Film producer Richard D. Zanuck dies at age 77

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Veteran Hollywood executive Richard D. Zanuck, the prolific producer behind the blockbuster shark thriller 'Jaws,' the best-picture Oscar-winner 'Driving Miss Daisy' and a string of Tim Burton fantasies, died on Friday of a heart attack at age 77.

Zanuck, son of famed 20th Century Fox chieftain Darryl F. Zanuck, who was named by his father at age 28 as Fox's head of production, making him Hollywood's then youngest-ever studio boss, died at his home in Beverly Hills, a spokesman said.

No further details were immediately available about the circumstances of his death.

Zanuck, who spent the bulk of his career as an independent producer, earned numerous awards during more than 50 years in filmmaking.

Among his accolades were the Academy Award he shared with his wife and collaborator, Lili Fini Zanuck, for their work on 'Driving Miss Daisy,' and the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for his work with longtime associate David Brown.

Steven Spielberg, with whom Zanuck collaborated on 'Jaws,' called the producer 'a cornerstone of our industry, both in name and in deed.'

'In 1974, Dick Zanuck and I sat in a boat off Martha's Vineyard and watched the mechanical shark sink to the bottom of the sea,' Spielberg recalled in a statement. 'Dick turned to me and smiled. 'Gee, I sure hope that's not a sign.''

That moment of wry humor proved to be far from prophetic, as 'Jaws,' the tale of a great white shark that terrorizes a small New England beach town, became one of the biggest hits of its era and helped launch Spielberg's career as a director.

Born in Los Angeles, Zanuck, whose mother was actress Virginia Fox, joined his father as a story and production assistant on two 20th Century Fox films, 'Island in the Sun' and 'The Sun Also Rises.'

He debuted as a full-fledged producer at age 24 on 1959 feature film 'Compulsion,' which starred Orson Welles. Four years later, he was placed in charge of production at his father's studio.

During his eight-year tenure there, the studio cranked out a series of critical and commercial successes, 'The Sound of Music,' 'Patton' and 'The French Connection,' all of which won best film Oscars. Other Fox hits from that period include the original 'Planet of the Apes' series, the Paul Newman and Robert Redford western 'Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid' and the Korean War satire 'M*A*S*H.'

HOLLYWOOD HITS AND MISSES

But a handful of big-screen musical flops 'greenlighted' for production by Zanuck, among them 'Doctor Dolittle,' 'Hello Dolly' and 'Star,' cost the studio dearly and ultimately led to his ouster in 1970 by his father.

From there, Zanuck and Brown moved briefly to Warner Bros., where they oversaw the making of the religious thriller 'The Exorcist' and Mel Brooks' parody western, 'Blazing Saddles' before starting their own production company.

It was the Zanuck/Brown label that made Spielberg's 1974 film directorial debut, 'The Sugarland Express,' and his 1975 blockbuster 'Jaws,' which earned Oscars for film editing, score and sound.

Other Zanuck/Brown successes included 'The Sting,' a Depression-era tale of grifters that reunited Newman and Redford and won seven Academy Awards, including best picture; courtroom drama 'The Verdict,' which earned five Oscar nominations, and 'Cocoon,' which won Oscars for best supporting Oscar (Don Ameche) and visual effects.

Zanuck earned his greatest personal filmmaking accolade for the first movie produced under his own Zanuck Company label, the 1989 film 'Driving Miss Daisy,' about the relationship of a stubborn old Jewish woman (Jessica Tandy) and her black chauffeur (Morgan Freeman) in the American South.

The film earned four Oscars, including best actress for Tandy and best picture for Zanuck and his wife.

The latter stretch of Zanuck's career was marked by a close collaboration with director Tim Burton, starting with a 2001 remake of 'Planet of the Apes,' released by 20th Century Fox.

Others included the 2005 hit 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,' the critically acclaimed 2007 musical 'Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street' and the 2010 success 'Alice in Wonderland,' all starring Johnny Depp.

The last film of Zanuck's career ended up being his sixth collaboration with Burton, the critical and commercial bomb 'Dark Shadows,' also starring Depp and based on the 1960s television series about lovelorn vampire.

In addition to his wife, Zanuck is survived by his sons Harrison and Dean, and nine grandchildren.

(Editing by Peter Cooney)



This news article is brought to you by OUTDOORS - where latest news are our top priority.

