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Film

Coen brothers to receive Dan David Prize

Brothers Joel and Ethan Coen, who have produced and directed several highly acclaimed films, will receive a $1 million prize for their contributions to filmmaking. Tel Aviv University on Tuesday announced the recipients of the international Dan David Prize, which annually makes three awards for outstanding achievement in the categories of past, present and future time dimensions.

This is not Israel’s year in the Oscar races

“The Human Resources Manager” struck out early in the best foreign-language film competition, while the documentary feature “Precious Life” was short-listed among the 15 semi-finalists but didn’t make the final five cut. However, still in the running is “Strangers No More” in the documentary short category.

Waiting for Aaron Sorkin

I had this fantasy about Aaron Sorkin. It’s probably only natural that I should want to know him, because he is, after all, the most intelligent and sharp-witted writer working in Hollywood today. His prestige began with “A Few Good Men” (1992), surged with the “The West Wing,” which he created in 1999 and for which he wrote until 2003, and was cemented with “The Social Network,” which deftly showcases his extraordinary writing talent — although he’s also had a few flops — and his uncanny gift for cultural relevance.

Debra Granik cuts to the emotional bone with ‘Winter’s Bone’

Writer-director Debra Granik is Jewish, upper middle class and a New Yorker. So it is all the more remarkable that her thriller, “Winter’s Bone,” is so accurate in its depiction of life in the Ozarks that, in the words of one critic, “You can almost taste the fried squirrel.” The film has been nominated for four Academy Awards, including best picture and best adapted screenplay.

Actress’ Kentucky upbringing lends authenticity to film

Jennifer Lawrence, nominated in the best actress category for her searing portrayal of an Ozarks teenager in “Winter’s Bone,” was indispensable to writer-director Debra Granik — and not just for her acting prowess. Lawrence, 20, who was raised in Kentucky, played an important role in helping the New York Jewish director bridge the culture gap to bring the gritty Bible Belt tale to the screen.

Sisterhood of ‘The Fighter’

For “The Fighter” director (and Oscar nominee) David O. Russell, the film isn’t just a docudrama about the rise of boxer Micky “Irish” Ward (nominee Mark Wahlberg), who won the light welterweight championship in 2000 with the help of his ex-champ half-brother, Dicky (supporting actor nominee Christian Bale). It’s about fighting within the ring and without, in life and with loved ones, and the closely knit but explosive relationships within the Ward clan. The film has received seven Academy Award nominations, including one for best picture.

Underdog ‘Fighter’ overcame odds for Oscar noms

On a recent afternoon, producers David Hoberman and Todd Lieberman were finishing up a meeting with “The Muppets” filmmakers Jason Segel and Nicholas Stoller in the maze of production trailers between stages 27 and 28 at Universal, where the highly anticipated children’s movie had been filming several weeks ago.

Oscar night’s vanities

Ever since Hollywood agent Swifty Lazar died in 1993, Vanity Fair has hosted his legendary, exclusive Oscar after-party. The event’s official photographer from 2000-2009 was Larry Fink, who is having an array of his unusual Oscar night photos exhibited at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art from Feb. 13 to April 3 as part of the museum’s homage to the Academy Awards.

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