The 45-year-old football player turned wrestling pro and then actor sported a sharp black suit and was joined by longtime partner Lauren Hashian and their almost two-year-old daughter Jasmine at the ceremony on Hollywood Boulevard.

“I didn’t want to write anything down. I figured this is such a monumental moment and significant time for me it’s probably best I just speak from the heart and from my gut,” the Herculean father-of-two said.

He told cheering fans the 2,624th star on the Walk was the result of years of hard work, voicing gratitude for the opportunities he’d been afforded and the friends and family who’d helped him along the way.

“This moment is so significant because it’s full circle. 2018 will mark 18 years in Hollywood and that is a very long time of blood, sweat and earning respect,” he added.

Johnson announced Monday on Instagram that he and Hashian were expecting a second child, hours before they stepped out for the premiere of his latest movie “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle.”

Tom Rothman, chairman of Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, paid tribute to the actor, who has entertained the possibility that he might run for president in 2020.

“Dwayne said he would use me as a bar bell if I didn’t show up,” Rothman joked, before describing his friend as a “global superstar with hundreds of millions of fans and billions of dollars in box office.”

Johnson’s recent work includes “Baywatch,” “The Fate of The Furious,” “Central Intelligence” and “San Andreas,” as well as the HBO comedy “Ballers.”

Reputed to be one of the hardest-working stars in Hollywood, he has been in 14 movies in just four years, including previous installments of the “Fast and Furious” franchise, “Hercules,” “Snitch,” “G.I. Joe: Retaliation,” “Empire State,” “Pain and Gain,” and “Moana.”

Born on May 2, 1972, in the San Francisco Bay Area and raised in Hawaii and Pennsylvania, Johnson grew to six foot five inches (196 centimeters) and weighs 245 pounds (111 kilograms).

He played defensive tackle at the University of Miami and went on to a stint on the practice roster of the Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian Football League in 1995.

Johnson became a professional wrestler in 1996, following his father, Rocky Johnson, and grandfather, High Chief Peter Maivia. He would become an eight-time World Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Entertainment champion.

Nicknamed “The Rock” due to his strength in the ring and roughhewn features, he was declared “sexiest man alive” by People magazine in November 2016.

It was a good year for the actor, who was also named the world’s highest paid film star by Forbes magazine.

Building on the first iteration of the Talent Lab in 2016, this year’s Lab was expanded to two days, and included a pitching workshop and pitch forum with feedback from a panel of film professionals.

The jury selected Xaisongkham’s “Raising a Beast”, to attend the TFI Network market at the 2018 Tribeca Film Festival (April 18-29, 2018). Xaisongkham attended the Talent Lab with his Filipino producer, Abigail Lazaro.

Hosted annually by TFI, the industry market gives filmmakers the opportunity to build connections with a wide range of industry insiders who can potentially help them advance their projects.

TFI will mentor Xaisongkham through the completion of the project. All participants in this year’s Talent Lab will also receive preferential consideration for any of TFI’s grants.

“Raising a Beast”, co-produced by American Steve Arounsack, tells the story of two Hmong siblings, Ying and Neng, who are blessed with beautiful voices and dream of moving to the city to become singers. When their father refuses to sell the family’s prized bull to help pay for Neng’s education in the city, Ying becomes a bull trainer to cover her brother’s expenses.

Singapore-based media investment firm Aurora Media Holdings, represented on the jury by Jeremy Sim, selected Ledesma’s “Cat Island” as the recipient of their Aurora Producing Award. Ledesma, who attended the Talent Lab with her producer Alemberg Ang, will receive US$10,000 (Bt327,000) to help produce her film.

“Cat Island” follows Catherine, who after dedicating almost two decades of her life to the care of her asthmatic, albeit feisty and cat-loving mother, finds herself alone and purposeless when her mother dies. On the eve of her 40th birthday, the ghost of Catherine’s mother returns to ask for Catherine’s help in completing her “unfinished business”: have her remains cremated and scattered over Cat Island, Japan. With a renewed sense of purpose, Catherine travels to Japan to complete her mission on the rural island.

Founded by Justin Deimen, Terence Kong, and Sim, Aurora Media is one of Southeast Asia’s leading media and entertainment asset incubation, investment and management specialists.

