#and the shawn anderson cameo but we’ll see

[ninyard]

6, 12, 13, and 23 for the aftg ask game!

- @you-know-i-get-itt

Already answered 6!

12. Favourite narrative foil?

I don’t know if I have this right I haven’t studied English/literature stuff in…like 8 years and I’m kind of stupid academically so. Forgive me if this analysis is absolutely wrong and not what that means but

I think Andrew/Renee, maybe. Renee who went through a bunch of the same things Andrew went through, becoming kind through her pain. Seeing how ugly and terrible and bad the world can get and just… being so determined to not be that person anymore. She acknowledges the horrible things she’s done with regret and doesn’t feel proud of her actions, she hates the person she used to be, she found light and meaning in life and turned her hatred of the world into smiles and positivity and spreading love like it’s her life’s mission.

And Andrew became bitter. Andrew became angry, and resentful, and lost any blatant outward kindness that he might’ve had. Andrew became violent and hateful and intolerant to bullshit and unkind people. The lessons Andrew learned from his trauma was not that he was the victim of terrible people, but that if terrible people wanted something from him, they would just take it. Renee sees the bad day someone might’ve had, while Andrew sees an asshole who has wronged him. Renee fought back against her abusers when Andrew never could. Andrew took Renee’s knives from her. They’re not true foils of each other, I know that really, but I just love seeing the different responses to the same kinds of trauma. How they started on this path that looked the same and both ended up two totally opposite kinds of people. IDK! that’s not a great analysis rly but yeah!!!

(Neither of their reactions to their trauma is wrong or right btw - just because Andrew’s sounds more insulting and negative, it doesn’t make it a bad response. Renee deserves to be angry and bitter and resentful too. They both rightfully deserve to be pissed at the life they were given. Renee just decided not to outwardly be that way.)

13. Favourite narrative symbolism?

(Was it intentional that number of this q was 13??) The number 13 and the keys I think!!

23. Something you are very sure will happen in TSC2

Kevin and Jean facing off on the court. The jerejean pottery class of course. An argument with Jeremy’s family. MAYBE Jean having the water boarding conversation with someone:

(Things I would like to see that are not so certain: Lukas blaming Jean for Graysons inevitable death, Jeremy losing his cool, Jean gets a sex toy, Ichirou cameo, the Ravens implode from the inside)

[gyrlversion]

Ariana, Taylor, Billie, And Lil Nas X Lead Your 2019 VMA Nominations

She’s got the biggest selling album of the year, and now Ariana Grande continues her hot streak by co-leading the pack of nominees for the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards!

Grande has racked up a whopping 10 (!) nominations, including Video of the Year, Song of the Year, Best Pop, Best Direction, and Best Cinematography, all for her cameo-packed, rom-com-inspired “thank u, next” video. Joining her at the top of the list is fellow pop titan Taylor Swift, who also boasts 10 nods, split between her whimsical “ME!” and “You Need to Calm Down” visuals. In the list announced Tuesday (July 23), VMA newbies Billie Eilish grabbed nine nods and Lil Nas X trails close behind with eight. Eilish also joins Grande in the illustrious Artist of the Year category, alongside Cardi B, Halsey, Jonas Brothers, and Shawn Mendes.

Meanwhile, the mother-of-them-all category — Video of the Year — is predictably packed. Grande’s “thank u, next” is up against Eilish’s “bad guy,” Swift’s “You Need to Calm Down,” Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road (Remix),” Jonas Brothers’s “Sucker,” and 21 Savage and J. Cole‘s “a lot.”

This year’s show also sees the introduction of a brand new prize: Best K-pop. BTS scored a nom for their Halsey-featuring smash “Boy With Luv,” and the rest of the category is filled with more of the genre’s biggest stars: Blackpink, Monsta X, TOMORROW X TOGETHER, NCT 127, and EXO.

We’ll find out who wins when the 2019 VMAs touch down at the Prudential Center in New Jersey on Monday, August 26. See the full list of nominees below and get voting now — your faves need you!

