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It’s easy to forget that, before he was a multi-multi-billionaire with a penchant for phallic-shaped spaceships and whose record-breaking divorce bill barely scratched his status as one of the world’s wealthiest individuals (current position: number 2 behind Elon Musk), Jeff Bezos was just a regular Wall Street exec with a big idea.

But it’s this pre-global domination period, when Amazon was merely a glint in Bezos’ eye, that’s the focus of a new biopic being touted at the American Film Market.

Entitled Bezos: The Beginning and from Vision Films, the film is based on the book Zero to Hero and, according to director Khoa Le, looks to “tell a story about a person that works a 9-5 job, doesn’t have entrepreneurship experience, but has this idea of building something that was going to change the future.”

Le says the...

Peter A. Lees, a film producer whose credits include the recent live-action versions of The Little Mermaid, Anastasia and The Mad Hatter, has died. He was 51.

His publicist Sheri Goldberg said Lees died Friday at his home in Miami Beach but did not provide a cause of death.

His credits as executive producer include Todd, Santa in Training, A New York Christmas Wedding, Cinderella: The Enchanted Beginning, Rapunzel: A Princess Frozen in Time and 2019’s A Christmas Carol.

Lees has been producing films for Conglomerate Media since 2017 and was in pre-production on several projects including Britto, a biopic of the renowned pop artist Romero Britto.

Armando Gutierrez, his producing partner, said: “Peter was a master at producing movies and loved by all those who worked with him. His work will live on forever. Anyone that worked with him would remember his trademark ‘Cheers’ when he would be on set.”

Survivors include his two sisters.

Peter A. Lees, who produced recent live-action film versions of The Little Mermaid, The Mad Hatter and Anastasia, died Aug. 6 of an unknown cause at his home in Miami Beach, Florida, a publicist announced. He was 51.

Lees has been producing features for Conglomerate Media since 2017 and was in preproduction on several projects, including a biopic of Brazilian pop artist Romero Britto.

“Peter was a master at producing movies and loved by all those who worked with him,” his producing partner, Armando Gutierrez, said in a statement. “His work will live on forever. Anyone that worked with him ...

Peter A. Lees, who produced recent live-action film versions of The Little Mermaid, The Mad Hatter and Anastasia, died Aug. 6 of an unknown cause at his home in Miami Beach, Florida, a publicist announced. He was 51.

Lees has been producing features for Conglomerate Media since 2017 and was in preproduction on several projects, including a biopic of Brazilian pop artist Romero Britto.

“Peter was a master at producing movies and loved by all those who worked with him,” his producing partner, Armando Gutierrez, said in a statement. “His work will live on forever. Anyone that worked with him ...

A seemingly safe weekend psychology excursion becomes a sinister experience for a group of unsuspecting college students in Cate Devaney's The Mad Hatter, and with the new horror film now available on VOD from Blue Fox Entertainment, we've been provided with an exclusive clip to share with Daily Dead readers!

You can check out a hypnotic haunting in our exclusive clip below, and to learn more about The Mad Hatter, visit:

https://www.bluefoxentertainment.com/films/the-mad-hatter

Directed by Cate Devaney from a screenplay by R.V. Romero and Devaney, The Mad Hatter stars Armando Gutierrez, Samuel Caleb Walker, Michael Berryman, Isadora Cruz, Nick Miller, and Rachel Brunner.

Synopsis: "Henry and three classmates join their professor for a weekend psychology study at the ‘Mad Hatter’ mansion, supposedly haunted by those who died at a lavish party in the 1880s. Henry is hopeful that the study will cure him of his...

"Something is happening... Something is wrong... I'm seeing things..." Blue Fox Entertainment has released an official trailer for an indie horror film titled The Mad Hatter, set to be released sometime this summer. The film marks the feature directorial debut of a storyboard artist on Scott Derrickson's movies now making her first feature. Henry, and three of his classmates, encounter mind-bending ghostly terrors when they volunteer for a weekend study with their psychology professor in the haunted 'Mad Hatter' mansion. Supposedly haunted by those who died at a lavish party in the 1880s. I dig the smoldering embers look of all the ghosts, just hope the rest of it lives up to that potential for something really cool. The film stars Armando Gutierrez, Samuel Caleb Walker, Isadora Cruz, Nick Miller, Michael Berryman, and Rachel Brunner. This does look extremely creepy - check it out. Here's the two main trailers...

