It’s cowardice, isn’t it? That instinct that draws horror fans to old movies; camp, arch, silly films; and contemporary films set in the comforting warmth of the hand-knitted past. The word ‘cosy’ …| Precast Reinforced Concrete Heart
I would like you to imagine that you are a middle-aged man with two young boys who has just lost his wife and the mother of his children. Now sprinkle in your inability to parent and grieve synonymously, what would that produce?| Strand Magazine
Photo courtesy of Goldfinch Entertainment Few filmmakers have captured the pulse of modern music history quite like Oliver Murray. Over the past six years, the Oxford-born director has carved out a distinctive space at the intersection of film and sound, documenting some of the most influential figures and movements. From his early days making music videos for The Horrors, Fink, Midlake, and Noel Gallagher, Murray’s storytelling has evolved into a deeply human exploration of creativity,...| Strand Magazine
Davies’ legacy lives on through his art, and the BFI fosters that legacy as it commemorates him through the re-release and remastering of his works. We had the privilege of being invited to watch the first in this series: The House of Mirth.| Strand Magazine
“A before David and an after David” is how Sabrina Sutherland described the change in her professional and personal life when she started working with Lynch; those who surrounded him seemed to feel the same gravitational pull.| Strand Magazine
Abou Sangare in Souleymane’s Story (2024); Photo courtesy of Conic Films Souleymane’s Story (Boris Lojkine, 2024) is a French language film following breakout star Abou Sangare as Souleymane, an asylum-seeker from Guinea. This film follows Souleymane through the 48-hour period before his citizenship interview where he must revise a fabricated story sold to him by Barry, a “social worker” who helps him prepare documents and memorise dates. The question this movie asks at its core is,...| Strand Magazine
Photo by Kazzle John Delbo on Unsplash Contains spoilers for Love Is Blind season nine, episodes 1-11. I have been an avid enjoyer of the reality TV show Love Is Blind (created by Chris Coelen) since it first premiered in 2020. The premise of the show is simple: fall in love with someone, get engaged sight unseen and then get to know them physically before either marrying them, or walking away. It puts into practice the claim that people do prefer personality over looks. Initially, the...| Strand Magazine
by Rob Reiner with Christopher Guest, Michael McKean and Harry Shearer Sadly, I’ll have to wait until January when the sequel to the best mockumentary ever, Spinal Tap: The End Continues, is available for streaming, it was only on locally during one week and then at odd times. But I was able to console myself Read More| AnnaBookBel
The debate over binge vs. weekly release strategies has been a mainstay of the streaming landscape for years. The post Binge vs. Weekly? Amazon Release Strategy Belies the Binary Debate appeared first on Luminate.| Luminate
Faced with the end of streaming’s glory days and roiled by twin guild strikes, Hollywood was being forced to seriously rethink its priorities. The post How Streaming Series Cancellations Have Changed Post-Peak TV appeared first on Luminate.| Luminate
If there’s been a narrative that defines the streaming wars in 2025, it’s the notion that Netflix is seeing its rivals making progress on their bid to close the gap with the market leader on the original-programming front. The post Netflix Series Lead Under Siege? Summer 2025 Begs to Differ appeared first on Luminate.| Luminate
Animated series have endured a boom-and-bust cycle in recent years.| Luminate
Stéphane Ly-Cuong is an inspiration to fellow aspiring artists, as his journey to fame was founded after he turned 40 years of age. He never gave up on his dreams of being a director and film maker and produced one of the most authentic, funny and poignant pieces of cinema I have witnessed in the last few years. His care for the story is reflected in his mastery of craft, and in this interview it becomes prevalent that this film is more than just his first feature: it is him being vulnerable...| STRAND Magazine
So much of being disciplined into adulthood is a curtailing of the imagination. In February this year, I watched around thirty kids movies: movies about children, a few movies made for children, and even one film made by children (1985’s Daemon, by the London-based Children’s Film Unit). Most of these films were made in the […]| Mid Theory Collective
I’ve found the Blu-ray box set Shadows in the Fog to be a great introduction to the West German Krimi genre despite, on paper, being a collection of also-rans. ‘Krimi’ is a description applied to a…| Precast Reinforced Concrete Heart
Robert Redford, legendary actor and lifelong environmentalist, has died at 89. From Butch Cassidy to climate activism, his legacy bridges film and environmental justice.| A greener life, a greener world
The Nordic film and TV industries have launched the Nordic Ecological Standard (NES), a trailblazing framework to cut emissions and boost sustainability| A greener life, a greener world
'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' has been axed after 22 years following the talk show host's comments following Charlie Kirk's death.| UNILAD
Sorda (2025) is a Spanish drama directed by Eva Libertad about a woman named Ángela (Miriam Garlo) who is deaf and leads her life in Spain’s countryside with her partner, Héctor (Álvaro Cervantes). She experiences the new onset of pregnancy and the following stages of early motherhood, whilst facing the frustrations and difficulties which arise within a hearing-normative world.| STRAND Magazine
