Los Angeles, 30 May 2022 : Coming only three years after the Palme d’Or for ‘Parasite’, the two Cannes prizes for Park Chan-wook as best director and for Song Kang-ho as best actor are further proof of the strength of Korean cinema’s originality, its elevated skills and its resilience, reports ‘Variety’.

Korean movies have been temporarily overshadowed by K-pop and Korean TV dramas — think BTS and ‘Squid Game’ — both of which flourished during the Covid era, while Korean film was struck down by the pandemic.

Closed cinemas and disrupted release schedules meant that the film sector was not fully able to capitalise on the 2019 Cannes and multiple Oscar successes of ‘Parasite’ and ‘Minari’. Korean film producers’ revenues crumbled between 2020 and early this year, and talent shifted across to the more vibrant streaming sector.

In an insightful report on the creative forces at work behind the efflorescence of Korean cinema, ‘Variety’ notes that the Cannes prize for Park’s ‘Decision to Leave’ is particularly satisfying for a core group of filmmakers that also includes ‘Parasite’ director, and Park’s younger brother, Bong Joon Ho, “who have engaged with streaming platforms, but see themselves as filmmakers first”. This particularly tight cluster of leading names consists of a group who are friends rather than rivals.

Saturday’s Cannes wins, according to ‘Variety’, are also a vindication for Korean entertainment giant CJ ENM, which was partly responsible for Korean culture’s modern incarnation, and which has been in the Park Chan-wook and Bong Joon Ho business for more than 20 years.

CJ ENM was a founder investor in Steven Spielberg’s DreamWorks SKG in 1995 and then found itself doubling down in the sector as a pioneer distributor in Korea and builder of the country’s first multiplex cinemas.

“Having created the distribution capacity and exhibition infrastructure, the company found itself increasingly pulled into production and production finance, needing to keep the feature films flowing, meet the government’s content quotas and industrialize a business that barely existed a decade earlier,” writes ‘Variety’,

CJ Entertainment was a producer of Park’s 2000 breakout film ‘Joint Security Area’, and financier of his astonishing 2003 picture ‘Oldboy’, which won Cannes’ second prize, the Grand Prix. CJ was also aboard Bong’s second title ‘Barking Dogs Never Bite’ in 2000 and his ‘Memories of Murder’ in 2003, ‘Variety’ adds.(IANS)

Los Angeles, 30 May 2022: Dancer-singer-actor Matthew Morrison, who was announced as the new judge on the hit dance competition series ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ in April, has exited the show after he failed to follow production protocols, reports ‘Deadline’.

Commenting on the same, Morrison told ‘Deadline’, “Having the opportunity to be a judge on ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ was an incredible honour for me. Therefore, it is my deepest regret to inform you that I will be leaving the show (sic).”

“After filming the audition rounds for the show and completing the selection of the 12 finalists, I did not follow competition production protocols, preventing me from being able to judge the competition fairly. I cannot apologise enough to all involved and I will be watching alongside you all on what I know will be one of the best seasons yet (sic),” he added.

Cat Deeley serves as host of the long-running series that features skilled dancers in the age group of 18-30, showcasing their talents in various dance styles. The series, produced by Industrial Media’s 19 Entertainment and MRC, will see Rosie Seitchik serving as showrunner and executive producing alongside co-creator Lythgoe, Jeff Thacker, Eli Holzman and Aaron Saidman.

Mumbai, 30 May 2022 : Even as politicians began sparring over the killing of Punjabi rapper and celebrity Sidhu Moosewala on Sunday evening, people from the entertainment industry reacted to the death with shock and disbelief.

Comedian and TV star Kapil Sharma, who is from Amritsar, called the incident “very shocking” and “very sad”. “Satnam Shri Waheguru very shocking n very sad, a great artiste n a wonderful human being, may God give his family strength #sidhumoosewala,” Sharma tweeted.

Former ‘Bigg Boss’ contestant Shehnaaz Gill wrote: “Kise da jawaan dhee ya putt es duniya toh chala jaave, es toh vadda dukh koi nahi ho sakda duniya te. Waheguruji mehar kareyo #sidhumoosewala.” Her tweet roughly translates to, “Nothing is more painful in the world than someone losing their young child. God, please show your mercy.”

Filmmaker Ashoke Pandit also took to Twitter to make a political statement: “Well-known Punjabi singer #SidhuMoosewala Shot Dead in Mansa district. Security was withdrawn yesterday. Heartfelt condolences to the aggrieved family and fans. It’s an intelligence failure & the @ArvindKejriwal Govt. should own the responsibility.”

Music composer and singer Vishal Dadlani called it a “sad day”. VJ and actor Rannvijay Singha expressed his shock in a tweet, where he wrote, “Shocking news about #sidhumoosewala, can’t believe it.”

Born on June 17, 1993, Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu, professionally known as Sidhu Moosewala, hailed from the village Moosewala in Punjab’s Mansa district. He held a degree in electrical engineering and was often seen to be openly promoting a gun culture and glorifying gangsters in his provocative songs.(IANS)