Annapurna Television
Annapurna Pictures is an independent American media company founded by Megan Ellison in 2011, that specializes in film production, live theatre production, television through its Annapurna Television division, and video game publishing through its Annapurna Interactive division. History Annapurna Pictures was founded in 2011 by Megan Ellison as a production and finance entity focusing on high-end auteur-driven cinema. After attending University of Southern California’s film school for two semesters, Ellison left in 2005 and traveled the world. Among her stops was Nepal, where she trekked on the Himalayan mountain Annapurna, for which her production company is named. By 2014 Annapurna had produced and/or financed the films '' Lawless'', '' The Master'', '' Killing Them Softly'', ''Zero Dark Thirty'', '' Spring Breakers'', '' The Grandmaster'', ''Her'', '' Foxcatcher'', and ''American Hustle'', and was starting production on '' Joy'', '' Sausage Party'', '' Wiener-Dog'', '' ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Privately Held
A privately held company (or simply a private company) is a company whose shares and related rights or obligations are not offered for public subscription or publicly negotiated in the respective listed markets, but rather the company's stock is offered, owned, traded, exchanged privately, or over-the-counter. In the case of a closed corporation, there are a relatively small number of shareholders or company members. Related terms are closely-held corporation, unquoted company, and unlisted company. Though less visible than their publicly traded counterparts, private companies have major importance in the world's economy. In 2008, the 441 largest private companies in the United States accounted for ($1.8 trillion) in revenues and employed 6.2 million people, according to ''Forbes''. In 2005, using a substantially smaller pool size (22.7%) for comparison, the 339 companies on ''Forbes'' survey of closely held U.S. businesses sold a trillion dollars' worth of goods and services (4 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
USC School Of Cinematic Arts
The University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts (SCA) houses seven academic divisions: Film & Television Production; Cinema & Media Studies; John C. Hench Division of Animation + Digital Arts; John Wells Division of Writing for Screen & Television; Interactive Media & Games; Media Arts + Practice; Peter Stark Producing Program. The USC School of Cinematic Arts is led by dean Elizabeth Monk Daley, who holds the Steven J. Ross/Time Warner Chair and is the longest-serving dean at the University of Southern California, having led the cinema school since 1991. History When Douglas Fairbanks became the first president of the nascent Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 1927, one of the more innovative items on his agenda was that the academy should have a “training school”. As Fairbanks and his enablers reasoned that training in the cinematic arts should be seen as a legitimate academic discipline at major universities, given the same degree consideratio ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Joy (2015 Film)
''Joy'' is a 2015 American biographical comedy-drama film, written and directed by David O. Russell and starring Jennifer Lawrence as Joy Mangano, a self-made millionaire who created her own business empire. ''Joy'' received a theatrical release on December 25, 2015, distributed by 20th Century Fox. It received mixed reviews from critics, who praised Lawrence's performance but criticized the writing and pace of the film. Lawrence received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress and won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for her performance. ''Joy'' was also nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, among other accolades. Plot In 1990, Joy Mangano, an airline booking agent residing in Peconic, New York, struggles financially while juggling a complicated family life. Living with Joy and her two children are her single mother, Terri, who spends all day in bed watching soap operas, her ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
American Hustle
''American Hustle'' is a 2013 American historical black comedy crime film directed by David O. Russell. It was written by Eric Warren Singer and Russell, inspired by the FBI Abscam operation of the late 1970s and early 1980s. It stars Christian Bale and Amy Adams as two con artists who are forced by an FBI agent (Bradley Cooper) to set up an elaborate sting operation on corrupt politicians, including the mayor of Camden, New Jersey ( Jeremy Renner). Jennifer Lawrence plays the unpredictable wife of Bale's character. Principal photography took place from March to May 2013 in Boston and Worcester, Massachusetts as well as New York City. ''American Hustle'' was released nationwide in the United States on December 13, 2013. It opened to acclaim from critics, who praised its screenplay and ensemble cast. The film received ten nominations at the 86th Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Actor (Bale), Best Actress (Adams), Best Supp ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Foxcatcher
''Foxcatcher'' is a 2014 American biographical psychological sports film produced and directed by Bennett Miller. Written by E. Max Frye and Dan Futterman, the film stars Steve Carell, Channing Tatum, and Mark Ruffalo. The film's plot is loosely based on the events surrounding multimillionaire E.I. du Pont family heir and wrestling enthusiast John du Pont's 1986 recruitment of two 1984 U.S. Olympic gold medalist wrestlers, Mark Schultz and his older brother David, to help coach U.S. wrestlers for participation in national, world, and Olympic competition, and the subsequent murder of David Schultz by du Pont in January 1996. ''Foxcatcher'' received critical acclaim for the three lead actors' performances, Miller's direction, and the film's visual style and tone. It was nominated for the Palme d'Or in the main competition section at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival, where Miller won the Best Director Award. The film had three Golden Globe Award nominations, including Best Mot ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Her (film)
''Her'' (stylized in lowercase) is a 2013 American science-fiction romantic drama film written, directed, and co-produced by Spike Jonze. It marks Jonze's solo screenwriting debut. The film follows Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix), a man who develops a relationship with Samantha (Scarlett Johansson), an artificially intelligent virtual assistant personified through a female voice. The film also stars Amy Adams, Rooney Mara, Olivia Wilde, and Chris Pratt. Jonze conceived the idea in the early 2000s after reading an article about a website that allowed for instant messaging with an artificial intelligence program. After making '' I'm Here'' (2010), a short film sharing similar themes, Jonze returned to the idea. He wrote the first draft of the script in five months. Principal photography took place in Los Angeles and Shanghai in mid-2012. The role of Samantha was recast in post-production, with Samantha Morton being replaced with Scarlett Johansson. Additional scenes were fil ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
