Yes, James Cameron's sci-fi juggernaut Avatar may have dominated box offices across the globe since its release almost three months ago. And yes, it may have broken all known records to become the highest grossing film of all time. But anyone thinking that was enough to secure Oscar glory was sorely mistaken, as it was Kathryn Bigelow's small scale Iraq war drama The Hurt Locker than reigned supreme at last night's glittering ceremony in Los Angeles.
The fourth annual Richard Attenborough Film Awards will be held on January 28th, celebrating the films of the year as voted for by UK regional film critics. Voting began in December, and journalists will decide their Film of the Year, Performance of the Year, Filmmaker of the Year, Screenwriter of the Year, Rising Star and All Time Legend. In addition, there are to be a further 9 awards to be voted for by the UK cinema-going public, with awards patron Lord Attenborough commenting “2009 proved to be an exceptionally buoyant year for cinemagoing, with an increase in audiences across the UK. This adds to my pleasure in announcing the fourth annual Richard Attenborough Film Awards, which take in the opinions of both regional audiences and the regional critics.”
Read more: Public Voting Opens for 2010 Richard Attenborough Film Awards
An unscheduled downpour may have resulted in a soggy entrance for the plethora of A-listers who attended Sunday's Golden Globe awards ceremony in LA, but spirits were high as presenter Ricky Gervais kicked off proceedings with his own brand of acerbic humour. Luckily Gervais is known and loved in Hollywood, and so his jokes about plastic surgery, Mel Gibson and the rest were well-received by the assembled crowd, which included heavy hitters like Tom Hanks, Helen Mirren and Cameron Diaz. And they witnessed a mix of the expected and the unexpected when it came to handing out the awards.
Every budding film-maker knows that short film competitions are a great way to hone your skills and get yourself noticed in an increasingly competitive industry. Now MoFilm, the pioneers of video competitions for major brands and creating tailor made content, has teamed with mega-brand Pepsi to offer talent the perfect forum to showcase their talents; the 60 Seconds to Refresh the World Pepsi Short Film Competition.
The Times BFI 53rd London Film Festival is well and truly underway, with the stars hitting the capital for the opening night gala of Fantastic Mr Fox. Director Wes Anderson was joined on the red carpet by stars George Clooney, Bill Murray, Jason Schwartzman and Jarvis Cocker for the UK premiere of the film, and we've got official footage from the heart of the action. And remember to check back here for official vodcasts from each day of this year's London Film Festival!
Read more: London Film Festival 2009: Day One Official Vodcast
The fifth and final day of FrightFest 2009 was the most exciting of the whole weekend, with so many great films to choose from showing across both screens that it proved very difficult to come up with a plan of viewing action. We decided to start the day in the Discovery Screen with Colin, the much-hyped debut from British newcomer Marc Price and were glad we did. Although we very much doubt that the movie cost just £45, a figure that's been bandied around by the press, it was still an effective foray into low-budget horror film-making.
We spent most of the fourth day of FrightFest '09 in the Discovery Screen, where there was a host of intriguing film fare on offer. And we weren't the only ones to take advantage of this year's new double-screen choices, as American Werewolf director John Landis also took his seat in the smaller screen. And first up was Salvage, the excellent ultra-real chiller from British writer/director Lawrence Gough.
Our third day at FrightFest kicked off with a screening of Hierro, an atmospheric Spanish chiller that promised to be in the same vein as Guillermo del Toro's masterpiece Pan's Labyrinth and Juan Antonio Bayona's The Orphanage. Although it didn't quite match the might of those two movies, Hierro proved to be an interesting film; although it did divide the FrightFest audience.
We blame the after effects of last night's party for not making it to this morning's screening of The Horseman, although we hear from other FrightFesters that it was a gory delight. Our first film of the day is Beware the Moon, an enthusiastic documentary looking at the making of the 1981 horror classic An American Werewolf in London. Written and directed by Werewolf fan Paul Davis, the film brings together cast and crew for an entertaining trip down memory lane.
