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Tag: documentary

  • Kurt Cobain Tried to Kill Himself in High School

    Kurt Cobain attempted suicide at least once before his death in April 1994. That is one of the many revelations of the HBO documentary “Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck.”

    The film was put together using some never-before-revealed home videos and personal audiotapes.

    In one scene of the film, Kurt Cobain describes a time in high school when he tried to lie in front of an oncoming train, weighted down by cinder blocks, in an attempt to end his life. The rain sped by on a parallel track. Were it not for that error, the world would have had no “Smells Like Teen Spirit.”

    The documentary also reveals more about Kurt Cobain’s widow, Courtney Love.

    “For over 20 years, the public has come to know Courtney through the media’s (filter),” filmmaker Brett Morgen said. One of the interesting things about ‘Montage of Heck’ is we experience Courtney through Kurt’s eyes. And who we come to meet are two young 20-year-olds who are intoxicated with a toxic love. But I think the film really challenges viewers who come to the movie with predisposed ideas about Courtney.”

    Just last month, Frances Bean Cobain told Rolling Stone that she actually doesn’t like Nirvana all that much.

    “I don’t really like Nirvana that much [grins]. Sorry, promotional people, Universal. I’m more into Mercury Rev, Oasis, Brian Jonestown Massacre [laughs]. The grunge scene is not what I’m interested in. But ‘Territorial Pissings’ [on Nevermind] is a fucking great song. And ‘Dumb’ [on In Utero] – I cry every time I hear that song. It’s a stripped-down version of Kurt’s perception of himself – of himself on drugs, off drugs, feeling inadequate to be titled the voice of a generation.”

    “My dad was exceptionally ambitious. But he had a lot thrown on him, exceeding his ambition. He wanted his band to be successful. But he didn’t want to be the fucking voice of a generation.”

    One of the toughest things for Frances Bean Cobain, and an odd thing about a dead musician like Kurt, is that his death immortalizes him. This new documentary takes that even further.

    “Even though Kurt died in the most horrific way possible, there is this mythology and romanticism that surrounds him, because he’s 27 forever. The shelf life of an artist or musician isn’t particularly long. Kurt has gotten to icon status because he will never age. He will always be that relevant in that time and always be beautiful.”

  • Ron Jeremy Documentary to Hit Amazon Instant, Plus Video Game

    Ron Jeremy claims the title of “Hardest (Working) Man in Show Business.” The multi-decade porn star has done what few porn stars are able to do — carved out a career for himself outside of the skin industry.

    Ron Jeremy is not a pretty man. His nickname in porn is The Hedgehog. That pretty much sums up his look — well, except for the obvious feature that made him the go-to name in porn in the days before Viagra.

    But Ron Jeremy managed to generate enough goodwill and cred off the porn set to land roles in films like Boondock Saints, Ronin, and Reindeer Games.

    Ron Jeremy understood the value of networking and contacts long before he era of PDAs and cloud contact storage. He built his career with a ratty old notebook that was stuffed full of scribbled names and phone numbers, with lines connecting many of the names to show social and business relationships.

    But in 2013, Ron Jeremy almost died. It wasn’t any sort of STD that laid The Hedgehog low. It was his heart.

    In a soon-to-be-released documentary called Ron Jeremy: Life After the Buffet, the story of how Ron Jeremy used this almost-tragic and certainly-frightening event as impetus to change his life.

    Broadway World said of the documentary:

    “Ron Jeremy is a cultural icon, known as the King of Porn. Even with his eccentric features, he is a sex guru to millions of fans. Ron Jeremy: Life After the Buffet is an explosive film that exposes Ron, at age 60, in a surprising and very real way. Death came knocking at his door like a bolt of lightening when he started experiencing pains in his chest. The film follows Ron on his spiritual awakening and personal journey to discover the existence of a greater power than what is here on earth.”

    Life After the Buffet, will be released on DVD and VOD May 5th, 2015. The documentary will be available on iTunes, Amazon Instant, Vudu, Google Play, Xbox, and Vubiquity for purchase on May 5.

    Add to that the video game featuring Ron Jeremy due out in August, and it looks like The Hedgehog ain’t going anywhere soon.

  • Leah Remini Thanks HBO For New Investigative Documentary On Scientology, Church Calls Her ‘Self-Absorbed’

    Former Scientologist actress Leah Remini sent out a heartfelt thanks to HBO filmmakers for their work in making the investigative documentary Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief.

    Remini made headlines after her high-profile exit from the Church of Scientology in July 2013. According to a statement released during her departure, the main reason she left the religious sect was due to issues with its management.

    Remini tweeted her gratitude towards HBO’s documentary, saying, “Thank you to the brave who did something about it. And to those who didn’t have a voice, you do now.” The tweet was posted on her account on Monday.

    In a candid interview with BuzzFeed, the Exes actress said she didn’t want her daughter to grow up under the teachings and influence of her former church. She didn’t want her child to be forced to live in a secluded Scientology compound in Florida.

