Rachel Maddow’s next project will take her to Russia — in a sense.
The journalist’s Surprise Inside production company will team up with Adam McKay’s Hyperobject Industries to work on the Rakontur documentary project “From Russia With Lev.” All three production entities are clients of WME.
The feature boasts exclusive interviews with Lev Parnas, the Ukranian-born operative whose association with former President Donald Trump and one of his attorneys, Rudolph Giuliani, took him on a strange journey that ended in a stealth campaign to produce dirt on then-candidate Joe Biden and a role in Trump’s first impeachment.
Maddow and McKay will serve as executive producers on the political farce, which is directed by Billy Corben and produced by Alfred Spellman, The duo have more than 30 hours of interview footage with Parnas and exclusive access to his personal archive that includes hundreds of gigabytes of photos, videos, documents,...
The journalist’s Surprise Inside production company will team up with Adam McKay’s Hyperobject Industries to work on the Rakontur documentary project “From Russia With Lev.” All three production entities are clients of WME.
The feature boasts exclusive interviews with Lev Parnas, the Ukranian-born operative whose association with former President Donald Trump and one of his attorneys, Rudolph Giuliani, took him on a strange journey that ended in a stealth campaign to produce dirt on then-candidate Joe Biden and a role in Trump’s first impeachment.
Maddow and McKay will serve as executive producers on the political farce, which is directed by Billy Corben and produced by Alfred Spellman, The duo have more than 30 hours of interview footage with Parnas and exclusive access to his personal archive that includes hundreds of gigabytes of photos, videos, documents,...
- 1/17/2024
- by Brian Steinberg
- Variety Film + TV
We’re seeing the first footage of Sofia Vergara as real-life drug queenpin Griselda Blanco in Netflix’s upcoming limited series, Griselda, which is set to premiere January 25, 2024.
Created by Eric Newman, Doug Miro, Ingrid Escajeda and Carlo Bernard, the six-episode series chronicles the life of Colombian-born Blanco, who created one of the most profitable cartels in history. In 1970s-80s Miami, Blanco’s lethal blend of unsuspected savagery and charm helped her expertly navigate between business and family, leading her to become widely known as “the Godmother.”
Blanco burst onto the pop culture scene after her exploits were highlighted in the 2006 documentary Cocaine Cowboys and its sequel two years later from Billy Corben. She was portrayed by Catherine Zeta-Jones in the Lifetime biopic Cocaine Godmother in 2018.
Alberto Guerra (Dario Sepúlveda), Christian Tappan (Arturo Mesa), Martín Rodríguez (Rivi Ayala), Juliana Aidén Martinez (June Hawkins), Vanessa Ferlito (Carmen Gutiérrez) also star.
Created by Eric Newman, Doug Miro, Ingrid Escajeda and Carlo Bernard, the six-episode series chronicles the life of Colombian-born Blanco, who created one of the most profitable cartels in history. In 1970s-80s Miami, Blanco’s lethal blend of unsuspected savagery and charm helped her expertly navigate between business and family, leading her to become widely known as “the Godmother.”
Blanco burst onto the pop culture scene after her exploits were highlighted in the 2006 documentary Cocaine Cowboys and its sequel two years later from Billy Corben. She was portrayed by Catherine Zeta-Jones in the Lifetime biopic Cocaine Godmother in 2018.
Alberto Guerra (Dario Sepúlveda), Christian Tappan (Arturo Mesa), Martín Rodríguez (Rivi Ayala), Juliana Aidén Martinez (June Hawkins), Vanessa Ferlito (Carmen Gutiérrez) also star.
- 9/21/2023
- by Denise Petski
- Deadline Film + TV
The Oldenburg Film Festival has picked two iconoclast filmmakers to honor for its 30th anniversary edition: French actor/director Isild Le Besco and Canadian producer Jen Gatien. Both women have carved out unique paths in independent cinema, defying conventions and expectations.
Le Besco has worked in front of the camera since she was eight, and by her early 20s was already a face of French auteur cinema, with two César nominations — for her performances in Benoît Jacquot’s Sade (2000) and Cédric Kahn’s Roberto Succo (2001) and a best actress honor in Venice for Jacquot’s L’Intouchable (2006).
