Friday, May 31, 2019

New Rules Announced for 92nd (2020) Academy Awards

ACADEMY ANNOUNCES RULES FOR 92ND OSCARS

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM AWARD RENAMED “INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM AWARD

The Academy’s Board of Governors has approved Oscars rules for the 92nd Academy Awards.  Notable changes and updates are as follows:

1. In the Animated Feature category, the theatrical release of eight eligible animated features in the calendar year is no longer required for the awards category to be activated.  In addition, nominations voting will be automatically open to all active members of the Short Films and Feature Animation Branch.  Other active voting members of the Academy must opt-in to participate in the nominations round.

The Foreign Language Film category name has been changed to International Feature Film.

“We have noted that the reference to ‘Foreign’ is outdated within the global filmmaking community,” commented Larry Karaszewski and Diane Weyermann, co-chairs of the International Feature Film Committee. “We believe that International Feature Film better represents this category, and promotes a positive and inclusive view of filmmaking, and the art of film as a universal experience.”

The category name change does not change any existing category rules, the submission process, or eligibility requirements.  An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the United States of America with a predominantly non-English dialogue track.  Animated and documentary feature films are permitted.  Only one film is accepted from each country as the official selection.

In addition, the shortlist for the International Feature Film award is expanding to ten films; seven to be chosen by the Phase I International Feature Film Committee, and the additional three to be voted by the International Feature Film Award Executive Committee.

In the Makeup and Hairstyling category, the number of nominated films is increasing from three to five, and the shortlist is increasing from seven to ten.  In addition, the bake-off reels for the films shall not exceed seven minutes in total running time.

In the Short Film categories, Animated and Live Action Short Films now have the option to qualify theatrically in either the City of New York or Los Angeles County to be eligible for submission. 

The Academy’s Board of Governors voted to maintain Rule Two, Eligibility for the 92nd Oscars.  The rule states that to be eligible for awards consideration, a film must have a minimum seven-day theatrical run in a Los Angeles County commercial theater, with at least three screenings per day for paid admission. Motion pictures released in nontheatrical media on or after the first day of their Los Angeles County theatrical qualifying run remain eligible.

“We support the theatrical experience as integral to the art of motion pictures, and this weighed heavily in our discussions,” said Academy President John Bailey. “Our rules currently require theatrical exhibition, and also allow for a broad selection of films to be submitted for Oscars consideration. We plan to further study the profound changes occurring in our industry and continue discussions with our members about these issues.”

Other amendments to the rules include standard date changes and “housekeeping” adjustments.

Rules are reviewed annually by individual branch and category committees.  The Awards and Events Committee then reviews all proposed changes before presenting its recommendations to the Board of Governors for final approval.

The complete 92nd Academy Awards rules are available at oscars.org/rules.

The 92nd Oscars will be held on Sunday, February 9, 2020, at the Dolby Theatre® at Hollywood & Highland Center® in Hollywood, and will be televised live on the ABC Television Network at 6:30 p.m. ET/3:30 p.m. PT.  The Oscars also will be televised live in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide.

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Thursday, May 30, 2019

National Geographic Channel Commemorates 75th Anniversary of D-Day

National Geographic Commemorates 75th Anniversary of D-Day with a Week of Powerful Programming Devoted to World War II

The Weeklong Event Includes Premieres of Original Specials Drain the Oceans: Secrets of D-Day; Hitler’s Last Stand: Lost Battalion; Eyewitness: D-Day and The King Who Fooled Hitler, Plus Encore Presentations from National Geographic’s Programming Archives

D-Day Marathon Begins June 3, 2019, at 9/8c on National Geographic

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The world was in its fifth year of war, when on June 6, 1944, western Allied forces crossed the English Channel and stormed the German defenses across the heavily fortified beaches of Normandy, France. Invading by land, sea and air, the broad attack was code named Operation Overlord, but the world knows it as D-Day, and it is said to be the beginning of the end of World War II. Ranking as the greatest amphibious landing in military history, the invasion allowed the Allies to advance into France. As a result, by August 1944, Western Europe was liberated from the Nazi German occupation, and World War II would be over the following year.

