Top Foreclosure Firms Homeless-Themed Halloween Party Pictures Spark Controversy on Internet

The story goes like this: NY's largest foreclosure law firm, Steven J. Baum, held it's big annual Halloween party last year, as they do every year the Friday before October 31. Nearly a year later, a former employee sent photos from the party to NY Times columnist Joe Nocera. But unlike most Halloween costume parties, this one sparked anger: the pictures depict what appears to be a "homeless" theme, with employees at the Buffalo-based firm apparently mocking the very homeowners their law firm targets with foreclosure.our editor recommendsMedia Releases Photos of Bank of America, Wells Fargo Foreclosure Firm's Homeless Themed Halloween BashAnn Curry's $2.9 Million NYC Brownstone Occupied by Homeless SquatterSee Pictures of Nicolas Cage's Foreclosed Las Vegas MansionHollywood Docket: Another Way To View the Foreclosure Mess STORY: Media Releases Photos of Bank of America, Wells Fargo Foreclosure Firm's Homeless Themed Halloween Bash For example, in the pictures, one woman is seen wearing a cardboard sign that reads, "3rd party squatter. I lost my home and I was never served." According to the unnamed source, the sign is meant to reflect "the typical excuse" of homeowners attempting to avoid a foreclosure proceeding. Bill Haydon, who says his income puts him in the top 1%, commented on the pictures, "I get it that sometimes attorneys need to do unpleasant things. To, however, take such mindless pleasure in it, to revel in other people's misery...to essentially wallow in it like pigs...is beyond the pale of basic human decency." "I fault the banks for lending money to people that were clearly unqualified, and for the deceptive practices that were often used," A.S. in North Carolina wrote in response to the NY Times column. "I also fault the borrowers that were blind to the risks and overextended themselves. But I also understand that many people now facing foreclosure are the collateral damage of a corrupt, dysfunctional and unregulated system, people that lost their jobs or retirement savings due to the recession." At the end of the day, to show such callousness and lack of empathy to people who are losing their homes is disgusting, especially when you are most likely in contact and dealing with them every day," A.S. continues. "No matter what the reason for foreclosure, it can only be a very painful and scary process for those going through it. For the Baum firm to treat it as a joke leaves me speechless. PHOTOS: Halloween Gone Wrong: 10 Least Scary Films of All Time Tom, in Boston, seemed to be one of the few who cut some slack for the employees pictured. "The photos are in bad taste but, as it was intended only as an inside joke, I think we need to keep things in context," he wrote on the NYT comment board. "This picture was never meant for the greater public's view." A commenter on a Gawker article by the username gt99tg also saw things from the perspective of the Steven J. Baum firm. "This is how they cope with being the 'bad guys.' Their costumes are totally insensitive and offensive. But keep in mind that a lot of people being foreclosed on were purchasing 5bd 4bath houses and making $20k a year. Yet we make people like Baum employees and banks to be the bad guys even in those situations when those types of homeowners SHOULD be foreclosed on. There are lots of just and unjust foreclosures out there." Ryan Atkins says his family was at one point homeless, and finds fault in the employees' costumes that depict the foreclosed as uneducated. "In fact, my dad was working towards his doctorate degree at the time we were homeless for that short period of time. Hardly uneducated," he writes. "I didn't know that the foreclosed homeless were so dirty? Really? They carry booze around in a paper bag? Right! That must be the reason for falling behind on their mortgage?" Sonia Weech added on Facebook. "A lot of comments about WF people losing their jobs over this, but it was a company supported party, and someone signed off on it. They won't get fired." PHOTOS: NY City Power List Others found similarities from this party to other insensitive depictions. "This, if true, has to be the most disgusting display of insensitive cruelty since American fraternity boys threw blackface-themed and KKK college parties," Robin S. Fletcher commented on Facebook. "For those employees to make fun of people who have lost their homes is disgusting. They think it's funny? At hospital Halloween parties, do employees dress like people who have died in their building? How about insurance companies who deny sick people health insurance, do their employees yuck it up by dressing like sick people?" writes Mary in Texas, in response to the NYT column. "This is the very reason I hate shows like storage wars, operation repo, and the pawn shop show... I don't see what's funny about others misfortune," James Thomas Sr. commented on Facebook. "It's nastier still that several of these photos show youngish, presumably lower-rung employees unctuously clowning for their corporate masters," Daniel Guideracommented on the NYT column. "Whomever is making the millions running this foreclosure mill will one day throw these performing seals to the wolves just as soon as look at them." A Gawker commenter, vinyluwant, also felt the individual people in the photographs are not entirely to blame. "To me, this is a group of people who are pathetically overinvested with their bosses. I don't know how much money the people in those pictures earn, but I'm making a guess that it is nowhere near what their bosses make, and therefore closer to the salaries of the very people they are mocking." As for Baum, the head of the firm told The Buffalo News in a statement Saturday that the photos "obviously were in poor taste." "On behalf of the firm, I sincerely apologize for what happened last year at our Halloween party," he said. While the theme of this year's Halloween bash is as of yet unknown, Baum said the party raised money for the American Red Cross. Related Topics

