Latest news with #MichelGondry
ABC News
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- ABC News
Michel Gondry's new film was created to keep his daughter close
After French pop group Oui Oui disbanded in 1992, things took off for then-drummer Michel Gondry. What: a cute, cut-and-paste animation made by a beloved French filmmaker for his daughter. Directed by: Michel Gondry. Starring: his daughter, Maya Gondry. When: Playing at the Melbourne International Film Festival. Likely to make you feel: like whipping out the glue gun. The kooky music videos he directed for the band were spotted by Icelandic singer-songwriter Björk, just as she was launching her solo career, post-The Sugarcubes. Their bright minds sparked together, with his trippy, dark fairy tale clip for her debut single Human Behaviour the start of a rewarding partnership. In high demand, Gondry went on to direct clips for the likes of Lenny Kravitz, Sinéad O'Connor, The White Stripes, Daft Punk, Massive Attack and Radiohead. He also realised the many Kylie Minogues of her 2001, Parisian-set music video, Come into my World. That same year marked the arrival of Gondry's big-screen directorial debut feature, Human Nature, a surreal love triangle spun from a screenplay by Being John Malkovich writer Charlie Kaufman. They'd collaborate again on their Oscar-winning break-up movie Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, starring Kate Winslet and Jim Carrey. But of all these starry team-ups, perhaps his greatest pairing is with his daughter, Maya. Maya, Give Me a Title (Maya, Donne-moi un Titre), Gondry's adorable, paper cut-out stop-animated movie, is the result of his long-distance relationship with his daughter. To keep their connection strong across the ocean, he'd task his young daughter with dreaming up a film title. Then he'd use his lo-fi collage techniques to conjure it up, casting Maya in the starring role each time. It was created across five years, beginning when Maya was just three-years-old. Screening at the Melbourne International Film Festival this August, the family-friendly, hour-long film that collates a few of their faves, is a visual feast for the soul, harnessing a sweetly creative brand of chaos. Throughout the film, Maya saves the world from a tomato sauce disaster, becomes a mermaid, survives an earthquake, and is rescued from a snowball by an adorable cat. "Little by little, as Maya grew up, the film became more complicated," Gondry says of the prompts he received from her. "It was a fun challenge to accomplish, because her titles were sometimes crazy. So it was very stimulating, creating stories from these elements." We meet at Club UniFrance, the French film industry's hub in Berlin, during that city's celebrated film festival, commonly known as Berlinale. I ask him how his childhood compares to his relationship with Maya. "We were three brothers, very close in age, and while Maya does have an older brother, Paul, he's 32, so they aren't as close as we were," Gondry says. "Our parents were a bit hippy, and we were very encouraged to be creative, and to have quirks which were sometimes bizarre." Maya, on the other hand, has a much more structured upbringing. "Children now have a million activities, like she plays an instrument, does karate and choir," he says. "We never had that much going on, which I think was maybe better." It certainly encouraged the imagination of a young Gondry and his brothers — Oliver also grew up to be a music video director — who made their own fun, drawing all the time. While they loved watching cartoons together, Gondry never shared his brother's love of superhero comics. "I always hated them," he says. "I really saw them as a description of fascism. One guy that's going to save the world, and so on." Instead, he was intrigued by the more unusual animated movies coming out of Eastern European countries. He also adores Albert Lamorisse's celebrated short, The Red Balloon (Le Ballon Rouge). "It's just magic, because you fly across France from north to south, and I watch it maybe once a year, which makes me happy," Gondry says. Gondry's disdain for superheroes has only grown in the intervening years, as their rapidly proliferating franchises took over cinemas. Cheekily, I note he directed The Green Hornet, co-written with and starring Seth Rogen. "It's not the