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The Franchise is a satirical comedy series created by Jon Brown. The HBO series revolves around the crew of a little-known franchise movie set in an otherwise extremely popular superhero cinematic universe. The Franchise’s comedy comes from all the chaos generated by the always-on-fire set, idiotic stars, arrogant director, and panic-ridden crew. The Franchise stars Himesh Patel, Aya Cash, Jessica Hynes, Billy Magnussen, Lolly Adefope, Darren Goldstein, Isaac Powell, Richard E. Grant, and Daniel Brühl. So, if you loved the satirical comedy, behind-the-scenes look at Hollywood, and the general chaos in The Franchise here are some similar shows you should check out next.

Episodes (Paramount+ & Rent on Prime Video) Credit – Showtime

Episodes is a satirical comedy series created by David Crane and Jeffrey Klarik. The Showtime series follows a British married couple who created an award-winning British...

Liked Space Cadet On Prime Video? Watch These 8 Similar Comedy Films. (Photo Credit – Instagram)

Prime Video’s Space Cadet, starring Emma Roberts, is receiving praise for its light-hearted comedy set against the backdrop of a space mission. The film tells the story of Tiffany “Rex” Simpson, a party girl from Florida who has always dreamed of going to space.

As Rex fills out an application for NASA’s astronaut training program, she surprisingly gets selected and becomes the best candidate with her wit and determination. If you liked the feel-good vibe of Space Cadet, here are 8 films with similar premise, themes, or ideas that you should check out next.

8. She’s the Man (2006)

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A different take on William Shakespeare’s play Twelfth Night, She’s the Man stars Amanda Bynes as Viola Hastings, who disguises herself as her twin brother...

The horror TV series Z Nation was produced by The Asylum (a company best known for the Sharknado franchise and mockbusters) and aired on Syfy for five seasons, running for a total of 68 episodes from September 12, 2014 to December 28, 2018. After that show wrapped up, a prequel series called Black Summer ran for two seasons (released in 2019 and 2021) on the Netflix streaming service. If you’ve been wondering when Black Summer is going to return for a third season… well, it looks like it’s not going to, because the folks at What’s on Netflix have confirmed that Netflix quietly “ghost cancelled” the show. But a new post on The Asylum’s X account indicates that Z Nation might be getting a revival! The post promises that a big announcement is coming soon…

Sorry folks. We took a brief break. But now that we're back… #ZNation pic.twitter.com/MaRC7fWISG

— The...

On the JoBlo Movies YouTube channel, we will be posting one full movie every day of the week, giving viewers the chance to watch them entirely free of charge. The Free Movie of the Day we have to share with you today is a horror movie. This one is the 2016 horror anthology Patient Seven, and you can watch it over on the YouTube channel linked above, or you can just watch it in the embed at the top of this article.

The directors of the segments that make up Patient Seven include Danny Draven, Paul Davis, Ómar Örn Hauksson, Dean Hewison, Joel Morgan, Johannes Persson, Nicholas Peterson, Erlingur Thoroddsen, and Rasmus Wassberg. The film centers on Dr. Marcus, a renowned psychiatrist who has selected 6 severe mentally ill and dangerous patients from the Spring Valley Mental Hospital to interview as part of research for his new book. As Dr. Marcus interviews each patient,...

With Seth Rudetsky resuming his Off Broadway solo show and also returning this Sunday to his acclaimed series of livestream special-guest concerts, one is tempted to begin an article like this by playing on the ubiquitous “Broadway’s Back!” slogan. But “Rudetsky’s Back!” doesn’t work. He never really went away.

During the entire Broadway shutdown, when it seemed just about everyone had gone into hibernation, Rudetsky and husband James Wesley kept the lights on through their very popular, very effective and very busy Stars in the House livestream series, raising well more than $1 million for The Actors Fund’s pandemic efforst by, among other things, reuniting Broadway casts from Annie and Dreamgirls to Jagged Little Pill and Beetlejuice.

The show has also brought together the casts from far too many classic TV casts to list here, so just a few examples: actors from ER (including George Clooney), Glee,...

Seth Rudetsky and James Wesley announced today that their live and in person Stars in the House at The Town Hall will be rescheduled to Monday, October 25th at 8:00 Pm, consistent with Theatre Authority guidelines.

Broadway’s brightest stars will come together at the live concert benefitting The Actors Fund. The line-up will include appearances by Andy Karl, Anika Larsen, Bebe Neuwirth, Brenda Braxton, Charlotte d’Amboise, Christine Pedi, Chita Rivera, Dana Delany, Kelli O’Hara, Laura Benanti, Linda Benanti, Liz Callaway, Marc Shaiman, Orfeh, Schele Williams and many others. CBS Medical Correspondent Dr. Jon Lapook will also take the stage to give the latest updates on the Covid-19 pandemic. The evening will be directed by Lisa Mordente.