Philip K. Dick Family Sues for 'Adjustment Bureau' Film Royalties

Universal Gets the copyright on Philip K. Dick's short story that increased being the film The Adjustment Bureau been modified from existence? The late sci-fi author's trust has punished Media Rights Capital and filmmaker George Nolfi proclaiming they are decreasing to cover roylties within the 2011 film starring Matt Damon since they claim the story influences public domain. The suit, filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in La, claims Nolfi approached the estate in 2001 seeking rights for the Adjustment Team, Dick's 1953 story about several males who "adjust" the lives of standard people. The estate made the decision to license the story inside a "bargain" rate of $25,000 every year, in exchange, Nolfi mentioned he'd make "substantial obligations" for the trust once the movie ever happened. These obligations totalled in to the millions dollars when budget and box office bonuses are thought in, in line with the suit. Eight years later, Nolfi set the film like a writing and pointing vehicle for themselves at Media Rights Capital with Damon starring and Universal Pictures delivering. But monthly following a film was released in March 2011, Nolfi and MRC allegedly mentioned they discovered "an problem while using copyright chain of title for Adjustment Team" the accused now claim allows these to increase the risk for movie without needing to spend the money for trust anything. The suit describes this as theory absurd: "So, despite getting become their the best-selling bargain, accused goal to deny the trust of the side in the deal," the complaint alleges. The trust claims the filmmaker and MRC capitalized on the requirement for Dick's title and talked about a deal in good belief, and for that reason needs to be required to pay back. "Using heavy-handed means, they goal to 'adjust' contracts became a member of into way back when, 'adjust' determinations made way back when with the U.S. Copyright office, in addition to 'adjust' history to be able to hoard every money rightfully acquired with the estate in the guy whose genius inspired what's unquestionably an effective film," the complaint states. The accused are MRC II Distribution Company, MRC Holdings, Oaktree Entertainment, Nolfi and Michael Hackett. Universal is not a defendant. The suit alleges causes of action for breach of contract, money had and received, quantum meruit, illegal enrichment, additionally to declaratory relief regarding copyright rights and rights under contract. We've showed up at to Nolfi reps and MRC for comment. Trust lawyer Justin Goldstein also provides released the following statement: Philip K. Dick's trust and receivers were partners all of the strategies by lending time, support and cooperation through the expansion, production, marketing and relieve "The Adjustment Bureau." Rapidly following a movie was released as well as the money started flowing in, the filmmakers and Media Rights Capital attempted to chop the Trust out entirely, and grab every last dollar by themselves. To justify this greedy move, they are stating that contracts and copyright filings they, their lawyers, and agents examined and approved -- which the U.S. Copyright Office fortunate not once but two occasions -- are really wrong. Regarding the countless fans worldwide from the visionary sci-fi author, it truly saddens us thatthe matter required to achieve this time around. Email: Matthew.Belloni@thr.com Twitter: @THRMattBelloni

Anton Yelchin on Sex Moments With Jennifer Lawrence and Choosing 'Like Crazy' Over Real-Existence Love

It's amazing to look in a movie like 'Jurassic Park' and discover how good the results endure. The sequences appear almost too ideal for a movie that was released in 1994. For the, audiences can thank Dennis Muren, the visual effects wiz who done the initial two movies inside the series. While using 'Jurassic Park' trilogy released on Blu-ray now, Muren spoke for the L.A. Occasions Hero Complex blog, where he revealed the whole process of making the dinosaurs as realistic as you can, together with the continuing legacy in the first 'Jurassic Park.' It started by helping cover their us thinking, 'Well, maybe we are able to perform dinosaurs inside the distance with computer graphics, and possess Them running and many types of, but never get much closer than wide shots.' But when we i did so it, we just attempted but got more bold, but got closer in it and closer 'til we ended up undertaking a detailed-on the T. rex getting a performance you have never observed before, because you might never have the acting of people animals with animatronics or with fly fishing rod puppets or Muppets or anything. There's just no method it. It absolutely was a genuine real surprise for your audience and ourselves too, once we saw the film which we had people shots. The piece also provides two awesome behind-the-moments videos within the 'JP' Blu-sun sun rays, including interviews while using cast about how precisely their be employed in the film affected the comfort from the careers. Click through to have a look. [via LAT/Hero Complex] Follow Moviefone on Twitter Like Moviefone on Facebook

'Pretty Soon, It Will All Be Over': Director Roland Emmerich Thinks You're a Lemming

During Game 5 of the World Series between the St. Louis Cardinals and Texas Rangers on Monday night, Cardinals manager Tony LaRussa made a series of increasingly unexplainable pitching moves in the eighth inning, which helped contribute to his team's loss. After the game, LaRussa blamed the bizarre changes (sports fans and non-sports fans can read about them here) not on failed strategy, but a faulty bullpen phone. It seems that the Texas crowd was so loud that the Cardinals' bullpen coach had trouble hearing which pitchers LaRussa was asking for when he called down. On ESPN Radio this morning, hosts Mike Greenberg and Mike Golic imagined one reason for the phone disaster: Bullpenfone. Thanks, ESPN? In response, Moviefone checked in with the real Mr. Moviefone to find out what he thought of the incident: "Sounds to me like Tony LaRussa would have been better off dialing up the real Moviefone," he said. "Tony, use your day off to check out 'Moneyball' -- who knows? You might learn something!" Press one, TLR! [via ESPN] [Photo: Getty] Follow Moviefone on Twitter Like Moviefone on Facebook RELATED