    “They say they’re loving, caring, non-judgmental people, but secretly, they were judging the world for not believing what they believed,” she said.

    “We were working from morning until night with barely any schooling,” Remini recounted. “There was no saying no. There was no being tired.”

    Going Clear debuted three months ago at the Sundance Film Festival. The documentary shed light on some of the alleged scare tactics of the religious group, and followed the Hollywood director and former Scientologist Paul Haggis as he recounted the times when he was allegedly threatened and blackmailed by the church.

    A representative from the Church of Scientology issued a statement to People shortly after the revealing interview, in which Remini was named “self-absorbed” and a woman with “an insatiable craving for attention” who was exploiting “her former faith.”

    “I don’t want to be known as this bitter ex-Scientologist. I’m not trying to bash anybody, and I’m not trying to be controversial. I just want people to know the truth,” Remini said in reply.

  • Nina Simone: Netflix To Release Documentary On Legendary Singer In 2015

    Nina Simone: Netflix To Release Documentary On Legendary Singer In 2015

    Netflix, which is primarily known as a streaming service, has been pushing for more original content recently. It was announced that one of these original projects will be a feature-length documentary on the life of legendary singer Nina Simone. The documentary, What Happened, Miss Simone?, will be using three decades worth of recorded material including rare interviews, concert recordings, and diary entries. The film is directed by the critically acclaimed documentarian Liz Garbus, who made the films Bobby Fischer Against the World and The Farm: Angola, USA. What Happened, Miss Simone? will be released worldwide next year.

    As much as she is known for her music, Simone is also known for her fiery temperament and her political views. Simone criticized the Vietnam War in her songs, and even supported the armed revolt of African Americans during a time when the Civil Rights movement was at its peak. The documentary claims it will shine a light on these aspects of Simone’s life, and according to Netflix, it will be “the most authentic, personal, and unflinching telling of the extraordinary life of one of the 20th century’s greatest recording artists”.

    “I’m thrilled that Netflix has embraced the incredible story of Nina Simone and partnered with RadicalMedia on this film,” director Liz Garbus said about the film. “Nina feels like a treasured secret. With What Happened, Miss Simone? I’m excited to help bring her passion, her music and her story to the world.” Lisa Nishimura, Netflix’s VP of original documentary programming, also released a statement saying that the film “paints a brave and provocative picture of Nina Simone — artist, civil-rights activist and heroine — in a film that we’ve loved from Day One and are proud to bring to our viewers around the world.”

    Nina Simone was born Eunice Kathleen Waymon on February 21, 1933. She is known for her songs I Put a Spell on You and Feeling Good among others. She passed away on April 21, 2003, years after being diagnosed with breast cancer. 

  • Nina Simone Documentary To Premiere On Netflix

    Nina Simone Documentary To Premiere On Netflix

    Nina Simone’s documentary What Happened, Miss Simone? is scheduled to premiere on Netflix next year.

    The documentary, directed by Liz Garbus, follows the late music icon and “traces Simone’s life with the help of never-before-heard tapes, in which Simone tells her own life story,” according to Thecelebritycafe.com.

    “I’m thrilled that Netflix has embraced the incredible story of Nina Simone and partnered with RadicalMedia on this film,” Garbus recently said in a statement.

    “For each of her millions of fans, Nina feels like a treasured secret,” Garbus added. “With What Happened, Miss Simone?, I’m excited to help bring her passion, her music, and her story to the world.”

    “In What Happened, Miss Simone?, Liz Garbus paints a brave and provocative picture of Nina Simone — artist, civil rights activist and heroine — in a film that we’ve loved from Day 1 and are proud to bring to our viewers around the world,” Netflix’s vice president of original documentary programming Lisa Nishimura said in a statement.

    Simone died in 2003 at the age of 70. However, her work with music and civil rights remains prevalent today. There have been talks about a possible feature film about Simone’s life, but nothing has come of it so far.

    Garbus has also directed Love, Marilyn, Bobby Fischer Against the World, There’’s Something Wrong with Aunt Diane, Girlhood, and The Farm: Angola, USA.

    Are you planning on checking out the Nina Simone documentary when it hits Netflix in 2015? Leave your comments below.

  • Alanis Morissette Releases Song To Promote Documentary “A Small Section Of The World”

    Alanis Morissette Releases Song To Promote Documentary “A Small Section Of The World”

    On November 11, singer-songwriter Alanis Morissette released a new song called “The Morning”. The song is featured in the film A Small Section of The World, which focuses on the stories of female coffee producers in Costa Rica, particularly the women behind the group Asociación de Mujeres Organizades de Biolley (ASOMOBI). Morissette co-wrote the song with Costa Rican musician Carlos “Tapado” Vargas.

