Variety reports that Al Pacino will play Michigan native “Dr. Death” Jack Kevorkian in a new HBO biopic film. Though it has not been announced yet, it is likely that this movie will be shoot in Metro Detroit, specifically Royal Oak. No word yet on who will play famed Metro Detroit lawyer Geoffrey Fieger who has appeared on reality TV show Power of Attorney, and was opposing counsel in an episode of NBC’s The Law Firm. On a side note, Fieger’s brother Doug is the frontman for the 80′s rock quartet The Knack.
Caught in the Crossfire, is a new movie currently being shot in Grand Rapids Michigan starring rapper 50 Cent, Adam Rodriguez (CSI: Miami) and Chris Klein (American Pie). The movie will be directed by East Grand Rapids native Brian A. Miller.
Here is the trailer for the upcoming Christina Ricci movieAll’s Faire In Love. Some of the scenes in the trailer were shot at Mott Community College in Flint, Michigan, which is developing a new Film and Video school on their campus, complete with a new studio.
The Hollywood Reporter states that this August ABC will be airing the new auto-competition show Crash Course. The obstacle course game show seires Crash Course will be shot in and around Metro Detroit and plan to showcase the regions rich automotive history. Each episode will feature couples partaking in extreme driving challenges.
The network will air seven one-hour episodes of Crash Course from the same executive producers that creaded the popular TV shows Hell’s Kitchen and I Survived a Japanese Game Show. Orlando Jones (MadTV) and Dan Cortese (Veronica’s Closet) will be Crash Cousre’s commentators.
Star Trek’s Eric Banna is set to star in upcoming Michigan made movie Armored. The movie is about an armored truck driver schemes to make off with a load of cash that his company is entrusted to transport.
The Michigan made TV series Hung will premiere at 10 p.m. on Sunday June 28, on HBO. The show stars Thomas Jane (“The Mist”) as a guy who relies on his physical attributes when his financial prospects start to look bleak.
The Detroit Film Center presents Detroit Shorts, a festival of short films running May 28 – 31, 2009, has announced the official lineup for its inaugural production. Over 70 films from around the globe will be featured, including entries representing all genres, techniques and subject matter.
The festival takes place May 28-31, 2009 in the Broadway-Randolph District in Downtown Detroit at 1515 BROADWAY and the BOLL FAMILY YMCA.
The lineup features over 20 Award-winning films. Highlights include:
Lies – Best International Short at Sundance
Thompson – Best Documentary Short at SXSW
Short Term 12 – Jury Prize for Best Short at Sundance
Mexican Standoff and Santa: The Fascist Years – Two new shorts from renowned animator Bill Plympton
A Long Journey Home – Audience Award Winner at the Brooklyn Film Festival
Sebastion’s Voodoo – Winner of over 20 awards from festivals around the world
Michigan Economic Development Corporation has recently passed a Renaissance Zone for the city of Pontiac that would exempt Motown Motion Pictures LLC movie production studio from property taxes. The studio will be exempt from most property taxes through 2025. The studio plans to create several thousand new jobs and will get a state tax credit of over $100 million over the next 12 years. The initial investment for the planned studio expected to be about $40 million and could go to as high as $70 million once the land is accrued by it’s former owner General Motors
Radish Creative Group of Royal Oak will hold a open casting call for the Michigan made movie Annabelle and Bear. Auditions will be held 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday, May 27, and times to be determined Thursday, May 28, at the Radish Creative Group Studio 326, at 326 E. Fourth in Royal Oak. For more information go to http://www.annabelleandbear.com/castinginformation.html
Drew Barrymore’s directorial Michigan made debut Whip It has a theatrical release date of October 9.
Mob flick The Irishman; which is set to star Christopher Walken, Val Kilmer and Ray Stevenson, will be shooting in around Metro Detroit this summer in connection with the Ferndale based S3 Studios. WXYZ has more:
Jennifer Connelly and Liam Neeson are set to star upcomign drama What’s Wrong with Virginiain Michigan. Dustin Lance Black (”Milk”) will make his directorial debut while West Michigan based private investment firm Brooks Capital Management, LLC will finance the project.
Robert De Niro is also the executive producer for the upcoming Val Kilmer and Martin Landau “dramedy” 20% Fiction – which will also be shooting in Troy Michigan this summer.
MLive.com reports that Warner Brothers has recently leased a building in Ann arbor to shoot the upcoming Rob Riner film adaption of the “coming of age” novel Flipped. They also report that if the production goes well Warner Brothers will keep the space for a second movie.
The Detroit Free Press reports that filming for the new Robert De Niro and Edward Norton psychological thriller Stone started filming today at Michigan’s closed-down state prison in Jackson. The state of Michigan is being reimbursed about $70,000 for use of the prison and for time spent by state employees working on the project.
According to IMDB the Stone is about a ruthless convict engages in a series of disturbing mental games with his corrections officer in an attempt to gain parole.
All’s Faire In Love starring Christina Ricci, Owen Benjamin, and Matthew Lillard recent premiered at the Cannes Film Market. The film was shot last fall in Flint, Michigan and is still looking for distribution.
After recently filming the upcoming Eric Roberts movie Intentin Livonia Michigan, New Castle Entertainmentis planning on shooting two movies in Michigan this year. First up is Mr. Microphonewhich follows a karaoke DJ and a band of misfits as they travel the country to enter a singing contest in order to keep a friend out of jail. Scheduled to start filming in the Fall of 2009, the cast for consideration include Will Ferrell, Bobby Lee, Tony Cox, Anna Faris, Jeremy Piven, and David Koechner. If it holds up this would be the second movie Ferrel has shot in Michigan when you count the 2007 comedy Semi-Pro.
Next, New Castle plans to shoot Forsakenthis coming summer in Michigan. The film is a true story about a politician and his family who endure unthinkable punishment after he has an affair in Vietnam. Cast for consideration include Michael Douglas, Eric Roberts, Kathy Bates, Brett Rice, Alec Baldwin and James Spader. Given Alec Balwin’s recent negative comments on the Huffington post about Michigan’s battered auto industry this may make for some interesting local news.
Tonight I went to the Terminator Salvationscreens at the Emagine Theater Novi. In attendance was Kalamazoo, Michigan native and Terminator Salvation director McG of Charlie’s Angels, We Are Marshall and the TV show Supernatural fame. After playing around with the audience beforehand by giving the T4′s leading actor Christen Bale an inprompto phone call, McG told the audience that we were about to be the first people ever to see the film in it’s finished theatrical form. However, what was most intriguing about the evening was when he told all of us that he is going to do “everything he can” to bring the next two sequels of the Terminator franchise to his home state of Michigan (According to IMDB, Terminator 5 is set to start shooting in 2010 for a Summer 2011 release). However, McG did note that this coming weekend T4 must perform well in order for Warner Brothers to give him the green light for the next two sequels. Personally, I don’t think that will be much of a problem, Terminator Salvation is a fantastic movie and in my opinion the best thus far.
