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Tag: Neil Gaiman

  • Cannes Film Festival: Nicole Kidman Defends Grace of Monaco

    Actress Nicole Kidman gently addressed criticism of her new film Grace of Monaco on the opening day of the Cannes Film Festival.

    “I feel sad because I think that the film has no malice toward the family or particularly towards Grace or Rainier,” said Kidman, who stars in the film’s titular role.

    “I want them to know that the performance was done with love and if they see it I think they’d see there’s an enormous amount of affection for their parents and for the love story of their parents.”

    The controversy over the biopic film, which started more than a year ago, involves the question of how a specific period of French-American cultural history is portrayed on the big screen.

    Set in the 1960s, Grace of Monaco features as a central storyline France’s attempt to annex Monaco and claim its tax revenue. Monaco’s Prince Rainier III, who ascended the throne in 1949, played a key role in the resolution of the crisis, creation of a revised constitution, and restoration of Monaco’s national parliament.

    Prince Rainier III married American actress Grace Kelly in 1956. Their children constitute Monaco’s reining Grimaldi family: Caroline, Princess of Hanover; Albert II, Prince of Monaco; and Princess Stéphanie of Monaco.

    The Grimaldis didn’t hesitate to express their displeasure over the film:

    “The trailer appears to be a farce and confirms the totally fictional nature of this film. The Princely Family does not in any way wish to be associated with this film which reflects no reality and regrets that its history has been misappropriated for purely commercial purposes.”

    To further complicate matters, the film’s US distributor, Harvey Weinstein has been involved in an ongoing dispute with its French director Olivier Dahan.

    The original version Dahan delivered to Weinstein was deemed incomplete and “too much like a Hitchcock thriller and too little like what they anticipated – a yarn about a princess in a gilded cage.”

    Weinstein cut his own version and now wants a renegotiation of the agreed-upon rights fee with the film’s financier to mitigate the additional costs Weinstein Company has incurred.

    Later, disputes intensified, this time over the film’s rollout. In January Weinstein called off the film’s March release, dashing the French filmmakers’ hopes that it would pave the way for a successful European release later in the Spring. Shortly thereafter, Weinstein further angered by the news that Cannes would open with the French version.

    Weinstein didn’t attend the Cannes premiere, instead issuing the following statement:

    “My wife, Georgina, and I have been in Jordan visiting two Syrian refugee camps, Al Zaatri yesterday and Azraq today. This was a long-planned trip with the UNHCR” – the United Nations refugee agency – “and our friend Neil Gaiman to bring attention to the plight of refugees who have been forced to flee Syria and the incredible work of UNHCR.”

    Image via YouTube

  • Neil Gaiman Reads Us A Bedtime Story

    Neil Gaiman Reads Us A Bedtime Story

    Neil Gaiman has been responsible for–or had a part of–so many incredible things that it’s nearly impossible not to admire him. From writing comics to penning children’s books and wondrous novels (“Coraline”, “American Gods”, The Sandman, and “The Ocean At The End Of The Lane”, to name a few), he’s proven over the years that he’s as cool as they come. Just ask his wife, Amanda Palmer.

    But Gaiman is much more than the words he puts to paper; he’s also just a really good guy. To prove it, he recently read “Green Eggs And Ham” in its entirety for all of us to enjoy just because a charity he backs had just raised a bunch of money.

    “Worldbuilders raised $500,000 for charity, so I read all of GREEN EGGS AND HAM on video without shaving first,” Gaiman posted to Reddit.

    He also posted about it on his blog, where he promised to auction off a bunch of his personal items–autographed!–in the next year or so. We’re holding you to your word, Mr. Gaiman.

    “You may not have known that I’d agreed that if Worldbuilders made their stretch goal of half a million dollars, I would film myself reading Dr Seuss’s GREEN EGGS AND HAM,” he wrote. “Well, I did so agree. And this afternoon, they made their goal. I got the call, and I recorded the video. (As you can see, I am very beardy, because I am not going out in public, and am just writing.) And I’ve put it up on YouTube. It made me miss having small kids around to read to. I hope you enjoy it.”

    That accent! That timbre! I could listen to him read the phone book.

    Image via YouTube

    H/T to Buzzfeed

  • Neil Gaiman Talks ‘The Ocean At The End Of The Lane’ At Google

    Author Neil Gaiman recently stopped by the Googleplex to talk about his latest book, “The Ocean at the End of the Lane”. Google has now made the talk available for fans to enjoy.

    The talk took place on June 28th. Chris DiBona moderated.

    As Google notes in the YouTube description, you can find the book on Google Play. As Google directs users in search results, you can also find it on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

    More recent At Google talks here.