    The song, which premiered exclusively on The Hollywood Reporter, features Morissette singing along to a lushly-arranged instrumental track that features percussion made from coffee seeds and machines used in coffee production. Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter about her involvement with the film, Morisette said, “I think they (producers Nick Davidge and Dominic Sandifer) were trying to see who might lend the voice and sing through the hearts and minds and soul of these women in Costa Rica, to tell their story and articulate something that might be a little challenging to articulate.”

    The film, which takes its title from a line in the song’s bridge, is directed by Lesley Chilcott – who produced the critically-acclaimed documentaries Waiting for Superman and An Inconvenient Truth. Morissette’s song is intended as a teaser for the hour-long documentary.

    “For a long time, there was no conversation about women in coffee,” Morisette said in the interview. “But I think Lesley was telling me some 75 percent of coffee-making is done by women. I just think the community of coffee and how the women’s movement conversation can be threaded into it is really exciting and surprising.”

    Morissette also revealed that the language barrier didn’t hinder her collaboration with Carlos Vargas. “Working with Tapado was really easy. We had a shorthand, and even though there was the translation challenge for us with speaking different languages, it was quite easy because in our own way we just kind of finished each other’s sentences.”

    A Small Section of the World will be shown in theaters on December 5 and will be available on demand beginning December 16.

  • Dave Grohl Sets Out to Reinvent the Wheel

    Much like fans of the book series A Song of Ice and Fire (aka Game of Thrones), every musical fan out there knows how painstaking it is to wait for their favorite band’s next album. However, fans are also usually understanding toward the process – the band has to take time off from touring and making money; they have to sit in a studio for hours upon hours each day, searching for any sort of inspiration; once inspired, the band has to send the samples off to have the CD produced; then the entire thing has to be marketed and finished so it can be released for sale. After years and years of doing this laborious process over and over, bands have a tendency to get burned out, and each album takes longer to make than the one before.

    Perhaps that is why, after 20 years of being a band, Dave Grohl decided to create the next Foo Fighters album in a much different fashion.

    Speaking at the Television Critics Association panel (and showing his inexperience by letting his phone ring and dropping his mic), Grohl discussed the process behind the Foo Fighters latest album, yet to be named. The entire experience is documented in Grohl’s second documentary, Foo Fighters: Sonic Highways, which is set to air on HBO in October.

    The documentary shows the Foo Fighters traveling around the United States to eight different cities with rich musical heritages – Austin, Texas, Chicago, Los Angeles, Nashville, Tennessee, New Orleans, New York, Seattle and Washington, D.C. At each stop, Grohl and his bandmates speak with local music legends, such as Buddy Guy, Dolly Parton, Chuck D, Gibby Haynes, Allen Toussaint and Gary Clark Jr., in an attempt to understand why each city developed its own musical stylings and influence.

    “I don’t want my kid to think that the only way you can be a musician is to stand in line at a song contest audition, and then wind up having a bazillionaire tell you if you’re not a good singer. Don’t get me started. To me, that’s not what music’s about,” stated Grohl.

    For Grohl, this particular album was about attempting to connect with his music in a different way and to showcase the rich history of American music:

    To me, it’s all about reinventing the process. We could just go and make another record in the studio, hit the road and sell a bunch of T-shirts … but wheres the fun in that? We’ve been a band for 20 years now. Let’s go to tiny studios all over the country, tell the story of music from that city. What is it about that each one of these cities that influences the music that comes from there? Because there are real reasons, cultural influence from each one of these places. There’s a reason why jazz came from New Orleans. There’s a reason why country went to Nashville, and why the blues went to Chicago.

    Each of the eight episodes of Sonic Highways will focus on one individual city of the band’s tour, with the show culminating in a live performance of the songs Grohl wrote at the end of his stay in each city.

    While Grohl thoroughly enjoyed the process of creating both a documentary and a new album at the same time, fans shouldn’t expect the trend to continue: “It’s not like anything I’ve ever done. It was so exciting. Like, I couldn’t sleep, because I didn’t want to. That’s just how I roll. And I will never, ever do it again. Because it was a pain in the ass.”

    The Foo Fighters will release its eighth studio album this November.

    Image via YouTube

  • Miley Cyrus Documentary Coming To NBC

    Miley Cyrus has stirred up a lot of controversy over the past year with her crazy antics and outrageous performances. However, things have remained quiet on the Miley front for the past little bit, until now … Miley is back!

    According to Entertainment Weekly, NBC will be airing a two-hour documentary special Miley Cyrus: Bangerz Tour with behind-the-scenes footage and live performances from the 21-year-old’s upcoming concerts in Barcelona, Spain and Lisbon, Portugal. The concert was announced on Thursday, with a promise that they will “examine what makes [Cyrus] such a global phenomenon.”

    “There are few recording artists with the global success achieved by Miley Cyrus,” said Paul Telegdy, the president of alternative and late night programming for NBC Entertainment. “This unique special will offer an exclusive peek on how she engages with her crew and fans at one of her hugely popular concerts.”

