Hollywood is Dead.
What's next for the film industry?
I’m taking a week off for Thanksgiving, but I’ll be back next Friday with a new story. Until then, enjoy this round up of interesting stuff about filmmaking and the entertainment industry that I’ve been reading.
Hollywood is dead. This is what’s next.
By Justine Bateman
In October of 2024, The Hollywood Reporter (THR) posted this on social media: “Hollywood, meet your new A-List.” There were no actors in the accompanying photo. Featured instead were TikTokers and Instagram “influencers” who function primarily as infomercial salespeople.
In the past, THR’s “New A-List” was reserved for actors rising quickly to the top—the ones to watch. In fact, THR did publish a New A-List of Movie Stars a few months prior. Perhaps THR was simply making a new list, one filled with these types of salespeople. But the accompanying text was leveled at “Hollywood,” as if these salespeople were the new inhabitants. And that was quite inaccurate.
Hollywood is dead. These salespeople are too late and too off-target to have been a part of it.
Film Vibes
This might be the coolest site I’ve come across that helps filmmakers find reference images for their mood boards.
Legendary Movie Poster Artist Drew Struzan On Honing His Craft
This interview was conducted by Guest Contributor Erik Sharkey.If you don't know the name Drew Struzan, you definitely know his artwork.Drew has painted iconic movie posters for some of the biggest franchises in history, like Star Wars, Back to the Future, Harry Potter, and Indiana Jones. My generation grew up seeing his beautiful posters for films like The Goonies and Big Trouble in Little China in the theater lobby and in full page newspaper ads. Drew's posters were a big part of the moviegoing experience.
How Director Luke Barnett Was Inspired to Create Viral Short Film ‘The Crossing Over Express’ After Receiving a Message From His Late Mother
By Jenelle Riley
A couple of years ago, Luke Barnett heard from his mother – even though it had been 20 years since she died. The actor-filmmaker received a text from an unknown number with a YouTube link to a video his mother had made when he was 16, telling him how proud she was of him. It was particularly jarring, as he didn’t have many photos and no video of her. It turned out, his friend Jon’s father had recently discovered it on an old VHS tape and had it put online.
“The video really shook me up,” says Barnett. “It took me back to my last conversation with my mom. She was in the hospital, in a coma, and they let me go in one last time.” He was just 17 at the time, and says it ended up being more like a confession.