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☆ Vietnam bans 'Barbie' movie over South China Sea map
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

HANOI, July 3 (Reuters) - Vietnam has banned Warner Bros' highly-anticipated film "Barbie" from domestic distribution over a scene featuring a map that shows China's unilaterally claimed territory in the South China Sea, state media reported on Monday. The U-shaped "nine-dash line" is used on Chinese maps to illustrate its claims over vast areas of the South China Sea, including swathes of what Vietnam considers its continental shelf, where it has awarded oil concessions. "Barbie" is the latest movie to be banned in Vietnam for depicting China's controversial nine-dash line, which was repudiated in an international arbitration ruling by a court in The Hague in 2016. In 2019 the Vietnamese government pulled DreamWorks' animated film "Abominable" and last year it banned Sony's action movie "Unchartered" for the same reason. Vietnam and China have long had overlapping territorial claims to a potentially energy-rich stretch in the South China Sea.

Persons: Warner, China's, Barbie, Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, Kien Thanh, Warner Bros, Phuong Nguyen, Kanupriya Kapoor Organizations: Warner Bros, Vietnam, DreamWorks, Netflix, Department of Cinema, Warner, Thomson Locations: HANOI, Vietnam, South China, The Hague, China, Australian, United States

☆ 'Barbie' movie banned in Vietnam over South China Sea map
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-03 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

Reuters —Vietnam has banned Warner Bros.’ highly anticipated film “Barbie” from domestic distribution over a scene featuring a map that shows China’s unilaterally claimed territory in the South China Sea, state media reported on Monday. (Warner Bros’, like CNN, is a unit of Warner Bros. The U-shaped “nine-dash line” is used on Chinese maps to illustrate its claims over vast areas of the South China Sea, including swathes of what Vietnam considers its continental shelf, where it has awarded oil concessions. “Barbie” is the latest movie to be banned in Vietnam for depicting China’s controversial nine-dash line, which was repudiated in an international arbitration ruling by a court in The Hague in 2016. Vietnam and China have long had overlapping territorial claims to a potentially energy-rich stretch in the South China Sea.

Persons: Barbie ”, China’s, “ Barbie ”, ”, “ Barbie, Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, Barbie ’, Kien Thanh Organizations: Reuters, Warner Bros, CNN, Warner Bros ., Vietnam, DreamWorks, Netflix, Department of Cinema Locations: Reuters — Vietnam, South China, Vietnam, The Hague, China, Australian, ”, United States

☆ How ‘Nimona’ Helped Its Creator Explore His Emerging Identity
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Robert Ito | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

The film had its beginnings in 2015, the same year the book was published, and is that rarest of Hollywood literary makeovers. For Stevenson, much of the book spoke to his own upbringing and experiences. Stevenson, 31, was born and raised in Columbia, S.C., the middle child of five siblings. After years of home-schooling and two more at the local high school, he went to the Maryland Institute College of Art, where he began posting Nimona comics online in 2012, a project that became his senior thesis. “When I first started making the comic, I didn’t consider myself a writer,” he said.

Persons: Nimona, Stevenson, ”, “, Nimona ”, Eisner, ” Stevenson, Ra Organizations: Hollywood, Netflix, Maryland Institute College of Art, ”, Fox Animation, Blue Sky Studios, DreamWorks, Media Locations: Hollywood, Burbank, Sur Monterey County, Columbia

☆ A Hollywood movie mogul and campaign adviser to Joe Biden is telling the president to embrace his age like Harrison Ford and Mick Jagger
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-25 | by ( Katie Balevic | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A Hollywood big shot is helping Joe Biden pitch his age to wary voters in the 2024 election. Jeffrey Katzenberg wants Biden to tout his age like Harrison Ford or Mick Jagger, per The Wall Street Journal. Katzenberg has told Biden to embrace his age like 80-year-old Harrison Ford, who is reprising his role in the "Indiana Jones" franchise, or Mick Jagger, who was still performing on tour last year at 79. "I've never, ever had the sense that Jeffrey does this for what the business people call ROI," Begala told the Journal. "He's very much committed to Biden, for Biden, and I think he may be one of the few people who can talk to him as a near peer."