Ticket buyers who have purchased tickets to the original September 12th show will have the option to attend the new date, or will receive a refund. Ticket buyers will receive an email from TicketMaster with further details.

There’s no business like show business, and if anyone has proven that over the past 16 months, it is “Stars In The House” co-hosts Seth Rudetsky and James Wesley!

The moment the theaters on Broadway went dark, the two put their heads together to find a way to give back, and provide much-needed entertainment to the community that they love. After hundreds of shows, thousands of guests, and millions of viewers, the impact of “Stars In The House” cannot be overstated, as it celebrates raising $1 Million for The Actors Fund. Donations from all around the world flooded in as people tuned in nearly every night to revisit beloved Broadway shows, television series, and films with the stars who made them, and have their spirits lifted by this one-of-a-kind series.

Rudetsky and Wesley will mark this unbelievable accomplishment with a very special In Person “Stars In The House” show on Wednesday,...

In today’s film news roundup, Toby Kebbell joins Vin Diesel in “Bloodshot,” “Rockbarnes: The Emperor in You” gets a release, and Dana Brunetti unveils a new production company.

Casting

Toby Kebbell will join Vin Diesel in “Bloodshot” for Sony Pictures in the role of Axe with principal photography starting in July.

Eiza Gonzalez, Michael Sheen, Sam Heughan, Talulah Riley, and Alex Hernandez also star. Dave Wilson of Blur Studios will direct and Neal H. Moritz is producing.

“Bloodshot,” first published in 1992, centers on a mortally wounded soldier with powers of regeneration and meta-morphing made possible through nano-machines in his bloodstream. “Bloodshot” was created by Kevin Van Hook, Don Perlin, and Bob Layton for Valiant. Over its comic-book run, “Bloodshot” totaled 110 issues with more than 7.5 million copies sold.

Kebbell’s credits include “The Fantastic Four,” the rebooted “Planet of the Apes” franchise, “Kong: Skull Island,” “Warcraft,” and “RocknRolla.” The news...

Connecticut Repertory Theatre Crt announces the casting for the first production of the2018 Nutmeg Summer Series Disaster, the hilarious new musical straight from Broadway. CRTwelcomes the co-writing team of the show, as Jack Plotnick will direct and three-time Emmy Awardnominee and SiriusXM Broadway host Seth Rudetsky will reprise the role he originated on Broadway Ted Schneider. DisasterrunsJune 7 through June 16. Subscriptions and single tickets are on sale now. A full performance schedule is available atcrt.uconn.eduor 860-486-2113.

Pop TV's new behind-the-scenes video for the Wolf Creek series shows "all the games Mick Taylor plays." Also in this morning's Horror Highlights are Redbox release details for Patient Seven and two clips and a trailer for Hell House LLC.

Wolf Creek Series Behind-the-Scenes Video: "Inspired by one of the most terrifying, cult movie franchises ever released in theaters, episode 2 of the six-part television event, Wolf Creek, premiere[d] exclusively on Pop [on] October 21 at 10:00 Pm, Et/Pt."

"Pop’s limited series event--inspired by one of the "25 best horror movies since 2000" (Av Squad), one of the "100 Best Horror films" (Time Out) and one of the "25 Best Horror Movies Since The Shining" (Vulture)--is an intense psychological thriller [that premiered on] Friday, October 14, at 10/9c. It stars John Jarratt as killer Mick Taylor, wreaking havoc in the Australian Outback except, this time, things are different. The series turns an entire genre on its head...

It takes guts to write a parody of 1970s disaster movies. After all, Airplane, the parody of the Airport series, is one of the most beloved comedies of all time. It also takes guts to write a 1970s jukebox musical. A show you may have heard of called Mamma Mia ran for nearly 14 years and 6,000 performances. Nevertheless, into this field of exclamation points flew Disaster, a parody of 1970s disaster movies...and a 1970s jukebox musical. The show, co-written by multi-hyphenate Seth Rudetsky who also plays one of the main roles and director Jack Plotnick, was perhaps a bit slim for the past Broadway season. Its silliness, specificity, and lack of original songs may have caused it to struggle amid the powerhouse shows surrounding it, and it closed in May after 72 performances. But it did receive some enthusiastic reviews, and in particular acclaim for the breakout performance of Jennifer Simard,...

It’s been less than a year since production began on Danny Draven’s Patient Seven, and now a trailer and an official poster have been revealed for the anthology horror film.

Take a peek at the trailer and poster located at the bottom of this story. An exact release date has yet to be announced for Patient Seven, but we will inform our readers on further updates.

