Justin Lin set to direct Star Trek 3

As many of you already know, JJ Abrams is has been too busy with Star Wars and it was inevitable that he would leave the similarly humongous universe of the Star Trek movies to another director. For a while, producer/writer Roberto Orci (which had Abrams' blessing) was set to take over the helm of Star Trek 3. But there was a large backlash coming from fans who were against that idea (especially that Orci was partially the reason why the last Star Trek movie was bad). One of the big (and a really good choice, IMO) names for the directing job was Rupert Wyatt (Rise of the Planet of the Apes). But now, Paramount has turned to Fast and Furious director Justin Lin to helm Star Trek 3 which is set for release July 8, 2016.
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Sony Finally Releases "The Interview" in Theaters and Online

Sony Pictures Entertainment has finally stood their ground and announced that The Interview will have a theatrical release, in around 300 theaters in the United States on Christmas Day, and will be available to rent starting today at 10am PT/1pm ET on YouTube Movies, Google Play, and Microsoft's Xbox Video. [hit the jump to continue]

Natalie Portman Confesses How The Star Wars Prequels Almost Ruined Her Career

With films like "Black Swan" and "Closer", Natalie Portman has proven to be one of Hollywood's biggest actresses. But for a time, she appeared in George Lucas' dreaded Star Wars Prequels. Portman has recently come out to admit how being part of the prequels almost ruined her career.
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Sony Hacks Fallout: Cancellation of Sony's "The Interview" and New Regency's "Pyongyang"

Movie theaters in the US have recently succumbed to terrorist threats connected with the Sony Hacks. Sony has now officially cancelled its film "The Interview" which is a James Franco, Seth Rogen comedy about a plot to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, and New Regency is also canceling Gore Verbinski‘s adaptation of Guy Delisle‘s graphic novel Pyongyang, which is a memoir following “the French-Canadian cartoonist’s travels through North Korea after obtaining a work visa (a rarity for a Westerner) for his job on a children’s cartoon show,” but his journey becomes complicated when he’s accused of espionage. [hit the jump to continue]

The Controversial Sony Pictures Hack

Last month, hackers infiltrated the computer network of Sony Pictures Entertainment, a major Hollywood movie studio. The attackers stole a huge number of confidential documents, which are now being downloaded (primarily by journalists) from file-sharing networks. Since then, journalists have been poring through the files looking for interesting revelations. One month on, and the consequences of the hack are still being experienced, with damage caused to the film world and major Hollywood celebrities alike. SYOWING has been scouring through the net and gives us a rundown of the basic stuff about this controversy. [hit the jump to continue]

Viola Davis is Amanda Waller for "Suicide Squad"

Viola Davis (How To Get Away With Murder) has been cast for the role of major DC Comics character Amanda Waller in David Ayer's upcoming "Suicide Squad". In the comics, Amanda Waller is a former congressional aide and government agent often placed in charge of the Suicide Squad, a semi-secret government-run group of former supervillains working in return for amnesty. [hit the jump to continue]

The CineKasimanwa 2 Overview

The CineKasimanwa 2 was a Success!!!
by Reymundo Salao

It was a memorable week for Iloilo City and the film arts of Western Visayas, as the second CineKasimanwa: Western Visayas Film Festival was held last December 8 t0 13, 2014. The three venues namely; the UPV Cinematheque, the FDCP Cinematheque, and SM City Iloilo Cinema, were showing films made by filmmakers of Western Visayas. From magnificent works by established Visayan artists like Lav Diaz, Peque Gallaga, Tara Illenberger, Ned Trespeces, and Jay Abello, to pioneers like Joenar Pueblo and Ray Gibraltar, the amazing features from TM Malones, Kip Oebanda and Aimee Apostol Escasa, to the works of filmmakers from Guimbal, Negros, and unforgettable short films from various artists, among them are young directors coming out with their debut masterpieces. Undoubtedly, the CineKasimanwa definitely accomplished their objective this year, of giving spotlight on marvellous films of Western Visayas and introducing them to the mainstream public. [hit the jump to continue]

CineKasimanwa Updates; Short Films Moved to FDCP and UPV Cinematheques, and The Red Carpet Opening

Photo by Christian Evren Gimotea Lozañes

First off, is an important announcement; Due to unfortunate circumstances beyond the control of the organizers, all short films set for an SM Cinema screening have been cancelled since Monday. The screenings of these features have been transferred to an evening screening at the FDCP Cinematheque. [hit the jump to continue]

Did Sony Strike a Deal with Marvel Studios for a Spider-man Crossover?

