By Tuesday, tickets for Hayao Miyazaki’s film “The Boy and the Heron” had topped $527 — more than a $200 increase. Meanwhile, tickets for “Dumb Money” were going for nearly $900. - The Wrap
"Although the festivals won't be as deprived of stars as feared, the agreements mean there will be a patchwork of talent: Who is and isn't attending depends on the project, the person's role in it and even their own calculation about the optics of appearing (or not)." - Yahoo! (Los Angeles Times)
In early 2019, YouTube announced tweaks to its recommendation system with the goal of dramatically reducing the promotion of “harmful misinformation” and “borderline content” (the kinds of videos that were almost extreme enough to remove, but not quite). - The Atlantic
The two highest-power frequencies in the western Massachusetts network, one FM and one AM, are moving to the news/talk format familiar on most NPR affiliates, while classical programming will be placed on five local frequencies with less geographical reach. - MassLive
Netflix says games are a key part of its proposition to stay relevant with audiences in years to come, and is slowly ramping up plans to offer more gaming experiences to subscribers. - BBC
A recently released film titled The Witness, about a touring violinist, caught in Kiev as the invasion begins, who sees (entirely fictional) atrocities committed by (fictional) neo-Nazi Ukrainian troops, is part of a wave of propagandistic feature films produced by the Russian state. Will Russians go see it? - AP
"From studio rentals and set construction to dry cleaning for costumes and transportation to sets, it's hard to find a corner of the Los Angeles economy that has entirely escaped the reverberations. … Restaurants, coffee shops, even nail salons that neighbor major studios — they're all desperate for a quick resolution." - AP
Child advocacy groups now suspect that a second FTC probe into YouTube could result in a fine that dwarfs that 2019 record penalty. Their letter suggested that if millions of COPPA violations are discovered through the FTC probe, "the Commission should seek civil penalties upwards of tens of billions of dollars." - ArsTechnica
The major issues remain the same: Streaming residuals, AI plans, and more. Can anything be resolved soon? Well, that's up to the producers. - Washington Post
Glamorous - and weird: "For the second year running – after Tár in 2022 – it seems as if Gustav Mahler will be echoing around the gateway to the Adriatic. It pains us to bring this up, but the long road to the 2024 Oscars begins in Venice." - Irish Times
Sometimes, "Hollywood can get too caught up in the lavish spectacle of these affairs, with depictions that sap them of their cultural or emotional significance" - but looking over the landscape, a new movie mostly delivers. - The New York Times
"Curzon Cinemas, a chain with 16 locations in Britain, began allowing dogs to attend select movie screenings with their owners, starting with Strays." - The New York Times
Possibly, Bottoms - being released in a post-Barbie world - can win through where Joy Ride (equally raunchy, but not violent) and No Hard Feelings (had J-Law! And Ferris Bueller!) did not. - Los Angeles Times