"Green Mile" actor Michael Clarke Duncan hospitalized

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - 'The Green Mile' actor Michael Clarke Duncan has been hospitalized in Los Angeles, a spokeswoman for his reality TV star girlfriend said on Friday.

Priscilla Clarke, a representative for 'The Apprentice' star Omarosa Stallworth, did not provide any further details on why Duncan was taken to the hospital.

Celebrity website TMZ reported that Stallworth discovered early Friday that Duncan had suffered a heart attack and was in cardiac arrest. She revived him with cardiopulmonary resuscitation before he was rushed to a Los Angeles hospital, TMZ reported.

Duncan, 54, starred in the 1999 prison drama 'The Green Mile' and had roles in the 2003 comic book movie 'Daredevil' and 2005 release 'Sin City.'

(Reporting by Alex Dobuzinskis; editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)



This news article is brought to you by VOCATIONAL-TRADE-SCHOOLS - where latest news are our top priority.

Sigourney Weaver turns political animal for new TV show

NEW YORK (Reuters) - In new TV series 'Political Animals,' Secretary of State Elaine Barrish Hammond, who has just lost a presidential bid, laments that the country just doesn't adore her as much as her womanizing husband and former President.

If that sounds like current Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, actress Sigourney Weaver, who portrays Elaine, disagrees.

The similarities between the real-life politician and the TV one are clear in the frothy series premiering July 15 on the USA Network, yet Weaver swears she did not have Clinton in mind. She points to other women she has met, mostly those in non-profit work, upon which she based the character.

'I admire Mrs. Clinton immensely, (but) I don't know anything about her except the little bit we are allowed to know. I never think of her when I am playing this part,' Weaver told Reuters in a recent interview.

The 62-year-old actress said 'Political Animals,' a soapy dramatization of sex, greed and politics in the White House, is based on many families who have lived there - not just the Clintons. She noted that while Elaine's ex-husband, Bud Hammond, 'had been a successful president, not unlike Bill Clinton,' her character 'was first lady, then became a governor, then ran for president, failed, then became secretary of state.'

'Some of the details are similar to the Clintons, but in fact, if you talk to the creator, he has been a real political junkie for most of his life, and he is fascinated by all these families who have been in the White House,' she said.

Creator Greg Berlanti gives the show's pilot a light tone, setting it apart from more serious, recent political TV dramas such as 'Game Change' about Sarah Palin.

SOAPY WHITE HOUSE

In the pilot episode, Elaine divorces her husband, tries to help her gay son with finances while he battles drug addiction and chastises a Russian foreign minister for patting her bottom during a press conference.

Elaine offers a steely image in public, but lets her guard down in private, showing disappointment she wasn't popular enough to secure the presidential nomination.

'The country loves you Bud. They will always love you, but it's me they have mixed feelings about, ' she tells her husband at the start of the first episode. Two years later, however, she has earned a measure of popularity as a hardworking Secretary of State - much like Hillary Clinton.

Weaver, who has a history of playing strong women, most notably as Ripley in the four 'Alien' space films, said that to prepare for the role she read former Secretary of State Albright's 2009 memoir, 'Read My Pins,' about global politics.

She also leaned heavily on her views of women she met in the non-profit sector more than any real-life political figures.

The miniseries reaches audiences following other political shows centered on female characters during the current U.S. presidential election year, including HBO comedy series 'Veep,' featuring Julia Louis-Dreyfuss as a U.S. vice president and HBO movie 'Game Change,' which starred Julianne Moore as conservative firebrand Sarah Palin.

'It's more enticing to watch fake politics on television than real politics because real politics is difficult to watch. Everything is even more dysfunctional than my own family,' Weaver said with a smile.

Elaine is the type of fearless female that real-life Washington needs more of, said Weaver, who believes women are more likely to cross the political aisle and 'get down to work.'

'Women naturally roll up their sleeves,' she said. 'They support each other on both sides of the aisle. It's a much more collaborative, team-building kind of inclusiveness about their work, and I feel like we need that kind of energy in the Washington politics-as-usual.'

A Democrat with a businessman father she described as 'a Nelson Rockefeller Republican,' the actress is worried about the current trend of partisanship and what she sees as the common person being left behind in today's economic policies.

'What politicians have to be talking about is the needs of real people. To me, as long as the Republicans are the champions of big business, that can't happen. Because the common man is being left out of all of this. And this trickle-down idea is fallacy,' she said.

