To survive in this business you must have confidence and be resilient -- an agent told me this four years ago and I live by it each day. To survive in the film industry, resiliency will help you persevere even during the toughest of times. This advice works at any level in this business, even Hollywood's top agencies abide by it. ICM took a hard hit on Wednesday when two long-time agents Robert Newman and Matt Solo became partners at Endeavor talent.

A spokesman at ICM told Variety that the departure was a kind one, but despite this fact, they've still lost their head of motion pictures and TV lit department. The client roster that Newman created contained huge names such as Guillermo Del Toro (Pan's Labyrinth) and Robert Rodriguez, whose double horror feature with Quentin Tarantino has people talking and anticipating its release.

Why would an individual who has worked so long with a company choose to leave for another high profile agency position? Newman's reason was simple: he desired "a change in scenery" while Solo looked forward to reconnecting with former ICM agents and partners who left the agency before he did. Other rumors have spawned from the shift but none of which are worth repeating as they bear no fact whatsoever.

I know what you're probably thinking: "Geez Chris, enough with the technology stuff already." Even if you do think that, I just feel compelled to bring you these interesting tidbits about how technology helps, enhances or otherwise makes things better for films and filmmakers. This time around, it's not a technique or technology used during production or post-production. In this case, it's a technology used to help give older films the fantastic look of a newborn, just delivered to the theater.

What is this miraculous technology of which I speak? It's called Ultra Resolution and it's pretty exciting stuff. According to a recent article in The Hollywood Reporter, the technique, invented by some smart chaps at Warner Bros., has been nominated this year for a Scientific and Technical Academy Award and has helped in the restoration of several films in the studio's vast library -- including Singing In the Rain, The Wizard of Oz, and one of my personal favorites, The Searchers. According to the article, prints of these classic films exhibited blurring or "color fringing" as well as shrinkage, stretching and other damage. In case you can't tell, that's a bad thing.

These issues were made especially visible by the Ultra Resolution process that involves digitally realigning and sharpening the older film negatives of these classic movies shot on Technicolor three-strip film -- thus enabling a much better restoration than previously possible. Says Chris Cookson, president, Warner Bros. Technical Operations and chief technology officer, Warner Bros. Entertainment: "It not only benefits Warner Bros. and the industry at large, it benefits the movies themselves and the people who love them." Well, I'm one of those people so I say, "Keep up the good work, Chris." Films are an important part of our history and the more that can be done to preserve them, the better.

I know you're probably sick and tired of all these guild/critic nominations by now. I mean, we know which movies and actors will get nods, the only fun left is in guessing which order or which category they're being stuffed into. The Screen Actors Guild does something a little different -- instead of awarding a best picture of the year, their big what-to-do is best ensemble cast. Joining the ensemble cast category are best actor, best actress, best supporting actor and best supporting actress. They also delve a bit into boob tube land, but we'll stick with the film side of things.

Not surprisingly, the ensemble cast noms went out to Babel, Bobby, The Departed, Dreamgirls and Little Miss Sunshine. Were there any surprises? Well, Leonardo DiCaprio was nominated twice; once for Blood Diamond (best actor) and once for The Departed (best supporting actor). Will Leo ever win a big award? While this might seem like the year to do so, he's seriously facing some stiff competition. Should we even talk about best actress? Helen Mirren is there (for both The Queen and the TV flick Elizabeth I), of course, and the favorite. She's joined by Meryl Streep (wouldn't it be lovely to see her come in and sneak out a winner?), Kate Winslet (ugh, was I the only one not blown away by her performance in Little Children?), Judi Dench (Notes on a Scandel) and Penelope Cruz (Volver).

The fun category to watch this year (as far as acting goes) will be best supporting actor. SAG awarded nominations to Eddie Murphy (Dreamgirls), Jackie Earle Haley (unlike Winslet, I feel he deserves to be here for Little Children), Leo Di Caprio, Alan Arkin (the man is outstanding in Little Miss Sunshine) and Djimon Hounsou (Blood Diamond). In case you're wondering, the winners will be announced on January 28 at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.

Full list of nominees (film only) after the jump.

