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Music supervisors behind the songs of “Wicked” and “A Complete Unknown” led the winners at the 15th annual Guild of Music Supervisors Awards on Sunday night.

On the TV side, the music supervisors behind “Agatha All Along” and “Baby Reindeer” triumphed.

Stephen Schwartz was awarded the Icon Award to celebrate his contributions to the music and film industry. The composer and lyricist performed his song “Beautiful City” on stage from his musical “Godspell.”

Oscar nominees Abraham Alexander and Adrian Quesada performed their nominated song “Like a Bird” from “Sing Sing,” which took the prize for best song written and/or recorded for a film. Meanwhile, Danielle Ponder performed her nominated song “Egún” from Apple TV’s “Manhunt,” and the artist Role Model performed their song “Sally, When The Wine Runs Out” as the Spotlight artist of the evening.

Music producer and supervisor Bonnie Greenberg accepted the Legacy Award for her outstanding career in music supervision.

The Guild of Music Supervisors Awards revealed its 2025 winners Sunday night (Feb. 23). The 15th annual ceremony was held at The Wiltern in L.A.’s Koreatown and honors the year’s best work in songs and scores for screen.

Sunday’s ceremony began with a video about January’s deadly wildfires, in which guild president Lindsay Wolfington lost her home. She thanked the community for rallying behind her during opening remarks with vp Heather Guibert.

The opening remarks didn’t shy away from addressing the Academy’s decision to “move away” from best original song live performances at the 2025 Oscars. “We are proud that our awards for best song written and or recorded for film and for television, acknowledges the collaborative efforts of the songwriters, the performers, and of course the music,” Guibert told the crowd.

“This year in particular, unlike other awards bodies, we are especially proud to be...

Another week, another early Asghar Farhadi film gets restored and finally comes to North America. Following last week’s release of his 2003 drama Dancing in the Dust, Film Movement Classics will now release the Oscar-winning Iranian director’s second feature Beautiful City in a new 2K restoration approved by Farhadi. Led by Taraneh Alidoosti––who would go on to work with the director in Fireworks Wednesday, About Elly, and The Salesman––the 2004 drama will be released digitally on October 13 and we’re pleased to exclusively deubt the new trailer.

Here’s the full synopsis: “After spending two years in juvenile detention for killing his girlfriend as a teenager, the troubled, young Akbar is transferred to an adult facility shortly after turning 18. No longer a minor, his death sentence will soon be legally carried out. Meanwhile outside, Ala — Akbar’s friend and newly paroled petty thief — along with Akbar’s sister...

Valentyn Vasyanovych’s film to open on May 6.

Film Movement has acquired North American rights from New Europe Film Sales to Ukrainian filmmaker Valentyn Vasyanovych’s timely Venice 2021 selection Reflection.

The drama centres on a Ukrainian surgeon who tries to rebuild his life after he is released by Russian forces and is a chilling foreshadowing of the ongoing Ukraine-Russia war that erupted in late February.

The story opens in 2014 as Ukrainian surgeon Serhiy is captured by the Russians after he enlists to fight against them in the contested southeastern Donbas region.

As a prisoner of war he witnesses horrifying scenes...

Film Movement has acquired all North American rights to two previous Ukrainian Oscar entries “Bad Roads” and “Donbass,” as well as the Sundance award-winning documentary “The Earth Is Blue as an Orange.”

“Bad Roads,” which was Ukraine’s Oscar candidate last fall, marks the feature debut of playwright-turned-filmmaker, Natalya Vorozhbit. The politically minded omnibus film, which premiered at Venice in 2020, is adapted from Vorozhbit’s play and unfolds in the recently invaded Eastern region of Donbass.

“Bad Roads” features four stories shedding light on life in the front-line war zone of Donbass: one man alleging to be a schoolmaster is accosted by the military at a checkpoint, two teenagers wait for their soldier boyfriends in a dilapidated town square; a journalist is held captive and gets brutally assaulted; and a young woman apologizes to an elderly couple for running over their chickens.

Variety’s review said the film “gains extra...

Exclusive: Film Movement Classics has acquired North American rights to 2K digital restorations of Asghar Farhadi’s first two features Dancing in the Dust and Beautiful City, which have been signed off on by the two-time Oscar winner himself. Both restored dramas will be released theatrically this year, with a release on all heading home entertainment and digital platforms to follow.

In Farhadi’s 2003 feature directorial debut Dancing in the Dust, Nazar (Yousef Khodaparast) is pressured into divorcing his wife (Baran Kosari) because of her family’s bad reputation. This leads to money problems, and before long, he’s on the run due to debts that he can’t pay. Hiding out in the desert, he meets an eccentric elderly man (Faramarz Gharibian) who makes a living by collecting venom from poisonous snakes. Nazar becomes his unlikely partner and gets an unexpected chance at redemption. The film won Best Director,...

