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Archive for January 6th, 2009

Tuesday, January 6th, 2009

TUESDAY JANUARY 6, 2009

PROJECTS ANNOUNCED

NBC’s in tune with scribe Jared Bush’s music-themed drama project “Soundtrack.” Hourlong script, in development at the Peacock, revolves around a misguided man whose life begins being accompanied by the music in his head. In “Soundtrack,” the lead character has lost his job and his ex-girlfriend has gotten engaged to someone else. That’s when he starts to hear the music — the same, iconic song, over and over again, which doesn’t go away until he figures out its significance — and then it’s on to the next track.

HBO is teaming with Warner Bros. and writer-producer John Wells on a U.S. version of Blighty’s iconic blue-collar TV drama “Shameless.” The move follows protracted talks between the skein’s creator British screenwriter Paul Abbott, Wells and various U.S. networks in recent years including NBC, which at one point was poised to remake “Shameless” starring Woody Harrelson.

PROJECT UPDATES

Michael Gambon, Leslie Bibb, Colm Meaney and Theresa Randle have come aboard the Film Department thriller “Law Abiding Citizen.” Gerard Butler and Jamie Foxx already have been cast in the F. Gary Gray-directed vigilante movie. “The Longest Yard” screenwriter Sheldon Turner recently came on to do production work on the script as the film chugs toward its Jan. 21 start date in Philadelphia. “Citizen” is set in motion when a district attorney orchestrates a plea bargain that sets free the killers of another man’s family. The aggrieved victim then seeks personal justice from the D.A.

Emmy winner Christine Lahti and Johnny Sneed have joined the cast of USA Network’s 90-minute pilot “Operating Instructions,” directed by “Hitch” helmer Andy Tennant. The project, from Conaco Prods. and Universal Cable Prods., centers on Lt. Rachel Scott (Emily Rose), a former Marine who returns from a tour as a Navy surgeon to take a post at a military hospital. Lahti will play Cmdr. Helen Keller, the hospital’s chief administrator, who butts heads with Rachel almost from the get-go. Sneed will play Capt. Will McKay, who might share a history with Rachel. He is the hospital’s chief medical officer and arranged for her to take the job there.

ACQUISITIONS/FESTIVAL NEWS

Regent Releasing has nabbed North American rights to Yojiro Takita’s drama “Departures.” Pic follows an unemployed cellist who takes a job as a Japanese “nokanshi,” preparing dead bodies for the afterlife. “Departures” has pocketed several fest awards, including Montreal’s Grand Prix and Hawaii’s audience award, and the film garnered 13 nominations for the Japan Academy Prize, making it the country’s entry for the Oscars.

BUSINESS NEWS

Roman Polanski’s lawyers want his case moved out of L.A. On Monday, attorney Chad Hummel filed two documents with the Los Angeles Superior Court outlining all the reasons why that court should be disqualified from weighing the director’s decades-old case. A hearing on Polanski’s early December request to have the sexual misconduct case dismissed had been set for Jan. 21. Polanski fled the United States more than 30 years ago on the eve of sentencing, convinced he would not get a fair shake from Judge Lawrence Rittenband, and has lived in European exile ever since. His fugitive status is central to the latest request. Hummel said that court expressed a “predetermination” on the issue when it indicated that Polanski would have to appear at the hearing. He cited a Dec. 3 L.A. Times story in which a court spokesman said that it had been the court’s position “consistently for several years” that the “Chinatown” director must personally appear in order to seek dismissal or sentencing.

For TNT, the new year marks decision time for one of the most ambitious drama-development slates in the TV biz right now. In November, Turner programming topper Michael Wright said the network would wait until the beginning of the year to choose to greenlight “one, maybe two” series from a flurry of pilots from big-name producers and talent. According to several sources, decisions are close, with the midlife-crises-themed “Men of a Certain Age,” produced by and starring Ray Romano, a leading candidate for series greenlight. Other pilots said to be looking good to TNT include “The Line,” a cop drama produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and starring Dylan McDermott, and medical drama “Time Heals,” produced by and starring Jada Pinkett Smith. TNT officials said an announcement is pending.

The cable channel that sold for a bargain-basement price last month is suddenly the object of a tug-of-war between two prospective owners. Lionsgate surprised the biz late Monday by announcing that it’s cut a deal to acquire the TV Guide Network cabler and TV Guide Online from Macrovision for $255 million. Just three weeks ago, Macrovision announced a deal to sell the channel and online biz to investor Allen Shapiro for the same price, but late Monday the tech firm announced it had “terminated” that agreement in favor of the deal with Lionsgate. Lionsgate and Macrovision execs worked in secret through the holidays to complete the deal despite Macrovision’s announcement of its agreement with Shapiro on Dec. 18.

INDUSTRY MOVES

Antonio Banderas has signed with the William Morris Agency. Banderas had long been repped by CAA but signed with WMA vet Ed Limato. The Spanish actor is the first above-the-liner to change agency addresses in the new year. Amid the gloomy pace of film production that followed the 2008 writers strike, numerous actors, writers and directors changed agencies, and uncertainty over a possible SAG strike could portend more moves.

WEBSITE TO WATCH

http://www.motionbox.com/

If you got an HD camcorder for Christmas check out this site. It offers a free platform with which to upload, share and store your HD footage then further distribute it on the web. One cool feature allows you to highlight specific segments of videos then share only the best bits. Online apps allow you to create video e-cards, embeddable videos or even hard copy DVDs or flipbooks you can ship to that family member who is still not online. It’s extremely easy to use and – best of all – there are currently no limits on how much you can upload.