Persons: Joe Biden, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Biden, Harrison Ford, Mick Jagger, —, Jeffrey Katzenberg —, Katzenberg, Indiana Jones, Jeffrey, there's, George Clooney, he's, doesn't, Clooney, Paul Begala, I've, Begala Organizations: Street Journal, Service, DreamWorks, Hollywood, Democratic

Universal’s “The Super Mario Bros.” movie and Sony’s “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,” both animated films, have racked up big ticket sales this year. The successes of "Super Mario Bros." and "Spider-Man" also reflect a new post-COVID-19 trend at box offices, Hollywood insiders say. In his book, “Creativity, Inc.,” Pixar co-founder Ed Catmull credited Pixar's brain trust with the studio’s early box-office triumphs. Catmull and other members of the original brain trust are gone, though Docter remains, now in the role of chief creative officer. During the pandemic's peak, when many cinemas were closed, Disney launched three Pixar films directly to Disney+_in the U.S., bypassing theaters.

Persons: ”, Universal’s, Mario, Tony Chambers, Disney's, don’t, Chambers, DreamWorks Animation’s, “ Ruby Gillman, Tom Sito, King, Sito, Jeff Bock, Ed Catmull, — John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter, Lee Unkrich, Joe Ranft —, Docter, Domee Shi, Soul’s ’ Kemp Powers, Pixar’s, Brad Bird, Oscar, “, Darla K, Anderson, “ Coco ”, Bob Chapek, there’s, we’ve, ” Docter, it’ll, Dawn Chmielewski, Lisa Richwine, Kenneth Li, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: Pixar, Inc, Walt Disney, Universal Studios, DreamWorks, University of Southern, Netflix, Disney, Apple, Relations, Thomson Locations: ANGELES, U.S, Canada, Disney, University of Southern California, ”

☆ 'The Flash,' 'Elemental' disappoint as 'Spider-Verse' continues box office domination
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-18 | by ( Sarah Whitten | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The mixed results saw disappointing debuts from "The Flash" and "Elemental," while "Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse" continued to attract ticket buyers. It also fell short of the $67 million debut of fellow DC film "Black Adam" last October. "Audiences have shown in recent months and post-'Endgame' years that they are being more selective about which comic book films are going to earn their box office dollars," he said. Estimates peg the film's debut at $29.5 million, just higher than the $29.1 million "Toy Story," Pixar's first-ever theatrical release, which opened in 1995. Across Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the Father's Day weekend, the domestic box office is expected to tally just under $175 million in receipts.

Persons: Adam, Shawn Robbins, Robbins, Ezra Miller, Mario, Paul Dergarabedian Organizations: Warner Bros, BoxOffice.com, DC, Pixar, DreamWorks, Mario Bros, Comscore, Guardians, Galaxy, Comcast, CNBC Locations: NBCUniversal

☆ Disney looks to get out of animation rut with Pixar's 'Elemental'
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-15 | by ( Sarah Whitten | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The stakes are high as Pixar releases its 27th feature film in theaters this Friday. "Elemental," a romantic immigrant story told through anthropomorphic elements of nature, arrives as Disney is under pressure to prove it hasn't lost its golden touch in animation. The company, which operates both Pixar and Disney Animation, has struggled to drum up ticket sales for its animated fare in recent years. Disney's Pixar studio, in particular, is looking to rebound from the box-office letdown that was "Lightyear." "Animation certainly seems to be going through some winds of change," said Shawn Robbins, chief analyst at BoxOffice.com.