Her directorial debut, 2004’s Demi-Tarif (Half-Price), the story of three young siblings, Romeo (Kolia Litscher), Launa (Lila Salet), and the youngest, Leo (Cindy David), left on their own in a rundown Paris apartment, was an unmediated look into the world of childhood and drew praise from the likes of Mia Hansen-Løve, whose review,...
Le Besco has worked in front of the camera since she was eight, and by her early 20s was already a face of French auteur cinema, with two César nominations — for her performances in Benoît Jacquot’s Sade (2000) and Cédric Kahn’s Roberto Succo (2001) and a best actress honor in Venice for Jacquot’s L’Intouchable (2006).
Her directorial debut, 2004’s Demi-Tarif (Half-Price), the story of three young siblings, Romeo (Kolia Litscher), Launa (Lila Salet), and the youngest, Leo (Cindy David), left on their own in a rundown Paris apartment, was an unmediated look into the world of childhood and drew praise from the likes of Mia Hansen-Løve, whose review,...
- 9/14/2023
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Hulu’s “God Forbid” and Netflix’s “Cocaine Cowboys” producers Billy Corben and Alfred Spellman have set their sights on their next subject: one of the members of Donald Trump and Rudy Giuliani’s former inner circle, Florida businessman Lev Parnas.
Corben and Spellman’s Miami-based production company Rakontur is currently in production on “From Russia With Lev,” following Parnas (interviewed for the first time in this project) who, per Rakontur, “shares his story about how he and Rudy Guiliani worked behind the scenes to damage the Biden presidential campaign, conspired with Russian officials to sabotage efforts in the Ukraine and many more alleged crimes.”
A frequent collaborator of Adam McKay’s Hyper Object, Rakontur does not yet have a platform attached to the Parnas doc, but is taking it out to market soon.
“Our genre is Florida fuckery, so we have a rolling Google Docs spreadsheet of extraordinary Miami characters,...
Corben and Spellman’s Miami-based production company Rakontur is currently in production on “From Russia With Lev,” following Parnas (interviewed for the first time in this project) who, per Rakontur, “shares his story about how he and Rudy Guiliani worked behind the scenes to damage the Biden presidential campaign, conspired with Russian officials to sabotage efforts in the Ukraine and many more alleged crimes.”
A frequent collaborator of Adam McKay’s Hyper Object, Rakontur does not yet have a platform attached to the Parnas doc, but is taking it out to market soon.
“Our genre is Florida fuckery, so we have a rolling Google Docs spreadsheet of extraordinary Miami characters,...
- 5/22/2023
- by Jennifer Maas
- Variety Film + TV
Miami, home to the two leading U.S. Hispanic networks — TelevisaUnivision and Telemundo — as well as a host of smaller television companies, studio outposts, recording artists and independent entertainment companies, has long been the cultural epicenter of both Latin America and the U.S. Hispanic population.
“It is not just the geographic location that makes Miami a hub: In so many ways, the city is also representative of the cultural diversity across Latin America and among all U.S. Hispanics,” says Karen Barroeta, executive VP, production and development, Telemundo Global Studios, NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises.
“On top of its rich cultural diversity, Miami is a world-class city in which to make television, with the highest quality production studios and a skillful workforce including incredible talent, from production teams to writers and actors,” she says.
“Telemundo built roots in Miami because we believe in the growth and power of the Hispanic community...
“It is not just the geographic location that makes Miami a hub: In so many ways, the city is also representative of the cultural diversity across Latin America and among all U.S. Hispanics,” says Karen Barroeta, executive VP, production and development, Telemundo Global Studios, NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises.
“On top of its rich cultural diversity, Miami is a world-class city in which to make television, with the highest quality production studios and a skillful workforce including incredible talent, from production teams to writers and actors,” she says.
“Telemundo built roots in Miami because we believe in the growth and power of the Hispanic community...
- 4/11/2023
- by Anna Marie de la Fuente
- Variety Film + TV
Hulu has set its next big true-crime doc project, a series following the notorious Sarah Lawrence College sex cult, just as its latest addition to the genre, Adam McKay’s “God Forbid: The Sex Scandal That Brought Down a Dynasty,” has achieved the title of Hulu’s most-watched documentary film to date.
The Disney-owned streamer, which does not release specific viewership figures for its content, confirmed to Variety that the new record set by “God Forbid,” and previously held by 2019’s “Fyre Fest,” counts all original and non-original docs and is based on hours streamed within the first three weeks.