same," he sighs, and we quickly move on. There's a sense that Gondry has never lost the playfulness many of us are fooled into leaving behind as we grow up, finding joy in the simplest things. "I don't make much difference between children and adults, and I see them as a complete person," he says. "It's not a Bergman movie. It's a fun little adventure," Gondry says of his make-do-and-mend approach to crafting Maya, Give Me a Title. "It's also a lot of work to create all the backgrounds, but very enjoyable, like painting with a good friend. It's very satisfying to find the right blue to make the sky, using tracing paper to make clouds." Maya, Give Me a Title's fantastic sound design pops alongside composer Jean-Michel Bernard's peppy score. "When you're working in such a simple animation style, it's the sound that makes it feel more real," Gondry says. "The fun part is that we'd find a great sound, then use it for something completely different that it has nothing to do with." Keeping his animation simple allows the audience to fill in the best possible special effects: the ones we conjure up in our minds, just like he and his brothers. "The less technical the medium, the more freedom you have in the storytelling," Gondry says. "So that's where paper cutouts are great. I stop in the middle between realism and the abstract, and the audience completes the journey using their imagination." Does he hope that Maya, who also appears in live-action interludes, will follow in his footsteps? "I would be happy whatever she does," Gondry says. "If she's happy, that's the main thing." Maya, Give Me a Title screens at MIFF
USA Today
08-07-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
The early 2000s movie that actors and directors call one of the best of the 21st century
What are the movie makers' favorite movies? The New York Times posed that question recently, polling some 500 notable directors, actors and Hollywood players to compile a list of the 100 best films of the 21st century. The result – a polarizing and comprehensive tour of modern movie magic – was published this month. Among the varied titles that made the list, one 2000s flick emerged as a favorite among actors and directors alike. "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind," Michel Gondry's 2004 heartbreak epic, landed at No. 7 on the list, just behind No. 1 pick "Parasite." Is this the best movie of the 21st century? 500 Hollywood power players think so. Among the big names who voted for it were Australian actress Toni Colette, "Succession" star Brian Cox, and horror film director Robert Eggers. The movie, which stars Kate Winslet and Jim Carrey, turns the classic rom-com formula on its head, imagining if a recently split couple had the power to erase all memories of one another. The resulting film is a heartwrenching exploration of how we are shaped by love and the inevitability of pain as an accompaniment to vulnerability. "It's really smart. It's deeply moving. And it's funny. You can get all those three, which is rare," author Dennis Lehane wrote of the movie alongside his vote for the list. Our 40 favorite movies of the past 40 years, from 'Back to the Future' to 'Get Out' "It's very much about how love finds a way. And I don't mean that in the sunny Hallmark way. I mean that in the messy, sometimes destructive, sometimes self-destructive way," wrote Lehane, a novelist and screenwriter whose books, such as "Mystic River" and "Shutter Island," have been adapted into popular films. Other stars who cast a ballot for "Eternal Sunshine" included "The Help" star Bryce Dallas Howard and "Barbie" actor Simu Liu. Rachel Zegler, who was born just three years before the movie was released, also listed it as one of her favorites, as did novelist Curtis Sittenfeld. That the film has a cult following among even A-listers is no surprise. Since its early 2000s release, it has become an unbreakable part of the cultural vocabulary. Pop star Ariana Grande's most recent album, "Eternal Sunshine," drew heavily from the themes of the film, her music video for one of the tracks even recreating scenes from the movie. With Carrey in a rare serious role, and a star-studded supporting cast including Kirsten Dunst, Elijah Wood and Mark Ruffalo, the movie's grasp on the bodily violence of heartbreak continues to earn it new fans.