The American Black Film Festival (ABFF) has set its lineup for the 2020 virtual edition of the fest which runs August 21-30. In addition, IMDb will simulcast The Best of the ABFF Awards Ceremony on its homepage on closing night.

The online fest will bring the energy and magic of the live fest as it spotlights the best of independent Black cinema, studio premieres, conversations and panels, along with virtual networking events. ABFF will also introduce the inaugural John Singleton Award for Best First Feature for a director of African descent.

Of the 90 films featured in this year’s fest, 90% of the submissions are from Black filmmakers, 70% are first time filmmakers and approximately 40% are women.

“The more than 90 films in this year’s festival are the work of a group of powerful and passionate storytellers who reflect the diversity of voices in our industry,” said Jeff Friday, founder and CEO ABFF Ventures.

In today’s roundup, a behind the scenes Seinfeld attraction called “The Seinfeld Experience” will open in New York City in the fall.

Casting

Juliette Lewis, Ryan Kwanten and Jordan Alexander are set to star in the second season of the Blumhouse TV anthology series “Sacred Lies: The Singing Bones,” which airs on Facebook Watch.

Season 2 of the show will feature a new cast and a storyline that draws inspiration from a Brothers Grimm story, “The Singing Bone,” as well as real-life murder cases.

Deals

Paramount Worldwide Television Licensing has acquired the international television distribution rights to “Anastasia,” “Santa in Training,” and “Trico Tri Happy Halloween,” Variety has learned exclusively.

The former is a musical/fantasy which stars Brandon Routh (“DC’s Legends of Tomorrow”), Donna Murphy (“Tangled: The Series”), Emily Carey (“Wonder Woman”), Armando Gutierrez (“The Little Mermaid”) and Amiah Miller (“War for the Planet of the Apes”). It...

“There are no cheap parlor tricks here!” growls Locke (Armando Gutierrez), the cloak-swirling, goatee-twitching villain of Blake Harris and Chris Bouchard’s “The Little Mermaid,” providing such an easy way in for the disgruntled reviewer (and few will be gruntled) that it almost feels like a trap. Creaky visual effects, slapdash plotting and a script drunk on cliché: There’s pretty much nothing but cheap parlor trickery here.

The biggest trick of all, of course, is that though it feels like it was designed to capitalize on the confusion, this is neither the forthcoming Lin-Manuel Miranda-assisted Disney remake, nor Universal’s similarly titled, status-unknown project that formerly had Sofia Coppola and Chloë Grace Moretz attached. Nor does it bear much resemblance to the 1989 animated musical, or to the Hans Christian Andersen story that purportedly inspired all of the above. Instead it belongs to the subgenre of “imagine insert-mythical-creature-here was real” movies,...

In today’s film news roundup, Poppy Drayton’s “The Little Mermaid” gets a theatrical release, Melissa Leo gets a film festival honor, and the script for holiday adventure “Escape From the North Pole” is bought.

Release Date

A live-action independent version of “The Little Mermaid,” starring British actress Poppy Drayton, has been set for release nationwide exclusively in AMC Theatres beginning Aug. 17.

The movie is inspired by the 1837 Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale rather than the Disney animated movie and follows a young girl who discovers an enchanting woman she believes to be the real “Little Mermaid” of lore.

William Moseley stars as a reporter following a story about a mermaid and a magic healing water. Together with his sick niece, played by Loreto Peralta, they travel to a small town in Mississippi to uncover a legend.

Shirley MacLaine, Gina Gershon, and Armando Gutierrez also star. Production companies are...

