America Ferrera Earns Two Astra Awards Nominations from the Hollywood Creative Alliance

America Ferrera is having an Astra-nomical year…

The Hollywood Creative Alliance has revealed its nominees for the 2024 Astra Film and Creative Arts Awards, with the 39-year-old Honduran American actress earning two nods.

America Ferrera, BarbieFerrera picked up a nomination in the Best Supporting Actress category for scene-stealing performance in Greta Gerwig’s box office smash Barbie, which earned a best picture nomination.

Ferrera is also nominated in the Best Cast Ensemble category alongside her Barbie cast mates, including fellow Latina actresses Ariana Greenblatt and Ana Cruz Kayne,

Colman Domingo has picked up three nods…

The 54-year-old Belizean-Guatemalan American actor and social justice activist is nominated for Best Actor for his performance in Rustin, Best Supporting Actor for his performance in The Color Purple and Best Cast Ensemble for The Color Purple.

Ariana DeBose has some Astra Award recognition.

The 32-year-old half-Puerto Rican Oscar-winning actress and singer is nominated for Best Voice-Over Performance for portraying the lead character in Walt Disney Studios’ animated film Wish, while the title track that she performs in the film, “This Wish,” is up for Best Original Song.

Winners of the 2024 Astras film winners will be revealed on Saturday, January 6, during a live-streamed event from the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles, beginning at 6:30 pm PT/9:30 pm ET. Comedian Jimmy O. Yang will serve as host.

The Astras creative arts winners will be revealed on Monday, February 26 at City Market Social House in Los Angeles.

Here are nominees for the 2024 Astra Film and Creative Arts Awards in 14 selected categories:

Best Original Song
“Camp Isn’t Home” from Theater Camp, Written by Ben Platt, Noah Galvin, Molly Gordon, Nick Lieberman, and Mark Sonnenblick – Performed by Ben Platt, Molly Gordon, Noah Galvin, Alexander Bello, Bailee Bonick, Donovan Colan, Jack Sobolewski, Kyndra Sanchez, Luke Islam, Madisen Lora and Quinn Titcomb (Searchlight Pictures)

“Dance the Night” from Barbie, Written by Mark Ronson, Andrew Wyatt, Dua Lipa, and Caroline Ailin – Performed by Dua Lipa (Warner Bros. Pictures)

“I’m Just Ken” from Barbie, Written by Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt – Performed by Ryan Gosling (Warner Bros. Pictures)

“Peaches” from The Super Mario Bros Movie, Written by Jack Black, Aaron Horvath, Michael Jelenic, Eric Osmond, and John Spiker – Performed by Jack Black (Universal Pictures)

“This Wish” from Wish, ​​Written by Julia Michaels, Benjamin Rice, and JP Saxe – Performed by Ariana DeBose (Walt Disney Pictures)

“What Was I Made For?” from Barbie, Written By Billie Eilish O’Connell and Finneas O’Connell – Performed by Billie Eilish (Warner Bros. Pictures)

Best Score
Elemental, Thomas Newman (Disney/Pixar)
Killers of the Flower Moon, Robbie Robertson (Apple Original Films)
Oppenheimer, Ludwig Göransson (Universal Pictures)
Poor Things, Jerskin Fendrix (Searchlight Pictures)
Saltburn, Anthony Willis (Amazon MGM Studios)
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, Daniel Pemberton (Sony Pictures) 

Best Documentary Feature
20 Days in Mariupol (PBS Distribution)
American Symphony (Netflix)
Beyond Utopia (Roadside Attractions)
Little Richard: I Am Everything (Magnolia Pictures)
Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie (Apple Original Films)
Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour (AMC Theatres Distribution)

Best Animated Feature
The Boy and The Heron (GKids)
Elemental (Disney/Pixar)
Nimona (Netflix)
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Sony Pictures)
Suzume (Sony Pictures/Crunchyroll)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem (Paramount Pictures) 

Best Voice-Over Performance
Ariana DeBose – Wish (Walt Disney Studios)
Bradley Cooper – Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (Disney/Marvel)
Daniel Kaluuya – Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Sony Pictures)
Hailee Steinfeld – Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Sony Pictures)
Jack Black – The Super Mario Bros Movie (Universal Pictures)
Shameik Moore – Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Sony Pictures)