Produced by Alfred Spellman’s Rakontur and McKay’s Hyperobject and directed by Billy Corben, “God Forbid: The Sex Scandal That Brought Down a Dynasty” centers on Giancarlo Granda, former pool attendant at the Fontainebleau Hotel, as he recounts the alleged events of his relationship with Becki Falwell and her husband,...
The Disney-owned streamer, which does not release specific viewership figures for its content, confirmed to Variety that the new record set by “God Forbid,” and previously held by 2019’s “Fyre Fest,” counts all original and non-original docs and is based on hours streamed within the first three weeks.
Produced by Alfred Spellman’s Rakontur and McKay’s Hyperobject and directed by Billy Corben, “God Forbid: The Sex Scandal That Brought Down a Dynasty” centers on Giancarlo Granda, former pool attendant at the Fontainebleau Hotel, as he recounts the alleged events of his relationship with Becki Falwell and her husband,...
- 11/28/2022
- by Jennifer Maas
- Variety Film + TV
Miami’s legion of film fans get an extra treat this week via the expanded ninth edition of the Miami Film Festival Gems. The carefully curated, week-long festival (under the aegis of Miami Dade College) unspools Nov. 3-10 at Miami’s historic Tower Theater, showcasing some of the most lauded fall festival entrants along with five international Oscar submissions.
On the docket are awards contenders, from opener “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” to closing night’s “The Fabelmans,” from Steven Spielberg. Sarah Polley’s buzzed about “Women Talking” is a centerpiece presentation; Darren Aronofsky’s “The Whale” is the other.
Narrowing down programming choices is never easy, says interim executive director Nicolas Calzada, but the festival’s aim is clear- cut and provides “an advance taste of the best films of the year that have strong chances at awards consideration.” Formerly a weekend, Miami Gems is now a week,...
On the docket are awards contenders, from opener “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” to closing night’s “The Fabelmans,” from Steven Spielberg. Sarah Polley’s buzzed about “Women Talking” is a centerpiece presentation; Darren Aronofsky’s “The Whale” is the other.
Narrowing down programming choices is never easy, says interim executive director Nicolas Calzada, but the festival’s aim is clear- cut and provides “an advance taste of the best films of the year that have strong chances at awards consideration.” Formerly a weekend, Miami Gems is now a week,...
- 11/1/2022
- by Kathy A. McDonald
- Variety Film + TV
When Miami-based documentary director Billy Corben and his producing partner Alfred Spellman received a June 2020 email with a subject line invoking Giancarlo Granda, Jerry Falwell Jr. and Donald Trump, they knew they had the next film for their Rakontur nonfiction banner.
Granda, a local pool boy who began having an affair with Falwell’s wife Becki in 2012, had sent the email. After telling his story to Reuters, Granda was ready to go on camera about his past relations with the evangelical couple. The result is the new Hulu documentary feature “God Forbid: The Sex Scandal That Brought Down a Dynasty,” released Nov. 1. In the doc, Granda claims that Falwell Jr., a staunch supporter of Donald Trump, was aware of and involved in the relationship he was having with Becki Falwell. After the Reuters article was published in 2020, Falwell Jr, stepped down as president of the evangelical college Liberty University in Lynchburg,...
Granda, a local pool boy who began having an affair with Falwell’s wife Becki in 2012, had sent the email. After telling his story to Reuters, Granda was ready to go on camera about his past relations with the evangelical couple. The result is the new Hulu documentary feature “God Forbid: The Sex Scandal That Brought Down a Dynasty,” released Nov. 1. In the doc, Granda claims that Falwell Jr., a staunch supporter of Donald Trump, was aware of and involved in the relationship he was having with Becki Falwell. After the Reuters article was published in 2020, Falwell Jr, stepped down as president of the evangelical college Liberty University in Lynchburg,...
- 11/1/2022
- by Addie Morfoot
- Variety Film + TV
The life of Jerry Falwell — the late Moral Majority televangelist who for decades helped catalyze the rightward shift of American evangelicals before his death in 2007 — is a quintessentially American story. But it’s in the next generation that the Falwell narrative becomes at once soap opera and morality tale.