Ramin Karimlooshared him singing 'Beautiful City' from Godspellon YouTube today. Check out him singing thehit below...

“Trump’s visa ban for Iranians is racist.”

Actress Taraneh Alidoosti, who stars in the best foreign language-nominated The Salesman, will boycott the Oscars in protest at Donald Trump’s “racist” visa restrictions.

Iranian star Alidoosti wrote on Twitter: “Trump’s visa ban for Iranians is racist. Whether this will include a cultural event or not, I won’t attend the #AcademyAwards 2017 in protest.”

Alidoosti’s tweet already has more than 3000 ‘likes’.

Trump is considering a plan which will see citizens from Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen temporarily banned from being issued new U.S. visas, according to reports.

The Salesman is directed by Asghar Farhadi and co-stars Shahab Hosseini and Babak Karimi, and is up against Land of Mine, A Man Called Ove, Tanna and Toni Erdmann in the best foreign language category.

Alidoosti is one of the most famous actresses in Iran, and was named by one magazine poll as the best...

Fascinated by the complex motivations that lie beneath the familiar surface, director Asghar Farhadi has masterfully crafted an impressive body of work that thrives on both the universal flaws of the human condition and the idiosyncratic mechanics of Iranian society. His films are riveting mazes that reveal themselves slowly as the characters are exposed and confronted with their wrongdoings, fears, and unflattering truths. Secrets are at the core of Farhadi’s narratives, but they are never easily resolved or simplistic in their relevance. Every decision is ambiguous and morally conflicting in ways that only Farhadi could concoct.

International audiences became aware of the Iranian director’s undeniable talents when “A Separation” took the festival circuit by storm and eventually earned Farhadi a Golden Globe and an Oscar. But prior to that monumental achievement, the incredibly wise filmmaker had already made several films that positioned him as a leading voice in his country’s film industry.

“The Beautiful City” in 2004 and “Fireworks Wednesday” in 2006 showcased his affinity for stories that deal with a different segment of the Iranian population, which goes against the image of the country we have in West. Middle class families, strong female leads, and Iranians abroad, all form part of Farhadi’s vision, and he’s managed to cleverly do it without trouble from the infamous cultural censors.

Right before his 2011 massive art house hit, the director released “About Elly” in 2009 back in his homeland, where it was extremely well received. The film went on to win in Berlin and Tribeca, and became that year’s Iranian Academy Award Submission for Best Foreign Language Film. But somehow this underrated masterwork wasn’t picked up for U.S. distribution, and that remained the case until Cinema Guild announced earlier this year that they would be in charge of finally bringing the film to American audiences. “About Elly” has a simple premise, but those who’ve experienced Farhadi’s thought provoking artistry should know that his films are anything but simple.

It’s summer in Teheran, and a group of friends is leaving the city for the weekend to relax near the ocean. Three couples and their children, plus a single man, Ahmad (Shahab Hosseini), who has just returned from Germany, and a young single teacher named Elly (Taraneh Alidoosti) . Shy and well-mannered, Elly reluctantly accepted to come after being invited by Sepideh (Golshifteh Farahani), one of her student’s mom. Sepideh is delighted with her presence, but she also wanted her to come so she could introduce her to Ahmad, who has just gone through a divorce. In Sepideh’s mind it seemed like the perfect idea to have these two singles meet during a fun weekend surrounded by friendly company.

Unable to secure the accommodations the group usually gets on their trips, they have to settle for a rundown beachside villa. The place needs cleaning, but otherwise it appears to be the ideal place for the large gang. They settle in, cook some food, play charades and try to create opportunities for Elly and Ahmad to be alone. She seems to like him but when he inquires about her life she is very reserved. Sepideh, who orchestrated the trip and their meeting, is pleased with the results so far. But this tale of newfound romance soon takes a turn when an unfortunate incident takes place the following morning. In the aftermath everyone is rattled and Elly has disappeared.

Without spoiling any of the perfectly arranged twists, one could describes what ensues as a clash between what’s acceptable for a woman to do in this type of society and the communal fear of this group to face consequences for what’s happened. Honor is a crucial element in this dilemma, which ends with a powerful revelation. As the drama intensifies the characters crumble on the screen allowing us to see their individual anxieties. Amir (Mani Haghighi), Sepideh’s husband, questions her intentions to bring Elly along for the trip, while Ahmad and the rest attempt to piece together every small event to understand what’s happened. They second-guess every interaction they ever had with Elly that night, what her reactions to those exchanges were, and wonder if their behavior could have caused her disappearance.

