In what may have been an highly unconventional job interview, NBCUniversal ad chief Linda Yaccarino hosted a discussion with Elon Musk about Twitter’s content policies and approach to working with marketers at an industry conference one month before Musk announced that he’d hired her as the social network’s CEO.

The April 18 keynote conversation was billed as a talk about Musk’s “Twitter 2.0: From Conversations to Partnerships” at MMA Global’s Possible marketing event in Miami.

Yaccarino told Musk that marketers want “protection for their ad campaigns,” with content moderation policies ensuring that “provocative speech” is properly labeled. She applauded Twitter’s announcement last month to promote “freedom of

Berlin-based sales agency M-Appeal has released the first-look trailer (below) for the suspense filled drama “Power Alley,” from Brazilian director Lillah Halla, ahead of its world premiere in Cannes’ Critics’ Week sidebar.

The gripping drama is set in Brazil, where abortion is illegal. Talented volleyball player Sofia (Ayomi Domenica Dias) discovers she is pregnant at a crucial moment, jeopardizing her career plans. Intent on deciding her own fate, Sophia tries everything possible to get an illegal abortion, but has to contend with an increasingly sinister fundamentalist group determined to stop her — but Sophia, her team and

In a bid to boost the animation sector across Latin America, Spain, Portugal and Italy, Ibermedia has opened a call for applications for Ibermedia Next funding, a scheme designed to take animation in the region to a new technological – and artistic – level. 

Providing a much-needed boost to creators and producers who are eager to explore the cutting-edge possibilities of new technologies, the

initiative, presented Friday May 12 at the Canary Island Quirino Awards, is offering grants of up to €150,000 ($163,500), alongside a support programme valued at up to €95,000 ($103,550). 

This ambitious initiative aims to empower producers and creators to explore new

Ever since the first night of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour — when the pop star announced she’d be performing two surprise acoustic songs at every show — fans have been waiting with bated breath to find out which gems from her discography will be unearthed next.

Swift kicked off the tour in Glendale, Ariz. with “Mirrorball” from “Folklore” and “Tim McGraw” from her 2006 self-titled debut album. Since then, she has surprised audiences with songs including “State of Grace,” “Our Song,” “Cowboy Like Me” with special guest Marcus Mumford, “Sad Beautiful Tragic” and “The Lucky One.”

IATSE members came out in force Friday afternoon to the Writers Guild of America picket line outside Fox Studios, raising their voices — and picket signs — in support of fellow union members as the writers strike heads into its third week.

“Labor has to stick together. Workers have to stick together. We’re in a time when people need to be taken care of and have security in their jobs,” IATSE president Matthew Loeb told Variety.

Loeb was on hand with IATSE vice president Matthew Miller and dozens of members of IATSE’s Local 800 and Local 695, among other units.

The onset of the

Indie trio Muna isn’t yet a household name, but judging from a roaring reception at the first of two sold-out shows at New York City’s Terminal 5, they’re already a must-see live band on the rise.

The group — consisting of singer Katie Gavin, lead guitarist Josette Maskin and multi-instrumentalist Naomi McPherson, as well as touring drummer Sarab Singh and bassist Geo Botelho — has put in plenty of time on the road, opening for huge touring artists such as Harry Styes, the 1975, Lorde, Kacey Musgraves and dates on Taylor Swift’s massive Eras Tour. All that time on major stages has made the group’s chops exceedingly tight,

Variety garnered a record 96 nominations for the SoCal Journalism awards sponsored by the Los Angeles Press Club, with nods across magazine and entertainment journalism, art and photography, video, audio, online content and social media during the 2022 calendar year. Among the nominations announced Friday were Tim Gray for print journalist of the year and Clayton Davis for online journalist of the year. In addition, Owen Gleiberman, Chris Willman and Daniel D’Addario were nominated as entertainment journalists of the year.

“We are extremely proud of our newsroom for a banner year in record-breaking traffic, hard-hitting investigative journalism, profile writing and video. These nominations are a testament to the

ABC has canceled the drama series “Alaska Daily,” “Big Sky,” and “The Company You Keep,” Variety has learned.

Hilary Swank starred in “Alaska Daily” series as Eileen Fitzgerald, described as “a fiercely talented and award-winning investigative journalist who leaves her high-profile New York life behind after a fall from grace to join a daily metro newspaper in Anchorage on a journey to find both personal and professional redemption.”

In addition to Swank, the series starred Jeff Perry as Stanley Cornik, Matt Malloy as Bob Young, Meredith Holzman as Claire Muncy, Grace Dove as Rosalind “Roz” Friendly, Pablo Castelblanco as Gabriel Tovar, Ami Park as Yuna Park,

As Blake Shelton prepares to exit “The Voice” after a dozen years and 23 seasons, the impact of the country singer’s enduring, anchoring presence as the NBC music competition series’ longest-running coach is already being keenly felt by his creative colleagues.

“From the start, Blake was kind, down to earth and funny,” says the series’ showrunner and executive producer Audrey Morrissey, who, like Shelton, has been with the series since its inception. “He’s the type of person that makes sure to have fun every day and makes sure those around him laugh as well.”

Shelton’s affable, easygoing and supportive approach has been felt far beyond what makes

Blake Shelton stays busy with his music career, a bit of acting and a lot of career coaching on “The Voice.” He’s been on the series since the beginning, and his picks have won nine times and counting over the show’s 22 seasons. But despite his busy schedule, he returns to his Oklahoma roots time and time again for relaxation and philanthropy.

Though Shelton moved to Nashville after high school, he remains connected his home state with a 1,300 acre ranch near the town of Tishomingo.  As an avid outdoorsman, it stands to reason that he’d support nonprofits with the same values.

The Oklahoma Wildlife Conservation Foundation