No matter how much some fans would deny it, last summer's "The Amazing Spider-man 2" was a failure, and just a big pile of sh1t. Sony has recently been making their Spider-man franchise into a big liability than being a supposed asset. Meanwhile, Marvel Studio's Marvel Cinematic Universe is beautifully blooming into the culmination of Phase 2 with Avengers 2, and is prepped to have a bigger future with Phase 3. Some Spider-man fans have been demanding-- Why dont they just include Spider-man in the Avengers, or in the Marvel Cinematic Universe? Well, as many of you know, that's not easily possible because Spider-man is in the hands of Sony Pictures.

But recent sources revealed that Sony did make efforts to reach out to Marvel Studios in order to strike a deal that could be advantageous both to Marvel and Sony's Spider-man as well. [hit the jump to continue]

CineKasimanwa's Typhoon Ruby Update [UPDATED]

Click to view larger version

The CineKasimanwa is a festival that is fully conscious of safety concerns and the welfare of the general public. And it is fully conscious of the recent devastation of Typhoon Ruby in other parts of the country. In this regard, CineKasimanwa will be offering 25% of its earnings to the victims of Typhoon Ruby. This will be donated via the Jaro Archdiocesan Social Action Center and Rebuild Project. Last year, the CineKasimanwa gave 100% of its earnings (which is 28,000 pesos, rounded off to 30,000 pesos) to the victims of Typhoon Yolanda through the Jaro Archdiocesan as well.

UPDATE: The screening for "Norte, Hangganan ng Kasaysayan" will push through at 5:30 PM SM City Cinema 1. The screening of "Wanted Border", however, will not push through. Announcements for schedule changes were made earlier because of the effects of Typhoon Ruby, for a while we thought that the Typhoon would prevent the coming of our guests. However, due to developments Monday, As of writing time, the CineKasimanwa is expecting guests from Metro Manila who will grace the event, namely Raymond Lee, the producer of Lav Diaz's "Norte", Sid Lucero who is the star of "Norte", and Alessandra De Rossi who is the star of "T'yanak" They are expected to be at the festival's official opening film "Norte, Hangganan ng Kasaysayan". They are expected to be in attendance during the other screenings as well.

Ilonggo Filmmakers of CineKasimanwa Meet and Unite

Dec. 6, 2014 - The united Ilonggo filmmakers front (new and returning), media partners from Manila and the CineKasimanwa volunteers gathered to renew their support for each other and the CineKasimanwa: Western Visayas Film Festival at the iconic Ilonggo's pride, Madge Cafe, at Tienda La Paz (La Paz Market), Iloilo City.

CineKasimanwa Press Con and Plans for CineKasimanwa 2015

Dec. 5, 2014 --- The storm (plus two other press conferences) prevented many from attending the CineKasimanwa 2 press conference but a few of our good and supportive friends from the Iloilo Media came to show us their love. Festival director and programmer, Elvert Bañares; UPV Cinematheque OIC, Prof. Alfredo Diaz; Iloilo Cinematheque's Daniella Caro Barbosa; and, filmmakers Joebert Casas & Reymundo Salao were part of the press con panel. Filmmaker TM Malones covered the proceedings. Our huge thank you to the Iloilo Media! [hit the jump to continue, on to plans for 2015]

The CineKasimanwa: The Western Visayas Film Festival Screening Skeds

The coming week from December 8 up till December 13, 2014 Saturday will be a very big week for Iloilo City and Iloilo Cinema. The second CineKasimanwa: The Western Visayas Film Festival will be held, and it will showcase works of cinematic art from various filmmakers of Western Visayas. These works range from various artists, whether they're professional, student, or amateur; whether they be in the genre of action, suspense, comedy, drama, experimental, and even horror. These are all movies worth watching, because these are our stories, these are your stories. [hit the jump to continue on to the screening skeds]

