Amazon gets six Oscar nominations for ‘Manchester by the Sea’

As awards watchers expected, Manchester by the Sea ended up being a major Oscar magnet for its co-distributor Amazon. The film, which was also Amazon's first Golden Globe winner, nabbed six Academy Award nominations this morning: best picture, actor...

Amazon Japan adds 12 new original series to Prime Video

Amazon isn't wasting any time making good on its original programming plans for Japan. As part of its Prime Video service, which launched in September of last year, the company had announced plans to offer about 20 original shows tailored to that mar...

Amazon is working on a comedy starring Jean-Claude Van Damme

The man who calmly did the splits between two moving semi trucks and lived to tell the tale is starring in a comedy from Amazon. Jean-Claude Van Johnson has Jean-Claude Van Damme playing a martial arts actor who ditches retirement and steps back into...

Watch Amazon spoof tech culture in its upcoming sci-fi movie

There's already a spot-on parody of tech industry culture you can watch, but Amazon -- a big part of that industry -- might have a clever satire of its own. Its studio wing just released the first trailer for Creative Control, a movie that roasts the...

Amazon adds Amy Sedaris, Wanda Sykes and Cynthia Nixon to ‘Alpha House’ cast

Amazon adds Amy Sedaris, Wanda Sykes and Cynthia Nixon to 'Alpha House' cast

Amazon Studios clearly isn't messing about. One of the more notable series in its original round of pilots is getting a bit more star power. Comedians Amy Sedaris, Wanda Sykes and Sex and the City alum Cynthia Nixon are set to join the cast of Alpha House, which already includes the likes of John Goodman. The Garry Trudeau-penned show is shaping up to be the largest of Amazon's first round of five green lit series. The show will premier through the company's streaming service later this year.

Billy Steele contributed Photoshopped magic to this report.

Filed under: , ,

Comments

Amazon Studios now accepting short video bids for feature films

Amazon Studios now accepting short film bids on top of series, features

Amazon Studios is hell-bent on developing movies and TV series, and on top of script submissions, it's now asking filmmakers to send in 2-15 minute long shorts to pitch their feature-length film ideas. Those would serve as a foundation for your project and "express an idea that's begging to be seen on the big-screen, in full-length, full-budget form," according to the division's Hollywonk blog. Amazon Studios will spend 45 days evaluating each submission, and those added to the development slate will receive $10,000. After that, you'll get put into the development pipeline, which could get you paid writing and directing opportunities, guidance and feedback from partners like Warner Bros., and up to $400,000 if your baby hits theaters. Private submissions are welcome, but if you're feeling brave, you can also post it for the world to see -- hit the source or More Coverage link for more info.

Filed under: ,

Comments

Source: Amazon Studios Hollywonk blog

Amazon introduces Storyteller tool to turn scripts into storyboards

Amazon introduces Storyteller tool to turn scripts into storyboards

Amazon Studios has been forging ahead with its push to develop original movies and TV series, and it has now introduced a new tool that it's hoping will help foster further development. Dubbed Amazon Storyteller, the tool lets writers quickly turn their script into a storyboard without the need for any actual artistic skills. As Amazon explains it, the tool first scans the writer's script and then "identifies the scenes, locations and characters from scene descriptions, and 'casts' them from a library of thousands of characters, props and backgrounds." Writers and filmmakers can then choose to customize the storyboard or upload some of their own images if they like, before sharing it with others to solicit feedback (naturally, it's only available if you submit your script to Amazon Studios). According to the company, the tool works best with contemporary dramas or romantic comedies given its current art assets, so you may still have your work cut out for you if you're looking to storyboard your post-apocalyptic fantasy epic.

Filed under: , ,

Comments

Source: Amazon Storyteller