Best Cast Ensemble
Air (Amazon MGM Studios)
Barbie (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Killers of the Flower Moon (Apple Original Films)
Oppenheimer (Universal Pictures)
The Color Purple (Warner Bros. Pictures)
The Holdovers (Focus Features)

Best Supporting Actress
America Ferrera – Barbie (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Danielle Brooks – The Color Purple (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Da’Vine Joy Randolph – The Holdovers (Focus Features)
Julianne Moore – May December (Netflix)
Rachel McAdams – Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret (Lionsgate)
Viola Davis – Air (Amazon MGM Studios) 

Best Supporting Actor
Charles Melton – May December (Netflix)
Colman Domingo – The Color Purple (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Dominic Sessa – The Holdovers (Focus Features)
Glenn Howerton – BlackBerry (IFC Films)
Robert Downey Jr. – Oppenheimer (Universal Pictures)
Ryan Gosling – Barbie (Warner Bros. Pictures) 

Best Actress
Carey Mulligan – Maestro (Netflix)
Emma Stone – Poor Things (Searchlight Pictures)
Fantasia Barrino – The Color Purple (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Greta Lee – Past Lives (A24)
Lily Gladstone – Killers of the Flower Moon (Apple Original Films)
Margot Robbie – Barbie (Warner Bros. Pictures) 

Best Actor
Barry Keoghan – Saltburn  (Amazon MGM Studios)
Bradley Cooper – Maestro (Netflix)
Cillian Murphy – Oppenheimer (Universal Pictures)
Colman Domingo – Rustin (Netflix)
Jeffrey Wright – American Fiction (Orion Pictures / Amazon MGM Studios)
Paul Giamatti – The Holdovers (Focus Features) 

Best Original Screenplay
Air, Written by Alex Convery (Amazon MGM Studios)
Anatomy of a Fall, Written by Justine Triet & Arthur Harari (NEON)
Barbie, Written by Greta Gerwig & Noah Baumbach (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Past Lives, Written by Celine Song (A24)
Saltburn, Written by Emerald Fennell (Amazon/MGM Studios)
The Holdovers, Written by David Hemingson (Focus Features) 

Best Adapted Screenplay
American Fiction, Screenplay by Cord Jefferson (Orion Pictures / Amazon MGM Studios)
Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, Screenplay by Kelly Fremon Craig (Lionsgate)
Killers of the Flower Moon, Screenplay by Eric Roth & Martin Scorsese (Apple Original Films)
Oppenheimer,  Screenplay by Christopher Nolan (Universal Pictures)
Poor Things, Screenplay by Tony McNamara (Searchlight Pictures)
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, Screenplay by Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, Dave Callaham (Sony Pictures) 

Best Director
Alexander Payne – The Holdovers (Focus Features)
Ben Affleck – Air (Amazon MGM Studios)
Bradley Cooper – Maestro (Netflix)
Celine Song – Past Lives (A24)
Christopher Nolan – Oppenheimer (Universal Pictures)
Cord Jefferson – American Fiction (Orion Pictures / Amazon MGM Studios)
Emerald Fennell – Saltburn (Amazon MGM Studios)
Greta Gerwig – Barbie (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Martin Scorsese – Killers of the Flower Moon (Apple Original Films)
Yorgos Lanthimos – Poor Things (Searchlight Pictures) 

Best Picture
Air (Amazon MGM Studios)
American Fiction (Orion Pictures / Amazon MGM Studios)
Barbie (Warner Bros. Pictures)
The Color Purple (Warner Bros. Pictures)
The Holdovers (Focus Features)

First Trailer Released for George Miller’s “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga,” Starring Anya Taylor-Joy

Anya Taylor-Joy is bringing the fury

The first official trailer has been released for Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, starring the 27-year-old Argentine American Golden Globe-winning actress.

Anya Taylor-Joy, Furiosa“Whatever you do, whatever it takes — promise me you’ll find your way home.” This is what “the darkest of angels is told,” begins the trailer for the film, the prequel to 2015’s Fury Road and part of George Miller’s Mad Max universe.