The Little Mermaid, the live-action film inspired by the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale more than the Disney animated classic, has set an August 17 release date exclusively at more than 200 AMC Theatres nationwide via Freestyle Releasing. The Royals‘ William Moseley and Downton Abbey‘s Poppy Drayton star in the debut feature from Robert Molloy’s Kingsway Productions.

Written by Blake Harris and co-directed by Harris and Chris Bouchard, the fantasy-adventure follows a young girl who discovers a beautiful, enchanting woman she believes to be the real “Little Mermaid” of lore. Moseley is Cam Harrison, a young reporter following a big story about the mermaid (Drayton) and a magic healing water said to cure all. He travels with his sick niece (Loreto Peralta) to a small Mississippi town and uncovers a legend that’s as mysterious as the circus they find it in. Shirley MacLaine, Gina Gershon and Armando Gutierrez co-star.

Exclusive: Feature marks second collaboration between Swen Group and Conglomerate.

Emily Carey, who plays the young Diana in global smash Wonder Woman, will star in the live-action family feature Anastasia: Once Upon A Time.

The feature is a retelling of the Anastasia Romanov story and marks the second production between Swen Group, the Latin American giant that recently established a Us distribution arm, and Conglomerate, the Florida-based production company behind Walt Before Mickey and the upcoming Little Mermaid.

Anastasia: Once Upon A Time begins in 1917 as the youngest daughter of Tsar Nicholas II flees Lenin’s troops through a time portal, emerging in 1988 when she befriends a young American girl.

Carey will star alongside Kendall Vertes as Tana and Aliyah Moulden from TV show The Voice, who will write and perform original songs. Blake Harris directs, as he did on Little Mermaid.

Although rumours of the real Anastasia’s escape endured for years, in reality...

Nearly 30 years after Disney's timeless animated classic The Little Mermaid hit theaters, the studio announced last year that they are putting together a new live-action adaptation with Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda. Universal was also readying their own live-action adaptation with Chloe Moretz set to star, before she dropped out. While it remains to be seen what will happen with those projects, there is a new live-action Little Mermaid movie coming out later this year, and the first trailer has been released today.

This Little Mermaid movie comes from Conglomerate Media and Kingsway Productions, with the trailer debuting on YouTube. The project doesn't have a release date set at this time, but it is expected to debut later this year, possibly this summer, although it remains to be seen when a release date will be announced. This story takes a much different approach to the original Hans Christian Anderson fairy tale.

William Moseley ("The Chronicles of Narnia," "The Royals") will join Shirley MacLaine and Poppy Drayton in Chris Bouchard's live-action family adventure "A Little Mermaid" at Mvp Studios.

Blake Harris' script is inspired by the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale and has Moseley playing a reporter who travels with his younger sister (Loreto Peralta) to a small Southern town where they discover an enchanting creature (Drayton) they believe to be the real 'Little Mermaid.'

MacLaine portrays an eccentric woman who has intimate knowledge of the story. Diahann Carroll, William Forsythe and Gina Gershon also star. Robert Molloy and Armando Gutierrez are producing the film which recently began production in Georgia.

This is not to be confused with the Chloe Moretz-led live-action adaptation in the works at Universal.

Source: Variety...

Mvp Studios said today it is kicking off production next month on the live-action family pic A Little Mermaid, which will serve as the first project for the new company founded by Robert Molloy, who is the grandson of former New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, and producer Armando Gutierrez. Poppy Drayton, Loreto Peralta and Shirley MacLaine are set to star in Mermaid, with Chris Bouchard directing. The film will be shot in Georgia for a 2017 release. In the Blake…...

Shirley MacLaine will star in a live-action rendition of Hans Christian Andersen's fairytale A Little Mermaid.

The film will come from Mvp Studios, a newly formed entertainment company founded by Robert Molloy and Armando Gutierrez.

Chris Bouchard will direct the pic, which was written by Blake Harris, and will also star Shannara Chronicles' Poppy Drayton and Loreto Peralta. 

Chloe Grace Moretz is set to star in a different Little Mermaid adaptation from Working Title that will come from director Rebecca Thomas.