Hard work once again proves triumphant. Two agents at Agency for the Performing Arts have been bumped up to the position of partner. Barry McPherson and Josh Humiston are now living the life in high profile positions. APA is one of the few high power agencies -- William Morris, United Talent Agency, Paradigm, Creative Artists Agency to name a few more -- where every talent in this business competes for their attention. To have their name on your side as a filmmaker or actor is like being a lawyer with Harvard on your application.

The better part of the story is that McPherson and Humiston started out at the bottom rung of the APA community. McPherson's first position was as an assistant and Humiston started even lower, working in the mailroom. I always imagine 'the mailroom' being like Jon Favreau's depiction in Elf -- below the building's basement with an assembly line of individuals craving for just a glimmer of sunlight. Humiston shows that amongst those individuals is a craving to get to the very top of the company and if that desire is strong enough, you'll have no choice but to make it there.

The same goes for directors and actors alike. Many directors started their work in music videos and now are recognized as award nominated artists. Mike Mills -- director of Thumbsucker -- worked for a long time as a music video director and graphic designer. This year's comedy hit Little Miss Sunshine directors Valerie Faris and Johnathan Dayton both started directing music videos for Paula Abdul and R.E.M. Judi Dench has worked in television since the 50s before receiving worldwide notoriety in the late 80s.

None of these careers happened over night. What these people have in common is that they have been working in this industry for over a decade. The test then becomes can you stick it out and do the time to get to where you really want to be? I can't answer for anyone, but these individuals definitely could and are hopefully enjoying the results of their efforts. ...

If you're going to be in Miami from January 5th to 8th, you might want to stop by the Art Miami Fair at the Miami Beach Convention Center and behold a new painting of the Virgin Mary -- actually, make that the Virgin Angelina. Artist Kate Kretz is presenting a new oil and acrylic painting on linen entitled "Blessed Art Thou." It presents Angelina Jolie and her three children as the Virgin Mary and offspring, hovering in heavenly repose over a typical American Wal-Mart with flags draped from the rafters and plus-sized shoppers obliviously gazing at the merchandise. A sickly green hue fills the air over the shoppers, one of whom seems to be staring in the general direction of a copy of Us Weekly, which is wedged in the magazine rack next to a "For Dummies" book. A frothy cloud cover forms a dividing line between the serene celebrity heaven above and the hell below.

In conjunction with the unveiling, Kretz has been keeping a blog on her website, detailing the step-by-step creation of the painting. The blog seems to be in the same "too much information" spirit as the painting itself, giving us an excess of detail about her artistic process. Here's a sampling: "hair and sash are not the only dark values, so the grouping is more unified against the clouds. I think the clouds have lost some impact, as the blue dress is stronger than the blue of the clouds...."

The event I'm most anticipating in 2007 is, sadly, not the opening of Spider-Man 3. No, what I'm most looking forward to is the 57th Berlin International Film Festival -- mainly, because I'll be traveling to Germany in order to cover the fest for Cinematical. Not only am I stoked to return to Berlin -- a city I absolutely adore -- but I'll also have a chance to bring a big taste of the fest back to you, the reader, while you lounge about your living room in that adorable pair of pajamas grandma bought you for Christmas.

One of the ultra cool aspects of Berlinale is its Talent Campus, a program which invites young aspiring filmmakers from all over the world to take part in a series of workshops, lectures and screenings dedicated to their particular craft, be it directing, screenwriting, composing, etc ... This year, however, the Campus is introducing a new Garage Flick project, as part of The Garage Studio, where Campus participants will get the chance to produce one digital short film per day, only to watch it be instantaneously uploaded online and available to watch via the Campus website, as well as on iTunes (Apple is an official sponsor of the project).

The Garage Flick project will take place over the course of five days, beginning February 10 and concluding on February 15, the final day of the Berlinale Talent Campus. And, on that final day, all of the Garage Flicks will be showcased on the big screen for the public. Fear not Cinematical fanatics, yours truly will try his best to get in there and attempt to cover some of the behind-the-scenes action, bringing you that much closer to this unique and spirited program.

