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The NAACP Image Awards inaugurated night one of its pre-awards show, announcing the first round of winners in 31 non-televised award categories. The show aired exclusively on NAACP Image Awards YouTube Channel. The 56th NAACP Image Awards will air live on February 22 on BET and CBS.

Winners for the pre-awards show included Taraji P. Henson and Samuel L. Jackson, who won for outstanding supporting actress and supporting actor in a Limited TV for Peacock’s “Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist.”

Henson also was another award in the category of Outstanding Literary Work – Children for writing “You Can Be a Good Friend (No Matter What!): A Lil Tj Book.”

Emmy winner Ayo Edebiri (“TheBear”) also won an Image Award in the category of Outstanding Breakthrough Creative (Television), while Keke Palmer (NBC’s “Password”) was awarded for Outstanding Host in a Reality/Reality Competition, Game Show and Marlon Wayans scored the...

The NAACP Image Award nominations have been revealed — with “Wicked” star Cynthia Erivo, multi-hyphenate Keke Palmer, rapper Kendrick Lamar, comedian Kevin Hart and NFL hall of famer-turned-broadcaster Shannon Sharpe competing for Entertainer of the Year.

The winner of the prestigious award will be announced on Feb. 22 during the two-hour live broadcast of the 56th NAACP Image Awards from the Pasadena Civic Auditorium, airing on BET and CBS. The theme for this year’s show is, “Our Stories, Our Culture, Our Excellence.” A host is yet to be announced, though Queen Latifah emceed the previous two ceremonies.

“The Piano Lesson” leads the motion picture categories with 14 nominations, including recognition for director Malcolm Washington and stars John David Washington, Danielle Deadwyler, Samuel L. Jackson, Corey Hawkins and Skylar Aleece Smith. The Netflix movie was nominated for outstanding motion picture, alongside Sony’s “Bad Boys: Ride or Die,” Paramount’s “Bob Marley: One Love,...

Exclusive: BET+’s Sundance Film Festival acquisition Young.Wild.Free. has dropped its official trailer (above) ahead of its streaming premiere on June 27. The feature starring Sanaa Lathan, Mike Epps, Algee Smith and Sierra Capri is directed by Thembi L. Banks.

Young.Wild.Free. follows Algee Smith (Brandon Huffman), a hot-tempered high school senior whose claustrophobic life is suddenly thrust into an enticing, dangerous direction after he’s robbed at gunpoint by the girl of his dreams, Cassidy (Sierra Capri).

Being a teenager is rough and Brandon is no different. Between struggling in school, caring for his two younger siblings, and having just been let go from his job, he often uses his art as an escape from the confines of his subdued day-to-day life. Enter Cassidy, a bedazzled bad girl dripping in confidence, freedom, and danger. Lured in by her whimsies, Brandon teams up with Cassidy, seamlessly slipping into the role...

Madame Web Starcast Salary: Dakota Johnson Earns 669% Higher Than Sydney Sweeney (Picture Credit: IMDb)

American superhero film Madame Web is all set to premiere in February 2024. Starring Dakota Johnson in the lead, the film, helmed by Sj Clarkson, is based on a Marvel comic of the same name. The film is the fourth film in Sony’s Spider-Man Universe, which also includes characters like Venom, and a film on Kraven is already being made.

The Fifty Shades actress was the first one to come on board to play Cassandra Webb, a woman with psychic abilities who can look into the future events of Spider-World, along with three superwomen with powerful futures.

After Dakota Johnson, Sydney Sweeney joined the cast of this superhero film. And these stars are being paid a fortune for the film. In fact, while the Euphoria star is paid much less than the Fifty Shades star, Dakota...

Hello, and welcome to the Scene 2 Seen Podcast. I am Valerie Complex, an associate editor and film writer at Deadline.

Today, we’re talking to television and film director Thembi Banks about her directorial debut film Young.Wild.Free, which premiered at Sundance and stars Algee Smith, Sanaa Lathan, Sierra Capri and Mike Epps. The film is produced by Charles D. King, James Lopez, Poppy Hanks, Tommy Oliver, Baron Davis, and Tracy “Twinkie” Byrd, and was written by Juel Taylor and Tony Rettenmaier.

Young.Wild.Free follows Brandon (Smith), who between struggling in school, caring for his two younger siblings and having just been let go from his job, tends to use his art as an escape from the confines of his subdued day-to-day life. Enter Cassidy, a bedazzled bad girl dripping in confidence, freedom and danger. Lured in by her whimsy, Brandon teams with Cassidy, seamlessly slipping into the...