That’s the case made by “God Forbid: The Sex Scandal That Brought Down a Dynasty,” a feature-length documentary released on Hulu. It covers the graceless fall of Jerry Falwell Jr., who after the death of his father was placed in the presidency of the family’s conservative organ Liberty University. There, he seemed to remain painfully in thrall to his appetites. We hear testimony about his alleged tendency to drink on the job and discomfiting, slurry interviews between him and sympathetic media — but most crucially, we receive the testimony of Giancarlo Granda.
Granda was a pool attendant at a Miami...
That’s the case made by “God Forbid: The Sex Scandal That Brought Down a Dynasty,” a feature-length documentary released on Hulu. It covers the graceless fall of Jerry Falwell Jr., who after the death of his father was placed in the presidency of the family’s conservative organ Liberty University. There, he seemed to remain painfully in thrall to his appetites. We hear testimony about his alleged tendency to drink on the job and discomfiting, slurry interviews between him and sympathetic media — but most crucially, we receive the testimony of Giancarlo Granda.
Granda was a pool attendant at a Miami...
- 10/26/2022
- by Daniel D'Addario
- Variety Film + TV
Hulu is exploring the private life of Evangelical Christian leader Jerry Falwell Jr. The streamer has dropped a trailer for “God Forbid: The Sex Scandal That Brought Down a Dynasty,” an upcoming documentary exploring the scandal that lead to Falwell’s fall from grace in his community.
The documentary is built around interviews with Giancarlo Granda, who met Fallwell’s wife Becki as a pool attendant at the Fontainebleau Hotel in Miami Beach and engaged in a years-long affair with her. Granda alleged that the affair occurred with the knowledge and approval of Jerry Falwell, and that he occasionally watched the two have sex, which he has denied.
News of the affair became public in 2020, when Reuters published a story based on Granda’s account. The resulting controversy forced Falwell to resign from his position as president of Liberty University, the Evangelical University established by his father. Since then, it...
The documentary is built around interviews with Giancarlo Granda, who met Fallwell’s wife Becki as a pool attendant at the Fontainebleau Hotel in Miami Beach and engaged in a years-long affair with her. Granda alleged that the affair occurred with the knowledge and approval of Jerry Falwell, and that he occasionally watched the two have sex, which he has denied.
News of the affair became public in 2020, when Reuters published a story based on Granda’s account. The resulting controversy forced Falwell to resign from his position as president of Liberty University, the Evangelical University established by his father. Since then, it...
- 10/12/2022
- by Wilson Chapman
- Indiewire
Exclusive: Rakontur has wrapped production on The Last of the Cocaine Cowboys, a four-part documentary miniseries on Medellín Cartel co-founder Carlos Lehder.
Described by the U.S. Department of Justice as “the Henry Ford of the cocaine industry,” Lehder co-founded Colombia’s infamous drug cartel alongside Pablo Escobar, Jorge Ochoa and Jose Rodriguez Gacha in the 1970s. He conspired with heads of state to corrupt entire nations and open cocaine smuggling routes in the Bahamas, Cuba, Panama, Nicaragua and Mexico, also buying his own Bahamian island, Norman’s Cay, and transforming it into an air and sea cocaine shipping hub. Lehder simultaneously rose to political power in Colombia as head of the National Latin Movement and helped elect Pablo Escobar to Parliament, with the cartel at its peak smuggling 300 kilos of cocaine per day, and generating 20 billion a year.
Lehder in 1987 became the first Medellín Cartel leader to be captured and extradited to the United States,...
Described by the U.S. Department of Justice as “the Henry Ford of the cocaine industry,” Lehder co-founded Colombia’s infamous drug cartel alongside Pablo Escobar, Jorge Ochoa and Jose Rodriguez Gacha in the 1970s. He conspired with heads of state to corrupt entire nations and open cocaine smuggling routes in the Bahamas, Cuba, Panama, Nicaragua and Mexico, also buying his own Bahamian island, Norman’s Cay, and transforming it into an air and sea cocaine shipping hub. Lehder simultaneously rose to political power in Colombia as head of the National Latin Movement and helped elect Pablo Escobar to Parliament, with the cartel at its peak smuggling 300 kilos of cocaine per day, and generating 20 billion a year.
Lehder in 1987 became the first Medellín Cartel leader to be captured and extradited to the United States,...