(Reporting By Christine Kearney Editing by Bob Tourtellotte and Eric Walsh)



This news article is brought to you by PHOTOGRAPHY AS ART - where latest news are our top priority.

Broadway's Nina Arianda tapped for Janis Joplin film

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The makers of a planned film about rock icon Janis Joplin have tapped recent Tony Award winner Nina Arianda to play the part of the 1960s singer in a biographical movie directed by Sean Durkin, a spokesman for the director said on Tuesday.

The independently-produced film, titled 'Joplin,' looks at the last six months in the life of the raspy-voiced singer who died in 1970 of a drug overdose following chart success with classic rock hits such as 'Down on Me' and 'Piece of My Heart.'

Producer Peter Newman told show business news website Deadline that 'Joplin' would have a production budget under $20 million and it would be in production early next year.

Arianda won raves in 'Venus in Fur,' a sex comedy in which she portrays a struggling actress named Vanda who staggers into an audition late then proceeds to put on the performance of her life. The role won her Broadway's Tony for best actress, and she recently appeared in Woody Allen movie, 'Midnight in Paris.'

Durkin is best known for making 2011 independent film 'Martha Marcy May Marlene,' which led to the director's award at last year's Sundance Film Festival.

Joplin, who died at age 27, had a short career but lived a full life and was iconic for the Woodstock generation.

She gained rock stardom as the lead singer of the psychedelic-acid rock band Big Brother and the Holding Company, then cemented her fame with backing groups, The Kozmic Blues Band and The Full Tilt Boogie Band.

Newman said Arianda will sing all the songs in the film.

(Reporting By Bob Tourtellotte; Editing by Bernard Orr)



This article is brought to you by ONLINE MONEY MANAGER.

Batman could fly, but he'd crash and die

LONDON (Reuters) - Holy crash landing Batman! The crime-fighting caped crusader could fly but if he did, he would smash into the ground and probably die, a group of British physics students have calculated.

Dashing the dreams of comic fans across the world, four students from the University of Leicester said that while Batman could glide using his cape as he does in the 2005 film 'Batman Begins', his landing would almost certainly prove fatal.

The superhero is back in cinemas later this month in 'The Dark Knight Rises' and they suggested Batman should go shopping before trying a similar attempt to become airborne over Gotham City.

'If Batman wanted to survive the flight, he would definitely need a bigger cape,' said David Marshall, 22, one of the students in the final year of their four-year Master of Physics degree.

'Or if he preferred to keep his style intact he could opt for using active propulsion, such as jets to keep himself aloft.'

In a paper titled 'Trajectory of a falling Batman', the group argued that if he jumped from a 150-metre (492-foot) high building, the 4.7 meter (15-foot) wingspan of Batman's cape would allow him to glide 350 meters (1148 feet).

However, he would reach a speed of 68 miles per hour (109 km per hour) before hitting the ground at a life-threatening speed of 50 mph.

(Reporting by Michael Holden, editing by Paul Casciato)



This article is sponsored by medical case study.

Oscar-winning actor Ernest Borgnine dead at 95

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Actor Ernest Borgnine, whose barrel-chested, bulldog looks made him a natural for tough-guy roles in films like 'From Here to Eternity' but who won an Oscar for playing a sensitive loner in 'Marty,' died on Sunday at age 95, his publicist said.

The real-life U.S. Navy veteran who became a household name during the 1960s by starring as the maverick commander of a World War Two patrol boat in the popular television comedy 'McHale's Navy,' died at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, longtime spokesman Harry Flynn said.

Borgnine, who continued to work until very recently, had been the oldest living recipient of an Academy Award for best actor, Flynn said.

A statement from the actor's family said he 'had been in excellent health until a recent illness.' Flynn said Borgnine recovered from unspecified surgery he underwent a month ago but his condition deteriorated rapidly after he visited the hospital on Tuesday for a medical checkup.

His last screen credit was the lead role of an aging nursing home patient in a film set for release later this year, 'The Man Who Shook the Hand of Vicente Fernandez.' The performance earned Borgnine a best actor award at the Newport Beach Film Festival, where it debuted in April, Flynn said.

With his burly profile, gruff voice and gap-toothed leer, Borgnine was on the verge of being typecast as the bad guy early in his career, following a string of convincing performances as the heavy in such films as 'Johnny Guitar' in 1954 and 'Bad Day at Black Rock in 1955.'

