Andra Day was rising all the way up as a Grammy-nominated chanteuse — for her 2015 debut album, “Cheers to the Fall” — who sang like the spiritual goddaughter of Billie Holiday and Erykah Badu.Then in 2021, the 39-year-old singer — born Cassandra Monique Batie — flipped the script to become the Golden Globe-winning, Oscar-nominated star of “The United States vs. Billie Holiday,” the Lee Daniels-directed biopic about the same Lady Day who inspired her stage name.Now, nine years and three movies later — she also shot the indie drama “Exhibiting Forgiveness” and the upcoming supernatural thriller “The Deliverance” — Day is back to bringing her own jazzy, sultry vibes with her long-awaited second studio album, “Cassandra (cherith).”And she will continue to get her own gardenia groove back in the most pastoral of New York settings — Central Park — when she headlines the season kickoff of the SummerStage series with a free concert on Saturday.Still, she hasn’t completely kicked the Holiday habit.“There are some parts for sure that I could still shake and then some parts I’m realizing, well, I’m just growing, you know what I mean?” Day told The Post.
Ava DuVernay’s Array Releasing Partners With Mansa Streaming Service To Distribute Select Film And TV Titles
13.05.2024 - 19:39 / deadline.com
EXCLUSIVE: Mansa, the ad-supported streaming platform highlighting Black content for a global audience, has partnered with Ava DuVernay‘s ARRAY Releasing on a licensing agreement to distribute a curated selection of ARRAY’s independent feature films directly to audiences via the Mansa Streaming Service and on the Mansa Mix FAST channel.
The platform delivers a curated selection of films, TV shows, and FAST channels that showcase Black narratives from around the world. Since launching a year ago, Mansa has amassed a library of thousands of hours of content and is accessible on a growing list of distribution partners.
“Ava DuVernay is one of my closest friends and collaborators so I can’t overstate how meaningful this partnership between ARRAY Releasing and Mansa is to me,” said David Oyelowo, award-winning filmmaker, actor, and co-founder of Mansa. “It’s not just about distributing films; it’s about amplifying the voices of those who have been marginalized for far too long. Our hope is to expand the reach of Ava’s vision, allowing her to continue championing diversity and inclusivity in filmmaking. Together, between ARRAY and Mansa, we aim to rewrite the narrative and ensure that the richness of our stories are celebrated worldwide.”
“ARRAY Releasing, the distribution arm of Ava DuVernay’s art collective ARRAY, is honored to partner with Mansa and continue our dedication to amplifying Black independent storytellers globally,” said Tilane Jones, President of ARRAY. “Exhibiting these transformative stories on the Mansa streaming service will create a new audience of film lovers for our amazing family of directors.”
Initial slate of critically-acclaimed titles will be available on Mansa in the coming weeks and include:
3388 Films To Release Vietnamese Hit ‘Face Off 7: One Wish’ Day-And-Date In North America & Major International Markets
EXCLUSIVE: Growing specialty distributor 3388 Films has acquired rights to Vietnamese smash Face Off 7: One Wish, and has set the weekend of June 14 to launch in numerous markets, including the U.S., Canada and the UK.
Avanti issue 'do not travel' warning on West Coast with 'extremely limited service'
Passengers heading between Greater Manchester and Scotland are being urged to rethink their plans. Both Avanti West Coast and TransPennine Express are warning travellers not to travel by train north of Preston this morning (May 30).
Deadly Isle of Man Motorcycle Race Gets Film and Docuseries From Brad Pitt, Channing Tatum, Mediawan and More
Jordan Moreau The legendary Isle of Man TT motorcycle race will be the subject of a film and docuseries from Brad Pitt and Channing Tatum‘s production companies, Mediawan-owned Plan B Entertainment and Free Association. The Isle of Man TT is one of the most famous and deadly races for motorcyclists around the world. Taking place on a small island nation in the Irish Sea, the race traces its heritage back to the early 1900s when road racing was outlawed in England, and racers found refuge on the Isle of Man.
David Oyelowo on Creating an Inclusive Kingdom and Sticking With ‘Bass Reeves’ After Being Turned Down by Every Studio
David Oyelowo made his U.S. breakthrough portraying Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Banijay Rights Hires Long-Serving Passion Distribution Exec & Ups Andrew Dickens In Marcomms Rejig
EXCLUSIVE: Banijay Rights has hired Passion Distribution’s Claire Douglas as part of a rejig of its marketing and comms team that sees Andrew Dickens taking over the division.
Edie Falco's 'Nurse Jackie' Sequel Series Moves Networks, Heads to a Streaming Service
Edie Falco is set to reprise her role as Jackie Peyton in an upcoming new series!
TNT Sports Reaches 5-Year Deal With ESPN To Exclusively Air Select College Football Playoff Games
ESPN and TNT Sports have reached a 5-year sublicensing deal that will see the Warner Bros. Discovery subsidiary carry select College Football Playoff games from ESPN.