Press Release: Los Angeles, CA (August 3rd, 2016) – In October of 2015, genre distributor Terror Films announced that principal photography had begun on an Untitled Horror Anthology, now titled Patient Seven. The structure of the anthology includes a wrap-around, written by Barry Jay Stitch (The Chosen) and directed by horror veteran Danny Draven (Ghost Month, Reel Evil), which intertwines 7 award winning, short films by filmmakers from around the globe. The filmmakers include: Nicholas Peterson, Paul Davis, Ómar Örn Hauksson, Dean Hewison, Erlingur Ottar Thoroddsen,...

Raven Banner Entertainment and Terror Films have announced a partnership. Raven Banner will distribute at least six horror titles, from Terror Films, in Canada. The initial slate will include films such as: Goddess of Love, House of Purgatory, Unearthed & Untold: The Path to Pet Sematary, Antidote, Hell House LLC and Patient Seven. This is an ongoing collaboration, initiated by Terror Films CEO Joe Dain and James Fler, of Raven Banner. This is good news for horror fans! Here is a quick overview of some of the films. Goddess of Love is a femme fatale thriller. It has already been reviewed on 28Dla, here: A Goddess of Love Review. As well, Unearthed & Untold: The Path to Pet Sematary chronicles the long journey to adapt Stephen King's Pet Sematary to screen. The world has gone to hell in Antidote, while Hell House LLC is a found footage film "about a haunted...

A boat capsizes on Broadway and Irwin Allen turns over in his Hollywood grave. “Disaster” is too dynamic a word to describe the new jukebox musical “Disaster!,” which opened Tuesday at the Nederlander Theatre. Better words would be “lukewarm mess.” Seth Rudetsky and Jack Plotnick wrote the show, which has had previous incarnations in small theaters around Manhattan. Smaller, not to mention shorter, would help in every way. “Disaster!” sets the story of Irwin Allen’s “The Poseidon Adventure” on a floating casino that’s somehow responsible for creating an earthquake and a tsunami. The long first act gets bogged down in telling.

Broadway's new musical comedy Disaster opens tonight, March 8, at the Nederlander Theatre 208 West 41st Street, directed by Jack Plotnick with a book by three-time Emmy Award nominee and Grammy Award nominee Seth Rudetsky and Jack Plotnick. Disaster will play a limited engagement through Sunday, July 3, 2016. Scroll down to learn more about the company, plus watch footage of the cast onstage below...

Broadway's new musical comedy Disaster has announced that a limited number of 30 general rush tickets will be available for each performance at the Nederlander Theatre 208 West 41st Street when the box office opens for that day's performances. Limited to 2 tickets per patron, tickets must be purchased with cash only and are subject to availability. Directed by Jack Plotnick with a book by three-time Emmy Award nominee and Grammy Award nominee Seth Rudetsky and Jack Plotnick, Disaster begins performances tonight, Tuesday, February 9, 2016 and officially opens on Tuesday, March 8, 2016 for a limited engagement through Sunday, July 3, 2016.

Genre distributor Terror Films has unveiled its 2016 slate, which includes the horror anthology “Patient Seven,” a documentary on the making of Stephen King‘s “Pet Sematary” and a trio of haunted house movies, TheWrap has learned. “Unearthed & Untold: The Path to Pet Sematary” is a documentary that includes interviews with the director and cast of the classic horror movie as well as never-before-seen footage from the set in Maine. “Patient Seven” is an original horror anthology that follows seven patients in a mental hospital. The cast includes Michael Ironside (“Total Recall”) and Jack Plotnick (“Reno 911”), with segments starring Amy...

Read More: Exclusive: Wolfe Releasing Acquires Gay Coming-Of-Age Drama 'Henry Gamble's Birthday Party' Wolfe Releasing has acquired the distribution rights to writer-director Jim Hansen's "You're Killing Me," an Lgbt comedy-horror film that has played at numerous horror festivals throughout the year. The deal gives Wolfe Releasing all worldwide rights to the film, and the company is planning a 2016 spring release on DVD, VOD, cable and additional digital platforms. "You’re Killing Me" stars Jeffery Self as an internet comedy star whose friends are so steeped in irony and sarcasm they don’t know a serial killer when they meet one. When George’s handsome new boyfriend (Matthew McKelligon) tells him he’s a murderer, George thinks it’s a joke and plays along. As George's friends start disappearing one by one, the remaining group takes matters into their own hands. Drew Droege, Jack Plotnick, Mindy Cohn and Bryan Safi co-star.

Off-Broadway’s musical comedy hit, “Disaster” his heading to the Great White Way and in need of a young boy actor to play twin siblings Ben and Lisa. Slated for a March 2016 curtain, the show by writer-director Jack Plotnick and cowriter Seth Rudetsky is loosely based on 1970s disaster movies (think “The Poseidon Adventure,” “Earthquake,” and “The Towering Inferno”) and set to a soundtrack of the decade’s greatest and grooviest hits. The story’s simple: A glamorous casino opening in New York City brings together the city’s finest, all of whom become connected through the horrific disaster(s) that take place, making for a show-stopping musical as funny as it is thrilling. Ben and Lisa are the twin children of Jackie, a lounge singer at the casino and the love interest of Tony Delvecchio, the casino’s owner. Auditions will be held Nov. 22 and rehearsal begins Jan. 4, 2016 with previews beginning Feb.