Steve Jobs Tribute Logo Sparks Controversy for Graphic Designer

The revised Apple logo, with Steve Jobs' silhouette in place of the bite mark, found its way to all corners of the news media and the Internet in the wake of the co-founder's Oct 5 passing. But the graphic design student who created it is now fielding accusations of plagiarism. 19-year-old Jonathan Mak Long, who lives in Hong Kong, originally created the black and white image in August as a tribute to Jobs when he stepped down as CEO. And almost just as soon as it went viral, the NY Times reports Mak started being widely accused of copying the concept from British graphic designer Chris Thornley. PHOTOS: Steve Jobs Remembered in Magazine Covers Thornley created a very similar image in May, with a different color and slightly different silhouette. "It's been a very overwhelming experience," Mak tells NYT. "I still attend classes and lessons as usual. But as far as following my assignments, it's been difficult." Mak says he searched extensively to make sure he wasn't copying another design, and even asked readers to point out similarities between his work and any others when he posted it on his blog. VIDEO: Remembering Steve Jobs No one mentioned Thornley's design in any of the comments, and for five weeks the post received little attention. Then Jobs died. "Overnight, my website went from getting 80 responses to tens of thousands," he says. "At first I was very happy." And then people started referring to the other design, with Thornley's wife contacting Mak just three days later. STORY: Apple CEO Tim Cook on Steve Jobs: 'No Words Can Adequately Express Our Sadness' Mr. Thornley, who is receiving treatment for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, released a statement saying he developed his design in May to "celebrate the fact that someone who had cancer was still working, still driving forward and still thinking positively about the future." He also remains diplomatic about Mak's motives, noting that he doesn't think he was aware of the other design. But that hasn't stopped the negative publicity. Mak says the entire experience has taught him to be more cautious. Related Topics Steve Jobs Apple

Existence Unexpecteds Rafi Gavron Heads to Motherhood

Rafi Gavron Existence Unexpected's Rafi Gavron will guest-star on Motherhood, TV Line reviews.Inside an episode slated to air November. 22, Gavron - who referred to unhealthy-boy boyfriend of Lux (Britt Robertson) round the CW series -- may have Troy Quinn, a problematic like to Rosa Salazar's Zoe, regulations firm coffee girl who's pregnant and considering giving the newborn up for adoption to Erika Christensen's Julia.See the relaxation in the day's news on TVGuide.comFollowing a couple-episode pick-up in September, Parenthood's Season 3 stands at 18 episodes.Aside from his stint on Existence Unforeseen, Gavron has came out in Rome and cases of 24 and CSI: Miami.Motherhood airs Tuesdays at 10/9c on NBC.

Lars Von Trier Releases Public Statement

He'll not be questioned againWell, this is really interesting:Lars vonTrier has launched the next statement."Today at 2pm I had been asked through the Police of North Zealand regarding the charges produced by the prosecution of Grasse in France from August 2011 regarding a potential breach of prohibition in French law against justification of war crimes.""The analysis covers comments made throughout the press conference in Cannes in May 2011. Because of these serious accusations I've recognized that I don't hold the abilities to convey myself positively and that i have therefore made the decision out of this day forth to avoid all public claims and interviews."Lars von TrierAvedøre, 5. October 2011So, it might appear that there's been further fallout from von Trier's questionable joke about as being a Nazi, that they made only at that year's Cannes Film Festival. For additional particulars surrounding that, mind by doing this. And thus, with the potential of prosecution hanging over him, the truly amazing provocateur of world cinema has, possibly naturally, known as it each day. You will see individuals who believe vonTrier is basically getting what he warrants to make that statement in Cannes you will see other people who believe this can be a gross overreaction, which vonTrier will still you can speak his mind on every other subject.Wherever you stand about them, though, it appears that vonTrier makes his last public statement. Will that remain the situation, though?That greatly remains to appear.

Vinessa Shaw Starring in Dark Fairy Tale 'Siren' (Exclusive)

Getty Images Vinessa Shaw is starring in Siren, an indie which marks the directorial debut of feature and TV scribe Jesse Peyronel. Siren is a dark modern romantic fairy tale about a girl with a very unique curse: her scent makes her irresistible to all men. Peyronel wrote the script two years ago and was moved to direct after being inspired by seeing his friends and fellow filmmakers do well at this past year's Sundance with movies such as Sound of my Voice and Like Crazy. The script grew its roots from Peyronel's interest in fairy tales, Greek classics and, intriguingly, comic books. "It's really a grounded intimate look at someone who has a special ability but looked at in a personal way," says Peyronel. "It's takes a more a realistic look at an X-Men-style power." PHOTOS: Kristen Stewart Vs. Lily Collins Projects: Anatomy of a Snow White Smackdown Music and color is playing a strong role in the movie. Peyronel, when casting and staffing the movie, sent out the script with a packet that included not only photos of the look he was going for but also a link to a playlist that could be listened to while reading. He used a color chart to show how the tone of movie shifts from fairy tale to romance to thriller. Rounding out the Siren cast are Rob Kazinsky (Pacific Rim) Bess Wohl (CSI:NY) and Ross Partridge (The Off-Hours). Meg Thomson (dot the i) and Ludo Poppe (Peking Express) of Eccho Media are producing the movie, which is shooting in Massachusetts. Shaw starred with Joaquin Phoenix and Gwyneth Paltrow in James Gray's Two Lovers and counts 3:10 to Yuma and the recent Chris Evans movie Puncture as her credits. Peyronel is repped by Gersh while Shaw is repped by ICM. Joaquin Phoenix

