This week we get to sit down with Zoë Dennis, a Development Executive at Feigco. In our conversation, we cover her background, path to development, and what the daily work of a development executive is like. Zoë is a lover of all things film and television, and this was a really fun conversation that will hopefully inform, inspire, and spark some interest in development if you’re looking into entertainment but unsure of which path to take. Madison and Tristan wrap up the episode talking about their favorite President’s Day movies, which is a fun, albeit unnecessary, list.
You don’t want to miss this week’s episode of The Indie Magazine Podcast, and be sure to share it with anyone looking into development, screenwriting, or fans of President’s Day!
Links related to this episode:
Feigco
Madison’s Favorite President’s Day Movies
Enjoy the trailers for some of Madison’s favorite President’s Day movies that we discussed this week on The Indie Magazine Podcast.
Long Shot (2019)
National Treasure Book of Secrets (2007)
Independence Day (1996)
Tristan’s Favorite President’s Day Movies
Enjoy the trailers for some of Tristan’s favorite President’s Day movies that we discussed this week on The Indie Magazine Podcast.
The American President (1995)
Lincoln (2012)
All the Way (2016)
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News:
Hilary Swank, Rainn Wilson, Roma Downey and More Talk Representations of Faith and Spirituality in Entertainment
- https://variety.com/2024/biz/news/hilary-swank-rainn-wilson-faith-spirituality-entertainment-1235909504/
- “From Rainn Wilson‘s desire to start a spiritual revolution in Hollywood and beyond to Hilary Swank‘s latest film “Ordinary Angels,” and a first look at the Amazon Prime Video series “The Baxters” the Variety Spirituality in Entertainment Breakfast, presented by Faith & Media Initiative, explored representations of faith and spirituality throughout media. Tuesday’s event, held at the Los Angeles London hotel, featured five in-depth conversations that dove into varied perspectives on the role of spirituality in entertainment and how industry leaders find inspiration from meditation to a whale’s song.”
- “Rainn Wilson sat down with Variety senior entertainment writer Angelique Jackson to chat about his latest projects, including writing his New York Times bestseller “Soul Boom: Why We Need a Spiritual Revolution” and SoulPancake, thedigital media company he co-founded in hopes of creating content that sparks conversations about spirituality. It’s been fifteen years since the creation of the production company, so the actor reflected on the evolution of the company and his mission.”
- “Indeed, they found that people feel underrepresented or misrepresented in media. Additionally, there is a large portion of the audience that yearns for more diversity in media representations of faith, especially with 73% of people identifying as spiritual, religious or a person of faith. After the analysis, Zaugg stated that as a Christian, it was “revelatory” to her to see in the study that faith plays an important role in others’ lives as well.”
- “Nesho discussed how the “flyover states,” are often overlooked. However, the streaming revolution and generative AI are likely to close that gap, which means entertainment must start prioritizing people’s desire to see faith represented on screen.”
Kristen Stewart Says Studio Tried to Make ‘Twilight’ a ‘Movie for Kids’ and ‘Didn’t Want’ the Actual Book: ‘When the F– Are’ Bella and Edward Smiling Ever?
- https://variety.com/2024/film/news/kristen-stewart-rejects-robert-pattinson-questions-twilight-strong-female-lead-1235910632/
- “Kristen Stewart graces the latest cover of Rolling Stone, where she talked openly about her days headlining the “Twilight” franchise. Stewart played Bella Swan in five “Twilight” movies that grossed a combined $3.3 billion worldwide and turned the actor and her castmates Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner into global superstars.”
- “Stewart caught some flak from critics at the time for her moody screen acting, but she told Rolling Stone she was just keeping her interpretation of Bella true to the book series. Some execs wanted Bella to be perkier and bright-eyed, but Stewart just didn’t agree.”
- “Stewart opened up to Variety last month about reflecting on her “Twilight” era so many years removed from it. She said she’s started to see the film saga’s queer undertones with age.”
- “Stewart is returning to theaters next month with the A24 crime thriller “Love Lies Bleeding,” directed by Rose Glass. The movie earned strong buzz at the Sundance Film Festival last month. Stewart plays a gym manager in small town America who falls for bodybuilder (Katy O’Brian), only to learn her new love has gotten wrapped up in the criminal underworld overseen by her father (Ed Harris). Stewart told Rolling Stone that she first bonded with Glass over the industry’s misguided interest in movies with strong female leads. Their film would deconstruct such an archetype.”
The ‘Road House’ Reboot Battle: A Contested Streaming Deal, Ari Emanuel’s ‘Desperate’ Pleas and a Director Going Scorched-Earth
- https://variety.com/2024/film/news/road-house-remake-drama-verbal-abuse-distribution-plans-jake-gyllenhaal-1235909744/
- “The reboot of the 1989 cult favorite, which launches on Amazon Prime on March 21, sparked a fierce fight behind the scenes over its release. While studio-filmmaker standoffs are not uncommon, this one featured such subplots as the involvement of a notorious private investigator, a producer given the heave-ho, a cameo from Ari Emanuel and a director going scorched-earth. Even more shocking, some of the embarrassing details began to publicly spill out in recent months, culminating with director Doug Liman promising to boycott the film’s premiere at SXSW on March 8.”
- “In November 2021, Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy were running MGM and began negotiating with Liman to direct and Jake Gyllenhaal to star as the tough-guy bouncer, played by Patrick Swayze in the original. Joel Silver, who produced the Swayze version for MGM, was on board to bring the film into the modern era (Gyllenhaal’s character is now a former UFC fighter). At the time, MGM was making movies for the big screen, and the prospect of streaming didn’t factor into discussions. But after Amazon closed its $8.5 billion acquisition of MGM in March 2022, the trajectory of “Road House” changed.”
- “In July 2022, De Luca and Abdy left to run Warner Bros., and the film was put into turnaround. Still, Amazon Studios chief Jennifer Salke quickly salvaged it and was poised to greenlight the film with a cast that also included Billy Magnussen, Daniela Melchior and Lukas Gage. Sources familiar with the negotiations say the filmmakers and Gyllenhaal were given a choice: Make the film for $60 million and get a theatrical release or take $85 million and go streaming only. They opted for the latter.”
- “Silver continued to push for a theatrical release and grew so combative that the studio threatened to cut ties with him. That prompted Emanuel, CEO of WME parent Endeavor, to lobby on Silver’s behalf. Sources say Emanuel reached out to Salke and begged her not to fire the legendary producer. One source familiar with the back and forth described his pleas as “desperate.” Emanuel enlisted private investigator-turned-quasi consultant Anthony Pellicano in an effort to help Silver keep his job. (WME declined comment.)”
- “All the while, things continued to look rosy from the outside, with all parties onboard with the streaming plan. Deadline reported that UFC superstar and WME-repped Conor McGregor was joining the cast, noting that the film would “stream on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide at release.” The story made no mention of the fact that the two-time UFC champ was facing multiple sexual assault and violence against women allegations at the time. (McGregor has denied.)”
- “The missive appears to be the final shot on a project fraught with discord. Ultimately, it’s left some with a bad taste. “It’s so disrespectful to everyone who worked hard on it,” says one person involved. “It’s a great big fun streaming movie.””
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