Choreographed as an effortlessly paced sequence of events, “About Elly” grabs you instantly and never lets go. This is a drama written and directed with an extraordinary notion of human behavior and in which every small detail has its narrative reward. Storytelling like this is simply mesmerizing. Farhadi commands his entire ensemble cast to give heart-wrenching and layered performances shining with incredible honesty. Still, above them all is Farahani’s tremendously affecting work as Sepideh. Her pain and guilt are tangible and immensely moving throughout.

Thrilling and unexpected, “About Elly” is a spellbinding drama that is as visceral as it is marvelously puzzling. It reinforces Farhadi’s status as one of the most important filmmakers of our time, one that works with global sensibilities in an Iranian context.

"About Elly" is currently playing in NYC and opens in L.A. Friday May 8th at the Nuart...

Sarah Hyland was reportedly assaulted by a male fan at an event celebrating Modern Family’s arrival in Australia, where they are shooting a special episode.

Sarah Hyland Groped By Male Fan

Hyland, 23, was at a Modern Family after-party hosted by Qantas Airlines in Sydney, Australia, when the incident occurred, Thursday, Feb. 20. Hyland went outside to say hello to fans and take pictures with them. While she was interacting with fans, a man reportedly reached over and grabbed her breast. Hyland was reportedly able to push him away and yelled, “Don’t touch me there!” And her security was able to step in before the suspect could do any more harm to the actress. An emotional Hyland left immediately following the assault.

According to reports, the 29-year-old male was arrested and the investigation is currently ongoing. A spokesperson for the local police department confirmed that the man has been charged with assault,...

"I don't want them to be together." Memento Films International has recently debuted an English subtitled trailer for a highly anticipated film premiering at the Cannes Film Festival. It's titled The Past, originally Le passé in French, and is written/directed by Oscar winning filmmaker Asghar Farhadi of A Separation previously. The film is a contemporary relationship drama starring Bérénice Bejo (The Artist), Tahar Rahim (A Prophet) and Ali Mosaffa (The Last Step). It was just announced as In Competition at Cannes and everything about this looks fantastic, a compelling and emotional follow-up to Farhadi's A Separation. Here's the very first subtitled trailer for Asghar Farhadi's The Past, found on Vimeo (via The Playlist): The Past, or Le passé in French, is written and directed by Iranian-born filmmaker Asghar Farhadi, of the films Dancing in the Dust, The Beautiful City, Fireworks Wednesday, About Elly and A Separation, which won the Oscar.

As Hulk Journeys Toward The Convention Center Itself, Hulk Looks Up At The Marriot Which Has Two Gigantic Screen Advertisements Over The Side Of The Towers. Looking Around The City, These Kinds Of Ads Are Everywhere, Taking Up The Entire Sides Of Skyscrapers… It’S Like The City Itself Is Cosplaying.

Hulk Arrives To The Back Of The Line In The Midst Of Chaos And One Of The Biggest Surprises Is That Line System Works Pretty Damn Well. The Volunteers And Security Are On Their Game. They Direct People With Care And Know-how. And There Is No Doubting That The...

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences brings you the Oscars (yep, that's why they're called Academy Awards), and on Friday, the organization announced that it was prepared to invite 176 new folks to its fold.

In a list posted on its website, the Academy deemed Matthew McConaughey, Jean Dujardin, Terrence Malick, Jonah Hill, Berenice Bejo, Jessica Chastain, Octavia Spencer and a host of other film luminaries worthy of inclusion in its nearly 6,000-member army.

The Academy has drawn the ire of critics who bemoan its overwhelmingly male, white population. A Los Angeles Times investigation found that of all Academy members, 94 percent are Caucasian and 77 percent are male. A mere 2 percent are black, with Latinos constituting an even smaller portion. Only 14 percent of members are under the age of 50.

Full members of the Academy select and vote on Oscars nominees. The organization was started in 1927 and is now governed by a 43-person board.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences extended their 2012 membership invitations today to 176 lucky actors, directors, cinematographers, and other members of the filmmaking industry.

Terrence Malick, who somehow wasn’t already a member, received an invitation, as did fellow directors Rodrigo Garcia and Asghar Farhadi.

For actors, Melissa McCarthy’s invitation continues her incredible post-Bridesmaids rise. In addition, actors Jonah Hill, Matthew McConaughey, Andy Serkis, Jessica Chastain, and Octavia Spencer were all invited to be members, among others.

Voting membership in the organization has now held steady at just under 6,000 members since 2003, according to the Academy’s website.

HollywoodNews.com: The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is extending invitations to join the organization to 176 artists and executives who have distinguished themselves by their contributions to theatrical motion pictures. Those who accept the invitation will be the only additions in 2012 to the Academy’s roster of members.

“These film professionals represent some of the most talented, most passionate contributors to our industry,” said Academy President Tom Sherak. “I’m glad to recognize that by calling each of them a fellow Academy member.”

Voting membership in the organization has now held steady at just under 6,000 members since 2003.

