Tag Archives: filmmaker

US

Trump’s allies claim they were assured editorial input before filmmaker was subpoenaed

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Multiple people said they had been told the documentary was focused on Trump’s legacy and would be a flattering portrayal.

But 17 months later, that filmmaker, Alex Holder, has been subpoenaed by the House select committee investigating the January 6, 2021, Capitol Hill insurrection, and turned over hours of his footage. That has made some in the former President’s orbit nervous, they told CNN, mainly because several don’t recall the full extent of their comments.

An attorney for Holder denies that the Trumps were granted editorial control over the final product.

”The Trumps did not request, and were not granted, any editorial control over the series. To the contrary, Alex Holder said at the outset that he would have full editorial control. The Trumps also did not request any contractual right of control, or even review, so there is none,” Russell Smith said in a statement provided to CNN.

Holder’s “Unprecedented” three-part docuseries about the 2020 election will be released on Discovery Plus, which is owned by CNN’s parent company, later this summer. The documentary includes never-before-seen footage of the Trump family on the campaign trail and their reactions to the outcome of the election.

The then-President’s children sat for multiple interviews with the British filmmaker, who was there in the final weeks of Trump’s time in office. Ivanka Trump did three interviews, her husband, Jared Kushner, was interviewed twice and Eric Trump was interviewed twice, Holder told CNN. Donald Trump Jr. was interviewed once for an hour, but an attempt at a second interview with him did not come to fruition.

Several of the interviews, including with Ivanka Trump, were conducted after Trump had lost the election but as he was still contesting it. Most of Ivanka Trump’s interview focused on her relationship with her father, in addition to a public comment about the ongoing legal challenges over the election. Trump Jr. sat down with Holder about three weeks before the election, another source said.

Now there is some concern among certain figures about what was said on camera given hours of footage have been turned over. One former aide downplayed the likelihood anything relevant to the committee was said.

A person familiar with the matter said the interviews were orchestrated by Jason Greenblatt, Trump’s Middle East peace envoy who left the administration in 2019 but remained in close touch with top officials. Greenblatt has not responded to CNN’s request for comment.

Holder sat for a deposition with the committee Thursday morning behind closed doors.

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US

US film-maker Brent Renaud killed by Russian forces in Ukraine | Ukraine

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Brent Renaud, an award-winning US film-maker whose work has appeared in the New York Times and other outlets, has been killed by Russian forces in the flashpoint town of Irpin, outside Kyiv. A US photographer, Juan Arredondo, was wounded.

Renaud, 51, was hit in the neck and died after coming under Russian fire while working on Sunday, according to local police officials and multiple Ukrainian sources.

Jane Ferguson, a reporter for PBS Newshour who was nearby when Renaud was killed, tweeted: “Just left roadside spot near Irpin where body of American journalist Brent Renaud lay under a blanket. Ukrainian medics could do nothing to help him by that stage. Outraged Ukrainian police officer: ‘Tell America, tell the world, what they did to a journalist.’”

Clifford Levy, a deputy managing editor of the New York Times, issued a statement on Twitter clarifying that Renaud was not on assignment for the paper, contrary to earlier reports.

“[The New York Times] is deeply saddened to learn of the death of an American journalist in Ukraine, Brent Renaud. Brent was a talented photographer and film-maker, but he was not on assignment for the New York Times in Ukraine. Early reports that he worked for Times circulated because he was wearing a Times press badge he had been issued for an assignment many years ago.”

Levy added: “Brent’s death is a terrible loss. Brave journalists like Brent take tremendous risks to bear witness and to tell the world about the devastation and suffering caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.”

The Kyiv region police chief, Andrei Nebitov, said in a statement: “The occupiers are cynically killing even journalists of international media who are trying to show the truth about the atrocities of Russian troops in Ukraine.”

Arredondo, 45, a World Press Photo winner and adjunct professor at Columbia University, said he and Renaud had gone to Irpin to film refugees escaping the town, and they were fired on by forces near a checkpoint. Filmed describing what had occurred while he was receiving hospital treatment, he suggested they had driven into an ambush.

‘We crossed the checkpoint and they started shooting at us’ says journalist wounded in Irpin – video

“We crossed the first bridge in Irpin. We were going to film all the refugees leaving. We got into a car … Someone offered to take us to the other bridge and we crossed a checkpoint and they started shooting at us,” Arredondo said. “So the driver turned around, and they kept shooting … and there was two of us. My friend is Brent Renaud and he’s been shot and left behind.”