As I'm a horror fan I don't mind so much that the genre's had a bit of a recent resurgence. Maybe its the success of films like The Blair Witch Project, The Ring or Saw that sparked this mini-renaissance of the horror film? Whatever the reason, I'm happy about it. Even if the films often leave something to be desired (i.e. they suck), it's still good that they keep getting made because sometimes you do get a really good one.

Many of the good ones I've enjoyed over the last few years are remakes of other films from countries like Japan -- in the case of The Ring and The Grudge and another, although a non-horror, a remake of the Hong Kong thriller Infernal Affairs called The Departed. Besides being remakes, what do these films, and several others including Dark Water and The Lake House, have in common? They are all produced by a guy named Roy Lee. And according to a story over at Sci-Fi Wire, Lee is not going to take it easy and rest on his past success.

Instead, he's planning on even more remakes and English-language versions of popular foreign films. His upcoming slate includes The Eye, Ikiru, Oldboy, a third Ring installment, The Invasion (featuring Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig) and a version of the Korean horror smash-hit The Host. Although, according to the article, Lee is having a little trouble adapting The Host, especially because he wants to tone-down the anti-American sentiment of the film and help it rise above a generic monster movie.

Hey, what's wrong with a generic monster movie anyway? Sometimes those can be fun. Like it or not, these films are coming. Maybe we'll get a few more good ones out of the bunch. If you play the odds, some have to end up good, don't they? Let's hope so. Look for The Invasion sometime this year. As for the rest, they'll probably hit theaters closer to 2008. ...

One of the greatest things about the film Heat was our chance to finally watch two fantastic actors (Robert De Niro and Al Pacino) act alongside one another. Of course, it wasn't the first time these two Godfathers of cinema appeared in the same film, but it was a moment everyone (including me) had been waiting for. And tell me that scene at the table didn't make the movie.

Now, word is trickling out via MTV and Production Weekly that De Niro might be teaming up with another mega-Hollywood giant, George Clooney. Okay, perhaps it's not as jaw-dropping as the De Niro/Pacino pairing, but nevertheless they're still a delicious on-screen duo. The film in question is Marc Forster's (Stranger Than Fiction) 36, a remake of the 2004 French flick 36 Quai des Orfèvres starring Gérard Depardieu. Pic tells of two cops who compete against each other to solve a series of armored car robberies, with the winner earning a promotion. At first glance, the premise could sound sort of comedic (if you hadn't heard of the original) -- however, I assure you this ain't no comedy. It's a straight-up crime drama, complete with violence, revenge and all that other tasty stuff. De Niro recently told MTV that he will film 36 (which will be based off a script written by The Manchurian Candidate scribe Dean Georgaris) after he's finished with the Barry Levinson pic What Just Happened.

Here's a question: In your own fantasy world, which two actors (or actresses) would you like to see paired up on the big screen?

I am going to get crucified for what I am about to say in this post. Deep breath. Please don't hate me. Deep breath. Here goes ... I do not watch Aqua Teen Hunger Force. Yes, it's true. Family Guy. Check. Robot Chicken. Check. Futurama. Check. Erik gets yelled out by his wife when he attempts to watch three minutes of Aqua Teen Hunger Force (or ATHF) because she thinks it's the stupidest show on the planet. Triple check.

The bits and pieces of the show I have watched were pretty solid, though it's safe to say The Force is best enjoyed when your mind is a bit altered ... if you catch my drift. For those who are not aware, ATHF is a cartoon aired daily on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim, and it revolves around the bumbling adventures of Meatwad (a wad of meat), Master Shake (a milkshake) and Frylock (a box of french fries). Needless to say, the show has built up enough steam (as well as a massive fanbase) through its television play and DVDs to warrant a feature film on the big screen. Not long ago, a very funny teaser hit the net, and now Variety brings us word that First Look Pictures will debut the 86-minute film this March on 800 screens across the country.

Pic, which was written, produced and directed by co-creators Matt Maiellaro and Dave Willis, will primarily focus on the origins of the three characters and feature the voice talent of Maiellaro, Willis, Bruce Campbell (kick ass!) and Neil Peart of the band Rush. It shall be interesting to see how this film does theatrically (I'd say $8-9 million would be a huge success -- keep in mind it's only on 800 screens), but I'm positive the DVD will rake in the cash. What other Adult Swim toons would you like to see on the big screen?

