Latest news with #OrsonWelles
The Star
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Star
Orson Welles can be your travel guide thanks to AI
Thanks to AI, the legendary voice of the director of Citizen Kane will be heard in a new project, this time as a digital tour guide. — AFP Relaxnews Forty years after his death, Orson Welles is still telling stories. Thanks to artificial intelligence, the legendary voice of the director of Citizen Kane will be heard in a new project, this time as a digital tour guide. Open the app, select a point on the map, and listen. Are you standing in a dingy Hollywood alleyway? On Broadway in the heart of New York City? Every location becomes an opportunity to discover the behind-the-scenes history of cinema and TV series from a new perspective. In a bold initiative, the StoryRabbit app now offers its users the chance to discover this world through the voice of one of the most iconic directors in the history of cinema, Orson Welles. "No matter where you are, Orson peels back the curtain on the hidden architecture of film, television, history, and culture that surrounds you. What may look ordinary is, in his telling, anything but," reads the press release unveiled by Podnews. Launched by Treefort Media, in collaboration with Orson Welles Presents is now available on the app for iOS and Android starting at US$4.99 (RM21) per month. StoryRabbit uses geolocation to enable travellers to hear contextualised audio stories narrated by famous voices, including, now, Welles, recreated with uncanny accuracy from voice archives, with the permission of his estate. Unlike other AI-based experiences, each script is written, checked, and approved by a team of people. "All narratives are human-curated, authentic, and responsibly produced.' promises Treefort Media, which emphasizes its "ethical' approach to AI. "Orson was a relentless innovator, who worked effortlessly across multiple platforms during his long and storied career, so bringing his voice into this new medium feels like a continuation of that legacy,' said David Reeder, of Reeder Brand Management, the agency for the Orson Welles Estate Kelly Garner, founder and CEO of Treefort Media and creator of StoryRabbit, said: "Integrating Orson Welles' voice gives our storytelling unparalleled resonance. Having the opportunity to work with a voice of this caliber is extraordinary. His timeless perspective offers users a unique lens – simultaneously nostalgic and forward-looking – to discover the world as it speaks, revealing incredible true stories." In addition to Orson Welles, StoryRabbit also features the voice of Dominic Monaghan, the British-Irish actor known for his roles in The Lord Of The Rings trilogy and the TV series Lost . – AFP Relaxnews
Free Malaysia Today
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Free Malaysia Today
Orson Welles can be your travel guide thanks to AI
Cinema legend Orson Welles passed away at the age of 70 in 1985. (AFP pic) PARIS : Forty years after his death, Orson Welles is still telling stories. Thanks to artificial intelligence, the legendary voice of the director of 'Citizen Kane' will be heard in a new project, this time as a digital tour guide. Open the app, select a point on the map, and listen. Are you standing in a dingy Hollywood alleyway? On Broadway in the heart of New York City? Every location becomes an opportunity to discover the behind-the-scenes history of cinema and TV series from a new perspective. In a bold initiative, the StoryRabbit app now offers its users the chance to discover this world through the voice of one of the most iconic directors in the history of cinema, Orson Welles. 'No matter where you are, Orson peels back the curtain on the hidden architecture of film, television, history, and culture that surrounds you. What may look ordinary is, in his telling, anything but,' reads the press release unveiled by Podnews. Launched by Treefort Media, in collaboration with 'Orson Welles Presents' is now available on the app for iOS and Android starting at US$4.99 per month. StoryRabbit uses geolocation to enable travellers to hear contextualised audio stories narrated by famous voices, including, now, Welles, recreated with uncanny accuracy from voice archives, with the permission of his estate. Unlike other AI-based experiences, each script is written, checked, and approved by a team of people. 'All narratives are human-curated, authentic, and responsibly produced.' promises Treefort Media, which emphasises its 'ethical' approach to AI. 'Orson was a relentless innovator, who worked effortlessly across multiple platforms during his long and storied career, so bringing his voice into this new medium feels like a continuation of that legacy,' said David Reeder, of Reeder Brand Management, the agency for the Orson Welles Estate Kelly Garner, founder and CEO of Treefort Media and creator of StoryRabbit, said: 'Integrating Orson Welles' voice gives our storytelling unparalleled resonance. Having the opportunity to work with a voice of this calibre is extraordinary. 'His timeless perspective offers users a unique lens – simultaneously nostalgic and forward-looking – to discover the world as it speaks, revealing incredible true stories.' In addition to Orson Welles, StoryRabbit also features the voice of Dominic Monaghan, the British-Irish actor known for his roles in 'The Lord of the Rings' trilogy and the TV series 'Lost.'