    Miley’s most recent album Bangerz was released in October and has already gone platinum. Cyrus’ Bangerz Tour kicked off February 14 in Vancouver, but then she had to delay several of her American concerts when she fell ill and had to be hospitalized due to an allergic reaction.

    According to the EW, NBC may have to edit their footage carefully. At a recent concert in London, Miley reportedly rode a giant inflatable penis onstage.

    Miley Cyrus: Bangerz Tour is scheduled to air on NBC on Sunday, July 9 at 9 p.m.

    Image via Twtter

  • Burt’s Bees Co-Founder Ousted After Affair With Employee

    The public always thought that Burt Shavitz of Burt’s Bees left his own company in order to live a private life in Maine.

    Shavitz is the subject of the upcoming documentary Burt’s Bees and he revealed the real story behind his sudden escape from his corporate life. According to Shavitz, he was ousted by Burt’s Bees co-founder Roxanne Quimby after his affair with one of their employees.

    When he left the business, he was given 37 acres in Maine and a sum of money. “In the long run, I got the land, and land is everything. Land is positively everything. And money is nothing really worth squabbling about. This is what puts people six feet under. You know, I don’t need it,” he said in an interview.

    In the interview, Shavitz refused to discuss his relationship with his former business partner. He only said, “What I have in this situation is no regret. The bottom line is she’s got her world and I’ve got mine, and we let it go at that.”

    Shavitz, 79, served in the Army as a photographer for Time-Life. When he got back, he made a living by selling honey in Maine. His chance encounter with Quimby changed his simple life. Quimby started to make products from Shavitz’s beeswax.

    In the documentary Shavitz said, “Roxanne Quimby wanted money and power, and I was just a pillar on the way to that success.”

    Quimby sent an email to the Associated Press and said that everyone in her company was treated fairly “and in some cases very generously.”

    Shavitz now resides in a small house with no hot water. His life today is very different from the life he had when he was running a business. He is happy with his life now, living with three golden retrievers in a wide expanse of land. “No one has ever accused me of being ambitious,” he said in the documentary.

    Image via YouTube

  • Manuel Uribe, Once World’s Heaviest Man, Dies at 48

    In 2008, Manuel Uribe had just one wish – to be able to walk down the aisle during his wedding to Claudia Solis. At the time, Uribe weighed approximately 700 pounds, down 535 pounds from his Guinness World Record weight of 1,235 pounds.

    Born in Mexico in 1965, Manuel Uribe always suffered from weight problems. As a teen, Uribe weighed nearly 250 pounds. By the time of his first marriage, Uribe weighed in at a solid 280 pounds and felt as if his diet was the same as most other Mexicans of the time: “I used to eat normal, just like all Mexicans do … beans, rice, flour tortilla, corn tortilla, french fries, hamburgers, subs and pizzas, whatever regular people eat.”

    Despite the belief that his eating habits were no different than the average person, Uribe began gaining weight quickly. He blamed the sudden gains on his sedentary lifestyle: “I worked as a technician, repairing typewriters, electronic calculators and computers. So I worked on a chair. It was a sedentary life.”

    Soon Uribe’s eating and depression spiraled out of control, though, following his wife’s request for a divorce.

    “I was very depressed. … Everything ended on account of my obesity, because I spent a lot of money trying to see doctors, going on diets, and I just gained more weight.”

    Uribe’s obesity was worsened due to a botched liposuction procedure which damaged the lymph nodes in his legs, leaving him with massive tumors weighing 220 pounds. These tumors are a large part of the reason Uribe was not able to leave his bed after 2002.

    In an odd twist of events, it was Uribe’s extreme weight which may have prolonged his life as long as it did. Being the Guinness World Record holder as the world’s heaviest man, Uribe began drawing much attention from media outlets. In 2007 he became the main subject of the documentary, “The World’s Heaviest Man”.

    Soon afterwards, Uribe went on national television in Mexico to plea for help to lose weight. A team of doctors from Italy, the United States, and Mexico came to his aid and helped Uribe drop from 1,235 pounds to nearly 700.

    By the time of his death, Uribe weighed 867 pounds.

    While the cause of death is still unknown, speculation is that Uribe died due to cardiac and liver issues. He was 48 years old.

    Image via YouTube

  • Orca Shows: Bill Stemming from ‘Blackfish’ Documentary is Deferred

    The show will go on–for now.

    Following the fallout from the Blackfish documentary, an assemblyman in California proposed legislation that would end orca shows in the state–namely at SeaWorld San Diego. To the dismay of many animal rights activists, the bill was deferred until at least next year.

    The Orca Welfare and Safety Act bill (also called the “Blackfish bill”) was introduced last month by Assemblyman Richard Bloom from Santa Monica. If the bill is eventually passed as it is currently written, it will bring forth many changes to how killer whales are treated in California. Under this bill, it would be illegal to hold orcas in captivity for performance purposes, which would prevent SeaWorld San Diego from holding orca shows. The bill would also make it illegal to breed killer whales in captivity. Anyone holding orcas for entertainment purposes would also be forced to eventually transfer the whales to sea pens.