Just the fact that I had to check the spelling of the film seven times before creating the title of this post isn't a good sign of things to come for Disney and Pixar. Say what you want about this summer's crop of films (they're all sequels to sequels to sequels!), it's sure to go down as one of the most competitive in recent history. According to Jim Hill Media, it's that competition which is scaring the mouse poop out of Disney's marketing department, who are currently sweating bullets over how exactly to go about marketing the next Pixar film, Ratatouille, due out June 29.

Now, you're probably sitting there, saying to yourself: "But Erik, Cars was the second highest grossing film of 2006 with over $244 million at the domestic box office -- why should Disney be worried about how Ratatouille will perform?" Well, while that number is most certainly ginormous, it failed to meet the studio's internal financial projections and could not live up to the bigger figures produced by flicks like The Incredibles ($261 million) and Finding Nemo ($339 million). Add to that the fact that Cars had no real competition for at least six weeks, and you're looking at a combination of luck and positioning which helped it reach $244 million.

On the other hand, Ratatouille will have to fend off Transformers (July 4) and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (July 13) with a plot that revolves around a rat (not the cleanest of animals) who dreams about being a chef (great, a filthy animal who cooks food -- there's a pleasant image). Nemo had no real competition on the animated front, The Incredibles caught us at the peak of the superhero trend and Cars had the massive Nascar audience to feed off of. So, who does Ratatouille turn to? Rat lovers? Heck, Dreamworks' rat flick saw its box office figures flushed right down the toilet -- what's not to say the same thing won't happen to Ratatouille? And then who gets blamed for the Pixar acquisition? And what does that do to Pixar's rep?

And don't even get me started on which toy the kids would rather own -- a sweeet looking Transformer or a stuffed rat with a piece of cheese on its head??

Ian McKellen is the definition of stardust -- he is versatile, romantic and ethereal -- and it only makes sense that he signed on to narrate the upcoming film Stardust.

They don't call him Sir for nothing. He has earned that title time and time again with his plethora of intense roles. Each role he mastered as if it required nothing but him reciting the words. I always enjoy an actor who obtains such simplicity; a simplicity that can play Shakespeare (so many actors lack this ability and training) or something as majestic as Gandalf in Lord of the Rings.

Stardust is based on Neil Gaiman's novel baring the same name. The story is a lovely one, as a young man tries to win the heart of the woman he loves by promising to find a fallen star. His journey begins when acting to fulfill his promise. He then finds himself searching in the land of Faerie where he encounters hoards of magical and frightening beings.

The film includes a star-studded cast: Claire Daines, Robert DeNiro and Sienna Miller play characters in the story McKellen will tell. Matthew Vaughn, producer of Snatch, will be responsible for bringing the film to life. But it's McKellen's voice that will bring the film full circle. The actor -- not shy to voice-over work -- is bound to entrance us with this fairy tale; simply with the cadence of his voice.

In an attempt to enter the new year in good spirits, Robert De Niro (and his team of lawyers) have sent a letter to the owner of independent website, Tribeca.net, claiming the site is dancing dangerously close to copyright infringement, as it pertains to the Tribeca Film Festival. For those who weren't aware, De Niro practically owns the New York City neighborhood, having opened two restaurants there as well as helping to launch the widely popular spring film fest.

However, Tribeca.net has nothing whatsoever to do with the film festival (apparently it's a website that encourages independent artists to create their own TV shows and short films in order to be showcased online ... or something like that), and so the site's publisher (Chuck Harris) has written a friendly little letter (in which he also created a movie poster with the words 'Raging Bully' splattered across the top) reminding folks that the domain name was registered six years before the Tribeca fest began. He then goes on to spit out site statistics that claim Tribeca.net is more popular than the official website for the Tribeca fest, and that this whole what-to-do can be boiled down to a nasty case of jealousy on De Niro's part.

While you might think De Niro is being a bit of a bully here (and he kind of is), Tribeca.net has also launched two festivals of their own, one dedicated to TV shows and the other to short films. And, though Harris claims to have registered the domain back in 1995, the site did not officially open up shop until this past June. So, who's right here? Should De Niro back off of a little independent website which helps promote local homegrown talent (something he himself very much believes in), or should Tribeca.net either change their name or put up a notice claiming they are in no way affiliated with the Tribeca Film Festival? What say you?

