creative freedom

I recently found out that Strub retired from his job as the DOD’s Hollywood liaison last July, though this wasn’t...

The National Geographic drama series The Long Road Home tells a version of the story of the battle for Sadr...

The Pentagon’s censorship of movie scripts is fairly well established – I have documented numerous instances on this site.  But...

China is without doubt a major player in Hollywood. Both private investment and state regulations and censorship have played a significant role in the American movie business in recent years. This week I examine the Chinese influence on Hollywood, both in terms of the shape of the industry and the shaping of film content. I examine how both the US and China have adopted protectionist mentalities, but are forced to work together for mutual economic benefit.

In 1994 the Chinese government first allowed Hollywood films to be distributed within the country.  Since then the US and China have been in a near-constant state of negotiations over import quotas, profit sharing and market access.  In 2007 the US brought a case before the World Trade Organisation, arguing that Chinese protectionism was preventing […](Read more...)

While some senior military officials have spoken openly about the possibility of a war between the US and China, the entertainment liaison offices appear to be working to ensure that doesn't happen. Perhaps surprisingly, they have refused to support films, TV shows and video games where China is the adversary or antagonist, replicating the mentality shown by the Chinese government's censorship board.(Read more...)

Nazis make the perfect Hollywood villains – instantly recognisable, obviously deplorable and easy to recreate. So why were there no anti-Nazi films until 1939, on the eve of World War 2? This week I explore the history of Nazis in Hollywood in the 1930s, how the German government influenced American film-making, and the Jewish intelligence organisation who did what the FBI wouldn’t – infiltrated and helped prosecute the Nazis.

In this month's susbcriber-only podcast I talk about my new screenplay project - a political satire of Hollywood. I talk about my history with acting and writing, and discuss some of my creative process, how I developed two simple ideas and combined them to form the basis for my screenplay. I also quickly review some of my film and TV inspirations including The Big Picture, Get Shorty and Episodes. (Read more...)

Streaming content on-demand has changed the way people think about their relationship with entertainment, and drastically changed people’s viewing habits and behaviour. So in this episode we take a look at Netflix (and other on-demand platforms), the merits and demerits of the streaming model, and ask whether this development will be good for independent content […](Read more...)