When the interviewer asked how Renaud was, Arredondo replied: “I don’t know. I saw he’d been shot in the neck. And we got split.”

The US national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, told CNN: “If in fact an American journalist was killed, it is a shocking and horrifying event. It is one more example of the brutality of Vladimir Putin and his forces as they’ve targeted schools and mosques and hospitals and journalists.

“And it is why we are working so hard to impose severe consequences on him, and to try to help the Ukrainians with every form of military assistance we can muster, to be able to push back against the onslaught of these Russian forces.”



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Entertainment

‘Rust’ filmmaker Joel Souza breaks silence after colleague Halyna Hutchins’ death on set

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“Rust” film director Joel Souza, who is recovering after being shot with a prop gun fired by producer and actor Alec Baldwin on Thursday while filming, said he is “gutted by the loss of my friend and colleague” cinematographer Halyna Hutchins who was killed as a result of the same film set accident.

“She was kind, vibrant, incredibly talented, fought for every inch and always pushed me to be better,” Souza said in a statement to NBC News.

Hutchins was working as the director of photography for “Rust” alongside Souza in Santa Fe, New Mexico when Baldwin discharged a prop firearm on set. Hutchins was flown by helicopter to the University of New Mexico Hospital, where she was pronounced dead, while Souza was taken to the hospital by ambulance, officials said.

“My thoughts are with her family at this most difficult time,” Souza said.

Matt Hutchins, Halyna’s husband, opened up about the tragedy Friday on his first social media post since his wife’s death.

“Halyna inspired us all with her passion and vision, and her legacy is too meaningful to encapsulate in words,” he tweeted alongside a photo of his late wife and their son. “Our loss is enormous, and we ask that the media please respect my family’s privacy as we process our grief. We thank everyone for sharing images and stories of her life.”

Family, friends and film industry colleagues have also been expressing their condolences and posting tributes to her work on social media for the past few days.

“She decided early on she would take the craft of cinematography by storm and the last couple of years proved she was well on her way. Her talent was immense, only surpassed by the love she had for her family,” Halyna’s team said in a statement Friday.

“All those in her orbit knew what was coming; a star director of photography, who would be a force to be reckoned with,” her team added.

Souza, 48, said he is “humbled and grateful by the outpouring of affection we have received from our filmmaking community, the people of Santa Fe, and the hundreds of strangers who have reached out.”

“It will surely aid in my recovery,” he added.

Halyna, 42, was originally from Ukraine and grew up on a Soviet military base in the Arctic Circle. She also worked as an investigative reporter in Europe before moving to Los Angeles to do film, according to her website.

She graduated from the American Film Institute in 2015 and was selected as one of American Cinematographer’s Rising Stars of 2019, according to the biography on her website.

Halyna’s friends and mentors at the film school helped establish a scholarship fund “to honor her memory and support aspiring female cinematographers,” according to her husband Matt.

“Anyone seeking to honor her memory, please direct your giving to this fund,” he tweeted.

Matt is a corporate lawyer who joined Latham & Watkins’ Los Angeles office as an associate earlier this year. Before that, he was an in-house lawyer at an entertainment company and practiced at Kirkland & Ellis and Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, according to his LinkedIn profile.

He said on Friday that he had spoken with Baldwin, who was being supportive, following the incident.

In his first comments about the prop gun shooting, Baldwin also confirmed he was in touch with the Hutchins family.

“There are no words to convey my shock and sadness regarding the tragic accident that took the life of Halyna Hutchins, a wife, mother and deeply admired colleague of ours,” Baldwin tweeted, adding that he has been cooperating with authorities in charge of the ongoing investigation.

So far, no charges have been filed in connection to the incident, the sheriff’s office said.

Nicole Acevedo is a reporter for NBC News Digital. She reports, writes and produces stories for NBC Latino and NBCNews.com.

Diana Dasrath

Diana Dasrath is entertainment producer and senior reporter for NBC News covering all platforms.

Reuters contributed.



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World

Russian minister dies trying to save filmmaker during Arctic drill

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MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — Russia’s emergencies minister has died trying to save a filmmaker who slipped from a cliff during training exercises in the Arctic, officials said Wednesday.