Taylor-Joy and Chris Hemsworth star in the film that returns to the iconic dystopian world launched 45 years ago with the low-budget/high-octane Mel Gibson-led Mad Max.

Oscar winner and six-time nominee Miller is back at the helm for the action fest he co-wrote with Nico Lathouris.

Here’s your logline: As the world fell, young Furiosa (Taylor-Joy) is snatched from the Green Place of Many Mothers and falls into the hands of a great Biker Horde led by the Warlord Dementus. Sweeping through the Wasteland, they come across the Citadel presided over by The Immortan Joe.  While the two Tyrants war for dominance, Furiosa must survive many trials as she puts together the means to find her way home.

Alyla Browne and Tom Burke also star in the film.

Among the Fury Road Oscar winners returning for this trip are production designer Colin Gibson, editor Margaret Sixel, sound mixer Ben Osmo, costume designer Jenny Beavan and makeup designer Lesley Vanderwalt.

Warner Bros opens the film from Village Roadshow Pictures on May 24 stateside, with its overseas rollout starting two days earlier. Furious also will rev up in IMAX theaters.

Warner Bros. & Legendary Move Up Release Date of Javier Bardem’s “Dune: Part Two” to March 1

Javier Bardem has been given his March-ing orders for his highly-anticipated film.

Warner Bros. and Legendary have moved up the release of Denis Villenueve’s Dune: Part Two, starring the 54-year-old Spanish Oscar-winning actor.

Javier BardemThe second half of the space epic will now open nationwide on March 1.

The new date is two weeks earlier than the March 15 date Warner Bros. set in August when it moved Dune: Part Two out of 2023 amid the Hollywood strikes. The sequel was originally set to open on November 3.

Dune: Part Two is the second chapter in Villeneuve’s adaptation of Frank Herbert’s seminal science-fiction novel.

The first film opened simultaneously in theaters and on Max (then known as HBO Max) in November 2021 and grossed $402 million at the worldwide box office. It also earned 10 Academy Award nominations, including best picture, and won the Oscars for original score, sound, film editing, cinematography, production design and visual effects.

In addition to Bardem, Villeneuve’s original Dune cast members Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Dave Bautista, Stellan Skarsgård and Charlotte Rampling are all back for the second chapter.

Newcomers to the franchise include Christopher Walken, Austin Butler, Florence Pugh and Léa Seydoux.

“I just I loved the first film so much,” Butler previously told Variety about stepping into Villeneuve’s world. “It was this cinematic masterpiece, so the idea of getting to be a part of that world is just incredibly exciting and Denis is one of my favorite filmmakers and just an amazing human being. He’s so kind and I’m a fan of every one of those actors in the film, so I I felt really honored.”

In a recent interview with Empire, Villeneuve shared his hopes for a third installment in the sci-fi epic film series, saying, “If I succeed in making a trilogy, that would be the dream.”

On his Dune: Part Three progress, Villeneuve teased, “I will say, there are words on paper.” The project would be based on Dune Messiah, the direct sequel to Dune author Frank Herbert’s 1965 original novel.

The official Dune: Part Two synopsis from Warner Bros. and Legendary reads: “This follow-up film will explore the mythic journey of Paul Atreides as he unites with Chani and the Fremen while on a warpath of revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family. Facing a choice between the love of his life and the fate of the known universe, he endeavors to prevent a terrible future only he can foresee.”

Disney Releases First Look Photo of Rachel Zegler in Live-Action “Snow White” Film

Rachel Zegler is the fairest of them all

Disney has released a first look photo of its live-action Snow White film, starring the 22-year-old half-Colombian American Golden Globe-winning actress and singer.

Rachel Zegler, Snow WhiteThe film’s release date has been pushed back a year to March 21, 2025, amidst the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike.

Zegler portrays the title character in the new take on Disney’s 1937 animated classic, a work foundational to the studio’s empire that was itself based on a 19th century fairy tale from the Brothers Grimm.

The story follows a princess who is rescued by seven dwarf miners who make Snow White part of their household after she’s exiled into a dangerous forest by her wicked stepmother.

