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Automotive artists put makeup, costumes on cars that star on screen

Mar 1, 2024
Cinema Vehicles in Georgia crafts cars and trucks for movies and TV, sometimes destroying and fixing the same machine several times.
A pickup truck in the Cinema Vehicles lot, damaged with claw marks after serving as a prop. The business crafts vehicles to help set the scene.
Matthew Pearson/WABE

Hallmark movies may be "a little cookie-cutter," but audiences don't seem to mind

Feb 12, 2024
"They are very cozy and comforting," said Danyel Smith of The New York Times Magazine. "Especially in these times."
Annie Howell, Crown Media communications chief, speaks at a screening of "Christmas on Cherry Lane," one of the 42 Christmas films that Hallmark produced in 2023.
Craig Barritt/Getty Images for Hallmark Media

What does the indie film market look like in the wake of Hollywood strikes and a pandemic?

Jan 26, 2024
The Sundance Film Festival has seem some big buys, and renewed interest especially for the small screen.
A lot of indie filmmakers are making movies meant to be seen in theaters, but that market doesn't necessarily exist anymore at Sundance, says Variety film critic Peter Debruge.
Mat Hayward/Getty Images

It doesn’t take a Mathlete to know a “Mean Girls” remake adds up for Hollywood

Jan 12, 2024
The latest iteration is a musical movie, and a chance to make money by presenting old material to a new audience.
More "Mean Girls": Bebe Wood, left, Avantika and Reneé Rapp star in the new musical movie.
Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for Paramount Pictures

How below-the-line workers are surviving the Hollywood strikes

Oct 18, 2023
As actors continue to picket for a better contract, some Hollywood workers are forced to make tough decisions.
Thousands of Hollywood strikers marched from Netflix to the Paramount lot where SAG-AFTRA held a special rally.
Robert Garrova

Chinese animation house puts AI capabilities to the test

Aug 21, 2023
Base Media and iQiyi see potential for a creative edge in a competitive market. But U.S. clients worry about copyright infringement.
A screenshot of an animation after AI tools were applied. The brick wall and background are generated by AI.
Courtesy Base Media/iQiyi Wonderworks

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Former teacher finds creative flow in new art career

Jun 20, 2023
Eve Leonard says her transition from education to entertainment has been eye-opening and satisfying.
Eve Leonard hopes to build a career as a film compositor and director. When she's engaged in a creative project, she says, "I kind of feel the gears moving and churning, and the work that I'm doing is effortless."
Courtesy Leonard

California lawmakers want to diversify Hollywood. So does an LA church

May 4, 2023
Some small production studios want to expand the presence of people of color among Hollywood directors and writers.
Krenée Tolson looks on as Geremy Dixon prepares to host an episode of the “Misfit Manifesto” podcast at Hope Studios.
Hauwa Otori

Hollywood on Thames: How the U.K. became the European home of the blockbuster

Apr 3, 2023
A generous tax break has attracted American moviemakers to the U.K., but the measure has its critics.
Britain's Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, is greeted by Chewbacca during a 2016 tour of the Star Wars sets at Pinewood studios in Iver Heath, west of London.
Adrian Dennis/AFP via Getty Images