Shanghai Disneyland project approved

September 8th, 2009 CALIFORNIA - The Disneyland theme park is planning to screen late pop legend Michael Jackson's movie "Captain EO that was shown at the venue in the 1980s and 1990s at the behest of his fans. "Captain EO, a 17-minute 3D movie starring Jackson, was about a space crew who were on a mission to take a present to an alien leader and the pop icon has sung two songs in it, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

September 1st, 2009 OVIEDO - US actor Brad Pitt, who has created a foundation to promote rebuilding in hurricane-wracked New Orleans, has visited the northern Spanish town of Aviles to study the possibility of taking part in an urban development project there. Pitt, who Monday toured the works of the Oscar Niemeyer International Cultural Center, said he was "enthusiastic" about the innovative Island of Innovation project and showed special interest in "everything that has to do with sustainability".

August 19th, 2009 NEW YORK - Actress Nicole Kidman is set to make her foray into reality TV with a cameo appearance on the fashion series "Project Runaway: All Star Challenge". The "Moulin Rouge" star, known for her elegant red carpet style, will set up a design contest for eight contestants in a spin-off from the original "Project Runway", with all the competitors having previously appeared on the original US show, reports hollywood.com.

August 19th, 2009 TORONTO - Defying all odds and unfavourable conditions, a Pakistani beauty queen is competing in the world's fifth largest beauty pageant- Miss Tourism Queen International 2009 being held in Shanghai. Ayesha Gilani, who hails from Lahore, is in Shanghai to compete with other 81 beauties from around the world.

August 13th, 2009 LONDON - The executors of late pop legend Michael Jackson's estate have approved plans to publish a luxury photo-book on his life that the King of Pop was working on before his sudden death. Jackson was in discussions with bosses at the Los Angeles-based publishing house Kraken Opus to create an official manual before he died June 25 and now the book has been approved by the Jackson estate and will be on sale later this year, reports ok.co.uk.

July 31st, 2009 LONDON - American actress-singer Jessica Simpson's new TV show "The Price of Beauty" is proving to be a costly affair for the bosses, as she is spending $25,000 an episode to ensure she looks good in front of the camera. The star is set to jet around the world for the new VH1 project, which will examine different beauty regimes in a variety of cultures but TV bosses have been forced to come to grips with the real price of Simpson's beauty, as a staggering $25,000 is spent on a hair and make-up team for the singer, reports dailystar.co.uk.

July 14th, 2009 LONDON - Hollywood superstar Johnny Depp says he would have taken his two children to Disneyland regularly if he wasn't so famous. The Pirates of the Caribbean actor who has a 10-year-old daughter Lily-Rose and son Jack, 7, with partner Vanessa Paradis would take his kids to the famous theme park if he wasn't a heartthrob, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

July 1st, 2009 LONDON - Pop star Justin Timberlake has promised to work in British film director Guy Ritchie's next project. The two made the deal at the Punch Bowl in Mayfair over a drink after Ritchie told Timberlake about his future project.

June 22nd, 2009 Danish-Swedish drama best film at ShanghaiSHANGHAI — The Danish-Swedish drama "Original" won best picture at the 12th Shanghai International Film Festival, with its male lead Sverrir Gudnason named best actor for playing the soul-searching son of a mentally ill mother. Reading from the citation, jury president "Slumdog Millionaire" director Danny Boyle called the debut feature film of Antonio Tublen and Alexander Brondsted "a light, touching and subversive study of mental illness that is both compassionate and never sentimental." Accepting his trophy, Gudnason, who plays a character who tries to stop pleasing others, yelled in delight and said, "This is the best thing that anyone has ever given to me and it's going to keep me going on." The jury said "this young actor's brilliant, sensitive, and humorous performance is absolutely mesmerizing." Simone Tang was named best actress for another Danish film, "Aching Hearts," about the relationship of two high school sweethearts.

June 18th, 2009 MacDowell: 40s are awkward for a leading ladySHANGHAI — "Four Weddings and a Funeral" star Andie MacDowell says her 40s were an awkward time partly because Hollywood filmmakers didn't know how to cast the veteran American actress. The 51-year-old actress hasn't had a big hit since a string of commercial successes in the early and mid-1990s, including "Groundhog Day," ''Michael," and "Four Weddings and a Funeral." She said Thursday that while she didn't have trouble finding work in her 40s, American filmmakers may have had trouble finding good roles for her.

June 18th, 2009 MacDowell: 40s awkward for a leading ladySHANGHAI — "Four Weddings and a Funeral" star Andie MacDowell says her 40s were an awkward time partly because Hollywood filmmakers didn't know how to cast the veteran American actress. The 51-year-old actress hasn't had a big hit since a string of commercial successes in the early and mid-1990s, including "Groundhog Day," ''Michael," and "Four Weddings and a Funeral." She said Thursday that while she didn't have trouble finding work in her 40s, American filmmakers may have had trouble finding good roles for her.

May 26th, 2009 SHANGHAI - Slumdog Millionaire director Danny Boyle will be one of the members of the jury at the 12th Shanghai International Film Festival. The Oscar-winning filmmaker will judge the films along with actress Andie MacDowell and fellow director Andrew Lau, reported contactmusic.com.

May 26th, 2009 MUMBAI - Yash Raj Films' animation flick "Roadside Romeo" has been selected for the Shanghai and Seoul Film Festivals. While the film will be screened as part of the Panorama section of the Shanghai fest (June 13-21), it has earned a place in the Invitation Section Out Of Competition category for the Seoul festival (Aug 19-25), said a Yash Raj Films statement released here.

May 5th, 2009 China's Ai Weiwei to design Mermaid substituteCOPENHAGEN — A video installation by Chinese artist Ai Weiwei will replace Copenhagen's famed Little Mermaid statue when it goes on display at the World Expo in Shanghai next year, officials said Tuesday. The Danish Expo secretariat picked Ai's project over three other entries in a design competition.

May 3rd, 2009 Recession has disappointed Surya since on of his most anticipated flick Mugamudi has been dumped due to its high budget. UTV Productions which is a big name in Bollywood had planned to open their office in Kollywood with producing this film.