebrities to showcase their fashion, and this year was no exception. Notable figures such as Madhuri Dixit, Katrina Kaif and Kareena Kapoor Khan displayed their fashion choices on the green carpet.
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