Eight months after it won the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival, “Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project” has been officially picked up by HBO Documentary Films, which is buying U.S. and Canada television and streaming rights. Backed by Confluential Films and Rada Studio and directed and produced by respected veterans Joe Brewster and Michèle Stephenson, producer Tommy Oliver (HBO’s “40 Years A Prisoner”), and executive producers Taraji P. Henson and Codie Elaine Oliver, the film will also screen in the Spotlight section of the upcoming 61st New York Film Festival.

To qualify for the Oscars, the film will play in theaters this fall ahead of its 2024 debut on HBO and Max. Sundance always supplies a number of Oscar nominees in the documentary race and “Going to Mars” is a strong contender.

As innovative and unpredictable as its subject, “Going to Mars” travels through time and space,...

Netflix has released the first official trailer for the satirical conspiracy film “They Cloned Tyrone,” starring Oscar winner Jamie Foxx, Golden Globe winner John Boyega and Teyonah Parris.

“They Cloned Tyrone” will premiere on Netflix on July 21. Ahead of its streaming release, the movie will debut at the American Black Film Festival (ABFF) on June 14. The film wrapped in April 2021, according to Boyega’s Instagram account.

Per the film’s official logline, “A series of eerie events thrusts an unlikely trio onto the trail of a nefarious government conspiracy in this pulpy mystery caper.”

Foxx stars as Slick Charles, Boyega as Fontaine and Parris as Yo-Yo. The cast also features Kiefer Sutherland, David Alan Grier, J. Alphonse Nicholson, Joshua Mikel and James Moses Black.

“They Cloned Tyrone” is the directorial debut of Juel Taylor, who co-wrote the film with Tony Rettenmaier. Prior to serving as co-screenwriter on this film, Taylor also penned “Creed II,...

Fresh off of her turn in Amazon’s “Swarm,” Heather Alicia Simms has joined Gabourey Sidibe’s “1266” pilot at Onyx Collective as a recurring guest star.

She’ll portray Lashanna. According to her official character description, Lashanna is Imagine Inc.’s most dichotomous employee: a phone sex worker who is a very religious Christian with quite conservative views on sexuality. She has photos of her kids and grandkids on her wall and is proud of the fact that most of her money goes to tithes and taking care of her grandkids.

She joins previously announced cast members Karim Diané, Kristin Dodson, and Kassandra Lee Diaz as series regulars to star alongside Sidibe, who will executive produce and play the lead role of Gabby. Anna Maria Horsford, Tisha Campbell, and Judy Reyes have been announced as recurring guest stars.

Set in the early 2000’s, the series follows Gabby (Sidibe) is...

The “1266” pilot set at Onyx Collective has added Karim Diané, Kristin Dodson, and Kassandra Lee Diaz as series regulars to star alongside Gabourey Sidibe, who will executive produce and play the lead role of Gabby. Anna Maria Horsford, Tisha Campbell, and Judy Reyes have been announced as recurring guest stars.

Diané (“One of Us Is Lying”) portrays Posh, a student at the New York Institute of Fashion who’s described as everyone’s favorite, even if they are constantly trying to figure out if he’s straight or gay. They’re Gabby’s best friend who doesn’t put up with her antics and isn’t scared to hold her accountable. Posh’s brutal honesty is always delivered with love, understanding and some attitude. He’s repped by Paradigm and managed by Reed Baker at Legendize.

Dodson plays Jimmy, the youngest of the phone sex workers at Imagine Inc. She’s flighty,...

Exclusive: Sony has rounded out the cast for its untitled, R-rated rom-com, led by Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell, with the addition of actor and rapper GaTa (Dave).

Details as to the plot of the film currently being shot in Australia and GaTa’s role in it are under wraps. But Will Gluck is directing from a script by Ilana Wolpert, which he rewrote.

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Dermot Mulroney, Rachel Griffiths, Michelle Hurd, Bryan Brown, Darren Barnet and Hadley Robinson also star in the pic which Joe Roth, Jeff Kirschenbaum and Gluck are producing. Sweeney is exec producing for Fifty-Fifty Films, along with Natalie Sellers and Alyssa Altman for Rk Films,...

Teenage lovers Brandon (Algee Smith) and Cassidy (Sierra Capri) embark on dangerous but lust-fueled journey in Young. Wild. Free., the feature debut from director Thembi Banks. Cinematographer Cary Lalonde tells Filmmaker about shooting this modern day take on Bonnie and Clyde. See all responses to our annual Sundance cinematographer interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led to your being hired for this job? Lalonde: The project was initially shut down after one day of shooting in the early days of Covid. Once it was […]

The post “With Each Interior Location We Had a Distinct Color Palette”: Dp Cary Lalonde on Young. Wild. Free. first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.