To mark the 75th anniversary of the pivotal battle at Normandy, National Geographic is celebrating with a week of powerful programming devoted to World War II. Beginning Monday, June 3, 2019, at 9/8c, the D-Day Marathon will feature premieres of original specials including Drain the Oceans: Secrets of D-Day, Hitler’s Last Stand: Lost Battalion, Eyewitness: D-Day and The King Who Fooled Hitler as well as encore presentations from National Geographic’s programming archives.

In addition to providing unprecedented access to archival material, National Geographic’s original special The King Who Fooled Hitler presents never-before-seen documents, including secret letters from King George VI himself, correspondence and diary entries, along with new interviews giving fresh insight into the infamous D-Day deception that outsmarted Hitler.

All specials will air globally in 172 countries and 43 languages on National Geographic. Full details of the programming event are below.

Original D-Day Marathon Specials Include:

DRAIN THE OCEANS: SECRETS OF D-DAY
Monday, June 3, at 9/8c
World War II saw the greatest-ever loss of ships and submarines at sea, and beneath the oceans lies a hidden graveyard of those vessels that has its own story to tell. Using the latest sonar technology, National Geographic goes on a unique expedition to map the sunken Allied vessels off the Normandy Coast, revealing stunning images from beneath the waves, and uncovers extraordinary, secret technology that was deployed by both the Allies and the Nazis in the battle for western Europe.

HITLER’S LAST STAND: LOST BATTALION
Monday, June 3, at 10/9c
On June 6, 1944, the Allies finally land troops in Normandy to open the western front. But after the surprise of the D-Day landings and Allied advances, Nazi loyalists dig in, determined to keep a merciless grip on the towns, strongholds and fortresses of occupied Europe to defend the Third Reich. These are the stories of desperate battles waged on the edge of defeat — not just for victory but for survival.

EYEWITNESS: D-DAY
Tuesday, June 4, at 9/8c
One famous day. Five heroes. Five key turning points that changed the course of World War II during the D-Day landings, told through the eyes of the people who made a difference. Using rarely seen archive footage, dramatic reconstruction and written accounts from eyewitnesses and personal testimony from five heroes, this is D-Day as never seen before.

THE KING WHO FOOLED HITLER
Wednesday, June 5, at 9/8c
This landmark film unearths exclusive new documents — secret letters, correspondence and diary entries — about D-Day that shed new light about the deception that fooled Hitler. In a tale of double agents and decoys, the investigation reveals for the first time the identity of the most secret agent of them all: King George VI. It also uncovers how the queen and future Queen Elizabeth II were enlisted in the ruse, and how the royal household managed to lose one of Britain’s greatest secrets of World War II.

Additional Programming Includes:

D-DAY SACRIFICE: BATTLE FOR FREEDOM
Monday, June 3, at 8/7c
In the spring of 1944, the Allies rolled the dice and chanced the whole fate of World War II on a single day. On the 75th anniversary of D-Day, National Geographic revisits the Allied forces’ June 6, 1944, Normandy landings and the ensuing 100 days leading up to the liberation of Paris from the Nazis.

AFTER HITLER: SPOILS OF WAR
Tuesday, June 4, at 8/7c
May 8, 1945: World War II has finally ended and the world is celebrating the defeat of Nazi Germany, but the celebration is short lived. A shattered Europe has to rebuild, heal its wounds and deal with the fallout from an interminable and barbarous conflict while sketching the outlines of its future. For many civilians, the aftermath of the war is even more brutal than the conflict itself.

HITLER YOUTH: NAZI CHILD SOLDIERS
Tuesday, June 4, at 10/9c
In 1930s Germany, the Nazi Party created the Hitler Youth to indoctrinate children and adolescents with Nazi ideology and prepare them to become a child army for Hitler. The first program traces the rise of the movement through to the war. The second program starts at the height of World War II and traces the story of the Hitler Youth as they face defeat.