Welcome back to The Stack. This is the final episode before I kick off our Holiday Gift Guide this Tuesday November 25. This is also the beginning of a new, shorter format. But The Stack is still packed with home entertainment goodness. A favorite release is Space Station 76 (2014), directed by Jack Plotnick, whom you might remember from Rubber (2010) and Wrong (2012). Olive Films releases Fedora (1978), which many consider to be Billy Wilder's late career followup to Sunset Boulevard (1950). I also take a look at one of their back catalog titles, the nearly forgotten William Castle science fiction spy thriller Project X (1968). Lastly and quite excitedly, I tease the gift guide coverage by revealing one of this year's great TV Blu-ray box...

[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...

Welcome back to This Week In Discs! If you see something you like, click on the title to buy it from Amazon. Space Station 76 The Omega 76 is a space station expecting two new visitors. First up is a new co-captain (Liv Tyler) who immediately sets the current captain (Patrick Wilson) on edge and disrupts the crew’s flow, but she’s still far less threatening than the second visitor. Because it’s an asteroid! Or meteor. Details aren’t important, but what is important is how the crew reacts to the impending danger coinciding with a bevy of personal dramas among them. Actor Jack Plotnick directs this surprisingly dark space-set comedy and delivers a lot of laughs along the way. The gags are both visual — this is sci-fi as envisioned in the ’70s meaning the tech is old fashioned and quaint — and dialogue/delivery-based as the script serves up plenty of great lines and humorous conflicts...

In two of her most recent roles, Liv Tyler went to outerspace, and then she was very much trapped on planet Earth. The actress and model took a break in the first decade of the 2000s, but found herself tapped back into film when actor Jack Plotnick decided to direct his first feature “Space Station 76,” a darkly comedic satire of sci-fi movies from the 1970s that has the crew aboard questioning gender, sexual orientation, habits and morals. Plotnick spoke a language that resonated with Tyler, which put her in a role opposite of Patrick Wilson, Matt Bomer, Marisa Coughlan and more in a spaceship with a tiny budget. Then she said “yes” to HBO's “The Leftovers,” which Tyler described as a confluence of all her dream job descriptions. It was regular work, that kept her in New York and close to her son Milo, with a character (Meg) that was a little bit “off.

Earth Below Us: Plotnick’s Debut a Sweet Space Soap Opera

Those familiar with the comedic genius of Jack Plotnick should be thrilled to see his directorial debut, Space Station 76, based on a stage play he co-wrote. Bearing his particular brand of subversive, offbeat humor, it’s a space set soap opera made as if it were in the 1970’s and meant as an homage to those classic films from the time period that inventively attempted to visually prophesize the space age. Regularly featured in the films of Quentin Dupieux and television series, ‘Reno 911,” Plotnick’s perhaps best known for the sorely underrated spoof, Girls Will Be Girls, so many may be surprised at the sometimes melancholy tone underlying this film’s more capricious moments. More of a space age melodrama reflecting nostalgia for a bygone era of storytelling in its mixture of vintage and modern tone, it’s as sweet,...

Don't expect many laughs from this retro-futuristic curio, which doesn't really go for them, despite its parodic title and its '70s insistence that in the far future, View-Masters would be cutting-edge communication tech. Still, sympathetic audiences may be diverted by Space Station 76's period design and skilled performances, and by the mystery of what exactly the filmmakers are going for. (The less sympathetic may just ask what the point is.) Instead, director Jack Plotnick's debut mines the '70s not just for an aesthetic of kitsch but also for a narrative mode: Imagine an Updike novel set in the pinwheeling station of 2001, a Valium-in-the-void take on marital blisslessness. With jokes: Scenes with a robot therapist are inspired riffs on rudimentary AI progra...

Like the unexpected and slightly clumsy offspring of some strange tryst between Gene Roddenberry and Pedro Almodóvar, director (and co-writer) Jack Plotnick's “Space Station 76” is a period-perfect pastiche of Carter-era pop culture futurism. Extensive 21st-century CGI is used to recreate the retro-style graphics of the past's miniature, models and matte shots, but the goings on inside the title spacecraft combine the space opera and soap opera of an earlier era. The film's look and feel are far more purposeful and propulsive than the story and script, but even so, “Space Station 76” has more than a few laughs.

Liv Tyler and Matt Bomer are space pioneers with major personal problems in the trailer for Space Station 76.

The quirky dark comedy envisions an alternate history of space travel in the vein of a cheesy 1970s television show, with Patrick Wilson as the troubled captain of an intergalactic ship.

The crew of this space station find themselves more concerned with their fractured interpersonal relationships than with their mission.