Telegraph
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
How Alan Yentob changed the BBC for the better (and worse)
With the death of Alan Yentob, the BBC's erstwhile creative director and broadcasting titan, the corporation has lost the man who has done more than virtually anyone else in the post-war era to define it in the public imagination, for good and for ill alike. For nearly six decades, Yentob was a seismic figure within and without the confines of Broadcasting House, a man whose vision reshaped its cultural output. He was that rare behind-the-scenes impresario who was also a household name, and his willingness to put himself on camera suggested that he saw himself as being as much a star as the figures he interviewed throughout his career, from Orson Welles to David Bowie. Yentob's time with the BBC was a career of dizzying highs and lows, of glittering brilliance tainted by hubris. In addition to the art documentary series Arena and Imagine, he was directly responsible for many of the corporation's most iconic and memorable programmes during his tenure as BBC controller, firstly of BBC Two from 1987 to 1993 and then BBC One from 1993 and 1996. In retrospect, the high watermark of his career was as an executive, rather than as a presenter. During this period, he commissioned programmes such as Pride and Prejudice (the series which made Colin Firth a heartthrob), Middlemarch, The Office and Absolutely Fabulous (the latter of which paid him appropriately backhanded homage by calling the character of a Moroccan houseboy 'Yentob'). He furthered the reach of Have I Got News For You, which began in 1990 but only really achieved critical mass under Yentob's enthusiastic patronage. That he would occasionally become one of its satirical targets was merely a price that he willingly paid to see it become the BBC's most popular and longest-running televised comedy panel show. Yet the difficulty with Yentob was that he was vain and inclined to believe that he was a genius in his own right rather than a man who was at his best when allowing other, more talented individuals to thrive. The difficulties really began in 2004 when he was given the all-encompassing post of 'BBC creative director', which allowed him to do more or less as he wished. Anyone watching him closely might have expected that a fall was coming, and it duly did. The only surprise in retrospect is that it took over a decade to arrive. He had joined the BBC in 1968 as a trainee, the only non-Oxbridge graduate in his cohort, and quickly ascended the corporation's ranks, a testament to his charisma and relentless drive. By the time he became controller of BBC Two in 1987, he had already established himself as the most influential figure in British television, and many of the shows that he commissioned there are justly regarded as classics. (Without him, for instance, it's fair to say there would be no Wallace and Gromit.) These years were nothing short of a cultural renaissance for the channel; at a time when many might have asked what BBC Two stood for, he transformed it into a crucible of televisual innovation, which more than held its own against its rival Channel 4. Some, not least Yentob himself, might have whispered that he was the most significant figure at the corporation since the days of Sir John Reith. When his flagship arts show Arena was at its peak, such self-congratulation did not seem wholly absurd. The show managed to look at both high and low culture with the same blend of seriousness and commitment, suggesting that punk rock and Orson Welles alike were worthy of intellectual assessment. This not only influenced broadsheet newspapers' cultural supplements but also led to Yentob himself fronting Imagine, a show that was dogged by controversy in 2007 when it was revealed that other journalists had conducted some of the interviews, with shots of Yentob frowning and looking quizzical dropped in. This was known as 'Noddygate', on account of the number of shots of the presenter nodding and looking sage. While a staff investigation reportedly found that none of that footage had been broadcast, this made Yentob a marked man in the estimation of junior colleagues, who were all too aware that other, less venerable figures had lost their jobs for rather less. All the same, Yentob was a serious contender for the