Black Film Critics Circle Name "Creed" Best Picture of 2015

The Black Film Critics Circle (BFCC) was founded in 2010 and is a membership organization.  Its membership is comprised of film critics of color from daily newspapers, weekly newspapers, magazines, radio, and television and also from qualifying on-line publications.

2015 Black Film Critics Circle Awards:

Best Picture: “Creed”

Best Directing: George Miller “Mad Max: Fury Road”

Best Actor: Michael B. Jordan “Creed”

Best Actress: Brie Larson “Room”

Best Supporting Actor: Sylvester Stallone “Creed”

Best Supporting Actress: Tessa Thompson “Creed”

Best Screenwriting (Original Screenplay): “Straight Outta Compton”

Best Screenwriting (Adapted Screenplay): “The Martian”

Best Cinematography: “Mad Max: Fury Road”

Best Foreign Language Film: “Son of Saul” (Hungary)

Best Documentary Feature: “What Happened, Miss Simone?”

Best Animated Feature: “Inside Out”

Best Ensemble Performance: “Straight Outta Compton”

Pioneer Award: Ice Cube

Rising Star: Abraham Attah

Special Mention: Beasts of No Nation


BFCC’s Top 1o Films of 2015 are as follows in order of distinction:

1. “Creed”

2.  “Mad Max: Fury Road”

3. “Straight Outta Compton”

4. “Spotlight”

5. “The Martian”

6. “Room”

7. “Beasts of No Nation”

8. “The Hateful Eight”

9. “The Big Short”

10. “Ex Machina”

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Image Comics' "Spread" Preps for a New Story Arc

SPREAD KICKS OFF NEW STORY ARC

Issue #12 is a standalone issue, featuring art by Jen Hickman

Writer Justin Jordan (LUTHER STRODE) and special guest artist Jen Hickman (The Dead) will launch a special stand-alone issue in the ongoing horror series SPREAD this January 2016.

Previously in SPREAD, a man named No found an orphaned baby named Hope. Hope is the key to stopping The Spread—the gruesome cancerous growth of monsters that’s brought civilization to a grinding halt—but not everyone sees her as a savior. The key to keeping Hope alive has been Molly, a crazy survivor with an unknown background.

In SPREAD #12, Molly’s story is told.

“The world of Spread is a bad one, and Molly's story reflects this,” said Jordan. “This was probably one of the hardest scripts I ever wrote, and I really hope I did justice to the story.”

“When Justin sent me the script for the issue, he noted that this one was ‘fairly brutal’ and that made me pause. If Justin Jordan, of all people, wanted to preface a script like that, what exactly was lurking in the pages?” said Hickman. “I mean you'll have to read for yourself, but he was spot on. This issue cuts deep. I was like 3/4 through the issue and about 30 seconds from crying. I hope that I've succeeded in imparting even a fraction of the ‘fairly brutal’ emotion in the script. Basically, I hope you cry. Read Spread. It's super awesome.”

SPREAD #12 Cover A by Kyle Strahm and Felipe Sobreiro (Diamond code: NOV150648) hits stores Wednesday, January 13th. SPREAD #12 Cover B by Camila Torrano(Diamond code: NOV150649) and SPREAD #12 Cover C by Michael Adams and Kyle Strahm (Diamond code: NOV150650) will also be available Wednesday, January 13th, 2016. Final order cutoff deadline for retailers is today—Monday, December 21st, 2015.


ABOUT IMAGE COMICS
Image Comics is a comic book and graphic novel publisher founded in 1992 by a collective of best-selling artists. Image has since gone on to become one of the largest comics publishers in the United States. Image currently has five partners: Robert Kirkman, Erik Larsen, Todd McFarlane, Marc Silvestri and Jim Valentino. It consists of five major houses: Todd McFarlane Productions, Top Cow Productions, Shadowline, Skybound and Image Central. Image publishes comics and graphic novels in nearly every genre, sub-genre, and style imaginable. It offers science fiction, fantasy, romance, horror, crime fiction, historical fiction, humor and more by the finest artists and writers working in the medium today. For more information, visit www.imagecomics.com.