Yevgeny Zinichev, who previously served in President Vladimir Putin’s security detail, is the first Russian cabinet member to die on duty.

He was lauded by senior government officials and the Russian leader as a loyal civil servant and a “hero.” The UK’s ambassador in Russia also offered condolences.

The 55-year-old “tragically died trying to save a person’s life” near the city of Norilsk, the ministry said in a statement carried by Russian news agencies.

The ministry identified the filmmaker as 63-year-old Alexander Melnik who produced several films set in the Arctic region. It said he also died in the incident that took place earlier Wednesday.

Margarita Simonyan, the well-connected editor-in-chief of the state-funded news outlet RT, said the minister had fallen to his death trying to save the man later identified as Melnik.

“He and the cameraman were standing at the edge of a cliff,” she said.

Russian Emergencies Minister Yevgeny Zinichev attends a Security Council meeting chaired by Russian President at the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence outside Moscow on November 22, 2019. (Alexey DRUZHININ / SPUTNIK / AFP)

“The cameraman slipped and fell… Before anyone even figured out what happened, Zinichev jumped into the water after the fallen person and crashed against a protruding rock.”

Zinichev’s deputy Andrei Gurovich said in televised remarks: “Without thinking for a second he acted not like a minister, but like a rescuer.

“This is how he lived all his life,” Gurovich added.

In an usually personal note to Zinichev’s family published by the Kremlin, Putin said he was “shocked by the tragic news” of his death.

“We have lost a true military officer, a comrade, a person of great inner strength and courage and bravery close to all of us. For me, this is an irreparable personal loss,” Putin said.

Zinichev was a member of the KGB security service in the last years of the USSR and his career took off after he served in Putin’s security detail between 2006 and 2015.

He held a number of high-profile jobs, briefly serving as acting governor of Russia’s exclave region of Kaliningrad and then as deputy head of the Federal Security Service (FSB).

He was appointed head of the emergencies ministry in May, 2018. He was also a member of Russia’s Security Council.

As head of the emergencies ministry, he held one of the highest-profile cabinet jobs, dealing with natural and man-made disasters and other rapid-response situations across the vast country.

The two-day drills he was participating in across several Arctic cities including Norilsk, kicked off on Tuesday involving over 6,000 people.

Condolences poured in from top officials and even foreign dignitaries including Serbia’s President Aleksandar Vucic.

Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin praised Zinichev as a “true Russian officer” and Chechen strongman Ramzan Kadyrov said the minister “died like a hero.”

“I knew him personally. We worked together closely and fruitfully,” said the head of the Russian space agency Roscosmos, Dmitry Rogozin.

FSB chief Alexander Bortnikov called his passing “a big loss for Russia.”

The British Ambassador to Russia, Deborah Bronnert, said on Twitter she was “saddened” by Zinichev’s death and expressed her condolences to his family.

Melnik was an award-winning film director and had travelled to Norilsk to work on a new film about the development of the Arctic and the Northern Sea Route.

Opening up the Arctic is a strategic priority for Moscow and it has huge projects to exploit the vast region’s natural resources.

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Entertainment

Prince Charles ‘has been very hurt over the last few months’ about Prince Harry’s claims: filmmaker

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Prince Charles is allegedly troubled by his strained relationship with Prince Harry.

Most recently, his youngest son announced he was working on an “intimate and heartfelt memoir,” which is expected to be released in late 2022.

“I’m writing this not as the prince I was born but as the man I have become,” the Duke of Sussex, 36, said in a statement. “I’ve worn many hats over the years, both literally and figuratively, and my hope is that in telling my story — the highs and lows, the mistakes, the lessons learned — I can help show that no matter where we come from, we have more in common than we think. I’m deeply grateful for the opportunity to share what I’ve learned over the course of my life so far and excited for people to read a firsthand account of my life that’s accurate and wholly truthful.”

True Royalty TV co-founder and Editor-in-Chief Nick Bullen told Fox News that, while he hasn’t heard of what the Prince of Wales really thinks about the book’s upcoming release, the patriarch has been heartbroken over the bombshell claims Harry has made in recent months.