    “There is no justification for the continued captive display of orcas for entertainment purposes,” Bloom said last month. “These beautiful creatures are much too large and far too intelligent to be confined in small, concrete pens for their entire lives. It is time to end the practice of keeping orcas captive for human amusement.”

    An Assembly committee decided to defer voting on the bill on Tuesday. The bill has attracted attention from all around the world, and it was decided that more time was needed to research components of the bill before voting on it. Even though Bloom is strongly against orca shows, he says that the deferment probably isn’t a bad thing.

    “I think that allowing more time for you committee members to really dig into the information that is out there and come to your conclusions in a fashion that allows careful consideration is not a bad idea,” Bloom said. The assemblyman later tweeted that he’s looking forward to continuing his work on the bill.

    SeaWorld has been busy working to debunk some of the claims made in Blackfish, including the claim that holding killer whales in captivity can shorten their lifespans. As such, SeaWorld San Diego President John Reilly is relieved that the bill has been deferred.

    “The bill was deeply flawed and fundamentally flawed and didn’t appear to have support today,” Reilly said. “We believe strongly there is an inspiration benefit to people seeing (killer whales) in our park.”

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • ‘Island Of Lemurs: Madagascar’ Takes Audiences On An Exotic 3D Adventure

    The endangered primates of Madagascar take center stage in the IMAX 3D nature documentary entitled Island of Lemurs: Madagascar. The 40-minute feature gives the audience a majestic view of the lemurs’ exotic habitat on the southeastern African nation, as well as their journey across the Indian Ocean to their home. However, the film’s most significant message involves the preservation of these endangered species.

    Island of Lemurs is narrated by multi-awarded actor Morgan Freeman, who has also lent his distinctively deep and authoritative voice to the 2005 sci-fi disaster film War of the Worlds and the 2005 French nature documentary March of Penguins. Freeman declared that children must be educated on the importance of “plain old diversity” on Earth in order to lessen its destruction, which he referred to as a “catastrophe”.

    The documentary follows primatologist Dr. Patricia C. Wright as she carries out her mission of saving certain species of lemurs from complete extinction. She digs into the dense Madagascar jungle searching for possible mates for the few remaining lemur species.

    There are approximately 100 living species of lemurs in existence, and viewers get acquainted with a few of them in the documentary.

    Lemurs have not been given much attention until DreamWorks’ animated film franchise Madagascar was released in 2005. The films featured British actor Sacha Baron Cohen’s voice as the lemur King Julien and Andy Richter as a mouse lemur. Interestingly, Dr. Wright pointed out that lemur society is matriarchal, which means that a queen character would have been more appropriate.

    The film’s prologue relates the arrival of lemurs in Madagascar through a great storm that took over Africa more than 60 million years ago. The absence of predators on the island allowed the highly-evolved primates to thrive in their habitat, and the film somewhat zeroes in on the first species that existed then.

    Island of Lemurs is directed by frequent IMAX collaborator David Douglas and written by Madagascar writer-producer Drew Fellman. The film premieres April 4th.

    ‘Island Of Lemurs: Madagascar’ Trailer

    Morgan Freeman talks about documentary

    Image via YouTube

  • Mira Sorvino Strives to Stop Sex Slavery in Cambodia

    “It’s not okay to sell children! It’s not okay to sell children to pedophiles!”

    Actress Mira Sorvino shouts this at locals in Svay Pak, Cambodia. To her fury, they had scattered when they saw the cameras following her as she recorded a documentary on child sex-trafficking. The CNN International film, “Freedom Project: Everyday in Cambodia” covers the lives of young Cambodian girls being sold into slavery – sometimes by their own family.

    Some may know Sorvino best for her acting career and for being an Academy Award and Golden Globe winner. However, Mira has also been an activist against human trafficking for roughly a decade now. She began her initiative in 2004, around the time her first of four children was born. That year, she joined forces with Amnesty International, and was appointed Ambassador of Goodwill by the United Nations five years later.

    These kinds of accolades are the ones of which she is most proud.

    “Being a mom of four kids, you can not stand it.” Sorvino said during an interview. “You look at these kids and you know what they are suffering at the hands of adults who know very clearly what they are doing,”

    The film, which premiered Saturday, follows Mira’s journey into the heart of Cambodian child sex trafficking. While there, she attempted to exploit the atrocious ongoings – like the sales of pre-pubescent girls to grown men and the part played by law enforcement.

    In her online blog, she explains, “Corruption is endemic at every level of society here, an expert tells me – adding that every brothel here operates with the help of the police or military.” She later stated, “It is estimated that the child sex trade in Cambodia makes $500 million annually; this means a lot of high-level investment in this lucrative business.”

    Mira conceded that simply portraying a problem isn’t sufficient to enact change. She thus tries her best to spread the message in a way that will spur others toward acting on the intense emotional response that accompanies seeing the abuse of a defenseless child. Indeed, by the end of her journey, she was able to share in the victory of at least one survivor she’d met.

