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Book review: Time To Act – Simon Annand

Simon Annand’s Time To Act is a beautiful book of photos capturing actors in the minutes before they go on stage

Tackling the constraints of the pandemic in its own way, Simon Annand’s fantastic new book of photos Time To Act has launched a virtual exhibition of some of the photographs which has now been extended to until Christmas. It’s an ingenious way of sharing some of the hundreds of images from the book and should surely whet the appetite for either just buying it now or putting on your list for Santa to collect soon.

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News: Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Olivia Colman launch theatre support fund

With a long list of major founding donors, including Danny Boyle, Emilia Clarke, Tom Hiddleston, James McAvoy, Ian McKellen, Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Thompson and Rachel Weisz, the Theatre Community Fund has received a pledge of £1 million.

Some of the biggest names from British stage and screen have joined together to support creatives in the beleaguered theater industry as it struggles to survive the COVID-19 crisis.

Created by Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Olivia Colman and theatre producer Francesca Moody (who was the original producer of Waller-Bridge’s Fleabag stage show), the newly-launched Theatre Community Fund has already received a pledge of £1 million and amassed £500,000, having signed up a who’s who of actors, directors, writers and producers as founding donors. Continue reading “News: Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Olivia Colman launch theatre support fund”

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72nd British Academy Film Awards winners

BAFTA Fellowship
Thelma Schoonmaker

Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema
Elizabeth Karlsen and Stephen Woolley for Number 9 Films

Best Film
Roma – Alfonso Cuarón and Gabriela Rodríguez
BlacKkKlansman – Jason Blum, Spike Lee, Raymond Mansfield, Sean McKittrick, and Jordan Peele
The Favourite – Ceci Dempsey, Ed Guiney, Yorgos Lanthimos, and Lee Magiday
Green Book – Jim Burke, Brian Hayes Currie, Peter Farrelly, Nick Vallelonga, and Charles B. Wessler
A Star Is Born – Bradley Cooper, Bill Gerber, and Lynette Howell Taylor Continue reading “72nd British Academy Film Awards winners”

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72nd British Academy Film Awards nominations

BAFTA Fellowship
Thelma Schoonmaker

Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema
Elizabeth Karlsen and Stephen Woolley for Number 9 Films

Best Film
BlacKkKlansman – Jason Blum, Spike Lee, Raymond Mansfield, Sean McKittrick, and Jordan Peele
The Favourite – Ceci Dempsey, Ed Guiney, Yorgos Lanthimos, and Lee Magiday
Green Book – Jim Burke, Brian Hayes Currie, Peter Farrelly, Nick Vallelonga, and Charles B. Wessler
Roma – Alfonso Cuarón and Gabriela Rodríguez
A Star Is Born – Bradley Cooper, Bill Gerber, and Lynette Howell Taylor Continue reading “72nd British Academy Film Awards nominations”

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Film Review: The Favourite (2018)

Yorgos Lanthimos’ The Favourite offers up a thoroughly human approach to history and three cracking performances from Olivia Colman, Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz

“Don’t shout at me, I am the Queen”

It may seem like casting directors have forgotten that there are other actresses available alongside Olivia Colman but when the work she produces is this irresistible, you can’t help but indulge them. But though she is being pushed as the lead of Yorgos Lanthimos’ The Favourite, it is important to note that she eagerly shares that spotlight with both Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone.

Which is unique enough for Hollywood in general, never mind a mainstream historical film. But here, Lanthimos completely upends convention to produce something unique, compelling and utterly significant. The history of Queen Anne’s reign may be less of an unknown quantity to recent theatregoers although nothing there will have prepared anyone for the affecting and effective novelty of this approach.   Continue reading “Film Review: The Favourite (2018)”

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25th Screen Actors Guild Awards nominees

Film
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role
Christian Bale – Vice as Dick Cheney
Bradley Cooper – A Star Is Born as Jackson Maine
Rami Malek – Bohemian Rhapsody as Freddie Mercury
Viggo Mortensen – Green Book as Frank “Tony Lip” Vallelonga
John David Washington – BlacKkKlansman as Ron Stallworth

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role
Emily Blunt – Mary Poppins Returns as Mary Poppins
Glenn Close – The Wife as Joan Castleman
Olivia Colman – The Favourite as Queen Anne
Lady Gaga – A Star Is Born as Ally Maine
Melissa McCarthy – Can You Ever Forgive Me? as Lee Israel Continue reading “25th Screen Actors Guild Awards nominees”

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2017 Oscars – pre-ceremony thoughts

“For whatever reason, he spared a hamster”

When you see as much theatre as I do, it can be difficult to keep up to date with cinematic releases – if I have a night off, I rarely want to spend it in a dark room… – but I have tried my best this year to see at least some of the Oscar-nominated films, so that I can chip in once they’ve been distributed in a way that will doubtless cause some controversy or other.

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