SARAH FERGUSON REVEALS WHAT PRINCESS DIANA WOULD HAVE THOUGHT OF PRINCE HARRY AND MEGHAN MARKLE’S ‘MEGXIT’

True Royalty TV co-founder Nick Bullen has worked with Prince Charles (pictured here) for nearly a decade.
(Getty Images     )

“I do know from people close to him that he has been very hurt over the last few months about all the revelations,” said Bullen. “I think it’s pretty telling that when Clarence House released their annual report in the summer, they made it very clear that they were funding Harry and [his wife] Meghan [Markle] after their departure.”

“It’s very rare that the royal households complain and explain, but they most certainly explained this time,” Bullen continued. “Harry alleged that after they stepped down, they were immediately cut off financially. But Clarence House turned around and basically said, ‘No, that’s not true. Harry was receiving money until the summer.’ So I think that in itself is pretty telling about how people [in the palace] feel about what’s going on.”

Bullen is an award-winning documentarian who has been making programs about the royal family for nearly 10 years and has worked closely with Charles, 72, for eight.

This month, True Royalty TV is releasing several new documentaries including “The Royals Revealed: The Royal Family, Are They Worth It?,” which examines the financial value of the British royal family, as well as “The Royals Revealed: Harry and Edward, Princes in Exile,” which explores some of the similarities between Harry and Edward VIII, the queen’s uncle.

MEGHAN MARKLE TEASES FIRST LOOK OF BABY DAUGHTER LILIBET IN BIRTHDAY VIDEO

Prince Harry will be releasing a memoir in 2022.
(Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Global Citizen VAX LIVE)

“I am an enormous fan of the Prince of Wales,” said Bullen. “I’ve been lucky enough to film with him on quite a number of occasions. I’ve spent time with him privately. He is incredibly hardworking. He is a man who puts duty above absolutely everything else. And he wants to make a difference… He’s been dedicated to helping the young, disadvantaged children of Britain. He’s hugely passionate about the environment, sustainability and organic farming. He wants to support our local farmers.”

“For over 60 years, he has put his head down and carved out a role that would make a difference long before he ever becomes king,” Bullen continued. “This isn’t a man waiting around to be crowned. This is a man who is using his role, his position, his platform to make a difference not just for his country, but for the world. He knows that will be harder to do when he becomes king. So he wants to do it now. And he’s doing it very effectively.”

Bullen said he was shocked to hear that Harry was releasing a book, adding that “people within the palace have concerns” about it.

“I think most people felt that the Oprah interview and the subsequent documentaries were enough,” he explained. “Enough has been said. Do we really need a book going into more detail? Will this really help his relationship with the family? So I was personally surprised.”

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This image provided by Harpo Productions shows Prince Harry, from left, and Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex, in conversation with Oprah Winfrey.
(Joe Pugliese/Harpo Productions via AP)

“I thought enough has been said, but if you’ve been offered a $20 million publishing deal or so, I guess you’ve got to deliver on that,” he shared. “But I’m also shocked by the timing. Next year is the queen’s Jubilee year, an incredibly important year for the queen. Every member of the royal family is ensuring that the year is about the queen. And I just think that this book, in many ways, could have a detrimental impact on the year.”

Bullen suspects that the book may possibly come out sooner than expected out of respect for the queen, who is known for having a close relationship with her grandson.

“If there’s going to be more revelations, let’s rip off the plastic quickly and get it out,” said Bullen. “There are concerns from all sides. Nobody quite knows what’s going to be said, especially after the Oprah interview. And of course, many people are concerned this book will overshadow the queen’s Jubilee, which is supposed to be her time. Even if the book is relatively tame, it’s going to be widely covered by the press for weeks. And those headlines could be pretty damaging and pretty harmful for all involved.”

While financial terms were not disclosed by Random House, the book publisher noted that Harry will donate proceeds to charity.

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Prince Charles and Prince Harry attend the ‘Our Planet’ global premiere at Natural History Museum on April 4, 2019 in London. 
(Samir Hussein/Samir Hussein/WireImage/Getty Images)

The book announcement came four months after Harry and Markle, 40, made worldwide news during their interview with Oprah Winfrey, 67, near the couple’s home in Montecito, California. The Duchess of Sussex spoke of feeling lonely and nearly suicidal before they left England last year and Harry acknowledged tension with his father over his decision to step back from his royal duties and his marriage to the biracial American actress.