Teenage lovers Brandon (Algee Smith) and Cassidy (Sierra Capri) embark on dangerous but lust-fueled journey in Young. Wild. Free., the feature debut from director Thembi Banks. Cinematographer Cary Lalonde tells Filmmaker about shooting this modern day take on Bonnie and Clyde. See all responses to our annual Sundance cinematographer interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led to your being hired for this job? Lalonde: The project was initially shut down after one day of shooting in the early days of Covid. Once it was […]

The post “With Each Interior Location We Had a Distinct Color Palette”: Dp Cary Lalonde on Young. Wild. Free. first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.

Teenagers Brandon (Algee Smith) and Cassidy (Sierra Capri) form a perilous romance that rivals Bonnie and Clyde’s in Young. Wild. Free., director Thembi Banks’s feature debut. Filmmaker asked editor Lindsay Armstrong about her experience cutting the film, including the unexpected importance of VFX. See all responses to our annual Sundance editor interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the editor of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led to your being hired for this job? Armstrong: Director Thembi Banks and I met and became good friends while working towards our MFAs in Film Production […]

The post “From the First Assembly, I Knew the Film Was There”: Editor Lindsay Armstrong on Young. Wild. Free. first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.

Teenagers Brandon (Algee Smith) and Cassidy (Sierra Capri) form a perilous romance that rivals Bonnie and Clyde’s in Young. Wild. Free., director Thembi Banks’s feature debut. Filmmaker asked editor Lindsay Armstrong about her experience cutting the film, including the unexpected importance of VFX. See all responses to our annual Sundance editor interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the editor of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led to your being hired for this job? Armstrong: Director Thembi Banks and I met and became good friends while working towards our MFAs in Film Production […]

The post “From the First Assembly, I Knew the Film Was There”: Editor Lindsay Armstrong on Young. Wild. Free. first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.

Already an Emmy nominee for Hulu's Only Murders in the Building, Thembi Banks has made a splash at this year's Sundance with her feature film debut, Young. Wild. Free. Sundance previously introduced the world to her short film Baldwin Beauty in 2020, and now she's proven her chops with a much longer runtime. A beautifully told and heartbreaking tale of a beleaguered youth longing for freedom, Young. Wild. Free. makes use of everything from costumes and cinematography to music and powerhouse performances from its fresh-faced cast to paint a vivid portrait of its characters.

Young. Wild. Free. follows troubled teenager Brandon (played by Euphoria's Algee Smith), whose heavy responsibilities within his family weigh him down on a daily basis. Struggling financially and academically, his less-than-idyllic life of caring for his siblings and his not altogether present mother (Sanaa Lathan) is upended when he means a manic pixie dream girl...

Emmy-nominated writer, Thembi Banks (Hulu's Only Murders in the Building) brought her first project, a short film called Baldwin Beauty, to the Sundance Film Festival back in 2020. This year, she returns for her feature directorial debut, Young. Wild. Free., which follows Brandon (Algee Smith) as a struggling high schooler and artist who dreams of being freed from his overcomplicated life. A modern day take on Bonnie and Clyde, the film sees Brandon cross paths with the fiery and confident Cassidy (Sierra Capri), whose zest for danger appeals to him in peculiar ways. Packed with humor and great chemistry among the leads, Young. Wild. Free. lives up to its name, seducing its viewers into its wild ride.

Brandon is a typical high schooler with big problems. He’s just been let go from his job at Burger Bang, and he's struggling with his academics. In addition, he cares for his...

When IndieWire conducted its annual survey of all the cameras used by cinematographers at the Sundance Film Festival, a striking trend quickly emerged: Over 75 percent of the DPs with narrative films at the festival utilized either the Arri Alexa Mini or its large format sibling, the Alexa Mini Lf, as their camera of choice. The Mini was introduced in 2015 as a compact version of the Alexa designed primarily for use on drones and gimbals, but its combination of a traditional Alexa sensor with increased mobility eventually led to its use as the A camera on Hollywood studio movies like “A Star is Born” and “Get Out” — and now, it seems, for a majority of cinematographers in the independent realm.

The Mini’s presence in independent film began to be felt at Sundance’s 2017 iteration, where festival favorites “Patti Cake” and “Thoroughbreds,” among others, were captured with the camera. “It was a very ambitious shoot,...

Actress Sanaa Lathan sat down in The Hollywood Reporter’s Studio at Sundance to promote her new feature Young. Wild. Free., alongside director Thembi Banks and co-stars Algee Smith and Sierra Capri. Lathan, most recently known for her Emmy-nominated guest starring role on season 3 of HBO’s Succession, also reflected on the upcoming season of the HBO series.

