Hollywood

Act II: The shaper That said, someone has to win the lottery at some point—and Gore had a winning ticket with her background, personality, and, of course, her pilot idea: a half-hour comedy she refers to as a reverse Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Based in her hometown of Richmond, Summers tells the story of Tatiana, a 15-year-old rich girl who’s forced to live in the hood with her cousins after her father is arrested and their assets are seized. Gore loosely based the pilot on her own life. When her two sisters wouldn’t stop teasing her that she was too much of a softy, their dad sent her to summer camp in the hood to help push Desia out of her bubble. … [Read more...] about This Y Combinator for Hollywood wants to discover the next Lena Waithe

The fall of Harvey Weinstein, though, and the trail of unmasked abusers in its ongoing aftermath, has given people a reason to reevaluate matters. (Indeed, one of the journalists leading the legally difficult charge to break the Weinstein story was Allen’s son, Ronan Farrow.) In a December op-ed for the Los Angeles Times, Dylan asked the men and women of Hollywood why the #MeToo movement had spared her father. One possible answer is that there have been no new Woody Allen accusers since the dam began to burst in October. Although many fans and actors on the fence must have reconsidered their (perhaps subconscious) decision not to believe Farrow, there has been no flashpoint for fresh outrage to take hold. … [Read more...] about Time’s Up, Woody Allen

Theater inspirations can be found everywhere from the bike studios to the changing rooms. Marquee-style glowing stencil signs illuminate the entrances to the two studios, called “Ride” and “Reshape.” The studios themselves mimic the design of blackbox theaters, with walls of black timber fiber acoustic insulation panels and floors of recycled black rubber. A podium sits at the front of the rows of stationary bicycles, where the workout instructor presides over her audience, projections glowing on the wall behind her. Sometimes, a live band joins in at the podium. And in the changing rooms, 1950s barbers’ chairs sit in front of Hollywood-style vanity mirrors. Emphasis on vanity. … [Read more...] about Paging Buff Design Snobs! This Is The World’s Most Precious Gym

However, 360RA’s focus on isolating and locating sounds may work with some genres of music, particularly jazz. The 360 approach could be used to deconstruct and reconstruct classic jazz music recordings, especially since many recordings from masters such as Coltrane, Monk, and Parker sound like live recordings anyway. In addition, jazz doesn’t always depend on the cumulative effect of musicians playing together in the way that other genres do. Jazz players are virtuosic: You can enjoy the sections of the music that are played in unison, but it’s also easy to focus on the individual artistry of the players—which 360 sound helps emphasize. … [Read more...] about How Sony’s 360 Reality Audio makes recorded music sound like an immersive concert

In this episode of Creative Conversation, Berkus travels through his storied career, going from being “a terrible assistant” to his big break on The Oprah Winfrey Show to his own failed show (“worst job of my life”) to how he’s expanding his brand in design and in Hollywood. … [Read more...] about How Nate Berkus has kept his creativity flowing for 25 years