Vanity Fair's 2014 Hollywood Issue Cover, Close Up & Behind The Scenes.

On February 11th, The 20th Hollywood Issue of Vanity Fair hits the newsstands. Photographed by Annie Leibovitz, the magazine celebrates a year of spectacular film with a group of distinguished actors on the cover as it has done annually for the past two decades.

Left half of the full shot:

Right half of the full shot:


This is the most racially diverse cover ever for the annual Hollywood Issue, which includes six actors of color - a nod to both Hollywood's embrace of more racially diverse films and roles as well as to progress for Vanity Fair who has been criticized in the past for being both "too white' and 'too sexist." Of the 19 previous Hollywood Issues, the majority of actors gracing the covers have been white, although occasionally an asian, latino and/or black actor has been featured among the group. But to have six black actors on the cover is a welcome record for Vanity Fair.

The cover as it appears closed and the full fold-out:



The cover, a three-panel foldout, features Oscar nominees Julia Roberts (August: Osage County), Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave), Jared Leto (Dallas Buyers Club), and Lupita Nyong’o (12 Years a Slave), as well as Idris Elba (Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom), George Clooney (Gravity), Michael B. Jordan (Fruitvale Station), Naomie Harris (Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom), Brie Larson (Short Term 12), Chadwick Boseman (42), Margot Robbie (The Wolf of Wall Street), and Léa Seydoux (Blue Is the Warmest Color).

Individual close-ups:








Some still shots from behind the scenes at the photoshoot:




A video of the photoshoot:


The magazine will be on national newsstands on February 11.

Vanity Fair

11 Very Short Films, Each With One Line. Making A Scene Directed by Janusz Kaminski.

For the New York Times Magazine Movie Issue, 11 of the year’s best big-screen performers (Cate Blanchett, Bradley Cooper, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Adèle Exarchopoulos, Greta Gerwig, Oscar Isaac, Michael B. Jordan, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Robert Redford, Forest Whitaker and Oprah Winfrey) deliver one line in 11 original very short films directed by Oscar-winning cinematographer  Janusz Kaminski.

Making A Scene: Cate Blanchett:


Making A Scene: Oprah Winfrey:


Making A Scene: Robert Redford:


Only the three above were available via youtube. The remainder are shown below via the New York Times. My apologies for their small size.

Making A Scene: Bradley Cooper:

Making A Scene: Oscar Issac:

Making A Scene: Adèle Exarchopoulos:

Making A Scene: Greta Gerwig:

Making A Scene: Michael B. Jordan:

Making A Scene: Forest Whitaker:

Making A Scene: Chiwetel Ejiofor:


And lastly, Behind-the-Scenes Look: The Making of 'Making a Scene':

Hollywood Star Charts Make Cinema Celestial.

Dorothy has done it again. Their new Hollywood Star Charts - available in four different editions - celebrate some of the most culturally significant films and actors to have graced the silver screen since 1927.

Choose from the Golden Age star chart (limited or open edition) or Modern Day star chart (limited or open edition) depending on your favorite cinematic era. Both re-imagine constellations as American films and re-name the stars that make up the clusters after the Hollywood greats that appeared in them. And yes, they ship worldwide.

Hollywood Star Chart: Golden Age - Original Open Edition



The Golden Age version of our Hollywood Star Chart features constellations named after some of the most culturally significant films to have appeared on the silver screen since 1927 - 1960's. The stars that make up the clusters are the Hollywood stars that appeared in them.



The chart is based on the night sky over Los Angeles on October 6th 1927 - the release date of Al Jolson's 'The Jazz Singer', the first feature-length motion picture with synchronized dialogue which heralded a new era for cinema and the decline of the silent film.