Honing Your Dance-Making Skills in College

Honing Your Dance-Making Skills in College By Lisa Jo Sagolla October 6, 2011 Dancers interested in earning a college degree often struggle with the decision to give up four of their prime performing years to academic studies. Though studying in a college dance program can improve their skills, aspiring performers can just as easily take classes at commercial studios without having to interrupt or delay the start of their professional careers. But for those who want to be choreographers, it's a no-brainer: College is the perfect place to hone your choreographic craft.It Takes a Village "If you're interested in choreography, you absolutely need to go to college," says Louis Kavouras, chair of the dance department at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. "You not only need to study the craft, but you need the opportunities college provides to workshop your work and the apprenticeship experiences you get from being with other artists who choreograph. As a working professional, a choreographer is a very solitary person. There's not a lot of interface in the dance world for choreographers to get together. Dancers migrate, so they get a lot of pollination, but choreographers need that too. They need to work closely with other choreographers, especially in their developmental stages."UNLV offers a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in dance that includes a three-year choreography track. Students take four semesters of solid choreography classes, beginning with Choreography I, which emphasizes improvisation and movement generation. "This class develops their ability to generate new movement, so they're not copying and just going with set steps," Kavouras explains. "That's one of the main reasons for going to college to study choreography. Many of the dances created by young students, or those who haven't studied, just involve them taking steps they've been taught and putting them together into different sequences. They're not really generating new movement material."In the second class, Compositional Forms and Structure, students learn how to create movement phrases and explore the devices and forms used to manipulate and structure choreographic works. The third class requires them to create and analyze longer movement studies, while in Choreography IV they focus on digital medialearning the techniques of sound editing, working with composers, filming dance, and creating dance for video or making videos to use as background for their choreography."That sequence prepares them for two projects classes," says Kavouras, "in which they come in and propose a concept for a dance and then workshop it for an entire semester, bringing in all the elementsscenic design, costumes, lightingand putting them into play for a full presentation."UNLV's curriculum also includes an aesthetics course, which focuses on the philosophies of art, from Plato to modernism. "They explore questions like what is expression?, what is the difference between craft and technique?, and what is it about dance that makes it different from ordinary movement?" Kavouras says. "Thinking about all of that is really important to the choreographer. College also gives choreographers the time they need to develop and work on their craft without having to pay the bills doing it, without having to take any gig that comes along, or choreograph 30 competition numbers for children."According to Kavouras, it's also vital for choreographers to have their work shown: "They need it out there. They need eyes on it. Different eyes, from different cultures even. And they need to interact with work and choreographers from other places. We have an international travel program, where we take students' pieces all over the world. We've taken work to Korea, Germany, and Australia."While UNLV's program focuses primarily on ballet, modern, and jazz, its students are permitted to choreograph in any dance form they know. "The art of choreography transcends dance styles," Kavouras says. "The study of movement generation and the principles of compositional structure apply to any dance form."Takin' It Beyond the Streets Kathryn Daniels, dance department chair at Seattle's Cornish College of the Arts, agrees with Kavouras about the importance of college for choreographers. "If you want to learn to be a choreographer, virtually the only place to do it is within a college setting," she says. "The most you'll get outside of college is maybe a one- or two-week workshop. But to really have the opportunity to learn over time and in a sequentially developed program, you have to go to college."Daniels admits, however, that there are those in the commercial dance industry who might disagree with her: "In the area of music videos, for example, you'll find choreographers who may never have had a dance lesson in their livesthey're essentially street-taught. And they've learned to choreograph on the job. But quite honestly, I think their choreographic skills can be developed beyond that. There are people who might say, 'I have been in 14 Broadway shows, and that's where I polished my craft.' To them I would say, 'Yes, but there's still more you can learn.' "The BFA program in dance at Cornish places a strong emphasis on choreography and includes a six-semester sequence of course work in dance composition. "That's what we call choreography; we borrowed the term from music," Daniels explains. "There is a craft to choreography and specific choreographic tools that can be taught. It involves things like understanding how to move groups of people in space, as well as compositional forms which we again borrow from music, such as ABA, sonata, rondo, and crafting tools such as inversion and canon. There are all sorts of ways of learning to manipulate movement material to generate choreography that feels true and unique to yourself. And in addition to the pedagogical elements, college gives you the chance to practice your art. As a choreographer in a college setting, you have free rehearsal space, dancers available to you, and your work gets fully produced."Co-winner of the 2011 MTV Video Music Award for best choreography for his work on Beyonc's "Run the World (Girls)" music video, choreographer Jeffrey Page is a 2002 graduate of Philadelphia's University of the Arts. "I always made up dances when I was a little boy," he says, "but it wasn't until I got to college that I learned someone could have a full career as a choreographer."Born and raised in Indianapolis, Page started dancing as a child, doing mainly African dance and hip-hop, and then attended a performing arts magnet high school, where he studied ballet, modern, and jazz. "In Indiana, there were very few black dancers," he recalls. "So I was really attracted to the idea of going to college in Philadelphia, because you saw a lot of really good black dancers going to school there and dancing in Philadelphia professionally. It was like a little NY."While in college, where he majored in dance (with an emphasis on jazz dance performance), Page was also able to work as a professional dancer in the city, as well as in NY and Washington, D.C., as both were only a short train ride away and he was given permission to do so by the university's dance department chair. "I worked on 'Soul Possessed' with Debbie Allen in Washington and did 'Black Nativity' here at Freedom Theatre," he says. "And I also danced with Forces of Nature Dance Theatre in New York. Doing all those shows, however, really gave me my fill of dancing, and by the time I graduated, my interest was 100 percent on choreography."Nonetheless, Page went on to dance in "Fela!" on Broadway, after establishing himself as a sought-after choreographer in Los Angeles. He has created dances for television's "So You Think You Can Dance," the NAACP Image Awards, the Billboard Music Awards, and the BET Awards (for which he earned an Emmy nomination), as well as for Beyonc's world tour.As a choreographer, Page thinks in terms of musical structures when designing dances. "I think that's something I got from my college composition classes," he says. "In college I learned that choreography is strategic; it's thought-out, not random. We also did a lot of improv work in college, in order to find material. You play, and you find movement inside of your own mind and body, and I still do that to this day."Time to Create Stephen Koester, chair of the department of modern dance at the University of Utah, says, "A college is a great place for a choreographer to start, particularly in these economic times. You're given the time, the space, the bodies, and the mentorship over a concentrated and long period of time, which is a luxury anywhere outside of academia. Of course, you're paying for it. But the costs, compared to working in the 'real world,' are a lot less. And in a college situation, there's a more generous atmosphere, in which you're able to experiment, to risk, and to fail at times. In the real world, you have to put your work up there and live by it. Here you're almost expected to try things that may not work."The University of Utah offers both BFA and MFA degrees in dance. "Each