Annoying robots make their presence known as well, only seeming to make matters worse.

Jack Plotnick - the actor known for playing the deputy mayor in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and a Red John suspect in The Mentalist - has directed Space Station 76, in addition to working on the screenplay with a team of writers.

The ensemble cast includes Jerry O'Connell, Kali Rocha and Marisa Coughlan. Space Station 76 opens later this year.

Thanks to Entertainment Weekly, we now have the trailer for the upcoming "Space Station 76" comedy, which spoofs 1970s sci-fi films and stars Patrick Wilson, Liv Tyler, Matt Bomer, and Jerry O'Connell. Check it out below. Plot: In a 1970s-version of the future, a group of people and robots living on a space station face inner turmoil when a new assistant captain arrives, sparking tension. The new movie is directed by comedian Jack Plotnick, making his feature directing debut. It already premiered at the SXSW Film Festival earlier this year. A release date has yet to be announced. Trailer:...

With so many movies set in a futuristic version of space, it’s refreshing to see a movie that looks at deep space life in a 70s style. That’s what you get with Space Station 76, Jack Plotnick’s feature directorial debut that follows a group of characters aboard a refueling station called Omega 76. We have the the first trailer and poster for the movie below, definitely check them out! Here's the film’s official synopsis: Space Station 76...

"A female captain?" Say what? The first trailer for a goofy sci-fi 70's spoof called Space Station 76 has debuted thanks to Entertainment Weekly and it's as bad as you would expect for a trailer that debuts on Entertainment Weekly. Despite a solid cast, including Patrick Wilson, Liv Tyler, Marisa Coughlan, Matt Bomer, Jerry O'Connell and Kylie Rogers, the jokes fall flat, the dialogue is atrocious, and this looks more like bargain bin crap than a worthy spoof. Seriously, it looks terrible. But maybe it wasn't made for everyone. Take a look below at a 1970s version of the future, where personalities and asteroids collide. Here's the first official trailer for Jack Plotnick's Space Station 76, from EW.com via The Playlist: In a 1970s-version of the future, a group of people and robots living on a space station face inner turmoil when a new assistant captain arrives, sparking tension.

Actor turned director Jack Plotnick is best known for his TV work and his frequent appearances on "Reno 911" and for his directorial debut, he's taking his comedic talents into space. Or so he hopes.

Space Station '76 is a genre comedy spoof about the shenanigans of a group of people living on a space station and the new female captain that arrives on board. Starring Patrick Wilson, Liv Tyler, Matt Bomer and Marisa Coughlan, Plotnick's feature debut actually looks pretty great, taking us back to the 70s vision of the future. As expected, there are all sorts of familiar reference points and though the trailer isn't laugh out loud funny, it is amusing and suggests that this might be one to keep an eye on. After all, it's been a while since we've seen a good space spoof (was the la [Continued ...]...

The genre comedy/spoof is a tricky one to pull off. Hell, just ask Seth MacFarlane, who tried it with "A Million Ways To Die In The West." Needless to say, Jack Plotnick has his work cut out for him with "Space Station 76," but the first trailer reveals something whose ambitions are modest, while keeping a sharp eye on the jokes. Starring Patrick Wilson, Liv Tyler, Matt Bomer and Marisa Coughlan, the film is set in a '70s version of what the future would look like, and follows a group of humans and robots, living in a space station, who find things turned upside down the arrival of new Assistant Captain. This is more carefully crafted than you might expect, with some pretty great set and costume design to be found within. And it looks like it's actually funny as well, which is the top priority for a movie like this.

Ever wonder what it would be like if Ron Burgundy had gone to space in the 1970s?

That’s the general vibe of the trailer for Space Station 76, which stars Patrick Wilson as the mustachioed, hard-drinking captain of Omega 76, a groovy space station that is turned upside down when the new assistant captain turns out to be a… woman (Liv Tyler).

The film’s vision of the future cleverly samples from B-movies and sci-fi television of that era, and its melodrama, which includes crumbling marriages, affairs, and petty jealousies, may have been cribbed from your favorite classic soap.

Veteran...

The 32nd edition of the Los Angeles-based Lgbt comes to a close on July 20 with a screening of Jack Plotnick’s Space Station 76 starring Patrick Wilson, Matt Bomer, Liv Tyler, Sam Pancake and Jennifer Cox.

Sydney Freeland’s Drunktown’s Finest earned the Us Dramatic Feature Film in the grand jury awards, while Stefan Haupt’s The Circle won best documentary feature.

In the audience awards, Daniel Ribeiro prevailed in the dramatic feature category with The Way He Looks and Cheryl Furjanic’s Back On Board: Greg Louganis was named best documentary.