INSIDE WWII: BEHIND ENEMY LINES
Wednesday, June 5, at 7/6c
Day by day. Hour by hour. Second by second. This is the story of last century’s bloodiest conflict told in a concise and compelling three-hour special. Including personal accounts, strategic analysis and rare footage, the special provides a new and intimate perspective on the experience of war.

NAZI MEGASTRUCTURES
Across three nights, beginning Wednesday, June 5, at 10/9c
High-tech superguns. Weapons of mass destruction. In the quest for world domination, the Nazis built some of the biggest and deadliest pieces of military hardware and malevolent technology in history. These weapons changed the face of modern warfare forever. Witness the hidden remains of Hitler’s most ambitious projects and hear the stories of the engineering geniuses who designed them.

MAKING A DICTATOR
Back-to-back nights, beginning Wednesday, June 5, at 11/10c
A growing threat to democracies appears in the force of dictatorships. Dictators like Adolf Hitler, Saddam Hussein, Augusto Pinochet, Mobutu Sese Seko and Fidel Castro found their way to power through similar methods. The special examines the brutal methods and common practices implemented by each dictatorship, along with the ways in which the dictators corrupted the countries they claimed to improve.


About National Geographic Partners LLC
National Geographic Partners LLC (NGP), a joint venture between the National Geographic Society and Disney, is committed to bringing the world premium science, adventure and exploration content across an unrivaled portfolio of media assets. NGP combines the global National Geographic television channels (National Geographic Channel, Nat Geo WILD, Nat Geo MUNDO, Nat Geo PEOPLE) with National Geographic’s media and consumer-oriented assets, including National Geographic magazines; National Geographic studios; related digital and social media platforms; books; maps; children’s media; and ancillary activities that include travel, global experiences and events, archival sales, licensing and e-commerce businesses. Furthering knowledge and understanding of our world has been the core purpose of National Geographic for 131 years, and now we are committed to going deeper, pushing boundaries, going further for our consumers … and reaching millions of people around the world in 172 countries and 43 languages every month as we do it. NGP returns 27 percent of our proceeds to the nonprofit National Geographic Society to fund work in the areas of science, exploration, conservation and education. For more information visit natgeotv.com or nationalgeographic.com, or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn and Pinterest.

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Tuesday, May 28, 2019

Comic Book Nominees for "Dwayne McDuffie Award 2019" Announced

Dwayne McDuffie Award for Kids' Comics Announces 2019 Shortlist

Kids Read Comics has announced the shortlist for the annual Dwayne McDuffie Award for Kids’ Comics, which will be handed out at the Ann Arbor Comic Arts Festival on June 14, 2019.

The award honors the pioneering comics and animation writer who cofounded Milestone Media and created the teen superhero Static among others. Judges seek out excellent comics aimed at school-aged children and young teens and score the work on four main criteria: Quality, Timelessness, Originality and Diversity.

After reviewing scores of books published in 2018, the judges narrowed the field to a list of ten that showcase today’s amazing variety of comics for young readers: books that cover a wide range of topics from many viewpoints and in distinct voices.

On this year’s shortlist are:

Be Prepared, by Vera Brosgol, sends young Vera, a Russian girl living in an American suburb, to summer camp—Russian summer camp, the only one her single mom can afford and the one where she just might be able to fit in,

The Cardboard Kingdom, by Chad Sell, follows a neighborhood of kids who transform ordinary cardboard into fantastical homemade costumes as they explore conflicts with friends, family, and their own identity.

Hidden Witch, by Molly Knox Ostertag, continues the story of Asler, hero of The Witch Boy, as he takes magic lessons from his grandmother and tries to help his non-magical friend Charlie escape from a curse that's trying to attach itself to her.

Last Pick, by Jason Walz, takes readers to an earth overrun by alien invaders, where only those too young, too old, or too "disabled" have been spared from abduction...but maybe the kids last picked can step up and start a revolution.