Daily Mail
16-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Hollywood A-lister reveals why she blames Kate Winslet for being cut from blockbuster
Ellen Pompeo has revealed she was 'completely cut' from the final edit of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind due to Kate Winslet 's sensational performance. The Grey's Anatomy actress, 55, was reflecting on the early days of career – before she became a household name thanks to her notable role of Dr Meredith Grey – when she shared that she didn't make the final cut in Michel Gondry's award-winning film. Speaking to Katie Couric at Tribeca Film Festival on Saturday, Pompeo recalled her acting work before taking up the offer of filming the Grey's Anatomy pilot. 'I did Catch Me If You Can with Stephen [Spielberg],' she recalled. 'I did Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, which I got completely cut out of because Kate Winslet is in the move of course.' She then joked: 'If you have Kate Winslet, you definitely don't need me.' Written by Charlie Kaufman and released in 2004, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is a surrealist science fiction romantic drama. With Winslet, 49, and Jim Carey, 63, at the helm, the film follows Clementine (Winslet) as she undergoes a procedure to erase memories of her former boyfriend Joel (Carrey) from her mind. When Joel discovers that Clementine is going to extremes to forget their relationship, he undergoes the same procedure and slowly begins to forget the woman that he loved. The film won an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay in 2005, while Kate was nominated for the Best Actress gong. It also picked up a BAFTA for Best Original Screenplay and Best Editing, and Jim and Kate were both nominated for Best Actor and Best Actress. Besides Winslet and Carrey, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind also starred Kristen Dunst, Mark Ruffalo, Elijah Wood, and Tom Wilkinson. Elsewhere in her talk at Tribeca Film Festival, Ellen reflected on her appearance in the 2002 movie Moonlight Mile, directed by Brad Silberling. Pompeo starred alongside Jake Gyllenhaal, Dustin Hoffman, Susan Sarandon, and Holly Hunter in the film, but sadly it failed to attract appeal and flopped at the box office. Although it flopped, Pompeo believed that the film would be her big break. 'It was the best thing that never happened, is what I say,' Pompeo said as she discussed the film's lackluster performance and how her career stalled thereafter. 'And I love that phrase because it really is. 'I think the universe comes in and takes over for you at certain moments and not everything you think should be the next thing you should do. 'Had I gotten all that attention and had all the things that they told me were going to happen for me, had they happened in that moment, I may not have been ready for them. 'There's no guarantee that that necessarily was the best path for me.' Pompeo continued: 'I don't necessarily think fame and attention are the best path for any young person. I think it's a really slippery slope. 'So, in that moment for me to really have to learn that lesson, to see all of these really important people in the industry are building me up and building me up, I believed it for a hot second and then they pulled the rug from under me, which was like thank you universe, because that's life. That's what can happen.' Returning to Moonlight Mile's failure, Pompeo said: 'They didn't know how to market it. I think they felt it was too sad and so they sort of didn't really give it a chance.'
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Annecy Revs Up For 2025 Edition; Kicking Off With Michel Gondry & Matt Groening Honors & Shorts Selection Featuring New ‘Stars Wars: Visions' Title
The Annecy International Animation Film Festival kicks-off this weekend with a masterclass by French filmmaker Michel Gondry, who will also receive a career award alongside The Simpsons creator Matt Groening and UK animation director Joanna Quinn at the opening ceremony. It marks The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind director Gondry's first trip to the lakeside event, billed as the biggest animation festival in the world, although his work Is the Man Who Is Tall Happy?:An Animated Conversation with Noam Chomsky played at the festival in 2014, winning the best French film prize. More from Deadline 'Wallace & Gromit' Studio Aardman Partners With France's Foliascope On Cross-Border Stop-Motion Training Program Gkids Takes North America For Cannes & Annecy Title 'Little Amélie Or The Character Of Rain' Nickelodeon Acquires Animated Kids' Show 'Mr. Crocodile' From Joann Sfar's Magical Society & Mediawan 'Michel is exactly like Terry Gilliam,' says the festival's artistic director Marcel Jean, referring to Annecy's 2024 guest of honor. 