‘Paddington’ Backer Anton Raises $108M Of Film & TV Financing In Partnership With BlackRock
Anton, a European studio that has backed titles including Paddington and His Dark Materials, has raised €100M ($108M) in financing through investors led by funds and accounts managed by BlackRock.
New Saudi Production Company 3SIX9 Studios Launches From Cannes With Hollywood Film and TV Slate
Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent A new Saudi Arabian film studio with deep pockets and Hollywood connections is launching from the Cannes Film Festival with a slate of film and TV projects. The Los Angeled-based 3SIX9 Studios – announced at an event on a yacht in the bay of Cannes – is co-founded by actor and producer Daya Fernández, who serves as CEO; Inga V.
Comedy ‘Babes’ Opens In Limited Release Stateside With Neon On The Move In Cannes – Specialty Preview
Babes by Pamela Adlon, co-written and starring Ilana Glazer, debuts in limited release with films by Hang Song-soo and Bertrand Bonello and docs on a controversial Venice Biennale, ground-breaking female clerics, and the Blue Angels Navy Squadron. A trio of festival favorites expand. While eyes now are on fare at Cannes — where Neon has been making high-profile moves — each week Stateside remains a test of indie film’s theatrical boundaries in a post-Covid, streaming-centric marketplace.
Producer Glen Zipper On His Cannes Premiere Doc ‘Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes,’ Upcoming John Candy Film, And Soaring With ‘The Blue Angels’
Cannes is not lacking for glamor this year, even in the documentary lineup.
David Oyelowo Is Working To “Normalize The Marginalized” With Production Company Yoruba Saxon And Streamer Mansa
Near the end of the miniseries Lawmen: Bass Reeves, David Oyelowo’s titular character is told something all too familiar to many unsung real-life heroes: “No one’s gonna ever know, but you made history today.”
The Buzziest Films and Packages for Sale at Cannes 2024: ‘The Apprentice,’ Pamela Anderson’s ‘Last Showgirl’ and ‘Emilia Perez’ Starring Selena Gomez
Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer Are we headed for a bon marché? A new class of finished films and packages (unmade movies with big stars and a director attached) will travel to Cannes this week in search of cash and homes with the studios, streamers and global indie players. The 2024 Cannes market comes equipped with some interesting contradictions. Stateside, the content buying machine is fraught.
Amazon MGM Studios Sets Strategic Partnership With ‘Peter Pan & Wendy’s Ever Anderson
EXCLUSIVE: Ever Anderson, an up-and-coming actress known for roles in Disney+’s Peter Pan & Wendy and Marvel’s Black Window, has entered into a new strategic partnership with Amazon MGM Studios, sources tell Deadline.
James McAvoy Pic ‘Control’ Enters Production & Adds Sarah Bolger, Nick Mohammed, Jonna Coleman, Rudi Dharmalingam, Kyle Soller, August Diehl & Martina Gedeck To Cast
EXCLUSIVE: Studiocanal and The Picture Company have added seven names to the cast of the James McAvoy starrer Control as the pic enters production in Berlin.
Millennium Docs Against Gravity Seeks to Be a Conduit Between Eastern European Filmmakers and Western European Industry
Murtada Elfadl Documentary festival Millennium Docs Against Gravity, running in Poland from Friday to May 19 and online from May 21 to July 3, is in its 21st edition, but its industry section is a relatively recent addition. However, it is growing in size and impact. The section started small four years ago, as Anna Szczypińska, head of the section, explains.
‘Matchbox’ Movie From Mattel Films And Skydance Lands ‘Extraction’s Sam Hargrave As Director
EXCLUSIVE: After successfully launching the Extraction film franchise at Netflix, director Sam Hargrave has his eyes set on another potential franchise with a piece of IP that is revving its engines to get out the gate. Sources tell Deadline that Skydance and Mattel Films have closed a deal with Hargrave to direct a live-action movie based on Matchbox, Mattel’s iconic real-world die-cast toy vehicle line. David Coggeshall and Jonathan Tropper are penning the script.
Participant “Gratitude & Pride”: Ava DuVernay, Martin Sheen, Regina King, Alfonso Cuarón, Matt Damon, Diego Luna & More Ask Hollywood To Embrace Shuttered Company’s Social Impact Legacy
As Neil Young once sang, the now shuttered Participant is gone, but not forgotten.
Tyler Perry Studios And Devon Franklin Form Faith-Based Film Partnership With Netflix; ‘R&B’ First Film Announced Under New Deal
Tyler Perry Studios and DeVon Franklin (Flamin’ Hot) have formed a partnership with Netflix to produce faith-based films under a multi-year and multi-picture first-look deal. This deal marks the latest extension of Perry and Netflix’s creative partnership which sees Perry write, direct, and produce films and series, however, these films will be produced by Franklin and Perry in conjunction with Tyler Perry Studios.