Borgnine's most memorable turn as a menacing tough guy was his breakout role in the 1953 Oscar-winning film 'From Here to Eternity' as the sadistic Sergeant 'Fatso' Judson, who terrorizes and eventually kills Frank Sinatra's character, Private Angelo Maggio.

UGLY DUCKLING ROLE

But Borgnine broke free from the bad-guy rut and won his own Oscar with a rare leading-man role in 1955's 'Marty,' playing a warm-hearted New York butcher who lamented, 'One fact I gotta face is that, whatever it is that women like, I ain't got it.'

In addition to his Academy Award, Borgnine's work in 'Marty' led to more sympathetic roles in such films as 'Jubal' (1956) and 'The Best Things in Life Are Free' (1956).

Critic Bosley Crowther described Borgnine's Oscar-winning performance in 'Marty,' a film version of a television play by Paddy Chayevsky, as 'a beautiful blend of the crude and strangely gentle and sensitive.'

Some critics hinted that Borgnine was a 'Marty' in real life, but the actor, who was married five times, took exception by saying, 'I'm no playboy, but I'm no dumb slob either.'

'Marty' also won Oscars for best picture, best director and adapted screenplay.

'Ernie is the nicest man I've ever worked with,' said Sidney Lanfield, who directed him on the TV sitcom 'McHale's Navy.' 'When he says, 'Hello! How are you?' or 'Glad to see you!' you can bet the line has not been rehearsed.'

The television show, in which he starred as the skipper of a misfit PT boat crew skirting Navy regulations while chasing Japanese submarines, ran on ABC from the fall of 1962 until August 1966 and reinvigorated Borgnine's career. Funnyman Tim Conway co-starred as McHale's ensign.

He starred again as Lieutenant Commander Quinton McHale in a 1964 big-screen adaptation of the TV show, and returned to supporting character work in such movies such as 'The Flight of the Phoenix' (1965), 'The Dirty Dozen' (1968), Sam Peckinpah's 'The Wild Bunch' (1969) and 'The Poseidon Adventure' (1972).

He appeared in dozens of films in all.

NAVY SERVICE

He was born Ermes Effron Borgino in Hamden, Connecticut, and did not take up acting until after a 10-year hitch in the U.S. Navy, including a stint during World War II as a gunner's mate on a destroyer in the Pacific.

'I just couldn't see myself going into a factory where I saw these pasty-faced fellows walking in and walking out after stamping their cards,' Borgnine once said.

Using money he earned from the G.I. Bill, Borgnine studied at the Randall School of Dramatic Arts in Hartford and performed on stage for several years at a Virginia theater.

His first Hollywood job was a low-budget picture, 'China Corsair,' in 1951, starring in ethnic makeup as the Chinese proprietor of a gambling club.

He made his Broadway debut in the 1949 Mary Chase comedy 'Harvey,' and after a trio of early-'50s films appeared on Broadway again in 1952 in another Chase production, 'Mrs. McThing,' this time opposite Helen Hayes.

Hayes ended up being a godmother to the eldest of Borgnine's three children, daughter Nancee, by his first wife.

Borgnine returned to series television as co-star of the mid-1980s action film 'Airwolf.' And in 1988 he portrayed a mafia chief in the big-screen film 'Spike of Bensonhurst.'

Working well into his 90s, Borgnine earned an Emmy nomination for his 2009 guest appearance on the final two episodes of the television hospital drama 'ER,' playing the husband of a dying elderly woman. The following year, he notched a cameo role as a CIA records keeper in the spy thriller 'Red.'

He performed voice work for animated productions late in his life, including 'SpongeBob SquarePants' and 'All Dogs Go to Heaven.'

Borgnine's 1964 marriage to singer-actress Ethel Merman barely lasted a month. He said it broke up because fans paid more attention to him than her during their honeymoon.

The longest of Borgnine's five marriages was his last - to Tova Traesnaes, whom he married in 1973. Despite his rough looks, Borgnine appeared in ads touting the face-rejuvenating powers of beauty products from a company she started.

(Reporting by Steve Gorman.; Editing by Bill Trott and Christopher Wilson)



This news article is brought to you by SELF-ESTEEM - where latest news are our top priority.