Persons: hasn't, Mario, Shawn Robbins Organizations: Pixar, Disney, Disney Animation, DreamWorks, Mario Bros, Alpha

☆ 'The Little Mermaid's' box office will say a lot about Disney's live-action remake strategy
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Sarah Whitten | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

That opening is on par with the $91 million "Aladdin" secured in 2019 on its way to more than $1 billion at the global box office. Audience buzz has become an increasingly important factor in box office success in the wake of the pandemic. Those that skip out on seeing a film during its opening weekend can be enticed to cinemas by positive chatter, helping to bolster the film's overall box office. The studio, which is known for its animated content, saw two of its recent releases — "Lightyear" and "Strange World" — flounder at the box office. Although there were two live-action films based on "101 Dalmatians" in 1996 and 2000, Disney didn't start producing these remakes in earnest until 2010's "Alice in Wonderland."

Persons: Alice, Maleficent, Lilo, Shawn Robbins, it's Organizations: Disney, Universal Pictures, DreamWorks Animation, BoxOffice.com Locations: Wonderland

DreamWorks Animation has laid off 33 staffers, or around 2%, in recent days. DreamWorks' parent company, NBCUniversal, has been laying off staff across divisions in recent months. The cuts were confirmed by a spokesperson from DreamWorks Animation, whose parent company, Comcast's NBCUniversal, has eliminated roles across the organization over the past six months. DreamWorks Animation said in a statement that the layoffs were part of an overall cost reduction and that a majority of those affected were in support functions. This person said staffers laid off in this round learned the news several weeks ago, giving those affected some time to prepare.

☆ CNBC Anchor Complained NBCUniversal C.E.O. Pressured Her for Years
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Benjamin Mullin | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A CNBC journalist accused Jeff Shell, the former chief executive of NBCUniversal, of pressuring her for sex over a period of years during her career at the business news network, according to a copy of her complaint reviewed by The New York Times. The complaint, lodged in late March by Hadley Gamble, an anchor and senior international correspondent, kicked off an investigation that led to Mr. Shell’s dismissal last week, sending shock waves across a far-flung media empire that includes NBC News, the Universal movie studio and DreamWorks Animation. Less than a page of Ms. Gamble’s complaint, which is more than a dozen pages, focused on allegations of sexual harassment by Mr. Much of the complaint raised accusations of bullying and discrimination at CNBC, saying women at the network’s international division were harassed by their male colleagues on several different occasions. Comcast, NBCUniversal’s parent company, hired the law firm Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher to investigate the complaint after it was sent to the company’s executives in New York and London.

☆ Big money donors rally behind Biden as he launches his reelection bid
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Brian Schwartz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Big donors in the business world started rallying around President Joe Biden soon after he announced Tuesday that he's running for reelection next year. A Biden campaign spokesperson didn't return a request for comment before publication. Katzenberg told CNBC in an exclusive interview Tuesday night that he believes the Biden campaign will raise more this time around than in 2020. Biden's campaign raised over $400 million from donors that gave under $200 during his last run for president, according to OpenSecrets. Venture capitalist Ron Conway has told friends he will help the president's campaign, according to a person close to him.

A series of upcoming challenges, from the ongoing war in Ukraine to a still-uncertain economy, could provide hurdles to Biden’s reelection. The Washington beltway event may be indicative of what’s to come for the Biden reelection campaign strategy. “Just like four years ago—I’m off to teach and Joe’s launched his (re-election) campaign! Obama held his first reelection campaign rally in May 2012, 13 months after announcing his bid for a second term. The wait for a Biden reelection rally could be just as long.

☆ Upfront's Mark Suster created one of the most exclusive and glitziest gatherings in tech. But there's a dark side.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Ben Bergman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Mark Suster is managing partner of Upfront Ventures, a Los Angeles venture firmSuster's fastidiousness has created what many now consider one of the best tech conferences of the year. But Suster's abrasive, take-no-prisoners approach has also alienated some startup founders and investors. These luminaries were among the 1,000-plus attendees of last month's Upfront Summit, a glitzy, invite-only tech conference organized by Upfront Ventures and its managing partner, Mark Suster, in Los Angeles each year. "Mark and the Upfront Summit helped put LA tech and investing on the map," said Jeffrey Katzenberg, the cofounder of DreamWorks and WndrCo. Several years ago, a founder whose startup Suster invested in was in a conference room rehearsing their presentation for the Upfront Summit.