Lumberjanes: The Infernal Compass, by Lilah Sturges and polterink, finds the Janes separated during an orienteering outing, thanks to a mysterious compass that others very much want to lay their hands on.

My Beijing: Four Stories of Everyday Wonder, by Nie Jun, introduces Yu'er and her grandpa, who live in a small neighborhood in Beijing that's full of big personalities—with a story around every corner and a hint of magic each day.

Onibi: Diary of a Yokai Ghost Hunter, by Atelier Sento, transports readers to the places where natural and supernatural meet, as it explores some of the lesser-known parts of Japan in a story that is part fantasy and part travelogue.

Peter & Ernesto: A Tale of Two Sloths, by Graham Annable, tells the story of two best friends who are nothing alike—Peter loves their tree and never wants to leave, while Ernesto loves the sky and wants to see it from every place on earth.

The Prince and the Dressmaker, by Jen Wang, finds Prince Sebastian hiding a secret life―taking Paris by storm wearing fabulous dresses as the Lady Crystallia―and relying on the brilliant young dressmaker Frances, who guards his secret but has dreams of her own.

Sanity & Tallulah, by Molly Brooks, features best friends who live on a dilapidated space station at the end of the galaxy―but when Sanity creates a definitely-illegal-but-impossibly-cute three-headed kitten, the havoc it wreaks may mean the end of their outer space home.

This year, the judges for the Dwayne McDuffie Award for Kids’ Comics are Faith Roncoroni, a high school English teacher and comics and anime club adviser; Tameshja Brooks, who works at Green Brain Comics, and Nola Pfau, managing editor for Women Write About Comics. They have been assisted by Edith Donnell, a Kids Read Comics cofounder and youth and teen librarian.

The full list of books considered for the award can be found at the end of this a2caf.com post.

Previous years' winners were Hilda and the Black Hound by Luke Pearson, Awkward by Svetlana Chmakova, Ghosts by Raina Telgemeier and The Tea Dragon Society by Katie O'Neill.

Nominations for 2019 titles can be made through January 31, 2020 by emailing mcduffiekidsaward@gmail.com.

Kids Read Comics is a Michigan-based nonprofit that hosts the annual Ann Arbor Comic Arts Festival in collaboration with the Ann Arbor District Library. A2CAF is a free, weekend event for kids, teens and adults that features over 60 artists and writers and a full slate of interactive programs including many hands-on workshops. Guests at the 2019 show include comics artists and writers Jerry Craft (New Kid), Wendy and Richard Pini (Elfquest), Lucy Knisley (Kid Gloves: Nine Months of Careful Chaos), Raúl the Third (¡Vamos! Let’s Go to The Market!), Judd Winick (Hilo), Joamette Gil (Power & Magic: The Queer Witch Comics Anthology), Ben Hatke (Zita the Spacegirl), and Raina Telgemeier (Share Your Smile).

A2CAF is immediately preceded by A2 Inkubate, a one-day conference for educators and librarians aimed at helping them use comics successfully in their professional settings, and includes cartoonists with whom they can collaborate in advocating for comics.

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Monday, May 27, 2019

BOOM! Studios from Diamond Distributors for May 29, 2019

BOOM! STUDIOS

MAR191293    CODA #12 (OF 12) MAIN & MIX    $3.99
JAN191368    GRAND ABYSS HOTEL ORIGINAL GN HC (MR)    $24.99
MAR191299    LUMBERJANES SOMEWHERE GREEN #1 CVR A MAIN    $7.99
MAR191300    LUMBERJANES SOMEWHERE GREEN #1 CVR B FISH VAR    $7.99
MAR198758    MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS #39 FOC MERCADO VAR    $3.99
MAR191280    MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS #39 MAIN    $3.99
MAR191281    MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS #39 PREORDER GIBSON VAR    $3.99
FEB191276    SMOOTH CRIMINALS #6 (OF 12)    $3.99
MAR191314    STEVEN UNIVERSE ONGOING #28 MAIN PENA CVR    $3.99
MAR191315    STEVEN UNIVERSE ONGOING #28 PREORDER PERRONE VAR    $3.99