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Negromancer News Bits and Bites from December 27th to 31st, 2015 - Update #17

Support Leroy on Patreon.

NEWS:

From VillageVoice:  Here is a piece on the late Bill Gunn, whose vampire film, "Ganja and Hess," was the subject of a Spike Lee remake, "Da Sweet Blood of Jesus."

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From YahooNews:  Leo DiCaprio said no to George Lucas when offered the role of Anakin Skywalker.

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From TheWrap:  "Making a Murder" docuseries has spawned a WhiteHouse.org petition.

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From YahooSports:  Kobe wishes he could tell his younger self to "understand compassion."

From YahooSports:  Michael Jordan records tribute to Kobe Bryant.

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From YahooNews:  No charges in the Tamir Rice killing.  Of course not... No justice, no peace.

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From TheWrap:  The "Halloween" franchise is looking for a new home after Dimension lets its rights to the property expire.

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From TheWrap:  Katherine Waterston is the female lead in Ridley Scott's "Alien: Covenant," the follow-up to "Prometheus."  Covenant is apparently the start of a new Alien trilogy and will connect Prometheus to original Alien (1979) film.

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From TheWrap:  Chris Nolan's next film is "Dunkirk," a World War II film.

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From TruthVoice:  Quentin Tarantino says that he utterly rejects that idea that only some cops are bad apples.

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From BoxOfficeMojo:  The winner of the Christmas weekend box office (12/25 to 12/27/2015) is "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" with an estimated take of $153.5 million.  That is the largest second weekend at the box office in history.  Meanwhile the film has crossed the $1 billion mark in worldwide ticket sales in just 12 days.

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From Deadline:  "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" has repeated as weekend box office champion, according to early estimates.

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From BleedingCool:  Quentin Tarantino and Paul Thomas Anderson praise 70mm in this interview.

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From CinemaBlend:  Before Andrew Lincoln became Rick Grimes on "The Walking Dead," Thomas Jane was the choice.


COMICS - Films and Books:

From BleedingCool:  Mads Mikkelsen is the main villain in Dr. Strange, apparently.

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Variety:  First look at Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Stange.


REVIEWS:

From the VillageVoice:  A review of Charlie Kaufman and Duke Johnson's "Anomalisa."


OBITS:

From TheWrap:  Lemmy Kilmister, the front man for the rock band, Motorhead, died at the age of 70 on Monday, December 28, 2015.  Once upon a time, I was a Motorhead fan.

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From TheWrap:  Meadowlark Lemon, the legendary member of the Harlem Globetrotters, died Sunday, December 27, 2015 at the age of 83.  Known as "the Clown Prince of Basketball," Lemon joined the team in 1954 and left in 1978 after a contract dispute.  Negromancer sends condolences to Lemon's family.  R.I.P.

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From IndieWire:  Haskell Wexler, the legendary cinematographer, died this morning, Sunday, December 27, 2015.  He was 93.  Wexler won two Oscar for his work ("Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf" and "Bound for Glory").  Negromancer sends condolences to his family.  R.I.P.

AWFJ Announces 2015 EDA Award Nominations - Full List

According the organization’s website, The Alliance of Women Film Journalists, Inc. (AWFJ), was founded in 2006.  The membership is made up of “highly qualified professional female movie critics, reporters and feature writers working in print, broadcast and online media.”  Its state purpose is to “support work by and about women - both in front of and behind the cameras - through intra-group promotional activities, outreach programs and by presenting the annual EDA Awards in recognition of outstanding accomplishments (the best and worst) by and about women in the movies.”

Statement from the group's website:  “With sincerest appreciation of all the great work that’s been done in film this year, the Alliance of Women Film Journalists is pleased to announce the awards categories for the 2015 EDA Awards.

EDA Award winners will be announced on January 12, 2016.

2015 EDA Awards nominations:

[AWFJ BEST OF AWARDS: These awards are presented to women and/or men without gender consideration.”]