program has only one track," Koester says. "We don't have a separate choreography track, in the belief that a broad base of study supports whatever it is you're going to do in dance. You learn how to choreograph by teaching, you learn how to teach by being in someone's dance, and you learn how to dance by choreographing. They all support each other and make you a better dance artist no matter what your focus or interest is."According to Koester, despite the lack of a separate choreography track, Utah's programs honor the creative process: "Every student will get either an improvisation or a choreography course every semester that they're at the university. We think of it as of equal importance to the physical practice and the theory of dance. All three areas are equally weighted." All students auditioning for Utah's undergraduate program are required to present a one- to two-minute solo of their own choreography.The University of Utah also offers a summer workshop on choreography and the creative process, which is open to students from other colleges or anywhere else. "It can be taken for credit or not," Koester says. "We bring in outside guest choreographers. Last year we brought in Eiko & Koma" and two other duos. "Our theme was collaborationpairs of choreographers who make work in tandem. This year we're going international and are bringing in choreographers from abroad." The workshop includes three daily sessions: a technique class, a repertory class, and a choreography session in which the guest artists mentor the students in developing their own choreography.Traditionally Liberal For aspiring choreographers who are also interested in acquiring a traditional liberal arts education, Baltimore's Goucher College offers a Bachelor of Arts in dance with eight concentrations, one of which is choreography. "The number and variety of opportunities for a choreographer in a college setting is far greater than they could get in any one place out in the professional dance world," says Elizabeth Lowe Ahearn, chair of the dance department."In our program," she continues, "beyond the composition classes, choreographers get the chance to advance and augment their movement vocabulary by taking technique classes in all the different idioms we offer hereballet, modern, jazz, musical theater, African dance and drumming. They can also take courses in anatomy, music, partneringall of which are really helpful to choreographers. And beyond that, they can expand their general education by taking classes in literature, history, art, mathematics. They can do this all in one location."Goucher's choreography program is focused on allowing students to develop their creative potential by investigating movement concepts and personal ideas in a safe environment over a three-year sequence of classes. "In the course work, they're fostering and developing their personal choreographic voice as they learn tools for how to create and shape movement," Ahearn explains. "And they are being provided with both traditional and untraditional points of view, such as site-specific works, chance forms, or working with sound scores instead of music."While ballet and modern are the foundational techniques on which the program is based, students are encouraged to choreograph in whatever style they like. "As long as they are addressing the question put forth in the composition class assignment, they can create in any idiom," Ahearn says. "If they want to investigate the question in pointe shoes, that's fine, as long as they're addressing the concept at hand. I've had students do studies in tap shoes. We want them to bring their own dance background to their choreographic work."Following completion of their course work, choreography students are expected to do a one-semester independent study or a yearlong senior thesis project. "These are enormous projects," Ahearn continues. "For example, we've had students create site-specific works for the Baltimore Museum of Art. They arranged getting their work installed there; they had to do all the negotiations and contracts, make their own costumes, and do their own publicity. If it's a thesis, there will be an academic component as well. They might have papers to write and will have to defend their work to a jury of professors."Ahearn also stresses the importance of a college program in developing a choreographer's critical eye, as students are asked to observe and comment on one another's choreography. "And looking at, talking, and writing about the works of others," she says, "is sometimes what helps them fully develop their own voices as choreographers." Honing Your Dance-Making Skills in College By Lisa Jo Sagolla October 6, 2011 Dancers interested in earning a college degree often struggle with the decision to give up four of their prime performing years to academic studies. Though studying in a college dance program can improve their skills, aspiring performers can just as easily take classes at commercial studios without having to interrupt or delay the start of their professional careers. But for those who want to be choreographers, it's a no-brainer: College is the perfect place to hone your choreographic craft.It Takes a Village "If you're interested in choreography, you absolutely need to go to college," says Louis Kavouras, chair of the dance department at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. "You not only need to study the craft, but you need the opportunities college provides to workshop your work and the apprenticeship experiences you get from being with other artists who choreograph. As a working professional, a choreographer is a very solitary person. There's not a lot of interface in the dance world for choreographers to get together. Dancers migrate, so they get a lot of pollination, but choreographers need that too. They need to work closely with other choreographers, especially in their developmental stages."UNLV offers a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in dance that includes a three-year choreography track. Students take four semesters of solid choreography classes, beginning with Choreography I, which emphasizes improvisation and movement generation. "This class develops their ability to generate new movement, so they're not copying and just going with set steps," Kavouras explains. "That's one of the main reasons for going to college to study choreography. Many of the dances created by young students, or those who haven't studied, just involve them taking steps they've been taught and putting them together into different sequences. They're not really generating new movement material."In the second class, Compositional Forms and Structure, students learn how to create movement phrases and explore the devices and forms used to manipulate and structure choreographic works. The third class requires them to create and analyze longer movement studies, while in Choreography IV they focus on digital medialearning the techniques of sound editing, working with composers, filming dance, and creating dance for video or making videos to use as background for their choreography."That sequence prepares them for two projects classes," says Kavouras, "in which they come in and propose a concept for a dance and then workshop it for an entire semester, bringing in all the elementsscenic design, costumes, lightingand putting them into play for a full presentation."UNLV's curriculum also includes an aesthetics course, which focuses on the philosophies of art, from Plato to modernism. "They explore questions like what is expression?, what is the difference between craft and technique?, and what is it about dance that makes it different from ordinary movement?" Kavouras says. "Thinking about all of that is really important to the choreographer. College also gives choreographers the time they need to develop and work on their craft without having to pay the bills doing it, without having to take any gig that comes along, or choreograph 30 competition numbers for children."According to Kavouras, it's also vital for choreographers to have their work shown: "They need it out there. They need eyes on it. Different eyes, from different cultures even. And they need to interact with work and choreographers from other places. We have an international travel program, where we take students' pieces all over the world. We've taken work to Korea, Germany, and Australia."While UNLV's program focuses primarily on ballet, modern, and jazz, its students are permitted to choreograph in any dance form they know. "The art of choreography transcends dance styles," Kavouras says. "The study of movement generation and the principles of compositional structure apply to any dance form."Takin' It Beyond the Streets Kathryn Daniels, dance department chair at Seattle's Cornish College of the Arts, agrees with Kavouras about the importance of college for choreographers. "If you want to learn to be a choreographer, virtually the only place to do it is within a college setting," she says. "The most you'll get outside of college is maybe a one- or two-week workshop. But to really have the opportunity to learn over time and in a sequentially developed