Ryan Reynolds in Officially Confirmed as DEADPOOL

Early this year, Fox greenlighted a DEADPOOL movie set for a February 2016 release date. A decision which probably was pushed after the Deadpool test footage “leaked” online caused massive positive responses. Ryan Reynolds provided the voice for the character in that footage, and now things are being made official as the actor is finalizing his deal to star in the film. [hit the jump to continue]

The New James Bond Movie has a title: SPECTRE

"Spectre" is the title of the upcoming 24th James Bond movie! The past couple of months the rumor mill has been brewing around as to what the next James Bond movie will be like. and now that the title has been unveiled, we pretty much have an idea what to expect. The original arch-nemeses of James Bond are now making its way to the new millenia at last: SPECTRE! [hit the jump to continue]

The Star Wars Refresher: What has happened before Star Wars: The Force Awakens

The first official teaser-trailer for the new Star Wars movie "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" is out now. This upcoming epic sequel is directed by J.J. Abrams, stars Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Peter Mayhew, Anthony Daniels, and Kenny Baker, along with new cast members John Boyega, Andy Serkis, Max Von Sydow, Oscar Isaac, Adam Driver, Domhnall Gleeson, and Daisy Ridley, and is set for release December 18, 2015.  with this in mind, perhaps it is time to look back at the original trilogy (and forget that the awful prequels ever existed). Just as a refresher, we've listed some notes about what we know so far, after the events in the last movie "Return of the Jedi" [hit the jump to continue]

Guillermo Del Toro Teases Tiny Details About Pacific Rim 2

It's not really a surprise that Pacific Rim would get a sequel. It is, after all, one of 2013's biggest sci-fi action movies. The visionary director of this monster hit, Guillermo Del Toro will be going in a very different direction with Pacific Rim 2. The sequel picks up a few years after the events of the first. The story will begin in a Kaiju-free world, and this will indeed create a restart scenario when the horror re-emerges. There will be a lot of new Kaiju in Pacific Rim 2, according to Del Toro, and of course, the Jaegers will indeed rise to fight the threat once again. Some favorite characters from the first film, like Geiszler played by Charlie Day and Gottlieb played by Burn Gorman, will return. But others wont re-emerge till at the end of Pacific Rim 2 in an effort to heat things up for a third film. [hit the jump to continue]

Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead director Michelle MacLaren Helms the Wonder Woman Movie

Michelle MacLaren who is well known for directing episodes of “Breaking Bad”, “The Walking Dead” and "Game of Thrones" (probably three of the greatest series that hit TV recently) has been picked to both develop and direct the "Wonder Woman" solo film with Charles Roven and Zack and Deborah Snyder producing. Gal Gadot is already set to play Wonder Woman, who will also be making her first screen appearance in 2016 with "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice". Wonder Woman herself may be expected to make additional appearances in other DC cinematic universe movies, and most especially, a major role in "Justice League Part One" which is expected to hit theaters November 10, 2017. "Wonder Woman" is targeted for a June 23, 2017 release date. [hit the jump to continue]

Schwarzenegger and Stallone's Interaction with Pacquiao Sparks Rumors of the Pinoy Champ Joining The Expendables

The Expendables 4 to be More Violent IF Greenlighted

During last sunday's big fight night between Chris Algieri and the Filipino champion Manny Pacquiao, action superstars Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone visited the locker room of Pacquiao to wish him well before his fight. When that happened, the internet along with action movie fans blew up with speculation, giving birth to the rumor that the Pinoy boxing champion was going to be part of "Expendables 4". But, that's not enough reason to bring out that big bag of popcorn. Because despite the fact that various sites have fueled the idea, the whole Pacquiao joining Expendables hype is still just a rumor. [hit the jump to continue]

Oscar Isaac set as titular villain in "X-Men Apocalypse"

The actor to play the villain for the next X-Men movie has now been chosen. Oscar Isaac, who is best known for his role in "Inside Llewyn Davis" will be playing the titular villain for the upcoming "X-Men: Apocalypse". Apocalypse is one of the biggest villains in the X-Men comics universe. His real name is En Sabah Nur, and he is one of the oldest mutants who was considered a god during the time of ancient Egypt. [hit the jump to continue]

Keanu Reeves to star in Tarsem Singh's "The Panopticon"