The announcement of the winning projects was made in a uniquely Luang Prabang fashion: while cruising down the Mekong River at sunset.

Following the afternoon pitch forum, the jury and Talent Lab fellows from the 10 participating projects boarded a boat manned by Mekong Kingdoms, a stylish new boat company that opened operations earlier this year. Fellows took in Luang Prabang’s magical mountain views and attempted to relax while the jury deliberated in a private room in the stern.

The jury was comprised of filmmaking professionals from around the world, including Sim; Kenneth Lipper, the Oscar-winning American producer; Victor William of Rokki, AirAsia’s in-flight entertainment provider; and Ho Hock Doong and Siti Helaliana Chumiran, both from the Malaysian distribution company, Astro.

The 10 projects that LPFF selected to participate, which are in various stages of production, come from six countries from the ASEAN region: Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, and Thailand. The pool was equal parts documentary and narrative features, with five projects of both genres participating. Attendees taking part in the Talent Lab included directors, writers, and producers behind the films.

The participating projects were:

“Autobiography” (Indonesia), represented by Makbul Mubarak (director) and Yulia Evina Bharas (producer)

“Bai Bibyaon, Lady Warrior of the Lumad” (Philippines), represented by Cenon Obispo Palomares (director, writer)

 

“Cat Island” (Philippines), represented by Siege Ledesma (director, writer) and Ang Alemberg (producer)

 

“Doi Boy” (Thailand), represented by Nontawat Numbenchapol (director, writer)

 

“Going Straight” (Philippines), represented by Kristoffer Brugada (director)

 

“It Wasn’t an Accident” (Myanmar), represented by Soe Moe Aung (director)

 

“Luzviminda” (Philippines), represented by Inshallah Montero (director)

“Raising a Beast” (Laos), represented by Xaisongkham Induangchanthy (director, writer) and Abigail Lazaro (producer)

“Song of the Homeland” (Thailand), represented by Preecha Srisuwan (director, cinematographer)

“Wilderness” (Malaysia), represented by Nadira Ilana (director, scriptwriter)

Find out more at the LPFF at http://www.lpfilmfest.org.

Guillermo del Toro’s acclaimed 1960s-set fantasy picked up nominations in several top categories, including best motion picture drama and best actress for Sally Hawkins.

“The Post” and “Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri” followed with six nods and coming-of-age film “Lady Bird” got four nominations.

The announcements will give the nominees a welcome boost going into the race for March’s Oscars, with the influential Screen Actors Guild nominations to come later this week.

The other best motion picture drama nominees are “Call Me By Your Name,” another coming-of-age tale, World War II thriller “Dunkirk,” media drama “The Post” and “Three Billboards.”

The Globes are seen as a chance for Hollywood to demonstrate its intolerance of sexual misconduct following a wave of allegations that emerged after movie mogul Harvey Weinstein was accused of decades of misbehavior that would make him the most egregious sexual predator in the history of filmmaking.

The Weinstein Company, which sacked its co-founder, was never expected to land nominations at the ceremony — and it did not.

The wider fallout, however, is likely to have a seismic effect on the awards season, as numerous other powerful figures have been accused of sexual misconduct.

The HFPA — apparently sensitive to the message it would send out — largely avoided rewarding the work of Kevin Spacey, Jeffrey Tambor, Louis C.K., Brett Ratner and numerous other scandal-hit big players.

 

– Rebuke –

 

Spacey, who won best actor in 2015 for “House of Cards,” never had a chance of a repeat following a litany of allegations of impropriety with young men.

But his alleged misdeeds also appeared to have harmed the chances of his colleagues such as Robin Wright — the show was blanked this year.

“Transparent,” which has also had numerous nominations and a win for Tambor, found itself in the same boat with HFPA members giving the comedy a hard pass.

Spacey had been expected to front an awards campaign for “All the Money in the World” before Ridley Scott decided to expunge the actor from his latest movie.

His replacement Christopher Plummer — added via last-minute reshoots in a groundbreaking move — earned a surprise nomination for best supporting actor in a film.