  • Alicia Keys is BlackBerry’s New Global Creative Director

    Today’s announcement by BlackBerry (which included changing its name from RIM to BlackBerry) was expected to be a simple announcement of its new phones and a rundown of all the features of the new BlackBerry 10 OS. It was all of that, but CEO Thorsten Heins channeled Steve Jobs by saving one last big announcement for the end of the presentation.

    Heins announced that the position of “Global Createive Director” has been created at BlackBerry, and that singer/songwriter Alicia Keys will be filling the role. It seems that Keys and BlackBerry will be reaching out to creative people in an effort to brand BlackBerry 10 as more than a secure business platform.

    Judging from some of the new ads BlackBerry has uploaded to its YouTube account, Keys is effectively the new face of BlackBerry. Joining Heins on stage, she pitched for BlackBerry 10 and stated she will be working app designers and content creators.

    Keys will also be heading-up the “Keep Moving Project,” which is working with artists on “a series of unique projects.” The video below, which was shown during the BlackBerry presentation, shows that both director Robert Rodriguez and author Neil Gaiman are a part of the project. Rodriguez will be “collaborating with BlackBerry and people from all around the world on a very unique filmmaking project.” Gaiman states he will use his project to “connect people from all over the world and, together, to tell some amazing stories, and to make some fantastic art.”

  • Neil Gaiman’s “Coraline” Turns 10 Years Old

    Neil Gaiman’s “Coraline” Turns 10 Years Old

    Neil Gaiman has been one of my favorite writers for years now; when I was in high school, I discovered the Sandman series of comics and fell in love (I have a quote from one of the books tattooed on my shoulderblade; Sandman was the first-ever comic series to win a literary award, a fact which gives me goose-flesh every time I think about it). Since then, I’ve read anything of his I can get my hands on, no matter what age group it’s intended for. That’s the lovely thing about Gaiman’s work; his books cross more boundaries than any other writer I’m aware of. You don’t have to be a kid to enjoy his children’s stories. That’s why I became a fan of Coraline in my twenties.

    I used to work at a bookstore, and more days than not, I was given the task of cleaning and re-shelving the children’s section. Although it wasn’t an easy job–try cleaning up after a hundred or so kids every day, plus their parents–it was my favorite place in the store to be because of the good memories I associate with books and my childhood. I re-discovered some of my old favorites (Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs) and found newer works that I couldn’t live without. Coraline was one of those.

    The award-winning book tells the story of a girl who moves into a new house and discovers a little door leading to a secret world, which mirrors her own world in almost every way…except it’s better. Her “other mother” is more attentive and loving, the food is marvelous, and she can do as she pleases. But she comes to realize her “other” parents are intent on keeping her there forever, and will do whatever is necessary to keep her from going back to the real world.

    The book was adapted for the big screen by Henry Selick in 2009 in a completely wonderful stop-motion feature, an art form I admire so much not only because of the gorgeous aesthetic, but because of the extreme amounts of patience it must take to create something so tedious. Every single aspect of the film was handmade, from hand-painted sets to the teeny-tiny clothes each character wore, and in order for the filmmakers to get everything just right, they went through the entire movie once before filming it. So, essentially, they made the movie twice.

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    Gaiman injects everything he writes–no matter how dark the subject matter–with a sense of humor that appeals to me largely because it’s the sort of sarcastic wit I’m prone to myself. His books are a comfort to me, much as my favorites were when I was a child. And although fans have clamored for a sequel for years, I’m glad Gaiman refuses to entertain the idea. There is only one Coraline, and that’s as it should be.

    Images courtesy of Focus Features

  • SOPA: An Open Letter To Washington From Content Creators

    In all the debate that has raged over SOPA/PIPA, one group has been decidedly under-represented: the creators of the content that the two bills are designed to protect. Those lobbying loudest in support of SOPA and PIPA have insisted that the bills are necessary to protect the entertainment industry from the ravages of online piracy. Such piracy, they claim protects copyright holders from the threat of having their livelihood destroyed by piracy. In that case, one might assume that the content creators – authors, actors, filmmakers, musicians, and the like – would be overjoyed by this legislation and would gladly lend their voices to its support.

    The reality, it seems is different. In an open letter to Washington, several such people – the creators of the very content the MPAA and RIAA claim they are trying to protect – object strongly to SOPA/PIPA. They cite the benefits of an open internet for both themselves and society, as well as their fear that the legislation puts too much power in the hands of copyright holders. The believe that the impact of SOPA/PIPA on piracy will be negligible, while its effect on a free and open internet could be devastating. The full text of the letter, which may be found here, is below. Notable names on the list include author Neil Gaiman, Adam Savage of Mythbusters fame,

    We, the undersigned, are musicians, actors, directors, authors, and producers. We make our livelihoods with the artistic works we create. We are also Internet users.
    We are writing to express our serious concerns regarding the PROTECT IP Act (PIPA) and the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA).