The new still from Disney’s Snow White features Zegler’s princess opposite dwarves Bashful, Doc, Dopey, Grumpy, Happy, Sleepy and Sneezy.

Marc Webb directed from a script by Barbie‘s Greta Gerwig and Erin Cressida Wilson, with Marc Platt producing.

Gal Gadot plays the Evil Queen, with Tony Award winner Andrew Burnap portraying a new male lead character.

Original songs for the film were penned by the Oscar-winning La La Land duo of Benj Pasek and Justin Paul.

Oscar Isaac to Star in the Crime Thriller “In the Hand of Dante”

Oscar Isaac has a new project on his hand(s)

The 44-year-old Cuban-Guatemalan actor will star in the crime thriller In the Hand of Dantewith Oscar nominee Julian Schnabel directing and Martin Scorsese among the executive producers.

Oscar IsaacIsaac will star opposite Jason Momoa and Gerard Butler in the film, which is in production in Italy and recently landed an Interim Agreement from SAG-AFTRA allowing it to film during the actors strike.

Based on the novel by Nick Tosches, it follows the story of the original manuscript for The Divine Comedy emerging in the clutches of a black-market smuggling ring in the dangerous underbelly of New York City, and weary scholar Nick is called by the mob to authenticate it.

Overwhelmed by temptation, Nick defies the mafia and steals the manuscript in a frenzied bid to have it all. He follows a dark and violent path from a metaphorical Hell into Paradise with his love Giulietta, while a parallel tale unfolds: the odyssey of Dante himself, a man who is trapped in a loveless marriage with Gemma and bolstered only by his mentorship under an austere intellectual. He escapes to Sicily and creates his greatest work, immortalizing his lost love, Beatrice.

Nick and Dante’s timelines weave separate paths, and yet the two men are inextricably linked — both lose themselves chasing love, beauty and the very promise of the divine.

Scorsese will executive produce alongside DreamCrew, Screen Capital/Screen One and Tribune Pictures, with Isaac (through his production company Mad Gene Media) and Schnabel also executive producing.

Katina Medina Mora to Direct Her First English-Language Film, “Freeland”

Katina Medina Mora is embracing a freeland

The 43-year-old Latina film, television and theatre director and Emily in Paris helmer will direct Freeland, her first English-language film.

Katina Medina MoraThe film will be co-written with Chilean scribe Julio Rojas, creator of podcast sensation Caso 63 and a co-writer on Pablo Fendrik’s El Refugio.

Nicolas Celis, who earned an Academy Award nod for producing Roma, will serve as the lead producer of Freeland.

The project was put together by producer Nestor Hernández, a former Sony and HBO development executive for Latin America who attended the San Sebastian Film Festival in September to present the project.

MadAvenue PR director Eva Herrero serves as an executive producer on the film.

“We have long been following Katina Medina Mora’s remarkable career and her impressive accomplishments over such a short time span,” remarked Celis who has been attending Iberseries to take part in a panel and to meet with contacts.

“I am also more than thrilled to be working with Rojas and alongside Hernández,” he said. “At Pimienta Films, we are increasingly focused on producing globally appealing films with talented and influential creators like Katina,” he noted.

“Nicolas is not only one of the most recognized producers in Mexico, but for me, is one of the few whose work has both narrative and artistic value.” said Medina Mora, adding: “Collaborating with him is something I have been waiting for a long time. I am certain that his involvement with ‘Freeland’ will bring many strengths to the project.”

In “Freeland,” based on Rojas’ eponymous novel, Nicolas, a 17-year-old living in a seemingly idyllic village, shocks his school when he asserts that the Earth is round in a world where a creationist revolution has rewritten history. He’s sent to a reeducation reformatory called Hotel Roma, where he falls in love with Hipatia, the daughter of political prisoners. Together, they plan to escape to Freeland’s border in a totalitarian dystopia of the mid-2030s.

“It is an honor for me that Pimienta and Nicolas Celis have chosen to lead this project. I have been a great admirer of the work of Julio, Katina and Nicolas himself for years. I feel like I am part of something truly unique,” said Hernandez.