Meanwhile, the HFPA went for scandal-free old favorites like Scott, Christopher Nolan (“Dunkirk”) and Steven Spielberg (“The Post”).

“The Post,” a defense of the free press widely seen as a rebuke to President Donald Trump, is an early Oscars favorite.

Martin McDonagh’s “Three Billboards,” starring Frances McDormand as a mother seeking to avenge the rape and murder of her daughter, is also widely fancied since taking the influential audience award at the Toronto International Film Festival in September.

“Coco,” a colorful take on Mexico’s Day of the Dead, was nominated and should be the comfortable frontrunner for best animated film — despite Pixar co-founder John Lassiter’s recent admission of inappropriate behavior towards employees.

On the downside, “Dunkirk” — an early Oscars favorite much loved for its masterful cinematography, if not its sparkling dialogue — earned just three nominations.

 

– ‘Wonder Woman’ snubbed –

 

“Call Me By Your Name” was widely expected to be the top contender, but disappointed with just three nominations, for best film drama, lead actor Timothee Chalamet and supporting actor Armie Hammer.

“Get Out” — a satire on racism and middle class white guilt — made perhaps the biggest and most unexpected impact of any movie this year but also came up short, with just two nominations for best comedy and best actor for Daniel Kaluuya.

HFPA president and Indian journalist Meher Tatna nevertheless praised the diversity of nominees.

“I’m excited that we’re recognizing people like me that I had not seen on television when I first came to this country. As a journalist, I always look for diversity and I’m happy to celebrate it,” she said.

Some Globes watchers noted on social media however that while ethnic minorities were well represented, there were no nominations for female filmmakers.

DC superhero movie “Wonder Woman” was perhaps the most controversial snub of the day, picking up no nominations at all, sparking an angry backlash from fans.

The movie, starring Gal Gadot in the title role, is the first female-led superhero movie directed by a woman (Patty Jenkins) and was selected in the American Film Institute’s top 10 films of the year.

“Sorry Golden Globes, but Wonder Woman was a better movie than Dunkirk,” tweeted one disappointed fan.

On the television front, HBO drama “Big Little Lies” — already rewarded with several Emmys — led with six nominations.

FX anthology series “Feud: Bette and Joan” was close behind with four nominations, while “Fargo,” “The Handmaid’s Tale” and “This is Us” grabbed three each.

HBO comfortably led the television nominations with 12.

The 75th Golden Globe Awards will take place in Beverly Hills on January 7, with talk show host Seth Meyers presenting.

Here are the nominees in key categories for the 75th Golden Globe Awards, which were announced Monday in Beverly Hills. The awards ceremony will take place on January 7:

 

– FILM –

 

Best film, drama

“Call Me by Your Name”

“Dunkirk”

“The Post”

“The Shape of Water”

“Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri”

 

Best film, musical or comedy

“The Disaster Artist”

“Get Out”

“The Greatest Showman”

“I, Tonya”

“Lady Bird”

 

Best actor, drama

Timothee Chalamet, “Call Me by Your Name”

Daniel Day-Lewis, “Phantom Thread”

Tom Hanks, “The Post”

Gary Oldman, “Darkest Hour”

Denzel Washington, “Roman J. Israel, Esq.”

 

Best actress, drama

Jessica Chastain, “Molly’s Game”

Sally Hawkins, “The Shape of Water”

Frances McDormand, “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri”

Meryl Streep, “The Post”

Michelle Williams, “All the Money in the World”

 

Best actor, musical or comedy

Steve Carell, “Battle of the Sexes”

Ansel Elgort, “Baby Driver”

James Franco, “The Disaster Artist”

Hugh Jackman, “The Greatest Showman”

Daniel Kaluuya, “Get Out”

 

Best actress, musical or comedy

Judi Dench, “Victoria & Abdul”

Helen Mirren, “The Leisure Seeker”

Margot Robbie, “I, Tonya”

Saoirse Ronan, “Lady Bird”

Emma Stone, “Battle of the Sexes”

 

Best supporting actor

Willem Dafoe, “The Florida Project”

Armie Hammer, “Call Me by Your Name”

Richard Jenkins, “The Shape of Water”

Christopher Plummer, “All the Money in the World”

