Showbiz Sandbox 309: Getting Shutout at Sundance

Anyone who is anyone in the indie film world is presently in Park City, Utah attending this year’s Sundance Film Festival. Of course, it’s impossible to see all the nearly 200 films making their debut at Sundance. As we explain, seeing some of the hottest titles at the festival requires hours of waiting in line for screenings that are often over capacity, thus leaving dozens out in the cold. Literally and figuratively.

Some of the biggest headlines at this year’s Sundance were made by Amazon and Netflix. Though both distributors have previously had a presence at Sundance, this year they went on a buying spree, shelling out big bucks to snap up a number of buzzworthy films. The industry now is watching closely how the distribution of these acquisitions is handled and whether the companies are capable of turning them into financial successes.

Meanwhile, the controversy over the lack of diversity for this year’s Oscar nominations continues to boil over. With talk of boycotts and accusations of racial bias, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced some drastic steps it plans on taking to rectify the situation. Unfortunately, this only caused the debate to become even more boisterous.

Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment news including the Grammy Awards will go live, Bette Midler will be going to Broadway and actress Gillian Anderson balks at being paid half of what David Duchovny makes for the “X-Files” reunion.

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Broadway Shows Cancelled, Movie Theaters Darkened Due to Blizzard
https://variety.com/2016/legit/news/broadway-shows-cancelled-blizzard-1201686973/

‘The Revenant’ Tops International Box Office
https://variety.com/2016/film/box-office/the-revenant-international-box-office-star-wars-1201687476/

China Box Office: ‘Kung Fu Panda 3’ Earns Impressive $6.4M in Previews
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/china-box-office-kung-fu-858877

Box Office: ‘The Revenant’ Survives Storm Jonas to Win Weekend With $16M
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/box-office-revenant-survives-storm-858764

‘Star Wars: Episode VIII’ Gets New Release Date
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/star-wars-episode-viii-gets-857601

Steven Spielberg’s New Amblin Chief Reveals Who Has Greenlight Power
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/steven-spielbergs-new-amblin-chief-854838

Ticket Prices Hit Record High in 2015
https://variety.com/2016/film/box-office/ticket-prices-2015-record-1201683031/

MPDAA Confirm 2015 Best Year Ever for Australian Film
http://www.screenaustralia.gov.au/news_and….

So Far, Amazon and Netflix Are Sundance’s Top Buyers
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/26/business/media/so-far-amazon-and-netflix-are-sundances-top-buyers.html

Sundance: ‘Birth of a Nation’ Lands at Fox Searchlight in Record $17.5 Million Deal
https://variety.com/2016/film/festivals/sundance-birth-of-a-nation-1201688520/

Amazon Nabs Rights to ‘Manchester by the Sea’ at Sundance
https://variety.com/2016/film/festivals/sundance-buyers-chasing-hot-manchester-by-the-sea-exclusive-1201687390/

Sundance: ‘Manchester By The Sea’ Kicks off 2017 Oscars Buzz
https://variety.com/2016/film/news/sundance-manchester-by-the-sea-oscars-casey-affleck-kenneth-lonergan-1201687254/

Sundance: Amazon Inks Huge Deal for ‘Manchester by the Sea’
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/sundance-amazon-inks-huge-streaming-857577

2016 PGA Awards: The Complete Winners List
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/2016-pga-award-winners-856982

Viacom Sneak: CEO Philippe Dauman Actually Made $54M in 2015
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/viacom-sneak-ceo-philippe-dauman-858152

Sumner Redstone Faces Medical Exam, Not Deposition, in Health Care Lawsuit
https://variety.com/2016/biz/news/sumner-redstone-health-exam-lawsuit-1201686577/

Penske Media Acquires Indiewire
https://variety.com/2016/biz/news/penske-media-indiewire-1201682719/

Adele, Kendrick Lamar, the Weeknd to Perform at Grammys
http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/adele-kendrick-lamar-the-weeknd-to-perform-at-grammys-20160120

Bette Midler Coming to Broadway in ‘Hello, Dolly!’
http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/01/19/bette-midler-coming-to-broadway-in-hello-dolly/

Bette Midler Will Literally Run the Show on Broadway
http://pagesix.com/2016/01/24/bette-midler-will-literally-run-the-show-on-broadway/

‘Cats’ Will Return to Broadway This Summer
http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/01/21/cats-will-return-to-broadway-this-summer/

Gillian Anderson: I Was Offered Half Duchovny’s Pay for ‘The X-Files’ Revival
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/01/22/gillian-anderson-i-was-offered-half-duchovny-s-pay-for-the-x-files-revival.html

NYC’s Ziegfeld Theatre to Close Within Weeks
http://www.thewrap.com/ziegfeld-theatre-to-close-within-weeks/

Nielsen to Use Facebook and Twitter in New Ratings System
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/20/business/media/nielsen-to-use-facebook-and-twitter-in-new-ratings-system.html

Viacom, CBS Sued Over ‘Loyalty’ to Sumner Redstone
https://variety.com/2016/biz/news/viacom-cbs-lawsuit-sumner-redstone-1201682943/

Adele Smashes PSY’s Billion View Record On YouTube
http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/2016/1/adele-smashes-psys-billion-view-record-on-youtube-413662

Netflix Takes Another Swipe At NBC After Earnings Beat
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/netflix-exceeds-expectations-quarterly-metrics-857263

Directors Guild President Calls for ‘Structural Changes’ to Promote Diversity
https://variety.com/2016/film/news/directors-guild-oscars-diversity-1201688080/

Film Academy, Under Fire, Is Expected to Take Steps to Improve Oscar Diversity
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/21/business/media/film-academy-under-fire-is-expected-to-take-steps-to-improve-oscar-diversity.html

Academy Mulls Changes in Membership & Categories to Halt Diversity Crisis
https://variety.com/2016/film/awards/academy-mulls-changes-in-oscar-voting-membership-to-halt-diversity-crisis-1201684639/

Oscars: Academy Board Under Pressure to Rewrite Voting, Membership Rules to Improve Diversity
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/oscarssowhite-motion-picture-academy-oscar-858243

Charlotte Rampling Says ‘Racist’ Oscars Remark Was Misinterpeted
https://variety.com/2016/film/news/charlotte-rampling-oscars-racist-1201686690/

Academy Takes Historic Action To Increase Diversity
https://www.oscars.org/news/academy-takes-historic-action-increase-diversity

Abe Vigoda, ‘Barney Miller’ and ‘Godfather’ Actor, Dies at 94
https://variety.com/2016/tv/news/abe-vigoda-dead-dies-barney-miller-godfather-1201689081/

Is Abe Vigoda Dead
http://isabevigodadead.com/

Song Exploder – MGMT
http://www.songexploder.net/mgmt