The 2012 invitees are:

Actors

Simon Baker – “Margin Call,” “L.A. Confidential”

Sean Bean – “Flightplan,” “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring”

Bérénice Bejo – “The Artist,” “Oss 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies”

Tom Berenger – “Inception,” “Platoon”

Demián Bichir – “A Better Life,” “Che”

Jessica Chastain – “The Help,” “The Tree of Life”

Clifton Collins,...

After nearly 300 performances, rock musical Godspell will end its Broadway engagement on June 24, producers announced Tuesday. This latest revival at Circle in the Square Theatre is the first staging on Broadway since its original inception off-Broadway in 1971. The show, which features former High School Musical star Corbin Bleu, opened in Nov., 2011.

“I’ve never been more proud of a show than I am of Godspell,” said lead producer Ken Davenport. “For nine months this incredible company of performers brought joy into the hearts of more than 153,000 people (and blasted them with over 1,000 pounds of confetti) … forever changing their lives, and mine as well.

It's not often that we're home to animated shorts in these parts but this Steve Coogan-voiced effort is well worth making an exception for. Entitled The Beautiful City, it's a noir set in a night-time metropolis and salted with the fatalism of 24 Hour Party People. 99 John - a drug dealer operating out of the back of an ice-cream van - is our conduit to this weird and wonderful world. This is not a man who's interesting in putting a flake in that; his business is flogging pills from the back of the van and wryly chronicling the goings-on of the city. The hitch? He's mute, making us his only witnesses. This episode is the first in a series of animations that'll be available for free download later in the year and feature the voice talents of Kathy Burke, Keith Allen and Howard Marks. Head to The Beautiful City websitebrightcove.

There's no real estate market problem for talk show host Rosie O'Donnell, who just sold her 6,000 square-foot Chicago home in a single day.

The brick house, located in the Lakeview neighborhood of the city, had a listing price of $2.5 million and went under contract on Tuesday, as recorded by Mls.com.

O'Donnell bought the 12-room house late last fall from Own President Erik Logan for $2.25 million. The closing date on her sale has not been publicly announced.

Broadway has never been a stranger to hosting young celebrities, but more often than not, it’s the girls who take the stage — Abigail Breslin, Claire Danes, Diana DeGarmo, Scarlett Johansson. (We really covered the spectrum with that list.) Given all the recent hubbub about How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (which welcomed Nick Jonas this week), it’s nice to remember that Hollywood’s young leading men are also shipping out and hitting the Great White Way.

For starters, Jonas follows in the footsteps of Daniel Radcliffe and Darren Criss, who both starred in the revival of How to Succeed.

Talk about misleading movie titles. It’s being reported by Deadline that production on a sequel to producer Eli Roth’s horror hit The Last Exorcism (or what I’m now calling The Next To Last Exorcism) is scheduled to begin next month in New Orleans. Roth will return to produce, while Ed Gass-Donnelly (The Beautiful City, Small Town Murder Songs) will replace Daniel Stamm as director.

The R-rated follow-up will continue the storyline of the 2010 PG-13 found footage film with a screenplay written by Damien Chazelle. The (Next To) Last Exorcism followed a disillusioned Southern preacher out to debunk the practice of exorcism, only to find himself taking on a very possessed and very dangerous young woman. Apparently, the sequel will pick up three months from where the original left off, and will see the return of Ashley Bell, the surprisingly flexible actress who played exorcisee, Nell Sweetzer.

According to Roth,...

New clips and trailer for Asghar Farhadi's A Separation, starring Peyman Moaadi and Leila Hatami. The Sony Pictures Classics drama opens on December 30th in New York and Los Angeles, and is helmed and scripted by Asghar Farhadi (Tambourine, About Elly, Beautiful City). Also in the cast are Shahab Hosseini, Sarina Farhadi and Merila Zare'i. Set in contemporary Iran, A Separation is a compelling drama about the dissolution of a marriage. Simin wants to leave Iran with her husband Nader and daughter Termeh. Simin sues for divorce when Nader refuses to leave behind his Alzheimer-suffering father. Her request having failed, Simin returns to her parents’ home, but Termeh decides to stay with Nader.

New clips and trailer for Asghar Farhadi's A Separation, starring Peyman Moaadi and Leila Hatami. The Sony Pictures Classics drama opens on December 30th in New York and Los Angeles, and is helmed and scripted by Asghar Farhadi (Tambourine, About Elly, Beautiful City). Also in the cast are Shahab Hosseini, Sarina Farhadi and Merila Zare'i. Set in contemporary Iran, A Separation is a compelling drama about the dissolution of a marriage. Simin wants to leave Iran with her husband Nader and daughter Termeh. Simin sues for divorce when Nader refuses to leave behind his Alzheimer-suffering father. Her request having failed, Simin returns to her parents’ home, but Termeh decides to stay with Nader.