    Sorvinos’s hope about this girl’s bravery in court is that it will mark the start of a paradigm shift against the ongoing harm of others like her:

    “Hopefully this case a harbinger of more justice to come, and will reverse the trend of dwindling human trafficking arrests and convictions. This should send a message out that Cambodia is willing to try to convict those who exploit young girls, followed by vigorous law enforcement and legal action that can truly end the impunity the criminals now enjoy.”

    (image)

    Thank you for your service, Mira!

    To to join the fight, you can click here.

    Image via Youtube

  • Martina McBride, .38 Special Cancel SeaWorld Performances

    Following suit with six others that have also been scheduled to perform and recently cancelled, Martin McBride and 38 Special have refused to perform at SeaWorld.

    Since the release of the buzzed about documentary Blackfish, many people have become more aware of the some of the unsafe and inhumane practices that are done involving the whales at SeaWorld.

    Over the weekend, REO Speedwagon became the latest musical act to cancel their performance at the theme park. Shortly after, Martina McBride joined in, and then 38 Special.

    The Blackfish documentary has created a huge backlash against the Orlando theme park, and several celebrities have made a point to recommend Blackfish, and avoid SeaWorld since then, advising others to do the same.

    In a concert series that originally had 10 acts scheduled to play in a series called “Bands, BBQ and Brew,” with the latest two cancellations, only two artists remain. Justin Moore and Scotty McCreery are the two remaining artists, and while fans continue to put the pressure on, their representatives have not responded to CNN’s repeated requests for comment.

    Martina Mcbride announced the news of her cancellation via her facebook page, while 38 Special did the same days after.

    For those that have not had the opportunity to see the chilling film yet, Blackfish tells the story of SeaWorld’s inhumane treatment of the whales, and the news has been brought to the attention of people all over in the past year. After the documentary came out, it has been covered on RealTime With Bill Maher, CNN, and several other news outlets, in addition to being called one of the best documentaries of the year.

    Martina McBride and .38 Special join a list which before this weekend included Trisha Yearwood, Willie Nelson, Cheap Trick, Heart and Barenaked Ladies, with Barenaked Ladies being the first act to drop out.

    In what was once an anticipated series of well-known musical acts, the lineup has almost completely dissapeared. According to CNN, the park’s six-week concert schedule has disappeared from SeaWorld’s website. It now simply promises “incredible concerts with top artists in classic rock and country music.”

    With eight out of 10 acts already gone from the lineup including country star Martina McBride, and as more fans and celebrities continue to urge people to stay away from SeaWorld, is a full boycott in the near future? SeaWorld, once a park of famliy fun, has now turned into a place that nobody wants to go because of the way that the whales are being treated.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • SeaWorld Documentary Making Waves

    SeaWorld Documentary Making Waves

    SeaWorld continues to undergo scrutiny after the film, “Blackfish” was released. The documentary discusses the captivity of killer whale Tilikum and its role in the deaths of three individuals while revealing specific practices used at the park.

    The film made the list for the Best Documentary at the Oscars last week. SeaWorld claims the film is not an accurate representation of their policies and park life.

    Not only has this been bad press for the Orlando park, it’s affected their business. The park’s Brews, Bands and BBQ concert series has lost a number of acts in relation to the bad press. So far, Martina McBride, Cheep Trick, REO Speedwagon, Heart, Barenaked Ladies, Willie Nelson and Trisha Yearwood have canceled their scheduled performances.

    Not familiar with the documentary? Here’s the trailer.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8OEjYquyjcg

    The only artists that haven’t dropped yet include Justin Moore, Scotty McCreey and .38 Special.

    Apparently all acts had received pressure from animal rights groups and petitions on Change.org in relation to how the marine life is treated.

    Fans and supporters are in on the petitions, encouraging the bands for canceling. Followers replied graciously to the announcement REO Speedwagon made about their SeaWorld cancelation on Twitter.

    YouTube users seemed to be in support of the film as well.

    Jrandjanet22 said, “I do not mind zoo’s or other habitats that help to save species, the difference here is that they are forced to perform to entertain. HUGE DIFFERENCE.”

    vegan truth6 said, “Boycott sea world!, Good people of the earth, please fight for these sentient animals.”

    Another user said, “SeaWorld and other water parks maybe fun to attend? However, it is completely against the nature of these amazing beautiful creatures to be held captive. Their genetics are to roam and discover. Held in a fish tank they go crazy. So Sad.”

    What do you think about SeaWorld? Have you watched Blackfish? Leave your reactions in the comments below.

    Photo Credit: YouTube

  • REO Speedwagon Becomes Latest Musical Act To Cancel Show At Seaworld

    In an effort to expose the horrors of what goes on at SeaWorld, a documentary called Blackfish has created quite a stir in the media recently. Since being shown on CNN in November, the documentary has become more mainstream, and as a result, REO Speedwagon, in addition to several other musicians, have recently cancelled their shows at SeaWorld.