program, you have to go to college."Daniels admits, however, that there are those in the commercial dance industry who might disagree with her: "In the area of music videos, for example, you'll find choreographers who may never have had a dance lesson in their livesthey're essentially street-taught. And they've learned to choreograph on the job. But quite honestly, I think their choreographic skills can be developed beyond that. There are people who might say, 'I have been in 14 Broadway shows, and that's where I polished my craft.' To them I would say, 'Yes, but there's still more you can learn.' "The BFA program in dance at Cornish places a strong emphasis on choreography and includes a six-semester sequence of course work in dance composition. "That's what we call choreography; we borrowed the term from music," Daniels explains. "There is a craft to choreography and specific choreographic tools that can be taught. It involves things like understanding how to move groups of people in space, as well as compositional forms which we again borrow from music, such as ABA, sonata, rondo, and crafting tools such as inversion and canon. There are all sorts of ways of learning to manipulate movement material to generate choreography that feels true and unique to yourself. And in addition to the pedagogical elements, college gives you the chance to practice your art. As a choreographer in a college setting, you have free rehearsal space, dancers available to you, and your work gets fully produced."Co-winner of the 2011 MTV Video Music Award for best choreography for his work on Beyonc's "Run the World (Girls)" music video, choreographer Jeffrey Page is a 2002 graduate of Philadelphia's University of the Arts. "I always made up dances when I was a little boy," he says, "but it wasn't until I got to college that I learned someone could have a full career as a choreographer."Born and raised in Indianapolis, Page started dancing as a child, doing mainly African dance and hip-hop, and then attended a performing arts magnet high school, where he studied ballet, modern, and jazz. "In Indiana, there were very few black dancers," he recalls. "So I was really attracted to the idea of going to college in Philadelphia, because you saw a lot of really good black dancers going to school there and dancing in Philadelphia professionally. It was like a little NY."While in college, where he majored in dance (with an emphasis on jazz dance performance), Page was also able to work as a professional dancer in the city, as well as in NY and Washington, D.C., as both were only a short train ride away and he was given permission to do so by the university's dance department chair. "I worked on 'Soul Possessed' with Debbie Allen in Washington and did 'Black Nativity' here at Freedom Theatre," he says. "And I also danced with Forces of Nature Dance Theatre in NY. Doing all those shows, however, really gave me my fill of dancing, and by the time I graduated, my interest was 100 percent on choreography."Nonetheless, Page went on to dance in "Fela!" on Broadway, after establishing himself as a sought-after choreographer in Los Angeles. He has created dances for television's "So You Think You Can Dance," the NAACP Image Awards, the Billboard Music Awards, and the BET Awards (for which he earned an Emmy nomination), as well as for Beyonc's world tour.As a choreographer, Page thinks in terms of musical structures when designing dances. "I think that's something I got from my college composition classes," he says. "In college I learned that choreography is strategic; it's thought-out, not random. We also did a lot of improv work in college, in order to find material. You play, and you find movement inside of your own mind and body, and I still do that to this day."Time to Create Stephen Koester, chair of the department of modern dance at the University of Utah, says, "A college is a great place for a choreographer to start, particularly in these economic times. You're given the time, the space, the bodies, and the mentorship over a concentrated and long period of time, which is a luxury anywhere outside of academia. Of course, you're paying for it. But the costs, compared to working in the 'real world,' are a lot less. And in a college situation, there's a more generous atmosphere, in which you're able to experiment, to risk, and to fail at times. In the real world, you have to put your work up there and live by it. Here you're almost expected to try things that may not work."The University of Utah offers both BFA and MFA degrees in dance. "Each program has only one track," Koester says. "We don't have a separate choreography track, in the belief that a broad base of study supports whatever it is you're going to do in dance. You learn how to choreograph by teaching, you learn how to teach by being in someone's dance, and you learn how to dance by choreographing. They all support each other and make you a better dance artist no matter what your focus or interest is."According to Koester, despite the lack of a separate choreography track, Utah's programs honor the creative process: "Every student will get either an improvisation or a choreography course every semester that they're at the university. We think of it as of equal importance to the physical practice and the theory of dance. All three areas are equally weighted." All students auditioning for Utah's undergraduate program are required to present a one- to two-minute solo of their own choreography.The University of Utah also offers a summer workshop on choreography and the creative process, which is open to students from other colleges or anywhere else. "It can be taken for credit or not," Koester says. "We bring in outside guest choreographers. Last year we brought in Eiko & Koma" and two other duos. "Our theme was collaborationpairs of choreographers who make work in tandem. This year we're going international and are bringing in choreographers from abroad." The workshop includes three daily sessions: a technique class, a repertory class, and a choreography session in which the guest artists mentor the students in developing their own choreography.Traditionally Liberal For aspiring choreographers who are also interested in acquiring a traditional liberal arts education, Baltimore's Goucher College offers a Bachelor of Arts in dance with eight concentrations, one of which is choreography. "The number and variety of opportunities for a choreographer in a college setting is far greater than they could get in any one place out in the professional dance world," says Elizabeth Lowe Ahearn, chair of the dance department."In our program," she continues, "beyond the composition classes, choreographers get the chance to advance and augment their movement vocabulary by taking technique classes in all the different idioms we offer hereballet, modern, jazz, musical theater, African dance and drumming. They can also take courses in anatomy, music, partneringall of which are really helpful to choreographers. And beyond that, they can expand their general education by taking classes in literature, history, art, mathematics. They can do this all in one location."Goucher's choreography program is focused on allowing students to develop their creative potential by investigating movement concepts and personal ideas in a safe environment over a three-year sequence of classes. "In the course work, they're fostering and developing their personal choreographic voice as they learn tools for how to create and shape movement," Ahearn explains. "And they are being provided with both traditional and untraditional points of view, such as site-specific works, chance forms, or working with sound scores instead of music."While ballet and modern are the foundational techniques on which the program is based, students are encouraged to choreograph in whatever style they like. "As long as they are addressing the question put forth in the composition class assignment, they can create in any idiom," Ahearn says. "If they want to investigate the question in pointe shoes, that's fine, as long as they're addressing the concept at hand. I've had students do studies in tap shoes. We want them to bring their own dance background to their choreographic work."Following completion of their course work, choreography students are expected to do a one-semester independent study or a yearlong senior thesis project. "These are enormous projects," Ahearn continues. "For example, we've had students create site-specific works for the Baltimore Museum of Art. They arranged getting their work installed there; they had to do all the negotiations and contracts, make their own costumes, and do their own publicity. If it's a thesis, there will be an academic component as well. They might have papers to write and will have to defend their work to a jury of professors."Ahearn also stresses the importance of a college program in developing a choreographer's critical eye, as students are asked to observe and comment on one another's choreography. "And looking at, talking, and writing about the works of others," she says, "is sometimes what helps them fully develop their own voices as choreographers."