role of director-general. He later said, with a typical combination of apparent self-deprecation and considerable self-regard that, 'I'm really glad I didn't get it. I'd probably have been sacked. I think I could have run the BBC, but obviously I would have run it in my way.' Despite his self-consciously cerebral mien, there was also something of the overgrown child about Yentob, a sense that he was giddily enjoying his power and influence. It was little surprise, with this in mind, that he launched CBBC and CBeebies, cementing the BBC's role as a nurturer of young minds. It was ironic, then, that his legacy was irrevocably marred by his involvement with Kids Company, the charity that he served as chairman for and which collapsed ignominiously in 2015 due to accusations of financial mismanagement. Yentob was accused of trying to influence the BBC's coverage of the scandal. His meddling was described by MPs as 'unwise at best, deliberately intimidating at worst,' and he resigned from his much-prized creative director role in December 2015. (An internal BBC inquiry concluded that he did not affect its reporting.) Yentob's penchant for self-promotion and name-dropping—Clive James once quipped he had heard the executive was 'in the Red Sea, in conversation with the Dalai Lama'— allowed him to become a whipping boy for all those who disliked the modern BBC. He was seen as overpaid (in 2013, it was revealed his annual salary was more than £330,000), out of touch and, in the inimitable words of the Daily Mail, a 'profligate luvvie'. Yet it is hard to view his ultimate legacy as purely a tainted one. Yentob made some of the most memorable and successful television of the last few decades. It is this, rather than his many failings and excessive self-confidence, that should ultimately stand as his lasting memorial.
Vogue Singapore
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Vogue Singapore
Cannes Film Festival: 13 best Palme d'Or winning films to watch now
Seventy-eight years on from the inception of the Cannes Film Festival, its coveted Palme d'Or remains one of the industry's highest honours. The prize has been bestowed upon some of the greatest auteurs in history—Roberto Rossellini, Orson Welles, Henri-Georges Clouzot, Luis Buñuel—and is staunchly global in its outlook, rewarding new releases that take risks and shed light on urgent social issues, regardless of their origin. Amid this year's festival, running from 13 to 24 May, we shortlist 13 previous winners to rewatch now, from a surreal '70s musical to a moving Japanese family drama. 1. La Dolce Vita (1960) Shutterstock There's no better introduction to Federico Fellini's oeuvre than this exuberant masterpiece. Set over seven decadent days in Rome, it follows a world-weary journalist (Marcello Mastroianni) who is chasing stories for his gossip column. The women he pursues are glamorous and enigmatic—Anouk Aimée shines as a jaded heiress—but Anita Ekberg is the most captivating, as a film star who dances late into the night and then wades into the Trevi Fountain in a floor-length ball gown. 2. Blow-Up (1966) Shutterstock Veruschka in a beaded cocktail dress, Vanessa Redgrave in a checked button-down and Jane Birkin in a striped shift—the actors that populate Michelangelo Antonioni's cult classic are as striking as they are stylish. They play the prospective subjects of a fashion photographer (David Hemmings) whose life is disrupted after he stumbles upon a murder scene. It's a thriller that doubles as a vibrant portrait of Swinging London, complete with raucous parties and a rock'n'roll soundtrack. 3. Taxi Driver (1976) Shutterstock Martin Scorsese's account of urban alienation features a career-defining performance from Robert De Niro. Playing a Vietnam War veteran-turned-cab driver, he cruises the streets of New York and is appalled by the corruption and exploitation he encounters. Violence quickly ensues, but there's unexpected beauty to be found in the film's haunting score and hallucinatory visuals: a fever dream of neon signs, rain-splattered sidewalks and steam ominously rising from manhole covers. 