Dark Horse Comics from Diamond Distributors for May 29, 2019

DARK HORSE COMICS

MAR190353    BAD LUCK CHUCK #3 (OF 4)    $3.99
JAN190470    DEATH ORB TP VOL 01    $19.99
JAN190459    DEPT H OMNIBUS TP VOL 01    $24.99
MAR190285    FIGHT CLUB 3 #5 CVR A MACK (MR)    $3.99
MAR190286    FIGHT CLUB 3 #5 CVR B FEGREDO (MR)    $3.99
JAN190446    GOD OF WAR TP    $17.99
JAN190469    GRUNT HC ART AND UNPUBLISHED COMICS OF JAMES STOKOE    $39.99
MAR190344    HELLBOY VS LOBSTER JOHNSON RING OF DEATH    $3.99
DEC180370    MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000 #6 CVR A NAUCK    $3.99
DEC180371    MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000 #6 CVR B VANCE    $3.99
JAN190472    PROS AND (COMIC) CONS TP    $19.99
MAR190270    STRANGER THINGS SIX #1 CVR A BRICLOT    $3.99
MAR190271    STRANGER THINGS SIX #1 CVR B LAMBERT    $3.99
MAR190272    STRANGER THINGS SIX #1 CVR C MACK    $3.99
MAR190273    STRANGER THINGS SIX #1 CVR D SATTERFIELD PHOTO    $3.99
AUG180391    WITCHER III WILD HUNT GERALT IN BATH STATUETTE    $79.99

DC Comics from Diamond Distributors for May 29, 2019

DC COMICS

NOV180600    BATMAN BLACK & WHITE STATUE WHITE KNIGHT JOKER BY MURPHY    $80.00
MAR190458    BATMAN LAST KNIGHT ON EARTH #1 (OF 3) (MR)    $5.99
MAR190459    BATMAN LAST KNIGHT ON EARTH #1 (OF 3) VAR ED (MR)    $5.99
MAR190500    CATWOMAN ANNUAL #1    $4.99
APR190003    DC PREVIEWS #14 JUNE 2019 EXTRAS    $PI
JAN190555    DC SUPER HERO GIRLS SPACED OUT TP    $9.99
MAR190505    DETECTIVE COMICS ANNUAL #2    $4.99
MAR190475    DOG DAYS OF SUMMER #1    $9.99
JAN190585    DOOMSDAY CLOCK #10 (OF 12)    $4.99
JAN190586    DOOMSDAY CLOCK #10 (OF 12) VAR ED    $4.99
FEB190572    FLASH BY MARK WAID TP BOOK 06    $29.99
FEB190577    GREEN LANTERNS TP VOL 09 EVILS MIGHT    $19.99
NOV180599    HARLEY QUINN RED WHITE & BLACK STATUE BY FRANK CHO    $80.00
MAR190476    HEROES IN CRISIS #9 (OF 9)    $3.99
MAR190477    HEROES IN CRISIS #9 (OF 9) VAR ED    $3.99
FEB190592    LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT MICHAEL GOLDEN HC    $29.99
FEB190599    RAVEN DAUGHTER OF DARKNESS TP VOL 02    $16.99
FEB190605    SHAZAM THE WORLDS MIGHTIEST MORTAL HC VOL 01    $49.99
MAR190478    SUPERMAN LEVIATHAN RISING SPECIAL #1    $9.99
MAR190555    WILD STORM #23    $3.99

Dynamite Entertainment from Diamond Distributors for May 29, 2019

DYNAMITE

MAR191139    PETER CANNON THUNDERBOLT #5 CVR A WADA    $3.99
MAR191140    PETER CANNON THUNDERBOLT #5 CVR B GANUCHEAU    $3.99
MAR191141    PETER CANNON THUNDERBOLT #5 CVR C WIJNGAARD    $3.99