The 62 films featured include those chosen for preservation in the US National Film Registry due to their cultural, historical, or aesthetic significance; Academy Award winners; and a few personal favourites. Films include King Kong, The Wizard of Oz, It's a Wonderful Life, Gone with the Wind, Casablanca and Rebel without a Cause



An A-Z key of featured actors lists their Academy Award nomination dates and the position of their star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

2 colour litho print on 120gsm uncoated art paper
H80 x W60cm
£25 (plus P&P)
BUY IT HERE

Hollywood Star Chart: Golden Age - Signed Limited Edition (Gold Metallic)



The Golden Age version of our Hollywood Star Chart features constellations named after some of the most culturally significant films to have appeared on the silver screen since 1927 - 1960's. The stars that make up the clusters are the Hollywood stars that appeared in them.



The chart is based on the night sky over Los Angeles on October 6th 1927 - the release date of Al Jolson's 'The Jazz Singer', the first feature-length motion picture with synchronized dialogue which heralded a new era for cinema and the decline of the silent film.



The 62 films featured include those chosen for preservation in the US National Film Registry due to their cultural, historical, or aesthetic significance; Academy Award winners; and a few personal favourites. Films include King Kong, The Wizard of Oz, It's a Wonderful Life, Gone with the Wind, Casablanca and Rebel without a Cause.



An A-Z key of featured actors lists their Academy Award nomination dates and the position of their star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.



1 colour (metallic gold) litho print on 120gsm Keaykolour Navy Blue uncoated paper
H80 x W60cm
Limited Edition signed and stamped litho prints cost £100 each plus P&P.
The print run is limited to only 350 copies.
BUY IT HERE

Hollywood Star Chart: Modern Day - Signed Limited Edition (Silver Metallic)



The Modern Day version of our Hollywood Star Chart features constellations named after some of the most culturally significant films to have appeared on the silver screen since 1960 - present day. The stars that make up the clusters are the Hollywood stars that appeared in them.



The chart is based on the night sky over New York on June 16th 1960 - the date of the first showing of Hitchcock's 'Psycho' at the DeMille Theater. With its new approach to storytelling, characterisation and violence it is seen as a key movie in the start of the post-classical era of Hollywood.



The 108 films featured include those chosen for preservation in the US National Film Registry due to their cultural, historical, or aesthetic significance; Academy Award winners; and a few personal favourites. Films include Easy Rider, Bonnie and Clyde, The Exorcist, The Godfather, Chinatown, Star Wars, Pulp Fiction and Avatar.

An A-Z key of featured actors lists their Academy Award nomination dates and the position of their star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

1 colour (metallic silver) litho print on 120gsm Keaykolour Jet Black uncoated paper
H80 x W60cm
Limited Edition signed and stamped litho prints cost £100 each plus P&P. The print run is limited to only 350 copies.
BUY IT HERE

Hollywood Star Chart: Modern Day - Original Open Edition



The Modern Day version of our Hollywood Star Chart features constellations named after some of the most culturally significant films to have appeared on the silver screen since 1960 - present day. The stars that make up the clusters are the Hollywood stars that appeared in them.



The chart is based on the night sky over New York on June 16th 1960 - the date of the first showing of Hitchcock's 'Psycho' at the DeMille Theater. With its new approach to storytelling, characterisation and violence it is seen as a key movie in the start of the post-classical era of Hollywood.



The 108 films featured include those chosen for preservation in the US National Film Registry due to their cultural, historical, or aesthetic significance; Academy Award winners; and a few personal favourites. Films include Easy Rider, Bonnie and Clyde, The Exorcist, The Godfather, Chinatown, Star Wars, Pulp Fiction and Avatar.



An A-Z key of featured actors lists their Academy Award nomination dates and the position of their star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.



2 colour litho print on 120gsm uncoated art paper
H80 x W60cm
Original open edition litho print for £25 plus P&P
BUY IT HERE

all images courtesy of We Are Dorothy

The Walking Dead Guitars & Accessories From Peavey With Artwork By Charlie Aldard.

A big hit at the Long Beach Guitar Expo and The NAMM 2013 Show was the newly licensed product line from Peavey Electronics® featuring graphics from The Walking Dead, the award-winning comic and TV show.

Forget Pitching to Hollywood. Zach Braff Raises $1.9 Million in 2 Days on Kickstarter.