VIDEO OF THE YEAR

21 Savage ft. J. Cole – “a lot” – Epic Records

Billie Eilish – “Bad Guy” – Darkroom/Interscope Records

Ariana Grande – “thank u, next” – Republic Records

Jonas Brothers – “Sucker” – Republic Records

Lil Nas X ft. Billy Ray Cyrus – “Old Town Road (Remix)” – Columbia Records

Taylor Swift – “You Need to Calm Down” – Republic Records

ARTIST OF THE YEAR

Cardi B – Atlantic Records

Billie Eilish – Darkroom/Interscope Records

Ariana Grande – Republic Records

Halsey – Astralwerks/Capitol Records

Jonas Brothers – Republic Records

Shawn Mendes– Island Records

SONG OF THE YEAR

Drake – “In My Feelings” – Young Money/Cash Money/Republic Records

Ariana Grande – “thank u, next” – Republic Records

Jonas Brothers – “Sucker” – Republic Records

Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper – “Shallow” – Interscope Records

Lil Nas X ft. Billy Ray Cyrus – “Old Town Road (Remix)” – Columbia Records

Taylor Swift – “You Need to Calm Down” – Republic Records

BEST NEW ARTIST, presented by Taco Bell®

Ava Max – Atlantic Records

Billie Eilish – Darkroom/Interscope Records

H.E.R. – MBK/RCA Records

Lil Nas X – Columbia Records

Lizzo – Atlantic Records

ROSALÍA – Columbia Records

BEST COLLABORATION

Lil Nas X ft. Billy Ray Cyrus – “Old Town Road (Remix)” – Columbia Records

Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper – “Shallow” – Interscope Records

Shawn Mendes & Camila Cabello – “Señorita” – Island Records

Taylor Swift ft. Brendon Urie of Panic! At The Disco – “ME!” – Republic Records

Ed Sheeran & Justin Bieber – “I Don’t Care” – Atlantic Records

BTS ft. Halsey – “Boy With Luv” – Columbia Records

PUSH ARTIST OF THE YEAR

Bazzi – Atlantic Records

CNCO – RCA Records

Billie Eilish – Darkroom/Interscope Records

H.E.R. – MBK/RCA Records

Lauv – LAUV/AWAL

Lizzo – Atlantic Records

BEST POP

5 Seconds of Summer – “Easier” – Interscope Records

Cardi B & Bruno Mars – “Please Me” – Atlantic Records

Billie Eilish – “Bad Guy” – Darkroom/Interscope Records

Ariana Grande – “thank u, next” – Republic Records

Jonas Brothers – “Sucker” – Republic Records

Taylor Swift – “You Need to Calm Down” – Republic Records

Khalid – “Talk” – RCA Records

BEST HIP HOP

2 Chainz ft. Ariana Grande – “Rule the World” – 2 Chainz Ps/Def Jam

21 Savage ft. J. Cole – “a lot” – Epic Records

Cardi B – “Money” – Atlantic Records

DJ Khaled ft. Nipsey Hussle & John Legend – “Higher” – We The Best/Epic Records

Lil Nas X ft. Billy Ray Cyrus – “Old Town Road (Remix)” – Columbia Records

Travis Scott ft. Drake – “SICKO MODE” – Epic Records/Grand Hustle/Cactus Jack

BEST R&B

Anderson .Paak ft. Smokey Robinson – “Make It Better” – Aftermath Ent/12 Tone Music

Childish Gambino – “Feels Like Summer�� – RCA Records

H.E.R. ft. Bryson Tiller – “Could’ve Been” – MBK/RCA Records

Alicia Keys – “Raise A Man” – RCA Records

Ella Mai – “Trip” – 10 Summers/Interscope Records

Normani ft. 6lack – “Waves” – Keep Cool/RCA Records

BEST K-POP

BTS ft. Halsey – “Boy With Luv” – Columbia Records

BLACKPINK – “Kill This Love” – YG Entertainment/Interscope Records

Monsta X ft. French Montana – “Who Do You Love” – Epic Records

TOMORROW X TOGETHER – “Cat & Dog” – Republic Records

NCT 127 – “Regular” – SM Entertainment

EXO – “Tempo” – SM Entertainment

BEST LATIN

Anuel AA, Karol G – “Secreto” – Universal Music Latino

Bad Bunny ft. Drake – “MIA” – OVO Sound/Warner Bros. Records

benny blanco, Tainy, Selena Gomez, J Balvin – “I Can’t Get Enough” – NEON16/Friends Keep Secrets/Interscope Records