'He comes from the world of animation. That's where he started. We've wanted to invite him for a long time and the planets have aligned.' Jean notes that Gondry's visit also coincides with a focus this year on the use of animation in music videos, a domain in which the director is also well-known for his collaborations with the likes Of Björk, The White Stripes and Daft Punk. In a break with tradition, Jean has opted to world premiere five short films at the opening ceremony rather than showcase a single feature film. Recent openers have included The Most Precious of Cargoes (2024), Sirocco and the Kingdom of Air Streams (2023) and Minions: The Rise of Gru (2022). 'We wanted to reaffirm the place of the short film at Annecy,' explains Jean. 'With the first films, we don't stipulate that they are French premieres, but this year we received an enormous amount of world premieres, so we decided to open with a program of shorts, which are very different and very strong.' They range from 9 Million Colours by emerging Czech director Bára Anna Stejskalová, who won praise for her short film Love Is Just A Death Away, to Shinya Ohira's Star Wars: Visions – 'Black', from Japanese anime studio david production, produced by Lucasfilm for Disney+. The line-up also features The Girl Who Cried Pearls, the latest stop-motion work from Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski, the Canadian directorial duo working under the banner of Clyde Henry Productions, who were Oscar nominated for short film Madam Tutli-Putli. Bulgarian Oscar-nominated director Theodore Ushev, who won Annecy's best short award in 2020, also returns with La Vie avec un idiot about a man forced to live with an idiot as a state sanctioned punishment. The opening night mix of filmmakers forging their way in the indie space and globally known animation stars such as Matt Groening and IPs such as Star Wars encapsulates the essence of Annecy, which is one of the few film festivals in the world to truly showcase indie and studio fare side-by-side with equal amounts of respect and attention. This mix and the festival's efforts to cater to animation professionals across all formats and styles has won it fans worldwide. In 2024, there 17,400 accredited attendees, including 6,500 participants at its MIFA market, and 4,120 students, who give the festival its youthful atmosphere. At the heart of the festival program is the 21-title Main Competition, with contenders this year ranging from established names such as Sylvain Chomet with A Magnificent Life and Félix Dufour-Laperrière with Death Does Not Exist, to newcomers such as Ugo Bienvenu with Arco, and Momoko Seto with Dandelion's Odyssey. Jean acknowledges that many of the films have French connections this year but suggests this is more a reflection of the role France plays in financing independent feature films. 'I think the dynamism of French film finance and cultural diplomacy makes it look like there are a lot of French entries but the directors and stories this year are from across the world,' he says. Outside of the competition programs, the festival will also be world premiering Andy Serkis's Animal Farm on Monday and hosting the French premiere of How To Train Your Dragon as special screening events ahead of its release in France on June 11. The other big draw for attendees outside of the films are the works-in-progress, makings of and sneak peaks, as well as the program of close to 200 industry sessions. As ever, all the Hollywood studios will be out in force. Disney kicks off the Making of sessions on Monday (June 9) with a presentation of new action-adventure series Eyes Of Wakanda, which launches on Disney+ on August 6, with director and executive producer Todd Harris leading the presentation. 'It's a big year for Disney at Annecy,' comments Jean, noting all of its divisions – from Walt Disney Studios, Pixar Animation Studios, Marvel Animation, Lucasfilm, Disney Television Animation to 20th Television Animation – will be at the festival. Further highlights of the Disney program include the Pixar Animation Studios showcase on Friday, featuring footage from Elio and first images from Hoppers and Toy Story 5, teased by the studio's CCO and Annecy regular Pete Docter. 'Netflix and Warner will also be out in force,' adds Jean, noting the presence of the latter's Warner Bros. Animation, Cartoon Network Studios, and Hanna-Barbera Studios Europe. Warner Brother Animation will hold a special conversation event celebrating the 25th anniversary of Cartoon Network Studios' featuring creators such as Genndy Tartakovsky (Dexter's Laboratory), Craig McCracken (The Powerpuff Girls), Pendleton Ward (Adventure Time), Rebecca Sugar (Steven Universe), J.G. Quintel (Regular Show), Adam Muto (Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake). 'In recent years, TV series have brought about a huge amount of innovation.,' says Jean. He points to the example of Ward's series Adventure Time, about the adventures of a boy called Finn and his adoptive brother Jake, a dog with shape shifting powers. 'There are lots of independent features and shorts that were influenced by Pendleton Ward and Adventure Time, which in turn also opened the way for Rebecca Sugar to make Steven Universe, which also opened up new subject matter. Channels like Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network have been extremely important,' says Jean. 