Visionary filmmaker Tarsem Singh who has been known to direct such visually wild movies such as "The Cell" and "Immortals" is set to film a sci-fi thriller "The Panopticon" and Keanu Reeves is in talks to star in the film. [hit the jump to continue]

"The Stand" will be a Four-Movie Epic

Writer/director Josh Boone (The Fault in our Stars) has announced that his film adaptation of Stephen King's horror classic "The Stand" will now be four movies. [hit the jump to continue]

Attack On Titans Posters Unleashed

Attack On Titan fans have been insanely craving for a film adaptation, and now they're getting it finally. Shinji Higuchi's upcoming live action film adaptation of "Attack On Titan" now have character posters to tease fans with. Toho has finally announced the cast line-up, along with several key art posters of each character in their costumes. [hit the jump to continue]

Mike Nichols Rests at the Age of 83

Very sad news this week in the world of cinema. Legendary director (behind movies like "The Graduate", "The Birdcage", "Closer", among several others) Mike Nichols has died at the age of 83. Several sources report that Nichols died of a cardiac arrest. The writer-director’s work spanned several decades of movies, television, and Broadway. In the mid 1960s, his feature directing debut "Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" revolutionized mature themes and highly relevant topics in cinema. His second film "The Graduate" was a film that transitioned Old Hollywood into New Hollywood. And ever since then, his various works had been great thought-provoking masterpieces. His diversity earned him awards in various fields. He won 8 Tony awards, he won Emmys for "Angels in America" and "Wit", and a Best Director Oscar for "The Graduate". Nichols and fellow University of Chicago student Elaine May became skilled improvisers and the duo’s act eventually resulted in three best-selling comedy albums, one of which won a Grammy.  Although his filmography ended with 2007′s Charlie Wilson’s War, he continued to direct for the stage, and his recent productions included 2012′s Death of a Salesman starring Philip Seymour Hoffman and Andrew Garfield, and Betrayal starring Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz. He is survived by his wife, ABC News Anchor Diane Sawyer, as well as three children and four grandchildren. The legendary Mike Nichols will live with us through his various masterpieces forever.

The Israeli Film Festival at the FDCP Cinematheque this week

This week, the FDCP Cinematheque presents the 2014 Israeli Film Festival. This will run from November 18, 2014 till November 21, 2014 at the Cinematheque Iloilo, all screenings scheduled at 3:30 PM. And it is free of charge. The FDCP Cinematheque is located at the B&C Square Bldg., Solis St., Iloilo City (near BPI Iznart, East West Bank Iznart, and Landbank Iznart). [hit the jump to continue]

Guy Ritchie Developing a King Arthur Film Epic

Guy Ritchie, director of "Snatch", "Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels", and the recent Robert Downey Jr. "Sherlock Holmes" movies, was looking to direct his own long-range epic series with a new version of the King Arthur tale at Warner Bros., envisioned as a tentpole fantasy epic that would ambitiously span six feature films.  There’s no telling if the franchise will indeed stretch to six films, but Warner Bros. has announced a July 22, 2016 release date for the first step, the Ritchie-helmed King Arthur. [hit the jump to continue]

UNCHARTED hires "Horrible Bosses" director and "The Hurtlocker" writer

The upcoming film adaptation for the video game "Uncharted" looks like its getting a top-caliber writer to pen its screenplay. Oscar-winning screenwriter Mark Boal (The Hurt Locker) is being brought in to work on the screenplay. Seth Gordon, who directed "The King of Kong" and "Horrible Bosses", is set to helm this adaptation. "Uncharted" is targeting a June 10, 2016 release date. [hit the jump to continue]

Doctor Doom backstory for Upcoming Fantastic Four Movie Revealed

With what we know now, the new film's
Doctor Doom may not even look like this

As many of you already know, 20th Century Fox's Fantastic Four movie will not be based on a single issue of the Fantastic Four comic books. And in addition to that is the recent revelation about the movie's villain, Doctor Doom. In a recent interview, Toby Kebbell who plays Doom in this upcoming Fantastic Four movie have revealed the backstory of this character.