    The Blackfish documentary has created a huge backlash against the Orlando theme park, and several celebrities have made a point to avoid SeaWorld since then. A big event that was scheduled at SeaWorld, a concert series called “Bands, BBQ and Brew” had a number of well-known bands signed on to the lineup including REO Speedwagon and several others.

    A handful of the groups have already dropped out, but several still remain. People who have seen Blackfish, and fans of the bands continue to put pressure on the musical groups, urging them not to play at SeaWorld.

    The story of SeaWorld’s inhumane treatment of the whales that are kept there have been given notice more in the past year, and after the documentary came out, it has been covered on RealTime With Bill Maher, CNN, and several other news outlets, in addition to being called one of the best documentaries of the year.

    Each of the musicians that are scheduled to play during the series have received pressure from fans who started online petitions, tweeted and posted on Facebook pages in order to urge them not to play during the concert series.

    The film tells the story of the death of a SeaWorld trainer by an orca whale in 2010, and also raises questions about the safety and inhumane practices that are used with the whales while in captivity.

    The band announced the news of their cancellation via their FB page with this post.

    After receiving pressure from fans, and in some cases simply seeing the film for themselves, the bands continue to cancel performances one at a time. REO Speedwagon becomes the 6th musical act to cancel their performance after Barenaked Ladies set the precedent. In addition, Heart, Cheap Trick, Williie Nelson, and Trisha Yearwood have all cancelled their performances at the once beloved theme park for families. Barenaked Ladies became the first act to cancel after seeing a petition on Change.org, showing the power that citizens have in making a change if they wish to do so.

    In addition to the several groups that have cancelled their musical performances, Joan Jett has even personally written to SeaWorld, demanding that they quit playing her hit song “I Love Rock And Roll” during their “Shamu Rocks Show.” She was surprised and upset to see her song being used on Youtube, and wrote a letter which included the statement “I’m among the millions who saw ‘Blackfish’ and am sickened that my music was blasted without my permission at sound-sensitive marine mammals.”

    The female rocker went even further when saying that if they did not understand her in writing then “I will be forced to take further action, and you’ll find me among the PETA protesters outside your parks.”

    It is not often that a single documentary can create such a backlash for a business, but Blackfish has certainly done that for SeaWorld, and director Gabriela Cowperthwaite is thankful for the reactions that she has seen from people after seeing the film.

    REO Speedwagon is the latest musical act to cancel their show, but will certainly not be the last, with more bands still on the targeted list for fans to put pressure on. As bands continue to cancel their gigs, will a complete boycott of the them park be in the near future?

    Several celebrities have tweeted to all of their followers addressing the issue, and telling everyone to go see Blackfish, along with a hopeful boycott of the theme park.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Jared Leto Talks About Music Industry in New Documentary

    Jared Leto is a man of many talents; he is an actor, having starred in both big-budget productions and small indie projects alike, as well as a musician, song writer, and singer, perhaps best well known in this aspect for fronting his band, Thirty Second To Mars. The band made it big with their album and single, “This Is War.” The album, while a huge success, was also a source of strife and trouble for the band, as their record label, Virgin/EMI, sued the artists for $30 million on the grounds of a “breach on contract” having to do with the album. The bandmates turned this crisis on its head, however, by retaliating in a unique way; they made a documentary.

    Jared Leto, along with his bandmates Shannon Leto and Tomo Miličević, are out to reveal to the world just how barbed and thorny the music industry can be for musicians. Leto took it upon himself to create, record, and direct the documentary, titled “Artifact,” which recorded all the intimate details of the battle with EMI for the band’s custody over their creative and financial freedom.

    On the topic of the film, Leto had this to say; ”I’m excited to share our insight on how this business really works. We get down to the nitty-gritty. We talk about this business inside and out and reveal quite a few things I think people will be shocked to realize. I think we made the right decision. Sometimes you have to fight in order to be free, and we did exactly that. We fought for what we knew was right, what we knew was fair. We were sued by EMI, but we didn’t let that intimidate us.”

    Leto does not, however, consider himself a crusader in the fight against the music industry at large. In fact, he was quoted as saying, “I’m not anti-record company, I’m just anti-greed. I think that record companies and corporations in general can treat audiences and artists fairly and still make a ton of money, which is what they’re designed to do, make money — that’s what corporations are built for — and to service shareholders and stockholders.”

    The film was released on iTunes, and has been a huge success. The piece won the 2012 Toronto Film Festival’s People’s Choice documentary award, and has soared to a strong #2 place on iTune’s list of most popular documentaries.

    [Image courtesy of Jared Leto’s official Twitter.]

  • Thirty Seconds To Mars Legal Troubles Documented In “Artifact” [TRAILER]

    Jared Leto is a man of many hats. He’s currently garnering Oscar buzz for his portrayal of a transsexual, Aids patient in the true-life drama “Dallas Buyers Club”. On top of that he’s the front man of a pretty popular band “Thirty Seconds to Mars”.

