Tag - hollywood

 
 

HOLLYWOOD

Originally debuting on a coin purse, Hello Kitty became a national phenomenon in Japan and is now the second highest-grossing media franchise worldwide.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Nov 20, 2024
Hello Kitty looks pretty at 50 (and is worth more than ever)
Kitty’s broad appeal, especially to adults, helped popularize the Japanese concept of kawaii (cuteness), which has since become a global trend.
The first phase of growth for Warner Bros. in Asia will come from partnerships with local streaming platforms and telecom operators, with the Max standalone app only being launched once the company thinks it has a big enough audience.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 18, 2024
Warner Brothers brings Max to Asia with cautious Hollywood-first strategy
Warner is relying on established franchises like Harry Potter and Friends to draw viewers across the region, setting it apart from rivals Netflix and Disney.
The film character Godzilla poses on the red carpet during a ceremony to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Hollywood, California, in November 2004.  
COMMENTARY
Nov 6, 2024
After nearly three-quarters of a century, Godzilla’s monstrous empire is thriving
The famed Japanese monster went from serious metaphor for nuclear destruction to a kitschy pop culture icon.
Actor Zhu Jian, 69, rehearses with other actors on the set of a micro movie during a filming session at a banquet hall in Zhengzhou, Henan province, China, on July 16.
BUSINESS
Sep 23, 2024
Micro dramas shake up China's film industry, aim for Hollywood
The leader in the micro drama space is Kuaishou, an app that accounted for 60% of the top 50 Chinese micro dramas last year.
George Clooney attends a premiere for the film "The Boys in the Boat" in Beverly Hills, California, on Dec. 11, 2023. Clooney, a lifelong Democrat who helped raised $30 million for U.S. President Joe Biden at an event last month, has now advocated for a new candidate.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 11, 2024
Hollywood turns against Biden as George Clooney warns ‘dam has broken’
Heavy hitters, including Netflix Chairman Reed Hastings and author Stephen King, have joined the chorus calling on Joe Biden to drop his reelection bid.
The cast of “Megalopolis” joins director Francis Ford Coppola on the red carpet at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.
CULTURE / Film
Jun 6, 2024
‘Megalopolis’ got the Hollywood treatment. The bad kind.
The real issue is that the American film industry, in its current condition, cannot make heads or tails of a movie like "Megalopolis."
The Atomic Bomb Dome in Hiroshima remains an iconic symbol of the destruction of the atomic bomb on that city.
CULTURE / Film
Mar 12, 2024
Hiroshima grapples with 'Oppenheimer' Oscars success
While locals would have liked to see more Japanese representation in the film, they are at least happy that some discussion is taking place.
Christopher Nolan and Emma Thomas, winners of the Oscar for best picture for "Oppenheimer," pose with Takashi Yamazaki, winner of the Oscar for best visual effects for "Godzilla Minus One," at the Governors Ball, following the 96th Academy Awards in Hollywood, California, on Sunday.
CULTURE / Film
Mar 11, 2024
‘Oppenheimer’ caps a big night with best picture Oscar
The big night for ‘Oppenheimer’ offered hope for traditional cinema.
SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher speaks as she is flanked by Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, SAG-AFTRA's executive director and chief negotiator, during a news conference following the end of the Screen Actors Guild strike in Los Angeles on Friday.
BUSINESS
Nov 11, 2023
Actors union explains AI guardrails in strike deal
The Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA) reached a deal with studios like Disney and Netflix this week to end its nearly four-month strike.
A union team captain reacts after SAG-AFTRA approved a tentative agreement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) to bring an end to the 118-day actors strike, at a brewery in Los Angeles on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 9, 2023
Hollywood actors reach tentative deal with studios to end strike
The deal also provides protections against unauthorized use of images generated by artificial intelligence.
More than 75,000 Kaiser Permanente health care workers went on strike from Oct. 4 to 7 across the U.S.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 1, 2023
Unions in the U.S. are winning big for the first time in decades
Recent victories mark a potential turning point for the country’s labor movement, which has seen union ranks and power dwindle for decades.
Striking writers and actors stage a solidarity march through Hollywood on Sept. 13.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 1, 2023
The Writers Guild had a PR strategy like no other
So how did the Writers Guild union do it? First and foremost, it’s impossible to overstate the importance of social media in the equation.
Members of the Writers Guild of America picket outside of Universal Studios in Universal City, California, on Friday.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Sep 25, 2023
Striking Hollywood writers reach tentative deal with studios
The WGA settlement, while a milestone, will not return Hollywood to work. The SAG-AFTRA actors' union remains on strike.
The Writers Guild of America went on strike on May 2 and was joined on the picket lines by members of the Screen Actors Guild on July 14, bringing most U.S. film and scripted television production to a halt.
BUSINESS
Aug 17, 2023
Optimism emerges among Hollywood writers over talks with studios
Writers went on strike over an impasse on compensation, minimum staffing in writers' rooms, residual payments and curbs on artificial intelligence.
Members of the Writers Guild of America and the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists walk a picket line outside of Paramount Pictures in Los Angeles. Hollywood actors and writers are currently on strike, effectively bringing the giant movie and television business to a halt in the first industry-wide walkout in 63 years.
CULTURE / Film / Wide Angle
Aug 10, 2023
The Hollywood strike is a wake-up call to Japan's film industry
With Hollywood writers and actors on strike, what lessons can creatives in the Japanese film industry learn from the fray?
Tom Malian on Monday at his business, Toluca Lake Dry Cleaners, in Burbank, California near the Warner Bros. and Disney studios. His business has taken a severe blow since Hollywood went on strike. Film and TV production ground to a halt 100 days ago when writers downed their pens, before being joined on the picket lines in mid-July by actors.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 9, 2023
Los Angeles subdued as Hollywood double strike hits 100 days
Despite its sprawling size, the city is almost as much a company town as any in America dominated by a single industry.
Members of the Writers Guild of America and the Screen Actors Guild take part in a picket line outside Paramount Studios in Hollywood, California, on Thursday.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 21, 2023
AI shines a spotlight on Hollywood hypocrisy
Studios haven’t informed or paid background actors properly for being digitally scanned, yet they want the same courtesy from AI companies.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Jul 14, 2023
Actors go on strike in new blow to struggling Hollywood studios
The Screen Actors Guild, which represents some 160,000 performers, announced the walkout after failing to reach a new labor agreement.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 29, 2023
From caterers to cowboy outfitters: Writers' strike hits Hollywood economy
It remains unclear how long the work stoppage will last. No new talks are scheduled between major Hollywood studios and the writers.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 23, 2023
Why are Hollywood films falling out of favor in Japan?
American films used to dominate the box office in Japan, but over the past 20 years Hollywood's share has slowly shrunk.

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Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?