Full list of Outfest 2014 award winners:

Audience Awards

Documentary Short

Families Are Forever, dir Vivian Kleiman

Dramatic Short

Alone With People, dir Drew Van Steenbergen

Documentary Feature

Back On Board: Greg Louganis, dir Cheryl Furjanic

Dramatic Feature

The Way He Looks, dir Daniel Ribeiro

First Us Dramatic Feature

Drunktown’s Finest, dir Sydney Freeland

Grand Jury Awards

Documentary Feature Special Recognition

Dior And I, dir Frédéric Tcheng...

The 32nd edition of the Los Angeles-based Lgbt comes to a close on July 20 with a screening of Jack Plotnick’s Space Station 76 starring Patrick Wilson, Matt Bomer, Liv Tyler, Sam Pancake and Jennifer Cox.

Sydney Freeland’s Drunktown’s Finest earned the Us Dramatic Feature Film in the grand jury awards, while Stefan Haupt’s The Circle won best documentary feature.

In the audience awards, Daniel Ribeiro prevailed in the dramatic feature category with The Way He Looks and Cheryl Furjanic’s Back On Board: Greg Louganis was named best documentary.

Full list of Outfest 2014 award winners:

Audience Awards

Documentary Short – Families Are Forever, dir Vivian Kleiman

Dramatic Short – Alone With People, dir Drew Van Steenbergen

Documentary Feature – Back On Board: Greg Louganis, dir Cheryl Furjanic

Dramatic Feature – The Way He Looks, dir Daniel Ribeiro

First Us Dramatic Feature – Drunktown’s Finest, dir Sydney Freeland

Grand Jury Awards

Documentary Feature Special Recognition – Dior And I, dir Frédéric Tcheng...

This will be my third year attending the venerable Fantasia International Film Festival here in Montreal, and this year’s slate does not disappoint. I was asked to pick the five movies I was the most excited to see. This proved to be a difficult task, seeing as how my original list had upwards of thirty titles. But here are the five that have got me the most intrigued.

The Zero Theorem

Directed by Terry Gilliam

USA/UK/Romania/France, 2013

Even though this movie has been finished for a while and already released in certain territories around the world, there’s a sense that a new Terry Gilliam movie is some form of minor miracle. Stories of Gilliam’s distended budgets, lost projects, and squabbles with producers lend the director a kind of bizarre mystique. But by all accounts, this was the easiest time Gilliam had making a movie in a while.

Following previous announcements of their film lineup, the Fantasia International Film Festival has released their full lineup of movies to be shown at the 18th Annual festival, starting July 17.

New additions to the lineup include 2014 Cannes Selection When Animals Dream, directed by Jonas Alexander Amby and the return of Fantasia’s showcase of animated films, Axis.

Tickets for the festival go on sale starting July 16, and the festival runs through August 5.

View the whole press release of additional announcements below:

Fantasia Celebrates Its 18th Birthday

With Over 160 Feature Films Montreal, Thursday July 10, 2014 – 2014 is the year that Fantasia turns 18. We can’t believe it either. Fantasia’s 18th birthday means over 160 features and something in the neighborhood of 300 shorts, many being shown for the first time on this continent, a good number screening here for the first time anywhere in the world.In addition to being stacked with a multitude of breathtaking debut filmmaker discoveries,...

The 2014 Outfest Los Angeles Lgbt Film Festival has announced its complete programming line-up for the event, set to run from July 10-20.

The Outfest Five In Focus series spotlighting emerging filmmakers will include Abdellah Taïa’s Salvation Army, Ken Roht’s Perfect Cowboy, Sydney Freeland’s Drunktown’s Finest, Stewart Thorndike’s Lyle and Mariana Rondón’s Bad Hair.

As part of its Outfest Forward programme, the festival will present OutSet shorts, a series of five short films written, produced and directed by a new generation of Lgbtq storytellers from Outfest and LifeWorks’ Young Filmmakers Project.

The 2014 Outfest UCLA Legacy Project screenings will celebrate the 25th anniversary of Longtime Companion, a groundbreaking feature examining the impact of the arrival of HIV/AIDS, and present the world premiere restoration of Sign of Protest.

Included in the Under The Stars series screening at The John Anson Ford Amphitheatre will be The Wizard Of Oz: The Sing-Along as well...

Outfest Los Angeles 2014 has announced the films slated for screening at gala nights happening during the course of the fest running July 10–20 in L.A. The oldest film festival in the city will be opening with the Tribeca Film Fest select “Life Partners,” starring Leighton Meester, Gillian Jacobs, Adam Brody, and others, and will close with “Space Station 76,” a film based on the stage production about life on a space station; the film’s co-written and directed by actor and Backstage contributor Jack Plotnick, and stars Patrick Wilson, Liv Tyler, Matt Bomer, and others. “The 2014 [Outfest Los Angeles] Galas represent some of the most acclaimed and thematically diverse films of the year,” said Kirsten Schaffer, executive director of Outfest in a statement. “These films are intimately familiar and yet surprisingly unique, showing us how much undiscovered territory there is in the world of Lgbt cinema.” Other films being screened include Sundance cinematography award winner “Lilting,...