“There is a lot to work through there,” Harry said about his relationship with his father, who was divorced from Diana, Princess of Wales, at the time of her fatal car accident in 1997. “I feel really let down. He’s been through something similar. He knows what pain feels like. And Archie (Harry and Markle’s son) is his grandson. I will always love him, but there is a lot of hurt that has happened.”

Harry told Winfrey that he felt trapped by royal life and that his family cut off him financially and took away his security. He also acknowledged his relationship was also strained with his older brother, Prince William.

“I was trapped, but I didn’t know I was trapped,” Harry said, before adding, “My father and my brother, they are trapped.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Entertainment

Why filmmaker Ken Burns won’t do a documentary for the streaming giants

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The conservatorship of Britney Spears, the college admissions fraud scandal, the accusation of sexual abuse against Woody Allen — all of these stories came back atop headlines in recent weeks after new documentaries offered fresh insight. 

The films appeared on streaming platforms Hulu (DIS), Netflix (NFLX), and HBO Max (T) to feed a growing appetite for nonfiction.

Still, legendary documentary filmmaker Ken Burns says in a new interview he’ll never make a movie for the streaming giants. Rather, he plans to keep his longtime partnership with PBS that affords him total creative control and a lengthy production timeline, he says.

“I’ve been with public television my entire thing and I’m staying with them,” says Burns, whose new three-part film “Hemingway” premieres on April 5. “They have one foot in the marketplace and the other tentatively out.”

Burns, known for expansive movies on quintessential American subjects like “Jazz” and “Baseball,” cited the marathon production schedule for his 10-part documentary series “Vietnam War,” which aired in 2017.

‘PBS gave me 10 and a half years’

“I could have gone a few years ago — or 10 and a half — to a streaming channel or or a premium cable, and say, with my track record, ‘I need $30 million to do Vietnam,’ and they would have given me,” he adds. “But what they wouldn’t have given me is 10 and a half years.”

“PBS gave me 10 and a half years,” he says. “They gave me six and a half on Ernest Hemingway.”

With hundreds of millions in the U.S. isolated at home — and many more around the world — the pandemic brought about an explosion of viewership for documentary. Last April, 34.3 million viewers watched the murder mystery “Tiger King” over its first 10 days available, making it one of the most popular original programs ever to air on Netflix, according to Nielsen. 

A documentary series about basketball legend Michael Jordan called “The Last Dance,” which aired over five weeks from April to May of 2020, averaged 6.1 million viewers per episode, ESPN said — which made it the most-viewed documentary in the history of the network.

Documentary has made up a key part of high-profile production deals reached by streaming giants and creators. Last September, Netflix inked a multi-year production deal with Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle reportedly worth upwards of $100 million, which calls for a slew of projects, including documentaries. Similarly, former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama signed a blockbuster deal with Netflix in 2018 that includes nonfiction work.

Nevertheless, Burns said he prizes the arrangement with PBS free of the pressure to turn a profit, since it relies on a host of individuals and institutions who back his work.

“It’s not a financial model; it’s a grant model,” he says. “We raise money from foundations, and individuals of wealth, from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, from PBS itself.”

 “We make [the films] zero-sum games,” he adds. We’re “not allowed to put in contingency, not allowed to put in any profit margin, and it just happens.”

“What that gives me is total creative control. If you don’t like these films, it’s my fault,” he says. “And that’s the way you want it to be: No excuses.”

Burns spoke to Yahoo Finance Editor-in-Chief Andy Serwer in an episode of “Influencers with Andy Serwer,” a weekly interview series with leaders in business, politics, and entertainment.

Filmmaker Ken Burns speaks to Yahoo Finance Editor-in-Chief Andy Serwer on “Influencers with Andy Serwer.”

A two-time Oscar nominee, Burns has made films for more than four decades on a range of topics that span “The Vietnam War” and “The Civil War” to “Country Music” and “Brooklyn Bridge.” In addition to the upcoming film “Hemingway,” Burns will release later this year “Muhammad Ali,” a four-part documentary on the legendary boxer and social activist.

For years, he has lived and worked in the small town of Walpole, New Hampshire.

Speaking with Yahoo Finance, Burns welcomed the explosion of documentary filmmaking. He described the early days of his career in the 1980s as what he thought at the time was “the golden age” but acknowledged how the output has improved since.

“There was just an amazing spectrum,” he says. “And it’s only gotten bigger and more effective.”

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