Daddy Yankee ft. Snow – “Con Calma” – Universal Music Latin Entertainment

Maluma – “Mala Mía” – Sony Music US Latin

ROSALÍA & J Balvin ft. El Guincho – “Con Altura” – Columbia Records

BEST DANCE

The Chainsmokers ft. Bebe Rexha – “Call You Mine” – Disruptor/Columbia Records

Clean Bandit ft. Demi Lovato – “Solo” – Big Beat/Atlantic Records

DJ Snake ft. Selena Gomez, Ozuna & Cardi B – “Taki Taki” – DJ Snake Music Productions Ltd/Geffen

David Guetta, Bebe Rexha & J Balvin – “Say My Name” – Big Beat/Atlantic Records

Marshmello & Bastille – “Happier” – Capitol Records

Silk City & Dua Lipa – “Electricity” – Columbia Records

BEST ROCK

The 1975 – “Love It If We Made It” – Dirty Hit/Interscope Records

Fall Out Boy – “Bishops Knife Trick” – Island Records

Imagine Dragons – “Natural” – KIDinaKORNER/Interscope Records

Lenny Kravitz – “Low” – BMG Rights Management (UK) Ltd.

Panic! At The Disco – “High Hopes” – Elektra Music Group

twenty one pilots – “My Blood” – Elektra Music Group

VIDEO FOR GOOD

Halsey – “Nightmare” – Astralwerks/Capitol Records

The Killers – “Land of the Free” – Island

Jamie N Commons, Skylar Grey ft. Gallant – “Runaway Train” – Interscope Records

John Legend – “Preach” – Columbia Records

Lil Dicky – “Earth” – Dirty Burd, Inc./Commission/BMG

Taylor Swift – “You Need to Calm Down” – Republic Records

BEST DIRECTION

Billie Eilish – “Bad Guy” – Darkroom/Interscope Records – Directed by Dave Meyers

FKA twigs – “Cellophane” – Young Turks – Directed by Andrew Thomas Huang

Ariana Grande – “thank you, next” – Republic Records – Directed by Hannah Lux Davis

Lil Nas X ft. Billy Ray Cyrus – “Old Town Road (Remix)” – Columbia Records – Directed by Calmatic

LSD ft. Labrinth, Sia, Diplo – “No New Friends” – Columbia Records – Directed by Dano Cerny

Taylor Swift – “You Need to Calm Down” – Republic Records – Directed by Drew Kirsch & Taylor Swift

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

Billie Eilish – “when the party’s over” – Darkroom/Interscope Records – Visual Effects by Ryan Ross, Andres Jaramillo

FKA twigs – “Cellophane” – Young Turks – Visual Effects by Matt Chandler, Fabio Zaveti for Analog

Ariana Grande – “God is a Woman” – Republic Records – Visual Effects by Fabrice Lagayette, Kristina Prilukova & Rebecca Rice for Mathematic

DJ Khaled ft. SZA – “Just Us” – We The Best/Epic Records – Visual Effects by Sergii Mashevskyi

LSD ft. Labrinth, Sia, Diplo – “No New Friends” – Columbia Records – Visual Effects by Ethan Chancer

Taylor Swift ft. Brendon Urie of Panic! At The Disco – “ME!” – Republic Records – Visual Effects by Loris Paillier & Lucas Salton for BUF VFX

BEST EDITING

Anderson .Paak ft. Kendrick Lamar – “Tints” – Aftermath Ent/12 Tone Music – Editing by Elias Talbot

Lil Nas X ft. Billy Ray Cyrus – “Old Town Road (Remix)” – Columbia Record – Editing by Calmatic

Billie Eilish – “Bad Guy” – Darkroom/Interscope Records – Editing by Billie Eilish

Ariana Grande – “7 Rings” – Republic Records – Editing by Hannah Lux Davis & Taylor Walsh