Here's what Kebbell stated...
"He’s Victor Domashev, not Victor Von Doom in our story.  And I’m sure I’ll be sent to jail for telling you that.  The Doom in ours—I’m a programmer.  Very anti-social programmer.  And on blogging sites I’m “Doom”. [hit the jump to continue]

Spanish Film Festival at the FDCP Cinematheque this week

This week, the FDCP Cinematheque presents the 2014 Spanish Film Festival. This will run from November 12, 2014 till November 16, 2014 at the Cinematheque Iloilo, and it is free of charge. The FDCP Cinematheque is located at the B&C Square Bldg., Solis St., Iloilo City (near BPI Iznart, East West Bank Iznart, and Landbank Iznart). [hit the jump to continue]

Margot Robbie is Harley Quinn for WB and DC's SUICIDE SQUAD; Jared Leto eyed to be The Joker

Warner Bros and DC are gradually developing their own DC Cinematic Universe with their line-up of superhero-related films coming soon. Among them is "Suicide Squad" which will be directed by David Ayer (Fury, Street Kings, End of Watch). Will Smith, Tom Hardy, and Margot Robbie (The Wolf of Wall Street) were in negotiations for roles in the movie. But now, we have received confirmation that Margot Robbie is in the movie and will be playing the Batman villainess and Suicide Squad member, Harley Quinn. In addition, we also have word that Jared Leto is being courted to play The Joker. [hit the jump to continue]

THE HATEFUL EIGHT Synopsis Revealed; Channing Tatum and Demian Bichir Officially Join Cast

After "Django Unchained" many of us already know that Quentin Tarantino is not done with making movies with gunslinging cowboys yet, as he readies his next Western; "The Hateful Eight" which will start production in January. The cast will include Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Walton Goggins, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, and Bruce Dern. And now, reports have confirmed that Channing Tatum and Demian Bichir (A Better Life) has joined the cast. The Weinstein Company has now released the official synopsis for "The Hateful Eight" [hit the jump to continue]

Warcraft Teaser Posters Unveiled; UPDATE: Characters Revealed!

Universal Pictures has released the first two Warcraft movie posters for director Duncan Jones’ (Moon) upcoming adaptation of the incredibly popular video game World of Warcraft.  The two teaser posters were unveiled at the recent WoW convention BlizzCon, and they tease the two major factions of the Warcraft world. [UPDATE: The characters for the movie have been revealed! Hit the jump, after the posters!]

STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS is the official title of Episode VII

Just days ago, we reported that principal photography for the latest Star Wars movie has wrapped. Now, Lucasfilm has revealed the official Star Wars: Episode VII title, "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" and of course, the title makes sense, considering that this will be a return from the supposed-happy ending that "Return of the Jedi" (Episode VI) had. We have yet to get an official synopsis for this upcoming epic.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens is due in theaters on December 18, 2015 and stars John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Harrison Ford, Adam Driver, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Lupita Nyong’o, Oscar Isaac, Domhnall Gleeson, Andy Serkis, Gwendoline Christie and more.

Matt Damon set to work with Alexander Payne in DOWNSIZING

Matt Damon's filmography has long been very impressive, having worked with directors such as Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Paul Greengrass, Anthony Minghella, Steven Soderbergh, Terry Gilliam, and The Coen Brothers

Damon is now set to work with director Alexander Payne who helmed the award-winning "Nebraska".  Payne's new film is entitled "Downsizing" which is described as a social satire and revolves around a guy who “realizes he would have a better life if he were to shrink himself.”  Payne co-wrote the film with his Sideways co-writer Jim Taylor.

Further plot details for the film are unknown for now, the "shrink himself" part is unclear if it means something that's a figure of speech, or something that will literally be having sci-fi elements. What is clear, though, is that the film is a “social satire” so it would not be too far off from his previous films "Nebraska" and "The Descendants", but may be closer to his other movie "Election". [hit the jump to continue]

Star Wars Episode VII Just Finished Filming

After months since it principal photography in May, production on STAR WARS Episode VII, which is set to debut in theaters on December 18, 2015, has recently officially wrapped. The cast and crew recently finished their final days of shooting at England's Pinewood Studios. The end of photography was marked by a warm thank you card signed by director J.J. Abrams as well as producers Kathleen Kennedy and Bryan Burke, which James Rose tweeted a pic of alongside a crew hat. [hit the jump to continue]

Gambit will be penned by Robocop Scribe Josh Zetumer

20th Century Fox is officially moving forward with the Gambit movie.  Months ago, reports came in that Fox was developing an X-Men spinoff featuring the card-wielding mutant with Channing Tatum set to star, and now Fox has hired screenwriter Josh Zetumer to get to work on a script while Tatum is indeed officially attached to lead the feature.  But earlier, Marvel Comics writer Chris Claremont apparently wrote the treatment for the Gambit movie, which will form the basis of the screenplay. 