Emotional Jolie visits Sarajevo Film Festival

SARAJEVO (Reuters) - Angelina Jolie, whose directorial debut tackled the 1992-95 Bosnian war, attended the 18th Sarajevo Film Festival on Saturday and became an honorary citizen of the Bosnian capital in recognition of her film.

'This means so much to me. My heart is in this city,' said a tearful Jolie on receiving the award from Sarajevo authorities. She arrived with her three children on a private plane.

Jolie's film 'In the Land of Blood and Honey' tells the story of the war through the relationship between Danijel, a Bosnian Serb, and Ajla, a Bosnian Muslim woman, whose affection becomes hostage to their respective ethnic groups.

'It was the hardest thing I have ever done because of my deep respect for the people that really experienced it. The experience here was so unique for me that I felt very connected to the people,' Jolie told Reuters.

But the Oscar-winning actress, who has used her fame to draw attention to humanitarian disasters across the world, said she was hesitant about embarking on a new directorial project tackling another conflict, such as the one in Afghanistan.

'I have been writing and I'd love to try at some point to direct another film. I would like to try to learn about countries like Afghanistan but I don't know if I am the best person to make the film about the subject matter,' she said.

'Unless I felt I was somebody that can really contribute, I don't think I would do it,' she added.

'I think it's important for film-makers to know what they are trying to say when they make a film. If you're gonna do something about another country, make sure to surround yourself by extraordinary people from that country and really know that country and let that country speak through you. Don't try to give the country your own voice.'

This is Jolie's second attendance of the festival, the largest southern European film gathering.

She also threw her support behind the Sarajevo Talent Campus program, which gives young film talents from the region the chance to learn from established film professionals willing to share their knowledge.

The program seeks to give writers, actors and directors access to further education, an entry to the international film industry, and an incentive to make their first joint projects with colleagues from the region.

'I hope to spread to the world to pay more attention to the artists from this region,' said Jolie.

The film festival, which opened late on Friday, acts as a major regional showcase. This year it will show more than 200 movies during its nine days.

Nine feature films from Bosnia, Serbia, Macedonia, Turkey, Austria and Romania are competing for the Heart of Sarajevo, the festival's main award.

Apart from Jolie, the most famous guests are Spanish actress Victoria Abril, who stars in Macedonian film 'The Woman Who Brushed Off Her Tears', and American director Todd Solondz, whose films will be screened in a special retrospective program.

Every year the festival hosts about 100,000 film fans, many from neighboring countries, and hoteliers and tourism officials say that nearly all accommodation is booked up during the event.

(Reporting By Maja Zuvela; Editing by Pravin Char)



This news article is brought to you by BUSINESS AND TRAVEL - where latest news are our top priority.

Steve Carell goes from "Office" to end of the world

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - After leaving television's 'The Office' last year, Steve Carell immediately began production on the indie film 'Seeking a Friend For the End of the World', which opens in U.S. movie theaters on Friday.

The film is about an asteroid headed toward Earth that will destroy the planet. Carell plays a newly single man who decides to go on a road trip to find his high school sweetheart. He is unexpectedly accompanied by his neighbor (Keira Knightley) who wants to find a plane to take her to her family in England.

Carell talked with Reuters about playing Knightley's love interest, and life after 'The Office'.

Q: After six years on 'The Office' the first thing you do is a quirky little movie. Why?

A: I thought the script was oddly funny and dark and absurd, but also moving and relevant. I thought it would be very challenging to try and mine any sort of comedy based on this dark premise.

Q: You mean the premise that an asteroid is about to hit Earth and everyone will die?

A: It's the flip side of one of these big asteroid movies that we've all seen with the President and the hotline and the astronauts. This is a story of what everybody else is going through. Few people know how much time they have left. Given the time you have, how do you chose to use it? Where do you find your joy? That's very present in me on a daily basis. I have my wife and two little kids. I try to live in the moment and embrace what I've got.

Q: You're 49, Keira is 27. Is she the youngest woman you've kissed on screen?

A: Boy, that's a tough one, because there have been so many!

Q: But in real life, a girl like that would never go for a guy like him.

A: Never! It would take the apocalypse to make it work. These are two people that, given any other circumstance, wouldn't become friends, let alone drawn together in a soulful way. ... All of those things melt away and it becomes about who they are, what they need and what they care about.

Q: Your other co-star is a dog who is a constant companion. What was he like to work with?