Solange – “Almeda” – Columbia Records – Editing by Solange Knowles, Vinnie Hobbs, Jonathon Proctor

Taylor Swift – “You Need to Calm Down” – Republic Records – Editing by Jarrett Fijal

BEST ART DIRECTION

BTS ft. Halsey – “Boy With Luv” – Columbia Records – Art Direction by JinSil Park, BoNa Kim (MU:E)

Ariana Grande – “7 Rings” – Republic Records – Art Direction by John Richoux

Lil Nas X ft. Billy Ray Cyrus – “Old Town Road (Remix)” – Columbia Records – Art Direction by Itaru Dela Vegas

Shawn Mendes & Camila Cabello – “Señorita” – Island Records – Art Direction by Tatiana Van Sauter

Taylor Swift – “You Need to Calm Down” – Republic Records – Art Direction by Brittany Porter

Kanye West and Lil’ Pump ft. Adele Givens – “I Love It” – Warner Records & Def Jam Music Group – Art Direction by Tino Schaedler

BEST CHOREOGRAPHY

FKA twigs – “Cellophane” – Young Turks – Choreography by Kelly Yvonne

ROSALÍA & J Balvin ft. El Guincho – “Con Altura” – Columbia Records – Choreography by Charm La’Donna

LSD ft. Labrinth, Sia, Diplo – “No New Friends” – Columbia Records – Choreography by Ryan Heffington

Shawn Mendes & Camila Cabello – “Señorita” – Island Records – Choreography by Calvit Hodge, Sara Biv

Solange – “Almeda” – Columbia Records – Choreography by Maya Taylor, Solange Knowles

BTS ft. Halsey – “Boy With Luv” – Columbia Records – Choreography by Rie Hata

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Anderson .Paak ft. Kendrick Lamar – “Tints” – Aftermath Ent/12 Tone Music – Cinematography by Elias Talbot

Billie Eilish – “hostage” – Darkroom/Interscope Records – Cinematography by Pau Castejon

Ariana Grande – “thank you, next” – Republic Records – Cinematography by Christopher Probst

Shawn Mendes & Camila Cabello – “Señorita” – Island Records – Cinematography by Scott Cunningham

Solange – “Almeda” – Columbia Records – Cinematography by Chayse Irvin, Ryan Marie Helfant, Justin Hamilton

Taylor Swift ft. Brendon Urie of Panic! At The Disco – “ME!” – Republic Records – Cinematography by Starr Whitesides

The post Ariana, Taylor, Billie, And Lil Nas X Lead Your 2019 VMA Nominations appeared first on Gyrlversion.

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[newstfionline]

Forget Netflix and Chill. Try Pure Flix and Pray.

By Katherine Rosman, NY Times, April 22, 2017

CHICAGO--Before breakfast at Sixteen, a restaurant in the Trump International Hotel and Tower here the morning after the premiere for the film “The Case for Christ,” David A. R. White and Andrea Logan White requested a pause.

“Hold on, I want to say grace,” Mr. White said to this reporter, whose mouth was already stuffed full of bacon. “Bless us, Lord, thanks so much for this day,” he went on, concluding: “I love you. Thanks so much for the movie.”

The disconnect between the mainstream news media and evangelical Christians is also a major theme of “The Case for Christ.” Based on the best-selling book written by Lee Strobel, a former journalist at The Chicago Tribune, the movie depicts his process of going from a hard-nosed newsman and atheist to a devout Christian and minister.

It was produced by Pure Flix, a faith-based entertainment production and distribution company in Scottsdale, Ariz., that Mr. White helped found in 2005. In June 2015, the company introduced an on-demand streaming service. While Netflix denizens devour series like “13 Reasons Why” and “Breaking Bad,” PureFlix.com offers bingeable programming like “The American Bible Challenge,” a game show hosted by Jeff Foxworthy; “Family Affair,” a sitcom starring Brian Keith that ran from 1966 to 1971; “The Encounter,” a Pure Flix original scripted series about people who are visited by Jesus; and stand-up comedy from Sinbad and Louie Anderson. Next up is “Hilton Head Island,” a soap opera starring Antonio Sabato Jr. It also streams sermons and documentaries for parents who home-school.