Roadside Attractions Acquires U.S. Rights to Diego Calva’s New Thriller “Dreamer”

Diego Calva’s dream(er) project will be hitting U.S. theaters…

Roadside Attractions has acquired the U.S. rights to Dreamer, a thriller starring the 31-year-old Mexican Golden Globe-nominated actor.

Diego CalvaExecutive-produced by Oscar nominee Yalitza Aparicio, the film examines enslaved child labor in the U.S.

Inspired by a landmark sweatshop case in El Monte, CA, the film marks the feature directorial debut of veteran producer Mohit Ramchandani.

It will bow exclusively in theaters nationwide on April 5, 2024.

Newcomer Ari Lopez leads an ensemble that also includes Alfredo Castro, Paulina Gaitan, Calva and Renata Vaca.

The story follows Jesús (Lopez), a young farmer in rural Mexico who dreams of playing for Club Puebla, his local soccer team. With the promise of training at a soccer camp in Los Angeles, Jesús is convinced by his father to leave home, but he soon discovers that he’s been sold to a sweatshop run out of a decrepit mansion in downtown Los Angeles. Jesús is then subjected to the grueling 18-hour work schedule dictated by El Jefe (Castro), a boss who promises freedom for those who complete their quotas, and whose brutality is motivated by his own desperation to provide for his family back in Mexico. Despite all, Jesús finds solace in Elena (Vaca), a girl who was similarly betrayed and sent to America under the guise of attending a fashion school. When Elena goes missing and another co-worker, Carlitos (Calva), is severely beaten for confronting El Jefe, Jesús realizes his only way out is a daring escape.

Ramchandani directed from his own script, with the film being produced and financed by Rufus Parker of P2 Films, Jon Graham and Matt Diezel. Ramchandani also served as producer. In addition to Aparicio, EPs included Luis Mandoki and Daljit DJ Parmar of Original Entertainment.

Dreamer has garnered praise from L.A. Mayor Karen Bass’ Office, the Los Angeles Civil Rights Department, and former Department of State Chief of Staff Mark J Biedlingmaier, who stated: “It is one of the most emotionally engaging films I have ever seen. I’m excited to share this film with my colleagues in Washington, given this topic touches every single American today.”

Ramchandani underscored that “Dreamer has no political bias or agenda. It merely shows you, from the point of view of a young boy, what it would be like to have your dreams stolen and replaced with the hellish nightmare of slavery. His story is only one of over 2.8 million undocumented migrants that crossed the border in 2023 and whose forced labor is an unforgiveable stain on countless corporate products.”

Added Roadside Attractions Co-Presidents Howard Cohen and Eric d’Arbeloff, “Directorial debuts don’t get any more exciting than this. Mo takes us into a world that we can barely imagine, yet he convinces us it exists right under our noses. The visceral energy of Jesús’ journey is something filmgoers will not soon forget.”

Mexico Submits Lila Avilés’ “Totem” for 2024 Oscars Best International Feature Film Race

Lila Avilés’ latest project has entered the Academy Awards race…

Mexico has selected the Berlin competition title Tótem, hailing from the 41-year-old Mexican film director, screenwriter, actress and producer, as its entry for the Best International Feature Film category at the 2024 Oscars.

Lila Avilés,The family drama is Avilés’ second film after the award-winning feature debut The Chambermaid, which debuted in Toronto in 2018 and then traveled the international festival circuit before being selected as Mexico’s Oscar submission.

Tótem stars newcomer Naíma Sentíes as a 7-year-old girl navigating the strange atmosphere of a special surprise party being held for her dying artist father, from whom she herself feels temporarily estranged.

Lila Avilés, TotemOther cast members include stars Montserrat Marañon, Marisol Gasê, Saori Gurza, Mateo García Elizondo, Teresita Sánchez, Francisco Maldonado, Iazua Larios and Alberto Amador.

The film was produced by Tatiana Graullera, Avilés and Louise Riousse.

After playing Berlin, Tótem made its North American bow at New Directors/New Films and played Telluride earlier this month, where Alfonso Cuarón presented the screening.