Actor-director Zach Braff is killing it on Kickstarter. He has forgone traditional ways of getting Hollywood backing and has raised $1.9 million (and counting) in two days on the crowdsourcing platform, for "Wish I Was Here," his follow-up to "Garden State." His goal was to reach $2 million in funding in a month.



above: Zach wrote the move with his brother Adam last summer.

His pitch on Kickstarter launched two days ago, April 24th and as of 7:30pm April 26th (Pacific Time) he has raised $1,916,889 from 27,135 backers. He still has 27 days to reach his $2,000,000 goal, which he obviously will surpass.

His earnest and likeable video pitch on Kickstarter has appearances by Jim Parsons, Donald Faison and Chris Hardwick:


Cinematographer Larry Sher, who shot Zach's first film, Garden State, as well as the hangover franchise, has agreed to shoot "Wish I Was Here":


Here is a drawing of the film's characters by Colin Fix (the film in NOT animated):


To get all the details about the film or to become a supporter and see what goodies various pledges will get you, visit Zach's Kickstarter project.

The 85th Oscar Nominees Have Been Announced - And Here They Are. The Entire Official Nominee List.

BEST PICTURE
•Amour (TBD, Producer)
•Argo (Grant Heslov, Ben Affleck and George Clooney, Producers)
•Beasts of the Southern Wild (Dan Janvey, Josh Penn and Michael Gottwald, Producers)
•Django Unchained (Stacey Sher, Reginald Hudlin and Pilar Savone, Producers)
•Les Misérables (Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Debra Hayward and Cameron Mackintosh, Producers)
•Life of Pi (Gil Netter, Ang Lee and David Womark, Producers)
•Lincoln (Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy, Producers)
•Silver Linings Playbook (Donna Gigliotti, Bruce Cohen and Jonathan Gordon, Producers)
•Zero Dark Thirty (Mark Boal, Kathryn Bigelow and Megan Ellison, Producers)

ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
•Bradley Cooper (Silver Linings Playbook)
•Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln)
•Hugh Jackman (Les Misérables)
•Joaquin Phoenix (The Master)
•Denzel Washington (Flight)

ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
•Alan Arkin (Argo)
•Robert De Niro (Silver Linings Playbook)
•Philip Seymour Hoffman (The Master)
•Tommy Lee Jones (Lincoln)
•Christoph Waltz (Django Unchained)

ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
•Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty)
•Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook)
•Emmanuelle Riva (Amour)
•Quvenzhané Wallis (Beasts of the Southern Wild)
•Naomi Watts (The Impossible)

ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
•Amy Adams (The Master)
•Sally Field (Lincoln)
•Anne Hathaway (Les Misérables)
•Helen Hunt (The Sessions)
•Jacki Weaver (Silver Linings Playbook)

ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
•Brave (Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman)
•Frankenweenie (Tim Burton)
•ParaNorman (Sam Fell and Chris Butler)
•The Pirates! Band of Misfits (Peter Lord)
•Wreck-It Ralph (Rich Moore)

CINEMATOGRAPHY
•Anna Karenina (Seamus McGarvey)
•Django Unchained (Robert Richardson)
•Life of Pi (Claudio Miranda)
•Lincoln (Janusz Kaminski)
•Skyfall (Roger Deakins)

COSTUME DESIGN
•Anna Karenina (Jacqueline Durran)
•Les Misérables (Paco Delgado)
•Lincoln (Joanna Johnston)
•Mirror Mirror (Eiko Ishioka)
•Snow White and the Huntsman (Colleen Atwood)

DIRECTING
•Amour (Michael Haneke)
•Beasts of the Southern Wild (Benh Zeitlin)
•Life of Pi (Ang Lee)
•Lincoln (Steven Spielberg)
•Silver Linings Playbook (David O. Russell)

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
•5 Broken Cameras (Emad Burnat and Guy Davidi)
•The Gatekeepers (TBD)
•How to Survive a Plague (TBD)
•The Invisible War (TBD)
•Searching for Sugar Man (TBD)

DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT
•Inocente (Sean Fine and Andrea Nix Fine)
•Kings Point (Sari Gilman and Jedd Wider)
•Mondays at Racine (Cynthia Wade and Robin Honan)
•Open Heart (Kief Davidson and Cori Shepherd Stern)
•Redemption (Jon Alpert and Matthew O’Neill)