4. Apocalypse Now (1979) Shutterstock A soldier (Martin Sheen) travels from Vietnam to Cambodia on a secret mission to assassinate a colonel who has gone rogue (Marlon Brando) in Francis Ford Coppola's electrifying war epic. It is unflinching in its depictions of the horrors of combat, zipping from napalm-strewn fields to jungles engulfed in flames and an airstrike set to Wagner's Ride of the Valkyries . Beyond the set pieces, though, it's a meditation on the absurdity of battle and the psychological scars it leaves behind. 5. All That Jazz (1979) Shutterstock Bob Fosse's semi-autobiographical musical extravaganza opens with a flurry of high kicks and jazz hands, but what lies beneath its shiny surface is much more complex. It centres on an eccentric choreographer (Roy Scheider) who is juggling projects on Broadway and in Hollywood, dashing between theatres and editing suites until he slowly loses his grip on reality. There are dreamlike dance sequences, elaborate costumes and bizarre insights into the mind of a creative genius. 6. Kagemusha (1980) Shutterstock In 16th-century Japan, the death of a feudal lord is covered up through the use of a double, a petty thief who bears an uncanny resemblance to him. Both characters are played with relish by Tatsuya Nakadai, in his penultimate collaboration with legendary director Akira Kurosawa. It's a samurai epic that weaves together Shakespearean court intrigue and explosive battles, culminating in a heart-stopping scene in which the impostor finally lets his hubris get the better of him. 7. Paris, Texas (1984) Shutterstock The vast landscapes of the American southwest provide a lyrical backdrop for Wim Wenders' wistful road movie. It begins with a drifter (Harry Dean Stanton) walking alone through the desert. After a mysterious four-year absence, he is discovered by his brother (Dean Stockwell) and sets out to find his long-lost wife (Nastassja Kinski). It's worth watching for the latter's moving, measured performance, not to mention the blunt bob and pink mohair jumper that made her a style icon. 8. The Piano (1993) Shutterstock With this ravishing period drama, Jane Campion became the first, and still the only, female director to win the top prize at Cannes. It features two poignant, Oscar-winning turns: Holly Hunter as a mute Scottish widow and Anna Paquin as her precocious young daughter. They are shipped off to New Zealand after the former is promised in marriage to a landowner, but tragedy looms when she agrees to give piano lessons to a crude forester (Harvey Keitel), with whom she falls in love. 9. Shoplifters (2018) Shutterstock An unconventional family unit is at the heart of Hirokazu Kore-eda's delicate study of poverty in modern-day Tokyo. A gang composed of an elderly matriarch, a couple, a young woman and a boy, they make ends meet by stealing from supermarkets. Soon, they also take in a child (Miyu Sasaki) who they suspect is being abused by her parents. Has she been kidnapped or rescued? The film offers few answers but captivates with its warmth, compassion and clear-eyed view of the world. 10. Parasite (2019) Shutterstock As the first release to win both the Palme d'Or and the Oscar for Best Picture since 1955's Marty , Bong Joon-ho's audacious satire has cemented its place in film history. It's a rip-roaring romp that combines black comedy with Hitchcockian horror and social realism—a fable about two clans, one destitute but ambitious and the other naive and wealthy, whose lives become intertwined. The sets are pristine, the dialogue biting and the overwhelming sense of foreboding undeniable. 11. Titane (2021) In the first few minutes of Julia Ducournau's jaw-dropper, a young girl is severely injured in a car crash and has a titanium plate fitted into her skull. Somehow, this is the least shocking thing to happen in a nerve-jangling thriller that encompasses mass murder, arson and, shall we say, auto erotica as it tracks our heroine as a maladjusted adult (an astounding Agathe Rousselle). It's only the second film helmed by a woman to scoop the prestigious prize, and proof that Cannes is still a place where boundary-pushing work is celebrated. 12. Triangle of Sadness (2022) Courtesy of Everett Collection Ruben Östlund, who received his first Palme d'Or for the side-splitting art world saga The Square , dazzled the festival once more with this deliciously acerbic skewering of global consumer capitalism. Much of the action takes place on a luxury yacht, where a model couple (Harris Dickinson and Charlbi Dean) find themselves rubbing shoulders with oligarchs, tech bros, and arms dealers—that is, until a storm hits, chaos reigns and a new world order is established. 