Indies Strike Back! 🎯

🎬 Welcome to The Reelarc Rundown 🎬

🔸 The new success of the independently-produced pilot
🔸 Gollum finally gets to tell his story
🔸 Bernard Telsey’s timeless audition advice

All that and more on this week’s Rundown ⤵️

Industry News

Return to the Rings

Andy Serkis will be pulling double duty both directing and starring in Gollum’s prequel story. Producer Peter Jackson stated, “It is an honor and a privilege to travel back to Middle-earth with our good friend and collaborator, Andy Serkis, who has unfinished business with that Stinker- Gollum!”

Both Jackson’s original LoTR and Hobbit trilogies grossed almost $3 billion at the global box office. Hopefully Gollum continues the trend. 🤞🏻

Your Summer Watch List

Wanting to stay up on the biggest shows on the small screen this summer? From the newest Star Wars series on Disney+ to thriller crime to true-story sports scandals, there’s so much to watch. (If the silver screen’s more your thing, check out this list of upcoming movie must-sees.)

Indie Ideas in Demand

After the strikes of last year finally cooled off, many Hollywood insiders predicted bidding wars for large star projects that never really arrived. The evolution of streaming tv and the current budget hesitancy of major studios have led to an up-tick in the amount of independent TV pilots being produced and sold.

Writers look to success stories from the past decade like Issa Rae’s webseries The Misadventures of AWKWARD Black Girl that went on to become HBO’s hit series Insecure. With the initial trend of huge budgets for streaming projects heavily waning, more and more creatives are finding their low-budget, indie works gaining mainstream traction. This is great news for performers too- more independent productions means more accessible jobs for a wider variety of actors!

Box Office Numbers

1. The Fall Guy - 27.7M - Universal

2. Star Wars Ep. I: The Phantom Menace - 8.7M (483.3 total) - 20th Century Studios

3. Challengers - 7.6M (29.4 total) - Amazon MGM Studios

4. Tarot - 6.5M - Sony Pictures

5. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire - 4.5M (188.1 total)

Behind the Screens

Let’s take a closer look at the newest romcom everyone’s talking about- The Idea of You. Anne Hathaway & Nicholas Galitzine star in the age-gap romance initially inspired by- you guessed it- Harry Styles fanfic.

Director & Writer: Michael Showalter (Director: The Dropout, I Love That for You, The Big Sick; Writer: Search Party, Wet Hot American Summer; Upcoming: Happy Face, Oh. What. Fun., Wayland)

Casting Directors: Tiffany Little Canfield (In the Heights, The Greatest Showman, Tracker, Death & Other Details; Upcoming: Wicked, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Paradise City)
Bernard Telsey (Tracker, Mean Girls, Only Murders in the Building, And Just Like That…; Upcoming: Wicked, Plainclothes)

Bernard is owner of the renowned Telsey Office that casts regularly in New York & LA for tv, fiilm, theatre, and commercials. Canfield is part of the Telsey team. Telsey is behind the casting of the upcoming live-action remakes of Moana and Snow White.

For a certified throwback, check out Bernard Telsey’s tips on “How to Give Your Best Audition” given to Backstage a whopping 15 years ago. (He knows his stuff- these ideas are evergreen!)

For more recent ideas, listen to this podcast episode Tiffany Little Canfield gave last year on the art of being bold.

Reelarc Casting Board

NYC
female, 28-33, any ethnicity
male, 50-60, any ethnicity
male, 48-58, any ethnicity
female, 20-30, any ethnicity

Quiz Time

Chris Pine recently shared his surprise after the third Wonder Woman film was axed from production (most likely due to new boss James Gunn’s universe-wide reboot). Can you match the following actors with their movie runs that were cut unexpectedly short?

Trends on your FYP

In promo for their upcoming movie Wildcat, father-daughter duo Maya & Ethan Hawke stopped by Criterion’s Closet (aka a movie lover’s paradise) to discuss the films that have impacted their lives in small and big ways. It’s a true delight-

What We’re Watching This Weekend

🎥 For your action blockbuster fix - Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes in theaters now

🎥 For the true-crime podcast lovers - new series Bodkin on Netflix

🎥 For mind-bending sci-fi - new series Dark Matter based on Blake Crouch’s international best seller

🎥 For a romcom not focused on 20 somethings - Netflix movie Mother of the Bride starring Brooke Shields and Benjamin Bratt

🎥 For the anglophiles - Britain’s beloved series Doctor Who lands on Disney+

Quiz Answers: 1C , 2D, 3B , 4E , 5A
(P.S.- Have a story or industry info you think should be featured on the Rundown? Let us know - [email protected]!)