Sam Rockwell, “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri”

 

Best supporting actress

Mary J. Blige, “Mudbound”

Hong Chau, “Downsizing”

Allison Janney, “I, Tonya”

Laurie Metcalf, “Lady Bird”

Octavia Spencer, “The Shape of Water”

 

Best director

Guillermo del Toro, “The Shape of Water”

Martin McDonagh, “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri”

Christopher Nolan, “Dunkirk”

Ridley Scott, “All The Money in the World”

Steven Spielberg, “The Post”

 

Best foreign language film

“A Fantastic Woman”

“First They Killed My Father”

“In the Fade”

“Loveless”

“The Square”

 

Best animated feature

“The Boss Baby”

“The Breadwinner”

“Coco”

“Ferdinand”

“Loving Vincent”

 

– TELEVISION –

 

Best drama series

“The Crown”

“Game of Thrones”

“The Handmaid’s Tale”

“Stranger Things”

“This is Us”

 

Best drama actor

Jason Bateman, “Ozark”

Sterling K. Brown, “This is Us”

Freddie Highmore, “The Good Doctor”

Bob Odenkirk, “Better Call Saul”

Liev Schreiber, “Ray Donovan”

 

Best drama actress

Caitriona Balfe, “Outlander”

Claire Foy, “The Crown”

Maggie Gyllenhaal, “The Deuce”

Katherine Langford, “13 Reasons Why”

Elisabeth Moss, “The Handmaid’s Tale”

 

Best musical or comedy series

“Black-ish”

“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”

“Master of None”

“SMILF”

“Will & Grace”

 

Best musical or comedy actor

Anthony Anderson, “Black-ish”

Aziz Ansari, “Master of None”

Kevin Bacon, “I Love Dick”

William H. Macy, “Shameless”

Eric McCormack, “Will and Grace”

 

Best musical or comedy actress

Pamela Adlon, “Better Things”

Alison Brie, “Glow”

Issa Rae, “Insecure”

Rachel Brosnahan, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”

Frankie Shaw, “SMILF”

 

Best limited series or TV movie

“Big Little Lies”

“Fargo”

“Feud: Bette and Joan”

“The Sinner”

“Top of the Lake: China Girl”

 

Best limited series or TV movie actor

Robert De Niro, “The Wizard of Lies”

Jude Law, “The Young Pope”

Kyle MacLachlan, “Twin Peaks”

Ewan McGregor, “Fargo”

Geoffrey Rush, “Genius”

 

Best limited series or TV movie actress

Jessica Biel, “The Sinner”

Nicole Kidman, “Big Little Lies”

Jessica Lange, “Feud: Bette and Joan”

Susan Sarandon, “Feud: Bette and Joan”

Reese Witherspoon, “Big Little Lies”

 

– FILMS WITH MOST NOMINATIONS –

 

“The Shape of Water” – 7

“The Post” – 6

“Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri” – 6

“Lady Bird” – 4

When it comes to the world of film, there is little that Pimpaka Towira hasn’t done except actually star in front of the camera.

The first Thai female director to gain international recognition for her short and full-length feature films, she’s worked as a film journalist, a scriptwriter, a film distributor and a festival director and programmer. Most recently, she donned an international hat, signing up as the programme director of the Singapore International Film Festival on a three-year contract.

“It’s a challenge and I wanted to try so I applied for the job,” says Pimpaka.

This year marked the first time that the SGIFF had throw invitations for the job to non-Singaporeans. Pimpaka’s application impressed the organising committee. After a virtual interview with the festival team, she was selected as the festival programmer. The past few months have seen her working closely with the SGIFF team led by the event’s executive director Wahyuni A Hadi, the wife of Thai filmmaker Aditya Assarat.

Pimpaka learned she had been accepted for the post in early July and started work in August. She relocated to Singapore in September, joining her Singaporean counterparts and discussing the programmes that has already been chosen for the festival’s programme before putting her efforts into shaping the festival and the competition categories.

“Because I had little experience with local audiences, my task involved making the festival engaging to a larger cross-section of viewers and not just movie fans,” she says, adding that she found working in a new environment very stimulating.