13. Anatomy of a Fall (2023) Courtesy of Landmark Media Justine Triet, the third female recipient of the Palme d'Or—and later, the Best Original Screenplay Oscar—ratchets up the tension masterfully in this slippery, ice-cold thriller which follows a frustrated novelist (a steely and then explosive Sandra Hüller) accused of murdering her husband (Samuel Theis). As a high-profile trial commences, secret recordings are revealed, facts twisted, and every moment of marital discord dredged up and presented to the jury. It's deftly directed, the script (which zips effortlessly between French and English) is faultless, and every performance expertly judged, from Swann Arlaud as our lead's dashing lawyer and Milo Machado-Graner as her precocious son, to Antoine Reinartz as a quippy prosecutor and Messi the dog, the breakout star of 2024's awards season, as the beleaguered Snoop. This article was originally published on British Vogue.
Otago Daily Times
11-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Otago Daily Times
The search for Orson Welles' lost masterpiece
Orson Welles during the filming of Citizen Kane. Photo: RKO In 1942 Orson Welles was the biggest name in Hollywood. His masterpiece Citizen Kane came out in 1941, and he had an unheard-of deal with studio RKO giving him final cut creative control. Citizen Kane however was not a great commercial success, and for his next project The Magnificent Ambersons, RKO clipped Welles' creative wings, eventually taking his cut and "mutilating it," Josh Grossberg told RNZ's Culture 101. The studio took his cut and removed almost an hour of footage, including changing and re-shooting the ending. Welles' original cut of The Magnificent Ambersons is considered one of the great lost films, and it's long been thought a copy may still exist. Grossberg documents his quest to find it in a new documentary, The Lost Print: The Making of Orson Welles' The Magnificent Ambersons. Welles was in Brazil working on a government film project when the RKO got its hands on his cut, and audience screenings did not go well, Grossberg said. "Welles was out of the loop at this point, and try as he might, cabling editing suggestions left and right, those. were ignored, and RKO cut the footage down and held another test screening. "And subsequent to that, they released the film in an 88-minute form. They completely re-shot the ending and what was considered by those who saw the original version to be a masterpiece that even excelled the level of artistry in Citizen Kane, ended up being essentially mutilated." RKO ordered Welles' print be destroyed but there are no first-hand accounts of that happening, he said. Orson Welles on the set of The Magnificent Ambersons. Photo: RKO "There's no tangible evidence, no accounts that someone saw the actual print being destroyed. There was documentation that RKO ordered the print destroyed, but there is no official confirmation that it actually was destroyed. "So, this print's essentially missing. It's gone into the ether. And my thought was, well, if we can find it in the world, in the words of the great, late director William Friedkin, it would be like finding the holy grail of cinema." The Lost Print: The Making of Orson Welles' The Magnificent Ambersons funded by Classic Turner Movies follows Grossberg's travels around the globe searching to for the 43 minutes that the studio hacked from Welles' original. The journey ends in Brazil where Welles' had been working at the time. "I think this is a story that needs to be told. People need to understand what the original version of Ambersons entailed, because the studio did Orson Welles a great disservice in cutting it," he said. The documentary is more broadly about the preservation of cinematic cultural heritage, he said. "So many of our films are being lost to time. So, I think it's important to emphasise how do we save our cultural heritage in cinema." As to whether he finds the missing print, wait and see, he said. "Will I find the print? Will they turn up any evidence or any footage or any stills? And we're going to answer that question in the documentary. "I can't talk about that now, but you're definitely going to have some answers as to the fate of the print."