According to several sources, Fox has set screenwriter Josh Zetumer to pen the Gambit movie script based off of Claremont’s treatment.  Zetumer only has one produced feature under his belt, this year’s RoboCop remake, but apparently Fox thinks he’s the right man to tackle Gambit.  The storyline for the film is being kept under wraps, but the Gambit character has been a fan-favorite for sometime.  A native of New Orleans, Gambit aka Remy LeBeau has the power to control and manipulate kinetic energy, with a propensity for card throwing. [hit the jump to continue]

At the Cinematheque this Week: "Illustrated By" and "Ang Mga Aswang"

It's an incredibly and amazingly interesting week at the FDCP Cinematheque, as it shows two features that are a must-see for you and me. First is the documentary "Illustrated By: Filipino Invasion of US Comics" which is pretty self explanatory by its title; and then there's the Ilonggo full-length film "Ang Mga Aswang" by JR Macahilas. Admission is only at P100. The FDCP Cinematheque is located at the B&C Square Bldg., Solis St., Iloilo City (near BPI Iznart). [hit the jump to continue]

Cinekasimanwa 2 Facbook Site launched and Extension of Entry Deadline

We are at the doorsteps of November and December is getting really close now; The second Cinekasimanwa: The Western Visayas Film Festival is fast approaching. We dropped by last weekend at the FDCP Cinematheque office and found out that there have already been a number of entry films that have been submitted for the festival.

This week, the official facebook site of Cinekasimanwa 2, along with its beautiful new festival posters were launched. The new facebook site [www.facebook.com/cinekasimanwa2014] has also announced the extended deadline for entries, now set on or before November 25, 2014. The festival itself will be held on December 8 to 14, 2014. The event will have three venues at the same time; it will be at the SM City Cinemas, the FDCP Cinematheque, and the UPV Cinematheque; same as last year. [hit the jump to continue]

Marvel has officially announced their Phase Three line-up. And it's been causing geeks to scream in excitement.[hit the jump to continue]

Marvel Reveals Upcoming Phase Three Films

Marvel has finally revealed their Phase 3 plans with several projects that will excite all its fans. The line-up include: stealing back the spotlight with an enormous slate of its own.  Here’s the overview of Phase 3:
Captain America: Civil War will hit theaters on May 6, 2016.
Doctor Strange will arrive on November 4, 2016.
Guardians of the Galaxy 2 is due on May 5, 2017.
Thor: Ragnarok hits theaters on July 28, 2017.
Black Panther arrives on November 3, 2017 starring Chadwick Boseman.
Captain Marvel will be released on July 6, 2018.
Inhumans is coming on November 2, 2018.
Avengers: Infinity War - Part I arrives on May 4, 2018 followed by Part II on May 3, 2019.
[hit the jump to continue]

Benedict Cumberbatch is Marvel's Doctor Strange

It's official; Benedict Cumberbatch is Marvel's Doctor Strange. Yeah other sources and sites have been reporting it as a done deal already, but in truth, Cumberbatch was still in talks when those reports came out, and now, the "officially confirmed" part just came right now. It's been no secret that the title series Doctor Strange will be part of Marvel's Phase three which begins with Ant-Man on 2015. Just days ago, Cumberbatch was in final negotiations with Marvel to play the title character, now the deal has been finalized, and he will soon be playing Marvel Cinematic Universe's sorcerer supreme. [hit the jump to continue]

FDCP Launches the Sineng Pambansa Horror plus Film Festival at SM Cinemas this week

The Film Development Council of the Philippines, in partnership with SM Cinema, will present the Sineng Pambansa Horror plus Film Festival, which opens on October 29, 2014 and will run until November 4 in all SM Cinema branches nationwide.  The entrance fee will be at regular admission prices. [hit the jump to continue]