Lathan portrayed attorney Lisa Arthur on the Emmy-winning series’ most recent season, representing Jeremy Strong’s troubled media heir Kendall Roy. Asked whether she’s been on Succession’s set for season 4, Lathan revealed: “I have not, no, I have not.” However, in response to learning that co-star Nicholas Braun one-word summation of the upcoming season would be “Banger,” she said: “I mean, how can it bang more than my season? I’m kidding. Lisa Arthur was a legend. Who knows, maybe she’ll come back in the future.”

Sundance’s lineup...

It’s been nearly a decade since Justin Simien stormed Sundance with his debut feature “Dear White People.” Premiering in Park City in January 2014 — his first trip to the festival — it marked the realization of a long held dream. The audacious social satire had been Simien’s passion project, inspired by his own college experience and fueled by a concept trailer that went viral and an Indiegogo campaign that raised 40,000 for the cause. The reception to “Dear White People” — for which Simien won the breakthrough talent special jury prize — launched the filmmaker’s career, spawning a four-season Netflix series, his sophomore film “Bad Hair” (which also debuted at Sundance) and Disney’s upcoming “Haunted Mansion.”

Now, he’s back at the festival with a new mission: paying it forward.

“This is my first time going without having a movie there and I’m really excited to do that, because usually I’m a mess,...

Brendon (Algee Smith) isn’t a bad kid. An aspiring artist living in Los Angeles, in his last month of high school, the pressures of his daily life, however, are beginning to overwhelm him. His mother, Janice (Sanaa Lathan), is not only working long hours to support the family, but she’s also with his loafing stepdad drug dealer (Mike Epps). Meanwhile, her precocious little sister and brother are mostly cared for by him.

Continue reading ‘Young. Wild. Free.’ Review: A Stylish, Young Black Love Story Loses The Plot [Sundance] at The Playlist.

There’s a point when a movie starts dropping too many references to other movies that the enthusiasm gets a little suspicious. In director Thembi L. Banks’ debut feature “Young. Wild. Free.”— the title styled as such for no reason in particular — a mysterious woman with “Euphoria” eye-makeup named Cassidy (Sierra Capri) suddenly starts spouting them with abandon about 30 minutes in. “Did you know this is the diner from ‘Reservoir Dogs?,'” she says while digging into some pancakes at the diner from “Reservoir Dogs.” Over the course of the rest of the film’s running time, she proceeds to name drop “Dazed and Confused,” “Unforgiven,” and “Kill Bill.” Something is up.

And something is indeed up in the drama, which is . As the Letterboxd-friendly dialogue would imply: This is one you’ve seen before, and it’s sloppily executed.

By the time the reveal comes around you’ve been...

Exclusive: Macro Film Studios, Confluential Films and No Label Productions are collaborating on the film Young. Wild. Free. Sanaa Lathan (The Perfect Guy), Algee Smith (Judas and the Black Messiah), Sierra Capri (On My Block) and Mike Epps (The Upshaws)star.

Directed by Thembi Banks (Insecure) and written by Juel Taylor (from a story created by Juel Taylor and Tony Rettenmaier), the film follows a hot-tempered high school senior who finds his claustrophobic life suddenly thrust into an enticing, dangerous direction after he is robbed at gunpoint by the girl of his dreams.

Producers include Macro Film Studios’ Charles D. King, James Lopez and Poppy Hanks, Tommy Oliver and Baron Davis. Executive producers include Codie Elaine Oliver, Prince Baggett and Charlotte Koh; Jenna Cavelle; Taylor, Rettenmaier, Mark R. Wright, Jo Henriquez, Thembi Banks and Lathan.

Production is underway in Los Angeles.

MacRo Film Studios and Confluential Films has announced the start of production on the new film “Young. Wild. Free.”

Directed by Thembi Banks, the movie stars Sanaa Lathan, Algee Smith, Sierra Capri and Mike Epps. According to the official logline for the project, Smith plays a hot-tempered high school senior who finds his claustrophobic life suddenly thrust into an enticing, dangerous direction after he is robbed at gunpoint by the girl of his dreams. Production on the project is underway in Los Angeles.

The film’s script is written by Juel Taylor (“Creed II”), from a story by Taylor and his “They Cloned Tyrone” co-writer Tony Rettenmaier, with revisions by Banks. “Young. Wild. Free” is produced by Macro Film Studios’ Charles D. King, James Lopez and Poppy Hanks, Confluential Films’ Tommy Oliver and No Label Productions’ Baron Davis. Taylor, Rettenmair, Banks and Lathan will executive produce the project alongside Confluential Films’ Codie Elaine Oliver,...