FILM EDITING
•Argo (William Goldenberg)
•Life of Pi (Tim Squyres)
•Lincoln (Michael Kahn)
•Silver Linings Playbook (Jay Cassidy and Crispin Struthers)
•Zero Dark Thirty (Dylan Tichenor and William Goldenberg)

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
•Amour (Austria)
•Kon-Tiki (Norway)
•No (Chile)
•A Royal Affair (Denmark)
•War Witch (Canada)

MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
•Hitchcock (Howard Berger, Peter Montagna and Martin Samuel)
•The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Peter Swords King, Rick Findlater and Tami Lane)
•Les Misérables (Lisa Westcott and Julie Dartnell)

MUSIC (Original Score)
•Anna Karenina (Dario Marianelli)
•Argo (Alexandre Desplat)
•Life of Pi (Mychael Danna)
•Lincoln (John Williams)
•Skyfall (Thomas Newman)

MUSIC (Original Song)
•Before My Time - Chasing Ice (Music and Lyric by J. Ralph)
•Everybody Needs A Best Friend - Ted (Music by Walter Murphy, Lyric by Seth MacFarlane)
•Pi’s Lullaby - Life of Pi (Music by Mychael Danna, )Lyric by Bombay Jayashri
•Skyfall - Skyfall (Music and Lyric by Adele Adkins and Paul Epworth)
•Suddenly - Les Misérables (Music by Claude-Michel Schönberg, Lyric by Herbert Kretzmer and Alain Boublil)

PRODUCTION DESIGN
•Anna Karenina (Production Design: Sarah Greenwood,Set Decoration: Katie Spencer)
•The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Production Design: Dan Hennah, Set Decoration: Ra Vincent and Simon Bright)
•Les Misérables (Production Design: Eve Stewart, Set Decoration: Anna Lynch-Robinson)
•Life of Pi (Production Design: David Gropman, Set Decoration: Anna Pinnock)
•Lincoln (Production Design: Rick Carter, Set Decoration: Jim Erickson)

SHORT FILM (ANIMATED)
•Adam and Dog (Minkyu Lee)
•Fresh Guacamole (PES) See this here!
•Head over Heels (Timothy Reckart and Fodhla Cronin O’Reilly)
•Maggie Simpson in “The Longest Daycare” (David Silverman)
•Paperman (John Kahrs)

SHORT FILM (LIVE ACTION)
•Asad (Bryan Buckley and Mino Jarjoura)
•Buzkashi Boys (Sam French and Ariel Nasr)
•Curfew (Shawn Christensen)
•Death of a Shadow/Dood van een Schaduw (Tom Van Avermaet and Ellen De Waele)
•Henry (Yan England)

SOUND EDITING
•Argo (Erik Aadahl and Ethan Van der Ryn)
•Django Unchained (Wylie Stateman)
•Life of Pi (Eugene Gearty and Philip Stockton)
•Skyfall (Per Hallberg and Karen Baker Landers)
•Zero Dark Thirty (Paul N.J. Ottosson)

SOUND MIXING
•Argo (John Reitz, Gregg Rudloff and Jose Antonio Garcia)
•Les Misérables (Andy Nelson, Mark Paterson and Simon Hayes)
•Life of Pi (Ron Bartlett, D.M. Hemphill and Drew Kunin)
•Lincoln (Andy Nelson, Gary Rydstrom and Ronald Judkins)
•Skyfall (Scott Millan, Greg P. Russell and Stuart Wilson)

VISUAL EFFECTS
•The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Joe Letteri, Eric Saindon, David Clayton and R. Christopher White)
•Life of Pi (Bill Westenhofer, Guillaume Rocheron, Erik-Jan De Boer and Donald R. Elliott)
•Marvel’s The Avengers (Janek Sirrs, Jeff White, Guy Williams and Dan Sudick)
•Prometheus (Richard Stammers, Trevor Wood, Charley Henley and Martin Hill)
•Snow White and the Huntsman (Cedric Nicolas-Troyan, Philip Brennan, Neil Corbould and Michael Dawson)