The Grandmaster (film)
''The Grandmaster'' ( zh, s=一代宗师) is a 2013 martial arts drama film based on the life story of the Wing Chun grandmaster Ip Man. The film was directed and written by Wong Kar-wai. It was released on 8 January 2013 in China. It was the opening film at the 63rd Berlin International Film Festival in February 2013. The film was selected as part of the 2013 Hong Kong International Film Festival. The Weinstein Company acquired the international distribution rights for the film. The film was selected as the Hong Kong entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 86th Academy Awards, making the January shortlist, but ultimately did not receive the nomination. Despite this, the film was nominated for Best Cinematography and Best Costume Design. Plot Wing Chun grandmaster Ip Man (Tony Leung) reflects on the nature of martial arts as he battles a dozen combatants during a rainstorm in Foshan. Ip wins and experiences flashbacks of his life, from his early training at the age of ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Spring Breakers
''Spring Breakers'' is a 2012 American comedy crime film written and directed by Harmony Korine and starring James Franco, Vanessa Hudgens, Selena Gomez, Ashley Benson and Rachel Korine. Gomez, Hudgens, Benson and Korine portray four college-aged girls who go on spring break in St. Petersburg, Florida and meet an eccentric local drug dealer (Franco) who helps them in a time of desperation, and their eventual descent into a world of drugs, crime, and violence. Korine had devised the concept over several years prior to production, with fleeting ideas about the plot and what should transpire. His initial desire was to create a " sensory film" that was more about feeling than action and placed little importance on narrative or plot, the idea for which came later. Once Korine developed the story's backbone, which takes place around the American spring break period, he traveled to Florida to write the screenplay. Production began in 2012, on an estimated budget of $5 million, making ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Zero Dark Thirty
''Zero Dark Thirty'' is a 2012 American thriller film directed by Kathryn Bigelow and written by Mark Boal. The film dramatizes the nearly decade-long international manhunt for Osama bin Laden, leader of terrorist network Al-Qaeda, after the September 11 attacks. This search leads to the discovery of his compound in Pakistan and the military raid where bin Laden was killed on May 2, 2011. Jessica Chastain stars as Maya, a fictional CIA intelligence analyst, with Jason Clarke, Joel Edgerton, Reda Kateb, Mark Strong, James Gandolfini, Kyle Chandler, Stephen Dillane, Chris Pratt, Édgar Ramírez, Fares Fares, Jennifer Ehle, John Barrowman, Mark Duplass, Harold Perrineau, and Frank Grillo in supporting roles. It was produced by Boal, Bigelow, and Megan Ellison, and independently financed by Ellison's Annapurna Pictures. The film premiered in Los Angeles on December 10, 2012, and had its wide release on January 11, 2013. ''Zero Dark Thirty'' received critical acclaim for its acti ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Killing Them Softly
''Killing Them Softly'' (stylized in marketing as ''killing them softly'') is a 2012 American neo-noir crime film written and directed by Andrew Dominik and stars Brad Pitt. Based on George V. Higgins' 1974 novel ''Cogan's Trade'', the story follows Jackie Cogan, a hitman who is hired to deal with the aftermath of a Mafia poker game robbery that ruptured the criminal economy; the events are set during the 2008 United States presidential election and financial crisis. On May 22, 2012, the film premiered in competition for the Palme d'Or at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival and received positive early reviews. ''Killing Them Softly'' was released on November 30, 2012, domestically by The Weinstein Company and internationally by Inferno Distribution to mostly positive reviews, even though general audiences were less receptive to the film. It grossed $37.9 million against a budget of $15 million. Plot During the American financial crisis and presidential election campaign of 2008, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
The Master (2012 Film)
''The Master'' is a 2012 American Psychological drama (film genre), psychological drama film written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson and starring Joaquin Phoenix, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Amy Adams. It tells the story of Freddie Quell (Phoenix), a World War II United States Navy, Navy veteran struggling to adjust to a post-war society, who meets Lancaster Dodd (Hoffman), the leader of a religious movement known as the Cause. Dodd sees something in Quell and accepts him into the movement. Freddie takes a liking to the Cause and begins traveling with Dodd's family to spread his teachings. The film was produced by Annapurna Pictures and Ghoulardi Film Company and distributed by The Weinstein Company. The film's inspirations were varied: it was partly inspired by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard, by early drafts of Anderson's ''There Will Be Blood'', the novel ''V.'' by Thomas Pynchon, drunken Navy stories that Jason Robards had told to Anderson while filming ''Magnolia (f ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Lawless (film)
''Lawless'' is a 2012 American crime drama film directed by John Hillcoat. The screenplay, by Australian singer-screenwriter Nick Cave, is based on Matt Bondurant's historical novel ''The Wettest County in the World'' (2008). The film stars Shia LaBeouf, Tom Hardy, Gary Oldman, Mia Wasikowska, Jessica Chastain, Jason Clarke, and Guy Pearce. The film is about the violent conflict between three bootlegging brothers: Forrest (Hardy), Howard (Clarke), and Jack Bondurant (LaBeouf) — and the ruthless lawman Charley Rakes (Pearce), who tries to shut down the brothers' Prohibition-era moonshine business after Forrest refuses to pay him off. The film was in development for about three years before being produced. It screened at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival and was theatrically released on August 29, 2012. Plot In 1931, the Bondurant brothers — middle brother Forrest, eldest brother Howard, and youngest brother Jack — are running a successful moonshine business in Franklin Coun ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |