‘Unit 234’, ‘The Bayou’, ‘Flying Shadow’, ‘A Haitian Wedding’, ‘Shoulder Dance’ Castings; HBO Max’s Asian Pacific American Visionaries Finalists; Acquisitions By Gravitas, Freestyle; More – Film Briefs

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorPresident Joe Biden will welcome superstar South Korean group BTS to the White House on Tuesday to “discuss Asian inclusion and representation” and to “address anti-Asian hate crimes and discrimination,” according to an announcement from the White House released Thursday.Biden and the group “will also discuss the importance of diversity and inclusion and BTS’ platform as youth ambassadors who spread a message of hope and positivity across the world,” the statement continues.The visit by BTS will take place on May 31, the final day of Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.As noted by Politico, the president has been active during the month. He issued a presidential proclamation on April 29 about AANHPI Heritage Month, and he and Vice President Kamala Harris — who is half Filipino — hosted a White House reception earlier in the month that included U.S.

GenderCool Project, an organization that promotes LGBTQ inclusion through speaking events, mentorship programs, consulting, and advising for parents of transgender children, to provide a collection of three books — A Kids Book About Being Transgender, A Kids Book About Being Transgender, and A Kids Book About Being Non-Binary — for libraries and community centers to put on their shelves. The book initiative was touted as an effort to “replace misinformed opinions” about transgender, nonbinary and gender-nonconforming youth with positive depictions of the community in the hope of promoting positive real-life interactions between readers and LGBTQ youth they may encounter. The books in question are written promote the idea of inclusion and explain who LGBTQ people, especially transgender and nonbinary individuals, are.“The project’s goal is to increase representation of LGBTQ+ books and support our communities in having challenging, important and empowering conversations with children age 5+,” an email from Jose Soto, State Farm’s Corporate Responsibility Analyst, which was sent to all of the company’s agents in Florida, reads.

Not personal. Stassi Schroeder and Beau Clark didn’t cut down their Italian wedding guest list out of spite — it was out of necessity.

Gallery: Campsite owner installs James Bond submarine for £40,000 and you can stay in it (Metro)‘If they tried to turn their heads to see if there was an enemy plane behind them, they would get vertigo and probably pass out. ’ The solution was that jets had rear-view mirrors fitted inside the cockpit. In search of more facts, I set off for the USS Midway, a giant 1,000ft aircraft carrier that came into service in 1945 and was eventually decommissioned in 1992.

More Care Bears: Unlock the Magic is on the way. HBO Max and Cartoon Network have greenlighted six new 22-minute Care Bears: Unlock The Magic specials for the Cartoonito preschool block. Production is currently underway. Additionally, season 1 of the 2D animated series (48 11-minute regular episodes and two 22-minute specials) has been extended into early 2027 for the linear and streaming platforms.

EXCLUSIVE: The single-camera teen comedy Wild Life from Imagine Kids+Family has received a pilot order at HBO Max with rising star Izabella Alvarez (Euphoria, The Casagrandes) set as the show’s lead.

EXCLUSIVE: Fresh off their Oscar nominations for drama The Lost Daughter, Oscar winner Olivia Colman (The Favourite) and Chernobyl star Jessie Buckley are set to reunite on comedy Wicked Little Letters, which will be a hot project at the Cannes market.

Spreading the love! Kristen Doute gushed over friend Stassi Schroeder after she and Beau Clark tied the knot for a second time in Rome.

In a further expansion of their kids and family programming slate, HBO Max and Cartoon Network are teaming on new live-action coming-of-age comedy series, Home Sweet Rome, from Emmy-nominated Hannah Montana and That’s So Raven creator Michael Poryes, for premiere in 2023.

Beloved doll and book line American Girl is getting two new live-action specials. Mattel, Inc.

Selome Hailu HBO Max and Cartoon Network has greenlit and acquired several projects for their kids and family live action slate, Variety has learned exclusively. The slate includes two specials based on Mattel’s American Girl franchise and a supernatural romance starring Peyton List.The first American Girl special has the working title “American Girl: Corinne Tan,” inspired by the doll brand’s 2022 girl of the year and the first doll of Chinese descent.

The sign outside the entrance to Florida’s Disney World has been a lightning rod for protests of late. This past weekend was no exception.

EXCLUSIVE: Samuel Goldwyn Films has acquired North American rights to Grandave International’s romantic comedy Divorce Bait, with plans to release it in theaters and on digital platforms this fall.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter“Julia” has been renewed for Season 2 at HBO Max.The series is inspired by the life of Julia Childs and her long-running cooking show “The French Chef.” Through Childs’ perspective, the series explores the emergence of public television as a new social institution, feminism and the women’s movement, the nature of celebrity and America’s cultural evolution.Sarah Lancashire stars as Childs. The cast also includes David Hyde Pierce, Bebe Neuwirth, Brittany Bradford, Fran Kranz, and Fiona Glascott.

Manori Ravindran International EditorMeg Ryan will direct and star alongside David Duchovny in “What Happens Later,” an “evolved and nostalgic” take on the romantic comedy.The film is based on the play “Shooting Star” by American playwright Steven Dietz, who also co-wrote the screenplay with playwright and novelist Kirk Lynn, and Ryan. Bleecker Street has snapped up the U.S.

EXCLUSIVE: Jack Huston (House of Gucci) has signed on to star alongside Isabelle Fuhrman and Don Johnson in Andy Tennant’s thriller Unit 234, which is currently in production in the Cayman Islands.