- 9/7/2022
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Amid record-breaking viewership performance for “Victoria’s Secret: Angels and Demons,” Hulu has set the premiere date for its next big doc: the Adam McKay and Billy Corben-produced Jerry Falwell Jr. project, “God Forbid: The Sex Scandal That Brought Down a Dynasty,” Variety has learned exclusively.
Hailing from McKay’s HyperObject and Corben’s Rakontur banner, “God Forbid” tells the sensational story of evangelical leader and former Liberty University president Jerry Falwell Jr., his wife Becki Falwell and Giancarlo Granda, the Miami pool boy who had an affair with Becki and claims that Jerry was aware of and involved in the relationship. The streamer says Granda is closely involved with the doc and his point of view is largely the focus of the movie.
Per Hulu’s official description for the movie, which will launch Nov. 1 on the Disney-owned streamer, “A Miami pool boy finds himself trapped in a seven-year...
Hailing from McKay’s HyperObject and Corben’s Rakontur banner, “God Forbid” tells the sensational story of evangelical leader and former Liberty University president Jerry Falwell Jr., his wife Becki Falwell and Giancarlo Granda, the Miami pool boy who had an affair with Becki and claims that Jerry was aware of and involved in the relationship. The streamer says Granda is closely involved with the doc and his point of view is largely the focus of the movie.
Per Hulu’s official description for the movie, which will launch Nov. 1 on the Disney-owned streamer, “A Miami pool boy finds himself trapped in a seven-year...
- 8/26/2022
- by Jennifer Maas
- Variety Film + TV
The Hulu original unscripted series “Captive Audience” has lived up to its name, earning record-breaking viewership for the streamer.
Hulu documentary chief Belisa Balaban told Variety exclusively that the show — which explores the harrowing kidnapping of 7-year-old Steven Stayner and its resulting media frenzy — has set a record for most-viewed nonfiction TV program in its first month of release.
Launched on April 21, “Captive Audience” is also the second-most watched unscripted series in Hulu’s history. Directed by Jessica Dimmock and produced by Wonderburst, High Five Content and Joe and Anthony Russo’s Agbo, the program is second only to “The Kardashians” in total viewership for its category.
“This is really a huge credit to that team, whose bold creative choices and empathy brought it to life. This project is a great example of what a Hulu true crime story is — not just the story of a family and what they’ve endured over the years,...
Hulu documentary chief Belisa Balaban told Variety exclusively that the show — which explores the harrowing kidnapping of 7-year-old Steven Stayner and its resulting media frenzy — has set a record for most-viewed nonfiction TV program in its first month of release.
Launched on April 21, “Captive Audience” is also the second-most watched unscripted series in Hulu’s history. Directed by Jessica Dimmock and produced by Wonderburst, High Five Content and Joe and Anthony Russo’s Agbo, the program is second only to “The Kardashians” in total viewership for its category.
“This is really a huge credit to that team, whose bold creative choices and empathy brought it to life. This project is a great example of what a Hulu true crime story is — not just the story of a family and what they’ve endured over the years,...
- 7/6/2022
- by Matt Donnelly
- Variety Film + TV
Resident Evil 0 HD hits Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC on January 19. However, Capcom says that bonus pre-order costumes for both Billy Cohen and Rebecca Chambers won’t be available for those that opt to pre-order the game on Xbox 360. The developer have yet to provide a reason for the strange occlusion of Microsoft’s console.
The release date announcement coincides with the game’s newest trailer (above) that shows off the bonus costumes, also confirming that the remaster will cost $19.99 to buy.
Resident Evil 0 HD is the second game in the series to be given a new lick of paint recently, with the first game in the series, Resident Evil HD Remaster having been made available in January of this year. Not content with just sprucing up the visuals though, Capcom have also added a brand new mode to this newest version. Wesker Mode replaces Billy Cohen with...
The release date announcement coincides with the game’s newest trailer (above) that shows off the bonus costumes, also confirming that the remaster will cost $19.99 to buy.
Resident Evil 0 HD is the second game in the series to be given a new lick of paint recently, with the first game in the series, Resident Evil HD Remaster having been made available in January of this year. Not content with just sprucing up the visuals though, Capcom have also added a brand new mode to this newest version. Wesker Mode replaces Billy Cohen with...
- 12/8/2015
- by Joe Pring
- We Got This Covered
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