Harry Potter Preview Draws Big Crowd At Comic-Con
Beloved boy wizard Harry Potter comes face to face with Voldemort in the first cinematic installment of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.”
Actor Tom Felton shared an exclusive clip of the forthcoming film Saturday with about 6,000 convention-goers at Comic-Con. Many of them camped out overnight for a chance to see the footage.
The clip showed Potter and his pals navigating a dark world after Voldemort and his minions overtake the Ministry of Magic and Hogwarts. It introduced Bill Nighy in his role as Rufus Scrimgeour and hinted at a confrontation between Harry and Ron Weasley.
Felton, who plays Draco Malfoy, said the entire cast is “incredibly proud” of the last two films. He said it was tough to part from his castmates on the last day of shooting, adding that star Daniel Radcliffe “cried like a girl.”
The movie opens in November.
Source: cbs4
JENNIFER LOPEZ – Biograhpy
Biography
Early years
Lopez was born and raised in the Castle Hill neighborhood in The Bronx, New York City, New York to Puerto Rican parents Maxjen, Guadalupe Rodríguez and David Lopez. She has two sisters, Lynda and Leslie. “Our parents had a strong work ethic – there wasn’t really any other way,” Lynda Lopez told Rolling Stone. Lopez parents also stressed cultural assimilation, especially the need to speak English. Lopez spent much of what she called “the boyfriend years” secretly meeting with first-love, Davíd Cruz, with whom she remained in a relationship between the ages of 16 and 25. “I was always climbing out windows, jumping off roofs, and he was sneaking up,” she said. “It was crazy.” Lopez spent her entire academic career in Catholic school and acknowledges that she still prays regularly. Lopez financed singing and dancing lessons for herself from the age of 16. After leaving a one semester-long career at Baruch College, Lopez divided her time between working in a legal office, dance classes, and dance performances in Manhattan clubs at night. After months of auditioning for dance roles, Lopez was selected as a dancer for various rap artists’ music videos, and was given a guest spot on the American Music Awards. After being rejected for the role twice, Lopez gained her first regular high profile gig as a “Fly Girl” dancer on the television comedy program In Living Color in 1991. Soon after Lopez became a back-up dancer for famed singer Janet Jackson and made an appearance in her 1993 video “That’s The Way Love Goes”. Scheduled and contracted to go on Janet Jackson’s World Tour, she asked the superstar to be let out of her contract to pursue her acting dreams.
Acting
Lopez has appeared on the short-lived television programs South Central, Second Chances, and Hotel Malibu, the television movie Nurses on the Line: The Crash of Flight 7. Lopez broke into the big screen in 1995, in the drama My Family and then appeared opposite Wesley Snipes in the action film Money Train. Lopez has also played roles in Francis Ford Coppola’s 1996 comedy Jack starring Robin Williams, and the 1997 thriller Blood and Wine with Jack Nicholson. Lopez played the lead role in the 1998 film Selena for which she was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. She also became the first Latina actress to get paid $1 million or more for one film, the role.
Lopez guest-starred in the sixth season finale of Will & Grace in 2004.
In May 2006, MTV gave the greenlight on her executively produced reality show, Moves. The show will follow the lives of six aspiring dancers as they struggle to make it in the competitive world of professional dance. Lopez, who took an active role in selecting the show’s participants, is also slated to make cameo appearances over the course of the season and the show’s eight-episode run is scheduled to begin this winter. Read more
A Guide To The Oscars
The Academy Awards has an 80-year history of commemorating the talents of the film industry. Over the years, categories have been added and special awards have been received, but the gala event provides the public with a chance to view excerpts of nominated movies, see live performances of nominated sound tracks, catch a glimpse of Hollywood stars and join in the celebration of determining the best of the best for that year.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, developed in 1927, is a professional honour society encouraging excellence in the industry and commemorating those who exemplify Academy standards. Individuals are invited to become members, which are comprised of actors, directors, producers and other film making artists. Besides nominating potential award candidates, the Academy is involved with numerous industry fields, including film preservation and new technology projects.
Prior to the awards ceremony, the statuettes are cast. Each Oscar stands 34.3 cm tall and weighs 3.85 kg. The statue is constructed of britannium, plated with 24 karat gold, and attached to a marble base. The figure is a crusading knight holding a sword, standing atop a movie reel with 5 spokes that represent the original branches of the Academy, namely actors, directors, producers, technicians and writers. The statue was originally called the Academy Award of Merit until the 1930’s when a librarian remarked that it bared an uncanny resemblance to her Uncle Oscar. The nickname was mentioned in a Hollywood article and started to catch on; the name was officially adopted by the Academy in 1939.
Five nominees are selected in each category from a list of the year’s possible candidates. The nominees are first compiled on a list as producers or distributors submit an Official Screen Credits to the Academy for consideration. In the first month of the new year, the list and a ballot are sent to members of the Academy, who must choose five candidates in each category. Each member votes within his/her area of specialty. Actors vote for other actors and directors vote for other directors, but the best picture category is determined by all members. Likewise foreign films or documentaries are voted on by specially formed groups.
Once the ballots are completed and returned they are sent to an accounting firm for secret tabulation. The Academy then holds a press conference to disclose the names of the nominees. Again members of the Academy are sent ballots to vote on a winner in each category. The ballots are again returned and submitted to the accounting firm for secret tabulation.
In preparation for the event, hundreds of individuals are employed as artists, chefs, carpenters, cameramen, musicians and technicians who perform numerous tasks including constructing the stage, feeding the staff, developing visual and audio effects, and formulating all the details of the event known as the Oscars.