'Someone like Genndy Tartakovsky who went on to make features and comes from these channels, is a key figure… there's also Adult Swim which last year presented the first episode of Common Side Effects. That series for me, is a major milestone in the history of animated series, which has gained in importance since the election of Donald Trump,' he adds of the show about two high school students who take on big pharma and corrupt government. Warner Bros. Animation will also be running a work-in-progress session for Get Jiro based on the best-selling graphic novel set in a not-too-distant future L.A. where master chefs rule the town, and making of presentation for Bat-Fam. In other studio highlights, Netflix will be running its traditional Next on Netflix Animation event, with a focus on the upcoming From Stranger Things: Tales From '85 animated series and feature film In Your Dreams, which it is positioning for an awards season push. Sony Pictures Animation will also be in town to unveil animated sports-themed production GOAT from Tyree Dillihay and co-director Adam Rosette; DreamWorks Animation will present a first look at Bad Guys 2 directed by Pierre Perifel and co-directed by Juan Pablo Sans, and Paramount Animation and Nickelodeon will showcase Smurfs and The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants. Best of Deadline 2025 TV Series Renewals: Photo Gallery 2025 TV Cancellations: Photo Gallery 'Stick' Soundtrack: All The Songs You'll Hear In The Apple TV+ Golf Series
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Europe Hits Meta, Apple With $790M in Antitrust Fines
The European Union has issued its first major fines under its antitrust legislation, the Digital Markets Act, hitting Apple and Meta with a combined €700 million ($793 million) in penalties as part of a broader effort to rein in the influence of major tech companies operating across the bloc. Apple was fined €500 million ($566 million) over restrictions in its App Store that the European Commission said limit competition by preventing developers from offering alternative app marketplaces. Meta received a €200 million ($227 million) fine for its controversial 'consent or pay' model, which required users to either allow cross-platform data collection or pay for ad-free services — an approach regulators said does not constitute genuine consent under the law. More from The Hollywood Reporter Annecy Unveils 2025 Lineup (Full List) Annecy to Honor Michel Gondry, Matt Groening, Joanna Quinn Netflix Boss: Hollywood Gets "Thrown Under The Bus" During Trade Deals 'These companies have fallen short of compliance,' said EU Commissioner Teresa Ribera. 'We have taken firm but balanced enforcement action against both companies.' Both Apple and Meta pushed back forcefully. Apple accused the EU of forcing it to 'give away our technology for free' and of undermining user privacy and security. Meta described the decision as 'a multibillion-dollar tariff' imposed through regulatory fiat, and argued that the EU was holding American firms to different standards than their Chinese and European competitors. The Digital Markets Act, which came into effect last year, was designed to address what the EU considers systemic imbalances in the tech industry by requiring so-called gatekeeper platforms to open up to fairer competition. The Commission's actions mark the first enforcement under the new law. Though the fines are modest relative to the companies' revenues — far smaller than the €2.4 billion ($2.7 billion) levied against Google last year — they arrive at a moment of rising trade tension between Washington and Brussels. The Trump administration has already imposed a 10 percent tariff on EU imports, and criticism of European regulatory policy targeting U.S. tech companies has been mounting. A White House spokesperson has not yet commented on the latest fines, but the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, a U.S.-based think tank funded in part by tech firms, called the EU's actions a revenue grab. 'The Commission's actions today will not be well received by the Trump administration,' it said. Meanwhile, Epic Games, long at odds with Apple over App Store policies, welcomed the decision. CEO Tim Sweeney posted on X that the ruling was 'great news for app developers worldwide' and urged U.S. lawmakers to follow the EU's lead. Legal observers say appeals from both Apple and Meta are likely. Meta has already signaled its intent to challenge the ruling in the European Court of Justice. As the EU moves forward with investigations into other U.S. platforms, including Google and Amazon, and prepares for possible action against Elon Musk's X for violation of laws regulating the spread of disinformation and illicit content online, Wednesday's fines signal a more aggressive phase in Europe's tech oversight — one that may reverberate well beyond the continent. Best of The Hollywood Reporter How the Warner Brothers Got Their Film Business Started Meet the World Builders: Hollywood's Top Physical Production Executives of 2023 Men in Blazers, Hollywood's Favorite Soccer Podcast, Aims for a Global Empire Sign in to access your portfolio