Best Film

    Carol
    Mad Max: Fury Road
    The Martian
    Room
    Spotlight

Best Director

    Lenny Abrahamson – Room
    Todd Haynes – Carol
    Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu – The Revenant
    Tom McCarthy – Spotlight
    George Miller – Mad Max Fury Road
    Ridley Scott – The Martian

Best Screenplay, Original

    Ex Machina – Alex Garland
    Inside Out – Pete Docter, Ronnie Del Carmen, Meg LeFauve, Josh Cooley
    Spotlight – Josh Singer, Tom McCarthy

Best Screenplay, Adapted

    The Big Short – Charles Randolph, Adam McKay
    Carol – Phyllis Nagy
    The Martian – Drew Goddard
    Room – Emma Donoghue

Best Documentary

    Amy – Asif Kapadia
    Best of Enemies – Robert Gordon, Morgan Neville
    Going Clear: Scientology and The Prison of Belief – Alex Gibney
    The Hunting Ground – Kirby Dick
    What Happened, Ms. Simone? – Liz Garbus

Best Animated Film

    Anomalisa
    Inside Out
    Shaun The Sheep

Best Actress

    Cate Blanchett – Carol
    Brie Larson – Room
    Charlotte Rampling – 45 Years

Best Actress in a Supporting Role

    Rooney Mara – Carol
    Kristen Stewart – Clouds of Sils Maria
    Alicia Vikander – Ex Machina
    Kate Winslett – Steve Jobs

Best Actor

    Matt Damon – The Martian
    Leonardo Di Caprio – The Revenant
    Michael Fassbender – Steve Jobs
    Eddie Redmayne – The Danish Girl

Best Actor in a Supporting Role

    Paul Dano – Love & Mercy
    Mark Rylance – Bridge of Spies
    Michael Shannon – 99 Homes
    Sylvester Stallone – Creed

Best Ensemble Cast

    The Big Short
    Spotlight
    Straight Outta Compton

Best Editing

    The Big Short – Hank Corwin
    Mad Max: Fury Road – Margaret Sixel
    Spotlight – Tom McArdle

Best Cinematography

    Carol – Edward Lachman
    Mad Max: Fury Road – John Seale
    The Revenant – Emmanuel Lubezki

Best Film Music Or Score

    Carol – Carter Burwell
    The Hateful Eight – Ennio Morricone
    Mad Max: Fury Road – Junkie XL
    Youth – David Lang

Best Non-English-Language Film

    Mustang – Deniz Gamze Erguven
    Phoenix – Christian Petzold
    Son of Saul – Laszlo Nemes

EDA FEMALE FOCUS AWARDS
[These awards honor WOMEN only.]

Best Woman Director

    Isabel Coixet – Learning to Drive
    Maya Forbes – Infinitely Polar Bear
    Sarah Gavron – Suffragette
    Marielle Heller – Diary of a Teenage Girl
    Celine Sciamma – Girlhood

Best Woman Screenwriter

    Emma Donoghue – Room
    Marielle Heller – Diary of a Teenage Girl
    Phyllis Nagy – Carol
    Amy Schumer – Trainwreck

Best Female Action Star

    Emily Blunt – Sicario
    Jennifer Lawrence – The Hunger Games Mocking Jay 2
    Daisy Ridley – Star Wars: The Force Awakens
    Charlize Theron – Mad Max: Fury Road

Best Breakthrough Performance

    Brie Larson – Room
    Bel Powley – Diary of a Teenage Girl
    Daily Ridley – Star Wars: The Force Awakens
    Alicia Vikander – Ex Machina, Testament of Youth, The Danish Girl

Female Icon of the Year Award (a woman whose work in film and/or in life made a difference)

    - Chantal Ackerman – In Memoriam For being a great filmmaker and inspiration.
    -  Maria Giese – Activist filmmaker who is spearheading the movement for parity for women directors.
    - Donna Langley – Chair(wo)man, Universal Pictures, who has brought the studio to unprecedented profits.
   -  Jennifer Lawrence – For breaking the silence about discriminatory practices and unequal pay for actresses.
   -  Charlotte Rampling – Because she’s Charlotte Rampling and is iconic.