A: There were a few dogs, actually. There was the main hero dog, the junior varsity dog and a third dog. ... They got increasingly stinky the lower you went on the ladder. Their breath became worse. Their dispositions became more ornery. Our main dog seemed to have an awareness that he was being filmed and would favor the lens. He would know how to compose himself in the shots. Dog Number Two and Three just wanted out by any way possible.

Q: In August, you play a non-comedic role as a therapist to Meryl Streep and Tommy Lee Jones in 'Hope Springs'. What was that like?

A: It was an interesting acting exercise because you have to limit any sort of impulse to judge, which is what a good therapist would do. There are no raised eyebrows, no cynicism. I tried to be almost faceless in it because it's not how he feels about them, but about how he wants to help this couple.

Q: The first season of 'The Office' without your character Michael Scott ended in May. Any regrets about leaving the show?

A: No. I felt like it was the right thing to do and the right time for me to go. It's very much akin to when I left 'The Daily Show'. I had a great job and good friends and a solid income .... I just felt like if I'm going to leave, I better leave now before I get too comfortable. I figured it was time to try something else. You never know what might be on the other side.

Q: You recently wrapped 'The Incredible Burt Wonderstone' with Jim Carrey and 'Anchorman 2' is about to start. Excited about reprising your role of meteorologist Brick Tamland?

A: They just officially green lit and we're starting in February or March. We did a teaser trailer about two months ago. That was the most fun day. We hadn't been in these characters' costumes in 8 years. It was like no time has passed. We'd all wanted to do a sequel for years, so I feel like we're all going to camp in February.

Q: You will also be playing real life millionaire John du Pont who murdered an Olympic wrestler. Do you consciously plan out your roles and your career path?

A: I can't say that I do. ... It's just by virtue of what's come along. I was stunned, frankly, that I'm the person (director Bennett Miller) thought of to play a paranoid schizophrenic murderer. I'm glad he did, but I don't think I'm first on the list in that way.

(Reporting by Zorianna Kit, Editing by Jill Serjeant and Richard Chang)



This news article is brought to you by CONTRACEPTIVES - where latest news are our top priority.

New actors' treaty a good step, hard work remains

BEIJING (Reuters) - An international treaty expected to be signed next week is an important step to protect the intellectual property rights of actors and the creative industries but hard work will be needed to enforce it, an official involved with the pact said.

Hollywood stars including Meryl Streep and Javier Bardem have backed efforts to push the treaty, which has been more than a decade in the making. Digital technology has made it easy to download movies or television shows without paying for them.

Actors' rights to remuneration and protection of their work - unlike those of directors, screenwriters and musicians - are not included in current international copyright law.

Actors whose shows or films are sold abroad currently have no legal right to payment for those broadcasts, and if payment is made, it generally goes to the producer.

They also have no rights in many countries if their work is manipulated in any way that may harm their reputation.

'It's a real problem - it's not an artificial problem,' Francis Gurry, the World Intellectual Property Organization's director general, told Reuters in an interview on Wednesday.

'The actors are the ones, in the international framework, who have not been catered for.'

An agreement between the United States and European Union last year paved the way for concluding the pact, though the ratification process by the U.N. body's 185 member states will take longer.

Once the treaty is signed in Beijing next week it will be up to individual countries to enforce its provisions, Gurry said, acknowledging that that could be hard in many places.

'These are necessary steps in the right direction. We have to follow through on the ground to make sure that it isn't just a symbolic act, to make sure it's got some reality to it,' he said.

'I know it's frustrating - why can't it happen overnight? The reality is that it requires a complete social adjustment.'

China and Russia, for example, are regularly excoriated by the United States and European Union for their widespread copyright piracy, despite often having laws in place to fight the problem.

In China, the latest Hollywood movies are generally widely available for sale on pirated DVDs for about $1 each soon after U.S. theatre releases - sometimes even before - costing the industry hundreds of millions of dollars a year.

'When you take a country that's coming from basically an agricultural economy to an advanced economy, at least in some parts, in a process of 30 years, it's normal I think that it takes time for them to develop a widespread awareness that ... there's more value in what's on the disc than the physical disc itself,' Gurry said.

(Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Robert Birsel)



This news article is brought to you by ACCOUNTING - where latest news are our top priority.

Julia Stiles on playing an escort on a web show

NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - Julia Stiles holds a degree in English literature from Columbia University and has taken the stage in plays written by David Mamet and some guy named Shakespeare.