Dark Horse Graphic Novel POLAR: CAME FROM THE COLD being eyed for a film adaptation

Constantin Films is joining forces with Dark Horse Entertainment to turn the graphic novel Polar: Came from the Cold into a feature film.  According THR, Constantin preemptively snatched up Jayson Rothwell’s spec script for the project.  The Victor Santos penned and illustrated graphic novel has been in stores for almost a year now and focuses on a guy named Black Kaiser, an expert assassin who has to come out of retirement when he’s targeted by a group of younger hitmen. [hit the jump to continue]

Disney loses John Carter rights

Walt Disney's adaptation of Edgar Rice Burrough's "John Carter" was a massive critical and box office disappointment. Which obviously led to Disney's rights to Edgar Rice Burroughs’ John Carter series of sci-fi novels, being reverted back to Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc., which intends on moving forward with further films. [hit the jump to continue]

James Wan Returns to Horror with The Conjuring 2; Will He be Directing a DC Movie as well?

Nobody can deny how last year's The Conjuring was such a horror masterpiece. Its director James Wan has always been best known as one of the more recent masters of horror, having pioneered the Saw franchise and also directed such hits as Insidious. Recently, Wan has shifted to the action genre, as he is directing the upcoming Fast & Furious 7. Now, James Wan has announced that he is returning to horror, with the sequel of The Conjuring. [hit the jump to continue]

WB plans Minecraft Movie; eyes Shawn Levy to direct

Warner Bros. had acquired the rights to adapt the ridiculously popular video game Minecraft into a film with Roy Lee (The LEGO Movie) producing alongside Jill Messick (Mean Girls). Night at the Museum director Shawn Levy is being eyed by WB to direct the adaptation. The open-world game is from Swedish indie developers Mojang AB, and allows players to create a world with textured cubes.  Different modes have the players either fighting for survival or they can simply build away without any restraints aside from a lack of rounded corners. It's possible that this project will try to catch the same lightning the Lego Movie did, what with all its success. But then again, The Lego Movie was made by the amazing duo of Chris Miller and Phil Lord, who are known to make gold out of seemingly thin ideas (The 21 Jumpstreet movies, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs). Shawn Levy's other films include Real Steel, Date Night, This Is Where I Leave You, The Pink Panther (remake), and The Internship. And that simply means that we may not set the expectation levels too high for this project.

Hasbro Planning to take My Little Pony to the Silver Screen

Hasbro Studios is making a push to bring My Little Pony’s popularity to the big screen in 2017 with Ice Age: Continental Drift’s Joe Ballarini penning the script. According to Variety, Hasbro is using its Allspark Pictures label for this one, just like with Jem and the Holograms.  Hasbro will produce and finance the film in house, and is already talking to studios regarding distribution options. [hit the jump to continue]

Disney announces new animated project Moana

Walt Disney Animation Studios has revealed plans for “Moana,” a sweeping, CG-animated comedy-adventure about a spirited teenager on an impossible mission to fulfill her ancestors’ quest. "Moana" is expected to hit theaters in late 2016, and will be directed by the renowned filmmaking team of Ron Clements and John Musker (“The Little Mermaid,” “The Princess and the Frog,” “Aladdin”). [hit the jump to continue]

Ang Huling Cha-cha ni Anita at the Cinematheque this week

This week at the FDCP Cinematheque, the award-winning film "Ang Huling Cha-cha ni Anita" will be screened from October 21 to 26, 2014, with screening skeds on 3:30 and 5:30 PM, and on the weekend, screening sked is on 1:30 and 3:30 PM, with admission only at P100. The FDCP Cinematheque is located at the B&C Square Bldg., Solis St., Iloilo City (near BPI Iznart). [hit the jump to continue]

Is Jena Malone playing Robin in Batman v Superman?

Several sources have confirmed that Jena Malone will indeed appear in the upcoming DC film "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice", but there’s been no confirmation on which DC character will she be portraying. While I would personally think she would be great as the Superman villainess named Livewire, all the commonly-buzzing speculation points to the idea that she might be playing the character named Carrie Kelley who is best known as the female version of Batman's sidekick Robin. [hit the jump to continue]