Pimpaka replaced festival director Zhang Wenjie, who left earlier this year after being with the organisation since 2014.

“Here they work hard and I have learnt that making an international film doesn’t only mean to represent a (host) country but that it must represent the region as a whole. Likewise, a film festival doesn’t mean screening and watching films; it should go further than that, it should be a platform to create dialogue and networking among not just filmmakers but with everyone so that cinema moves forward in the region as a whole,” says Pimpaka.

“The SGIFF in essence asks why we have to go to cinemart events in Europe to find financing and partnerships. It shows that we can meet in Singapore and identify collaboration in this region,” she adds.

Using a film festival for regional networking is nothing new. Pimpaka explains that she organised discussions and platforms for information sharing while working as programme director of both the Bangkok Film Festival and the Bangkok International Film Festival. In both cases, she was in charge of the South East Asian Panorama and also the SEA competition.

“Thai film has achieved international success on the festival circuit as well as commercially so we have enough material and the qualifications to be leaders in the film festival arena in this region. Yet we can’t do it because we don’t have long-term planning or the continuity that they have in Singapore. We Thais don’t have the same mindset as the Singaporeans. Working at the SGIFF offers a great opportunity to look at Thailand and see what we are lacking,” she adds.

Known for its efficiency, Singapore has the right environment to make its festival better and better. Support for the event is strong and the organisers have the determination and professionalism to turn the SGIFF into the festival hub of the region.

“It’s very satisfying to see how everyone works together to get festival up and running. Everywhere I go, I meet people from very part of society who are willing help the festival,” she says.

Cinema in the Asean region has been going through a rough patch in recent years, except in Indonesia, which continues to put out successful movies. And with stiff competition coming from the streaming networks, Pimpaka says it’s important for the Asean film industry to work together if it is to survive.

“We can’t survive if we do it alone because to the rest of the world, Asean films look the same. Co-productions say between Thailand and Singapore or with the Philippines could make all the difference and a festival should provide the platform to make that happen,” she says.

Most of the major film festivals in Thailand fall under the umbrella of government offices and usually have little engagement with the film industry sectors. The lack of commitment, continuity and a clear vision in the festival concept have resulted in the festivals struggling to survive, in direct contrast to the SGIFF, which is now in its 28th edition. After a brief hiatus, it was relaunched in 2014 and in just three short years has established itself as the hub of the Asean region.

“I believe Thailand can do it but it will require a lot of effort to reshape the organisers and push them to work more professionally. Right now, we don’t have the sort of engagement that’s required as we all feel that the film festival is just a government-run event to promote Thai movies. We must move beyond that mindset,” she says.

A graduate in film from Thammasat University’s Faculty of Journalism and Mass Communication, Pimpaka worked for a while as a journalist for Manager and The Nation before being taking on as the festival programmer and director of the Bangkok Film Festival, which was sponsored by The Nation. She also worked for the short-lived Bangkok International Film Festival and was programme director for the Bangkok ASEAN festival from 2015 to 2017.

In between, she made the short film “Under Taboo” and the internationally acclaimed “Mae Nak” in 1997. Her first independent feature, “Khuen Rai Ngao” (“One Night Husband”) followed. Her most recent outing was the movie “Mahut samut lae susaan” (“The Island Funeral”), which won her an award in the Asian Future category at the Tokyo International Film Festival.

In 2009, she was recognised by Thailand’s Culture Ministry with a Silpathorn Award

Ayer, known directed box-office hits “Suicide Squad” and “Training Day”, sets the action-thriller in present day Los Angeles. It follows the story of two LAPD police officers played by Smith (Officer Ward) and Edgerton (Officer Jakoby).

“Bright” is the film with the highest investment made to date by Netflix and features four species – orcs, elves and fairies and humans.

“Bright” also has magic, explosions, car chases and a missing wand, making it an eclectic and ambitious movie. Even with the trailer, it can be a little confusing trying to pin down what “Bright” is.

Ayer referred to “Bright” earlier this year in San Diego Comic Con as “a bright is a user who has magical abilities. Humans, for example, do not in this world, and they cannot possess them. From what we can tell and based on what we heard, the only creatures that have magical abilities are the elves. Ayer added that in this world, the elves are considered the most elite class — the “one per cent”, as he referred to them.”