Mvp's A Little Mermaid will be filmed entirely in Georgia; principal photography is set to begin in March.

MacLaine is ...

Shirley MacLaine will star in a live-action rendition of Hans Christian Andersen's fairytale A Little Mermaid.

The film will come from Mvp Studios, a newly formed entertainment company founded by Robert Molloy and Armando Gutierrez.

Chris Bouchard will direct the pic, which was written by Blake Harris, and will also star Shannara Chronicles' Poppy Drayton and Loreto Peralta. 

Chloe Grace Moretz is set to star in a different Little Mermaid adaptation from Working Title that will come from director Rebecca Thomas.

Mvp's A Little Mermaid will be filmed entirely in Georgia; principal photography is set to begin in March.

MacLaine is ...

Much is known about Walt Disney, the creator of the omnipotent Disney brand that has begat countless films and become a veritable force of nature in the years since its inception. And though its storied founder is a legend in his own right, much less is known about his early years, before the creation of his iconic Mickey Mouse.  Read More: Exclusive: Skyway Film Festival Announces 'Walt Before Mickey' and 'No Stranger Than Love' as Opening and Closing Night Films Coming just in time for the creative maverick's birthday, the biopic "Walt Before Disney" chronicles Walt Disney's early years that led to the creation of the Mickey Mouse character. Based on a book of the same name by Timothy S. Susanin, "Walt Before Mickey" stars Thomas Ian Nicholas, John Heder and Jodie Sweetin and was helmed by first-time feature director Khoa Le. The film was written by writer/producer Armando Gutierrez.

The story of the young Walt Disney is coming to the screen - and here's the first trailer...

Digging way back into the story of Walt Disney is the upcoming movie, Walt Before Mickey. Based on the book of the same name, the film is focusing on the early struggles of Disney, back in the days when he was an animator and businessman, rather than the head of a hugely successful company. In fact, Walt Before Mickey is likely to focus on the studios he launched before he struck gold, eventually, with Disney.

Khoa Le has directed this one, from a script by Arthur L Bernstein and Armando Gutierrez. Playing Disney? That'd be Thomas Ian Nicholas (American Pie), with Jon Heder (Napoleon Dynamite) playing his brother, Roy.

It's still unclear when we'll get this one, as it's yet to find a distributor. But here's the first trailer...

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While audiences were served up a fantastic portrayal of a 1960s Walt Disney in last year’s Saving Mr. Banks, Khoa Le’s Walt Before Disney is set to serve up another helping of the legendary animator, only this time with a particular interest in the early, defining years of the artist’s career.

The period drama — largely based on Timothy S. Susanin’s nonfiction novel, Walt Before Mickey: Disney’s Early Years, 1919-1928 — will be situated in the 1920s, a time where Walt’s nascent career was hampered by several false starts and crushing disappointments.

Labelled as the “missing decade”, the film is set to chart Walt (played by American Pie’s Thomas Ian Nicholas) as he ventures from Missouri to California in the search of his dream — setting up four mediocre film studios along the way.

Joining Ian Nicholas for the tale is Napoleon Dynamite’s Jon Heder...

Exclusive: Before he created Mickey Mouse, Walt Disney was an animator and businessman who spent a decade shrugging off failure in order to build the studio that would turn him into an icon. The indie period drama Walt Before Mickey chronicles nine years worth of these early struggles, with American Pie‘s Thomas Ian Nicholas playing the young and ambitious Disney and Napoleon Dynamite‘s Jon Heder as his brother Roy. Check out the trailer exclusively on Deadline.

Disney fans got a peek at the 1960s-era Walt in last year’s Saving Mr. Banks, but Walt Before Mickey offers up the pre-Depression Era “missing decade” during which he launched four studios and moved from Missouri to California, with varying degrees of success. Jodie Sweetin (Full House) and David Henrie (Wizards Of Waverly Place) also star for first-time feature helmer Khoa Le, who directs a script by Arthur L. Bernstein and Armando Gutierrez.