WB hops on Bridge Direct

The Bridge Direct has showed up the planet master toy and game certification rights for Warner Bros.' "The Hobbit" films, helmed by Healing For Healing For Peter Jackson. The Boca Raton, Fla.-based company can make figures, playsets and role-play add-ons like swords and fight axes designed across the figures and props inside the photos, while using first merchandise striking store shelves just before the 12 ,. 14, 2012, relieve "The Hobbit: An Unforeseen Journey." Follow-up "The Hobbit: There and AgainInch is skedded for 12 ,. 13, 2013. Retail partners will probably be proven the initial kind of products inside the future. While numerous companies were competing for your "Hobbit" deal, Warner Bros. Consumer Products granted the license to Bridge Direct thinking about the very fact that many its professionals and staffers tried developing and marketing products connected with New Line's "Our god in the Rings" franchise while at other toymakers including Toy Biz and Play Along. Toys connected with WB's films and tv shows are often produced by Mattel. Bridge Direct, run by toy biz vet Jay Foreman, is much better recognized for its "Zhu Zhu Pets" kind of plush, figures and playsets, "Bobby Jack" toys and novelties, "Busytown" automobiles and playsets as well as the Attacking Youthful Boys dolls. "Due to the majority of the same creative minds behind 'The Our god in the Rings' trilogy products, we're searching toward unveiling a powerful toy line for your two films that captures the excitement in the beloved adventure and delights loyal fans in the series," mentioned Karen McTier, professional V . p . of domestic certification and worldwide marketing for Warner Bros. Consumer Products. Contact Marc Graser at marc.graser@variety.com