EDA SPECIAL MENTION AWARDS

Best Depiction Of Nudity, Sexuality, or Seduction

    Anomalisa
    Carol
    Diary of a Teenage Girl

Actress Defying Age and Ageism

    Helen Mirren
    Charlotte Rampling
    Lily Tomlin

Most Egregious Age Difference Between The Lead and The Love Interest Award

    Danny Collins – Al Pacino and Katarina Cas
    Freeheld – Julianne Moore and Ellen Page
    Irrational Man – Joaquin Phoenix and Emma Stone
    Spectre – Daniel Craig and Lea Seydoux

Actress Most in Need Of A New Agent

    Bryce Dallas Howard – Jurassic World
    Dakota Johnson – 50 Shades of Grey
    Emma Stone – Aloha

Movie You Wanted To Love, But Just Couldn’t

    Aloha
    The Danish Girl
    The Hateful Eight
    Sisters

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"Bitch Planet" Returns in the New Year

BITCH PLANET RETURNS IN FORCE

Issue #6 is a stand-alone before the new arc begins, featuring art by Taki Soma

Writer Kelly Sue DeConnick (PRETTY DEADLY, Captain Marvel) and special guest artist Taki Soma (SINERGY, Rapture) will launch a special stand-alone issue in the ongoing bitingly satirical series BITCH PLANET this January.

Previously in BITCH PLANET, a new crop of non-compliants settled in for their stay on the Auxiliary Compliance Outpost. When a small group was offered a chance to earn their freedom, they took it, knowing the odds would be stacked against them at every turn.

In BITCH PLANET #6, Meiko Maki’s past is uncovered: how she went from promising engineer to killer—and the ace up her sleeve.

“I’ve wanted to work with Taki since we met, and Val and I were so pleased when she agreed to take on Bitch Planet,” said DeConnick. “Her art style matches Meiko’s personality, I think. There’s a vulnerability to it, an honesty, buffered with a sense of humor—which I think is critical for this title. And that’s not an easy thing to balance. Val makes it look effortless, but it’s not. Taki was able to step into our world and meld beautifully, and at the same time, entirely be herself.”

She added, "After lengthy discussions between ourselves, we’ve decided to run this issue with the following content advisory: 'The following is a flashback issue, covering the events that lead to Meiko Maki's incarceration. It contains plot elements and images relating to sexual assault. The creators encourage you to evaluate your comfort level before deciding to proceed. Bitch Planet's main narrative will resume next month with Issue 7. The series recap therein will not recount the assault.’ It’s similar to the tack we’ve taken with racial epithets—these things have to exist in the world of Bitch Planet, we have to talk about them, but we’re trying to figure out a way to do it that isn’t exploitative, that doesn’t contribute to trauma.”

"I gotta say, this has been a dream project,” said Soma. “In this particular issue, you really GET where Meiko Maki comes from in a way that's integral to the overall Bitch Planet title. If that doesn't excite you, let me just say that I feel sad for you and may I suggest that you look into your pet's eyes and hug it a lot."

BITCH PLANET #6 (Diamond code: NOV150504) hits stores Wednesday, January 6th, 2016. Final order cutoff deadline for retailers is Monday, December 14th, 2015.


ABOUT IMAGE COMICS
Image Comics is a comic book and graphic novel publisher founded in 1992 by a collective of best-selling artists. Image has since gone on to become one of the largest comics publishers in the United States. Image currently has five partners: Robert Kirkman, Erik Larsen, Todd McFarlane, Marc Silvestri and Jim Valentino. It consists of five major houses: Todd McFarlane Productions, Top Cow Productions, Shadowline, Skybound and Image Central. Image publishes comics and graphic novels in nearly every genre, sub-genre, and style imaginable. It offers science fiction, fantasy, romance, horror, crime fiction, historical fiction, humor and more by the finest artists and writers working in the medium today. For more information, visit www.imagecomics.com.