Jakoby is the first orc to ever be appointed to the Los Angeles Police Department and must contend with instant dismissal from his fellow officer, his new partner Ward and everyone else he encounters

Tikka (Lucy Fry) is an elf who betrayed her species by stealing and hiding the magical wand from Leilah. Leilah (Noomi Rapace), an evil elite elf who crafted a magical wand from her own body in order to use it as destruction.

How does fate intertwine these four characters when they are not from the same species? Find out by streaming “Bright” on December 22.

The colorful film tells the story of Miguel (Anthony Gonzalez), a young Mexican who longs to become a musician despite his family’s unrelenting ban on music. He stumbles into the Land of the Dead, where trickster Hector (Gael Garcia Bernal) helps him unravel a surprising family secret.

“Coco” has taken in $135.5 million since its release over the long Thanksgiving weekend, and is already the top-grossing film ever in Mexico. It is one of just four films to lead the North American box office for three weekends in a row this year, according to Variety.com.

But that is expected to change with the much-anticipated release next week of “Star Wars: The Last Jedi,” predicted to net up to a mammoth $200 million in its opening weekend.

Second on North American screens this weekend was Warner Bros.’s “Justice League,” taking in $9.6 million, for a four-week total of $212 million. Its all-star cast features Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, Ben Affleck as Batman, Henry Cavill as Superman and Jason Momoa as Aquaman, plus Ciaran Hinds as a supervillain.

Third was Lionsgate’s feel-good film “Wonder,” which netted $8.5 million. The movie, starring Julia Roberts, Owen Wilson and Jacob Tremblay, tells the story of a determined fifth-grade boy with a facial deformity who must deal with rudeness and bullying by schoolmates.

Shooting up to fourth place was “The Disaster Artist,” distributed by A24, a comedy-drama directed by James Franco about the making of 2003 cult movie “The Room,” reputedly one of the worst films ever (it made a grand total of $2,000 when first released). Starring Franco, Seth Rogen and Alison Brie, “Disaster” took in $6.4 million for the weekend.

And in fifth was “Thor: Ragnarok,” featuring the self-effacing humor of Chris Hemsworth as the powerful Norse god and Cate Blanchett as death goddess Hela. The Disney film netted $6.3 million, bumping up its six-week total to $301 million.

Rounding out the list were:

“Daddy’s Home 2” ($6 million)

“Murder on the Orient Express” ($5.1 million)

“The Star” ($3.7 million)

“Lady Bird” ($3.5 million)

“Just Getting Started” ($3.2 million)

All nine instalments will also be available on HBO and HBO Go on AIS Play and AIS Playbox.

This marks the first time that all nine films set in the fantastical wizarding world created by best-selling author JK Rowling will air on a single network, commercial-free.

From the moment readers and viewers alike first met young wizard Harry in the cupboard under the stairs, the Harry Potter franchise cast a spell on fans, sparking a global phenomenon. The eight-film adaptation starring Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint has earned $7.7 billion in box office sales, the second-highest-grossing film franchise of all time. The seven-book series is distributed in more 200 territories, has been translated into 68 languages and has sold over 400 million copies all over the world.

The Harry Potter marathon of all eight movies on HBO will kick-off on Friday, December 15 starting at 12.25pm with “Harry Portter and the Sorcerer’s Stone to “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Part 2) and the marathon will close with the final film, “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” on Saturday, December 16 at 8pm.

Wrap 2017 and ring in the New Year with six all-new episodes of the always anxiety-inducing series, which this season stars Jesse Plemons, Rosemarie DeWitt, Jimmi Simpson, Cristin Milioti, Aldis Hodge, Maxine Peake, Andrea Riseborough, Letitia Wright and Michaela Coel, “Black Mirror” Season 4 directors include Jodie Foster, Toby Haynes, John Hillcoat, Colm McCarthy, Tim Van Patten and David Slade.

The British-American science fiction anthology is created and written by Charlie Brooker. It into our collective unease with the modern world, with each stand-alone episode a sharp, suspenseful tale exploring themes of contemporary techno-paranoia leading to an unforgettable – and sometimes unsettling – conclusion.