Jon Hamm still mad we’re talking about his penis, Blake Shelton calls Adam Levine a complete vag, is there anything wrong with choosing to be gay?

In one of the stranger defenses of Bryan Singer, out actor Matthew Smith, who appeared on Wizards of Waverly Place says he met Singer at 17, hung out alone with him numerous times, and even flew on his private jet, with his mom invited. “He had every chance to rape me and didn’t.”

Meanwhile, Michael Egan, Singer’s accuser, has filed suits against three more Hollywood power players for operating a Hollywood sex ring. Garth Ancier, David Neuman and Gary Goddard have all been named in new lawsuits filed in Hawaii.

In Virginia, The Family Group is calling on its members to fast for 40 days to stop marriage equality, from August 27 to October 5. Well, it might help the obesity problem.

Less than 48 hours...

Matt Bomer and Marisa Coughlan premiered their new film Space Station 76 at SXSW and spoke to Uinterview about their characters and how fun it was to make a spin on a period film.

Space Station 76 takes place in the 1970’s version of the future, essentially transplanting ‘70s culture and style into a futuristic setting – the space station.

“I play Ted, who is the mechanic on the space station,” Bomer revealed. “Much like a mechanic, he wants to fix everything. He is just the kind of guy who no good deed goes unpunished.”

Bomer and Coughlan play husband and wife in the sci-fi dramedy.

“He’s trying to do the right thing and do his best by his wife and their child, and it’s just not working out for him,” Bomer said.

“And I play a very disappointed wife,” Coughlan added, laughing.

Space Station 76 is the feature debut for director Jack Plotnick,...

South by Southwest 2014 felt even larger this year with additions of Keynote speakers, its countless conference events, and of course, the music. South by Southwest is truly the convergence of all things talent and nothing showcases this better than the vast array of films screened this year.With 133 feature films screened across 10 venues, 11 screens, and over 9 days, SXSW 2014 has come to a close. This year saw, as with many years in the past, a great collection of headliners, festival favorites, filmmaker debuts, and oddball favorites.

Signing off from Austin, TX, see y’all next year! If you missed any of our coverage of SXSW, check out the links below:

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Bad Words

Directed by Jason Bateman

In his directorial debut, Bateman pulls little punches. In a script that strings along profanity like letters in a spelling bee challenge word, most will cringe, others will laugh, and a few will cringe while laughing.

Space Station 76

Directed by Jack Plotnick

Written by Jennifer Elise Cox, Sam Pancake, Jack Plotnick, Kali Rocha, and Michael Stoyanov

Space Station 76 begins with a narration musing on the impermanence and isolation of asteroidal paths. It’s the overarching metaphor in a film that is hilariously set in a nostalgic, 1970s version of the future and populated with hurt, dysfunctional, and yearning characters.

Glen (Patrick Wilson) is the alcoholic, abrasive, and suicidal captain of the Omega 76; Jessica (Liv Tyler) is new aboard and although much more competent than her counterparts, she is struggling with her own maternal inabilities; Ted (Matt Bomer) is an earnest but naive mechanic who lives with Misty (Marisa Coughlan), his philandering wife, and their lonely, precocious daughter Sunshine (Kylie Rogers). Together, this motley cast of characters explores what it means to live in a future built on expectations from the past. What happens when...

Our #1 Man on TheBacklot Hot 100 has been busy lately, as we’ve had a bumper crop of Tasty Tuesdays With Matt Bomer. This week Matt attends the SXSW press junket and premiere of his new film Space Station 76 in Austin, Texas.

Speaking of, why are we just hearing about this movie? Matt, Patrick Wilson, and Jack Plotnick (who also wrote and directed) star in this comedic look at the future (from a 70′s Pov).

Here’s a gallery of pics, as Matt brings his four-eyed fineness to the premiere, as well as an interview with Matt, Jack, and Patrick.

The post Tasty Tuesday With Matt Bomer: “Space Station 76″ appeared first on thebacklot.com.

Indiewire is at the SXSW Film Festival, shooting portraits and videos of some of the festival’s best and brightest with photographer Daniel Bergeron and the team at Movies on Demand. Now we've got Patrick Wilson and Jack Plotnick, star and director of the sci-fi comedy "Space Station 76," which was acquired by Sony ahead of the festival. Take a look.

Frank Ocean trying to become Frank Ocean, Jack Plotnick sells sci-fi starring Matt Bomer, Starz buys To Be Takei

Scott Bakula loved his scene in the bathhouse on Looking. He got a chance to catch up on something he felt he’d missed. “This was as close as I’d ever gotten to a real bathhouse. Just hearing about it in my old days in New York in the mid-‘70s, you know that was a huge deal. That’s where Bette Midler started and that whole scene! My gay friends would be off to Sunday Tea, and then roll in at 9 the next morning after the bathhouse. But that was about as close as I ever got. But I thought this was a great scene, a great way to introduce the character. I love what that scene was about. But no, I wasn’t shocked. In terms of having my clothes off,...