Last month, PureFlix.com had nearly 715,000 unique visitors, according to Alexa, a website traffic analytics company. Greg Gudorf, chief executive of PureFlix.com, said the service’s nearly 250,000 paying subscribers could choose from a catalog of more than 7,500 titles. “We’ve been blessed with really strong growth,” he said.

Mr. White, who was raised a Mennonite in rural Kansas, saw just one secular film in a theater before he turned 18. (“The Mennonites make the Mormons look like a pack of Hell’s Angels,” he said.) A friend’s parents took him to see “Grease” and “when Olivia Newton-John came out in black tights, I thought for sure I was going to hell,” he said. This was enough to persuade him to drop out of Bible college after one year. His goal was to serve God through acting, but then he became interested in production, too. Pure Flix has made hundreds of films (“Do You Believe?” starring Cybill Shepherd), sitcoms, serialized dramas and web series including “On the White Track,” which stars Mr. White and his wife.

On-demand services allow Christians of different disciplines to find content that speaks to their individual interests and beliefs. A theatrical feature film can be a tougher sell to a religious population with many different denominations.

“In the Christian faith, there are divisions with all the sects,” Mr. White said. “The Baptists won’t talk to the Assemblies of God. You have your charismatic Christians. You have your ultraconservatives, like Southern Baptists. You have Catholicism. They’re all a little different.” But, he added, invoking the Rev. Billy Graham, “The foot of the cross is level ground.”

The 2014 Pure Flix theatrical release “God’s Not Dead” found the level ground. It earned more than $60 million at the box office. (Mr. White was a star of the film, and it features Korie and Willie Robertson of “Duck Dynasty.”)

“The Case for Christ” also focuses on a theme that binds all Christians, the resurrection of Jesus. Set in 1980 and decked out with the cars, pastel clothes, handlebar mustaches and smoky newsrooms that conjure the dawn of Reagan’s America, the movie was filmed over six weeks in Atlanta and cost more than $4 million to make. It stars Mike Vogel (recently of the Syfy network’s mini-series “Childhood’s End”), the Tony-winning actress L. Scott Caldwell and Erika Christensen (known for her six-season work on the NBC show “Parenthood”). There are cameos from Robert Forster and Faye Dunaway.

On the film’s marketing poster, Mr. Vogel’s character gazes at a red Time magazine cover from 1966 that asks, “Is God Dead?” (As it happens, Time repurposed the cover for a March 2017 edition, but the modern-day headline read, “Is Truth Dead?”)

The film earned mostly favorable reviews from the small mainstream publications. It received an A-plus CinemaScore, measuring audience appeal, and has a 77 percent favorability mark from Rotten Tomatoes.

By the end of its first two weekends in more than 1,000 theaters around the country, the movie had brought in about $9 million, perhaps less than Mr. White and his partners had hoped for but still delivering a tidy profit.

Thanks to President Trump’s popularity among evangelicals and discussions of “fake news” abounding on the internet, the film has considerable resonance.

“If you watch CNN or Fox, you feel like it’s two different worlds,” said Michael Scott, a founder of Pure Flix and a producer of the film. “Here, you have something similar, you have an atheistic journalist investigating the claims for Christ. There are some similarities even though it was taking place more than 30 years ago.”

Speaking near the red carpet before the screening, Mr. Scott, also the chief executive of Pure Flix, was upbeat and gregarious, if a little nervous. Soon he would need to introduce the film with a list of thank yous “as long as the Bible,” he said. He was standing with Shawn Boskie, who was a pitcher with the Chicago Cubs and is Pure Flix’s vice president for investor relations. (A Q. and A. session after the screening was conducted by Kirk Cousins, a quarterback for the Washington Redskins.)

Mr. Scott was wearing a red-stripe tie that Mr. Boskie bought for him at Trump Tower in New York. Earlier in the evening, Mr. Scott had been yearning for a pair of scissors to help nip a tag hanging from the back of the tie. He didn’t want to just yank it off. “The tie was made in China,” he said.

