News & Updates
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Oscar 2015 Nominees Expose Academy’s Lack of Diversity
Posted by NALIP on January 15, 2015
Senior Film and Media Reporter @ Variety
This year’s crop of Oscar contenders reveals a stunning lack of diversity that is certain to reawaken complaints that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is tone deaf when it comes to issues of race and gender.
All of the acting categories on Thursday were dominated by white performers and no female writers or directors were included in the Oscar race. It’s the kind of monochromatic constellation that flies in the face of a moviegoing public that is becoming more multi-cultural by the day.
Oscar voters had a chance to make history by nominating the first African-American woman in the Best Director category with “Selma” helmer Ava DuVernay, but instead they opted to reward a contingent that was all-male and heavily white. Mexican director Alejandro González Iñárritu, rewarded for “Birdman,” was the sole instance of diversity in that category.
Moreover, “Selma” star David Oyelowo has earned raves for his work as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., but he was also left off of too many ballots to make the final cut.
DuVernay seemed to take it in stride, emphasizing “Selma’s” Best Picture and Best Song nods and tweeting, “Happy Birthday, Dr. King. An Oscar gift for you. To SELMA cast + crew led by our miracle David Oyelowo! To Common + Legend! Kudos! March on!”
DuVernay wasn’t alone. Oscar voters ignored “Unbroken” director Angelina Jolie and “Citizenfour” director Laura Poitras (although the film was nominated for best documentary). In the supporting actor categories, Carmen Ejogo’s sensitive portrayal of Coretta Scott King in “Selma” was ignored, as was Miyavi’s frightening work as an abusive prison guard in “Unbroken.”
Past reports on the makeup of the Academy’s membership have exposed a disturbing level of racial and demographic homogeneity. A Los Angeles Times article from 2012, revealed that Oscar voters were 94% white, 77% male and only 14% under the age of 50.
To its credit, the Oscars have made efforts to diversify, appointing African-American Cheryl Boone Isaacs as president in 2013, for example. It has also rewarded black actors such as Forest Whitaker and Octavia Spencer in recent contests, and last year handed its top prize to “12 Years a Slave.”
But Thursday’s nominations represent a step back. Host Ellen DeGeneres kicked off last year’s Oscars telecast with a joke that read as a warning, noting that the night could end two ways.
“Possibility number one: ’12 Years a Slave’ wins best picture,” DeGeneres said. “Possibility number two: You’re all racists.”
Who’s laughing now?
Check this out in Variety.com
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A Free Online Event Offering Cinematography Knowledge from World-Class DPs
Posted by NALIP on January 15, 2015
Robert Hardy @ NoFilmSchool
Cinematography is not an easy subject to learn on your own -- that is, unless you have access to professional DPs who are willing to spill the beans about the tips and tricks that have made them successful.
From January 20th to 21st (next Tuesday and Wednesday), Big League Film School will host its annual cinematography summit. Aptly named the Big League CineSummit, the unique online event brings a host of working narrative and commercial DPs, ranging from Frankie DeMarco (the cinematographer behind the first season of Mad Men and All Is Lost) to Shane Hurlbut, who needs no introduction around these parts. Each of the guests will be presenting on a topical aspect of cinematography and offering practical tips that viewers can use in their own work.
Here's the trailer for this year's summit.
Curious as to what kind of material you'll be learning at the Big League CineSummit? Here's a preview that features our good friend Matt Workman, who recently put together an awesomeseries of videos about operating and designing camera moves for the Technocrane. In this video, Workman talks about both the importance of composition and how different tools can affect camera movement.
The catch in all of this is that these presentations are only free if you watch them live during the middle of next week. If you'd like additional access to them so that you can watch them on your own schedule and at your own pace, well, that's going to cost you about $100 (as of this writing). Depending on the educational value and quality of the presentations, which I expect to be good considering the top notch DPs who are presenting, that price could very well be a worthwhile investment.
If you're interested in learning more about and attending the Big League CineSummit, head on over to their website to get all of the details about who is presenting and what they'll be talking about.
Check this out at NoFilmSchool.com
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Marvel’s Ant-Man Adds Latino Talent to Its Superhero Universe
Posted by NALIP on January 14, 2015
The Midwest’s weather is currently proving that it can never be too cold to snow, so I’m daydreaming about summer temperatures — and blockbusters. Luckily, Marvel Studios released the trailer for Ant-Man last week, and it seems the superhero universe has plenty of room for Latino talent: Ant-Man stars Michael Peña and Bobby Cannavale in supporting roles and Jordi Mollá as one of the main antagonists.
