Jon Dudley explores the notion of national cinema… Although cinema is a worldwide spectacle that can be enjoyed by billions of people, there seems to be a way to define a films origins and values, and who or where it represents. It would be all too easy to walk into any cinema and identify the […]

Trevor Hogg profiles the career of filmmaker and Academy Award-winning screenwriter Jane Campion in the second of a two part feature… read part one. In 1981, Jane Campion watched a teenager perform at the Phillip Street Theatre in Sydney, Australia; the director immediately wanted to cast the young actress in her graduation film. Unfortunately, the […]

Gary Collinson selects his Five Essential New Directors of the 21st Century… In thinking of an article to mark the end of the decade a number of ideas passed through my mind – best movies (too common), worst movies (where to begin?), best directors (possibly), best directorial debuts (getting there) – before finally settling upon […]

Jon Dudley compares Hollywood to the British film industry… “…the American hegemony over cinema in Britain has frequently been blamed for preventing the development of an authentically indigenous cinema” – Tom Ryall American films have dominated global cinema for many decades now. Such is the high number of Hollywood productions being shown in cinemas across […]

Trevor Hogg profiles the career of filmmaker and Academy Award-winning screenwriter Jane Campion in the first of a two part feature… The daughter of Richard Campion, theatre director and co-founder of the New Zealand Players Company, and stage actress Edith Armstrong, Jane Campion was raised in the world of the dramatic arts. The acclaimed filmmaker […]

Actress passes away aged 32… Brittany Murphy has died of natural causes in Los Angeles yesterday, Sunday 20th December. The 32 year old actress reportedly went into cardiac arrest at her home and was taken to the Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre near Beverly Hills where she was pronounced dead on arrival. She is survived by her […]

In which Gerry Hayes makes Bob Cratchett type up his latest filmy polemic while he amuses himself kicking Tiny Tim’s crutch from under him. Filthy urchin. Something a little different this week. Given it’s the season to be jolly and all, I’ve decided I could be considerably more jolly by not doing much work for […]

Alien writer passes away aged 63… Hollywood screenwriter Dan O’Bannon has died yesterday 17th December in Los Angeles after a short illness. A former USC graduate alongside director John Carpenter, the pair collaborated on Carpenter’s 1974 debut Dark Star (with O’Bannon co-writing, editing, working on the visual effects and production design, and appearing on screen) […]

American History X director discusses two new feature projects… Controversial British director Tony Kaye has delivered an insight into his upcoming film slate while taking part in a Design Inspiration event to promote the Nissan Cube, stating that he has two new projects lined up for 2010 entitled Steps and Zero Point. Kaye of course […]

With upcoming sci-fi epic Avatar set to end twelve years of cinema exile for James Cameron, Trevor Hogg profiles the career of the influential Hollywood filmmaker in the third of a three part feature… read part one and two. “I started thinking about the film in two stages,” explained James Cameron on how he approached […]