The film will next play the Woodstock Film Festival, Hamptons Film Festival, Chicago Film Festival and Mill Valley Film Festival.

Internationally, Tótem is set to play the London Film Festival and San Sebastian.

Rodrigo Prieto to Receive Lifetime Achievement Award at GuadaLAjara Film Festival 

Rodrigo Prieto is earning a special award…

The 57-year-old Mexican Oscar-nominated cinematographer will be honored with the 2023 Árbol de la Vida, a lifetime achievement award, at the 13th edition of the GuadaLAjara Film Festival on November 1.

Rodrigo Prieto,Taking place at the Theater at the Ace Hotel in Downtown L.A., Prieto will be honored at the opening night gala celebration. Past honorees have included Oscar-winner Patricia Arquette, in addition to stars such as Xolo Maridueña, Rosario Dawson and Danny Trejo.

Prieto has garnered worldwide acclaim for his work on various feature films, collaborating with some of cinema’s most vital masters. He has picked up his three Oscar nods for Ang Lee’s Brokeback Mountain (2005) and two with Martin ScorseseSilence (2016) and The Irishman (2019).

He’s teamed up with the iconic filmmaker again for Killers of the Flower Moon, the story of a group of men that murdered Osage tribe members in the 1920s. The Apple Original Films and Paramount Pictures co-distributed feature stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro and Lily Gladstone.

Prieto also lensed Greta Gerwig’s billion-dollar Mattel meta-comedy Barbie from Warner Bros — now the highest grossing release of 2023.

Curated with Latinx and BIPOC communities in mind, GLAFF’s programming is a mix of films that aim to attract cinephiles and art and culture enthusiasts. The 2023 program and official selection includes a special Día de Muertos (Day of the Dead) centerpiece gala screening of the 1960s Mexican classic Macario from director Roberto Gavaldón. More films will be announced in the coming weeks.

“GLAFF continues its mission to be a bridge between Latin America and U.S.-based Latinx/BIPOC creators,” says Ximena Urrutia, festival director. “Being part of a festival run by Latina women, we strive to add to the efforts of ensuring domestically and internationally Latinx representation.”

The GuadaLAjara Film Festival is supported by the University of Guadalajara, Guadalajara, the University of Guadalajara Foundation USA, the Grodman Legacy Family Foundation and the Guadalajara International Film Festival (FICG).

Spain Selects J.A. Bayona’s “Society of Snow” as Its Entry for the Oscars’ Best International Feature Film Race

J.A. Bayona is in the running for a potential Academy Award

Spain has selected the 48-year-old Spanish filmmaker’s latest film, Society of the Snow as its entry for the Best International Feature Film race at the 2024 Oscars.

J.A. BayonaThe announcement marks the first time a Netflix-backed film has been selected by Spain and the second time J.A. Bayona has made the cut following his 2007 film The Orphanage.

Society of the Snow closed this year’s Venice Film Festival. Based on the book of the same name by Pablo Vierci, first published in 2008, the film charts the story of the 45 people who, on October 13, 1972, boarded Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 from Montevideo to Chile. There were five crew members on board and 40 passengers, including 19 members of the Old Christians Club rugby team. Tragedy struck when the pilot began his descent too early, crashing into the Andes and killing 12 immediately. The survivors clung to the belief that help was coming, but none did. After weeks of hunger, having exhausted everything in the plane’s hold, they were forced to do the unthinkable and eat the flesh of those who had died. The story was told by Frank Marshall in the 1993 film Alive.

J.A. Bayona, La Sociedad De La Nieve, Society of the SnowStarring in the Spanish-language film are Enzo Vogrincic, Matías Recalt, Agustín Pardella, Esteban Kukuriczka and Tomas Wolf.

The film is produced by Belén Atienza, Sandra Hermida and Bayona. The screenplay comes from Bayona, Bernat Vilaplana, Jaime Marques and Nicolás Casariego from the novel by Pablo Vierci. The director of photography is Pedro Luque.

Last year Spain selected Carla Simón’s Berlinale winner Alcarràs for the Best International Feature Film race. The film didn’t make the final shortlist.