Technology has transformed all aspects of our lives; in every home; on every desk; in every palm – a plasma screen; a monitor; a Smartphone – a “Black Mirror” reflecting our 21st Century existence back at us.

“Black Mirror” was inspired by older anthology shows like “The Twilight Zone”, which were able to deal with controversial, contemporary topics without fear of censoring In 2017, the three-episode “San Junipero” earned Black Mirror its first Primetime Emmy Awards, for Outstanding Television Movie and Outstanding Writing for a Limited Series, Movie, or Dramatic Special for Brooker.

 

Wrap 2017 and ring in the New Year with six all-new episodes of the always anxiety-inducing series, which this season stars Jesse Plemons, Rosemarie DeWitt, Jimmi Simpson, Cristin Milioti, Aldis Hodge, Maxine Peake, Andrea Riseborough, Letitia Wright and Michaela Coel, “Black Mirror” Season 4 directors include Jodie Foster, Toby Haynes, John Hillcoat, Colm McCarthy, Tim Van Patten and David Slade.

The British-American science fiction anthology is created and written by Charlie Brooker. It into our collective unease with the modern world, with each stand-alone episode a sharp, suspenseful tale exploring themes of contemporary techno-paranoia leading to an unforgettable – and sometimes unsettling – conclusion.

Technology has transformed all aspects of our lives; in every home; on every desk; in every palm – a plasma screen; a monitor; a Smartphone – a “Black Mirror” reflecting our 21st Century existence back at us.

“Black Mirror” was inspired by older anthology shows like “The Twilight Zone”, which were able to deal with controversial, contemporary topics without fear of censoring In 2017, the three-episode “San Junipero” earned Black Mirror its first Primetime Emmy Awards, for Outstanding Television Movie and Outstanding Writing for a Limited Series, Movie, or Dramatic Special for Brooker.

 

Based on Liane Moriarty’s bestselling novel, “Big Little Lies” was initially broadcast as a mini-series, and was not intended to run beyond seven episodes shown at the start of 2017.

It was a major hit with viewers, picking up eight Emmy awards including Outstanding Limited Series, as well as individual gongs for director Jean-Marc Vallee and its Oscar-winning stars Kidman and Witherspoon.

As a result of its success, HBO launched production of a second season. Taking the reins from Vallee as director is Andrea Arnold, who was awarded an Oscar in 2005 for her short film “Wasp.”

“Most of the cast is expected to return and negotiations are underway,” HBO added in a statement.

“Big Little Lies” tells the story of three wealthy California mothers, who, behind the facade of seemingly perfect lives, are embroiled in behind-the-scenes jealousy, secrets and drama.

Writer David Kelley, who also worked on the first season, “wrote beautiful scripts and Reese and Nicole were, once again, a force to be reckoned with,” said Casey Bloys, president of HBO programming.

Meanwhile, Kidman said she was “grateful to have this opportunity to keep exploring these female characters and make this series with my friends.”

Thai talent was very much in the spotlight last week with three directors all picking up major prizes at both the Singapore International Film Festival’s Silver Screen Awards and TV Asian awards. The celebrations of big and small screen are part of the annual Singapore Media festival, which meshes media and entertainment events and this year ran from November 23 to December 3.

Director Anucha Boonyawatana was named Best Director in the Asian Feature Film Competition for her film “Malila” (“The Farewell Flower”), which earlier picked up top prizes at the Busan International and the Golden Horse film festivals.

Sorayos Prapapan took home the Best Director award in the Southeast Asian Short Film Competition and the Youth Jury Prize for “Awasarn Sound Man” (“Death of the Sound Man”), a hilarious satire centred on a guy involved in sound recording for film production, while Ratchapoom Boonbunchachoke moved a step closer to making his debut feature by winning the Southeast Asian Film Lab’s Most Promising Project for “A Useful Ghost”. The Film Lab is a story development workshop for emerging filmmakers from Southeast Asia embarking on their first feature film.

 

Anucha, who was as ever dressed in an outfit made with traditional Thai fabric, said that winning the award had increased her confidence in filmmaking and confirmed that she was on the right path.