    Back in 2008 when “Thirty Seconds to Mars” were heading into the studio to record the bands third album, they found out they were being sued for $30 million dollars by their record company, EMI. At the time Leto was behind the camera with intentions to make a promotional video for the forthcoming album… but it ended up becoming a documentary about the bands legal troubles. You can view the trailer for “Artifact” below”:

    “Artifact” won audience awards at both Gotham and TIFF. If you’d to find out more about the documentary, you can read the official synopsis below:

    “Telling harsh truths about the modern music business, Artifact gives intimate access to singer/actor Jared Leto and his band Thirty Seconds to Mars as they battle their label in a brutal lawsuit and record their album This Is War. The film is a true artifact of our times, as its subjects struggle with big questions over art, money and integrity.”

    The film is slated to be released on VOD platforms on December 3, 2013.

    Image: (YouTube)

  • This Sega Genesis Documentary Art Book Needs Your Help On Kickstarter

    Before it was a software publishing house responsible for the Total War series and a sad Aliens game, SEGA was the second-biggest gaming hardware manufacturer in the world. Its Sega Genesis console still lives on to this day as one of the best pieces of hardware to ever grace our living rooms, and now somebody wants to publish a book about it.

    Sega Mega Drive/Genesis: Collected Works is the latest book from publisher Darren Wall. The book will celebrate the 25th birthday of Sega’s most popular game console, and will feature over “20 exclusive interviews with original Sega team members.” The book will document the history of the console and its games, but it will also serve as an art book. Art from games such as Sonic the Hedgehog, Streets of Rage, Phantasy Star, Gunstar Heroes, Golden Axe, Vectorman and more will all be included.

    This is a UK Kickstarter campaign, but Genesis fans in the U.S. can easily contribute to the project. To get a copy of the book, you only need pledge £30/$48 to get hardcover edition. If it’s shipping outside of the UK, you will need to add an additional £7 to your pledge.

    If you want to go all out, you can also opt for the special edition of the book that will be limited to only 100 copies. For £250/$400, you will get the book with a special cover featuring Sonic and Dr. Robotnik illustrated by Sonic creator Naoto Oshima.

    For the book to become a reality, they need to raise £30,000 and they’re already well on their way with over £26,000 pledged. If you have a soft spot for the Sega Genesis and it’s wonderful library of games, consider pledging some funds. Video games are an important part of our shared global culture, and books like this help to preserve that culture for generations to come.

    [Image: Kickstarter/Darren Wall]

  • That Minecraft Documentary Is Now Free To Watch On YouTube

    That Minecraft Documentary Is Now Free To Watch On YouTube

    Late last year, 2 Player Productions released a documentary called Minecraft: The Story of Mojang. The film explored the origins of Minecraft and the immense impact it has had on the gaming community and players all around the world. Since its release, you could purchase the film for as little as $8, but now it’s free.

    2 Player Productions released the entirety of Minecraft: The Story of Mojang on YouTube today. The one-hour-and-44-minute film is all here for your viewing pleasure on everybody’s not-so-favorite-anymore video streaming portal.

    Of course, the fun part of it being on YouTube means that you can watch the entire film below. So grab a snack, get comfortable and get ready to watch one of the best gaming documentaries ever made:

    If you liked the film and want to support the super talented guys over at 2 Player Productions, you can purchase the 2-disc DVD Limited Edition of the documentary over at their Web site. You can also pick up the C418 composed soundtrack while you’re at it.

    [Image: 2PlayerProductions/YouTube]

  • WATCH: Trailer For MTV’s Six-Part Documentary Series, “Rebel Music”

    The name Shepard Fairey may not mean anything to you, but chances are you’re very familiar with his work. Fairey is the renowned graphic artist who created the Andre the Giant OBEY sticker and the famous Barack Obama HOPE poster.

    For the time being Fairey is stepping away from his stenciling to executive produce a six-part documentary series for MTV called, “Rebel Music.” The series examines the activist art movement in six sports from around the globe: India, Mexico, Afghanistan, Mail, Egypt and Israel / Palestine. Each 30-minute episode will profile a group of musicians / artists given them a platform showcase their artwork and how they hope it can entice change in their country.

    Below you can read an official synopsis for Rebel Music:

    “Rebel Music is a powerful new six-part series that looks into the lives of young people who are using art and music to ignite change around the world. Each episode highlights a new group of fearless youth who are fighting injustice with passion and creativity. Exposing audiences to inspiring stories from Egypt, Mali, Israel/Palestine, Afghanistan, Mexico, and India, Rebel Music is a portrait of those risking their lives today in the pursuit of a better tomorrow.”

    Rebel Music is slated to debut on mtvU on Monday, November 18th. After each episode airs, they’ll be made available on the official website, RebelMusic.com.