WRITING (Adapted Screenplay)
•Argo (Screenplay by Chris Terrio)
•Beasts of the Southern Wild (Screenplay by Lucy Alibar & Benh Zeitlin)
•Life of Pi (Screenplay by David Magee)
•Lincoln (Screenplay by Tony Kushner)
•Silver Linings Playbook (Screenplay by David O. Russell)

WRITING (Original Screnplay )
•Amour (Written by Michael Haneke)
•Django Unchained (Written by Quentin Tarantino)
•Flight (Written by John Gatins)
•Moonrise Kingdom (Written by Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola)
•Zero Dark Thirty (Written by Mark Boal)

The Oscars air on ABC, Sunday, February 4th. For More info, visit Oscars.org

Artists Design 16 Special Movie Posters You Can Tear-Off and Take- Away For Quentin Tarantino and RZA's Upcoming The Man With The Iron Fists.

In this unique promotion, fans get to have the opportunity to take home a piece of the upcoming new film presented by Quentin Tarantino and the first directed by RZA. Graphic artists from around the world have united to create a unique 16-piece tear-off and take-away outdoor poster series that promotes the new action-adventure movie, The Man With the Iron Fists. Details as to how you can get your hands on one are at the end of the post.


above: RZA directing Russell Crowe on the set of The Man With The Iron Fists

The mere mention of Tarantino's movie that puts the F-U in kung fu was enough to inspire this eclectic group of talented artists to offer their poster interpretations of the film.

The result is a revolutionary collection of beautiful, stylized, provocative art created by a group of designers as varied as the posters themselves. From a retired Japanese woodblock printer and an independent South African illustrator to a man from Detroit who makes band posters with Sharpies, each artist injected his or her unique sensibility into this innovative campaign that aims to break the mold of traditional advertising.

Below are all 16 posters and a bit about each artist.

YASUSHI ONO:


Yasushi Ono (Born 1947) of Susaki City, Kochi Prefecture, Japan, is a retired government worker who has been practicing Hanga (Japanese woodblock printing) for over 50 years. He is entirely self-taught and honed his woodblock carving skills designing a unique New Year’s card for his family every year. He is now considered a master of his field. Ono works out of his home.

SHAWN KNIGHT:

Shawn Knight is a graphic designer from Detroit, Michigan. His work is predominately collage or illustration based and often features hand painted typography. Shawn creates his drawings with Sharpie markers and cheap copy paper, just as he did when he started making flyers back in high school. His influences come from his favorite bands’ record covers: artists such as Raymond Pettibone, Winston Smith, Pushead, and H.R. Giger.

MARGARET BERG:

Margaret Berg (or Magrikie Berg in her native Afrikaans), was born and raised in South Africa. In 2000, she left her beloved country to pursue her creative passion and continue her studies in Los Angeles. Currently, she is an independent art director and illustrator with a flair for the quirky. Her hope and passion is to bring joy and love to everyday life with whatever she creates.

CHAD ROBERTSON:

Western Project artist Chad Robertson has gained critical acclaim for his technique of combining digital, video, and print photography into a multi-layered oil painting. He has shown nationally and internationally in Seattle, New York, London, Stockholm, and Munich. His work has been featured numerous times in The LA Times as well as in LA Weekly, Whitehot Magazine, The Huffington Post, and Anthem Magazine. Recent exhibitions include "Disparate Collectives" which opened at Western Project in 2011. Robertson treats his images equally, employing a similar layering and patterning to imply the interconnectedness of events occurring. It is a conceptual as well as philosophical view: no hierarchy equals all happening, all together.

JOSHUA ANDREW BELANGER:

Joshua Andrew Belanger lives and works out of his studio in Southern New Hampshire.
Collecting comics and conspiracy theories, he spends the night illustrating for bands, magazines, books, skate decks, gig posters and graphic novels, but the day walking his hound dog around the battle torn foothills of the White Mountains. Raised by Wolverine and Todd McFarlanes Spawn, his illustrations focus on high action and intensity with focus on the narrative. Joshua strives to hone his craft and achieve illustration transcendence, through alien abduction... or hard work, which ever comes first.