“Winning the Kim Ji seok award at the Busan International Film Festival was a great honour for me and taking home the best director prize here in Singapore tells me that my film is a good one, as movies selected by SGIFF always receive recognition from other festivals,” she told XP.

The Kim Ji seok award was initiated this year in memory of the BIFF’s festival programmer Kim who died of a heart attack while attending the Cannes International Film Festival in May. The jury praised Anucha for her “quiet, extremely sensitive, beautifully shot exploration of fundamental themes of our existence”, adding that the film gently “nudges us into a meditative state to enable us to explore for ourselves the meaning of being in the present.”

 

This year the Silver Screen Awards ceremony was held at the Marina Bay Sands Grand Theatre. A total of 14 awards were presented, nine of them in the two most anticipated sections – the Asian Feature Film Competition and the Southeast Asian Short Film Competition. The Iranian film “Disappearance” by Ali Asgari picked up the Best Film prize in the former category while actress Sadaf Asgari collected the Best Performance award for her role as Sara in the film.

Thai filmmakers were also recognised in ways other than awards through the selection of Pimpaka Towira as the festival’s programme director, the first non-Singaporean to be chosen as the festival’s key figure.

 

Equally as sparkling were the Asian Television awards held over two days and giving out 47 prizes for excellence in programming, production and performance. More than 1,350 entries from 250 channels and 66 broadcasters across Asia submitted entries to this year’s event, which incorporates every kind of television programme and drama. It is a very open competition as it allows anyone interested in taking part to choose the best part of a series or best episode and submit it to award organiser Contineo Media. The entries are judged by a multi-country jury.

Three Thai programmes were entered into this year’s competition: Channel 3’s “Singer Auction” from Zense Entertainment Company and “House of Blast – Dracula in Trouble” from Workpoint Channel. The third entry was and a gay show hosted Niti ‘Pompam’ Chaichitatorn from GMM 25 –“Talk Ka Toey Tonight” (“Talk with Toey Tonight”) and this won best entertainment presenter, beating out well known hosts like Allen Wu from the “Amazing Race Asia”.

 

“Given that the show’s title, this award goes to gender equality across Asia,” said Pompam in his acceptance speech, drawing loud applause from the audience in the Suntec City Convention Centre.

Hosted by Singapore’s Info-communications Media Development Authority (IMDA), the Singapore Media Festival also includes the Asian Television Awards (ATA), the Asia TV Forum & Market (ATF), Asia’s marketplace ScreenSingapore, which offers a series of talk and seminars on film pitching for the SGIFF, and SMF Ignite.

A one-day conference and exhibition, VR X SMF Ignite aims to bring together technologists, creators, developers and users to exchange insights on the VR ecosystem and discuss how this new paradigm can create opportunities for businesses in media. This year the SMF also hosted its very first Country-of-Focus, selecting Indonesia for its rich stories, talents and achievements across the SMF’s various constituent events.

 

The Singapore Media Festival usually brings together more than 20,000 media and creative professionals, industry thought-leaders and fans of television and film from around the world. The 18th Asia TV Forum & Market (ATF) and the seventh ScreenSingapore ended with an estimated US$289 million (Bt9.42 billion) worth of deals sealed over four days. A total of 760 exhibiting companies from around the world showcased their latest programming and content. Exhibitors included major studios like CBS Studios International, Sony Pictures Television and The Walt Disney Company and Asia’s popular content providers from South Korea, Japan, India and China. Thailand was represented by Workpoint Entertainment, which showcased its TV game shows “Mic Mod Nee” (“Mic on Debt Off”) and the new singing contest show “Diva Makeover” which garnered plenty of attention from Southeast Asian buyers. The ATF also organised talks with well-known creators like Sana Amanat, aka Miss Marvel, cocreator of Marvel’s first Muslim superhero “Kamala Khan”.

“The goal of these media festivals is to bring together the component parts and provide opportunities to get business people and creators together to create new opportunities,” explained Robert Gilby, chairman of the Singapore Media Festival.

“The SMF is largest international media festival in Southeast Asia.  It’s a great venue to showcase ideas and stimulate conversations, to find buyers for shows and to find new financiers for programmes,” he added.