Us Weekly was not represented on the news media line, but The National Catholic Register and Movieguide were. “This is like ‘All The President’s Men’ journalism before so much of it was doubted and before there were so many different journalists writing for so many different media,” said Jon Gunn, the movie’s director, of his protagonist’s search for answers. “Back when people had notebooks and pens and spoke face to face.”

But the film’s character connects to modern opinions of the news media, too, he said. Mr. Strobel’s character “is a skeptic who says he’s being evenhanded and unbiased but he’s looking to debunk Christianity so he’s not as unbiased as he should be.”

Mr. and Ms. White sidled up to Mr. Gunn and his wife, Lisa, to say hello. Mr. Gunn and Mr. White have known each other for years. Mr. White starred along with Eric Roberts in 2000’s “Mercy Streets,” Mr. Gunn’s first feature film, in which Ms. Gunn, an actress, also had a role.

“I got to make out with his wife for ‘Mercy Streets,’” Mr. White said with a big laugh.

Mr. Gunn said, “Andrea and I are still waiting for our turn.”

“Oh, it’s getting chilly in here,” Mr. White said. Ms. White, who met her husband at a church in Malibu, Calif., when she had blond dreadlocks and was working as a personal trainer, rolled her eyes. “I’ve never been a rainbow-and-unicorn Christian,” she said later.

The world of faith-based entertainment feels small and interconnected in this way. Eamonn McCrystal is an Irish tenor whose music career is managed by Elizabeth Travis, the country singer Randy Travis’s ex-wife and ex-manager who is also a Pure Flix partner. Mr. McCrystal, who played an American Civil Liberties Union lawyer in Pure Flix’s “God’s Not Dead 2,” strolled amid the friends and family of the film’s cast and crew as Ms. Travis walked the red carpet. He carried a cellphone in a leather case that made it look like a little Bible. “Oh, you’re the one that Donald Trump hates,” he said after meeting a reporter for The New York Times.

Brian Bird, the film’s writer, was an executive producer of “Touched by an Angel” and worked on programs including “Step by Step” and “Evening Shade,” the Burt Reynolds sitcom that was broadcast on CBS from 1990 to 1994. When he was in his early 20s, Mr. White had a recurring role on “Evening Shade” until he stuffed a pillow under his shirt and did an impersonation of Mr. Reynolds in front of the studio audience before filming an episode. Mr. Reynolds turned his rings around and smacked Mr. White on the ear with his open palm. Mr. White was subsequently fired.

Now Mr. Reynolds plays Mr. White’s father on a new sitcom Pure Flix is trying to shop to the networks, a 10-episode season of which has already been shot. In “Hitting the Breaks,” Mr. White plays a former racecar driver who moves with his family from Atlanta to a small town in Colorado, where he has inherited a bed-and-breakfast, the Serenity Inn. His real-life wife plays his wife on the show. Morgan Fairchild, Rob Schneider and Tim Tebow have guest-starred.

Mr. and Ms. White would also like to star in a reality show. After the success of “God’s Not Dead” in 2014, they took meetings with network executives but the discussions went nowhere.

In part “it was a faith thing,” Mr. White said.

“The major networks like the audience of faith,” he continued, “but when you have to go to the audience and say faith things on television, well, we might be too open.”

Ms. White responded, “They’re worried we’ll make the audience uncomfortable, like Jesus freaks.”

“I think the climate is different now,” Mr. White said of producing a reality show based on an evangelical Christian family. “I think it eventually will happen.”

Pure Flix executives are also building a strategy to attract a secular audience so that its content is not mere “preaching to the converted,” said Alysoun Wolfe, another of the company’s partners. This fall, Pure Flix will release in theaters “Same Kind of Different as Me,” starring Greg Kinnear and Renée Zellweger and featuring Jon Voight. It also has been filming “Samson,” starring Rutger Hauer, Jackson Rathbone, Lindsay Wagner and Billy Zane, in South Africa. And Ms. Wolfe, with Mr. Scott, is focusing on the start of Epiphany, a production partner to Pure Flix whose subtler brand name is intended to avoid alienating non-Christians.

“We need to reach a broader audience,” Ms. Wolfe said, “because we want to get the moral lessons out.”