Cesar Chavez lead actor (and Chicago Mexicano) Michael Peña is the only one of the three who we actually see in the trailer, and he’s toting some serious firepower while wearing a suit and a Pym Security badge. Peña’s been pretty tight-lipped about his role as Luis, so we learned from his co-star T.I. that they will both play friends and back-up to Scott Lang/Ant-Man (Paul Rudd).
In a case of art imitating life, IRL Rudd buddy Bobby Cannavale has been cast as Paxton, another one of Scott’s friends. It’s not clear if Cannavale, a half-Cuban Jersey boy, will get to fight crime with Ant-Man, or if he’s part of Scott’s checkered past. But I think it’s safe to say that he’ll leave his Gyp Rosetti antics on the boardwalk.
Read more at REMEZCLA.com.
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NALIPster, Gina Rodriguez Brings Home the Golden Globe
Posted by NALIP on January 11, 2015
Gina Rodriguez at the 2014 NALIP Media SummitGina Rodriguez
Wins
Best Actress in a TV Series
Comedy or MusicalNALIP is proud to congratulate Gina Rodriguez on her Golden Globe win for Best Actress in a TV Series, Comedy or Musical for her lead performance in CW's Jane the Virgin.
We are beyond honored to consider Gina a longstanding member of NALIP, and believe this achievement is not only the representation of her talent and work, but that also of the quality and potential of Latino talent on and behind the screen.
Gina is also the 2013 recipient of the NALIP Lupe Award - given to up-and-coming Latino breakout artists. She's participated in other programs such as NALIP's Latino Producers Academy in the acting segment, and numerous NALIP Media Summits.
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FCC Chair Hints Net Neutrality Rules Will Treat Broadband as a Utility
Posted by NALIP on January 08, 2015
Speaking at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, the Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler has strongly hinted that his new net neutrality rules will treat broadband Internet service providers as utilities.
Despite initially resisting the idea, it looks increasingly likely that Wheeler's net neutrality reforms could reclassify ISPs and regulate them under Title II of the Communications Act. That would protect consumers by treating the internet as an essential service—and it's something that Obama has laid out as vital in his own net neutrality plan.
Originally, Wheeler suggested that ISPs should be able to strike deals with content companies if they were "commercially reasonable." But he explained yesterday that "it became obvious [to the FCC] that 'commercially reasonable' could be interpreted as what is reasonable for the ISPs, not what's reasonable for consumers or innovators. And that's the wrong question and the wrong answer. Because the issue here is how do we make sure that consumers and innovators have access to open networks."
Instead, he explained, the best way to judge an ISP's beahvior is the "just and reasonable" standard under Title II. "We're going to propose rules that say that no blocking, no throttling, [no] paid prioritization, all that list of issues, and that there is a yardstick against which behavior should be measured," explained Wheeler. "And that yardstick is 'just and reasonable.'"
Of course, we have to wait until February 26th to find out exactly what the FCC's decision is on net neutrality. But right now, it looks like ISPs could be in for a disappointment—and that broadband could end up being treated like a utility. [LA Times]
Check this out at GIZMODO.com.
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The rising economic power of Latinos in the U.S.
Posted by NALIP · January 08, 2015
By Rian Bosse
The growing Hispanic population in the United States is set to shape businesses and the country’s economy in a big way over the next 50 years, according to Chiqui Cartagena, vice president of marketing for Univision.
Calling it a “Latino baby boom,” Cartagena, a seasoned journalist and media expert who has worked with businesses for 20 years, spoke Monday on the impact natural born and immigrant Hispanics have had on shaping business and marketing strategies for companies looking for future growth.
Cartagena was the lunch time keynote speaker on the kickoff day of Reynolds Week at Arizona State University’s Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. Her audience included journalists and professors taking part in the Reynolds Week program, as well as professors participating in the Scripps-Howard Entrepreneurship Institute, which is also being held this week at the Cronkite School.
“When companies like McDonald’s, Coke and Pepsi tell me they are focusing more on being multicultural, they are changing,” she said following her presentation. “Twenty years ago, they weren’t saying that. Now they get it.”What do you think?The U.S. Hispanic population is projected to increase for the next fifty years and expected to make up a larger part of the country’s population. By 2060, 30.6 percent of the American population will be Hispanic, while the non-Hispanic white population will make up 42.6 percent, according to projections.
Cartagena, author of the books Latino Boom! and Latino Boom II, says the boom is not confined to states Latinos have traditionally settled in, like Arizona, New Mexico, California and Texas, but has become a national phenomenon. Across the country, the Hispanic population doubled in 28 states over the last 13 years.