☆ Upfront's Mark Suster has become the star of LA's booming startup scene. Not everyone is a fan.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Ben Bergman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +29 min

"I have worked with more than 50 VCs and nobody comes close to what it is like to work with Mark Suster," said a founder backed by Suster. "Mark and the Upfront Summit helped put LA tech and investing on the map," said Jeffrey Katzenberg, the cofounder of DreamWorks and WndrCo. Several years ago, a founder whose startup Suster invested in was in a conference room rehearsing their presentation for the Upfront Summit. If you're going to put him on your board, you're letting the fox guard the henhouse. "If you're going to put him on your board, you're letting the fox guard the henhouse."

☆ Fintech dealmaking is ready for prime time
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

It seems the time has finally come for some M&A, and one group is ready to go. I wrote last week about how a couple of blockbuster deals could kick off a spree of dealmaking after a long drought. Insider's Paige Hagy and Bianca Chan identified a bunch of acquisition targets in a segment of the market that is in need of some deals: fintech. One could make the point that every industry has a backlog of potential deals, but fintech seems particularly ripe. For the complete rundown on the 16 fintech and consumer-facing deals JPMorgan has made since 2020, click here.

☆ Fintech has a fraud problem, and the onus is on you to figure it out
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Fintech's fraud misfortune. Which brings us to a story by Insider's Bianca Chan and Paige Hagy about concerns over the prevalence of fraud within consumer-facing fintechs in recent years. Click here to read more about fintech's fraud problem. We've also got the deck StellarFi, a fintech that helps users improve their credit score, used to raise $15 million. For more than 50 different decks used by fintechs to raise fresh funds, check out our library.

☆ Why is Universal making a live-action 'How to Train Your Dragon'? These charts may explain
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-18 | by ( Sarah Whitten | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

In this article CMCSA Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNTStill from Universal and Dreamworks' "How to Train Your Dragon 2." For the last decade, the Walt Disney Company has been transforming its classic animated features into live-action theatrical and streaming features. Earlier this week, Universal said it would be doing the same for one of its own animated franchises: How to Train Your Dragon. What is, perhaps, most notable about Disney's live-action remakes is how much of the ticket sales were generated from international markets. This is something Universal is likely also keyed into when creating the live-action version of "How to Train Your Dragon."

☆ The gravity-defying space-age 'Garcia House' in Los Angeles just hit the market for $16 million. The home is suspended more than 60 feet above a cliff and has an outdoor pool. Take a look inside.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Architecture firm Marmol Radziner, which specializes in restoring midcentury modern homes, renovated the home in 2003. The preservation project included adding stained walnut cabinetry and a sliding glass door that opens up the living room. Roger DaviesThe home was originally designed for composer Russell Garcia and his wife Gina, according to Vogue Australia. It took the firm about 12 months to fully preserve the home. "Our goal was never to do a slavish restoration, but to create something that maintained the spirit of Lautner's work and also made sense for the 21st century," Radziner told the magazine.

☆ How the unlikely partnership between a VR startup cofounded by the former head of DreamWorks and Arizona State University has led to a mind-blowing student learning experience
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Madeline Renbarger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Dreamscape Learn developed immersive, VR learning experiences for Arizona State University. Students learn STEM coursework using the VR experience, which has seen tremendous results. The company had been building immersive VR experiences, one of which was called the "Alien Zoo." Now, Dreamscape Learn has raised a $20 million in Series A funding to expand its curriculum offering and branch outside of ASU. An ASU student in the Dreamscape Learn pod interacts with the virtual lab.