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Warner Bros.' Announces Christopher Nolan's "Dunkirk"

Christopher Nolan to Direct the Epic Action Thriller “Dunkirk” for Warner Bros. Pictures

Casting is underway on the ensemble to be led by unknown actors, with Mark Rylance, Kenneth Branagh and Tom Hardy in talks to join the cast

BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Warner Bros. Pictures announced today that Christopher Nolan will direct “Dunkirk” from his own original screenplay. An epic action thriller, “Dunkirk” is set during the legendary evacuation. The announcement was made by Greg Silverman, President, Creative Development and Worldwide Production.

The large scale film will be shot on a combination of IMAX 65mm and 65mm large format film photography for maximum image quality and high impact immersion. Shooting will begin in May using many of the real locations of the true-life events, which form the background for the story.

The cast will be headed by yet-to-be-cast unknowns. Mark Rylance, Kenneth Branagh and Tom Hardy are currently in talks to join the ensemble.

Nolan will also produce the film with his longtime producing partner Emma Thomas.

Silverman stated, “We are thrilled to be continuing our collaboration with Christopher Nolan, a singular filmmaker who has created some of the most critically acclaimed and commercially successful films of all time. ‘Dunkirk’ is a gripping and powerful story and we are excited to see Chris, Emma and their cast realize it on the big screen.”

Warner Bros. Pictures is distributing “Dunkirk” worldwide and has slated the film for a July 21, 2017 release. The film will be released theatrically on IMAX, 70mm, 35mm and all other screens.

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J-Pop Summit Returns to San Francisco's Fort Mason Center

J-POP SUMMIT WILL RETURN TO HISTORIC FORT MASON CENTER IN SAN FRANCISCO FOR 2016

The Bay Area’s Premiere Japanese Pop Culture Event Announces Dates For Summer 2016 Festival At Expansive New Home In San Francisco’s Historic Marina District

San Francisco, CA – The J-POP SUMMIT Committee, the organization that presents the Japanese pop culture celebration held annually in San Francisco, has announced that the 2016 J-POP SUMMIT will be held at the historic Fort Mason Center, the weekend of Friday, July 22nd thru Sunday, July 24th, 2016.

The Bay Area’s popular celebration of Japanese pop culture, music, art, anime, fashion, food, technology, travel and film, marked its evolution into a ticketed event this year, and attracted more than 30,000 people to its first Festival staged at the historic Fort Mason Center in San Francisco’s Marina district earlier this summer. It was also complemented by additional events in Union Square and at the NEW PEOPLE Cinema in Japantown. Full details and images from the 2015 J-POP SUMMIT are featured at: www.J-POP.com.

“As we look ahead to presenting the 8th consecutive J-POP SUMMIT, we will continue to deliver a unique showcase of Japan’s latest pop trends,” says Seiji Horibuchi, Chairman of the J-Pop SUMMIT Festival Committee and the founder of NEW PEOPLE, Inc. “Every year we add new attractions and special events to highlight not only popular current trends but also emerging new aspects of Japanese pop culture. Fort Mason gives us many possibilities for future growth and we look forward to presenting another extraordinary line-up of artists and programming for 2016!”

Held since 2009, the J-POP SUMMIT is a one-of-a-kind, yearly event that has developed a unique festival format to present a diverse array of the latest in pop-influenced culture and artists from Japan. J-POP SUMMIT began as an annual street fair-style outdoor festival held in San Francisco’s Japantown and has drawn as many as 125,000 people in past years. Previous notable J-POP SUMMIT headliners have included Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, May’n, Tadanobu Asano, Takako Tokiwa, Tomomi Itano, Eir Aoi, Gacharic Spin, Tokyo Girls Style, and JAM Project.


About J-POP SUMMIT
The J-POP SUMMIT is an annual Japanese Pop Culture celebration held in San Francisco, CA that features live bands and artists from Japan, pop culture panel discussions, film premieres, fashion shows and events, food and spirits, art, and celebrity appearances. Details on J-POP SUMMIT are available at www.J-POP.com.

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