Just ahead of its Saturday premiere in the SXSW Visions section, Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions (Spwa) have acquired all international rights on writer-director Jack Plotnick's comedy 'Space Station 76.' The film stars Patrick Wilson, Liv Tyler and "2001: A Space Odyssey" star Keir Dullea. Domestic rights are still up for grabs via Kevin Iwashina and Zac Bright of Preferred Content. Space Station 76 is a comedic drama about a group of people (and several robots) living on a space station in a 1970’s-version of the future. When a new Assistant Captain arrives, she inadvertently ignites tensions among the crew, prompting them to confront their darkest secrets. Barely contained lust, jealousy, and anger all bubble to the surface, becoming just as dangerous as the asteroid that’s heading right for them. The film was produced by Edward Parks, Rachel Ward, Dan Burks, Joel Michaely and Katherine Ann McGregor. Niraj Bhatia...

Comedy and science-fiction are two genres that rarely get mixed together, especially when the mid-1970's are thrown into the mix. But writer/director Jack Plotnick has managed to pull off such a feat with his latest film "Space Station 76," which premieres March 8 at SXSW and to which Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions (Spwa) has just acquired all international rights."Space Station 76" is a comedic drama about a group of people (and several robots) living on a space station in a 1970’s-version of the future who are forced to confront their darkest secrets when a new Assistant Captain arrives and inadvertently ignites tensions among the crew. “We are thrilled to be working with Spwa as our international distribution partner and are excited for the film to reach a large, earthly audience,” shared director and co-writer Jack Plotnick. "Space Station 76" boasts a strong cast, which includes Patrick Wilson, Liv Tyler,...

Update: Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions (Spwa) has acquired all international rights to Space Station 76, while in separate deals Picturehouse has acquired The Guest and Starz Digital Media has taken North American rights to To Be Takei ahead of their Austin screenings.

Space Station 76 is set to premiere at SXSW on March 8 and stars Patrick Wilson and Liv Tyler in the comedic retro tale of space station inhabitants imperiled by an asteroid. Jack Plotnick directed.

Edward Parks, Rachel Ward, Dan Burks, Joel Michaely and Katherine Ann McGregor produced and Niraj Bhatia and Frank Mele served as executive producers.

Spwa brokered the deal with Parks and Mele of Rival Pictures and their legal team at Reder & Feig. Kevin Iwashina and Zac Bright of Preferred Content represent Us rights.

Picturehouse has acquired all Us rights to Adam WIngard’s Sundance premiere The Guest, which also screens in Austin on March 8.

Snoot Entertainment’s Keith Calder and Jessica Calder...

Update: Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions (Spwa) has acquired all international rights to Space Station 76, while in separate deals Picturehouse has acquired The Guest and Starz Digital Media has taken North American rights to To Be Takei ahead of their Austin screenings.

Space Station 76 is set to premiere at SXSW on March 8 and stars Patrick Wilson and Liv Tyler in the comedic retro tale of space station inhabitants imperiled by an asteroid. Jack Plotnick directed.

Edward Parks, Rachel Ward, Dan Burks, Joel Michaely and Katherine Ann McGregor produced and Niraj Bhatia and Frank Mele served as executive producers.

Spwa brokered the deal with Parks and Mele of Rival Pictures and their legal team at Reder & Feig. Kevin Iwashina and Zac Bright of Preferred Content represent Us rights.

Picturehouse has acquired all Us rights to Adam WIngard’s Sundance premiere The Guest, which also screens in Austin on March 8.

Snoot Entertainment’s Keith Calder and Jessica Calder...

Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions (Spwa) has acquired all international rights to Space Station 76, while in a separate deal Picturehouse has acquired The Guest ahead of their Austin screenings.

Space Station 76 is set to premiere at SXSW on March 8 and stars Patrick Wilson and Liv Tyler in the comedic retro tale of space station inhabitants imperiled by an asteroid. Jack Plotnick directed.

Edward Parks, Rachel Ward, Dan Burks, Joel Michaely and Katherine Ann McGregor produced and Niraj Bhatia and Frank Mele served as executive producers.

Spwa brokered the deal with Parks and Mele of Rival Pictures and their legal team at Reder & Feig. Kevin Iwashina and Zac Bright of Preferred Content represent Us rights.

Picturehouse has acquired all Us rights to Adam WIngard’s Sundance premiere The Guest, which also screens in Austin on March 8.

Snoot Entertainment’s Keith Calder and Jessica Calder produced the story of a mysterious soldier who arrives in a small town.

Picturehouse...