[via Hollywood Wiretap]

Although I've never watched the show myself, according to its recent Golden Globe nomination for Best Television Series Drama, as well as the outstanding coverage provided to us by our sister site TV Squad, Heroes is a pretty popular program with you folks at home. And, part of that popularity is due to Masi Oka's performance as Hiro Nakamura -- a "Tokyo nonconformist computer/anime enthusiast who develops a way to pierce the space-time continuum and move back in time through sheer will power," so says the show's official website.

Well, the CGI artist-turned-actor (did you know he was a CGI artist on films like Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest and the Star Wars trilogy?) is now making his way to the big screen (and in front of the cameras for a change), as Oka is in talks to co-star in the Kevin Spacey-produced 21. Based off Ben Mezrich's book Bringing Down the House, film will tell the true story of how six M.I.T. whiz kids traveled to Vegas hell-bent on coming up with a way (mastering the art of counting cards) to take back with them as much money as they could. Robert Luketic will direct (now that he's officially done with Dallas) and Jim Sturgess will star in the lead role. Oka can also be seen in the upcoming Balls of Fury.

Was anyone else a little weirded out watching George Lucas at the beginning of yesterday's Rose Bowl? My little sister's boyfriend turned to me and said, "Wait, is that George Lucas? What the hell is he doing there?" Something tells me a lot of people said the same exact thing during the coin toss (although most probably did not know he was this year's Grand Marshal). All that aside, the trade's officially confirmed today that what we've been hearing about Indiana Jones 4 is indeed true -- yes, the project is a go and production will kick off this June.

After much consideration and fine-tuning of the script, Steven Spielberg has chosen Indy 4 as his next directorial assignment, and a 64 year-old Harrison Ford will reprise the role of Indiana Jones for a fourth (and final?) time. Says Spielberg, "George, Harrison and I are all very excited. We feel that the script was well worth the wait. We hope it delivers everything you'd expect from our history with Indiana Jones." Okay, I'll tell you what we expect Steve -- we expect you to not let Lucas ruin this thing with tons of fancy, digital special effects. We expect you to give us a fourth installment that remains true to the look and feel of the other three, regardless of when they were shot and what was available at the time.

Currently there's no title, casting or plot information, but based on what's been said before, there's a good chance Sean Connery will make an appearance and the story will have some sort of supernatural theme. Spielberg, Lucas and friends will be working off David Koepp's version of the script and shooting will take place within the U.S. as well as around the world. Though an official release date was not announced, all signs point toward May 2008, which means Indy 4 will be going up against Iron Man, Prince Caspian and the Wachowski Brothers' Speed Racer. Sweet!

So, you stoked or what?

Though it's a new year, we do not have a new film in the number one spot this week. With a 24% leap (I know, rare), Night at the Museum remained at the top of the box office this past weekend, taking in an estimated $37.8 million (Friday through Sunday only!). Really? You folks were that into watching more Ben Stiller shtick? Apparently so. Will Smith continued his pursuit of those big box office numbers (as I continue to pursue more original quips in my writing), and The Pursuit of Happyness once again finished right behind Museum with $19.3 million. (Man, did anyone party it up this weekend or were you all at the movies?)

I'll tell you one thing: If Dreamgirls had been in more theaters, that film would have massacred the competition; on only 852 screens (compared to Museum's 3,768 screens) the early buzz that attached itself to those expensive pre-screenings helped the film take in $15.5 million and third place at the box office. 852 freaking screens! We're looking at $18,192 per screen people! But don't worry, Dreamgirls expands to 1800 screens on January 12. And, unlike last weekend, Charlotte's Web delivered the knockout punch to Rocky Balboa, as those two films finished fourth and fifth respectively. While the Dreamgirls take was nice and all, check out the numbers for Pan's Labyrinth: $569,000 on 17 screens, for a mind-blowing $33,470 per screen average. All I have to say about that is ... wow.

Full numbers (Friday through Sunday only) after the jump.