    As creative professionals, we experience copyright infringement on a very personal level. Commercial piracy is deeply unfair and pervasive leaks of unreleased films and music regularly interfere with the integrity of our creations. We are grateful for the measures policymakers have enacted to protect our works.

    We, along with the rest of society, have benefited immensely from a free and open Internet. It allows us to connect with our fans and reach new audiences. Using social media services like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, we can communicate directly with millions of fans and interact with them in ways that would have been unimaginable just a few years ago.

    We fear that the broad new enforcement powers provided under SOPA and PIPA could be easily abused against legitimate services like those upon which we depend. These bills would allow entire websites to be blocked without due process, causing collateral damage to the legitimate users of the same services – artists and creators like us who would be censored as a result.

    We are deeply concerned that PIPA and SOPA’s impact on piracy will be negligible compared to the potential damage that would be caused to legitimate Internet services. Online piracy is harmful and it needs to be addressed, but not at the expense of censoring creativity, stifling innovation or preventing the creation of new, lawful digital distribution methods.

    We urge Congress to exercise extreme caution and ensure that the free and open Internet, upon which so many artists rely to promote and distribute their work, does not become collateral damage in the process.

    Respectfully,

    Aziz Ansari
    Kevin Devine, Musician
    Barry Eisler, Author
    Neil Gaiman, Author
    Lloyd Kaufman, Filmmaker
    Zoë Keating, Musician
    The Lonely Island
    Daniel Lorca, Musician (Nada Surf)
    Erin McKeown, Musician
    MGMT
    Samantha Murphy, Musician
    OK Go
    Amanda Palmer, Musician (The Dresden Dolls)
    Quiet Company
    Trent Reznor
    Adam Savage, Special Effects Artist (MythBusters)
    Hank Shocklee, Music Producer (Public Enemy, The Bomb Squad)
    Johnny Stimson, Musician

  • Neil Gaiman Defends Himself Via Social Media

    Serving as the hero of geeks everywhere, Neil Gaiman is something of a pied-piper. That is, his work is met with such a level of respect from the comic book crowd, it seems he can’t do anything wrong. Every release is met with cheer and any time Gaiman’s name is mentioned in relation to already-favorite intellectual property, the excitement builds and builds.

    Of course, you can’t please everybody, something Gaiman recently learned after a brush with a Republican leader from the state of Minnesota. Previously, Gaiman was paid a handsome sum for a public speaking engagement for the state of Minnesota, and apparently, one of the elected officials from the GOP didn’t agree and lashed out at Gaiman as a result. To wit, House Majority Leader Matt Dean apparently didn’t like the message Gaiman delivered, and as a response, Dean called Gaiman a “pencil-necked little weasel who stole $45,000 from the state of Minnesota.”

    Dean also indicated he hated Gaiman, which is always a brilliant strategy for an elected official, especially one who has risen to the level of House Majority Leader.

    Needless to say, Gaiman and his legion of fans did not take such trash-talk idly. According to BoingBoing, after Gaiman tweeted a link to Dean’s website, the site was crashed. Nothing like a Denial of Service attack featuring real-live people instead of bots, aye? Speaking of Twitter, Gaiman made liberal use of microblogging site in order to provide further details and reactions. He also used his blog to respond as well.

    Without the 140-character limit, Gaiman’s ability to paint a picture using words manifested as he explained the situation in depth. He offered his thoughts on the situation — perhaps the best of them:

    I like “pencil-necked weasel”. It has “pencil” in it. Pencils are good things. You can draw or write things with pencils. I think it’s what you call someone when you’re worried that using a long word like “intellectual” may have too many syllables. It’s not something that people who have serious, important things to say call other people.

    Gaiman also offered reasons for why he was called a thief by Dean, which was not only amusing, but also an accurate and measured response:

    I do not know whether this man is calling me “a thief” because:

    A) I charged more than he’s comfortable with for a talk, or

    B) People happily pay me a lot of money to come and give talks, or

    C) He thinks I gave the talk wearing a stripy sweater to an audience of people who were there at gunpoint and afterwards took their wallets, or

    D) He’s against the principles of the Free Market, and feels that governments should regulate how much people are paid to talk in public.

    For what it’s worth, Dean has apparently apologized for portions of comments, but not the entire package:

    Gaiman Tweet
    All things considered, it wouldn’t be at all surprising to find out that Dean was one of the elected officials who support the elimination of NPR funding…

    Lead image courtesy.