☆ 18 movies with valuable entrepreneurial lessons: From 'Startup.com' to 'Becoming Warren Buffett'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Vikas Jha | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +21 min

Takeaway: This movie shows the effect money, greed and power can have on relationships. "The Social Network" (2010)"The Social Network" shows us that business success requires more than just a great idea. "Becoming Warren Buffett" (2017)In this documentary, Warren Buffett reveals his day-to-day, and his two most important investing rules. Takeaway: This movie shows how two young men were pitted against each other, striving to grow in a cut-throat business. I've found myself feeling motivated after watching a great film with lessons I can transpose to my entrepreneurial journey.

"'Puss in Boots: The Last Wish" is now available to watch at home. "Puss in Boots: The Last Wish" is a sequel to the 2011 animated adventure movie "Puss in Boots." Banderas previously played the character in "Shrek 2," "Shrek the Third," "Shrek Forever After," and the first "Puss in Boots" movie. How to watch 'Puss in Boots: The Last Wish'You can watch 'Puss in Boots: The Last Wish" as home through digital retailers like Amazon, Vudu, and Apple TV. Critics praise the movie as a fun and clever animated adventure for the whole familyWhere can I watch the first 'Puss in Boots' movie and the 'Shrek' films?

☆ Google, YouTube content providers must face U.S. children's privacy lawsuit
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-28 | by ( Jonathan Stempel | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Circuit Court of Appeals in Seattle said Congress did not intend to pre-empt state law-based privacy claims by adopting the federal Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, or COPPA. In July 2021, U.S. District Judge Beth Labson Freeman in San Francisco dismissed the lawsuit, saying the federal privacy law pre-empted the plaintiffs' claims under California, Colorado, Indiana, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Tennessee law. The case was returned to Freeman to consider other grounds that Google and the content providers might have to dismiss it. Lawyers for Google and the content providers did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Their lawsuit sought damages for YouTube users age 16 and younger from July 2013 to April 2020.

☆ Tom Holland would be a great Zorro, according to Antonio Banderas
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-27 | by ( Dan Heching | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —In the age of reboots, revivals and prequels, Antonio Banderas is sharing thoughts on who would make a great choice to follow in his masked footsteps as the legendary Zorro. The actor, who played the swashbuckling hero in 1998’s “The Mask of Zorro” and sequel “The Legend of Zorro” in 2005, said his “Uncharted” costar Tom Holland would be a perfect fit for the role, in a video interview published Saturday with Comicbook.com. “He’s so energetic and fun,” Banderas said of Holland. “He’s got this spark, too.”The “Zorro” films, which were directed by Martin Campbell, costarred Catherine Zeta-Jones. While the “Zorro” franchise currently has no solid projects in development, Banderas is currently doing press for another sequel, the upcoming DreamWorks animated movie “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish.”In that film, Banderas again voices the debonair feline character he originated in the “Shrek” movies, following 2011’s feature-length “Puss in Boots.”

☆ Analysis: ‘Welcome to Chippendales’ strips down a true crime origin story
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-26 | by ( Lisa Respers France | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

So in the coming weeks, we shall be switching things up and putting a little meat on the bone. Three things to watch‘Welcome to Chippendales’Kumail Nanjiani in a scene from Hulu's "Welcome to Chippendales." This new limited series, starring Kumail Nanjiani and Murray Bartlett, among others, also doubles as a true crime tale. Let me grab my dollar bills now, because the first two episodes of “Welcome to Chippendales” are streaming now. Grime is a British genre of hip-hop/electronic music, and Stormzy is one of its best-known stars.

☆ I got my big break as a Lionsgate screenwriter after I moved 2,000 miles from Hollywood. Here's how I made connections and worked my way up from security guard to my dream career.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Ken Miyamoto | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

Ken Miyamoto was a security guard at Sony, and worked his way up to story analyst for the studio. In 1996, I took one University of Wisconsin screenwriting class, and that was the extent of my screenwriting education. I moved to California from Wisconsin with my wife in late 1999 to pursue a career in screenwriting. The apartment was way overpriced and much smaller than others we looked at, but we signed the lease that day. Lastly, don't write for free.

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