IAN KELTIE:


Illustrator Ian Keltie lives and works in Newcastle Upon Tyne in the UK. His urban industrial style takes many influences, the skylines and architecture that surround him as well as all things he finds cool: scuffed jeans, old sneakers, 1970's photographs, graffiti and the paintings of Egon Schiele. Music, fashion, graphics and street art all combine to help make him tick creatively. His life's desire and ambition is to please the eyes of as many strangers as possible with his graphic style.

ERIC NAKAMA:

Eric Nakama is an L.A. based artist and self-proclaimed baller. He cites SoCal skate culture, Mexican street art, and Japanese animation—particularly the oeuvre of Hiyao Miyazaki—as his primary influences. Much of his work boldly embodies his dual Japanese Mexican heritage. He dedicates this artistic contribution to his idol, Bruce Lee.

RAVI ROCHANAYON:

Ravi Rochanayon was born is New York and raised in Thailand, where he was spoonfed all the Japanese Anime he could handle. He returned to the States and soon began his career as an L.A. based artist specializing in minimalist graphic designs with an ecological message. When he is not working on his pen and ink collection of über-cute nature-loving superheroes, EEKO EEKO, Ravi enjoys dressing his identical twin sons exactly the same.

JEFF STEVENS:





Jeff Stevens was born and raised in Aspen, Colorado, where he naturally developed a love of fresh powder and fresh art. After an early career designing graphics for major apparel and snowboard brands, Jeff turned his aggressive aesthetic to entertainment advertising. He is a proud graduate of Woodbury University in Burbank, CA.

DAVID IKEDA:

L.A. based artist David Ikeda is thrilled to be a part of this collaborative, as Wu Tung Clan has been his jam of choice since the early 90’s. David’s versatile style stems from his eclectic interests: music, automotive design, fashion, commercial advertising, and street art. Even after many years in the world of design, David still loves to draw, doodle, and daydream.

The Outdoor series of exclusive tear-off collectible posters and take-away art for fans will be appearing in the following cities and locations. I'm sure they will disappear in minutes.

When: Monday, October 22, through Sunday, November 4
Where: Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco, Chicago, Washington D.C., Atlanta, Houston, Miami, Detroit, Seattle, Philadelphia, Dallas and Phoenix

Los Angeles (5 locations)
·Highland & De Longpre
·Fairfax & Rosewood
·La Brea & Washington
·Venice & Lincoln
·Windward & Pacific

New York (9 locations)
·Smith Street & Union Street
·116th Street & 1st Avenue
·Varrick & VanDamm
·9th Avenue & 29th Street
·30th Avenue & 36th Street
·81st Street & Broadway
·1st Avenue & 11th Street
·2nd Avenue & 91st
·44th St (BTW) 8th & 9th Avenue

San Francisco (5 locations - includes 1 location in Berkeley on University Ave.)
·3rd & Gilman
·Mission & Persia Avenue
·Folsom Street & 24th Street
·3rd & Townsend
·University Avenue &Milvia Street (Berkley location)

Chicago (7 locations)
·641 N. Ashland
·Ashland & W 72nd Street
·W. Diversity Parkway & Southport
·Halsted & Fullerton Avenue
·W. Oak &N. Orleans
·W. Randolph Street & N. Sangamon Street
·N. Clark Street & W. Roscoe Street

About The Man With the Iron Fists

Quentin Tarantino presents The Man With the Iron Fists, an action-adventure inspired by kung fu classics as interpreted by his longtime collaborators RZA and Eli Roth. Making his feature-film debut as a director, co-writer and leading man, RZA—alongside an exciting international cast led by Russell Crowe as Jack Knife and Lucy Liu as Madam Blossom—tells the epic story of warriors, assassins and a lone outsider hero who all descend on one fabled village in China for a winner-takes-all battle for a fortune in gold.
The Official Movie site

Images courtesy of Universal Pictures and Ignition Print