With its whopping $7.7 billion deal for the streaming rights to all UFC events in the U.S., newly christened Paramount Skydance is making a big play to reposition its SVOD for younger subscribers. The post UFC Rights Deal Could Be the Start of a New, Younger Paramount appeared first on Luminate.| Luminate
Neo Sora’s feature film Happyend was one that I had anticipated with excitement. The film's description: “A near-future city in Japan awaits destruction as it is rocked by a series of foreshocks that predict a larger, more disastrous quake on the horizon. With the anxiety looming over them, a group of teenage best friends and musicians get into typical teenager trouble that tests the strength of their relationships”. This felt like it would be right up my alley, and to some extent it wa...| STRAND Magazine
But why does anyone film anything? To remember it and, in the case of home viewing, to watch it repeatedly, allowing the images to spread across time like a curse. The same week I began writing this piece, the entertainment company A24 Films texted me to advertise a unique contest, as if they sensed my […]| Mid Theory Collective
KPop Demon Hunters is the all-time most-watched Netflix original film worldwide, but reaching No. 1 tells only part of the story about what makes this title stand apart from previous hit films on streaming.| Luminate
Haitian filmmaker Luc Junior Ségur’s AbiZe turns heartbreak event into cinema, earning acclaim at Toronto’s Nollywood Film Festival.| The Haitian Times
What happens if we are never bored? Boredom is a thoroughly modern feeling; or rather, one etymologically contiguous with modernity. The noun did not enter the language until the middle of the nine…| Mid Theory Collective
Watching the film Hundreds of Beavers and a product of Shakespeare’s Henry V in the same week was something of a crash course in the suspension of disbelief. Hundreds of Beavers (Mike Cheslik, 2022) is a slapstick comedy about a fur trapper (Ryland Tews) using ever more elaborate methods to catch beavers. Except the beavers […]| Precast Reinforced Concrete Heart
Samuel L. Jackson stars in a Vattenfall ad promoting offshore wind farms, highlighting their benefits for marine life and renewable energy.| A greener life, a greener world
Film-friendly tax incentives and cooperative city support have helped turn Jersey City into a filming epicenter in New Jersey.| Jersey Digs
Boardroom breaks down how Dave Franco and Alison Brie shine in the genre-bending film that pairs body horror with gut-punch emotions.| Boardroom
Adam Sandler and fellow cast members Julie Bowen, Christopher McDonald, and Benny Safdie discuss bringing 'Happy Gilmore 2' to life.| Boardroom
By Archivist Susannah Broyles| The Keystone
The number of scripted spinoff series currently on linear TV and streaming has increased 75% vs. the same time last year, according to Luminate Film & TV.| Luminate
Year-over-year viewership trends across original and licensed content from the streaming giant have actually seen net declines in both films and TV series.| Luminate
Ahead of the Cannes premiere of his latest release, the star-studded ‘The Phoenician Scheme’, we look back at the idiosyncratic American director’s most eccentric sets.| British Vogue
According to Tolkien, fantasy requires a deep imagination known as "sub-creation." And the genre reflects a fundamental truth of being human.| Big Think
Since 2020, the disruptive effect streaming services have had on linear television and theatrical films has been a major industry concern.| Luminate
London, like New York, is often too busy, and too much in flux, to play itself on film. So, time after time, filmmakers rebuild it on backlots – with varying degrees of accuracy. Each of these othe…| Precast Reinforced Concrete Heart
From PBS’s MASTERPIECE programming block to BBC America, and with titles like Downton Abbey and Dr. Who, British TV has maintained its place in the cultural zeitgeist for nearly as long as the medium has existed.| Luminate
A corner of entertainment often overlooked in year-end retrospectives is the performance of stand-up comedy specials and the power they hold to launch up-and-coming talent into stardom.| Luminate
This summer, AMC and Netflix inked a deal licensing 13 AMC titles to Netflix. This wasn’t a typical licensing deal, as many of these titles were already flagship series on AMC’s own paid streamer, AMC+. When they arrived on Netflix on August 19, the titles were given prominent AMC branding, a rare sight in Netflix’s […]| Luminate
The rise of AI and robotics in cinema, Action Bronson partners with Meta AI, TikTok Live spotlights Lionel Messi, and much more Tech Talk.| Boardroom
This past May, Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery announced they would begin offering a Disney+/Hulu/Max bundle, prompting questions: How does a mega-bundle like this impact each participating streamer?| Luminate
The streaming wars aren’t over, but they might already have a winner.| Luminate
Skydance and Paramount became a dynamic duo long before their M&A tango made trade headlines this year.| Luminate
When Paramount rebranded its “CBS All Access” service to “Paramount+” in 2021, its intentions were clear: Like other media conglomerates, it was chasing the runaway streaming success of Netflix.| Luminate
I did go see the Barbie movie (last month I had to put up someone else’s blog about it). Kate McKinnon and the Birkenstock choice is my favorite part. You can catch part of that scene in the middle…| Economist Writing Every Day