Despite that pedigree, the cynical teen from '10 Things I Hate About You' and secret agent from the Bourne movies wants to spend her Monday talking about female escorts.

Well, whether she wants to or not, Stiles must talk about the subject. She is the star of 'Blue,' the latest series from Jon Avnet and Rodrigo Garcia's YouTube Channel, Wigs.

In 'Blue,' Stiles stars as the title character, part-working mom, part-escort, making extra money to make ends meet.

With a gun to our head, TheWrap obliged, talking with Stiles about Hollywood's fascination with escorts, getting her boyfriend to pay her for sex while doing the show for free and the real problem with online video - it doesn't pay.

Q: You did 'The Today Show' today and seem to have a lot of interviews lined up. I'm sure everyone has been asking you about why you did this show and what you think of working for a web show.

A: 'Yeah, I'm scared of the internet kind of. It just turned out that when I read the script, the first episode hooked me. It's a great premise for a story, a girl who is living a secret life and going to drown in the lies she has to tell. There's a reason there are lots of movies and TV shows about escorts. What happens when people pay for sex?'

'The downside of web content - scripted web content - is that there is no money involved. No one is earning a living. The upside is there is a lot of creative freedom.'

Q: And it's a pretty quick shoot, no? You can do a show for two weeks and be done.

A: 'We shoot one episode a day and it's 12 episodes. Sometimes I get worried that our attention spans are getting short. We only watch content that can be downloaded. What we're trying to do with 'Blue,' and what they are trying to do with whole channel, is tell a story that builds to a longer story. Each one is a brick that builds a house. A 7-minute episode is an interesting chapter in a large book. Ultimately 12 episodes amounts to the length of a movie.'

Q: Long-form content for the attention-deficit generation?

A: 'Is that what they call it?'

Q: Have you watched the other shows on 'Wigs'? Having spoken with Jon and Rodrigo before, they describe this as a channel for women. Do you agree with that as a unifying element?

A: 'They say that it's for women. To me, the link is each central character is a woman. What's refreshing about having Rodrigo Garcia and Jon Avnet driving this is it's a little more well-rounded than just for women. For me with 'Blue,' one of the most interesting questions proposed is she asks one of her clients 'Why are you paying for sex? What happens when people pay for sex?''

Q: Now, your first client on the show is your real-life boyfriend?

A: 'It happened because I read the script and we had worked together a few times and knew it wouldn't be weird. He's a really good actor.'

'I knew the Cooper part was interesting and luckily he got on board. It made my life easier because it's one of the more intimate scenes. Honestly he's a good actor and we try to work together as much as we can. Plus, I was asking him to do this for free. Everyone is working for free.'

Q: Do you sense actors are more open to online video? It seems like a lot more recognizable names are participating?

A: 'For me it's very specific to this one project. If Rodrigo hadn't been involved, if he hadn't written it, I wouldn't have been as keen.'

Q: Why was Rodrigo's involvement so critical?

A: 'Whether or not I want to work on something stems from writing. He's a really, really good writer; I knew I would be in good hands, especially with this kind of subject matter. His interests are in keeping with mine.'

Q: Which are?

A: 'Well, he wasn't trying to make 'The Red Shoe Diaries.' He's interested in characters. It's character-driven. I could go for plot and character, but in terms of work I am more interested in character driven.'\

Q: If this is really successful, would you come back for another season or are you one and done?

A: 'We're waiting to see how people respond. If Rodrigo wanted to write more I'd certainly be interested. But they have to figure out a way to make a living, to pay the crew. These things have a way of righting themselves.'

'The people at the top have to find a way to share wealth. Nobody knows where the ad revenue is going. Once we figure out where that's going, we can spread it around with the crew. The pitfall of that is the more money involved, the less freedom you have.'

Q: It almost makes movie studios look like benefactors.

A: 'Like the Medicis. In fairness, it's a reasonable schedule. One episode a day. We can't work more than 10-12 hours. It's pretty civilized compared to some movie schedules. I don't know where it's going. It's the question with any industry. As a journalist you are experiencing this too. The music industry went through a crisis. These things have a way of righting themselves.'

'There are so many ads on the Internet now you actually can't watch anything without watching an ad. People will get sick of that. They'll make you subscribe to skip all the ads. I just show up and say my lines.'



This news article is brought to you by CONTRACEPTIVES - where latest news are our top priority.