Cinelicious has acquired boutique film restoration company High Hat Post Inc. The deal comprises all aspects of High Hat’s business, equipment, and talent, including High Hat principal Craig Rogers as Cinelicious’ lead restoration artist. Rogers brings years of large format film experience to his new roost. During his 12-year tenure at IMAX he was responsible for quality control and supervision of final film recording of over 50 IMAX releases including The Dark Night, Avatar, and the Harry Potter series. As founder of High Hat Post, Rogers has been working on restorations from challenging elements such as 35mm b/w nitrate, and 16mm A-B original camera negative for MacGillivray-Freeman Films’ notable 16mm surf-film library, which will come to Cinelicious as part of the acquisition….Josh Bogdan has been promoted to associate creative director at San Francisco-based creative agency MUH๏ฟฝTAY๏ฟฝZIK | HOF๏ฟฝFER. Bogdan joined MUH๏ฟฝTAY๏ฟฝZIK | HOF๏ฟฝFER in early 2012 as a sr. copywriter….After Homeland’s phenomenal success, Michael Cuesta is directing Kill The Messenger, a Focus Features true-story thriller about Gary Webb, the journalist who bared a CIA link to coke trafficking in the US as a way to funnel money to the Nicaraguan Contras. Webb was subsequently discredited by a smear campaign which ruined him and he eventually committed suicide. Jeremy Renner plays Webb. Cuesta will be available mid to late fall for spots via The Artists Company….Commercial, film and music video director Tom Scharpling—also known as a radio host, comedian, TV writer and producer—has joined Arts & Sciences. His directorial credits include music vidoes for The New Pornographers, Titus Andronicus, Wild Flag, Real Estate, The Ettes and Aimee Mann. For the latter, Scharpling wrote and directed “Labrador,” which was named by TIME magazine as the second best music video of 2012. Scharpling was a writer and an exec producer for the TV series Monk…
Utah Leaders and Locals Rally To Keep Sundance Film Festival In The State
With the 2025 Sundance Film Festival underway, Utah leaders, locals and longtime attendees are making a final push โ one that could include paying millions of dollars โ to keep the world-renowned film festival as its directors consider uprooting.
Thousands of festivalgoers affixed bright yellow stickers to their winter coats that read "Keep Sundance in Utah" in a last-ditch effort to convince festival leadership and state officials to keep it in Park City, its home of 41 years.
Gov. Spencer Cox said previously that Utah would not throw as much money at the festival as other states hoping to lure it away. Now his office is urging the Legislature to carve out $3 million for Sundance in the state budget, weeks before the independent film festival is expected to pick a home for the next decade.
It could retain a small presence in picturesque Park City and center itself in nearby Salt Lake City, or move to another finalist โ Cincinnati, Ohio, or Boulder, Colorado โ beginning in 2027.
"Sundance is Utah, and Utah is Sundance. You can't really separate those two," Cox said. "This is your home, and we desperately hope it will be your home forever."
Last year's festival generated about $132 million for the state of Utah, according to Sundance's 2024 economic impact report.
Festival Director Eugene Hernandez told reporters last week that they had not made a final decision. An announcement is expected this year by early spring.
Colorado is trying to further sweeten its offer. The state is considering legislation giving up to $34 million in tax incentives to film festivals like Sundance through 2036 โ on top of the $1.5 million in funds already approved to lure the Utah festival to its neighboring... Read More