Following job opportunities, new patterns of population growth have developed as well, helping to support different economies that might have otherwise experienced a population decrease if not for the boom.
“We’re seeing a new pattern of Latino migration to the Midwest,” Cartagena said.
The growth is also fueled by a shift in the makeup of the Hispanic population, according to Cartagena. More and more Latinos are being born in the United States instead of emigrating from other countries, which has traditionally formed the makeup of the group.
That means the percent of the Hispanic population of working age will double by 2060, according to projections. Already, 29 percent of people in the Hispanic population are Millennials, a valuable age demographic to target for companies, compared to 22 percent in the non-Hispanic white population.
With the growth, Latinos represent more purchasing power and are becoming the “backbone” of the economy in the United States while more and more enter the middle and upper classes, Cartagena said. One in six consumers in the country are already Hispanic and, since 2000, the percent of the Latino population making over $100,000 a year has doubled from 7 to 13 percent.
Much of Cartagena’s time in the media industry has been spent convincing companies looking globally to “look in their own backyards” for opportunity.
And the data backs that idea up – if Hispanics in the United States made up their own country, it would have a higher per capita income than any BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) country worldwide, according Cartagena’s research.
That purchasing power means a lot of potential dollars across a number of industries. For instance, Hispanics already spend $90.7 billion on groceries consumed at home, impacting agriculture and the food industries. In the housing market, they are expected to represent half of all new home buyers by 2020.
Culturally, the population is on stable ground to support its place in the economy, now and in the future. Cartagena said research shows the Hispanic population is more concerned politically about education than it is about immigration reform, which is an issue often tied to its communities.Ninety-four percent of Hispanic parents expect their children to go to college and 1 in 5 currently attends technical or vocational school. Not only does that mean the population will be more qualified to enter a variety of fields, but it will also spend more in support of schools and universities.Altogether, Cartagena argued, the impact that Hispanics have economically can no longer be ignored. Still, problems with cultural perceptions, representations and portrayals, especially in the media, surround the communityBut, as she has seen in the past, that change is certainly coming along as well, though more still needs to be done.“The Hispanic community is really a business imperative for companies today,” she said.
Check this out at BusinessJournalism.org.
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Longtime WME Partner Launches New Company Targeting Underserved African American, Latino Audiences
Posted by NALIP · January 08, 2015
By Tambay A. Obenson | Shadow and Act
Veteran partner at William Morris Endeavor, Charles King, announced yesterday that he has formed MACRO, a new media holding company that will target the "explosive multicultural content marketplace," and will bring "a unique focus to content creation, distribution and engagement for the radically under-served African-American, Latino and Multicultural audiences," states the press release.
"There were two major catalysts that propelled me to move to LA and enter the industry over fifteen years ago: my vision to build a media company one day and the knowledge that what I saw on screen did not fully reflect the spectrum of who we are," said Charles King. "It's clear to me now, as it was then, that there's a growing appetite for content that serves the more diverse world we live in. During my career as an agent, it has been an honor to help build the careers of and represent some of the most compelling artists of our time. Launching MACRO fulfills the vision I had all those years ago, and at a time when our industry needs it the most. I am humbled by all of the support I’ve received industry-wide from my WME family, clients and friends."
MACRO’s initial focus will be on producing film, TV and digital content, working both within and outside the entertainment industry in the United States, bringing together veterans, innovators, and thought leaders in the worlds of technology, politics, media and entertainment.
Working his way up the ladder, from the mailroom to become the first and only African American partner at WME, King has become known for discovering emerging talent and excelling in a rapidly-evolving media landscape, represented a wide breadth of talent in every sector of entertainment, over his 15 year run at WME.
"Charles' terrific relationships and entrepreneurial approach make him perfectly suited for his new venture. We have had an incredible run together and look forward to working with him in his next chapter," said WME Co-CEOs Ari Emanuel and Patrick Whitesell.
MACRO officially launched on January 5, 2015 and will be based in Los Angeles. Current advisory board members include Ted Sarandos, Chief Content Officer, Netflix, and Raymond McGuire, Global Head of Corporate & Investment Banking, Citibank.
Other key executives will be joining the company eventually.
King is in the final stages of closing an 8-figure round of financing round, and is in distribution talks with several film studios.
MACRO has projects already in development with filmmakers Ryan Coogler and Craig Brewer.
WME will continue representing King’s current roster of clients.
Check this out on IndieWire.com.