BREAKING! MPTFs Acute Care Cope With Providence Health & Services Doesn't Happen

EXCLUSIVE: I’ve got confirmation of the items I’ve suspected since September fourth: the Film And Tv Fund’s pact for Providence Health & Services California to consider within the acute care hospital and intensive care assisted living facilities isn't any more. That’s right, the offer has fallen through whose existence I scooped in on Feb 23rd, after which introduced with your fanfare, known as forProvidenceto broaden and expand health care services towards the entertainment industryon the storied Wasserman Campus in Woodland Hillsides. However, an MPTF insider informs me tonight there’s a “better alternative” in route which any gossips concerning the facilities “closing [are] not the case”. I understand that several major Hollywood moguls happen to be but still will work behind-the-moments to try to keep servicingacute care patients. But by now, employees and staff from the hospital started telling family people the Providence deal has flattened and there's nothing in position to help keep it open. So essentially the MPTF is in exactly the same mess it had been beginning last year once the first announcement is made concerning the MPTF’s decision to shut its acute care hospital and intensive care assisted living facilities simply because they were losing $ten million annually. This grew to become an enormous Hollywood story with major implications for everybody who considered the MPTF his or her back-up in occasions of sickness and senior years. Also it underscored how, with the enormous wealth in showbiz, the community couldnt or wouldnt take care of its much better than this. I realize the grassroots activists who fought against so difficult and lengthy to help keep the facilities from shuttering haven't been formally told yet relating to this terrible development. Who's offered by continuing to keep this secret? Definitely not the patients or their family members. The connection with Providence resulted in that MPTF could continue supplying lengthy-term care services on its campus, putting aside its closure announcement. During the time of the announcement, associates explained, It couldnt be considered a better scenario. This news came around the eve from the Film & Television Fund Fundamentals ninth Annual Evening Before Pre-Oscar Fundraising event located by Jeffrey Katzenberg, chairman from the MPTF Foundation Board. Additionally, it adopted a California Department Of Public Health inspection from the Film & Television Funds skilled nursing facility completed on June 4, 2010, stating the MPTF for privileges violations and repair failures. And came following the forced resignation of Dr. David Tillman, MPTFs leader and leader, and the alternative through the more responsible and conciliatory Bob Beitcher. And let’s remember time of bad publicity for pretty much everybody involved in the MPTF due to protests by groups like Saving The Lives That Belongs To Them to make sure that the entertainment industrys commitment of Being Careful in our Own remains unbroken now as well as for future decades just as when it had been founded in 1921 by Mary Pickford, Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks and D.W. Griffith to assist showbiz individuals who fell on hard occasions. And recent weak Hollywood Guild contracts using the galleries and systems may have caused by slowly destroying more people of the middle-class livelihoods and imperiling their own health and pension benefits to ensure that later on much more stress is going to be placed on MPTF infrastructure. Back on November 24th, I reported that MPTFs lately installed Leader/Boss Bob Beitcher was attempting to effect an agreement and was told chances are favoring a face-saving yet real solution for that LTC along with a major capital campaign, on the ongoing war of attrition and negative PR. So a dialoguewas ongoing between Beitcher, Film and tv Fund Foundation Boss Ken Scherer, and MPTF moguls. It had been 2 yrs ago, that with no warning the shocking announcement is made the MPTFs acute care hospital and long-term care elderly care were losing $ten million annually which the shortfall was likely to widen considerably in future years. Reported because the problem could be that the huge most of hospital and LTC patients are handled by government insurance programs whose compensation rates haven't stored pace with fast-rising operating costs. So MPTF have been creating the shortfall by sinking into its investment reserves. But, according to its forecasts, ongoing to subsidize a healthcare facility and LTC facility may likely exhaust available reserves within 5 years. About 100 retired people then resided in MPTFs acute-care facilities. Consequently from the planned phase-outs, individuals patients may be moved during the period of 2009 to selected MPTF and Providence wished to accomplish definitive contracts later this season, detailing each partys roles and duties. Any final agreement could have been susceptible to Board and regulating home loan approvals. However the deal never closed. During the time of the announcement, Beitcher stated you will find only those who win here, including our lengthy-term care citizens”. Without another offer place with care providers, seems like you will find only nonwinners now.

EU ruling threatens int'l TV biz

LONDON -- In a landmark ruling for the broadcasting industry, Europe's highest court has ruled that U.K. sports fans can watch live sports matches on cheaper foreign decoders. The ruling, which centers around Brit pub landlady Karen Murphy who, five years ago, started using Greek firm Nova via a decoder to show Premier League soccer games to her customers, is likely to trigger wider ramifications for all broadcast rights holders in Blighty and the EU. Murphy paid around 8,000 ($12,300) in fines and costs because she used a foreign satellite TV provider to showcase Brit soccer games rather than going through U.K. pay TV outlet BSkyB, which paid more than $1.54 billion for the rights to Premier League soccer matches. Murphy appealed the case to the European court of justice, which ruled on Tuesday that the Football Assn. Premier League cannot prevent individuals from looking for better deals for TV sports subs from European broadcasters. The court found that the sale of rights on a country-by-country basis broke the EU law. While increased competition could strike good news for consumers and pub landlords across Blighty, the ramifications for rights holders, content producers and broadcasters could be damaging. For instance, movies that are currently released in specific chronological windows in each country due to exclusive territorial licensing could see the erasure of a territory-by-territory distribution structure via television. Exclusive territoriality allows broadcasters to tailor content locally to suit local consumer demand in a given country or region. The destruction of this model could lead to fewer broadcasters. Writing in U.K. newspaper The Times, Stephen Garrett, chairman of Kudos Film and TV and exec chairman of Shine Pictures, expressed why the content industry had reason to worry. "We finance our productions by selling rights on a territory by territory basis, a strategy that self-evidently only works if it is exclusive," he said. "An episode of 'Spooks' costs around 1 million ($1.54 million) to produce and employs hundreds of people. High quality entertainment is not cheap and as a producer, Kudos has effectively to mortgage these territorial rights in order to secure the upfront funding to make the show in the first place. "The incentive for broadcasters to make this investment is the guarantee that they will be the only one screening the film on their turf when it is released, which means maximum ratings and advertising revenues. Without it why would they bother to invest?" He added that the ruling could see smaller companies "squeezed out of the market." "Broadcasters would find themselves forced to buy more rights than they need in order to secure the ones that they really want, creating a fictitious and fundamentally unsustainable market for unwanted rights. Only the biggest broadcasting companies could afford to play such a game, fuelling concentration detrimental to media pluralism and competition." However, as sporting events have no intellectual properties while theatrical performances do, it is still unclear how this ruling will play out to the wider broadcasting industry. Currently, the cost of individual subscriptions for BSkyB's sports package is not hugely more expensive than its European counterparts and a foreign subscription will of course be susceptible to localized content with any English language pics or TV programs subtitled or dubbed accordingly. Contact Diana Lodderhose at diana.lodderhose@variety.com

Watch Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows 2010