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George Folsey Jr., the veteran film editor behind classic films such as “Coming to America” and “Animal House,” died Dec. 29. He was 84.

Variety learned the news from Folsey Jr.’s son Ryan Folsey, who is also an editor. Folsey Jr. was the son of cinematographer George J. Folsey.

Folsey Jr. collaborated frequently with director John Landis. Over the course of his five-decade career, he went on to edit or co-edit a total of six of Landis’s films which included “Schlock,” “The Blues Brothers” and “Coming to America.”

Furthermore, Folsey Jr. worked with the “Burke and Hare” filmmaker as a second unit director on “Trading Places,” “Into the Night” and “Three Amigos.”

Some of his other editing credits include the “Michael Jackson: Thriller” music video, “Hot Tub Time Machine,” “Clarity,” “Wolf Mountain,” “Just Swipe,” “Summer Rain,” “Despair,” “Freeloaders,” “Chain of Command” and “My Sister.”

In addition to his work as an editor,...

Good Deed Entertainment’s genre label Cranked Up Films has acquired U.S. rights to American Badger, an action film written and directed by and starring stunt veteran Kirk Caouette. It is set for a digital and VOD release on June 15.

Caouette plays a hitman known as Badger, the nickname that came from his wife, who died 4451 days ago. Since her passing he has been living the life of a recluse, operating in the shadows. But all that is about to change with his latest assignment: Make friends with a sex worker named Velvet (Andrea Stefancikova) and extract information about the inner workings of an Albanian gang she works for. An unlikely romance follows until Badger’s handler tells him that it is time to take down the syndicate — and the first person he must kill is Velvet.

“Right away we took to the complex,...

Exclusive: Colony and House of Cards actress Carolyn Michelle Smith has joined the Russian Doll cast for a recurring role in the Netflix series’ sophomore season.

Smith most recently appeared in Reboot Camp and Ava DuVernay’s Cherish The Day. Her credits also include Five Times A Day, Dunny Daze, Luke Cage and How to Get Away with Murder. Beyond the screen, Smith acted alongside Orlando Bloom and Condola Rashad in David Leveaux’s Broadway revival of Romeo and Juliet.

Russian Doll, created and executive produced by Natasha Lyonne, Amy Poehler and Leslye Headland, first debuted on Netflix in February 2019 and was renewed for a second season in June 2019. The followed a young woman named Nadia (Lyonne), who repeatedly dies during a New York party that seems never to end thanks to an edgy, mordant update of Groundhog Day‘s premise. Greta Lee, Yul Vasquez, Elizabeth Ashley and Charlie Barnett.

Reboot Camp is a spoof documentary. Or a documentary about a spoof. Or a film about a documentary about a spoof. Confused? Not really. Because despite the confusing nature of the set-up, after the first couple of minutes it is pretty clear what is going on. Which is a film and a comedy, in an approximate documentary style, about a spoof.

At its centre are two brothers, Seymour (David Lipper) and Danny (Keli Price). Seymour is upset when his girlfriend runs off to join a cult. So he and Danny decide to set up a sham cult, film the result and thereby expose the falseness that exists at their heart.

Of course, it goes wrong. Under the tutelage of Seymour, now rebranded as Gordon St Pierre, cult leader and guru with a bad French Canadian accent, the group attracts followers.

Then, as followers turn to believers, Seymour is increasingly suckered in.

Exclusive: The 27th annual Austin Film Festival (Aff) has unveiled their first wave of programming for its virtual edition for the fest which takes place October 22-29.

In addition to panels, the writers-driven fest will feature the world premiere of Anne Rapp’s Horton Foote: The Road to Home, which puts the spotlight on the work of the titular Oscar-winning screenwriter of the 1962 adaptation of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. Aff will also feature world premieres from second-round writers through the Festival’s Screenplay competitions, including The Catch from first-time director Matthew Ya-Hsiung Balzer as well as Paper Tiger, which also marks the directorial debut of Paul Kowalski. Khaled Ridgeway will also debut the Texas Premiere of his film Death of a Telemarketer starring Larmorne Morris, Haley Joel Osment, and Jackie Earle Haley.

Aff will spotlight Texas filmmakers with the North-American premiere of Blinders, directed by former Terrence Malick...

Pierson Fodé (Naomi & Ely’s No Kiss List) has been cast in Sony’s Patrick Hughes-directed action-comedy Man From Toronto, starring Kevin Hart, Woody Harrelson, and Kaley Cuoco. Written by Robbie Fox and Chris Bremner, from a story by Fox and Jason Blumenthal, the film follows the world’s deadliest assassin, known as “The Man from Toronto” and a man named Teddy who is described as “New York’s biggest screw-up.” The two run into each other in a rented Airbnb and are forced to team up and save the day. Escape Artists’ Todd Black, Blumenthal, and Oscar winner Steve Tisch are producing with Bill Bannerman serving as executive producer. Fodé, who will next be seen in Reboot Camp, is repped by Innovative, Strategic, Zero Gravity and Gang, Tyre, Ramer, Brown & Passman.

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Milo Gibsonwill co-lead opposite Annet Mahendru in the indie film Manifest West from Wolf Haus Productions.